PATB,
It is rumored that Ostendorff will be visiting the lab next week. He is the deputy NNSA administrator, now acting. He was not involved in most of the recent nonsense. LANL staff should give him the benefit of the doubt.
If the general lab staff are invited, it would be a good idea to attend. I understand why most skipped the Schoenbauer and Bingaman visits. However, a message can be sent by attending this all hands meeting. Unless you are in one of the directorates where LANS has forbidden questions, questions should be encouraged. Please be professional.
I request that you post a comment to this effect on the blog. If you wish you may post this email with my name attached.
Thanks
John M. Pedicini
P.S. Thanks for picking up the blog duties.
No problem, John. And for those who missed it, you can read about Bill Ostendorff here.
"Unless you are in one of the directorates where LANS has forbidden questions"
ReplyDeleteeh?
Yup...I'm in one of those directorates. Thankyou Mr. Marquez.
ReplyDeleteOK, so can you elaborate as to what that means?
ReplyDeleteA threat - declaration of intention to inflict punishment or harm on another. It will often be conditional upon a particular course of action on the part of the recipient.
ReplyDeletehmmm. The LANL rumor mill reports that some directorates have openly threatened their employees to keep them from asking questions in open forums. (say during Mike A.s monthly State of the Lab reports.) I don't know what they are afraid of, we all know the emperor has clothes...
Can we publicly 'out' these backward thinking, dare I say, un-American, divisions? How about a list of culprits? any direct quotes?
Yes, please. I would be interested in what questions are "off limits" and how these were communicated to staff.
ReplyDeleteADWE - details will have remain anonymous for now.
ReplyDeletePretty vague stuff so far....
ReplyDeleteIf any directorates have truly forbidden questions, with accompanying threats, veiled or otherwise, can anyone give actual details? Who said what, and what were the threats?
I figure we can still remain anonymous on this blog.
Without details or evidence, one must assume this is sound and fury, etc.
From
ReplyDeletehttp://www.whitehouse.gov/
news/releases/2007/05/20070517-13.html
President George W. Bush today announced his intention to nominate three individuals to serve in his Administration:
The President intends to nominate Thomas P. D'Agostino, of Maryland, to be Under Secretary for Nuclear Security (Administrator for Nuclear Security, National Nuclear Security Administration) at the Department of Energy. Mr. D'Agostino currently serves as Acting Under Secretary of Nuclear Security as well as Deputy Administrator for Defense Programs at the National Nuclear Security Administration at the Department of Energy. Prior to this, he served as Assistant Deputy Administrator for Program Integration for Defense Programs at the National Nuclear Security Administration at the Department of Energy. Mr. D'Agostino retired with the rank of Captain from the United States Naval Reserves. Mr. D'Agostino received his bachelor's degree from the United States Naval Academy and his master's degrees from Johns Hopkins University and the Naval War College.
So,
ReplyDeleteA new member of the good ol' boys club is coming to visit LANL. He's the latest player on the the team that conspired to put Bechtel in charge. And LANL staff have apparently all been completely intimidated into agreeing to just meekly just sit there and listen to whatever he has to say. No comments or questions allowed. Not that most of you could be counted on to come up with a perceptive question to be asked.
"When are we going to get free day care?" is the best you have collectively been able to come up with in the entire past year and a half whenever the opportunity arose to ask a pertinent question of someone who mattered.
It's just like the good old days under Nanos. One thing hasn't changed up on The Hill -- it's still populated by a bunch of gutless bastards. Don't look for much sympathy from the outside, because you're not going to find it. Instead, just sit there meekly in the auditorium and listen to the nice naval ex-submariner tell you how to toe the line. You all ought to be pretty good at "meek" by now.
Oh, and don't forget the ever present need for bike paths and more courteous driving. And while you're at it, don't forget to give LANS a pat on the back for improving cafeteria food or something along those lines. You want to make sure the powers that be notice you're wearing your team player T-shirt. After all, raise time is right around the corner.
ReplyDeleteWell I assume, if Mr. Ostendorff will address the LANL employees it will certainly be at the NSSB - Q cleared only or 1:1 escort, and, or course, no "evil" foreign nationals. With no call-in option available for quite a while they can all watch the show "undisturbed" - if they haven't left this fine facility already.
ReplyDeleteActually, he is not addressing the workforce at all, as it turns out, due to the poor showing for other high level visitors in the auditorium of late.
ReplyDeleteSo let's whine about that for a week now...
Bow to Pedincini
ReplyDeleteHow do you figure?
ReplyDeleteWow 8:35/7:56!
ReplyDeleteYou sure do have a nasty resentment of LANL employees going! We have to wonder what your deal is.
Yes, there are too many unassertive people left behind after many of the assertive asserted themselves by leaving, but don't go tarring and feathering us all with the same brush.
And 6:17, what is your point?
And 11:40, WHAT?
And everyone... surely anecdotal stories about attempts to squelch questions will surface here if they are real?
I'm in TR and have not gotten the word (of course it is extremely rare for me to bother with all-hands meetings in person or with questions when I do attend).
- Darko