The really boring and totally pointless snippets thread IV

[PHXPhlyer]

In my Catman days I was very well trained in unarmed combat by the Battmen.

UP:
Definition please.

PP

[OFSO]

Good for you, UP. Respect to you.

A fine lunch, cooked by the limping Mrs OFSO, many courses, very succulant. I had not checked my diary for 2020 but our guests did, and a year ago on this verysome day we had them here for cakes and coffee. In addition to being friends to and healers of sick cats, they have a pigeon loft with CCTV installed so they can watch the birdies, and also befriend hedgehogs. Our Growltiger 49 sensed this an loved them on the spot.

[Undried Plum]

In my Catman days I was very well trained in unarmed combat by the Battmen.

UP:
Definition please.

PP

When the then new Sultan of Oman deposed his father he needed to heal serious rifts in society in Dhofar. The previous Sultan had been a monstrous tyrant so the Busaidi ruling family was hated. The Soviets and the Chinese gave moral and practical support to the militant rebels while the British supplied troops to help with the warfighting. Because the military warfighting ops hadn't been approved by Parliament in London the army guys had to operate under he guise of the misleading name of British Army Training Teams (Battmen).

The CO of the Battmen came up with a scheme called Hearts & Minds. The idea was to dispatch 6 man teams into the remote villages of the province and do good things for the people while explaining that the new Sultan was benign and munificent. There were 4 Battmen and two Civil Aid Team guys (Catmen). One of the Battmen was a very experienced medic; another was a Signaller; and other was a demolitions expert; and the fourth was a linguist who spoke at least three of the many local languages in the Province. My tasks were to choose appropriate locations for the drilling of new water wells and to survey potential airstrip and helipad locations and to survey hilltops with good intervisibility for the Signaller to establish a crude early version of a mobile telephone network. There were very few roads in those days, just donkey tracks. We had access to Bell 205s and Skyvans which were flown by RAF pilots on secondment to the Sultan's Armed Forces, but were nominally civilians. The RAF Medical Branch and the RAMC supplied brilliant medical services to the local tribes and our Battmen medics helped to set up basic clinics in each of the local areas where the people had previously been supportive of the rebels (Adoo).

Most of the warfighting was pretty much over by the time I worked there, but we were armed and there were a few skirmishes which required the fighting skills of the Battmen. It was regarded as a failure if we had to return fire, so mostly we talked our way out of fights. The Battmen were all Tier One special forces and capable of giving a good account of themselves in fights. Before my first trip I spent a week at a training establishment of the FCO and then another training week at the army guys main base in Western England. In the field I was given further continuation training in the use of the SLR and Browning pistol and a lot of unarmed combat training in how to disarm an armed aggressor.

The muscle memory is still there, so I found it quite easy to deal with the unarmed Weegie scrote who thought he'd have a go at me on the riverbank. The Battmen of B and G Squadron had taught me well all those years ago.

About twenty years ago I went back to Dhofar with one of the Battman medics I'd worked with. The whole country has been transformed. There are now proper roads all over the place and plentiful clinics and schools and hospitals. Visiting some of the many villages where we worked was an absolute delight. The older women hugged and kissed us in gratitude for what we had done for them. For example, when we first arrived there had been a huge infant mortality. Most kids did not survive the first five years of life. Usually it was diarrhoea which killed them. They died of dehydration. We taught the womenfolk how to administer oral rehydration therapy. Something as simple as adding a level teaspoon of salt and a heaped tablespoon of sugar to a litre of properly boiled water is all it took to save a child's life. Knowing that their children would almost certainly make it into adulthood totally transformed the lives of those women and we had made sure that they understood that it was all the doing of the new Sultan who had made the changes. The Omani people really did learn to genuinely love the Sultan, who died only quite recently.

The whole country is at peace and is prosperous despite not having much oil. Centuries of tribal fighting are now over. The hundreds of forts are now tourist attractions and are not needed for defensive purposes any more. Everyone is entitled to full education, up to and beyond university level and all totally free of charge. Women have fully equal rights and participate in all levels of government. The police are totally non-corrupt and there is remarkably little crime, even in the inner city areas. I wish somebody would do for Scotland what we did for Oman!

Sometimes I'm asked by people who know that I've lived and worked in dozens of different countries around the world: where do I recommend as a really good place to go on holiday. My answer usually surprises people: Oman. The scenery is mind-blowing and the people are incredibly friendly and hospitable. The culture is fascinating and there is none of the brash trashiness of Dubai.

[PHXPhlyer]

Many thanks for both the definitions and the background.
Sounds like an interesting learning opportunity.

PP

[1DC]

Very interesting UP, I agree about Oman and if anyone decides to go I can recommend Oman Air as the airline to go with. I think that they are the best of the middle east airlines.

[Rwy in Sight]

I would echo PHXPhlyer. Amazing story and I am really happy to read it. It gives me hope we can make a difference in the world and change something for the better.

[Karearea]

To town, roads are up. etc.

Supermarket: did not have the brand of frozen Cottage Pie I wanted, nor did they have frozen Crumbed Mussels.
I note that for some weeks now a quarter of the length of the freezers has been devoted to potato products: wedges, chips, hash-browns, mashed etc and even those compartments aren't filled to the brim.
What, I ask myself, is Going On?

[PHXPhlyer]

Everyone Dry(ish)?

Thunderstorms cause flash flooding in London, submerging roads and some train stations

https://www.cnn.com/2021/07/25/weather/ ... index.html

(CNN)Severe thunderstorms caused flash flooding across London on Sunday afternoon, sparking major transport delays.

London Metropolitan Police said the flooding had caused "severe disruption" on the North Circular Road, one of the major roads surrounding central London.
Several London Underground train stations were heavily flooded, disrupting services.
The "significant flooding" affected services across the transport network," a Transport for London (TfL) spokesperson said in a statement emailed to CNN.
Multiple stations on the rail network known as the Tube were closed, according to the TfL website.
"With multiple bus routes on diversion and some Tube and rail services affected and stations closed, we strongly advise that customers check for the latest information before they travel to ensure they have a safe and smooth journey," the TfL spokesperson said.

Two London-area hospitals, Newham University Hospital and Whipps Cross University Hospital, were affected by the rains.
A spokesperson for Barts Health NHS Trust told CNN in a statement that both hospitals are experiencing operational issues due to the heavy rainfall.
"We are working closely with our local partners to resolve the issues and maintain patient care and -- while services remain available for people in an emergency -- patients are asked to attend alternative hospitals where they can, to help us put solutions in place as quickly as possible," the spokesperson said.

In the Worcester Park area, social media video emerged of cars stuck in the floodwaters and rescue boats working in the area.
The London Fire Brigade said in a tweet that it had received hundreds of calls reporting flooding across London.
"We have now taken more than 600 calls to flooding incidents, including flooding to roads & properties, reports of ceilings collapsing & vehicles stuck in water. Crews used specialist water rescue equipment to rescue five people from a car stuck in flood water in #WorcesterPark," the brigade said.
CNN meteorologist Gene Norman said that the storms that erupted over London and southern England on Sunday came on the heels of record heat on Friday.
"That very warm air collided with an area of low pressure near northern France. This resulted the slow-moving storms the produced the deluges and prompted the UK Met Service to issue an Amber alert for storms with 75 to 100 millimeters (3 to 4 inches) of rain expected," he said. "A half-dozen flood warnings remain in effect as runoff causes rivers to rise. The heaviest of the rain should move out by Monday morning."
Norman said unofficial reports estimated some locations around London received 60-92 millimeters (2.3 to 3.6 inches) of rain in an hour on Sunday.
"The tell-tale signature of this kind of flooding is that the storms formed and moved repeatedly over the same areas, basically, raining faster than it can drain," he said.

PP

[Pinky the pilot]

Thanks for the explanation, Undried Plum. Most interesting.
When did this occur?

You mentioned that the Sultan died recently. I wonder how the 'new' one is going then?

[EA01]

In my Catman days I was very well trained in unarmed combat by the Battmen.

UP:
Definition please.

Add 'Water Bailiff' too please....

[OFSO]

Morning, all. A Viewing this morning. French, so hardly worth putting ourselves out polishing furniture etc. Every nation except the French think we've priced the house correctly, with one German saying it was too low. OTOH the French immediately suggest a price €200k lower. Can't see us running around looking for cardboard boxes by the end of today...

[TheGreenGoblin]

Thanks for the explanation, Undried Plum. Most interesting.
When did this occur?

You mentioned that the Sultan died recently. I wonder how the 'new' one is going then?

At the time noted by UP, the British position in Oman was, and had been for nearly two centuries, that of a de facto colonial power, interested primarily in ensuring its own strategic position and influence in the region and driven after the second world war, by considerations of maintaining access to possible oil concessions and access to the strategic oil and trading routes that abut Oman. One mustn't forget that the tyrant UP talks about had been propped up and fully supported by the British and the tear jerking story about women's health etc. and civil rights, good works and that kind of crap, only became a factor when the British began to fear they would lose their toehold in the area due to the success of the rebels and their backers, namely the Chinese and, the Russians, and thus they instigated and supported the overthrow of the tyrant by his son.

Well worth reading the history of the whole area from ancient times to today.

A well known Rhodesian pilot and aircraft cargo company supplied the covert war being fought by British special forces in Oman in the late 60's, early 70's. In a strange irony my father helped the very same man and his company evade the British sanctions against Rhodesia after UDI as well, thus washing money paid to him covertly by the British at a time they were officially sanctioning the country.

Talk about left hand and right hand and treating the British public like mushrooms (i.e. keep them in the dark and feed them *****).

Long read but worth it.

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/201 ... -wars-oman

[handsfree]

Much cooler today, 16°C, but it will not last. 25°C guessed at for later.

Billy is going out this morning to see the surgeon who put him where he is.
I should get some idea of what he (the surgeon) plans to do in reconnecting the
waterworks plumbing. Hopefully the Nurse will have got the urine culture results back as well
and have some antibiotics ready for me when I get there. It is all go in the world of Wee Billy.

The hallway looks like a Florists shop this morning after all Mrs HF's friends descended mit Blumen
yesterday. There is a particularly large bouquet of lilies the smell of which I find incredibly cloying
and reminds me of funerals. Lots of roses too which are quite beautiful.

[TheGreenGoblin]

Everyone Dry(ish)?

Thunderstorms cause flash flooding in London, submerging roads and some train stations

https://www.cnn.com/2021/07/25/weather/ ... index.html

(CNN)Severe thunderstorms caused flash flooding across London on Sunday afternoon, sparking major transport delays.

PP

The slow moving thunderstorms produced some local, minor flooding, but to read the press you would have believed that an apocalyptic monsoon had hit the South East. The hyperbole has grown so great that British "heroes" have been elevated out of the mythos....

London weather: Passengers rescued from stranded bus by hero residents on inflatable boat
This is the moment hero residents in London's Hackney Wick set off into floodwaters to rescue passengers from a stranded bus.

The locals used an inflatable boat and wore black bin bags on their legs to protect themselves from dirty water as they carried people from the public vehicle to safety on Osborne Road in the north east of the city.

Crowds cheered as grateful passengers were returned to dry land.

https://www.independent.co.uk/tv/climat ... -v9b1d2475

Well at least the passengers didn't get their socks wet. Ridiculous?

[k3k3]

We had a ferocious storm here in Torbay on Friday night that flattened everything in the garden, but with relatively little rain.

[TheGreenGoblin]

Here is a ferocious storm that hit Czechoslovakia a couple of weeks back. Now this is ferocious...

[k3k3]

That is ferocious with bared teeth.

[TheGreenGoblin]

That is ferocious with bared teeth.

Indeed!

The storm produced multiple tornadoes, including, a rare, for Europe, EF4.

[OFSO]

Sitting here like Wonders wondering what we would do if we got an offer today for this house. Yes want to return to a UK but need to transport this house there!

[larsssnowpharter]

Got back last night from a great long weekend at the Latitude festival. Some great acts but, as usual, the gems were found in the smaller venues.

We were lucky with just one small shower but could see storms to the South.

Not a mask in sight!