Category: Guest Contributors

Tom’s World – 28JAN2025 – The Ravages of Time

photog Americana, Guest Contributors, TomD , ,

Tom | Flickr

TomD

The place where I grew up, at least from age 5, doesn’t exist any more. The name, Sandy Springs, exists as does the geographical location, north Atlanta metro, both exist. But the reality is long gone, torn down and the replacement torn down and the replacement of the replacement—- You get the idea.

Nothing, absolutely nothing physical from my childhood survives. Dust and dead. The neighborhood BBQ parties where everyone’s Dad was a WWII vet. The neighborhood gone, the street gone. Highrise buildings where the woods with the abandoned POW camp were. An 8 lane road where the old rock quarry was where we used to shoot snakes in the lake at the bottom.

I’m the only one left and I’m not going to be around that much longer either.

And the replacements are far from what I imagined as I read my Sci-Fi. Nobody then wrote anything sufficiently dystopian to include this reality.

Guest Contributor – War Pig – 25JAN2025 – Wheels

photog Americana, Guest Contributors, War Pig , , ,

war pig

When I returned from Vietnam I was without wheels. Six of us pooled our cash and bought a military surplus lot of ten Harley scout bikes still in crates. Took us six months to put them together. 1955 panheads, probably leftover from the Korean War. Rubber was dry rotted as was some of the leather. They were OD green with the white star, etc., markings. Those old beasts had 3 sets of points and suicide shifters with the clutch pedal on the left. Throttle on the right handlebar and spark advance on the left. Took a while to get used to. We had enough spare parts from the excess 4 bikes that we sold them and made our money back plus a little. I wish I’d left it in the original colors, but we had to chop them, put long ape hangers on them and all of the rest. Easy Rider was all the rage. I rode mine from Camp Legune to Norfolk. To say my butt was numb would be an understatement. Those old things sure did shake, rattle and roll. Also, no electric start. Kick it over. And if it backfired at the bottom of the stroke it would catapult you about two feet into the air and your knee hurt. But, put a little gal on the back and ride her around for a bit and the vibrations got good to her. Then you were in like Flynn.

Had to sell it and get a 1968 Malibu when I got married. Harley was good, but it couldn’t cook.

Tom’s World – 25JAN2025 – I Get Around

photog Americana, Guest Contributors, Photography, TomD , , ,

Tom | Flickr

TomD

That Valiant had a 170 CI slant 6 rated at 101 HP, that was the only motor available, and the 3 speed pushbutton transmission. But the time I got the car, it probably made around 50 HP. But the drive train was close to unkillable.

The tires at the time were definitely killable though. A new set could be worn down in less that 10K miles and I couldn’t afford anything like new tires. When the cord started showing, I would buy one used tire for around $5.

At the time, I was dating a girl (whom I later married) whose family had bought her a new VW. That helped a bunch.

My Dad had a 72 Impala with a 454 police interceptor package. That was something.

Below: my Kawasaki 500. This was followed by a Suzuki 1000 GS and later by a Suzuki 1100. Before I gave my last bike away in the early 2000’s I had around 200,000+ total miles riding experience.

A year or two ago, I was within a gnats whisker of buying a Honda 750 triple. The only thing that stopped me is that model was out of stock and nobody knew when they would have more. My wife was freaking out. Look at the picture below and you can see the appeal.

The last time I was active with motorcycles, I was in my 50’s, now I’m in my mid-70’s. I wonder what’s happened to my balance and reflexes since. I still have a motorcycle endorsement on my license though.

My old Kawasaki 500. This thing was a beast, it had about 25 HP at 5000 RPM and around 70 at 5500, with the front tire pointing at the moon. Talk about a hand full.

scan180

Guest Contributor – Chemist – 24JAN2025 – Nuclear Power

photog Chemist, Guest Contributors, Science , , , ,

 

“Now the real problem is managing the wastes and breeding more fuel.”
Interesting choice of words.
If only there were a way of capturing all those extra neutrons and making fuel grade Uranium from more common ore. We could call it a “Breeder reactor”.
Nah. It will probably be decades until we could do that.
Like negative 7 decades.

There is no scientific reason not to use nuclear power. As you pointed out, the French have been doing it for 70 years. (They sell power to Germany.)
And if the French can do it….
The roadblocks are 90% political and 10% engineering.
Nuclear waste can be dealt with if we give American engineers a chance to attack the problem. But with no new activity going on, we can’t solve the problems.

Spending billions on a waste storage project in Nevada and then letting a corrupt politician kill the project was clearly the wrong way to go.
BTW, Nevada, I’d like that money back.

Tom’s World – 23JAN2025 – Rusted Floorboards and All

photog Guest Contributors, TomD , ,

Tom | Flickr

TomD

My 1st couple of years in engineering school (1966-1967) were with a slip stick. A number of years followed spent in the military and civilian employment before I paused my hedonistic lifestyle to complete my degree in Civil Engineering in 1975. When I started back in 1973, slip sticks were gone in favor of calculators. I started off with a $240 (in 1973 dollars!) Bowmar, by current standards, the equivalent of a current $12 scientific calculator. But I quickly gravitated to an HP 45. I can’t remember who I had to kill to get the cash for the over $400 price of the HP 45. I was living and paying all of my bills and food and tuition and books from my $275/month GI Bill and my weekend job pumping beer, shelling oysters and making Reubens at Smokeys Bar for a couple of bucks an hour.

My transportation at the time was a Kawasaki 500 until I got so cold one winter that I paid $100 for a 1962 Valiant with a rusted out floorboard that I covered with a stolen real estate sign to keep my feet from falling through.

Sounds tough but that was the absolute best time of my life.

Guest Contributor – War Pig – 18JAN2025 – Hollywood Types and Tanks

photog Guest Contributors, War Pig , ,

war pig

Living on SoCal in the early to late 60s, we ran across several celebs. George Goebel was a blind drunk. Sinatra was a mean drunk, but quite personable and giving when sober. Red Skeleton was a kind man, as was Roy Rogers. Who was just as he appeared on screen. A kind, decent man who, along with Dale, was a straight shooter. Ray Molland was also an alcoholic. Bob Denver could be quite mean in person. Tommy Kirk, Annette Funicello and Frankie Avalon were friendly. The Beach Boys were finding their sound. Carlos Santana was nice to me when I accidentally bumped into him one time.

As for WWII, my uncle was a tank crewman from Operation Cobra through the wars end. Was the only survivor of his original tank crew and liberated Buchenwald. It haunted him for the rest of his life. I have never seen “Fury”, but it resembled my uncle’s experiences, from the sound of it.

 

 

 

ArthurinCali Has an Article on Realpolitik and Trump

photog ArthurinCali, Current Events, Guest Contributors, Trump , ,

ArthurinCali has a very interesting interesting discussion about how Trump looks at the ways and means of running the American Empire.

“From time to time, the mask slips and the broader public catches a glimpse into the inner machinations of the Global American Hegemon. This can be a striking blow to the ideals and platitudes usually presented as representation of the Liberal international order.”

 

Guest Contributor – TomD – 11JAN2025 – California Wildfires

photog Current Events, Guest Contributors, TomD , ,

Tom | Flickr

TomD

I live on the Florida panhandle, the population isn’t nearly as dense as central and south Florida. There are extensive farmlands and 10’s of thousands of acres covered in trees, mostly pines.

Except hot and dry spells, you will commonly see large smoke plumes here and there on the horizon. That is called “controlled burning”. That is to burn off the underbrush and dead branches, dry pine straw, etc., but not kill the trees. That reduces the kindling and fast fuel that a major fire needs to get started. It works. This method is common across the US in forested areas.

It is illegal in California.

In the meantime, the LA fire dept has spent the last 4 years hiring mostly lesbians as firefighters with no qualifications other than being lesbians.

In the meantime, California has created no new reservoirs since 1979 despite a near doubling of population since.

In the meantime, California passed a $7.5 billion bill to ensure adequate water supply but not a cent has been spent to that purpose. Some of it was used to destroy 4 then existing dams and reservoirs.

A number of years ago, someone ventured that California was rich enough to be stupid. I’m not sure that is the case any more.

Another interesting point: LA, and California in general, has long been famous for the difficulty and time required to get a building permit. We’re talking years for a house. How do you think the 10’s of thousands of people affected by the burning show up to get permits to rebuild their homes and businesses only to be told that they first need an environmental study and permission from 17 different agencies? Do you think there will be hangings? Hopefully.