Don't Move To Canada Just Yet

Published on Nov 9, 2016 Views: over 5 million Sure, they've got free health care up there. But being an American citizen is like family: you're in it whether you like it or not.

For Readers of This Blog Site > Tongue-In-Cheek or Otherwise?

The tongue-in-cheek figure of speech is used to imply that a statement or other production is humorously or otherwise not seriously intended, and it should not be taken at face value.
Confused?
Well, ya gotta figure it out - readers are "spoon-fed" nothing here except in certain cases where information or press releases are used in their entirety, sometimes with context provided and sometimes not as the case might be.
At heart with good intentions and in good faith, it's here to make you think. You are free to respond or not. Enjoy any way you take it

Some say strange. Some ask if your MesaZona blogger is kidding or has he 'lost his mind" ?
Some readers might get offended for sure for good reasons or not. It's far from ordinary, perhaps slightly on the fringe, sometimes crossing the lines but over 65,000 views tell your blogger it's worth a look.
You only live once on this merry go-round so here we go.
When the music ends you can exit. But please don't fall off the wagon - enjoy the ride

Review:'Doctor Strange' is tongue-in-cheek Marvel at its best
Doctor Strange is a unique superhero, dealing with supernatural threats the Avengers can't handle. This occasionally takes the movie into serious head trip territory; astral projections, roll-top architecture, Cronenberg surgery, a mashup of 2001: A Space Odyssey and Thor's Asgard drenched in M.C. Escher.
Far out is an outdated yet appropriate compliment for this movie's look. . . Not since Iron Man has a superhero movie surprised and delighted like Doctor Strange, after eight years of Marvel glut and DC rebuttals in-between.

Like Iron Man B.D. (Before Downey), Doctor Strange is a second-tier Marvel superhero, less renowned than any Avenger not named Hawkeye. Knowing next to nothing about a comic book hero is handy when origin stories are mandatory. Unless you're into seeing Peter Parker's spider bite or Bruce Wayne's traumatic childhood again.
Planning beyond the Avengers assembly line, Marvel needs another Iron Man-like sucker punch with another Robert Downey Jr. performance shaking up perceptions of what superheroes can be. There's a lot of Tony Stark in Dr. Stephen Strange, and dashes of Downey in Benedict Cumberbatch's portrayal of Marvel's next big thing among several.
Cumberbatch is inspired casting as Stephen, displaying a limber sense of humor seldom surfacing in his capital-T thespian choices.
A nice balance of solemn myth making and genre irreverence lifts Doctor Strange to Marvel's first tier of movie franchises.

A title card promises his return, and not one but two end credits scenes confirms it, as soon as next summer.
The doctor is in. Make an appointment.
Contact Steve Persall at spersall@tampabay.com or (727) 893-8365. Follow @StevePersall.

[ Blogger's Note and Credits: Excerpts and some images taken from  this review that appeared in The Tampa Bay Times on November 2, 2016 written by Steve Pearsall ]

Aurora . UnManned UH-1H What is It?

Aurora to Develop Unmanned UH-1H
Aurora Flight Sciences continues to break ground on the development of advanced autonomous capabilities for vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) systems. Aurora's work on the Autonomous Aerial Cargo Utility System (AACUS) program will be leveraged to integrate the company's Tactical Autonomous Aerial Logistics System (TALOS) on a UH-1H helicopter. The primary goal of the AACUS program is to enable rapid cargo delivery by unmanned, and potentially optionally-manned, VTOL systems. AACUS encompasses the development and implementation of VTOL-based obstacle detection and avoidance, and allows for autonomous landings at unprepared, off-field, non-cooperative landing sites. AACUS also enables dynamic contingency planning to the point of landing, with goal-based supervisory control by any field personnel with no special training.
At the AACUS flight testing event held today in Northern Virginia, the AACUS program demonstrated on a manned Bell 206 the perception and planning capabilities required for autonomous takeoff, transit and landing. "We know how to make things fly, we've been doing it for over 100 years," said Retired Brig. Gen. Frank Kelley, the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Unmanned Systems. "What we don't yet know how to do, is how to couple aircraft and autonomous systems together, but great programs like this are helping us get there."
Includes this eye-popping video

Aurora's TALOS system has been demonstrated previously on a Boeing H-6U Unmanned Little Bird flown autonomously, and three different human-piloted Bell 206 aircraft. "The arrival of a Huey as our third test platform frames a key point for future customers – the TALOS system is platform agnostic; you're not buying a new fleet of helicopters, you're buying a capability set for your current fleet," said John Wissler, Vice President of Aurora's R&D Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts. "TALOS is not an aircraft, nor is it a robot flying an aircraft –TALOS is transferable intelligence designed with both manned and unmanned aircraft requirements in mind. The value of TALOS can be described in a few words – platform agnostic, scalable autonomy, onboard sensing of the environment, and on-board intelligence that no other system in the world can provide."
Commercial applications for the TALOS technology are also being explored by Aurora. "Think of the civilian first responder pilot attempting to land in a remote, storm-ravaged area at night – TALOS senses and alerts to power lines and landing zone obstacles well before the pilot and informs the pilot's maneuvers," said Wissler.

Source : Aurora Flight Sciences - view original press release

Next Secretary of Defense ; Cher - If I Could Turn Back Time (Official Music Video)

Your MesaZona blogger would like to nominate Cher to be the next Secretary of Defense ... morale onboard our ships would most definitely rise
Views: 5,962,678

Flashing Neon > A Sign + A Story with A Happy Ending About Hospitality

Remarkable, as noted here in the New Urban Downtown Mesa with saving The Diving Lady and neon-inspired mural art just off Main Street, sometimes it takes a different point-of-view from someone like Paul Lucas who wrote this article that appeared on Bloomberg .
It starts off like Rod Sterling introducing a new episode of The Twilight Zone, but quickly veers into a historical context.
The classic “(No) Vacancy” sign may soon become another victim of shifting travel habits and market forces.

"You’ve been driving for a good chunk of the day, you’re pulling into an unfamiliar town, and you need a place to stay for the night. Happily, there’s a comforting sight just ahead—a motel with an illuminated “Vacancy” sign, the “No” thankfully darkened.

The “(No) Vacancy” sign, a beacon of hospitality and/or disappointment, has greeted road-weary American travelers for generations. But just as paper maps and toll booth clerks increasingly seem quaint relics of the analog age, the classic “(No) Vacancy” sign may soon become another victim of shifting travel habits and market forces.

First, some quick historical context. . .

The digital revolution isn’t the only threat to vacancy indicators. Another factor is the dwindling number of independent mom-and-pop motels and the corresponding growth of chains such as Days Inn and Super 8....“They want you to walk in not knowing whether a room is available. So if they’re full, they can send you to another one of their properties in the vicinity and keep the business in-house. It’s a strategic decision.”

In addition, Rogers said, omitting vacancy indicators allows for overbooking (“If it’s late and you’re fully booked, but someone with a reservation hasn’t shown up, you can sell the same room twice”) and gives managers wiggle room when sizing up questionable customers. "If people come in asking for a room, and you think they look like trouble—rowdy college students, say—if you have ‘Vacancy’ out there, you’re kind of obligated to give them a room,” he said. “Without the sign, you can just say, ‘Sorry, we’re full,’ even if you’re not. That’s why you’re seeing fewer and fewer of these signs. They’re figuring out that they’re better off without them.”

HAPPY ENDING: It’s worth noting, however, that not everyone in the lodging industry is all that concerned about the current state of vacancy indicators or the prospect of their demise. Several motel owners contacted for this article seemed disinterested in the topic. One responded by asking, “What the hell kind of story to write is that?” and then hanging up. Which just goes to show that hospitality is where you find it, no matter which sign, if any, is illuminated out front.
[images are those published with original article]

Sounds a lot like Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz

Gateway Aviation Center Expands Federal Inspection Services for Passengers + Air Cargo

Phoenix-Mesa airport opens new US customs facility

Nov 10, 2016

Arizona’s Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport (AZA) has opened a new US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) facility adjacent to one of the airport’s three 10,000 ft. runways.
AZA said the larger, upgraded space, located within the Gateway Aviation Center, will enable CPB to more efficiently and securely provide federal inspection services for international passengers and cargo.
The CBP facility is staffed during business hours on weekdays and is available 24-hours a day by appointment, according to an AZA statement.
“Our ability to prove US Customs services at Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport creates additional air transportation opportunities and economic benefit for the entire region,” Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport Authority CEO J. Brian O’Neill said.  “With three 10,000 ft. runways and a Foreign Trade Zone designation, businesses from all sectors are realizing the many advantages of locating at or near the airport.” 
Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport is the 43rd busiest airport in the US based on operations. 

Linda Blachly linda.blachly@penton.com

Source:

http://www.intelligent-aerospace.com/pt/2016/11/10/phoenix-mesa-airport-opens-new-us-customs-facility.html

AZA: J. Brian O’Neill Named Executive Director/CEO 
Source: Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport Authority (PMGAA)
September 21, 2016
The Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport Authority (PMGAA) Board of Directors unanimously voted today to remove the “Interim” tag and appoint J. Brian O’Neill, A.A.E. as full-time PMGAA Executive Director/CEO.  O’Neill had served as interim executive director/CEO since June 2, and as the airport authority’s deputy director/COO. O’Neill has more than 20 years of airport management experience; previously serving as deputy airport director at Manchester-Boston Regional Airport for eight years before joining PMGAA.
“It is an honor to work for a board that is committed and supportive; a privilege to work with a team of employees so dedicated and talented; and a pleasure to work with elected officials and their staffs in neighboring communities that truly understand the economic importance of this airport,” stated O’Neill in accepting his new position. “Gateway Airport is a dynamic place to work and I look forward to the many challenges ahead.”
     

Who's To Blame for Electing President Trump: How & Why...

Listen when my man Pie talks ... one of the best ever!

Published on Nov 10, 2016

Views: 210,788

Pie thinks he knows who is to blame for the rise of Trump...and you're not going to like it!