Flyby PC

Wow....... Davis–Monthan Air Force Base. - Check it out on Google Earth. (It's not spying, they're junk).

There's 'used' and 'used'. Used to fight, and used for leverage. I point you in the direction of Roosevelt's attitude towards Churchill in the early years of WW2 when Britain was crying out for escort ships, and the 99 year leases on bases. Nice to know who your friends are in times of need.... No offence meant by the word junk, I only meant to imply they weren't operational aircraft which the USAF might not want you looking at.

Well done Spain! And well done South Africa! Mind you, all that money and expense, when we could have got the same result but saved all the bother just by watching Paul the octopus getting fed. Anyone know if Paul does the Olympics?

OK, last one... Mary Mary quite contrary, how does your garden grow? With cockle shells and silver bells, And pretty maids all in a row. Sounds harmless enough eh? Except of course that Mary was actually Mary Tudor, daughter of Henry VIII, or Bloody Mary. She was a staunch catholic, (contrary to protestant faith), and the gardens referred to are the graveyards she filled with protestants. It gets worse, silver bells was a nickname for thumb srews, and cockleshells was a similar nickname for similar instruments of torture which, well, didn't go on your thumbs shall we say....but would certainly make your eyes water. And pretty maids? Well, in the early days, the guillotine was called a maiden. Read the rhyme again. - Kinda changes things a bit...

This is Alfred Lord Tennyson reading his poem on a wax cylinder in 1890. - http://charon.sfsu.edu/tennyson/lightbrigadewax.html I've also just read the last survivor of the charge died in 1927. This isn't bad either - http://www.archive.org/details/EDIS-SWDPC-01-04

This opens the door to nursery rhymes too. While it's disputed, most people attribute 'Ring a ring of roses' to be about the black death. A pocket full of poses was to mask the smell of death, and defeat the 'miasma' (foul atmoshere that spread the disease). Atishoo atishoo we all fall down... The three blind mice are reputed to be the three Oxford Martyrs - 3 Oxford Bishops burned at the stake for their beliefs by Elizabeth 1. This is also disputed, because the martyrs were burned, not blinded, and cutting off their tails is obscure. Baa Baa Blacksheep stems from a medieval wool tax. Some claim the tax was a third for the Crown, a third for the Church, and one for the poor shepherd. (One for the Master, one for the dame or Virgin Mary, & one for the little boy who lives down the lane), The reality was the tax wasn't that tough, but between 5 and 10%, but duties were split between the crown and church. Humpty Dumpty wasn't somebody fat or an egg, but a heavy Royalist cannon mounted on the ramparts to defend St Mary's Church, Colchester during the English Civil War. The parliamentarians damaged the wall supporting the firing position and put the gun out of commission. It was too heavy for all the kings men & horses to put back together. Want more? - Read on. But beware, some stories are more convincing than others. http://www.rhymes.org.uk/index.htm Oranges and Lemons is worth a read, and quite a neat link back to the gallows in London....

The expression the 'thin red line' comes from the Crimean war, and more specifically, the actions of the 93rd Sutherland Highlanders. In 1854, the British held the port of Balaklava, but it was very weakly defended. A Russian force of 25,000 sought to retake the port, but advanced first with their heavy cavalry. The massed charge was at first met by the bold and reckless British Heavy Brigate under James Yorke Scarlet, but the remainder fell upon the Sutherland Highlanders in line formation 2 men deep. When the Russian charge fell upon them, they held their line and with two volleys of fire managed to repel the attack. The quote in the Times newspaper was - "The Times correspondent, W. H. Russell, who standing on the hills above could clearly see that nothing stood between the Russian cavalry and the defenceless British base but the "thin red streak tipped with a line of steel" of the 93rd. Condensed almost immediately into "The Thin Red Line", the phrase has survived to this day as the chosen symbol of everything for which The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders believe themselves to stand. Asked why he had been so unorthodox as to receive a cavalry charge in line instead of in a square. Sir Colin Campbell said; "I knew the 93rd, and I did not think it worth the trouble of forming a square." That's where the expression comes from. Scarlet's charge is worth a second mention - Sorry, it's a Wiki reference, but ok I think.... "As the Heavy Brigade was crossing broken country a numerically superior Russian cavalry force appeared at the top of the heights. They poured over the skyline, down the slope towards Scarlett's brigade, beyond which lay Balaklava, and the site of the action known as the Thin Red Line of the 93rd Highlanders, which had routed a previous Russian charge that morning. Scarlett quickly and coolly assembled his men at the foot of the heights, organizing them into parade-perfect formation, and sounded the charge. This maneuver defied all military doctrine at the time, as the Russians were more numerous and, more importantly, the charge was made uphill against an oncoming force. As astounded onlookers watched from the rear, Scarlett's red-clad Heavies, including members of the Inniskillings and Scots Greys (of Waterloo fame), drove into the centre of the grey mass of Russians, causing the enemy formation to collapse completely. With their charge broken, the Russians were routed and the British forces could claim another victory on the day". This incident is packed with drama and emotion, because in this action, the seeds were sown for the infamous charge of the light brigade. The Heavy Brigade's spectacular charge and the 'thin red line' had rattled the Russian force, and had Cardigans Light Brigade chosen that moment to attack their enemy in complete disarray, as Captain William Morris of the 17th Lancers strongly urged his superior officer to do, it is highly likely the whole Russian force would have been routed. This inaction, or perhaps indecision, created division and argument and could have contibuted to the dreadful failure in communication which led directly to the infamous charge of the Light Brigade. - A history I would urge you to read about for yourselves.

I'm sure I've said it before, but being sent to Coventry is an expression used when somebody is shunned for having done something wrong. It's origins are set back in the times when cities were closed, and tradesmen had to be given the freedom of a particular city in order to work there. If you misbehaved, it was a very big deal, and often you wouldn't be permitted to work in that city. Coventry however was an open city, where the craftsmen's guilds were more liberal, and errant tradesman could still make a living there. Hence the expression being sent to Coventry. Robbing Peter to pay Paul is another stonemason's term. Stone, or some say money, meant for St Peter's cathedral was diverted to pay for St Pauls. You're 'robbing' from one cathedral just to build another. Getting the third degree is supposed to be level in the masonic order, and quite a demanding level I presume. Similar phrase is 'all square' or 'all right' (angled). A chip off the old block I read once (though not convinced) concerned masons marks. Masons couldn't read or write so used tooled marks to identify their work. Often a son would adopt the same masons mark as his father, but add a chip or score to the mark to make it distinct from his fathers. The father would train him to do things the way he did them, so the son would be a very similar tradesman or a chip off the old block...... Hmmm. Maybe. Another one is keeping your nose to the grind stone. That's a miller's term. The best flour is the finest ground, but grind it too thin, then the millstones would create heat and burn the flour. As the flour began to burn you might smell it. Keeping your nose to the grind stone means pay close attention to whatever you're doing. A flash in the pan is a musket mis-firing. The smouldering taper fails to ignite the powder behind the ball, and all you get a quick' flash in the pan'. My favourite however is rule of thumb. That's reputed to be how you judged the correct thickness of a stick which you were allowed to use to beat your wife.

I've never seen it before. Not really sure what to make of it. An 'up close shredder' sounds about right to me, but doubtful practicality. Since it was made however, it must have worked on some level, but I'm guessing thats about it. Why 'shed' with a special gun when you can 'burn' with tracer and incendiaries from a standard weapon? I also know Remington is a US company, and while it did manufacture good quality arms for WW1 under license, (Lee Enfields for the UK and Mosin Nagants for the Russians), they only really got going when the US joined the war in late in the day. Their bigger problem was money. In 1917 the Russian Imperial Government was in the process of collapsing, but had ordered vast quantities of arms which they hadn't the money to pay for. Things got even worse for Remington when the Russian revolution took place, the Bolsheviks wouldn't honour the contract at all (disputing faults with the weapons etc). Remington was left high and dry with no money and a massive stockpile of arms and ammunition nobody really wanted. Given Remington's manufacturing experience, I suspect this machine gun probably did work, - but nobody wanted it. You could speculate that aircraft were getting more robust too... If the US Government hadn't stepped in, and the company itself diversified into sporting weapons in addition to military armaments, then Remington were on the point of going bankrupt. At the end of the most intense period of arms proliferation the world had ever seen, they only just survived, but long enough to be bought out by Du-pont (a chemical company specialising in gunpowder), in the 30's depression. (OT, but a rival of Du-pont was the British company ICI, who amongst other things were making their money developing explosives too). Along came WW2, and a massive contract to make Springfield's M1903's, and the rest as they say is history... It's a funny old world.

Sigh ..... once upon a time..... The modern Scottish teams special strength is finding the most obscure and convoluted mathematical formula for just failing to qualify. They've got a real talent for it. But sometimes, just now and then, they get it hoplessly wrong and end up qualifiying for stuff. It's ok you don't know about Scottish stuff. I watch UK television here in Scotland and I don't know anything about them either. I'd bet money if Scotland had been in South Africa, I'm sure with Scottish ingenuity you'd have got any number of bagbipes with 3 vuvuzelas sticking in the pigskin instead of the normal 3 drones. 2 to make the noise, and the third to smuggle alcoholic contraband into the football ground. It's a bit like our Rugby. We used to have a national network of amateur teams and leagues which produced an international squad which could compete on the world stage. Thankfully we've destroyed most of that now and nowadays ship in professional ex-pats to fly the flag. It's a twist on the old saying "If you can't beat them, join them". With Scotland, you can beat us and then join us if you like, just as long as you have a great, great, great Aunt Matilda who can point out where Scotland is on a map.

:grin:I have a dream.....

Don't know if you've already been here - http://www.audible.co.uk/aduk/site/audibleSearch/searchResults.jsp?N=1715&Np=-23952&Sc=-35972&Ns=P_Release_Date|1&BV_UseBVCookie=Yes Some good stuff.....

Wow. I've read the book and knew it came from actual recordings, but didn't know they were online. Audio books can be excellent. They make a nice change to music to listen to while you're working, although not for everybody. I have some stuff on my Ipod, 1984, Sherlock Holmes, and also some 50's radio shows lie the Saint & Bulldog Drummond etc. You don't listen to them all the time, but now and again they fit the bill perfectly. Only problem is the Ipod can pick them randomly when playing music, so you get the odd random chapter out of context. I'd never thought about WW1 stuff. Hmmmmm..... Here's the link to the radio stuff... http://www.radiolovers.com/ Only strange thing I find is I can read a good book over and over again, but to listen to an audio book twice is harder work somehow.

I reckon the winner of Argentina / Germany will go all the way. Kiss of death though. Fancied Italy for a while, (before the tournament), liked the look of Portugal for a dark horse, but they just didn't turn up against a poor Spain. Poor old Joachim. Try claiming that one didn't cross the line. Nobody has really set the tournament on fire, but Brazil looked very wooden. (Didn't see the Dutch game though). Favourite goal so far was Italy's Fabio Quagliarella's goal against Slovakia. Worst moments are the two red cheating cards. Kaka got one, and I forget who got the other... I'd have dumped the Ivory Coast out the tournament for that carry on. The other incident will come to me.... Costa. Portugal/Spain.

This is the ad I best remember... I was gutted when B Cal went down. As a kid I always reckoned that would be Scotland's national airline come the revolution.

Stealth version. - Happens all the time.

Very early prototype. The sergeants in the mess had a competition about what they could build with some bits of wood, a pot of glue and bits of string.

Hmmm. Think I prefer the new de Havilland myself...cough! cough!

Mosquito's are never off topic.... That excellent video is one of Tochy's - http://www.k4.dion.ne.jp/~suppon/ If only he had an interest in WW1......

It may never catch on in the US, but at the same time, there are starving penniless kids in Africa who make their own footballs from plastic bags. Love it or hate it, football is a global sport and here to stay.

Ha ha ha ha! Love it. There isn't one of these for bagpipes is there?

Is 3D the new Virtual reality, or has VR fallen by the wayside? Trackir already gives you sense of 3D, since you can lean to the side and look down the aircraft with a reasonable sense of perspective, but beyond that, I'm not sure how enhanced you flight experience will be with 3D images. VR on the other hand, once your head is inside the action and everywhere you look is game or sim generated, would be something a bit more special. Still, one step at a time....

Should have given him Irn Bru. He'd have broken down the door himself and hunted down the creep who'd left him to die. Ditto the happy ending though. Good story.

I just don't think it's been handled very well. We work with stone, and from time to time we see the results of mindless vandalism. Spray paint, especially if it's fresh, is reasonably easy to get off provided the substrate is sound. (If it's very porous, you're in trouble). Apply the right chemical to break down the paint and wash it all away. Most paints take a day to harden, so get it early and it's gone. I think the whole situation would have been better handled if the paint was removed within hours of it's discovery, and the issue kept quiet. Of course the idiot should be found and the circumstances addressed, but exposure in the media only does two things. First, it gives air time to extremist views, (even when there's no actual connection to the event, they just adopt the outrage to force their opinions up the agenda). Second, it distresses friends, comrades and relatives of the dead, and in my opinion quite needlessly so. I don't think they have to know the graves were attacked. Who benefits from that? Hysteria just doesn't help. I was taught to believe it's better to walk softly, but carry a big stick. Get done what needs to be done, but do it quietly. No messing about, no compromise, no fuss. Clean it up, find the culprit if you can, and get the quiet tranquility restored before any needless distress is caused. On a tangent, but related, it is a similar attitude with derelict properties. If vandals attack the property and break a couple of windows, you should have them repaired as soon as you can, and do so repeatedly. If you don't repair the broken ones, they'll return and break them all. If you do repair them however, and quickly, the vandals know 'somebody' still cares for the building. They also recognise that 'somebody' who is motivated to repair the damage quickly and efficiently is likely to be equally motivated and efficient in stopping the damage happening in the first place. Odds are high they may take it upon themselves to take whatever steps may be necessary to identify and catch the vandals in the act. Since vandals invariably prefer weak and defenceless targets, the gutless wonders will usually move on and make someone else's life a misery. It's just my opinion mind. I'm full of respect for the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

Nazi slogans on WW1 graves? In Pink? Why pink? Can't imagine it was Hitler's favourite colour. Do you think he meant it or maybe the pink looked like red in the dark? I do hope they catch him. (Something tells me it won't be too difficult). Biggest shock to this fella's system would be exposure to education. Either that, or embracing his human right to unfettered self expression, have TWAT tatooed to his forehead in nice big letters so at least the rest of us can see him coming, and the fella himself would have a constant reminder he'd been TAWT his lesson every time he looked in the mirror. I am assuming of course this fella actually is a twat, and did this for fun, if 'fun' is the right word to use. I do hope it isn't a desperate cry for help from some ex serviceman tortured by PTSD or broken by some equally destructive state of mind. For me, that would reshape the landscape quite a lot. And when you begin to look at it that way, you start to hope this was just a stupid kid. Let's maybe just wait and see how things unfold...