DEI Means Failing Upwards

So he went from being one of the reasons for the Flint. Michigan water crisis to heading what is now potentially the largest wastewater spill in United states history - in Washington DC.

Because of DEI and he's a Democrat and a favored minority both.

DEI: Why did Washington DC hire David Gadis after he lied to Flint residents that their water was safe to drink despite knowing it was contaminated with lead? Diversity, plain and simple. When he got to DC Water he fired all of the white male executives and replaced them with… pic.twitter.com/YTofhsO6MK

— @amuse (@amuse) February 18, 2026

So after failing and misleading the community in Flint about the lead contamination, he was then appointed to head DC's water system. He then systematically removed experienced white executives to replace them with minorities to ensure the executives looked like the people they served.

That all worked out just great: Daily Caller: DC Water’s CEO Oversaw $520 Million In DEI Contracts — And The Biggest Sewage Spill In US History.

Flying IFR - Lesson 56 - Getting Better, Maybe?

Finally I was flying N8570F again, and it agreed with me. Still had Rocky for this hop as the instructor.

So today the conditions were still light precipitation with the winds from the East and overcast at 8,000 per the ATIS and Metars.

However, at around 3,000 there was an  unforecast solid foggy layer where you could see ground contact below you, but forward visibility was nil, zip, zilch.

So I picked up an IFR pop-up clearance in the air as a result, and was told to climb to 4,000, just as we entered the soup, which lasted until we were close to Flint when visibility improved back to VFR conditions just as we got to the Final approach fix for the ILS 9.

Headed to Flint and did the ILS 9 approach and I did it rather well, got kinda blown off in the procedure turn again following the GPS instruction so I need to figure that out as apparently it lies, but not always.  Did it well, stayed in parameters and all was good.

Then it started getting pretty choppy, bit I did the VOR 18 Circle to 9 and had it pretty good except again dipped just under the 1,300 circle to land minimum while I descended to it.  You basically need to touch it and bounce off of it and I keep having trouble doing that as I either go up too much over 1,400 which is a fail, or I don't pull up enough and go a skosh under which is also a fail, so  it still doth suck.   Anyways, I did the circle and was in a perfect setup to land on 9. 

Then back to Pontiac and into the soup again, now with some light turbulence.  This heading into the soup caused confusion as Great Laes Approach had us remain VFR but as we did the hand-off we headed into IMC conditions.  Managed to get it confirmed with Detroit that were were still an IFR flight and Great Lakes hadn't bounced us out of IFR to VFR flight following. 

Then went to Pontiac did the Localizer 9R approach partial panel and had it going well (did start the timer late but I'll fix that next time) but then Tower had me side step to 9L which ended that approach a bit early.  Personal critique - I need to descend a little earlier, but not too early.  Landing was good.

Rocky said I did a ton better than last time and just need to improve a bit more.  

Yep, I'm back to the purgatory of being "almost there".  Woop de doo.  Better than epic failure from last time, I guess.

So now what? 

Well, I've decided I'm not taking lessons next week as this is basically a control problem and no point paying for an instructor and flight school rental rates when I can fly my "own" Archer.   I have the radio and procedures down, I know what I'm supposed to do, the problem is doing it within the altitude tolerances.

So, next week I'm going to shoot the approaches just on my own VFR and may even have a safety pilot aboard so I can wear foggles while doing so and get control practice in. 

I think that once I can fly the approaches with no deviations and fully within standards then it will be time to go back and get a final lesson or two in and get signed off and be done.  Until then there's just no point.

That's 1.5 with .6 actual and .6 simulated instrument, and a great landing.

The Recount Chaos Stumbles In Michigan's Blue Zones.

Funnily enough there seem to be a number of severe irregularities in Michigan's highly Blue areas - Detroit, Flint and Lansing that may prevent a lot of ballots being recounted due to "problems".

Problems like Poll Books not matching the number of ballots cast. I.E. an indication of a high potential for ballot stuffing with more ballots than those that were shown to be issued by the books. Problems like a hole in a "sealed" ballot box in Lansing. Par for the course in these areas.

The Detroit News: Half of Detroit votes may be ineligible for recount

Funny how these irregularities crop up so regularly in Democrat strongholds - the very same ones that handily delay getting their totals in until late in the game so they can "adjust" as needed, eh?

Whether Stein's game is to delay the confirmation of Michigan's totals as to put the state's 16 electoral votes in jeopardy, or just done to threaten Trump's legitimacy at the outset, or whether this is just a fundraising stunt is open to question. Even if the recount doubles Stein's votes received she and the Greens would go from all of 1% to 2% - which just won't carry the state for her.

Either way the State and people of Michigan are going to bear a large amount of the cost for her tilting at windmills, but the Left does so enjoy spending other people's money.

Wow, Everything Really IS All About Him

Obama has been called the Narcissist-in-Chief by many as in every speech covering every situation he always injects himself into it as an example of the topic.

In his appearance in Flint Wednesday, he really got the lead out.

The Detroit Free Press: White House explains Obama's remarks on lead exposure

The White House on Thursday further explained President Barack Obama’s comments made a day earlier in Flint that he, too, likely was exposed to lead as a child

The Freep notes that Obama said

"if you are my age, or older … you got some lead in your system when you were growing up.....“, "I am sure that somewhere, when I was 2 years old, I was taking a chip of paint, tasting it, and I got some lead,”

Yep it's all him, all the time, even when it comes to lead poisoning.

His ingesting lead paint chips may certainly explain somethings, but his recollections of how he was nibbling a few chips of paint as a child really doesn't compare to a messed-up water supply of the entire City of Flint, caused by a failure of epic proportions at the city, state and federal levels.

Dangerous Detroit Continues To Be Tops In Crime

Detroit scored at the very top of the FBI's crime stats to take first place as the most dangerous city with a population over 100,000.

While other large cities may be fudging their stats and affecting the rankings, this is still a sad accomplishment.

Detroit led in both murders with 45 per 100,000 residents, and led in violent crime.

Other Michigan cities to make the list were Flint and Saginaw both leading in the cities with populations over 50,000 category.

Detroit has a long, long ways to go before becoming a prosperous and livable city again.

Source: The Detroit News: Detroit led U.S. in murder, crime rates, FBI says

Flint Michigan Woman Goes Jihadi, Allegedly Gets Killed Fighting With Al Qaeda Affiliate In Syria

The Detroit News: Flint mother, 33, killed in Syria

The Detroit Free Press: Flint woman, 33, killed by Syrian government forces, family says.

A picture of a portion of Nicole Mansfield's Michigan driver's license, complete with her wearing a hijab leads the article in the Free Press.

One wonders if she was at least on the terrorist watch list or if this is a complete surprise to the authorities.

Apparently this conversion to jihadism started with a lonely single mother and a fraudulent immigration case, or more charitably with her being badly used by the Arab guy to get green card status and then being dumped once her use in getting that status was at an end:

Speelman and other family members said Mansfield met an immigrant from the Arab world several years ago and married him. She then converted to Islam and started wearing the hijab.

They divorced about three years ago after he was able to get a green card that allowed him to stay long-term in the U.S.

Even after being divorced she became very Islamic including attending mosques regularly, and apparently decided to go all jihadi.

Now she ends up dead in Syria allegedly fighting alongside some Brits for Al-Nusra, the Syrian chapter of Al Qaeda.

Sadly, she seems like a person who was open and vulnerable to being manipulated and then was indeed manipulated:

Nicole Mansfield grew up Baptist in Flint. Her dad was a production worker at General Motors. Her parents divorced and Mansfield dropped out of high school after she got pregnant

....

She was smart in school, the grandmother said, but at the same time, was too trusting.

“She had a heart of gold, but she was weak-minded,” Mansfield said. “I think she could have been brainwashed.”

Quite a sad end, and she deserved better than to die shot in the face in Syria.

One wonders how many more Michiganders are in the process of being brainwashed to join the global jihad, and whether they'll end up in Syria or in terrorist attacks here in the USA.