Posted on 04/11/2009 3:52:50 AM PDT by Anti-Bubba182
Authorities hope a quarter-million-dollar reward will shake loose a tipster to lead them to the vandals who severed underground fiber-optic cables, cutting off phone service for tens of thousands of people and disrupting life throughout southern Santa Clara, Santa Cruz and San Benito counties.
Investigators said Friday they are tracking down at least 10 leads and reviewing traffic-camera footage taken near one of four sites where the cables were cut Thursday in hopes of a breakthrough.[snip]
Contract talks
The sabotage in the South Bay came as AT&T was negotiating with the Communications Workers of America for a contract covering more than 80,000 employees, who have been working under their old pact since it expired Sunday.
"We are working under an expired contract and are prepared to strike at any time, which makes the timing of this vandalism difficult for us," said Libby Sayre, a regional director for the union.
"Neither the union nor its members are involved in this in any way," she said. "Our members spend their lives keeping up the equipment. We're confident they didn't do this."................"
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
exactly. looks like good old union thuggery.
Neither the union nor its members are involved in this in any way
Of course not they wouldn’t do something like that (cough cough wink wink)
Nope, not in a million years would the union have done any such thing. BTW, I have a bridge for sale.
It does to me too. The act would require some technical knowledge and tools beyond that expected of street punks.
What was that sound?
From a union thug, that's a flat out admission.
First, fiber-optic cables have near zero value to anyone.
Second, the price paid for copper is way, way down. So even if it was a mistake by someone hoping to sell some copper wire to a recycler, they are stupid.
Lastly, the impasse in negotiations with the CWA is not a coincidence.
Nothing has changed - they would indeed do things like that.
Frankly, I was puzzled as to who would do this until I learned of the CWA union involvement.
Small world Bill, I was with CWA Local #2108 in Suburban Maryland for a brief time in the middle 70’s and while I was never aware of anything approaching something of this magnitude back then, I know there were rogue members that were capable of damn near anything if called upon quietly to do so.
Not to say that some saboteur could not get lucky, but in 4 locations....NOT BLODDY LIKELY!
Sounds like a patriot trying trying to cut this liberal socialist enclave off from the real world.
Knowledge is the bigger deal. A 360 strand fiber can be cut with a hacksaw or a bolt cutter.
Actually it’s not hard to figure out. Down in South America, air pressure crews used to have to deal with vandals lopping off the ends of cables and pulling them out with their trucks. So they tied the pressure pipe in to an alarm system so the moment it’d drop it’d call the crew, the managers, and the police.
But that’s kind of unlikely for America still.
Let them strike.
Union NO!
I was a roving wireless engineer for about 18 years and worked with CWA thugs all over the country. In the early days of cellular there was A LOT of resentment for the new guys on the block, mostly because we were nonunion. It really chapped them when they'd mention us joining the CWA and we'd respond that we couldn't afford to take the pay cut. When available, we'd use phone company (usually Bell) provided T-1's to carry voice and data to remote cells. We regularly saw delays in turning up these circuits for no apparent reason. It was a move designed to delay the launch of the systems we were turning up. They were upset because they claimed we were taking work away from union workers. Later, when I started managing large cellular build out projects I refused to hire former Bellcore workers because of their piss poor work eithic.
Based on what I saw in the field over the years I see this sabotage as highly likely to have been carried out by CWA thugs.....
Many people know about telephone pedestals. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist or an engineer to see the terminal boxes. I have watched several phone lines being buried and connected. Anyone using simple hand tools can do a whole lot of damage.
“We didn't do it,” said Libby Sayre, area director for the California chapter of the Communications Workers of America, the union in negotiations with AT&T. “It's not completely inexplicable why people would be inclined to speculate. But we never condone any kind of vandalism.”
The severed fiber ran in underground conduits about 10 feet below ground level. In other places, optical fiber runs in pipes just under the ground, or in railway embankments.”
I once worked for SBC. This absolutely, positively had to be inside work. Essential service circuit locations are NOT public information. And these were not accessible with a “can tool” only.
always look for the union label, and then go buy something else without one
No it wouldn’t. F.O.cable is clearly marked and it doesn’t take much to cut through one of them and the inner duct that surrounds them.
Man holes are notoriously dangerous if they aren’t ventilated before entering. That’s a process that takes several minutes.
“Each time, the vandals had to pry up manhole covers, climb down into vaults and chop through the thick cables.”
Fiber Optics cable may be many things but it isn’t thick when compared to copper cable.
A knowledgeable person could find easier locations to cut a fiber cable, such as a hand hole, instead of going through the process described.
Really there is no need for these actions with the Kenyan in the White House paid for and owned by the unions. Bail out money is available by making one phone call.
“Neither the union nor its members are involved in this in any way,” she said. “Our members spend their lives keeping up the equipment. We’re confident they didn’t do this.”................”
With more than 80,000 members in her union, I have to question why she is sooooo sure...........
They used a contractor....just like the company wants.
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