Posted: 10/9/2006 9:23:56 AM EDT
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they even had a giant video screen set up so you could see a close up of the stunt flying, you could even see the pilot's face wearing a flight helmet |
I didnt get any from the Blue Angles, because I have a crappy digital camera and they flew over so fast, that it was hard to get any good pictures, it was very loud during the low altitude fly overs over the city, I should have brought ear plugs |
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I didn't go, I decided I didn't need to work with the hassle of traffic and parking. Besides, I've been aboard all the classes of ship before, except the three Canadian ships, which I wouldn't have minded a tour of. I've seen the BAs a few times, I used to live on Treasure Island, they'd fly right over. NTM |
I found plenty of FREE PARKING just a couple of blocks away from the ship! near pier 17 and Green street, the meter said free parking, Sundays excepted parking lots jacked up the parking fees, some lots were $20 flat rate, some were $30 flat rate |
Naaahh...they just show their patriotism and support of our servicemen/women by doing this..  (1000+ posts) Click to send private message to this author Click to view this author's profile Click to add this author to your buddy list Click to add this author to your Ignore list Mon Oct-09-06 11:21 AM Original message Saluting Fleet Week in SF, the Steve Earle way: This weekend was the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Fest in SF, which is an annual free weekend of bluegrass, country and other music in Golden Gate Park. This weekend happened to coincide with Navy Fleet Week, so when Steve played (once with his wife Allison Moorer, then with the Songwriter's Circle with Billy Bragg, Guy Clark and Verlon Thompson, and with his own Bluegrass Dukes), he reminded the crowd that if the Blue Angels were to fly over and interrupt the acoustic music, we should raise a one-finger salute. Which we did, of course, every time they flew over. Other highlights were chatting with Steve after the Songwriters Circle; he liked my "Worst President Ever" shirt. Also in the Songwriters Circle Billy Bragg performed an updated version of Leadbelly's "Bourgeois Blues", rewritten as "Bush War Blues." Great song, search for the free MP3 online. Overall it was a great weekend of music, though as this war drags on and on, it gets sadder every year -- |
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I'm so glad I got a chance to do Fleet Week before 9/11 (I went in '97). Crawled all over a DDG, CG and gators with practically no waiting and only a marginal amount of security. Hell, the SEAL display on USS Denver was so laid back they didn't have tethers on their weapons and let me dry snap a few toys. I walked aboard USS Tarawa with the rest of the public and walked up the internal ramp to the flight deck checking out various displays on the way. Once on deck I spent an hour on with a Super Stallion crew and then got to use the tethered control panel on an Avenger to track air traffic lifting off from Oakland Intl! with the FLIR Those were the days! |
Honestly, yes. During Vietnem any GI had to run the gauntlet at SF airport. They threw all sorts of shit at them. Feces, rotten veggies, you name it. OTOH, it makes my sphincter sore just thinking about being a sailor now and having to pull into that lousy port. Thank God I'm presently on the Atlantic. |
Just nukes. They tie up across the bay usually, though in this case Nimitz just anchored in the middle. There are still enough San Franciscans (Even Feinstein) who remember their naval heritage, they strongly overrule the people that want to keep 'Bush's War Machine' out of SF. (In fairness, these same people objected in the Clinton years too). NTM |
 I went through the SF Airport, in uniform, several time during the Vietnam war and never saw anything like that. I thiink that an isolated incident or two has been repeated (and inflated) so much that it has become a "truth" to many people. I wounder how many times I will be flamed for this post by people who will insist that it happened to them, or their friend's sister's husband's cousin. |
+1 my dad served two tours and neither he nor any of his navy buddies had this happen. im sure it happened occasionally but not every time |