Palimbacchius

Blog Post
Larry-Lambert

Caption: I tried to pick a word for Boron’s edification. It means a metrical foot of two long and one short syllable. It’s a pattern used in Latin poetry for a specific effect. Since finding a perfect single-word English example is difficult (English stress patterns differ), think of it as a rhythmic unit, like a slow, heavy beat followed by a quick release. Here are some examples: “Blind luck is” or “Hard thinking.” Is that arcane enough?

 

Confederate Rapid Fire Cannon

Also known as the WILLIAMS GUN, it was a Confederate Artillery piece that was classified as a 1# cannon. Designed by Capt. D.R. WILLIAMS of Kentucky, the gun was a breech-loading, rapid-fire cannon operated by a hand crank, with a cycle rate of 65 rounds per minute and a maximum range of 2000 yards.

Approximately 40 of these guns were made during the war, with at least six fabricated at the S.H. SKATES Foundry in Mobile, AL.

Since only a small number of the guns were actually built, only four survived the war.

A battery of six of these guns were used at the Battle of Seven Pines, Va. In May 1862. Captured Union Officers, asked to see the Confederate Secret Weapon, their firepower had made great effect. The breech-loading obturating plug served as the basis for the first breech-loading gun adopted by the United States Army.

Ed Bonderenka, host of Your American Heritage

LIVE – Saturday, January 17,  1 pm ET

Listener Call-In: 734 822-1600

eMail: edward@bonderenka.com

Ed Bonderenka examines current events in the light of our past, our Founding and Biblical Principles. Saturday, Ed’s guest will be Larry Lambert, author of The Confederate Cipher. You are all invited to call in and participate in the discussion as he flogs his book and shamelessly self-promotes.

 

Bullet Points:

** Sometimes simple works just fine (left) – During the Vietnam War, the Lazy Bomb (non-exposive) was used in the jungles of Vietnam. The Lazy Bombs were about 1 3/4 inches long and 1/2 inch in diameter (width of a .50 caliber round) and had razor-thin tail fins. Approximately 17,000 Lazy Bombs were packed into a Cluster Adapter and released, usually in a Cluster Bomb, over the enemy. This was a kinetic energy weapon. According to the altitude at which the Lazy Bomb was released, it could reach speeds of 500 MPH. Being made of solid steel, they could penetrate the triple canopy jungles and still have enough kinetic energy to kill enemy troops.

** Ben offers sound advice in San Jose, California. (Do you know the way to San Jose?)

** Will the British Military Hoarde descend on Greenland alongside the Germans to save it from the USA? How many troops and how long will they deploy?

** Here is a small detail of the painting “Cold Steel at Cowpens“. These are militia dragoons attacking the 71st Regiment of Foot, “Frazier’s Highlanders”. I always like painting cavalry. The straight-bladed sword is a Rappahanock Forge type saber made by Hunter. The model was posed with an original. https://artofdontroiani.com/

** If you have six months to live, what do you prioritize?

** P-108U defensive measures

** Katie Hobbs offers insight from Batshit Bonkers Britain.

** There are two people who share the bathroom…is it too much to ask?  –read The Yellow Stream, by I. P. Standing. Everything will come into focus.

** (Breitbart) A Grand European Army? The Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (Is that the same as the National Socialist Workers’ Party  – NAZI?) argued that Europe needs to remind itself “of its own strength”. To do this, Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares argued, it needs to “move towards a European army” so as to provide its own defence “without depending on third parties” such as the United States. The Spanish minister said that the “decades of a solid alliance” between Brussels and Washington were dependent on shared values, but that President Donald Trump has “other principles”. Nevertheless, Albares said he does not believe President Trump’s threats to annex Greenland from Denmark would break up the NATO military alliance, as Danish PM Mette Frederiksen suggested last week. If Europe is capable of self-defense, do they need NATO or the UN?

** (Face the Nation) Congresswoman Ilhan Omar discusses Somali inbreeding practices.

** What do you burn in your fireplace?

** Should I marry again, LSP would need to perform the service, and I think that it would go very much like this.

** I had a discussion with a lady who has a fat, stupid child, which followed this discussion very closely. Unemployed single mother of two mixed-race children under three, 22, 5-0, 240 lbs, seeking a hot, fit, athletic white male over 6′ earning at least 250K per year. The children’s father is “no longer in the picture” (in prison).

** More Greenland history is discussed.

** From Boron: Sweden not only gave us Greta Tintin Eleonora Ernman Thunberg, the Swedish oracle of the 21st Century (Limited), it also provided us with the recently turned-on-its-head “Food Pyramid”; it appears that Sweden gives the world more cow flop than there are cows: Grok (with some urging, I might add) has finally provided the true rationale behind the original; even Grok attempts to  weasel-word its answer:  it’s strictly economics vs. science (government propaganda vs. research)

 

Never Ready for Prime Time

The Gloster P.275

In response to Specification F.43/46, issued on 24 January 1947, Gloster proposed the P.275 in 1948—a single-seat day fighter designed for the daylight interception of high-speed, high-altitude targets. The design featured a distinctive butterfly tail, rotating wingtip controls, and a powerful 12,000 lb thrust engine, with an intended armament of four 30 mm cannons.

 

The War Between the States – at sea

By January 1, 1863, the famed CSS Alabama had already captured 26 prizes. Confederate Captain Raphael Semmes had learned that the Union was planning a joint operation, commanded by Maj. Gen. Nathaniel P. Banks, to capture Sabine Pass, and he expected to capture several transports near Galveston, Texas.

The circumstances had changed before Semmes arrived since Confederate General John Bankhead Magruder had liberated Galveston on New Year’s Day, 1863. Unbeknownst to Semmes, instead of transports he recognized, there were five blockaders off the entrance to Galveston Bay. Semmes knew he could not battle alone with this large squadron. Instead, he sailed along the horizon to tempt one of the blockers to follow him. USS Hatteras took the bait on January 11, 1863.

As soon as Hatteras gave chase, Semmes slowed his sloop of war so that the Union blockader would soon get in range of Alabama’s heavy battery. Blake noted that as he continued the chase, he “rapidly gained upon the suspicious vessel. Knowing the slow rate of speed of the Hatteras, I at once suspected that deception was being practised.” The steamer’s commander now realized that the unknown vessel was probably the already infamous Alabama, which was in Blake’s path with its broadside facing his ship. Blake cleared his vessel for action and worked four guns onto one side of Hatteras.

It was now about 7:00 p.m., and darkness shrouded the scene. When the blockader reached within 75 yards of Alabama, Blake hailed, “What steamer is that?” The answer was returned: “Her Britannic Majesty’s ship Vixen!” The Union commander replied that he would send a boat over. Both ships began to maneuver; however, the Confederate steamer positioned itself to rake Hatteras.

Just as the cutter pulled away from Hatteras, Capt. Semmes shouted, just as the Confederate flag was being hoisted, “We are the Confederate steamer Alabama!”, which was quickly followed by a broadside that crashed into Hatteras, causing considerable damage. Semmes recounted that “my men handled their pieces with great spirit and commendable coolness, and the action was sharp and exciting while it lasted, which, however, was not very long, for in just thirteen minutes after firing the first gun, the enemy hoisted a light and fired an off-gun, as a signal that he had been beaten.”

Blake steamed Hatteras within 30 yards of Alabama in an attempt to board the Confederate steamer. Pistol and musket shots were exchanged; however, Hatteras could not close with the Alabama as shells from that ship rumbled through the Union steamer, causing considerable damage. One shell entered amidship in the hold, setting fire to it; another shell passed through the sick bay, exploding in an adjoining compartment, creating a fire; and yet another shot made it into the engine room and broke the cylinder head, sending steam throughout the vessel. This shot left Hatteras helpless, unable to work its pumps or for the steamer to maneuver. The Union vessel was dead in the water in a sinking condition.

Commander Blake stated in his report, “the vessel on fire in two places, and beyond human power a hopeless wreck upon the water, with her walking beam shot away and her engine rendered useless.” Blake maintained his fire with the hope of disabling Alabama, hoping that the sound of distant gunfire would bring other ships of the squadron to the battle scene.

The commander of Hatteras had run out of options. He had just been told that shells had entered the “Hatteras at the water line, tearing off entire sheets of iron, and that the water was rushing in … Learning this melancholy truth … I felt that I had no right to sacrifice uselessly, and without any desirable result, the lives of all under my command.” When Hatteras surrendered, Alabama sent boats to render assistance and saved most of the crew. Hatteras’s losses included two killed and five wounded. In turn, Alabama suffered two wounded.

Semmes then took the officers and men of the sunken Union warship to Jamaica, where they were paroled. Hearing the sounds of the engagement and seeing flashes in the distance, Commodore Bell took USS Brooklyn out to investigate the action. The sloop of war arrived on the scene in the early morning hours of January 12, only to discover the hulk of Hatteras upright in the water about 20 miles south of Galveston Light. Bell noted that only the masts of Hatteras reached out of the water, and from the topmast, the US Navy commissioning pennant was still flying. Hatteras had surely lived up to the motto, “Sink Before Surrender.”

This victory delayed a planned Union invasion of Galveston, allowing the Confederacy to strengthen its defenses there for the remainder of the war. Painting by Patrick O’Brien

 

Identify the Aircraft

1 & 2 & 3

You don’t need to identify the Mk 1 Mod 0 bird

 

4

 

5

 

 

Parting Shots

 

 

 

 

End

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Saturday Morning — Live

I never thought that Hillary’s campaign launch would have been so funny. It’s one of those parodies that you think…

60 thoughts on “Palimbacchius”

  2. Identify the Aircraft:
    Indian Air force:
    1. Mi-35 Hind
    2. Boeing AH-64 Apache
    3. HAL Dhruv
    4. Shahed 136 drone
    5. Shahed 191 UCAV

  3. Six months – depends on the cause. If rabies, some people would draw up of list of people to bite :)

  4. 1 – Top: Indian Air Force Mil Mi-35
    2 – Middle: Indian Air Force Boeing AH-64E Apache,
    3 – Bottom: Indian Air Force HAL Rudra
    4 – Iranian HESA Shahed-136 loitering munition suicide drone
    5 – Iranian Shahed 191

  5. I listened to Katie Hobbs rants during the State of the State address the other day. Ugh, could we switch her with Katie Hopkins until the November election? Go Andy Biggs!

  6. Will Ed be broadcasting via pirate radio on Lake St. Clair??? Boating with Ed B???

    -STA Lethal

    1. If EdB broadcast from the water, it might be a short broadcast. I think it’s more like the Ayatollah’s bunker. (aloha snackbar)

      1. will this be recorded and where will it be available for those of us who cannot be close to a radio at that time?

  7. Lord willing and the creeks don’t rise, I’m planning to tune in to Ed’s presentation with LL as guest, as I have my noon gruel.
    Relative to the War of Northern Aggression, other than the CSS Alabama event, the Union was subject to additional checkmate(s) at Sabine Pass. Family claims have a member of our clan participating in the Battle of Sabine Pass.

    1. The Sabine battlefield, although small in terms of what you can get to and scope of maneuver of the combatants, is well worth visiting because unlike a lot of other battlefields, there hasn’t been a lot of crap built up or grown up over the years to obscure the view, so visitors can get a pretty clear sense of what happened.

      1. And at the Sabine battlefield, with a valid Texas fishing license you can catch redfish, speckled trout, drum, and crabs (blue crabs) out of the ship channel.

  8. Six months to live. I was given a 20% chance of living 4 months due to stage four triple mutation lymphoma. One grapefruit and 30 peanut to golf ball tumors. My goal was just to survive. I knew I had to always stay alive the next fifteen minutes. To do that I drank lots of water and dragged my chemo pole with six bags around the hospital every day. I did chemo 24 / 7 at 160% hot loads for a week every two weeks. The goal was simple, just survive continuously. No fancy assessment of what I wanted, it was just survive. I had to relearn how to talk, drive and control the frustration and outbursts. Six year later I am mostly normal but sort of off.

    1. SISU…attitude is everything. Glad you got through the rough patch and God saw fit to keep you here.

    2. I’m so sorry that you had to go through that, Tom. Mostly normal is close enough for government work.

      1. wow!
        Attitude. Determination. Resolve.
        As Paul M referenced- SISU indeed.

        I can’t help but wonder how much Nordic is in you.

        🫡

        Juan

    3. Lord, we ask that You alleviate Tom’s suffering and bring him relief. Help him to feel Your presence in his darkest days. Remind him that he is not alone and that Your grace is sufficient for his needs. Help Tom to trust in Your plan, even when healing seems distant.
      —
      “I am mostly normal but sort of off.” – Probably would describe many of us here,
      Good Luck And Godspeed Tom!

  9. Somali’s: No one has answered as to exactly why there are a million or so Somali’s clustered in Minnesota, namely Minneapolis/St. Paul? Just asking. And don’t hand me it’s about refugees. Maybe more about ‘Learing Centers’ and the resulting We The People’s hard-earned cash being transported out of the country as allowed by TSA through that particular airport without penalty.
    ***
    While the ‘What do you burn in your fireplace’ link is inoperable, my first two thoughts even without said video:
    1st – Do people still have fireplaces since they’ve been linked to carbon emissions and the destruction of Gaia and not allowed in new construction?
    2nd- The more relevant question is “What do you put in your wood chipper, eh?” (especially if living in Nord DahKotuh, in Winter).
    ***
    EdB’s Program: Always enlightening, and with his guest this week it should be even moreso. (Does that shameless suck up get me more VM Digital Dollars on account to pay off my tab?)

    1. Your federal government imported them to vote for the democrat of their choice. And your tax dollars have been going to their feed and care.
      .
      I burn juniper and oak in my fireplace. None of this tainted woodchipper material that would make it smell like a BBQ.

        1. Hit the ‘On’ remote button and on she comes…easy and no mess. Us, we like the radiant heat from wood, so installing a small woodstove in the ‘primary’ bedroom (used to be called “Master’ but that’s bad juju these days), and a woodburning fireplace insert in the great room. Have lots of woodlot cleanup to do so MrsPaulM will get plenty of time to break in her new wood-splitter.

      2. Oak? Must be nice…I get pine and fir…am I an oppressed woodburner?
        ***
        Talk about burning…listened to a Senate Hearing clip of Sen. Moody (a female) asking Dr. Verma (who corrected the Senator in that typical arrogant smarmy fashion to address her as ‘Doctor’) a very simple question, “Can men get pregnant?”. The DOCTOR takes this long pause then says, “Uhmm (1st clue she was tap dancing), you know (2nd clue)…pause, then ahhh, then ‘the look of hand in cookie jar’. She moves on to the next ‘witness’, an AG, who emphatically without hesitation says, “No’.
        Sen. Hawley then tries again with DOCTOR Verma, same question…she responds, “I hesitated there because I wasn’t sure where the conversation was going or what the goal was, I mean (3rd clue) I do take care of patients with different identities, I take care of many woman, and take care of (repeat) different identities, Umm (4th clue), so that’s where I paused, I think, so yeah…I wasn’t sure where you were going with that.” (pure gobblygook non-answer). Sen. Hawlet clarifies, “the goal is just the truth”, then asks her again if men can get pregnant. She then repeats her statement then asks the same “don’t what the goal is here” (that Hawley just answered). Hawley responds, “The goal is to establish a biological reality…” then goes on to establish the truth of the matter for this DOCTOR. She’s mental, and likely getting paid to tap dance around anything truthful, shamelessly making a complete fool of herself (must have a nice offshore account for this level of public humility). And she calls herself a DOCTOR.
        –
        Yet another prime example of Democrat v. Republican – or put another way – The Demented Deranged v. The ones not under some evil spell of moronic behavior and clear mental stupidity for a political agenda. The MSM were whining that Moody and Hawley are the perpetrators of a hate agenda for asking a simple question a 3rd-Grader knows the answer. Unreal.

        2. Oak grows on the property and in the forest where I live.
          .
          I saw the same exchange. Dr. Verma should be defrocked and never allowed to practice medicine if she can’t affirmatively state that men can’t have babies.

          1. 100%..yet the scary part is she’s only one of many, and worse, has actual fawning patients. To each – his/he/her/she/they/them – own I suppose, just don’t try to convince normal thinking people that your wacko brand of mental masturbation is real.

      3. My parents burned lump coal in their fireplace. One load in the morning and one load at night was needed. Works well so long as you cleaned the chimney once a year.
        ———-
        Six months to live? Probably keep on doing what I do everyday. My affairs are mostly in order.

        1. I thought seriously about coal and might buy a bag for the sake of Auld Lang Syne, but since wood is free…

  10. NY Post – https://nypost.com/2026/01/13/world-news/im-living-through-irans-bloodthirsty-murderous-crackdown-the-horrible-truth-about-whats-really-happening/
    .
    It’s not a long article, but it lays things out clearly enough to suggest that the ayatollah needs to die along with his factotums and scrotes. Can Iran form a more perfect union based on the inalienable rights of human beings – life, liberty, property, the pursuit of happiness, without the government interfering? They’ve never had it. Russia never had it, and they swapped one tyrant for another.
    .
    There is some hope.
    .
    h/t Claudio for sending the article forward.

        1. You’re being restrained. I swear these types truly believe we are stupid. (Ok, many Americans ARE stupid…look at DOCTOR Verma (emphasis – per her – on DOCTOR) and “protesters” (aka. paid anarchists) who have been brainwashed into believing they can run ICE Agents over without consequence…until they find out not so much.)

  11. LL- you may wanna read before publishing…

    I thought of ID Armor as I read this:
    https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUYhTQbtr2Vw6qBFjMqQqGBdR2BDkfl7iutGjVksXIro2w9Yo6wFZ2TB34MGraPJtTiuPlwx54bORSV4v8cO8J-mP-GtnmLVxq3LtqP3vqg2xQI_LnTeRFgHF62HsTXfYmsgjWiGF2lv4l1I1MOfab8L4inuBTmFr_rDaFgJ-Ns-qLG8JwurEEnGdKIrSt/s1080/1000162159.jpg

    As An Unreconstructed-
    I was quite surprised to read of the Williams gun.
    Yet again, proof your product is multi-varied, informative, delightful nd well worth 100x the subscription price!

    Never heard of the lazy bombs (lazy bums? of course. We all know too many).

    Will make a point to listen to Ed’s show (likely Monday am though).

    nd still more Troiani!
    Such an amazing start to the year.
    Now, if only we can get serious arrests nd convictions, key personnel changes, turn our body clocks back 20 years…

    Though I mostly lurk amongst you giants, appreciate all here.

    Juan

    1. Always go with armor if given the option. The meme simply underscores the value. Kipling: A woman is only a woman, but a good cigar is a smoke. Mind you, I’m not anti-woman at all, but they are an ongoing expense, and an STG III is a self-propelled gun.

  12. An off the wall question about my back/neck.. (FWIW I’ll be 73 next month). I’ve been having a numbness in my shoulder/neck area that comes & goes. I went to the doctor, they got me x-ray and an MRI, I just saw the specialist. Here are results.
    **Patient with severe cervical stenosis at C3/4 and subluxation of C4 on C5 with cervical HNP. Dr. has recommended surgery at this time to prevent injury to the spinal cord.**
    When he explained it to me it sounded like replacing disks bring back the space that is supposed to be there.
    Anyone have disks replaced and had problems after?

  13. One of my daily goals at almost 81 is to learn something new. I have been visiting the VM website for 3 years or more. The bit about Greenland was amazing. It gives more humor to the TDS nutjobs reactions and the reported reactions of the European elite. I am a student of history and have never been overly interested in the war of northern aggression but your instruction has been interesting. Thanks for keeping me and others informed. I really appreciate the daily laughs also. Keep smiling and doing what you do.

    1. The Confederate Cipher is a historical novel, which means that its plot and characters are driven. The first 17% is spent heavily on the era and moderately on the character-driven plot. After that, the duelist comes into his own. MUCH of the story is based on actual events in book 1 and book 2 (yet to be released). Book 3 will be different because some of it unfolds west of the BIG war.

  14. Lazy bombs? Interesting… Rhodesia developed something similar, based on a 6″ nail with plastic fins, deployed from a modified aircraft underwing fuel tank. Group Captain Petter-Bowyer described them in his book, “Winds Of Destruction: The autobiography of a Rhodesian combat pilot” (https://www.amazon.com/Winds-Destruction-autobiography-Rhodesian-combat-ebook/dp/B07VWRDZQT). I’ve copied the relevant pages and sent them to you via e-mail, because they were too long to quote here. I saw one result of their deployment in combat. Impressive!

    1. I’ve always liked the effect that flechettes have. Particularly the effect that a beehive round has when fired from an 8″ howitzer. Canister – hold my flechette.

  15. Seven years ago, at age 60, I had difficulty grasping a spoon (loss of fine motor coordination). I was able to drive to the emergency dept. Long story short, they seemed disappointed I wasn’t having a stroke. It appeared to have been “merely” a pinched nerve in the spine/neck in that nerve that travelled the length of the arm to the fingertips. Women are not the only ones to suffer calcium loss from bones. Physical therapy was very helpful, and I’ve avoided surgery so far.

    Within the past week an acquaintance mentioned to me that his wife is scheduled for surgery to her neck vertebrae. I don’t exactly know the severity of nerve damage, but it’s considerably worse than mine. Apparently she’s been seen by several specialists. All but the last one indicated that she would be a good candidate for surgery if she wasn’t so old (she’s in her early 60’s). They finally found a doctor that performs these interventions rather routinely on “older” patients with excellent results. Here’s a link: https://www.prosserhealth.org/provider-directory/providers/david-yam/

    I wish you all the best. Perhaps he might offer a referral if you are far from Eastern Washington.

    1. Thank you, I shall add the word to the lexicon I carry ‘tween my ears – and I appreciate the use of the word “edification”, particularly the archaic definition in respect to this day’s edifying vision of the future (BTW: I’d hate to pilot an airborne craft in that canyon).
      I enjoy reading your science/fantasy fiction writings; I’m waiting (but not holding my breath) for the next one.

    2. I had a problem with my right leg, extremely slow onset. By the time I noticed it and finally discussed it with my wife (she’d be my caregiver in recuperation, as well as if something went amiss), she found me a young surgeon specializing in spinal foraminal widening in Bradenton (FL) who had surgical time for me the following Friday.
      I attempted to discuss with him the likely/possible loss of neural tissue due to compression of the foramen over the several years affecting the success to no avail.
      I demurred. Wise or not, I don’t know (and I understand that many surgeons aren’t happy discussing procedures and possible outcomes with patients), but I balked.

    1. A male officer or a female officer? Or one of indeterminate gender? I ask only because I saw a female officer from the Royal Horse Artillery Regiment who stood about 5′ tall (possibly wearing boots as well). Not very intimidating. She might be a great wit down at the pub.

      1. I wonder if Dr. Verma could be of assistance of identifying the gender of the orificer?
        .
        I thought that was the dumbest thing I’d heard all day…….until Clay and Buck started playing clips of the mayor of Minneapolis speaking about ICE.

      2. Worked with a gal, ex-military, who was about 5′ 10″ and built like a linebacker. Some gals are more equal than others.

  17. > even Grok attempts to weasel-word its answer
    That was NOTHING. You want to see weasel words? Ask any of the AIs about the origin and the spread of Marxism.
    Remember those two (or was it three) days when Grok’s “guiderails” were accidentally (no doubt) removed?

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