Friday quickies – Iran, author update, tankers lose naming rights
Our favorite folks in the Mideast, those crazy mullahs of mayhem, have announced the discovery of one of the world’s largest deposits of lithium. Think lithium-ion batteries – with all the push toward electrification, you can safely describe it as a strategic asset and Iran claims to have found about 8.5 million tons’ worth.
If that number is accurate, it would mean Iran now holds the largest lithium reserves outside of South America. Last year’s US Geological Survey estimated the total lithium reserves in the world at roughly 89 million tons, meaning this discovery could amount to nearly a tenth of the world’s lithium.
The price of lithium has surged in recent years, largely spurred by ambitious emissions goals by countries in Europe and North America creating an increased demand for electric vehicles, which use lithium batteries. A McKinsey study from last year reported a 550% annual increase in the price of the metal.
Just what we need. Too, didn’t they announce a rebadged F-105 as a stealth fighter a while back? Watch and see how this plays out.
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R.L. Stine, the author of the children’s “:Goosebump” series of books, has accused his publisher of censoring his books.
Certain titles from the Goosebumps anthology, second only to the Harry Potter books in terms of popularity, have been re-released as sanitized e-books by Scholastic, a new report from the Times has revealed.
“I’ve never changed a word in Goosebumps. Any changes were never shown to me,” Stine explained on Twitter.
One Goosebumps character is now “cheerful” instead of “plump.” Elsewhere the word “crazy” has been changed to “silly.” And a character who dressed as a “dark and stormy night” for Halloween now no longer wears black face paint.
When the authors are dead and unable to talk back, it’s one thing – should be interesting to see how this turns out when the author is alive – and pissed.
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III Armored Corps, headquartered at Ft. Hood, has announced that only crews who qualify “distinguished” in gunnery in their own tanks will be allowed to name their equipment.
III Corps’ commander, Lt. Gen. Sean Bernabe, and Command Sgt. Maj. Arthur Burgoyne Jr. are both infantrymen, not tankers or cavalry scouts who are typically tied to the tradition of naming their tanks.
(Lt. Col. Tania Donovan, a spokesperson for III Corps)Donovan said that, even if crews qualify distinguished on another crew’s tank, they still will not be able to name their own.
But per an anonymous armor officer:
“Sounds like a dumb rule that has [command sergeant major] written all over it,” they said. “Not that many crews will shoot distinguished, so there will be very few named tanks.
“But tankers really look forward to naming their tank after gunnery. It’s something that [the] crew talks about when it’s sitting for hours on the firing line, waiting for its turn to shoot,” they added.
Crews naming their tanks has been a staple of armor culture going back to World War II.
The article goes on to say that junior officers usually get more junior gunners, while older more experience gunners usually wind up with senior officers, so the effect of this is to create another division between ranks. Dunno about that, but it seems to me that trying to make naming your vehicle a privilege for the upper rankers only seems to be a little petty.
Category: "The Floggings Will Continue Until Morale Improves", Iran, Liberals suck
How about only a tanker may command an armor corps? I would really like to see real men lead the Army again.
Just a regular DAT here, who shot gunnery using a hand-cranked rangefinder and no STAB my first few times, in the day and age of CDATs where it’s now all push button laser rangefinder/computer integrated and generated target designations, STAB platforms that can hold a shot of whiskey on the end of a barrel traveling at 30 clicks and click shoot click next click shoot, are crews not getting higher scores now when there’s no one trying to shoot back?
But yeah, GFY with not allowing crews to name their tanks and actually take pride in themselves and their crew
That explains Chinas recent fascination with Iran.
I’m sure making naming rights a reward will fix everthing that is wrong with Ft Hood. Good job there Phantom 6 & 7!
The restriction on naming tanks is asinine. I expect the rule to be flaunted… a lot.
As to gunners. When I was a Plt Ldr I had little say about who got what gunner but learned to deal with an inexperienced man in the position. When I took over a Company I made sure the experienced gunners went to good TC’s and I took the least experienced troops for my tank. Yep totally against the normal doctrine but I made sure my troops were taken care of. I still had more than a few distinguished engagements with a totally new crew. Treat your people right and give them proper instruction and watch them go.
I named my car “FTA” for ‘Failure To Adapt’ or ‘F… The Army’.
Looks like I can add another abbreviation to the list, standing strong against idiocy with my Brothers-from-other-mothers in Armor & Cav: ‘F…king Tankers, Always’.
When stationed overseas, it was “Fly To America”.
Another awesome tank name. 😁
US Army M1 Abrams tank named ‘ASVAB Waiver’ keeping watch in Poland (taskandpurpose.com)
I wish I could upvote you more than once for that.
ROFLOLMFAO!!
No more wars over oil now? Gonna be fighting over lithium? Got it! Maybe it’ll delay the fight over Soylent Green…and bugs.
Book censorship? Taken straight from the “How To” Manual, 1984.
Nothing like creating more division in the ranks. Musta seen an uptick in Treadheads re-upping. Can’t have that now, can we. FFS!
How, exactly, does one prevent soldiers from naming something, General?
You did get the memo about not giving orders one can reasonably expect to be ignored, right General?
Was this actually something a squeaking-new 2LT aide did while General was napping? No?
Perhaps some helpful 71L can start typing retirement packages.
Gah.
Ok,, so let’s take the names off of shops too! Let’s start by peeling the name the “USS Harvey Milk” off the hull of that boat!
Good grief!
Fn autocorrect! “Ships”!!!!! “Ships”!!!!!!
Damn it!!!!
Tanker here. I have no problem with not naming your tank if you didn’t qualify it. I don’t agree with the distinguished part but the bottom line is too many tankers don’t know how to properly maintain their tanks and then are scared to shoot it on the qualification table. Gunnery exists not just to train crews but maintain the combat vehicles. GTFOH with that watching to see what tank is hitting and then hot seating on that one. Train, maintain, and shoot your own track. That’s tanker standards. One of the prouder days of my Bn command was our third gunnery after the Bn hadn’t shot a gunnery for ten years and every crew qualified their own track.