Thought Containment Unit

Jan 31 2012 12:16

Debunking the Bootstrap Myth

His father, George W. Romney, was CEO of American Motors Co. (1954-62), governor of Michigan (1963-69) and secretary of Housing and Urban Development (1969-73).

His mother, Lenore LaFount, was a U.S. senate candidate in 1970. President Calvin Coolidge appointed her father to what is now the Federal Communications Commission.

Romney may have worked hard. But he hardly started off in a cheap pair of boots. No, he probably started off with a closet full of expensive shoes, suits, shirts and neckties.

If he had any boots, were they work boots or boots for recreation? If he had a job interview, what was the likelihood that the interviewer wasn’t connected to his patrician society?

Can one really claim they earned it the old-fashioned way when their father was CEO of one of the largest corporations on earth and at the head table of a political party?

Point taken, but with one qualification: American Motors is not General Motors - It trailed in size behind GM, Ford, and Chrysler for most of it’s existence.

(Source: azspot, via gilmoure)

56 notes

Jan 15 2012 8:55
hotparade: Garry Winogrand A shot of Ralph The Swimming Pig, and an Aquamaid, one of the attractions at Aquarena Springs, one of the first, if not the first, theme waterpark in the US. Also, archaeologists believe that the natural spring that forms the heart of the area might be one of the oldest continuously occupied places in North America - Evidence suggests that people have been living in the area for 13,000 years.

hotparade:

Garry Winogrand

A shot of Ralph The Swimming Pig, and an Aquamaid, one of the attractions at Aquarena Springs, one of the first, if not the first, theme waterpark in the US. Also, archaeologists believe that the natural spring that forms the heart of the area might be one of the oldest continuously occupied places in North America - Evidence suggests that people have been living in the area for 13,000 years.

60 notes

Mar 09 2011 12:32

Discovery’s Final Landing

Yeah, everyone’s all the geeks are undoubtedly blogging this, but the Space Shuttle Discovery is on the ground after 12 days in orbit.

That’s the end of 27 years, 365 days in space, and about 148 million miles (238 million kilometers) worth of ship. And, to those who doubt the world’s interest in spaceflight, the live HD web feed from NASA was being viewed by about 112,000 people at the time of the landing.

Aug 14 2010 12:07

Century-Old Scotch Now Off The Rocks In Antarctica : NPR

shaneguiter:

A crate of Scotch whisky that was trapped in Antarctic ice for a century was finally opened Friday — but the heritage dram won’t be tasted by whisky lovers because it’s being preserved for its historic significance.

The crate, recovered from the Antarctic hut of renowned explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton after it was found there in 2006, has been thawed very slowly in recent weeks at the Canterbury Museum in Christchurch on New Zealand’s South Island.

The crate was painstakingly opened to reveal 11 bottles of Mackinlay’s Scotch whisky, wrapped in paper and straw to protect them from the rigors of a rough trip to Antarctica for Shackleton’s 1907 Nimrod expedition.

I once heard that Jacques Cousteau located a wine jug from an ancient Greek wreck in the Mediterranean that was still sealed. Being French, of course, they popped the seal and there was still red liquid in the jug, so they tasted it. Their comments were to the effect that “you can age wine too long”.

Possibly apocryphal, but it’s still a good story.

30 notes

Jul 15 2010 8:45
gilmoure: my-ear-trumpet: kathrynsutcliffe: “PAM”Description: MI5 staff member pictured on beach. This ordinary looking snapshot was taken and planted as part of a complex WWII intelligence plan known as Operation Mincemeat. The intention was that this photograph would make other documents secreted with it seem more authentic. These documents, passed on to German agents after they were found on a body washed up on the coast of Spain (planted by British intelligence) suggested that the Allies were not planning an invasion of southern Europe via Sicily. This led to a weakening of German defence of Sicily which assisted the eventual Allied attack. Date: c.1944 In 1956, Clifton Webb starred in a movie about this bit of espionage.

gilmoure:

my-ear-trumpet:

kathrynsutcliffe:

“PAM”
Description: MI5 staff member pictured on beach. This ordinary looking snapshot was taken and planted as part of a complex WWII intelligence plan known as Operation Mincemeat.

The intention was that this photograph would make other documents secreted with it seem more authentic. These documents, passed on to German agents after they were found on a body washed up on the coast of Spain (planted by British intelligence) suggested that the Allies were not planning an invasion of southern Europe via Sicily. This led to a weakening of German defence of Sicily which assisted the eventual Allied attack.

Date: c.1944

In 1956, Clifton Webb starred in a movie about this bit of espionage.

24 notes

Page 1 of 1