Something Old, Something New...

Well, today was take a PHD to the range day...

One of my project scientists decided he wanted to go shooting, so I invited him out to the range. Now he IS both a mathematician and an acoustician, so he's a pretty smart cookie, and actually has pretty good common sense and people skills...

Anyhoo, we met up at FRGC, and spent about 20 minutes going over the four rules, next we went down to the rifle range, and I brought out the M-4 to let him try that, and see what his skill set was. I checked the zero on the TA-31 and it looked good, so I had him do a dry fire load, then gave him a Barney Fife mag and let him load, trip the bolt, and fire a round. He did all those well, so I let him have a 30 rounder of 55gr to shoot off. He didn't do too badly at 100 yards off the bench, but he was complaining all the shots seeming to be going high left. Now I thought it might have been the difference with my eyes/zero and his eyes/aim point, but that wasn't true.

The interesting part, if you look at the 100 yard target below, is the rounds inside the orange square are 69gr shot offhand. The rounds to the upper left are 55 gr shot offhand with the same aimpoint!

I've never encountered this before, so any comments are appreciated. The ONLY thing I can think of, is the 55gr are "flying" differently...

Since he was doing pretty good, I brought out the "old" gun- 1962 Winchester Model 94 in 30-30. I put a couple down range to check the sights, drew up a sight picture for the Buckhorn sight for him, and he at least hit the paper :-)

His parting comment was, "This is NOT as easy as it looks on TV!" I just grinned...

Then it was off to the pistol range.

I started him on the old Ruger .22 with the same drill, dry fire, a Barney Fife, and once he was comfortable, he shot a couple of magazines. Next up was the Python, I started him on .38 spl to see how he managed the recoil and flinching, and no problems, so about a half a box of .38 later I brought out the .357 ammo. THAT got his attention! :-)

Next up was my carry pistol, C&S 1911, again same drill and let him shoot about half a box of practice ammo, then I gave him a mag of Hydroshocks. After the first round he looked over at me with the funniest expression, like whatthehellisthis??? He finished the mag and I let him finish the box of practice ammo. He did pretty well with both, but on the last mag I could really see he was starting to flinch/anticipate the recoil, so I called a halt at that point.

I shot a cylinder of .357 and a couple of mags of .45 and we called it a day.

On yeah, one funny note- While we were up at the rifle range, a couple of guys were sighting in/testing a 300 Whisper. They had the full setup including the Chrono, load sheets, et al. Since he was curious, we walked over during one of the cold range periods, and got to talking to the guys. Remember I said this guy is a PHD right? He starts asking questions like bullet coefficient, muzzle velocity, etc. and starts doing the math OFF THE TOP OF HIS HEAD!!! We all pretty much had the old deer in the headlights look when he started that... funny thing was, he was pretty much dead on with what the bullets were doing...

As we were leaving, I asked him if his wrist was hurting, he said it was and wanted to know why- Recoil my friend, recoil... :-)

On the way back, he was asking for recommendations for pistols, so I "think" it was a pretty productive day!

You'd do anything to help your kids, right???

Go over to Ambulance Driver's and read this POST. It appears Chris and Melody Byrne of the Anarchangel are the same as you and I, and they've been fighting a lengthy, tedious and horribly expensive international custody battle for several years now, and the bills are coming due. They're offering up a cookbook for donations, so if you can spare it, go help them out...

From little acorns...

Okayyyy... I'm tired of the political crap, so a little aviation history...

Not necessarily correctly time sequenced, but an intriguing story never the less.

From NAA retiree's newsletter, author D.S Scott.

Enjoy a trip back in time and wonder at what was accomplished. Quite frankly, as an aviation nut for most of my life, I'm flabbergasted at not only the humble beginnings, but the back and forth moves by some of the major players. I was lucky enough to meet Ed Heinemann at the Naval Aviation Museum back in the 70's; he was very interesting to talk to...

In aviation history, decades before geeks and nerds altered our way of life, young and gutsy aviation pioneers changed the world with their wood sticks, bailing wire, canvas and aluminum.

How many of you know that in 1910, mighty Martin Marietta got its start in an abandoned California church? That's where Glenn L. Martin with his amazing mother Minta Martin and their mechanic Roy Beal constructed a fragile biplane that Glenn taught himself to fly.

It has often been told how Douglas Aircraft started operations in 1920 in a barbershop's backroom on L.A. 's Pico Boulevard . Interestingly, the barber-shop is still operating.

The Lockheed Company built the first of their famous Vegas' in 1927 inside a building currently used by Victory Cleaners at 1040 Sycamore in Hollywood.

In 1922, Claude Ryan, a 24 year old military reserve pilot, was getting his hair cut in San Diego, when the barber mentioned that the 'town's aviator' was in jail for smuggling Chinese illegals up from Mexico. Claude found out that if he replaced the pilot 'sitting in the pokey,' that he would be able to lease the town's airfield for $50 a month - BUT he also needed to agree to fly North and East - BUT not South!

Northrop's original location was an obscure So California hotel. It was available because the police had raided the hotel and found that its steady residents were money-minded gals entertaining transitory male hotel guests.

Glenn Martin built his first airplane in a vacant church, before he moved to a vacant apricot cannery in Santa Ana . He was a showman and he traveled the county fair and air meet circuit as an exhibitionist aviator. From his exhibition proceeds, Glenn was able to pay his factory workers and purchase the necessary wood, linen and wire. His mother, Minta and two men ran the factory while Glenn risked his neck and gadded about the country. One of his workers was 22-year old Donald Douglas [who WAS the entire engineering department]. A Santa Monica youngster named Larry Bell [later founded Bell Aircraft] ran the shop.

Another part of Glenn Martin's business was a flying school with several planes based at Griffith Park , and a seaplane operation on the edge of Watts . His instructors taught a rich young man named Bill Boeing to fly. Then, Boeing bought one of Glenn Martin's seaplanes and had it shipped back to his home in Seattle At the same time, Bill Boeing hired away Glenn's personal mechanic. Later, after Boeing's seaplane crashed in Puget Sound , he placed an order to Martin for replacement parts.

Still chafing from having his best mechanic 'swiped,' [a trick he later often used himself] Martin decided to take his sweet time and allowed Bill Boeing to 'stew' for a while. Bill Boeing wasn't one to 'stew' and he began fabricating his own aircraft parts, an activity that morphed into constructing entire airplanes.

A former small shipyard nicknamed 'Red Barn' became Boeing Aircraft's first home. Soon, a couple of airplanes were being built inside, each of them having a remarkable resemblance to Glenn Martin's airplanes .. that, interestingly, had its own remarkable resemblance to Glenn Curtiss' airplanes.

A few years later, when the Great depression intervened and Boeing couldn't sell enough airplanes to pay his bills, he diversified into custom built speed boats and furniture for his wealthy friends.

After WWI, a bunch of sharpies from Wall Street gained control of the Wright Brothers Co in Dayton and the Martin Company in L.A. and 'stuck them' together as the Wright-Martin Company.

Wright-Martin began building an obsolete biplane design with a foreign Hispano-Suiza engine. Angered because he had been out maneuvered with a bad idea, Martin walked out taking Larry Bell and key employees with him.

From the deep wallet of a wealthy baseball mogul, Martin was able to establish a new factory. Then his good luck continued, when the future aviation legend Donald Douglas, who Glenn persuaded to join his team. Quickly emerging from the team's efforts was the Martin Bomber, the Martin MB-1.

Although too late to enter WWI, the Martin bomber showed its superiority when Billy Mitchell made everyone mad at him by sinking several captured German battleships and cruisers.

In Cleveland, a young fellow called 'Dutch' Kindelberger joined Martin as an engineer. Later, as the leader of North American Aviation, Dutch became justifiably well-known.

Flashing back to 1920, Donald Douglas had saved $60,000, returned to L. A. and rented a barbershop's rear room and loft space in a carpenter's shop nearby. There he constructed a classic passenger airplane called the Douglas Cloudster.

A couple of years later, Claude Ryan bought the Cloudster and used it to make daily flights between San Diego and Los Angeles . This gave Ryan the distinction of being the first owner/operator of Douglas transports. Claude Ryan later custom built Charles Lindbergh's 'ride' to fame in the flying fuel tank christened: The Spirit of St. Louis .

In 1922, Donald Douglas won a contract from the Navy to build several torpedo carrying aircraft. While driving through Santa Monica 's wilderness, Douglas noticed an abandoned, barn-like movie studio. He stopped his roadster and prowled around. That abandoned studio became Douglas Aircraft's first real factory.

With the $120,000 contract in his hand, Donald Douglas could afford to hire one or two more engineers. My brother Gordon Scott had been schooled in the little known science of aviation at England 's Fairey Aviation, so he hired Gordon.

My first association with the early aviation pioneers occurred when I paid my brother a visit at his new work place. Gordon was outside on a ladder washing windows. He was the youngest engineer. Windows were dirty. And Douglas Aircraft Company had no money to pay janitors.

Gordon introduced me to a towhead guy called Jack Northrop, and another chap named Jerry Vultee. Jack Northrop had moved over from Lockheed Aircraft. And all of them worked together on the Douglas Aircraft's world cruiser designs. While working in his home after work and on weekends, Jack designed a wonderfully advanced streamlined airplane. When Allan Loughead [Lock-heed] found a wealthy investor willing to finance Northrop's new airplane, he linked up with Allan. Together, they leased a Hollywood workshop and constructed the Lockheed Vega. It was sensational with its clean lines and high performance. Soon Amelia Earhart and others flew the Vega and broke many of aviation's world records.

I had the distinct pleasure of spending time with Ed Heinemann who later designed the AD, A3D and A4D. He told me how my Dad would fly out to Palmdale with an experimental aircraft they were both working on. They would fly it around for a few hops and come up with some fixes. After having airframe changes fabricated in a nearby machine shop, they would hop it again to see if they had gotten the desired results. If it worked out, Mr. Heinemann would institute the changes on the aircraft's factory assembly line. No money swapped hands!

In May 1927, Lindbergh flew to Paris and triggered a bedlam where everyone was trying to fly everywhere. Before the first Lockheed Vega was built, William Randolph Hearst had already paid for it and had it entered in an air race from the California Coast to Honolulu . In June 1927, my brother Gordon left Douglas Aircraft to become Jack Northrop's assistant at Lockheed. While there, he managed to get himself hired as the navigator on Hearst's Vega. The race was a disaster and ten lives were lost. The Vega and my brother vanished. A black cloud hung heavily over the little shop. However, Hubert Wilkins, later to become Sir Hubert Wilkins, took Vega #2 and made a successful polar flight from Alaska to Norway . A string of successful flights after that placed Lockheed in aviation's forefront.

I went to work for Lockheed as it 26th employee shortly after the disaster and I worked on the Vega. It was made almost entirely of wood and I quickly become a half-assed carpenter.

At this time, General Motors had acquired North American consisting of Fokker Aircraft, Pitcairn Aviation [later Eastern Airlines] and Sperry Gyroscope and hired Dutch Kindelberger away from Douglas to run it Dutch moved the entire operation to L.A. where Dutch and his engineers came up with the P-51 Mustang.

Interestingly, just a handful of young men played roles affecting the lives of all Americans ..... as it initiated the Southern California metamorphosis, from a semi-desert with orange groves and celluloid, into a dynamic complex, supporting millions.

Although this technological explosion had startling humble beginnings, taking root as acorns in - a barber shop's back room - a vacant church - and an abandoned cannery - but came to fruition as mighty oaks.

The Fix is In...

Well, Sotomajor will be confirmed if you believe the LWLs...

They are already crowing about having TWO premptive cards to play, the race card AND the gender card. From what I'm hearing inside the beltway, it's already started...

Also, plan on hearing a lot about "snippets", "half-sentences", "out of context", and other buzz words as the dems machine cranks up to derail any and all opposition to Sotomajor. Although I haven't seen it, one of the LWLs that works in the office was talking to one of her friends about a "team" email she had gotten and how, "Everybody just has to stay on message to make sure nobody can counter without feeling the pain in the media, and especially push hard with any Hispanic friends to get them up in arms if there is any negative media."

What happened to selecting the best person for the job based on, oh something novel, LIKE QUALIFICATIONS???

I predict this will go ugly early in the media, driven by the left, to shut off ANY questions... sigh...

Oh @#$^&...

Well, I guess everyone has heard Sonia Sotomayor has been nominated as the replacement for Souter on SCOTUS...

All this has done is reaffirm, at least in my mind, the Lightbringer doesn't care a flip about the Constitution and is simply trying to stack the deck as much as he can! She is an average Judge, no really tough cases (she wouldn't even hear the Reverse Discrimination case by Ricci et al over the firefighter promotions, which is now at SCOTUS), she is definitely anti-gun, anti-2A, and is going to get confirmed anyway because the Dems have enough votes to put her on the court without any problems...

BUT, she is female, Hispanic, Liberal, and has a sob story background- That puts all the checks in the box for the Obamabots, so who cares whether or not she is really the best candidate? They sure as hell don't!

You can go HERE and read some of her statements and see the video of HER view of what the appeals courts do. You can go over to Texas Fred and read his post with leads to other posts/blogs.

Folks, this is, in my opinion, the first shot across the bows of the silent majority. I think the Obamabots are going to see what they can get away with on this one... How far they can push the envelope, how well the dems actually perform to get her on the SCOTUS, and prime the pump because the Lightbringer thinks he'll get to do this again and again...

I'm writing my Congresscritters, asking them to look at qualifications and agendas of this woman, because I STRONGLY believe she will hurt the US more than help it...

What you do is up to each of you, but I simply ask you to consider whether you really want someone like this interpreting/making your laws for the next 20-30 years...

Or would you rather have someone like Justice Diane Wood? If you want a female, why not get one of the best? sigh...

Banging head on soapbox now...

Memorial Day...

/Toast/- Absent Comrades! /Toast/

Drive by Blogmeet...

It was a pleasure to finally meet Snigs’ clan and J.R. Shirley today. We did an impromptu blogmeet (kinda, sorta) for lunch over in Augusta, GA. Once again I was impressed with the folks in real life, as they ALL are down to earth and VERY sharp! Snigs’ kids were probably the nicest most polite kids, and the quietest I have seen in oh, forty forevers… Of course, something about if they got out of line they were dead meat “might” have had something to do with it… Or maybe not ☺

J.R. has my admiration, simply because he teaches school- I couldn’t do that, at least not without ending up under the jail because I’d have smacked one of the back talking little twerps… J.R. did admit it wasn’t easy, but he hung in there! Now he’s on to bigger and better things.

J.R. has an interesting background, and is a shooter too! We also found out we know people in common (cue small world music)! Snigs piped up that we probably know people in common, as she was raised over in Covington, GA where some of my relatives are…

J.R. related the story of the threat made by one of his students that he posted about, and Snigs’ hubby James made an interesting observation, since he works for GA Dept of Corrections, and I think he’s right when he said he’d probably be seeing “most” of them in the near future…

It’s no wonder Snigs does as well as she does in school, she reminds me of the ol’ Steel Magnolia… All Southern sweetness and light on the outside, real pretty, but solid steel underneath, and NO qualms about doing what is right, regardless of what is going on around her. If she’s not the top graduate out of nursing school, it sure wont be for lack of effort!

I think we solved the world’s problems at least once or twice, talked guns, travel, guns, school, guns, kids, snakes, idiots… well you get the drift ☺

I had to bail early, as the Maytag man was meeting me at my place to install a new microwave (yes they DO make service calls, of course in this case, it helps that he’s a friend and I bought the original one from him in 1994…), even on a Sunday; this is because I have to go back tomorrow.

Hopefully we can do this again in the future and actually get a little shootin in too!

Seagull, Unix-Jedi, y’all missed a good one!

I really shudder to think what would happen if Snigs, Holly, Phlegmmy and Farm Girl ever get together… We’re ALL in trouble… ☺

Hell, if you throw in Alison, Breda, Brigid, CPDcopurr and Tam, they'd rule the world!!!

Memorial Day Weekend...

Why did we do what we did, and why to the Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Army do what they are doing today?

This is sworn to and recited by every member of the military. Easy to say but it takes that special dedication to enact that almost all of our military members possess when the time comes for the oath to hit one in the face with reality.

The Military Code of Conduct

I am an American, fighting in the forces which guard my country and our way of life. I am prepared to give my life in their defense.

I will never surrender of my own free will. If in command, I will never surrender the members of my command while they still have the means to resist.

If I am captured, I will continue to resist by all means available. I will make every effort to escape and aid others to escape. I will accept neither parole nor special favors from the enemy.

If I become a prisoner of war, I will keep faith with my fellow prisoners. I will give no information or take part in any action which might be harmful to my comrades. If I am senior, I will take command. If not, I will
obey the lawful orders of those appointed over me, and will back them up in every way.

When questioned, should I become a prisoner of war, I am required to give only my name, rank, service number, and date of birth. I will evade answering further questions to the utmost of my ability. I will make no oral or
written statements disloyal to my country and its allies or harmful to their cause.

I will never forget that I am an American, fighting for freedom, responsible for my actions, and dedicated to the principles which made my country free. I will trust in my God and in the United States of America

This following clip will leave an impression, especially for those of us who were there, and remember. Listen to the narrative, especially about the Marines in 1944...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xBr9cm9EWJQ

Two things-

The video did not include Bob Hope appearing in Manama, Bahrain Christmas 1991, and many do not realize the USO is still putting on tours for our military around the world. Three that come to mind that have made multiple trips to the Sandbox and Sandpit are Gary Sinese and his band, Toby Kieth, and Brooks and Dunn.

Take a moment this weekend to remember those who gave their all, literally for this country, and if you know a Veteran, thank him for his service. I "know" they will appreciate it...

That is all.

Oh joy...

Well, the Lightbringer did it again...

The cost of your car just went up by $1300 and for this you get what???

Under the changes, the overall fleet average would have to be 35.5 mpg by 2016, with passenger cars reaching 39 mpg and light trucks hitting 30 mpg under a system that develops standards for each vehicle class size. Manufacturers would also be required to hit individual mileage targets.

The only way they are going to be able to do that is reduce the size of the cars and the engines in them. I believe someone from Ford said they would downsize engines, possibly add turbo or super chargers to "boost" power when needed. Also they will have to reduce weight, which means less steel, more aluminium, and more plastic...

But...but... to make plastic it takes... Petroleum!

Sooooo, you get to buy a smaller, less safe car, with less acceleration capability, for more money, and you'd BETTER enjoy it! Cause you sure as hell aren't going to have any choices... sigh...

And this one just cracked me up!

Obama said the proposal would save 1.8 billion barrels of oil over the lifetime of the vehicles sold in the next five years, akin to removing 177 million cars from the roads over the next 6 1/2 years.

Yo, Lightbringer, this doesn't take effect until 2016, so howinthehell is it going to save 1.8 billion barrels of oil BEFORE IT TAKES EFFECT???

Oh yeah, while I'm on the subject, well more or less, where are all those "Porkulus" jobs that were supposed to be created? Hmmm?

Nonfarm payroll employment continued to decline in April (-539,000), and the unemployment rate rose from 8.5 to 8.9 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today.

In the even more stoopid category, it appears the Navy will have to forgo $450 MILLION in required maintenance on ships, submarines and aircraft in 2009 because the bill is too big...

Last time I looked, we were STILL at war with folks in combat in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Can somebody PLEASE tell me WTFO???

I'm beginning to wonder when the other size 937 shoe is going to fall on us...

Oh, a "bright" spot... Health care jobs were UP by 17000 in April. Hmmm, betting on the come maybe? After all, Daschle DID get hired by GE to head up their medical records division.

Couldn't possibly be they expect him to "lobby" the Lightbringer for contracts and money could it? Nah... the administration doesn't ALLOW lobbyists, right?

Kalifornia is going down...

Well, the State with one of the highest tax rates in the Nation is sinking under it's bad debt, myriad of costly social programs, environmental regulations and costs, and outrageous salaries and benefits packages for state workers (union of course)... AND the best case if the pass ALL the bills on the special election ballot tomorrow is they will still be in the hole something in excess of $10B THIS YEAR!!! And they are already at junk bond status for their loans, because they loan money to themselves...

From a friend in LA- "Well, the usual scare tactics ads are running; they're gonna release 40,000 criminals cause they can't afford to house them, cut 5000 teachers JUST in LA cause they can't pay em, shut down fire houses and police stations cause they can't pay em; but not one time did I hear they were going to cancel any social programs or lay off any state workers..."

"Having said that, I still think the folks out here will vote ALL the measures down tomorrow, then things will get interesting. Hey, you know anybody that wants to buy a stadium? Slightly used?"

No... Not really... Now if it was somewhere nice, I might think about it...

Ya know, it strikes me as funny that Texas, which has NO state income tax, actually has a small surplus and refused any bailout money!

One wonders if the Lightbringer will take over the state of Kalifornia and fire the politicians and sell the state to the union like he tried to do with Chrysler???

sigh...

In other news, it appears the NRA meeting in Phoenix was a great success, with record turnout!

Well, Stretch Pelosi is getting hung out to dry, now that Pinhead Panetta has fired back that yes she WAS briefed (any bets that statement was approved by the White House?), and oh yeah, she hauled ass to somewhere this weekend aboard her "personal" G-5 courtesy of the USAF (gee, didn't the congresscritters bitch at the car companies for this, or is this do as I say, NOT as I do), and has been totally incommunicado, not only on her little faux pas, but also on the state of her state...

For all you shooters, Federal is going up 20% June 1 due to increased costs of components for ammunition... dammit... And orders continue to push to the right for fill dates.

Please remember Memorial Day...

Armed Forces Day...

Today is Armed Forces Day- The third Saturday in May...

This is President Reagan's speech on Armed Forces Day in 1982. He says it MUCH better than I can.

To all those who are serving today, and those who have served- SALUTE!

One of the oldest truths in the world is that nothing worth having is cheap. And many times, the greater the good, the higher its cost. Keeping America free has cost us dearly over the centuries. Since 1776 we as a nation have lost thousands of lives and suffered thousands of injuries to guarantee our freedom.

Preserving the peace also requires the daily toil of millions of men and women who, without fanfare and glory, serve to protect our freedom and security. The men and women in our armed services are our final protection against those who wish us ill. The soldier, the sailor, the airman, and the marine in the United States and around the world are the ultimate guardians of our freedom to say what we think, go where we will, choose who we want for our leaders, and pray as we wish.

It is sad that these rights, which should belong to all people, are not fully enjoyed by most of the human family. It is sadder still that some in the world view such freedom as a threat to their right to rule over their fellow citizens, and so long as that's true, we can't afford to take our freedom for granted. It cannot survive without protection. And for their role in protecting our freedoms, we honor the members of our volunteer Armed Forces today.

Their jobs are difficult, requiring judgment, technical know-how, endurance, and in many cases exposure to danger. We ask them to put in long hours under trying conditions. Many serve far from their homes and families, prepared, if need be, to make the ultimate sacrifice for our nation. In short, they give us their all.

So, I would like to thank them today: the Army tank crew member in Germany or Korea, responsible for maintaining a 55-ton machine so that it's ready at a moment's notice; the sailor in the Indian Ocean who's been away from home for 4 months and is working 18 hours a day in a hot engine room or carrying chocks for returning aircraft; the Air Force security policeman guarding our nuclear alert aircraft in the Texas heat or the North Dakota winter; the Marine squad leader on Okinawa working with his men to provide the most efficient combat team in the world. All these people and the rest of their comrades in arms we thank today.

Humor... kinda, sorta...

Am I a sick sumbitch for thinking it is hilarious watching "Petrified" Pelosi swingin' in the wind??? I REALLY want them to hold those so called "truth" hearings, I REALLY want to see her and a few others up there under oath...

I loved the fact that "Pinhead" Pineta put out a memo over at Christians In Action today telling everyone just to "ignore" the furor, don't worry about responding and keep on working...

Anyhoo...

The US troops in Afghanistan proved they, like all military, still have a sense of humor; one of them sent this.

"YOU MAY BE TALIBAN IF..."

1. You refine heroin for a living, but you have a moral objection to beer.

2. You own a $3,000 machine gun and $5,000 rocket launcher, but you can't afford shoes.

3. You have more wives than teeth.

4. You wipe your butt with your bare hand, but consider bacon "unclean."

5. You think vests come in two styles: bullet-proof and suicide.

6. You can't think of anyone you haven't declared Jihad against.

7. You consider television dangerous, but routinely carry explosives in your clothing.

8. You were amazed to discover that cell phones have uses other than setting off roadside bombs.

9. You have nothing against women and think every man should own at least one.

10. You believe it is OK to stone a woman to death for merely being accused of adultery but considered it normal for you to rape and behead women of villages you take over.

11. You've always had a crush on your neighbor's goat.

And another reminder for Memorial Day!

Various Things...

In a few weeks, this country will be taking some time out to remember our fellow brothers & sisters who paid the ultimate cost in a distant war (both time and mileage). This coming Memorial Day, please take a minute out of your day, and say a prayer for our fallen brothers & sisters and their families. As the Chaplain reminded us just before we left for Vietnam, "In combat, there is no such thing as an atheist!"

A few things from the "old days" for your reading pleasure...

This is from a "sea story" told by a friend who was flying off the Bonnie Dick in 1967...

A Whale Tale

The Russian "Trawlers" (Russian AGI or intelligence collector) with what looked like one thousand"fishing" antennas plied the Gulf of Tonkin on a daily basis...needless to say, it was a cat and mouse game to see what havoc they could raise with our two carriers operating there 24 hours a day.

Since the U.S. government had proclaimed the waters of the Gulf of Tonkin three miles off the coast of North Vietnam and Hinan Island , People's Republic of China , to be international waters, American ships in the Gulf were bound to obey the international rules of the road for ocean navigation.

This meant that if the Russian ship maneuvered herself into the path of an aircraft carrier where she had the right of way, the carrier had to give way even if she was engaged in launching or recovering aircraft. The navigation officer was constantly trying to maneuver the ship so that the trawler wouldn't be able to get in position to abuse the rules of the road and gain the right of way.

Sometimes he was successful in sucking the trawler out of position, but the room available for the ship to maneuver was limited by our on-station requirements, and sometimes the trawler was successful interrupting our flight operations. The pilots of the air wing were strictly forbidden to take any action against the Russian ship, but on this day CDR John Wunche, the commanding officer of the heavy tanker KA-3B detachment, had finally had enough of the Russians' antics.

John Wunche was a big man with bright red hair and a flaming red handlebar mustache. He was a frustrated fighter pilot whom fate and the BUPERS had put into the cockpit of a former heavy bomber now employed as a carrier-based tanker. CDR Wunche flew the tanker like a fighter and frequently delighted the tactical pilots by rolling the "Whale," as we all called the KA-3B tanker, on completion of a tanker mission. Consequently, John 's nickname was "the Red Baron." On 21 July 1967 he proved just how appropriate that name was..

The Bon Homme Richard had nearly completed a recovery. The Russian trawler had been steaming at full speed to try to cut across our bow, and the bridge watch had been keeping a wary eye on the intruder. For a while it looked as if the Russian would be too late and we would finish the recovery before having to give way to the trawler. But a couple of untimely bolters extended the recovery and the "Bonnie Dick" had to back down and change course to comply with the rules. The LSO hit the wave-off lights when the "Whale" was just a few yards from the ramp. John crammed on full power and sucked up the speed brakes for the go-around. The "Bonnie Dick" began a sharp right turn to pass behind the Russian, causing the ship to list steeply, and there, dead ahead of John , was the Russian trawler.

He couldn't resist. He leveled the "Whale" about a hundred feet off the water and roared across the mast of the Trawler with all fuel dumps open like a crop duster spraying a field of boll weevils. The Russian disappeared in a heavy white cloud of jet fuel spray, then reemerged with JP-4 jet fuel glistening from her superstructure and running lip-full in the scuppers. The Russian trawler immediately lost power as the ship's crew frantically tried to shut down anything that might generate a spark and ignite the fuel.

She was rolling dead in the water in the Bon Homme Richards wake, the crew breaking out fire hoses to wash down the fuel, as we steamed out of sight completing the recovery of the Whale.

Needless to say, the Red Baron was an instant hero to the entire ship's company.

I originally had this forwarded to me (by hand) from another Vietnam veteran. I took a few minutes out and read it. It seems to be dead on from the way I remember the reports in the late 70s. I would hope each and every one who reads this, please think about what is said here.

These are the real, researched numbers, not hype or rhetoric. only the truth...

Vietnam War: Facts, Stats & Myths
Credit: Capt. Marshal Hanson, USNR (Ret.)
and Capt. Scott Beaton, Statistical Source

9,087,000 military personnel served on active duty during the official Vietnam era from August 5, 1964 to May 7, 1975.

2,709,918 Americans served in uniform in Vietnam.

Vietnam Veterans represented 9.7% of their generation.

240 men were awarded the Medal of Honor during the Vietnam War.

The first man to die in Vietnam was James Davis, in 1958. He was with the 509th Radio Research Station. Davis Station in Saigon was named for him.

58,148 were killed in Vietnam.

75,000 were severely disabled.

23,214 were 100% disabled.

5,283 lost limbs.

1,081 sustained multiple amputations.

Of those killed, 61% were younger than 21.

11,465 of those killed were younger than 20 years old.

Of those killed, 17,539 were married.

Average age of men killed: 23.1 years.

Five men killed in Vietnam were only 16 years old.

The oldest man killed was 62 years old.

As of January 15, 2004, there are 1,875 Americans still unaccounted for from the Vietnam War.

97% of Vietnam Veterans were honorably discharged.

91% of Vietnam Veterans say they are glad they served.

74% say they would serve again, even knowing the outcome.

Vietnam veterans have a lower unemployment rate than the same non-vet age groups.

Vietnam veterans' personal income exceeds that of our non-veteran age group by more than 18 percent.

87% of Americans hold Vietnam Veterans in high esteem. (but it's taken 30 years to get there)

There is no difference in drug usage between Vietnam Veterans and non-Vietnam Veterans of the same age group (Source: Veterans Administration Study).

Vietnam Veterans are less likely to be in prison - only one-half of one percent of Vietnam Veterans have been jailed for crimes.

85% of Vietnam Veterans made successful transitions to civilian life.

More travel stuff...

So... as usual I'm on the road. First let me wish all you Mothers out there Happy Mother's Day! Thank you for having us, putting up with us and kicking us out the door to become adults in our own right. Literally, without y'all WE wouldn't exist!

A funny overheard (along with a whole bunch of other people) outside the exchange. Family of three Daddy, Momma, and 3-4 year old little girl. Momma says to Daddy, "I could use a hot shower" (now it's in the mid-80's very little wind, better known as STICKY); little girl pipes up, as only little girls can at the top of her lungs, "Mommy, you can't take a shower with Daddy, you make too much noise when you do!" I about fell out trying to keep from laughing, and others were chuckling/laughing; as the Momma grabbed the little girl and literally RAN for their car.

What is it they say, out of the mouths of babes??? :-)

Got this in an email today, NOT good if true...

I had a doctors appointment at the local VA clinic yesterday and found something very interesting I would like to pass along. While going through triage before seeing the doctor, I was asked at the end of the exam, three questions.

(1. Did I feel stressed?)
(2. Did I feel threatened?)
(3. Did I feel like doing harm to someone?)

The nurse then informed me, if I had answered yes to any of the questions, I would have lost my concealed carry permit as it would have gone into my medical records and the VA would have reported it to Homeland Security.

I am a Viet Nam vet and 15 year cc permit holder. Looks like they are going after us vets.

And a couple of pics from the trip thus far...

Fishes :-)

These are Japanese Carp, better known as Koi. This was taken at the Hilton Hawaiian Village yesterday.

Oh yeah, just a point of interest, when we were checking in, I asked how full the hotel was, the clerk indicated they were 83% full, and expecting to be 94% full as of Monday!

So it does appear people are still traveling, just most of them are Japanese (this is one of their favorite hotels in Hawaii)

Hawaii Kai golf course- A nice little par 3 of ONLY 215 yards, into the wind... At least I didn't get wet :-)

I hope y'all have a good week!

Return to Makin Island...

This happened in 1999, and is the story of the Marines going back to Makin Island in the Gilbert Islands to recover the 19 Marines from the Second Marine Raider Battalion that were killed and buried on the island after the failed raid in 1942. This was one of the first raids against the Japanese conducted by the Marines. I have never seen ANY coverage of this anywhere. All 19 bodies were returned and buried at Arlington.

A couple of things...

A friend sent me this...

Imagine my surprise recently when I picked up a copy of the Wall Street Journal here in Japan, to find a photo of two Vietnamese former army personnel standing  in front of a sculpture in Hanoi, made from parts of American aircraft shot down during the Vietnam War on the front page.  This was the method the Journal used  to remind their readers that it was 34 years ago that America ended it's involvement in Vietnam, the war had come to an end, and the evacuation of Saigon  was completed.     I'm not sure why that photo drew my attention, nor do I know why I instinctively purchased this particular copy of the Journal.  The one thing that has been  roaming around in the back of my brain recently is the fact that it WAS 34 years ago when this all happened.  These "memories" started while trying to get out of  Travis AFB Space A recently.  While waiting to do so, I visited their base museum.  I hadn't been to Travis since early 1975 when I too, had gotten on one  of those USAF C-141's headed back to Vietnam for my third tour.  It was this trip through the Travis museum that probably made me more "aware" of the time  line.    I'm also not sure why all of this has "come back" with the viewing of this Wall Street Journal photo.  But it did, and I just "needed" to write about it and  forward the attached "item" that I saw while at Travis, which drove home the reality that this was a "long" time ago and we lived it, fortunately or  unfortunately as the case may be. 

It is also a hellva comparison between our treatment and the treatment of the kids coming home today...

Thankfully, John Q. Public is PROUD of the kids today!!! Here is the item he sent...

The Department of Veterans Affairs estimates that 20,000 Vietnam veterans have committed suicide in the wars aftermath. This figure will always bear repeating.

The greatest defeat that the United States has suffered in any war was the failure to overcome the attitude of coldness, and indifference, with which Americans shunned most of those returning veterans. Let us never forget the men and women who served our country so valiantly and at such cost in the difficult, much repudiated and unforgettable Vietnam War.

Let us now continue our journey from the center of Vietnam to back home where your country awaits you.

Some may have seen this, some may not have...

This is one of the recovery methods for the SEAL teams use... Chinook water hover (note Chinooks DO NOT have flotation)

Pretty good helo driver and pretty good boat driver too! Did you notice the crew chief taking the high road and getting out of the way? :-)

He'd done that before!

On a more prosaic front-

It appears the Obamabots tried to basically threatened one of the Chrysler investors to take twenty-nine cents on the dollar while giving the unions seventy plus cents on the dollar. It appears those investors as a whole grew some balls and told the Obamabots to pound sand. The investors are pushing for Chrysler to go into bankruptcy so they (the investors) will have a chance of getting 50-70 cents on the dollar in bankruptcy proceedings.

I hope it works... Somebody needs to stand up to them, once that happens, I believe others will do so and stop the administration from pulling this crap.

On the road (again)...

Oklahoma IS okay!!!

An update from Oklahoma.

The state law passed , 37 to 9 (had a few liberals in the mix), an amendment to place the Ten Commandments on the front entrance to the state capitol. The feds in D.C., along with the ACLU, said it would be a mistake. Hey this is a conservative state, based on Christian values...!

Guess what..........We did it anyway.

We recently passed a law in the state to incarcerate all illegal immigrants, and ship them back to where they came from, unless they want to get a green card and become an American citizen. They all scattered. Hope we didn't send any of them to your state. This was against the advice of the Federal Government, and the ACLU, they said it would be a mistake.

Guess what..........we did it anyway..

Yesterday we passed a law to include DNA samples from any and all illegals to the Oklahoma database, for criminal investigative purposes. Pelosi said it was unconstitutional.

Guess what........We did it anyway.

Several weeks ago, we passed a law, declaring Oklahoma as a Sovereign state, not under the Federal Government directives. That, for your information, makes Oklahoma and Texas the only states to do so. Guess what.........More states are likely to follow. Louisiana, Alabama, Georgia, both Carolina's, Tennessee, Kentucky, Missouri, Arkansas, West Virginia, just to name a few. Should Mississippi act, so will Florida. Save your confederate money, it appears the South is about to rise up once again.

The federal Government has made bold steps to take away our guns. Oklahoma, a week ago, passed a law confirming people in this state have the right to bear arms and transport them in their vehicles. I'm sure that was a set back for the Kennedys and Ms Pelosi.

Guess what..........We did it anyway.

By the way, Obama does not like any of this.

Guess what....who cares...were doing it anyway!

And I'd LOVE to see Perez Hilton or what ever his REAL name is take on THIS young lady...