sherpa

Avoiding the draft was a national obsession at the time, and if people weren't around, they shouldn't criticize. Many creative ways, especially from those with means. That was part of the absurdity of the times and war run from failed Washington "strategy." I have no problem with anybody who tried to avoid the draft.

I don't want to hijack the thread.

Ya. Two cruises on Kitty Hawk in the A7E. It was a TA4, as you suggest. We had A4's, a few TA4's and F-5's at the time with the Adversaries.

I'll tell two, both from my days in the Navy. We were going on our first cruise on Kitty Hawk. Supposed to be a six month Pacific deployment-turned out to be nine, but that's another story. One of the other bachelor junior officers in our squadron had a Porsche 911. He figured he'd store in during the cruise, so he removed the insurance two weeks prior to deployment. You guessed it-his girlfriend was driving it two days before we left and burned in to the ground. I was in the Pacific Fleet Adversary Squadron. We had 12 airplanes, but only two were two seaters. Occasionally, some guy from another single seat squadron would need to fly in a two-seater, maybe off for a while with some medical issue or something. Anyway, they'd put him in the back seat of one of our airplanes and go out to the warning area east of the Sierras and fly around on instruments for an hour and a half or so. Incredibly boring if you're in the front seat, so the junior guy always got it. No reason to ever be below 15,000'. Anyway, one Friday afternoon our new guy was assigned to do this and off he goes. Nobody is flying over the weekend, but Sunday night when the full maintenance Dept. comes in to prepare the airplanes for the upcoming week, one of their guys notices the top 4 inches of the vertical stabilizer, (what most guys would call the tale), is gone from that airplane. As bad luck would have it, about 40 homes in an area in our warning area had called in to their power company that they had lost power Friday afternoon. Power guys find a down cable and a four inch piece of aluminum a couple hundred feet away that nobody could identify. He had flown under it and cut it. Fight as hard as our CO could, the guy lost his wings over that.

If you don't have pictures they didn't.

Stratton, Tracy and Jacobs. Ah.... the days when guys didn't get hurt all the time.

Race Bannon is a two handed flyer. No seat belts, and notice Bandit on Hadji's lap.

Isn't that "Johnny Quest?"

Evidently, bin Laden's mother has some pics in Saudi Arabia. While they don't say the pics were taken in SA, you can bet they were. "The red hijab that covers her hair is reflected in a glass-fronted cabinet; inside, a framed photograph of her firstborn son takes pride of place between family heirlooms and valuables. A smiling, bearded figure wearing a military jacket, he features in photographs around the room: " Bin Laden Mom Interview

I have a "nuisance" permit. I can shoot them whenever I want. I don't, unless they refuse to stay out of my vineyard. I give them two chances.

I used to get up really early and turn the TV on. First the test pattern, then the Public Service Announcement about the dangers of blasting caps. I used to think they must be laying around everywhere. Eventually, the cartoons started, but I worried about blasting caps for years. The first really serious thing I watched was Cuban Missile Crisis coverage with my father.

Because they can't, and they don't want to. Their view is that soybeans have too much negative impact on the soil.

When I'm in a high level business meeting, I simply text: HLBM They seem to understand that, although initially, the last two letters caused some confusion. When I'm in a very high level business meeting I have to turn my phone off because, well, the meeting is just to high level.

The 12,500 square foot number is the lot size. The house is a 3 br/ 3 bath 2477 square foot house.

Does seizing an embassy and holding hostages count? It isn't done too often.

I really like WNY, having grown up there, but it is what it is, a place with really non-competitive weather. Sometimes it takes a kid to make an observation that is so clear it is really neat. I used to visit family there every year. One year, the year my oldest was learning about the solar system and earth's play in it, we were visiting in late October. We were walking around somewhere and there was a broken layer of clouds quite low, maybe about 800', and it was very windy. The clouds were just whistling by. Anyway, he looks up at me and says,"You know why I like visiting Buffalo so much?" Of course I thought it was visiting relatives and food, which he loved, but he said; "It's because it's the only place you can see the earth spinning." I looked up at the clouds speeding by and I knew exactly what he ws thinking.

49 years ago today we made it through four 1202 alarms and one 1201 alarm. They're trouble for sure.

Best user name on the site. I remember it so well.

One of my favorite quotes. From a a former undersecretary of defense: " ...you know, frankly, going to war without France is like going deer hunting without an accordion."

Welcome to the NFL. Just stupid.

Nice post. Accurate. I'm kind of a Jefferson nut. What would be really neat, and valuable, would be to get a copy of the original Declaration drafts wherein he condemned the slave trade. That proposition was cast aside because it was thought that unanimity was more important, and it was thought that some wouldn't sign it with that provision.

"That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed..." "We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States...." "And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor." T. Jefferson, In Congress, July 4, 1776

I live in Charlottesville. We've been through this and continue to be impacted. Leave them alone or you will invite hundreds of lunatics to protest the issue. Monuments are monuments. No support or condemnation need be implied.

Viognier. Simply the best white. If you can find one from South America, all the better.

I'm told they survived the initial explosion and separation. 3 or 4 g's would be meaningless. Above 7 and you start dealing with issues. Normal Shuttle launch was about 3. Not a big deal. I have a few friends of friends who were involved in other flights. I'm told the thing shook like crazy at liftoff.