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Wonderful writing by Patrick Smith on Salon.com. Gives us an insight into the emotions & fears of an airline pilot. I love this behind the scenes stuff… Though perhaps that’s a good thing as well. We’re all afraid of flying on some level, and is that not perfectly healthy? And the pilot’s job, in essence, is the management of contingency. Fires, explosions, physics gone bad, all the nasty scenarios the simulator instructors love — they’re all there, coiled behind the instrument panel, waiting to spring in a game of comfortable, though never perfect, odds. And the pilot’s role is to spring right back. Do pilots worry about crashing? Of course. As a matter of practicality, they have to. It’s in their best interest, and yours too. So I’ve wanted to have a radio-controlled helicopter ever since DC Comics’ General Jumbo! He controlled his miniature army/air-force from a controller on his sleeve. This was back in 1965! Alas it was not to be until I was well into middle age. In the last few years there has been a spurt in the popularity of RC Helicopters thanks to new battery & electric motor technology. No longer does cranking nitro motors add another level of difficulty to the dark art. Li-po batteries can keep even large heli’s in the air for over ten minutes. I have a fixed pitch MSR Blade that is an incredible exercise in miniaturization. On one circuit board are solenoids, gyros, electronic speed control and all the other gubbings that keep a 1oz. machine in the air! Downside – repairs. I have yet to go over one hour without ALL of my fleet of four choppers being out of action. I came by a Blade 400 in a sweet deal and am restoring it. However I know that without due care & attention it will be a basket case within seconds. Such is the tragic life of le pilote d’hélicoptère… Went into Academy Sports today and was amazed to see full shelves of ammunition. I hadn’t checked in a while but all last year into the Fall I could not find any 9mm ammo locally. Turns out that after the election all the pin-head, gun-lovers thought that the dreaded Government was going to take all their guns away or levy huge taxes on ammunition or do all kinds of Machiavellian things to spoil their fun. Of course the Govt. has better things to do than fuck around with the NRA et al, in fact they made it legal again to carry concealed in National Parks. So I guess all the rabid Obama-hating gun forums are softening their stance and punters are no longer stock-piling. God there are some idiots out there. FYI got some of that pinko, Commy, Russkie FMJ by Monarch – cheap as dirt, goes bang just fine. Sweet little personal media player with full HD 1080p output and a touchscreen. Supposedly will handle all video & audio formats and ebooks! Amazing price – Viewsonic spokesman quotes a MSRP of $199. Oh boy! Available March. BTW – great Viewsonic spokesperson. Has all the information at his fingertips and doesn’t oversell. Reminds me of my friend Charlie Fowler who has been selling all his life – could sell anything. |
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