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9月30日 Gatling GunsGatling Guns
Every so often I run into a historical topic that just grabs hold of me in a sort of intellectual vicegrip. Right now the topic is Gatling Guns. It all started with a discussion on the LBH forum dealing with a sort of 'what-if' scenario about Custer having Gatling Guns with him at the Battle of the Little Bighorn.
The whole discussion got me thinking about what we actually know about this historically influential weapon. This gun marked the beginning of the transition to effective fully-automatic fire. I consider it amazing that many aspects of the basic 1862 design are still in use by a host of different current day weapons systems.
The thing I am seeing is that we don't have the nifty body of information on this weapon that we have on so many other systems. I already have a library that can testify to this but trying to find definitive information on the Gatling Gun is more elusive. The other problem is in the evolution of the weapon; the Gatling Gun was constantly changing in the service of different nations and their militaries. One of my favorite images is the Bulldog model mounted on the back of a camel!
This is a video of a weapon that would have been comparable to what Custer would have had available to him. Now the information I have presently indicates Custer would have had the 1866 model - this one is a 1874 - and his would have been mounted on either a modified field artillery carriage or an actual Gatling carriage. The weapons are very similar though. Now I have managed to find about a half dozen good books that go into the history of the Gatling Gun. It is just a matter of some time for me to go through these. One thing I am discovering now is that as incredible as it was the weapon had distinct, and sometimes fatal, limitations. The British discovered this more on their colonial campaigns than we did in the west.
This last video just demonstrates what I was saying about the evolution of the Gatling Gun. Goalkeeper is one of the most advanced CIWS platforms yet developed. This is essentially a machine gun for shooting down missiles. I don't think there is a lot of combat experience yet for CIWS but this does seem like it has a high probability of working. In the video you can readily see the basic design features of the Gatling Gun - the revolving barrels. Time for me to post this...
9月23日 "The Day""The Day"
Laurie and I have another trip to Deadwood planned for October. This will probably be our last major roadtrip this year. It will include a sidetrip to Fort Robinson in Nebraska and, if the weather permits, we will visit the Rosebud battlefield in Montana. I already have a small shopping list for Fort Robinson. After this trip is done our vacation time at work is pretty much exhausted. I also doubt if we will have a lot more good driving weather for this year. Laurie did point out to me that we made a trip to Deadwood during January of one year and the weather was better there than in Minnesota!
Right now a lot of our planning is increasingly looking to what I call "The Day". Here is the way I see it; you get to a certain point in life where you plan for retirement. I am not convinced that 'retirement' is going to be the same thing to all people. The idea of 'retirement' is a relatively recent development in American history. I don't know that a lot of people anymore will be able to achieve the traditional dream of retirement; a life of without punching the clock anymore.
What I see is a time somewhere out there in the future, "The Day", when Laurie and I will make what will probably be the biggest life effecting decision we will probably ever make. This day will not be the day we both retire from Qwest. Our retirement from Qwest will just be a milestone in this process. When we reach "The Day" it will be sometime after we cut our strings to Qwest and decide it is time to relocate, tenatively, to South Dakota. It is a pretty safe bet considering the prevailing political situation in Minnesota that we will have to leave the state. By remaining in Minnesota, under present tax laws, we will lose almost half of our pensions before the money ever gets to us! It nevers ceases to amaze me how our enlightened political leadership has decided to impoverish its most productive citizens at what hypothetically is their most vulnerable time in life!
Leaving Minnesota is a given, where we go is the question. South Dakota is our best bet right now. Our pensions will be a lot more productive for us there than here. I watch the politics in South Dakota almost on an hourly basis but, so far, the political environment there is favorable to our eventual retirement.
Now "The Day" is keyed on a lot of other events as well. Eventually selling our house is one of the key measures in our planning. Right now markets don't look all that good for this. The thing is this part of our planning is not going to come for at least another seven years. The area we live in is starting to have a financial revitalization as new businesses move into the area. I am betting that housing demand will go up as the local economy improves. The sad fact of the matter is that the tax environment in Minnesota does not lend itself to new business but I am keeping my fingers crossed that the tech sector will eventually see our area as favorable to this sort of growth.
Either way "The Day" is coming and each trip we make to Deadwood is a step in this process. There will come a day when we will no longer just visit the area but will actually live there. 9月10日 Some trips are more productive than others...Some trips are more productive than others...
and this one was very productive! Laurie and I returning with a disproportionate amount of progress and materials towards our eventual retirement in South Dakota. We also picked up a large amount of valuable historical material and one especially important piece of map software.
I just hate when we have to come back from these trips. I have come to love this area of the country and its history.
Oh well, enough for now. We are at our favorite 'Flying J' in Sioux Falls and it is four hours from here to home. Tomorrow we will be back and work and I will be planning our next trip. 9月8日 Deadwood againBack in Deadwood again...
Laurie and I got back into Deadwood yesterday around 2:00pm. We made a couple stops on the way at Walldrug and in Rapid City. Managed to spend some money in both places. Then we made a straight shot for Deadwood.
The first thing we did in Deadwood was head for the Adams House Museum. We made the donation to the museum that I've been talking about and picked up the 501c letter from one of the museum directors. We spent even more money then in their bookstore.
After this we headed for the Bullock and our rather comfortable room there. We are now in the habit of hauling around our small Nikon C2100 camera as we go in and out of the hotel and taking snapshots down the halls and into the nooks and crannies of the hotel. You just never know when something interesting might show up in a picture.
The only sad thing of note was when we got to Miss T's coffeeshop and found out it wasn't Miss T's coffeeshop anymore. It seems that Terry sold out while we were gone. We talked a bit with the lady working the shop now, Laura, and found out that there is a plan for Terry to supply them with her fudge in the future. It just makes a person understand better that people and things are always in a flux of change. It really is important to preserve memories.
9月7日 On the road again...On the road again...
Laurie and I are on the road again. Right now we are at our favorite 'Flying J' truckstop along I-29 in Sioux Falls. We pulled out from home at 2:35am and we pulled in here at 6:35am. We will fuel up, buy some road supplies and probably be back on I-90 no later than 8:00am. At this rate we will probably be in Deadwood by 3:00pm; now this is taking into account our mandatory stop at Wall Drug.
Once we get to Deadwood we will first head to the Adams House Museum. Today Laurie and I will get our lifetime membership in the museum. I have it figured this way; the museum is a recognised 501c entity thus our membership is tax deductible. We are going to lose our money one way or another, taxes or donation, this way it goes where we want it to go. If more people did this sort of thing it would not only benefit numerous charities but might force government to rethink taxation. Now I have to admit they would probably just defer funding to some sort of fee arrangement or sales taxes but right now my little plan will still work.
Okay, we are safe and sound and highly caffeinated. Our next update will probably be from somewhere in Deadwood... |
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