Happy Veterans Day

from an old fat retired squid. Thanks for your service, be it 2 years or twenty.

Today In History

1942: The US Navy's Battle of Midway winds down as surface fleet combatants move to disengage, the Japanese lost four carriers to the American's one. Yorktown was under tow on the 6th, expected to once again be salvaged, when she was discovered and attacked by a Japanese submarine; she was lost early the 7th.

As the Navy's battle wound down the Marine's battle was just beginning; Marine air elements began to engage the remnants of the Japanese fleet on the 6th. These battles were the first large-scale Allied victories against the Japanese juggernaut and although hard fighting was yet ahead they signaled the beginning of the end of Japanese dominance in the Pacific.

1944: D Day invasion of France at Normandy; the allies landed on Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno, and Sword Beaches beginning at 6:30 AM, establishing beach-heads for continued operations and sustaining 4,414 casualties by the days end. This is the largest amphibious operation in history to date, and if God is merciful it will be the largest one ever.

Every day we lose more and more of these men, and the world is left poorer by their passing.

And finally, I would be remiss at this time if I did not acknowledge the last of the Navajo code-talkers, Chester Nez, who passed on the 4th at the age of 93. Well done Marine, Semper Fi.

Egon Crosses the Streams

and the world is a less funny place.

Thanks for everything Harold, say hello to Elvis.

St Brigid

Patron saint of sailors, bastards and other low-lifes (for some reason Daughter wanted to know who the patron saint of sailors was and I thought the answer was funny).

And now off to bed with my drunken ass, where I probably should have been before posting this...

Tam Gets Her Gun

Evil Black Shotgun, that is.

Yeah, I'm late. Shut it.

Let The Fun Begin

Boy and I landed in NoVa around noon and got checked in early, then went to get something to eat. Afterwards we took a quick look around and then settled in for a few hours before meeting the crowd for dinner.

As I pulled up to the restaurant I mentioned that, having never met any of these folks before, I really didn't know how I was going to recognize any of them. About that time I noticed the Dodge 4x4 with the Massachusetts plates and suddenly I knew how I was going to know where everyone was.

I can now say that I am not the only person on the planet that doesn't know Old NFO, so that mission at least is accomplished. I can also place faces to names for Bubblehead Les, Dr. Mike and of course the infamous and previously mentioned Massachusetts Madman himself.

We had a bit of pasta, discussed plumbing issues, had a little birthday party, and then went to the home of Our Lovely Hostess for a show-what-ye-brung. I think for sheer numbers JayG wins, which is why he said he didn't bring his convertible (as he admired mine, and dammit I really need to get my FXR running again). We also formulated a plan for setting up the range and repairing the aforementioned plumbing issues, then started the BS session. These folks have lived interesting lives.

We will be up early for a 9 AM muster to put the plans in action (remember what they say about plans and first contact), so I'm off to bed. I'll make an after action report in the morning.

End of an Era

The President, the Pope, and now the Prime Minister.

They were instrumental in bringing down the Evil Empire, and now they are gone.

Farewell Lady Thatcher. Britain, and the world, is a poorer place today.

Curious

Speaking of conspiracy theories...

CSM Plumley

Departing.

Fair winds and following seas Command Sergeant Major.

Aw, Damn

Thanks Neil. You were a hero whether you wanted to be or not.

Olympic Gold

Congratulations to all our Olympians, particularly the winners of the skeet shooting competition.

Kim Rhode took gold with the record breaking score of 99 out of 100. Additionally, she is the first American Olympian to win five medals in five consecutive Olympics. Gold medal and two records? Way to go!

Vincent Hancock not only took the gold, but once again set a record with an incredible score of 148 out of 150! Well done!

Not to be outdone, swimmer Micheal Phelps has also set a new record, winning 19 medals overall. Previous record holder Larisa Latynina, a gymnast who won 18 medals while representing the Soviet Union in the late 50s and early 60's, says she is happy for him.

I am, too.

RIP

Sally Ride, first American woman in space and at the time the youngest astronaut to boot.

Adventurer, pioneer, role model, taken too soon at 61 from pancreatic cancer.

Yet another reason to hate that f*cking disease.

Fair winds and following seas Sally.

Finish Line

Thanks Caroll. It was one hell of a ride.

(I had to put a picture of the Dodges. Everyone else is doing Fords.)

Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I’ve climbed and joined the tumbling mirth of sun-split clouds, – and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov’ring there,
I’ve chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless falls of air...
Up, up the long, delirious, burning blue
I’ve topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace
Where never lark, nor eer eagle flew –
And, while with silent lifting mind I’ve trod
The high, untrespassed sanctity of space,
Put out my hand and touched the face of God.

Fair winds and following seas Captain.

End Of An Era

Florence Green, the last WW1 veteran, has gone to her final muster.

Godspeed Mrs. Green. Thank you for your service.

Birthdays

John Moses Browning (PBUH) and Correia 2.4 both had birthdays yesterday, number 157 for St John and Year Zero for Correia 2.4.

And just when you thought it was safe, Tamera K keeps up the press.

Go say Hippo Birdy before it's too late.

Between

Have they flown to some new Weyr
Where cruel Threads some others fear?
Are they worlds away from here?
Why, oh, why, the empty Weyr?

Anne Inez McCaffrey, 1 April 1926 – 21 November 2011

I Did Not Know This Man

but he was well regarded by those who's opinions I have learned to trust.

If indeed the true mark of a man is the number of lives he has managed to touch, then William the Coroner was indeed a man among men.

Rest well William. Fair winds and following seas.

Where Do We Get Such Men

As promised.

On 15 September 2011 SGT Dakota Meyer, USMC, was awarded the Medal of Honor for service as set forth in the following citation:

Corporal Meyer maintained security at a patrol rally point while other members of his team moved on foot with two platoons of Afghan National Army and Border Police into the village of Ganjgal for a pre-dawn meeting with village elders. Moving into the village, the patrol was ambushed by more than 50 enemy fighters firing rocket propelled grenades, mortars, and machine guns from houses and fortified positions on the slopes above. Hearing over the radio that four U.S. team members were cut off, Corporal Meyer seized the initiative. With a fellow Marine driving, Corporal Meyer took the exposed gunner's position in a gun-truck as they drove down the steeply terraced terrain in a daring attempt to disrupt the enemy attack and locate the trapped U.S. team. Disregarding intense enemy fire now concentrated on their lone vehicle, Corporal Meyer killed a number of enemy fighters with the mounted machine guns and his rifle, some at near point blank range, as he and his driver made three solo trips into the ambush area. During the first two trips, he and his driver evacuated two dozen Afghan soldiers, many of whom were wounded. When one machine gun became inoperable, he directed a return to the rally point to switch to another gun-truck for a third trip into the ambush area where his accurate fire directly supported the remaining U.S. personnel and Afghan soldiers fighting their way out of the ambush. Despite a shrapnel wound to his arm, Corporal Meyer made two more trips into the ambush area in a third gun-truck accompanied by four other Afghan vehicles to recover more wounded Afghan soldiers and search for the missing U.S. team members. Still under heavy enemy fire, he dismounted the vehicle on the fifth trip and moved on foot to locate and recover the bodies of his team members. Corporal Meyer's daring initiative and bold fighting spirit throughout the 6-hour battle significantly disrupted the enemy's attack and inspired the members of the combined force to fight on. His unwavering courage and steadfast devotion to his U.S. and Afghan comrades in the face of almost certain death reflected great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and the United States Naval Service.

Corporal Meyers has since been promoted to Sergeant.

Thank you, Sergeant Meyers.

US Navy photo

I Deserved That

In this post I took a swipe at one of the good guys just to see if he was awake.

He was.

And now it's time for me to walk it back some.

I don't have the temperament to be in law enforcement. I know that about myself.  I don't have the patience to deal with people as a general rule, and that's one of the several reasons I didn't take up the offer to join one of the countless police forces across the country when I retired from the Navy.

I'm better off dealing with machines. Machines are predictable and they follow the script, and when they don't you can figure out whats wrong, fix it, and they're back on point. People, not so much.

Most of us are going to have very little interaction with the police, and for the most part when we do it is going to be the mark of a bad day.  That means that usually the guys (and gals, can't forget them) in blue don't get to see us at our best.

Just like all of us have bad days, they are human, too, and they have bad days as well.  It's the bad days that get caught on tape and put on the news.

Yes, there are bad cops out there, but for the most part I believe that the men and women who are out there answering the call are good people. We never hear about them because we aren't likely to comment on a positive interaction, only on the negative ones.

So here's to the good guys. Thanks for being there.

(And besides being one of the good guys, Wyatt has excellent taste.)