VETERANS POST
by Freddy Groves
Why Such a Long Wait for Copies of Records?
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If you've been waiting for copies of military records so you can apply for benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs, you've likely been waiting for a long time. Unfortunately, your wait might continue, depending on the reason for your request.
Due to COVID, the National Personnel Records Center is closed, with a 10% staffing level and a backlog of half a million records requests. Most of the 60 million older records are on paper, so they must be accessed and touched by humans. The only exceptions are emergencies: burials, medical treatments or homeless veterans who are trying to get into a homeless shelter.
For anything else, the NPRC is specifically requesting that you don't ask for records. If it's records research, corrections to records or replacement medals, it's not an emergency... at least for the NPRC.
I can foresee situations where getting medal replacements for an elderly, ill veteran might well be considered an emergency if that veteran wants to see his medals one last time, and tell stories and maybe give them in person to a grandchild.
If you have a genuine emergency, as defined by the NPRC, you'll need to submit a Standard Form 180, Request Pertaining to Military Records (find it online). Sign it and then fax it to (314) 801-0764.
The good news is that newer records might be online. Check www.archives.gov, click Veterans' Service Records, then click on More Ways to Get Service Records on the left.
It could be much worse: In 1973, up to 18 million files were destroyed in a fire the St. Louis record center. Plus, VA had loaned the NPRC millions of records, which also went up in smoke.
Over time they've tried to re-create those records using auxiliary sources, but the Certificate of Service they send you contains only basic service information -- like a Little League participation trophy.
(c) 2021 King Features Synd., Inc.
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STRANGE BUT TRUE
By Lucie Winborne
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* Alligators will give manatees the right of way if they swim near each other.
* A day on Mars lasts 24 hours, 39 minutes and 35 seconds. You'd assume therefore that there are fewer days in a Martian year than an Earth year, right? Nope -- because Mars orbits the sun more slowly than Earth, a Martian year actually comprises 687 days.
* The board game Cranium was the first non-coffee product to be sold at Starbucks.
* A Mickey is the smallest detectable movement of a mouse cursor on a screen. The term was coined by computer scientists, who use it when programming mice and other input devices.
* And while we're on the subject of "small," the tiniest item ever photographed is the shadow of an atom, captured via a super-high-resolution microscope by a team at Australia's Griffith University in 2012.
* The Welsh word for jellyfish is "Psygod wibli wobli."
* Out of the millions of creatures that inhabit planet Earth, humans are one of just three species capable of laughter, the other two being chimpanzees ... and rats!
* "The Galop Infernal," composed for an opera as a soundtrack to a man descending into hell, is better known to most of us as "The Can-Can" song.
* Proof that some things never change: the world's oldest known joke is a Sumerian fart joke.
* The most expensive pizza in the world will set you back a cool $12,000. Why? Well, it takes 72 hours to make, can only be produced in your home by three Italian chefs, and is topped with three types of caviar, bufala mozzarella, lobster from Norway and Cilento, and pink Australian sea salt!
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Thought for the Day: "Don't worry about failures, worry about the chances you miss when you don't even try." -- Jack Canfield
(c) 2021 King Features Synd., Inc.
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CONTRACT BRIDGE
by Steve Becker
MAXIMIZING YOUR CHANCES
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East dealer.
Both sides vulnerable.
NORTH
[S] A 9
[H] 8 7 6 2
[D] K 7 4 2
[C] Q J 9 5
WEST
[S] J 8 7 4
[H] K J 9 6 4
[D] J 9 3
[C] K
EAST
[S] 6 5 3 2
[H] Q 10
[D] Q 10 6
[C] 8 7 3 2
SOUTH
[S] K Q 10
[H] A 5 3
[D] A 8 5
[C] A 10 6 4
The bidding:
East South West North
Pass 1 NT Pass 3 NT
Opening lead -- six of hearts.
Occasionally, declarer may make a play that might arouse suspicion that he had peeked into one of his opponents' hands. While such things have been known to happen, the fact is that most such plays are based more on sound reasoning than on ill-gotten information.
Consider this case where South was in three notrump and West led a heart. Declarer held up his ace on the first two hearts and won the third as East discarded a low spade.
The outcome now depended on how South handled the club suit, from which he needed to score three tricks to make his contract. The obvious approach was to cross to dummy and try a club finesse. If it won, 10 tricks would be there for the taking; if it lost, he would go down one.
After careful consideration, declarer plunked down the ace of clubs, caught West's king and finished with an overtrick!
Since the chance of West's holding the king singleton with five cards outstanding is exceedingly small (less than 3%), while a finesse offers a roughly 50% chance of success, it might seem that South was either clairvoyant or had seen the king in West's hand. However, declarer had a very sound reason for playing the clubs as he did.
South's primary concern was to try to develop the three club tricks he needed in the safest way possible. He could afford to lose a club trick in the process, so long as he did not lose it to West. A successful club finesse was therefore not really necessary to make three notrump, but it would be disastrous if West happened to hold the singleton king.
There were thus two different chances to make the contract: if East had the king of clubs, or if West had the singleton king. The play of the ace catered to both possibilities.
(c)2021 King Features Syndicate Inc.
