Matt Oliver

And I’m remembering this more peaceful than it was.

That phone call ended with me saying emphatically, I’m not stamping anything without that testing.

This was informed by a lot of fire investigations where I’d find all the wiring insulation intact…except at one place inside a conduit where conducted heat had melted all the insulation into a puddle.

Not safe to energize without minimum high-pot test to confirm adequate insulation integrity.

Ultimately I declined - they weren't willing to have me return to site and it wasn't really within my scope of practice as a forensic engineer. Mentioned any electrical firm to do the cable testing, and I'd be happy to stamp it.

Never know what happened, but I slept well that night.

You just need to stamp a letter so the utility will turn the power back on.

I was tempted. It seemed low risk, but I knew due diligence demanded at least a visual inspection of the entire run, and I'd only looked at the main breaker during my fire investigation (which seemed ok, but heat).

I said, before I did that I'd need to do a visual inspection down the raceway, and would need high potential insulation testing to confirm insulation integrity. No special knowledge beyond metal conducts heat, and polymer electrical insulation melts (like the captain's visor).

The site eng said -

I was asked at one point to stamp a document certifying that underground 480V/600A (or so) feeders were safe for use after a very hot fire in the electrical room just above. The fire captain leading the attack mentioned his visor had melted.

The mech eng on site said the electricians said it was ok

Gutsy move, approving structures knowing another PEng had declined to do so. Especially so to do it with (what seems to be) a lack of personal inspection - the panel commented on his reliance on verbal reports from others versus a personal inspection.

all colonizers. That they in turn will have done to them what they’ve done to others.

There are other ways of existing.

from other independent collectives is ‘business and progress’ while having yours threatened is cause for outrage.

When you rely on empire as the basis for your authority over lands and resources, it should not be surprising when others are able to do the same to you.

Which is the deep phobia of

AM news, CBC interview with an undersecretary for foreign trade from Mexico.

CBC very concerned about US threats to Canadian sovereignty.

The same comments (below) applies to Canada, the complaints ‘how dare you threaten ma sov-wren-ty!’ just as ahistorical.

Colonialism means taking independence

Light receptacle in lower level near smoke alarm not even covered when popcorn ceiling sprayed in. I’d prefer an octagon in ceiling - not that little dish usually for wall mount.

The smoke alarm wiring in lower level, which then supplies the upstairs. Red wire is signal between alarms, but on top floor it seems to have been used to provide 120 VAC to lighting near smoke alarm. Condo electrician who inspects smoke alarms annually is very nervous about this when I show him. In the meantime, I installed battery powered wireless alarms to meet electrical code, despite what condo board lawyer claims without evidence

Some of my diagnostic and repair tools. IYKYK.

Man’s eye view of my construction pants. Love those pockets, which hang like flaps in lieu of a tool belt. Way easier than wearing a belt especially when climbing up/down ladders in tight spaces; more capacity than overalls, and more comfortable either way bulkier tools.

Deep diving dysfunctional smoke alarm wiring in my condo townhouse. Never worked for me nor for previous owners. Maybe no permit? Condo board being pain.

Want to wear headlamp + construction pants every day. Messed w wrong engineer.

@sameo416.bsky.social @drsmith.bsky.social @dupuisj.bsky.social

Shipwreck on Zombie Road Vindication means nothing without justice.

One of the most beautiful pieces of journalism I have seen in a long, long time. From @sarahkendzior.bsky.social

sarahkendzior.substack.com/p/shipwreck-...

With alt text

Ah the professor of finance discussing indoctrination

snippet of an email: "And finally, I offer thanks to the original poster for providing the occasion for others to discuss the nuances of my research, unprofessionalism notwithstanding."

we have a faculty email list at TAMU and the amount of shade on there is just a sight to behold. really enjoyable.

here's a snippet from an email, which I completely agree with.

Shawn Micallef: Toronto is facing its worst police corruption scandal in decades. Here are three things that need to happen soon The corruption revealed by Project South undermines the public trust that is the foundation of policing.

In the Toronto Star I write about Toronto Police's violent corruption scandal. Will it move the needle on police reform? It's a dramatic escalation in a long history of police intimidation, bullying their critics & broken trust. I argue 3 big things have to happen, including firing this chief.

Court upholds discipline of B.C. engineer who approved faulty crane foundation Engineer knowingly approved anchor stools that failed previous inspection, judge rules

Hey, @cmadocs.bsky.social - this is what professional accountability looks like. Not kissing and covering the a**es of anti-mask, droplet dogma, socially murderous public health & @ipaccanada.bsky.social officials.

www.biv.com/news/real-es...

I gave my coworkers valentines and they (or the public library patrons) gave me another virus. Are we having fun living with Covid yet?

valentine's day isn't just for couples, it's also a day to celebrate love. for instance, i would love it if housing prices came down.

Billie Eilish Said "No One Is Illegal on Stolen Land"— In Reality, The Theft of Native Land Is a Blueprint for Border Patrol and ICE The slogan sparked outrage across the political spectrum, but the connection between Native dispossession and immigration enforcement is structural, not symbolic.

Excellent analysis from @rebeccanagle.bsky.social starting with a critical reflection on Billie Eilish's comment, "No one is illegal on stolen land".

While I appreciate Eilish's overt support, this analysis named what troubled me.

historycanthide.substack.com/p/billie-eil...

Thread 🧵🪡

Absolutely. But as you’ve probably noticed, diversity of thought is not all that popular these days. 😞

The other issue is building diversity of thought into our systems. Evidence Based Medicine's insistence that an MD is the ultimate expert on everything from aerosol physics to human behaviour makes failure inevitable. A monoculture is much less naturally resistant to attack than an ecosystem.

🧵:

The big advantage a scientific approach has over the heuristics currently used for medical guidance and policy is that science (at least in principle) requires discordant evidence be reconciled. Vs EBM/GRADE etc formalize cherry picking, and then it's ultimately just about who controls the process.

There was definitely an error, the one Dr. Morawska was trying to correct when she was shouted down was already 86 years (!) out of date at the time, but the big failure is the structural context that gave the guy shouting the authority to do that in the first place, and allowed it to be exercised.

This talk takes a deep dive into the structural and paradigmatic basis for what they're doing. Recent events appear sudden, but from a systems perspective it's the inevitable result of a long-term drive to centralize power over the interpretation of science, and make it discretionary / subjective.

Trump’s cronies aren’t what broke public health The structural blind spots that undermine medical progress and how to fix them.

It's such a bizarre concept that scientists often have a hard time accepting that anyone would actually believe it, but this is why it has been so easy for RFK to rewrite guidance.

Control over "what science says" is how you win at institutional medical politics, so the tools were already in place.

Yeah, I doubt there is one - "better" is a direction rather than an end point. That said, I have been very impressed (H/T @sameo416.bsky.social) with some of the concepts systems theory has come up with, and that lens reveals the drivers of a lot of problems.

E.g. this is bigger than "error":

I guess over time they can fall prey to structural or building envelope issues way beyond those of a single family home, not to mention the fire/explosion threat of years of grain dust in every nook and cranny. Quite the renovation to do right.

@sameo416.bsky.social

Screenshot of a post by Acyn quoting an exchange between Lyons and Senator Blumenthal. Lyons cites case law allowing entry into a home based on an administrative warrant; Blumenthal responds that this does not override the Fourth Amendment or allow ICE to break down doors without a judicial warrant. Below is a C-SPAN image of a congressional hearing with an ICE official testifying.

They knew this policy was so unconstitutional that they kept the “legal memo” authorizing this practice hidden, wouldn't let physical copies of it circulate, and a whistleblower had to alert Congress about its very existence.