It’s bound to get you some day.
I didn’t predict the weather. But I sure as shit predicted July in Afghanistan. 66 Dead. Hoora! and for every KIA another 10 wounded and another 10 or 20 coming back to the States with incurable PTSD that no valium or Lunesta or even heroin can kill.
Sixty-Six dead. A record. Don’t worry. It’ll calm down come October. Read a little history. You’ll see.
And in July next – we are outta there! (yeah right).
Good Job McChrystal, Holbrooke, Clinton, Obama, and Gates.
I’m sorry, Bunn, Churchill was a fat, drunken, sick warmonger. His biggest moments where he was actually in total control were failures. The US won the war. He failed at Gallipoli and he repeated the failure in Italy. He wrote a lot. He just was never that smart. His escape during the Boer War was largely chance. I give him credit for the initial burst over the wall. But his whole career is based on that move. I take that back. His whole career is based on a history that preceeded that which was largely successful. He rolled the die maybe 6 times and came up a winner all six. Taleb will point out somebody has to do it. That’s why you see winners in the Casino all the time. Somebody has to do it.
It should be noted none of these rolls was a strategically sound decision. The odds were always against him. Having served in the Sudan and the Northwest Frontier don’t con’t. He was simply there.
But the world works now just as it did then and we grant hero status and intelligence to men whose luck simply exceeded their abilities.
Look at Britain now. It is obvious Churchill acheived nothing. Stalin too. It will take longer to see this about Roosevelt and Lincoln.
Churchill was massively depressed, despondent, drunk (though nobody admits it) and basically useless in WWII. His Generals handled affairs.
I know because I’ve read most of the histories. At a certain point I said to myself, enough is enough. This is a scam. This man was done in 1942. Finished. The conference before Anzio at Christmas 1942 and early 1943 show how out of touch he was. We had already won. But he was hesitant about everything. He was broken by fever. I know how it feels. I’ve been broken by fever 3 times in my life. But I was losing all three times when I went in. And came out winning. He went in winning.
Churchill was never the same after Gallipoli. He was fucking batshit nuts. His thing about the Germans was just luck. He could have gone either way. His downfall was that he was honest.

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July 30, 2010 at 9:44 pm
Dr. Doom
Leave it to the Brits, Kiwis and Aussies to celebrate a resounding defeat like Gallipoli. At least the Kiwis and Aussies do so as ANZAC day.
Charge of the Light Brigade stuff. Earlier defeats against the Russians, in Georgia?
I thought the big defeat of the Allied/Brit invasion of Yugoslavia or Balkan states which was Churchill’s big plan, was sort of a downward turning point in his career as warrior-pol.
July 30, 2010 at 10:21 pm
JR
(20 minutes later)
Take it up with Yarra. I got nuttin to do wit it.
Speaking of Yarra. Where is that AC/DC loving cunt? I need some serious advice on tomatoes.
@Nudge – And?
I’m watching Gudard’s Contempt. I doesn’t matter what you say. Just give me an answer. Katya won’t be around. Don’t be shy. Oh, you already went to bed. Get up early and answer. Katya usually calls around 11. So If I’m gonna come up with excuses, you better say so before that.
direct line:bauercomputer@hotmail.com
not only am I a vampire, but I don’t sleep at all. Time means nothing to me. Once I turn off my brain, I realize I am alive. Scared now? Like I say. Eggs and milk. I’ve got ground beef and you might wanna try one of my burgers. Based on a Jamie Oliver recipe. They are the best. And I know burgers.
July 30, 2010 at 11:19 pm
Dr. Doom
You might try the burgers at The Grill in the Raddison Hotel shopping maul in Hollywood, on Hollywood Boulevard, located next to that famous Chinese Theater with all the hand and footprints in the cement in front.
Be sure to go there hungry.
July 31, 2010 at 5:16 pm
Bunn Bunn
JR, thanks (and I mean it) for your terrific discussion of Churchill. That someone like him could have even existed and, as you wrote, won on almost every huge gamble he took is sort of uncanny. He was definitely an outlier, who if he had his life to live over and over again (ala Groundhog Day) probably would have died ignominiously in Africa or Cuba 9 times out of 10.
Even if a compelling case can be made (as you have) that various aspects of Churchill and his life were absurd, vainglorious, delusional, idiotic, lucky, or whatever, there’s still something about him that evokes sympathy. He seemed to view his father with awe, and probably never thought that he (WSC) was worthy. Whatever. But the stuff of enduring heroic stories, for whatever reason, is ultimately at some level a grab for glory, power, or fame, almost always involving behavior that contemporary psycho-babble talkers might refer to as inappropriate risk taking.
Gentlemen, we don’t want any heroes out there, just team ball.
July 31, 2010 at 6:35 pm
Dr. Doom
Why should I take it up with Yarra when you, not him, brought it up in the first place, asshole? Although I’m sure Yarra could provide illumination on this topic.
You pushed Nudge for an answer and got one. Try not to come off as the Boston Rapist next time, and maybe you two townies will finally meet.
@Bunn, regarding Churchill, well said.
July 31, 2010 at 8:59 pm
Bunn Bunn
Thanks, Dr. Doom.
“try the burgers at The Grill in the Raddison Hotel”
I’m normally only willing to eat burgers at In-N-Out (Animal Style, naturally), but this might be a worthy alternative, especially if trying to escape the heat and the hobos and whatnot typically attendant to Hollywood burger joint lunches al fresco.
http://daviswiki.org/In-N-Out_Secret_Menu
August 1, 2010 at 9:08 am
dave
the assholes of the world always have ruled the world, and always will. my only specific question is: what would have happened if borro haden’t broken his leg when he fell from the tree?
August 1, 2010 at 9:27 am
dave
asshole is just a perjorative. seems appropriate, but i really don’t know.
August 1, 2010 at 10:13 am
Nudge
Whoops, JR, didn’t get your message until way too late. But then, a) I had no idea this was a message board, b) yesterday morning was gorgeous so I got up early and went cycling, and c) why not just use my email address as you have before?
Doom, thanks, but I’m seeing JR’s behavior in the sense of him needing to show off some machismo for his peeps here. Although the tone of the situation is quite different, the basic thing itself is not unlike the way groups of younger males, in pickups will sometimes whistle at female bikers who are out cycling alone. They do this even when they have no intention of carrying through, so presumably it’s just their little “I’d hit it” game to show each other how studly they are. The same males generally don’t do the same thing when they’re alone, and they certainly don’t do it when they’re alone and they encounter a group of females.
A better-known form of this sort of purposeless machismo-display is when some guy buys an enormous honkin’ Hummer-yellow SUV and drive around with the windows down and the cheezy music blaring. He thinks he’s advertising himself as a tough guy when in reality the only advertising he’s doing is moron like “Ran out of viagra, can’t get laid, yada yada yada”.
Oh, and JR, I was planning on meeting Katya, not avoiding her. Avoiding her would send totally the wrong message, and besides, how else would I learn all the things about you that I really should know?
August 1, 2010 at 12:39 pm
Dr. Doom
Reminds me of the last time we were on the main drag through the now sleepier-than-ever Kailua-Kona town on Hawaii Island. As we crossed the narrow street, up stops this enormous pick-up truck, a Dodge Ram Super Duper, with a jacked suspension and huge tires. I look up to the cab, which looks to be 12-14 feet up off the pavement, and there is this guy, overweight, shaved head and sunglasses staring down at us. I guess he thought he was intimidating. I thought “how embarrassing” because it was so silly, and then averted my eyes and proceeded across the street to the restaurant we were intending to dine at that evening.
August 1, 2010 at 10:03 pm
Uncle Yarra
@0:29
I think that might be a Neumann U47 mic.
Odd, as it didn’t bring out the best in female vocalists like some of the AKG condenser mics.
Still, maybe the studio only had one.
Or maybe it’s just a promo shot (no spit guard/pop filter).
August 1, 2010 at 10:36 pm
Uncle Remus
Or a Telefunken U47.
http://phoneboy.com/2781/it-looks-just-like-a-telefunken-u47
As a kid in N. Africa in the 50′s, I was familiar with German audio brands, Telefunken, Grundig & Blaupunkt – my father brought them from Germany. And being an FZ fan, his reference to a “Telefunken U47″ stuck with me.
Used to listen long hours to short wave on a Grundig. I still prefer tube equipment pre-amp & amps.
August 1, 2010 at 10:48 pm
Uncle Yarra
Telefunken was a re-badge of various manufacturers wasn’t it?
BTW, keep an eye out Remus, I’m gonna get JR to post some tube pr0n.
August 2, 2010 at 6:07 am
dave
They do this even when they have no intention of carrying through, so presumably it’s just their little “I’d hit it” game to show each other how studly they are.
you sound disappointed.
August 2, 2010 at 12:11 pm
Dr. Doom
Uncles Yarra, Remus, I have a colleague EE here who specializes in new audio equipment with tube technology—he claims it sounds better, warmer sound.
Check him out at http://www.hagtech.com
August 2, 2010 at 1:46 pm
Uncle Remus
Doom, clicked thru from your link above (thanks) to the speaker link.
Check out the lone album leaning up against the wall to the left of the speakers.
http://www.thehornshoppe.com/model3.html
Long ago & far away I had a pair of DCM TimeWindows (very efficient) powered by a old Fisher tube receiver I had rescued from oblivion. I had some esoteric transistor amp at the time – never plugged it back in.
August 2, 2010 at 4:10 pm
Dr. Doom
UR, it’s our hero, whose band probably claimed about 30% of my hearing loss, long ago.
August 2, 2010 at 4:56 pm
Nudge
Dave wrote “you sound disappointed”
Are you kidding? I still need to get to work on time. Besides, it’s the losers that do that sort of stuff, not the cute ones.
August 2, 2010 at 7:36 pm
Uncle Yarra
UR,
Funny, I was just looking at horns again the other day and saw that shot…
Doom,
I want to do something like that soon, too. More PA stuff, though, crossovers and guitar amps.
August 2, 2010 at 9:25 pm
JR
Wow. Activity.
Slow news week, I guess. Watching Dave’s video on Borro. Reminds me a lot of scene whatever from the first sequence/part of 2001:A Space Odyssey. If not an exact copy. Only reinforces. Good stuff, Dave.
Asked my Brother-In-Law if I could grab his BB-gun to hunt the critters eating my tomatoes. He said as long as you don’t shoot any cabs. I sed, cabs? No cats, you idiot.
No, No I would never shoot a cat or a dog. Or even the chipmunk that is the main suspect. I immediately thought about it and realized I’d never shot anything. I’ve never even shot anything above a BB-gun.
I’m an expert on all the specs of all these guns but I’ve never shot them.
We plinked around with his BB gun and I set up tin-can targets at long range. It got boring.
His father is a Vietnam Vet. One of the crazy ones up in the woods in New Hampshire with a whole arsenal of AKs and M16s. From the stories (and I know they are true, I’ve met the guy several times, and been up to the house) – he is a real-life Rambo. When he and my dad meet he just gives my Dad shit about being CIA. My Dad, of course, smiles and sez nothing. Hopefully my sister’s baby (President in 37 years) will cool things down and we can all get along.
Anyway, I said forget it. I’m not sure I could shoot a squirrel. If I miss and just wing him, he’s gonna crawl off and die somewhere. I can’t bring that pain. You can have my tomatoes. I’ll keep them well watered. Take all you want. I’m well fed. I eat steak. Maybe when I get hungry, I’ll get angry. But in the meantime, maybe I’ll make you dance for your supper.
I’ll be waiting for you. Tomorrow morning. Second floor with a scope. Clear field of fire. Cup of coffee. I’ll cough and you will look up. I won’t pull the trigger. Let’s be friends.
I have 27 tomatoes. You ate the first batch of 9. and the second batch of 5. I realize it was a drought. I forgive you. Go to somebody else’s yard first.
I need one ripe, red tomato. I promised Katya. Just leave me one. I don’t trust you.
August 2, 2010 at 11:23 pm
Dr. Doom
I’m pretty sure you have an infestation of those rare Italian Boston squirrels. There was one in that last Scorose movie, which they shot in Boston. At the end, scampering across the railing like he was the godfather Idy squirrel, set it all up.
Or maybe it was an Irish rat? You’re lucky all they want (for now) is your ripe tomatoes.
Violence is not a good idea, especially with the Italian squirrels. It’ll escalate. Just ask dave.
August 3, 2010 at 12:35 am
JR
I’m looking into it [in a Jack Nicholson voice]
August 3, 2010 at 12:45 am
JR
You realise me and you and Bunn and dave have a mutlti-million dollar screenplay here. We are definitely the best writers. We just need a story.
Try this. Moldova 1939. A simple guy’s tomato patch. He will soon be overrun 6 or 7 times by the two biggest tank armies in the world. His tomatoes survive. And then we cut to 2009. He lives in Brighton, Massachusetts. One Daugther is a whore the othe lives inFlorida with a retarded son and had been married three times. The last to a Russian millionaire who won’t take care of the kid. The son studies accounting at UMass.
It gets better.
It’s a true story. All of it. Nobody has to make up anything. It’s a fucking true story.
Oh, Katya.
August 3, 2010 at 12:50 am
JR
And it gets better. I’m sorry. I have to shut my mouth. I’ll talk to Bunn about this. This is our ticket out of here. I am splitting all procedes.But I want Bunn to review so we get maximum hit. Everybody here gets equal. Including Nudge and AU.
August 3, 2010 at 1:46 am
Dr. Doom
Just make sure they do their part. I’m worried about Nudge. Ever since she got that damn expensive Eurotrash Dutch bike, she’s on endorphin, vitamin D highs like a hopeless drug fiend, a regular High Street black Mamba dock riding hooker now. And AU has health issues, don’t want unreal medical bills just when we hit the big time. The idiot could die on us, and then everyone will go WTF it’s The Long Emergency up taken one of our own to an early grave. Double writer’s block, big time.
But I think I worry too much. Go for it, JR.
August 3, 2010 at 1:57 am
JR
What?
I heard this weird sound when I was taking my final left to park for work. It was some gook bitch in a helmet riding a bike. But it had an engine. Like must have been 10 hp and barking. It was a fucking bike.
Whatever. you can bet I’m gonna find her and fuck the details out of her. Super annoying.
Don’t get me wrong. The only thing I care about is Katya. She is the best cook ever. Better than me. She’s coming over tomorrow if I have to kidnap her. I buy all the supplies. This little Monkey can cook and I love her.
As far as I’m concerned there should be three classes of humans. Men, Women, and Chefs/Cooks. Fuck! I love food. It’s as good as sex or cigarettes. Close to crack. I can’t believe God has kept me from this secret for so long.
Food is almost as good as Lee Marvin. Jesus. Somebody should write a book about how awesome food is.
August 3, 2010 at 2:24 am
Dr. Doom
Dude, they have both books and TV shows on how awesome food is. It’s a scary trend to me, as the same thing, the celebration of gourmet cooking, happened to Rome before their fall.
Eat hardtac and thrive, eat truffles and die.
August 3, 2010 at 5:24 am
Nudge
Doom wrote: “I’m worried about Nudge. Ever since she got that damn expensive Eurotrash Dutch bike, she’s on endorphin, vitamin D highs like a hopeless drug fiend, a regular High Street black Mamba dock riding hooker now.”
Well, you’ve got parts of it right, but the docks are a long ways from here and those little ones on lakes don’t count, do they? Also, I haven’t yet recruited a proper cycle chic posse out here due to the way everyone so lurves their bigass automobiles. I tried telling them that their beloved white pickups are slowly killing them, and they said huh?
Might need to ride all the way into Worcester or one of the bigger towns to find the cycle chic posse. It’s out there, waiting to happen. You think women on bikes are subversive? Wait til ya see us doing it in groups of 30+.
I’m busy sabotaging my career yet again, but that’s OK. The boss has once again hinted that I should go find a bikini and head down to his place on the Cape for the weekend. (this was part of his commentary about how the cycling has been making me damn skinny) Nah, I’d rather go riding. He’s probably better off playing those games with someone more gullible/trusting than me anyway, someone who really wants to suck up to the seat of power and all that. Yawn. It’s hard to get motivated in that direction when temp jobs in Boston (with no sucking-up required) pay more.
August 3, 2010 at 5:32 am
Nudge
Oooh, that reminds me .. I’m feeling evil now and know what to wear today. Got legs, may as well have some fun ;)
August 3, 2010 at 5:45 am
dave
yeah, i’ve often said that the biggest real difference between baboons and humans, both large primates from the savanah of africa, is that humans are better at postponing gratification. iow, they’re sneakier, humans are.
August 3, 2010 at 5:48 am
dave
Are you kidding? I still need to get to work on time. Besides, it’s the losers that do that sort of stuff, not the cute ones.
i don’t know nudge. it sounds like you’re just being coy to me. that act only goes just so far. you might be missing out on something good.
August 3, 2010 at 5:50 am
Nudge
What makes you think it’s an act? lol
August 3, 2010 at 6:02 am
dave
well, of course, in some sense, what is an an act? all the worlds a stage an all. but, isn’t being coy an act, in the sense of being a pretense, by definition? feigning disinterest while displaying signs of sexual arousal? you are the sneaky one.
August 4, 2010 at 1:40 am
Dr. Doom
yeah Nudge, take one of the lucky ones up on their offer and make wild monkey love out there under the trees in the middle of the work week and tell the boss you had a tumble on the way to work (not too far off, eh?) and that’s why you’re late. just make sure he wears a condom.