Prepare For A Slow, Spendy Baltimore Bridge Rebuild That Doesn’t Satisfy Anybody
Engineering priorities have become secondary to other interests, which is why we cannot have nice things quickly at a reasonable cost.What the Empire State Building can teach us about the Baltimore bridge collapse
Rumor has it that Americans across the country will feel the effects of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridges’s collapse for quite some time. Officials claim that it will take years for the bridge to be rebuilt, which will have dire effects not only on importation and exportation but also jobs, as “the Port of Baltimore creates over 15,300 jobs,” and “over 140,000 jobs [are] linked to the activity at the port.”
For those who don’t know, the Port of Baltimore is the nation’s “leading import/export site for cars and trucks,” so Americans waiting for a car to come in from overseas are in for a rude awakening, as the time of delivery is expected to increase exponentially.
But it’s not just the automobile industry that will be impacted. Last year alone, “A record 52.3 million tons of foreign cargo” was transported through the Port of Baltimore, but now the port has been entirely shut down due the bridge’s collapse that has left the only shipping lane blocked.
“An expert on property damage cases in the shipping industry told the New York Post that ‘the collapse will have a major impact on shipping and traffic routes on the East coast for the foreseeable future.’”
While many will hear these reports and fear what this means for the country, all Glenn Beck hears is a bunch of unnecessary doomsday-ing.
“Have we forgotten who we are? Have we forgotten what we’ve done?” he asks, calling attention to the spirit of America, which is “so potent and so vibrant that it has scaled towering mountains.”
America has “constructed marvels of engineering” and “buildings that scraped the sky,” he encourages.
In 1930, “The Great Depression had its icy grip on us. It was a time when everybody felt the flickering candle in the vast darkness ... yet it was in this crucible of adversity that Americans did great things. The Empire State Building rose. It wasn’t just a structure of steel and stone; it was a beacon of hope and American resilience and ingenuity,” says Glenn.
“In a record-shattering one year and 45 days, an army of workers ... transformed this audacious vision into a towering reality.”
So, what does the Empire State Building — a marvel that was constructed at a “feverish pace” and “defied the laws of time physics” — have to do with Baltimore’s bridge?
According to Glenn, everything.
The Empire State Building and other man-made marvels “are not merely historical footnotes. They are blazing torches illuminating our path forward. They remind us ... that when we are faced with adversity, we don’t just endure it. We overcome it. We don’t wait for history to chart our course. We write it with the sweat of our brow and the strength of our backs,” he says.
“That’s who we are.”
To hear more of Glenn's encouraging message, watch the clip below.
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The craziest Baltimore bridge theory yet
In the wake of Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge’s collapse, skepticism continues to mount. A number of conspiracy theories regarding the events of the mysterious collision have since emerged.
Many have pointed to the possibility of a cyberattack, granted the cargo ship lost power. Others have honed in on the company that manages the ship — a DEI-captive firm called Synergy Marine Group. Then, there are those who call attention to the fact that the Baltimore bridge was not the Dali’s first unfortunate collision.
However, Glenn Beck, Pat Gray, and Stu Burguiere have another theory — one you probably haven’t heard of before.
And it centers around Pete Buttigieg, the United States’ secretary of Transportation.
There seems to be an unprecedented number of accidents related to transportation taking place under his watch, and yet nobody has heard from him.
“We never hear him talk about anything transportation” related, says Glenn. “He never shows up at the scene of the crime.”
“There are a lot of reasons to believe that Buttigieg isn't responsible for each” transportation mishap, but “how else do we explain this?” asks Stu, adding that “this guy has overseen disaster movie sequel after disaster movie sequel since he got this job.”
“Have we seen close-up pictures of the United Airlines flight when it was taking off losing the tire? ... Was [Buttigieg] up in the wheel hub?” laughs Glenn.
“Was he driving a tankard truck last June 11 and left it on I95 in Philadelphia?” asks Pat jokingly.
While the theory isn’t meant to be taken seriously, it is uncanny that America has seen an immense rise in the number of transportation “accidents” since Buttigieg took office.
To hear more, watch the clip below.
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Ship that obliterated Baltimore bridge was involved in a previous collision; managed by DEI-captive company
Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge is apparently not the first structure that the Dali has left its mark on in recent years. The Singapore-flagged container ship that obliterated the bridge and effectively closed the second-busiest port in the mid-Atlantic Tuesday morning previously had an incident in a Belgian port.
The Dali, a 984-foot vessel owned by Grace Ocean Private Ltd. and managed by the DEI-captive Synergy Marine Group, collided with the stone pier in the Port of Antwerp during unmooring maneuvers on July 11, 2016.
The incident, which reportedly occurred on a clear day with good weather, resulted in significant damages to the stern and transom of the ship.
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VesselFinder noted at the time that the ship remained afloat but suffered breaches near the waterline as well as serious damage to its berth requiring repairs. The ship was detained and closed for cargo.
"As a general rule, these accidents are investigated, and ships are only allowed to leave after experts have determined it is safe for them to do so," a spokesman for the Port of Antwerp told Reuters.
The incident was reportedly the result of mistakes made by the master and pilot on board.
The same ship attempted to leave the Baltimore Harbor just after 1:00 a.m. Tuesday morning. However, while traveling at what Maryland Gov. Wes Moore indicated was a "very rapid speed," the ship allegedly lost power. The pilots alerted authorities but were evidently unable to arrest the ship's progress.
Blaze News previously reported that Baltimore Police Commissioner Richard Worley claimed there is "absolutely no indication" that the Dali rammed into the bridge intentionally.
The FBI Baltimore field office indicated several hours after the incident that there "is no specific and credible information to suggest any ties to terrorism at this time."
An unclassified Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency report suggested the Dali "lost propulsion" while leaving port and that the pilots alerted officials to their loss of control.
At 1:28 a.m., the unlit container ship careened into a pier holding up the Francis Scott Key Bridge. The bridge, which spanned 1.6 miles over the Patapsco River, immediately collapsed.
Several vehicles atop the bridge at the time of the collision plunged into the frigid waters below. Two individuals were rescued, one of whom was in critical condition. Six were still missing at the time of publication.
The ship's all-Indian crew all survived.
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Synergy Marine Group, the company tasked with managing the ship, appears to have priorities besides avoiding collisions with critical infrastructure.
The company touts itself as a "leading shipmanager ... provid[ing] end-to-end maritime solutions with precisely and expertly tailored services."
Synergy Marine Group states on its website that "issues related to diversity are a high priority at Synergy. We realize that the benefits of diversity are best achieved by fostering greater inclusion and belonging."
The company indicated that its goal is a "workplace that is truly characterized by inclusion and belonging."
Days prior to paralyzing a major American port, the company underscored its commitment to "Diversity@Sea" and DEI.
Baltimore was apparently the company's latest stop on its "DEI journey in building an innovative and sustainable maritime sector which all can be proud of."
The company said in a statement that "whilst the exact cause of the incident is yet to be determined, the 'DALI' has now mobilised its Qualified Individual Incident response service. The US Coast Guard and local officials have been notified, and the owners and managers are fully cooperating with Federal and State government agencies under an approved plan."
President Joe Biden suggested Tuesday afternoon that he had directed his administration "to ensure every federal resource is available to assist search and rescue efforts and response to this terrible incident."
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Horrific accident or nefarious attack? What we currently know about the Baltimore bridge collapse
Last night around 1:30 a.m., a cargo ship departing the Port of Baltimore struck the Francis Scott Key Bridge after reportedly losing power. Upon impact, the structure immediately collapsed into the murky waters below. Thankfully, the majority of traffic was stopped prior to the accident, but a few automobiles and several contractors who were working on bridge repairs weren’t so lucky. While some have been rescued, others remain missing.
As with any unforeseen tragedy, people want to know: Was this a genuine accident? Or is there something more sinister at play?
Glenn Beck invites former Assistant Treasury Secretary Monica Crowley to discuss the incident.
“There is a very active search and rescue going on,” Monica tells Glenn. “The Coast Guard is out there; the National Transportation Safety Board is on site; the Navy is there.”
As of now, “it looks like an accident,” but it’s important to “wait for the investigation” before coming to any certain conclusions, she explains.
Considering the catastrophe is the result of alleged power loss, many people – including Glenn – can’t help but ponder the possibility of “an attack on electronics.”
“I think that, too, Glenn,” says Monica. “There is one report this morning that indicates that the crew alerted the Maryland Department of Transportation when they were leaving the port that they had lost control of the vessel.”
Those reports have since been confirmed. The crew was able to notify authorities of the power issues, and as a result, traffic was halted seconds before the collision, which likely saved numerous lives.
Regardless, “most of these vessels are under electronic control – not unlike some of our voting systems – and might very well be open to hacking by nefarious players,” Monica explains, while also acknowledging that the event could simply be nothing more than a horrific accident.
“Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar,” she says hopefully.
“I hope that's the case,” says Glenn, “but with all the cyber terror that is predicted … we're all on high alert.”
To see the footage of the Francis Scott Key Bridge’s collapse and hear more of Glenn’s commentary, watch the clip below.
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Amid bridge tragedy, Washington Post calls out Francis Scott Key as a racist
Francis Scott Key is best known for writing the poem that became America’s National Anthem: "The Star-Spangled Banner."
Key wrote the lyrics after an 1814 British attack on Fort McHenry, which is right by the bridge that has just collapsed in Baltimore this week. The bridge also happens to be named after Francis Scott Key.
Americans all over the country woke up to the collapse of the bridge this week — but the Washington Post is already calling out Key for his “racist views” in what Pat Gray believes is an obvious attempt to erase American history.
“Nobody even knows the verse they're referencing here,” Gray says.
Rather, Key was just “a patriot” who “obviously wanted America to win this war and would have been pissed about anybody siding with the British at that time.”
The verse being criticized begins, “No refuge could save the hireling and the slave from the terror of flight or the gloom of the grave, and the Star Spangled Banner in triumph doth wave or the land of the free and the home of the brave.”
“He didn’t want anyone joining the British,” Gray explains.
To make the accusation even more absurd, Key was a lawyer who defended several slaves and even freed multiple of his own.
“But, they still had to make him into a bad guy,” Gray sighs.
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