The Swiss finally take a side!

Dregor Thule · Post by **Dregor Thule** » March 2, 2007, 6:00 pm

What began as a routine training exercise almost ended in an embarrassing diplomatic incident after a company of Swiss soldiers got lost at night and marched into neighboring Liechtenstein.

According to Swiss daily Blick, the 170 infantry soldiers wandered just over a mile across an unmarked border into the tiny principality early Thursday before realizing their mistake and turning back.

A spokesman for the Swiss army confirmed the story but said that there were unlikely to be any serious repercussions for the mistaken invasion.

"We've spoken to the authorities in Liechtenstein and it's not a problem," Daniel Reist told The Associated Press.

Officials in Liechtenstein also played down the incident.

Interior ministry spokesman Markus Amman said nobody in Liechtenstein had even noticed the soldiers, who were carrying assault rifles but no ammunition. "It's not like they stormed over here with attack helicopters or something," he said.

Liechtenstein, which has about 34,000 inhabitants and is slightly smaller than Washington DC, doesn't have an army.

About time! And might I add that I'm right with them on taking down the tyranical "government" of Liechtenstein. For too long has democracy been silenced, and Switzerland should be applauded for liberating the Liechtensteinians.

Nick · Post by **Nick** » March 2, 2007, 6:18 pm

Liechtenstein has WMD and its people are oppressed and Switzerland was only fighting them there so it didnt have to fight them here.

Xorian · Post by **Xorian** » March 4, 2007, 1:03 pm

Hehehe that happens from time to time, althought they make it sounds like it ia a biiig things. The border is unmarked, and i guess tahn during a walk, even an officer can makes a mistake

Yeah our l33t seekret services already known about the WMD, this was a decoy, as they send a special mounted cow troop to disable the launchers. No reports from it yet !

Siji · Post by **Siji** » March 4, 2007, 2:11 pm

Viva la Liechtenstein!

Do they have boobies in Liechtenstein?

Arborealus · Post by **Arborealus** » March 4, 2007, 3:26 pm

Siji wrote:Viva la Liechtenstein!

Do they have boobies in Liechtenstein?

About 34,000...

kyoukan · Post by **kyoukan** » March 4, 2007, 4:08 pm

even the canadian army has GPS.

Xorian · Post by **Xorian** » March 4, 2007, 6:15 pm

Never used GPS when we walked with the army.... good ole map for the win !

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » March 4, 2007, 8:36 pm

You know...Swiss Army Knives aren't just for tourists! The latest one has a compass!

Arborealus · Post by **Arborealus** » March 4, 2007, 8:55 pm

Topo Map and compass > than GPS in the woods, in the mountains...ya don't need LOS to a sattelite...

Aslanna · Post by **Aslanna** » March 4, 2007, 10:33 pm

Don't really need LOS with todays receivers. SiRF III is good! I can get satellite lock even indoors.

Deward · Post by **Deward** » March 6, 2007, 11:28 am

I spent 9 years in the national guard and never saw a GPS device. It was all maps and compasses. Of course the NG is pretty much shit upon as far as equipment goes.

Neost · Post by **Neost** » March 6, 2007, 2:23 pm

they need map reading and orienteering skills so when snake set's off that device that kills all power sources globally they can still find their way.

Dregor Thule · Post by **Dregor Thule** » March 6, 2007, 3:09 pm

Neost wrote:they need map reading and orienteering skills so when snake set's off that device that kills all power sources globally they can still find their way.

Escape from Liechtenstein!

Boogahz · Post by **Boogahz** » March 14, 2007, 9:31 pm

http://www.technoride.com/article/Switz ... 787_1.aspx

one more way the troops could get lost! Portable Navigation Devices banned! if one of the features is an overlay showing the location of traffic-camera speed traps and red light cameras.

Feature-rich portable navigation devices (PNDs) are now illegal in Switzerland—if one of the features is an overlay showing the location of traffic-camera speed traps and red light cameras. Europe relies heavily on the devices, more so than the strategy of hiding state troopers behind billboards or letting traffic set its own speed based on congestion.

What's more, the European community doesn't speak with one voice. Some countries want the information embedded in PNDs so drivers remember to slow down (especially if the locations are high-risk areas, not high-revenue areas). Germany forbids electronic maps of speed traps located in Germany. But Switzerland goes a step further, reports Telematics Update, and apparently bans a device that has information about speed traps outside its borders.

In the U.S., this isn't a big issue, because photo radar isn't that widespread. In most states (Virginia and D.C. excepted), legislatures or courts have upheld the belief that noting the location of a device that emits radio waves (that's what radar is) is legal.

Aslanna · Post by **Aslanna** » March 14, 2007, 10:36 pm

That pretty much includes all current GPS devices since most all of them now support Points of Interest. You can find POI databases for red light and speed cameras online for easy import into your GPS!