LEGO designers solved a tough, but fun challenge: controlling one of the world’s largest excavators, the Liebherr R 9800, only using LEGO Technic elements and the LEGO control app, marking the launch of the brand-new LEGO® Technic™ Liebherr R 9800 set






Powered by the new intuitive LEGO® TECHNIC™ CONTROL+ app, the brand-new replica model of one of the world’s most impressive hydraulic excavators will give you a colossal LEGO build and play experience. With the app, you can explore groundbreaking digital control of the brand-new LEGO® Technic™ Liebherr R 9800 excavator set.

Niels Henrik Horsted, Marketing Director at the LEGO Group said:

“We wanted to give ourselves a tough challenge and put the CONTROL+ app to a real-life test and see if we can remote control the huge Liebherr excavator, just like we do with the new LEGO Technic set. Our design and engineering team came up with an impressive solution building movable mechanical arms and legs, mounted on the controls and pedals inside the excavator cabin, using the app to move the huge machine. Once again, proving that with LEGO Technic you can build for real.”

Grégory Schuh, Marketing Manager at Liebherr-Mining Equipment Colmar said:

“When the LEGO Technic team came up with this idea, we were immediately excited by this incredible project. We already have developed our own concepts for remote control our machines, but to control a R 9800 through a LEGO Technic solution, we were not so sure that this was achievable. At Liebherr we are used to facing great challenges but this was a very special one… We quickly realized that the creativity of the LEGO engineers, paired with the friendly and professional Liebherr teams, would make the project a great success. To summarize this partnership, I would say that both companies share a core value: ‘passion in everything we do.’ And that makes everything possible.”




Let me take a moment to give a standing ovation to Michigan State Police Trooper Joseph Ballone, for saving a life.

He was doing a traffic stop for a speeding violation, and when returning to the driver, found her slumped over, not breathing.

It seems that the driver had a medical problem, and stopped breathing, and her heart slowed, then stopped

By using proper CPR and a portable defibrillator, he was able to keep the driver alive until the paramedics arrived, they kept the driver stable and moved to the hospital

So, let's be glad MSP Trooper Joe is out there with good CPR training!

https://www.uppermichiganssource.com/content/news/MSP-Negaunee-Post-Trooper-honored-for-saving-a-life-during-traffic-stop-562100211.html

Mid-Atlantic Backcountry Discovery Route, blends dirt, gravel twisty forest roads, and rural country lanes, to adventure ride on the East Coast


Since 2010 Backcountry Discovery Routes has been creating and preserving off-highway tracks  engineered to cater to adventure and dual-sport motorcycle riders, with dips into small, one-pump towns for fuel and food.

The mid-Atlantic route is organization's 12th and its first on the East Coast.

"The roads with the most value to us are the low-usage, high-elevation, rugged roads that have a lot of character and a lot of fun factor and are really remote. You don't see people out there."



The MABDR blends dirt, gravel and paved roads to wind through remote parts of Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania. It starts in Damascus, VA, and crosses 1,080 miles before ending in Lawrenceville, PA, at the New York state border. It took us on twisty forest roads and rural country lanes through the Appalachian Mountains, majestic state forests, rustic farming landscapes, Amish country, and locations that played pivotal roles in early American history. The route is divided into nine sections, allowing the rider to easily knock out one a day


Backcountry Discovery Routes is a non-profit organization with a mission to develop and preserve public off-highway riding opportunities throughout the U.S


BDR’s goal is to create a new route every year. A full-length documentary film complete with trailer (see below), a Butler map and free GPS tracks are also released.





https://ridebdr.com/mabdr/
https://adventuremotorcycle.com/rides/mabdr-ride-report

an LA county sheriff's deputy who was subjected to harassment and retaliation from the Sheriff's dept, for pointing out the corruption and dishonesty in trainers' police reports and their reasons for stopping suspects was awarded $8.1 million by a jury today.

Rodriguez said outside the courtroom after the verdict that he always believed in his case, but was wary of what he called the "overwhelming resources" the county brought against him during trial, including multiple trial attorneys.

Rodriguez, who filed his lawsuit in October 2017, was assigned as a trainee at the Industry station in December 2013 after earlier stints in the county jails and as a bailiff in Compton Superior Court and the Edelman Children's Court in Monterey Park.

Rodriguez testified that his first two trainers at the Industry station, Joanne Arcos

and Timmy Nakamura, engaged in what he believed were unconstitutional stops and detentions of potential suspects that could have led to both him and the trainers going to federal prison.

Rodriguez stated that current 2nd in command of the LA Sheriff's Dept, Undersheriff Timothy Murakami told him in August and September 2014 that he would "find something" to get the plaintiff fired.

Attorney Alan Romero, on behalf of Deputy Andrew Rodriguez, said during final arguments that the LASD spared no effort to make life difficult for the plaintiff.

"I can't imagine a case where so much time and resources were used to destroy a person's life," Romero said.

"This is a case about police corruption," added Romero, who told jurors that Murakami instigated an unwarranted investigation into Rodriguez when he was out on sick leave and deserves much of the blame for his client's difficulties.

Romero said some of the department witnesses were "coached" in their testimony and had no fear of being punished for any alleged misconduct on their part. He said they violated the oaths they took when they obtained their badges and when they took the witness stand.

"They knew they would get away with it," Romero said. "Most of the people actually got promoted."

Rodriguez has made himself a personal enemy of Murakami, testified that he knows if he returned to duty, he knows he'll be killed by the actions of the LA Sheriffs Dept, or the inaction if in a case where he needed police backup to handle non-police criminals, he wouldn't get any help at all.

What's non-police criminals? Opposite of the next two news stories of police who are criminals, ina  police gang that attacks other police, etc.

https://knx1070.radio.com/articles/cns-news/lasd-deputy-alleging-harassment-and-retaliation-awarded
https://mynewsla.com/crime/2019/10/02/lawyer-deputy-harassed-for-reporting-alleged-misconduct-within-lasd-ranks-2/
https://www.sgvtribune.com/2019/09/09/industry-deputy-testifies-on-his-allegations-of-wrongdoing-retaliation-in-the-la-county-sheriffs-department/


Two Los Angeles County deputies who say they were beaten and strangled to the point they believed they might die spoke exclusively to Eyewitness News.

"I knew I was losing consciousness. I knew that at the moment I was being overpowered. So I did feel like I was being killed," says one of the injured deputies.

In all, eight deputies are demanding $60 million in a new lawsuit against Los Angeles County and four fellow deputies they say are members of the "Banditos" deputy gang.

"We're hoping that the county and the Sheriff's Department finally changes, finally fixes what they admit has been a problem for 50 years," says their attorney Vincent Miller. "It's unbelievable to anyone on the outside that you'd have gang-member cops."

https://abc7.com/lasd-deputies-say-they-were-beaten-by-fellow-deputies/5551266/

A former Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department lieutenant was convicted Thursday of charges of tipping off West Hollywood massage parlors about planned law enforcement raids in exchange for sexual favors

He pled guilty to lesser charges to avoid 3 years in prison for a felony count of conspiracy to obstruct justice and one misdemeanor count of obstruction of justice.

Smith admitted to having sex at two of the businesses between 2016 and 2017, prosecutors said. He claimed to be performing lawful business inspections at the time.

https://ktla.com/2019/09/12/former-l-a-county-sheriffs-lieutenant-convicted-of-tipping-off-massage-parlor-to-raids-in-exchange-for-sex/

While assigned to Catalina Island in 2011, LA SD Deputy Cordero  claimed in a lawsuit against the county that he witnessed a Sheriff's Dept captain who escorted a county inmate to a golf course. The inmate was a former pro golfer, and he gave the captain golfing tips, the lawsuit said.

https://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-2014-brady-list-deputies-20171208-htmlstory.html

I came across the 362nd FG nose art, and most of them were painted by George Rarey



from his scrap book where he seems to have had a different name in mind











above, Sleepy Jean the 3rd





https://justacarguy.blogspot.com/2015/02/i-had-not-known-p-47s-had-nose-art-too.html  for the full size post about George Rarey, a remarkable artist whose scrap book was put together by his son and printed and sold on Amazon, and every year the asking price seems to double, it's now about 200 dollars.

https://www.amazon.com/Laughter-Tears-Sketchbooks-Squadron-1996-01-02/dp/B01K3HBTK4/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Laughter+and+Tears%2C+george+rarey&qid=1570205421&sr=8-1

http://www.rarey.com/rareybird/laughter.html

Does anyone have a copy of Rarey's book, Laughter and Tears, that they can scan, or loan out?