Rod McLaughlin

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You thought you'd escaped from the Maven Java dependency tool...       17 may 18
It's many years since I had to deal with the Java dependency management tool Maven. But I'm trying to write a program in Elixir which decodes Bitcoin transactions. I can't make sense of the documentation, so what I need is code - in any... read more

You can't make it up XCXXI - a story which puts current climate change in perspective       07 may 18

http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20170309-in-1703-britain-was-struck-by-possibly-its-worst-ever-storm



The fall of Da Nang in 1975 was like the evacuation of Toulon in 1793       30 apr 18
Napoleon's first victory was the savage siege of Toulon in 1793. The British had to leave to avoid their ships being destroyed. Hundreds of French civilians drowned trying to join them. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRUx61plsz4 ... read more

Vung Tau       22 apr 18
My South Vietnam trip is coming to an end. It was great, but I still believe what I did when I was fifteen - North Vietnam is better. I rode up to the Cu Chi tunnels, where the Viet Cong (don't call them that) had their underground... read more

The War Remnants Museum       17 apr 18
If you google "bob kerrey war crimes", you get lots of light-hearted banter about Bob Kerrey, baby-killer and, later, American politician, from the US newspapers. The Vietnamese account in the War Remnants Museum is more to the point. ... read more

Ho Chi Minh City       15 apr 18
Yesterday, it took me longer to get into Saigon than it did the NLA in 1975. I attached my phone to my handlebars using a "selfie stick", but it kept losing the directions on the Google map. I had to keep going into cafes and asking for... read more

Last day in Dalat       10 apr 18
There is a supermarket in Dalat called "Big C". It's underground, by the lake, underneath the big yellow plastic thing. The first time I went there, it was alright. The second time, the jobsworths wouldn't let me come in the wrong entrance,... read more

Dalat after four days       09 apr 18
If you're into pictures of pretty girls with guns, Vietnam is even better than America. Bang let me stay at his hotel free for a week. When we go out for dinner with him and his staff, he insists on paying. All he wants is me to help him... read more

Buon Ma Thuot to Dalat       05 apr 18
I rode from Buon Ma Thuot about 100 easy Km to Dam Rong, an unfriendly little town just over the river that divides Ak Lak Province from Lam Dong. They did have interesting omelettes in rice paper - unfortunately, my picture of them is not... read more

Phu Tuc to Buon Ma Thuot       31 mar 18
The man who bombed the palace in Saigon - Nguyen Thanh Trung I was always impressed by the man who mutinied against the collapsing South Vietnamese regime on April 8 1975 by turning his American F-5E fighter against his own side, bombing... read more

E254: Cannot allocate color error in vim       29 mar 18
Pleiku to Phu Tuc and some real barbecued duck       28 mar 18
To Pleiku over the Mang Yang pass       25 mar 18
Phu Cat to An Khe       23 mar 18
From Quang Ngai to Binh Dinh       20 mar 18
Son My (My Lai)       15 mar 18
Da Nang and Hoi Na       12 mar 18
Hue day two       10 mar 18
In which he continues his exploration of Vietnam       09 mar 18
You can't make it up XCXX - evolution takes millions of years       02 mar 18
You can't make it up XCXIX - first commercial tanker crosses arctic sea route in winter       13 feb 18
You can't make it up XCXVIII - a climate change contradiction in a software talk       09 feb 18
John Perry Barlow       08 feb 18
You can't make it up XCXVII - Alaska is warming - and that's a bad thing       01 feb 18
Yee-haw!       17 jan 18
The joy of bitcoind       16 jan 18
Installing Ubuntu Linux on an old Mac Air       10 jan 18
You can't make it up XCXVI - the Guardian is back on form with the headline of the year       23 dec 17
You can't make it up XCXV - the Guardian has a reasonable article       09 dec 17
You can't make it up XCXIV - if the warming don't get you, the acid will       27 nov 17
You can't make it up XCXIII - climate change is responsible for child brides in South Asia       27 nov 17
London mayor Sadiq Khan bans Uber       22 sep 17
You can't make it up XCXII - if you think Nazis are bad, try being a climate skeptic in the Bay Area       14 sep 17
Avoid Sriphat Medical Center in Chiang Mai       12 sep 17
You can't make it up XCXI - Jennifer Lawrence and the hurricanes       11 sep 17
You can't make it up XCX - global warming adds to Afghanistan's woes       28 aug 17
You can't make it up XCIX - volcanoes cause Antarctic ice to melt       13 aug 17
And yet another reason...       11 jul 17
Another reason to support Uber       28 jun 17
Uber Über Alles       20 jun 17
You can't make it up XCVIII - global warming study postponed because of ice       14 jun 17
Nepal       17 may 17
You can't make it up XCVII - the March for Science - the corruption of science by the left wing       23 apr 17
You can't make it up XCVI - a scientific measure of sea level rise: "worrisome"       14 apr 17
You can't make it up XCV - the Guardian insults the intelligence of the global warming movement       31 mar 17
You can't make it up XCIV - global warming helped cause Brexit       25 mar 17
You can't make it up XCIII - ocean warming is accelerating - advanced computer models       14 mar 17
You can't make it up XCII - global warming explains heat, cold, drought, floods...       19 feb 17
You can't make it up XCI - climatologist compares scepticism to Soviet pseudo-science       06 feb 17
You can't make it up XC - the global warming shell game in a nutshell       20 dec 16
Phoenix Life Assurance company nightmare       08 dec 16
Remember when MySql for Rails on Mac was easier than PostgreSQL?       02 dec 16
You can't make it up LXXXIX - U.S. Puts Climate Denier in office, Climate Change Action In Limbo       13 nov 16
Three strikes       10 nov 16
Nationalism isn't the main cause of war today       16 oct 16
You can't make it up LXXXVIII - climate change affects people differently based on ‘gender identity’       04 oct 16
You can't make it up LXXXVII - another comment not deleted in the Guardian       04 oct 16
Another funny example of an online ad involving Muslims       01 sep 16
The Guardian shows its true colours       03 jul 16
My favourite picture from Britain's EU referendum       24 jun 16
A comment NOT deleted in the Guardian       25 may 16
A mistaken advert on Youtube       09 may 16
Climbing at Ton Sai       22 apr 16
Me on Huayna Potosi in Bolivia and some locals       22 apr 16
The refutation of morality       19 apr 16
You can't make it up LXXXVI - DOJ has discussed prosecuting "climate change deniers"       13 mar 16
You can't make it up LXXXV - magazine publishes hoax "feminist glaciology" paper       06 mar 16
You can't make it up LXXXIV - climatologists clarify catastrophe deferment       01 mar 16
Elvis Costello's Puns       20 feb 16
Brexit       20 feb 16
The best article about conspiracy pseudo-theories I've ever read       16 feb 16
You can't make it up LXXXIII - Counterpunch gives in to groupthink       04 feb 16
How to install the Phoenix framework       29 jan 16
No wonder the Middle East is such a mess       07 jan 16
You can't make it up LXXXII - extreme weather events and WMDs       28 dec 15
Climbing at Crazy Horse Buttress near Chiang Mai       19 dec 15
Hanoi-Chiang Mai - 3000 kilometres without a flat tyre       13 dec 15
The Guardian's worst act of censorship yet       08 dec 15
A month without the internet       02 dec 15
Lies about Vietnam       02 dec 15
The Vinh Moc tunnels and a US Navy recruiting slogan       05 nov 15
Phong Nha       30 oct 15
Thanh Hoa to Ky Lien via Vinh and Ha Tinh       26 oct 15
Quan Hoa to Thanh Hoa       23 oct 15
Mai Chau to Quan Hoa       21 oct 15
A holocaust survivor and some cute kids in Son La       18 oct 15
Potential rock-climbing near Tuan Giao       16 oct 15
You can't make it up LXXXI - theregister.co.uk's Freeman Dyson scoop       14 oct 15
Dien Bien Phu       13 oct 15
Stuck inside of Lai Chau with the Dien Bien Phu Blues again       09 oct 15
A ride halfway to Sa Pa       03 oct 15
Country roads between Yen Bai and Lao Cai       02 oct 15
Yen Bai and a typical taxi driver       01 oct 15
One of those days when everything goes wrong...       30 sep 15
Vinh Phuc       29 sep 15
The road from Ha Long to Viet Tri       29 sep 15
Climbing with Asia Outdoors       26 sep 15
Re-reading the history of post-WWII Vietnam       21 sep 15
You can't make it up LXXX - the latest attempt by the global warming movement to jail dissidents       19 sep 15
Deep water soloing       19 sep 15
Hanoi to Haiphong       14 sep 15

 

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