Bring me the head of Diego Garcia...and the Mayor of Addu Atoll too!

[Chickenboy]

ORIGINAL: sprior

Right after you become a millionaire. Or so I hear.

[:D]

[BBfanboy]

[:D]
Perhaps someone should tell her that the presence of a star does not mean this is the Hollywood Walk of Fame. She appears to be trying to leave an imprint...

[Cap Mandrake]

ORIGINAL: sprior

Right after you become a millionaire. Or so I hear.

[:D]Damn that recession!

Really nice front glacis, although I have to admit that is not the design element that got my attention first.

[Cap Mandrake]

******************VII Bomber Command HQ, Darwin, Feb. 8, 1943(c)********************


General Dreedle: <looking at map> Cathcart, what is this little crooked "X" thing over New Guinea...<looks more closley> Hollandia, whatever that is.

Lt. Col Cathcart: Why that's the Jap field at Hollandia sir, two runways, 5000 and 6000 ft, 15-20 reventments, fuel storage tanks, ordnance bunkers, enclosed hangars. Quite nice, really.

General Dreedle: Yes, but this "X" thing wasn't here before.

Lt. Col Cathcart: Well, that usually means the Japs put some planes there.

General Dreedle: Planes? How did we find out? Do we have recon over there?

Lt. Col Cathcart:Not sure, sir. It just seems to happen some times.

General Dreedle: Happen? Happen? Cathcart, where did you come from?

Lt. Col Cathcart: Indianapolis, sir.

General Dreedle: No, your unit.

Lt. Col Cathcart: 90th Bombardment Squadron, medium, sir.

General Dreedle: Hmmm. How did you get here Cathcart?

Lt. Col Cathcart: Oh, the 90th was destroyed at Noumea, sir.

General Dreedle: No, not that, I mean how did you GET here?

Lt. Col Cathcart: I'm not sure I understand, sir?

General Dreedle: By what means of conveyance, son?

Lt. Col Cathcart: Oh, life raft, sir. I paddled to Fiji, sir.

General Dreedle: Fiji?

Lt. Col Cathcart: Yes, sir, Fiji.

General Dreedle: And the rest of the squadron?

Lt. Col Cathcart: MIA, sir.

General Dreedle: All of 'em?

Lt. Col Cathcart: Yes sir.

General Dreedle: Did that just happen, too?

Lt. Col Cathcart: Yes sir, I guess it did.

General Dreedle: Cathcart, I don't trust you. Get me some recon over Hollandville or whatever it's called.

Lt. Col Cathcart: <crestfallen> Yes sir.....

[Chickenboy]

ORIGINAL: sprior

Meantime, here's a game of Spot the Tank. I still haven't found it:

Yeah. I'm experiencing stiff resistance to this visual challenge myself. Whatya got for afters?

[zuluhour]

That tank has great GAMS!!!! yikes

[Cap Mandrake]

I am pretty sure that is General Dreedle's girlfriend

[Cap Mandrake]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QzcDi9Cw3zo

[:D]

[Cap Mandrake]

No turn yet AND the NFL hasn't started for the day. [:@]

Finished reading Neptune's Inferno *****spoiler alert*******. We won.


The chapter about the Battle of Savo Island was hard to read. They weren't at full readiness. Crappy assumptions. Crappy recon reports. Crappy battle plan. Mistrust of radar. Recon aircraft and aviation fuel sitting on the fantail. Uggh.

Kirishima vs. the crusiers. Awesome fight. A cavalry charge in the dark.

Didn't know the details of the Sullivan brothers or Juneau. Uggh. Almost as bad as Hood.

[Chickenboy]

ORIGINAL: Cap Mandrake
We won.

We did!?! BANZAI! [8D]

[Cap Mandrake]

************Mandrake Timesaver Tip, 2nd in a Series**************

I'm not sure what the 1st tip was but I am pretty sure there was one. The second is based on evolutionary biology. I call it "Darwin Comes to the Dresser: Socksual Selection".


First, you must understand that The Mayan used to sort my socks. She used to iron my skivies too but I would rather that didn't get around. Now that SG and SG Jr. conspired to get The Mayan fired I just get a drawer full of socks. So I am confronted with a dilemma. Sort my ******* socks or retain a precious sliver of free time to waste on timesaver tips. Naturally, I chose the latter and to apply some evolutionary biolgy.

In the morning, I simply pick two socks of a color appropriate to what I am wearing. There are generally three races of socks, your dark blues/blacks, your browns/tans and your whites. The whites pretty much just get worn when I am playing golf (once a year) so I sent them to the Galapagos drawer. Nobody under 75 wears Argyle socks anymore so we shall discount them.

Now, the idea here is to save time, so one can't be picky about a couple of dots or fleur de lis. As a consequence this approach would not be prudent if you are a talking head on TV and have to sit around a coffee table and cross your legs or if you anticipate some team building activity at work that involves taking your shoes off or if you have to get past a TSA checkpoint. If you are going to do it with your sexretary then just take your socks off real fast.

So anyway, when you get down to the bottom of the drawer, any mismatched socks are tossed in the trash bin. Think of it as predation. It's magnificently efficient.

You may freely adopt this strategy at no cost.....and......you are welcome.

[witpqs]

Tell anyone who notices two different species of socks on you at the same time "E=Mc2" implying, but not stating (in case you are challenged) that you are an absent-minded genius like Einstein.

[BBfanboy]

ORIGINAL: Cap Mandrake

No turn yet AND the NFL hasn't started for the day. [:@]

Finished reading Neptune's Inferno *****spoiler alert*******. We won.


The chapter about the Battle of Savo Island was hard to read. They weren't at full readiness. Crappy assumptions. Crappy recon reports. Crappy battle plan. Mistrust of radar. Recon aircraft and aviation fuel sitting on the fantail. Uggh.

Kirishima vs. the crusiers. Awesome fight. A cavalry charge in the dark.

Didn't know the details of the Sullivan brothers or Juneau. Uggh. Almost as bad as Hood.

Sounds like a great book - I hope I can lay my hands on it.
I have always been fascinated with the Guadalcanal campaign and have read many books on it. The thing that always stood out for me is how Allied commanders stuck with their familiar line-ahead formation in the face of all evidence that this was a nice target for torps. Meanwhile the Japanese had a series of squadrons operating in nimble formations and following very good night battle doctrine to stay coordinated. It was like watching Ali [Cassius Clay at the time] dance around Liston and just keep stinging without being hit.

[Cap Mandrake]

ORIGINAL: BBfanboy

ORIGINAL: Cap Mandrake

No turn yet AND the NFL hasn't started for the day. [:@]

Finished reading Neptune's Inferno *****spoiler alert*******. We won.


The chapter about the Battle of Savo Island was hard to read. They weren't at full readiness. Crappy assumptions. Crappy recon reports. Crappy battle plan. Mistrust of radar. Recon aircraft and aviation fuel sitting on the fantail. Uggh.

Kirishima vs. the crusiers. Awesome fight. A cavalry charge in the dark.

Didn't know the details of the Sullivan brothers or Juneau. Uggh. Almost as bad as Hood.

Sounds like a great book - I hope I can lay my hands on it.
I have always been fascinated with the Guadalcanal campaign and have read many books on it. The thing that always stood out for me is how Allied commanders stuck with their familiar line-ahead formation in the face of all evidence that this was a nice target for torps. Meanwhile the Japanese had a series of squadrons operating in nimble formations and following very good night battle doctrine to stay coordinated. It was like watching Ali [Cassius Clay at the time] dance around Liston and just keep stinging without being hit.

I enjoyed the book. I think the American commanders were fearful of friendly fire disasters (with good reason as there were several well documented mistargetings). Line ahead in a night fight is the best way to maintain control. Those that came before Lee clearly didn't trust radar either, even when radar-equipped DD's were well ahead as pickets. Savo Island was a disaster with plenty of blame to go around.

Later commanders led with DD's (both as scouts and, probably in the case of Lee, as sacrifical torpedo magnets for the vulenrable BB's).

By all reports Ghormley was overmatched by the job. Halsey was almost too aggressive but got the job done. Funny story about Halsey. When he got to SouPac HQ, he was appalled at how cramped and inadequate the insulated quonset huts were. He sent an aide to the governor of New Caledonia, some French Admiral, to appeal for quarters. He was asked by the governor, "What's in it for me?"

Halsey was incensed. He gathered up some Marines and went downtown and seized the Governor's house. [:D][:D]

Lee's rating in AE is well deserved. Not sure what Scott's rating was. He was also a very, very capable commander.





* Is that how you spell "cramped"? And who'da thunk "appalled" has two "p's" and two "l's"? Bah, who cares.

[Cap Mandrake]

....

[Cap Mandrake]

Another funny thing. I always thought Willis "Ching" Lee was ethnic Chinese, though I will admit I was surprised that a Chinese American could rise to that rank in the late 30's.

In fact he lived next door to the Clampetts when he was a kid, shooting squirrels. He wasn't ethnic Chinese. He just liked moo shoo pork or some such thing so he was given the nickname. [:D]

[BBfanboy]

I have seen a picture of Adm. Lee and he had a round face, squinty eyes and wore round spectacles. He did appear to be Chinese [per the caricature at the time] and that may have had something to do with the nickname.

[Cap Mandrake]

Not sure about Chinese but he does look like a braniac [:)]

[BBfanboy]

Musta been in bright sunlight in the pic I saw - he was definitely squinting![8D]

[Cap Mandrake]

Here is Adm. Callaghan who led Task Group 64.7 on the night of Nov 12/13 vs. Kirishima. He drove his crusiers right into the oncoming Kirishima in very poor visibility, knowing full well he was facing at least one BB. Ostensibly it was to close range so the 8 in guns could penterate Kirishima's armor. Thing is he didn't tell anyone so they thought he was crazy. [;)]

Kirishima was wrecked. Then he was killed along with his staff and a Lt. Commander took control of San Francisico.

He was awarded a posthumous Medal of Honor. A bit more polished-looking than Lee