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

Category: Who knows

  • Gimme Yer Worst – Update

    Decided I’d post an update here regarding the “Gimme Yer Worst” article and my request for reader input.

    Cutoff will be 2000 EDT (8PM US Eastern Time) today.  I’ll look at whatever is posted by then.  Please post your suggestions in the comments to the original article – not here.  (I’ll also consider any suggestions posted in the comments to  TSO’s original USO non-update update article.)

    I won’t be doing a “1-to-whatever” ranking of the suggestions.  The only way I could do that reasonably would be to run a poll like TSO does for the SVT.  I frankly don’t yet know how to do that, he’s out of pocket, and I don’t have enough time to figure it out on my own this weekend.

    So what I plan to do is to “bin” the suggestions myself into categories.  As of now, I’m going to “bin” your suggestions into 4 categories:

    1. Non-qualifying entries  (if any)
    2. Bad, but just not bad enough
    3. Really bad, but have some value (humor, etc . . . . )
    4. Spectacularly bad – the Playlist from Hell

    I might come up with another category or two, but these are the 4 I’m leaning towards now.

    We can argue about the lists after they are posted.  Make a good argument to move an entry and I might change my mind.

    I’m shooting for early Monday AM to have the entries binned and the lists posted.  That will mean I have a chance to spoil your breakfast twice.  (smile)

    Again: please post your suggestions in the comments to the original article – not in the comments here.

  • It’s Friday – Gimme Yer Worst!

    Well, TSO’s non-update update on the great USO brouhaha got me to thinking.  And you know that means I’m about to wander off the reservation – again.  (smile)

    The “music video” – if you can call it that – that TSO provided in his non-update update about the USO brouhaha was one of the worst pieces of . . . musical junk I’ve ever seen or heard.  (WARNING:  most of the links in this paragraph are to video clips of songs so bad they may spoil your breakfast.  Viewer discretion advised.)  But so was Twist’s “Banana Song”.  And I humbly submit that the “blast (of flatus) from the past” I provided was God-awful-bad, too – as was the even worse-sound but apparently later video by the original artists (in spite of the eye candy in the newer video).  And there are a couple of other . . . interesting items in the comments, too.

    So I’m asking for TAH reader input here.  What in your opinion is the absolute worst song you’ve ever heard – or seen and heard on video?  I’m talking stuff that is want-to-put-bleach-in-your-eyes-and-jam-a-pencil-in-your-ears-after-seeing-the-video God-awful bad.

    Some ground rules:

    1.  A representative video or audio clip of the song must be available on the Internet.  A verbal description of bad just is not sufficient.  Everybody needs to be able to hear and/or see for themselves what bad looks like.

    2.  Provide a link to said audio or video clip.

    3.  Be at least semi-serious.  Don’t get “cute” and post links to a sister-service’s song (Anchors Aweigh/Off We Go Into the Wild Blue Yonder/The Army Song/The Marine’s Hymn), a rival school’s alma mater, the former Soviet national anthem, or anything like that.  We’re talking about really bad songs, irrespective of politics or rivalries.

    4.  Multiple submissions are OK.  But if you put more than a couple of links in a single comment, the spam filter may flag and filter it.  Best to go with no more than 2 links per comment.

    5.  Foul language alone doesn’t qualify a song, nor do lame lyrics.  So don’t send in something just because its lyrics are foul/lame/obscene – unless it’s just so bad overall as to qualify as being musically obscene as well.  Ditto marginal or even bad performances of an otherwise decent song – it needs to be spectacularly bad in that case.  (And if you do post a link to something with foul language or nudity, please include a “NSFW” warning).

    6.  Submissions must be generally accepted as actually being music.  Bad verbal monologues, comedy bits, sound effects, or non-musical acts don’t qualify.  This means some of Pink Floyd’s early work (and similar things) won’t qualify; an example would be “Several Species of Small Furry Animals Gathered Together in a Cave and Grooving With a Pict“.

    7.  Finally:  bad covers of The Star Spangled Banner are off-limits.  Yeah, there have been some legendarily bad covers of the national anthem, and yeah – the melody possibly isn’t the finest, musically speaking, on earth.  But IMO as the national anthem it has a special status and is deserving of a bit of respect.  So don’t submit any covers of the national anthem – no matter how bad.

    . . .

    OK, those are the rules.  Gimme yer worst!

    And who knows – if the resulting “playlist from hell” turns out “good” enough, maybe the folks at Leavenworth can put it on a continuous loop on the TVs in Hassan’s and Manning’s cells. (smile)

  • General Dempsey:”our population of military-age young men, who qualify for the military, is declining”

    That is the reason that the restrictions on women in combat arms is being challenged. Not even joking.

    When the Pentagon said earlier this year that it would open ground combat jobs to women, it was cast in terms of giving women equal opportunities in the workplace — the military workplace.

    But the move has practical considerations, too. The military needs qualified people to fill its ranks, and it’s increasingly harder to find them among men.

    “It’s fairly common knowledge that our population of military-age young men, who qualify for the military, is declining,” Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey said in an interview with NPR just after the Pentagon announced that women no longer be excluded from ground combat jobs.

    I am confused I thought that we are actively reducing our numbers and not the other way around.

    Too many potential male recruits have criminal records, drop out of high school or have drug problems. In addition, the rising obesity rate is also a factor.

    Yet this was not a issue with Iraq and Afghanistan troop surges were in place? I do not understand this at all, it should be easier not harder due to the fact that the recruiting pool is about the same size and quality it was in 2003. Oh and this is a great little gem.

    “Recruiters anecdotally will have fewer issues with a female applicant than they will with a male,” says Kathleen Welker, who is with the U.S. Army Recruiting Command at Fort Knox, Ky.

    Really because it seems that both genders can bring a equal amount of drama to the table. More about this later.

  • SOFREP: “The Shooter” was not “the guy”

    You’ve all read that “the Shooter” who got bin Laden has been left out in regards to his medical benefits, but mostly because he didn’t do his research before he left the military. Well our friends at SOFREP say he wasn’t the shooter, either;

    One story coming out of Joint Special Operations Command is that the Esquire “shooter” isn’t the shooter after all. To be clear, he wasn’t the point man that put the well placed rounds into UBL’s head that ended the terrorist leaders life. Sure he was there, and deserves credit but he wasn’t the man who shot UBL, and ended his life. And this is an important fact that must be clarified.

    The actual shooter at Naval Special Warfare Development Group (NSW DEVGRU or SEAL TEAM 6) has continued to maintain his professional integrity and has not come forward with the story, and most likely never will. Looks like Esquire and Bronstein are the ones who are really screwed, not their interviewee; our sources say he’s off cashing large checks from unsuspecting donors who bought the Esquire pity piece.

    The story continues that “the Shooter” was advised to keep his trap shut while he was still on duty, he was also asked to continue his service – obviously, things he didn’t take into consideration before interviewing with Phil Bronstein and Esquire.

    Now I wasn’t there and I don’t know, I’m just repeating stuff here. When I talked to Don Shipley, he said that it was likely “the Shooter” was the guy, but no one who wasn’t there knows for sure, so…make up your own mind given all of the noise.

  • ‘Olympus Has Fallen’ director a proud patriot

    The Washington Times reports that the director of the new movie “Olympus Has Fallen”, Antoine Fuqua, is something of a rarity in Hollywood – a US patriot;

    “That flag is supposed to represent freedom,” said director Antoine Fuqua last week in an interview with The Washington Times. “So why not wave it?”

    “I hear people sometimes say some negative things. ‘Eh, America’ —” Mr. Fuqua said, making a dismissive sound. “I just call bull on it. I’m patriotic. This country gave opportunity to everybody. It’s supposed to be the melting pot of the world. The flag is a representation of that.

    “There’s nothing wrong with being patriotic. People sometimes get so cynical — they’re like, ‘Ah I don’t want to be patriotic because it’s not cool.’ I think it’s bull. My kids have grown up here. We have freedom here.”

    The bad guys in the movie are North Koreans, which is kind of Hollywood’s go-to bad guys, but Fuqua says they could just as easily been Iranians. I kind of wish they were, because the North Koreans aren’t all that realistic. I don’t think they could find the White House with a GPS. Regardless, if we’re willing to boycott certain Hollywoodians for their views, I think it’s just as important to flock to the theaters for their opposite numbers. But, then I’d planned on seeing it anyway – the trailers looked pretty good.

  • Friday Afternoon Funny

    Both videos are short.  First is probably NSFW or children.  Enjoy.

     

     

     

    Guess we now know why the old song said “Tie Me Kangaroo Down”.  (smile)

  • I Think I Finally “Get It”!

    Why the Navy seems so odd to everyone else, that is.

    It’s simple.  They think and look at the world differently.

    Here’s an example.  In any sane world, room 5D22 generally is next to (or maybe across the hall from) room 5D23.

    On a ship – or in a building laid out by a Navy contractor – it’s often completely on the other side of the ship or building.  That’s called the “even/odd rule”.

    Also, decks above the main deck are levels, not decks – even though they’re decks.  Decks including and below the main deck – those are decks.  And the main deck may or may not be big one that’s open to the air (it’s not on a carrier).  And so on.

    Once you realize that, why the Navy seems “different” to everyone else all starts to kinda make sense.

    You nautical types are kinda weird, but we love you anyway. (smile)

  • A Big Company Gets One Right

    You see large companies do stupid things all the time – things that make no sense, and which alienate the public.  And I have to say I’m not a particular fan of Delta Airlines based on some experiences I’ve had with them.

    But once in a while, a big company does manage to “get it right” when they didn’t really have to.  And recently, IMO Delta did exactly that.

    A Delta flight was recently delayed in Knoxville.  It was delayed for 3 hours.

    The local manager decided to comply with FAA regulations to feed passengers in such a situation in a rather unusual manner.  He arranged for 60 Pizza Hut pizzas to be delivered to the plane.

    The pizzas were delivered directly to the plane.  On the tarmac.  With a police escort.

    Needless to say, this went over quite well.  The only “complaint” was no beer to go with them (I’m guessing FAA regs prohibit serving alcohol until the plane is in flight).

    Kudos, Delta.  One of your people certainly got one right.