Early Risers.

[polybear]

8 hours ago, monkeysarefun said:

There's a gun that's illegal?!?

 

I don't know what a short-barrelled scattershot sidearm is but to me ironically it sounds closer to the weapons that existed when the second amendment was drawn up than the military assault rifles that today are apparently essential for a well armed militia.

 

Sounds like a sawn-off to this Bear too; I recall a scene in "Only Fools & Horses" where Del Boy turns up at a swanky country estate clay shoot with one (he borrowed it off a guy that robs Banks....) and IIRC hit two or three clays with one shot....

 

7 hours ago, andyram said:

Sadly this is not the first time it had happened. Three previous Peco deliveries have been dumped on the doorstep on mornings prior to the shop opening. Fortunately they have still been there when I arrived a short time later. I was less lucky with a Hornby parcel just before Easter. This was similarly left and one of the boxes had disappeared before I arrived.

 

 

I do hope you don't end up picking up the tab for any parcels that go walkabout?  Can you ask Peco etc. to use an alternative courier perhaps?  Bear has had a few run-ins with various deliveries - leaving on doorstep (even when I ask for them to go to a neighbour if no answer - and Bear is almost always in), delivering to a house two miles away (with an address not even sounding "close" to mine) etc.  It does seem that whilst they might not be the cheapest Royal Mail do seem to be the most reliable in general.

 

Bear here......

A day of MIUABGA today - the bins are out already, and it sounds like one of the trucks may already have been.  The Dado Rail stills needs a couple of top-coats of paint before being screwed to the wall - but Bear is taking a short break from all things Lounge Refurb at the moment; other things need Bear's attention and there's only a certain amount of DIY in a Bear.......

 

In other news.....

If anyone should come out of Hospital "clanking" there could be a reason....

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/uknews/wire-cutters-and-drill-bits-among-the-items-left-inside-nhs-patients/ar-AAXrPq5?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=7aca5fed2d6d44538dfeae1aeb8063cb

 

And for lovers of all things Pallets......

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/health/medical/diy-warning-for-wooden-pallets-as-highly-toxic-treatment-used-key-stamp-to-look-for/ar-AAXqu7W?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=7aca5fed2d6d44538dfeae1aeb8063cb

[iL Dottore]

8 hours ago, monkeysarefun said:

…Hey they saved our ar5e in WW2 (once they turned up!)

So the Americans like to think.

Lets just put this in perspective:

 

WWII Casualties (Civilian & Miltary)

USSR: 24 million!

China: 20 million
Germany: 8.8 million

Japan: 3 million

UK: 450’0000

US: 418’000

 

Some historians argue, with good reasons, that had Hitler not declared war on the US, America would have stayed out of the war in Europe - concentrating on the war in the Pacific (even lend-lease was a hard sell politically for Roosevelt). Certainly there was little appetite in the US for war with Germany (a lot of German-Americans and a not insignificant pro-Nazi feeling), had America not entered the war against Germany, the Nazi regime would have eventually been defeated - but by the Soviets alone - bringing the Soviet sphere of control/influence up to the western German border - if not to the channel.

 

Such was the American isolationism of the late 1930s/early 1940s that some historians argue that had Japan simply invaded Indonesia for the oil & rubber they needed, completely ignoring any American targets, America would not have intervened and would have stayed out of WWII.

 

Such was the impact of the Soviet Union on the outcome of the war that some historians argue that it wasn’t the atomic bombings that made the Japanese surrender but the Soviet Union's declaration of war and the Soviet invasion of Manchuria.

 

A sobering thought, unlike with other occupied countries of WWII, occupied Germany and Japan produced no resistance as they had nothing left with which to resist.

 

Equally sobering is the fact that the Axis countries - bombed flat and forced to rebuild from scratch - are doing so, so much better on so very many measures of social and economic prosperity than the erstwhile victors of WWII.

[BSW01]

Good morning everyone 

 

Unlike the first half of the week, this morning it’s very dull and looks like it could chuckinitdarn at any moment. Sheila is in the kitchen busy getting herself ready for her Zumba class, so as usual I’m in the dining room keeping clear. Once I’ve dropped her at her Zumba class, I shall call at the pharmacy to collect her prescription and call at Sainsbury’s for a few items that were about to run out of. I might even call in to Aldi to see what there tool offers are this week. Once home and the few shopping items have been packed away, I shall make myself a muggertea and head off to the cellar and fix the shelf brackets up, but I’m going to use bigger screws than those that were supplied with the brackets, as I want them to stay up. 

 

Charlie isn’t coming round this afternoon, he was out last night and will probably not be in a fit state for any model making today. But, as he is off tomorrow, the plan is that he calls round after dinner. 

 

Back later. 

 

Brian

[iL Dottore]

28 minutes ago, polybear said:

In other news.....

If anyone should come out of Hospital "clanking" there could be a reason....

Now I know that the last time I was in theatre was back when “general anaesthesia” meant a big stick to the back of the head 😆 but even in those “primitive” times the surgeon never closed the patient until all swabs, peanuts (a type of swab), screws, wires and instruments were accounted for (I can’t remember if it was the scrub nurse or the circulating nurse who kept and verified the tally). 
 

Interestingly, although resisted initially, adopting the aviation industry “check list” approach for critical processes considerably reduced accidental “left behinds”.

[simontaylor484]

Morning all 

 

This is a snake gun its a small bore pistol sized shotgun.https://images.app.goo.gl/L2y16jcxgG6HCk776

 

Del boy clay pigeon shooting with a sawn off was a classic like the radar dish from Heathrow they used for sky tb

[simontaylor484]

When my wife had C sections a tally of swabs and instruments was kept by one of the nurses on a whiteboard on the theatre wall.

They were counted on way in and on way out with apologies to Brian Hanrahan

[PhilJ W]

Morning all from Estuary-Land. No sign of Arthur Itis or Si Attica yesterday evening so I went off to sleep straight away despite the rumbling thunder. I woke up before the lesser spotted glass and bottle came round. The sky is still leaking but I'm about to get even wetter in the bath, be back later.

[New Haven Neil]

18 minutes ago, iL Dottore said:

Now I know that the last time I was in theatre was back when “general anaesthesia” meant a big stick to the back of the head 😆 but even in those “primitive” times the surgeon never closed the patient until all swabs, peanuts (a type of swab), screws, wires and instruments were accounted for (I can’t remember if it was the scrub nurse or the circulating nurse who kept and verified the tally). 
 

Interestingly, although resisted initially, adopting the aviation industry “check list” approach for critical processes considerably reduced accidental “left behinds”.

 

Friend H that is coming around this morning was a scrub nurse - yes they keep the tally!

[monkeysarefun]

55 minutes ago, iL Dottore said:

So the Americans like to think.

Lets just put this in perspective:

 

WWII Casualties (Civilian & Miltary)

USSR: 24 million!

China: 20 million
Germany: 8.8 million

Japan: 3 million

UK: 450’0000

US: 418’000

 

Some historians argue, with good reasons, that had Hitler not declared war on the US, America would have stayed out of the war in Europe - concentrating on the war in the Pacific (even lend-lease was a hard sell politically for Roosevelt). Certainly there was little appetite in the US for war with Germany (a lot of German-Americans and a not insignificant pro-Nazi feeling), had America not entered the war against Germany, the Nazi regime would have eventually been defeated - but by the Soviets alone - bringing the Soviet sphere of control/influence up to the western German border - if not to the channel.

 

Such was the American isolationism of the late 1930s/early 1940s that some historians argue that had Japan simply invaded Indonesia for the oil & rubber they needed, completely ignoring any American targets, America would not have intervened and would have stayed out of WWII.

 

Such was the impact of the Soviet Union on the outcome of the war that some historians argue that it wasn’t the atomic bombings that made the Japanese surrender but the Soviet Union's declaration of war and the Soviet invasion of Manchuria.

 

A sobering thought, unlike with other occupied countries of WWII, occupied Germany and Japan produced no resistance as they had nothing left with which to resist.

 

Equally sobering is the fact that the Axis countries - bombed flat and forced to rebuild from scratch - are doing so, so much better on so very many measures of social and economic prosperity than the erstwhile victors of WWII.

Yo no offence but I wasn't talking about your ar5e, I was talking about us down here in the Pacific.

After the disaster that was the British defensive strategy at Singapore, which  followed Churchill's betrayal of Australia to the Japanese  at the 1941  Arcadia conference and then  his refusal to release Australian troops from the Nth African campaign so they could  defend the homeland despite being more than happy to take all we could send to defend Britain we were left with a part time militia who had to defend Australia in the jungles of New Guinea in harsh brutal battles  in what became the Kokoda campaign.

 

If it wasn't the entry of the US into the war due to Pearl Harbour we'd all be driving around in Japanese cars now.

 

It ended Australia's belief in  Britiain as a capable  defence partner in the Pacific and turned us to allegience with  the US instead, and we got to hang out with them in the jungles of Nam and play cool 60s rock songs.

 

[AndrewC]

17 hours ago, Ian Abel said:

Stealing these things due to their "worth" has now become almost top of the list in crimes here. With a battery powered saw they can be removed in minutes, and folks are losing them even in daylight hours in store/church parking lots! ☹️ So much so that in many places scrupulous scrap dealers won't touch them and you can also be fined/charged if you have one without some form of "proof of ownership", however THAT is managed.

 

Converter theft is rampant in the UK as well. Story of one that was chopped out mid afternoon in the parking lot of our local Horrorsons. There are a lot of scrappies down along the Thames in Erith and Thamesmead. The old Bill check them pretty regularly. Covid and Brexit have put paid to most of our metal fairies but the hard core cat thieves are thriving.

The trouble is even with marking etc, the thieves just load them up into a container and export their "goods" to another country where they don't care if the metal was stolen. There are loads of websites that will sell you add on plates and other goodies to make the theft less easy. The scum will still get their quota of converters but will take the path of least resistance and pass your car by for an easier target. It is the same with any theft. The thief will 99.99% go for the easiest target. 

 

13 hours ago, Ozexpatriate said:

I read somewhere that in the colonial period, candidates would barbeque a pig and tap a whiskey barrel to encourage voters to cast  their ballot. Things have changed. One famously hot state recently enacted legislation banning offering water to people queuing to vote in person. (Further commentary on that would violate our 'no politics' guideline.)

Et voila, the orign of the phrase pork barrel politics. 

 

 

Moaning all from the boring borough. Drizzle is today's magic word. Meh. Work is work. Currently mulling over an offer. Basically the same crap, different pile but for about 12% more £££. Trying to see if I can negotiate a 4 day week. If so, I'm off. Other than that, looking forward to the Chelsea Flower Show member's day next Tuesday. Hoping to keep SWMBO from spending too much. 

 

ooo look, another meeting. <sigh> 

Enjoy the day. 

[TheQ]

The Australian troops were released from the North Africa campaign it's just that a lot of them were surrounded in Tobruk at the time, they were gradually replaced, by ships overnight when they were avoiding being bombed, so eventually more British and and indian troops served there than ANZACs

[BoD]

3 hours ago, grandadbob said:

Sainsbury's have surprised us by declaring that we will receive everything we ordered with no subs.

Didn’t they sub your normal bill with a much larger one?

[polybear]

2 hours ago, simontaylor484 said:

Morning all 

 

This is a snake gun its a small bore pistol sized shotgun.https://images.app.goo.gl/L2y16jcxgG6HCk776

 

 

Now that would make a nice little intruder remover....

 

1 hour ago, monkeysarefun said:

If it wasn't the entry of the US into the war due to Pearl Harbour we'd all be driving around in Japanese cars now.

 

Many are....

 

1 hour ago, monkeysarefun said:

......and turned us to allegiance with  the US instead, and we got to hang out with them in the jungles of Nam and play cool 60s rock songs.

 

 

Which didn't end terribly well IIRC

 

1 hour ago, AndrewC said:

Converter theft is rampant in the UK as well. Story of one that was chopped out mid afternoon in the parking lot of our local Horrorsons. There are a lot of scrappies down along the Thames in Erith and Thamesmead. The old Bill check them pretty regularly. Covid and Brexit have put paid to most of our metal fairies but the hard core cat thieves are thriving.

The trouble is even with marking etc, the thieves just load them up into a container and export their "goods" to another country where they don't care if the metal was stolen. There are loads of websites that will sell you add on plates and other goodies to make the theft less easy. The scum will still get their quota of converters but will take the path of least resistance and pass your car by for an easier target. It is the same with any theft. The thief will 99.99% go for the easiest target. 

 

 

Another big theft target are spare wheels slung beneath vehicles - pick up trucks etc. being particularly vulnerable.  I've seen reports that an up-and-coming target are the batteries on leccy motorcycles/scooters too.

[grandadbob]

Plenty of rain earlier but this has stopped and the shine is sunning for now.  A walk has been walked, just a mile today as The Hip and The Boss's knees were both complaining.  Somehow we managed to pick up yet another plant from Asda just to "give me something to do."  This has now been done and I'm popping to The Shed for an hour before lunch.

[monkeysarefun]

28 minutes ago, polybear said:

2 hours ago, monkeysarefun said:

 

 

Which didn't end terribly well IIRC

Twas a bit like the  Great Emu War of 1932 but with a Doors soundtrack.

https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/running-ponies/the-great-emu-war-in-which-some-large-flightless-birds-unwittingly-foiled-the-australian-army/

Edited May 19, 2022 by monkeysarefun

[iL Dottore]

2 hours ago, monkeysarefun said:

Yo no offence but I wasn't talking about your ar5e, I was talking about us down here in the Pacific.

After the disaster that was the British defensive strategy at Singapore, which  followed Churchill's betrayal of Australia to the Japanese  at the 1941  Arcadia conference and then  his refusal to release Australian troops from the Nth African campaign so they could  defend the homeland despite being more than happy to take all we could send to defend Britain we were left with a part time militia who had to defend Australia in the jungles of New Guinea in harsh brutal battles  in what became the Kokoda campaign.

 

If it wasn't the entry of the US into the war due to Pearl Harbour we'd all be driving around in Japanese cars now.

 

It ended Australia's belief in  Britiain as a capable  defence partner in the Pacific and turned us to allegience with  the US instead, and we got to hang out with them in the jungles of Nam and play cool 60s rock songs.

 

I see what you mean.

 

Certainly for the British and (most of) the allies, defeating Nazi Germany was always the first priority. The SE Asian/Pacific theatre of war was almost an afterthought (not for the Americans or Australians, of course). 

 

I recently read a book about the campaigns in Burma and it noted that even back then the units fighting in Burma considered themselves “the forgotten army”.

 

I think the failure of the British defensive strategy was considerably influenced by racism. Conveniently ignoring how Japan had clobbered the Russians in the Battle of Tsushima, how the Japanese conquered Manchuria less than a decade before they set their sights on Singapore or how Japan had transformed itself from a feudal country in 1867 to an industrial power by 1914, the British High Command believed that the Malayan Jungle was impassable (it wasn’t) and the Japanese - referred to contemptuously as “l1ttle yell0w men” were bad soldiers (they weren’t). And as callous as the Japanese military of the time was towards the vanquished, they were almost as equally callous about their own men.

 

The Americans underestimated the Chinese and North Koreans in Korea and the Vietcong in Vietnam in the same (racist) way in these later conflicts - with equally predictable consequences (the Korean War hasn’t technically ended: no peace treaty having been signed between the belligerents).

 

I would argue that for any politician contemplating a military “adventure” they should always consider their opponent to be as clever, motivated and resourceful as their own side, if not more so. Something Putin forgot… 

Edited May 19, 2022 by iL Dottore

[monkeysarefun]

3 minutes ago, iL Dottore said:

The Americans underestimated the Chinese and North Koreans in Korea and the Vietcong in Vietnam in the same (racist) way in these later conflicts - with equally predictable consequences (the Korean War hasn’t technically ended: no peace treaty having been signed between the belligerents).

For similar underestimation of the enemy see my post above yours  regarding  the Great Emu War of 1932. 

 

Edited May 19, 2022 by monkeysarefun

[simontaylor484]

Recently some one nicked the solar batteries from the car park ticket machines in town.

Just before i started at the Council someone nicked a load of cats from the iveco vans we had. There was even a security guard on shift at the time 

[PhilJ W]

Afternoon all from Estuary-Land. Had my bath followed by some eyelid inspection and have only just come downstairs. I was going to continue clearing the shed but its too muggy. The fox cubs are in hiding as its probably too wet for them.

[The White Rabbit]

I know we all have off days but: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-us-canada-61505050 - just how many pages in the next Colemanballs is he going to fill?

[The White Rabbit]

And more seriously...

 

5 hours ago, iL Dottore said:

So the Americans like to think.

Lets just put this in perspective:

 

WWII Casualties (Civilian & Miltary)

USSR: 24 million!

China: 20 million
Germany: 8.8 million

Japan: 3 million

UK: 450’0000

US: 418’000

 

 

Another perspective, based on the % of a country's population that 'bought it':

 

https://topforeignstocks.com/2016/04/19/chart-world-war-ii-casualties-as-a-percentage-of-each-countrys-population/

 

We now have:

 

Poland

Soviet Union

Yugoslavia

Germany

Japan is listed 12th

and with the UK and US coming 15th & 21st. 

 

I am not sure how reliable this site is, I would question some of the figures and have noticed they differ from at least some of il D's given above, but it is an alternate view, possibly a more relevant one when considering a country's history and social impact. Though whether we look at absolutes or the percentages, both still support the basic argument that the US (and UK) suffered much less than some of the other nations. 

 

There is a saying about the Allies' respective contributions to their victory, Britain gave [the Allies] time, Russia gave the men and the States gave them the materials. 

[TheQ]

That is of course total casualties, so Poland and Belarus casualties are hugely swollen by the Jews,  gypsies and anyone else the Nazis wanted  exterminated, rather than just those that fought. Though Poland fought bravely, Belarus was one of the main battle grounds between the USSR and the Nazis and lost out from everyone..

Edited May 19, 2022 by TheQ

[Pacific231G]

Afternoon all

I was doing well yesterday. Had my 4k brisk walk and 200 strokes on the outdoor-gym rowing machine in the morning and the June FRS Journal is all but finished. Mid-afternoon I suddeny felt fluey and had limited sleep last night. I tested this morning and the "you have the plague"  second line appeared almost instantly with the  test line. Rats! That's the first time I've tested positive though I suspect I may had it mildly a couple of times. Fortunately I had just done my weekly shop and the freezer is pretty well stocked as is my cupboard with the tins I accumulated last year for just this eventuality. I shall now just relax at home for five or six days and hope it passes mildly. Fortunately, I'm not one of those conspiracy theorising mid-west/southern redneck who thinks a cupboard full of semi-automatic weapons will protect them from anything so I have had all three doses of vaccine.

I really enjoyed ExpoEM on Sunday and will know in a few days if it was worth it.

Edited May 19, 2022 by Pacific231G

[Ian Abel]

BIN day. All that sorted last evening and they've been round and we're "empty" again 😀

 

Another non-eventful day yesterday, with the exception that the Mrs and I got our second boosters. Been holding off while the Mrs knee-surgery was accomplished.

 

Today will be similarly quiet. I do have to meet our handyman/contractor over at the rental house to review some items that need doing, nothing much else.

 

10 and overcast at BIN time, expecting to reach 23 later with a chance of some rain.

 

Onward.

[andyram]

Afternoon all and I hope you are all well. The sun is out and it has been lovely and warm in Matlock Bath today. A few tourists have been around but things have been rather quiet. 

 

I have kept myself busy unpacking the large Bachmann delivery which arrived on Tuesday. Some of the contents are for customer pre-orders so these will be packed and sent out over the course of the weekend.

 

To add further to the DPD saga. The parcel that was stolen was from Hornby. To be fair to them they have been very supportive and have sent me goods of equal value as a replacement. Sadly, some of the missing items are also for customer pre-orders and these are so sought after they cannot be replaced. This will mean I will be facing a tab of about £500 in refunds. Nothing Hornby can do and, seemingly, nothing DPD are prepared to do either. The whole thing stinks a little.

 

Stay safe

 

Andy