This Is Why I Never Use Toronto Pearson International Airport

I live at Toronto Pearson International airport. The worst place on earth. I smell so bad. pic.twitter.com/PfdnHcO7Ad

— Ryan Whitney (@ryanwhitney6) June 6, 2022

WNU Editor: I know how Ryan Whitney feels. Was stuck for two days in Toronto Pearson International airport on a trip to San Francisco a dozen years ago. Since then I have never used Toronto for any  connecting international flight. It looks like nothing has changed.

Pin-ups For Vets Calendar Released

 

FOX News: Former Black Hawk helicopter pilot Jana Tobias on posing for Pin-ups for Vets: ‘I still can't believe it's me'  

Jana Tobias is Miss June 2022 in Gina Elise's annual Pin-Up for Vets calendar 

Jana Tobias was eager to suit up in a completely different way. 

The veteran, who served in the Army as a Black Hawk pilot, is one of 12 women who swapped their uniforms and combat boots for ‘40s style dresses and high heels, for the 16th annual Pin-Ups for Vets 2022 calendar. The award-winning nonprofit, founded in 2006 by California resident Gina Elise, raises funding to support hospitalized and deployed troops. 

"I try to follow as many veteran organizations as possible," Tobias told Fox News. "I came across Pin-Ups for Vets on Facebook and I was just intrigued. I’ve always loved the 1940s, not because of the clothes, but really the nose art. I’m in aviation, so that has always fascinated me. It was also a time when our country was going through hardship and war. And yet, we as Americans did whatever was possible to motivate and uplift our troops, so they can keep going. I felt like I could contribute." 

Read more ....  

WNU Editor: Girls want to have fun. Jana Tobias' video is below. 

World's Most Admired Men And Women 2021

World's Most Admired Men 2021 (1-10)

1. Barack Obama 🇺🇸
2. Bill Gates 🇺🇸
3. Xi Jinping 🇨🇳
4. Cristiano Ronaldo 🇵🇹
5. Jackie Chan 🇨🇳
6. Elon Musk 🇿🇦
7. Lionel Messi 🇦🇷
8. Narendra Modi 🇮🇳
9. Vladimir Putin 🇷🇺
10. Jack Ma 🇨🇳https://t.co/oBV8X1gh6E pic.twitter.com/IedkTP2d7c

— YouGov (@YouGov) December 14, 2021

Summit News: Poll Finds Trump is More Admired Than Biden or The Pope  

The Donald is still popular. 

A new poll has found that Donald Trump is more admired than Pope Francis or Joe Biden. 

The survey, conducted by YouGov, places Trump at number 13 for the world’s most admired man, while the Pope is below him at number 16 and Biden further down in 20th place.  

Read more ....  

WNU Editor: I am not on the list. :(

These Are The Most Dangerous Airspaces To Travel Through

Statista: The Most Dangerous Airspace To Fly Through  

Ryanair Flight 4978 was subject to a bomb threat in Belarussian airspace on May 23 and it was escorted to Minsk by a MIG-29 fighter jet where opposition activist Roman Protasevich was detained, along with his girlfriend. Condemnation of the episode was swift with EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen descrbing "the hijacking of the Ryanair plane by the Belarus regime as an attack on democracy" while U.S. President Joe Biden condemned it "in the strongest possible terms". The event served as a reminder that some sections of international airspace carry an inherent level of risk for passenger flights.  

Read more ....  

WNU Editor: I expected more countries to be on the "caution list".

The Stuff That You Can Find On A Beach

Bomb squad members removed a possible naval explosive device that washed ashore in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, Fla., on Sunday.Broward County Sheriff's Office 

NBC: Possible military explosive device washes ashore on Florida beach 

A bomb squad and the Air Force determined that the device was not a threat and removed it from the beach in Lauderdale-By-The-Sea. 

A possible military explosive training device washed ashore on a Florida beach early Sunday. 

The Broward County Sheriff's Office said a deputy on patrol discovered the device on the beach in Lauderdale-By-The-Sea, about 30 miles north of Miami, at 2:30 a.m. Sunday. 

Read more .... 

WNU Editor: Even though the sea-mine says "inert". I will be on the side of caution.

Where I Go To Eat In New York City

✔️1918 Pandemic
✔️World Wars I & II
✔️Great Depression
✔️Great Recession

NYC landmark Katz's Delicatessen survived all of the above while serving its famous pastrami sandwiches since 1888. Here’s how Katz’s is adapting during #Covid19. Presented by @Citrix pic.twitter.com/nds4vQbH8u

— Bloomberg QuickTake (@QuickTake) October 8, 2020

WNU Editor: Whenever I am in New York City I always drop by Katz. Montreal has a few very good places that provide the same product (we call it smoke-meat), but Katz is a little different. Darn. Seeing the above video I now have a craving for the stuff. 

Forget About The News … Have You Seen The Comet?

The Comet C/2020 or 'Neowise' is seen in the sky behind St Mark's Tower, a 17th century coastal fortification in Malta, July 12. REUTERS/Darrin Zammit Lupi

Blain's Morning Porridge - July 20 2020: Time of the Comet?

“When beggars die, there are no comets seen; the heavens themselves blaze forth the death of princes.”

Forget the markets… Have you seen the Comet?

Worry not about the EU failing to agree a deal over a long weekend negotiating - but agreeing to talk more about it later today. Fret not about how last week’s strong US bank earnings might be anaesthetising us to worse numbers from US industry still to come. Don’t stress about the deepening China vs World standoff, or how China’s Ambassador strenuously claims the manacled prisoners were on their way out for nice day by the seaside. Have no concerns about how the US equity market seems unable to breach key phycological levels. Be calm about the absolute lack of market conviction. And don’t give a fig for rising Coronavirus hotspots or the US Dr Fauci being “a bit alarmist”.. I know who I would trust between Trump or the good doctor.

I shall return to markets later – much later – but for now I most strongly suggest get up very early tomorrow morning (about 2 am) and focus on the Northern Sky. It will reward you.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: For those who are new to the blog, I am an amateur astronomer. Saw the comet last night. One word describes what I saw .... "incredible". If you are outside the city limits take the opportunity to try and see it. You will be rewarded with one of natures brilliant shows.

U.S. Police: Son Of Former Soviet Leader Nikita Khrushchev Died Of Gunshot Wound To The Head

Sergey Khrushchev during his visit to Moscow in 2015. © Sputnik / Anton Denisov

RT: Son of Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev died of gunshot wound to the head – US police

Sergey Khrushchev’s cause of death was a gunshot wound to the head, US police said. The 84-year-old son of Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev passed away at his Rhode Island home last week.

“There were no immediate signs of outside foul play,” Major Todd Patalano of the Cranston Police Department said. He didn’t elaborate as to whether the death was being treated as an accident or a suicide, simply stating that the investigation was closed.

The gunshot wound was revealed by Joseph Wendelken, spokesman for the Rhode Island state medical examiner’s office, the AP news agency reported.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: He fled to the U.S. when the Soviet Union was falling apart. At least he knew when to get out.

Boom! 94 Year Old WWII Veteran Fires 152mm Howitzer (Video)

RT: Boom! 94yo WWII veteran fires 152mm howitzer in stunning VIDEO

A decorated WWII veteran couldn’t resist trying a large-caliber cannon while visiting a Russian military compound in Siberia and didn’t miss a single target. The jaw-dropping moment was caught on film.

It’s been 75 years since Mikhail Asanov came back from the war, but his shooting skills are still as sharp as ever. This week, he was invited to share his wartime experience with young soldiers near the Siberian town of Kemerovo, but the visit ended up being a spectacular live-fire exercise.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: My father was a Soviet WWII veteran who an officer for an artillery unit. If he was around today, I am sure he would ove to fire one of these cannons one more time.

What Do They Get Right And Wrong In Military Movies

BroBible: Navy SEAL Breaks Down Military Movies, Explains What They Get Right And What They Get Horribly Wrong About Combat

Retired Navy SEAL Jocko Willink served his country for 20 years, where he was deployed all over the world. Willink was enlisted Navy SEAL with SEAL Team ONE and SEAL Team TWO, plus he was the commander of SEAL Team Three’s Task Unit Bruiser that fought Iraqi insurgents in Ramadi during the Iraq War. Willink earned the Silver Star and Bronze Star for his brave service.

With all of that experience in the military and fighting in bloody battles, GQ asked Jocko Willink to watch military movies and discreet the military action to see how realistic the films were. Willink analyzed several movies including 1990’s Navy SEALs starring Charlie Sheen, Zero Dark Thirty, Captain Phillips, Act of Valor, Lone Survivor, and American Sniper, which is about Chris Kyle, who was in Willink’s Task Unit Bruiser.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: Retired Navy SEAL Jocko Willink is never boring.

The 25 Most Powerful Countries On Earth In 2020 Ranked

Business Insider: The most powerful countries on earth in 2020, ranked

US News and World Report ranked countries to determine which ones are the most powerful.

The US stays in first place this year, but other countries have changed positions amid rising global instability and political changes.

The US, Russia, and China remain the planet's most powerful countries even as other countries have seen their positions fall, according to this year's global power rankings.

The rankings, published by US News and World Report, look at how the influence of a nation, as well as its political, economic, and military power. The rankings are part of its annual "Best Countries" study, which evaluates 80 countries based on responses from 21,000 people.

These are the world's 25 most powerful nations, according to the 2020 rankings:

Read more ....

WNU Editor: I would place some of these countries higher or lower, but it is still a good summary.

FBI Agent On His Last Day On The Job Is Reunited With A Kidnapped Newborn He Rescued 22 Years Ago Who Is Now A Marine

After shaking Sowers' (right) hand, Rembert (left) told the FBI agent that his parents wanted to give him a hug and the pair embraced

Daily Mail: FBI agent's retirement day surprise as he's reunited with a kidnapped newborn he rescued from next to a dumpster 22 years ago who went onto become a MARINE

* Troy Sowers left the FBI after 22 years of service with a party in Knoxville, TN
* Colleagues surprised him with a reunion from one of his first cases in the FBI
* They tracked down Stewart Rembert who was kidnapped as a baby in 1997
* Sowers found him in a box next to a dumpster, 19 hours after he disappeared
* Rembert survived and is now an U.S. Marine, he thanked Sowers for saving him

An U.S. Marine who was kidnapped as a baby and abandoned next to a dumpster 22-years-ago finally got to meet and thank the FBI agent who saved him - on his final day at the federal agency before retirement.

Troy Sowers of Knoxville, Tennessee, had hoped for a 'very simple' final day with 'coffee and doughnuts' to end his decades of service but colleagues had a different plan in mind.

They tracked-down Stewart Rembert, now a U.S. Marine corporal, who Sowers had saved only a few months into the job in 1997 when he was still a rookie.

Rembert was abducted by a woman who impersonated a nurse to steal the newborn and later dumped in a box in an alleyway.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: A truly remarkable and emotional reunion. The US Marines have to also be grateful that their future corporal was saved.

This Spcial Ops Veteran Says You Should Have These Products In Your Daily Like

Warzone/The Drive: Special Ops Veteran Relied On These Products In Combat And Says You Should Too In Daily Life

After 24 years in special operations, you get an idea of what stuff works and what doesn't. These are one soldier's top picks for average folks.

Well, let’s start with a universal truism in life. Stuff. A path through any human life is populated by and littered with stuff, right? The legendary comedian and brilliant truth-teller George Carlin captured this reality in his classic comedy bit “A Place For My Stuff.” I may connect with that bit deeper in a future article, but for this article, I want to talk about stuff in a soldier’s life.

Of course, in the Army, we can’t call it just “stuff.” It is “gear” or “kit,” or sometimes, and more boringly, “OCIE”—organizational clothing and individual equipment.

But who are we kidding? It’s stuff.

What I want to discuss is a few key items across a spectrum of categories that have been my go-to “stuff” during a 24-year career filled with actual combat deployments and that remain so in my life as a civilian today. Why? Because this stuff just works. And when something works, you don’t discard it. You incorporate it into your life forever.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: I have the knife, multitool, military flashlight (two of them actually), socks (of course), duct-tape (always), and the watch (Russian version). I may get the gloves.

Do You Know This Man?

In 1983, photographer Ramzi Haidar took this photo of a militiaman playing the piano in an abandoned mansion. Supplied: Ramzi Haidar

ABC News Online: Lebanese photographer who took iconic civil war image searches for the man who saved his life

Photographer Ramzi Haidar has been searching for the Piano Man for more than 30 years.

He is the subject of Haidar's most famous image — a moment of serenity for a young combatant in Lebanon's bitter civil war.

But that is not the only reason Haidar wants to find him.

He is seeking the Piano Man because of what happened in the moments after the photograph was taken.

Haidar was shot in the head and nearly died.

"I've been searching for him for decades now," Haidar said.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: If he has not been found after 30 years .... he is probably dead.

Here Are 15 Commercial Products Invented By The Military

USA Today: 15 commercial products invented by the military

Over the century or so, military research has led to the development of many commercial products.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: I am surprised about the T-shirt. At home I am always wearing them. I am also surprised that it was the military that was the driving force to develop feminine hygiene products, something that I am sure every woman now appreciates.

Do Not Miss This

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Do not miss this. <a href="https://t.co/sV3MrDDtvw">pic.twitter.com/sV3MrDDtvw</a></p>&mdash; Brit Hume (@brithume) <a href="https://twitter.com/brithume/status/1128306657979719680?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 14, 2019</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> 
WNU Editor: OK. I am impressed. Hat tip SmallDeadAnimals for this link.

How G.I. Joe Became A Toy Legend

Popular Mechanics: Yo, Joe: How a 12-Inch Soldier Doll Became a Toy Legend

Ronald Reagan and Marvel helped create the famous action figure, and Star Wars held it back.

If you’re under 30, your most prominent associations with G.I. Joe might be Channing Tatum or the Rock. Joe, though, has been around since 1964.

At the time of his debut, Joe mirrored the culture of the nation—just like Barbie did in 1959. Joe was a role model to generations of children and a boon to Hasbro, the toy company who produced him. But he was also in a constant struggle.

Here’s how G.I. Joe got started, and how the action figure (a term coined for Joe to avoid the word “doll”) maintained its relevance for half a century.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: I wish I had one as a kid.

Fighter Jets Will Always Set Off A Police Radar

Business Insider: An F-16 fighter jet made a California highway patrolman's radar go bonkers with a high-speed flyby

* Video taken by Officer Chris Bol of the California Highway Patrol shows an F-16 Fighting Falcon blasting past his patrol car on an empty highway.
* These low-altitude flybys occur regularly in this particular area and are often picked up on radar.
* Bol's radar went in and out, apparently reading 250 mph at one point, the California Highway Patrol station in the California desert suburb of Bishop told Business Insider.

A California patrolman's radar apparently flipped out on an empty stretch of highway over the weekend, which was odd because there wasn't another car in sight. But then an F-16 Fighting Falcon came flying low and fast past his location.

A video taken by Officer Chris Bol and shared by the California Highway Patrol station in the California desert suburb of Bishop shows the F-16 making a pass — not the first, as the officer filming has his camera ready to catch the fighter flying by his Ford Explorer.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: Those low flybys are always a sight to see.

Extraordinary Helicopter Rescue In The French Alps

Popular Mechanics: Helicopter Pulls Off Improbable Rescue Mission in the French Alps

Have you ever seen a helicopter do that before?

While mounting a mountain rescue in dicey conditions in the French Alps, members of the French Mountain Police (PGHM) put their helicopter in a position that seemingly defies physics.

The video of the intense rescue mission, undertaken to save a young man injured on the side of a mountain on January 2, smacks of an action-movie scene. The injured man named Bruno clutches his knee as a helicopter digs its landing skid into the snowy facade, its propellers cutting through the clouds and nearly scraping the mountain with each rotation. Nicolas Derely posted the video to Facebook, explaining the hair-raising incident in detail.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: Incredible.

National Border Walls And Fences Across The World (As Of 2015)

National border walls and fences across the world (as of 2015).

Source: The Economist
See the interactive map (you can zoom in on specific world regions): https://t.co/P9VPpDTKXO#borders #migration #InternationalSecurity #geopolitics #maps #mapping pic.twitter.com/NJBw161YMZ

— Bryan Druzin (@BryanDruzin) December 18, 2018

WNU Editor: That is a lot of border walls and fences.