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Pythagoras
1.0 out of 5 starsBad rants & bad info
July 9, 2019
Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
This turned out to be just a collection of short stories & rants. I briefly scanned the story titles and the first one I read dealt with the M1 Garand rifle, which Williamson considers junk -- he loves AR's, which I consider junk. So far just a difference of opinion BUT: My bullshit meter hit max when MZ claimed that the sights on an M1 only go out to 460 yards. Now that's just a lie, he knows better. As a Marine officer I shot quite a bit of military rifle competition back in the early 1970's, with both the M1 Garand in 30.06 and the M-14 in 7.62, using the mil-spec standard iron sights. The course used was a national match course fired at 200, 300, and 600 METERS. That's 660 yards for the math-challenged Williamson. Both match-conditioned rifles shot quite accurately at that range and I would not have hesitated to fire the M1 on the 1000-yard range. Silly rants are OK but don't lie to support a questionable case.

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Michael Z. Williamson 1 second ago
First, there is a difference between a "lie" and an "Error."

Second, per FM 23-5, the stated maximum effective range is given as 500 yards. Now, what I saw was 460 METERS, but in publications using both Imperial and Metric. I transposed. BFD. AND, the newer M16s exceed that range.

Also, just because a weapon is mechanically limited to a given range, does not mean it's impossible to shoot further. It's entirely possible. It's just that accuracy lacks.

The M1 was accepted for service at 3 MOA accuracy. That's 18" at 600 yards plus wind drift, plus rotation of the earth (And yes, that is a factor). Then, flight time is approximately 1 second, so sure, hitting paper at that range is doable, but inaccurate, and hitting a moving enemy...only by sheer luck.

Also, I own and shoot an original, complete, M1-D.

So it's your math that's challenged, as well as your reading comprehension. And if you're such an over-sensitive snowflake that a single questionable error removes 4 stars from the book and causes a meltdown of "LIAR LIAR PANTS ON FIRE!" it doesn't speak well for Marine officers. Luckily, I'm aware you're not typical.

Also, the AR platforms have been demolishing the archaic platforms at National Match for about 30 years now. 1970 was a long time ago. About the time I was 5. Technology has advanced in a half century. Witness this computer we're using.

You should probably look up an article entitled, "The M14, Not Much For Fighting ( A Case Against The M14 Legend)"

If you're that upset about my comments on the Garand, this one will cause apoplexy. But facts remain facts.

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Tide of Battle
byMichael Z. Williamson
4.4 out of 5 stars

 
 
 

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I just don't see much point in most of them.  I've been nominated for several, won a couple, and few of them pay anything or are anything other than a nice bit of bling.  I'd much rather have big royalty checks.

I don't turn awards down if I receive them, but I've never really agitated to win or even be nominated, and apparently missed the deadline on several I would have been well-eligible for.  Shrug.

I get money. I get positive feedback from fellow veterans who understood my language and had some of the tension, stress and boredom of deployment dulled for a few hours. That's worth something.

And occasionally I get fanmail like this:

~~~

...In A Long Time Until Now, you have a character with hypothyroidism. I didnΓÇÖt really connect the dots until months after I read the book. I have a lot of health problems. I have had them for years. Never went to the doctor. Part of it was I couldnΓÇÖt afford it. Part of it was I figured any doctor would tell me to lose weight, so I kept saying ΓÇ£Oh, IΓÇÖll lose some weight first.ΓÇ¥ Needless to say, I never lost weight, even when I tried and then other stuff would distract me.
...
It’s been a stressful couple of years, topped off with my Dad dying very suddenly in February. So, I got distracted a lot. But then the light bulb finally turned on and I figured that I had hypothyroidism. I managed to find a doctors office with a sliding scale and got an appointment. I’ve worked with dogs and it’s a common disease in dogs. I figured it’s easy enough to manage and the meds are cheap, get to a doctor and Voila! Problems solved.  
...
So, while I donΓÇÖt have hypothyroidism, which would have made this little story poetically perfect, I do have CushingΓÇÖs Syndrome, most likely caused by a tumor on an adrenal gland. I have a CT scan scheduled for later this month and the endocrinologist has already sent in a referral to a surgeon to expedite the whole thing.

If I hadn’t read that book, I’d probably still would be doing the stupid “Oh, I’ll get to it.” thing. Or maybe I finally would have gone to every specialist in town for the next million years while I continued to decline.  

Either way, if it wasnΓÇÖt for that one character that you wrote, I donΓÇÖt think it would have ever been figured out. Or at least, certainly not so quickly. From going to the doctor (Nurse Practitioner, whatever) for the first time in over ten years to a CushingΓÇÖs diagnosis in less than two months is probably record.

So, yeah, you saved my life. Literally. I owe you. Thank you.
 
~~~

You are most very welcome, and I'm thrilled I could help.
 
And that's why I write hard SF.  It's not for the plaques and trophies.

 

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With a typical exchange with one, that mirrors thousands I've had:

Tony Alexander: red states are receiving assistance, not paying taxes. Moscow Mitch has 9 out of 10 of the counties that receive the most assistance in the country.
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Mike Williamson: Tony Alexander But as a good liberal, you should enjoy helping poor people with the taxes you voted for.  width=
If you're opposed to the government's legitimate authority to tax, maybe you should go live in Somalia.
And even her pet boy Mueller couldn't prove ANYTHING about Russia, and is in fact being countersued for the slander.
What was that about "investigated and found no wrondoing?"

:-*

They're all in favor of helping "The poor" until they're expected to pay for it from their urban petri dishes of "culture."

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I briefly saw a clickbait headline to the effect of "Cost for Trump's New Air Force One near $2 billion."

Obviously, this was being shared by a "liberal."

I will now explain for liberals and complete morons (but I repeat myself) how just the headline tells us this is complete bullshit.

First: It's not "Trump's" AF1. It's THE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT'S AF1, and will be used by other, future presidents. Assuming we have any. The odds look good. Also, it's operated by the USAF.

B] Trump, or any president, has pretty much zero input in the design. That's up to the aircraft designer (probably Boeing), the USAF, the Secret Service for their specific needs, and Congress.

3) So, that's about double the flyaway cost of a fully-loaded deluxe airliner with all the trimmings, BUT, it also serves as a command post for the most powerful man on Earth, all his immediate staff, and any guests and associates along with him.  It's like complaining an armored limo costs more than a top of the line Cadillac. Duh.

But keep that hatred flowing! It's certainly easier than thinking.

  1. Pennsic and the Social Justice Cancer
  2. I Love Using Facts to Make Socialist Shitheads Look Like The Retards They Are

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