Vicious Lies and Slanders

In relation to yesterday’s (Belated) Quote of the Day, I just received this via email. I’m not even going to go to Snopes to see if it might even possibly be real, I’m just going to roll with it:

They Walk Among Us

A Washington DC airport ticket agent shares the following 12 experiences that demonstrate the intelligence of our politicians and, therefore, why our country is in trouble!!! Oh boy!

1. I had a New Hampshire Congresswoman (Carol Shea-Porter) ask for an aisle seat so that her hair wouldn’t get messed up by being near the window. (On an airplane!)

2. I got a call from a Kansas Congressman’s (Moore) staffer (Howard Bauleke), who wanted to go to Capetown. I started to explain the length of the flight and the passport information, and then he interrupted me with, “I’m not trying to make you look stupid, but Capetown is in Massachusetts.”

Without trying to make him look stupid, I calmly explained, “Cape Cod is in Massachusetts, Capetown is in Africa”

His response — “click!”

3. A senior Vermont Congressman (Socialist Bernie Sanders) called, furious about a Florida package we did. I asked what was wrong with the vacation in Orlando. He said he was expecting an ocean-view room. I tried to explain that’s not possible, since Orlando is in the middle of the state.

He replied, “Don’t lie to me, I looked on the map and Florida is a very thin state!” (OMG!)

4. I got a call from a lawmaker’s wife (Landra Reid) who asked, “Is it possible to see England from Canada?” I said, “No.” She said, “But they look so close on the map.” (OMG, again!)

5. An aide for a cabinet member (Janet Napolitano) once called and asked if he could rent a car in Dallas. I pulled up the reservation and noticed he had only a 1-hour layover in Dallas. When I asked him why he wanted to rent a car, he said, “I heard Dallas was a big airport, and we will need a car to drive between gates to save time.” (Aghhhh!)

6. An Illinois Congresswoman (Jan Schakowsky) called last week. She needed to know how it was possible that her flight from Detroit left at 8:30 a.m., and got to Chicago at 8:33 a.m.

I explained that Michigan was an hour ahead of Illinois, but she couldn’t understand the concept of time zones. Finally, I told her the plane went fast, and she bought that.

7. A New York lawmaker, (Jerrold Nadler) called and asked, “Do airlines put your physical description on your bag so they know whose luggage belongs to whom?” I said, “No, why do you ask?” he replied, “Well, when I checked in with the airline, they put a tag on my luggage that said (FAT), and I’m overweight. I think that’s very rude!”

After putting him on hold for a minute, while I looked into it. (I was dying laughing). I came back and explained the city code for Fresno , Ca. is FAT ( Fresno Air Terminal), and the airline was just putting a destination tag on his luggage.

8. A Senator John Kerry aide (Lindsay Ross) called to inquire about a trip package to Hawaii. After going over all the cost info, she asked, “Would it be cheaper to fly to California and then take the train to Hawaii?”

9. I just got off the phone with a freshman Congressman, Bobby Bright (D) from Ala who asked, “How do I know which plane to get on?” I asked him what exactly he meant, to which he replied, “I was told my flight number is 823, but none of these planes have numbers on them.”

10. Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) called and said, “I need to fly to Pepsi-Cola , Florida . Do I have to get on one of those little computer planes?” I asked if she meant fly to Pensacola , FL on a commuter plane. She said, “Yeah, whatever, smarty!”

11. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) called and had a question about the documents she needed in order to fly to China. After a lengthy discussion about passports, I reminded her that she needed a visa. “Oh, no I don’t. I’ve been to China many times and never had to have one of those.”

I double checked and sure enough, her stay required a visa. When I told her this she said, “Look, I’ve been to China four times and every time they have accepted my American Express!”

12. A New Jersey Congressman (John Adler) called to make reservations, “I want to go from Chicago to Rhino, New York.”

I was at a loss for words. Finally, I said, “Are you sure that’s the name of the town?”

“Yes, what flights do you have?” replied the Congressman.

After some searching, I came back with, “I’m sorry, sir, I’ve looked up every airport code in the country and can’t find a Rhino anywhere.”

The man retorted, “Oh, don’t be silly! Everyone knows where it is. Check your map!”

So I scoured a map of the state of New York and finally offered, “You don’t mean Buffalo , do you?”

The reply? “Whatever! I knew it was a big animal.”

What’s worse; that someone would write something like this, or that I don’t really have a problem thinking it might just be true?

(Belated) Quote of the Day

(Belated) Quote of the Day

But worth the wait:

Now let’s just take a minute and think about our elected officials, be they democrat, rino, or pretty much anyone other than Ron Paul, who has his own set of problems anyway. Some senators can’t manage to drive across a bridge without killing someone. Others think their staff sent them an internet. Bluntly put, congressmen and senators are too busy diddling page boys, evading their taxes, drowning their workers, going out with mistresses, explaining that barrel shrouds are shoulder things that go up, and generally demonstrating as frequently as possible that between all 535 of them you could find more intelligence and general competence (in ANY field other than getting elected) in a lightly stunned ground squirrel.
— Stingray, from Atomic Nerds in Just a thought . . .

Another “Oh. Damn.” moment.

Well, Now We Know Where the Terminators Will Come From

And it ain’t Sunnyvale, California.

Remember the Cyberdyne Systems T-800?


It looks like it started out life as an exoskeleton designed to assist human beings:


Exoskeletons Are on the March

Cyberdyne is shipping nearly 100 more exoskeletons this fall

17 August 2009—An army of exoskeletons is coming. And according to their inventor, Professor Yoshiyuki Sankai of the University of Tsukuba, in Japan, they’re making a difference in the lives of disabled people.

Speaking at the International Conference on Intelligent Robotic Technology and Business, held earlier this month in Taipei, Taiwan, Sankai proudly described how the robotic exoskeleton suit HAL (short for Hybrid Assistive Limb), helped a 46-year-old man whose left leg was withered by polio when he was 11 months old.

HAL reads electric signals at the surface of the skin that are generated by the muscle beneath and then uses them to guide the movement of robotic limbs strapped to a person’s real limbs, thereby multiplying their strength.

The polio patient’s withered left leg generated extremely weak bioelectric signals at first, and the robotic limb remained unmoved. Ten days later, with HAL’s assistance, the patient moved his left leg based on his own intention. “He cried,” says Sankai.

Sankai suspects that in the past 45 years, the patient’s brain had rarely generated the signals needed to move his left leg. After the patient used HAL, the levels of signals strengthened and became detectable. Sankai says that similar phenomena were observed when applying the HAL suit to patients with spinal cord injuries. Starting in late April, his team began measuring bioelectric signals in polio and stroke patients before and after using HAL. They hope to record data over a period of 8 to 12 months. An analysis of how the brain adapts to HAL will be taken into account to improve the exoskeleton’s operation, says Sankai.

In Japan, more than 20 sets of various HAL exoskeletons are in use at hospitals and rehabilitation centers, Sankai says. The facilities lease the robots from Sankai’s company, Cyberdyne, for about US $1700 per month on average.

“It’s worthwhile, because a suit can be used for eight patients per day,” he says, adding that the service could possibly be cheaper once the market for the exoskeletons increases.

Sankai, who is Cyberdyne’s CEO, expects to supply 80 to 90 suits in Japan in October. At the end of September, 10 sets of HAL suits will be delivered to Denmark to be used by nurses who care for elderly people. The suits should enhance the nurses’ strength, helping them to move patients.

More versions of HAL are in the works, says Sankai. Following HAL’s use by a man injured in a car wreck to climb the 4164-meter Breithorn Mountain, in Switzerland, the company decided to develop a weather-resistant outdoor exoskeleton. Sankai says the company will also be introducing a HAL with significantly smaller and lighter batteries this fall at an event in Kyoto.

Screw Terminators. I want a Mecha:

21 Days!

There are now THREE WEEKS until Gunblogger Rendezvous IV! If you haven’t signed up, time is running out. Once again, for those of you who may be new to this site, the GBR is an annual gathering of gunbloggers, readers, and guests in Reno, NV for a nice long weekend of shooting, show-and-tell, bullshitting, eating, adult beverages, and damned little sleep! And there are prizes!

The attendees this year include (but are not limited to):

Mr. Completely, our host

KeeWee, from KeeWee’s Corner

Phil & David, from Random Nuclear Strikes

US Citizen of Traction Control (who failed to secure Summer Glau, but we’ll forgive him.)

Ride Fast & the Commandress, from Ride Fast – Shoot Straight

Mr. & Mrs. JimmyB, the Conservative UAW Guy

Lou from Mad Gun

Derek from The Packing Rat

Rachel Parson from the NRA

D.W. Drang from The Clue Meter

EJ from Engineering Johnson

Cap’n Bob & The Damsel

Mark Knapp from Firearms Lawyer

Maj. Chuck Ziegenfuss from From My Position – On the way and founder of Project Valour-IT.

Dirt Crashr, from Anthroblogogy

Chris & Mel Byrne, from The Anarchangel

Uncle, From Say Uncle

Miss Elain-eous of Bearcat’s Spin

Azreel of Free Spirit Mind

John O’C. of the Gun Counter forum

Benjamin of The Reasonable Nut

Larry Weeks, from Brownell’s

Andy and Lance from HiCap Gun Works

and Guest of Honor, Alan Gura
And me, of course. And the prizes? Well, I’m giving away a Para USA GI Expert that you need not be present to win! In that same drawing, you can win a certificate for four days of training at Front Sight in Nevada. Valued at $2,000, you can use it for one four-day class or two two-day classes.

IF YOU ATTEND you can purchase raffle tickets that might win you another Para pistol, or a Hi Point 9mm Carbine. Or you might win a framed Heller Kitty t-shirt autographed by Alan Gura! Other sponsors include (but are not limited to):

Steel Challenge Shooting Association

National Shooting Sports Foundation

Brownell’s

GLOCK

Dillon Precision

Lucky Gunner Ammo

Natchez Shooter’s Supply

Midway USA

Remington

Nosler Bullets
Which means there will be some damned cool stuff.

And, of course, there will be shooting!

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1933EPNUIY&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0&w=480&h=385]

So make your hotel reservations, sign up for the Saturday night all-you-can-eat Pizza dinner, and we’ll see you there!

Quote of the Day

Quote of the Day

I must simply state

That the most awesome plane ride in the world is the one that takes you OUT of Iraq. We’re not back on American soil yet, but I’ve now checked off the second tour where I got out of that country with all MY fingers and toes, and all my Joes are healthy and riding the plane home with me.

Ladies and gentlemen, THAT is a win.

Abby is coming home! Welcome back!

“All of these things serve to make America less American.”

Daniel Hannan, conservative member of the European Pariament for Britain gives a speech at the Army-Navy club in August of this year. Worth your time:

Part I:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v8vJYfxR14Y&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0&w=640&h=505]
Part II:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3ftNEzSjQY&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0&w=640&h=505]
Part III:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTuEaoicXlQ&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0&w=640&h=505]

Thanks, DJ.

Why I Do This

I received this email this morning:

Kevin,

I’ve commented occasionally on your blog, under the name Splodge Of Doom.

I have been reading TSM regularly for nigh-on three years now, starting when I was seventeen. I was pretty new to politics and the like, and started out very easily swayed by whoever I last listened to on any particular issue.

You and the regulars on your blog have taught me a lot over the time I have been reading (although it is perhaps more fair to say I have learned from Markadelphia, rather than him teaching me anything) and I have grown quite a bit since I started reading.

I do not always agree with you, but I pay attention when you speak. This critical thinking stuff is harder than it looks!

This note is just to say thank-you, and I appreciate the lengths you go to to write TSM and reach the fence-sitters.

Yours respectfully,

(Splodge Of Doom)

And this also why I’ll never ban Markadelphia. He’s too perfect an example of the Left in this country not to let him illuminate their failings.

Damn, that made my week.

I’ve Joined the EeePC Army

Woot! had this as today’s item:

Asus Eee PC 900 Netbook with 1.6GHz Atom Processor $169.99

  • + $5 shipping
Condition:
New
Product:
1 Asus EEEPC900A-WFBB01 Netbook with 1.6GHz Atom Processor, 8.9” LCD, 1GB DDR2, 4GB SSD and Linux


Obviously I’m going to need to get an SD memory card for it. Any suggestions? And does Firefox work with GNU Linux, or will I need to wipe the thing and start over with a different OS? I’m new to these things, but I didn’t think I could pass up this deal.