TheList 5648

The List 5648     TGB

 

Good Monday Morning March 15 .

Beware the Ides of March

I hope that you all had a great weekend except for the Time change

Regards,

Skip.

 

This day in Naval History

 

March 15

1889—A typhoon strikes Apia, Samoa, where American, German and British ships are protecting their national interests. The typhoon drives USS Trenton, USS Vandalia, and USS Nipsic ashore, killing 51 crew members, and sinks all three German ships with the loss of 150 crew.

1943—U.S. 7th Fleet is established in Brisbane, Australia during WWII, under the command of Adm. Arthur S. "Chips" Carpender.

1944—USS Shamrock Bay (CVE 84) is commissioned. During World War II, she serves in the Atlantic and is sent to the Pacific due the loss of escort carriers and participates in the Okinawa Campaign.

1947—Ensign John W. Lee, Jr., becomes the first African-American with a commission in the regular Navy and serves aboard USS Kearsarge (CV 33).

1953—Marine pilots of VMA 312 destroy eight rail cars, two possible radar towers, a power transformer and numerous other assorted targets in Korea before returning to USS Bataan (CVL 29).

1957—A ZPG-2 airship driven by Cmdr. Jack R. Hunt lands at Naval Air Station Key West, FL, after a flight that began Mar. 4 at South Weymouth, MA, then circled over the Atlantic Ocean toward Portugal, the African coast and back for a new world record in distance and endurance, covering 9,448 statute miles and remaining airborne 264 hours 12 minutes without refueling.

 

 

Thanks to CHINFO

 

Executive Summary:

•           Washington Post published an op-ed by President Joe Biden and other Quad leaders.

•           Washington Post also ran an op-ed by Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Secretary of State Antony Blinken ahead of their travel to the Indo-Pacific.

•           Military.com reported U.S. F-35B Joint Strike Fighters are conducting sea trials on an Italian aircraft carrier.

 

 

 

 44   The ides of March: Julius Caesar is murdered »

 

This day in History   15 March

44 BC		Julius Caesar is assassinated by high-ranking Roman Senators.
933		Henry the Fowler routs the raiding Magyars at Merseburg, Germany.
1493		Christopher Columbus returns to Spain after his first voyage to the New World.
1778		In command of two frigates, the Frenchman la Perouse sails east from Botany Bay for the last lap of his voyage around the world.
1820		Maine is admitted as the 23rd state.
1862		General John Hunt Morgan begins four days of raids near the city of Gallatin, Tenn.
1864		The Red River Campaign begins as the Union forces reach Alexandria, La.
1892		New York State unveils the new automatic ballot voting machine.
1895		Bone Mizell, the famed cowboy of Florida, appears before a judge for altering cattle brands.
1903		The British complete the conquest of Nigeria.
1904		Three hundred Russians are killed as the Japanese shell Port Arthur in Korea.
1909		Italy proposes a European conference on the Balkans.
1916		General John Pershing and his 15,000 troops chase Pancho Villa into Mexico.
1934		Henry Ford restores the $5-a-day wage.
1935		Joseph Goebbels, German Minister of Propaganda bans four Berlin newspapers.
1939		Germany occupies Bohemia and Moravia, Czechoslovakia.
1944		Cassino, Italy is destroyed by Allied bombing.
1949		Almost four years after the end of World War II, clothes rationing in Great Britain ends.
1951		French General de Lattre demands that Paris send him more troops for the fight in Indochina.
1955		The U.S. Air Force unveils the first self-guided missile.
1956		The first performance of My Fair Lady, starring Julie Andrews and Rex Harrison, takes place on Broadway.
1960		Ten nations meet in Geneva to discuss disarmament.
1965		Gamal Abdel Nasser is re-elected Egyptian President.
1967		President Lyndon Johnson names Ellsworth Bunker as the new ambassador to Saigon. Bunker replaces Lodge.
1968		The U.S. mint halts the practice of buying and selling gold.
1991		Four Los Angeles police are charged in the beating of Rodney King.

 

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ROLLING THUNDER Thanks to the Bear

Monday, 15 March 2021... Bear🇺🇸⚓️🐻

 

LOOKING BACK 55-YEARS to the Vietnam Air War—15 March 1966 From the archives of  http://www.rollingthunderremembered.com

"Guns and/or Butter"

 

http://www.rollingthunderremembered.com/subject-rolling-thunder-remembered-15-march-1966/

 

 

Vietnam Air Losses

Access Chris Hobson and Dave Lovelady's work at:  https://www.VietnamAirLosses.com.

 

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This Day in U S Military History

 

March 15

The Ides of March. In the ancient Roman calendar the 15th day of March, May, July and Oct. or the 13th day of the other months.

1521 – Ferdinand Magellan discovered the Philippine Islands, where he was killed by natives the following month.

 

1697 – A band of Abnaki Indians made a raid on Haverhill, Massachusetts. Twenty-seven women and children were killed in the raid. Less than a week from childbed, Hannah Duston was captured along with her infant daughter and a nurse, Mary Neff. Hannah's husband managed to escape with their seven other children. The baby was brutally killed, and Hannah and Mary were taken northward by their captors. After a march of 100 miles, the party paused at an island (afterward known as Penacook, or Dustin, Island) in the confluence of the Merrimack and Contoocook rivers above the site of present-day Concord, New Hampshire. There the two women were held and told that after a short journey to a further village they would be stripped and scourged. On the island they met Samuel Lennardson (or Leonardson), an English boy who had been captured more than a year earlier. During the night of March 30, Hannah and the boy secured hatchets and attacked their captors; 10 were killed, 9 of them by Hannah. The three captives then stole a canoe and escaped, but Hannah turned back and scalped the 10 corpses so as to have proof of the exploit. They reached Haverhill safely and on April 21 presented their story to the General Court in Boston, which awarded the sum of 25 pounds to Hannah Duston and half that to each of her companions.

 

1945 – On Iwo Jima, US 5th Amphibious Corps continues to engage the Japanese forces which are now confined a small area in the northwest of the island.

 

2010 – The passing of the United States generation that fought in World War I is marked by the funeral of Frank Buckles, who died on 27 February 2011, aged 110, and was buried with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery. Frank Woodruff Buckles (born Wood Buckles, February 1, 1901 – February 27, 2011) was a United States Army soldier and the last surviving American veteran of World War I. He enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1917 and served with a detachment from Fort Riley, driving ambulances and motorcycles near the front lines in Europe. During World War II, he was captured by Japanese forces while working in the shipping business, and spent three years in the Philippines as a civilian prisoner. After the war, Buckles married in San Francisco and moved to Gap View Farm near Charles Town, West Virginia. A widower at age 98, he worked on his farm until the age of 105. In his last years, he was Honorary Chairman of the World War I Memorial Foundation. As chairman, he advocated the establishment of a World War I memorial similar to other war memorials in Washington, D.C.. Toward this end, Buckles campaigned for the District of Columbia War Memorial to be renamed the National World War I Memorial. He testified before Congress in support of this cause, and met with President George W. Bush at the White House. Buckles was awarded the World War I Victory Medal at the conclusion of that conflict, and the Army of Occupation of Germany Medal retroactively following the medal's creation in 1941, as well as the French Legion of Honor in 1999.

 

 

Medal of Honor Citations for Actions Taken This Day

SMITH, HENRY I.
Rank and organization: First Lieutenant, Company B, 7th lowa Infantry. Place and date: At Black River, N.C., 15 March 1865. Entered service at: Shell Rock Fall, Cerro Gordo County, lowa. Born: 4 May 1840, England. Date of issue: 7 September 1894. Citation: Voluntarily and under fire rescued a comrade from death by drowning.

HERRERA, SILVESTRE S.
Rank and organization: Private First Class, U.S. Army, Company E, 142d Infantry, 36th Infantry Division. Place and date: Near Mertzwiller, France, 15 March 1945. Entered service at: Phoenix, Ariz. Birth: El Paso, Tex. G.O. No.: 75, 5 September 1945. Citation: He advanced with a platoon along a wooded road until stopped by heavy enemy machinegun fire. As the rest of the unit took cover, he made a 1-man frontal assault on a strongpoint and captured 8 enemy soldiers. When the platoon resumed its advance and was subjected to fire from a second emplacement beyond an extensive minefield, Pvt. Herrera again moved forward, disregarding the danger of exploding mines, to attack the position. He stepped on a mine and had both feet severed but, despite intense pain and unchecked loss of blood, he pinned down the enemy with accurate rifle fire while a friendly squad captured the enemy gun by skirting the minefield and rushing in from the flank. The magnificent courage, extraordinary heroism, and willing self-sacrifice displayed by Pvt. Herrera resulted in the capture of 2 enemy strongpoints and the taking of 8 prisoners.

PIERCE, FRANCIS JUNIOR
Rank and organization: Pharmacist's Mate First Class, U.S. Navy serving with 2d Battalion, 24th Marines, 4th Marine Division. Place and date: Iwo Jima, 15 and 16 March 1945. Entered service at lowa Born: 7 December 1924, Earlville, lowa. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while attached to the 2d Battalion, 24th Marines, 4th Marine Division, during the Iwo Jima campaign, 15 and 16 March 1945. Almost continuously under fire while carrying out the most dangerous volunteer assignments, Pierce gained valuable knowledge of the terrain and disposition of troops. Caught in heavy enemy rifle and machinegun fire which wounded a corpsman and 2 of the 8 stretcher bearers who were carrying 2 wounded marines to a forward aid station on 15 March, Pierce quickly took charge of the party, carried the newly wounded men to a sheltered position, and rendered first aid. After directing the evacuation of 3 of the casualties, he stood in the open to draw the enemy's fire and, with his weapon blasting, enabled the litter bearers to reach cover. Turning his attention to the other 2 casualties he was attempting to stop the profuse bleeding of 1 man when a Japanese fired from a cave less than 20 yards away and wounded his patient again. Risking his own life to save his patient, Pierce deliberately exposed himself to draw the attacker from the cave and destroyed him with the last of his ammunition Then lifting the wounded man to his back, he advanced unarmed through deadly rifle fire across 200 feet of open terrain. Despite exhaustion and in the face of warnings against such a suicidal mission, he again traversed the same fire-swept path to rescue the remaining marine. On the following morning, he led a combat patrol to the sniper nest and, while aiding a stricken marine, was seriously wounded. Refusing aid for himself, he directed treatment for the casualty, at the same time maintaining protective fire for his comrades. Completely fearless, completely devoted to the care of his patients, Pierce inspired the entire battalion. His valor in the face of extreme peril sustains and enhances the finest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service.

*SARGENT, RUPPERT L.
Rank and organization: First Lieutenant, U.S. Army, Company B, 4th Battalion, 9th Infantry, 25th Infantry Division. Place and date: Hau Nghia Province, Republic of Vietnam, 15 March 1967. Entered service at: Richmond, Va. Born: 6 January 1938, Hampton, Va. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. While leading a platoon of Company B, 1st Lt. Sargent was investigating a reported Viet Cong meeting house and weapons cache. A tunnel entrance which 1st Lt. Sargent observed was booby trapped. He tried to destroy the booby trap and blow the cover from the tunnel using hand grenades, but this attempt was not successful. He and his demolition man moved in to destroy the booby trap and cover which flushed a Viet Cong soldier from the tunnel, who was immediately killed by the nearby platoon sergeant. 1st Lt. Sargent, the platoon sergeant, and a forward observer moved toward the tunnel entrance. As they approached, another Viet Cong emerged and threw 2 hand grenades that landed in the midst of the group. 1st Lt. Sargent fired 3 shots at the enemy then turned and unhesitatingly threw himself over the 2 grenades. He was mortally wounded, and his 2 companions were lightly wounded when the grenades exploded. By his courageous and selfless act of exceptional heroism, he saved the lives of the platoon sergeant and forward observer and prevented the injury or death of several other nearby comrades. 1st Lt. Sargent's actions were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military services and reflect great credit upon himself and the U.S. Army.

 

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Thanks to Al…Probably more than you ever knew about St. Patrick's Day

Monday Morning Humor--St. Patrick's Day

St. Patrick - The Patron Saint of Ireland

 

Who was St. Patrick?

     St. Patrick was a Christian missionary credited with the conversion of Ireland from paganism.  He lived from the late 4th century A.D. to the mid 5th century A.D., so long ago that it's difficult to separate fact from legend.

     St. Patrick was born in either Scotland or Wales, the son of Roman parents living in Britain.  When he was about fifteen or sixteen, he was captured and enslaved by an Irish chieftain during a raiding party across the sea.  He spent several years enslaved in Ireland, herding and tending sheep and swine.  It was during his captivity that St. Patrick dedicated his life to God.  Legend has it that St. Patrick escaped captivity and Ireland after a dream in which God instructed him to journey to the Irish coast where he found a ship that returned him to his family.

     After years of religious study, he became a priest.  In a document attributed to him known as "The Confession", St. Patrick heard the voice of the Irish in his dreams, "crying to thee, come hither and walk with us once more."  Eventually, Pope Clemens commissioned St. Patrick as bishop to preach the gospel to the Celtic people.  Arriving back in Ireland, he commenced an incredible mission, traveling across the country, preaching and baptizing, ordaining priests and bishops, erecting churches and establishing places of learning and worship, despite constant threats to his life.  It has been said that he and his disciples were responsible for converting almost all the population of Ireland to Christianity.

 

Legend of the serpents

     The most famous legend about St. Patrick is that he miraculously drove snakes and all venomous beasts from Ireland by banging a drum.  Even to touch Irish soil was purported to be instant death for any such creature.  However, this legend is probably a metaphor for his driving the pagans from Ireland, as snakes were often associated with pagan worship.

 

Why the shamrock?

     Finding that the pagan Irish had great difficulty comprehending the doctrine of the Trinity, St. Patrick held up a shamrock (similar to a three-leaf clover) to show how the three leaves combined to make a single plant, just as the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost combined to make the holy Trinity.  The Irish understood at once, and from that time the shamrock has been the symbol of the land.  Irishmen wear it in their hats on the saint's day.

 

Why March 17th?

     It is the death of Saint Patrick, and his recognition as the patron saint of Ireland, that led to the celebration of March 17th as Saint Patrick's Day.  In Ireland, St. Patrick's Day is a holy, religious time with praying, singing and dance.  Outside Ireland, St. Patrick's Day is primarily a secular celebration of all things Irish.

     There are conflicting versions of the first North American celebration.  One source says it was held in Boston in 1737 by the Irish Charitable Society, and later in Philadelphia and New York by the Friendly Sons of St. Patrick and the Ancient Order of Hibernians.  Another source states that on March 17, 1762, a group of Irish-born soldiers, en route to the local tavern of renown to honor their patron saint, staged the first parade in colonial New York, complete with marching bands and colorful banners.  Bystanders and passerby's joined the promenade, singing Irish ballads and dancing down the cobblestones.  The event was so popular it has been repeated annually since then.

 

What about wearing green?

     Ireland's nickname is "The Emerald Isle" because the grass on the hills is so green.  Everyone wears the color green on St. Patrick's Day to honor The Emerald Isle.  If someone forgets to wear green on St. Patrick's Day, those who are wearing green are allowed to give the offender a pinch as a reminder.  However, if you pinch someone who is wearing green, that person gets to pinch you back ten times!  Some of the biggest St. Patrick's Day parades are in Chicago, Illinois, New York City, and Savannah, Georgia.  The city of Chicago goes so far to celebrate that they dye their river green!

 

What does all this have to do with leprechauns?

     Not much, really, except that the leprechaun has been described as Ireland's national fairy.  Over the years, as St. Patrick's Day became a celebration of the Irish as well as a religious holiday celebrating the life of the saint, the leprechaun has evolved as another symbol, with all sorts of myth and legend attached.

     The name leprechaun may have derived from the Irish word for shoemaker (leath bhrogan), or from the Irish word for pygmy (luacharma'n).  Legend has it that these aged, diminutive men are frequently found in an intoxicated state.  However they never become so drunk that the hand which holds the hammer becomes unsteady enough to effect their primary business of shoemaking.

     Leprechauns are also self-appointed guardians of ancient treasure, left by Danes as they marauded through Ireland, burying it in crocks or pots.  Marauding Danes might be the reason leprechauns try to avoid contact with mortals, whom they regard as foolish, flighty, greedy creatures.  The legend goes that if caught by a mortal, a leprechaun will promise great wealth if allowed to go free.  Leprechauns supposedly carry two leather pouches.  In one there is a silver shilling, a magical coin that returns to the purse each time it is given away.  In the other he carries a gold coin which he uses to try and bribe his way out of difficult situations.  The gold coin usually turns to leaves or ashes once the leprechaun has parted with it.

     Remember, if you do catch a leprechaun, you must never take your eye off him.  He will vanish in an instant!

 

 

 

Submitted by Dean Laird:

 

Irish Wisdom

Work like you don't need the money.

Love like you've never been hurt.

Dance like nobody's watching.

Sing like nobody's listening.

Live like it's Heaven on Earth.

May there always be work for your hands to do;

May your purse always hold a coin or two;

May the sun always shine on your windowpane;

May a rainbow be certain to follow each rain;

May the hand of a friend always be near you;

May God fill your heart with gladness to cheer you.

And may you be in heaven a half hour before the devil knows you're dead.

 

  

 

Submitted by Dave Harris:

 

     An Irish painter by the name of Murphy, while not a brilliant scholar, was a gifted portrait artist. Over a short number of years, his fame grew and soon people from all over Ireland were coming to the town of Miltown in County Clare, to get him to paint their likenesses.

     One day, a beautiful young English woman arrived at his house in a stretch limo and asked if he would paint her in the nude. This being the first time anyone had made such a request he was a bit perturbed, particularly when the woman told him that money was no object; in fact, and she was willing to pay up to 10,000 pounds.

     Not wanting to get into any marital strife, he asked her to wait while he went into the house to confer with Mary, his wife. They talked much about the Rightness and Wrongness of it. It was hard to make the decision but finally his wife agreed, on one condition.

     In a few minutes he returned.  "T'would be me pleasure to paint yer portrait, missus," he said "The wife says it's okay."

     "I'll paint you in the nude all right; but I have to at least leave me socks on, so I have a place to wipe me brushes."

 

 

 

     A married Irishman went into the confessional and said to his priest, "I almost had an affair with another woman."

     The priest said, "What do you mean, almost?"

     The Irishman said, "Well, we got undressed and rubbed together, but then I stopped."

     The priest said, "Rubbing together is the same as putting it in. You're not to see that woman again. For your penance, say five Hail Marys and put $50 in the poor box."

     The Irishman left the confessional, said his prayers, and then walked over to the poor box.  He paused for a moment and then started to leave.

     The priest, who was watching, quickly ran over to him saying, "I saw that. You didn't put any money in the poor box!"

     The Irishman replied, "Yeah, but I rubbed the $50 on the box, and according to you, that's the same as putting it in!"

 

 

 

Submitted by John Hudson:

 

     Paddy McCoy, an elderly Irish farmer, received a letter from the Department for Work & Pensions stating that they suspected he was not paying his employees the statutory minimum wage and they would send an inspector to interview them.

     On the appointed day, the inspector turned up.  "Tell me about your staff," he asked Paddy.

     "Well," said Paddy, "there's the farm hand, I pay him $200 a week, and he has a free cottage.  Then there's the housekeeper. She gets $150 a week, along with free board and lodging.  There's also the half-wit. He works a 16 hour day, does 90% of the work, earns about $25 a week along with a bottle of whisky and, as a special treat, occasionally gets to sleep with my wife."

     "That's disgraceful" said the inspector, "I need to interview the half-wit."

     "That'll be me then," said Paddy

 

 

 

     O'Toole worked in the lumber yard for twenty years and all that time he'd been stealing the wood and selling it. At last his conscience began to bother him and he went to confession to repent. "Father, it's 15 years since my last confession, and I've been stealing wood from the lumber yard all those years," he told the priest.

     "I understand my son," says the priest. "Can you make a Novena?"

     O'Toole said, "Father, if you have the plans, I've got the lumber."

 

 

     Paddy was in New York. He was patiently waiting, and watching the traffic cop on a busy street crossing. The cop stopped the flow of traffic and shouted, "Okay pedestrians". Then he'd allow the traffic to pass.

     He'd done this several times, and Paddy still stood on the sidewalk. After the cop had shouted "Pedestrians" for the tenth time, Paddy went over to him and said, "Is it not about time ye let the Catholics across?"

 

 

     Gallagher opened the morning newspaper and was dumbfounded to read in the obituary column that he had died. He quickly phoned his best friend Finney. "Did you see the paper?" asked Gallagher. "They say I died!!"

     "Yes, I saw it!" replied Finney. "Where are ye callin' from?"

 

 

     An Irish priest is driving down to New York and gets stopped for speeding in Connecticut. The state trooper smells alcohol on the priest's breath and then sees an empty wine bottle on the floor of the car. He says, "Sir, have you been drinking?"

     "Just water," says the priest.

     The trooper says, "Then why do I smell wine?"

     The priest looks at the bottle and says, "Good heavens! He's done it again!"

 

 

     An Irishman arrived at JFK Airport and wandered around the terminal with tears streaming down his cheeks.  An airline employee asked him if he was already homesick.

     "No," replied the Irishman. "I've lost all me luggage!"

     "How'd that happen?"

     "The cork fell out!" said the Irishman.

 

 

     Two Irishmen were sitting in a pub having beer and watching the brothel  across the street. They saw a Baptist minister walk into the brothel, and one of them said, "Aye, 'tis a shame to see a man of the cloth goin' bad."

     Then they saw a Rabbi enter the brothel, and the other Irishman said, "Aye, 'tis a shame to see that the Jews are fallin' victim to temptation."

     Then they saw a Catholic priest enter the brothel, and one of the Irishmen said, "What a terrible pity...one of the girls must be quite ill."

 

 

     Two Irishmen, Patrick and Michael, were adrift in a lifeboat following a dramatic escape from a burning freighter. While rummaging through the boat's provisions, Patrick stumbled across an old lamp. Secretly hoping that a genie would appear, he rubbed the lamp vigorously.

     To the amazement of Patrick, a genie came forth.  This particular genie, however, stated that he could only deliver one wish, not the standard three.  Without giving much thought to the matter, Patrick blurted out, "Make the entire ocean into Guinness Beer!"

     The genie clapped his hands with a deafening crash, and immediately the entire sea turned into the finest brew ever sampled by mortals.  Simultaneously, the genie vanished. Only the gentle lapping of Guinness on the hull broke the stillness as the two men considered their circumstances.

     Michael looked disgustedly at Patrick whose wish had been granted. After a long, tension-filled moment, he spoke "Nice going Patrick! Now we're going to have to pee in the boat! "

 

 

     Murphy was staggering home with a pint of booze in his back pocket when he slipped and fell heavily. Struggling to his feet, he felt something wet running down his leg. "Please Lord," he implored, "let it be blood!!"

 

 

     His wife had been killed in an accident and the police were questioning Finnegan. "Did she say anything before she died?" asked the sergeant.

     "She spoke without interruption for about forty years," said the Irishman.

 

 

     The Doctor was puzzled "I'm very sorry but I can't diagnose your trouble, Mahoney. I think it must be drink. "

     "Don't worry about it Dr. Kelley, I'll come back when you're sober."

 

 

     "Hey Patrick, do I hear you spitting in the vase on the mantelpiece?"

     "No, Nora, but I'm getting closer all the time!"

 

 

     Murphy told Quinn that his wife was driving him to drink.

     Quinn thinks he's very lucky because his own wife makes him walk!!

 

 

     Mike lay dying on his bed when his wife Brigid came in to him and asked if there was anything he wanted.

     Mike said "Brigid, what is that delicious smell coming from the kitchen?"

     And Brigid replied "Oh Mike that is a ham I am baking."

     Mike thought, and said "Brigid, as my dying wish I would love to have some of that ham you're cooking."

     Then Brigid said "Oh Mike, I'm saving that for the wake!!"

 

 

     "Did you hear that Flanagan invented an invisible deodorant?"

     "No, what good is it?"

     "Well if you use it, you vanish and no one knows where the smell is coming from!"

 

 

     An Irishman moves into a tiny hamlet in County Kerry, walks into the pub and promptly orders three beers.

     The bartender raises his eyebrows, but serves the man three beers, which he drinks quietly at a table, alone. An hour later, the man has finished the three beers and orders three more. This happens yet again. The next evening the man again orders and drinks three beers at a time, several times.

     Soon the entire town is whispering about the 'Man Who Orders Three Beers.'

     Finally, a week later, the bartender broaches the subject on behalf of the town. "I don't mean to pry but folks around here are wondering why you always order three beers?

     "Tis odd, isn't it?" the man replies, "You see, I have two brothers, and one went to America, and the other to Australia. We promised each other that we would always order an extra two beers whenever we drank as a way of keeping up the family bond."

     The bartender and the whole town was pleased with this answer, and soon the Man Who Orders Three Beers became a local celebrity and source of pride to the hamlet, even to the extent that out-of-towners would come to watch him drink.

     Then, one day, the man comes in and orders only two beers. The bartender pours them with a heavy heart. This continues for the rest of the evening: he orders only two beers. The word flies around town. Prayers are offered for the soul of one of the brothers.

     The next day, the bartender says to the man, "Folks around here, me first of all, want to offer condolences to you for the death of your brother. You know-the two beers and all..."

     The man ponders this for a moment, then replies, "You'll be happy to hear that my two brothers are alive and well. It's just that I, meself, have decided to give up drinking for Lent."

 

 

     In Cork County Ireland, a bum came up to old Hogan and asked for a handout.

     Hogan replied, "Ye'll only waste the money, you will."

     "No," replied the bum, "I need it for food. I don't drink,

     I don't smoke and I sure don't gamble."

     "Aye," Hogan replied, "in that case, if you'll be comin' back to my house, I'll give you a whole pound."

     The bum was agreeable, and in a few minutes they were at the door of Hogan's house. Mrs. Hogan opened the door, took a look at the pair of them and said, "Aye! And what would this be about then?"

     Hogan said to his wife, "I just wanted to show you somebody who doesn't smoke, drink, or gamble! And why don't you keep your promise and marry him, then?"

 

 

     An Irish bloke goes to the doctor, "Dactor, it's me ahrse. I'd loik ya ta teyhk a look, if ya woot".

     So the doctor gets him to drop his pants and takes a look. "Incredible" he says, "there is a $20 note lodged up here."  Tentatively he eases the twenty out of the man's bottom, and then a $10 note appears. "This is amazing" exclaims the doctor. "What do you want me to do?"

     "Well fur gadness sake teyhk it out man," shrieks the patient.

     The doctor pulls out the tenner and another twenty appears, and another and another etc...  

     Finally the last note comes out and no more appear.

     "Ah Dactor, tank ya koindly, dat's moch batter, how moch is dare den?"

     The doctor counts the pile of cash. "$1990 exactly."

     "Ah, dat'd be roit amount. I knew I wasn't feeling two grand."

 

 

     Pat and Mick landed themselves a job at a sawmill. Just before the morning break, Pat yelled "Mick, I've lost me finger!"

     "Have you now," said Mick. "And how did you do it?" Pat replied

     "I just touched this big, shiny spinning thing here like this... darn! There goes another one!"

 

 

     An Irishman who had a little to drink is driving home from the city one night and, of course, his car is weaving violently all over the road.

     A cop pulls him over. "So," says the cop to the driver, "where have you been?"

     "Why, I've been to the pub of course" slurs the drunk.

     "Well," says the cop, "it looks like you've had quite a few to drink this evening".

     "I did all right," the drunk says with a smile.

     "Did you know," says the cop, standing straight and folding his arms across his chest, "that a few intersections back, your wife fell out of your car?"

     "Oh, thank heavens," sighs the drunk.

     "For a minute there, I thought I'd gone deaf."

 

 

     The Irish girl knelt in the confessional and said, "Bless me, Father, for I have sinned."

     "What is it, child?"

     The girl said, "Father, I have committed the sin of vanity. Twice a day I gaze at myself in the mirror and tell myself how beautiful I am."

     The priest turned, took a good look at the girl, and said, "My dear, I have good news. That isn't a sin--it's only a mistake."

 

 

     Three Englishmen were in a bar and spotted an Irishman. So, one of the Englishmen walked over to the Irishman, tapped him on the shoulder, and said, "Hey, I hear your St. Patrick was a drunken loser."

     "Oh really, hmm, didn't know that."

     Puzzled, the Englishman walked back to his buddies. "I told him St. Patrick was a loser, and he didn't care."

     The second Englishman remarked, "You just don't know how to set him off...watch and learn."  So, the second Englishman walked over to the Irishman, tapped him on the shoulder and said, "Hey, I hear your St. Patrick was lying, cheating, idiotic, low-life scum!"

     "Oh really, hmm, didn't know that."

     Shocked beyond belief, the Englishman went back to his buddies. "You're right. He's unshakable!"

     The third Englishman remarked, "Boys, I'll really tick him off... just watch."  So the third Englishman walked over to the Irishman, tapped him on the shoulder and said, "I hear St. Patrick was an Englishman!"

     "Yeah, that's what your buddies were trying to tell me."

 

 

     A cop pulled up two Irish drunks, and asked to the first, "What's your name and address?"

     "I'm Paddy O'Day, of no fixed address."

     The cop turned to the second drunk, and asked the same question.

     "I'm Seamus O'Toole, and I live in the flat above Paddy."

 

 

     Paddy was trapped in a bog and seemed a goner when Big Mick O'Reilly wandered by.

"Help!" Paddy shouted, "Oi'm sinkin'!

     "Don't worry," assured Mick. "Next to the Strong Muldoon, Oi'm the strongest man in Erin, and Oi'll pull ye right out o' there."

     Mick leaned out and grabbed Paddy's hand and pulled and pulled to no avail. After two more unsuccessful attempts, Mick said to Paddy, "Shure, an' Oi can't do it. The Strong Muldoon could do it alone, mebbe, but Oi'll have to get some help."

     As Mick was leaving, Paddy called "Mick! Mick! D'ye think it will help if Oi pull me feet out of the stirrups?"

 

 

Concerning bagpipes: The Irish invented them and gave them to the Scots as a joke, and the Scots haven't seen the joke yet.

 

 

Q: Did you hear about the Irishman who was tap dancing?

A: He broke his ankle when he fell into the sink.

 

Q: What's Irish and sits outside in the summertime?

A: Paddy O'Furniture!

 

Q: What are the best ten years of an Irishman's life?

A: Third grade.

 

Q: How do you sink an Irish submarine?

A: Knock on the hatch.

 

Q: How can you identify an Irish pirate?

A: He's the one with patches over both eyes.

 

 

     An Irishman, Englishman and a German are caught in Saudi Arabia drinking.

     "Under Saudi law you are sentenced to 30 lashes then deported. Before you begin you are entitled to something on you back, what would you like?" said the prison guard to the Englishman just before lashing him.

     The English man, being a bit of a cricket fan, asked for linseed oil. When they lashed him on a post and let him go to catch his flight back to London he groaned and crawled to the airport.

     Next came the German. "Under Saudi law you are sentenced to 30 lashes then deported. Before you begin you are entitled to something on you back, what would you like?" said the prison guard

     "Nothing" said the German and, after receiving his lashes spat on the ground, called the prison guards Schisers and started off towards the airport.

     The guards then came to the Irishman. "Under Saudi law you are sentenced to 30 lashes then deported. Before you begin you are entitled to something on you back, what would you like?"

     "Oh", replied the Irishman, "I'll take the German".

 

 

     An Irishman and an American were sitting in the bar at Shannon Airport.

     "I've come to meet my brother," said the Irishman. "He's due to fly in from America in an hour's time. It's his first trip home in forty years".

     "Will you be able to recognize him?" asked the American.

     "I'm sure I won't," said the Irishman, "after all, he's been away for a long time".

     "I wonder if he'll recognize you?" said the American.

     "Of course he will," said the Irishman. "Sure, an' I haven't been away at all".

 

 

"Erin Go Braugh" on Wednesday and have a great week,

Al

 

 

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AMERICAN AEROSPACE EVENTS for March 15, 2021 FIRSTS, LASTS, AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTS. THANKS TO HAROLD "PHIL" MYERS CHIEF HISTORIAN AIR FORCE INTELLIGENCE, SURVEILLANCE, AND RECONNAISSANCE AGENCY

 

15 March

1916: Capt Benjamin D. Foulois, and his 1st Aero Squadron, arrived at Columbus, N. Mex., for duty with General Pershing's punitive expedition against Mexican raiders. (11) (21)

 

1945: Fifteenth Air Force flew heavy bombers from bases in Italy on their longest mission of the war to attack the synthetic oil plant at Ruhland, Germany. (24)

 

1950: The JCS gave the USAF formal and exclusive responsibility for strategic guided missiles in a basic decision on the role and mission of guided missiles (See 21 March). (24) The only jet-powered and last remaining USAF Flying Wing, the YRB-49, crashed at Edwards AFB when its nose gear collapsed during a taxi test. (See 5 June 1948) (5)

 

1951: Using a KC-97A Stratofreighter, Boeing refueled a B-47 bomber for the first time. (12) (26)

 

1956: The USAF issued a requirement for an air-to-surface missile for the B-52. This missile became the Hound Dog. (6)

 

1957: HARMON TROPHY FLIGHT. The Navy's ZPG-2 airship landed after setting new world records for distance and endurance, covering 9,448 miles and remaining airborne 264 hours 12 minutes without refueling. The ship's commander, Cmdr J.R. Hunt received the Harmon Trophy for Aeronauts. (5)

 

1964: USAFE accepted five 412L air weapon control system sites, the first in this new air defense system. (4)

 

1967: The Sikorsky HH-53B, the largest and fastest helicopter in the USAF inventory, made its first flight. (16) (26)

 

1968: Major Jerauld R. Gentry flew the modified HL-10 Lifting Body on its first flight. (3)

 

1969: Exercise FOCUS RETINA. Through 20 March, Focus Retina deployed a brigade of the 82d Airborne Division from Fort Bragg in the largest tactical airlift attempted to date to move 2,500 assault troops and supporting equipment to Korea. The brigade staged through Okinawa and dropped into the Korean exercise area on 17 March. MAC, TAC, the US Strike Command, and Air Force Communications Service (AFCS) units supported the airlift. (16) (17)

 

1975: From Vandenberg AFB, Production Verification Missile (PVM-13) completed the last flight in the Wing VI Hybrid Explicit Flight Program. It supported the Wing VI configuration upgrade for the Minuteman at Grand Forks AFB. (5)

 

1977: Responding to a request from Zaire, MAC began a commercial airlift to move 642 tons of medical supplies, clothing, food, and equipment from Dover AFB in Delaware, Hill AFB, Barksdale AFB, and Pisa AB, Italy, to Kinshasa, Zaire. Fourteen DC-8s and one B-747 airlifted the supplies between March and June. (2)

 

1983: Through 28 March, SAC successfully demonstrated its new sea interdiction capability with three AGM-84 Harpoon missile launches from a B-52 at the Pacific Missile Test Range on Kwajelein Atoll. (16) (26)

 

1985: A MAC C-5 Galaxy delivered 1,000 rolls of plastic sheeting used to create protective shelters for victims of a 3 February earthquake that ravaged the coastal and interior regions of central Chile. (16)

 

1992: Through 18 April, C-5 Galaxies and C-130 Hercules aircraft moved 165 tons of food, medical supplies, clothing, blankets, and other relief items to eastern Turkey following a major earthquake. (16)

 

1999: An electric arcjet rocket engine, developed at the Air Force Research Laboratory's Propulsion Directorate as part of the Electric Propulsion Space Experiment (ESEX), fired for the first time in space aboard an ARGOS spacecraft. The arcjet engine consumed less than one-fourth the amount of fuel of an equivalent chemical engine. (3)

 

2003: Operation IRAQI FREEDOM. AFFTC deployed its NKC-135E Big Crow electronic combat aircraft from Kirtland AFB, New Mexico, to Souda Bay, Crete, where it carried out 37 communications jamming missions to support the operation. (3)

 

2005: An AFFTC team completed the first Avionics Modernization Program (AMP) risk-reduction flight on an MC-130E Combat Talon 1. The project tested improved terrain-following radar and algorithms for Air Force Special Operations Command pilots who would fly low level sorties. The upgrade included a new radome and a "glass cockpit" with a heads-up display. (3)

 

2007: The YAL-1A Airborne Laser successfully fired its target illuminator laser during a five-hour flight from Edwards AFB, Calif. The mission and test firing represented the Airborne Laser's first in-flight external laser firing and used the "Big Crow" NC-135E to verify the YAL-1A's ability to track an airborne target and measure atmospheric turbulence. (AFNEWS, Airborne Laser Fires Tracking Laser, Hits Target," 21 Mar 2007.)

 

 

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World News for 15 March thanks to Military Periscope

Please see attachment

 

 

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