Dear Rhonda and Doug

Dear Rhonda & Doug. I like country music, I really do. I do NOT like having to listen to it from YOUR stereo system through the walls of my place. All. Day. Long. I tried calling your phone, but according to Verizon Wireless it’s been disconnected. I tried your landlord. I knocked several times on your door, but you wouldn’t answer even with your dog barking between knocks.

Tuesday morning I am going to the District Court and ask for a restraining order for nuisance behaviour. I shouldn’t have to do that. Neighbors should be neighborly. Lord knows I have tried to be a good one, but I freely admit I’m human and have my faults too. I sometimes go out to get the mail wearing shorts, flip flops and a muscle shirt. It’s the residual redneck in me, I suppose. I also like mayo instead of ketchup with my fries. I drink PBR and Bourbon. Call it a weakness.

I’ve also resisted complaining about the drunken screaming matches you two carry on every few days, nor about the dog howling when you leave it locked up when you go out. I haven’t complained when you come home drunk, and the dog gets out and you spend the next two hours (after midnight) hollering up and down the street for it to “get it’s ass back here right now”. I guess I should’ve known what to expect when you moved in and I saw those huge honkin’ speakers and all that Salvation Army furniture.  Hell, I could write a country song from just what I’ve learned about you two. Probably a whole album.

But the best part? I probably will write that song, and hopefully it will sell like hotcakes. If I make some money, the first thing I’m going to buy are headphones. For you.

A Republic, If You Can Keep It.

I have been a follower of  “Dean’s World” for a few years now. I haven’t commented in some time there, though I lurk and read his thoughtful and well-written posts. He has some excellent commenters, too, which is why I rarely post there anymore, as they seem to say what I would have said so why clutter up the comments section with repetition? But I digress.

His latest post is an excellent consideration of the state of our nation, vis-a-vis economic influence on government, and the duties not just of our citizens, but especially of our elected officials to see to our nation’s health. With privilege comes responsibility. Here is the money quote, for me at least:

I think it is high time that we acknowledge that we do not just have “rights” in this country, we also have duties to it. Whatever you have, then either visibly or invisibly, it is this society, which includes this government, that has made it possible for you to do that. As a citizen you have not just rights under our Constitution, but duties under it, as do our elected representatives. Once again such sentiments would not have been controversial in conservative circles a generation ago, though they are often seen as high heresy now.

If you have a few minutes, grab a cup of coffee, or a dram of whiskey, and read the post. It’s thought-provoking, and I agree completely with his conclusions.

N.B.  Dean writes to say that he has rewritten that paragraph I quoted, and rather than edit mine, I will include the revision verbatim.

“I think it is high time that we acknowledge that we do not just have “rights” in this country, we also have duties to it. Whatever you have, then either visibly or invisibly it is this society, which includes this government, which has made it possible for you to obtain it. As a citizen you have not just rights under our Constitution, but duties under it, as do our elected representatives. Once again such sentiments would not have been controversial in conservative circles a generation ago, though they are often seen as high heresy now. So perhaps some rethinking is in order, and I am relieved to see stalwart conservative organs like NR and TWS edging back toward that. It’s needed.”

Again, the article is a good read, and worth your time to ponder.

respects,

"The most sublime word in the English language". R.E.Lee

Basic Impetus

 

I am a wargamer. I’ve been playing wargames in one form or another since 1968, when a friend of mine brought over a set of rules by Charles Grant. We both had collected lots of old 1/72 scale Airfix plastic toy soldiers and model tanks.  The rules showed us how to refight battles from WWII with them, and from that day forward, I was hooked.

There are many forms of wargames, from computer simulations, to games played on maps with cardboard counters, to battles with miniature toy soldiers on table tops. It’s the latter that I’ve spent most of my hobby time with. Though almost any era can be modeled and games, what interests me most are Ancient period games, specifically the period of 100BC to 100AD, and up to the 7th century with the wars of Justinian and Byzantium.

Although there are many sets of rules published for gaming in this era, the one that I’ve finally settled on is entitled “Impetus”.  It combines an easily-understood and fast-playing game system with a visually appealing basing system for the miniatures.  In this system, the size of the base upon which your miniatures are mounted is standardized at 120mm frontage, or side-to-side.  The depth of the base, or the front-to-back distance, is variable and can be adjusted to your needs as you see fit.

What this does is allow you to make each base a small vignette or diorama, if you wish. The modeling possibilities are endless. One nice aspect here is that the number of miniatures per base is not important. You can use as few or as many as you like, although some heavy infantry units, like Macedonian pikes, or Germanic/Celtic hordes are best represented with large numbers of figures per base. Skirmish troops like Greek Peltasts, Cretan Archers, etc, can use only a handful of figures per base and thus represent their loose, open formations.

Impetus regards each base as a separate, individual unit. Thus, it represents a number of actual soldiers, and not the number of figures mounted upon it. The system uses 6-sided dice, simple game mechanics, and can be expanded through the use of various modifications for many different eras. Best of all, there is an introductory set of the rules entitled “Basic Impetus” which is available as a free pdf download.  I encourage folks who might be interested in the game to download the rules and give them a read.  If your interest is piqued, you don’t have to go whole hog and purchase a bunch of miniature figures, paints, brushes, etc. You can just draw out and cut some bases from matte board, cardboard or foam core and write on them what each represents, then try out the rules solo or with a friend.

In future posts, I’ll discuss the rules, the various figure scales that wargamers use, painting and basing techniques, and how actual battles can be recreated in miniature. It’s a wonderful hobby, encompassing a huge set of demographics, and gamers and clubs may be found all over the world. As a way of introducing kids to history, math, art and strategy, I can’t think of a better hobby than wargaming.

28mm scale medieval troops based for Impetus

Ron Paul: Read My Lips

I believe that Ron Paul has the right to run for any office he chooses to. I also have the right to NOT vote for him, and to state that, in my personal opinion, he’s bat shit crazy. If Ron Paul is the answer, then it’s a damned stupid question.

Having said that, this video is priceless, as it pretty much sums up the truth about Ron Paul. Anyone with more than 2 functioning brain cells who supports this man ought to have their right to vote stripped away permanently.

The Holidays And All That

AW1 Tim’s Blog is going on hiatus until the first of the year.  I’m a single parent and a homeschooler, so things get busy at this time of year. Additionally, I’m dealing with a couple of health issues that, while not critical, are still serious enough that they need to be addressed in the near future.

I can’t thank you enough for stopping by to see what’s up and what I write about.  I’m actually humbled by the number of folks who stop by, even though they aren’t commenting.  That’s fine. My blog is like my front porch. Everyone’s welcome to stop and chat, the only folks who get booted off are the traveling salesmen.

I’ll also be adding a couple of new subjects this coming year. I’ll be going further into two of my hobbies: Miniatures Wargaming, and Civil War period reenacting. There will be pictures, PLUS, this site will be undergoing a partial redesign as an actual website.

So, please accept my humble and sincere thanks for visiting, and my wish to all who read this of a wonderful holiday season, and a joyous and prosperous new year.

We’ll be back in a couple weeks.

Brothers In Arms

There is a bond that forms between those who served.  It doesn’t matter where, or when you served, which branch, or anything else.  The fact that you stepped up, raised your hand and took the oath is what matters.  Whether you were in the front lines taking fire, or back in the states slinging hash on some post, the fact that you answered when the nation asked for help sets those who served apart from those who didn’t. That’s not a slight on those who never served, no sir.  What I’m saying is that the shared experience amongst veterans is unique, and lasting.

For some, those bonds grow into a love that time, distance, or even death cannot break.  Knowing that those around you have your back, and you there’s, day after day, that you can count on them as they count on you, turns you into a family with ties as strong or stronger than those of blood and birth.

We’ve all lost friends. It’s a dangerous profession. The scars of those losses are as real as those caused by physical wounds.  the scars from those will heal, but the others, not so much. It is said that time will heal all wounds, but in truth, the bleeding never stops, it only lessens for awhile, to return with some sound, or image, or scent, or any of a thousand triggers.

What does help, for me and for so many, is to tell the stories of those wounds, to remember the brothers we lost. It’s cathartic, if only for a time.

Over to This Aint Hell,  Doc Bailey tells such a story. You should read it, because it’s from his heart, and because for those who haven’t been there, it’s a window into the soul of those who have.  Read it, and read between the lines.  God bless the Corpsman, and all who bring the better angels of our nature to those times of darkness.

NOT Just Another Day

 

A Green Navy, But At What Price?

I did a post a few days back about Paul F. Foster, the US Navy’s experimental ship and how it’s been used to successfully demonstrate the ability to run on bio-fuels for an extended period.

This morning, CDR Salamander has an excellent post about the US Navy’s long-term plans for developing and using Bio=Fuels for the fleet.

That piece is here:  Go read it all, and if you don’t have CDR Salamander on your blog roll, you ought to.

Quote:

I never really got all that worked up about the quasi-political “Green Navy” pet project by the SECNAV. Afterall, I like concept demonstrations on a small scale to try things out. Bio-diesel isn’t a new concept for anyone.

The Navy seemed a little silly getting all worked up about it – kind of like the teenager who thinks they discovered s3x – but that is OK; I gave us the benefit of the doubt as I have a bit of a weakness for the Knight-Errant vibe of it all.

That was then; this is now.

We have huge problems with our budget. We are impacting the lives of thousands of our Sailors because we claim to be in a money crunch. In times like these, any normal organization has to take a serious look at where it is spending its money. You have to get rid of most all “fun to have” and get rid of or scale back the balance of “nice to have.”

The Navy’s experiment with bio-diesel was interesting in a way – behind the technology curve and a bit blinkered – but worth a demonstration just to confirm that military systems can do the same thing civilian systems … silly, but OK.

Now, I’m afraid, it is out of control. It has become a vanity project, tone-death to the financial crunch that the actual operational side of the military is under. It just jumped the cost-benefit shark.

 

For the record, AW1 Tim is not at all opposed to the US Navy taking the lead in new fuels, new technology. If we can do it well, and do it for the same or less than current fuels/tech, then have at it, as long as their is a stable logistical tail and source for it.

What I AM opposed to ios the US Navy being used as a petri dish for ever social welfare/engineering/tech/whatever experiment that some congress critter or administration hack gets up their skirt.

As the good CDR rightly points out, these are times of austerity, which is amazingly naive and terrifying given that we are in a war. A real honest-to-goodness shooting war.

I am glad our Navy can do this, in one sense, because it totally pisses off the greenies and causes no small amount of hand=wringing when the Navy actually does what they are only preaching.  For example, the MV Esperanza, flagship & showboat of Green Peace, still runs on fossil fuels, despite all their own “green” energy experimentations.

In Defense Of Liberty

From my good friends at “The Jawa Report” :

The Congressional Subcommittee on Counterterrorism and Intelligence, of the House Committee on Homeland Security, will meet today, 6 December 2011. The meeting will take place at 2:00 p.m. in room 311 Cannon House Office Building.

The hearing is titled “Jihadist Use of Social Media – How to Prevent Terrorism and Preserve Innovation.”

A live feed to the hearing may be found here:   (Link to live video)

It’s about time that we as a nation understood that, although our elected leaders and it’s media enablers may naively believe that we are not at war with Islam, it is abundantly clear that Islam is at war with us.  Islam, despite the protestations of organizations such as CAIR  and it’s sycophants. is not a religion of peace, nor does the word “Islam” mean “peace”. Islam literally translates to “submission”.

Islam has been at war with everything not named Islam for some 14 centuries. It demands conversion to it’s tenants, or the acceptance of slavery or death for denial.  Islam is anathema to freedom and liberty. It stands starkly at odds with everything that our Constitution stands for, every principle our ancestors fought for, and must be resisted at every turn.

Jihadists and Islamists have been using our own social media for spreading their message of hate and terror, to recruit participants, and as a propaganda tool against freedom. We must deny them these resources, or we risk a continued rise in threats and actual attacks within our own nation.

Failure to actively suppress access to these media, to deal with the very real attempts to destroy our nation and enslave our people under the hellish yoke of sharia, will result in the tombstone of these United States being graven with the phrase “Died of Democracy”.

Individuals appearing today as witnesses include the following:

Mr. Evan F. Kohlmann
Flashpoint Global Partners

Mr. William McCants
Analyst
Analyst for the Center for Naval Analyses

Mr. Andrew Aaron Weisburd
Director
Society for Internet Research

Mr. Brian Michael Jenkins
Senior Advisor to the RAND President
RAND Corporation

"Stand your ground, men. Don't fire unless fired upon. But if they mean to have a war, let it begin here!"

The Future Is Now: FOB In A Box

AW1 Tim certainly appreciates technology, and although I view some things in a “is that really needed?” light,  every once in awhile something comes along that makes absolute sense.

Today’s example is the “FOB in a Box”.  This is another in the evolution of shipping containers. It is a series of support modules designed to be either built into existing containers, or built to the same specs. These modules provide food service, laundry, showers and toilets, etc. They are east to transport and, in many cases, can be set up and ready to go by two men in as little as two hours time.

From Fox News:

Forces often need to operate in areas where the local infrastructure is rudimentary at best or has collapsed. Kitchen, laundry, water and sanitation facilities are essential for forces that will be based at home but on contingency status — meaning those needing to deploy quickly.

Fortunately, the forward operating base (FOB) now comes in one big box.

The box part of these pop-ups are standard shipping containers, meaning they can be transported just like anything else by air, water, road or rail. They’re stackable too, plus they can be hoisted about and put on a pallet with a standard hook lift or maneuvered by truck and crane and then easily unveil a kitchen, bathroom and more.

 

The kitchen module is well-thought out, and capable of easily feeding 300-500 people.

A standard kitchen that can produce meals for 300 to 600 comprises four containers that can be set up by two people within ten hours. It can be augmented with two additional containers to feed 500 to 1,000 — and by modifying it with six containers it can feed 3,000 soldiers.

What does a pop-up kitchen look like? All of the interior walls, including the ceiling and floor, are stainless steel providing compliance with hygiene requirements in style.

Forces often deploy to areas where contagious diseases spread by viruses, micro-organisms and parasites pose a threat. These kitchens in a box tackle this problem with UVC and air-optimization systems.

UVC, ultra violet radiation or UV light, disinfects water, air and surfaces prevents microbes from breeding by damaging the genetic material. Some microbes can evolve to resist chemicals and antibiotics; UVC solves the resistance problem.

 

I think that this is a great idea, and it tags along with my own idea of building ship=borne self-defense modules for commercial vessels. I have been saying, since the time we were reflagging Kuwaiti tankers in the Gulf, that a self-defense system designed to fit into 1-4 cargo containers could be designed and mounted easily onto the deck(s) of commercial shipping vessels and provide support for dealing with small attackers, such as pirates.

These new support modules for FOB are also a great idea for any sort of emergency deployment operation, such as disaster relief, where large numbers of people may need to be taken care of. Medical clinics, small surgical and dental set-ups, as well as bunk rooms for support personnel could all be built into these containers and shipped via truck, train or plane to where needed and be ready for use in an extremely short period of time.

Well done.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2011/12/02/military-base-in-box-all-rage/?test=faces#ixzz1fP3pQLso

A chef prepares a four-course meal for up to 3,000 soldiers in a kitchen in a box -- one that can be assembled anywhere in just a few hours.

Navy Abandons It’s Honored Dead

A disturbing and infuriating situation has arisen.  Apparently, under the “leadership” of  CDR Renee Richardson, USN – head of the Department of Defense Prisoner of War/Missing Personnel, the US Navy has decided NOT to repatriate the bodies of US Navy sailors interred in Tripoli. These men were sailors from USS Intrepid who lost their lives in an attack against the Barbary pirates.

From “The Intrepid Project”

 

United States Navy Master Commandant Richard Somers was one of the first officers to enlist in the new Navy at the turn of the 19th Century. The young officer and his men fought gallantly in America’s first naval war against the States of North Africa. He died with his 12-man crew of the USS Intrepid on September 4, 1804 while engaged in a secret mission during the Battle of Tripoli.

Today the first Navy commandos lie abandoned in mass graves in a foreign land.

When their bodies washed up on the shores of Tripoli, the bashaw – the king of the pirates – invited a pack of dogs to devour them as American prisoners of war looked on. These 13 naval heroes remain buried today in mass graves in Libya.

This nation has ample resources to repatriate the remains of these brave sailors to their United States, and see them buried with full military honors. Yet, our own Navy, under the leadership of CDR Richardson, has chosen to abandon their bones to the soil of a foreign land, a land that has, more often than not, been hostile to our nation.

That this slight to these sailors should take place should not surprise anyone who has seen the demise of tradition and honor under recent CNO’s.  Those Navy leaders placed diversity above warfighting, and have chosen to expand their own “diversity enterprise” at Millington while discharging competent Petty Officers from the fleet to “trim the budget”.

This Navy has chosen to also abandon the former USS Olympia, the last surviving warship of the Great White Fleet to it’s likely demise of either being sent to the breakers, or sunk at sea.

We are throwing good money down the black hole of shipbuilding on such un-needed and inefficient platforms as LCS & DDG-1000, yet we can’t find the funds to bring a few good men home.  Big Navy has more admirals per sailor than at any point in our history, more staffs and Make-Work commands than ever before, yet we can’t save USS Olympia, the last of her kind.

CDR Salamander has an excellent piece about this, and I encourage all of you to take a few minutes and read his article. When you’ve finished, call your Congress Critter(s) and give them a piece of your mind regarding this situation.

The men of USS Intrepid have lain in foreign soil long enough. It’s time to bring them home.

USS Philadelphia, previously captured by the Tripolitans, ablaze after she was boarded by Stephen Decatur and 60 men and set afire, making their escape in the ketch Intrepid, depicted in the foreground.