8/31/2022

Marine Buffalo

 

Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton is home to one of just two protected herds of American bison in California, with the other herd managed on Catalina Island. The Marine Corps herd can be found roaming in Delta and Charlie training areas, the Zulu Impact Area and in Case Springs, areas off-limits to the general public.

Camp Pendleton first received its bison from the San Diego Zoo between 1973 and 1979. The earliest numbers were small, just 14 individuals. The installation was a perfect home for the bison, and not just because there's no better friend than the Marines. Camp Pendleton is enormous; with 125,000 acres of land and two natural water sources, there's plenty of room on the range to roam. There are 90 buffalo on Camp Pendleton now.

https://www.military.com/history/why-marine-corps-maintains-its-private-herd-of-american-bison.html


Home, Home on the Range

Where the deer and the buffalo play

Where seldom is heard, a discouraging word

Cause buffalo can't talk anyway.


Video

https://youtu.be/iZLT21HnQ6U







8/26/2022

10 Most Dangerous Interstates in America

 


Click to read the article:  https://www.everquote.com/10-most-dangerous-highways-usa/




Wind Turbine Design

There are numerous alternate designs for wind turbines for generating electricity. The design that is predominant now is shown below, and these types of wind turbines are being installed all over the world. 





Here is an oldie by goodie.


https://www.mywindpowersystem.com/2011/08/27/wind-power-history-charles-brush/





My grandfather, Helmer Liffengren lived on a ranch near Draper, South Dakota. He installed a windcharger that generated electricity for his home. My mother remembered that when the wind blew briskly he would go home so he could listen to the radio.

Helmer's son, my mother's twin brother, Luverne Liffengren, lived south of Draper, South Dakota on a ranch that was off the grid, not by choice. This was in the 1930's up to about 1960.  

They had an old wind charger that used to provide power but no longer worked well.  Luverne generated his power with a very loud old car engine.  He stored power in car batteries that filled the top floor of his old garage.  The power system was 32 volts, I think, though I am not sure - he got rid of the system when I was about 12 in 1960+-, when they extended commercial power to the ranch.

I think the power was used for lights, to pump water, fans, drills, and not sure what else. The appliances all had to be low voltage.

They used an outhouse, and propane for heating. Wish I had some pictures. 




Bird safety is a big issue in the world of wind turbines. In order to reduce the danger for our flying feathered friends, engineers created the Vortex Bladeless wind energy generator, which is shaped like a tall, thin straw rather than having large rotating blades. The device harvests energy from swirling vortices in moving air, and since the bladeless wind energy generators are tall and thin, several of them can be installed in the space that a single blade turbine takes up. Its creators say the Vortex Bladeless cuts manufacturing costs by 53 percent and maintenance costs by as much as 80 percent compared to traditional turbines, and it has a smaller carbon footprint too.


Click to read more

https://www.engadget.com/2016-11-05-six-innovative-wind-turbine-designs.html

https://www.linquip.com/blog/types-of-wind-turbines/

https://craighullinger.blogspot.com/2014/09/how-much-electricity-comes-from.html

https://www.illinoiswindmills.org/wind-turbines

http://www.texasescapes.com/MichaelBarr/Wind-Chargers.htm

8/24/2022

Washington State



Mount Ranier Aug 24, 2022 Shot From Gig Harbor, Washington




Mount Ranier, flying home from Seattle to Sarasota Aug 25, 2022




Mount Ranier Aug 24, 2022


Snoqualmie Falls  Aug 24, 2022



Mount Baker, I think. 2009


Mount Baker above, I think, 2009







Cambodia

I normally enjoy the Rosendo's Travelscope show on PBS but his recent political comments about Cambodia were harmful nonsense. 

He stated: 

US bombing caused the Khmer Rouge genocide.

That is the equivalent of saying that: 

US bombing caused the Nazi genocide.

Both statements are ridiculous lies. Disgusting disinformation. The Khmer Rouge and the Nazi's are to blame for their genocide, not the United States.

The US supported the South Vietnam, Cambodia and Laotion  governments against Communist attacks. Our support included bombing of their strongholds and supply lines.

Our bombing campaign did not drive the Khmer Rouge insane and make them murder millions. And it did not cause the Vietnamese genocide.  And our bombing campaign did not make the Nazi's murder people. That is absurd. Rosendo blames our country for the actions of homicidal maniacs. And PBS happily puts it on the air.


Shameful.  

You can watch this show at:




Here is what happened. And the Vietnamese Communists were nearly as bad as the Cambodians.

World War II, the Cold War, and Vietnam

Little Girl in Front of a Memorial to the People Killed by Communists
No doubt some of her grandparents, uncles, and aunts. The kids
played on  the memorial and would not get out of the photo.
27 million people were murdered by the Axis countries in World War II in addition to those killed in war. The United States, Great Britain, Canada, and Australia were joined by the USSR, China, and other allies against Nazi Germany, Japan, and Italy. Most people believe that World War II was necessary and justified.

150 million people were murdered by the Communist countries  in addition to those killed in war. The United States and Great Britain were joined by our old enemies and other allies against our former allies, the USSR, China, and other Communist countries. Most people believe the Cold War to opposed Communism was necessary and justified.

Communism was everywhere on the attack from 1945 to 1985. Communism expanded from Russia into Poland, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Albania, China, Cuba, Czechslovakia, East Germany, Tibet, North Vietnam South Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, North Korea, and a number of other countries. Their goal was to bring Communism to all nations.

Communists used terrorism, murder and subversion to destabilize countries. Political murder and terrorism was an integral part of the “Wars of Liberation.”

3.8 million people were murdered in South Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos when the Cold War went hot. Millions more were imprisoned, enslaved, and ethnically cleansed. 
Young Boy in Front of a Memorial near Angkor Wat

The anti war movement changed American policy. Many of them believed that the War was immoral and that the U.S. was there for oil. They contended we were imperialist fascist war mongers. They believed that war is evil and to be avoided at all costs. Many of them considered Ho Chi Minh and Pol Pot to be Freedom Fighters. "Ho, Ho, Ho Chi Minh, NLF is sure to Win". They thought Communism was an excellent system. They believed that Communists were fighting for freedom and self determination. They contended that the war in southeast Asia was a civil war. 


The antiwar movement succeeded in their goals.  The Congress elected in 1974 withdrew support leading to the Communist takeover of South Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos in 1975. This led directly to the massive genocide that took place in all three countries.


I believe an individual and a nation must oppose evil, especially when their avowed policy was to take over the world. And genocide must be opposed. We were both moral and right to oppose Hitler, Tojo, Stalin, Mao, Ho Chi Minh, and Pol Pot.


We have largely prevailed over Communism. It has been abandoned in Europe. It is liberalizing and improving in Asia. China, Laos, North Korea and Vietnam remain totalitarian police states.

I believe that most of the anti war folks were sincere in their beliefs. And they were successful in their efforts to halt financial and military support for Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. But millions of people are dead, tortured, ethnically cleansed and enslaved partly as a result of their success.


Never again. Until the next time.



Photos from the killing fields of Cambodia. Vietnam and Laos were just as bad but the people who committed the genocide and ethnic cleansing are still in charge and don't publicize what happened after the Communist takeover. 



References on Murder

Professor Rudy Rummel of the University of Hawaii has published extensive referenced and documented estimates on murder by government, which he terms democide. He has reviewd all academic studies of the various genocides in the world.  The estimates of the number killed varies widely. He generally through out the high and low estimates and chose a median for his estimate. The table below summarizes some of his work.






1.Laos, Pathet Lao regime (1975- )
o Rummel:
* Democide in Laos: 130,000 (33% blamed on Laos; 67% blamed on Vietnam)
* Laotian war dead: 54,000
* TOTAL: 184,000 (1975-87)
o SIPRI 1989, civil war, 1977-90:
* military: 10,000
* civilian: 30,000
* TOTAL: 40,000
o Polish Press Agency, 3 Dec. 1998: 300,000 killed for political reasons, acc2 dissident Laotian Council for Independence and Democracy.

CountryMurdered
China76,702,000
USSR61,911,000
China Mao 1923-483,468,000
Poland1,585,000
Yugoslavia1,072,000
North Korea1,663,000
Vietnam1,670,000
Cambodia2,035,000
Laos130,000
Totals150,236,000


http://users.erols.com/mwhite28/warstat5.htm







8/23/2022

c-130 Flying Loop

ZAP!

 Thanks for the Memories



Arguments Online

 Arguin




8/21/2022

Russia At It Again

Russia loves to stick it to the United States.  They take every divisive issue and magnify it. Stir the pot and increase our anger towards each other. It is working well.

Look at the info below. In a few paragraphs they are able to make Trump supporters angry at the search at Mar a Lago and Trump opponents angry that he took Top Secret information. They tell us that the Russians have the Top Secret information. They tell us that Trump is a victim of a witch hunt.

They have helped to make Democrats hate Republicans and vice versa. And they have helped make me disgusted with both the Republicans and Democrats.  Our countrymen hating the other half of our population is terrible but great for the Russians.

Rooskies are amazing.

_____________________

Russia Claims to Have Seen the Documents

Russian media defended Trump and also said that the classified documents were reviewed by Moscow. Igor Korotchenko echoed Trump's assessment of the FBI raid, calling it a "witch hunt." 

"They won't just be vilifying him, they will be strangling him. These raids, involving dozens of FBI officers and police dogs... This is a symbol of inordinate despotism," the Russian military expert added.

The state-owned Russia-1 television channel said Russians had access to the documents seized from Mar-a-Lago.

"Turns out that the investigation against Trump has to do with the disappearance of secret documents from the White House, related to the development of nuclear weapons by the U.S.," host Evgeny Popov said. "The FBI isn't saying what kinds of weapons, or what they found in Trump's estate. Obviously, if there were any important documents, they've been studying them in Moscow for a while."

_______

From Russia Today  rt.com

Most Americans see FBI as ‘Biden’s Gestapo’ – poll

 https://www.rt.com/news/561192-fbi-biden-gestapo-poll/

_________

Know Your Enemy. If you would like to read more of the nicely produced Russian progaganda, go to:





Or simply read the comments of any divisive political story. Russian disinformation folks are commenting and stiring the pot. They take both sides of the argument and hurl invective at the other side. Works very well to make us angry with each other.


United We Stand, Divided We Fall, Don't Fall For Russian BS


Alaska 2022