Comments on: The Rocket Men and the Tiger of Mysore

By: louiecypher

louiecypher — Fri, 28 Jul 2006 08:23:57 +0000

That’s right Scott….President Kalam’s failure to give a shout out to Goddard & von Braun puts him in the same genus as cranks who claim that proto-Patels purveyed parathas on Pluto during the Paleolithic.

By: Scott Carney

Scott Carney — Mon, 24 Jul 2006 08:18:48 +0000

Sure Tipu Sultan was the first to use a rocket barrage to rout enemy soldiers, but the reason that this 200 year old story is making news right now isn't only because of the conflict in the Middle East. Abdul Kalam just got back from Mysore where he issued this statement:

"This was the beginning of the rocket technology and the contribution of the ruler and his men is unforgettable. How the original idea came to his mind is amazing. Our rocket and missile technology is actually based on the same principle," [The Hindustan Times]

India loves revisiting its past to say "we were first". Some faux-scholars and fundi-pundits even go as far to say India invented human cloning and nuclear bombs.

By: The Chocolate Brownie in Mango Milkshake

The Chocolate Brownie in Mango Milkshake — Mon, 24 Jul 2006 05:54:08 +0000

As a wannabe author, but a much more accomplished history buff, I think the article and the ensuing comments demonstrate the sheer superiority of the AP-report style over a stream-of-consciousness narrative, when it comes to discussing history.

By: najeeb

najeeb — Sun, 23 Jul 2006 07:37:28 +0000

"The suggestion that Christians don't like Hezbollah or that Sunnis don't like Shiites or Hezbollah either is enormously simplistic"

nothing is as simplistic as the claim that 'hizbollah is lebanon' to which i was responding to. I was merely pointing out the different forces in play. And yes, the discussion is about the history of rockets and i should refrain from posting further off the topic.

By: Jilted_Manhood

Jilted_Manhood — Sun, 23 Jul 2006 02:06:46 +0000

This is Farouk Engineer, as ever behind the stumps watching every for swing and spin

In the meantime you forgot to watch your own spin

By: Farouk Engineer

Farouk Engineer — Sun, 23 Jul 2006 00:29:47 +0000

The suggestion that Hezbollah is alone responsible for this war is absurd. Hezbollah captured two Israeli soldiers, which is what warring nations tend to do. Kill, capture etc. A state of war existed between Israel and Lebanon prior to recent events on the border.

Furthermore, given that Hezbollah are in effect Lebanese irregular forces, then the term 'kidnap' is a distortion.

From the Oxford Dictionary...

Kidnap - 1. carry off by illegal force (a person etc.)...

Capture - 1. take prisoner, seize as a prize...

Hezbollah 'captured' two Israeli soldiers. The same was true of Hamas the week before. You would not say that the Lebanese and Palestinians in Israeli gaols arrived there by kidnapping, would you? Hezbollah did not ask for a fight, but rather for a prisoner exchange. Such exchanges have been conducted with Israel before.

Yes, I agree, Hezbollah indiscriminately launched rockets into Israel killing both Arabs and Jews. But the same is true of Israel. Incidentally, there remains a small Jewish community in Lebanon. In theory, Israel's indescriminations also risked the lives of the innocent Arabs and Jews of Lebanon. However, in reality, what Israel seems to be doing, given it's attacks are overwhelmingly on Beirut's Southern suburbs, Southern Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley, is a form of ethnic cleansing on the Lebanese Shia.

Finally, speaking of rockets, as I promised I would, I ran into Fox News last night, where a serious discussion was ongoing between their panel of experts about how Hezbollah could have been the destination for Saddam's Weapons of Mass Destruction!!!

Farouk Engineer

By: Vikram

Vikram — Sun, 23 Jul 2006 00:26:37 +0000

Here's an interesting page with detailed drawings and references ...

History of the Rocket - 1804 to 1815 Link

By: Abhi

Abhi — Sat, 22 Jul 2006 21:12:49 +0000

Or maybe this post is an SM Trojan Horse. A self-hijacking, if you will. Abhi is very duplicitous this way.

Ummm. Actually I posted about this for three reasons: 1) I'm a rocket scientist 2) I'm a history buff--> see SM archives 3) I'm a military buff--> see SM archives

You'll note that I haven't really stated my opinion about the current conflict. It seems kind of pointless to roll in a "Trojan Horse" and then never actually get out of the horse either in the post or the subsequent comments. Believe me that I have some strong opinions about this current conflict.

By: Sin

Sin — Sat, 22 Jul 2006 21:00:44 +0000

I really envy the people who can draw such fantastically clear lines for the sake of apportioning blame. It’s a trait I often wish I had, simply because the monocular myopia makes life so much easer.

There’s a lot of fucking-up going on here, both sides. I’ll leave it at that, because while I think Israel’s behaviour in attacking an entire country (instead of just the clear region where the Hizbollah is located) is reprehensible, I also think that there’s a lot of behind-the-scenes drama that one simply will not get as an outsider, no matter how emotionally invested. “Proportionality”. It’s a good way to go.

I do think it’s kind of wickedly cool to have sword blades as the “warheads” on early rockets. I mean, think about how much less drama there’d be, right? No fallout, no poison, no bio-chemical destruction? Desis came up with responsible artillery!

By: Cal

Cal — Sat, 22 Jul 2006 21:00:17 +0000

Hizbollah is responsible for this war. They kidnapped the soldiers. They have indiscriminately launched rockets into Israel killing both Arabs and Jews. They could have prevented this, but instead they asked for a fight and they got it.

See, I'm made a vow to avoid cable news networks so I can AVOID routine talking points, dammit!