On Mon, 12 May 2008 07:32:26 +0700, Bruce in Bangkok
wrote:

On Sun, 11 May 2008 16:46:56 +0000, Larry wrote:

Herodotus wrote in
m:

Sorry to burn your ears but I always wanted to cruise the eastern
coast of the US.

cheers and thanks
Peter


Wow...I didn't know about these paper restrictions. What ****es me off,
being on the receiving end of anything bad, is that there is NO GUNBOATS
AT THE HARBOR ENTRANCE! We're never challenged in any way coming in from
sea on sailboats....even if we show no flag. Noone seems to care. You
could sail right up to the City Marina dock, right past the Coast Guard
Base Charleston, with a stolen Russian suitcase nuclear weapon and noone
would say anything to you unless you wanted to rent a slip or you set the
damned thing off. I think you, or anyone in any boat, ought to be
challenged at the SEAWARD end of the jetties! There's NOTHING THERE!
Noone calls you to even see if you speak English (or Spanish, now that
half our population are illegal Mexicans). I've tried to get noticed by
making calls in Farsi and Arabic on Channel 16 and got no response, at
all!....(c; You'd think at LEAST someone would say SOMETHING when you
called for Googoosh (a famous Iranian Pop singer that makes Iranian men's
blood boil) on CHANNEL 16 in FARSI! Nothing, nada....


Hot Damn, Man! You really mean you want them Gumment men to sit out
there on the end of the jetty with a shotgun......... In the hot sun,
the pouring rain, the (well what passes for in S.C.) freezing cold.

Lord God Man, didn't your pappy teach you nothing? The Gumment men got
to have the white shirt, the air conditioner, the comfy chair 'n the
big desk.

How you expect the Homeland Security to make things secure if they got
to sit around and guard tings. And, the budget so small that they
can't afford to sub-contract the work.


Bruce-in-Bangkok
(correct Address is bpaige125atgmaildotcom)
With their mentality of watching the top of a container whilst trying
to fill it with water and not seeing the gaping hole at the bottom, I
wonder why some enthusiastic Bushian bureauocrat doen't come up with
the really bright idea of posting signs on all the fairway buoys -
"Terrorists are not allowed to enter this port without first
contacting DHS"

Herodotus wrote in
:

I
loved signing my original name first name "Panaeyotis" and listening
to them trying to pronounce it. They would try to avoid it by asking
for my room number which I couldn't remember at the time. Then they
would ask for my last name and finally burst out laughing to the
Dining room manager's displeasure when I told them that I only had one
name as when I was born my parents were so poor that they could only
afford to give me one name. In Australia when I am bored I often write
my name in the Greek alphabet. At least people have a sense of humour.
It appears that if you are older with a business suit and can keep a
straight face, people don't mind you "taking the mickey out of them"
the world over.


I lived in Tehran and worked under contract with Pan Am Airlines,
Technical Services Branch, for the Iranian Air Force at Doshen-Tappeh AFB
in NE Tehran. The base is deserted on Google Earth, now, very sad. We
were in the SIGINT/ELINT business against Iraq and Afghanistan. CIA kept
an eye on the Soviets in the late 70's from the "monitoring station on
top of Tochal that did not exist" every Iranian could point out to you.
Shahanshah was our guy, you know...CIA.

While there, I was very intent on learning enough Farsi to astonish the
Iranians and drove my homofars (technical warrant officers IAF) and
especially Raffick, my 12-year-old taxi driver, crazy with questions. He
taught me more Farsi than anyone else, so I spoke more like a street rat
hiphop ho than a proper Farsi speaker, something every Iranian I spoke to
in Farsi found most amusing, except Mullahs...(c; After I learned how to
sign my name, IAF ID number, "engineer" and unit in Farsi, I refused to
sign it in English to anyone. "NO NO! YOU SIGN IN ENGLISH or they think
I signed that form!"....."What? You don't like my Farsi?", I'd retort.
The AF colonel in charge of logistics presented me with my own Farsi
typewriter for my desk he was so proud of me. The conscript soldiers
that guarded the base lived in tents and had a mess tent at the end of
our building. I loved to eat breakfast with them before work if I could
get to work in time. Otherwise, I'd eat lunch with them. They all spoke
street rat Farsi and improved my accent, to the horror of proper
speakers. I was the only American who ate in the army mess tent and if I
needed something that required some muscle outside the secret building
they weren't allowed into where I worked, I had no trouble getting a huge
Russian army truck, my own driver and some grunts. Even Iranian drivers
get the hell out of the way when you're roaring downtown to the Hewlett-
Packard office for parts in a 8-ton truck with 8 drive wheels...(c;

It took some fast talking (in Farsi, of course) to convince my Bank
Markazi branch to allow me to make checks in Farsi with my Farsi
signature, but they relented, finally. The look on a clerks face as this
crazy, obviously American, who was supposed to be ignorant of all local
customs, language, etc., whisk out his checkbook and paid for the
groceries at the Super Shillon all in proper Farsi....(c;

I don't dare try it now in the states as I might find myself in chains
headed for Guantanamo Prison....(c;

I'd go back to Iran any time they decided they'd had enough of the
stonings and beatings and stone aged government. Iranians don't hate
Americans. Like most of the world, they hate our Illuminati Government
trying to kill them all....and they know the difference.

The Army guys even let me drive a T-72 Russian TANK! Way cool!
THAT makes the Peykan orange taxis get the hell out of my way!
They were even afraid to blow their horns!
Ahh...the sound of a steel track tearing up the pavement in the
morning...(c;

Bruce in Bangkok wrote in
:

And, the budget so small that they
can't afford to sub-contract the work.


Their budget could feed and house Thailand quite comfortably...

On Mon, 12 May 2008 03:13:18 +0000, Larry wrote:


I lived in Tehran and worked under contract with Pan Am Airlines,
Technical Services Branch, for the Iranian Air Force at Doshen-Tappeh AFB
in NE Tehran. The base is deserted on Google Earth, now, very sad. We
were in the SIGINT/ELINT business against Iraq and Afghanistan. CIA kept
an eye on the Soviets in the late 70's from the "monitoring station on
top of Tochal that did not exist" every Iranian could point out to you.
Shahanshah was our guy, you know...CIA.

While there, I was very intent on learning enough Farsi to astonish the
Iranians and drove my homofars (technical warrant officers IAF) and
especially Raffick, my 12-year-old taxi driver, crazy with questions. He
taught me more Farsi than anyone else, so I spoke more like a street rat
hiphop ho than a proper Farsi speaker, something every Iranian I spoke to
in Farsi found most amusing, except Mullahs...(c; After I learned how to
sign my name, IAF ID number, "engineer" and unit in Farsi, I refused to
sign it in English to anyone. "NO NO! YOU SIGN IN ENGLISH or they think
I signed that form!"....."What? You don't like my Farsi?", I'd retort.
The AF colonel in charge of logistics presented me with my own Farsi
typewriter for my desk he was so proud of me. The conscript soldiers
that guarded the base lived in tents and had a mess tent at the end of
our building. I loved to eat breakfast with them before work if I could
get to work in time. Otherwise, I'd eat lunch with them. They all spoke
street rat Farsi and improved my accent, to the horror of proper
speakers. I was the only American who ate in the army mess tent and if I
needed something that required some muscle outside the secret building
they weren't allowed into where I worked, I had no trouble getting a huge
Russian army truck, my own driver and some grunts. Even Iranian drivers
get the hell out of the way when you're roaring downtown to the Hewlett-
Packard office for parts in a 8-ton truck with 8 drive wheels...(c;

It took some fast talking (in Farsi, of course) to convince my Bank
Markazi branch to allow me to make checks in Farsi with my Farsi
signature, but they relented, finally. The look on a clerks face as this
crazy, obviously American, who was supposed to be ignorant of all local
customs, language, etc., whisk out his checkbook and paid for the
groceries at the Super Shillon all in proper Farsi....(c;

I don't dare try it now in the states as I might find myself in chains
headed for Guantanamo Prison....(c;

I'd go back to Iran any time they decided they'd had enough of the
stonings and beatings and stone aged government. Iranians don't hate
Americans. Like most of the world, they hate our Illuminati Government
trying to kill them all....and they know the difference.

The Army guys even let me drive a T-72 Russian TANK! Way cool!
THAT makes the Peykan orange taxis get the hell out of my way!
They were even afraid to blow their horns!
Ahh...the sound of a steel track tearing up the pavement in the
morning...(c;

Hi Larry,

You've certainly had an interesting life so far. Perhaps that is why
Bruce and yourself can often see the other side in any discussion -
because you have been exposed to other influences.

Interesting comment about Iranians not hating Americans. When we
sailed into Aden when most yachts were sailing past, we radioed
American friends a couple of days behind us to come in and get fuel
instead of going the 600 miles extra to Djibouti and out again. The
Customs/'Inmmigration officers at the port explained to our friends
"We are not anti-American. In fact we really like Americans. We are
merely opposed to thye foreign policy of your current President.
However we know that only half of your citizens voted for him.....and
you look intelligent people (said with a smile). Welcome to our
country.

This seperation between U.S. foreign policy and its citizens we found
to be widespread.

BTW, do they speak standard English in Charleston or do I have to
learn beforehand how to listen slowly when I visit your fair city and
the Folbot factory? I seem to be able to read your words at the same
speed as Bruce's and Roger's. Is it just the spoken word that slows to
a crawl in the South? I was in a shop at the airport in Dall Fort
worth and actaully heard a man who was leaving saying "Buy yawl" when
there was only the shop assistant there. By his reference to "y'all or
"yawl" or "you all" I presumed he was addressing more than on person
which he clearly wasn't. He may of course be giving advice to the girl
to purchase a sailing boat with the mizzen mast aft of the rudder post
as that was what it sounded like.I hope I don't get arrested as either
an illegal or a foreigner because I don't speak the lingo and slowly
enough.

Asalaam
Peter

"Larry" wrote in message
...
Herodotus wrote in
:

I
loved signing my original name first name "Panaeyotis" and listening
to them trying to pronounce it. They would try to avoid it by asking
for my room number which I couldn't remember at the time. Then they
would ask for my last name and finally burst out laughing to the
Dining room manager's displeasure when I told them that I only had one
name as when I was born my parents were so poor that they could only
afford to give me one name. In Australia when I am bored I often write
my name in the Greek alphabet. At least people have a sense of humour.
It appears that if you are older with a business suit and can keep a
straight face, people don't mind you "taking the mickey out of them"
the world over.


I lived in Tehran and worked under contract with Pan Am Airlines,
Technical Services Branch, for the Iranian Air Force at Doshen-Tappeh AFB
in NE Tehran. The base is deserted on Google Earth, now, very sad. We
were in the SIGINT/ELINT business against Iraq and Afghanistan. CIA kept
an eye on the Soviets in the late 70's from the "monitoring station on
top of Tochal that did not exist" every Iranian could point out to you.
Shahanshah was our guy, you know...CIA.

While there, I was very intent on learning enough Farsi to astonish the
Iranians and drove my homofars (technical warrant officers IAF) and
especially Raffick, my 12-year-old taxi driver, crazy with questions. He
taught me more Farsi than anyone else, so I spoke more like a street rat
hiphop ho than a proper Farsi speaker, something every Iranian I spoke to
in Farsi found most amusing, except Mullahs...(c; After I learned how to
sign my name, IAF ID number, "engineer" and unit in Farsi, I refused to
sign it in English to anyone. "NO NO! YOU SIGN IN ENGLISH or they think
I signed that form!"....."What? You don't like my Farsi?", I'd retort.
The AF colonel in charge of logistics presented me with my own Farsi
typewriter for my desk he was so proud of me. The conscript soldiers
that guarded the base lived in tents and had a mess tent at the end of
our building. I loved to eat breakfast with them before work if I could
get to work in time. Otherwise, I'd eat lunch with them. They all spoke
street rat Farsi and improved my accent, to the horror of proper
speakers. I was the only American who ate in the army mess tent and if I
needed something that required some muscle outside the secret building
they weren't allowed into where I worked, I had no trouble getting a huge
Russian army truck, my own driver and some grunts. Even Iranian drivers
get the hell out of the way when you're roaring downtown to the Hewlett-
Packard office for parts in a 8-ton truck with 8 drive wheels...(c;

It took some fast talking (in Farsi, of course) to convince my Bank
Markazi branch to allow me to make checks in Farsi with my Farsi
signature, but they relented, finally. The look on a clerks face as this
crazy, obviously American, who was supposed to be ignorant of all local
customs, language, etc., whisk out his checkbook and paid for the
groceries at the Super Shillon all in proper Farsi....(c;

I don't dare try it now in the states as I might find myself in chains
headed for Guantanamo Prison....(c;

I'd go back to Iran any time they decided they'd had enough of the
stonings and beatings and stone aged government. Iranians don't hate
Americans. Like most of the world, they hate our Illuminati Government
trying to kill them all....and they know the difference.

The Army guys even let me drive a T-72 Russian TANK! Way cool!
THAT makes the Peykan orange taxis get the hell out of my way!
They were even afraid to blow their horns!
Ahh...the sound of a steel track tearing up the pavement in the
morning...(c;


Larry
I was posted to a base in the north of Oz once where a Reserve had never
been before.
The docky coppers gave me a badge - 007.
You had to ask for your badge by number every morning.
Number 7 please? Zero Zero Seven?.
Nope, every day, they wanted to hear "Double-0 Seven please"
Cracked them up for weeks.
Hoges in WA

BTW - can you please repost that story about the fake radar you aimed at the
Russian fleet? I can't google it up and I've told a Pommy mate of mine
(ex-submarine-carried Russian linguist) a bit about it but I don't know
enough electronic stuff to tell him properly
thanks

On Mon, 12 May 2008 11:26:06 +1000, Herodotus
wrote:

On Mon, 12 May 2008 07:32:26 +0700, Bruce in Bangkok
wrote:

On Sun, 11 May 2008 16:46:56 +0000, Larry wrote:

Herodotus wrote in
:

Sorry to burn your ears but I always wanted to cruise the eastern
coast of the US.

cheers and thanks
Peter


Wow...I didn't know about these paper restrictions. What ****es me off,
being on the receiving end of anything bad, is that there is NO GUNBOATS
AT THE HARBOR ENTRANCE! We're never challenged in any way coming in from
sea on sailboats....even if we show no flag. Noone seems to care. You
could sail right up to the City Marina dock, right past the Coast Guard
Base Charleston, with a stolen Russian suitcase nuclear weapon and noone
would say anything to you unless you wanted to rent a slip or you set the
damned thing off. I think you, or anyone in any boat, ought to be
challenged at the SEAWARD end of the jetties! There's NOTHING THERE!
Noone calls you to even see if you speak English (or Spanish, now that
half our population are illegal Mexicans). I've tried to get noticed by
making calls in Farsi and Arabic on Channel 16 and got no response, at
all!....(c; You'd think at LEAST someone would say SOMETHING when you
called for Googoosh (a famous Iranian Pop singer that makes Iranian men's
blood boil) on CHANNEL 16 in FARSI! Nothing, nada....


Hot Damn, Man! You really mean you want them Gumment men to sit out
there on the end of the jetty with a shotgun......... In the hot sun,
the pouring rain, the (well what passes for in S.C.) freezing cold.

Lord God Man, didn't your pappy teach you nothing? The Gumment men got
to have the white shirt, the air conditioner, the comfy chair 'n the
big desk.

How you expect the Homeland Security to make things secure if they got
to sit around and guard tings. And, the budget so small that they
can't afford to sub-contract the work.


Bruce-in-Bangkok
(correct Address is bpaige125atgmaildotcom)
With their mentality of watching the top of a container whilst trying
to fill it with water and not seeing the gaping hole at the bottom, I
wonder why some enthusiastic Bushian bureauocrat doen't come up with
the really bright idea of posting signs on all the fairway buoys -
"Terrorists are not allowed to enter this port without first
contacting DHS"

No more money in this year's budget, but they are going to built the
funds into next year's budget. Further more, it is probably a federal
crime to pass such posted buoys if you are a terrorist.

Along that line, a chap from Wyoming told me (but I can't verify this)
that when Wyoming accepted federal money for the state highway
department one of the criteria was to change every highway sign in the
state to meet US government standards -- and there went the first
year's budget...



Bruce-in-Bangkok
(correct Address is bpaige125atgmaildotcom)

Bruce in Bangkok wrote:

Along that line, a chap from Wyoming told me (but I can't verify this)
that when Wyoming accepted federal money for the state highway
department one of the criteria was to change every highway sign in the
state to meet US government standards -- and there went the first
year's budget...

I didn't think there were enough Spanish speakers in Wyoming to justify
this.

Cheers
Marty

On Mon, 12 May 2008 14:39:23 +1000, Herodotus
wrote:

On Mon, 12 May 2008 03:13:18 +0000, Larry wrote:


I lived in Tehran and worked under contract with Pan Am Airlines,
Technical Services Branch, for the Iranian Air Force at Doshen-Tappeh AFB
in NE Tehran. The base is deserted on Google Earth, now, very sad. We
were in the SIGINT/ELINT business against Iraq and Afghanistan. CIA kept
an eye on the Soviets in the late 70's from the "monitoring station on
top of Tochal that did not exist" every Iranian could point out to you.
Shahanshah was our guy, you know...CIA.

While there, I was very intent on learning enough Farsi to astonish the
Iranians and drove my homofars (technical warrant officers IAF) and
especially Raffick, my 12-year-old taxi driver, crazy with questions. He
taught me more Farsi than anyone else, so I spoke more like a street rat
hiphop ho than a proper Farsi speaker, something every Iranian I spoke to
in Farsi found most amusing, except Mullahs...(c; After I learned how to
sign my name, IAF ID number, "engineer" and unit in Farsi, I refused to
sign it in English to anyone. "NO NO! YOU SIGN IN ENGLISH or they think
I signed that form!"....."What? You don't like my Farsi?", I'd retort.
The AF colonel in charge of logistics presented me with my own Farsi
typewriter for my desk he was so proud of me. The conscript soldiers
that guarded the base lived in tents and had a mess tent at the end of
our building. I loved to eat breakfast with them before work if I could
get to work in time. Otherwise, I'd eat lunch with them. They all spoke
street rat Farsi and improved my accent, to the horror of proper
speakers. I was the only American who ate in the army mess tent and if I
needed something that required some muscle outside the secret building
they weren't allowed into where I worked, I had no trouble getting a huge
Russian army truck, my own driver and some grunts. Even Iranian drivers
get the hell out of the way when you're roaring downtown to the Hewlett-
Packard office for parts in a 8-ton truck with 8 drive wheels...(c;

It took some fast talking (in Farsi, of course) to convince my Bank
Markazi branch to allow me to make checks in Farsi with my Farsi
signature, but they relented, finally. The look on a clerks face as this
crazy, obviously American, who was supposed to be ignorant of all local
customs, language, etc., whisk out his checkbook and paid for the
groceries at the Super Shillon all in proper Farsi....(c;

I don't dare try it now in the states as I might find myself in chains
headed for Guantanamo Prison....(c;

I'd go back to Iran any time they decided they'd had enough of the
stonings and beatings and stone aged government. Iranians don't hate
Americans. Like most of the world, they hate our Illuminati Government
trying to kill them all....and they know the difference.

The Army guys even let me drive a T-72 Russian TANK! Way cool!
THAT makes the Peykan orange taxis get the hell out of my way!
They were even afraid to blow their horns!
Ahh...the sound of a steel track tearing up the pavement in the
morning...(c;

Hi Larry,

You've certainly had an interesting life so far. Perhaps that is why
Bruce and yourself can often see the other side in any discussion -
because you have been exposed to other influences.

Interesting comment about Iranians not hating Americans. When we
sailed into Aden when most yachts were sailing past, we radioed
American friends a couple of days behind us to come in and get fuel
instead of going the 600 miles extra to Djibouti and out again. The
Customs/'Inmmigration officers at the port explained to our friends
"We are not anti-American. In fact we really like Americans. We are
merely opposed to thye foreign policy of your current President.
However we know that only half of your citizens voted for him.....and
you look intelligent people (said with a smile). Welcome to our
country.

This seperation between U.S. foreign policy and its citizens we found
to be widespread.

BTW, do they speak standard English in Charleston or do I have to
learn beforehand how to listen slowly when I visit your fair city and
the Folbot factory? I seem to be able to read your words at the same
speed as Bruce's and Roger's. Is it just the spoken word that slows to
a crawl in the South? I was in a shop at the airport in Dall Fort
worth and actaully heard a man who was leaving saying "Buy yawl" when
there was only the shop assistant there. By his reference to "y'all or
"yawl" or "you all" I presumed he was addressing more than on person
which he clearly wasn't. He may of course be giving advice to the girl
to purchase a sailing boat with the mizzen mast aft of the rudder post
as that was what it sounded like.I hope I don't get arrested as either
an illegal or a foreigner because I don't speak the lingo and slowly
enough.

Asalaam
Peter

Don't worry about it. I went to school in Florida and thought I was in
the "Old South" (which I have since discovered that S. Florida is not!
They spoke Yiddish on Miami Beach when I was there. Now they speak
Spanish). When I finished school my roomie's uncle got both of us a
job with a company called "Southern Airways" in Bainbridge, Georgia,
which is a small, very, small, town in South Georgia.

Now, I admit that I was born and brought up in New England where there
is a bit of a local accent. I used to say "paak yer caa at haavad
yaad", but when I got to Georgia they couldn't understand me and kept
asking me "what'd you say?" People would to ask me to repeat things my
"Yankee" accent was so different. But a couple of the girls thought I
"talked cute" so it all worked out in the end.

Just talk ENGLISH, or maybe Australian (everyone in the States has
seen at least one of the Crocodile Dundee movies) and you'll get along
all right. If you can talk like Banjo Paterson wrote they won't be
able to make out what you're saying :-)

If you do run into Larry make sure he feeds you some ethnic food like
"field peas", "collard greens", "red-eye gravy and biscuits", and
"chitlins" and "black eyed peas". That "good old boy" diet is like
eating some of the great Chinese dishes like fish head curry and
swim-bladder soup..... WHO ATE THE GOOD PARTS???????


Bruce-in-Bangkok
(correct Address is bpaige125atgmaildotcom)

On Mon, 12 May 2008 11:43:09 -0400, Martin Baxter
wrote:

Bruce in Bangkok wrote:

Along that line, a chap from Wyoming told me (but I can't verify this)
that when Wyoming accepted federal money for the state highway
department one of the criteria was to change every highway sign in the
state to meet US government standards -- and there went the first
year's budget...

I didn't think there were enough Spanish speakers in Wyoming to justify

And they can't learn the twenty five or so English words found on the
signs?
Neither can the either of the French speakers in Vancouver.

Casady

Richard Casady a écrit :


And they can't learn the twenty five or so English words found on the
signs?
Neither can the either of the French speakers in Vancouver.


They might possibly be puzzled by the last sentence...


--
http://francois.lonchamp.free.fr
Un doigt de linguistique ... et un soupçon de voile