Cheney Residence Blasts Upset Neighbors

AP ^ | 12/8/2002

[Leroy S. Mort]

WASHINGTON (AP) - Neighbors of Vice President Dick Cheney are being shaken and rattled at least once a day by mysterious blasts at the U.S. Naval Observatory where Cheney lives.

The Navy says the explosions are part of a construction project that has been going on for several months now, but won't say more because the project is classified.

Navy spokeswoman Cate Mueller described the work as an ``infrastructure improvement, a utility upgrade.''

She said they have tried to reassure the neighborhood, which includes the Washington residence of former President Bill and Sen. Hillary Clinton, that the blasts will not damage their homes. She said most understand that, because of national security concerns, they can't reveal details or confine the construction to a 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. schedule.

Joseph Rieser, who lives a half-block off Observatory Circle, said each blast was ``almost like thunder because it rolls and it lasts a noticeable period, probably several seconds.'' It said the explosions rattle windows that aren't shut tight.

He said his concern was that neighbors received no forewarning of the project. ``If this were a normal construction contract I would expect that they would have told the neighbors.''

Mueller acknowledged that they were ``not as aggressive up front in warning'' neighbors about the project.

She said the construction is expected to last another eight months, and for the time being there will be one or two blasts a day, each lasting about three to five seconds.

The blasts were being carefully monitored to assure they were well under acceptable vibration standards so there would be no damage to either nearby residences or to facilities at the observatory, she said.

The Naval Observatory moved to its present location on Massachusetts Ave. in Northwest Washington in 1893. The vice president took up residence on the site in 1974. It houses the master clock of the United States and telescopes dating back to a time when it was one of the premier astronomical observatories in the world.

The Washington Post, which reported the issue Sunday, said David Gillard, the observatory's superintendent, had sent the local neighborhood commission a letter noting that ``due to its sensitive nature in support of national security and homeland defense, project specific information is classified and cannot be released.''

Jennifer Millerwise, a spokeswoman for the vice president, referred questions about the project to the Navy.

On the Net: Vice president's residence: http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/life/vpresidence.html

U.S. Naval Observatory: http://www.usno.navy.mil/

[Leroy S. Mort]

Well ain't this interestin'

[dts32041]

Bruno out to be scared out of her mind, they are going to bury ceaserette not praise her.

[crypt2k]

Tunnel or underground shelter for Cheney?

[RnMomof7]

Sounds like a shelter going in..

[okie01]

Cheney must be building a secret bunker to house the CFR, y'spose?

[struwwelpeter]

Yeah, I noticed some serious excavating going on over there.

[Jhoffa_]

It's just probably algor trying to get his old job back.. with a battering ram.

[EternalVigilance]

She said they have tried to reassure the neighborhood, which includes the Washington residence of former President Bill and Sen. Hillary Clinton

Someone has to say it:

..."THEN GET OUT OF CHENEY'S NEIGHBORHOOD!"

;-)

[Dan Day]

Sounds like a shelter going in..

Exactly my thought. Cutting through bedrock usually requires blasting.

[Cicero]

It's the Ghost of Al Gore bowling in the basement.

[EternalVigilance]

It's the Ghost of Al Gore bowling in the basement.

No, that would sound less like an explosion, and more like a loud 'FLOP!!

[Demidog]

It's good to be king. When you have the taxpayers to build you an underground bunker for when the terrorists set off nukes and your administration fails to protect the little people. There's an appropriations bill somewhere that pays for this nonsense.

[McGavin999]

They're building a bunker. For heavens sake this should have been done long ago. The neighbors ought to be happy about it, if they're nice, they might be invited in, if not......they can build their own bunkers. :o)

[concentric circles]

Experiments in harmonic vibration. They've calculated the frequency needed to explode Saddam's head based on interviews with his physician and his barber and the Naval Observatory sits on the only locus in the western hemisphere from which the necessary energy can be focused.

[lexington minuteman 1775]

well i think we will now know where the "undisclosed location" will be.

[PoorMuttly]

I have this problem all the time. Neighbors just don't appreciate high explosives. The poor man probably needs a new root-cellar, and the neighbors are jealous. There's nothing more disappointing than a wilted turnip. Well, not much, anyway.

I'd be upset if they didn't let me watch.

[tubebender]

Yeah, I noticed some serious excavating going on over there.

You got the wrong picture. That is the spoils site for the tunnel under the Rio Grande in Arz.

[Jim Robinson]

Shocking all of Washington, it was discovered late last month that former Vice President Albert Gore did not actually leave the VP residence. He's sealed himself in, deep inside a secret steel reinforced concrete bunker.

"It's a terrible situation," says the current resident. "But we've got to blast him outta there. Thank God we've got some left-over bunker blasters. These things are great. They're the same model Rummy used to blast Osama bin Laden to hell."

It's rumored that impeached former president Bill Clinton has a similar bunker buried deep beneath the White House. "Hope we have a big supply of bunker busters," says the current resident.

[PoorMuttly]

...or...see Post 14.

[BenLurkin]

No, it's just that when the American people finally wedged wierd Al out of Dick Cheney's house, Al left a lot of his stubborn pals there: