The Times They Are a Changin'

Pretty sure Bob Dylan never saw this one coming....

Libyan plane destroyed by French jet

I can fondly remember a time, just a few months ago, when the French were simply a bunch of  "cheese eating surrender monkeys" (thank you Simpson's for forever etching that phrase into my mind!) Now they are bona fide warriors...striking fear (or at least mild confusion) into the hearts of the Libyan Air Force.
 
Which brings up another thought.... Was I the only one shocked to find out that Libya had an Air Force?
 
I know, I know, I'm not all that up-to-date on the status of other countries armed forces. But, for some reason that kind of shocked me.
 
Maybe it has something to do with the news reports that showed Libyan rebels who were heading to the front lines and didn't even know how to load their guns!! I get the fact that those are rebels with found guns. Essentially, the modern day equivalent of a peasant uprising with pitchforks. Still, that's kinda of sad, it also colours my view of their actual armed forces.
 
Now, I'm not a big gun nut but let's face it. How hard is it to figure out that you need to slide the clip with the bullets into the gun from the large hole in the bottom of the grip.  I'd say that's something that really needs to be worked out before you jump into your ass old Toyota and head to the front lines!
 
That's almost as funny to me as the report a month or so back where Chinese State television used a clip from the movie Top Gun and claimed it was news footage of their Air Force doing practice maneuvers. Pay no attention to the fact that their 2011 Air Force was made up of 80's era F-14a Tomcats and 80's era Soviet MiG-28 fighters! (those are just details).
 
I don't point these things out to make light of what is a very serious situation in Libya...but it does make you step back and realize that there are people out there who have issues that may or may not far out weigh you and your problems.