Mnemolth

Its nice. The first and last two lines are very good. :) The second stanza needs more work tho. Its a little muddled. B+ :devil:

I think the details are meant to put you in the world he has created. Many fans of Dickens like his work primarily for that reason. He can draw you into his world because his descriptions are so well done, intricate and perceptive. The devil is in the details and he gives them to you, in bucket loads! :D Personally, I'm not a fan. That's mainly because I'm a trite and shallow person not willing to haul through all the descriptions. Its my failing, not Dickens. :) Although I would add one thing. I also hate the fact that many modern authors today, in particular fantasy ones, who btw are a dime a dozen, seem to be way too interested in plot and getting the story to move along so much that they forget its a story they're telling, not an annotated diary that they write! I do appreciate good writing. The writing can make the story, but the story can never make the writing. I lament that many modern published authors no longer believe in this axiom. It also saddens me that many, many fanfics fall into this trap as well.

....and if so how? I tried ticking the post poll but when I tried to preview I didn't see any poll. Where do you set down the options for the poll and where do we actually write the comments of the post?

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Shyguy [/i] [B][color=darkblue][size=1]I have a blog, but so far I haven't written in it. I read Cera's and Ginny's a lot, they are very interesting... -Shy[/color][/size] [/B][/QUOTE] Now why would you go and say something like that. You've got me all intrigued now. I guess you've got no choice now but to give us the addresses...:D Here's an interesting question for you folks who have LJ/blogs or whatever. How many of you are honest and real on these things? And if not, what exactly is the point? (I can think of at least two but there are probably more possibilities)

Strong Points: 1) I'm a very intelligent person 2) I have a very compassionate heart 3) I'm a very intelligent person with a very compassionate heart Weak Points: 1) I'm a very intelligent person 2) I have a very compassionate heart 3) I'm a very intelligent person with a very compassionate heart And no. I'm not repeating myself. :D

I would ask a girl: 1) What is so unattractive about being a 'nice' guy? If she answers 'bcos ....etc' I'd continue with the next two questions. If she anwers 'nice' guys are actually attractive and there's nothing wrong with them then there's really no point in continuing cos she's obviously delusional. ;) 2) Does size matter? 3) And by size did you refer to wallet/power/popularity or did you mean the other thing... :devil:

Your poems show potential. But also that you try too hard. 'Plastic cape'? 'Surrounding declare'? Not quite right where they appeared. Don't try to impress, and if you're trying to emulate a particular style, keep it throughout the poem, don't chop and cut and switch. It destroys the flow. Now it may be that you're trying a structure with stanzas and punctuactions, but its really really hard to do that well. In a short poem that may not be a porblem, in something like Paper Ball, its more than a distraction, it actually harms the poem. I'm not saying it can't be done in longer poems, but damn, you'd have to be good to pull it off. And by good I mean like a Prof of Lit or something! So either stay with short poems if you're going for that style or else break it up a little bit. Also try to stay with an image or analogy or allegory. Don't jump all over the place. Again discipline is the enemy of most budding poets. ;) Good point is that it seems you know what's good and what's bad, you have a decent grasp of the language and a liking for it. But do try to find your own voice. Be comfortable with it. Don't try to hack, chop, cut and paste. C+ Cheers. :devil: PS: Hope I'm not too harsh. :blush:

First one is much better than second one, so I'll just keep my comments to the first one, k? ;) Good thing is rhythm. It knows its pace and keeps to it. Yeah some might not like it cos its like a rap, but then there's nothign wrong with rap IMHO. Content is also nice and entertaining. Bad point is structure is fractured, scattered all over the place. This is the most common complaint against rap too. Good rap keeps things tight but most wannabes have no such discipline. Don't ramble all over the place. Keep it together. Its short so you should really focus and just get one idea across. B- Cheers :devil:

IMHO Its good! :D It has a nice flow, except for the end. Personally I'd take out the last verse altogether. Whipping a dead horse there. You may be trying to force your point home but that's not necessary. You should give your readers a lil' more credit. ;) And I'd change the second verse ending, break up last line into two. Will your soul ever rest? Ending with the question seals that angst you're trying to convey. If you're in your teens I'll give you A-, if over 19, hmm....prob a B. :devil:

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Endymion [/i] [B]Girl in charge? You must be talking about Evil-Lyn (or Evelyn). Anyway, I like how Adam looks [i]nothing[/i] like He-Man. The only thing that frustrated me more than Superman's entire Clark Kent disguise consisting of nothing but glasses, was how the only difference between Adam and He-Man was a tan. [b]A tan.[/b] Thankfully, this new show made Adam half He-Man's size, so they look nothing like eachother. Now all these young'ins can see some of the ol' skool cartoons I used to watch back in my day... the 80s. [/B][/QUOTE] Dude its a freaking cartoon! :D Heroes like Superman work as ideas, not as reality. They are symbols, not real people. Glasses will do fine. :)

This is a simple idea but hopefully a powerful one. There's a lot of sh*t in the world. And many of you would no doubt have had your fair share of jaded cynicism, justified or otherwise. This thread is intended as an opportunity to show just a small candle flame of the enormous shining light that can be humanity. If you have any questions from your homework or assignments, post them here, and hopefully someone will get back to you with an answer. Free advice with no strings attached. Unconditional generosity. From strangers and friends alike. An antidote to the ugliness of the world. Of course, it goes without saying that the success of this thread depends on the participation of the members of the forum. Here are a few basic guidelines ( and they are just guidelines, nothing more): 1. Ask simple questions that can be answered. Or at least start with those. If your questions are too involved and require hours of work from others, that may be asking too much. You gotta do some stuff yourself. ;) 2. If you have some knowledge to impart and you have a bit of time to kill why not help those who are asking for help. Sure it may take you 10 or 20 minutes, but hey, you'd be helping someone out. Life is too short to waste on doing nothing constructive. 3. If you do get help, be understanding and grateful. People give their advice free of charge, so appreciate the effort they have put in and express that appreciation. If the advice is inaccurate or plain wrong, cast no blame. The advice is given as is. Its the thought that counts. Remember, being good is actually 'cool'. :)

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by James [/i] [B][color=royalblue]I hate to say it, but I think about 90% of the people here who are talking about suicide (and their own personal experience) are most likely just seeking attention. Remember, I did say [i]most likely[/i]. [/color] [/B][/QUOTE] I don't know anyone on this Board so I can't speak for them, but it seems to me that the fact that many people who attempt suicide do so to draw attention to themselves does not make their pain and suffering any less real. Just try to imagine the kind of hell you must be in when the only way you think you can express yourself is to hurt yourself.

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by BlueGender [/i] [B][Size=1][color=blue]Recently I saw We Were Soldiers which is a very good movie. The movie was not one which made the Japanese seem evil like they have through out history they portrayed each side as equally bad in my oinion. Yo felt for thoe who died and fel as though you are a part of the movie as you are there. [/color][/size] [/B][/QUOTE] I hate doing this, truly I do. Nothing more annoyingly than a nerdy know-it-all. But I just couldn't let it pass. Sorry. We Were Soldiers was about the beginning of the Vietnam War, the first major battle between American forces and the VCs. They were Vietnamese not Japanese. Gomen. :D

To never be tempted by the soothing embrace of eternal nothingness is to never have known the excruciating agony of day to day living...life is a wonder to revere, a joy to behold and a sadness to experience...its not all sugar and candy, which is a good thing....cos I'm kinda allergic to glucose...;)

Well that would be a start. :) But honestly, that all depends on you and what you think, doesn't it? The thing is I'm not here telling anyone what to do, or even what to think. I'm here to put a point of view across, my opinion. That's what Boards are for right? In the best of worlds, occasionally something posted on a Board might cause us to ponder our positions. I try to do that with my posts. It doesn't always work out that way of course, but I'm an optimistic guy and there is always hope. ;) If I tell you that every single one of us can change the world, you may not buy it. But, if you're going to tell me that none of us can do anything about anything, well....I don't buy that either...;)

[b]This should really go in "The Trouble with Americans..." thread because it is a reply to posts in those threads. But apparently James decided to lock that thread for reasons I can't understand so, its here instead[/b] Has no one heard of the excuse, 'I'm only human, I'm not perfect'? As if it was an automatic defense to all charges. Well, I'm afraid it isn't. All countries have their problems we know. But it doesn't mean we cannot highlight America's problems. And the trouble with America is its lack of introspection and reflection. Instead of asking why much of the world have such disdain for America, the good old US of A has a tendency to shove all of that under the carpet and repeat silly little retorts like, "They're all jealous of us" or "they are evil", like some little school punk who has yet to understand the true value of empathy and that perspective is everything. Of course America has a vocal minority that have long questioned its government and often criticized it. And that's all good and fine. The problem is that this minority, though respectable in many areas, are never in charge of government policy, and if they are, their reign is too short to make any real difference. Maybe the next generation, YOUR generation, will make a difference. But with the level of patriotism and inanity flying about, I think the odds are against it. You say that maybe I shouldn't paint such a broad brush and that not all Americans are arrogant. I never said ALL. I just said Americans. You identify with your nationality. Most people do. So, although you personally may not be arrogant, nor your family or friends, your country as a whole is, and so I believe I have a right to cast Americans in general as arrogant (if I so believe, that is). In my post I have outlined the reasons why I believe America is arrogant. I have made some points to support my case. If you disagree with what I have said, then maybe you can argue against my points, rather than copping out with the standard, "Well, no country is perfect". And for those of you who think that this thread can be made about any country, I will have to disagree. No other country on earth has as much military, social, cultural and political influence as America. As the sole remaining superpower its domination of world events is unprecendented. Some of you might say, well, because its so prominent, its an easy target for criticism. Well that's true. But you'd think with so much influence, it would be sensitive to other peoples and cultures and try to understand their perspectives. You would be wrong. America doesn't care. All America cares about its itself and its citizens. The rest of the world can go f*ck itself as far as they're concerned. An American life is priceless. An African life probably not more than a penny. It took only the deaths of a dozen US troops in Somalia in the early 90s before President Clinton decided to withdraw the humanitarian effort to feed and restore order to the country. And when the US came into Afghanistan to fight the Taliban and Al-Qaida, who do you think were on the front line? American soldiers? Some. But the majority was Afghani fighters ordered about my CIA operatives. When the Americans wanted to clear out the caves in Tora Bora, the maze complex in the mountains, who do you think were the guinea pigs to begin flushing out any elements of the enemy? Afghani fighters. They were paid by America because America didn't want its own troops in the line of fire. It didn't want images of body bags flying back home. The President realise America had a weak stomach for the deaths of its citizens. But other peoples? Well, that's a different matter altogether...... We are one people. If you believe in God, then we are ALL made in His image. If not, then we are still one people, made of the same stuff, blood, sweat and tears. And to believe you are better than someone else because you have a bigger gun and a larger wallet is not only morally bankrupt, but dangerous. You can be proud of your country without being arrogant. Just as you can be proud of yourself without thinking you are superior to everyone else. When Iraq was fighting Iran in the 80s, in a war that cost 1 million lives I might add (yep, you got that right 1 freaking MILLION) over 10 years, did you think America was in there rallying the world to see what a bag guy Saddam Hussein was? No. Now some have said that the US backed him to the hilt and supplied him with arms sales and such. I wouldn't go that far. I'm not a conspiracy theorist. Let's stick to the facts, and I doubt any informed person would deny, that the US, if it could decide who would win the war would rather prefer Saddam over the Ayatollah. Right after the war, when Saddam was faced with an uprising in the south, and he used chemical weapons on his own people, do you think the US was the first to jump up and condemn him? Hardly. Well, that's all in the past you say? Well, as a famous salesman once said, 'But wait, there's more...'. When the Gulf War was over and George Bush Snr called upon the Iraqi people to overthrow Saddam, and many of them took up the call, and when CIA operatives were sent in and helped some of them and promised them US support, and they launched their ill-advised offensive, what do you think happened? Did America came to their assistance? No. And they were slaughtered. The best America could do was to impose no-fly zones. And this was AFTER the event. America doesn't care about Iraq and the Iraqi people. America doesn't care that hundreds of thousands of babies have died because of the economic sanctions placed on Iraq. It doesn't care that the rich in Iraq can still live pretty comfortably whereas the majority, the middle class and the poor are the ones hurting. America just doesn't care. America is only interested in its oil, and to kill off all options for terrorists to harm it. America takes care of its own. But that's it. Everyone else in the world can go to hell. That's arrogance. FOOTNOTE DETAIL: One third of all Congressmen in the US have NEVER set foot on foreign soil. This means one third of all those people who are responsible for making the laws in America have NEVER been OUTSIDE America. Period. Think about that for a moment. Its enlightening. PS to James: I see no reason to lock my thread. Granted there were a couple of posts that repeated a couple of things, but for a socially and politically controversial topic like this that's not uncommon nor surprising. As for the 'pompous rhetoric', why is it as soon as someone is a little honest and strings a couple of words together it suddenly becomes pompous? Would you rather I just say 'America sucks' and leave it at that?? As I said earlier, I don't see any reason why my thread was locked. No one was going nuts with stupidity. And if they were you could warn them and then lock it if they don't behave. If the thread was going in a direction you didn't want it to go, well...threads sometimes have a life of their own...;) I'm requesting that my thread be unlocked. I find it a little disconcerting (not pompous just an appropriate choice of words) that you seem to have the last say and then locked the thread. As for me alienating myself, I've never really been one to look to be popular. ;) And I say that quite honestly, and am not trying to be cute or cool about it. I'm not some trouble-maker that wants to make a word for himself by causing havoc. But I am, on occasion, what one of your previous High Court Justices, Lionel Murphy, once referred to as, 'an agitator', in that I like to make people think. ;) It matters little to me if they agree with me or not, just as long as they think about their positions. Having said all that, I know you run this Board and I accept that, and that the Board is subject to your opinion not mine. So do whatever you feel is appropriate, I'm just voicing my opinion for what its worth. K? :)

Okay, after re-reading my post I guess it COULD be interpreted as a whinge. But my real purpose for this thread is not "Hey! Look at me! Join my game demmit!! Join!". I'm not really a little kid....not that there's anything wrong with little kids...;) (famous Seinfield line) The point of this thread was just as the title said....basically..'so what's wrong with my game anyways' NOT "What's wrong with you people that you don't appreciate my game?" So I ain't exactly 'ranting and complaining'. I just want to know what elements of the GAME can be improved without jeopardising the entire concept. This is not an ordinary RPG. Its not meant to be. And I'd rather have it fail than to change it to one. But if there's a way to change the game to attract players, if there's a way to add to the flavor of the game without ruining its spirit, then I'd like to know about it. ;) DarkOrderKnight; Loopholes? Such as?? I thought I had made it pretty balanced. Of course I have mathematically proved it, but I threw a few scenarios in (not just the examples but running other situations through my head), and I thought it worked out pretty well. If there ARE holes in it, please let me know. I would be REALLY interested to see the kinds of mistakes I've made. As for the long post and pictures. I don't like pics. By themselves they can inspire. But coupled with a narrative they also have a tendency to corrupt the imagination, especially with people who are a little lazy with their minds. But yeah. That's a good point. Just cos I don't like them doesn't mean other's can't either. :) As for the length of the post itself. That can't be helped. The rules are there to cover almost ALL eventualities. So they need to be long (which is why I need you DOK to tell me what loopholes you've spotted. :) ). And besides, if you're not the type to go through a long post, then there's a good chance you're also not the type to stick through the whole game. There are many reasons why my game is not taken up, but I think, for the most part, it would probably be because its hard and its cruel. Everyone dies at the end, and everyone keeps dying round after round. So its kinda cruel. It also is a different kind of RPG. As ShyGuy said, its foreign and so harder to conceive and understand. And ultimately a lot of luck is involved in surviving. That might deter some people as well. This thread was essentially made to test the waters as it were, to either confirm my thoughts or to change my thinking. Because if the problem is the nature and spirit of the game, then there's nothing I can really do to change that (without destroying the unique perspective in the first place). But....if its something else....well...then that's a different story..... ;) Thakns one and all for the feedback. Even your SuperSaiyan. ;)

I didn't expect a rush of people to sign up for my game. Its not easy, and people like easy things. But as you can see from the Prelude post in Adventures and the game system in Sign-Up, there has been a lot of effort put into creating an interesting and balanced game. I would have assumed it would appeal to that small minority who are looking for alternative forms of RPGs, and who aren't afraid of putting a little sweat into their games. I guess for those people the concern would be a lack of opportunity for character development, with people dying left, right and center. And yes, I'd admit its a dangerous gamble. But isn't that part of the fun? The chance to outwit some of your colleagues and friends (or perhaps enemies? ;)). So no, I wasn't expecting a wave of enthusiasm, but not a single entry after a few days? I think that's a little harsh. And just for those of you who may be wondering, I actually like my game. So I'm not here to radically change it (though of course I'm open to suggestions). Certainly the game stands out from the crowd. It combines writing and gamesmenship. The game mechanics are pretty solid. And the story sets the mood whilst leaving plenty of room for individual flights of fancy. Anyways...thats my two cents worth...:)

[b]IMPORTANT: This is NOT a flaming thread! So if all you want to do is call people names and insult them, including myself, go somewhere else. This thread is for HONEST but CIVIL discussion.[/b] I would also like people to read ALL of this post before responding but seeing as many people on Boards have relatively short attention spans, I'm not expecting much. ;) I read somewhere, in the Axis of Evil thread I believe, about some good ole' yankee bashing, and I'd thought I'd join in. ;p No, basically, it suggested to me that someone should make a point against America, and perhaps, at least I hope, with a little bit more persuasive argument. Don't get me wrong, I like America and American values. Its hard not to be enticed by a cultural imperialist. But I'm also keenly aware of America's place in the world, I'm not blind to the hardship and suffering the world endures, nor to the ignorance and/or indifference of many Americans. American values are important to me, after all I grew up on a diet of film, television, literature and magazines dominated by an American perspective. But that's precisely the point. American values are laden with the American experience. It is ONE point of view. It is neither THE truth, nor the ONLY way to see the world. And the trouble with Americans today is that they are too indulgent and insular to understand or appreciate this. 911 was a wake up call to America. It was a shocking attack on America by religious fanatics. America did not deserve to be hit in such a way, and the people who died in those two towers did not deserve their lives to be cut short in such a devastating manner. But let's not fool ourselves. It was a long time in coming. It was American foreign policy come home to roost. It was the result of decades of neglect and arrogance. America has a lot to answer for. Americans talk alot about doing the right thing, about law and order. America denounces Iraq for failing to comply with United Nations resolutions, and although the Israeli situation is substantially different, the world is not blind to the similarities. Rather than condemning Israel, the US has long defended it. FOOTNOTE DETAILS (ie stuff you should ignore if you don't want to really get into the nitty gritty): The UN has had a long standing Security Council Resolution, 242, that demanded the withdrawal of Israel from the territories it won during the 6 Day War. Remember this is a SECURITY COUNCIL resolution, not the GENERAL ASSEMBLY one, and as such, it is BINDING. It has the force of international law behind it. It has exactly the same power as the UN Resolution that enable America to lead the attack to 'liberate' Kuwait. So when was 242 passed? In 1967. Another thing, for those of you who might not know the basics of international law is that the Security Council consist of 5 PERMANENT members, the UK, US, France, Russia and China, and EACH of these nations have VETO power, that is if they vote against any resolution, it CANNOT pass. So in 1967, the US, an ally of Israel, did not vote against 242. Similarly, in 1973, after the Yom Kippur war of 1973, the UN Security Council again called for all parties to implement R242. Now, I'm not an idiot. I understand that R242 also calls for Arab states to recognise Israel and respect its legitimate borders. Some Arab nations have yet to do that. But it doesn't change the fact that it called for Israel to withdrawal from the West Bank and Gaza. America also talks about international law and about the 'world community'. Yet which nation do you think has been the greatest offender of international law? Which country has often and consistently shown a complete disregard for such laws, and worse, turn around in the same breath to condemn any violator of such laws when it suits them? From Granada to Panama, from El Salvador to Cuba, the US never stops meddling, breaking laws, and often justifying its actions with outlandish and rather ridiculous claims. America says it protects the free, values democracy and actively works to promote it. America condemns Castro for runing a communist state in Cuba, impose sanctions against that country, complains about its violationg of the human rights of its citizens. It did this before the Soviet Union fell apart and it continues to do this even today. But guess what? I've got news for Americans. China also happens to be a communist state. It also is a consistent and persistent violator of human rights. So why then did it get Most Favoured Nation status? Strange don't you think? Well, maybe China is just an exception. Not so. Anyone remember a small little country in the Middle East called Kuwait? Well, its ruled by a royal family. No democracy there. Speaking of royal families, Saudi Arabia also happens to be ruled by one too, and its one of America's most valued allies. To rip off a common phrase, "Its the oil stupid!" Well, America is just trying to protect its interests, right? And what's wrong with that? Nothing, except that being the most powerful nation in the world means that you have to be a little bit more responsible and fair in the exercise of that power. Remember Peter Parker and his uncle Ben? ;) In law schools all over America students are being taught that they live in a nations governed by laws, not by men. And this is so because no man should be above the law. The law of nations, international law has a similar function. As the leader of the world, the US should set a standard of abiding by the laws, not using its might to bully and cajole and get away with all kinds of sub-standard behaviour. Recently, the world set up an International Court. This is an international organisation, independent of the UN. Its SOLE purpose is to bring to justice people who have commited war crimes. You know, stuff like using rape as a weapon of war, genocide, torture, all those things denied by the Geneva Convention. That's all the Court does. Nothing more and nothing less. The Court allows all countries to prosecute their own war criminals. This is VITAL to understand. The Court has absolutely NO jurisdiction to try, for example, Americans who have committed war crimes. America will prosecute them. The Court ONLY has jurisdiction if the country FAILS to try its war criminals. You would think this is a good idea. You would think that America, being the so-called 'leader of the free world', would jump to sign up. You would be wrong. America is completely against the idea, as is China and Russia. But that's not the end of it. Not only were they against it and try to do everything to stop it from coming into effect, when all else failed, guess what America did? America, has a lot of its forces in peace-keeping missions under the UN banner. In places like Bosnia. America decided that because it couldn't scuttle the whole Court, it would remove its citizens from the reach of the Court. You see, the Court has the power to put people on trial who are suspected of committing war crimes, even if those people are nationals of countries that have not signed up to the Court. Let me remind you here of the one and ONLY purpose of this court. Its exists to bring people that have committed war crimes to justice. WAR CRIMES! That's it. It has not other agenda. So what is America saying? That if its soldiers commit war crimes, like mass rape and/or murder of unarmed civilians, that they would not be tried in America, and that NO ONE else can bring them to justice? That these murderers would just walk free? Unpunished? You might say American soldiers would never do that, that this whole thing is ridiculous. Well great! If American soldiers do not do these kinds of things, then America has nothing to worry about, right? So, back to America and its threat. It should be noted that the UN depends greatly on the contribution of America and its soldiers for peace-keeping. Basically, if the Americans pull out, and especially if they did so quickly, as was threatened, there would be no one to replace them. The UN needs the Americans, and the Americans know it, and are milking it for all its worth. For what end? To what purpose? To exclude its citizens from being tried for war crimes. So what happened? Well, its not over, but for the moment, there's one law for everyone else, and a special one for Americans. American soldiers are immune from prosecution 12 months (renewable at the end of every year). And this, from a country that claims to be a defender of freedom. The irony of it all. If it wasn't so sad, it would be funny. And we haven't even begun to discuss all that is wrong with the so-called 'War on Terror'. Let's not wade through all the blood spilt in Afghanistan. The number of civilian casualties range from the hundreds to the thousands. On the high end, it could be that more innocent civilians died in the war in Afghanistan than did in the World Trade Center. And the war there is not over yet. But who gives a f*ck eh? I mean its not like its American blood. What is a life worth these days anyway? And what about those Taliban and Al-Qaida prisoners in Guantanamo Bay. Hundreds of them in limbo. Being held without a charge. That's right. The US government has never filed a single charge aginst any of them. If they are terrorist charge them. If they are not then let them go. But hang on, you might say. They are dangerous. They will kill Americans, we can't let them go. There's a war on for Christ's sake! Well, fine then. If there's a war on, and if that's the reason why they are being detained, then they must be Prisoners of War. Accord them their rights under the Geneva Convention. Its real simple. If they are terrrorist, charge them and try them. Else detain them as POWs. Don't weasel your way out of it by denying them the basic right to a trial (if they are criminals) or their human dignity (if they are POWs). They are one or the other, and if they are neither, then you have no rights to keep them locked up. Period. FOOTNOTE DETAILS: For those of you who may be wondering why they were flown to Guantanamo Bay, its because its not in America, and so because they are not on American soil, American courts have no jurisdiction over them there, and so no one can argue that the action is unconstitutional. Or so that's the argument anyways. Who is John Walker Lindh and what is the difference between him and all the others locked up in Guantanamo Bay? The answer to the latter is none and the former that he is an American. America is a hotbed of hypocrisy. And the rest of the world are not stupid. Everyone knows it. In an episode of The West Wing, there was a conversation between a liberal sympathetic Democrat and the Communications Director of the Whitehouse (he's like the PR man). He had written something in a speech by the President to the UN that may be construed as flammatory. Anyway, the Democrat argued that he should be more sensitive and withdraw the statement. He refused. One of the things the Democrat said was, 'This is why they hate us' (ie because of US insensitivity and arrogance), to which he replied, 'They will like us when we win' (ie we will bomb the **** out of them until they come around to our way of thinking, and thereby confirming her point). The world does not hate America or Americans because we think they are evil. We hate Americans because many of them seem to be imbued with a self-righteous arrogance that blinds them to the suffering of the world, because many of them fail to understand or appreciate people from different places with different cultures and different priorities, and because they are the biggest bad asses to ever walk upon the face of the earth and as such they can do whatever they want... and they know it. We hate America and Americans because they make us feel helpless and inconsequential. We the world hate America and Americans because they hurt us, and they don't care. And so when some nutcases fly a couple of planes into America's symbols of power and privilege, and bring those famous towers down, if some of us feel, for a split micro-second, a sense of vengeful satisfaction, it is because as much as America has wrought suffering on the world, its nice to know someone has brought it back to them, and hurt them a little.

A word of caution about IB. I'm not sure if they've done a revamp for 3.1, but IB 3.0 was pretty darn well resource intensive, so if there's going to be as many people on your new Board as this one for example, and as active, you may run into problems, either with bandwidth costs or corruption of the database. I'd be surprised if they've fixed it cos its not really a bug, its just the way they've written it. InvisionBoard is pretty nice. Fast and simple. But hey, I'm not a techie so wtf would I know? ;)

Oh good grief TN, that has to be one enormous leap you just took. Talk about hyperbole! I have no idea what you're on about, never read anything about it, or anything about the bill, but I can pretty much say from my ignorance that what you just said is nothing more than pure unadulterated scare-mongering, and verges on total crap if it isn't already there. :) But that's OK. We all do the occasional BS. Well, on any Board, the propensity for BS goes up a couple of degrees, but I digress...;) As for the legality of downloads, it was NEVER illegal to download songs, or videos, or software. Just the ones with copyright on them, and which gave you no rights to distribute them. Which basically covers everything you want to download I guess, but there's a VAST ocean of software & songs out there where you ARE entitled to download them. Stuff like Linux, game patches, demo songs, first releases, etc.

I didn't know there were episodes. I thought it was a once off feature film....

Please open the attached text file (I don't know how to copy and paste TABS onto the Board, the formatting goes all wrong). I've created a text file but it doesn't word wrap on IE, sorry. Click [url=http://falkor.anu.edu.au/~ely/example.txt]here[/url] to open. Otherwise just download the attachment, and view it at your own leisure. Its a simple text file so there's nothing to worry about. :)

[b]DISCLAIMER:[/b] This game is designed and made for young adults. If you are BELOW the age of 15, it is NOT suitable for you. Please leave. There are plenty of OTHER games you can join. Greetings fellow travellers on this weary road of the world. I bid you welcome! I bring you a game that should be challenging and fun. Not to mention just a little bit dangerous. This game can be difficult, it requires discipline, creativity, skill and more than an ounce of luck. If you are one of those people whose only RPG entertainment comes from creating and playing invincible god-like characters, then maybe this is not the game for you. Far from being immortal, there is every chance you will die. Blood seeps from the veins of every character in this game, so if you have a problem with death or dying, then maybe this is not the game for you. This game has two separate but equally important components. Strategic thinking and planning, and creative writing prowess. This is a chess game with your mind, and the stake is the life of your character; the reward, the opportunity to pen a work of murder and mayhem, blood and butchery, and of being enthralled in the ecstacy of power (or trapped in the shame of humiliation). Your mind does not need to be a steel trap but it does need to do a little bit of number crunching, especially if you survive into later rounds. To get the best out of this game you need to enjoy out-thinking people, and to liven things its probably best you have a hint of a mean streak. Collusion and betrayal is not only allowed, it is encouraged. This is not a game for the light of heart or the squeamish. It can be tough and unforgiving. So if you have any qualms about killing off friends and comrades in a game environment, then maybe this is not the game for you. If your number skills are so bad that you can't add two and two together, then maybe this is not the game for you. If your writing skills are so bad you can't write a creative paragraph to save your life, then maybe this is not the game for you. But if you can do a few numbers in your head, and your creative writing skills are competent, then I entreat you to join me in this experiment in carnage. For information regarding the actual game itself, the background and the rules, and to register your interest please see the Sign Up forum. [b]Prelude...[/b] He was in her before she knew it. He tore into her like a runaway train. Powerful, strong, unrelenting. Sharp, searing pain flooded her mind, pain the likes of which she had never felt before, or imagined possible. And yet. In the pain there was pleasure. Sick, twisted and malevolent. Like him. It made her want him more than anything in the world. He [i]was[/i] her world. Nothing else existed except his arms and shoulders. She can feel his muscles move, deliberate, confident. They were toned, a captivating mixture of flesh and sinew rather than the hard granite of someone who had spent too much time in the gym. His lips supple and sweet, like honey. His eyes, oh God, his eyes, she could fall into those wells and never climb out. He ravaged and plundered her like he had her father's company. He had cut it to pieces, like he was now cutting her in two. But she no longer cared. He had emblazoned her mind with the imprint of his pain, marking her forever as his property. She did not resist. John Turnbull ploughed into the beautiful young woman with joy and satisfaction. She was half his age. Her skin was flawless and her body soft and yielding. She was a pampered wench, the favoured daughter of a rich businessman. He had destroyed her father, and now he would take the last thing of value to him. John knew at an early age he was not like other people. As a child he learned he could do things with his mind that other people could not. First it had been his studies. He excelled and was without peer. He could remember and understand things better than anyone else, even some of his teachers. Later he learnt he could read people, knew their feelings and mood, as if they were a book in large print. He began manipulating people indirectly, pitting one against another for his benefit. After his university studies, and as he grew older he found out his talents allowed him to do much more. He could read their minds and their thoughts, and what's more, he could control them. That was the secret to his renown business acumen and his unrivalled entrepreneurial success. He realised he was destined for something greater than anyone that had come before him. The world was his for the taking, along with everyone and everything else in it. Yet lately he had felt something stir in him, something distracting him from his affairs and his work. It began as a little emptiness, and now it had grown to an uncontrollable hunger. He ate the best foods, in vast quantities. He took women as he pleased. He crushed and humiliated his enemies at his leisure, and although he enjoyed all his triumphs, the hunger remained. Persistent and unsatisfied. Something had awakened in him, an ancient and primal urge. His mind was filled with thoughts of murder and mayhem. He had sought out violent sports to no avail. In the end he had even beaten men and women to a pulp to try and quench the bloodlust but it would not be satisfied. He searched the world for answers. And he found them in the occult. It had cost him half his fortune, and the lives of many of those in his employment, but at last he knew what had to be done. It seems he was afflicted with "the Hunger". A terrible want for blood, but not normal blood. Demon blood. It seems there were others like him in the world. Creatures beyond the natural. He did not know how many, or where they were, but now he understood they were out there and that he had to find them. And so it was that he met Mr. Chu, the most powerful media magnate in East Asia. Mr. Chu had amassed an empire that sprawled from Japan to China to Indonesia. A vast conglomerate that controlled everything from television, films, music, telecommunications, and not a small army of politicians. It was said that Mr. Chu was old, very [i]very[/i] old, but no one seemed to know [i]exactly[/i] how old. When he met the reclusive tycoon he instantly felt a familiarity he had never known before. Here was someone like him. Someone who did not play by the common laws of nature. As he sat down with Mr. Chu going over a business proposition, he realised he had found what he was looking for. Blood to quench his thirst. The battle was long and hard. The old man's mind was unlike any he had come across. It was criss-crossed with defenses beyond the realm of mortal men. Over two centuries Mr. Chu had walked under the moonlight on the streets of the world feeding on its unsuspecting humans. Age had not weaken him. In fact it made him even stronger. John lashed a mind probe forward, symbols of control to implant in Mr. Chu's brain. But the old man was ready. He bit hard on his own tongue so that the blazing pain would be redirected back at John. The sensation overwhelmed John. He staggered back clutching his head, shaking it violently as if to dislodge some unseen animal drilling into his skull. Mr. Chu advanced towards him, his mouth dripping of his own blood, his fangs unsheathed. John fell to his knees. Mr. Chu grabbed him roughly by the shoulders, lifted him up and was just about to lunge for his throat when John lifted his head to level his gaze at the old man. John mustered all his control and screamed a wail of rage. It was a nightmarish screech terrifying to behold, and it threw Mr. Chu across the room and smashed him against the opposite wall. The old man was stunned. So much [i]power[/i] unleashed with a mere thought. This ghost walker was indeed strong. For the first time in his long life, Mr. Chu felt fear. As he struggled to get to his feet, John had already reached inside his pocket to produce a thin but deadly piece of sharpened wood. He had guessed the secret to Mr. Chu's longevity before he arrived. Now in one quick smooth motion he threw it with practised ease, aimed directly at the old man's heart. Too late Mr. Chu saw the stake flying toward him. In a reflex action he deflected it with his mind. It was the last mistake he would make. For in that split second he left his mind vulnerable. It was all John needed to slip through, implant his seeds of control and completely obliterate all of Mr. Chu's mental defenses. John left the old man's identity intact, so that he would suffer with knowledge of what was being done to him and his family. He had forced Mr. Chu to call for his wife in his bedroom. When she arrived he made Mr. Chu gutter her with a kitchen knife. He then had the old man call his one and only daughter. John had Mr. Chu stand there helplessly watching as John took the last thing of value from him. John shot his seed into the girl with a grunt. Without a word he got up, took the knife from Mr. Chu and looked back down at the girl he had so violently violated. His hands reached to caress her face gently, soothingly, his fingers tracing the outline of her nose, eyes and cheeks. She looked up at him with so much love that it made him smile. Then he casually slid the blade across her throat. She did not make a single sound as her life seeped from her. On the bed stand was that sliver of wood he had brought here with him. John grabbed it and thrust it into the heart of Mr. Chu. The old man gasped and fell silently onto the blood drenched bed next to his beloved daughter. John took one last look around the blood bathed room and was pleased with the carnage he had wrought. He closed his eyes, focused his mind, and tapped into the dissipating energy of Mr. Chu. He happily fed until he was full. At last he was satisfied. At least for the moment.

[b]DISCLAIMER[/b]: This game is designed and made for young adults. If you are BELOW the age of 15, it is NOT suitable for you. Please leave. There are plenty of other games you can join. Thank you. I know this post is a little long. Stay with it. Its long mostly because I'm trying to describe all the game mechanics in detail and trying to cover all eventualities. At the end of the day, you really only have to remember some basic concepts, such as ascribing 3 attributes to your character, attack, defense and feed. The game will be run on a points-based system, the more points you have the better. If you win any round, you are rewarded with the opportunity to write a battle scene from start to finish. At the end all the battles are strung together to form an overall story or chronicle of events. So yes, you have to be able to think strategically, outwit your fellow players, and be capable of writing a half-decent battle scene. And that's the gist of it. But you should carefully go through the following to be familiar with the actual details of the game. If you ever get confused and feel your brain is overloading with all the info, just remember the above paragraph, there will be plenty of chances to grill me over the minutae later. Or if you feel its all overly complicated, again, its actually pretty simple, its just that I'm canvassing all options below so it only SEEMS complicated. [b]The End Times Setting[/b] The End Times is a contemporary story. It takes place in any major city in the world. Demons are amongst us. They do not necessarily have horns or hoofs, and some have managed to live with us, have even become cultural and scientific icons. Some have infiltrated our schools and been our teachers, some have penetrated our bedrooms and been our lovers. Human beings have co-existed with demons for a millennia, though few know about it. Yet every thousand years, the cycle of life runs its course and the world renews itself. Every thousand years, the world purges itself of its demons. They become afflicted with a terrible hunger that can only be satisfied with the lifeforce of another. Demons battle one another, driven by this unknown and irresistable force to kill and feed, until there remains only one, the champion. It is he or she that shall ascend and become an Immortal. Please discard all you may know about demons from other sources such as literature, films and other games. In this campaign demons simply refers to anyone with supernatural powers. This includes vampires, ghosts, and anything and everything under the sun or moon. [b]The End Times Game[/b] This is a little like Role-Playing Survivor. Essentially it is a strategic game, where there is a cast of characters at the beginning, and each week one is eliminated and their energy is consumed amongst those who are left. The carnage continues until only one remains, and he or she becomes the victor, and is deemed the champion. Each player must create at least one character and can only ever have one character in any one game at any one time. Your character MUST be a demon, although what that means is anyone's guess, but he/she/it CANNOT be either human nor Immortal (for obvious reasons). Furthermore, in addition to the above requirements, you also need to supply three distinct attributes of your character, the ways in which the character attacks, defends, and feeds. This will help others write up their battles if you do not survive. All players start off with 3 'energy points' (or EPs) in the game. Players may 'feed' and accumulate more as time goes on. Once a player's EPs are used up, they are replenished for the next round. ALL EPs MUST be distributed. They can be assigned as the player sees fit. All players MUST submit their actions each week. This is done via a PM to me, and the PM MUST be received by me BEFORE midnight of the Friday of that week. No player, except the winner of the previous round, needs to submit any piece of writing, and none will be accepted. [b]The End Times Combat System[/b] As was mentioned earlier, ALL EPs MUST be spent in one round. A player has total freedom to distribute EPs as they like. Attack and Defense EPs have to be targeted (to defend yourself, just target Defense EPs on yourself). Feeding EPs can be generic or targeted. Generic Feeding EPs are targeted at everyone on a 1:1 ratio whereas successfully targeted Feedings EPs are assigned a 1:2 ratio. That is, targeted EPs are twice as powerful (ie, they are worth double the number of EPs assigned to them). [i]Attacking and Defending:[/i] Combat is done by tallying up all the energy points and where they are going to for that round. Then each character's defense energy point is compared with how many attack points has been unleashed upon him/her. If there are more attack points suffered than defense points allocated, then the DIFFERENCE is counted. The player with the largest difference is deemed the loser and his character is killed off. If the difference is the same for two or more characters, then they are ALL killed. If there is no difference or if Defense EPs are greater than Attack EPs, then no one dies for that round. But because no one dies, the cabal of demons go hungry and everyone loses 10% of their EPs (fractions are counted, see "Rounding Off" below). [i]Determining the Winner:[/i] The Winner is the player with the highest COMBINED attack and feed EPs on the Loser. If two or more players have the same combined score, then the player who had submitted his action to me FIRST wins. [i]Feeding:[/i] Feeding EPs are used to drain the lifeforce from those killed in battle. The assignment of feeding EPs occurs at the same time as Attacking and Defending EPs. Feed EPs are NOT assigned to dead characters, they are assigned to LIVE characters who MAY be dead at the end of THAT round, but the choice to feed is made now, not when they are dead, because everything happens at once. If a character gets killed in a round, then all the EPs of that character are distributed to the person with the greatest Feed points targeted at the dead character (the character would have been alive at the time of the assigning of EPs). If there is two or more people having the same highest number of Feed EPs on the dead character the EPs are shared equally (fractions are counted, see "Rounding Off" below). If there are no Feed EPs on the dead character, then no one feeds on him/her, and their EPs are lost for good. [i]Rounding Off:[/i] All characters' EPs are calculated to two decimal points. However, the EPs can only be used as FULL WHOLE numbers, so they are rounded to the nearest integer or whole number, and this amount is then able to be used in the coming battle. The fractions do count as they do add up after a while, particular as there is rounding off. [i]The Hunger:[/i] The terrible Hunger that afflicts all demons during the End Times is so violent and irresistible that, at the beginning of this period of bloodlust, every demon MUST spend at least one EP to attack. Similarly, if no one dies, and the cabal goes hungry for one round, this means that the pent-up feeding frenzy needs release, and so one the next round, EVERYONE has to attack with at least 1 EP. Also if after that, again there are no deaths, the cabal are now starving and so ON the THIRD round, NO ONE can spend ANY points on defense. [i]There can only be one:[/i] When the game comes down to the last three characters left standing, each of these characters can be filled with power. To decided who wins and who loses then becomes are a voting contest. Each of the three players has to submit a battle story by the end of Wed of THAT round week. These are then posted for ALL registered players to read. ALL players are eligible to a vote. They can only vote for one story (ie one character). However, the vote is then weighted according to how many EPs the character possessed (at time of death), or possesses. In other words, you cannot split your EPs to vote for more than one candidate. For example, if you have 3 or 6 or how ever many EPs, ALL of them will go to your ONE choice. his means you have to be careful about your allegiances and who you double-cross. After all, much like real life elections, the dead here do vote! ;) [b]The End Times Battle Stories[/b] The Winner of the round MUST submit a piece of writing (whether prose, poetry or even song) before Wednesday midnight of the following week (ie he is given 3 days to write it up). It MUST to be between 300 to 3000 words in length, and it MUST include a description of the battle and death of the loser of that round. It also has to be CONSISTENT with ALL previous submissions/stories. If the winner fails to submit a piece of writing in time, then the player in second place has a FURTHER 3 days to submit. If there is no one in second, or the second place getter fails to submit, then there is no 'story' for that round. [b]What you can expect from me[/b] You can expect that I will run the game more or less smoothly. I have spent some time designing this game, I will spend just as much time ironing out and wrinkles in the game architecture, or any hiccups from actual play. You can PM me, or better still post on this Board so that everyone can see my response (you never know, other people may have similar questions, and it would save me the hassle of repeating myself again and again). IF this game gets up and running, my turnaround time is a maximum of 24 hrs, so that if you have query or complaint, you will get a quick answer. And obviously, you can expect me to act with fairness and impartiality. [b]What I expect from you[/b] I expect you to be an adult. I expect a minimum level of commitment (ie I don't want 20 sign-ups only to find 18 no-shows). If you win a round I expect you to write a story. I expect that your writing will be adequate and intelligible. I want you to enjoy yourself and have a lot of fun strategising and reveling in writing horrible tales of the demise of your opponents. Its expected that you will conspire, lie and betray in this game, but keep it in WITHIN the game! I expect everyone that started the game to finish the game. If you're killed off in the first couple of rounds, you should still keep a rough track of what is happening because I expect you to vote when the time comes to decide a winner from the last 3 standing combatants. [b]How to apply[/b] If you would like to play this game, you can register your interest by signing up. You can do it in one of two ways. You can simply indicate you want to join NOW, and edit your post LATER with details of your character (if the game gets up and running I will give a deadline for all character creations). OR, you can submit your character in the same post. Minimum number of players to start game is 7. Maximum number of players in a game is 20 (not that this would ever be a problem). Once I get the numbers of people I feel are worth starting or within two weeks of this post, which ever is sooner, I will close all applications. Because this is a last-man-standing kinda deal, NO ONE can join AFTER the game starts! If you are planning to create a character be sure to include a VERY BRIEF description and attack, defense and feeding powers/habits. Be as vague as possible, because you are likely going to want to develop your character as the story moves forward. I plan to include here an example of a few rounds of the game, just to give you an idea how it all gets put together. I will also post a story on the Adventures forum, although I should warn you right now my story is NOT and example of what you SHOULD write, just an indication of the POSSIBILITIES. Most of you would probably not write anything as macabre or long, and that's just fine, I don't expect you to. I will also try to put up sample characters and a FAQ on this thread, but this will depend on the level of interest. If no one signs up there really is no need for sample characters or any FAQs. [b]Who are you, and what kind of drugs are you taking?[/b] Some of you might have read all this, or just quickly scrolled downwards to here, and thought something like, "F*ck! This guy is nuts if he thinks anyone's gonna waste their time with something like this!". And to be honest, I quite agree with you. :) I don't expect I will get many takers. But I made this game and I might as well put it up on the shelf for one and all to see. And you never know, there is always hope. ;) [b]Game concept, design and writing © 2002, Mnemolth. All Rights Reserved.[/b]