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Hello, everybody. Typhoon 22 swept through Japan last night and wrecked the Yokosuka Navy base. I happened to have duty last night (onboard the USS Vandegrift) and was connected to the rest of the harbor through the Bridge-to-Bridge circuits, so here's what happened. We didn't see much of the typhoon until 4 PM, but when it hit, it hit hard. The USS Vincennes was the first to part mooring lines and experience an unexpected underway period. According to the bridge-to-bridge, they shortly thereafter drifted over and hit the USS Coronado. The USS Chancellorsville and two of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense...

I am not an overly religious man, save for those times I find myself in a foxhole. But if anyone needs the help, support, and prayers of others, it is the man I am about to describe. If you are overly sensitive, you may want to skip this thread. I'm not going to tell you his name; at this trying time, his privacy is important. Suffice to say, he is a sailor stationed in Yokosuka, Japan. Recently, this man and his Japanese wife had a new baby, their third. A few days ago, after bathing the baby, the mother put...

Children in a nursery were shocked when they spotted a three-headed frog hopping in their garden. The creature - which has six legs - has stunned BBC wildlife experts who warned it could be an early warning of environmental problems. Laura Pepper, from the Green Umbrella nursery in Weston-super-Mare, said: "We thought it was three frogs huddled together at first. "It is very strange. The children couldn't believe it." Mike Dilger, from the BBC Natural History Unit, added: "I have never seen anything like this. "Frogs are primitive animals - so the occasional extra toe is not that unusual. But...

Ze French have arrived at Yokosuka Naval Base in Japan! There are two ships, whose names I have been unable to ascertain. For those who aren't in the know, the Yokosuka Naval Base is divided into the American side of the harbor (the larger of the two, but also hosts Japanese subs), and then there is the smaller Japanese side of the harbor. Ze French have ported on the Japanese side.

Boy, Thanksgiving sure was a bad day at DU. A thread about Bush's visit to IraqAnother thread about Bush's visit to IraqA thread about Toby Keith's Halftime ShowJust for reference, so we know what kind of people we're dealing with, a poll conducted on DUAnother DU poll I'm not sure if linking to DU threads is frowned upon or not, but these threads are too good to not share with my fellow Freepers. Comedy gold!

This (very unscientific) poll was given to thirty-three advanced-level English language students. They are from a variety of countries (Mexico & Latin America, Japan, China, Germany, etc.). Although useless as a survey instrument (due to the small number of participants), I thought that some Freepers might be interested in the results. The answers were both written in a handout survey and discussed in class. What changes do you think will occur in the US over the next 20 years? Opinions differ greatly in this area. Answers range from ‘not much’ to dreamers thinking about a mission to Mars. Many are...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Ramzi Binalshibh, wanted by Germany for allegedly planning and helping to carry out the Sept. 11 hijacked plane attacks on the United States, has been captured in Pakistan, U.S. officials said on Friday. His capture came just days after a journalist with al-Jazeera Arabic satellite television said he interviewed Binalshibh in Pakistan. Binalshibh and another key al Qaeda member reportedly affirmed that Osama bin Laden ( news - web sites) was personally involved in planning the Sept. 11 attacks that killed about 3,000 people. U.S. officials have said the Yemeni national, who was refused a visa into...

I was reluctant to post this, since I know how some of my fellow Freepers feel about immigrants. Still, it would be a disservice to the people I have befriended to not speak up on their behalf. I am a sailor in the U.S. Navy and occasional college student. Currently, I am working on my college internship at a school that teaches ESL--English as a Second Language--to immigrants. We teach over 100 students during the day classes, at Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced levels of English language proficiency. This group includes my own wife, Yukiko, whom I married while stationed in...

Ok, before I start, this survey is a homework assignment (SIU-C, at Charleston, at the Charleston AFB...). I'm not cheating--the survey is part of the assignment. I figured that this board would be the perfect place to ask questions of this nature. So, without further ado- 1) What makes the US a superpower amongst the nations of the world? 2) Will the US stay a superpower forever? If so, why? If not, what do you think will happen to remove that status, and when is that event likely to occur? 3) Who would replace the US as the world's superpower,...

<p>Moussaoui cracks, tries to plead guilty. Get out the hangin' rope.</p>