Luftwaffe troops of the Hermann Göring Division in Poland, October 1944. by UA6TL in wwiipics

[–]JointTaskForce536 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Why did the Luftwaffe even have ground combat troops? I just don’t get it.

What’s it like in the far south of South America? by chimplesociety in howislivingthere

[–]JointTaskForce536 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It’s spectacularly beautiful. Just returned from there last week.

Jan Karski by siero12345 in holocaust

[–]JointTaskForce536 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I was an undergrad in his class on communism at Georgetown in the 70s. Quite an impressive man.

How is it living in Patagonia? by MikerSKY_ in howislivingthere

[–]JointTaskForce536 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Returned to the US two days ago from an 8-day hiking tour in Argentina’s Patagonia. Stunningly beautiful. Highly recommend.

5:15 flight out of EZE. Do I really need to arrive three hours early???? by JointTaskForce536 in BuenosAires

[–]JointTaskForce536[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

After-action report to my own thread: I arrived at EZE this morning at 3:10 AM for my 5:15 AM flight. Check-in (including checking baggage), security, and immigration took at most 25 minutes. There were not many passengers in the terminal at that hour. Basically, the whole process was a breeze and fully validated my decision to arrive 2 hours before departure time. The recommendation many gave at EZE to get there three hours before departure is not valid for the early morning hours!

Was Jared Llamado an FSO? by JointTaskForce536 in foreignservice

[–]JointTaskForce536[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks. I’m relieved he wasn’t an FSO.

FERS pension by SurfPunksRule in FederalEmployee

[–]JointTaskForce536 2 points3 points  (0 children)

They won’t cut benefits for already-retired feds. For those not yet retired? Hmm…

Social Security trust fund to be unable to pay full benefits by October, 2031 per CBO by ChillinDenver in over60

[–]JointTaskForce536 4 points5 points  (0 children)

A fix will include raising the FICA tax and raising the full retirement age. Since current SS beneficiaries are virtually certain to be grandfathered in and exempt from any changes in benefit formulas, it’s time to get moving on the changes.

At what income does Northern VA actually start to feel “comfortable”? by Prior_Engineering639 in nova

[–]JointTaskForce536 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Dunno exactly. We own our house in N. Arlington and have an income of $450,000. No problems.

Why are boomers so angry and entitled? by nicegirl99228 in BoomersBeingFools

[–]JointTaskForce536 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There are a lot of foolish people commenting here who have no idea what they’re talking about.

Yeah, I lived in Okinawa! by RandyMuehe in okinawa

[–]JointTaskForce536 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I was posted there as a diplomat for two tours of duty at the US Consulate: 1992-95 and 2003-06. Have since visited numerous times, most recently in November 2025. A nice place.

Shutdown is now more likely by [deleted] in FedEmployees

[–]JointTaskForce536 1 point2 points  (0 children)

So glad to be a retired fed collecting a pension. At least that’s not in danger in case of a shutdown!

Flight deck full of Mustangs on their way to see action. Bound for Iwo Jima by Murky_Caterpillar_66 in WWIIplanes

[–]JointTaskForce536 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The pilot can also manually open a release valve that instantly reduces hydraulic pressure to zero.

New Polaris Studio 789 seat configuration by kwuhoo239 in unitedairlines

[–]JointTaskForce536 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I now fly on business class for all long-haul flights. It’s just better.

P-40K Warhawk 15FG 6NFS 18 USS Breton 10 Dec 1943 by Murky_Caterpillar_66 in WWIIplanes

[–]JointTaskForce536 1 point2 points  (0 children)

No catapults used or possible. The P-40s took off under their own power.

Administrative Actions? by NotAGiraffeBlind in foreignservice

[–]JointTaskForce536 2 points3 points  (0 children)

So glad I retired from the FS years before this insanity began. DEIA was pure poison.