This ain't Hell, but you can see it from here

Category: Pointless blather

  • Deja Vu All Over Again

    Title is a quote, BTW.

    US aircraft carrier cruises disputed Asian seas

    A U.S. aircraft carrier group cruised through the disputed South China Sea on Saturday in a show of American power in waters that are fast becoming a focal point of Washington’s strategic rivalry with Beijing.

    Vietnamese security and government officials were flown onto the nuclear-powered USS George Washington ship, underlining the burgeoning military relationship between the former enemies. A small number of journalists were also invited to witness the display of maritime might in the oil-rich waters, which are home to islands disputed between China and the other smaller Asian nations facing the sea.

    Spent some time in The South China Sea AND with a nuclear carrier (USS Enterprise)… Not really relevant except point up that certain buzzwords have meaning.

    And I’ll admit passing fascination with a geopolitical view that places our assets in and around disputed OIL rich waters while ignoring closer assets, but that’s just me. To say nothing of dealing with a possible threat and ignoring a one that is real.  When was the last time a Chinese flew a plane into one of our buildings?

    Freedom of navigation is no trivial matter, but I can’t help but remember The Gulf of Tonkin incident .

    My apologies for being terse (or rambling) here. Reading the linked article aroused old memories that are most likely irrelevant to most, but…

  • Soliciting Your Best “Gotcha” Stories

    The last few articles I’ve written were pretty serious.  Not this one.

    Every soldier I ever knew loves a great “gotcha” – a situation when they really “got” someone who truly deserved it.  Could be a buddy, could be a superior, could be someone in another unit.  Hell, sometimes it’s a civilian or foreign national.  But “getting” someone who richly deserves it – in a humorous way that doesn’t cause permanent injury or damage – is a true pleasure.

    And it’s especially fun when the “gotcha” is apropos – that is, when you can hoist them on their own petard, so to speak.

    So I’m soliciting such stories.  Here are the ground rules:

    1.  If anyone got seriously hurt or got their career ended . . . um, no.  Probably not really appropriate.
    2.  If you committed a significant crime in getting even. . . again, probably not appropriate.  And remember:  some crimes have REALLY long statutes of limitations.
    3.  The intent is humor.  If the story isn’t funny, it’s probably not apropos.

    I’ll kick things off.  This story still makes me chuckle, even after 30 years.  It’s a true, first-person account – though after 30 years, I might be slightly off on a minor detail or two.  And no jackasses were permanently harmed while being taught a lesson. (smile)

    (more…)

  • Alright treadheads, what went wrong here.

    Ok, I am sure that a few of our readers have loaded a tracked Vehicle on a trailer. So I wonder what exactly went wrong here.

  • Makin Bacon Pancakes!

    Damn you, TSO. Just damn you. At least the kids loved them.

    Bacon1

    Bacon2

    No better way to spend the weekend than making the kids happy by doing goofy crap. Beer can chicken for dinner, anyone?

  • If You Wanna Play a Practical Joke on Your Neighbors . . .

    . . . I’d recommend you don’t try this at home.

    Randy Lee Tenley, 44, was dressed in a “ghillie” — an outfit favored by military snipers and game hunters — and standing in the middle of southbound lanes on U.S. Highway 93 near Kalispell on Sunday when he was struck twice in quick succession, Montana Highway Patrol spokesman Sergeant Steve Lavin said.

    “From what I understand, at least one of his friends said that he was trying to induce a sasquatch sighting by using the suit along the highway,” Lavin said. “This is a first for me after 20 years on the highway patrol. It’s strange.”

    With all due respect for the deceased:  “strange” isn’t the term I’d use.  Apparently The Refreshments were right.

     

  • Geezer Action Pron – A Saturday Silly

    Preface: I’m older than most here, less sane than most here, and certainly less physically able than some here to be grabbing a gun and chasing down bad guys. However, if said bad guys are foolish enough to offer a target that don’t require me to be chasing anyone – I’m game.

    While I was once (I think) tough enough to bear hunt with a willow switch I’ve come to enjoy a more vicarious life.

    That said: I do get a kick out of some of the comic book actions movies, I’ll admit, but there’s another sub-genre I call Geezer Action Pron that simply tickles me.

    Take a marginally improbable plot, toss in some elder hero types – add guns, knives, and things that go BOOM, and Viola!

    The first that comes to mind might be “Under Siege”, and/or even “Heartbreak Ridge” . Neither quite fits the spec, but… with lines like “He’s just a cook” and “you’re an anachronism” they do set a tone that jibes to me?

    Then came “Red“! This one defined the genre quite nicely.

    Then along came “The Expendables” to further refine the definition.

    And now in less than a week we have “The Expendables – 2” coming to a nearby theater. Okay so this really doesn’t need a preview OR a trailer. It ain’t “Stars Wars” or LOTR, but I’m looking forward to it!

    You folks got any suggestions I’ve missed that fit the genre?

    ETA: I was so excited I left out “Second Hand Lions“.

  • Down Time

    So we have some posts recently regarding the normal media groupthink about military and extremists, ie. Jonn’s posts about the portrayal of the Sikh temple shooter and now the white supremicist asshat that said his chain of command was fine with his swastika flag (cough, cough, BULLSHIT)

     

    In my spare time I’m a swim coach, as a kid my sport of choice was swimming.  So I hear about a video the US Swim team did lip syncing to Carly Rae Jepsen’s “Call be Maybe” and I set out to find it to post on the team website….then I run across this….I’m now waiting to see if the Ranger Up crew has something in the offering a la Katy Perry!

    WARNING: If you don’t have a sense of humor, leave now!

  • Just Curious? A Sunday Silly.

    This doesn’t really fit here at TAH, but this place has some of the more astute and erudite readers around so please forgive the audacity.

    Thesis: Same sex “marriage” is currently a genetic dead end. Cloning and/or other future technologies may change that, but it IS currently a dead end.

    And set aside any religious convictions for now, if you will. Although it might be said that in parts of the world certain religious zealots have demonstrated a willingness to emphasize the “dead end” aspect with enthusiasm.

    Here’s my question: How many wives should one man have? I’d argue that genetically it makes far more sense. And in some parts of the world, etc.

    I find the idea intriguing, if a bit frightening.

    What say you?