We defeated Germany and helped to rebuild it into a World power, We defeated Japan and helped rebuild it into a World power. We spend billions on billions to rebuild and prop up countries, yet what have we done for the "Banana Republics"? We have taken their labor and resources and not given them back an equitable return.

While I am against i*****l i*********n, we need to understand where and why it is as it is. We need to modify our controls so that we can deal with the immigration problem in a positive manner.

If we need to, why not set up a city near the border to house immigrants for six months to a year? During this time we would do due diligence to ensure their status and determine if they should be allowed citizenship. This would not be a free ride. They would be required to learn some English, understand our laws and Constitution, and learn a sk**l that would be marketable in the US. They also would receive minimal assistance and be required to work within the temporary community as laborers, cleaners, and anything else that would assist in their upkeep. When they are properly vetted, but before they have completed the other requirements they could receive work visas and be allowed to leave the immigration city for work only.

Some may ask why the requirements when people from Africa, Europe, and Asia do not have to go through such scrutiny and training - I'm talking about i******s. I do not endorse our present policy of just letting anyone into the country. They need to meet specific requirements and if they do not, they should be quarantined until a determination of their worth to our society can be established.

Don't be fooled, we need immigration -- the legal kind. Three and a half million Americans die off each year and while the birthrate is very slightly higher, I expect that to change in the next ten to twenty years as the baby-boom generation dies off. The birthrate in the US is in a constant decline (with a slight bump up in 2020, most likely due to C****-** and people staying in more). Without immigration, we will be a diminishing society.

Here I thought we all should be learning Spanish -- maybe we should be learning Japanese instead!

I will look into doing that. I just don't understand why Nikon doesn't modify their foot as I'm sure this is an issue that has been brought up with them numerous times. If nothing else, offer an upgrade foot for an extra 40 or 50 dollars. That would be less expensive than buying an Arca-Swill or RRS one.

I wanted to replace the Nikon 200-500 in the kit with the 180-600 but Nikon isn't releasing many of them. I put my name on a waiting list for some of the better known retailers like Unique, Midwest Photo, etc. When I contacted Hunts I was told their waiting list was up to 103 so I skipped that list. Anyway, B&H came through after only a few weeks.

As much as I'd heard about the scarcity of this lens, I had already decided the F lens with the adaptor would be traveling north. Now I will be taking a z6ii in place of the D500 as a backup camera. Although the 500 with the f-lens would reach out to 750, my guess is the z8 at 45 Mpx at 600 mm will give me equal or better shots than the 500 at 750.

The couple of shots I took with the new lens are amazingly sharp -- great product. If I could give the lens a 4.75 rating, I would. It deserves better than a 4.5 but due to the one thing that many people have complained about, a little has to come off the rating because Nikon continues to put a foot on their lenses that is not compatible with Arca-Swiss standards. It doesn't make sense that we have to add another piece of hardware to the lens before we can quick mount it to a tripod.

You get your money back but unless you are dealing with one of the major corporations, the return postage is on you. For a heavy item like a super-zoom lens, that could run as much as 40.00.

Thanks again all for your input. I did order the z40mm f2. It looks pretty small and will most likely do the job.

As far as I can ascertain, it has only been Abe's for the last 50 years. Some here on the Hog have also eaten there and we are a small sample by comparison. As well-known as it seems to be, I would be surprised if it hasn't been featured on some foodie show.

Neat trick if you can pull it off. I think it would take some practice.

That seems to be the best bet. It is small enough and 97 reviewers give it a 5-star average rating. The only rating below a 4 said it was sharp and well-made for an inexpensive lens. The only reason he downgraded it to a 3 was because the connecting plate was plastic rather than metal. This fact did not seem to bother others and it doesn't bother me as I see this lens as a one that will not get a great deal of use. I only plan to use it for occasional walks through towns or crowds like at fairs or carnivals.

I avoid E-bay because of a situation my daughter experienced. She sold someone a pair of expensive sneakers for half the price of new -- they were in fact new. She bought them and decided she could live without them. The buyer then decided they didn't want them and lied about the listing. They claimed the shoes they wanted were for a man when my daughter's ad clearly stated they were women's. E-bay will make you negotiate with the other party before they will make good on the problem. After going back and forth a couple of times with the buyer, my daughter was able to get the shoes back but was out something like 18.00 for shipping and insurance. E-bay was fine with that although my daughter was the loser. You may get satisfaction from E-bay but it might not be 100% satisfaction and it might take a month to settle the situation.

Beautiful shots! I really like the white flower.

Thank all of you for looking and commenting. I'm glad it made some of you happy knowing such a place exists.

You know that old saying "you can't get there from here" -- well that certainly applies to going from Memphis to Charleston, SC. A person would think they could travel along the southern border of Tennessee but you can't. At least if you don't want to take days getting there! From Memphis, you must drop down to Mississippi and go through Alabama as well. You also drive through Georgia, skirting Atlanta before your drive through SC to Charleston.

This is a good thing since it will take you past Abe's and other quaint places along the way.

Your mention of older lenses, and someone else mentioned pancakes for SLRs were better. That is a consideration but after adding the adaptor to use old lenses on z cameras, it gets back to not being a pancake lens! I think my best bet is to get a 35 or 40-mm lens in the z system. It will most likely be the best compromise between a small lens and good quality.

An Airbus 380 is on its way across the Atlantic. It flies consistently at 800 km/h at 30,000 feet, when suddenly a Eurofighter with a Tempo Mach 2 appears.
The pilot of the fighter jet slows down, flies alongside the Airbus and greets the pilot of the passenger plane by radio: "Airbus, boring flight isn’t it? Now have a look here!"
He rolls his jet on its back, accelerates, breaks through the sound barrier, rises rapidly to a dizzying height, and then swoops down almost to sea level in a breathtaking dive. He loops back next to the Airbus and asks: "Well, how was that?"
The Airbus pilot answers: "Very impressive, but watch this!"
The jet pilot watches the Airbus, but nothing happens. It continues to fly straight, at the same speed. After 15 minutes, the Airbus pilot radios, "Well, how was that?
Confused, the jet pilot asks, "What did you do?"
The AirBus pilot laughs and says: "I got up, stretched my legs, walked to the back of the aircraft to use the washroom, then got a cup of coffee and a chocolate fudge pastry."
The moral of the story is: When you’re young, speed and adrenaline seems to be great. But as you get older and wiser, you learn that comfort and peace are more important.
This is called S.O.S.: Slower, Older and Smarter.
Dedicated to all my senior friends ~ it’s time to slow down and enjoy the rest of the trip.
Author Unknown

Has anyone ever produced a really good pancake lens? It seems all the ones I've ever seen just rate ok, not excellent. I would like to have a very good copy of one of these to do street photography with. In the z system, even the 50mm looks like a short telephoto and is more lens than I would like to show when doing discrete shooting.