Gothmog

As many of you know, I've always believed this 'invade Iraq strategy' to be full of risks .... America's leaders must have had some big prize in mind when they embarked on this adventure because the potential down side is certainly huge. And yes, in an odd way Saddam was 'not so bad' ... he was quite competent at managing to keep Iraq together in spite of its diversity and dangers, and was always willing to sell oil to the West. He was certainly not the epitome of a democratic and benevolent ruler, but in that neighbourhood, who could be and survive, let alone dominate? If America leaves, the prize your reached for will be lost. If you stay, you risk attrition, demoralization and discontent ...

A Happy New Year to all and sundry!

I think they will be ok. They have a lot of knowledgeable folks on board and the 'library' area will draw people in time. As a Canadian board they are drawing on a niche market which isn't totally served by US milsurp boards, and yet they seem to be attracting a fair number of 'international' members. The layout and graphics are attractive and inviting, too and are a cut above the average dboard. Traffic is a bit slow right now, but with some support I'm confident things will get rolling.

Hi Jerry, glad you liked it. I think the Misurp Library section will prove a valuable resource as it builds. And no, its not my site, but was started by some fellows at another DBoard I frequent.

Check it out if you like, they are building up some good info. I'm afraid these fellows are collectors and not sporterizers though ... hope that's ok. http://www.milsurps.com/index.php?referrerid=16

I had a great Thanksgiving, thank you. Our food choices are the same as yours. Turkey is the mainstay, and a nice ham is the alternate dish. I did hear some discussion of roast lamb among the ladies last night, though. I think that's just creativity on their part and not a legitimate tradition. I remember hearing somewhere that the Thanksgiving tradition is older than Plymouth Rock and is in fact a yearly English celebration. Now the turkey is obviously North American in origin and I think the original English celebration was a form of harvest festival. I did a search on the internet, though, and only American traditions of Thanksgiving appeared to have links. BTW I do enjoy turkey and its a good thing ... a 23 lb bird more than feeds all my relatives that show up and we'll have meat and soup to last the rest of the week!

Hi Fritz, I don't know anything about Columbus Day, but thanks for the 'Happy Thanksgiving'. I'll be sure to return the favour when you get around to celebrating it later.

I'd have a hard time giving up my semi autos though.

This movie was filmed in a town not far from where I live and I actually know some of the people involved in its production, movie armourers by and large. The story is a good one, and it is essentially the Beowulf saga retold. The movie is based directly on a novel written by Michael Crighton, called "The Eaters of the Dead", which is an excellent read.

Hey FC , I hope the 'break' allows you the time to focus on your priorities. As Karl says, do let us know when its time to 'pass the hat' ... I just ran into a small stash of American dollars I had squirreled away some time ago and forgotten about. It would be nice if someone with the ability to do so could get our smilies up and running. Has anyone seen Badone lately?

Nice to hear from you Emul8 ... Good luck with the unpacking, and I hope you get some range time real soon.

What's next? Swearing off sporterizing?

I expect the Dems want 'payback' for Slick Willie's treatment. I expect they will claim that Bush lied in order to attack Iraq. I don't think the Senate needs to pass the measure, it will be enough for the Dems if the House besmirches Bush's name in order to give Clinton company in the 'Impeached Presidents' category. You mean like this: Just a couple of stories thus far, probably more rumour than fact ... but ...

If Lebanon attacks Hezbollah it is very likely that another civil war will take place, probably along religious lines. At present the Muslims outnumber the Christians and whatever allies they might have ... it would be an unmitigated disaster, once again. The last civil war lasted from 1975-1991. Fighting the Israelis at least pulls the nation together, and the Israelis will leave eventually while your countrymen are there to stay.

I think the plan has always been for the US to attack Iran ... Iran is strategically far more important than Iraq and the US would LOVE to have Iran in their back pocket once more. The loss of the Shah of Iran in the 1970's (and Iran with him) was a major strategic blow to American interests. I have not been able to make heads or tails of the Iraq invasion (yeah, I know ... oil, democracy, humanitarianism, whatever, I just don't see it) except in the light of establishing a sound base of operations from which to re establish control of Iran. I have read that Iran is using the war in Lebanon to dislodge their nuclear ambitions from world attention. Perhaps it is indeed all part and parcel of the same issue and America will simultaneously launch their attack on Iran. Perhaps the Israelis are hoping to catch Hezbollah without the means to be reinforced by Iran. Time will tell ... Wasn't Newt suggesting WW3 was around the corner? I thought his remarks foolish when I heard them, but he may know something the rest of us don't.

To be honest, I was a bit surprised at the severity of the Israeli response. There have been kidnappings and rocket attacks for some time ... why the rapid military escalation? This sitrep more or less outlines why ... this battle has been quietly brewing for some time. I suspect that Sharon not being in the picture might also be a reason Hezbollah thought to test the new Israeli leadership. In any event Karl, I quite agree with you, those are significant questions. The one which can be answered is the question about the war's effect on the price of oil .... it will go up, of course. I am tending to agree with predictions of $100/barrel oil in the near future. Hang on to your hats ...

I think the author is suggesting that military defeat of Hezbollah is likely. The question is, at what price? Have they indeed forced Israel into a war of attrition and/or caused the Israelis to subject their army to a protracted guerilla war? If Hezbollah has planned this as carefully as claimed here, you had better believe that the end game (guerilla insurgency) is already prepared for. Israel cannot afford a tactical defeat, that is certain. With the smaller population base, major losses will be difficult to bear. Israel has the problem of the smaller side in a conflict: its forces must be highly skilled and cannot afford to lose. In the past, the IDF has performed extremely well but a strategic defeat will be just as devastating as one on the battlefield ... and according to this intelligence, it is a strategic fight that Hezbollah has planned for. And then there is the political field ... the last time Israel invaded Lebanon, they were forced by world opinion to let the PLO escape. This is more evidence that a tactical victory can be thwarted by other means. I have to wonder if there will be a simultaneous escalation of activity in Gaza and within Israel to put more pressure on the IDF/security services?

A bit long but quite interesting ... I thought some might be interested in the view of those who provide intelligence reports for a living. Hopefully we can avoid discussing stuff we already know, like which side everyone hates/likes. If that turns out not to be the case, go ahead and move this topic to 'Fightin' Words'.

I like his spirit! He was damned lucky, mind you ... I have to wonder what was going through the mind of the fellow detonating the charge.

That barrel had quite a heavy profile and yet it was significantly bulged by the 9mm rounds making contact! I hate to think what 223 would have done ... As to 'diplomacy', I just made a phone call and told them the facts, and followed it up with shipping the evidence I did have. Sending live ammo across the border wasn't an option, but the spent slugs, empty box and pics all went to Remington to back up my story. I didn't necessarily expect they would cover the whole tab, but am very pleased they did. The people I had contact with were courteous and helpful and did their best to make sure of customer satisfaction and for that they deserve kudos.

The barrel of my Olympic Arms AR15 had been damaged as a result of shooting a squib load and a follow up 9mm bullet down the tube. As the ammo was UMC (Remington) factory ammo, I notified the company ... nice people and I just got their letter informing me of their intent to send me a check to compensate me for the loss of my barrel. I thought you fellas might like to know that this company has done right by me after an unfortunate mishap. They even threw in an extra $20 to buy more ammo!! Hopefully it won't cost them another barrel!!

This is out of the Toronto Sun: By JOE WARMINGTON • You can call Joe Warmington at (416) 947-2392 or e-mail at joe.warmington@tor.sunpub.com

I haven't read much on this ... from what I have read it may have been a 'sting' operation where the police provided the fertilizer ... so you boys need not fret over a violation of your constitutional rights to buy nitrogen rich fertilizer (ha ha!). I expect we'll find out more as this evolves, but one fellow who works with the Crown Prosecutor is concerned the charges might be in jeopardy due to the possibility of 'entrapment'. Many of those involved were young men, born in Canada ... second generation immigrants. I suspect Michael Moore and the media are the real story here. I have seen the results first hand ... young, impressionable minds tainted by the Fahrenheit 911 message. I'm guessing these are people who would otherwise have no hatred for America persuaded into rash and foolhardy actions in no small part due to media indoctrination.

Was there anything they liked?

I was aware of all of the above except the Draper/Ingles/Inglis connection ... the rest is of course part of the ordinary educational background of every good Canadian. And Inglis made High Powers are cool ...