Open post for those with something to share, updated through the day. New, complete posts come in below this one. Note: If trackbacking, please acknowledge this post in your post. That's only polite. You're advertising here, we should get an ad at your place...
I'm busy. Go for it. -The Armorer.
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Project Valour-IT update! -Fuzzybear Lioness
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Read this article about Vietnam Vets, both military and civil service, going to Iraq to help make a difference.
Also this morning, Bin Laden vows never to be captured alive. The world shrugs and wonders what gave him the impression we were interested in his living after the last hellfire missile attack on Zawahiri's purported position. Also see links at same post for other AQAM (Al Qaida Affiliated Movements) recent statements. - Kat
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Eric B. sends us this link to the guys at My Science Project, who run their own tests with a 28-gauge shotgun to assess whether the police report and most media reports of the L'Affaire Cheney et Whittington jive with reality. Their conclusion? Yes. Update: There is a dissenting opinion, well, at least methodological argument.
An interesting analysis by Francis Fukuyama of Neoconservatism and the Bush Doctrine as implemented in Iraq. Andrew Sullivan in support. Roger Simon and Joseph Knippenberg raise a caution flag on Fukuyama. I'm chewing it over.
Ooo! Ooo! The Flea seeks a home worthy of being the East Annex of the Arsenal of Argghhh!
What it takes to be a Good Democrat.
Les Jones on the change in buying power from 1975 to 2006.
Mr. Completely is seeking people with any knowledge about antique shotguns one of his readers owns. Any help would be appreciated.
*This* is a kewl picture. Okay, Bubbleheads - what type/whose izzit?
While I'm still chewing over Fukuyama ,et.al., Cassie is done chewing. And she sums a good chunk of it up in a new word... impugnity. Priceless!
Oooo! More Chinese Gun Pr0n! -The Armorer
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*A term of art from the artillery. Harassment and Interdiction Fires.
Back in the day, when you could just kill people and break things without a note from a lawyer, they were pre-planned, but to the enemy, random, fires at known gathering points, road junctions, Main Supply Routes, assembly areas, etc - to keep the bad guy nervous that the world around him might start exploding at any minute.
Not really relevant to today's operating environment, right? But, it *is*
The UAVs we fly over Afghanistan and Pakistan looking for targets of opportunity are a form of H&I; fires, if you really want to parse it finely. We just have better sensors and fire control now.
I call the post that because it's random things posted by me and people I've given posting privileges to that particular topic. It's also an open trackback, so if (Don Surber uses it this way a lot) someone has a post they're proud of, but it really isn't either Castle kind of stuff, or topical to a particular post, I've basically given blanket permission to use that post for that purpose. Another term of art that might be appropriate is "Free Fire Zone".
Bin Laden crawled out of his cave for that earth shattering event? Like we care if he is 'alive?' I can't call living in caves, on the run, knowing half the world is after your a$$ dead much of a life, let alone being alive.
addendum to my thought balloon: It would be a mistake to get complacent and while I know we don't get complacent, we as citizens have a duty to never forget.
To take a quote from a movie.
Bin Laden: I would rather die
Jon The Mechanic: THAT CAN BE ARRANGED!!!
Well, being a huge proponent of cruel and unusual punishment.....I want him captured alive and kept alive. Maybe kept in some kind of glass box at Ground Zero so he can watch Americans carrying on with their lives and prospering and enjoying freedom. (No, no pig's blood or bacon.)
$C&E;#! ObL. Kill his lieutenants one and all. Kill his planners and the people who pass out his orgs money to carry out ops. Fetishizing on ObL is like killing Nelson after his plan at Trafalgar had been initiated---didn't help the Spaniard/French fleet one iota. $^%*%&&#!!! ObL. He's just the face. Killing him or capturing him won't change the effect he has on recruitment much. How many crazy racists didn't become crazy racists because of Ruby Ridge? Killing Che didn't help---he's even more useful as an attractant to radical politics now that he'sdead. Kill the networks---that's what's really important in my tremendously amatuer and unqualified opinion.
[pats PG-17 on the head]
Tell us how you *really* feel Ry. Don't hold anything back!
Heh. ANd to think I have as much say in how the country works as anyone else(and believe it or not some people actually WANT my opinions on things---and no, they aren't psychiatrists Chief). Scary thought, no?
Ref the Bubblehead pic: Teddy the K visits the Bombay Sapphire factory...
Sub photo: Los Angeles? Only thing in 'Submarines of the World'(short day, wheeee) that looks like it has planes on the sail that large. (Of course it's wrong! When have I ever been right around here?)
I dunno either, Ry. That's why I asked the Bubbleheads!
I love the "my science project" guys! They RAWK!
Ha!
I read that Fukuyama piece yesterday and my head (weekend migraine notwithstanding) fairly exploded! I purposely didn't read anyone else's take on it because I didn't want to know, but Roger Simon's was exactly the same as mine: what the heck is the hurry? It's like his only criterion was our that our prior plans supposedly were too optimistic so the whole grand experiment is a failure.
What a ridiculous standard for a war. I ran out of time this morning - I'd have liked to devote more time to him. But maybe it wasn't worth the effort.
Geez, the squids go conspicuously absent whenever you need them for something. The SWAG on the sub is Russian, Delta IV. Just something going on at the nose--uhhh--I mean, *bow* of the boat that triggered some synapses...
you're gonna have to walk me thru this one Chief. I'm not seeing anything 'interesting' on the bow of this sucker.
I'm not seeing that dsitinctive ridge aft of the conning tower that's the missile storage of a Delta(stressing, *I'm* not seeing it. My eyesight is way worse than yours. Are you seeing it? Anyone else seeing it?). The planes on the tower fit the right locations for the Russkie boat, but I'm not seeing the 'hunchback'.
I'm thinking more a U.S. Permit class boat, based on the large fairwater planes that seem fairly close to the top of the sail. I'm putting it up on my board and at Ultraquiet No More to see if anyone else has a better idea...
J.M. -- Xia? That thing never goes to sea...
Can't be a Delta. This boat is too small and it doesn't have the large humpback for the missle doors.
My vote is Austrailian Collins Class sub. Those have a pretty blunt/round nose for the sonar dome and topside Fwd of the sail goes straight out and stops. The U.S. boats slope down to the nose.
ET1/SS
My guess is the HMS Gotland or a Collins Class sub designs from the Kockums shipyards. Hard to tell the scale but it looks like sail planes placed forward on a long sail, maybe flat superstructure above rounded hull below the waterline. White outline on bow could just be sea salt at rounded bow waterline. I say the Gotland because she is currently operating with the US Navy and that could be the Photo's source. But I'm still just guessing. - LL
The Gotland's sail planes look a tad anemic compared with the ones on the Whatziss sub. Focusing on one detail isn't the best way to go about it, but the Ohio class comes close...
Han class probable, although the new Type 093 and 094 are supposed to be doing trials now. Xia was the other guess as it has supposedly been renovated recently.
Cheers
JMH
You know, the bubbleheads looking at a submarine from that angle have some really bad depth control problems.
You could ask the P-3 guys.
But then they might say it can't be a submarine because there's no green flare...
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