ironroad18

ironroad18 t1_j3zlflb wrote

Reply to comment by zencat420 in Amid recruiting crisis, Army makes new companies for recruits who don't meet academic, fitness standards by GaryOaksAlcoholism

They had a similar program for the Army and Marines during the Vietnam-era draft, so nothing new. If recruits were overweight, injured, or couldn't meet certain standards they would cycle them through special training regiments before integrating them into a regular training unit.

However, there weren't as many obese people in the 1960s-70s, as there are today.

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ironroad18 t1_j3akheh wrote

Reply to comment by rockrnger in The Forgotten Story of the American Troops Who Got Caught Up in the Russian Civil War by Novel_Finger2370

Yeah, the international expeditions into Russia, really shed light onto the Lenin's and later Stalin's hyper paranoia towards the West and Japan. In addition to the ever present worry of an internal party coup or another popular uprising.

After WW2, it seems like Soviet Russians were obsessed with creating a physical buffer between them and the West at all costs due to what happened during the civil war. Even if it meant using the spent remnants of the Red Army to subjugate Eastern Europe by force.

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ironroad18 t1_j1p6gnw wrote

Reply to comment by PremierLovaLova in TIL Why Dog Paws Smell Like Fritos. Even the cleanest, healthiest pooch has trillions of bacteria and fungi living on their skin. That yeasty, corn chip smell is actually a normal byproduct of harmless bacteria, usually Proteus or Pseudomonas, both of which are naturally present in our environment. by Rossknight65

>Todays lesson: don’t lick dog feet.

looks forlorn

"A little late for Lenny..."

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ironroad18 t1_j0egawx wrote

Reply to comment by dinosaurs_quietly in National Archives releases thousands of documents on Kennedy assassination by John-Farson

The incompetence has already been duly noted.

  • At the time, there were no extensive federal laws, policies, or training for protecting federal officials and their families.

  • The Secret Service was very small. Had limited authorities and training. At the time they, really depended on their agents having previous law enforcement or military experience. See interview by retired Special Agent Clint Hill, who worked on details for President Eisenhower's family, and President Kennedy. https://youtu.be/sdO5ixuMr1s

  • Dallas police tried to treat the assassination like a run of the mill murder investigation, and fought federal agents over Kennedy's body. Worse, they were completely unprepared for handling a high-profile incident and failed to guard Oswald adequately.

  • The FBI dragged it's feet on all parts of the investigation, and its director spent more time trying to undermine other agencies, departments, and government officials instead of enforcing the law.

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ironroad18 t1_ivscdtc wrote

Reply to comment by HamburgerEarmuff in TIL In 1983, Air Force One (with Reagan aboard) landed six minutes before a microburst slammed into the ground at Andrews Air Force Base, causing wind speeds to hit 149 mph. At the time, that was the fastest wind speed ever measured by an anemometer. by theotherbogart

I would argue that Trump didn't come out of nowhere, but was more so a symptom of a perfect storm.

An angry white industrial working-class that was knocked down by Reagonmics, and finally killed off NAFTA, the tech industry, and globalization. The final bit was killed of by the 2008 Recession.

The other side of the equation were white supremacists that were aside themselves that black people lived in the Whitehouse for eight years. Add in the 9-11-era fear mongering (South Asians and non-christians are out to get us), spliced with the growing fear over population projections for the next fifty years (latins and asians are growing to challenge the WASP in population numbers).

I think these two things left the door wide open for someone like Trump who simply promised "it all" to scared and angry white voters.

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ironroad18 t1_ivryt2q wrote

Reply to comment by bigbura in TIL In 1983, Air Force One (with Reagan aboard) landed six minutes before a microburst slammed into the ground at Andrews Air Force Base, causing wind speeds to hit 149 mph. At the time, that was the fastest wind speed ever measured by an anemometer. by theotherbogart

There is very little evidence that H.W. Bush had any major influence over the Reagan administration. Reagan had his own circle of insiders and military men that he leaned on.

Bush and Reagan didn't necessarily dislike each other, but their wives hated each other. Bush was likely selected by Reagan as a running mate due to his popularity with those who previously endorsed Ford in the 76 election and because Bush was so popular in the Republican primaries.

Bush actually openly disagreed with Reagonmics, but shut up about it and played "party politics" when he joined Reagan's ticket in 1980.

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ironroad18 t1_iu99gbj wrote

Reply to comment by JohnDunstable in TIL Al Capone was only 33 when he was locked away for tax evasion and developed neurosyphilis, leading to his death at 48. Eliot Ness was 27 when he formed the Untouchables--he died in a state of financial ruin in his 50s, likely hastened by his heavy drinking in his later life by capsaicinintheeyes

Hoover was a monster, IMHO. Yes, he helped build the FBI into the primer law enforcement agency in the US, but he did so on the backs of several loyal employees and by breaking the very laws and rules he was tasked with enforcing.

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ironroad18 t1_iu986ui wrote

Reply to comment by JohnDunstable in TIL Al Capone was only 33 when he was locked away for tax evasion and developed neurosyphilis, leading to his death at 48. Eliot Ness was 27 when he formed the Untouchables--he died in a state of financial ruin in his 50s, likely hastened by his heavy drinking in his later life by capsaicinintheeyes

I think you are confusing Ness with Melvin Purvis a bit.

Ness was a Special Agent with the Treasury Department (Bureau of Prohibition). Hoover worked for the Department of Justice, and later became head of FBI. Ness was grabbing headlines as a Prohibition Agent before the FBI had really established itself as the "chief law enforcement" agency.

Hoover did keep files on Ness, and disliked him as he saw him as a rival to the FBI. Ness apparently tried to apply to the FBI, after his time in Chicago. However, either Hoover or some of his underlings taunted Ness about salary and experience (according to Smithsonian Magazine, they offered Ness a lowball entry-level salary, despite him being a supervisory federal agent). Ness went on to do enforce prohibition in Ohio, but eventually had a string of divorces, and had a failed run for political office. He died broke and of a heart attack apparently. https://case.edu/ech/articles/n/ness-eliot

Now Melvin Purvis is a real sad story, as he did a lot of leg work for Hoover and was intensely loyal to him. However, due to jealousy of Purvis's fame for his involvement in catching or killing several high profile gangsters (to include Dillinger and Babyface Nelson), Hoover started treating Purvis like crap. He demoted Purvis, moved him at will, and often berated him in front of others. Purvis eventually resigned from the FBI and went to practice law. He died in 1960 of either a suicide or a possible accident by the FBI service weapon he was given as a parting gift when he resigned almost 30 years earlier.

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