Never too old to have a happy childhood!
http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1066/1
NY Times, Dec. 16
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/16/world/asia/larry-colburn-my-lai-massacre-dies.html
Larry Colburn, who became an 18-year-old American hero when he intervened with two comrades to halt the massacre of unarmed Vietnamese civilians by United States soldiers in 1968, elevating an innocuous hamlet named My Lai into a watchword for the horrors of war, died on Tuesday at his home in Canton, Ga. He was 67.
http://www.historynet.com/interview-larry-colburn-why-my-lai-hugh-thompson-matter.htm
Dover-Sherborn Press, March 22, 2012
We must never forget what war really is all about
By Larry Colburn
So, an American soldier has apparently lost whatever sanity, or at least humanity, he once possessed, and murdered numerous civilians in Afghanistan. Staff Sergeant Robert Bales is alleged to have shot to death at close range at least 16 people, including children sleeping in their beds, and may have burned some of the bodies as well — a nightmarish act of wanton brut
How could this happen? It’s something I’ve given a lot of thought to since March 16, 1968 — 44 years ago last week — the date of the My Lai massacre. Since 2006, I have been the lone survivor of the three men on the helicopter, commanded by Warrant Officer Hugh Thompson Jr. — who later in life became my good friend — that intervened to help stop that massacr
Last week, President Obama stated that this latest atrocity by an American soldier is “not comparable” to what happened in My La
He is correct. It is not compara
But there is a good reason to bring up My Lai right now, regardless of the differences. And the differences are great: in body count, in the number of perpetrators, and in the coordinated execution of mass murder
All of those things set My Lai apart from what is being called the “Panjwai Shoo
Whatever names we give to these atrocities, they are stark reminders to a weary public of what war does to people — both the victims and the perpetrators.
War destroys people, not just physically, but mentally. Whatever facts may emerge about the man who killed those civilians more than a week ago, I am confident that it was his experience of war that transformed him into something he never, ever wanted to become. (This was reportedly his fourth tour of duty — after three i
This in no way excuses his acts, for which he will undoubtedly be prosecuted. And no matter what the outcome of that prosecution — whether his punishment is deemed too merciful or too severe by the many who will presume to opine on that subject — he will never rest easy for the rest of his life. His acts will haunt him to his dying day, just as they will haunt the families of his victims, who of course deserve compassion, and whatever measure of “justice” can be served by his prosecu
Americans can debate the pros and cons of our mission in Afghanistan, begun more than a decade ago in hot pursuit of the terrorist — and the regime protecting him — who inflicted the worsSo, an American soldier has apparently lost whatever sanity, or at least humanity, he once possessed, and murdered numerous civilians in Afghanistan. Staff Sergeant Robert Bales is alleged to have shot to death at close range at least 16 people, including children sleeping in their beds, and may have burned some of the bodies as well — a nightmarish act of wanton brutality.
How could this happen? It’s something I’ve given a lot of thought to since March 16, 1968 — 44 years ago last week — the date of the My Lai massacre. Since 2006, I have been the lone survivor of the three men on the helicopter, commanded by Warrant Officer Hugh Thompson Jr. — who later in life became my good friend — that intervened to help stop that massacre.
Last week, President Obama stated that this latest atrocity by an American soldier is “not comparable” to what happened in My Lai.
He is correct. It is not comparable.
But there is a good reason to bring up My Lai right now, regardless of the differences. And the differences are great: in body count, in the number of perpetrators, and in the coordinated execution of mass murder by senior commanders.
All of those things set My Lai apart from what is being called the “Panjwai Shooting Spree.”
War destroys people, not just physically, but mentally. Whatever facts may emerge about the man who killed those civilians more than a week ago, I am confident that it was his experience of war that transformed him into something he never, ever wanted to become. (This was reportedly his fourth tour of duty — after three in Iraq.)
This in no way excuses his acts, for which he will undoubtedly be prosecuted. And no matter what the outcome of that prosecution — whether his punishment is deemed too merciful or too severe by the many who will presume to opine on that subject — he will never rest easy for the rest of his life. His acts will haunt him to his dying day, just as they will haunt the families of his victims, who of course deserve compassion, and whatever measure of “justice” can be served by his prosecution.
Americans can debate the pros and cons of our mission in Afghanistan, begun more than a decade ago in hot pursuit of the terrorist — and the regime protecting him — who inflicted the worst attack on U.S. soil since Pearl Harbor.
And while my heart goes out to those who will surely be victims of the Taliban when America withdraws, I have my doubts about whether keeping our soldiers in Afghanistan even one more day is actually helping any of those we claim to be trying to help, as this tragic mass murder brings into high relief. Having served in combat in a war that was aptly described by the phrase, “we had to destroy the village in order to save it,” the parallels are growing ever more clear.
But while the generals and the pundits and the politicians weigh in, about “strategic objectives” and “protecting American interests” and all the usual justifications for the organized, planned murder of fellow human beings, I plead with you as my fellow Americans never to forget what war really is. Every military organization on earth trains young people, in the bloom of youth when they should be filled with hope and idealism and the joy of living, to dehumanize other human beings — to demonize them — so that the psychological ground is cultivated for them to do things they would only otherwise do if they were under mortal attack — that is to say to kill people.
And as long as we can rationalize that the people being killed “deserve it” — because they are “the enemy” — we have opened Pandora’s box, which as we know is damned hard to close once the lid is lifted.
While the “shooting spree of Panjwai” may not equal the horrors of My Lai in scale, it is a slap-in-the-face reminder of the hellish, irrevocable destruction that war wreaks upon both soldiers and civilians. It should force Americans to ask their leaders: what exactly we are trying to accomplish by continuing the longest war in American history?
Roberta Peters from the Bronx rode the subway to the Met.
http://www.fdrlibrary.marist.edu/daybyday/resource/november-1936-4/
Bob Wolff (1920-2017)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Wolff
The Singing Senators: Howard Devron, Truman Clevenger, Jim Lemon, Russ Kemmerer, Roy Sievers, Albie Pearson (front) and Bob Wolff (far right)
[quote user="BaltACD"]
[/quote above]
A wonderful friend replied to my posting your humor:
It has been asked why locomotive engineers can't be electrocuted.
It's because they aren't conductors....
I'll go crawl back in my hole...
Larry Resident Microferroequinologist (at least at my house) Everyone goes home; Safety begins with you My Opinion. Standard Disclaimers Apply. No Expiration Date Come ride the rails with me! There's one thing about humility - the moment you think you've got it, you've lost it...
And another reply from a friend, Chris Foreman of the website
www,audioencyclopedia.com:
And, a bit of humor from my childhood. One day in the late 1960s, my mother saw an older woman at the grocery store who asked about me. My mother replied that I was studying engineering at the University of Nebraska. The older woman replied, "I just didn't know they were running that many trains any more!"
I was watching an old movie on TV a few years ago (about 1930) that, even though it was a talkie, still followed the practice of inserting captions on the screen. In a nightclub scene with an orchestra playing, they inserted this caption: The conductor never played "Carmen" because his brother was a motorman. It took me a few seconds to get it.
(edit): Clarification: i wasn't watching the movie around 1930. The movie was from about 1930.
_____________
"A stranger's just a friend you ain't met yet." --- Dave Gardner
You’re never too young train scene
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DYUF2hqhP3w&t=25m
With all the controversy about off-topic this 'n that, how did we forget for so long about this thread? As I recall it was the 'lightning rod' for non-railroad discussions among community members. Drift and 'evolution' are expected, too
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r0-IaIWwHCk
OvermodWith all the controversy about off-topic this 'n that, how did we forget for so long about this thread? As I recall it was the 'lightning rod' for non-railroad discussions among community members. Drift and 'evolution' are expected, too
Last winter my cousin sent me a paperback book "FDR's FUNERAL TRAIN: A Betrayed Widow, A Soviet Spy, and A Presidency in the Balance", Robert Klara, St. Martin's Press, 2010. A fair amount of railroad detail - leaving Washington, the GG1 broke the couplers 3 times! Also some description of the Southern Ps-4 on the front for that portion of the trip, and a lot about FDR's private car, the Ferdinand Magellan.
And of course quite a lot about Eleanor Roosevelt. So this thread is no longer "Non-Topical"!
- PDN.
It took me a moment to remember how the Southern took part in FDR's funeral train--and then I remembered that he died in Warm Springs, Georgia, which was on Southern's Atlanta-Columbus line.
Does the book tell what engine(s) took the train to Atlanta? I am not sure that those Pacifics were allowed on that track. Also, I think that the engines were changed att Salisbury, if not also at Greenville and/or Monroe. Were they doubleheaded? Is the engine in the Smithsonian one of those used for that trip? I wrote "Salisbury," but the shops were at Spencer, just above the city of Salisbury. (You may remember that Steve was supposed to get 97 into Spencer on time.)
Thank you.
Johnny
Johnny, I would have to page through the first half of the book - about 100 pages - to answer most of your questions. However, from the index I quickly found (pg. 198) that the 1401 - the Smithsonian locomotive - hauled it 150 miles from Greenville, SC to Salisbury, NC (perhaps Spencer?). At least part of the SR portion of the trip was double-headed.
Maybe this weekend on the others.
How did a GG1 have or cause three (3) couplers to fail? That dosen't seem likely. Not saying it didn't happen, just don't understand.
Thanks, Paul. I had a vague memory about the 1401.
Incidentally, the Charlotte Division ran from Spencer to Atlanta; passenger trainmen ran the full length of the division, I believe.
From the discription in the above, it sounds more like they had difficulty in getting a coupler to properly lock than that the broke the coupler or knuckle in trying to get the train started.
Well I jusr learned a lesson, NEVER read a headline too quickly!
"Roosevelt Dies From Mike Of Course!"
Whereupon I thought "HUH? WHAT DID MIKE DO?" Silly me!
Anyway, I remember my father telling me about when FDR died and they heard Harry Truman's voice on the radio for the first time. Dad said what a let-down it was, after listening to Roosevelt for 12 years. If anyone sounded presidential, it was certainly Franklin D. Roosevelt!
But, as Dad said, in the end Truman did pretty well.
Here's a recording of Woodrow Wilson, he sounded even more presidential than Roosevelt did! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yb30L-NmKjo
Reminds me a bit of the late actor Lewis Stone.
You are correct Firelock, that does read rather odd .. I'll change something. Thanks for that.
Miningman You are correct Firelock, that does read rather odd .. I'll change something. Thanks for that.
Aw, don't change it Miningman, why should I have all the fun?
Other people should have the pleasure of shooting Coca-Cola through their nose while reading it!
BaltACD From the discription in the above, it sounds more like they had difficulty in getting a coupler to properly lock than that the broke the coupler or knuckle in trying to get the train started.
Two or three times when I was coming home, private cars were added to the rear in Denver--and it took three or four tries before a good joint was made; I was somewhat tempted to go back there and give some assistance.
Trouble Coupling
charlie hebdoNow threads are being deleted.
Are the threads being deleted ones that contain discussion about how the administrators run the forum?
Many times I've seen threads like that get locked, and then after they fade to the second or third page, they go *poof*
Not seeing anything deleted - just dropping off Page 1.
The thread about trucking and declining loads. Too political.
I don't think that thread was deleted....it just got moved to the "proper" folder. ROFL!
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