Tanks for Trump on 4th July?

[_Jersey Girl]

I get what everyone is saying, but . . . at the end of the day, tanks are frickin' cool, are they not?

They're kind of cool, yes. So are the demonstration teams that do flyovers and air shows--one of my favorite things to see. I think that people are missing the fact that these types of events (yes, I know Trump is full of himself) are held regularly. Bases opened to the public, air shows, exhibits of tracked/armored vehicles, parades, band and choir concerts to create good relations between the military and civilian communities and show the American taxpayer where their dollars go.

There's probably tours at Naval Bases where you can go on subs and aircraft carriers on the coast and all, but I've only been to one Naval Base and actually there was a ship's tour involved.

This happens every year (with very few exceptions such as aircraft groundings) world wide so I don't know why people are flipping out about this except for the fact that they despise Trump.

Apparently folks haven't been to any of these events? They don't live near a military installation? Never visited one?

I mean crap, they railed/trucked a couple or three armored and tracked vehicles up from Ft. Stewart. Had a parade, a band a flyover. This happens all the time. Not what Trump originally wanted, the end result. Happens all the time. Trump couldn't get what he wanted for the very reasons I stated on the previous thread and also on this thread. That's exactly how it went down and why.

I mentioned previously my arranging transportation for tanks on semi's. Mentioned it on a previous thread in fact about the same topic. This is exactly the type of event those tanks were being transported for. Typically for Armed Forces Day events in May.

Don't people know this?

[_Jersey Girl]

Trump will address the crowd at some point in the evening. The event is free to the public, though the section closest to the Lincoln Memorial is reserved with tickets being doled out by the Republican National Committee and Trump’s reelection campaign.

https://www.sltrib.com/news/politics/2019/07/03/president-trump-plans/

Making the national holiday into a campaign fundraiser sounds like something novel, provided the novel is about a dystopian future ruled by a demented megalomaniac.

And he's an ass for doing that.

[_Jersey Girl]

I do not wish to say anything negative about the military here but they have a couple of holidays and parades specifically honoring them. I have always understood that the original instructions for the fourth, illuminations all across the land, was to commemorate the burst of spirit, intelligence and light from the declaration of independance and all the hope that it pointed to.

Well I suppose you could say that the military is part of preserving our independence. Or fighting for it in the first place. Or it's good PR for civilian's to get a closer look at the military equipment that they paid for.

Or you could say I have a thin skin when it comes to some of these comments.

Sorry, not sorry.

[_Jersey Girl]

I do not wish to say anything negative about the military here but they have a couple of holidays and parades specifically honoring them.

I know you don't mean to insult because that is not who you are. I'd like to remind you that the military honors YOU every day of their lives, 24/7 around the globe and so do their families.

Visit any VA hospital in the nation to see what they have honored you with after their time in service is complete.

[_Kevin Graham]

Trump said ... .sigh

https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/p ... hqY_ey0Kqw

[_Jersey Girl]

Trump said ... .sigh

https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/p ... hqY_ey0Kqw

Good grief. I have had this stuff blaring in my ear for a couple of hours today. I couldn't hear exactly what he was saying.

I'm now very happy about that.

[_Jersey Girl]

I get what everyone is saying, but . . . at the end of the day, tanks are frickin' cool, are they not?

Er, no.

They are an unfortunate necessity. To like military equipment for its own sake may be excusable in teenage boys (of which I have been one in my time), but basically it is all just machines for one lot of mother's sons to use to convert another lot of mother's sons into a bloody pulp.

(Of course, like all parents I'd prefer my kids to be the ones who do the converting rather than getting converted, every time. But please don't ask me to take pleasure in the damn things.)

Are you bothered by flyovers?

[_Jersey Girl]

2019 US Navy Blue Angels Airshow Appearance Schedule

March 16-17: NAF El Centro Air Show – NAF El Centro, CA
March 23-24: California International Airshow – Salinas, CA
March 30-31: NAS Key West Southernmost Air Show – NAS Key West, Florida
April 6-7: Sun-n-Fun Fly-In Expo – Lakeland, Florida
April 13-14: Wings Over South Texas – NAS Corpus Christi, Texas
April 20-21: OFF WEEK
April 27-28: MCAS Beaufort Air Show – MCAS Beaufort, SC
May 4-5: Ford Lauderdale Air Show – Fort Lauderdale, Florida
May 11-12: JB Andrews Air Show – JB Andrews, MD
May 18-19: Cape Girardeau Regional Air Festival – Cape Girardeau, MO
May 22: U.S. Naval Academy Air Show – Annapolis, MD
May 24: U.S. Naval Academy Graduation Flyover – Annapolis, MD
May 25-26: Miami Beach Air & Sea Show – Miami Beach, Florida
June 1-2: Star Spangled Salute Air Show – Tinker AFB, OK
June 8-9: Great Tennessee Air Show – Smyrna, TN
June 15-16: Ocean City Airshow – Ocean City, MD
June 22-23: OFF WEEK
June 29-30: Quad City Air Show – Davenport, IA
July 6-7: KC Downtown Air Show – Kansas City, MO
July 13: Pensacola Beach Airshow – Pensacola Beach, Florida
July 20-21: Duluth Air Show and Aviation Expo – Duluth, MN
July 27-28: Grand Junction Air Show – Grand Junction, CO
August 3-4: Seafair Boeing Air Show – Seattle, Washington
August 17-18: 61st Chicago Air And Water Show – Chicago, IL
August 24-25: New York Air Show – Stewart ANG Base, Newburgh, NY
August 31-September 1: Atlantic Canada International Air Show – Greenwood, NS
September 7-8: Spirit of St. Louis Air Show – Chesterfield, MO
September 14-15: OFF WEEK
September 21-22: NAS Lemoore Central Valley Air Show – NAS Lemoore, CA
September 28-29: MCAS Miramar Air Show – MCAS Miramar, CA
October 5-6: California Capital Airshow – Sacramento, CA
October 12-13: San Francisco Fleet Week – San Francisco, CA
October 19-20: Fort Worth Alliance Air Show – Fort Worth, Texas
October 26-27: Jacksonville Sea and Sky Spectacular – Jacksonville Beach, Florida
November 2-3: Thunder Over South Georgia – Moody AFB, GA
November 8-9: Blue Angels Homecoming Airshow – NAS Pensacola, Florida

http://airshowstuff.com/v4/2018/us-navy ... -released/

2019 US Air Force Thunderbirds Airshow Appearance Schedule

February 17: Daytona 500, Daytona Beach, Florida (Flyover)
March 3: Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Las Vegas, NV (Flyover)
March 14: Creech Appreciation Day, Indian Springs, NV
March 23-24: Thunder and Lightning Over Arizona – Davis-Monthan AFB, AZ
March 30-31: Travis AFB Open House – Travis AFB, CA
April 6-7: Heart of Texas Air Show – Waco, Texas
April 13-14: OPEN
April 27-28: Wings over Wayne Open House – Seymour Johnson AFB, NC
May 4-5: Keelser AFB, MS
May 11-12: JB Andrews Air Show – JB Andrews, MD
May 18: Kirtland AFB Air Show – Kirtland AFB, NM
May 25-26: Jones Beach Air Show – Jones Beach, NY
May 30: USAF Academy – Colorado Springs, CO
June 1-2: Defenders of Freedom Air Show – Offutt AFB, NE
June 8-9: Fort Wayne Air Show – Fort Wayne, IN
June 15-16: Minnesota Air Spectacular – Mankato, MN
June 22-23: Dayton Air Show – Dayton, OH
June 29-30: National Cherry Festival Airshow – Traverse City, MI
July 6-7: Mid-summer Break
July 13-14: Rionegro (Medellin), Colombia
July 20-21: Fargo Air Show – Fargo, ND
July 24: Cheyenne Frontier Days – Cheyenne, WY
July 27-28: Milwaukee Air and Water Show – Milwaukee, WI
August 10-11: Abbotsford International Air Show – Abbotsford, BC
August 17-18: Sioux Falls Air Show – Sioux Falls, SD
August 21: Atlantic City Air Show – Atlantic City, New Jersey
August 24-25: Rochester International Airshow – Rochester, NY
August 31-September 2: Cleveland National Air Show – Cleveland, OH
September 7-8: Grissom Air Reserve Base Air Show – Grissom ARB, IN
September 14-15: National Championship Air Races – Reno, NV
September 21-22: Naval Air Station Oceana Air Show – NAS Oceana, VA
September 28-29: Robins AFB Air Show – Robins AFB, GA
October 5-6: Puerto Rico International Air Show – San Juan, PR
October 12-13: Atlanta Air Show – Hampton, GA
October 19-20: Wings Over Houston Air Show – Houston, Texas
October 26-27: Sheppard AFB Air Show – Sheppard AFB, Texas
November 2-3: Florida International Air Show – Punta Gorda, Florida
November 15-17: Aviation Nation – Nellis AFB, NV

A bazillion more air shows

http://airshowstuff.com/v4/category/airshows/

[_Chap]

I get what everyone is saying, but . . . at the end of the day, tanks are frickin' cool, are they not?

Er, no.

They are an unfortunate necessity. To like military equipment for its own sake may be excusable in teenage boys (of which I have been one in my time), but basically it is all just machines for one lot of mother's sons to use to convert another lot of mother's sons into a bloody pulp.

(Of course, like all parents I'd prefer my kids to be the ones who do the converting rather than getting converted, every time. But please don't ask me to take pleasure in the damn things.)

Are you bothered by flyovers?

'Bothered'? Not sure what you mean by that, but anyway:

As I think my response to Shades makes clear, the point of my post was that anyone who feels that the sight of military equipment is 'cool' needs to ask themselves what its purpose is. It reminds us of the horrible fact that we live in a world where the only way we can ensure that people we love are not killed in large numbers is to be prepared to kill other people's loved ones in larger numbers. The equipment we prepare for that purpose has to be as good as we can make it, and those who may have to use it deserve our sober respect and support.

Consider a tank: its armour is there in an attempt to preserve the living people inside it from horrible deaths by fire, or fragmentation injury: being killed instantly in an explosion is the easy option. Its weaponry is there in an attempt to inflict horrible deaths on other people who are similarly protected. And let's not forget the immense cost of producing and maintaining this object. With that money, how many poor children could be educated? How many sick old people cared for in comfort?

In this world, we need to have tanks, and people who know how to use them in battle.

But if you are an adult like Shades, spare me the adolescent enthusiasm, OK? I am sure you will have noticed that ex-military personnel who have seen such weapons used in combat don't go in much for that kind of thing either.

[_Chap]

Strangely, Trump read from a script during his speech, with minimal ad-libbing. But oh boy, when he did ad-lib or misread it really showed:

Flight of fancy: Trump claims 1775 revolutionary army 'took over airports'
Historical blunder in July 4th speech compounded by mixing up war of 1812 with war of independence

Donald Trump made an awkward blunder during his speech on Independence Day, praising the army, which he said “took over the airports” from the British during the revolutionary war in the late 1700s.

Trump made the mistake during his hour-long speech at the Lincoln memorial in Washington DC as part of his 4th of July “Salute to America” celebrations, which saw him become the first US president in nearly 70 years to address the country on Independence Day.

In a departure from his usual style of rambling, impromptu speeches in which the president lurches between topics at high speed, Trump gave a surprisingly scripted address in which he outlined the history of Independence Day, American achievement in various fields, and then paid tribute to each branch of the military in turn.

During his tribute to the army, Trump said: “In June of 1775, the Continental Congress created a unified army out of the revolutionary forces encamped around Boston and New York … The Continental Army suffered a bitter winter of Valley Forge, found glory across the waters of the Delaware, and seized victory from Cornwallis of Yorktown.

“Our army manned the air, it rammed the ramparts, it took over the airports, it did everything it had to do, and at Fort McHenry, under the rockets’ red glare, it had nothing but victory.”

As listeners were quick to point out, air travel did not occur in the US until early in the 1900s. The Wright brothers, whom Trump praised earlier in his speech, are credited with flying the world’s first plane in 1903.

However, this was not the only historical confusion in this section of Trump’s speech. As astute listeners picked out, the battle of Fort McHenry occurred during the war of 1812, and not the American revolutionary war which took place several decades earlier.

But I don't think the Fort McHenry point could have been an ad-lib ... so the speech was written by someone not too well up in US history, it seems.

God help us, on reconsideration, could it have been Ivanka who wrote this stuff, 18th-century air travel included? Makes sense. Who else would Trump trust enough to write a speech for him and get him to deliver it from script?