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[Atomic]

Oh, my my my.....

My dad, the test pilot (among other flying duties) had a simple saying -- New dog, old fleas.

Every aircraft developed since the 1950s was too expensive, obsolete, a solution for yesterday's problems, unnecessary, poorly designed, and wrong wrong wrong. And as for lead time, the 1950s aircraft took 10 years to develop and field, now it's 20 if you're lucky. The F-15 was just coming into the inventory when I entered the Air Force in 1975. It's still around you may notice.

Development is hell, especially if you have crap specifications and crappier mission doctrine. Consider -- the F-102 was a flying crap box intended for radar/rocket attacks intercepting bombers. Add a few years, area ruling, computer advances and you get the F-106, with radar guided missiles, more speed and maneuverability, and it didn't explode very much if at all. Alas, the F-4 matched it's mission and had more flexibility (bombs), so it stayed in the shadows by comparison.

How about the F-104? Mach 2 interceptor built to run, shoot, and leave. Unfortunately, that's not much of a mission compared to all the other things aircraft can do. But, add computers, new materials, and leave the air superiority mission to another aircraft (F-15) and what do you get? The F-16! Basically, the F-104 with lots of room for bombs.

Yes, we could play "My dog's better than your dog" all day, but that's not the point. My original bitch was about getting your money snatched for the manipulation of others, not the service of others.

Comparing Russia to US by dollars spent doesn't consider the economic structures being so different. As a percent of GDP, the World Bank (here) lists military spending by Russia as 5.4% vs the USA as 3.3%, down from 8.4% in 1960. As for overall spending, this site lists total government spending as 36% of GDP, of which only 4% is military.

Oh BTW - a chunk of military spending since the Marshall Plan and the foundation of NATO was to cover defense needs for western Europe. They're just recently beginning to pay their full costs. Or at least more of what would have been their full cost. It was in our interest to do so, thus helping their economies get going. Well, they're up and running, more or less, so time to pitch in.

Ok, enough of this. Let's talk about something useful, like who's the bigger jerk - Justin Bieber or Shia LaBouf?

[AnotherFairportfan]

Court challenge defending the inalienable right to be suicidally stupid coming in 10 ... 9 ...

=============

Incidentally, i could actually support such a challenge.

If it wasn't for the horrific effects on he driver who can't avoid squishing one of them when they wander in front of his car.

[AmriloJim]

The Flat Earth Society has members all around the globe.

Discuss among yourselves.

[Warrl]

The Flat Earth Society has members all around the globe.

Discuss among yourselves.

At one time there was a company selling T-shirts with the logo of "Fly by Night Airlines". The company slogan was "round the world since it was square" and the logo a brass globe-stand holding a cube globe with an airplane flying around it.

[Atomic]

A bit like the original Universal Pictures logo? The second one is nice too...

[Warrl]

A bit like the original Universal Pictures logo? The second one is nice too...

Yeah, except that the planet is a cube and there's a stand holding it.

[Alkarii]

Just after my mom left, she called me to tell me a red pickup was parked just down the hill, pointed towards the house, with the driver just sitting in it.

We have a pallet of blocks for when a storage building gets delivered. So maybe it was something innocuous, but it LOOKED like they were watching to see when we leave the house.

[lake_wrangler]

I never really cared much for playing organised sports because I found the rules to often be too restricting and tedious and detracting from the fun.

I had a tendency to miss out on the subtle nuances of the rules, some times... Like the time I was playing volleyball, and I jumped up against the net, to block the ball, going straight up and straight back down, even swinging my arms sideways as I came down, to make sure I did not touch the net. I had blocked the ball, and was so proud of myself, until the ref blew his whistle... While I had not touched the net, my fingers did go OVER the net, which apparently is a big no-no...

Contact sports were always problematic as well, as I had very much the wrong reflexes and got banned from soccer and rugby for playing too rough.

I remember playing a game of soccer, in the winter (on a weekend retreat with my church), and someone was coming with the ball, which I tried to kick away from him. I missed, and kicked his shin, instead... with my steel-toed boots...

He was not angry at me, though, as he mentioned that I did have my eyes on the ball at the time... it's if I had been staring at him,while running towards him, that would have given him cause to worry...

So I never got into the habit of playing sports when I was a young adult, and I've remained that way since.

I was never very competitive, and was not too coordinated, when it came to sports... That's why I preferred to travel by bicycle, instead, appreciating the scenery along the way.

[Warrl]

In the schools I went to, we were required to take "physical education" through 10th grade. Those who wanted to try out for athletic teams - ANY athletic team - were expected to take the special class at the end of the day, where in-class training and after-school training could run together; so the very best athletes were off in that, and I wasn't among them.

In fact, I was about as far from them as it was possible to get. Small, slow, weak, clumsy...

... until a month into 10th grade, when for no apparent reason my body suddenly decided to get organized. In the PE class I was in, I abruptly was among the best at almost anything that didn't call for sheer size. One of the faster sprinters, definitely the fastest distance runner at anything up to about a mile and a half (after which I tended to hyperventilate), could jump higher than most kids who were half a foot taller (of course, there were some kids who were closer to a foot taller), at bat I could reliably pick what part of the outfield the ball would land in (however I sucked in the outfield - in grade school I learned to fear fly balls)...

... and in the 42 years since I finished 10th grade, I have spent a total of maybe two hours at all forms of sports and strenuous exercise for its own sake.

Because what I learned in those years of formal education in competitive and strenuous physical activity is that it's pointless, painful, and humiliating.

[chicgeek]

Amen to that!
The reason for gym is supposed to be physical fitness. Supposedly.
But many of us are not athletic, are clumsy, ect., especially at a young age.
Our coach would pick two of her pets as captains, would would then pick their friends, the athletic, ect., until it was us last few left, who obviously weren't wanted. Being among the last each time sucked. The couch could have divided us in to two teams alphabetically, and we would have all had to learn to work together. Would have learned more sportmanship and team camaraderie that way!

[Alkarii]

Well, it's been two weeks since I applied to Hobby Lobby, so I'm gonna guess that they either aren't hiring, or aren't going to hire me.

So I'm gonna check to see if there are any positions at the nearest Lowe's, and then at the optical lab I used to deliver for (which is right next to that Lowe's). I still remember the route I had to drive, too, so if they have an opening for a driver, and are their insurance gives them the okay, I could get a job as a driver again.

Edit: Called Hobby Lobby, and apparently, the manager has just been "too busy" to look at any of the applications, and hasn't had time for interviews. And given the way the lady sounded over the phone, I could have just screwed myself out of a job.

[ShneekeyTheLost]

Well, it's been two weeks since I applied to Hobby Lobby, so I'm gonna guess that they either aren't hiring, or aren't going to hire me.

So I'm gonna check to see if there are any positions at the nearest Lowe's, and then at the optical lab I used to deliver for (which is right next to that Lowe's). I still remember the route I had to drive, too, so if they have an opening for a driver, and are their insurance gives them the okay, I could get a job as a driver again.

Edit: Called Hobby Lobby, and apparently, the manager has just been "too busy" to look at any of the applications, and hasn't had time for interviews. And given the way the lady sounded over the phone, I could have just screwed myself out of a job.

If they were upset at a callback after two weeks of no response, you're probably better off not having that job in the first place. If the manager is 'too busy' to do his job (hire and manage employees), then either he is Doing It Wrong (i.e. getting bogged down in details that he should delegate), or he's a micro-managing jerk. Either way, if you lost your opportunity with a polite callback, be thankful.

[AnotherFairportfan]

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If i had a bit more energy, i'd make a 3D pair of that. Five planes, i think.

[AnotherFairportfan]

Called Hobby Lobby, and apparently, the manager has just been "too busy" to look at any of the applications, and hasn't had time for interviews. And given the way the lady sounded over the phone, I could have just screwed myself out of a job.

That's okay - no rational person wants to work there, anyway.

[Alkarii]

That's probably why they're always hiring.

Mom told me that I should try working in a nursing home. Apparently they have all kinds of jobs, and they pay well. Not only that, but if I so choose, I can take a six or seven week course, during which I'll get paid, and upon completion I'll be able to make even more money.

So I'll probably try to do that.

[ShneekeyTheLost]

That's probably why they're always hiring.

Mom told me that I should try working in a nursing home. Apparently they have all kinds of jobs, and they pay well. Not only that, but if I so choose, I can take a six or seven week course, during which I'll get paid, and upon completion I'll be able to make even more money.

So I'll probably try to do that.

You'll be cleaning bedpans, changing soiled sheets, and other unpleasant duties, but it DOES pay particularly well, if you can find a job in the field. Expect pay on the order of 15$-20$/hr depending on your region's economical standard of living.

[Alkarii]

Actually, there's apparently all kinds of positions that doesn't even bother with that, like maintenance and grounds keeping.

[AnotherFairportfan]

[lake_wrangler]

Ha! I love last Friday's Whiteboard comic!
(Image is also a link to the comic)





Reminds me of an old commercial whose catch line at the end was: "Do you see a difference? I don't see a difference. Is there a difference?"

[AnotherFairportfan]

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