RupertKBD Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 3 hours ago, TheBearded1 said: Question: In the spy/action movies, covert/special ops/militia/private operations, are always explained away as "natural gas explosions" or other comical excuses. Seems like someone is assassinated every movie. Is there evidence of actual political/economic assassinations happening in today's world? Last time I checked, nobody is being taken down from a 50 cal sniper rifle in an adjacent skyscraper. Last time I checked, 6 bodyguards weren't gunned down in a restaurant. Last time I checked, a club owner wasn't gunned down by an assassin during a disco-dance party. Last time I checked, the FBI or CIA were not involved in a daytime shootout with a covert private military group. Last time I checked, an entire floor of a skyscraper was not blown to bits. Last time I checked, a prison transfer was not interrupted by an armed private helicopter in broad daylight. Question: are movies so far off that these events simply just don't happen in real life? Or are there world events that "could" be a botched assassination attempt, or a disruption of equipment/files/personnelle? I think I'm watching too much James Bond. I'm no expert, but my guess is that the vast majority of "spy" work is mundane and boring....mostly guys sitting in front of computer screens, monitoring chat rooms, etc. I'm sure that there are covert ops going on, but they probably represent a small percentage of intelligence work. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6of1_halfdozenofother Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 3 hours ago, TheBearded1 said: Question: are movies so far off that these events simply just don't happen in real life? Or are there world events that "could" be a botched assassination attempt, or a disruption of equipment/files/personnelle? Sex and violence sells. Movies sometimes have sex scenes that imply main characters getting it on with ease and with frequency; in real life, I'm guessing that isn't the case. Or maybe I'm not doing life correctly. Never mind, carry on. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6of1_halfdozenofother Posted January 24 Share Posted January 24 Quote Ukrainian-born model wins Miss Japan 2024, sparks identity controversy By Sarah Do Couto Global News Posted January 24, 2024 12:28 pm Carolina Shiino, pictured centre, won the Miss Japan Grand Prix pageant on Jan. 22, 2024. Her win triggered domestic and international conversation about racial inclusion in beauty pageants. Twitters @ Japan Maritime Public Relations Association On Monday, Ukrainian-born model Carolina Shiino graciously accepted the Miss Japan 2024 title with tears in her eyes. Though Shiino, 26, is not what many would expect of a conventional Miss Japan winner, she thanked the judges and audience in lilting, fluent Japanese. As she accepted her crown and trophy, Shiino called the win “a dream.” “I’ve had to face barriers that often prevent me from being accepted as Japanese, so I am filled with gratitude to be recognized at this competition as a Japanese person,” she said. According to the BBC, Shiino was born in Ukraine, but moved to Nagoya, a large city in Japan, when she was 5 years old. Shiino became a naturalized Japanese citizen in 2022 — the first to win the Miss Japan pageant. She is also the oldest woman to win the title. The response to Shiino’s win has been mixed, both inside and out of Japan. Online, some social media users felt Shiino’s triumph was unfair because she is not ethnically Japanese and therefore does not adhere to the country’s typical beauty standards. In this camp, netizens worried her win would push an image of Western beauty onto Japanese natives. Carolina Shiino at the Miss Japan Grand Prix pageant on Jan. 22, 2024. Twitter @ibf_japan Others praised the beauty pageant for its inclusiveness and saw Shiino’s crowning as an acknowledgement of racial diversity in Japan. Still, others openly wondered if Shiino’s win was political and to do with her being born in Ukraine, which was invaded by Russia in February 2022. Carolina Shiino said it was “a dream” to win the Miss Japan Grand Prix pageant. Instagram @Karolina0824 But in a statement to the BBC, Miss Japan Grand Prix pageant organizer Ai Wada said the judges were confident in their decision to crown Shiino. “She speaks and writes in beautiful and polite Japanese,” Wada told the outlet. “She is more Japanese than we are.” Shiino is the 56th Miss Japan Grand Prix winner. The beauty pageant began in 1950. In 2015, Ariana Miyamoto, whose parents are Japanese and African American, became the first ever biracial woman to become Miss Japan. Like Shiino, Miyamoto’s pageant triumph triggered discussion in the country and beyond about who should be eligible to compete for the Miss Japan title, with specific emphasis on racial inclusion. Miss Japan 2015, Ariana Miyamoto, at the 2015 Miss Universe Pageant on Dec. 20, in Las Vegas, Nevada. Ethan Miller/Getty Images https://globalnews.ca/news/10247490/carolina-shiino-ukrainian-wins-miss-japan-2024/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ilunga Posted January 25 Share Posted January 25 Good news on not just the Alzheimer's front but also from a human perspective. https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/indian-teen-invents-gadget-to-transform-dementia-care-out-of-concern-for-his-grandmother/ 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nuckin_futz Posted January 25 Share Posted January 25 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the destroyer of worlds Posted January 25 Share Posted January 25 56 minutes ago, nuckin_futz said: I mean, what do you expect from a Scott. She isn't wrong in her assessment of those people. Lettuce lasted longer than Liz Truss. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bishopshodan Posted January 26 Share Posted January 26 World News... Happy Birthday Rup. @RupertKBD You're our 'great one.' 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RupertKBD Posted January 26 Share Posted January 26 19 minutes ago, bishopshodan said: World News... Happy Birthday Rup. @RupertKBD You're our 'great one.' Thanks Bishop. 1 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattJVD Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 On 1/23/2024 at 7:28 AM, TheBearded1 said: Question: In the spy/action movies, covert/special ops/militia/private operations, are always explained away as "natural gas explosions" or other comical excuses. Seems like someone is assassinated every movie. Is there evidence of actual political/economic assassinations happening in today's world? Last time I checked, nobody is being taken down from a 50 cal sniper rifle in an adjacent skyscraper. Last time I checked, 6 bodyguards weren't gunned down in a restaurant. Last time I checked, a club owner wasn't gunned down by an assassin during a disco-dance party. Last time I checked, the FBI or CIA were not involved in a daytime shootout with a covert private military group. Last time I checked, an entire floor of a skyscraper was not blown to bits. Last time I checked, a prison transfer was not interrupted by an armed private helicopter in broad daylight. Question: are movies so far off that these events simply just don't happen in real life? Or are there world events that "could" be a botched assassination attempt, or a disruption of equipment/files/personnelle? I think I'm watching too much James Bond. I don't think most films are attempting litteral realism. They are attempting something that looks plausible enough that you can suspend your disbelief and enjoy a good story. Assassinations are rare, but they happen. Hardeep Nijjar was just assasinated in BC last year. And as sloppy as that one was that's usually how it goes. Agencies don't often get kenetic themselves; you find locals who are willing to do the wet work (or you just do a drone strike like Qasem Soleimani). But yes, most int work is very boring. My breif time in int largely involved making power point presentations and telling people not to get drunk and talk about work when they go on vacation. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ilunga Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 On 1/27/2024 at 2:36 AM, RupertKBD said: Thanks Bishop. A belated happy birthday brother. Only a couple of days difference. We are both Aquarians, and by those who follow that stuff, I am told I am a typical Aquarian. It cracks me up that I will be getting my seniors card in a couple of days. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6of1_halfdozenofother Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 Quote Japanese moon lander revived by sun, regains contact with Earth JAXA's SLIM spacecraft shut down on Jan. 20 due to low batteries The Associated Press · Posted: Jan 29, 2024 5:37 AM PST | Last Updated: 5 hours ago This image of the Smart Lander for Investigating Moon, or SLIM, was taken by one of its lunar rovers. The Japanese moon explorer was up and running on Jan. 29 after several tense days without the sunlight it needs to generate power. (JAXA/Takara Tomy/Sony Group Corporation/Doshisha University/The Associated Press) A Japanese moon explorer is up and running Monday after several tense days without the sunlight it needs to generate power. Japan's first lunar mission hit its target in a precision touchdown on Jan. 20, but landed the wrong way up, leaving its solar panels unable to see the sun. But with the dawn of the lunar day, it appears that the probe has power. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, or JAXA, said Monday that it successfully established communication with the probe Sunday night, and the craft has resumed its mission, taking pictures of the Moon's surface and transmitting them to the Earth. Problems during landing After a last-minute engine failure caused the Smart Lander for Investigating Moon, or SLIM, to make a rougher-than-planned landing, JAXA used battery power to gather as much data as possible about the touchdown and the probe's surroundings. The craft was then turned off to wait the sun to rise higher in the lunar sky in late January. With power, SLIM has continued work to analyze the composition of olivine rocks on the lunar surface with its multi-band spectral camera, seeking clues about the Moon's origin and evolution, the agency said. Earlier observations suggest that the moon may have formed when the Earth hit another planet. An image taken by SLIM shows the rocky lunar surface, including a rock the agency said it had named 'Toy Poodle.' The probe is analyzing six rocks, all of which have been given the names of dog breeds. (JAXA via The Associated Press) A black-and-white photo posted by JAXA on social media showed the rocky lunar surface, including a rock the agency said it had named "Toy Poodle" after seeing it in initial images. The probe is analyzing six rocks, all of which have been given the names of dog breeds. SLIM is expected to have enough sun to continue operations for several earth days, possibly until Thursday. JAXA said it's not clear if the craft will work again after another severely cold lunar night. The SLIM landed about 55 meters away from its target, in between two craters near the Shioli crater, a region covered in volcanic rock. Previous moon missions have typically aimed for flat areas at least 10 kilometers wide. SLIM carried two autonomous probes, which were released just before touchdown, recording the landing, surroundings and other lunar data. The landing made Japan the world's fifth country to reach the moon surface, after the United States, the Soviet Union, China and India. https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/jaxa-moon-lander-1.7097720 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UnkNuk Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 Probably not the most important news of the day. But the Olympics are a world event. And when it happened at the 2022 Olympics it got a fair amount of attention. So I thought I'd post this here. (It only took two years to settle.) Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva received a 4-year ban. Her team's Olympic gold medal is going to Team USA. Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva has been banned from the sport until 2025 after it was found she committed an anti-doping rule violation, the Court of Arbitration for Sport said Monday. Valieva, who with the Russian Olympic Committee earned gold in the team event at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, will be stripped of any awards she earned since late 2021. Valieva tested positive for a banned drug, trimetazidine, but the court ruled she could still compete in the Beijing Games as it investigated, which it said would take months. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/russian-figure-skater-kamila-valieva-doping-ban-gold-medal-team-usa/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RupertKBD Posted February 28 Share Posted February 28 Scientists have determined that smoking weed increases the risk of heart attack: https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/28/health/marijuana-heart-attack-stroke-study-wellness/index.html Quote Smoking, vaping or eating marijuana is linked to a significantly higher risk of heart attack and stroke, even if a person had no existing heart conditions and did not smoke or vape tobacco, a new study found. While both daily and non-daily users had an increased risk of heart attack and stroke compared to nonusers, stroke risk rose 42% and the risk of heart attack rose 25% if cannabis was used daily, the study found. The risk climbed as the number of days of use of marijuana rose. I think Willie Nelson would have something to say about that..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RupertKBD Posted February 29 Share Posted February 29 Not all rich folks are selfish jerks..... The lady in the video embedded in this article is Ruth Gottesman. She just donated a billion dollars from her late husband's estate, to cover tuition for medical students: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2024/02/26/ruth-gottesman-albert-einstein-medical-school-donation-tuition/72752939007/ Quote The widow of a billionaire financier made a landmark donation to cover tuition for students at a New York City medical school in perpetuity. Ruth Gottesman donated $1 billion to the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Bronx on Monday. Gottesman, 93, is a former professor at the school who studied learning disabilities and created an adult literacy program. She is currently the chair of the board of trustees for the college. The donation is the largest made to a medical school, according to the college. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UnkNuk Posted March 8 Share Posted March 8 But that's exactly what we would expect them to say, isn't it? Pentagon Review Finds No Evidence of Alien Cover-Up The new congressionally mandated Pentagon report found no evidence that the government was covering up knowledge of extraterrestrial technology and said there was no evidence that any U.F.O. sightings represented alien visitation to Earth. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/08/us/politics/pentagon-ufo-alien-review.html?unlocked_article_code=1.bE0.A9iq.XopNkzWb4pF8&smid=url-share 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RupertKBD Posted March 9 Share Posted March 9 44 minutes ago, UnkNuk said: But that's exactly what we would expect them to say, isn't it? Pentagon Review Finds No Evidence of Alien Cover-Up The new congressionally mandated Pentagon report found no evidence that the government was covering up knowledge of extraterrestrial technology and said there was no evidence that any U.F.O. sightings represented alien visitation to Earth. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/08/us/politics/pentagon-ufo-alien-review.html?unlocked_article_code=1.bE0.A9iq.XopNkzWb4pF8&smid=url-share I bet I know where the evidence is hidden: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gurn Posted March 9 Share Posted March 9 1 hour ago, UnkNuk said: But that's exactly what we would expect them to say, isn't it? Pentagon Review Finds No Evidence of Alien Cover-Up The new congressionally mandated Pentagon report found no evidence that the government was covering up knowledge of extraterrestrial technology and said there was no evidence that any U.F.O. sightings represented alien visitation to Earth. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/08/us/politics/pentagon-ufo-alien-review.html?unlocked_article_code=1.bE0.A9iq.XopNkzWb4pF8&smid=url-share 27 minutes ago, RupertKBD said: I bet I know where the evidence is hidden: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taxi Posted March 11 Share Posted March 11 On 1/23/2024 at 10:58 AM, RupertKBD said: I'm no expert, but my guess is that the vast majority of "spy" work is mundane and boring....mostly guys sitting in front of computer screens, monitoring chat rooms, etc. I'm sure that there are covert ops going on, but they probably represent a small percentage of intelligence work. A lot of covert ops work is done by informants too, not actual spies. It's much easier to turn someone already imbedded than to imbed your own spies. Various countries do use assassins, but those people wouldn't typically be attending cocktail parties and infiltrating organizations over time, they'd be making quick strikes and getting out. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UnkNuk Posted March 12 Share Posted March 12 Well, it's world news of a sort! Krystyna Pyszková from Czech Republic crowned Miss World 2024 https://apnews.com/article/miss-world-competition-india-krystyna-pyszkova-f86dc7b37e2a96467916d73a4d4a3986 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RupertKBD Posted March 12 Share Posted March 12 One of the greatest rock n roll movies of all time is getting a sequel.....40 years later: https://deadline.com/2024/03/spinal-tap-sequel-filming-elton-john-paul-mccartney-questlove-garth-brooks-trisha-yearwood-join-1235854578/ Quote Producer Castle Rock Entertainment announced today that the sequel to the 1984 cult classic This Is Spinal Tap recently began production in New Orleans, Louisiana. Rob Reiner is directing and Christopher Guest, Michael McKean and Harry Shearer are all reprising their roles as the comic heavy metal band, Spinal Tap. Reiner will also return as the documentarian Martin “Marty” DiBergi. The film will feature cameos from Elton John, Paul McCartney, Questlove, Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood. Guest, McKean, Reiner, and Shearer conceived the sequel, which after a 15-year hiatus, will see England’s loudest and most punctual band, reuniting for one final concert. I wonder who will play the exploding drummer? Tommy Aldridge looks old enough: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bishopshodan Posted March 12 Share Posted March 12 19 minutes ago, RupertKBD said: One of the greatest rock n roll movies of all time is getting a sequel.....40 years later: https://deadline.com/2024/03/spinal-tap-sequel-filming-elton-john-paul-mccartney-questlove-garth-brooks-trisha-yearwood-join-1235854578/ I wonder who will play the exploding drummer? Tommy Aldridge looks old enough: Tommy sits soo low in his kit. i once read it was because he learned to play using a bucket as his throne. Great drummer. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RupertKBD Posted March 12 Share Posted March 12 6 minutes ago, bishopshodan said: Tommy sits soo low in his kit. i once read it was because he learned to play using a bucket as his throne. Great drummer. I was trying to think of someone around the right age and Tommy definitely looks the part. Here's what the boys look like now: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bishopshodan Posted March 12 Share Posted March 12 4 minutes ago, RupertKBD said: I was trying to think of someone around the right age and Tommy definitely looks the part. Here's what the boys look like now: That's a sequel that i will look forward to for sure. The first one is up there with The Holy Grail and Slap Shot. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RupertKBD Posted March 19 Share Posted March 19 Ever have one of those days at work? This guy in Turkey says, "hold my beer"..... Now I don't know if this was the ship's captain, one of his crew, or a local pilot, but whichever it was, I'm guessing he or she is looking for a new job right now..... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rip The Mesh Posted March 21 Share Posted March 21 Never really stops, does it. And how did he get it through? I guess screening isn't world wide. At least he's dead.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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