FARK.com: (7524633) Seven months after a dam was demolished to make a river free-flowing for first time in 49 years, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers recommend building several new dams along the same river's route. BRILLIANT

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		Seven months after a dam was demolished to make a river free-flowing for first time in 49 years, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers recommend building several new dams along the same river's route. BRILLIANT (tennessean.com)		44
		More: Stupid, Army Corps of Engineers, Harpeth River, Williamson County, dams, Brentwood, Hickman

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8692 clicks; posted to Main » on 08 Jan 2013 at 3:52 PM | Favorite | share:

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BronyMedic		2013-01-08 02:56:23 PM

That 2010 flood was no joke. I grew up in the area, and had to take roads I hadn't taken in almost five years to get back to Memphis from Bell Buckle, where I was doing a class at the time. A four hour drive took almost 12.

vudukungfu		2013-01-08 03:56:05 PM

The ACE are a bunch of budget munchers, assholes, and boneheads.
Also, they like to break treaties.
Fark them to hell where they can DIAF.
They rest of you have a nice day full of rainbows and unicorns, however.

Job Creator		2013-01-08 03:57:19 PM

Given southern Republican House members reluctance to help people who are in areas near bodies of water, I think maybe we should let the river flow and if people's lives are in the way, fark em. The budget won't balance itself and Ayn Rand would want it that way.

thecpt		2013-01-08 03:59:02 PM

Thats weird, because they do sound like they're only smart ones there. I'm sure a quick cost benefit analysis could confirm it, and dry damns aren't usually obtrusive to the environment.

clane		2013-01-08 03:59:06 PM

"Removing the dam was touted as a way to improve the river's ecosystem" and yall keep voting Democrat... and when the huge floods come you blame Republicans for the disasters...
bronanthebarbarian.files.wordpress.com

error 303		2013-01-08 04:00:08 PM

buzzcut73		2013-01-08 04:04:52 PM

error 303: vudukungfu: The ACE are a bunch of budget munchers, assholes, and boneheads.
Also, they like to break treaties.
Fark them to hell where they can DIAF.
They rest of you have a nice day full of rainbows and unicorns, however.

Hey, I work for USACE :(

Can I still get a rainbow unicorn?

If it makes you feel any better, I never had any trouble with the USACE when applying for Rivers & Harbors or CWA permit activities at a former job. Your general permit process is pretty painless.

Somaticasual		2013-01-08 04:05:06 PM

Job Creator: Given southern Republican House members reluctance to help people who are in areas near bodies of water, I think maybe we should let the river flow and if people's lives are in the way, fark em. The budget won't balance itself and Ayn Rand would want it that way.

Heh. The Chinese and South American approaches..

Ow! That was my feelings!		2013-01-08 04:09:33 PM

vudukungfu: The ACE are a bunch of budget munchers, assholes, and boneheads.
Also, they like to break treaties.
Fark them to hell where they can DIAF.
They rest of you have a nice day full of rainbows and unicorns, however.

Ya know, I wish I could disagree. Here in Colorado, ACE has sold out to the water whores along the front range and intends to destroy one of the best parks in metro Denver, Chatfield State Park, in order to insure that those buying 35 acre ranchettes can plant Kentucky bluegrass. ACE is yet another agency serving the American people that has been subverted by the greed and ignorance of the clueless and most Americans, once again, just don't care.

sheep snorter		2013-01-08 04:13:02 PM

White man build wooden teepee in flood plain, while natives build movable housing to keep feet dry in wet season.

/You live in a flood plain, so eat shiat motherfarkers.

Walker		2013-01-08 04:13:03 PM

weiserfireman		2013-01-08 04:18:58 PM

ACE is just like any bureaucratic organization. People work there because they 1. want a job 2. think the organization does good work. For most of the 20th century, one of the ACE's primary jobs was building flood control projects. That has become a primary function of the organization. Asking them to stop designing and building flood control projects is like asking them to not do their job.

If they don't do their job, then that means their job is unneeded. That can't be true because, they do good important work. In fact, they will show you what good work they do, and how much better the country would be if they had a much bigger budget

The workers at almost every federal agency I have ever dealt with are very similar in this regard.

Fish in a Barrel		2013-01-08 04:21:07 PM

This article led me to look up what a dry dam is. So thanks for that. Learned something new today.

Pair-o-Dice		2013-01-08 04:23:25 PM

BronyMedic: That 2010 flood was no joke. I grew up in the area, and had to take roads I hadn't taken in almost five years to get back to Memphis from Bell Buckle, where I was doing a class at the time. A four hour drive took almost 12.

That was the worst of the worst. I know many people that lost their homes in that sh*t. My Mother being one of them.

/Lives 5 miles from the state capitol. West side.

miss diminutive		2013-01-08 04:24:48 PM

Fish in a Barrel: This article led me to look up what a dry dam is. So thanks for that. Learned something new today.

I learned that there's a weird way of spelling Army Core.

cajunns		2013-01-08 04:27:09 PM

It's called a "floodplain" for a reason you stupid fools; let them stew in their own idiocy.

moops		2013-01-08 04:31:43 PM

miss diminutive: Fish in a Barrel: This article led me to look up what a dry dam is. So thanks for that. Learned something new today.

I learned that there's a weird way of spelling Army Core.

Is your wife posting on your fark account?

lawsucks		2013-01-08 04:32:15 PM

Maybe they'll find snail darters in the water. Wouldn't that be ecotastic?

Suede head		2013-01-08 04:34:50 PM

Excellent. I can dispose of even more dead hillbilly rapists!

HoratioGates		2013-01-08 04:38:19 PM

Building on a flood plain is only slightly more stupid than destroying a dam above houses that are built on a flood plain, but these houses were built on a flood plain protected by a dam. If you want to destroy a dam, do a thorough study about what the effects will be. Move the houses on the flood plain before you remove the dam. Frankly, I don't give a damn.

gweilo8888		2013-01-08 04:39:34 PM

clane: "Removing the dam was touted as a way to improve the river's ecosystem" and yall keep voting Democrat... and when the huge floods come you blame Republicans for the disasters...
[bronanthebarbarian.files.wordpress.com image 350x450]

0/10 couldn't be more obvious if it was tattooed on your forehead

The Irresponsible Captain		2013-01-08 04:40:06 PM

No problem, once they get New Orleans and the rest of the delta wrapped up, eliminate the Asian carp, and remove zebra mussels from the Great Lakes I say let them spend money on low priority backwater projects.

gweilo8888		2013-01-08 04:45:42 PM

Somaticasual: Job Creator: Given southern Republican House members reluctance to help people who are in areas near bodies of water, I think maybe we should let the river flow and if people's lives are in the way, fark em. The budget won't balance itself and Ayn Rand would want it that way.

Heh. The Chinese and South American approaches..

Some of the world's largest dam-building and river diversion projects would like to disagree with your snark.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Gorges_Dam (among other reasons, created to "reduce the potential for floods downstream by providing flood storage space")
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South%E2%80%93North_Water_Transfer_Proje c t (intended to take water from the south and transfer it to major population centers in the drier north, ie. where people need it)

Not arguing whether these projects are good or bad, btw, just the incorrect assertion that the Chinese leave their people unaided in the face of flooding or other major issues.

gweilo8888		2013-01-08 04:46:53 PM

miss diminutive: I learned that there's a weird way of spelling Army Core.

I learned that you can't spell.

vudukungfu		2013-01-08 04:52:33 PM

error 303: Can I still get a rainbow unicorn?

I'm Cornplanter Seneca, what do you think?

Gunny Walker		2013-01-08 04:57:37 PM

sheep snorter: White man build wooden teepee in flood plain, while natives build movable housing to keep feet dry in wet season.

To be fair, a lot of us also live in movable housing.

No Time To Explain		2013-01-08 05:04:55 PM

Can this be fail tag mods?

/also, I smell attempt at job security

Crotchrocket Slim		2013-01-08 05:17:33 PM

weiserfireman: ACE is just like any bureaucratic organization. People work there because they 1. want a job 2. think the organization does good work. For most of the 20th century, one of the ACE's primary jobs was building flood control projects. That has become a primary function of the organization. Asking them to stop designing and building flood control projects is like asking them to not do their job.

If they don't do their job, then that means their job is unneeded. That can't be true because, they do good important work. In fact, they will show you what good work they do, and how much better the country would be if they had a much bigger budget

The workers at almost every federal agency I have ever dealt with are very similar in this regard.

Bear in mind they also answer to whoever is running the government at the time i.e. Congress and the President.

For another example when I think of why I wouldn't want any of my proverbial children in public education it's mostly because I know a bunch of public elected Teabagger types are going to try to waste kids' time with a bunch of nationalistic revisionist history and to hell with teaching them about the scientific process, Jesus didn't use it!

In short I feel more government agencies and programs would do a better job if we didn't have to share this country with conservatives too. I mean you can also list similar shenanigans perpetrated by individual Democrats but this sort of foolishness (that is, facts be damned! ideology is king!) is more a part of the GOP platform at the part level than the Democrats.

Wodan11		2013-01-08 05:17:41 PM

What's brilliant is they now want to do a $1.4M study to figure things out. It cost only $800k to tear down the damn dam in the first place.

Krieghund		2013-01-08 05:29:31 PM

I was really sure that most if the comments in this threasd would be along the lines of "No, subby, you're the stupid one." Instead we have a bunch of people that don't understand there is a big difference between having one big dam and having several smaller dry dams.

cryinoutloud		2013-01-08 05:41:55 PM

Wodan11: What's brilliant is they now want to do a $1.4M study to figure things out. It cost only $800k to tear down the damn dam in the first place.

I saw this:

And it wasn't cheap, either: Removing the dam, restoration of the riverbanks around it and creation of a new way for Franklin to take in water from the river for the city's use cost about $850,000.

That sounds pretty cheap to me.

StreetlightInTheGhetto		2013-01-08 05:43:57 PM

really great article about harnessing the Mississippi (yeah, it's surprisingly old, still a really great read with incredible foresight):

seriously, it's worth the read.

/that is all
//drtfa

jshine		2013-01-08 05:44:19 PM

I figured out how to post on Fark, so I know a hell of a lot more about civil engineering than an organization staffed by professional civil engineers.

ha-ha-guy		2013-01-08 05:53:54 PM

vudukungfu: error 303: Can I still get a rainbow unicorn?

I'm Cornplanter Seneca, what do you think?

That your ancestors should have fought harder?

GAT_00		2013-01-08 05:59:33 PM

Wodan11: What's brilliant is they now want to do a $1.4M study to figure things out. It cost only $800k to tear down the damn dam in the first place.

It's almost like there was a catastrophic flood in 2010 that made them rethink the need for flood control while still keeping the river free-flowing. Huh.

Somaticasual		2013-01-08 06:06:16 PM

gweilo8888: Somaticasual: Job Creator: Given southern Republican House members reluctance to help people who are in areas near bodies of water, I think maybe we should let the river flow and if people's lives are in the way, fark em. The budget won't balance itself and Ayn Rand would want it that way.

Heh. The Chinese and South American approaches..

Some of the world's largest dam-building and river diversion projects would like to disagree with your snark.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Gorges_Dam (among other reasons, created to "reduce the potential for floods downstream by providing flood storage space")
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South%E2%80%93North_Water_Transfer_Proje c t (intended to take water from the south and transfer it to major population centers in the drier north, ie. where people need it)

Not arguing whether these projects are good or bad, btw, just the incorrect assertion that the Chinese leave their people unaided in the face of flooding or other major issues.

Actually I was referring to the fact that millions of people were (or are being) involuntarily displaced in the area those lakes now cover. The chinese were a little nicer about it (or at least quieter), but there are quite a few photos floating around of the tribal south american cultures being violently forced out of their homes and lands.

//guessing the south americans had less ghost towns to populate..

vudukungfu		2013-01-08 06:31:30 PM

ha-ha-guy: That your ancestors should have fought harder?

Well, Our lawyers were good, but the lobby for the dam had more money.
We should have bribed harder.

miss diminutive		2013-01-08 06:42:08 PM

gweilo8888: miss diminutive: I learned that there's a weird way of spelling Army Core.

I learned that you can't spell.

Here since 2003 and you don't know about the Core?

Benjimin_Dover		2013-01-08 07:37:38 PM

runwiz		2013-01-08 07:56:09 PM

Spend millions of dollars to protect buildings in the flood plain from floods. That's why they call it a flood plain. Maybe the buildings should be moved and the residents/occupants relocated.

Yoyo		2013-01-08 08:39:14 PM

jshine: I figured out how to post on Fark, so I know a hell of a lot more about civil engineering than an organization staffed by professional civil engineers.

At the wages the government is paying, the Corps of Engineers is barely getting the C grade students.

KrispyKritter		2013-01-08 08:51:05 PM

Krieghund: I was really sure that most if the comments in this threasd would be along the lines of "No, subby, you're the stupid one." Instead we have a bunch of people that don't understand there is a big difference between having one big dam and having several smaller dry dams.

sometimes it seems to me things get done for the sake of doing them. give people jobs, keep smoke stacks burning in factories. there is a river coming down through Oakland to Pompton Plains NJ that floods horribly every so many years. causes a big problem. Army Corps of Engineers proposes a billion plus $$$ plan to construct a massive underground thingie to whisk the water woes away. meanwhile, the easy thing would be to buy out the riverside land on each side for some many feet worth. let it be picnic and recreation area (unimproved for the most part) and do not allow houses or buildings to be built or owned on the flood potential land. when the shiat hits the fan you closes the fence to the picnic area and no ones houses gets ruined. go figure. instead, they keep rebuilding and every so many years the big flood comes again. sometimes i can understand why people get pissed off when it appears common sense is lacking.

gweilo8888		2013-01-08 09:22:49 PM

miss diminutive: gweilo8888: miss diminutive: I learned that there's a weird way of spelling Army Core.

I learned that you can't spell.

Here since 2003 and you don't know about the Core?

Do enlighten me, oh newbly one. ;-)

Felix_T_Cat		2013-01-09 10:02:17 AM

DRTFA, but here's a rule I use. Years ago I met a geologist that would consult for the corps. Apparently the corps had been discussing whether or not to build a dam. The issue came up and was tabled meeting after meeting for 100 years and they still couldn't decide whether to build the dam or not. So the geologist said "Well, if no one can decide yes in 100 years, maybe it should be no." They guy says, "Hey that's good! I wonder if they'll accept it. How come you're so smart?"

So now I use a '100 year rule'. If I can't decide in a reasonable time, the answer is not to go ahead with the project.

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