He was a fixture from the 70's and the yin to Ali's yang -- a fighter who chose to disappear gracefully from a sport that crashed and burned not so long after his retirement. Love him or hate him - and there were no in-betweens, Smokin' Joe Frazier will go down as one of the top 5 baddest ass boxers to ever grace the ring. RIP Joe...

America's manned space program offically ended this morning at 5:56am - 42 years to the day after Neil Armstrong first stepped on the moon. This country is no officially Third World, and we now have to rely on crappy Russian spaceships to get our astronauts into space. How that's change working for us all these days?

Below is an awesome shot of Endeavour right before touchdown at KSC. A little ground effect for ya...

Remember when it was Fighter Weapons School?
12/17/2009 - NELLIS AIR FORCE BASE, Nev. (AFNS) -- An Air National Guard MQ-1 Predator pilot marked the beginning of a new era Dec. 12 as the first unmanned aircraft pilot from a reserve component to graduate from the Air Force Weapons Instructor Course at the U.S. Air Force Weapons School here.
Maj. Tammy Barlette, from the Arizona Air National Guard's 214th Reconnaissance Group based at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, completed the five-and-a-half month course along with three active duty UA pilots. They were the first to attend the school in its 60-year history. The school, regarded as having the U.S. Air Force's premier weapons and tactics training program, provides graduate-level instructor academic and flying courses. Its graduates are regarded as top authorities in their respective fields.
"I've been through a lot of training but nothing as difficult as this," said Major Barlette, a former A-10 Thunderbolt II pilot who left active duty to fly Predators over Iraq and Afghanistan full time with the Air Guard.
"The course is intended to make you the best instructor you can be for your squadron, weapon system and the Air Force," she said. "They teach you how to get to the root of a problem and find solutions.  It's constant studying, briefing and flying."
Within the first month she had to get qualified to fly the MQ-9 Reaper. The course requires UA pilots to have dual qualification in both the Predator and Reaper so that they can routinely fly training missions with various platforms to include A-10s, F-15 Eagles and F-16 Fighting Falcons.
The school, initially created for fighter pilots, now integrates Airmen from 22 different aircraft and specialties. The addition of UAs is an indication of their value in current conflicts and the need for their inclusion in the broader Air Force mission.
"Our training was focused on preparation for the next conflict," said the major. "The course taught us to keep a focus on the future so that, when required, a vast array of weapon systems can integrate in any number of situations. I feel like I have a better grasp of how all of these capabilities compliment each other, and I think officers from other Air Force communities got a better understanding of what (UAs) bring to the fight." Back at her unit, Major Barlette will be her commander's resident expert and will be relied upon to teach fellow Predator pilots how to improve operations.
"Everyone else in the unit will be marching behind her so we can learn how to better serve our customers: the troops on the ground," said Lt. Col. Randy Inman, 214th RG commander.
"We're very proud to have Major Barlette represent our unit, the state and the Air National Guard," Colonel Inman said. "We recognize the historic significance of her accomplishment and I know it was one that did not come without personal sacrifice."
One year ago Major Barlette was five-months pregnant with her second child when she learned of her selection to attend the school. Accepting the appointment meant she would have to leave her 1-year-old daughter and new-born son the following July.
"I talked it over with my husband and he said, 'You have to go. We'll figure out the rest.' He was very supportive, and my parents, who live in Tucson, helped us out tremendously," said Major Barlette.
Though Major Barlette admits the family separation was difficult, she says her new qualification as a weapons instructor will serve her and the UA community well.
"I just wanted to go to the school to get answers. I wanted to get better and I wanted to help my squadron get better," she said.
According to the major, weapon school patch-wearers from UA units across the country will enjoy the added benefit of being able to cross check ideas with each other.
"It's starting to connect us all," she said.

...which states that "shit happens, and sometimes BAD shit  happens" -- struck Dooferbook HQ last Friday night due to a chimney fire. Everyone's OK but the house is a total loss. The local FD kept their record of never having lost a foundation, and it only took them half an hour to start getting water to the flames after their arrival. The fire started at about 10pm and burned till past sunrise, but fortunately the beer remained cold as we watched the spectacle from the cabana. At one point a bit of excitement gripped the crowd as more than 200 rounds of 9mm, .22 and 300win mag started popping off from my bedroom...

The good news is we will soon be rebuilding  in hopes of hosting another Pig Roast reunion sometime next year!

When the TV series 'Kung Fu' premiered in 1972, it was the first look many of us had into the mystical world of Eastern philosophy and martial arts. David Carradine played Kwai Chang Caine, a quiet, peaceful Shaolin monk who roamed around the American West righting injustices for the little guys by laying a little Shaolin whoopass on their tormenters. In real life Carradine didn't know a thing about Kung Fu when he was cast for the part, but was able to fake it pretty well as he underwent OJT on the set. As kids, we didn't know crap about Kung Fu either, but that didn't stop us from beating the snot out of each other with attempted roundhouse head kicks and snap kicks to the groin...

Sadly, David Carradine was found dead yesterday in a Bangkok hotel room with a noose tied around his neck and his nuts. Intially thought to be a suicide, investigators now think it was some sort of auto-erotic masturbatory act that did him in.

Full Story

From correspondents in Quito, Ecuador

March 26, 2009 07:06am

A FIGHTER pilot who survived the crash of his jet plunged to his death with a rescuer after a cord broke as they were being pulled up to a helicopter.

The Ecuadorian pilot, identified as Rafael Durango, and an unidentified co-pilot had earlier ejected safely from their MK-89 Strikemaster before it crashed into a heavily jungled area near the Colombian border yesterday.

Ecuadoran military officials said two helicopters were sent to recover them.

But an air force official later said the rescue went awry as Durango and a rescuer were being lifted up to one of the hovering choppers.

"A cord that was attached to a helicopter broke and the pilot and one of the rescuers fell, dying in the rescue operation,'' the official said.

The second pilot was successfully rescued, the official said.

Colonel Hugo Lanas, an Ecuadoran air force spokesman, said earlier that the MK-89 Strikemaster was on a training mission in northeastern Sucumbios province when it crashed.

There is a heavy military presence in the area because of frequent incursions by Colombian guerrillas.

The MK-89 is a British-built jet-powered training and light attack aircraft.

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[ed. note: from the looks of the MK-89, the fact that his ejection seat even worked - and that he survived the canopy penetration in the jungle - made him the luckiest guy in the world for a short while. Sad he didn't make it.]