Gotta have more explosions!

I'm having trouble understanding how car insurance, repairs and excess works in VIC, Australia.

I gather that the driver who is "at fault" pays an excess to his insurance company before his vehicle is repaired, and his insurance company covers the repairs for the other vehicle involved. Will this excess see both vehicles being repaired, or do two excesses need to be payed?

Found a cat this morning in the middle of the road. The poor thing was cold by the time I got there, so I moved it off the road and took down the phone number off its collar.

I'm not quite sure what to say when I ring them up. It was a fairly young looking cat.

Just curious, because they look pretty cuddly.

And so do koalas, but I hear they can be pretty vicious to hold.

Hello!

I was wondering how US Army and USMC gunners and mortarmen (not formally Artillerymen, but... meh) protect their hearing they're doing their explodey-work. The pictures and videos I've seen of them show them wearing helmets.

Personally, we've got these somewhat bulky headsets that restrict the volume over a certain decibel level, so you can hear plain talking and fire orders without the noise of the gun ruining your hearing.

What's the secret? Have you got earplugs? Do you stick your fingers in your ears? Or do you tough the loud bangs out and say "SPEAK UP!" at the end of the day?

Information from any other militaries would be good, too.

Now we get a lot of pointless questions here about which special forces units in the world are the best.

But for the sake a good laugh, which special forces unit of the world do you think is the worst, and why?

I was reading this article and could hardly suppress a giggle. Is there anything worse than this?

http://www.arrse.co.uk/wiki/Special_Forces

It's something I've often wondered. Their duties seem to overlap with all the other branches of the US military. They have infantry, engineer, artillery and armored forces like the Army (albeit more crack), fly planes and helicopters and hang around on ships.

I understand the concept of them specializing in "naval power projection" and/or "rapid reaction", but who's to say their roles can't be done by other branches for the sake of simpler administration? Indeed, US Marines weren't allowed to take part in the seaborne invasion of Normandy. Why not create a new branch as an offshoot of the Air Force that specializes in air or space power projection, with it's own elite infantry, armor, artillery and aircraft, if otherwise?

In short, what's the point of having a whole new branch of the military, elite or not, to do jobs that the other, more traditional branches can do themselves?

Were any? Information on all Navies at the time is welcome, whether RN, USN, RAN, Kriegsmarine, IJN, etc.

The military government took power illegally, refused to relinquish power when beaten in democratic elections, has murdered thousands of people over the years, has a history of reacting to peaceful protests with violence and still has the nerve to try covering the whole mess up.

Given a historical tendency for Western nations to intervene, isn't it about time we punished them? Diplomacy hasn't worked, they're simply never going to learn.

How exactly? Pray for them? Send them care packages? Enlist? Write legislation? Put a bumper sticker on your car? Or merely say "I support the troops"?

Also, shouldn't it be up to each individual to decide if their actions support the troops? I'm getting sick of people trying to portray other people as non-troop supporters so they can further their own political agenda. I certainly think those scumbags don't support me in the least.

I like to consider myself a fit person that eats healthily, and definitely avoid exercise until several hours after I've eaten.

As I was walking to the track to go on a run, I started to feel a mild pain in my right abdomen, in my side and just below the bottom of my ribs. It felt like a stitch. When I started running, it quickly became so painful I had to stop and head back.

The same thing happened today, only the pain started a little earlier. At that point, I just returned home.

Any ideas what it could be or what's causing it? Should I bother seeing a Physician, or hold it off until I get some rest?

I know little on the subject. Who can enlighten me a bit? Why do people think he's a liar and betrayer? Or does he just have a very hard job?

I've just been wondering about this. Are there any notable cases of female rapists, outside statutory rape or accomplice to rape?

Why? So many other countries were outmaneuvered by the Axis early in the war. The British had Dunkirk, Singapore, Malaya, Burma, Hong Kong and Crete. The Americans surrendered at Wake Island, then at the Philippines to a numerically smaller force, in addition to performing poorly in the Kasserine Pass, Savo Island, Pearl Harbor... shall I go on? After WW2 ,everyone ended up conceding their colonies anyway, it wasn't just France.

You get my drift. I'm looking for good answers, not necessarily someone that agrees with me.

Particularly in the Politics section, people are treating Yahoo Answers as a sort of discussion forum.

They either don't ask questions so much as post opinions with question marks on the end, or ask a question but anticipate the answer they want. They don't want answers, they just want to read what they want to read. What could hypothetically be done to stop this stupidity?

What is the best island in the world? Use your own criteria here - I want to see ingenuity and creativity at work, people!

I'm always curious about how other militaries of the world do things, so my usage of the Wikipedia eventually led me to the page about the US Naval Academy.

What's the deal with politicians being able to appoint people for entry into the Naval Academy? I realise you don't need to be chums with anyone important to get it, but it certainly doesn't seem to rule out the possibility of a senator appointing his friend's son over other, more suitable and qualified candidates. Or am I wrong anywhere? Are there any merits to this antiquated system?

Stifle my curiosity, please. What are the minimum standards a serviceman needs to reach on the firing range? Answers in regards to any military of the world would be appreciated.

For instance, an Australian soldier is expected to get 200mm or lower groups at 100 meters, or 150mm or lower at 100 meters if he's an infantryman. I'm especially curious as to how the United States and United Kingdom militaries do things.

What's the deal with everyone using this term to describe Democrats and slightly Left-leaning people?

It's moronic. If Republicans aren't Liberal, does that mean they're opposed to individual liberty, freedom of thought and the other values of a democratic nation?

Once again, the term "Liberal" is being used as an adjective, and incorrectly at that. It is not - I repeat - not the name of a party. Think of a better term... gosh, maybe even "Left-Wing"?

Stifle my curiosity, please.

How long does the application process for the US Military take? Any information about other militaries is welcome.

Personally, I had to wait 9 months to get into the Australian Army, and I'm always curious how other countries do things.

What's the deal with blue camouflage that's worn by some foreign police forces? Is the pattern there for extra concealment, or some sort of psychological effect?

http://www.viewimages.com/Search.aspx?mid=57404497...

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/41255000/jpg...