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That My Khe beach aesthetic, tho
Here we see an excellent photo of a Vietnamese Ranger of the ARVN clad in sandals, shades and an nón lá “rice hat” over his U.S.-supplied duck hunter/frog lizard camo uniform (which was popular at the...
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President’s day: Campaigning with a British general’s pistol
A young George Washington, sitting for his 1772 portrait as Colonel of the Virginia Regiment done by Portrait of George Washington – Charles Willson Peale. Washington had been appointed colonel in...
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Spellcheck, 1790
Thomas de Mahy, complete with the cross of the Order of St. Louis on his chest. Thomas de Mahy, Marquis de Favras, was a petty aristocrat who served as a captain in the royal dragoons at the ripe old...
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Finding the soul in steel
As I poke around various trade shows and events in the gun world, I like to find interesting people who tell a story. A special class of skilled craftsmen often catch my eye– master engravers. I...
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The last groundpounder in Liechtenstein
Herr Kieber, late of the Royal Liechtenstein Army, shown hanging around Schlosses Vaduz in 1935, aged 91. Note the Schutzenschnur cord award for rifle marksmanship. The medal? That’s for the 1866 War,...
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Vraciu remembered
On 19 June 1944, during the “Great Marianas Turkey Shoot,” VF-16 Hellcat flyer Lt. Alexander Vraciu splashed not one or two or three but six (6) Japanese Yokosuka D4Y Judys in eight minutes, firing...
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Sea-130
I promised myself I would never go back to Jordan, and then I see this, via the Sea Breeze Dive Club: “Aqaba’s newest dive site is the C130-Hercules plane wreck. After serving its time in the Jordanian...
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Raven 42: Citizen soldiers at their ‘part time’ job 14 years ago today
“Raven 42” by James Dietz Via U.S. Army Center of Military History March 20, 2005: Two U.S. convoys were about to converge at a crossroads 30 miles south of Baghdad. They were attacked by one of the...
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Happy First Day of Spring
The coastal bayou is already coming back to life. Spent the day kayaking yesterday. Now go get some sun on your face.
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A link to Kearsarge, up at auction
We’ve talked extensively in passed Warship Wednesdays and other posts about the epic contest off France between the British-built steam privateer CSS Alabama, under the swashbuckling Capt. Raphael...
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You failed to maintain your weapon, son
Public Service Announcement: This unidentifiable semi-auto handgun came into a shop in Michigan recently, unable to fire. I wonder why? After an overnight soak and full disassembly, it was returned to...
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Responsibility afield
As someone that has hunted, fished, hiked and camped for more than 40 years– mostly on public lands– a recent outing to the Audubon Aquarium of the Americas in New Orleans struck me. A recent addition...
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Vindictive Lamp, 101 years ago today
We have covered the HMS Vindictive, a British Arrogant-class cruiser, in a past Warship Wednesday (Big Vincent and the Seagoing Pyro Party). Some 101-years ago, the obsolete vessel gave her all as the...
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Supporting Notre Dame
The French Navy posted this in the past few days, with the crew of their flagship, FS Charles de Gaulle (R91) assembling in support of the country’s iconic cathedral. Note her Rafales and Hawkeyes....
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Warship Wednesday, May 1, 2019: Indy Radio (on May Day)
Here at LSOZI, we are going to take off every Wednesday for a look at the old steam/diesel navies of the 1833-1946 time period and will profile a different ship each week. These ships have a life, a...
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Vale, Grand Duke Jean
Today, let us celebrate a modern warrior king, or grand duke, as it was. Related to King Louis XIV through his father and the famed Dutch-German House of Nassau through his mother, Jean Benoît...
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One special Colt Commando, delivered
Maj. John Plaster went on 22 missions while as an enlisted Green Beret attached to MAC-V-SOG in South Vietnam. Of course, none of those missions were IN Vietnam. He made contact on almost every...
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Vale, Herman Wouk
As a kid, I was a naval film junkie and the War and Remembrance, and The Winds of War miniseries along with Humphrey Bogart’s The Caine Mutiny were standard fare. Who can ever forget the ultimate toxic...
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Archer, Sterling Archer
Was filming last week for Guns.com at Machine Gun America in Orlando and came across this in their armory above a couple of sub guns, specifically two full-auto Sterlings and a STEN sporting Rhodie...
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