NewBasfordlad

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Posts posted by NewBasfordlad

  1. A good friend of mine lost his only son a few years back to something similar.

     

    He had just finished his first year at Nottingham High and was doing very well. On one Saturday he had just crossed the road near Lowdham roundabout to see someone outside the Magna Charta and dropped something in the road, without thinking he just turned round and bent down to pick it up. A car going slowly, it had just come round the turning struck his head, his life support was switched of 24 hours later.

     

    It ripped the heart out of the lads family and we found out later deeply affected the driver even though he was totally exonerated by the police investigation.

     

    Deepdene my Dad told me exactly the same thing

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  2. These things bug me, the trousers that is, so have enlarge the picture, it is hard to tell without the original.

     

    But the guy third from the right I think has a different cap and cap badge, he also carries a Sgt Major stripes as does the guy next to him, there wouldn't be two Sgt Majors in a battery, finally he is missing the lanyard tucked in his left breast pocket.

     

    I reckon he is from a different unit on attachment.

  3. Had a shock today.

     

    I was sat talking to my 15 year old granddaughter and she asked me about the book I was reading, I explained it was about the battle for Normandy in WW11 starting at D-Day.

     

    "D-Day" she asked, "yes" I said "The great invasion the led to the defeat of Germany in WW11, don't you do history?"

     

    "Oh yes" she says "We have just done WW11 from the .........................German perspective" You can imagine the discussion we had over the next hour, talk about twisting history.

     

    Pass me the gun....................

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  4. 50th Battery RFA was indeed in Dewsbury at one time.

     

    In WW1 the RFA were responsible for the horse drawn medium artillery pieces including the 18 pounder so in the first picture your grandfather would be carrying his riding crop and who would not carry it like a swagger stick when having your picture took. Usually the leading horseman carried the crop for signalling to the rest of his teams riders the moves he was going to make just like the RHA King Troop. The RFA weren't as fast as the Royal Horse Artillery but their guns carried a lot more clout and there were more of them

     

    Yes a bugle was still in use for close communication in WW1 especially by mounted troops and afterwards it became part of the dress.

     

    The artillery have carried small arms for years in fact one of my favourite muzzle loaders was an Enfield .577 Artillery carbine, a shortened version of the 2 band rifle built specially for the artillery back in the mid to late 1800s.

     

    These lads would be carrying the.303 short magazine Lee Enfield (SMLE) rifle and I believe (but don't count on this) 100 rounds in clips of 5. The bandolier was carried high to keep it from being fouled by the horse's reins if this happened you could be in a world of pain. My regiment carried the same when they were called up for WW11 and yes they were still on horse back in 1939.

     

    As to the chaps in full length trousers I have no idea except to say they weren't horsemen.

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  5. You may be right Margie most plants are programed by nature to procreate and you certainly get a boost in production as the season comes to an end or plants start to suffer for some reason.

     

    I used to know a gardener who would stress his runners by withholding water to kick them off, he said it worked but I have never tried it.

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  6. I got the facts wrong. During the battle for Normandy David Rinder was actually with a brigade of 3 tank regiments each regiment fielding 50 tanks and they needed 1073 replacement tanks just to keep 150 in the front line, Rinder himself had 3 shot out from under him. Not that he took the record Major Stanley Christopherson colonel to be came out of 5 in one day in the desert campaign.

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  7. Col, it's a very good job your here to put everyone right, when they are 'factually incorrect' but do tell me what make you so sure your always right, even I make the odd mistake, yes you heard it here folks NBL makes the odd mistake.

     

    By the way Col you never got back about Corbyn's anti Semitism, even Tom Watson as now stated 'Labour face's eternal shame' over anti-Semitism.

     

    Me I loved Mrs T, wish there was someone like here now the country needs it.

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  8. Col, Corbyn gives every impression of being highly anti semetic you may not like the fact but it stares most people in the face.

     

    As to large corporations stealing tax money that that could be seen as slander they do not steal they play by the rules as they are. Now these rules may well need changing but at this time they are the rules.

     

    I have been a tax payer all my life and at 72 am still paying taxes but as a self employed person different rules apply to me rather than PAYE and I have no hesitation in telling the world I will only pay what I have to. Not a penny more till I see my taxes spent wisely and even then it's doubtful.

     

    Finally I for one am very proud of what the British achieved around the world and will not judge yesterday thoughts and action by todays standards. Yes we conquered nations because we were better at warfare but once conquered we did an immense amount of good around the globe.

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  9. Very simplistic Col but both of us know the colonisation of South Africa was much more complicated than that.

     

    The Dutch were the first to go there to establish a stop over and replenishment site for the Dutch East India Company 1652 what was to become Cape Colony. We followed and took over 1795 and from there until the early 20th century it changed hands several time.

     

    The Act of Segregation was introduce in 1909 by the first prime minister General Botha, don't sound very English do he.

     

    Wrong I agree but two wrongs do not make a right and both Gandhi and later Mandela both did wrong.

     

    Me I hate and despise the far right as much as the far left they as bad as each other, just look at what has happened to what used to be the working mans party (Labour) now a bunch of racist anti Semites.

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  10. 'Tank Action' by David Render, Sherwood Rangers Yeomanry.

     

    I knew David as an old comrade before his death last year and this is the story of his time with the regiment in Normandy and beyond.

     

    The regiment arrived at 'H' hour on D day and David joined them as a casualty battle replacement some 5 days later, he then fought from Bayeaux all the way through to Bremerhaven and the end of the war.

     

    Seeing how a tank commanders life expectancy was slightly less than two weeks and 90% of his comrades were to become casualties this was no mean feat and earned him the nickname the 'Inevitable Mr Render' as he always turned up. The regiment earned more 'battle honours' than any other unit in WW11 so it's not like they were not in the thick of things.

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  11. ^^^^^^^^No not proper ones.

     

    When I did mine I started in Jan 62, but only signed in the September when they had decided I was suitable.Then five years, day release and two nights every week and went through every department on EMGAS including the offices, Basford works and sale showroom in town.

     

    Some of this you would never use again but when you passed out there was nothing you did not know about the production, transportation and use of gas.

     

    Now days its is all broke down into small lumps, everyone does basic gas safety and then it depends on what you want to do, as every part of the job needs an exam which we pay for many guys restrict themselves, so a kitchen fitter will be able to deal with hobs and cookers but nothing else.

     

    My man will go for reassessment in January and it will cost me just short of £2000, as he can deal with just about anything domestic except LPG and this is every five years............

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  12. I remember when I last went on I could bring up a map of the area I wanted, enlarge it and the pictures were shown with pins. When you found the picture you wanted to view you just clicked on the pin. Now there is no map when I go there.