Tuesday, April 30, 2019

April Ends W/ Arctic Action

SUN 30 APR 1944
Pacific
Task force (Rear Admiral Jesse B. Oldendorf) of nine heavy cruisers and eight destroyers detached from TF 58 bombards Japanese positions on Satawan Island in the Namoi Group, Carolines.

Japanese TAKE No.1 convoy, one group of ships destined for Manokwari, the other for Halmahera, sails from Manila (see 6 May).

Submarine Bang (SS-285) continues attack on convoy engaged the previous night, and sinks Japanese merchant tanker Nittatsu Maru off northwest coast of Luzon, 19°04'N, 119°14'E.

Submarine Flasher (SS-249) sinks French gunboat Tahure in South China Sea off Cape Varella, French Indochina, 13°02'N, 109°28'E. Damaged French cargo ship Song Giang, torpedoed the day before by Flasher, sinks.

TF 58 air strikes against Japanese installations in the Carolines continue. Reflecting an expected paucity of shipping targets in the area, TF 58 planes operating over the waters off Palau can only sink transport Nagisan Maru, 07°30'N, 134°30'E, and merchant vessel No.2 Tenyu Maru.

Planes from small carrier Cabot (CVL-28) damage gunboat No.2 Hino Maru at Truk.

Arctic
U.S. freighter William S. Thayer, in convoy RA 59, is torpedoed by German submarine U-711 50 miles south of Bear Island, 73°46'N, 19°10'E, and breaks into thirds; 23 of the 41-man merchant complement perish, as do seven of the 28-man Armed Guard and 20 of the 165 Soviet Navy passengers. Freighter Robert Eden and British destroyer HMS Whitehall rescue the survivors, while escorts scuttle the stern section of the ship with gunfire.

Monday, April 29, 2019

Accidental Friendly Fire Day

SAT 29 APR 1944
Pacific
After completing its support of the Hollandia landings TF 58 (Vice Admiral Marc A. Mitscher), including five carriers (CV) and seven small carriers (CVL), begins two-day attack on Japanese shipping, oil and ammunition dumps, aircraft facilities, and other installations at Truk. Japanese naval aircraft mount strong counter-attack on the U.S. formations during which destroyer Tingey (DD-539), in TG 58.2. is damaged by friendly fire.

TBF from small carrier Monterey (CVL-26), with destroyers MacDonough (DD-351) and Stephen Potter (DD- 538), sink Japanese submarine I-174 north of Truk, 06°13'N, 151°19'E.

Motor torpedo boats PT-346 and PT-347 are accidentally sunk by F4Us (VMF 215) and F6Fs (VF 34), and SBDs and TBFs off Cape Lambert, Bismarck Archipelago, 04°13'S, 151°27'E. PBY (VP 91) rescues survivors from the two PT-boats.

Submarines Bang (SS-285), Parche (SS-384) and Tinosa (SS-283) attack Japanese convoy off northwest coast of Luzon. Bang sinks army cargo ship Takegawa Maru in South China Sea, 19°20'N, 118°50'E, and damages Yashima Maru (see 30 April).

Submarine Flasher (SS-249) damages Vichy French cargo ship Song Giang Go in South China Sea, five miles off Cape Varella, French Indochina, 13°02'N, 109°28'E (see 30 April).

Submarine Halibut (SS-232) bombards Japanese installations on Kure Jima.

Submarine Pogy (SS-266) sinks Japanese submarine I-183, 30 miles south of Cape Ashizuri, Japan, 32°07'N, 133°03'E.

Japanese transport Kunikawa Maru is sunk by mine laid by RAAF Catalinas (mining operations take place on 20, 24, and 27 April) near Balikpapan, Borneo, 01°17'S, 116°49'E.

British submarine HMS Tantalus sinks coaster Pulo Salanama in Strait of Malacca.

Japanese ship Hasshu Maru is sunk by aircraft southeast of Formosa, 20°00'N, 130°50'E.

Mediterranean
USAAF B-17s and B-24s bomb targets in northern Italy and in southern France; during the raid on Toulon, German submarine U-421 is sunk in harbor.

Sunday, April 28, 2019

SecNav Dies

FRI 28 APR 1944
Secretary of the Navy Knox dies in Washington, D.C.

Atlantic
German motor torpedo boats S 100, S 130, S 136, S 138, S 140, S 142, S 143, S 145, and S 150 (5th and 9th Motor Torpedo Boat flotilla) attacks convoy of eight U.S. tank landing ships entering Lyme Bay, torpedoing and sinking LST-507 and LST-531 off Portland Bill, England, 50°28'N, 02°51'W; and damaging LST-289.

Staring At The Sun

Slightly cropped, filtered through clouds; otherwise unmanipulated.
The first judgement was by flood; the second shall be by fire.

Saturday, April 27, 2019

Dumpster Fire (Not A Reference To The Trump Admin.)

Getting absurd here; this reporter literally cannot leave the bunker w/o encountering police ossifers or firefighters at work.
Oddly, this took place in the same alley (although two blks. north) as the garage fire we shot 12 April.

Yubari Sunk

THU 27 APR 1944
Pacific
Cargo ship Etamin (AK-93) is damaged by aerial torpedo off Aitape, New Guinea, 03°09'S, 142°24'E.

Japanese TAKE No. 1 convoy reaches Manila.

Submarine Bluegill (SS-242) sinks Japanese light cruiser YĆ«bari west of the Sonsorol Islands, 05°20'N, 132°16'E.

Submarine Halibut (SS-232) attacks Japanese convoy and sinks minelayer Kamome west of the Nansei Shoto chain, about 40 miles north of Okinawa, 27°28'N, 128°02'E, and merchant transport Genbu Maru, 27°16'N, 128°21'E.

Submarine Seadragon (SS-194) damages Japanese merchant cargo ship Hawaii Maru off Shikoku, 33°16'N, 135°48'E.

Submarine Seahorse (SS-304) attacks Japanese convoy and sinks transport Akikawa Maru about 150 miles west of Saipan, 14°46'N, 143°22'E, and evades depth-charging by escorts.

Submarine Trigger (SS-237) attacks Japanese convoy about 90 miles north of Palau, and sinks transport M_ke [sic] Maru, 08°34'N, 134°53'E, and damages escort vessel Kasado and army cargo ship Asosan Maru, 08°32'N, 134°42'E.

Japanese submarine I-37 is damaged by mine laid by British submarine HMS Taurus on 18 April, south of Penang, Malaya.

USAAF B-24s damage Japanese cargo vessel Anshu Maru off Biak.

Japanese auxiliary minesweeper Hadayoshi Maru is damaged by mine off Balikpapan.
In other naval news of 75 yrs. ago, the untold story of the fire aboard the U.S.S. Saturn (AF-40).

Capitalism, Greedy Pig Contractors & Building Trades Thugs Kill Four, Injure Three In Negligent Homicide

Example, not the crane involved. Bear in mind that every object visible in this representation could fall on & kill you. (W/ the possible exception of the clouds.)
SEATTLE—Four people were killed and three wounded when a construction crane collapsed Saturday in downtown Seattle, pinning five cars underneath.

The four were dead by the time firefighters got to the scene, the Seattle Fire Department said. Three people were transported to the hospital, the department said.

The crane collapsed near the intersection of Mercer Street and Fairview Avenue near Interstate 5 shortly after 3 p.m.

“It was terrifying,” Esther Nelson, a biotech researcher who was working in a building nearby, told The Seattle Times.

“The wind was blowing really strong,” she said, and added that the crane appeared to break in half.

The crane was atop an office building under construction in a densely populated area.

Tweets from the scene showed the crane collapsed on the street, with vehicles stopped in the vicinity.

All lanes were closed, and motorists were told to avoid the area.

With Amazon and other tech companies increasing their hiring in Seattle, the city has dozens of construction cranes building office towers and apartment buildings. As of January, there were about 60 construction cranes in Seattle, more than any other American city.
[AssPress, via Truthdig]

Religious War?

Let's hope so. Death to the chump-ass suckers who follow Moses, Jesus & Mohammed, & if they all kill each other,
so much the better!

Friday, April 26, 2019

Yesterday's Emergency

Virtually cannot leave the bunker w/o encountering sirens & flashing lights.
Responding to a vehicular accident, but it should be noted that (the former) I LOVE PETS was burned out of its previous location.

Open The Streets!!

Epik High is a South Korean alternative hip hop group from Seoul, composed of Tablo, Mithra Jin, and DJ Tukutz.

And They're Off!

N29HD

DE Action

WED 26 APR 1944
Pacific
Destroyer escort Gilmore (DE-18) sinks Japanese submarine I-180, southwest of Cherikof Island, Aleutians, 55°10'N, 155°40'W.

Submarine Bonefish (SS-223) sinks Japanese transport Tokiwa Maru at entrance to Davao gulf, 06°13'N, 125°49'E.

Submarine Guavina (SS-362) attacks Japanese convoy, and sinks transport Noshiro Maru I-G_ [sic] off Miko Jima, 28°42'N, 141°26'E, and attacks cargo ship No.2 Asahi Maru unsuccessfully.

Submarine Jack (SS-259) encounters Japanese TAKE No.1 convoy off west coast of Luzon, and sinks army transport No.1 Yoshida Maru, 18°06'N, 119°40'E, and damages army cargo ship Wales Maru, 18°14'N, 119°53'E.

Submarine Sargo (SS-188) attacks Japanese convoy and sinks army cargo ship Wazan Maru (ex-British Vitorlock) off Ichiye Zaki, Honshu, 33°31'N, 135°24'E.

Atlantic
Destroyer escorts Frost (DE-144), Huse (DE-145), Barber (DE-161), and Snowden (DE-246) sink German submarine U-488 in mid-Atlantic, 17°54'N, 38°05'W.

Inane In The Membrane

The report bears an unwieldy title: “Mental Health Analysis of the Special Counsel’s Report on the Investigation Into Russian Interference in the 2016 Presidential Election.” The authors’ chosen subtitle, though, goes more to the heart of their thesis: “If One is Too Incompetent to Commit a Crime, Despite Trying Hard, Is One Competent to be President?”

Yale University professor Bandy Lee, the lead author of the analysis, said she and her colleagues believe Trump’s behavior shows that his mental condition is deteriorating rapidly. They are requesting that he undergo a full evaluation within the next three weeks by a “non-governmental, independent and non-partisan” panel that would include psychiatrists, neurologists and internists.
Shrink his head!!

Also, later:
Michelle Moons / Breitbart:
Donald Trump: I'm ‘Guilty’ of Being a 'Great President, and the Democrats Don't Like It'

Thursday, April 25, 2019

Motor Torpedo Boat Battle!

TUE 25 APR 1944
Pacific
Submarine Crevalle (SS-291) sinks Japanese army cargo ship Kashiwa Maru north of Borneo, 07°11'N, 116°46'E.

Submarine Guavina (SS-362) sinks Japanese army cargo ship Tetsuyo Maru northwest of Chichi Jima, 28°55'N, 140°28'E.

Japanese auxiliary minesweeper No.32 Kafuku Maru is sunk by mine, location unspecfied.

Mediterranean
German mining operations commence off Capreira, Italy; minelayer TA 23 sinks after striking a mine. TA 26 and TA 29 battle U.S. motor torpedo boats PT-202, PT-213, and PT-218.

Wednesday, April 24, 2019

I Want These "Ignorant" Scum
Drawn & Quartered

Two groups our culture has more than enough of: Fashion designers (Whatever they do.) & telebision hacktresses.

Steve Helling / Yahoo:
Lori Loughlin and Husband 'Didn't Realize That What They Were Doing Was Illegal': Source  —  Mossimo Giannulli didn't fully grasp that their alleged bribery in the college admissions scandal was illegal, a source familiar with the case tells PEOPLE.  —  “You read the complaint and they look like criminal masterminds,” the source tells PEOPLE. “But they really didn’t know the legalities of what was going on. They’re not lawyers and they’re not experts. They were parents who simply wanted to make sure that their daughters got into a good school.”

The source tells PEOPLE that Loughlin and Giannulli truly believed that their actions were comparable to those of other parents who take extraordinary steps to help their their [sic] children get into upper-tier colleges.
No excuse? Y'ask me, claims of "ignorance of the law" should come w/ five-ten yrs. added to the prison sentence.

Night Maneuvers

MON 24 APR 1944
Pacific
Destroyers Benham (DD-796) and Uhlmann (DD-687) are damaged in collision during night maneuvers with carriers, south of Oahu.

Submarine Robalo (SS-273) is damaged by aerial bomb off French Indochina, 10°29'N, 109°26'E, but remains on patrol.

Navy aircraft sink Japanese fishing vessel No.5 Shinho Maru and Mizuno Maru off north coast of Vogelkop.

Japanese army cargo ship Taka Maru is sunk by aircraft north of New Guinea, 01°36'S, 138°47'E.

USAAF B-24s damage Japanese fishing vessels No.5 Takara Maru and No.25 Sumiyoshi Maru off western New Guinea.

Tuesday, April 23, 2019

Royal Dutch Action

SUN 23 APR 1944
Pacific
Destroyer Gansevoort (DD-608) rescues USAAF B-24 crew as well as their Navy would-be rescuers (see 18 and 22 April).

Submarine Seadragon (SS-194) attacks Japanese convoy and sinks merchant cargo ship Danju Maru off Shionomisaki, Honshu, 33°26'N, 135°46'E.

Dutch submarine HNMS K-XV, operating under U.S. control for the Netherlands Intelligence Service, sinks a prau and a coaster off New Guinea.

Japanese destroyer Amagiri (transporting air base materiel) is sunk by USAAF mine in Makassar Strait about 50 miles south of Balikpapan, 02°12'S, 116°45'E.

Monday, April 22, 2019

Operations PERSECUTION & RECKLESS

SAT 22 APR 1944
Pacific
TF 77 (Rear Admiral Daniel E. Barbey) lands two divisions of the I Army Corps (Lieutenant General Robert L. Eichelberger, USA) at Aitape and Tanahmerah Bay in Operation PERSECUTION, and Humboldt Bay, Hollandia, New Guinea, in Operation RECKLESS, 300 miles inside the outer Japanese defensive perimeter. TG 77.1 (Rear Admiral Barbey) lands the 163rd RCT, 41st Infantry Division (Brigadier General Doe) at Aitape; TG 77.2 (Rear Admiral Fechteler) lands the 24th Infantry Division (Major General Irving) at Tanamerah Bay; TG 77.3 (Captain Alfred G. Noble) lands the 41st Infantry Division (Major General Irving) at Humboldt Bay. Escort carrier force (TF 78) (Rear Admiral Ralph E. Davison) provides close air support while TF 74 (Rear Admiral Victor A. C. Crutchley, RN) and TF 75 (Rear Admiral Russell S. Berkey) provide gunfire support in landings that proceed against slight resistance. Fast carrier task force TF 58 (Vice Admiral Marc A. Mitscher) also provides support. Hollandia becomes a major staging area for the next phase of the New Guinea campaign.
United States Naval Photographic Center 1897.
National Archives description:
1) MS Troops entering LCP; AK in bg; destroyer in bg.
2) CU Troops boarding LCP.
3) MS LCP underway loaded with troops; AK's and DD's at anchor in bay.
4) MS Troops, going up landing net, wearing full packs.
5) LA MS Troops going up ladder in full gear.
6) LS LCI's sitting offshore.
7) LS AK sitting at anchor offshore.
8) LS LCI's at anchor offshore.
9) MS Two men on signal bridge of ship talking; convoy in bg.
10) HA MCU Soldiers, on deck, playing cards.
11) MCU Soldiers and marines on deck of ship; man cleaning M1 carbine.
12) MCU Marine, with shirt off, cleaning rifle; men playing cards and smoking.
13) MCU Man cleaning submachine guns.
14) MCU Soldier, wearing rosary, Iying on deck reading; men playing cards and smoking in bg.
15) MS Over-all shot of soldiers lounging on deck.
16) HA MCU Hands of men playing cards; man removing cigarettes from pack.
17) MS Soldiers sitting on deck peeling potatoes.
18) MCU Soldiers playing cards; other soldiers in bg.
19) LS Part of convoy; AK's DD's and troops ships underway.
20) MCU Men cleaning 30 cal. machine gun on deck of USS Humphreys.
21) LS APD firing; hits made onshore.
22) LS Cruiser or destroyer firing; LCVP's heading toward shore; flashes from guns firing (night scene).
23) MLS Head-on view of LCP underway.
24) LS Three LCP's heading toward beach; destroyers in bg.
25) MCU Men sitting in LCP; men loaded with full packs and helmets.
26) MS LCP underway; stern of another LCP alongside.
27) MS LCP underway.
28) LS Convoy.
29) LS LCP underway; destroyer in bg.
30) MS Destroyer firing (bow view).
31) MS Four LCP's underway.
32) MLS Explosions on beach; water and smoke rising into air.
33) LS Explosions on beach; helmets of men as they ride toward beach in LCP in fg.
34) LS Tracers being fired at beach; LCP underway in fg.
35) MS Troops coming off LCP, onto beach, in full gear.
36) MS R4D landing.
37) MS Adm. Halsey and staff disembarking R4D; photographer taking pictures in fg; admiral saluted by officers; PAN as he and staff walk away from plane side.
38) MS Adm. Halsey in car which has four stars on it.
39) MS Car driving down ramp; soldiers in ranks in bg.
40) LS Adm. Halsey, riding in car, inspecting troops.
41) MS Adm. Halsey inspecting troops; PAN as admiral comes up to reviewing stand.
42) MS Officers on reviewing stand at attention.
43) LS Troops marching; Army band in front.
44) MS Officers standing at attention on reviewing stand.
45) MS Army band passing; troops marching in bg.
46) MS Troops passing, first group carrying rifles.
47) MS Soldiers passing with American flag, followed by others carrying regimental flags; Army band in bg; other troops marching in fg.
48) MLS Troops passing in review (this takes place at Ouatom, New Caledonia).
49) MLS Adm. Halsey walking toward R5D aircraft.
National Archives Identifier: 76248
United States Naval Photographic Center film # 1898.
National Archives description:
1) GV LCMs on beach, bulldozers work.
2) MS Plane passes over. MS File of soldiers, leave beach.
3) GV Soldiers debark LCI ramp, smoke BG-SV (good).
4) GV Japanese huts. LS 2 TBFs pass.
5) GV MS LST hits beach, troops debark LCP FG (good).
6) GV MS Beached tank, LSTs, tractor tows trailer from LST-SV
7) MS Burning Japanese dumps.
8) GV Soldiers mill around, inspect damage & supplies, drink Japanese beer.
9) MS SCU-Pan MacArthur & aides pass-SV.
10) MS GV Funeral ceremonies on deck, body slides into sea.
National Archives Identifier: 76249
PB4Y sights survivors of USAAF B-24 that had been damaged over the Marianas and had ditched on 18 April; PBY sent to rescue the aviators, however, suffers damage in landing and is unable to take off (see 23 April).

Army landing force (Company "I", 3rd Battalion, 111th Infantry) occupies Ujelang Atoll, Marshalls; operation to extend U.S. control over the westernmost atoll is supported by small seaplane tender Onslow (AVP-48) and motor minesweeper YMS-91.

USAAF B-24s (14th Air Force) attack Japanese Singapore-to-Saigon convoy anchored off Cape St. Jacques, French Indochina, sinking transport (ex-gunboat) Nagata Maru, 10°19'N, 107°05'E; fleet tanker K_ry_ Maru; army cargo vessel London Maru, and merchant tanker No.3 Sansui Maru; and damaging tanker Nisshin Maru. Only escort vessel, submarine chaser Ch 9, escapes the low-level onslaught unscathed.

U.S. aircraft sink Japanese transport Suiten Maru off Murilo Island, Carolines.

British submarine HMS Taurus sinks salvage vessel Hokuan I-Go off Malaya, 07°10'N, 99°20'E.

Europe
U.S. freighter George Popham, in convoy FS 28, is damaged by mine while en route from Methel, Scotland, to London, England, at 51 11'20"N, 01 48'40"E, but reaches her destination under her own power. There are no casualties to the merchant complement or the 29-man Armed Guard.

Sunday, April 21, 2019

U.S.S. Stingray: Sunk, Or Not Sunk?

FRI 21 APR 1944
Pacific
TF 58 (Vice Admiral Marc A. Mitscher), including carriers, battleships, cruisers, and destroyers, bombs and bombards Japanese airfields and defensive positions at Hollandia, Wakde, Sawar, and Sarmi areas of New Guinea; attacks continue the following day in preparation for Operations PERSECUTION and RECKLESS (see 22 April 1944). During these operations, Japanese army cargo ship Kansei Maru is sunk by aircraft off Sarmi. Navy aircraft sink small Japanese cargo vessels No.51 Ume Maru and No.2 Hihode Maru, Mapia Island, New Guinea.

Submarine Stingray (SS-186) is sunk when she strikes submerged pinnacle west of the Marianas, 20°30'N, 142°22'E. [The sinking (& the date) are debatable, at the very least, if one trusts Wikipedia. Or, from the horse's mouth, p. 8 of the Stingray's 10th war patrol report. P. 220 here. — M.B.]

Japanese cargo vessel No.2 Y_ei [sic] Maru is sunk by aircraft off Murilo Island, Carolines.

Mediterranean
U.S. freighter John Armstrong is damaged by mine at 41°12'N, 12°32'E, while en route from Anzio to Naples, Italy. One Armed Guard sailor perishes in the incident, but the ship reaches her original destination unaided.

Easter Terror In Sri Lanka

The Beeb advises:

Summary

  1. At least seven blasts have hit hotels and churches across Sri Lanka with at least 137 dead and many more injured
  2. The five-star Shangri-La, Kingsbury and Cinnamon Grand hotels in the heart of Colombo were targeted
  3. Congregations were taking part in Easter Sunday services at the churches when the blasts hit
  4. The death toll could rise significantly as hospitals report casualty figures

Saturday, April 20, 2019

Seahorse Sinks RO-45:
"a testimony to effective training"

THU 20 APR 1944
Pacific
Submarine Seahorse (SS-304) sinks Japanese submarine RO-45 off the Marianas, 15°19'N, 145°31'E. Seahorse's sinking RO 45 is a testimony to effective training. During passage to the patrol area with submarine Harder (SS-257), the boats had practiced approaches on each other.

USAAF planes sink Japanese merchant cargo ship Iwakuni Maru.

Mediterranean
German torpedo planes, on the heels of an unsuccessful attack by submarine U-969, attack 87-ship convoy UGS 38 off coast of French Morocco. Destroyer Lansdale (DD- 462) is sunk by aerial torpedo about 15 miles northeast of Algiers, 37°03'N, 03°51'E; Coast Guard cutter Taney (WPG-37), destroyer escort Lowe (DE-325) and Dutch antiaircraft cruiser Van Heemskerk, however, escape torpedo attacks. Ammunition-carrying U.S. freighter Paul Hamilton, struck by aerial torpedo at 36°55'N, 03°54'E, disintegrates, killing all on board: the 47- man merchant complement, the 29-man Armed Guard, and 504 troops. Illuminated by the explosion, freighter Stephen F. Austin, at 37°02'N, 03°38'E, is torpedoed and abandoned. Reboarded, the ship receives assistance from British rescue tug HMS Hengist and proceeds to Algiers under her own power. By contrast with the disaster that has befallen her sister ship Paul Hamilton, there are no casualties on board Stephen F. Austin.
Also of note 75 yrs. ago: A. Hitler's 55th birthday. One more to go!

Decline & Falling Down ...

There is no gravity ...
... the earth just sucks.

Friday, April 19, 2019

Also Too

Good Fri. W/ Fake Owl

Brits, Yanks, Coöperate In Killing

WED 19 APR 1944
Pacific
Allied naval force (Admiral Sir James F. Somerville, RN, Commander in Chief, British Eastern Fleet), including U.S. carrier Saratoga (CV-3) and three U.S. destroyers, strikes Japanese positions and shipping at Sabang, N.E.I., in Operation COCKPIT. In this, the first operation in which Pacific Fleet units operate alongside British units in offensive action in the Indian Ocean, carrier aircraft from Saratoga and HMS Illustrious sink minelayer Hatsutaka, transport Kunitsu Maru and army transport Haruno Maru. Pilot (VF 12) of only plane (from Saratoga) shot down by antiaircraft fire is picked up by British submarine HMS Tactician, which braves shore battery fire to do so.

Submarine Finback (SS-230) sinks Japanese sampan Ryoho Maru at 08°22'N, 151°41'E.

British submarine HMS Tantalus sinks tug Kampung Besar (nationality unspecified) in Strait of Malacca.

Atlantic
TBF (VC 13) from escort carrier Tripoli (CVE-64), in TG21.4, attacks German submarine U-543 with rockets and depth bombs in the face of heavy anti-aircraft fire; U-543 escapes.

Thursday, April 18, 2019

Submarine Gudgeon (SS-211) Is Sunk

TUE 18 APR 1944
Pacific
PB4Ys (VD 3) conduct long-range reconnaissance of Saipan, Tinian and Aguijan Islands, Marshalls, obtaining complete photographic coverage. USAAF B-24s provide close air support; battle damage forces one B- 24 to ditch (see 22 April).

Submarine Gudgeon (SS-211) is sunk, probably by Japanese naval aircraft (901st Air Group), southwest of Iwo Jima, 22°44'N, 143°25'E.

Submarine Tambor (SS-198) sinks Japanese guardboat No.3 Shinku Maru 300 miles northwest of Wake Island.

Second element of Japanese TAKE No.1 convoy sails from Shanghai and effects rendezvous with the first group that had departed Pusan, Korea, on 16 April.

U.S. freighter John Straub hits a mine off Sanak Island, Aleutians, 54°15'N, 163°30'W and sinks, breaking in two; 14 of the 27-man Armed Guard perish, as do 40 merchant seamen and the ship's solitary passenger. Army coastal freighter FP 41 rescues the survivors; frigate Albuquerque (PF-7) later scuttles the stern half with gunfire.

Atlantic
Abandoned U.S. merchant tanker Pan Pennsylvania, torpedoed by German submarine U-550 on 16 April, is scuttled by aircraft, 40°24'N, 69°37'W.

Wednesday, April 17, 2019

La Brea, North of Third

Judging from the stores selling clothing fashion & other useless crap & young people w/ shopping bags, this is the new Melrose.

Dough-Nut Break

Minecraft

MON 17 APR 1944
Pacific
Submarines Barb (SS-220) and Steelhead (SS-280) shell phosphate works on Rasa Island.

Submarine Harder (SS-257), in attack on Japanese convoy, sinks army cargo ship Matsue Maru about 150 miles northwest of Woleai, Carolines, 09°30'N, 142°35'E.

Submarine Searaven (SS-196) sinks Japanese auxiliary minesweeper No.2 Noshiro Maru 120 miles south of Haha Jima, Bonins, 26°01'N, 142°14'E.

USAAF planes sink Japanese army vessel No.2 Mikage Maru off Aitape, New Guinea, 02°41'S, 141°18'E.

Atlantic
Minesweeper Swift (AM-122) and submarine chaser PC-619 sink German submarine U-986, North Atlantic, 50°09'N, 12°51'W.

Mediterranean
U.S. freighters James Guthrie and Alexander Graham Bell, in convoy NV 33, are damaged by Allied mines off Isle of Capri, James Guthrie at 40°34'10"N, 14°16'50"E, and Alexander Graham Bell at 40°34'150"N, 14°17'20"E. James Guthrie is abandoned and taken in tow by salvage vessel Weight (ARS-35). Towed to Naples, James Guthrie is subsequently written off as a total loss. There are no casualties among either the merchant complement or the 28-man Armed Guard. Alexander Graham Bell returns to Naples under her own power and is repaired and returned to service. There are no casualties among the 42-man Armed Guard and only two injured from the merchant crew.

Penthouse View

Hand Job Bob To Star In S-E-X Video

The skin crawls ...

Marc Fortier / NBC10 Boston:
Florida Prosecutors Say They'll Release Videos of Robert Kraft at Day Spa  —  WHAT TO KNOW  —  Prosecutors said in court documents Wednesday that they are planning to release video of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft at a Florida day spa.  —  Kraft's lawyers argued in court last week …

Can It Happen Here?

Drain the swamp!! W/ bullets!

Associated Press:
Ex-Peru president kills himself as police try to arrest him  —  LIMA, Peru (AP) — Former Peruvian President Alan GarcĂ­a shot himself in the head and died Wednesday moments after police arrived at his home to arrest him on corruption allegations in Latin America's largest graft probe.
Marco Aquino / Reuters:
Peru ex-president Garcia shoots himself as police try to arrest him
Bob Fredericks / New York Post:   Former Peru President Alan GarcĂ­a dead after shooting himself moments before arrest
Joshua Gill / Daily Caller News Foundation:   Peru's Ex-President Shoots Himself In The Head When Cops Knock On His Door With A Warrant

Two Faces of Fox

Tuesday, April 16, 2019

Don't Fence Me In

All Hope Abandon, Ye Who Enter Here

Locals only, please; you out-of-state losers can't drive for shit.
A 26-year-old Utah man was charged Tuesday in the hit-and-run death of a Dallas man riding a rented electric scooter in Hollywood, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.

Jared Walter Anderson of Enoch, Utah, drove his pickup early Saturday through the busy interaction of Vine Street and Sunset Boulevard, not stopping for oncoming traffic, prosecutors said.

He struck Evan Dyer Faram, 31, of Dallas, who was riding a scooter in the crosswalk on Vine. Anderson then ran over Faram while fleeing police, according to the district attorney’s office.

Afterward, Anderson allegedly drove against traffic and didn’t stop at signals or stop lights, finally crashing his pickup in a residential area, where he was arrested, prosecutors said.

A police sergeant reportedly saw Anderson’s truck hit Faram, back up, roll the victim over and flee the scene, KABC7 reported. Faram died at a hospital.

Anderson is alleged to have a prior DUI conviction in Utah, according to the district attorney’s office.

Prosecutors charged Anderson with one felony count each of murder, vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, hit-and-run driving resulting in death to another person with allegations of causing great bodily injury, and fleeing a pursuing peace officer's motor vehicle causing death. He faces a possible maximum sentence of 11 years, plus 15 years to life in state prison if convicted as charged, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors requested that bail be set at $2 million. The case remains under investigation by the Los Angeles Police Department.

City News Service contributed to this report.
[From behind the paywall of the Los Angeles Times.]

N233LA

Instead of this Airbus Squirrel, why doesn't the L.A.P.D. buy American?

Amusing Architecture

We are not actually amused.

U-Boats

SUN 16 APR 1944
Pacific
Submarine Paddle (SS-263) attacks Japanese convoy and sinks Japanese army transport Mito Maru and merchant cargo ship No.1 Hino Maru in the Ceram Sea, 02°25'S, 127°24'E.

Submarine Redfin (SS-272) continues to pursue the convoy attacked the previous day, sinking army cargo ship Yamagata Maru in Moro Gulf, southwest of Mindanao, 06°52'N, 123°47'E.

RAAF Catalinas mine the principal entrances to Woleai to prevent the Japanese from using them during the projected Hollandia operations. The operation is repeated on 18 and 19 April.

Movement of Japanese convoy TAKE No.1, carrying elements of the Imperial Army's 32d and 35th Divisions to reinforce garrisons in the Halmaheras and in northwestern New Guinea, gets underway as four transports, and escorts, depart Pusan, Korea (see 18 April).

Battleship Colorado (BB-45) runs aground on Kuia Shoal, off Kahoolawe, T.H., but suffers no serious damage.

Atlantic
Battleship Wisconsin (BB-64)--the last battleship in the U.S. Navy--is commissioned at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
U.S. tanker Pan Pennsylvania, in United Kingdom-bound convoy CU 1, is torpedoed by German submarine U-550 150 miles east of Ambrose Light, 40°05'N, 69°40'W, and abandoned. Ten of the 31-man Armed Guard sailors perish in the action, as do 15 of the 50-man merchant complement; survivors are picked up by destroyer escorts Joyce (DE-317) and Peterson (DE-152). Later, destroyer escort Gandy (DE-764) is damaged when she intentionally rams German submarine U-550 off Nantucket Shoals, 40°09'N, 69°44'W, and teams with Peterson and Joyce to sink the U-boat. During the action, shells from the destroyer escorts set afire Pan Pennsylvania's abandoned wreck (see 18 April).

Mediterranean
German submarine U-407 attacks convoy UGS 37 about 17 miles off Derna, Libya, torpedoing U.S. freighters Meyer London and Thomas G. Masaryk, 32°51'N, 23°00'E; the latter, out of control at one point, nearly rams Meyer London. There are no casualties on board either ship (including the 27-man Armed Guard in each freighter). French-manned British corvette HMS La Malouine rescues Meyer London's crew; another escort vessel rescues the other ship's complement. British rescue tug HMS Captive later tows Thomas G. Masaryk and beaches her in Maneloa Bay, Libya, where the damaged ship is subsequently written off as a total loss. Meyer London sinks.

Monday, April 15, 2019

Airship, Unfocused

Over the stadium for Jackie Robinson Day. Dodgers won in the bottom of the ninth, & the Clippers beat Golden State in the biggest comeback in franchise history, reg'lar season & play-offs (31 points) slightly redeeming a day that ranged from merely irksome & tedious to horrid.

America's Leaders

Vile human scum, every last one.
 Andrew Kaczynski / CNN:
Stephen Moore once slammed Trump's ‘dangerous’ immigration position, Larry Kudlow compared it to worst parts of World War II  —  (CNN)President Donald Trump's pick to serve on the Federal Reserve Stephen Moore once criticized Trump's positions on immigration, describing them as “extreme nativist” …
Paul Krugman / New York Times:   Republicans Are the Real Extremists
Taegan Goddard / Political Wire:   Moore Called Trump's Immigration Policy ‘Dangerous’
Peter Wade / Rolling Stone:   Trump's Fed Nominee Isn't a ‘Big Believer in Democracy’
 Calum Stuart / Political State:
Evidence Shows Lindsey Graham Received Illegal Campaign Contributions From Russia  —  An investigation has been ongoing into Republican Senate Judiciary Chair Lindsey Graham's connections to Russia by a number of transparency groups, including money he has used in his political campaigns …

Wind, The, Pt. 2

Earlier this month. The whole mess is still there; we took a closer look at the damage.
Bent over, doubled up.

Fun W/ Color

Nothing is real.
And reality is nothing.

Andaman Islands Action

SAT 15 APR 1944
Pacific
Alaskan Sea Frontier (Vice Admiral Frank Jack Fletcher) with headquarters at Adak, Aleutian Islands, and Seventeenth Naval District (Rear Admiral Francis E. M. Whiting) with temporary headquarters at Adak and permanent headquarters at Kodiak, Alaska, are established.

Naval Base, Abemama, Gilbert Islands, is established.

Submarine Redfin (SS-272), in attack on Japanese convoy southwest of Mindanao, damages army cargo ship Shinyu Maru, 06°22'N, 123°42'E (see 16 April).

Japanese merchant cargo ship Sumida Maru is sunk, probably by mine laid by submarine Steelhead (SS-280), off Honshu, 42°07'N, 143°10'E.

British submarine HMS Storm sinks Japanese minesweeper W.7 in Andaman Islands, 11°56'N, 093°06'E.

Sunday, April 14, 2019

"No hits are observed."

FRI 14 APR 1944
Mediterranean
Three U.S. motor torpedo boats and two British Fairmile "D" patrol craft brave intense German shore battery fire to carry out two torpedo attacks on north-bound German F-lighters off San Vincenzio, Italy. No hits are observed.

Indian Ocean
British freighter Samuta rescues 38 survivors of U.S. freighter Richard Hovey, sunk by Japanese submarine I-26 on 29 March.

Who's Shallow Now?

Compare & contrast headlines.
There's the entire problem: The right-wing is completely shallow. Surfaces only.

And whadda they mean, "shines"? Did 'Vanka forget to powder her greasy, surgically-altered nose?

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Why waste time?

Saturday, April 13, 2019

Also On The Fire

Lima Whiskey, which has its own Instagram & is part of Lawrence Welk III's helicopter empire.

Mopping Up

'Tain't all glamorous rushing up ladders w/ a gushing hose in one's paw.
And here we hit the proverbial pause button, as the above video is 17MB too big for Bugger™ (& frankly has a few useless frames) so we're going to try some video editing software.

The Job Is Never Done ...

... until the tools are put away.
The only humanoid female this reporter observed working the fire.

Descent

Unlucky 13th For Destroyer Ikazuchi

THU 13 APR 1844
Pacific
Submarine Harder (SS-257) sinks Japanese destroyer Ikazuchi 180 miles south-southwest of Guam, 10°13'N, 143°51'E.

Please Validate My Existence

Or don't. What do I care?

Fire On Fairfax!

Oh, not smog at all. FIRE in a garage being used for storage.
Fortunately, the gurney went unused. Ladder probably wasn't used either.
There's always a wise guy running around w/ a camera.

Friday, April 12, 2019

More Smog Than Usual Today

Fewer Fish For Japan, Crummy Seamanship & Friendly Fire

WED 12 APR 1944
Pacific
Motor torpedo boat PT-135, damaged by grounding one-half mile north of Crater Point, New Britain, 05°21'S, 152°09'E, is scuttled by crew and motor torpedo boat PT-137.

Submarine Halibut (SS-232), despite presence of at least three escort vessels, sinks Japanese army passenger/cargo ship Taichu Maru about 20 miles southwest of the Nansei Shoto, 28°08'N, 128°57'E.

USAAF B-24s, B-25s, B-26s, and P-38s bomb Japanese installations in Hollandia, sinking army cargo ship Narita Maru and fishing vessels Aiko Maru, Kompira Maru, and Kyoei Maru.

USSAAF A-20s (5th Air Force) sink Japanese army cargo ship Narita Maru in Humboldt Bay, Hollandia, 02°30'S, 140°52'E.

Atlantic
Rescue tug ATR-98 is sunk in collision with ocean-going tug Abnaki (AT-96) off the Azores, 44°04.8'N, 24°08'W.

Mediterranean
U.S. freighter Horace H. Lurton, steaming in convoy west of Algiers, is damaged by shell fired by nearby ship, injuring five men of the 44 merchant sailors and 28-man Armed Guard. Destroyer Breckinridge (DD-148) provides medical assistance.

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Here.