This one has me really sitting on the fence, so I am curious to hear what other have to say. First watch this disturbing video of a woman getting tasered while resisting arrest. Do you think it was justified? I think she was being an idiot, but that the officer was too aggressive in a [...]

In a follow up to the story about a gamer who was murdered for stealing a virtual sword the outraged gamer has been sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole. Interesting that he went to the cops first but was told there was nothing they could do as it was a crime [...]

June 8th: On this date in 793 is the first Viking raid on England with a known date, the raid on the Holy Island of Lindesfarne. I was on the island last weekend and it is a very haunting place, I can see why the monks went there. It is interesting that the museum there [...]

Piracy is more common in the modern world than most people think it is, here is a story about some folks on a round the world sailing trip who managed to turn the tables on the pirates, but won’t be going back to sailing.

Lindesfarne Ruins

Originally uploaded by Tancread.

We were doing a grand tour of Scotland last week and had great weather most everywhere except Mallaig and Loch Ness. On the way home we swung by Lindesfarne.

Interesting article on the BBC about how villages and towns get their names. It misses some detail, such as which name roots are Saxon, Viking or Norman, but still a good read. I was looking at a Domesday book reference site the other day and found that Long Clawson was Clachestone and nearby Hose was [...]

If poisoness spiders and arrow armed rage ragers are not enough for you, now a fierce jungle cat stalks Salisbury. Anarchy in the UK cannot be far away now.

June 7th: Today in 1099 the Knights of the First Crusade began the seige of Jerusalem. Unlike the one in Kingdom of Heaven this one doesn’t end well at all for any of the inhabitants of the city, regardless of religion.

The Times has an interesting story about the finding of the Explorer, a submarine dating back to the US Civil War. Very interesting article, apparently it was sent out to harvest pearls after the Civil War. Naturally all the early submariners died of the bends, but it was soo cutting edge at the time.

June 6th: Today in 1944 the Battle for Normady began with the the invasion of Nazi occupied France from England. The first day casualties were enormous, 5,000 or more dead , yet everyone involved knew that the the losses were needed and the sacrifices were not in vain. It is often pointed out that the [...]