Alphecca recently commented on how the AP defines “assault rifle” or weapon. Basically, it’s a rifle that looks mean, or “military” and it really doesn’t matter how you define the terms. It’s been my experience that where the media is concerned, AK-47 and assault weapon are synonymous.
Well, darned if the media didn’t have it right this time. Although I doubt they were any more aware of their correctness than I was.
It seems that the AK-47 was designed by copying certain features of the original “assault rifle”, the Sturmgewehr 44. It seems Hitler was highly impressed by that precursor to the AK-47 and gave it a name “satisfying his demented dream of eternally attacking the world”.
(p.331)
The book is due out in the U.S. in a few days. I was fortunate to have been given a paperback of the UK release by my sister on her recent visit to the U.S. When she gave it to me, she warned “it’s gory and graphic, but I think you’ll like it.”
Gory it is. I’d give it a 10 on the gore scale as it is a book that contains chapters you might not want to read while eating. The methods of torture (not necessarily used to gain information, but used to prolong the suffering of death) aren’t new. They are likely accurate descriptions, which is more chilling than if they were made up.
What is distinctly NOT made up is the archaeology in the book. Gobekli Tepe definitely exists and the linkages between it’s location and biblical events are fairly well documented, extremely interesting, and intriguing.
Christian fundamentalists and young earth creationists are going to hate this book. While the link between Gobekli Tepe and the Yezedis is somewhat tenuous as presented, the idea of the evolution of ancient religions and myths is not. If Gobekli Tepe is “the Garden of Eden” of old, it’s certainly been upgraded many times.
It’s been well over a month since I read this book and I still find myself wondering about ideas and simple facts brought up in it. Whether you love it or hate it, this book will likely stay with you.
There is nothing that you do that does not require the use of stomach muscles. This includes moving your eyeballs from left to right.
What gives relief from pain in one area will eventually cause pain in another.
After you wake up a bit from the surgical anesthesia and get a dose or two of strong narcotics, you may be fooled into thinking everything is going to be just fine and want to go home.
A small incision is one that runs from the bra line to the belly button.
They don’t serve margaritas in the recovery room, but they’ve got some really good stuff in syringes.
Eating a cracker with zero saliva is very unpleasant.
I will survive.
Tomorrow I will finally have the hernia surgery that I’ve been putting off for a year or so. When I’ll feel like sitting in front of the computer again, who knows? Probably several days.
All day I’ve been wondering why it isn’t called a hisnia.
When freezing garden products for later use, it is extremely important to label the packages. Labeling them correctly would be even better.
I had a nice crop of peppers last year, mild red and purple bell peppers, mild jalapenos, and so very NOT-MILD habaneros. I chopped them up and froze them in little baggies. The purple bell pepper and the jalapenos were easy to tell apart. Not so the red bell peppers and habaneros, which I’d let ripen to the red stage.
But, because I think I will never forget which is which, I didn’t label the packages. Oh sure, the red bell peppers were thicker and bigger chunks, the habaneros thinner and tinier because you just don’t need a big chunk of habanero.
Today, I made clean-out-fridge fried rice. Yep, you guessed it, I thought that last 1/8 cup or so of frozen red pepper were of the mild bell pepper type, so I dumped them all into the skillet.
oops.
The fried rice is good, but it’s hot. Really, really hot. The kind of hot that stays with you, clinging to your lips, tongue, and cheeks. For hours.
I only get to see this guy when my assigned PCP is overwhelmed at the MTF (Military Treatment Facility) to which, as a Tricare Prime patient, I am enrolled.
I want to make it clear that any of the following which might seem derogatory toward military health care is derogatory only toward SYSTEMS. The people involved are wonderful and trying their very best to be the best medical providers. What I criticize are the rules/regulations/etc., and the hoops they and their patients must jump through.
This guy is good for me. He’s emotionally and professionallly honest with me. He calls me on my bullshit, but doesn’t make me feel like a moron. This is probably personality more than medical training — but we are able to communicate with each other.
This ability is priceless. MasterCard, Universal Health Care, Electronic Medical Records and all the other technological advances in medical care cannot replace the physician/patient relationship.
My MTF assigned PCP has this ability too, but she’s restricted in her ability to follow-up and follow-through with her patients. It’s just too damned hard to get an appointment with her and she has as little input into the availability of appointments as I do. This is a system failure, not a physician failure.
I got lucky. Through conversations with the non-MTF appointment person and billing agent, I learned which hoops I needed to jump through within the MTF referral process. Oh yeah, the MTF appointment clerk I worked with after learning the right words — ie, words she could “respond to” without repercussions led to EIGHT (that’s right, 8!) referral numbers, each with four authorized follow-ups. Folks, that translates to almost unlimited access to this non-MTF physician.
This freedom of medical treatment comes at a price. I must pay $12 bucks each time I see my new favorite PCP. (Please don’t tell Congress or the DOD that I consider that one fantastic deal.)
