iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 12/10/2026

The video somehow reminds me of ZELL...

An F-104G Starfighter of the Luftwaffe takes off using the Zero Length Launch system (ZELL) with a large rocket propelling the aircraft into the air amid a cloud of smoke, flame and debris caused by the rocket efflux. The rocket will fall away from the aircraft momentarily, having achieved the goal of launching it without the need to use a runway. The system was tested by both the US air force and the GAF between the late 1950s and mid-1960s before being abandoned as impractical.

David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 12/10/2026

...their fun was spoiled by David Cameron who, asked about yet another supposed disbandment, said something like 'Eh? What? Don't be daft: of course we aren't. What a stupid idea! No PM would be that silly.' and inadvertently destroyed several days' worth of stories. The Mail never forgave him...

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 12/10/2026

...and launch a campaign to save them from a disbandment that was never going to happen anyway. When the Reds survived to the surprise of nobody in the RAF, the Mail would proclaim this a 'victory for Mail readers!' rather than 'we've cost you the price of a stamp for no good reason!'...

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 12/10/2026

Every time the RAF drew up so-called 'pain and grief' statements the line 'disband the Red Arrows' was the one below which the truly disastrous possible cuts were placed. Ministers understood. And the Mail would proclaim' The Red Arrows are going to be disbanded by pen-pushing bureaucrats!'...

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 11/10/2026

A propos nothing, Bobby Farrell (Boney M's male singer on the song) died on the 94th anniversary of Rasputin's death - and in the same city, St Petersberg. (He died of a heart attack rather than having his wine posioned by 'men of higher standing' and then being shot, though)

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

Very sad to see this. Although I’m not a medieval historian (but loved the period as an undergrad), Chris was both an inspiring and hugely supportive colleague when I was starting out in this game at Brum in the 90s. I will remember him fondly and shall raise a small glass to his memory later.

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

I hesitate to ask, but what, exactly, does the MatildastuartM13 have as its bow armament? It’s not a machine gun…

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Isn't part of the role of the IG, in extremis, to ensure that disgruntled personnel don't decide to make their complaint via the medium of, say, a hand grenade? Or are we to take it that fragging is an integral part of the lethality construct for Mr Hegseth?

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

*memory* (not sure who emmory is or why they'd fail me)

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

...His public-spirited actions also, as I recall (from reading tales of the Bear to my son when he was little so emmory may fail me) prompt acts of generosity from the wealthy towards those less-well off than they are. Again, not quite seeing the negatives for the PM in the comparison here...

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

And - I have to be careful here since last time I mentioned Paddington in public, I ended up being quoted in the Guardian - his intentions are always to make things better for people, particularly those who are less fortunate than him...

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

... Now unless I've not being paying attention to British history, I'm reasonably sure that the majority of PMs would be delighted were people to say of them 'well, their solutions often went awry, but everything was fine in the end, everyone was happy and they were much-loved and respected'.

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

She appears to say that Paddington hopes problems will just go away. Which he doesn't - he makes attempts to solve every problem he encounters, usually causing chaos but crucially everything works out alright in the end and everybody is happy....

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

And you're pronouncing 'scones' *how* exactly? People wishing to start an argument wish to know...

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

… ‘one of the rebels used demotic language to cast aspersions on my paternity, so I praised his virility in similar language several times’ was Healey’s later account (as I recall he may have disputed the gestures). I suspect it’d be denials all round today…

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

And in 2nd place, the 1976 incident in the lobby with Eric Heffer and Russell Kerr. Heffer shouted ‘Stalinist!’ at him, while Kerr yelled ‘Bastard! Bastard!’. Healey responded ‘Go and f-k yourselves, you f-ing f-kers’, complete with some creative hand gestures…

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

If I remember my undergrad days correctly (hah!) there were some non-white merchants, so this must be one of those roles where the character appears for a couple of episodes then disappears, their departure being put down to them being away on business in a conversation between other characters.

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

And in the same vein it's fine for the occupants of said small boats to strip the local ruling elite of pretty much all their sovereign authority, pass it over to European-based decision makers, and make use of English wealth to prop up a weaker economy in the new union of states, presumably?

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

She appears to have stolen their metaphorical marbles quite some time ago... (with Europe, women, non-whites, immigrants, transgender & non-binary people and the French as her wily accomplices, one assumes).

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

You should milk that line for all it's worth, otherwise the line's udderly wasted... <er... room for one more there in your hiding place, please?>

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

That isn't actually my PIN, dear reader, but may not be dissimilar to the generic methodology from which it derived...

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

"Oh, er.....It's the date of the Treaty of Westphalia, minus the added together figures of the date of Operation Chastise after multiplication by the number of MacRobert brothers killed serving with the RAF, then add Ted Heath's 1970 election majority to... come back! I've nearly worked it out!"

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

I suppose that the option of mirroring their YouTube channel having producers (far more ’producers’ than Mel Brooks could’ve ever envisaged…) wasn’t there, since ‘author’ or consulting editor’ would be even less correct than ‘acknowledgements’… Whatever, it‘s a good book on the Comet.

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Poor planning by the (alleged) terrorists. A brief viewing of any British TV series set in a village would‘ve revealed to them that the sort of close surveillance dreamed about by techbros could never come close to that already delivered by villagers & they’d be rumbled in 5 minutes…

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

…As an uncle did part of his ‘aggressive motoring holiday in NW Europe’ in a Comet, I was always going to get the book, so pre-ordered (I’d draw the line long before the offer of a pair of Comet slippers, tho’)

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

In fairness, they did this for their book on the A34 Comet and was an acknowledgement of the ‘thanks to the following who pre-ordered so we knew it was viable to print’ sort, and I think there are ‘proper’ acknowledgements too...

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

… as I’d just note that Napoleon, who - despite his problems with Wellington, Ney & General Winter - might be said to have some understanding of warfare wasn’t shy of offering views on the inter-relationship of luck and success. For a start.

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

“Did your study also forecast someone who’s got some understanding of warfare roasting you?” Well, that doesn’t appear to have happened yet….

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

I await Richard Tice telling us that this is wonderful as it'll make swimming in the sea around Britain much nicer because the water won't be as cold... (not, one imagines, that he holidays much in Brighton or similar locales)

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

Possibly not the right location for 'Great Gig in the Sky' with the opening spoken lyrics. Or 'Time', for that matter...

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

You’ll be able to be sure when they start gossiping about an Act of Attainder and reports of a swordsman being summoned from France (“couldn’t His Majesty just have left a long, snotty review on Amazon?”)

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Lyulph Ydwallo Odin Nestor Egbert Lyonel Toedmag Hugh Erchenwyne Saxon Esa Cromwell Orma Nevill Dysart Plantagenet Tollemache-Tollemache (Lyonel the 2nd as he was known. Tollemache-Etc mother and father would've done well on Countdown).

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Captain Leone Sextus Denys Oswolf Fraudatifilius Tollemache-Tollemache de Orellana Plantagenet Tollemache-Tollemache enters the chat... (his brother had an equally implausibly long name, as I recall)...

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

Superfoiegrass? Average White Bread (a failed attempt at a supergroup)? Big Audio Dalmakhani?

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

A flawed plan in certain parts of the UK... 'A tip? For serving me a pint? <snort> Are you having a ****ing laugh, mate? You can have one yourself, though'

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

þū eart mīn betsta gefēra, þū eart <hic> [at least according to Polystranslator & with apologies who those can actually remember their Old English]

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

'The North': Harrying? Negative? What's tha' like? Bunch of snowflakes in t'past. Little bit of harrying did nowt but good... [survey turns into Monty Python sketch]

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

Strikes me that the correct approach to segregation would've involved the Tower (& its staff) and the delegation being kept well apart...

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

And air defence... I remember hearing a General who suggested that a mere handful of Typhoons and a lot of Super Tucanos was the correct mix for the RAF for the decades to come since there was no appreciable air threat now and it was henceforth land warfare and COIN all the way...

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

Forgive me, but I don't think that's fair. Patriot isn't the answer to everything and having a range of GBAD is needed to deal with the threats. Focus on Patriot isn't helpful - and I think that's their point, even though a Euro solution inevitably benefits French industry (but also UK & Italy).

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Makes me think of this by the great Gary Larson…

Gary Larsen’s cartoon’How to recognise the moods of an Irish Setter’. The cartoon shows six different moods -happy, depressed, angry, pensive, excited and suicidal. In all of them, the dog has the same expression, and looks cheerful and has its tongue hanging out.

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

“Have you considered researching and writing your essay yourself? Thought not….”

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

They held the first one in 1942, I believe.

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

I believe his dog may have deleted it, but that politeness forced him to respond to the message. His embarrassment at his dog's IT skills precluded just asking for it to be resent so he guessed what an appropriate response would say, and as luck had it, got it spot on. Or something like that.

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

“An interesting choice of name, Mr Secretary, but when we said this was about transformation, that wasn’t *quite* what we meant, “ sighed General Caine to Mr Hegseth…

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

A 'like' seems inappropriate, but an excellent piece. May your mother rest in peace and your memories of her be a source of great comfort.

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David Jordan @davidjair.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

Chris Mason: "So, Mr Farage, you're now saying that some big boys made you do it and ran away?" Nigel (sniffing and tearful): "Yes, Chris. This is why <sob> I need £5 million for security you see? <blows nose on sleeve>" CM: "There, there, Nigel. How awful for you" <pats his arm sympathetically>

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