I have been binge reading "Casca", there is an author that has picked up from where Berry Sadler had left off. I was reading a story where the eternal mercenary had taken a job with Emperor Justinian to go back to Italy to conquer what is modern italy and try to rescue the former Roman world from the Visigoths and takes part in the Battle of Taginae The backdrop of Byzantine politics and the "Green and the Blue factions" made for interesting reading. So I decided to do some research :)
The Romans were fervent followers of chariot racing. While the movie Ben Hur
provides us with a modern interpretation of the sport, the actual
events in ancient times were even more exciting, dangerous, and deadly.
Throughout the Roman Empire, from Jerusalem to Rome, people gathered to watch the racers compete.
The Circus Maximus in Rome was the largest arena in the empire.
Historians believe that it could hold 250,000 people or a quarter of the
entire population of Rome.
Ben Hur(1959) Chariot race
When Rome began to descend in importance, Constantinople began to
rise. They built the Hippodrome racetrack. Expert opinions on capacity
range from 30,000 to 100,00 people. Map of Constantinople.
Constantine the Great was the first Roman emperor to convert to
Christianity. He also became very interested in chariot races. He had
the Hippodrome remodeled to make it one of the most prominent buildings
in the city.
Head of Constantine
It was one of four buildings to frame the city’s central square along with the Senate, imperial palace, and Christian cathedral.
People arrived in droves for the races. Some even slept in the stands
to save their seats. In Constantinople, there were two teams: the Blues
and the Greens. Emperor
Constantine I presents a representation of the city of Constantinople
as a tribute to an enthroned Mary and Christ Child in this church
mosaic.
Charioteers were idolized by fans numbering in the tens of thousands.
Each charioteer piloted a chariot drawn by four horses known as a quadriga.
They raced around an oval track which was about 150 feet (almost 46
meters) wide. They frequently traveled at speeds that were not safe. Map showing the location of the Hippodrome in Constantinople.Laps were taken around the spina (spine) in the center of the track. The spina was decorated with spoils captured in war.
Maneuvering around the sharp turns at the ends of the spina
was often the cause of crashes and injuries. The horses had to be slowed
to make the turn, but they still were moving at 20 miles (32
kilometers) per hour.
The charioteers were the professional athletes of their time. They
were admired for their skill and their bravery. One charioteer could
have 10,000 fans. Ruins
of the Hippodrome, from an engraving by Onofrio Panvinio. The
engraving, dated 1580, may be based on a drawing from the late 15th
century. The spina that stood at the center of the chariot
racing circuit was still visible then. In modern Istanbul, three of the
ancient monuments remain.
One of the best-known charioteers was Porphyrius. He began racing in
the provinces and worked his way up to race in the Hippodrome. Accounts
describe him as good looking and gifted with amazing athletic abilities.
The Hippodrome races were tightly linked to politics. Leaders were constantly trying to use the race to their own advantage. The Walled Obelisk in the hippodrome.In AD 532, the tension between the Greens and the Blues was at its
highest point. At the same time, the population was upset with Emperor
Justinian after he raised taxes to pay for his recent military
victories.
After fighting commenced between the groups of fans in the
Hippodrome, Justinian had seven members of each side executed in a show
of strength designed to restore order. The Serpent Column (front) with the Obelisk of Thutmose III (back).
However, one person from each group survived the execution. The crowd
immediately rushed the two men to a church where they were given
sanctuary.
Believing that the men had been spared by an act of God, the crowds turned on Justinian and began rioting and looting. Mosaic of Justinian I.Justinian first thought to flee, but his wife, the empress Theodora,
convinced him to stay, saying that she preferred death to running away.
So Justinian sent out his troops who slaughtered 30,000 men in the
Hippodrome.
This occurred at the height of popularity for the chariot races.
Within a hundred years, the people would be distracted by wars against
the Persian Sasanids and then the Arab Muslims.
After that, the rulers in Constantinople would lack the resources to fund the extravagant races. The remains of the Sphendone.
Today, what is left of the Hippodrome is still in Istanbul. The outline of the track is still visible.
But the place of so much violence is now a peaceful park with little to remind visitors of the rich history that occurred there.
I decided to roll with this song, I remembered the first time I heard this song at a club in Germany and it was hilarious, I really enjoyed the storytelling. Granted they call it "Rap" but this was before the "Gangsta rap" took over the urban scenes. Will Smith has cemented his image as a "clean" image and that image has endured through his movie career. He is one of the most bankable men in Hollywood, pretty good for a kid that started spinning records.
The song's two major verses involve The Fresh Prince's problems with his own parents. The first one is a recollection of when he went school shopping with his whole family at the Gallery Mall, and his mother bought him a whole wardrobe of clothing that was way against his style (getting "Zips" shoes instead of Adidas, bell-bottoms, reversible slacks, etc.) and suffering the inevitable at school the first day. The second verse was of him taking the family Porsche
out for a spin while his parents were away, picking up a girl, going to
McDonald's, flooring it, getting pulled over for speeding, finding out
the girl he picked up was a runaway, getting arrested, then having his
parents come home from their vacation to bail him out and severely
discipline him on the drive home.
A few days ago, I was working on the truck, I had to replace the 3rd brake light and redo the seal around the "Halo Surround".
The Old 3rd brake light had crazing and several of the lights no longer functioned...so I replaced it
The New 3rd brake light, looks much better and you can see the seal for the Halo surround on the roof.
I also was asked to run a shotgun and Rifle range for the boy scouts this weekend and I did, first off the scouts went to the shotgun range....they were shooting the 20 gauge over and unders..
And the scouts had a good time, I forgot to bring my 12 gauge over and under so I could have gotten in some "upscale Redneck Golf" as my friend Mack likes to refer to sporting clays.
The Scouts then went to qualify in the .22 LR rifles for the rifle merit badge, it always is good to get some range time, even if you are working them....and I did get a little bit of trigger time
22LR pistol from Smith&Wessen that I brought, I put about 50 rounds thought the pistol, but the scouts showed up after Lunch so I had to shelve shooting some more...Oh well. A little bit of trigger time is a good time.
Someone had mailed a bunch of what I call loosely "kinda really fake looking bombs" to several prominent democrats and as I understand Robert DeNero got one to. I have a couple of issues with that......first off......mail bombs to people that will never open their mail.......right.....sure.....and second...the bombs looked really well.......amateurish.....fake.......stageprops......not that realistic...
And it to me looks like it is a "October Surprise", the democrats are going for the sympathetic vote....
I ran across this video from GOC and the lady that did this video is truly brilliant, The GOP needs to run this ad especially in battleground states, the tongue in cheek humor is great.
The differences between the democrats and the Republicans can be summed up in this cartoon.
I again shamelessly clipped this from "Angry Staff Officer", Like I have stated in the past My friend "Mack" turned me onto the guy. Well anyway the Military and some civilian organization used the "Mentor and Mentee" process to groom future leaders and officers. If Properly utilized, it is very effective in passing down the knowledge from the old to the young in the preparation of turning over the "Reins" to a new generation for the purpose is to preserve the organization and in turn grant a bit of immortality to the senior member. ASO uses "Star War" references to make a point, Star Wars is a great training aid for military organizations and other large groups
When the Force is Not With You: Mentorship and Star Wars
We talk a lot about mentorship in the military, but for most of us,
we don’t have a good example of what that even looks like. It’s not as
though there are mentors dropping from the sky to deliver words of
wisdom whenever we need them. No, we’re more likely to end up Googling
our questions when we get into a bit of a bind, which can often cause
more harm than good. “Siri, should I tell my battalion commander that I can’t find
those NVGs or just wait for it to come up during the next inventory?”
So, with no good real world examples of mentorship, we’ll do what we always do in these situations: turn to Star Wars.
And at first glance, the Star Wars universe would seem ready-made for
delivering lessons on mentorship given that both the Jedi and the Sith
have based their entire leadership principles off the master-student
relationship. Surely we can find some nuggets of wisdom in here to help
struggling Army officers figure out how to find or be a mentor.
You’d think so, but instead we find a cautionary tale on the dangers
of mentorship when the overarching system of belief is deeply flawed and
rife with opportunities for mismanagement. So, operating under the
philosophy that one can learn just as much from poor leadership as from
good, let’s take a look at how not to be a mentor. Communication and Integrity
We can just hit this one right out of the gate. For all relationships
between mentors and mentees, open and honest communication is key. Both
need to be able to trust that the other is going to share the truth to
them, even if it is the truth to the best of their knowledge. Without
trust, the relationship has no foundation. Which is why the Jedi
relationships always seemed to break down. Whether it was Qui Gon Jinn
lying to the Jedi Council about Anakin, Anakin lying to the Obi Wan
Kenobi about what he was up to, or Obi Wan and Yoda lying to Luke about
his paternal background, truth was usually absent from the room if there
were Jedi in it. Mentors and mentees need to build a solid foundation
of trust and open communication. Mutual Trust and Respect
Following up on integrity is the concept of mutual trust. It has to
go both ways for mentorship to be even remotely effective. If your
mentee suddenly takes off in a spacecraft to run after every threat that
surfaces and ignores all of your weary advice, well, no amount of
mentorship in the world will resonate with them (also, they might just
be opening up to the Dark Side). With no respect between parties, you’re
going to find that there can be no growth – only resentment from one
party towards the other. Resentment can lead to broken relationships,
the death of the Younglings, and basically the overthrow of the entire
Galactic order. So, be careful. Experience
For effective mentorship to happen, the mentor needs to have a
certain level of experience or education that exceeds that of the
mentee, otherwise the whole thing is pointless. Which is why assigning
Anakin Skywalker a Padawan apprentice was just a horrible idea; it was
like assigning a second lieutenant another second lieutenant as a
mentor. Sure, Anakin had “experience,” but most of it came at the cost
of common sense and high levels of risk, disguised as “opportunistic
adventuring.” Similarly, the type of experience is important. Yoda had
been absent from actual field operations by the time that he mentored
Luke, so it was a bit like the Army Chief of Staff reaching down to tell
a private how to clear a room. Commitment
No matter what, both the mentor and the mentee need to be committed
to the relationship. Whether that means taking the time out of a very
busy schedule or committing to not force choke the military officers
under your command, commitment is vital to the success of the endeavor.
That also means overlooking the mistakes of those that you mentor,
realizing that mistakes will happen on the road to improvement (refer
back to not force choking people). For example, if you sense darkness in
your apprentice, maybe don’t stand over them while they’re sleeping
with your light saber activated. Instead, talk to them about it in the
morning when you’ve both had some coffee and can confront the family
secret of grandpa being a mass-murdering Sith lord. As one does. Control
While a mentor and mentee are most often of differing ranks, there
should not be an element of control in the relationship. After all, the
mentor is simply sharing lessons learned and life experiences. The
minute that they attempt to use their rank to influence their mentee,
then the relationship has been compromised. The Jedi Council operated
entirely on the principle that as long as they could control their
members, then they could control the Galaxy. This flawed assumption led
to their ultimate downfall. Similarly, the Sith mentor exercised total
control over their mentee. However, since there could only ever be one
master and one apprentice – due to arbitrary rules from Sith Human
Readiness Command – this more or less worked out until one or the other
got killed. This had a tendency to backfire, however, when the
apprentice became emotionally involved with someone else. When Emperor
Palpatine tried to exercise full control over Vader against Luke, Vader
killed him. When Lord Snoke tried to get Kylo Ren to kill Rey, Kylo
killed Snoke. So, basically, don’t try to control your mentee.
I am doing better since my "bout" with the kindneystone, but I was able to continue working. I will be going to pullapart to get a seat for the F150 and I will be taking the back glass off to re seal the back window because there is a leak, it isn't a bad leak but I want to get it fixed. I will post in a few days to say how it went.
I heard this song on my Sirius/XM on the way to work and I decided to roll with it.
Buckingham released a live version of the song on his 2008 album Live at the Bass Performance Hall.
In July 2015, a remastered edition of "Holiday Road" was re-released on the Vacation soundtrack album and as a digital download along with "Dancin' Across the USA" from the original National Lampoon's Vacation soundtrack.
Went to work Sunday Morning like normal and around Lunchtime I discovered that I have a kidneystone....*Ouch* So needless to say Monday Music didn't happen....I will post Monday
Music tomorrow...
Why stick to someone who couldn’t beat Donald Trump?
Failed Democrat presidential candidate Hillary Clinton may run for a third time, according to aide Philippe Reines.
The question is, do the Democrats want her? Hillary has done her best
to stay in the limelight, inserting herself into the narrative, giving
speeches and interviews, and going on a 13 city tour with her husband
President Bill Clinton.
Yet her approval rating remains low and some of her comments have had the left moaning and groaning.
Her longtime aide Reines cannot believe that his boss does not have a
spot on lists for possible 2020 Democratic presidential candidates.
From Politico:
“It’s curious why Hillary Clinton’s name isn’t in the
mix—either conversationally or in formal polling—as a 2020 candidate,”
said Philippe Reines, her longtime gatekeeper in the Senate and at the
State Department. “She’s younger than Donald Trump by a year. She’s
younger than Joe Biden by four years. Is it that she’s run before? This
would be Bernie Sanders’ second time, and Biden’s third time. Is it lack
of support? She had 65 million people vote for her.”
Even if half of those people would no longer support Clinton in
another election, Reines argued, “there’s no one in the Democratic Party
who has anywhere near a base of 32 million people. That’s multiples of
what a Sanders or a Warren have.”
Reines said his biggest fear for the Democratic Party is that they
realize, only in hindsight, that dismissing Clinton for the errors she
made in 2016 was a mistake.
“Chalking the loss up to her being a failed candidate is an
oversimplification,” Reines said. “She is smarter than most, tougher
than most, she could raise money easier than most, and it was an
absolute fight to the death.”
Does that mean she will run in 2020? Reines told Politico that the possibility is “somewhere between highly unlikely and zero, but it’s not zero.”
Some Democrats agree the party shouldn’t brush aside Hillary since
she won the popular vote. Democratic strategist Bob Shrum believes the
choice has “an element of sexism” and people have “frustration that she
lost what people perceive as the unloseable election and an element of
Clinton fatigue.”
Others wonder why she should be punished and silenced for losing an
election compared to others like John Kerry and Bernie Sanders.
Gee, maybe it’s because SHE LOST TO PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP?! I repeat
myself: She lost to DONALD TRUMP. She didn’t lose to a polished veteran
politician. She lost to DONALD TRUMP. Not only did she lose to Donald
Trump, but she lost to him by a large margin in the electoral college.
It also doesn’t help that Hillary has not been a graceful loser. She
has shown bitterness and disdain for Americans who had the nerve not to
vote for her. She has not taken responsibility for her loss or admitted
the mistakes she made (Wisconsin? MICHIGAN?). The fact that her campaign
was all about her. “I’m With Her” isn’t exactly inspiring while Trump
campaigned on ways to Make America Great Again.
A Gallup poll from September showed that Hillary’s favorable rating remains at an all-time low at 36%.
Hillary shot herself in the foot last weekend
when she said no abuse of power happened when her husband, at the time
the most powerful man on the planet, had an affair with intern Monica
Lewinsky. She still thinks Bill was right not to resign.
Don’t forget that four other women
has accused Bill of sexual assault while Juanita Broaddrick has accused
him of raping her. Throughout the last few decades, Hillary has trashed
and tried to damage these women. Interesting coming from a woman who
said sexual assault victims deserve to be heard and believed.
These remarks caused outrage from the left with publications like ThinkProgress, The Guardian, and Vanity Fair putting out articles that criticized her “tone-deaf” comments.
Hillary and Bill’s 13 city tour
has tickets on sale between $120 and $370, but instead of doing
something thoughtful with the profits, the Clintons are keeping it.
Hillary could use them as a way to clean up her name, but it looks like
she won’t.
Let’s not forget Hillary’s comments
about how civility cannot exist until the Democrats have power again. I
may not be former First Lady Michelle Obama’s fan, but I loved the
tongue lashing she gave Hillary on the Today show:
“Fear is not — it’s not a proper motivator. Hope wins
out,” Obama said. “And if you think about how you want your kids to be
raised, how you want them to think about life and their opportunities,
do you want them afraid of their neighbors? Do you want them angry? Do
you want them vengeful?”
“We want them to grow up with promise and hope,” Obama added. “And we
can’t model something different if we want them to be better than
that.”
Hillary’s political aspirations are over. It has nothing to do with
sexism. It has everything to do with the fact that she’s a horrible
person who couldn’t beat Donald Trump.
The Cartoons are compliments of my stash on my computer, I have quite a selection of Hillary cartoons.
I saw this weird airplane on a facebook post and I decided to "Google" it and it was legit, it is an actual airplane and it flies and has some impressive specs especially for a "General Aviation" airplane. I pulled the specs from the Company website.
Design
“The Boomerang is a new high performance pressurized 5
place light twin intended for personal transportation. Its basic goals
were to provide optimum performance from two turbocharged 200 hp
Lycoming reciprocating powerplants. Probably one of the most difficult
tasks faced in the development of this aircraft was explaining why I
would design a configuration that is asymmetric. In fact, an early
comment as the aircraft arrived at the Experimental Aircraft Association
International Air Show at Oshkosh, Wisconsin this year, was from a
fellow who ran up and remarked, “What in the hell were you smokin’ when
you laid that one out?”
– Burt Rutan (1996)
In trying to explain how Burt Rutan developed the idea of the
Boomerang, he used a step-by-step comparison of a “traditional”
twin-engine aircraft (Beech Baron BE58) and his design.
Step-by-Step Comparison : Baron vs. Boomerang
Baseline Baron 58P
Span = 37.8 ft.
Wing area = 188 sq.ft.
Stab area = 56 sq.ft
Vert Area = 24.4 sq.ft.
Total BHP = 650
Empty Weight = 4018 lb
Useful Load = 2222 lb
Max Fuel = 1140 lb
Gross Weight = 6240 lb
Stall = 78 kt
Cruise (75% 20kft) = 224 kt
Range (75% 20kft) = 975 nm
Left engine moved outboard to improve symmetry at low speeds and to reduce cabin noise.
Both engines moved inboard to reduce MCS. Right engine moved forward to clear fuselage. Left engine moved aft to balance.
Wing skewed to support engines and to reduce left engine interference.
Composite construction allows smaller,
higher aspect ratio wing. but configuration is now nose-heavy, thus left
wing is swept forward. This helps, but configuration is still
nose-heavy.
The weight savings allows smaller engines and tail area can be reduced.
Higher aspect ratio tail flutter problem is fixed with nacelle boom. This allows additional baggage room in boom.
Right engine is moved to the fuselage to
reduce weight, cost and drag. Lateral balance is restored by moving
entire wing to the left. MCS is now well below stall.
Left engine is moved outboard to reduce
cabin noise and to eliminate prop interference. Entire wing is moved
left to restore lateral balance.
Twin small vertical tails improve low speed handling, reduce weight and allow low-drag pressure-recovery aft fuselage.
Continue evolution
Round fuselage, increased room.
Laminar flow flying surfaces.
Higher wing loading.
Aspect Ratio to 13.2.
Full-span camber control for aileron/flap/wing optimization
Baron 58P
Boomerang
3.8psi cabin
4.6psi cabin
6 seats
5 seats or 4 seats+1 bed
3% more span
15% wider cabin
84% more wing area
20% longer cabin
65% more tail area
92% more aspect ratio
59% more engine power
10% higher stall speed
62% more empty weight
45% more climb rate
13% more fuel
41 kt higher cruise speed
45% more gross weight
56% more range at 75%
92% more max range
Immune from MCS accidents
Technical Specifications
This table summarizes the performance and technical specifications of the Boomerang:
The Cockpit is totally computerized with LCD screens allowing for multiple selection of functions from pneumatic, hydraulic, fuel management,engine management passenger comfort and many other selections plus required analog gauges.
First off, we had the The senator from the peoples republic of Massachusetts release her DNA results..after being taunted by President Trump after she has touted her "Native American" ancestry and used that for political gains...well the results were surprising....for her and her fans...
The resulting Twitter meltdown after the results were very entertaining...Only Donald Trump could have engineered such a debacle ...for the Democrats...and their penchant for rich white liberals claiming "Victimhood" status with some marginalized group.....
The Resulting Meme's have been all over the internet..
And the Cherry on the whole circus for us conservatives has been the spokesman for the Cherokee Nation commented that "It is disingenuous for someone to claim tribe status when they have no basis, and it is an insult to those that have fought for that distinction. " And I have heard that she is having problems in her senate race, apparently even the people in the peoples republic has issues with their politicians shamelessly lying....like a cheap rug.
Or an Indian rug.....
I saw this on "The Art of Manliness" and they had an article about getting past a roadblock....and it is a very good article, I have used stuff from them in the past because they bring up what I call "Old school knowledge" stuff that isn't so common now. and especially for those that live in the cities, especially those cities that are chock full of "activist" like BLM and Antifa and their penchant for blocking traffic, usually with their bodies, but I can see them using old cars and the political structure supporting their goals especially like Portland where the Police are told to stand down and you will be on your own with no support and you really don't want to get stuck, and get pulled out of the car and get "Reginald Denny's "
Because of what is going on now with the various democrat politicians calling for violence against their political opponents and their supporters.
.I recall something like 594 attacks against Trump supporters by assorted leftist groups..
You have had Maxine Waters call for attacks against people that support Trump, we have had people that support the President run out of restaurants by the harpies of the left. And this is continuing....when the democrats lose in 2018 and I believe this likely the resulting temper tantrum will continue through the 2020 election and when President Trump wins and I believe this also likely especially when the economy is doing well people will vote with their wallets except for the perennial students, professors and other leftist that don't work for a living.
This is the article I saw on the "Art of Manliness"
How to Ram Through a Vehicular Roadblock
You’re cruising down a narrow road when you see two cars parked
across it, blocking your path. It seems to be some kind of checkpoint or
barricade. What should you do?
If it’s an official police or military checkpoint, you better stop.
Despite what you see in movies, blowing through a police blockade is not
a sound strategy: you can kill an officer, get shot yourself, and even
if you get through, the authorities will be after you like white on
rice, inevitably nabbing you in the high-speed chase that follows (if
you don’t end it yourself by crashing).
But what if the blockade isn’t an official one? You’re in a war-torn
foreign land and are about to be stopped by insurgents, or it’s a trap
set up by carjackers, or you’re living in a Mad Max-esque dystopian
future where some baby-eating cannibals see your car as a can full of
tasty sardines? Well, then it might be worth ramming through the
obstructing vehicles and continuing on your way.
Ramming a vehicular barricade is very dangerous, and should only be
employed as a last resort — when there’s no other means of escape or
alternative routes of navigation, and when breaching and stopping carry
about equal chances of death. In such a situation, here’s how to most
effectively carry out this defensive driving maneuver.
Picking an Ideal Ramming Vehicle
When it comes to the best kind of car for ramming through a blockade,
not all vehicles are created equal. You want to think both about its
frame type and its air bags. Vehicle frame. Vehicles are basically built with two types of frames: body-on-frame and unibody.
With the body-on-frame build, the vehicle starts as a separate frame
to which the body is attached. With a unibody car, the frame and body
are integrated together. A body-on-frame chassis is made with heavier
metals, while a unibody is made with lighter weight alloys.
In
a unibody car (top), the frame and body are all one structure; in a
body-on-frame vehicle (bottom), the body goes on top of a separate
frame.
A unibody vehicle is statistically safer
than the body-on-frame type because in the event of an accident, the
stresses are evenly distributed throughout the vehicle, which is
actually designed to crumple, even in a minor crash, in way that
redirects the forces away from the passenger cabin.
But the reason they’re safer in a normal accident scenario also makes
them less effective in a ramming situation. The key to an effective
ramming is to hit a hard part of your car against a hard part of the
obstructing car; this works better than a hard part of one hitting a
soft part — like a crumple zone — of the other. You want the energy from
the contact to move/bounce the obstructing car out of the way, rather
than being absorbed.
A body-on-frame vehicle provides this desirable rigidity because the
chassis is made with high-strength steel frame rails that run the entire
length of the vehicle. Rather than being distributed throughout the
body, contact forces will be concentrated in the frame, making for
better bumping.
Almost all vehicles these days are made with unibody frames except
trucks and a few heavy-duty SUVs. While a unibody car is capable of
ramming, a body-on-frame truck will have tactical advantages in this
(and in off-road capabilities as well). Air bags. You should also keep air bags in mind in a
ramming situation. Below we’ll talk about how to minimize the chance of
the air bag being deployed, but it can certainly still happen when
you’re hitting another vehicle. Getting smacked in the face with an air
bag when you’re trying to make an already dangerous maneuver is
obviously highly undesirable; it would not only be a painful,
view-obscuring distraction, but the release of an air bag can also
trigger the automatic shutoff of your fuel pump.
For tactical purposes, you might choose a vehicle that’s too old to
have an airbag, or deactivate the air bag (something you’d have to do
yourself, as you’re required to request authorization from the National
Highway Traffic Safety Association to have a mechanic install an on/off
switch for you).
Getting Ready to Ram
Remember, ramming through a vehicular blockade is a maneuver of last
resort. As you approach a checkpoint/roadblock, assess whether or not
there’s an alternative way to avoid it. Can you go around it? Throw the
car in reverse and back away?
If there’s no other way through, and death awaits if you stop, then it’s time to ram the car(s) blocking your path. Line up so that the frame rail of your vehicle will hit the wheel axle of the obstructing vehicle. Remember
that you’re going to aim to hit a hard part of your vehicle, to a hard
part of the other car. The best points of contact are the frame rail of
your vehicle, and the wheel axle of the other.
The frame rail runs roughly parallel to your headlights; as that’s
hard to see when you’re driving, use your outside leg (or that of your
passenger if you’re hitting with the other side of the vehicle) as a
reference. Even in a unibody car, this will still be the strongest spot
to use; while it doesn’t have frame rails that run the whole length of
the vehicle, there is a sub-frame in the front and the rear. Aim for the rear wheel of the obstructing vehicle if possible. The trunk end of the car is lighter and easier to move than the engine-heavy front end. If there are two cars, aim for the wheel axle of one of them.
A blockade often exists of two cars parked end-to-end. In this case,
aim to drive between them, hitting the wheel axle of one of them. Drive at around 15-20 mph. Approaching slowly will
make it appear you intend to stop at the checkpoint, and it’s also the
ideal ramming speed. You need less speed and force to move a car than
you’d think. By applying this “minimum effective dose,” you 1) minimize
the damage to your own car (preserving its integrity will be key in
making your getaway), and 2) minimize the chance of the air bag
deploying.
If you have air bags in the car, slow down to 15 mph. Air bags are
triggered from rapid deceleration, and the kind of impact/body damage
which occurs when you hit another car going at least 16-28 mph. Going
slow will hopefully prevent the air bag from deploying, as will
continuing to accelerate (see below). If you have to stop completely before the blockade, leave a car’s length between you and the obstructing vehicle.
A car’s length to a car and a half’s length will give you sufficient
distance to get up to speed before you hit the obstructing vehicle.
Put your car in a low gear, so you’ll have plenty of torque. Look ahead. Don’t stare at the target of impact, but
instead look ahead to see where there’s drivable terrain past the
blockade and figure out where you’ll maneuver next. Maintain situational awareness! Keep accelerating through the obstructing vehicle.
Human nature will prompt you to take your foot off the accelerator or to
pump the brakes as you hit the obstructing car. Do neither. Keep on
accelerating as you hit the car and break on through.
Congratulations, you just rammed through a vehicular blockade. The baby-eaters will go hungry another day.
This one still amazed, how a numerically superior force surrendered to a numerically inferior force, the humiliation of the British was complete. I still had a hard time understanding this because the total ineptness of the British in fighting the Japanese. I also remembered reading that the Flying Tigers tried to tell the British how to fight the Japanese successfully and they were blown off, the British believed that the Japanese were an inferior foe and that the Japanese were crappy pilots and that their Zero fighters were unable to handle the British fighters. The end results were the beginning of the end of the British Empire that didn't survive long after the War.
The Japanese celebrating with one of the captured British Cannons at Singapore
There are certain matters that must be adhered to if a battle is to
be successful. These include a well-trained army and a good military
strategy which can be the difference between success and failure.
However, even when a military council drafts out an excellent plan,
there are no guarantees in war. Things do not always play out the way
they are expected to.
In the past, many military engagements have been quite organized.
They have followed a conventional chain of events: one force meets the
other, and one army wins either due to better positioning, military
strategy, advanced weaponry, or the simple fact of numbers. Sometimes
the battle ends at a stalemate where there is no victor. In contrast,
there are battles which have been total disasters where one army is
completely taken apart by the other.
One of the most bewildering to all was the Fall of Singapore in 1942
during the Second World War. The battle is now regarded as one of the
greatest military defeats of the British Army, but it did not look
poised to take such a humiliating turn when it began.
The British stronghold in Singapore was deemed to be an impregnable
fortress. Their air and naval bases commissioned in 1939 and 1941
respectively were impressive and intimidating. The King George VI
Graving Dock at the naval base was the largest dry dock in the world,
scaling a full 300 meters to show the capacity of the British Malayan
Navy.
The
British Army in Malaya 1942. A launch returning from an island in
Keppel Harbour at Singapore after Royal Engineers had set fire to oil
storage tanks there, January 1942.
In March 1941, the British intercepted a message from Adolf Hitler to
the Japanese Foreign Minister, Yosuke Matsuoka. In this message, the
Nazi leader urged Matsuoka to attack the British stronghold in the Far
East. Hitler stated that conquering the British in Malaya would be
fundamental to the overthrow of England. There was little doubt as to
the importance of Singapore to the British Empire, as their naval base
was placed there to protect other Commonwealth assets.
However, the British were undaunted by this discovery and feared
little for the British troops stationed at the island. He was confident
that the fortress was impenetrable. The island had two major attack
areas of concern. The first was the sea, but the British naval base
there was more than capable of defending attacks from that direction.
The second was miles and miles of jungle terrain which were assumed to
be too arduous even to be considered by the Japanese.
A Type 97 Chi Ha Tank of the IJA 1st Tank Regiment During the invasion of Singapore, 1942.
Newspapers carried news of Churchill’s statement referring to the
fortress as the “Gibraltar of the Far East.” There was an air of
overconfidence around the British forces. The British considered the
Japanese army to be weak, often referring to them as “Little Japs.”
However, although the Japanese believed the myth of the British fortress
being impregnable, they were nevertheless resolved to take it in their
quest to conquer Southeast Asia and the East Indies.
Japan had few mineral resources and, as such, sought to acquire them
by force from other regions. Japan had conquered most of China and
Manchuria in the 1930s for the rich iron and coal resources which the
Japanese then employed in producing steel. They had one important
resource left to acquire and that was oil. As such, the East Indies,
including Singapore, was a major target for them.
“Dispositions,
22nd Brigade, 10 p.m. 8th February” – the positions of Australian
forces around Sarimbun, Singapore, 8 February 1942. The arrows indicate
attacks by Japanese forces.
Despite the fortress’s naval capacity, it was seriously lacking in
ships. Most of the British fleet had been committed to Europe and the
Middle East where the British felt they were more needed. The Singapore
campaign kicked off on December 8, 1941, when two Japanese convoys
landed at Patani in Southern Thailand, Singora, and northern Malaya. By
the end of that day, some 27,000 Japanese soldiers, well-trained in
jungle combat and under the command of General Yamashita Tomoyuki, had
secured their position in Malaya and captured the British air base at
Kota Baharu.
After that, air bombings of Singapore began. Unaware that their air base had been captured, the Prince of Wales and the Repulse
sailed for northern Malaya in an attempt to put off any Japanese ships
that were yet to land. The ships were sunk on 10th December by Japanese
aircraft.
One of Singapore’s 15-inch coastal defense guns elevated for firing.8 December 1941The Japanese were very swift, employing bicycles as a means of
movement across the jungle terrain. Using a combination of bicycles and
collapsible boats, they outflanked and encircled the British army in
North Malaya, cutting off their supply lines. The British army in the
region was led by Lieutenant General Arthur Ernest Percival who was only
promoted to this command position in April, so it was his first time in
command of an army corps. Procession in celebration of “Fall of Singapore” by Keijo(Seoul) citizen.
On January 31, 1942, the causeway at Johore Baharu which linked
Malaya and Singapore was blown up by the Japanese, resulting in a
fifty-meter gap. The battle that ended in the surrender of the British
took place from 8th to 15th February, by which time half of Singapore
was already occupied by the Japanese.
After a week of fighting, Percival was informed that ammunition and
water would run out the following day. He thereafter agreed to surrender
to the Japanese who insisted that Percival marched with the white flag
of truce to negotiate the terms of surrender. Lieutenant-General
Arthur Ernest Percival, (right), led by a Japanese officer, walks under
a flag of truce to negotiate the capitulation of Allied forces in
Singapore, on February 15, 1942. It was the largest surrender of
British-led forces in history.
The 36,000 Japanese troops had done what was thought by many as
impossible: gained a decisive victory over the British Malayan Army,
with 90 percent of the 90,000 men taken as prisoners of war. This defeat
was a crushing blow to the British Empire, and one that signaled the
start of the defection of Australia’s foreign policy away from the
United Kingdom. Yamashita
(seated, center) thumps the table with his fist to emphasize his terms –
unconditional surrender. Percival sits between his officers, his
clenched hand to his mouth.After the British surrender, the Australians began to turn to the United
States for aid, no longer able to trust the British Army to protect
them. Australia had sided with the British during the war and their
Prime Minister at the time, John Curtin, told Churchill that Australia
would regard the act of surrender as an inexcusable betrayal. Also The British were reinforced by Australian Troops who landed and were almost immediately told to surrender and were marched to POW camps where they spent 3 years under hellish conditions
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