A little bit of this, that, and a return to blogroots.

Since the sailors didn't seem interested... here's a link to an article about the Battle of Midway... Pictures from the Battle of Midway

Oops. Spanked.

John- Guess you still haven't found my Midway post from June 3 or CDR Salamander's from June 2 here. We Navy guys don't miss much, and Midway was one of the greatest sea victories of all time, although even the Air Corps got involved by attempting to bomb the Japanese fleet with B-17's...

Eagle1

Did someone say B-17s bombing?

And, Leagle, go *that* far back? Into the Archives? Geez, dude, blogs! We're blogs! If it ain't on the front page, it doesn't exist, except via Google! Or some such weak excuse, anyway.

Staff Officers, Commanders, Project Managers, CEOs, CIOs, IT Admin types, helk, just about anyone anywhere everywhere who haven't already seen this elsewhere and who has ever been in an organization of more than 20 people (and some with less) will appreciate this requirements brief. Some caveats - it's a powerpoint show, and if you believe that any Microsoft Product via the Internet is the Embodiment of Evil - don't download it. If you have sensitive ears, don't bother, as it's only funny with the sound on - but it is *chock full* of NOT WORK SAFE language. Earphones recommended, or low sound. Unless, like me, everyone in your local cube farm sends you stuff like this all the time anyway... including your corporate and government bosses....

With those warnings out of the way - Requirements Brief.

Just cuz' I'm feeling mean - I've got one and you don't! Now to sit back and see who in the readership trumps me and how long it takes... toys you use at work count, if you can use 'em for your own stuff...

Come to think of it - I bet you don't have this, either. A tabletop full of WWI grenades.

What the heck, let's roll with this. How about some old IEDs?

Left, Polish grenade from the Warsaw Uprising. Right, german concrete 'stock' mine. The cylinder in the middle is an original wax paper wrapper and label for the TNT charge that was inserted into the stock mine.

Here's another pic showing the bottom of the stock mine. The hole is where the TNT went, and usually (but not always) a wooden stake. Stock mines were commonly used as booby traps. They were made of concrete, many times with ball bearings embedded to improve fragmentation effects. They could accept a variety of fuzes, this one having a booby-trap pull fuze.

The Polish Home Army hand grenade was made with a pre-war Polish fuze, and whatever materials and explosive filler was at hand. This is a heavy sucker - definately for defensive use (i.e., thrown from cover).

All inert, of course! No placards at the Castle. We keep all that stuff over at the Firebase (but don't tell SGT B).

Snerk! I mean, like, y'know, everybody at DU *knows* that the BushChimp is an idiot, right? His grades at Yale prove it, right? Hee hee hee. Under the Yale system, Bush had a 77 (through his junior year, after which the scale changed). His oh-so-bright opponent? 76. Perhaps that's why Kerry didn't want his records released, as his transcript is a part of his records. I personally don't get that wrapped around grades. Of course not - mine, for my undergrad work, aren't a heckuvalot better. But I *test* well!

Another article on his records is here. For the moment, I guess we're going to have to trust the Globe that there are no new revelations (I was interested in the paperwork regarding his discharge) and take that at face value. If we've got any readers who were Naval officers of the period, I'd be interested in an opinion on the wording of the recommendations that the Globe quotes. In the Army, as I'm sure is true of all the Services, we have code phrases that allow us to 'damn with faint praise" but still sound nice. "One of the most outstanding junior officers I have served with" could mean, "he's fine, promote him with the others," while "One of the most outstanding officers I have served with," means "Promote Yesterday," with 'junior' being the code word to mean, "good kid, needs seasoning." I'd be interested in the take on that aspect of Kerry's reports.

Given what is thus far reportedly in the records, I'd say Kerry should have rolled with the punch about his grades and released 'em during the campaign. But mebbe I'm missing something, with my tin political ear. It wouldn't have helped him with me - he still fails the 'leaving combat early' test.

Michelle Malkin has more.

For a Lieutenant of the '80s, this is an interesting read. Any Russians at Graf during my time over there would have meant the 79th ITB had turned me and my guys into hamburger...

Changing subjects again, I've had chats with Wilcox (and, indeed, have published his brief on this site with his permission -right click, open in new window). Those of you who are 4th Gen Warfare fans will enjoy this article. The fight continues.