A true Story from an Irish Sunday School Teacher

I was testing children in my Dublin Sunday school
class to see if they understood the concept of getting to heaven.
'I asked them, ' If I sold my house and my car, had
a big garage sale and gave all my money to the church, would that get me into heaven?'
'NO!' the children answered.
'If I cleaned the church every day, mowed the
garden, and kept everything tidy, would that get me
into heaven?'
Again, the answer was
'NO!'
'If I gave sweets to all the children, and loved my
husband, would that get me into heaven?'
Again, they all answered
'NO!'
I was just bursting with pride for them. I
continued, 'Then how can I get into heaven?'
A little boy shouted out: 'YUV GOTTA BE FOOKN' DEAD.'
It's a curious race, the Irish.
Kind of brings a tear to the eye, doesn't it?



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The Army Can't Figure Out What To Do With the Ripsaw "Tank" The speedy little vehicle seems useful, but for what?

The U.S. Army continues to test a tracked-vehicle veteran of reality TV but doesn't know what to do with it. The Army has tested the Ripsaw EV since 2010 but has yet to come up with a practical role for the quick little vehicle.

The Ripsaw "tank" was frequently seen on the reality TV show "Howe and Howe Tech," which followed the Maine-based company as it developed a variety of "extreme vehicles". Although the U.S. Army is very interested in the vehicle, with the Ripsaw being tested at a number of Army bases and research facilities between 2010 and 2017, that interest has not translated to government contracts.

The Ripsaw EV2 (Extreme Vehicle) is a small, low-profile tracked vehicle with a two-person cockpit. It is optionally crewed, meaning it can be driven by a human or controlled remotely. It can turn (or more accurately, rotate) on a dime and climb a 70 degree grade.The vehicle has a 600 horsepower Duramax diesel engine—nearly half the power of a 70-ton Abrams tank—making it capable of speeds over 60 miles an hour. Howe and Howe claim it is the fastest tracked vehicle ever built.


A lack of armor makes it less interesting as a crewed vehicle, but a remote-controlled, partially-autonomous Ripsaw could function in a variety of roles, including tank-killer, infantry support vehicle, resupply vehicle, and ambulance. According to Defensetech, Ripsaw is designed to accommodate the CROWS remotely-operated weapons station, but it also seems possible to outfit it with Javelin anti-tank missiles. In 2002, the Army showed off an unmanned version of the Ripsaw it was investigating for convoy security duties.

The U.S. Army isn't the only one investigating unmanned ground combat vehicles (UGCVs) News of that Russian defense contractor Kalashnikov is developing a 20-ton UGCV could give Ripsaw EV2 a boost. But for now, it's speeding toward nowhere in particular.

Source: Defensetech


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Watch America's Fighter Jets Morph Over the Decades From the F-1 Fury to the F-35 Lightning II.

The United States military has been flying jets since 1946. Autoauctionmall.com has put together a morphing GIF that celebrates many of the major fighter designs, starting with the F-1 Fury and continuing to today's F-22 Raptor and F-35 Lightning II.

GIF


Here's the full list of the aircraft depicted:

F-1 Fury

F-2 Banshee

F-3 Demon

F-4 Phantom

F-5 Freedom Fighter

F-6 Skyray

F-7 Sea Dart

F-8 Crusader

F-9 Cougar

F-10 Skyknight

F-11 Tiger

F-14 Tomcat

F-15E Strike Eagle

F-16 Fighting Falcon

F-17 Cobra

F-18 Hornet

F-20 Tigershark

F-22 Raptor

F-23 Black Widow

F-35 Lightning II

Design trends over the decades are easy to pick out. The first aircraft, the F-1 Fury, dates to 1946 and looks like a propeller-driven plane. In the 1950s, aircraft such the F-4 Phantom and F-7 Sea Dart were optimized for speed. The 1970s-era F-14 Tomcat and F-15 Eagle mixed speed with maneuverability, while the F-16, F-17, and F-18 trended towards maneuverability over speed. In the 1990s, the F-22, F-23, and F-35 were the first aircraft to adopt stealthy body shaping characteristics, resulting in sleeker, sharper aircraft designs.




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How We Age?

>
> SOME OF US ARE IN SERIOUS TROUBLE.
>
> You are in the middle of some home projects: putting in a new fence, painting the porch, planting some flowers and fixing a broken door lock. You are hot and sweaty, covered with dirt, lawn clippings and paint. You have your old work clothes on. You know the outfit -- shorts with a hole in the crotch, an old T-shirt with a stain from who-knows-what, and an old pair of tennis shoes.
>
> Right in the middle of these tasks you realize that you need to run to Home Depot for supplies. Depending on your age you might do the following:
>
> In your 20s: Stop what you are doing. Shave, take a shower, blow dry your hair, brush your teeth, floss and put on clean clothes. Check yourself in the mirror and flex. Add a dab of your favorite cologne because, you never know, you just might meet some hot chick while standing in the checkout line. And yes, you went to school with the pretty girl running the register.
>
> In your 30s: Stop what you are doing, put on clean shorts and shirt. Change your shoes. You married the hot chick so no need for much else. Wash your hands and comb your hair. Check yourself in the mirror Still got it! Add a shot of your favorite cologne to cover the smell. The cute girl running the register is the kid sister of someone you went to school with.
>
> In your 40s: Stop what you are doing. Put on a sweatshirt that is long enough to cover the hole in the crotch of your shorts. Put on different shoes and a hat. Wash your hands. Your bottle of Brut is almost empty, so don't waste any of it on a trip to Home Depot. Check yourself in the mirror and do more sucking in than flexing. The hot young thing running the register is your daughter's age and you feel weird about thinking she's spicy.
>
> In your 50s: Stop what you are doing. Put on a hat. Wipe the dirt off your hands onto your shirt. Change shoes because you don't want to get dog crap in your new sports car. Check yourself in the mirror and swear not to wear that shirt anymore because it makes you look fat. The cutie running the register smiles when she sees you coming and you think you still have it. Then you remember -- the hat you have on is from Bubba's Bait & Beer Bar and it says, 'I Got Worms '
>
> In your 60s: Stop what you are doing. No need for a hat any more Hose the dog crap off your shoes. The mirror was shattered when you were in your 50s. You hope you have underwear on so nothing hangs out the hole in your pants. The girl running the register may be cute but you don't have your glasses on, so you're not sure.
>
> In your 70s: Stop what you are doing. Wait to go to Home Depot until you call the drug store to have your prescriptions ready for pick too and check your grocery list for a quick stop there. Got to save trips! Don't even notice the dog crap on your shoes. The young thing at the register stares at you and you realize your balls are hanging out the hole in your crotch who cares.
>
> In your 80s: Stop what you are doing. Start again. Then stop again. Now you remember you need to go to Home Depot. You go to Wal-Mart instead. You went to school with the old lady greeter. You wander around trying to remember what you are looking for. Then you fart out loud and turn around thinking someone called your name
>
> In your 90s & beyond: What's a home deep hoe? Something for my garden? Where am I? Who am I? Why am I reading this?
> Did I send it? Did you? Who farted?
>
>
>


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An Irishman comes to a pub...

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An Irishman walks into a bar in London, orders three pints of Guinness and sits in the back of the room, drinking a sip out of each one in turn.

When he finishes them, he comes back to the bar and orders three more.

"You know, a pint goes flat after I draw it,” the bartender tells him, “and it would taste better if you bought one at a time.”

The Irishman replies, “Well, you see, I 'ave two brothers. One is in America, the other is in Australia, and I'm 'ere in London. When we all left home, we promised we'd always drink this way to remember the days we drank together. So I drink one for each o'me brothers and one for meself.”

The bartender admits that this is a nice custom, and gives him his three pints.

The Irishman becomes a regular in the bar, and always drinks the same way: He orders three pints and drinks them all together, one sip each.

One day, he comes in and orders two pints. All the other regulars take notice and fall silent.

When he comes back to the bar for the second round, the bartender says, “I don't want to intrude on your grief, but I wanted to offer my condolences on your loss.”

The Irishman looks quite puzzled for a moment, then a light dawns and he laughs. “Oh, no, everybody's just fine,” he explains, “It's just that me wife 'ad us join that Baptist Church and I 'ad to quit drinking. 'asn't affected me brothers though.”

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Morning Musings...

  

  

Mark

For the Irish in You...

For the Irish in You