On Halloween I had problem with my shoes and had to take them to the shoe repair shop and walk home barefoot. It was rather cold. I still have a tiny sandal tan which makes my feet look weird.

 

My Oma loves this dirndl. Her whole face lit up when she saw it. "You look very German!" she said.

The photographer rarely gets his/her picture taken...problem solved. Self portrait on Front Street in historic Natchitoches, LA. Minolta Autocord on JCH Streetpan 400 medium format film.

I’ve got a problem. You see, about five or six years ago, I discovered the fantastically weird world of the Super Furry Animals, led by Gruff Rhys and I can’t get his songs out of my head. It was spring in the year 2000 and everywhere, things were starting to grow again. I found Mwng first while on the streets of NYC. I read in a mag that it was one of the only albums being released completely in Welsh. Intrigued, I picked this up and loved the sweet melodies the likes of I had never heard before. It didn’t sound like anything being created in North America or anywhere else for that matter.

 

I immediately fell in love and it was deep but it was about to get worse because soon after picking this one up, Rings Around the World (2001) came out. It felt more rock and psych influenced and immediately filled me with happiness. I had picked up the dvd edition so I was able to enjoy all my favorite songs on video like “Juxtapozed with U” where a giant microphone dances around with a video camera. If hostile aliens were about to attack Earth and I could only choose one song to play them in order to convince them to halt, I think I’d probably play this one. I don’t know how anyone could destroy such a place while a person like Gruff was living on it.

 

Weirdest of all in the video collection was “Receptacle for the Respectable” with it’s twisted and strange animation. It was almost like Wales was its own world the way Gruff thought. Probably the other song that changed me is “It’s Not the End of the World?” It gets stuck in my head at the most random moments and makes me smile sometimes even when that’s the last thing I feel like doing. My love grew again even more while listening to Phantom Power two years later in 2003. Gruff was clearly a man who could rock out with “Golden Retriever” and be gentle again with “Piccolo Snare” as well as “Venus and Serena.”

 

But nothing in heaven and Earth could prepare me for the intensity of love I’d feel after listening to 2005’s Love Kraft There are some days when I put it on in the morning and can listen to nothing else. I’ve listened to “Zoom!” on repeat for several hours. If time is a landscape, then in the desert of my days, the music has been played loud and has influenced every cell of my body to become a fan of this band as well.

 

Now, I should mention that I do like the newest one Hey Venus! even if I am not experiencing the same passion with it that I did for Love Kraft. I love the psych rock of “Into the Night” and “Baby Ate my Eightball” especially. But what I really wanted to talk about is Gruff.

 

Do you know the feeling you get when you just love music so much and you literally fall in love with songs, lyrics, melody lines. It’s like everything in this whole world could be obliterated but as long as the songs were there, you could drift along in the wasteland that was left and play it to the dead rocks and the tainted seas. It’s like, people weren’t born before this music because how could they have survived without it’s creation? Or, on the first through 7th days God created the Earth and all that other stuff but somewhere down the line, he created music and musicians and Gruff Rhys and there was much rejoicing.

 

Perhaps I’m going a little overboard. I’ve always been slightly over the top and melodramatic. It’s my way. When I love something, I really love it. When I dislike something, I really hate it. That’s simplified but you get the idea. Anyhow, I’m always afraid that the people behind the music are going to be snotty or full of themselves or just aloof. Then, you worry you won’t be able to connect with the music anymore on an emotional level because you’ll be thinking about how bad the interaction went.

 

But Gruff isn’t any of those things. He’s sweet and charming and even though he’s very much a man, he’s pretty much downright adorable. Nine times out of ten, I would rather take photos of a woman than a man. The tenth time, the man is Gruff.

 

I’ve always had a theory about concert photographers. There are alot of us and as the years have gone by, I’ve met more and more. They usually vary between fans of the music and people who are just doing this because they are paid to do it. But, my feeling is that if you aren’t connecting with the music, it will show. As for me, with a couple of exceptions, most of the photos I take are for bands I really love. I’ve done a couple of favors here and there but I’d say a huge percentage of the bands I take photos of, I am there on purpose.

 

That said, I am done with my brief (yes, brief!) autobiography of my love affair with the music of The Super Furry Animals. There are few bands that if I could I would follow around the world. Caribou is one as well as A Silver Mt. Zion. Super Furry Animals is definitely another, because they are one of the best bands of our time and undoubtedly put on one of the most thrilling live performances I’ve ever seen. So, I hope you enjoy these photos and hopefully it shows how much I love the Super Furry Animals.

Veil nebula

Telescope: William Optics GTF81

Mount: Losmandy G11

Camera ZWO ASI 294 MC PRO -10ºc Gain 120

Filter: Optolong L-Enhance

Integration: 36 x 300 "

APT

Elaboration with Pixinsight

 

In this image you can see all the problems I had, mysteriously the cooling of the sensor created a halo in the center of the images… I have no idea why. All this has unbalanced both the Flat and the dark, producing noise and artifacts.

Graffiti (plural; singular graffiti or graffito, the latter rarely used except in archeology) is art that is written, painted or drawn on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from simple written words to elaborate wall paintings, and has existed since ancient times, with examples dating back to ancient Egypt, ancient Greece, and the Roman Empire (see also mural).

 

Graffiti is a controversial subject. In most countries, marking or painting property without permission is considered by property owners and civic authorities as defacement and vandalism, which is a punishable crime, citing the use of graffiti by street gangs to mark territory or to serve as an indicator of gang-related activities. Graffiti has become visualized as a growing urban "problem" for many cities in industrialized nations, spreading from the New York City subway system and Philadelphia in the early 1970s to the rest of the United States and Europe and other world regions

 

"Graffiti" (usually both singular and plural) and the rare singular form "graffito" are from the Italian word graffiato ("scratched"). The term "graffiti" is used in art history for works of art produced by scratching a design into a surface. A related term is "sgraffito", which involves scratching through one layer of pigment to reveal another beneath it. This technique was primarily used by potters who would glaze their wares and then scratch a design into them. In ancient times graffiti were carved on walls with a sharp object, although sometimes chalk or coal were used. The word originates from Greek γράφειν—graphein—meaning "to write".

 

The term graffiti originally referred to the inscriptions, figure drawings, and such, found on the walls of ancient sepulchres or ruins, as in the Catacombs of Rome or at Pompeii. Historically, these writings were not considered vanadlism, which today is considered part of the definition of graffiti.

 

The only known source of the Safaitic language, an ancient form of Arabic, is from graffiti: inscriptions scratched on to the surface of rocks and boulders in the predominantly basalt desert of southern Syria, eastern Jordan and northern Saudi Arabia. Safaitic dates from the first century BC to the fourth century AD.

 

Some of the oldest cave paintings in the world are 40,000 year old ones found in Australia. The oldest written graffiti was found in ancient Rome around 2500 years ago. Most graffiti from the time was boasts about sexual experiences Graffiti in Ancient Rome was a form of communication, and was not considered vandalism.

 

Ancient tourists visiting the 5th-century citadel at Sigiriya in Sri Lanka write their names and commentary over the "mirror wall", adding up to over 1800 individual graffiti produced there between the 6th and 18th centuries. Most of the graffiti refer to the frescoes of semi-nude females found there. One reads:

 

Wet with cool dew drops

fragrant with perfume from the flowers

came the gentle breeze

jasmine and water lily

dance in the spring sunshine

side-long glances

of the golden-hued ladies

stab into my thoughts

heaven itself cannot take my mind

as it has been captivated by one lass

among the five hundred I have seen here.

 

Among the ancient political graffiti examples were Arab satirist poems. Yazid al-Himyari, an Umayyad Arab and Persian poet, was most known for writing his political poetry on the walls between Sajistan and Basra, manifesting a strong hatred towards the Umayyad regime and its walis, and people used to read and circulate them very widely.

 

Graffiti, known as Tacherons, were frequently scratched on Romanesque Scandinavian church walls. When Renaissance artists such as Pinturicchio, Raphael, Michelangelo, Ghirlandaio, or Filippino Lippi descended into the ruins of Nero's Domus Aurea, they carved or painted their names and returned to initiate the grottesche style of decoration.

 

There are also examples of graffiti occurring in American history, such as Independence Rock, a national landmark along the Oregon Trail.

 

Later, French soldiers carved their names on monuments during the Napoleonic campaign of Egypt in the 1790s. Lord Byron's survives on one of the columns of the Temple of Poseidon at Cape Sounion in Attica, Greece.

 

The oldest known example of graffiti "monikers" found on traincars created by hobos and railworkers since the late 1800s. The Bozo Texino monikers were documented by filmmaker Bill Daniel in his 2005 film, Who is Bozo Texino?.

 

In World War II, an inscription on a wall at the fortress of Verdun was seen as an illustration of the US response twice in a generation to the wrongs of the Old World:

 

During World War II and for decades after, the phrase "Kilroy was here" with an accompanying illustration was widespread throughout the world, due to its use by American troops and ultimately filtering into American popular culture. Shortly after the death of Charlie Parker (nicknamed "Yardbird" or "Bird"), graffiti began appearing around New York with the words "Bird Lives".

 

Modern graffiti art has its origins with young people in 1960s and 70s in New York City and Philadelphia. Tags were the first form of stylised contemporary graffiti. Eventually, throw-ups and pieces evolved with the desire to create larger art. Writers used spray paint and other kind of materials to leave tags or to create images on the sides subway trains. and eventually moved into the city after the NYC metro began to buy new trains and paint over graffiti.

 

While the art had many advocates and appreciators—including the cultural critic Norman Mailer—others, including New York City mayor Ed Koch, considered it to be defacement of public property, and saw it as a form of public blight. The ‘taggers’ called what they did ‘writing’—though an important 1974 essay by Mailer referred to it using the term ‘graffiti.’

 

Contemporary graffiti style has been heavily influenced by hip hop culture and the myriad international styles derived from Philadelphia and New York City Subway graffiti; however, there are many other traditions of notable graffiti in the twentieth century. Graffiti have long appeared on building walls, in latrines, railroad boxcars, subways, and bridges.

 

An early graffito outside of New York or Philadelphia was the inscription in London reading "Clapton is God" in reference to the guitarist Eric Clapton. Creating the cult of the guitar hero, the phrase was spray-painted by an admirer on a wall in an Islington, north London in the autumn of 1967. The graffito was captured in a photograph, in which a dog is urinating on the wall.

 

Films like Style Wars in the 80s depicting famous writers such as Skeme, Dondi, MinOne, and ZEPHYR reinforced graffiti's role within New York's emerging hip-hop culture. Although many officers of the New York City Police Department found this film to be controversial, Style Wars is still recognized as the most prolific film representation of what was going on within the young hip hop culture of the early 1980s. Fab 5 Freddy and Futura 2000 took hip hop graffiti to Paris and London as part of the New York City Rap Tour in 1983

 

Commercialization and entrance into mainstream pop culture

Main article: Commercial graffiti

With the popularity and legitimization of graffiti has come a level of commercialization. In 2001, computer giant IBM launched an advertising campaign in Chicago and San Francisco which involved people spray painting on sidewalks a peace symbol, a heart, and a penguin (Linux mascot), to represent "Peace, Love, and Linux." IBM paid Chicago and San Francisco collectively US$120,000 for punitive damages and clean-up costs.

 

In 2005, a similar ad campaign was launched by Sony and executed by its advertising agency in New York, Chicago, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, and Miami, to market its handheld PSP gaming system. In this campaign, taking notice of the legal problems of the IBM campaign, Sony paid building owners for the rights to paint on their buildings "a collection of dizzy-eyed urban kids playing with the PSP as if it were a skateboard, a paddle, or a rocking horse".

 

Tristan Manco wrote that Brazil "boasts a unique and particularly rich, graffiti scene ... [earning] it an international reputation as the place to go for artistic inspiration". Graffiti "flourishes in every conceivable space in Brazil's cities". Artistic parallels "are often drawn between the energy of São Paulo today and 1970s New York". The "sprawling metropolis", of São Paulo has "become the new shrine to graffiti"; Manco alludes to "poverty and unemployment ... [and] the epic struggles and conditions of the country's marginalised peoples", and to "Brazil's chronic poverty", as the main engines that "have fuelled a vibrant graffiti culture". In world terms, Brazil has "one of the most uneven distributions of income. Laws and taxes change frequently". Such factors, Manco argues, contribute to a very fluid society, riven with those economic divisions and social tensions that underpin and feed the "folkloric vandalism and an urban sport for the disenfranchised", that is South American graffiti art.

 

Prominent Brazilian writers include Os Gêmeos, Boleta, Nunca, Nina, Speto, Tikka, and T.Freak. Their artistic success and involvement in commercial design ventures has highlighted divisions within the Brazilian graffiti community between adherents of the cruder transgressive form of pichação and the more conventionally artistic values of the practitioners of grafite.

 

Graffiti in the Middle East has emerged slowly, with taggers operating in Egypt, Lebanon, the Gulf countries like Bahrain or the United Arab Emirates, Israel, and in Iran. The major Iranian newspaper Hamshahri has published two articles on illegal writers in the city with photographic coverage of Iranian artist A1one's works on Tehran walls. Tokyo-based design magazine, PingMag, has interviewed A1one and featured photographs of his work. The Israeli West Bank barrier has become a site for graffiti, reminiscent in this sense of the Berlin Wall. Many writers in Israel come from other places around the globe, such as JUIF from Los Angeles and DEVIONE from London. The religious reference "נ נח נחמ נחמן מאומן" ("Na Nach Nachma Nachman Meuman") is commonly seen in graffiti around Israel.

 

Graffiti has played an important role within the street art scene in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), especially following the events of the Arab Spring of 2011 or the Sudanese Revolution of 2018/19. Graffiti is a tool of expression in the context of conflict in the region, allowing people to raise their voices politically and socially. Famous street artist Banksy has had an important effect in the street art scene in the MENA area, especially in Palestine where some of his works are located in the West Bank barrier and Bethlehem.

 

There are also a large number of graffiti influences in Southeast Asian countries that mostly come from modern Western culture, such as Malaysia, where graffiti have long been a common sight in Malaysia's capital city, Kuala Lumpur. Since 2010, the country has begun hosting a street festival to encourage all generations and people from all walks of life to enjoy and encourage Malaysian street culture.

 

The modern-day graffitists can be found with an arsenal of various materials that allow for a successful production of a piece. This includes such techniques as scribing. However, spray paint in aerosol cans is the number one medium for graffiti. From this commodity comes different styles, technique, and abilities to form master works of graffiti. Spray paint can be found at hardware and art stores and comes in virtually every color.

 

Stencil graffiti is created by cutting out shapes and designs in a stiff material (such as cardboard or subject folders) to form an overall design or image. The stencil is then placed on the "canvas" gently and with quick, easy strokes of the aerosol can, the image begins to appear on the intended surface.

 

Some of the first examples were created in 1981 by artists Blek le Rat in Paris, in 1982 by Jef Aerosol in Tours (France); by 1985 stencils had appeared in other cities including New York City, Sydney, and Melbourne, where they were documented by American photographer Charles Gatewood and Australian photographer Rennie Ellis

 

Tagging is the practice of someone spray-painting "their name, initial or logo onto a public surface" in a handstyle unique to the writer. Tags were the first form of modern graffiti.

 

Modern graffiti art often incorporates additional arts and technologies. For example, Graffiti Research Lab has encouraged the use of projected images and magnetic light-emitting diodes (throwies) as new media for graffitists. yarnbombing is another recent form of graffiti. Yarnbombers occasionally target previous graffiti for modification, which had been avoided among the majority of graffitists.

 

Theories on the use of graffiti by avant-garde artists have a history dating back at least to the Asger Jorn, who in 1962 painting declared in a graffiti-like gesture "the avant-garde won't give up"

 

Many contemporary analysts and even art critics have begun to see artistic value in some graffiti and to recognize it as a form of public art. According to many art researchers, particularly in the Netherlands and in Los Angeles, that type of public art is, in fact an effective tool of social emancipation or, in the achievement of a political goal

 

In times of conflict, such murals have offered a means of communication and self-expression for members of these socially, ethnically, or racially divided communities, and have proven themselves as effective tools in establishing dialog and thus, of addressing cleavages in the long run. The Berlin Wall was also extensively covered by graffiti reflecting social pressures relating to the oppressive Soviet rule over the GDR.

 

Many artists involved with graffiti are also concerned with the similar activity of stenciling. Essentially, this entails stenciling a print of one or more colors using spray-paint. Recognized while exhibiting and publishing several of her coloured stencils and paintings portraying the Sri Lankan Civil War and urban Britain in the early 2000s, graffitists Mathangi Arulpragasam, aka M.I.A., has also become known for integrating her imagery of political violence into her music videos for singles "Galang" and "Bucky Done Gun", and her cover art. Stickers of her artwork also often appear around places such as London in Brick Lane, stuck to lamp posts and street signs, she having become a muse for other graffitists and painters worldwide in cities including Seville.

 

Graffitist believes that art should be on display for everyone in the public eye or in plain sight, not hidden away in a museum or a gallery. Art should color the streets, not the inside of some building. Graffiti is a form of art that cannot be owned or bought. It does not last forever, it is temporary, yet one of a kind. It is a form of self promotion for the artist that can be displayed anywhere form sidewalks, roofs, subways, building wall, etc. Art to them is for everyone and should be showed to everyone for free.

 

Graffiti is a way of communicating and a way of expressing what one feels in the moment. It is both art and a functional thing that can warn people of something or inform people of something. However, graffiti is to some people a form of art, but to some a form of vandalism. And many graffitists choose to protect their identities and remain anonymous or to hinder prosecution.

 

With the commercialization of graffiti (and hip hop in general), in most cases, even with legally painted "graffiti" art, graffitists tend to choose anonymity. This may be attributed to various reasons or a combination of reasons. Graffiti still remains the one of four hip hop elements that is not considered "performance art" despite the image of the "singing and dancing star" that sells hip hop culture to the mainstream. Being a graphic form of art, it might also be said that many graffitists still fall in the category of the introverted archetypal artist.

 

Banksy is one of the world's most notorious and popular street artists who continues to remain faceless in today's society. He is known for his political, anti-war stencil art mainly in Bristol, England, but his work may be seen anywhere from Los Angeles to Palestine. In the UK, Banksy is the most recognizable icon for this cultural artistic movement and keeps his identity a secret to avoid arrest. Much of Banksy's artwork may be seen around the streets of London and surrounding suburbs, although he has painted pictures throughout the world, including the Middle East, where he has painted on Israel's controversial West Bank barrier with satirical images of life on the other side. One depicted a hole in the wall with an idyllic beach, while another shows a mountain landscape on the other side. A number of exhibitions also have taken place since 2000, and recent works of art have fetched vast sums of money. Banksy's art is a prime example of the classic controversy: vandalism vs. art. Art supporters endorse his work distributed in urban areas as pieces of art and some councils, such as Bristol and Islington, have officially protected them, while officials of other areas have deemed his work to be vandalism and have removed it.

 

Pixnit is another artist who chooses to keep her identity from the general public. Her work focuses on beauty and design aspects of graffiti as opposed to Banksy's anti-government shock value. Her paintings are often of flower designs above shops and stores in her local urban area of Cambridge, Massachusetts. Some store owners endorse her work and encourage others to do similar work as well. "One of the pieces was left up above Steve's Kitchen, because it looks pretty awesome"- Erin Scott, the manager of New England Comics in Allston, Massachusetts.

 

Graffiti artists may become offended if photographs of their art are published in a commercial context without their permission. In March 2020, the Finnish graffiti artist Psyke expressed his displeasure at the newspaper Ilta-Sanomat publishing a photograph of a Peugeot 208 in an article about new cars, with his graffiti prominently shown on the background. The artist claims he does not want his art being used in commercial context, not even if he were to receive compensation.

 

Territorial graffiti marks urban neighborhoods with tags and logos to differentiate certain groups from others. These images are meant to show outsiders a stern look at whose turf is whose. The subject matter of gang-related graffiti consists of cryptic symbols and initials strictly fashioned with unique calligraphies. Gang members use graffiti to designate membership throughout the gang, to differentiate rivals and associates and, most commonly, to mark borders which are both territorial and ideological.

 

Graffiti has been used as a means of advertising both legally and illegally. Bronx-based TATS CRU has made a name for themselves doing legal advertising campaigns for companies such as Coca-Cola, McDonald's, Toyota, and MTV. In the UK, Covent Garden's Boxfresh used stencil images of a Zapatista revolutionary in the hopes that cross referencing would promote their store.

 

Smirnoff hired artists to use reverse graffiti (the use of high pressure hoses to clean dirty surfaces to leave a clean image in the surrounding dirt) to increase awareness of their product.

 

Graffiti often has a reputation as part of a subculture that rebels against authority, although the considerations of the practitioners often diverge and can relate to a wide range of attitudes. It can express a political practice and can form just one tool in an array of resistance techniques. One early example includes the anarcho-punk band Crass, who conducted a campaign of stenciling anti-war, anarchist, feminist, and anti-consumerist messages throughout the London Underground system during the late 1970s and early 1980s. In Amsterdam graffiti was a major part of the punk scene. The city was covered with names such as "De Zoot", "Vendex", and "Dr Rat". To document the graffiti a punk magazine was started that was called Gallery Anus. So when hip hop came to Europe in the early 1980s there was already a vibrant graffiti culture.

 

The student protests and general strike of May 1968 saw Paris bedecked in revolutionary, anarchistic, and situationist slogans such as L'ennui est contre-révolutionnaire ("Boredom is counterrevolutionary") and Lisez moins, vivez plus ("Read less, live more"). While not exhaustive, the graffiti gave a sense of the 'millenarian' and rebellious spirit, tempered with a good deal of verbal wit, of the strikers.

 

I think graffiti writing is a way of defining what our generation is like. Excuse the French, we're not a bunch of p---- artists. Traditionally artists have been considered soft and mellow people, a little bit kooky. Maybe we're a little bit more like pirates that way. We defend our territory, whatever space we steal to paint on, we defend it fiercely.

 

The developments of graffiti art which took place in art galleries and colleges as well as "on the street" or "underground", contributed to the resurfacing in the 1990s of a far more overtly politicized art form in the subvertising, culture jamming, or tactical media movements. These movements or styles tend to classify the artists by their relationship to their social and economic contexts, since, in most countries, graffiti art remains illegal in many forms except when using non-permanent paint. Since the 1990s with the rise of Street Art, a growing number of artists are switching to non-permanent paints and non-traditional forms of painting.

 

Contemporary practitioners, accordingly, have varied and often conflicting practices. Some individuals, such as Alexander Brener, have used the medium to politicize other art forms, and have used the prison sentences enforced on them as a means of further protest. The practices of anonymous groups and individuals also vary widely, and practitioners by no means always agree with each other's practices. For example, the anti-capitalist art group the Space Hijackers did a piece in 2004 about the contradiction between the capitalistic elements of Banksy and his use of political imagery.

 

Berlin human rights activist Irmela Mensah-Schramm has received global media attention and numerous awards for her 35-year campaign of effacing neo-Nazi and other right-wing extremist graffiti throughout Germany, often by altering hate speech in humorous ways.

 

In Serbian capital, Belgrade, the graffiti depicting a uniformed former general of Serb army and war criminal, convicted at ICTY for war crimes and crimes against humanity, including genocide and ethnic cleansing in Bosnian War, Ratko Mladić, appeared in a military salute alongside the words "General, thank to your mother". Aleks Eror, Berlin-based journalist, explains how "veneration of historical and wartime figures" through street art is not a new phenomenon in the region of former Yugoslavia, and that "in most cases is firmly focused on the future, rather than retelling the past". Eror is not only analyst pointing to danger of such an expressions for the region's future. In a long expose on the subject of Bosnian genocide denial, at Balkan Diskurs magazine and multimedia platform website, Kristina Gadže and Taylor Whitsell referred to these experiences as a young generations' "cultural heritage", in which young are being exposed to celebration and affirmation of war-criminals as part of their "formal education" and "inheritance".

 

There are numerous examples of genocide denial through celebration and affirmation of war criminals throughout the region of Western Balkans inhabited by Serbs using this form of artistic expression. Several more of these graffiti are found in Serbian capital, and many more across Serbia and Bosnian and Herzegovinian administrative entity, Republika Srpska, which is the ethnic Serbian majority enclave. Critics point that Serbia as a state, is willing to defend the mural of convicted war criminal, and have no intention to react on cases of genocide denial, noting that Interior Minister of Serbia, Aleksandar Vulin decision to ban any gathering with an intent to remove the mural, with the deployment of riot police, sends the message of "tacit endorsement". Consequently, on 9 November 2021, Serbian heavy police in riot gear, with graffiti creators and their supporters, blocked the access to the mural to prevent human rights groups and other activists to paint over it and mark the International Day Against Fascism and Antisemitism in that way, and even arrested two civic activist for throwing eggs at the graffiti.

 

Graffiti may also be used as an offensive expression. This form of graffiti may be difficult to identify, as it is mostly removed by the local authority (as councils which have adopted strategies of criminalization also strive to remove graffiti quickly). Therefore, existing racist graffiti is mostly more subtle and at first sight, not easily recognized as "racist". It can then be understood only if one knows the relevant "local code" (social, historical, political, temporal, and spatial), which is seen as heteroglot and thus a 'unique set of conditions' in a cultural context.

 

A spatial code for example, could be that there is a certain youth group in an area that is engaging heavily in racist activities. So, for residents (knowing the local code), a graffiti containing only the name or abbreviation of this gang already is a racist expression, reminding the offended people of their gang activities. Also a graffiti is in most cases, the herald of more serious criminal activity to come. A person who does not know these gang activities would not be able to recognize the meaning of this graffiti. Also if a tag of this youth group or gang is placed on a building occupied by asylum seekers, for example, its racist character is even stronger.

By making the graffiti less explicit (as adapted to social and legal constraints), these drawings are less likely to be removed, but do not lose their threatening and offensive character.

 

Elsewhere, activists in Russia have used painted caricatures of local officials with their mouths as potholes, to show their anger about the poor state of the roads. In Manchester, England, a graffitists painted obscene images around potholes, which often resulted in them being repaired within 48 hours.

 

In the early 1980s, the first art galleries to show graffitists to the public were Fashion Moda in the Bronx, Now Gallery and Fun Gallery, both in the East Village, Manhattan.

 

A 2006 exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum displayed graffiti as an art form that began in New York's outer boroughs and reached great heights in the early 1980s with the work of Crash, Lee, Daze, Keith Haring, and Jean-Michel Basquiat. It displayed 22 works by New York graffitists, including Crash, Daze, and Lady Pink. In an article about the exhibition in the magazine Time Out, curator Charlotta Kotik said that she hoped the exhibition would cause viewers to rethink their assumptions about graffiti.

 

From the 1970s onwards, Burhan Doğançay photographed urban walls all over the world; these he then archived for use as sources of inspiration for his painterly works. The project today known as "Walls of the World" grew beyond even his own expectations and comprises about 30,000 individual images. It spans a period of 40 years across five continents and 114 countries. In 1982, photographs from this project comprised a one-man exhibition titled "Les murs murmurent, ils crient, ils chantent ..." (The walls whisper, shout and sing ...) at the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris.

 

In Australia, art historians have judged some local graffiti of sufficient creative merit to rank them firmly within the arts. Oxford University Press's art history text Australian Painting 1788–2000 concludes with a long discussion of graffiti's key place within contemporary visual culture, including the work of several Australian practitioners.

 

Between March and April 2009, 150 artists exhibited 300 pieces of graffiti at the Grand Palais in Paris.

 

Spray paint has many negative environmental effects. The paint contains toxic chemicals, and the can uses volatile hydrocarbon gases to spray the paint onto a surface.

 

Volatile organic compound (VOC) leads to ground level ozone formation and most of graffiti related emissions are VOCs. A 2010 paper estimates 4,862 tons of VOCs were released in the United States in activities related to graffiti.

  

In China, Mao Zedong in the 1920s used revolutionary slogans and paintings in public places to galvanize the country's communist movement.

 

Based on different national conditions, many people believe that China's attitude towards Graffiti is fierce, but in fact, according to Lance Crayon in his film Spray Paint Beijing: Graffiti in the Capital of China, Graffiti is generally accepted in Beijing, with artists not seeing much police interference. Political and religiously sensitive graffiti, however, is not allowed.

 

In Hong Kong, Tsang Tsou Choi was known as the King of Kowloon for his calligraphy graffiti over many years, in which he claimed ownership of the area. Now some of his work is preserved officially.

 

In Taiwan, the government has made some concessions to graffitists. Since 2005 they have been allowed to freely display their work along some sections of riverside retaining walls in designated "Graffiti Zones". From 2007, Taipei's department of cultural affairs also began permitting graffiti on fences around major public construction sites. Department head Yong-ping Lee (李永萍) stated, "We will promote graffiti starting with the public sector, and then later in the private sector too. It's our goal to beautify the city with graffiti". The government later helped organize a graffiti contest in Ximending, a popular shopping district. graffitists caught working outside of these designated areas still face fines up to NT$6,000 under a department of environmental protection regulation. However, Taiwanese authorities can be relatively lenient, one veteran police officer stating anonymously, "Unless someone complains about vandalism, we won't get involved. We don't go after it proactively."

 

In 1993, after several expensive cars in Singapore were spray-painted, the police arrested a student from the Singapore American School, Michael P. Fay, questioned him, and subsequently charged him with vandalism. Fay pleaded guilty to vandalizing a car in addition to stealing road signs. Under the 1966 Vandalism Act of Singapore, originally passed to curb the spread of communist graffiti in Singapore, the court sentenced him to four months in jail, a fine of S$3,500 (US$2,233), and a caning. The New York Times ran several editorials and op-eds that condemned the punishment and called on the American public to flood the Singaporean embassy with protests. Although the Singapore government received many calls for clemency, Fay's caning took place in Singapore on 5 May 1994. Fay had originally received a sentence of six strokes of the cane, but the presiding president of Singapore, Ong Teng Cheong, agreed to reduce his caning sentence to four lashes.

 

In South Korea, Park Jung-soo was fined two million South Korean won by the Seoul Central District Court for spray-painting a rat on posters of the G-20 Summit a few days before the event in November 2011. Park alleged that the initial in "G-20" sounds like the Korean word for "rat", but Korean government prosecutors alleged that Park was making a derogatory statement about the president of South Korea, Lee Myung-bak, the host of the summit. This case led to public outcry and debate on the lack of government tolerance and in support of freedom of expression. The court ruled that the painting, "an ominous creature like a rat" amounts to "an organized criminal activity" and upheld the fine while denying the prosecution's request for imprisonment for Park.

 

In Europe, community cleaning squads have responded to graffiti, in some cases with reckless abandon, as when in 1992 in France a local Scout group, attempting to remove modern graffiti, damaged two prehistoric paintings of bison in the Cave of Mayrière supérieure near the French village of Bruniquel in Tarn-et-Garonne, earning them the 1992 Ig Nobel Prize in archeology.

 

In September 2006, the European Parliament directed the European Commission to create urban environment policies to prevent and eliminate dirt, litter, graffiti, animal excrement, and excessive noise from domestic and vehicular music systems in European cities, along with other concerns over urban life.

 

In Budapest, Hungary, both a city-backed movement called I Love Budapest and a special police division tackle the problem, including the provision of approved areas.

 

The Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003 became Britain's latest anti-graffiti legislation. In August 2004, the Keep Britain Tidy campaign issued a press release calling for zero tolerance of graffiti and supporting proposals such as issuing "on the spot" fines to graffiti offenders and banning the sale of aerosol paint to anyone under the age of 16. The press release also condemned the use of graffiti images in advertising and in music videos, arguing that real-world experience of graffiti stood far removed from its often-portrayed "cool" or "edgy'" image.

 

To back the campaign, 123 Members of Parliament (MPs) (including then Prime Minister Tony Blair), signed a charter which stated: "Graffiti is not art, it's crime. On behalf of my constituents, I will do all I can to rid our community of this problem."

 

In the UK, city councils have the power to take action against the owner of any property that has been defaced under the Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003 (as amended by the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005) or, in certain cases, the Highways Act. This is often used against owners of property that are complacent in allowing protective boards to be defaced so long as the property is not damaged.

 

In July 2008, a conspiracy charge was used to convict graffitists for the first time. After a three-month police surveillance operation, nine members of the DPM crew were convicted of conspiracy to commit criminal damage costing at least £1 million. Five of them received prison sentences, ranging from eighteen months to two years. The unprecedented scale of the investigation and the severity of the sentences rekindled public debate over whether graffiti should be considered art or crime.

 

Some councils, like those of Stroud and Loerrach, provide approved areas in the town where graffitists can showcase their talents, including underpasses, car parks, and walls that might otherwise prove a target for the "spray and run".

 

Graffiti Tunnel, University of Sydney at Camperdown (2009)

In an effort to reduce vandalism, many cities in Australia have designated walls or areas exclusively for use by graffitists. One early example is the "Graffiti Tunnel" located at the Camperdown Campus of the University of Sydney, which is available for use by any student at the university to tag, advertise, poster, and paint. Advocates of this idea suggest that this discourages petty vandalism yet encourages artists to take their time and produce great art, without worry of being caught or arrested for vandalism or trespassing.[108][109] Others disagree with this approach, arguing that the presence of legal graffiti walls does not demonstrably reduce illegal graffiti elsewhere. Some local government areas throughout Australia have introduced "anti-graffiti squads", who clean graffiti in the area, and such crews as BCW (Buffers Can't Win) have taken steps to keep one step ahead of local graffiti cleaners.

 

Many state governments have banned the sale or possession of spray paint to those under the age of 18 (age of majority). However, a number of local governments in Victoria have taken steps to recognize the cultural heritage value of some examples of graffiti, such as prominent political graffiti. Tough new graffiti laws have been introduced in Australia with fines of up to A$26,000 and two years in prison.

 

Melbourne is a prominent graffiti city of Australia with many of its lanes being tourist attractions, such as Hosier Lane in particular, a popular destination for photographers, wedding photography, and backdrops for corporate print advertising. The Lonely Planet travel guide cites Melbourne's street as a major attraction. All forms of graffiti, including sticker art, poster, stencil art, and wheatpasting, can be found in many places throughout the city. Prominent street art precincts include; Fitzroy, Collingwood, Northcote, Brunswick, St. Kilda, and the CBD, where stencil and sticker art is prominent. As one moves farther away from the city, mostly along suburban train lines, graffiti tags become more prominent. Many international artists such as Banksy have left their work in Melbourne and in early 2008 a perspex screen was installed to prevent a Banksy stencil art piece from being destroyed, it has survived since 2003 through the respect of local street artists avoiding posting over it, although it has recently had paint tipped over it.

 

In February 2008 Helen Clark, the New Zealand prime minister at that time, announced a government crackdown on tagging and other forms of graffiti vandalism, describing it as a destructive crime representing an invasion of public and private property. New legislation subsequently adopted included a ban on the sale of paint spray cans to persons under 18 and increases in maximum fines for the offence from NZ$200 to NZ$2,000 or extended community service. The issue of tagging become a widely debated one following an incident in Auckland during January 2008 in which a middle-aged property owner stabbed one of two teenage taggers to death and was subsequently convicted of manslaughter.

 

Graffiti databases have increased in the past decade because they allow vandalism incidents to be fully documented against an offender and help the police and prosecution charge and prosecute offenders for multiple counts of vandalism. They also provide law enforcement the ability to rapidly search for an offender's moniker or tag in a simple, effective, and comprehensive way. These systems can also help track costs of damage to a city to help allocate an anti-graffiti budget. The theory is that when an offender is caught putting up graffiti, they are not just charged with one count of vandalism; they can be held accountable for all the other damage for which they are responsible. This has two main benefits for law enforcement. One, it sends a signal to the offenders that their vandalism is being tracked. Two, a city can seek restitution from offenders for all the damage that they have committed, not merely a single incident. These systems give law enforcement personnel real-time, street-level intelligence that allows them not only to focus on the worst graffiti offenders and their damage, but also to monitor potential gang violence that is associated with the graffiti.

 

Many restrictions of civil gang injunctions are designed to help address and protect the physical environment and limit graffiti. Provisions of gang injunctions include things such as restricting the possession of marker pens, spray paint cans, or other sharp objects capable of defacing private or public property; spray painting, or marking with marker pens, scratching, applying stickers, or otherwise applying graffiti on any public or private property, including, but not limited to the street, alley, residences, block walls, and fences, vehicles or any other real or personal property. Some injunctions contain wording that restricts damaging or vandalizing both public and private property, including but not limited to any vehicle, light fixture, door, fence, wall, gate, window, building, street sign, utility box, telephone box, tree, or power pole.

 

To help address many of these issues, many local jurisdictions have set up graffiti abatement hotlines, where citizens can call in and report vandalism and have it removed. San Diego's hotline receives more than 5,000 calls per year, in addition to reporting the graffiti, callers can learn more about prevention. One of the complaints about these hotlines is the response time; there is often a lag time between a property owner calling about the graffiti and its removal. The length of delay should be a consideration for any jurisdiction planning on operating a hotline. Local jurisdictions must convince the callers that their complaint of vandalism will be a priority and cleaned off right away. If the jurisdiction does not have the resources to respond to complaints in a timely manner, the value of the hotline diminishes. Crews must be able to respond to individual service calls made to the graffiti hotline as well as focus on cleanup near schools, parks, and major intersections and transit routes to have the biggest impact. Some cities offer a reward for information leading to the arrest and prosecution of suspects for tagging or graffiti related vandalism. The amount of the reward is based on the information provided, and the action taken.

 

When police obtain search warrants in connection with a vandalism investigation, they are often seeking judicial approval to look for items such as cans of spray paint and nozzles from other kinds of aerosol sprays; etching tools, or other sharp or pointed objects, which could be used to etch or scratch glass and other hard surfaces; permanent marking pens, markers, or paint sticks; evidence of membership or affiliation with any gang or tagging crew; paraphernalia including any reference to "(tagger's name)"; any drawings, writing, objects, or graffiti depicting taggers' names, initials, logos, monikers, slogans, or any mention of tagging crew membership; and any newspaper clippings relating to graffiti crime.

Here's a classy looking geebeege truck from late 1916 or early 1917. You see, this is the problem with having the same design for twelve years. You can't tell what year it is, thus making the identification process slightly inaccurate. Not only was the Model AC a rousing success, but this geebeege body was also widely acclaimed. This geebeege truck used for collecting ashes and trash and used for collecting snow in the wintertime. It's kind of like that one company from Florida that advertised "Free Snow Removal" back in the 1990's. Except that company wasn't so successful in the snow removal business because it never snowed in Florida! You know come to think of it, it actually did this one time when the King was down there for a business opening with his college roommate Bobby and his cousin Paco.

 

So if you remember Paco, he's the richest guy in his little Mexican village, thanks to being in charge of Mexican affairs for Mari-Trade, the drug trading company owned by Elmigo del Rancho. What Paco doesn't know is that he's still poorer than a homeless man's toilet filled with dookie, but he's high all the time, so he doesn't even know where he is for the most part. Now this was 1992, and Mari-Trade had some deep competition, like that one guy Pablo Escobar and his gang down in South America. Man that guy was loaded! Luckily he's not around anymore these days to compete with Mari-Trade.

 

Somehow, Paco managed to make a huge successful coke deal with some gangsters in his village, with the help of Bobby, of course. Remember, the Internet was very new back then, so Bobby easily deterred the shipment of coke and traded it out with some used diapers from a geebeege barge in New York. Those gangsters must've had a sh*tty time without their drugs! Sorry, that was awful, but I'm the King, and the King can do whatever he wants. Now, the shipment came to Mari-Trade, of course, but it was such an overwhelming amount that Mari-Trade couldn't fit it in their storage facility. So, to make business, Rancho decided to expand Mari-Trade operations to Pompano Beach, Florida.

 

To start off the business, Rancho opened up a new convenience store. On the outsider's perspective, Rancho operated a franchise of Mexican convenience stores called El Seño, but in reality these were just cover-ups with loads of drug shipments across North America, particularly coke. Unfortunately for Rancho, his sister was going on a trip at the time and left her 2 young sons with Rancho. Of course Rancho doesn't give a crap about those two little Mexican jumping beans, so he left them in the back room of the convenience store. A few minutes later police responded to some screaming at the convenience store and found those two throwing coke balls and making coke angels! Turns out Rancho's nephews thought that it was snowing in the back room! What a couple of pendejos! Luckily, with Bobby's quick thinking, Rancho's sister got arrested, and Rancho wouldn't get caught until a couple months later. But that's a whole nother thing.

 

So it did snow in Pompano Beach. Now the King was there to help with the clean up, and knew of this one geebeege truck company that advertised free snow removals on their trucks. But for some reason when the King called for the snow removal service, all the dispatcher did was laugh at him. Man, they advertise some great offer only to be a hoax or something. Could've had the whole yard flying high with all that snow.

 

So they wouldn't collect for free, so all Bobby, Paco, and Rancho did was sit down in the pile of coke and started snorting. Man, they must've soared through the roof that night!

 

Coke and free snow removals aside, these trucks were very helpful in assisting with city works in removing real snow off the streets. Real helpful things, those geebeege trucks were back in the good ol' days. Oh crap, now the King is starting to sound like a redneck. You know the King once got into a fight with some redneck outside some geebeege truck yard. Maybe he'll tell you about that next on Evolution of the Kingdom.

POLITICHE DI BUON SENSO SULL'IMMIGRAZIONE

 

L'immigrazione resta uno dei temi più incandescenti e più difficili da affrontare della politica italiana. Ma la semplificazione dei percorsi di cittadinanza è indispensabile per consentire un’effettiva integrazione sociale. A partire dall'introduzione dello jus soli e del voto alle amministrative ai residenti stranieri. Anche perché i lavoratori stranieri in Italia. Il governo Monti ha già dato segnali di svolta rispetto al recente passato. Otterrà risultati adottando un approccio pragmatico.

Tra le scelte qualificanti del governo Monti compare la delega sull’integrazione ad Andrea Riccardi. Qui certamente si coglie una svolta, di linguaggio e di approccio culturale, rispetto al governo precedente. Più volte, poi, il presidente Napolitano ha incitato governo e parlamento a riformare le norme sulla cittadinanza, in favore dei minori nati in Italia da genitori immigrati. Vorremmo quindi provare a suggerire qualche pista di lavoro al nuovo esecutivo, pur sapendo che il tema resta tra i più incandescenti e dunque difficili da maneggiare.

 

SEGUIRE UN APPROCCIO PRAGMATICO

Per questa ragione, il primo suggerimento è quello di adottare un approccio minimalista, pragmatico, scevro di quelle ambizioni di grande riforma che hanno condotto alla sconfitta il ministro Ferrero all’epoca del secondo governo Prodi. Più il nuovo governo riuscirà a depoliticizzare le questioni, a porle sul piano del buon senso, della soluzione di nodi pratici, maggiori saranno le possibilità di coagulare una maggioranza sufficiente nei delicati passaggi parlamentari.

Partiamo allora dalla questione sollevata dal presidente Napolitano, che sarà prevedibilmente al centro del dibattito nei prossimi mesi. Il problema è serio: le norme italiane sono le più restrittive dell’Europa a 15, dopo che la Grecia ha riformato la propria legislazione. Pensare di formare dei buoni cittadini lasciandoli fuori dalla comunità non appare una politica sensata. Ma i minori nati qui sono quelli relativamente avvantaggiati, a patto che non si muovano dall’Italia per più di tre mesi: a 18 anni, fino al compimento dei 19, possono chiedere e ottenere la cittadinanza. I problemi maggiori riguardano i ragazzi ricongiunti, fosse pure all’età di un anno, e quelli che per un certo tempo si allontanano dal territorio nazionale, tipicamente per essere accuditi dai nonni: ricadono nella norma generale dei dieci anni di residenza, più i tempi di esame della pratica. Dunque, l’intervento di riforma dovrebbe puntare soprattutto a concedere la cittadinanza a coloro che hanno frequentato almeno cinque anni di scuola in Italia, eventualmente tra i 13 e i 18 anni.

Un altro grande nodo è quello di una riforma dell’attuale disciplina degli ingressi. Sappiamo che i decreti flussi, nella versione attuale, servono ad altro: a sanare rapporti di lavoro già instaurati, o a favorire l’arrivo di parenti e amici. Meglio allora ripristinare l’istituto dello sponsor (legge Turco-Napolitano), con quote annuali d’ingressi per ricerca di lavoro coperti da congrue fidejussioni e dalla mediazione di un garante. Volendo, si potrebbe aggiungere: con l’aggiunta di una sponda istituzionale (sindacati, enti locali, ong, organizzazioni ecclesiali, eccetera), disponibile a farsi carico dell’insegnamento della lingua italiana, dell’orientamento e del sostegno nella ricerca del lavoro.

Per il settore domestico-assistenziale, si potrebbe anche pensare a sperimentare un sistema di conversione dei permessi di soggiorno, che già esiste per gli studenti che conseguono un titolo di studio in Italia: persone che entrano con un visto turistico e trovano un datore di lavoro disposto ad assumerle regolarmente, potrebbero evitare di passare attraverso la via crucis del lavoro nero e delle sanatorie.

Le politiche migratorie denunciano poi un evidente deficit sul piano dell’attrazione di lavoratori qualificati e della valorizzazione delle competenze dei migranti, più volte posto in rilievo da Tito Boeri. Si potrebbe obiettare: la nostra economia purtroppo non richiede laureati. Noi importiamo braccia ed esportiamo cervelli. Tuttavia, un’esplicita politica di attrazione di immigrati di alto livello, concordata con imprese e centri di ricerca, oltre a metterci in linea con i paesi del primo mondo, avrebbe effetti positivi sulla promozione di un’immagine diversa e diversificata del lavoratore immigrato: non solo manodopera, ma anche capitale umano di pregio. Per farlo, occorre sciogliere però alcuni nodi, come quello di corsie privilegiate per consentire loro di farsi accompagnare dalle famiglie. Oggi gli immigrati qualificati sono sottoposti agli stessi vincoli e alle stesse estenuanti procedure degli altri.

Ma anche tra quanti sono arrivati per le vie normali (ossia perlopiù i faticosi percorsi di emersione: visto turistico-soggiorno irregolare-sanatorie), le persone istruite non mancano. Incontrano però difficoltà spesso insormontabili nel far riconoscere diplomi e competenze. Tra le chiusure attuali e un’assoluta liberalizzazione, dovrebbe essere possibile individuare modalità agili e praticabili di accertamento delle competenze effettive e di convalida almeno di alcuni tipi di titoli.

A questo nodo, se ne accompagna un altro: l’esclusione dal pubblico impiego, a causa di una vecchia norma mai abrogata, ma dichiarata invalida e discriminatoria da molti tribunali quando gli immigrati hanno la forza e le risorse per appellarsi. Anche su questo punto, fatto salvo il caso di funzioni pubbliche in senso proprio, ci si dovrebbe chiedere che senso ha tener fuori gli immigrati dalle aziende di trasporto, dagli ospedali o dai cimiteri.

La politica del buon senso potrebbe prevedere poi un intervento molto semplice: prolungare di un anno i permessi di soggiorno. Oggi molti migranti e i loro datori di lavoro perdono ore e giornate di produzione per queste procedure, gravando nello stesso tempo le questure di scartoffie e sottraendo personale alla lotta alla criminalità. In tempi di crisi economica, c’è poi il rischio concreto che parecchi immigrati non riescano a rinnovare il permesso, senza che questo si traduca in un effettivo allontanamento dal territorio nazionale. Specialmente se hanno qui moglie e figli.

Un problema analogo si pone per gli sbarcati dal Nord-Africa: il governo uscente ha prolungato i loro permessi di soggiorno per ragioni umanitarie. Ma se non si passa a un permesso che consenta loro di guadagnarsi da vivere in maniera onesta e regolare, fabbricheremo degli sbandati, senza però riuscire ad espellerne che una minima parte.

 

E PENSARE ALL’INTEGRAZIONE

Due suggerimenti infine sulle politiche per l’integrazione. La prima riguarda i ricongiungimenti familiari, resi più difficili dal passato governo. Comportano alcuni costi (più servizi scolastici, per esempio), ma promuovono integrazione sociale. Producono radicamento e responsabilità. Prevengono devianza e comportamenti antisociali. Trasformano gli immigrati sconosciuti in vicini di casa. Sono un investimento per la coesione sociale.

L’altra questione, difficile ma ormai matura, concerne la definizione di un’intesa con le minoranze islamiche. Oggi la mancanza di un accordo e la diffusa ostilità contro l’apertura di luoghi di culto si traducono nella realtà di centinaia di sale di preghiera semi-clandestine. Difficile impedire agli esseri umani di incontrarsi per pregare. Occorre invece guardare all’esempio dei nostri vicini, prima fra tutte la laica Francia, per costituire un interlocutore sufficientemente rappresentativo e definire un quadro di regole condivise, consentendo l’esercizio della libertà religiosa con modalità trasparenti e controllabili.

Sappiamo che su argomenti come questi, ad alta sensibilità simbolica ed emotiva, la ricerca del consenso rischia costantemente di prevalere sulle soluzioni ragionevoli. La vicenda delle elezioni milanesi, tra zingaropoli e allarme-moschee, insegna però che non sempre gli elettori sono disposti a seguire gli imprenditori politici della paura.

mambroini_simansi

    

And the Evobus rep and customer services staff headed straight towards BJ16KXL a Mercedes Benz Tourismo C48FT that had been delivered THIS MORNING....Photo taken Corley services 15/06/16

Hans Rudi Erdt (Germany 1883-1918)

Sunday at the Texas Renaissance Festival's Pirates Weekend was another scorcher - hot and humid with bright sun all day - not the best conditions for performers and patrons so I tried to stay in the shade all day. Also, the crowds were lower than usual. Maybe that is why I seem to have mostly shots of bar keep babes and belly dancers. Not that there is a problem with that but I will broaden my horizons next time.

 

I took these photos at TRF on Pirate Sunday in mid-October 2019. TRF is held at Todds Mission, TX, about 50 miles NW of Houston.

via

 

Many women deal with skin problems that are the major reasons behind their low confidence. Some of these problems are uneven skin tone, acne scars and dark circles around the eyes. Different products are available in the market for all customers to try. In fact, it is possible for you to purchase skin lightening innovations in different forms. These may appear in the form of pills, face masks or the common whitening cream. Skin bleaching products are cheaper than treatments offered in derma-aesthetic centers.

 

What can you do to your skin?

 

Changing bad habits can show big differences if you want to improve your skin. Note that your present lifestyle can also be the cause of skin imperfections. Drinking enough water can hydrate and moisturize the skin. Quitting smoking can alleviate dark spots. Adequate sleep relieves tired-looking eyes. Wearing sunblock can prevent skin darkening.

 

Observe your habits closely and determine those that affect your skin the most. These skin imperfections are reversible, and so are their causes. Recent signs of skin imperfections indicate a bad change to your habits. They must be overturned immediately especially if it’s a lack of sleep. This not only gives dark and heavy eyebags but also weakens the immune system.

 

Good sanitary habit is also a key. Avoid touching your hands with dirty fingers. Stay away from dusty places. Avoid foods that cause skin allergy and itchiness. These are good solutions, but they may not work for everyone. If all these fail, then skin products may be what you need.

 

What is Skin Bleaching?

 

Bleaching your skin explained

 

Skin bleaching is an effective way to even out your skin tone. It works by using chemicals to reduce the melanin in the skin. Melanin is the substance, which gives color and shade to our hair, eyes and skin. The color of the skin is determined by the presence of melanin. The more melanin your skin has, the darker your skin color will be. Skin whitening reduces the amount of melanin in the skin to make it lighter.

 

Precautions Before you Purchase

 

The greatest concerns regarding these products are their harsh ingredients. Strong chemicals are used in skin bleaching This should be done by an expert or with the advice of a professional. There are potential risks associated with it. These risks are sometimes not stated in the labels of the products you buy.

 

Mercury

 

Skin whitening products may have mercury. This can cause skin illnesses and worse complications. It is also a highly toxic chemical. It can cause neurologic and kidney problems. Worse cases can lead to mercury poisoning. Manufacturing companies can disguise mercury under many names. This is done so the product is sold easier. Its other names can be calomel or mercuric.

 

Hydroquinone

 

Another ingredient to watch out for is hydroquinone. This is an extensively strong ingredient. It is commonly present in skin lightening products all over the world. Prolonged and abusive use of this ingredient can cause premature aging. Hydroquinone stops melanin from being reproduced.

 

If you plan to use products with hydroquinone, then it is necessary to apply sunblock as well. This can protect the skin from being burned. Excessive use of this can cause untreatable skin conditions, such as ochronosis. Hydroquinone is actually recognized as one of the best skin lightening products in the market worldwide. This may be the reason why it is accessible to consumers everywhere.

 

When buying a skin lightening product, the hydroquinone content shouldn’t be more than 2%. It is best not to purchase products with no accurate information regarding its hydroquinone contents.

 

Steroids

 

Some options for bleaching skin cream in the market can also have steroids. Any miscalculation by the product’s manufacturer can cause skin infections. These include acne, blemishes and other skin problems. Anything applied unto the skin will eventually get absorbed into the body. These include creams and beauty products with steroids. Inappropriate use by the consumer can harm or irritate the skin.

 

Facts about skin bleaching

 

Bleaching Creams: Proper Use

 

Professionals will give you different instructions on how to bleach your skin. Procedures can also vary depending on the product. This is commonly based on the product’s potency. Instructions will also depend on the skin type and sensitivity. It may also differ on the body part you wish to bleach. Sensitive areas have thinner skin than the rest of the body. These include the face, neck and armpits. Greater care should be considered when bleaching these areas.

 

Harsh or strong chemicals can darken them easily. There are also special creams for these body parts while also providing other benefits. A face bleaching cream doesn’t only lighten skin but also moisturizes. This can make the skin look alive and younger. Underarm lightening creams also smoothen chicken skin and limit hair growth.

 

It’s best to follow prescriptions when buying skin lightening products for the first time. The directions given by dermatologists can’t always be correct. It is best to record your own observations as well. The skin’s reaction to new or certain products should also be noted. Consult the skin specialist about the product’s effects and ask if they are natural.

 

Some bleaching solutions like hydroquinone give the skin a fiery-red flush. This usually happens a few days before it exfoliates. Light exfoliation is commonly accompanied by a light stingy feeling. This is normal to almost any process involving your skin.

 

The post Skin Bleaching 101 appeared first on Find The Best Skin Lightening Cream.

 

skinlighteningcreams.net/skin-bleaching-101/

US Independence Day 2015

 

Benjamin Franklin Parkway

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

 

Thank you to those who have made me their contact. Due to poor health, eye problems and low energy I regret I can't take on any new contacts but nearly always manage to reply to your comments. Please no more than 1 invite.

but designs AIN'T one!!

Empezaron los problemas

se engancho a la pena

se aferro a la soledad

ya no mira las estrellas

mira sus ojeras

cansada de pelear.

 

Olvidandose de todo

busca algún modo

de encontrar su libertad

el cerrojo que le aprieta

le pone cadenas

y nunca descansa en paz

y tu dignidad se a quedado

esperando a que vuelvas.

 

Que nadie calle tu verdad

que nadie te ahogue el corazón

que nadie te haga más llorar

hundiendote en silencio

que nadie te obligue a morir

cortando tu alas al volar

que vuelvan tus ganas de vivir...

HPIM8672

Injector problems with 'Castle' No. 5029 'Nunney Castle' resulted in Pathfinder Tours 'Exmoor Coast Express' being piloted by Rail Express Services (RES) No. 47761 on their 0625 Derby - Minehead on 17th March 2001. 'Nunney Castle' joined the train at Nuneaton, as did No. 47761, and the pair are seen pounding up the 1-in-85 drag from St.Andrews Junction onto the Camp Hill Line just as they cross the Great Western Mainline at Bordesley. Plenty of clag from both enlivens a very cold, snowy morning. Copyright Photograph John Whitehouse - all rights reserved

the absence of evidence for extraterrestrial intelligence. For the type ofestimation problem, see Fermi problem. For the music album, see Fermi Paradox (album). For the short story, see The Fermi Paradox Is Our Business Model.A graphical representation of the Arecibo message – Humanity's first

attempt to use radio waves to actively communicate its existence to alien civilizations. The Fermi paradox (or Fermi's paradox) is the apparent contradiction between high estimates of the probability of the existence of extraterrestrial civilization and humanity's lack of contact with, or evidence for, such civilizations.[1] The basic points of the argument,

made by physicists Enrico Fermi and Michael H. Hart, are:

• The Sun is a young star. There are billions of stars in the galaxy that are billions of years older;• Some of these stars likely have Earth-like planets[2] which, if the Earth is typical, may develop intelligent life;• Presumably some of these civilizations will develop interstellar travel, as Earth seems likely to do;• At any practical pace of interstellar travel, the galaxy can be completely colonized in just a few tens of millions of years.According to this line of thinking, the Earth should have already been colonized, or at least visited. But no convincing evidence of this exists.Furthermore, no confirmed signs of intelligence elsewhere have been spotted, either in our galaxy or the more than 80 billion other galaxies of

the observable universe. Hence Fermi's question "Where is everybody?"

brainu.org/files/wikipedia_fermi_paradox_information.pdf

Frank Drake in 1961 in an attempt to find a systematic means to evaluate the numerous probabilities involved in the existence of alien life. The speculative equation considers the rate of star formation in the galaxy; the fraction of stars with planets and the number per star that are habitable; the fraction of those planets that develop life; the fraction that develop intelligent life; the fraction that have detectable, technological intelligent life; and finally the length of time such communicable civilizations are detectable. The fundamental problem is that the last four terms are completely unknown, rendering statistical estimates impossible.There are two parts of the Fermi paradox that rely on empirical evidence—that there are many potential habitable planets, and that we see no evidence of life. The first point, that many suitable planets exist, was an assumption in Fermi's time that is gaining ground with the discovery of many exoplanets, and models predicting billions of habitable worlds in our galaxy..The second part of the paradox, that we see no evidence of extraterrestrial life, is also an active field of scientific research. This includes both efforts to find any indication of life,[36] and efforts specifically directed to finding intelligent life. These searches have been made since 1960, and several are ongoing?Those who think that intelligent extraterrestrial life is (nearly) impossible argue that the conditions needed for the evolution of life—or at least the evolution of biological complexity—are rare or even unique to Earth. Under this assumption, called the rare Earth hypothesis, a rejection of the mediocrity principle, complex multicellular life is regarded as exceedingly unusual.The Rare Earth hypothesis argues that the evolution of biological complexity requires a host of fortuitous circumstances, such as a galactic habitable zone, a central star and planetary system having the requisite character, the circumstellar habitable zone, a right sized terrestrial planet, the advantage of a giant guardian like Jupiter and a large natural satellite, conditions needed to ensure the planet has a magnetosphere and plate tectonics, the chemistry of the lithosphere, atmosphere, and oceans, the role of "evolutionary pumps" such as massive glaciation and rare bolide impacts, and whatever led to the appearance of the eukaryote cell, sexual reproduction and the Cambrian explosion.This is the argument that technological civilizations may usually or invariably destroy themselves before or shortly after developing radio or spaceflight technology. Possible means of annihilation are many,[68] including war, accidental environmental contamination, or poorly designed artificial intelligence. This general theme is explored both in fiction and in scientific hypothesizing. In 1966, Sagan and Shklovskii speculated that technological civilizations will either tend to destroy themselves within a century of developing interstellar communicative capability or master their self-destructive tendencies and survive for billion-year timescales.Self-annihilation may also be viewed in terms of thermodynamics: insofar as life is an ordered system that can sustain itself against the tendency to disorder, the "external transmission" or interstellar communicative phase may be the point at which the system becomes unstable and self-destructs.Another hypothesis is that an intelligent species beyond a certain point of technological capability will destroy other intelligent species as they appear. The idea that something, or someone, might be destroying intelligent life in the universe has been explored in the scientific literature. A species might undertake such extermination out of expansionist motives, paranoia, or aggression. In 1981, cosmologist Edward Harrison argued that such behavior would be an act of prudence: an intelligent species that has overcome its own self-destructive tendencies might view any other species bent on galactic expansion as a threat It has also been suggested that a successful alien species would be a superpredator, as are humans.New life might commonly die out due to runaway heating or cooling on their fledgling planets.On Earth, there have been numerous major extinction events that destroyed the majority of complex species alive at the time; the extinction of the dinosaurs is the best known example. These are thought to have been caused by events such as impact from a large meteorite, massive volcanic eruptions, or astronomical events such as gamma-ray bursts.[76] It may be the case that such extinction events are common throughout the universe and periodically destroy intelligent life, or at least its civilizations, before the species is able to develop the technology to communicate with other species.

There are so many of these once beautiful stately houses being neglected and soon to crumble!!!

The one problem with spotting down here is that the tourists flock down here and make far-back nearside shots really rather difficult - such as in this case. A lack of room to back out means that the photos come out horribly glared, too, so I'm forced to put up with whatever I can get over style and substance. Prepare for some dodgily-framed shots!

 

I've ran out of interesting descriptors again - seen here coming rather unexpectedly up the High Street, Stagecoach Oxford Tube's 50432, a 2020 Volvo B11RET Plaxton Panorama, heads out for another run on the Tube to London Victoria coach station.

Some of my illustrations for "First World Problems", published by Weldon Owen 2013 - www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1616284102

Problems with getting a good colour balance with the old Agfa colour slide prompted me to render it as a black and white image. Here, former Great Western Railway Small Prairie 2-6-2T No.4588 stands at Kingswear station before heading to back to the start of the 7- mile branch line at Paignton. British Rail had ceded operation of the branch to the operators of the Dart Valley Railway with effect from 1 January 1973.

 

October 1973

Zorki 4 camera

Agfa CT18 film.

I have nothing to prove to others! I don't follow the crowd! I walk my own life path! If you have a problem with that it's on you!

 

8F 48151 crosses the main road in Settle with a Peterborough to Carlisle special on 2nd March 2019.It was much easier waiting for this train as on Saturdays there are less quarry lorries about and the road was alot quieter than normal.I did have a white van turn up at the last minute and parked on my right which i have managed to get rid of by moving abit forward.Also the wires are a problem here but its something you have to put up with.

I remember taking a shot here in the 1980's and there were less wires then.

not the right measurements? i don't give a damn, give me food!

Here is Arriva Buses Wales VDL Cadet CX04 AXW 2480 is seen at the Bangor bus station as it's operating the route 4A to Llangefni but this one has problems with the front destination board which is not working properly, then they send another bus as 2480 is returning to depot.

Luftbild von Spuren im Acker

New Islington Marina,Manchester.

Available on MP here.

One major problem a lot of people mentioned about Lewa is his chest looked too bulky. I thought it was because of the Nuva armor or his wide shoulders (it still might have been), but I raised the neck one stud and I think it looks a bit better. I also changed the chest armoring a bit, adding one stud to his torso so that it fixes many of the proportion issues mentioned by DeeVee.

If you don't like violence.. I am sorry.

 

(if you want to use my design please ask for permission first)

The de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito was a British multi-role combat aircraft with a two-man crew that served during and after the Second World War. It was one of few operational front-line aircraft of the era constructed almost entirely of wood and was nicknamed "The Wooden Wonder". The Mosquito was also known affectionately as the "Mossie" to its crews. Originally conceived as an unarmed fast bomber, the Mosquito was adapted to roles including low to medium-altitude daytime tactical bomber, high-altitude night bomber, pathfinder, day or night fighter, fighter-bomber, intruder, maritime strike aircraft, and fast photo-reconnaissance aircraft. It was also used by the British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) as a fast transport to carry small high-value cargoes to, and from, neutral countries, through enemy-controlled airspace.

 

When the Mosquito began production in 1941, it was one of the fastest operational aircraft in the world. Entering widespread service in 1942, the Mosquito was a high-speed, high-altitude photo-reconnaissance aircraft, continuing in this role throughout the war. From mid-1942 to mid-1943 Mosquito bombers flew high-speed, medium or low-altitude missions against factories, railways and other pinpoint targets in Germany and German-occupied Europe. From late 1943, Mosquito bombers were formed into the Light Night Strike Force and used as pathfinders for RAF Bomber Command's heavy-bomber raids. They were also used as "nuisance" bombers, often dropping Blockbuster bombs - 4,000 lb (1,812 kg) "cookies" - in high-altitude, high-speed raids that German night fighters were almost powerless to intercept.

 

As a night fighter, from mid-1942, the Mosquito intercepted Luftwaffe raids on the United Kingdom, notably defeating Operation Steinbock in 1944. Starting in July 1942, Mosquito night-fighter units raided Luftwaffe airfields. As part of 100 Group, it was a night fighter and intruder supporting RAF Bomber Command's heavy bombers and reduced bomber losses during 1944 and 1945. As a fighter-bomber in the Second Tactical Air Force, the Mosquito took part in "special raids", such as the attack on Amiens Prison in early 1944, and in precision attacks against Gestapo or German intelligence and security forces. Second Tactical Air Force Mosquitos supported the British Army during the 1944 Normandy Campaign. From 1943 Mosquitos with RAF Coastal Command strike squadrons attacked Kriegsmarine U-boats (particularly in the 1943 Bay of Biscay, where significant numbers were sunk or damaged) and intercepting transport ship concentrations.

 

The Mosquito flew with the Royal Air Force (RAF) and other air forces in the European theatre, and the Mediterranean and Italian theatres. The Mosquito was also used by the RAF in the South East Asian theatre, and by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) based in the Halmaheras and Borneo during the Pacific War.

 

By the early-mid-1930s, de Havilland had a reputation for innovative high-speed aircraft with the DH.88 Comet racer. The later DH.91 Albatross airliner pioneered the composite wood construction that the Mosquito used. The 22-passenger Albatross could cruise at 210 miles per hour (340 km/h) at 11,000 feet (3,400 m), better than the 100 miles per hour (160 km/h) Handley Page H.P.42 and other biplanes it was replacing. The wooden monocoque construction not only saved weight and compensated for the low power of the de Havilland Gipsy Twelve engines used by this aircraft, but simplified production and reduced construction time.

 

Air Ministry bomber requirements and concepts:

 

On 8 September 1936, the British Air Ministry issued Specification P.13/36 which called for a twin-engined medium bomber capable of carrying a bomb load of 3,000 pounds (1,400 kg) for 3,000 miles (4,800 km) with a maximum speed of 275 miles per hour (443 km/h) at 15,000 feet (4,600 m); a maximum bomb load of 8,000 pounds (3,600 kg) which could be carried over shorter ranges was also specified. Aviation firms entered heavy designs with new high-powered engines and multiple defensive turrets, leading to the production of the Avro Manchester and Handley Page Halifax.

 

In May 1937, as a comparison to P.13/36, George Volkert, the chief designer of Handley Page, put forward the concept of a fast unarmed bomber. In 20 pages, Volkert planned an aerodynamically clean medium bomber to carry 3,000 pounds (1,400 kg) of bombs at a cruising speed of 300 miles per hour (480 km/h). There was support in the RAF and Air Ministry; Captain R N Liptrot, Research Director Aircraft 3 (RDA3), appraised Volkert's design, calculating that its top speed would exceed the new Supermarine Spitfire. There were, however, counter-arguments that, although such a design had merit, it would not necessarily be faster than enemy fighters for long. The ministry was also considering using non-strategic materials for aircraft production, which, in 1938, had led to specification B.9/38 and the Armstrong Whitworth Albemarle medium bomber, largely constructed from spruce and plywood attached to a steel-tube frame. The idea of a small, fast bomber gained support at a much earlier stage than sometimes acknowledged though it was unlikely that the Air Ministry envisaged it not using light alloy components.

  

Project Mosquito:

 

Once design of the DH.98 had started, de Havilland built mock-ups, the most detailed at Salisbury Hall, in the hangar where E0234 was being built. Initially, this was designed with the crew enclosed in the fuselage behind a transparent nose (similar to the Bristol Blenheim or Heinkel He 111H), but this was quickly altered to a more solid nose with a more conventional canopy.

 

The construction of the prototype began in March 1940, but work was cancelled again after the Battle of Dunkirk, when Lord Beaverbrook, as Minister of Aircraft Production, decided there was no production capacity for aircraft like the DH.98, which was not expected to be in service until early 1941. Although Lord Beaverbrook told Air Vice-Marshal Freeman that work on the project had better stop, he did not issue a specific instruction, and Freeman ignored the request. In June 1940, however, Lord Beaverbrook and the Air Staff ordered that production was to focus on five existing types, namely the Supermarine Spitfire, Hawker Hurricane, Vickers Wellington, Armstrong-Whitworth Whitley and the Bristol Blenheim. Work on the DH.98 prototype stopped, and it seemed that the project would be shut down when the design team were denied the materials with which to build their prototype.

 

The Mosquito was only reinstated as a priority in July 1940, after de Havilland's General Manager L.C.L Murray, promised Lord Beaverbrook 50 Mosquitoes by December 1941, and this, only after Beaverbrook was satisfied that Mosquito production would not hinder de Havilland's primary work of producing Tiger Moth and Oxford trainers and repairing Hurricanes as well as the licence manufacture of Merlin engines. In promising Beaverbrook 50 Mosquitoes by the end of 1941, de Havilland was taking a gamble, because it was unlikely that 50 Mosquitos could be built in such a limited time; as it transpired only 20 Mosquitos were built in 1941, but the other 30 were delivered by mid-March 1942.

 

During the Battle of Britain, nearly a third of de Havilland's factory time was lost because the workers took cover in the factory's bomb shelters. Nevertheless, work on the prototype went quickly, such that E0234 was rolled out on 19 November 1940.

 

In the aftermath of the Battle of Britain, the original order was changed to 20 bomber variants and 30 fighters. It was still uncertain whether the fighter version should have dual or single controls, or should carry a turret, so three prototypes were eventually built: W4052, W4053 and W4073. The latter, both turret armed, were later disarmed, to become the prototypes for the T.III trainer. This caused some delays as half-built wing components had to be strengthened for the expected higher combat load requirements. The nose sections also had to be altered, omitting the clear perspex bomb-aimer's position, to solid noses designed to house four .303 machine guns and their ammunition.

 

Overview:

 

The Mosquito was a fast, twin-engined aircraft with shoulder-mounted wings. The most-produced variant, designated the FB Mk VI (Fighter-bomber Mark 6), was powered by two Merlin Mk 23 or Mk 25 engines driving three-bladed de Havilland hydromatic propellers. The typical fixed armament for an FB Mk VI was four Browning .303 machine guns and four 20 mm Hispano cannon while the offensive load consisted of up to 2,000 pounds (910 kg) of bombs, or eight RP-3 unguided rockets.

 

Construction:

 

The oval-section fuselage was a frameless monocoque shell built in two halves being formed to shape by band clamps over a mahogany or concrete mould, each holding one half of the fuselage, split vertically. The shell halves were made of sheets of Ecuadorean balsawood sandwiched between sheets of Canadian birch, but in areas needing extra strength— such as along cut-outs— stronger woods replaced the balsa filler; the overall thickness of the birch and balsa sandwich skin was only 7⁄16 inch (11 mm). This sandwich skin was so stiff that no internal reinforcement was necessary from the wing's rear spar to the tail bearing bulkhead. The join was along the vertical centre line. This split construction greatly aided the assembly of the internal equipment as it allowed the technicians easy access to the fuselage interior. While the glue in the plywood skin dried, carpenters cut a sawtooth joint into the edges of the fuselage shells, while other workers installed the controls and cabling on the inside wall. When the glue completely dried, the two halves were glued and screwed together. The fuselage was strengthened internally by seven bulkheads made up of two plywood skins parted by spruce blocks, which formed the basis on each half for the outer shell. Each bulkhead was a repeat of the spruce design for the fuselage halves; a balsa sheet sandwich between two plywood sheets/skins. Bulkhead number seven carried the fittings and loads for the tailplane and rudder, The type of glue originally used was Casein, which was later replaced by "Aerolite", a synthetic urea-formaldehyde, which was more durable. Many other types of screws and flanges (made of various woods) also held the structure together.

 

The fuselage construction joints were made from balsa wood and plywood strips with the spruce multi-ply being connected by a balsa V joint, along with the interior frame. The spruce would be reinforced by plywood strips at the point where the two halves joined to form the V-joint. Located on top of the joint the plywood formed the outer skin. During the joining of the two halves ("boxing up"), two laminated wooden clamps would be used in the after portion of the fuselage to act as support. A covering of doped Madapolam (a fine plain woven cotton) fabric was stretched tightly over the shell and a coat of silver dope was applied, after which the exterior camouflage was applied. The fuselage had a large ventral section cut-out, which was braced during construction, to allow it to be lowered onto the wing centre-section. Once the wing was secured the lower panels were replaced, and the bomb bay or armament doors fitted.

 

The all-wood wing was built as a one-piece structure and was not divided into separate construction sections. It was made up of two main spars, spruce and plywood compression ribs, stringers, and a plywood covering. The outer plywood skin was covered and doped like the fuselage. The wing was installed into the roots by means of four large attachment points. The engine radiators were fitted in the inner wing, just outboard of the fuselage on either side. These gave less drag. The radiators themselves were split into three sections: an oil cooler section outboard, the middle section forming the coolant radiator and the inboard section serving the cabin heater. The wing contained metal framed and skinned ailerons, but the flaps were made of wood and were hydraulically controlled. The nacelles were mostly wood, although, for strength, the engine mounts were all metal as were the undercarriage parts. Engine mounts of welded steel tube were added, along with simple landing gear oleos filled with rubber blocks. Wood was used to carry only in-plane loads, with metal fittings used for all triaxially loaded components such as landing gear, engine mounts, control surface mounting brackets, and the wing-to-fuselage junction. The outer leading wing edge had to be brought 22 inches (56 cm) further forward to accommodate this design. The main tail unit was all wood built. The control surfaces, the rudder and elevator, were aluminium framed and fabric covered. The total weight of metal castings and forgings used in the aircraft was only 280 lb (130 kg).

 

In November 1944, several crashes occurred in the Far East. At first, it was thought these were as a result of wing structure failures. The casein glue, it was said, cracked when exposed to extreme heat and/or monsoon conditions. This caused the upper surfaces to "lift" from the main spar. An investigating team led by Major Hereward de Havilland travelled to India and produced a report in early December 1944 stating that "the accidents were not caused by the deterioration of the glue but by shrinkage of the airframe during the wet monsoon season". However a later inquiry by Cabot & Myers definitely attributed the accidents to faulty manufacture and this was confirmed by a further investigation team by the Ministry of Aircraft Production at Defford which found faults in six different Marks of Mosquito (all built at de Havilland's Hatfield and Leavesden plants) which showed similar defects, and none of the aircraft had been exposed to monsoon conditions or termite attack; thus it was concluded that there were construction defects found at the two plants. It was found that the "Standard of glueing...left much to be desired”. Records at the time showed that accidents caused by "loss of control" were three times more frequent on Mosquitoes than on any other type of aircraft. The Air Ministry forestalled any loss of confidence in the Mosquito by holding to Major de Havilland's initial investigation in India that the accidents were caused "largely by climate" To solve the problem, a sheet of plywood was set along the span of the wing to seal the entire length of the skin joint along the main spar.

 

Information regarding the de Havilland DH98 Mosquito has been taken from excerpts contained on Wikipedia

 

Aston Martin Ulster Roadster (1936)

 

In 1927 Aston Martin was taken over by race driver A. C. Bertelli. He designed a 1.5-litre, SOHC engine which would eventually power the LeMans-racing Ulster. Thoughout the years the engine was devloped to include dry sump lubrication.

 

The Aston Martin Ulster stands as one of the most respected pre-war racecars. It was largely based on the Mark II which came before it.

 

The Ulster had a breif two year race program. During this time they dominated the British Tourist Trophy at Goodwood. In 1934, Ulsters took first, second and third place. The best LeMans result was achieved in 1935. Chassis LM20 raced to third overall which put it first in the 1101 to 1500cc class.

 

After the race efforts, Aston Martin readied a production version of the LeMans cars. Twenty-One of these cars were built of which all are accounted for today.

 

Aston Martin Ulster information used from:

 

www.supercars.net/cars/2084.html

 

In the 1980's a small number (7) replicas of the Aston Martin Ulster Roadster were manufactured as a kit car:

 

Fergus Mosquito (Aston Martin Ulster replica)

 

Kop Hill Climb - 25th September 2011

 

Fergus Mosquito - an Aston Martin Ulster replica.

 

Only seven were made in Kingsbridge, Devon, in the 1980s, using donor Morris Marina B-series engines and other parts.

 

UIJ233 is the best of the 7 replicas.

 

These two models, the de Havilland DH98 Mosquito aircraft and the Aston Martin Ulster Roadster of 1936 have been created in Lego miniland scale for Flickr LUGNuts' 79th Build Challenge, - 'LUGNuts goes Wingnuts" - featuring automotive vehicles named after, inspired by or related to aircraft.

.The Mana Spirits, also known as Elemental Spirits, are magical beings representative of the elements that make up the world. There are eight spirits in all:Salamander, the spirit of fire Undine, the spirit of water, Gnome, the spirit of earth, Jinn, the spirit of wind, Dryad, the spirit of wood,Luna, the spirit of the moon,Wisp, the spirit of light,Shade, the spirit of darkness.According to Seiken Densetsu 3, in her creation of the world, the Mana Goddess forged the Mana Sword and with it sealed the eight God-Beasts inside Mana Stones, which were then scattered across the world; the Elementals were charged with the duty of protecting the Stones. While each Elemental is a powerful spirit, being an embodiment has a drawback in that they can be physically harmed or limited, notably Jinn (Sylphid) in Seiken Densetsu 3 and Salamando in Secret of Mana. In the World History Encyclopedia featured in Legend of Mana, the Elementals are descended from the Mana Goddess, the embodiment of the creative and destructive forces of Mana, each being born from the light which formed the respective elements of Fa'Diel, the world of Mana.There is a basic system of opposing elemental pairs in the games before Legend of Mana: Undine (water) and Salamando (fire); Gnome (earth) and Sylphid/Jinn (wind); Lumina/Wisp (light) and Shade (darkness); Dryad (nature) and Luna (celestial). The system works differently in Legend of Mana, with the four Western Elements in a circular relationship: Undine overcomes Salamander, who overcomes Gnome, who overcomes Jinn, who overcomes Undine, thus launching the cycle over again; while Wisp and Shade are opposites, and Aura (gold/metal) becomes the new opposite to Dryad (wood) (see Elements).

mana.wikia.com/wiki/Mana_Spirit

www.mythsdreamssymbols.com/dreamsarchetypes.html

 

Imagine you are sitting in a theater, listening to a heroine sing longingly of her beloved. Suddenly the stage is invaded by two bands of acrobatic warriors. They tumble and twirl, cartwheel and somersault, flip this way and that. From the orchestra come sounds of cymbal, gong, and clapper to punctuate the action.

Dreams and myths are constellations of archetypal images. They are not free compositions by an artist who plans them for artistic or informational effects. Dreams and myths happen to human beings. The archetype speaks through us. It is a presence and a possibility of "significance." The ancients called them "gods" and "goddesses."What then is an archetype? Jung discovered that humans have a "preconscious psychic disposition that enables a (man) to react in a human manner." These potentials for creation are actualized when they enter consciousness as images. There is a very important distinction between the "unconscious, pre- existent disposition" and the "archetypal image." The archetype may emerge into consciousness in myriads of variations. To put it another way, there are a very few basic archetypes or patterns which exist at the unconscious level, but there are an infinite variety of specific images which point back to these few patterns. Since these potentials for significance are not under conscious control, we may tend to fear them and deny their existence through repression. This has been a marked tendency in Modern Man, the man created by the French Revolution, the man who seeks to lead a life that is totally rational and under conscious control. Where do the archetypes come from? In his earlier work, Jung tried to link the archetypes to heredity and regarded them as instinctual. We are born with these patterns which structure our imagination and make it distinctly human. Archetypes are thus very closely linked to our bodies. In his later work, Jung was convinced that the archetypes are psychoid, that is, "they shape matter (nature) as well as mind (psyche)" (Houston Smith, Forgotten Truth, 40). In other words, archetypes are elemental forces which play a vital role in the creation of the world and of the human mind itself. The ancients called them elemental spirits How do archetypes operate? Jung found the archetypal patterns and images in every culture and in every time period of human history. They behaved according to the same laws in all cases. He postulated the Universal Unconscious to account for this fact. We humans do not have separate, personal unconscious minds. We share a single Universal Unconscious. Mind is rooted in the Unconscious just as a tree is rooted in the ground. Imagine the Universal Unconscious as a cosmic computer. Our minds are subdirectories of the root directory. If we look in our personal "work areas," we find much material that is unique to our historical experience--could only have happened to us--but it is shaped according to universal patterns. If we humans have the courage to seek the source to which our "account" belongs, we begin to discover ever more impersonal and universal patterns. The directories of the cosmic computer to which we can gain access are filled with the myths of the human species. Modern man fancies that he has escaped the myths through his conscious repudiation of revealed religion in favor of a purely rational natural religion (read: Natural Science). But consider his theories of human origin. In the beginning, there was a Big Bang, a cosmic explosion. This is an image from which reason may begin to work, but it is not itself a rational statement. It is a mythical construct. Consider the theory of biological evolution. Man's ancestors emerge from the seas, and they in turn emerged from a cosmic soup of DNA. The majority of creation myths also begin with the same image of man emerging from primordial oceans. See Genesis 1 or the Babylonian creation epic. Consider the Modern tendency to call ourselves persons from the Latin persona. The term derives from the "mask" of Dionysus. Moderns are the wearers of masks! The reality is concealed in the darkness of mystery. This too is a mythical construct. Synchronicity Personality theorists have argued for many years about whether psychological processes function in terms of mechanism or teleology. Mechanism is the idea that things work in through cause and effect: One thing leads to another which leads to another, and so on, so that the past determines the present. Teleology is the idea that we are lead on by our ideas about a future state, by things like purposes, meanings, values, and so on. Mechanism is linked with determinism and with the natural sciences. Teleology is linked with free will and has become rather rare. It is still common among moral, legal, and religious philosophers, and, of course, among personality theorists. Among the people discussed in this book, Freudians and behaviorists tend to be mechanists, while the neo-Freudians, humanists, and existentialists tend to be teleologists. Jung believes that both play a part. But he adds a third alternative called synchronicity.

Synchronicity is the occurrence of two events that are not linked causally, nor linked teleologically, yet are meaningfully related. Once, a client was describing a dream involving a scarab beetle when, at that very instant, a very similar beetle flew into the window. Often, people dream about something, like the death of a loved one, and find the next morning that their loved one did, in fact, die at about that time. Sometimes people pick up he phone to call a friend, only to find that their friend is already on the line. Most psychologists would call these things coincidences, or try to show how they are more likely to occur than we think. Jung believed the were indications of how we are connected, with our fellow humans and with nature in general, through the collective unconscious. Jung was never clear about his own religious beliefs. But this unusual idea of synchronicity is easily explained by the Hindu view of reality. In the Hindu view, our individual egos are like islands in a sea: We look out at the world and each other and think we are separate entities. What we don't see is that we are connected to each other by means of the ocean floor beneath the waters. The outer world is called maya, meaning illusion, and is thought of as God's dream or God's dance. That is, God creates it, but it has no reality of its own. Our individual egos they call jivatman, which means individual souls. But they, too, are something of an illusion. We are all actually extensions of the one and only Atman, or God, who allows bits of himself to forget his identity, to become apparently separate and independent, to become us. But we never truly are separate. When we die, we wake up and realize who we were from the beginning: God. When we dream or meditate, we sink into our personal unconscious, coming closer and closer to our true selves, the collective unconscious. It is in states like this that we are especially open to "communications" from other egos. Synchronicity makes Jung's theory one of the rare ones that is not only compatible with parapsychological phenomena, but actually tries to explain them!

www.mythsdreamssymbols.com/dreamsarchetypes.html

 

On this day ghosts and other supernatural creatures come out from the Underworld and move among the living. Families prepare food and other offerings and place them on a shrine dedicated to deceased relatives.Mana You must understand that these archetypes are not really biological things, like Freud's instincts. They are more spiritual demands. For example, if you dreamt about long things, Freud might suggest these things represent the phallus and ultimately sex. But Jung might have a very different interpretation. Even dreaming quite specifically about a penis might not have much to do with some unfulfilled need for sex. It is curious that in primitive societies, phallic symbols do not usually refer to sex at all. They usually symbolize mana, or spiritual power. These symbols would be displayed on occasions when the spirits are being called upon to increase the yield of corn, or fish, or to heal someone. The connection between the penis and strength, between semen and seed, between fertilization and fertility are understood by most cultures.The concept of archetypes is central to Jungian psychology and myth analysis. However there are many different ways of looking at what exactly an archetype is (cf Heiddegger). Carol Pearson, in her book, Awakening The Heroes Within shows how five different individuals would view the idea of archetypes.A Shaman, or other seeker after spiritualism, will conceive of archetypes as gods and goddesses, encoded in the collective unconscious, whom are scorned at great risk. Academics and other rationalists, who are typically suspicious of anything that sounds mystic, may conceive of archetypes as controlling paradigms or metaphors, the invisible patterns in the mind that control how we experience the world.Scientists may see the process of identifying archetypes as similar to other scientific processes. Physicists learn about the smallest subatomic particles by studying the traces they leave; psychologists and other scholars study archetypes by examining their presence in art, literature, myth, and dream. Carl Jung recognized that the archetypical mages that recurred in his patients' dreams also could be found in the myths, legends, and art of ancient peoples, as well as in contemporary iterature, religion, and art. They know that they are archetypical becausethey leave the same traces over time and space. People who are committed to religious positions that emphasize one all-encompassing God, can distinguish the spiritual truth of monotheism from the pluralistic psychological truth of archetypes. The god we mean when we speak of "The One True God" is beyond the human capacity to envision and name. The archetypes are like different facets of that God, accessible to the psyche's capacity to imagine numinous reality. Thus these archetypes helpthe person connect to the Eternal; they make great mysteries more accessible by providing multiple images. This is evident in both the Catholic idea of the Trinity (The Father, The Son, and The Holy Ghost), and the Buddhist idea of one Buddha (which is then divisible into the 40, the 400, and the 4000 facets or aspects of that single deity, each with it's own name and story). Finally archetypes are the primal symbols of aspects of our own nature. By identifying with one of more archetypes we can identify our own nature. By portraying these archetypes, we portray ourselves. Thus we can use these archetypes as a spiritual guide to the discovery of selfhood. And what does an archetype mean to ? That's simple. Archetypes are symbols. In the Hermetic Tradition there is very little difference between the symbol and the thing it represents. This is explicit in the Law of Association. By manipulating the symbol it is therefore also possible to directly manipulate the thing. And because archetypes are symbols representing facets of ourselves they allow us to change ourselves. As within, so without. The macrocosm embodies the microcosm.So much for the content of the psyche. Now let's turn to the principles of its operation. Jung gives us three principles, beginning with the principle of opposites. Every wish immediately suggests its opposite. If I have a good thought, for example, I cannot help but have in me somewhere the opposite bad thought. In fact, it is a very basic point: In order to have a concept of good, you must have a concept of bad, just like you can't have up without down or black without white. This idea came home to me when I was about eleven. I occasionally tried to help poor innocent woodland creatures who had been hurt in some way -- often, I'm afraid, killing them in the process. Once I tried to nurse a baby robin back to health. But when I picked it up, I was so struck by how light it was that the thought came to me that I could easily crush it in my hand. Mind you, I didn't like the idea, but it was undeniably there.According to Jung, it is the opposition that creates the power (or libido) of the psyche. It is like the two poles of a battery, or the splitting of an atom. It is the contrast that gives energy, so that a strong contrast gives strong energy, and a weak contrast gives weak energy. The second principle is the principle of equivalence. The energy created from the opposition is "given" to both sides equally. So, when I held that baby bird in my hand, there was energy to go ahead and try to help it. But there is an equal amount of energy to go ahead and crush it. I tried to help the bird, so that energy went into the various behaviors involved in helping it. But what happens to the other energy? Well, that depends on your attitude towards the wish that you didn't fulfill. If you acknowledge it, face it, keep it available to the conscious mind, then the energy goes towards a general improvement of your psyche. You grow, in other words.

But if you pretend that you never had that evil wish, if you deny and suppress it, the energy will go towards the development of a complex. A complex is a pattern of suppressed thoughts and feelings that cluster -- constellate -- around a theme provided by some archetype. If you deny ever having thought about crushing the little bird, you might put that idea into the form offered by the shadow (your "dark side"). Or if a man denies his emotional side, his emotionality might find its way into the anima archetype. And so on. Here's where the problem comes: If you pretend all your life that you are only good, that you don't even have the capacity to lie and cheat and steal and kill, then all the times when you do good, that other side of you goes into a complex around the shadow. That complex will begin to develop a life of its own, and it will haunt you. You might find yourself having nightmares in which you go around stomping on little baby birds! If it goes on long enough, the complex may take over, may "possess" you, and you might wind up with a multiple personality. In the movie The Three Faces of Eve, Joanne Woodward portrayed a meek, mild woman who eventually discovered that she went out and partied like crazy on Saturday nights. She didn't smoke, but found cigarettes in her purse, didn't drink, but woke up with hangovers, didn't fool around, but found herself in sexy outfits. Although multiple personality is rare, it does tend to involve these kinds of black-and-white extremes. The final principle is the principle of entropy. This is the tendency for oppositions to come together, and so for energy to decrease, over a person's lifetime. Jung borrowed the idea from physics, where entropy refers to the tendency of all physical systems to "run down," that is, for all energy to become evenly distributed. If you have, for example, a heat source in one corner of the room, the whole room will eventually be heated.When we are young, the opposites will tend to be extreme, and so we tend to have lots of energy. For example, adolescents tend to exaggerate male-female differences, with boys trying hard to be macho and girls trying equally hard to be feminine. And so their sexual activity is invested with great amounts of energy! Plus, adolescents often swing from one extreme to another, being wild and crazy one minute and finding religion the next.As we get older, most of us come to be more comfortable with our different facets. We are a bit less naively idealistic and recognize that we are all mixtures of good and bad. We are less threatened by the opposite sex within us and become more androgynous. Even physically, in old age, men and women become more alike. This process of rising above our opposites, of seeing both sides of who we are, is called transcendence.

www.mythsdreamssymbols.com/dreamsarchetypes.html

 

The ego is the centre of consciousness. It is identity. It is 'I'. But it is not the totality of the psyche. Being the king of consciousness amounts to dominion over a small but important land surrounded by a wide world of terra incognita. The more aware the King is of lands beyond his domain the more secure he will be on his throne, but he must not be tempted to open the borders to it all. In Jungian theory the unconscious is far too vast to ever be made fully conscious, poking about in it is not without danger, yet ignoring it is also a mistake since it leads to a brittle fixedness which at best impedes growth, at worst can break when under the pressure of the 'threat' of change.So called "humanist spirit" relates to the thought and the viewpoint concerning man's mental life: the humanist spirit is linked with humanitarianism and is different from each other. Compared with animals, the author concluded: Tao (Dao) and Food, kindheartedness and living, righteousness and benefit, moral integration and feats of strength, principles and appetites and independent will, etc. all are human personality values. Simultaneously strong human social responsibility is also human social value. Human beings live in nature, mutually coordinate, and co-exist in harmony together with nature which is also the representation of man's natural

www.google.fr/search?q=ghosts+supernatural+creatures+Unde...

 

Hahah I saw this sick Aventador pulling out of the Westfield Promenade in Woodland Hills. White is starting to get old but they are still great to see. Please leave feedback. Comments and Favs are always appreciated!! :) I wasn't sure what to post tonight so I just put up this Aventador lol

discussion on Kensington Ave.

I've nothing to wear

... with wig

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Wegens problemen met een rotswand was in de periode van mei 2006 tot en met begin mei 2007 het deel van de Donauuferbahn tussen Spitz an der Donau en Aggsbach-Markt gestremd. De beide toeristentreinen EZ Wachau en EZ Strudengau werden daarom ook in twee delen gereden.

 

Op deze foto zien we in Aggsbach-Markt de 2016 063-6 met het materieel voor de EZ Strudengau rustig staan wachten op de terugrit naar St. Valentin.

 

De grote antenne op het dak van het stationsgebouw is van OBB's "Zugleitbetrieb".

 

Hier dus al wat veel schaduw, we wachten daarom geen verdere actie in het station af maar zochten snel een plek langs de vrije baan...

 

30 april 2007

Digifotomaraton themes: torturedmind.org/dfm-2014/

I'm finally starting to realize that there's a problem. But what can I do about it? What's a girl to do?

After a discussion about ball heads and tripods with Cassidy Photography this week, I recalled that I was missing a small travel 'pod' for hiking/biking, air travel. So, I got a killer deal on a new Zomei F678. (now replaced by the Q/Z 669 models)

Similar to the MeFoto offerings, but 1/4 the price. It has excellent build quality and features. 14.5" folded, 60.5" extended. It has one shortcoming, it can't get any lower than this without inverting the column. But I don't want to invert. I've been spoiled by my favorite Manfrotto 190D, which comes with a short center column attachment. I discovered that a very similar K&F Concepts version does include a 100mm stubby column to attach the ball head to, but wasn't included with the Zomei.

Hmmm, what to do? To the drawing board.

Dreaming of a big, spilled swamp symbolizes small satisfactions. You are always trying to please yourself, in spite of obligations and other obstacles. You have rituals that are making you happy, so you always find time for them. You usually do sports, go out, take massages, or go to the cinema. Shrek since an elf is a fictional character, he may also represent the problems that you have created on your own. Symbolism:An elf represents festivity, problems, annoying people, intellectual minds, foes and health. If you dream of a laughing elf, it indicates the laughter of your enemy.

Despite Shrek's frightening and repulsive outer appearance and incorrect identification as a monster (devil figure), he turns out to be:

The Hero: Shrek fulfills the ultimate task of breaking Fiona's curse with the true love's kiss. He also follows the hero's journey with significant character development on his Quest.

Onion: Shrek speaks about how ogres are like onions, which also reflects on the universal theme of the movie. Onions have layers, and his analogy represents that despite his repugnant appearance, like that of an onion, he is actually kind-hearted and capable of love after you peel at the layers.

Wall: Shrek talks about putting up a wall around his swamp to keep people away, but I believe it's also a figurative symbol for his need for isolation and fear of not being accepted or loved. Shrek tries to shut people out before they can do the same to him.

Shrek's Swamp

By George Gantz

 

Name & Symbols where Shrek's symbols linked with Nephthis

live in the swamps of the Nile's delta... like King Moses with is born in the same Delta or Swamps!!!!

 

Afterlife, regeneration and Green Color slopes and the regeneration of trees on decaying boles in swamps.

'Nephthys' is the Latin version of her Egyptian name `Nebthwt' (also given as Nebet-het and Nebt-het) which translates as "Lady of the Temple Enclosure" or "Mistress of the House" and she is routinely pictured with the heiroglyph for 'house' on her crown. The 'house' is neither an earthly home nor temple but linked to the heavens as she was related to air and ether.

 

The 'enclosure' may refer to the courtyard outside a temple as she was represented by the pylons outside of temples. Shrek's pylons are his ears.

 

in her role as a protective goddess; just as the pylons and wall protected the inner temple, Nephthys protected the souls of the people. She was associated with death and decay from an early period and was regularly invoked during funeral services. Professional mourners at Egyptian funerals were known as "Hawks of Nephthys" and she is one of the four goddesses (along with Isis, Selket, and Neith) whose images were found in the tomb of Tutankhamun as guardians of his canopic vessels. Historian Margaret Bunson notes:Nephthys was associated with the mortuary cult in every era and was part of the ancient worship of Min [a god of fertility and reproduction]. The desert regions were dedicated to her and she was thought to be skilled in magic (188).

 

In folklore, a will-o'-the-wisp, will-o'-wisp or ignis fatuus is an atmospheric ghost light seen by travelers at night, especially over bogs, swamps or ... Folk belief attributes the phenomenon to fairies or elemental spirits, explicitly in the term " hobby and now in 2020 for the kids that's Shrek... mysterious lights as omens of death or the ghosts of once living human beings. In modern science, it is generally accepted that will-o'-the-wisp phenomena (ignis fatuus) are caused by the oxidation of phosphine (PH3), diphosphane (P2H4), and methane (CH4). These compounds, produced by organic decay, can cause photon emissions. Since phosphine and diphosphane mixtures spontaneously ignite on contact with the oxygen in air, only small quantities of it would be needed to ignite the much more abundant methane to create ephemeral fires. Furthermore, phosphine produces phosphorus pentoxide as a by-product, which forms phosphoric acid upon contact with water vapor, which can explain "viscous moisture" sometimes described as accompanying ignis fatuus.The idea of the will-o'-the-wisp phenomena being caused by natural gases can be found as early as 1596, as mentioned in the book Of Ghostes and Spirites, Walking by Night, And of Straunge Noyses, Crackes, and Sundrie forewarnings, which commonly happen before the death of men: Great Slaughters, and alterations of Kingdomes, by Ludwig Lavater, in the chapter titled "That many naturall things are taken to be ghoasts":

Many times candles & small fires appeare in the night, and seeme to runne up and downe... Sometime these fires goe alone in the night season, and put such as see them, as they travel by night, in great feare. But these things, and many such lyke have their naturall causes... Natural Philosophers write, that thicke exhilations aryse out of the earth, and are kindled. Mynes full of sulphur and brimstone, if the aire enter unto it, as it lyeth in the holes and veines of the earth, will kindle on fier, and strive to get out. "Shrek lets fart in a fairy tale". Farting across the animal kingdom is wonderfully diverse, a new Tale with Shrek ... and our mammalian relatives, farts are mainly the result of digestion or regeneration.

 

Swamp monsters in folklore, legends, and mythology

The Will-o'-the-wisp appears in swamps, and in some areas there are legends of it being an evil spirit.

The Bunyip are a creature from Aboriginal mythology that lurk in swamps, billabongs, creeks, riverbeds, and waterholes.

The Grootslang are huge elephant-like creature with a serpent's tail which according to legend live in caves, swamps, freshwater in South Africa.

The Lernaean Hydra in Greek and Roman mythology, was the creature Heracles killed in the swamp near Lake Lerna.

The Honey Island Swamp monster in Louisiana.

Mokele-mbembe, a legendary water-dwelling creature of Congo River basin folklore that resembles a Brontosaurus.

The skunk ape is a horrible smelling large ape creature said to live in swamps.

The Lizard Man of Scape Ore Swamp.

In Beowulf, Grendel lived in a marsh near King Hrothgar's mead hall, as did Grendel's mother.

 

Our world seems to be mired in anxiety and fear; and civic discourse has degenerated to accusations, outright lies, and rhetoric. While we hear calls to “drain the swamp,” any common understanding of what that means, and a willing consensus required to achieve it, seems to elude us. Perhaps we are looking at the situation from too narrow a perspective. It is not just our politicians who are lost in the marsh; it is our spiritual life, too.

  

The English language is full of references to the soggy, wet places of the world. Have you ever gotten tangled up “in the weeds”? Or perhaps someone you know is “stuck in the mud” (or perhaps is a “stick-in-the-mud”)? Recently, we have heard calls to “drain the swamp” of Washington DC lobbyists and political insiders. These sayings all have a common origin: the idea that marshy places should be avoided, lest we become entrenched in the unpleasantness they represent. While modern environmental science is struggling to change this negative narrative about “wetlands,” there are natural contextual explanations for it. The negative imagery is quite powerful, and it holds true on a variety of levels: from natural to psychological, societal, and spiritual. Let’s unpack these different layers of meaning.

 

The Nature of Wetlands

 

Marshes, mires, and swamps—collectively referred to as “wetlands”—are essential natural features found all around the globe. They often develop wherever the land intersects major bodies of water, at the interface, as water from terrestrial sources makes its way toward the sea. Technically, marshes are characterized by grassy or shrub-like vegetation, while swamps feature trees. Mires, or bogs, are acidic and contain accumulated humus deposits known as peat.

 

Marshes are often difficult to access and to maneuver in (especially for us humans). The water usually moves slowly and may be brackish, or salty. Typically, oxygen levels are low, a condition to which indigenous species adapt. Reeds, for example, grow hollow stems for sucking oxygen to their root structures. Marshes do, however, provide useful water storage and filtration functions: they fill up with water in rainy periods and drain water downstream in dry periods; and they serve as a filter and a sink basin for sediments and pollutants.

 

Marshes can be highly productive biologically. But they can be quite unpleasant and inhospitable as well, as some of that productivity includes a variety of parasites, leeches, spiders, snakes, and even alligators. Since marsh waters move slowly, oxygen may be depleted by respiration and decomposition, particularly when pollution levels are high. Hypoxia, or oxygen deficiency, may result, causing the death of fish and invertebrates. When decomposition turns anaerobic, fetid odors are produced. This all helps explain the negative reputation held by marshes, mires, and swamps. And as a result, they have become fertile sources for our imaginative depiction of the horrors of stagnation.

 

Marshes and their renewing properties are also vulnerable to degradation if the natural water cycles are disrupted, and their historically negative reputation has made them a great target for human intervention. We have been very aggressive in intentional filling and draining, damming for flood control, water withdrawals, agricultural and urban development, and pollution. According to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) data, perhaps half of all the marshes in the United States were drained or destroyed prior to 1970. And that destruction has continued. A Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) study reported that in the five years between 2004 and 2009, almost one percent of coastal wetlands disappeared as a result of development pressures and silviculture (human-planned forests) expansion.

 

Psychological Stagnation

 

Stagnation is defined simply as “a state of not flowing,” yet our imagination associates the word with the unpleasant “marshy” qualities of death and decay. In the natural world, the low-oxygen conditions of stagnation are unfavorable to growth and change, and they give rise to illness and death. In the psychological sense, stagnation refers to the similar condition of being emotionally or rationally stuck or stunted. Without the ability to renew ourselves by absorbing new thoughts, ideas, experiences, and emotions, our vitality and resilience stagnate.

 

The story of Narcissus offers a good example. Narcissus was a beautiful Greek youth who fell in love with his own reflection. He became so enamored of his image that he forgot about food and rest, and he eventually died. This story is the origin of the modern personality diagnosis of narcissism, an excessive pre-occupation with self-gratification and self-image. Some current psychological research suggests that our omnipresent digital environment and our excessive attention to social media, in particular, promote narcissistic tendencies.

 

Depression is another psychological condition that represents the quality of stagnation, as it involves getting “stuck” in negative thought patterns and losing the motivation and energy to reach out to others or try something new. While the causes of depression may be varied and difficult to assess, it is clear that extreme emotional distress and feelings of isolation and alienation are shared by many: depression is on the rise worldwide, as is suicide, an ultimate and tragic statement of hopelessness. As we will see below, one key to preventing psychological stagnation may be found in better understanding our spiritual condition.

 

Societal Entrenchment

 

In economics and politics, marsh-like stagnation is often referred to as entrenchment. The word entrench simply means “to put in a trench,” which is suggestive of being stuck or tightly confined. A corporate management team may become entrenched, for example, if its members stick too closely together and refuse to bring in outside people or outside ideas. Entrenchment can be deadly for a business enterprise when upstart competitors with new and better ideas come along. An individual, a group, or an entire enterprise can get “mired in the weeds” arguing about minutiae while in the midst of a crisis. Stuck in this way, they are unable to break through an impasse or develop a realistic plan forward. As the saying goes, “Nero fiddled while Rome burned.” In the broader economic sense, monopolies, cartels, price-fixing, and insider trading represent different forms of entrenchment; they are all disastrous for productivity, creativity, and healthy markets.

 

In the political arena, entrenchment refers to the condition in which incumbents or small, tightly controlled elite groups are able to dominate and control the political process. By cutting out other participants, eliminating dissent, and rejecting new ideas, these groups set the agenda and determine the outcomes—all in their own favor. As a result, what is lost is any sense of renewal or accountability to the citizens whom the government is presumed to serve. It is on this basis that our nation’s capital is described as a swamp, dominated by professional politicians, who have been in office a long time, and their enablers, the lobbyists who wield immense war chests of campaign funds and who trade in secrets and inside information. The entrenchment narrative has become more prevalent in recent years, as indicated by the large volume of books and articles that talk about governments behaving as oligarchies, kleptocracies, or autocracies.

 

The common thread in our negative image of wetlands, psychological stagnation, and societal entrenchment is this: when what is pure and fresh—whether it be water, our emotions, or our relationships with others—does not flow into each of these systems, the system ceases to thrive and grow and goes into decomposition and decay.

 

But its swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they are to be left for salt. (Ezekiel 47:11)

 

Friendly Beast: The donkey aids Shrek throughout the journey and is his constant companion through all the trials. As an animal, he shows that nature supports Shrek.

Fire/Red/Black: The dragon has dark red skin representing violent passion and fire, setting up the character to be perceived as cruel and monstrous. Dark colors such as black are used in her tower to develop this theme as well.

The writers started with a fun and cartoony premise, and then layered in one technique after another which makes the film resonate with adults.

 

Our Spiritual Condition

 

Emanuel Swedenborg devoted much of his writing to the idea of spiritual correspondences. In a spiritual sense, flowing water is living truth. When the flow of water stops, this truth becomes stagnant and spiritual life dies. Being stuck in the marsh spiritually means becoming confirmed in falsities.

 

Those who cannot be reformed because they are in the falsities of evil are signified by “the miry places and marshes that are not healed, but are given to salt.” (Apocalypse Explained §513:7)

 

“To be given to salt” signif[ies] not to receive spiritual life, but to remain in a life merely natural, which, separate from spiritual life, is defiled by falsities and evils, which are “miry places” and “marshes.” (Apocalypse Explained §342:7)

One common feature of a healthy spiritual life is the belief in and commitment to a truth that is higher than just the laws that govern the natural world. Out of one’s personal commitment to a transcendent realm (the infinite) or agent (God), many blessings can flow. These include a sense of purpose, feelings of joy and gratitude, and the willingness to improve the world and the lives of those around us with love. Without such an affirmative commitment, our understanding of life is by definition constrained to the finite realm of physical space and time. If we do not believe in and are not open to spiritual ideas and experiences, then we destroy our potential to receive any inflow of such ideas and experiences.

 

Meaning and purpose, as they relate to Creation as a whole or to our lives in particular, become limited and relative only to the physical parts of experience. Some thinkers take this to an extreme, framing meaning and purpose as mere illusions. Love becomes just a biological function. Improving the world is defined in purely materialistic terms. This is the condition referred to in Ezekiel, above, where one’s spirit has been given to salt.

 

A commitment to the idea that there is no spiritual life—that the natural world is all there is—is destructive to spiritual life. When we are confirmed in this falsity, any goodness that we might see, feel, or experience is sucked out of life. We are stuck in the marsh and cannot be spiritually reformed, cleansed, and healed.

 

There is nothing more delightful than a marshy, and also a urinous [stink] to those who have confirmed themselves in falsities, and have extinguished in themselves the affection for truth. (Apocalypse Explained §659:5)

Conclusion

 

By following the chain of correspondences, we can identify solutions to the various forms of stagnation. As we know from the natural world, fresh water must continue to flow in and through the marsh in order to keep it healthy and biologically productive. In addition, external pollutants must be limited to what the marsh can absorb.

 

Similarly, our emotional and psychological lives need to include appropriate amounts of openness, recreation, and renewal in order for us to remain healthy. We need to balance our internal preoccupations with outward companionship, aesthetic experiences, and learning opportunities; and we need to avoid the “pollutants” of excessive stimulation, addiction, obsession, and distraction.

 

In society, we need to foster and support institutions that are resilient, responsive, and open to new people and new ideas. This requires that we go against our natural tendencies toward complacency and complicity and that we resist the temptations of using institutions for personal gain, as all of these behaviors pollute civic life.

 

To grow spiritually, we need to be open to transcendent possibilities, searching for knowledge and experiences that enrich our appreciation of spiritual truth. If we close ourselves off to spiritual ideas and to the possibility of having spiritual experiences, then our spiritual life will be deprived of sustenance and will decay.

 

If our spiritual life is “stuck,” then where is the foundation for a healthy psychological and emotional experience? When we focus on our own inadequacies or our personal gratifications, we undermine our opportunities to learn, to share love, and to be a full participant in our community. A healthy spiritual life is the wellspring for a healthy psychological and emotional life. It also sustains the virtues essential for a vibrant and thriving civic life: the commitment to truth and the dedication to the well-being of those we are responsible for serving.

 

Without a healthy civic life, we will never be able to agree on the rules and the practices that will assure that clean water flows into all our different marshes, refreshing, renewing, and rejuvenating the life that exists within them.

 

It all ends where it begins: with the water of truth that is the source of life.

   

George Gantz is a writer and philosopher at Spiral Inquiry and directs the Swedenborg Center Concord (SCC), a non-denominational educational project supported by the New Church of Concord, Massachusetts, that seeks to integrate the knowledge of science with the wisdom of religion.

   

Read more posts from the Spirituality in Practice series >

  

Here are some of those techniques:

Edgy Comedy

What's considered funny in our culture tends to change from time to time. It might be Mork and Mindy one year, Northern Exposure further down the line, and South Park a few years later. Of course, this is an over-simplification, for there are quite a number of popular comedy styles alive at any moment.

 

Still, there do tend to be trends, and adults are likely to be responsive to them. One trend alive today is a somewhat gross, edgy kind of comedy.

 

In Shrek the grossness doesn't have a sexual component, such as in American Pie, but there is a scene where Fiona sings a morning duet with a little bird in a nest. When Fiona hits an extremely high note, the bird swells up and explodes. The camera zooms in on the two little eggs left behind, then zooms out on them, now frying away, as Fiona cooks them for Shrek and Donkey.

 

In another scene, Fiona makes some cotton candy for Shrek by wrapping a spider's web around a stick, and then catching flies with the mess. She and Shrek both enjoy the delicacy. In yet another scene, Fiona and Shrek feast on cooked rats together.

 

This is very original, hip, and edgy comedy. It appeals to (at least some) adults.

 

Parody Humor: Spoofing Cultural References

When you spoof cultural references, especially when you do it well, you can create a kind of humor to which adults will respond.

 

In Shrek, Walt Disney Pictures and Disneyland bear the brunt of some clever spoofing. It was done with enough intelligence and wit that adults would appreciate it, such as:

 

Seeing, near the start of the film, various Disney-like animated characters depressed (and thus the opposite of their usual normal cheery selves) as they're being hauled away.

Lord Farquaad's castle, which possesses the ominous overtones of a nightmarish Disneyland, or

The weird singing toy figures which greet Shrek and Donkey at the castle wall, which spoof the singing toy figures in Disneyland's Small, Small World ride.

Non-Cliché Characters

A cliché character is one whom we've seen before, especially a character we've seen frequently. Shrek is certainly not a cliché. His personality is marked by some of the following attributes, or as I call them, Traits.

 

He likes himself (evident in the bathing scene under the opening credits).

He's clever. (He scares off the townspeople by convincing them he's much meaner than he is.)

He's brave (never shirking from a fight).

He's afraid of rejection, resulting in him pushing people away before they can reject him, which results in:

He's a loner (at least in the beginning), but he longs for connection with others, even as he also fights it off.

Can you think of another film or TV character with this exact set of traits? If you have a hard time remembering one, that's exactly why Shrek isn't a cliché.

 

Fiona also has an interesting array of traits:

 

She's romantic.

She's earthy. That's what I call women who eat rats.)

She's tough. She beats up Robin Hood with a few moves borrowed from The Matrix.)

She thinks she's ugly. And, like Shrek, she fears rejection.

Once again, we have a non-cliché character. Adults respond to characters who aren't clichés.

 

Emotional Problems We Can Relate To

Both Shrek and Fiona, for similar reasons (feeling that they're hideous), believe that no one could love them. This fear is so great in both of them, that it drives many of their actions.

 

Giving a character a powerful fear, a shame, or an emotional problem that adults can relate to will also help draw an adult audience -- as will that character's arc (his or her path of emotional growth) as circumstances in the plot force them to wrestle with this issue.

 

The Use Of Masks

A Mask is the term I use to describe ways characters can hide their fears and vulnerability.

 

There are at least eight different kinds of Masks that characters can hide behind. In Fiona's case, of course, her Mask is literally a visual lie: a fake body and face, created by magic.

 

Shrek's Mask is an attitude—the attitude that he doesn't need or want anyone in his life. (An Attitude is one of the eight types of Masks characters can hide their fears behind.) His behavior, stemming from this attitude, is the one I touched upon earlier: to push people away before they can reject him.

 

This is a Mask because, by watching this attitude and corresponding behavior, you might initially think that he hates others. But it simply covers up his fear that they would find him loathsome.

 

Using one of the eight types of Masks to create more complex characters is another technique that gives the film adult appeal.

 

Parallel Plot-Lines

There are about 100 techniques I'm aware of to give a feeling of emotional depth to a plot. I call these Plot Deepening Techniques.

 

(By the way, there are also Dialogue Deepening Techniques, Character Deepening Techniques [like the eight types of Masks], and Scene Deepening Techniques.)

 

The whole area of techniques which inject emotional and psychological depth into one's writing is vast, but we see one such Plot Deepening Technique used here, and that's parallel plot-lines.

 

There is the parallel of both Shrek and Fiona feeling too hideous to be lovable, but there's a third one too. The dragon, who falls in love with Donkey, uses such behaviors as shish-kabobbing people as a form of stopping them from getting too close.

 

Her efforts to frighten people off are very similar to the way Shrek handles the same fear.

 

As a general rule of thumb, Deepening Techniques work best when no more than 25% of the audience consciously notices them. Usually, to maximize their emotional effectiveness, you want them to operate a little bit outside the level of awareness of those watching the film.

 

All Plot Deepening Techniques contribute to making a film resonate more strongly with adults. The writers of Shrek employ many other techniques besides the one mentioned here, but my limited space here doesn't permit me to list them all.

 

Set-Ups And Payoffs

Sometimes a writer will introduce an object, and action, an image, or a phrase spoken by a character—the set-up—and then revisit it one or more times later in the script, usually in interesting ways (the payoff or payoffs).

 

It makes for sophisticated writing, which in turn makes the script appeal to adults.

 

Shrek utilizes many set-ups and payoffs. Here's one: When we first meet Shrek, he's in his outhouse. We learn his outhouse, like the rest of his swamp, is a place where he can be alone in total self-contentment. It's a symbol of his privacy, but here his desire for privacy is seen in a good light: as a reflection of his self-satisfaction.

 

Later in the film, when Shrek has experienced his worst nightmare—rejection by Fiona—and when he in turn has pushed Donkey away, he retreats into an outhouse. Now this symbol of solitude represents all his fears of getting close to others, and of literally shutting them out.

 

So, the outhouse is set up in the beginning, and then revisited later in an interesting payoff.

 

Don't worry if you didn't catch this when you saw the film, for, like Deepening techniques, set-ups and payoffs, in general, create their greatest emotional impact if they operate a little outside the conscious awareness of most people in the audience.

 

Summary:

The bottom line is that it's no accident that Shrek appealed as much to adults as it did to kids. The writers took a fun and amusing story which any kid would enjoy, and then artfully wove into the script a number of techniques not found in normal kids' fare.

 

The writing in this script is extremely tight. For me, tight means that most scenes accomplish several functions simultaneously: moving the story forward, drawing us into the characters, making us laugh or sad or both simultaneously, setting up elements which will be revisited later on, and always entertaining us with highly original lines and scenes.

 

If you want to reach both kids and adults and thus capture a wide demographic for your film, it wouldn't hurt to master the techniques these writers employed so artfully.

  

swedenborg.com/what-swamps-teach-us-about-spiritual-life/

The newly released Disney Parks Anna-Elsa Topsy-Turvy 14'' Plush Doll. I bought in the World of Disney store in Downtown Disney. The faces of the dolls are pretty, but not very movie accurate. Since the Elsa cape is longer than the underlying skirt, it is visible when the doll is turned into Anna. Also it is a problem as to where to put the arms of the doll that is on the inside. The better place to put them is probably behind the outer doll, rather than in front. The Disney Store Elsa and Anna 20'' plush dolls are much better as far as construction and accuracy to the movie characters. However, I am happy to have the Coronation Anna plush, which is not available elsewhere.

 

My Visit to Disneyland Resort (Anaheim) on Sunday March 16, 2014

 

I went to the World of Disney store in Downtown Disney, and checked out the Frozen section. They had the new Disney Parks reversible Anna and Elsa plush doll. It looked very pretty, so I got one. They had the Animators' Anna doll, but sold out of the Elsa doll. I got the Anna doll, even though it looks identical to the Frozen Anna toddler doll that I already have. The only difference is the packaging. They had some new clothing for children. They had just a handful of the Deluxe Frozen Prints left, so I got one, as a spare. In the collectibles section they had a couple of Disneyland ride figures I haven't seen before, and the Lenox Belle's Wedding Dreams figure was back. I also got a new style Nightmare Before Christmas t-shirt, which had images of most of the main cast members.

 

In Disneyland Park, it was moderately busy. It was very warm and sunny, in the mid-eighties and approaching 90 degrees. In the China Shop, they also had the Lenox Beauty and the Beast figure in stock. I got a good score in the Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters ride, but the system didn't save my score, and the leader board wasn't functioning. In the LGM Command Store, they had the open edition Frozen pins still in stock, both the snowflake Anna and Elsa pin, and the Booster Pack. I got a couple of the snowflake pins. I also asked to see their selection of Limited Edition pins, and lucked out on some pins I might not have otherwise gotten. My favorite of them is the A Piece of Disneyland History it's a small world pin, which I thought was sold out (as it was nowhere to be found last Sunday). I leave the park after eating lunch at the Plaza Inn.

+++ DISCLAIMER +++

Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based on historical facts. BEWARE!

  

Some background:

With the end of the conflict in Africa in early 1974, the Portuguese Armed Forces went through a reorganization and shifted their focus back from counter-insurgency to honoring Portugal's commitments to NATO and preparing for a possible conflict in Europe against the Warsaw Pact. The Portuguese Air Force's F-86F Sabre and G.91 fighters were considered to be outdated in both the air defense and ground attack roles to face Soviet forces in the European operations theater. Furthermore, only a few Sabre fighters were actually in service due to problems with the engines and lack of spare parts.

 

After the revolution Portugal faced financial problems and the new government didn't see the modernization of the armed forces as a priority. As such the Air Force counted on the support from the United States through the military assistance programs and the offsets and compensations for the use of the Lajes Air Base. In June 1974 the Air Force Chief of Staff, General Manuel Diogo Neto, informed the US Military Assistance Advisory Group (MAAG) in Lisbon of the interest in acquiring one F-5E Tiger II squadron and one F-4E Phantom II squadron, as well as T-38A Talon and T-41, to replace the T-33 Shooting Star and the DHC-1 Chipmunk, respectively.

 

The United States’ NATO delegation was worried about Portugal's capability in contributing to NATO operations and felt that the intention to purchase either the F-4E Phantom II or the F-5E Tiger II to replace the F-86F Sabre was inappropriate, given that the USA felt that the A-7D Corsair II or the A-4N Skyhawk provided a better platform for the Portuguese role in an eventual conflict with the Warsaw Pact, which was to mainly protect the Atlantic Ocean resupply routes from the United States to Europe.

 

By 1976 the Northrop F-5E Tiger II had become the sole preferred aircraft by the military command, which believed that this aircraft could be supplied by The Pentagon at a lower cost through the Military Assistance Program (MAP) and the Foreign Military Sales (FMS). To this end, Portugal leased Northrop T-38A Talon jet trainers, as part of the "Peace Talon" program, to establish and provide supersonic-capable lead-in fighter training and to eventually provide operational conversion.

 

Later in March 1976, a camouflage scheme for the F-5 was published in the Diário da República, stirring public awareness and political pressure. Nonetheless, at the time the FAP had already started analyzing the acquisition of the A-7 Corsair II as an alternative to the F-5, per the suggestion of the United States. This led to the acquisition of 30 A-7A Corsair II for 49 million dollars. But even with the A-7 taking precedence, the FAP continued interest in acquiring the F-5 for the air defense role and as a proper replacement for the outdated F-86F Sabre.

As such, a delegation was sent to Norway in July 1979 to evaluate F-5A/B aircraft of the Royal Norwegian Air Force. This offer was turned down, since the offered 11 F-5As turned out to require considerable repairs due to cracks found in the airframe. Furthermore, the FAP was particularly interested in twin-seat F-5 fighters, but the RNoAF did not plan on retiring any of its F-5B aircraft at that time. In November 1984, the United States offered four F-5As with spare engines to Portugal, but this offer was also declined, since the aircraft had already logged over 3,000 flight hours and needed thorough repair, too. In the same year, the RNoAF made a new offer of 15 to 20 F-5A/Bs, but this time the FAP declined, once more due to the airframes’ age and poor condition.

 

Unable to purchase any F-5 in decent condition, the FAP studied in the meantime the procurement of other second-hand fighters like the French Mirage IIIs or the SAAB 35 Draken. Negotiations with France, even though the preferred partner and with the intention to procure Mirage V fighter bombers, too, went nowhere. Eventually, a deal with Sweden could be settled in 1985 and the Saab 35 was chosen as the FAP’s new air superiority fighter.

 

The Draken had been developed during the 1940s and 1950s to replace Sweden's first generation of jet-powered fighter aircraft, the Saab J 29 Tunnan and, later, the fighter variant (J 32 B) of the Saab 32 Lansen. Fully developed in Sweden, the Draken was introduced into service with the Swedish Air Force in 1960 under the designation J 35 (the prefix J standing for “Jakt”, meaning “pursuit”). Early models were intended purely to perform air defense missions and the type was considered to be a capable dogfighter for the Cold War era. Later models were technically very advanced and the J 35 underwent a constant development that led to a long line of variants with several upgrades.

 

By the 1980s, the Swedish Air Force’s Drakens had largely been replaced by the more advanced Saab 37 Viggen fighter, while the introduction of the more capable Saab JAS 39 Gripen fighter was expected in service within a decade, although delayed. Many J 35s of earlier versions, primarily the D type as well as some early J 35 F, were therefore mothballed and/or offered for sale. Takers were Finland and Austria, some Draken also sold to private operators in the United States. A dedicated export version for Denmark, rather a strike aircraft than an interceptor, was built, too.

 

The FAP was interested in the J 35 F, since these aircraft were the most modern Draken variant at the time and the relatively young airframes promised a long service life. An initial batch of eight aircraft – six single seaters plus a pair of two-seat trainers – was leased by Portugal and delivered in 1986. These were effectively refurbished former Swedish Saab J 35 F interceptors and Sk 35 C trainers. Internally at Saab, the Draken versions for Portugal were designated Saab J or Sk 35 XP (“X” for export and “P” for Portugal), but this designation was not adopted officially.

For Portugal, the machines were stripped off of specialized Swedish equipment and instead outfitted with NATO-compatible avionics and other updates like the Hawé mods I & II on the P/S-01/011 radar sets to improve its resistance to ECM. In contrast to the Swedish Saab J 35 F, the avionics that were necessary to deploy the Rb 27 and Rb 28 missiles (Hughes AIM-4 Falcon with radar and IR guidance) were removed and the second gun reinstalled. The J 35 F’s IR sensor under the nose was retained and a Sherloc radar warning system of French origin, as well as chaff/flare dispensers, were added, too.

 

In Portuguese service, the machines were called Saab 35 FP and TP and dubbed “Dragõe”. The fighters’ main armament were, beyond the internal 30 mm cannons, AIM-9 Sidewinders. Typically, a pair of these missiles was carried under the wings, together with a pair of 500 l drop tanks under the fuselage, since the Draken had no in-flight refueling capability and just a range of 1.120 km (696 mi) in clean configuration and with internal fuel only. The machines retained a secondary strike capability, though, with iron bombs of up to 1.000 lb caliber, napalm tanks and unguided missiles in pods. The trainers were unarmed but could carry an optional single 500 l drop tank on a ventral hardpoint.

 

The leased aircraft batch arrived in bare metal finish, but, due to the country’s proximity to the open sea, they quickly received an overall coat with a grey anti-corrosive lacquer. They were allocated to Esquadra 201 "Falcões" at Monte Real air base, where they replaced the last operational F-86F’s. They were officially allocated to an interceptor role, but effectively they were primarily used for conversion training, together with the T-38’s which had been based at Monte Real since 1977, too.

 

With enough trained Draken crews at hand, a second batch of former Swedish Draken (this time twelve single seaters plus two more trainers) was bought and delivered in 1987, the machines from the initial leasing batch were eventually bought, too. This small fleet was split between Esquadra 201 and 103 (the latter at Beja air base), so that the FAP could now field two fully operational interceptor squadrons. Upon arrival, the new machines received a tactical camouflage with toned-down national and the J 35s from the initial batch were re-painted accordingly.

 

The ongoing process of the modernization of the Portuguese Air Force also included the launching of the SICCAP/PoACCS (Portugal Air Command and Control System) project, which was a pioneer in adopting the new architecture and concept of the NATO ACCS, being intended to replace Portugal’s old SDA air defense system. As part of these project, the air surveillance and detection units were re-equipped, including the reception of new radars and the air control center at Monsanto was enhanced. The Saab 35 FPs became an integral part of this system, so that interceptors could be guided from the ground towards potential targets.

 

This scenario did not last long, though: The end of the Cold War caused the Portuguese Air Force to accompany the shift of the focus of the Portuguese Armed Forces from a conventional war in Europe against the Warsaw Pact forces to the international peace enforcement missions. The FAP started to participate in a number of missions by itself or in support of missions led by the Army and the Navy, but the Saab 35s were not involved since they remained, due to their small number, dedicated to Portugal’s air space patrol and defense.

 

With the arrival of the first F-16 Fighting Falcon in 1994, the Saab 35s, as well as the FAP’s A-7 Corsair IIs, were gradually retired and fully replaced until 1998.

The last Saab 35 in Swedish service was retired in 1999, the last Saab 35 Draken was withdrawn from military use in Austria in 2005 – 50 years after the type first flew. However, several aircraft still fly today in private operators’ service.

  

General characteristics:

Crew: 1

Length: 15.35 m (50 ft 4 in)

Wingspan: 9.42 m (30 ft 11 in)

Height: 3.89 m (12 ft 9 in)

Wing area: 49.2 m2 (530 ft²)

Airfoil: 5%

Empty weight: 7,865 kg (17,339 lb)

Gross weight: 11,000 kg (24,251 lb)

Max takeoff weight: 11,914 kg (26,266 lb)

 

Powerplant:

1× Svenska Flygmotor RM6C (license-built Rolls Royce Avon with Swedish afterburner)

turbojet engine, 56.5 kN (12,700 lbf) thrust dry, 78.4 kN (17,600 lbf) with afterburner

 

Performance:

Maximum speed: 2,450 km/h (1,520 mph, 1,320 kn) at 11,000 m (36,089 ft)

Maximum speed: Mach 2

Range: 1.120 km (605 nmi; 696 mi); clean, internal fuel only

Ferry range: 2,750 km (1,480 nmi; 1,710 mi) with four external 500 l drop tanks

Service ceiling: 20,000 m (66,000 ft)

Rate of climb: 199 m/s (39,200 ft/min)

Wing loading: 231.6 kg/m² (47.4 lb/ft²)

Thrust/weight: 0.7

Takeoff roll: 800 m (2,625 ft)

 

Armament:

2× 30 mm AKAN M/55 ADEN cannon with 100 rounds per gun

4× hardpoints with a capacity of 2,900 kg (6,393 lb); typical interceptor ordnance:

2× 500 l ventral drop tanks and 2× AIM-9 Sidewinder under the wings

  

The kit and its assembly:

This what-if model came as a spontaneous idea when I browsed through the WWW for inspiration. I stumbled upon the history of the Portuguese Air Force and the fact that it did not operate any dedicated interceptor for 15 years – this task was taken over by the PAF’s A-7s(!) until the F-16 arrived in the Nineties This gap offered a lot of whiffing potential, and I had actually considered to build a whiffy FAP Mirage III for some time, since I knew that this was, together with the F-5, the favored type. However, there was also serious consideration of the Saab 35 as potential fighter alternative, too!

 

I found this idea so weird/exotic that I decided to build a Draken in FAP colors. The kit is the Hasegawa model, in a Revell re-boxing. I also considered the vintage Revell Saab 35 (a mold from 1957!), but after I saw the kit in a current re-boxing from Polish company Akkura, I took the chance of a reasonably priced Hasegawa kit instead. While the Akkura kit is crisply molded, it would take a lot of work to create a satisfactory “modern” Draken from it. I also had a Heller kit in store (my personal favorite), but I did not want to “sacrifice” it for this project.

 

The Hasegawa/Revell kit was basically built OOB. The kit is a simple, straightforward affair, with fine recessed engravings and good fit, but it’s IMHO far from extraordinary. It also has its flaws: the dashboard is totally blank, any instruments have to be created by yourself or taken from the decal sheet. There are ejection marks on the wheels and the landing gear covers, and the fit quality of some areas (e .g. the seam between the fuselage and the afterburner section) calls for PSR. The two-piece canopy is thin, very clear and fits well, the landing gear is sufficiently detailed – including the interior of the main landing gear wells.

 

For the FAP version I did not change much; I just replaced the seat (which OOB looks fine, I just wanted “something else”), added a radar warning antenna to the fin’s tip and chaff dispensers around the tail section, all carved from styrene profiles.

Unfortunately, the Revell re-boxing just comes with a pair of launch rails and underwing pylons, but no AA weapons at all. That’s acceptable for the anniversary machine that you can build from the kit, but leaves the other option, a grey, Swedish J35 H, without any ordnance.

The drop tanks on my build are OOB, together with their ventral hardpoints, and I added a pair of decent AIM-9J Sidewinders from a Hasegawa air-to-air weapon set for a suitable interceptor ordnance. The launch rails were recycled from the kit: they are actually missile rails with attachment points to mount them under the air intakes. The rails were separated and then attached to the OOB underwing pylons, this worked very well.

  

Painting and markings:

The livery was not an easy choice. Initially I favored a uniform pale grey livery with blue squadron markings, inspired by the late F-86s of FAP 51 squadron, but found this, despite being a plausible look for an interceptor, to look quite boring. For the same reason I rejected an Austria-style “Hill II” scheme or a light-grey USN-inspired “Compass Ghost” livery. The Hellenic “Ghost” wraparound scheme was another potential option, but I recently used something similar on another whif build (the Catalonian L-159 ALCA), and it would not have a typically Portuguese Cold War look.

 

Keeping in style with the FAP’s livery fashion during the Eighties, I rather settled upon a USAF SEA scheme, which was carried by many PAF aircraft during the Eighties, e .g. the A-7P, the G.91, and their replacement from 1993 onwards, the Alpha Jet. Instead of a wraparound version for ground attack aircraft, I rather gave the Draken light grey undersides.

 

The camouflage pattern itself was improvised, since I did not want to copy an existing delta wing aircraft (e.g. the USAF’s F-102 or F-106 SEA pattern, or the Belgian Mirage Vs). The basic colors are Humbrol 75 (Bronze Green; the authentic tone is FS 34079, but this lacks IMHO contrast to the lighter green), 117 (FS 34102) and 118 (FS 30219) from above, and Humbrol 28 (FS 36622) underneath.

A large ventral section was, typical for the J 35, left in bare metal, since leaking fuel and oil would frequently eat away any paint there. The section was painted with Steel Metallizer (ModelMaster) and later treated with Matt Aluminum Metallizer (Humbrol).

Internal details like the cockpit and the landing gear were painted with the help of Swedish and Austrian Saab 35 reference pictures. The cockpit tub was painted in a dark, bluish green (Humbrol 76) with grey-green (Revell 67) side walls. A piece of paper tissue covers the cockpit’s back wall, since the kit leaves a visible and rather ugly seam there, which is only partly hidden behind the seat.

The landing gear and its respective wells were painted with Humbrol 56 (Aluminum Dope), parts of the struts were painted in a bright turquoise (a mix of Humbrol 89 and 80; looks quite weird, but I like such details!). The front wheel received a dark green mudguard (Humbrol 30), the same color was also partially used on the extended emergency current generator. Missiles and launch rails were painted in gloss white (Humbrol 22).

 

As per usual, the model received a light black ink wash and some post-shading in order to emphasize the panels and dramatize the surface. Some extra weathering was done around the gun ports and the jet nozzle with graphite.

 

For markings I used the contemporary A-7Ps as benchmark: they were minimal, there were even no squadron markings or other decorations, and I think they even lacked roundels on their wings!

I gave the Draken slightly more markings: The small FAP roundels come from a PrintScale A/T-37 sheet, the fin flashes are from a TL Modellbai sheet and the tactical codes belong to a Japanese T-4 trainer. Most stencils were taken from the Revell OOB sheet, which also includes decals for the reddish sealer around the cockpit windows.

 

I didn’t want to leave the Draken without any squadron marking, though, so I gave it a blue band on top of the fin, as a reminiscence of the FAP 51 squadron’s markings, the former final F-86 operator which became 201 squadron in the early Eighties. These were simply done with layered white and blue decal stripes.

 

Finally, the model was sealed with matt acrylic varnish (Italeri), except for the black radome, which received a sheen varnish coat.

  

A relatively simple whif project, since the model was mostly built OOB with just minor cosmetic changes. However, despite its exotic operator, the USAF South East Asia scheme suits the Draken well, the whole thing looks disturbingly convincing!?

It’s also a kind of tribute build for “Sport16ing”, apparently a great fan of my what-if builds who frequently re-posts pictures and background stories (with kind permission to do so!) at deviantart.com.

Problem description:

Camera wont load film.

Lens extends and the shutter fires but the lens does not retract back into the body.