Bernard Cornwell’s, “The Sharpes Series” (Literature)

Bernard Cornwell’s

“The Sharpes Series”

Sharpe’s eagle part 9

This is a personal recommendation, these are both excellent Books and Videos. Some of my greatest quality time is spent reading and Steven King has said that this is one of the best writers around and I agree. Peace and mental health thru good literature is a legal and healthy form of escape. (see my link in my Blogrole)
 

Richard Sharpe is the central character in Bernard Cornwell‘s Sharpe series of historical fiction stories. These formed the basis for an ITV television series wherein the eponymous character was played by Sean Bean.

Cornwell’s series is composed of several novels and short stories) charts Sharpe’s progress in the British Army during the Napoleonic Wars. He begins as a Private in Sharpe’s Tiger gradually promoted to a field commission of Lieutenant Colonel in Sharpe’s Waterloo. They dramatise his struggle for acceptance and respect from his fellow officers and from the men he commands. Sharpe was born a guttersnipe in the rookeries of London. Promoted on the battlefield he leaves his own class behind to take a commission in an army where rank is usually bought. Unlike many of the officers he serves with, Sharpe knows how to fight.

Sharpe is described as “brilliant but wayward” in Sharpe’s Sword, and is acknowledged by the author to be a loose cannon. A highly skilled leader of light troops, he takes part in a wide array of historical events during the Napoleonic Wars and other conflicts, including the Battle of Waterloo.The earliest chronological books (they were published in non-chronological order) are set in India and chronicle Sharpe’s years spent in the ranks. He is known for being a dangerous man to have as an enemy; he is a skilled marksman and grows to be a good swordsman.

His frequent appearance is that of a Rifle Officer, armed with a 1796 Model Heavy Pattern Cavary Sword and Baker Rifle. although by Sharpe’s Waterloo he has acquired a pistol. He is described as being six feet tall, having long black hair and being blue eyed, with an angular, tanned face. The defining characteristic is a deep scar on his left cheek, which pulls his left eye in such a way as to give his face a mocking expression when relaxed.

 

1796 Infantry Officers sword

The 1831 Pattern British General Officers Ivory Hilted Scimitar

The Baker Rifle

A Welcome from Bernard Cornwell.

Convair B-58 Hustler

 

B-58 Hustler

Convair B-58 Hustler

B-58 Hustler with a centerline payload pod

B-58 Hustler

 

B-58 Hustler

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
B-58 Hustler
Role Strategic bomber
Manufacturer Convair

First flight 11 November 1956
Introduced 15 March 1960
Retired 31 January 1970
Primary user United States Air Force
Number built 116
Unit cost US$12.44 million[1]

The Convair B-58 Hustler was the first operational jet bomber capable of Mach 2 supersonic flight. The aircraft was developed for the United States Air Force for service in the Strategic Air Command (SAC) during the late 1950s. Originally intended to fly at high altitudes and speeds to avoid Soviet fighters, the introduction of highly accurate Soviet surface-to-air missiles forced the B-58 into a low-level penetration role that severely limited its range and strategic value. This led to a brief operational career between 1960 and 1969. Its specialized role would be succeeded by other American supersonic bombers, such as the FB-111A and the later B-1B Lancer.

The B-58 received a great deal of notoriety due to its sonic boom, which was often heard by the public as it passed overhead in supersonic flight.

Convair B-58 Hustler

Convair B-58 Hustler

The Convair B-58 Hustler

Convair B-58 Hustler

Convair B-58 Hustler

Convair B 58 Hustler-”MITO Take-Off”-1963-Part l/ll

Did Trucks Win and Lose the WWII European Theater?

Did Trucks Win and Lose

the WWII European Theater?

 

Stilwell Road

 

1940-12-13. Tummar – captured Italian diesel lorries were very useful for carrying captured Italian food to captured Italian soldiers. Fortunately the Italians left behind a large quantity of oil for these lorries, which we proceeded to capture also. (photographed by F. Hurley).

GAZ-AAA Soviet WW2 Army truck

 

Studebaker US WWII Army Truck

US Army 6X6 Trucks

WWII US Army Studebaker Truck

 

WWII British Trucks

Opel Blitz German Truck

Oshkosh Corporation Defense

Krauss Maffei ML4000

Krauss Maffei

ML4000

Southern Pacific, Kraus Maffei ML 4000 lashup

BRUTE STRENGTH!

That’s what the Southern Pacific was looking for in the early 1960s. The SP found it in Europe in the Krauss-Maffei ML4000. The 4,000-hp ML4000 was powered by high-revving Maybach diesel engines, driving one axle in each truck through torque-converter hydraulic transmissions. All axles on the truck were geared together, in theory reducing wheel slippage.

Not wanting to eat the entire cost of “proofing” the “hydro”s, the SP shared an order of six units with the Rio Grande. Delivered in 1961, three went to the SP (#9021-9023), and three to the Grande (#4001-4003). Delivered with hydraulic M-U connections, in short order both roads changed to electric M-U connections. Initially, all the units suffered from “breathing” problems in tunnels, due to the topside air intakes. Again, both roads modified the ML4000s by internal ducting of intake air from truck height. This required relocation of the air tanks to the top of the engine cowling. (As an interesting sidelight, the D&RGWmp;RGW applied temporary plywood ducts on the outside of the engine hood.)

Surprisingly, it turned out that the ML4000s were prone to slippage and had significant problems with maintenance, and by 1964 the Grande had had enough. Their units were sold to the SP. The initial K-Ms had a cab-type”bulldog” nose while later models came with the more diesel-typical hood nose.

Rio Grande, Krauss Maffei ML4000

Vanilla Fudge – You Keep Me Hanging On

THE VANILLA FUDGE YOU KEEP ME HANGING ON (ED SULLIVAN SHOW)

Vanilla Fudge  You keep me hanging on

Vanilla Fudge

You Keep Me Hanging On

Set me free why don’t cha babe
Get out of my life why don’t cha babe
’cause you don’t really love me
You just keep me hangin’on

Set me free why don’t cha babe
Get out of my life why don’t cha babe
You don’t really need me
But you keep me hangin’on

Why do you keep a comin’ around
Playing with my heart
Why don’t cha get out of my life
And let me make a brand new start
Let me get over you
The way you’ve gotten over me yeah

You say although we broke up
You still just wanna be friends
But how can we still be friends
When seeing you only breaks my heart again

Get out, get out of my life
And let me sleep at night
’cos you don’t really love me
You just keep me hangin’on

You say you still care for me
But your heart and soul needs to be free
And now that you’ve got your freedom
You wanna still hold on to me
You don’t want me for yourself
So let me find somebody else

Why don’t cha be a man about it and set me free
Now you don’t care a thing about me
You’re just using me – hey, abusing me
Get out, get out of my life
And let me sleep at night
’cos you don’t really love me
You just keep me hangin’on
You don’t really need me
You just keep me – hangin’on

Union Pacific “Big Boy” and Southern Pacific “Cab Forwards” (with Video )

Cab Forwards

Amazing American Cab Forward Steam Loco

Souther Pacific Cab Forward Locomotive

Southern Pacific Cab Forward Locomotive

The best known example of the cab-forward design in the United States, the Southern Pacific Cab-Forward (also known as “Cab-in-fronts”) placed the cab at the front by the simple expedient of turning the entire locomotive, minus the tender, by 180 degrees, an arrangement made possible by burning fuel oil instead of coal.

The cab forward design was widely used by the Southern Pacific Railroad, which developed it to deal with the peculiar problems of its routes. The 39 long tunnels and nearly 40 miles (64 km) of snow sheds of the Sierra Nevada Mountains could funnel dangerous exhaust fumes back into the crew compartment of a conventional locomotive. After a number of crews nearly asphyxiated, someone had the idea of running his locomotive in reverse. This meant that the tender was leading the train, which introduced new problems. The tender blocked the view ahead and put crewmen on the wrong sides of the cab for seeing signals. The tenders were not designed to be pushed at the lead of the train, which limited speeds. Southern Pacific commissioned Baldwin Locomotive Works to build a prototype cab-forward locomotive, then ordered more before the prototype had even arrived.

All of the cab-forwards were oil-burning locomotives, which meant there was little trouble involved putting the tender at what would normally be the front of the locomotive. The oil and water tanks were pressurized so that both would flow normally even on uphill grades. Visibility from the cab was superb, such that one crewman could easily survey both sides of the track.

Union Pacific Big Boy Locomotive

Union Pacific Big Boy Steam Locomotive

Big Boy

Big Boy

Big Boy (Moving The #4023)

Big Boy could generate a maximum of 6,290 drawbar horsepower. The Big Boys were the only locomotives to have the 4-8-8-4 wheel arrangement in the Whyte notation, combining two sets of eight driving wheels with both a four-wheel leading truck for stability entering curves and a four-wheel trailing truck to support the large firebox.

The Big Boys rendered important service in the Second World War, especially since they proved so easy to fire that even a novice could do a fair job. Since many new men who were unsuited to combat service or exempted were hired by the railroads to replace crewmen who had gone to war, this proved advantageous. During the war, after German agents filed reports that the Americans had giant steam engines that were moving huge trains full of vital war material over steep mountain grades at high speed, their reports were dismissed as “impossible”. Their performance in moving a huge volume of war material throughout WWII was repeatedly cited and the Big Boys are generally acclaimed as having made a huge contribution to the war effort

One of FDR’s Crazy Leftist Schemes that Newt Gingrich would Denounce as Socialism!!!!!

 

One of FDR’s

Crazy Leftist Schemes

that Newt Gingrich would Denounce as Socialism!!!!!

This is what is (and was) known as investing in infrastructure, the current energy problems beg for similar investment. 8 years of George W Bush and his trickle down economics (which isn’t as bad as what Newt espouses) have left no rational choice.

The Urban area power Utilities shied away from Rural electrification due to the higher cost of the transformers. The Government studied it and found a usable , but higher cost transformer and put up money to assist. Now the country at the time was much more rural centered, the resulting stimulus to the other industries, (Vacuum cleaners, coffee pots,  heaters, toasters, light bulbs and fans and so forth) probably more than paid for it with additional tax revenues and growth. One final thought at the risk of sounding like a Lefty Egghead, Food stamp assistance as part of increased aid to the troubled  families at this time will not go to China. My understanding is that Doritos are still produced in the United States of America.

Rural Electrification Act

 

FDR (Center) signs the Rural Electrification Act with Representative John Rankin (Left) and Senator William Norris (right)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 provided federal funding for installation of electrical distribution systems to serve rural areas of the United States.

It was proposed by Representative John E. Rankin and Senator George William Norris. The act signed into law by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. At the time the act was passed, electricity was commonplace in cities but largely unavailable in farms, ranches, and other rural places.

The funding was channeled through cooperative electric power companies, most of which still exist today. These member-owned cooperatives purchased power on a wholesale basis and distributed it using their own network of transmission and distribution lines.

Technical issues

In the 1930s, the provision of power to remote areas was not thought to be economically feasible. A 2300 volt distribution system was then used in cities. This relatively low voltage could only be carried about 4 miles before the voltage drop became unacceptable.

REA cooperatives used a 6900 volt distribution network, which could support much longer runs (up to about 40 miles). Despite requiring more expensive transformers at each home, the overall system cost was manageable.

Wiring homes and farms

REA crews travelled through the American countryside, bringing teams of electricians along with them. The electricians added wiring to houses and barns to utilize the newly available power provided by the line crews. A standard REA installation in a house consisted of:

• A 60 amp, 230 volt fuse panel, with:

1. A 60 amp range circuit
2. A 20 amp kitchen circuit
3. Two or three 15 amp lighting circuits

A ceiling-mounted light fixture was installed in each room, usually controlled by a single switch mounted near a door. At most, one outlet was installed per room, since plug-connected appliances were expensive and uncommon. Wiring was performed using type NM nonmetallic sheathed cable, insulated with asbestos-reinforced rubber covered with jute and tar.

Many of these installations still exist today, though most have been augmented to support a greater number and variety of appliances.

My Mother’s father was born a farmer, but unlike his brother, he learned to be an electrician and was employed all though the Great Depression, his brother also survived, and prospered as well, but was just a very good Indiana farmer (Bargersville Indiana, Guy and Chester Clore).

 

Chester Clore’s Round Barn near Bargersville Indiana

Barack Obama is the heir of FDR!!!!

Lefty, Pinko, Commie Socialist Agitator caught on Film!!!

Franklin Delano Roosevelt Died for us