I would like to please ask the participants on this blog for a favor. That being, you may not like me, have issues with me, etc., but keep your issues with directed towards me and please leave my postdocs out of it. None of my postdocs are second-rate and all of them are great guys and superb scientists. Yes, they all have fellowships - Seaborg and Director's, which they got on their records of achievement and performance. I also put my postdocs up for subsequent awards based on their LANL performance (Publication Prizes, Distinguished Peformance Awards, LAAP Awards, etc).
Yes, the Reines Fellow (as he has been referred to), after nearly 5 years no longer works with me, and that's his business, not yours. Insulting him on this blog is truly uncalled for - he did not sue or threaten to sue for his fellowship, or get paid off, he earned it, as he did his Seaborg and Director's fellowships before that. He is on no less than 19 papers with me during his stint at LANL. How many "second-rate " postdocs have this record, especially after having their research disrupted twice, by a standdown and a Type B Investigation? In any event, he is starting his career at UPenn so let's wish him all the best, OK?
Finally, you clearly don't know my postdocs if you think they kiss my ass or suck up to me. They may not like what I say to them at times, and vice-versa :-), but we have an open relationship and we respect each other and you know what? Yeah, we go out for drinks and celebrate each others successes. But they work their butts off and their records show this. So can we just leave them out of your issues with me? Please.
Thank you,
Jaqueline Kiplinger (aka JK, JLK, Doc Aq, etc.)
I'm a LANL retiree and I read this blog and sometimes contribute from my memory of the lab. I've been surprised, however, by the increasing number of ad hominem comments, insults and cursing and the numerous and irrelevant sex-based comments directed at prominent women. I repeatedly read that every comment must past the scrutiny of the blog "owner" but I wonder why these awful attacks continue to appear in print. What possible motive could a man have to create such an embarrassing picture of the lab?
ReplyDelete3:38 -
ReplyDeleteThis is Frank's blog, and from ithe beginning he established a policy of non-censorship regarding comments, to the extent possible.
I was much more strict in attempting to impose civility when I ran the original LANL, The Real Story blog, but Frank has chosen to err on the side of openness, rather than censorship.
If you don't like what you see coming out in the comments, well neither do I. But it is as fair a reflection of what the LANL community has become as is possible.
There really are not that many people interested in what goes on at LANL these days. By definition, the contributors to this blog *are* the aggregate representation of today's LANL community.
According to the StatCounter log, this "community" stretches from coast to coast and includes at least readers from the Caribbean, Europe, Australia, ...
ReplyDeleteThus I would be cautious to define this as "today's LANL community" unless you want, of course, to include the generic remote LANL hater and Blog troll who certainly never has ever put a foot on Los Alamos County (or had otherwise any one-on-one contact with LANL employees/Los Alamos residents).
Hey, you cannot censor the blog, it's an open (one of the few outlets we have) form of expression. If you do not like or agree with the comments then don't fucking read them! Employees' say what they think, and feel, so what if you find them insulting, your point of view is 180 from mine. This is the last LANL blog, how many people would bother to read any postings knowing that they have been run by a "censor" ?
ReplyDeleteAgain this is the truest sense of expression, what others think about the lab is not being formed by this blog, but rather by the lab itself.
Thanks for posting. It probably took some courage to do it. I appreciate the courage.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on your post doc being at UPenn. I have a lot of friends there.
On a related note, I just was contacted by a headhunter from the Northeast.
ReplyDeleteHe has a number of jobs for computer scientists (C/C++ and beyond), mathematicians, and mathematical physicists.
Good pay, challenging jobs.
Contact me - 662-3115 - for more information.
We have met the enemy, and he is us.
ReplyDeleteAs anticipated, the protests of "It's not us, it's the 'LANL haters' making us look bad" have started.
ReplyDeleteWrong.
Dr. Kiplinger,
ReplyDeleteYour post shows real class.
John M. Pedicini
I disagree that this post shows class. JK is a brutal infighter, and this post is meant to maintain an image that she is somehow holier than her opponents. This post should be recognized for the posturing it is. Those of us who has been on the receiving end of her attacks are well aware of her tactics.
ReplyDeleteI sincerely doubt this blog is an accurate representation of the LANL community.
ReplyDeleteJaqueline Kiplinger has shown more class than most of the posters on this board because she defended herself and her postdocs and had the guts to put her name to it.
I personally do not know her or any of the events that many anonymous commenters blather about, but I would hope that Frank and Doug reject any future anonymous references to her or her postdocs.
I think if my boss had been a little more like her, I might have stayed at the lab.
7:17 epitomizes what the LANL community has become, or perhaps always was: cowardly.
ReplyDeleteI might respect 7:17's opinions if the individual had the courage to express them with his, or her own name.
As it is, this person is just another anonymous coward. No wonder LANL is not viewed with any great respect these days.
Well, as I said in my post from an earlier link, it's not JLK's style to be anonymous and refuses pussyfoot around tough subjects. Here lies an excellent example :-)
ReplyDelete-Signed a friend
Sorry Doug. I would be less cowardly if my house was sellable and if I thought my comments would not be career suicide.
ReplyDeleteYou do bring up a good point, though. The pervasive atmosphere of fear is gutting LANL's traditional role as an honest advisor to the government.
A Coward at 7:17.
Among the comments you don't see are those:
ReplyDelete- that were not intended to be published from people who can't email me
- from people too drunk to type
- threats
- extreme profanity
- insensitive comments on someone's passing or illness
This is not a list of rules. There are very few comments rejected. In each case I (or Doug) made a judgment call. This is a compromise from the early days of the blog when all comments appeared immediately on the blog without any review.
You forgot comments critical of Frank or Doug.
ReplyDeleteDr. Kiplinger,
ReplyDeleteI am a recent LANL retiree and have never met you. However, I have met John Pedecini and respect him and his views. I agree with him that your post indicates a degree of class and guts not often seen here on this blog. I have no basis on which to judge your situation or that of your post-docs. However, as a one-time LANL post-doc myself, I sincerely thank you for standing up for them. Brava!
You miss my point, 8:38.
ReplyDeleteYou are a coward, we agree on that. However, you seem to feel your cowardice is justified.
You are wrong.
7:17, 8:38 .. "Sorry Doug. I would be less cowardly if my house was sellable and if I thought my comments would not be career suicide."
ReplyDeleteHmmm. As a friend of JK, I believe she has a house as well, so you lose me on that excuse. As for career suicide ... you have no problem showing your masogynistic views as an anonymous poster, continously I might add, but I guess I call bullshit on your career suicide point considering your bosses are Toni Taylor and Sue Seestrom = women. So admitting your name would be career suicide if you are trying to advance at LANL. Either way, Kiplinger has more guts and class than you buddy.
4/30/09 5:05 PM,
ReplyDeleteRemember when you look at the stat counter log that LANL has blocked stat reporting from lanl.gov for several months now. Anyone reading from work (LANL) is invisible to the stat counter.
Unfortunately, there are far two many LANL staff who, like 7:17, seem to feel entitled to post their anonymous character assassinations here on this blog.
ReplyDeleteI've worked here for a while, since before the LANS takeover, and I know that there are some good people at LANL, but there are far too many of 7:17's type as well.
As to the claims that it is the 'LANL haters' 'trying to make LANL look bad' via these cowardly anonymous posts, well, maybe there are a few of those. There's lots to hate about LANL. But we certainly don't need them to make LANL look bad. We're far too good at that ourselves to need any help.
I'm pleased that you jumped hard on 7:17, Doug. I'm ashamed that my coworkers choose to act that way.
Some network providers show a different location every time a user logs in. So don't believe everything the stat counter says about location.
ReplyDeleteThe lack on signed names is very obvious, duh! Sign your name with an expressed opinion and your ass is grass here at LANL. That, I think speaks much louder than ANY signed comment. Don't you think?
ReplyDelete4/30/09 5:05 PM here.
ReplyDeleteTo Frank and 5/1/09 11:29 AM. My point was that people from all over the world are at least reading and, assumingly, comment on this blog. It is likely that a fraction of these blog-users may have never lived in Northern NM and/or worked at LANL.
The corollary to this statement: not all toxic comments originate from "the Los Alamos Community" (unless one includes the casual blog-user, e.g., from Kazakhstan in this "community")
Mortgage rates are at 50 year lows and the government is doling out tons of cash to get people to buy homes. Local real estate agents in both Santa Fe and Los Alamos say that the buyers are starting to return to the market. I've recently seen some Los Alamos homes that sold after sitting on the market for over two years. Spring has arrived!
ReplyDeleteIf you can no longer stand hearing about for-profit LLCs, "PBIs, Baby", the Bechtel construction company, lean Six Sigma and constant warnings to wear shoes that GRIP... well, your window of opportunity for a change has finally arrived.
"Hey, you cannot censor the blog, it's an open (one of the few outlets we have) form of expression."Hey, 5:18. Frank can do whatever he wants -- it's his blog. Shit, I can't imagine why he's still running it after seeing what kind of "open expression" garbage gets left here.
ReplyDeleteYou all may hate me, but please don't denegrade my Lab. We have many dedicated hard working people here who are doing excellent research, and who are fully committed to achieving the Laboratory mission; for the good of the nation and the free world. And on a personal note I want thank Eric, for always been fair and balanced in his assessment my leadership.
ReplyDelete--Mike Anastasio
PS See how much class I have too?
Mike, I am glad to see you have class. Too bad you haven't made it a PBI cuz' those PADs and ADs certainly have not shown a single bit of class, compassion or sincerity in anything thay have done to date.
ReplyDeleteWell, Mike, I can say that I once thought you had some class. Does that count?
ReplyDeleteI repeat and I hope senior management is reading since it is a Sunday evening ... I disagree that this post shows class. JK is a brutal infighter, and this post is meant to maintain an image that she is somehow holier than her opponents. This post should be recognized for the posturing it is. Those of us who has been on the receiving end of her attacks are well aware of her tactics.
ReplyDeleteDo you have evidence that you are willing to post, preferably not anonymously?
ReplyDelete5/3/09 6:47 PM wrote, "...Those of us who has been on the receiving end of her attacks are well aware of her tactics."
ReplyDeletePlease do elaborate, friend.
JK, care to be forthcoming with your perspective on the acid fumes exposure incident? As I recall, several of your esteemed postdocs/students were involved.
ReplyDelete1:22 AM, Re: the aqua regia events, JK is under gag order from the third most hated woman on the blog, Chris Chandler.
ReplyDeleteWell, there are certainly lots of newspaper stories and Lab publicity releases out there that seem to tell the truth. Remember, Wallace who was in charge of the incident (and the americium event) never retracted the statements made in the newspapern accounts of the allegations made nor did he ever say the Lab made a mistake. so the newspapers must have told the truth.
ReplyDelete5:04 PM - listen to yourself. Wallace a pillar of truth and integrity? Please, the dirty bastard would sell his momma if he thought it would advance his career. Trust me, I know Doc Aq and the full story, there is 99% that has not been told.
ReplyDeleteI think a key point is that it is easy to say something that is conventionally applauded with your name attached.
ReplyDeleteIt is much riskier to say something unpopular with your name attached.
8:57 AM, You are a liar - I was one of the numerous defendants in the aqua-regia lawsuit and I am aware of no gag-orders ever issued.
ReplyDelete5/6/09 6:41
ReplyDeleteIs it possible that gag orders were issued that did not involve you? I challenge all of you who say that JK is at fault to insist that LANL release all documents related to this event.
FYI, I freely admit that I'm a friend of JK and know all of the PD's involved~
Is it possible that the terms of the settlement agreement dictate silence rather than a gag order from a judge?
ReplyDeleteIs it possible that the lab insisted on these terms?
Is it possible that the settlement used taxpayer dollars to buy silence about a lab fiasco?
9:06 PM ... at LANL anything is possible.
ReplyDeleteTo 9:06 PM - f*ck the Lab and their insistance. If we are to believe your claims, tell us the truth Doc Aq! (or else your critics are going to be viewed as the gospel and you the liar...)
ReplyDeleteBetter yet - KC-Ott should reveal the specs after tonites booze-fest at CAG, rite Kev? We all heard ya bitchin'.... waaaa, waaaa!
ReplyDeleteCAG?
ReplyDeleteCAG=central avenue grill
ReplyDeleteRemember what Seestrom said amidst the 2004 standdown when she destroyed many people at DX including her good friend (not anymore btw) Mary Hockaday ...
ReplyDelete"sometimes good people have to go down for the good of the institution."