Free Republic

Here is my homage to the Killdozer and the man that made it a reality, Mr. Marvin John Heemeyer. Marvin John Heemeyer was an American welder and an automobile muffler repair shop owner who went on a rampage with a modified bulldozer. Outraged over zoning disputes, he armored a Komatsu D355A bulldozer with layers of steel and concrete and used it on June 4, 2004 to demolish the town hall, the former mayor's house, and other buildings in Granby, Colorado. The rampage ended when the bulldozer became stuck in the basement of a Gambles store he was in the process...

For a guy who spends his time behind the wheel of a car going upwards of 200 miles per hour, you might wonder what else it takes to get NASCAR Driver Ryan Newman’s adrenaline pumping. Apparently it’s operating a massive Cat® mining machine. Newman, who races the No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet in the Sprint Cup Series, remotely operated a D11T Dozer from a trailer at the Phoenix International Raceway on November 13. The 230,000 pound machine (one of the largest in the world) was at the Caterpillar Tinaja Demonstration & Learning Center in Tucson, Arizona. While the concept seems like...

Earlier this year my wife and I purchased 46 acres in Kentucky. The land is heavily timbered with light timber. We need to build a road to the homesite and would like to clear several acres and excavate a pond. I am an extreme do it yourself guy and have rented and successfully operated skid steers, stump grinders and large trenchers. My options are: A. Hire an excavation contractor to complete the entire job for around $50,000 B. Buy a used dozer for $20,000 + diesel + gravel C. Rent a new dozer for $4,000 a month + diesel +...

The tornadoes that shattered schools in Oologah and Catoosa were acts of nature. What happened Sunday morning at Sequoyah High School was different -- an act of wanton destruction so calculated and methodical that it left authorities, administrators, teachers and students in shock. The first call to the Rogers County Sheriff’s Office reported what sounded like an explosion followed by “all the fire alarms going off.” But when Superintendent Terry Saul and Deputies Bryan Buchfink, and Mike Scott arrived, it was worse than they could have imagined. Vandals armed with a bulldozer had laid waste to Richelle Helbig’s family and...

The Nation -- So much for freedom of speech, let alone thought. The play My Name Is Rachel Corrie, directed in London by actor Alan Rickman and due to open in New York City in March, has been canceled for fear of controversy. The play adapts the diaries of the 23-year-old woman from Seattle who was murdered in Rafah in 2003, when she was deliberately run down by an Israeli Defense Forces bulldozer. Rachel had traveled to the Gaza Strip during the last intifada as an activist for the International Solidarity Movement. My Name Is Rachel Corrie has enjoyed two...

They junked the original petition since it got freeped hard and often. Original one got 2500 signatures and pithy comments. Get in on the ground floor with this one. Only 156 signatures so farLink:    Petition to investigate the Tragic Death of Rachel Corrie at the Hands of the Israeli Army 

The venerated title "human shield" has become a 21st century euphemism for "protecting evil." This morally confusing term most often applies to individuals who defend evil dictators such as Saddam Hussein or Yasser Arafat. Rachel Corrie´s wasted life ended as a result of throwing herself in front of an Israeli bulldozer to protect the "property" of a terrorist, something so senseless that even terrorist relatives never attempt it. Due to the unfortunate circumstances surrounding this incident, the media has portrayed Ms. Corrie as a compassionate, innocent, young American student fighting for a just cause. Beautiful photographs taken from her graduation,...