Weekend Open Thread – “. . . they came out of the sky like angels and took me to paradise.”
Continuing the recent WOT theme, this article’s a bit longer. You might also want to grab a tissue and keep it handy.
The story that follows is not a tall tale, parable, or a fable. It happened.
. . .
Once, there were three brothers. For now, we’ll call them Able, Baker, and Charlie.
They were born in a Communist land. To be precise, they were born in the German Democratic Republic, AKA East Germany.
Their parents were Party members, and ardent Communists. They were high-ranking officers in East German dictatorship’s security services. So the brothers had a relatively privileged upbringing.
And being in East Germany, they were living in the most prosperous of the Soviet-block nations. So by Communist standards their lives were good indeed.
Yet the oldest of the three – Able – had always wanted to see the world. This was a problem. He knew he could never do so while living in East Germany.
So he decided to go West.
Able served in the East German military. He was assigned to a border regiment that served along the Elbe, north of Berlin.
He finished his military service. And not long afterwards, he began planning to leave.
In his 21st year, he acted.
Able rented a car – of course, after being on a waiting list to do so for four months. He drove north.
He and a friend arrived in the area where Able had served – and thus knew fairly well. They sneaked through the “death zone” near the river, then quietly inflated air mattresses.
Then that night, Able and his friend paddled across the Elbe.
On the other side, they found a West German police vehicle. Able approached the vehicle, and tapped on its window.
“It’s a cold night for swimming,” was the West German policeman’s remark to Able on seeing him.
“Not when you’re swimming from the East,” was Abel’s reply.
. . .
Predictably, the family remaining behind received intense scrutiny from East German authorities. The parents lost their positions in the security services. And the remaining two brothers were watched closely.
Yet the youngest brother Charlie also wanted freedom. And after a time, he too decided he would risk all to obtain it.
After nearly eight years, he was ready.
He’d taken up archery as a hobby. He’d become reasonably profficient.
He also found a way to contact his brother in West Berlin during those years of waiting. With his brother’s promise of help, he formulated a plan to obtain his freedom.
Charlie found a place in East Berlin where the Berlin Wall’s “death zone” was fairly narrow. And as fate would have it, there were buildings of significant height on either side of the wall in that area.
One night, Charlie – having contacted his brother Able – climbed to the attic of one of those buildings. He and a friend climbed to the attic; Charlie then climed out of an attic window.
He stood on the roof, and used his bow to shoot a thin fishing line roughly 40m over the border – and over the house opposite the higher building on which he stood.
His brother Abel was waiting. He found the arrow his brother had shot across the Wall and the line attached to it. He used the line to pull larger line across the border – and then used that larger line to pull a wire across the Berlin Wall and its adjacent Death Strip.
Charlie and his friend had also each obtained a pulley. To this, they’d attached handholds and a strap for their wrists.
Charlie tied off his end of the wire to the chimney of the building on which he stood. Able tied his end to the bumper of his car – then drove a short distance to tension the wire.
Charlie put the pulley on the wire. He and his friend then zip-lined to freedom. Some sources say Charlie had to climb hand-over-hand the last few meters into West Berlin.
. . .
The last brother, Baker, still remained in East Germany. And he was now under strict surveillance.
Six more years passed.
During those years, Baker was offered a ticket west by East German security services. Believing this was a test, he refused the offer – and professed to be quite happy in the GDR. (Other sources say he refused because his then-girlfriend threatened to commit suicide if he left.)
His brothers, meanwhile, were searching for a way to bring him West. And in due time, Playboy Magazine (again!) helped them find a way to do exactly that.
One day Able saw an ad in Playboy for a miniature helicopter. He and Charlie traveled to Cologne to see it. To their chagrin they found that it was only a prototype, and not yet commercially available.
However, while there they met two French pilots who told them about something called an “ultralight”. They traveled to France and checked out one.
They’d found their tool. Able learned to fly an ultralight – and clandestinely (and illegally) taught his brother Charlie to do the same.
They procured two ultralights. Each ultralight would accommodate two persons. They would go together when it was time to get their brother Baker. One of them would land and would bring back their brother. The other would be the backup way out in case of problems.
They they managed to establish contact with their brother Baker. They coordinated a time and place.
After one aborted attempt, on May 26, 1989, they went back to East Berlin to get their brother.
At 4:15AM, Baker hid himself in bushes in East Berlin’s Treptow Park. Some minutes later, at Britzen Garten in West Berlin, Able and Charlie started their ultralight’s engines.
The flight was short. Able landed and picked up his brother Baker. Charlie circled overhead, ready to land and attempt to take off with both of them if there was an issue.
Able’s takeoff was long due to the extra weight, and clearing the trees at the end of their takeoff field in Treptow Park was a close thing indeed. But the takeoff was successful.
The returning trio landed on the lawn in front of the Reichstag. Waiting friends took them out for a beer.
Baker later remarked that it was the best drink of his life.
. . .
As I said initially, although it seems unbelievable this story is true. The three brothers were named (in age order) Ingo, Egbert, and Holger Bethke. (Some sources indicate Egbert was the youngest.)
Ingo escaped from the GDR in May 1975 by crossing the Elbe north of Berlin; Holger, in March 1983 via zip-line over the Berlin Wall in Berlin. As noted above, the two of them returned to rescue their brother Egbert from East Berlin on 26 May 1989. Ironically, less than six months later the Berlin Wall fell.
The title of this article is a partial quote of remarks made by Egbert Bethke, referring to the first beer he drank during the celebration he and his brothers shared after his rescue from East Berlin. The full quote is as follows:
“It was the best drink of my life. I thought I’d never see my brothers again, but they came out of the sky like angels and took me to paradise.”
Brotherly love indeed.
—–
Sources:
https://www.readersdigest.ca/culture/escape-east-germany/
https://www.mattlumine.com/call-desire-freedom-away-east-germany-using-imagination/?cn-reloaded=1
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/11/07/berlin-wall-escape-stories_n_6090602.html
http://mentalfloss.com/article/28517/8-creative-ways-people-went-over-berlin-wall
—–
Enough Cold War history for now. Enjoy the WOT and the weekend, everyone. “And hey – be careful out there”.
Category: Historical, Open thread
FIRST!!!
Congratulations, Veritas Omnia Vincit … You Da Man. You are officially our lord and master until next week at this time. Standing by to render assistance as required.
Looks as if you get the crown this week, VOV.
Holy shit…who knew it would actually be first…I’d like to thank my high speed internet provider for the great connection that allowed my refresh button to hit the first in microseconds ahead of the competitions….
Beers and wings and some conversation…hope everyone has a wonderful, safe weekend!!
Congrats VOV, may your lordship be a glorious one indeed! All Hail VOV!
I lay claim to Honorary First yet again.
((((OVER))))
First!
1st
First
OK; 4th.
Again.
first
Five simultaneous posts, posted at 1:05 pm, claiming first! This came down to the “seconds”, as in “within seconds of each other, and the first post made it by seconds. That must be it.
Yeah, I note many of us have the same time but there can only be ‘The One’ and that ‘One’ would be whoever had theirs posted first. I think mine was posted, like, fifth or sixth, and I don’t know how I could have posted it any more quickly than I did.
Blessings and a great weekend to you all. Above all, be safe.
New (to me) scam is someone with crappy accent calling to tell me my Apple computer is infected and I should call xxxx to have it fixed. At the time I was on my Dell. Anyway, they don’t really know what computer I have … they could say Asus, Apple, Dell, whatever and they would be right on occasion. I despise these white collar scumbags.
First
Ha! I’m getting closer.
Congrats to VOV
Looks like VOV beat us to it this week, guys …
Dang! Congrats VOV.
Have a great weekend y’all.
Damn Damn Damn Damn….Nano of nano seconds…I forthwith pass the crown of FIRST to Brother VoV and the congratulations on a job well done. Have simply got to string a 6 Fiber drop down the street to the local CO and bump this low speed high drag www up to be competitive. Lord over and Prosper dickweed…Tho I know you won’t Lord over.
In honor of VOV beating me to the coveted First by mere milliseconds, I’ll go ahead and post this week’s trivia. (Hey, it’s as good an excuse to post it as any.) Hope you enjoy! DID YOU KNOW…? What were the last words of Dr. Albert Einstein? By Commissioner Wretched I don’t know where I would be without my readers. (Well, yes, I do. I’d be unemployed, most likely.) A few weeks ago I gave you the tidbit of information that “under his powdered wig, George Washington had red hair.” Recently I received a very delightful e-mail from a reader who gently took me to task about that. The writer, Gloria, told me that after reading that little item she mentioned my “fact”to someone who would know – Igor Babailov. If you don’t recognize the name (I did), he’s the artist who was commissioned to paint a recent portrait of Washington, and thus would be one of the foremost sources of information about old George. Mr. Babailov informed Gloria that I was in error on one point: Washington did not wear a wig. Yes, wigs were the “in thing” then, but it was entirely within George’s character to buck the trend. Mr. Babailov told Gloria (and she then told me) that, instead of wigs, Washington powdered his own hair. So, I stand corrected once again. Since I have seen nothing to note that, under the powder, his hair was not a natural red, I stand by that part of the item, anyway. Thank you, Gloria, and thank all of you who take the time to let me know these things. Now, on to this week’s trivia! Did you know … … only ten percent of all athletes who sign professional baseball contracts make it to the major leagues? (That’s why it’s important to have a backup plan, folks.) … you can actually play an edible Monopoly game? The game is made of chocolate and butterscotch, and can be ordered from amazon.com. (The bad part is, you can only play it once if you decide to eat it. Boardwalk must be… Read more »
And, the North American heatwave of 1936 was so hot, parts of southern Canada suffered under triple digit temperatures. It’s the hottest summer on record.
Thanks! I’ll have to get that into a future column!
Another Shout Out and Big Thanks to Hondo for these “escapee” stories. When we read about the lengths and dangers that people would go thru to escape from the benevolent Democratic Socialist Utopia that was the USSR it is just mind blowing. A total of 14 years between their successful attempts. Some of our “elected” representatives need to ‘splain to us why they would want to leave that Utopia. /s/
CW, always enjoy your trivia and look forward to it after the dust from the FIRST competition dies down. One thing on George Washington I had read in an old bio of him years back. Seems as he did have red hair as a younger man and during The French and Indian Conflict when he was taking the King’s Shilling. This was before he became a damned insurrectionist Rebel. He started powdering his wig as the red was fading to gray. I may be wrong as that was well over 50 years ago. The book was a FIRST Edition printed in the 1850s that I didn’t get custody of.
Again, Thanks to the both of you and keep ’em coming!
“powdering his hair” proof read better damn it!
Happy weekend everyone!!
Fribbles!
That was my favorite episode of Trek … “The Trouble With Fribbles.” 😉
Tribbles, Commish. It was Tribbles, and some fan wrote in to tell the producers that she, Elaine Tribble, was nothing like the ST Tribbles, even if they are fribbelous. 🙂
Well, as they say here in the South, “Fribble my tribble!”
(Okay, they don’t say it. But they should.)
Funny thing is … the newspapers I work for are owned by a man named Tribble. Sometimes it’s hard to keep a straight face, especially when the Star Trek calendar on my office wall has a photo of a tribble on it.
Knew a Navy x-ray (8452) tech named Tribble.
You want something from Friendly’s? Better hurry, they’ve already filed for bankruptcy once and not sure how long the rest of the restaurants will be around.
Loved their cheeseburger on bread.
Not a bun, two slices of bread.
We visited them when stationed in Bethesda (72-77). Really liked their ice cream. Sorry to see them go. Some of the old standbys are disappearing. Sears comes to mind. Man, they were the boss for decades. I recall going to Sears for school clothes. Our W.T. Grant store in NC had all-you-could-eat fish every Friday night. We piled into the Nash and went and embarrassed ourselves. I got so embarrassed I quit going. My father would order, like, 6-7 times. He really pissed off the waiters. Whatever tip he left, I added another $3 or so, which was a nice tip in the 60s. Good times …
Friendly’s is going out largely due to crappy management of late. Their ice cream still resides in my freezer this very moment.
They’ve closed most of their restaurants in the area, it’s a sad situation.
I miss Big Boy restaurants, they made a wickedly good Patty Melt!
Yep. Bob’s Big Boy patty melts were excellent, and there are still a few of the restaurants around in Southern California, although I haven’t been to one down there in years. I also like Bob’s chunky bleu cheese salad dressing which is still available locally in the grocery store.
First!
FIST!!!!
Yeah, you know what I mean you sick fuckers.
Have a lovely weekend.
Spring has finally Sprung in the Mid-Atlantic with low 70s today and tomorrow but then 40s on Sunday.
FUCK YOU MOTHER NATURE! Yeah, THAT’S RIGHT, I SAID IT!!
Oh well. Not first yet again.
Congrats VOV on your 1st!!
Rule well & enjoy!
(And don’t use up all of the paper on the Royal Throne)
Hondo, thanks again for the weekly open thread story, always a good read. (smile)
Just had an e-mail from the VBA concerning this:
June 22nd marks the 75th Anniversary of the GI Bill, and VA wants you – all Veterans, service members, and your families from all generations – to share your story of how the GI bill has made a difference in your lives.
Sorry about the negativity, but can’t help but wonder how many posers will be making a video just to get their mug up in public.
Enjoy the weekend weeds & weedettes….and watch out for Monday: April Fool’s Day.
https://fs9.formsite.com/gibill75th/fizrlbbyvo/index.html
Ditto what Skyjumper commented, i.e. Congrats to VoV on being 1st on WOT…and a big Thank You to Hondo for sharing the story.
😊
Just a few updates.
Bernath is still dead.
CA Assemblyman Randy Voepel the last “Viet Nam” (era) Vet serving in the CA state Assembly is still a liar, fraud and Valor Thief.
He never worked SEALs, Tiger Battalion or served on PBR’s.
NPC has no record of his Combat Action Ribbon.
And he has shopped around an altered DD-214N.
CA State Assemebly leaders have yet to call out Randy Boy for his lies.
That is all.
MCPO OUT.
Randy is a fraud, but then so are most of the D-rats in Commiefornia.
While true, Voepel is a Republican.
He is a RINO who frequently votes with the D-rats in the Legislature.
not first ^_^ hahaha
that was a very good story about the brothers.
I’m glad that Able was Able to make it across the border and Able to continue making the “Grab” as we say in FD venaculer terms.
Present! Ok, somebody lied to me. I was told that when I became an eebil double dipping government employee, all I had to do was show up. Bastards! It ain’t true! My recruiter lied!
For Claw:
He’s back!
😉
“Top Enlisted Adviser To JCS Chairman Is Reinstated After Investigation”
https://www.stripes.com/news/us/top-enlisted-adviser-to-jcs-chairman-is-reinstated-after-investigation-1.574755
“The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said Thursday that he reinstated his senior enlisted adviser after an Army Inspector General investigation found he had violated ethics rules.”
“Army Command Sgt. Maj. John Troxell was temporarily removed from his position in September and assigned as a special assistant to the vice director of the Joint Staff during the investigation, which concluded in late February, according to the Pentagon.”
“The investigation by the Inspector General’s Office substantiated two complaints against Troxell. The violations include improperly using military personnel to carry out tasks outside of their official duties such as personal errands and improperly endorsing commercial fitness and nutrition products on his official military social media accounts, according to a Pentagon statement.”
“However, Troxell did not receive any personal or monetary gain from the endorsements, according to the Pentagon statement.”
Different spanks for different ranks. An E-4 would be on his way to out processing.
What twisted logic does the good general use here to claim he didn’t have any personal or monetary gain? What would you call sending subordinates to do chores? It’s the literal definition of the term; https://www.translegal.com/legal-english-dictionary/personal-gain
This guy defintely has hiccups of the brain due to Meth. Do hope he receives professional mental and drug abuse counseling before he hurts himself and others. “Man Stopped For Driving 130 MPH Said He Was Heading To White House, Needed To Return Phone To ‘Leader of the Army’” https://www.armytimes.com/news/your-army/2019/03/29/man-stopped-for-driving-130-mph-said-he-was-heading-to-white-house-needed-to-return-phone-to-leader-of-the-army/ “A Missouri man who threatened President Donald Trump and sped to the White House with a gun had driven 13 hours without stopping before he was pulled over along a West Virginia highway Wednesday, a trooper said.” “Eric Leonardo Charron of Kansas City, Missouri, was arraigned in Preston County Magistrate Court on Thursday in Kingwood on charges of reckless driving and being a prohibited person in possession of a firearm.” “State police said Charron was going 130 mph, early twice the speed limit, on Interstate 68 when he was pulled over near Bruceton Mills. The incident prompted the interstate to be closed for nearly four hours.” “Trooper D.W. Satterfield said in a criminal complaint that Charron, 42, indicated he was traveling to the White House and that he was running late to a dinner he was invited to by Trump. The suspect also said he had to travel to the Pentagon “to meet with the leader of the Army to return a phone,” according to the complaint.” “Charron later said he had “special hearing” that “would tell him to do bad things once he arrived at the White House or The Pentagon,” Satterfield said, adding the “special hearing” also told Charron to remove Satterfield’s gun from its holster while being transported from the traffic stop.” “Satterfield said a vehicle search turned up a handgun, 300 rounds of ammunition and gunpowder. In addition, manuscripts written by Charron contained “subjects ranging from time travel, levitating watercraft, and mythical creatures such as the ‘Chupacubra.'” “The trooper said Charron admitted using methamphetamine recently and his pupils were dilated despite bright conditions outside. Charron had driven through the night from his hometown, authorities said. The trooper didn’t notice any luggage in the vehicle.” “Satterfield asked Charron why the vehicle’s remote key would not open the… Read more »
Cu Cu for Coo Coo Puffs!
“…been driving all night my hands wet on the wheel….”
Do believe the boy mighta had a taste of ‘shroom tea to go along with his meth.
He may get a different kind of “Radar Love” from Bubba & the boys at the deli….dumbass!
That’s astronaut wearing diapers level of crazy.
*Lisa Nowak – For those who didn’t get the reference. I realize it’s kind of obscure.
Yes-Whack
Definitely a Special Sort of Person. I wonder if he eats Cheez-Whiz right out of the jar.
Sheesh…Some People.
This time it is a Father & Son, both US Army.
Son was a SFC in the West Virginia National Guard. His Father is a Retired Master Sergeant.
Go Figure.
“2 Ex-DoD Employees Get Probation For Stealing and Selling Government Property”:
https://www.armytimes.com/news/your-army/2019/03/29/2-ex-dod-employees-get-probation-for-stealing-and-selling-government-property/
“Two former U.S. Defense Department employees have been sentenced to four years’ probation for stealing and selling property from a government warehouse.”
“Prosecutors say 35-year-old Shane Morgan of Buckhannon and his father, 61-year-old Russell Morgan of Helvetia, were sentenced Thursday in federal court in Elkins. They also were ordered to pay more than $11,600 in restitution.”
“The pair admitted stealing at least 80 items valued at more than $80,000 from 2010 through 2017. They had access to the items through their official positions at the U.S. Property and Fiscal Office warehouse in Buckhannon.”
“Shane Morgan was a sergeant first class with the West Virginia Army National Guard and Russell Morgan is a retired master sergeant.”
2 dumbasses….”It’s a family affair….it’s a family affair.
Probation and 11K $ in restitution for stealing 80K $?
Guess he’s a former SFC now?
Don’t steal from the gubmint…The IRS hates competition.
Sly And The Family Stone
Here is some info I found that happened on this date in history:
Calley found guilty of My Lai murders, 1971
Lt. William L. Calley is found guilty of premeditated murder at My Lai by a U.S. Army court-martial at Fort Benning, Georgia. Calley, a platoon leader, had led his men in a massacre of Vietnamese civilians, including women and children, at My Lai 4, a cluster of hamlets in Quang Ngai Province on March 16, 1968.
The unit had been conducting a search-and-destroy mission to locate the 48th Viet Cong (VC) Local Force Battalion. The unit entered Son My village but found only women, children, and old men. Frustrated by unanswered losses due to snipers and mines, the soldiers took out their anger on the villagers, indiscriminately shooting people as they ran from their huts. The soldiers rounded up the survivors and led them to a nearby ditch where they were shot.
Calley was charged with six specifications of premeditated murder. During the trial, Chief Army prosecutor Capt. Aubrey Daniel charged that Calley ordered Sgt. Daniel Mitchell to “finish off the rest” of the villagers. The prosecution stressed that all the killings were committed despite the fact that Calley’s platoon had met no resistance and that he and his men had not been fired on.
The My Lai massacre had initially been covered up but came to light one year later. An Army board of inquiry, headed by Lt. Gen. William Peers, investigated the massacre and produced a list of 30 people who knew of the atrocity, but only 14 were charged with crimes. All eventually had their charges dismissed or were acquitted by courts-martial except Calley, whose platoon allegedly killed 200 innocents.
Calley was found guilty of personally murdering 22 civilians and sentenced to life imprisonment, but his sentence was reduced to 20 years by the Court of Military Appeals and further reduced later to 10 years by the Secretary of the Army. Proclaimed by much of the public as a “scapegoat,” Calley was paroled in 1974 after having served about a third of his 10-year sentence.
When I was hospitalized at Menlo Park, California in the Viet Nam Veterans Rehabilitation Program, a fellow patient claimed to have been at My Lai, as an APC crewman, and he said what got everybody in trouble was failure to follow orders.
He said their orders were to kill the people as they came to them, and not to kill them after having taken them prisoner.
JRM – haven’t seen you post here is a long time. Hope that you are doing well.
Bullshit. There were no APCs at the My Lai massacre. Calley commanded a leg rifle platoon in C/1/20th Infantry. Stick to something you know something about–wrenching radios.
Remember this guy who stole from a Mother of a Marine who died in the Chattanooga Terrorist Attack?
“Man Caught Stealing From Marine Parents In Their Darkest Hour”
https://valorguardians.com/blog/?p=83260&cpage=1
Well, John Simpson plead guilty. Love what the Marine’s Mom said (see below):
“Founder of Fraudulent Charity Linked to Chattanooga Terrorist Attack Pleads Guilty”
https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/breakingnews/story/2019/mar/28/fraudulent-charity-founder-guilty/491547/
“The founder of a charity accused of defrauding the mother of a July 16 shooting victim in Chattanooga pleaded guilty Thursday.”
“The FBI accused John Shannon Simpson of lying about his military record and pocketing about $390,000 that was raised to send U.S. Marines and their families on vacation. He dedicated only about 19 percent of the money raised over two years to the charity’s cause.”
“Simpson’s most lucrative target was Cathy Wells, the mother of Lance Cpl. Squire “Skip” Wells, one of five military servicemen killed in a terrorist attack here in 2015. Before she learned of his dubious military record, Cathy Wells gave Simpson $135,000, according to the FBI.”
“Simpson pleaded guilty Thursday to one count of wire fraud in U.S. District Court in South Carolina. Cathy Wells did not attend the hearing but plans to testify at his sentencing hearing. No date has been set, but she has been told Simpson will return to court in about two months.”
“I trusted him because he said he was a Marine,” Cathy Wells told the Times Free Press on Thursday. “He violated that trust. To me, he violated that oath. So I mean, I want him to know, ‘You [expletive] with the wrong Marine mom”.
Be nice if we could be in charge of the sentencing phase. IIRC there was a lot of good suggestions for his punishment on the Dec thread. Some stakes and a fire ant bed comes to mind.
Jus’ shoot the basterd, OK?
It couldn’t have happened to a nicer person….
🤣😂😅😆
“Rachel Maddow’s Ratings Suffer After Mueller Report Determined No Collusion”
https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/rachel-maddows-suffer-after-mueller-report-determined-no-collusion
“…The Rachel Maddow Show” saw an average 13 percent decrease in viewership comparing her ratings Monday through Wednesday this week versus last week — Maddow lost nearly a whopping 500,000 viewers on Monday’s show following the release of Barr’s letter compared to her previous Monday show. She also saw a 15 percent decrease in the 25-52 demo audience.”
hahahahahahahahahahahagaspgasphahahahahaha snort giggle
Have never watched MSNBC. Guess it’s cause I’m too old for the demo audience….or something?
5th/77th FA (godawgs!)
She is a loser…so arrogant…so smuggly.
Look at her reaction the night that President Trump was elected:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LabloPDPtLg
And this is Joy Behar’s meltdown (another loser):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=taRI4cQO3Ro
Classic!
rtr
It’s going to be hard to maintain your audience when they realize you’re so ungodly full of shit. Lie to me straight for two years, you can fuck off.
HA-HA!!! She’s so smug and full of shit it’s unreal!
Is it wrong of me to want to snap “Shut up, slut!” at these brainless bimps? Am I being too harsh? Too realistic? Too… uh, well, NOT PC??????
Yeah, well, I don’t give a flying stale donut. Maddowo might as well get her sex change going now. It’s all she has left. If Behar ever stops talking through her sinuses, someone please do NOT let me know. It won’t change a thing.
Saw this on the news last night…still think it is hilarious!
“Swamp Monster Attends Congressional Hearing”
Creature from the Black Lagoon.
Present.
Recuperating from having a secondary anal orifice installed due to the audacity of accepting a substitute teaching position for an elementary school level teacher.
It seems this particular administrator doing the orifice installation has a problem with men being in a classroom at that level, because of what might be said about a man’s behavior with children.
That’s correct – because I am male I am not to be trusted with elementary-level children in her school.
And I’m all out of beer.
That’s VILE. No further.
Further proof of what kind of IDIOTS run today’s publik shcoolz!
Not saying that you are wrong, but sadly, API, this is a private school.
IDK what is going on – this particular administrator had me subbing 3rd grade repeatedly some years ago. Evidently something happened that influenced her to develop a extreme risk-avoidance reaction to having a man in the lower level classrooms.
I am hoping that her good sense will reassert itself – and I really like the lady.
But, yeah, I’m insulted and ticked off regardless of liking her.
It also cuts into my paycheck to be limited that way, when the women subs are not confined to the lower levels for balance of the workload.
No offense, Graybeard, but when I was in elementary school ALL the teachers at that level were women. I do not recall having a man teaching anything until 7th grade.
The 1950s were a chaotic time for us grade-schoolers, you know. We had to deal with blizzards, surly bus drivers, rounding of livestock that got out of the pasture, that old-fashioned Maytag washer with the squeege that crushed water out of the clothing as it poured into the rinse tubs.
For all you train lovers on here, let me share you this little gem from when I was a child (I am 22 now). This is something I would like to do when I get financially settled. Some of you may even be familiar with these videos. The I Love Toy Trains Videos. Twelve of them were made.
I Love Toy Trains 2:
Part 1: https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x38d1k4
Part 2: https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x38d2yk
I hope you will do that in the attic. Lots of room to spread out.
Here’s some life advice, don’t try it at home unless you’re a UC Berzerkely stoodint!
Then….
…Then, find a reporter who had a meltdown on election night 2016 and ask him/her/it how the therapy is going… and seem really sympathetic while you’re at it… and then start snerking and giggling a little at a time….
Oflag IV-C Was the notorious high security prison run by the Nazis to contain the bad boy Brit escapers in WW2, aka Colditz Castle. Lieutenant Tony Rolt (a car racing legend in the UK)proposed building a glider. He somehow observed that the castle chapel roof line was hidden from guard view. Being an engineer, Rolt realized that he and the other PoWs could use the roof’s surface to launch a glider that could fly across the River Mulde. It was named the “Colditz Cock”.It never flew because the camp was liberated by the US Army on 16th April 1945.
A full scale replica was made and proved to fly well on the first attempt and a radio controlled model was made and flew successfully from the castle roof.
Aviation is the key to successful escapes it seems, and there have been other examples
Marines will soon have to sing when they hear the Marine Hymn. Sounds like an April Fools joke or something from the Duffel Blog. I could see this as appropriate at a promotion/retirement ceremony, but damn Marines will get really sick of this in an awful hurry. It’ll be like the music store scene in Wayne’s World “No Stairway To Heaven”.
https://www.military.com/daily-news/2019/03/29/marines-will-soon-have-belt-out-marines-hymn-when-they-hear-it.html
Hat tip to all my fellow Chiefs, those who chose to be initiated. 1APRIL1893 is the anniversary date for the conception of Chief Petty Officers.
Getting dusty in here, guys.
https://www.foxnews.com/travel/southwest-airlines-staffer-serenades-mother-of-fallen-dps-trooper-in-viral-video
Southwest flight attendant finds out the mother of an AZ trooper (and Navy vet) who was killed in the line of duty is aboard.
Reminds me why I really, really love flying Southwest.
If you have an hour to spend here is a link to Byron York’s podcast interview with Trumps attorney John Dowd. A remarkable look at the inside strategy to save the President.
https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2019/03/the-man-who-defended-trump.php