On This Day Pre-Y2K
Confused by any of the jargon you see below? Check the Y2K Glossary!
May 1, 1999 Permalink
Nebraska’s Y2K Point Man Sets Up in a Bunker
BY NANCY HICKS
WORLD-HERALD BUREAU
Lincoln - Francis A. Laden, the man in charge of daily operations for the state’s emergency preparedness program, plans to spend New Year’s Eve at work in a converted bomb shelter, waiting to see exactly what the Y2K computer bug brings to Nebraska.
The assistant director of the Nebraska Emergency Management Agency doesn’t know what to expect as the digital clocks of the state roll over into the new millennium, but he doesn’t expect a major crisis.
Just in case, the state’s National Guard unit commanders will be ready to call in their troops, and Laden is recommending that communities have temporary shelters stocked and ready.
... he will be prepared - holed up with telephones and televisions, weather and ham radio equipment in the enormous bomb shelter under a parking lot near the University of Nebraska-Lincoln campus.
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Now, just why is this palatable? He says that he will be in a BUNKER, safe and prepared, BUT...... THAT is perfectly acceptable because he does ***NOT*** expect any bad things to happen. But when some folks DO the same thing, that is, be prepared in a safe place, they are CASTIGATED because they **DO** expect something bad to happen.
This guy will be safe, but no one has anything unpleasant to say about his preparedness. It is OK for him to be prepared and safe, because he does NOT expect anything to happen.
ROTFLMAO at the hypocisy of the Pollyannas. NOT ONE of them will say a THING about this. Here is a guy who is prepared and EXPECTS **NOTHING**. But all the revulsion is saved up for those folks who DO expect something AND make preparations.
Who is the bigger idiot, the guy who expects bad things to happen and prepares or the guy who does the same thing and says that he DOES NOT expect bad stuff to happen? In other words, the guy who expects a problem and is preparing is a jerk, but the guy who expects nothing and prepares is ‘sage’.
ROTFLMAO
—Paul Milne, comp.software.year-2000, 05/01/99
I have some experience in designing polls and surveys, and it’s simply not possible to design one that’s as accurate as the free market.
As an example of the problems with polls and surveys in this area, consider that I would look at one, laugh, and throw it in the trash (or tell the person on the phone that I’m busy), while the guy across town who’s making a bundle on Y2K contracts might exagerate just a bit to stir up the market. The rare technical person who stockpiles food and water may fill out two or three surveys to “raise awareness”.
Another problem is that you have to consider whether the polls compare technical people to “average people” or to “average people who have heard of Y2K”. Obviously, technical people are more likely to have heard of Y2K than average people, so even if a small minority of them have made preparations, it could show up as more than average.
—Bob, comp.software.year-2000, 05/01/99
