The Off Topic Topic

[Razgovory]

Israelis actually invented a gun that shoots around corners.

I saw this on the Military channel ages ago.

I could have sworn there was a modification for the STG 44's that allowed shooting around corners.

[CountDeMoney]

Damn.  Talk about a bad day at Black Rock.

5 killed in Colorado rockslide were from same family; 13-year-old girl stable
msnbc.com

The five people killed when boulders the size of cars fell from a cliff in Colorado were members of the same family, authorities said Tuesday — as was a 13-year-old girl who apparently survived when her father shielded her from the tumbling rocks.

The girl, Gracie Johnson, was in stable condition after surgery to repair a broken leg.

Sheriff's deputies and some 40 volunteers from various agencies have recovered the five bodies at the base of the Agnes Vaille Falls, Chaffee County Sheriff Pete Palmer said just before 2 p.m.

A spokeswoman for Chaffee County identified the dead as Dwayne and Dawna Johnson, 46 and 45, their daughter Kiowa-Rain, 18, and two visiting nephews, Baigen Walker, 10, and Paris Walkup, 22. Dawna Johnson was a high school track coach, authorities said.

Rescuers dug Gracie out after the rockslide Monday. Chaffee County Sheriff's Deputy Nick Tolsma said he saw Gracie's hand sticking out from the boulders and helped pull her free. The girl told him that her father had protected her from the rocks, he said.

"Her dad is a real hero," the deputy told TODAY. "Saved her life."

The five were hiking a popular trail below 14,000-foot Mount Princeton when several bounders came loose in a rockslide several football fields across. Another hiker saw it happen and called 911. Chaffee County Undersheriff John Spezze said some of the rocks weighed more than 100 tons and measured 8x10x20 feet.

"There was a cliff bank above the falls, and it looks like it slid off," he told TODAY.

A man who called 911 said that he had not seen the family struck by the rocks, but he said a group of people came down the mountain upset and said that a woman had been hit in the head.

"Like a whole chunk of the mountain just slid down," he told the dispatcher.

Dawna Johnson was a track coach at Buena Vista High School, authorities said. A memorial service was planned there Saturday.

The bodies have been transferred to the morgue in Salida, Colo., according to the county sheriff's office.

The landslide came weeks after record rainfall and flash floods in Colorado killed eight people and caused millions of dollars of damage.

[Brazen]

Israelis actually invented a gun that shoots around corners.

I saw this on the Military channel ages ago.

I could have sworn there was a modification for the STG 44's that allowed shooting around corners.

The Israeli weapon, Corner Shot, was first demonstrated a full 10 years ago.

They've existed since WWI trench warfare and haven't evolved significantly beyond staggered stocks and periscopes.

[CountDeMoney]

Why some lucky bloke hasn't snatched you up yet for good, I'll never know.

[CountDeMoney]

Police step up enforcement as tougher cellphone law starts
Drivers can now be pulled over just for using a hand-held device

Motorists around Maryland found their cellphone conversations interrupted by flashing blue lights Tuesday, as tougher restrictions went into effect on the use of hand-held devices while driving.

Police were on the lookout for people driving with phones to their ears on the first day of a state law that makes the violation a primary traffic offense. Previously, drivers could only be cited if they were stopped for breaking another traffic law.

Officials around the state said they were issuing a mixture of warnings and citations as they attempted to get motorists acquainted with the new restrictions. In some areas, police took the occasion to remind drivers of another new requirement that all passengers wear seat belts.

Anne Arundel County police said they handed out 165 tickets and citations for improper cellphone use and seat belt violations during an enforcement effort with state police along West Street and Riva Road in Annapolis.

On Tuesday morning, Baltimore County police and Harford County sheriff's deputies worked with the State Highway Administration and state police to enforce the new laws along U.S. 1. Together, the police agencies said, they issued 38 citations and 28 warnings during the two-hour initiative.

Elise Armacost, a spokeswoman for Baltimore County police, said the number of violations recorded by her agency "tells us that motorists still need to adapt to the reality of the new laws."

The cellphone measure was among hundreds that took effect Tuesday. Among the others are high-profile laws banning the sale of some types of guns and repealing the death penalty.

Concerned about the dangers of distracted driving, the General Assembly passed a hand-held cellphone ban in 2010 but made it a "secondary" offense that could only be enforced along with other violations. This year, supporters argued that drivers had been given enough time to get used to the law and persuaded lawmakers to tighten enforcement.

State law already allowed police to pull over vehicles whose drivers and front-seat passengers were unbuckled. This year, lawmakers added a new restriction making it a secondary offense for adults in the back seat to ride without seat belts. Previously, only minors had been required to use either seat belts or child safety seats in back seats.

The crackdown was tough to stomach for Bill Villanueva, a 60-year-old ex-military employee pulled over by Harford deputies. The resident of Street in northern Harford County said he never wears a seat belt while driving.

"I pay for these roads and for these officers' salaries out of my taxes. This is just more money out of my pocket," Villanueva said. "The people who are in accidents causing havoc are stoned on drugs or drinking, so you have a guy like myself who is going to work being pulled over. ... Why?" 

As officers continued to stop drivers, Sgt. Mike Lane of the Harford sheriff's office said the day's efforts were "more of an awareness campaign."

"Even with the road signs back there and officers lined up out here, people are still rolling by without their seat belts on and talking on their phones," Lane said. "People don't pay attention. They do what they are comfortable doing, and they keep doing it."

Police say they'll continue to push awareness of the law. Anne Arundel County police Cpl. Nicholas DiPietro, a traffic coordinator, said county police are planning more enforcement efforts over the next two months.

He said almost all the drivers he pulled over Tuesday were aware of the new law and supported it.

"Compliance was high today, much higher than I expected," he said.

Lt. Eric Kowalczyk, a Baltimore police spokesman, said the agency's crash team, which is responsible for traffic-related issues, sent out several emails advising officers on the new laws. He said the agency is planning initiatives for the "very near future."

In Howard County, Police Chief Bill McMahon said in a statement that his department had scheduled details in coming weeks to enforce the cellphone and seat belt laws.

"We have also had commanders attending patrol briefings to answer any questions on the new law and stress its importance," he said. The agency would not offer specifics.

In Carroll County, the sheriff's office issued reminders through the news media in the weeks leading up to the changes regarding the cellphone and seat belt laws, but officials declined Tuesday to discuss any extra enforcement measures.

[derspiess]

Israelis actually invented a gun that shoots around corners.

I saw this on the Military channel ages ago.

I could have sworn there was a modification for the STG 44's that allowed shooting around corners.

Correct. They had the krummlauf barrel and a mirror.

[Ed Anger]

Why some lucky bloke hasn't snatched you up yet for good, I'll never know.

I know. When she talks like that with all that military jibber jabber, I get turned on. 

[CountDeMoney]

Why some lucky bloke hasn't snatched you up yet for good, I'll never know.

I know. When she talks like that with all that military jibber jabber, I get turned on. 

We could whisper sweet JMSDF sonar upgrade nothings from 50 Shades of Jane's Defence to each other by the fire over a bottle of chablis.  That'll curl some toes.  Mine, at least.

[Ed Anger]

 

[Brazen]

Why some lucky bloke hasn't snatched you up yet for good, I'll never know.

I know. When she talks like that with all that military jibber jabber, I get turned on. 

We could whisper sweet JMSDF sonar upgrade nothings from 50 Shades of Jane's Defence to each other by the fire over a bottle of chablis.  That'll curl some toes.  Mine, at least.

Why? Because intimate knowledge of military systems doesn't manifest itself as an impressive cleavage and doe-eyed dimness.

I think we've got Janes rattled as they've started doing videos too now. Sexy, huh?   
http://www.janes.com/article/27053/dsei-2013-london-nexter-titus

[derspiess]

Dunno, shooting a musket would be enough for me

[merithyn]

Why some lucky bloke hasn't snatched you up yet for good, I'll never know.

I know. When she talks like that with all that military jibber jabber, I get turned on. 

We could whisper sweet JMSDF sonar upgrade nothings from 50 Shades of Jane's Defence to each other by the fire over a bottle of chablis.  That'll curl some toes.  Mine, at least.

Why? Because intimate knowledge of military systems doesn't manifest itself as an impressive cleavage and doe-eyed dimness.

I think we've got Janes rattled as they've started doing videos too now. Sexy, huh?   
http://www.janes.com/article/27053/dsei-2013-london-nexter-titus

Work won't let me see it because of "Weapons".

[Brazen]

Work won't let me see it because of "Weapons".

Really? I just don't understand America 

My work won't let me open your thread in TBR because of "sex" 

[merithyn]

Work won't let me see it because of "Weapons".

Really? I just don't understand America 

My work won't let me open your thread in TBR because of "sex" 

Well then. I'd go back and clean it up, but I have no idea what it would be refering to.

[garbon]

Ugh someone posted on facebook a nightmare scenario: Clinton/Warren 2016!