Humor Random Comments Thread

Looks like we lucked out. Remember that it's Rick Perry that has to clean up the mess.

Don't worry. The Saturday Night Massacre has got its mediocre 21st century remake. :lol:
 
This is the non-political random comments thread.

To get us back on track, here's a bunny with a pancake on its head.

iu
 
I honestly wasn't expecting to see that much traffic on the rivers. although it kinda makes sense.
For some reason, it doesn't display the ship info in my browser.
My only disappointment with maps like these is that they don't display the time of departure :P Of course, if I have some spare time, I can hang around at high tide and see what comes in, but it would be nice to know more accurately. The biggest I've seen up-close was some apparently medium-sized freighter, and it still seemed absolutely huge, people were gathering on the piers to see it. It's easy to realise where the SF ships took their looks from.
 
It's easy to realise where the SF ships took their looks from.

I totally love the atmosphere of freight harbors, for exactly that reason. Too bad we don't have any in Switzerland.
 
I totally love the atmosphere of freight harbors, for exactly that reason. Too bad we don't have any in Switzerland.

I don't think I've seen a "true" freight harbor up close. I've seen St. Nazaire up-close, but the docks themselves are off-limits (duh :)) ) .The submarine pens are truly futuristic, though. Huge concrete structures. I've seen some WW2 bunkers and such, but those don't even come close. They seem to blend in more to the landscape of Battlefield 2142 than in present day
According to marintraffic.com, the biggest ship I've seen was a 3000 ton freighter. 90 by 15 meters. The most impressive, though, was a similar ship with some kind of hydraulic arm on the right side. It sure didn't look like a fishing ship, so I'm not sure what they were using it for. They were just finished stowing the arm as it entered harbor, and the view was...well..futuristic.
 
I don't think I've seen a "true" freight harbor up close. I've seen St. Nazaire up-close, but the docks themselves are off-limits (duh :)) ) .The submarine pens are truly futuristic, though. Huge concrete structures. I've seen some WW2 bunkers and such, but those don't even come close. They seem to blend in more to the landscape of Battlefield 2142 than in present day

Same for the similar Valentin bunker near Bremen - a huge box of concrete, looking alien like a crashed spaceship.

Luftbild_Bunker_Valentin.jpg


According to marintraffic.com, the biggest ship I've seen was a 3000 ton freighter. 90 by 15 meters. The most impressive, though, was a similar ship with some kind of hydraulic arm on the right side. It sure didn't look like a fishing ship, so I'm not sure what they were using it for. They were just finished stowing the arm as it entered harbor, and the view was...well..futuristic.

Maybe a Dredging Ship?

Geopotes_14.jpg


I totally love the atmosphere of freight harbors, for exactly that reason. Too bad we don't have any in Switzerland.

I especially like the modern container terminals, which are already highly automated and really buzz with activity... from big ship to smaller ship to big ship without even docking somewhere, from train to ship, from ship to truck...

And the huge cranes of those really fade into your view as you approach them, like a mountain range of steel.
 
Edit: how were the subs at Valentin supposed to get out? Some underwater link? Were they planning to dig up a water link?

Probably the same way Gibbs got the boat out of his basement.
 
Edit: how were the subs at Valentin supposed to get out? Some underwater link? Were they planning to dig up a water link?

A short channel to the single gate on the western end - which was also used for delivering complete submarine sections to the factory by barge.
 
Unrelated to the ongoing topic, but, n122vu, excellent signature picture!

Thanks! That's actually a picture I took last summer, have used it on a couple aviation forums, thought I'd bring it over here as well.

I've been using this one as my cover photo on FB since I took it a few weeks ago.
17457464_10210414864222431_1388971990819317519_n.jpg
 
When I was growing up near Philadelphia in the 80s the Phila. Naval Yard had a gigantic crane that was visible for miles around. The area around Philly is very flat, especially New Jersey, and from New Jersey driving up a particular street towards the Delaware River I remember being able to see that crane towering in the hazy distance. They tore that crane down and scrapped it in the mid-90s when the base was winding down and being commercialized.

Turns out it was called the "League Island Crane" and was built in 1917. It was used to move battleship gun turrets, according to this page.

Here's a photo of it from 1923, which appears to be shot from the New Jersey side of the river:

iu


Here's a photo of it in 1944. I can't make out which carrier that is on the right; I'm guessing the lack of hull number is a wartime measure. But the battleship to the immediate left is clearly the South Dakota; you can see the name on the stern.

iu


ETA: The ship to the left labeled "Wilkes-Barre" is probably the light cruiser CL-103, according to wiki.
 
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When I was growing up near Philadelphia in the 80s the Phila. Naval Yard had a gigantic crane that was visible for miles around. The area around Philly is very flat, especially New Jersey, and from New Jersey driving up a particular street towards the Delaware River I remember being able to see that crane towering in the hazy distance. They tore that crane down and scrapped it in the mid-90s when the base was winding down and being commercialized.

Turns out it was called the "League Island Crane" and was built in 1917. It was used to move battleship gun turrets, according to this page.

Here's a photo of it from 1923, which appears to be shot from the New Jersey side of the river:

iu


Here's a photo of it in 1944. I can't make out which carrier that is on the right; I'm guessing the lack of hull number is a wartime measure. But the battleship to the immediate left is clearly the South Dakota; you can see the name on the stern.

iu


ETA: The ship to the left labeled "Wilkes-Barre" is probably the light cruiser CL-103, according to wiki.

There's still one of those at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard... It looms over the drydocks, but is no longer in active use.
 
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