Comprehensive study identifies all Roman roads

Well, for some values of "comprehensive" and "all":

The study published earlier this week mapped out the roads into what the Roman network could have looked like at the peak of the empire's power, sometime between the 2nd to 4th centuries AD. That network of main roads and little countryside paths didn't centralize in Rome, though. Tom Brughmans, classical archaeologist at Aarhus University in Denmark and one of the leads on the project, told Reuters that, "...when we consider all movement within the entire Italian peninsula, we were shocked to discover that the most central road actually follows the opposite Adriatic coastline, bypassing Rome altogether." 

It is said that history is 90% n geography and 10% common sense.   It would make no sense at all for traffic from Hispania to Syria to be routed to Rome.  The direct route goes via Constantinople:

Hopefully Stanford's Orbis will be updated to include the new found roads.  We've seen Orbis here before. 

 

Commercial shipping is being hacked

I haven't blogged about this, but apparently it's a thing now and has been for maybe a decade.  This is a really good breakdown of what one of these attacks could do (and more importantly, could NOT do) to a container ship or a tanker.

Well THAT was fun

Yesterday was recoil therapy with Big Country.  He brought a collection of Enfields and a Springfield 1878 trap door in 40-70 which was great fun.  Another guy had a "Quigley" rifle = a Sharps 1874 in 45-120 (!).  That one kills on one end and maims on the other.

Many thanks to BC for participating in an experiment to see if going to the shooting range is effective in treating cancer.  Probably not, but I feel better already. 

Helicopter Gunship vacation

Viva Las Vegas, baby:

At Gunship Helicopters we offer:

• The only place in the world you can shoot full-auto belt fed from a helicopter as a civilian
• 71 acres of mountainside range space
• A truly authentic military experience

I was surprised that they have packages under $1000, but they get more expensive pretty quickly.  But things like this make me proud to be American.

 

What caliber for Orca?

Something weird with Orcas started around 6 years ago in the Straight of Gibraltar: Orca pods started ramming sailing boats.  Hundreds of boats have been attacked, so many that there is a Wikipedia page about the situation. 

Well it seems that yachtsmen have started returning fire: 

 I dunno - a pellet gun is maybe not my first choice.  But since this is Europe, it may be the best option they have.

Twenty-Five Years

 

 

Remember. 

 

 

Recommended blog

FotB Tom Lindsay has a very interesting blog: The Whiskey Trail which is all about, well, cocktailblogging.  He has a very fun series of posts on the James Bond drinks (with recipes) and even includes Kina Lillet blanc in the martini.  10/10.

As an Old Fashioned admirer, I really quite like his New Fashioned.  Clever, that. 

Highly recommended. 

A blog comment I received from The Queen Of The World

Plague Monk left a comment on my post about Dolly Parton's passing.   The Queen of the World was not amused.  She emailed this to me because I require Blogger registration to comment:

Usually I just rant to you in private but this was too big!!!

I’m once again impressed at how kind you are to your most ignorant of readers. The moron that commented about pissing on Dolly Parton’s grave is clearly a troll yet you were polite in your response to the most asinine of low life idiots that ever stepped up to prove the serious decline of intelligence ever exhibited in black and white. Its very clear he found the movie 9-5 to be as realistic as Superman and Ghostbusters and was therefore offended, thus yet another example of the current snowflake mentality the rest of the intelligent world has to live with while wishing there was a law that would allow the thinning of the herd!

I have never registered to allow myself to make comments on your post for fear you would have to quickly ban me and thus cause much marital strife, but once in awhile DAMN!! Can’t you just call an asshole an asshole?!?!!!

I love you.  Your hair looks nice.

Tacticalshit.com

I really wanted to like these guys, because (a) what a great name, and (b) they had fun stuff like soda can launchers.  Plus they are an American company, not one from Red China*.

Except (you knew there was an "except" coming, didn't you?) The Queen Of The World ordered a gift from them three weeks ago and all she's seen from them is an order confirmation - no shipping notification, nothing.  Still hasn't been shipped or received.  Maybe it's all Chinesium or another Minnesota Learing Center, I don't know.

Anyone else had any experiences like this from tacticalshit.com? 

* I use the term "Red China" to annoy the Usual Suspects.