Gnomes and halflings in the 21st century…

So finally I have gotten around to the little people.  In standard fantasy and roleplaying lore these guys are always left out or counted last for some reason.  Sure little people hit softer and don’t always get the best combat stats but they excel at magic based classes and are hard to hit.  A gnome who is a fighter isn’t as good as the gnome sorcerer who does the same damage with his spells as his heightened peers.  Course this is all for another time cause the discussion is how these two races would evolve in more modern times.  The society of the gnomes is close knit with the family but they often hit the road to see what there is to see of the world.  This prolly wouldn’t change much but the gnomes would probably by the most drawn to higher education like colleges and trade schools.  They would try to go the furthest away to do this so they can get the full experience of being somewhere new experiencing new things.  They would of course great others by announcing their family names and where they are from.  Halflings on the other hand live for the moment.  They don’t plan as much for the future but tend to go with things as they happen.  This kind of behavior is gypsy like but this is how they are now let alone their identity in the future.  Though they might adapt to the newer tech and modern customs they are more family drawn then gnomes and would likely retain this trait.  While I could see gnomes going for engineering and scientific work I would see halflings take on a wide variety of professions.  Being more of a jack of all trades rather then one who devotes themselves to one profession.  In winter they may clean houses, by spring they start showing up in building crews and other construction type work.  The summer may see them going cross country to a town they work at during the hot months then see them returning in fall to start the process over again. 

Testing things (Windows 7) Because we can…

Here goes the first in a series of what does this do and does it suck.  Windows 7 as far as now seems like a faster and not problem prone version of vista.  It looks good but is good at the same time so it’s simply okay.  And of course it’s on the new laptop so it runs extra nice.  This blog is written in the blog section of 7 and how good is this function.  Lets see if we can read this on the web.

10/25/06 - The ReBlog - A Because we can special

I decided it may be fun to go back and visit some old blogs and add more commentary or clarify things that don't make sense to anyone but myself. This one goes back to the myspace blog posted on 10/25/06 entitled "With the really crappy theme music...". The Current mood at that time was "Hating Alan Thick and Kirk Carmeron right now"

Remember all those really bad 1980's sitcoms with the really bad theme songs. You know the kind of songs that make you want to stop watching a show that will neither be offensive or really entertaining. A show that will neither challenge your perseptions nor your concept of what is funny. The really worse parts of this are of course the opening credits where they decide to tell and show you who everyone is in case it's too hard to simply read the end credits and match names with the characters they play (remember this was the 80's where you were actually forced to see the end credits rather than a split screen telling you what was up next or next week or tommorrow). Most of the time we can get through these with only a sense of stupidity or embaresment that you are watching a show devoid of comedy and talent. There are a few where for some reason the director said "do something random and then look directly at the camera, break the third wall and smile like an idoit" and then the underpaid camera man films it and you are forced to watch it. That's it just had to get that out there.

Now first to give you a taste of what I am talking about. This example includes some of the other bits such as look at what I'm doing. They only look at the camera about two or three times in this one and since it was from a latter season one could think that maybe they learned their lesson.

A mistake was the breaking the third wall. This term is breaking the fourth wall but I wrote third wall cause I was on a rant at the time. This term is when someone in a film, cartoon, play or other theatrical work stops what they are doing to address or talk to the audience. The looking at the camera like a fucking moron and smiling is a smaller version of this. Also I included growing pains as my example but if you look at any theme in the eighties for sitcoms long enough you will find more of these.

The comments include an exchange between steve and myself about being stuck in a freezer and kevin spacey opening a pet store across the street. These are four separate references to the clerks animated series. Look it up as it was funny for the six episodes there were. They are way better than any of the shit kevin smith has been putting out lately.

Alignment and you

So the subject of alignment popped into my head just recently. We all had a conversation bach in the day bout hitlers alignment. So he's evil right? Well yes but not in his mind. Obviously this isn't really true to our system. He is evil but really a different kind of evil. Had he toned it some with the anti everyone else he may be painted as a sort of patriot in circles. Sadly this wasn't the case. I remember back to parties were everyone in the party was evil. These groups were fun but the reasoning of their evilness wasn't always there. Some characters have to be evil by design of their race or undeadness. We all know there are exceptions to this and vice versa. The usual bent of most groups are non-evil. In the present there seems to be alignment requirements for the groups we play. This could be done for the reason that the campaign was supposed to be a flavor and being chaotic evil in a group of lawful goods doesn't always work. The other bit that I always thought is that "how do the other players know what my alignment is". Now I know there are spells but who really needs to go casting this all the time. There are times when it is needed but in a group the one thing that shouldn't pop up is the alignment issue. I can't work with so and so cause he's evil. In most bits I think someones actions should dictate the other characters perception of them. Another thing is the alignment change. Doing one really horrible thing might make you evil but in most terms it should take over time to develop into full blow evilness. The road there is more fun then simply being there from the beginning. Sure there can be exceptions but when everyone is evil is rarely takes much to go on before things go over the edge. When all are willing to sacrifice and kill everyone they find it loses its charm. It isn't as kewl when it's the norm instead of the exception. When there is one guy who doesn't always go with the flow and do the norm it's refreshing. When there is an awesome story to go along with it; it's even better. The usual evil doers who happen to be good is also fun. When the norm for the characters is not what their motivation is it can be fun. I have kind of swayed away from alignment due to it being too much of a tool and restriction rather than a resource. It seems to be something that defines the players actions rather than a construct defined by the players actions. It tends to dumb decisions into "could he do this" rather than "ya lets do this". Some prestige classes require it and then it becomes "only this type of person can do this". In some cases this is warranted, in others just horrible. It becomes less amusing when one or two rules dictate what is and what will never be rather then decisions that create a story that is fascinating to witness and create.

This has been a Because we can presentation. No rights are reserved.

Adult swim...Fucking it up again...

So the new anime was the old anime sort of. Fullmetal Alchemist:Brotherhood. This is the second anime based on the manga and this is the one that follows the manga. Course you could just wiki this if you wanted to know that. The main difference is the scope is easier to follow and contains less flashbacks and plot points that get forced down your throat. And following the manga it has the other million or so characters that the original anime didn't have. So how would I be able to make this judgment only after seeing one episode. Cause I have already watched the first twenty episodes. And no I didn't illegally download this... it's on the fucking internet already. On youtube funimation has been streaming these in the uncensored, undubbed, subbed, japanese version. With only a minute or two of commercials interspersed in the streaming it's also easier to watch on the internet. That's right... when ever the fuck you want to. But sometimes the English version is easier to digest for some people. First off the themes both opening and closing are clipped. This seems to be something that adult swim does to Fullmetal only. Even bleach with it's fucking eighty two thousand themes gets played in its entirety. Now this isn't the issue that one could complain about. The voice acting is as good as the first but I can't help but hear Al as sounding a bit younger than he should. Also major hughes stays in his wacky voice way longer than is tolerable (course it ain't like he's gonna live that long) but this isn't really an issue either. The real issue is that adult swim made a purchase of something that we can see unedited for free. They have a tendency to edit out blood and nudity cause we are in the USA. Even airing a disclaimer means you have to play around with the natural order. Blood isn't a problem. Nudity isn't much of a problem. Stop fucking with things. Also if you are stuck on this no blood thing then you are missing the other animes that are nice and bloody that we will never get to see on tv over here. Still since I mostly work saturday nights (cause I suck okay) I really don't get to see these things. The good is that I will not have to complain as much. The bad I won't get to complain as much (I miss complaining already).

2nd class human being...or the friends who aren't your friends but are friends with your friends (sort of)...

This is a special "Because we can..." Rant
Lately I as a person (or as close to a person as I can be) have been putting up with more than my fair share. In the last ten years or so I have become a punching bag. I have been dealing with my fair share and trying to deal with it without getting "Fucking Pissed" about it but even I have to fall victim to having the occasional outburst. Lately these have been increasing. I as a person really have been trying to just let the other guy win. Try not to let things bother you and later on you may get your chance to do what you want or have your pie (apple). Of course this is something that takes time. Too much time anyways. It has been observed that I let others run all over me. Who does this the most. Friends (not the show; although it gets on my nerves almost as much). They will step all over you and you will do the same. This kind of exchange is different then the bits you will have with other people or even family. It's the kind of forgive and forget that only is known by friends, bikers, and soldiers in war. This ability to want to kill someone and then decide that nah it's all okay is not the social norm. Usually if someone calls you a name or cuts in front of you in line then this means war. Well maybe not but they ain't someone you want to spend more time with. But most people can forgive a friend just about everything. Fights will ensue but eventually parties will console each other and be fine about it. There are some things that don't generally fit into these type of friendships. I took a look at some of my friends facebooks (proper tense?) and saw alot of people who used to be friends. Now lets never mind the fact that I have no real idea how these people know each other in all cases but this fucking pisses me off to no end. In all things known my most hated thing is (not the government) betrayal. In my mind friends are supposed to stick up for each other and acknowledge each others presence in the least. There are so many people right now who just look at me and pretend that we don't even know each other. This is the kind of things (well really just one of the many) that will turn you into a 2nd class human being. This is a term that for some reason applies to immigrants and natives in places you don't consider habitable by real people. I tell you what (ladies and gentleman mr. hank hill) this kind of thing pisses me off in itself but when "friends" treat you like this it takes on a much more sinister bent. The bit that gets me the most that if this is a person that you have shared your thoughts with (not in a work setting; though this will be addressed in some other blog some other time) or taken into your home then what is their fucking problem. Most of the time this problem seems to be something that they won't tell you and will be spoken in other circles. Some times these other circles are other friends. I have at least two sets of friends that seem to have written me out as if I didn't exist (With Lucas style who shoot first type special effects no doubt[not the band no doubt]). At times friends will part ways. But the whole lets all ignore them and stop hanging around them bit is the greatest insult ever (worse than andy dick). I myself have started to see this behavior in myself and had to knock it the fuck off. This bugs me more cause it should never be me doing the mature thing. So why does everyone else have to be bitches. Seriously. We all know that I am the last person to even think about the morally right decision in dealing with other people. This makes about as much sense as why people liked the movie titanic (spoiler: the boat sinks). I have lost many friends in the last decade but really I'm starting to not give a ham (cause you can't have any that's why). Really. This is about as mad as I can be and I can write a little bit on the internet that will be read by maybe two people and commented on by maybe one. Seriously. I am writing this for myself it seems and a few people may look at it and then carelessly shrug their shoulders and go on with their fucking lives. That's is why I have come up with something for this. Anyone who sees this forward this to the people who I am talking about. If you don't know who they are then I hope you aren't one of them. Have them read this and don't give them the whole "look what he's doing now" thing. This isn't a farce (right word?). As far as I am concerned this is my "Manifesto". From this point on I will make sure everyone knows what my bit is and in turn your all going to hate it. I have held back more then most CIA (CAPS!) agents have in a life time of crazy covert ops. At this point I want everyone to know where we stand. In turn I want to know what your "Fucking problem" is. And I hope you don't come prepared for an argument cause right now I could take on anyone and everyone if need be. From now on you will know that turning on me and thinking that's the end of it isn't how things will go. I always keep my friends close and never my enemies closer. To surround yourself with assholes prolly isn't what you should do. I would like to think that the people I associate with are friends. I also would like to think that the friends that used to associate with me think the same but if it's a no then "Go Fuck Yourself" and get off the fucking road (I'm not sure what that analogy was supposed to mean but it sounded cool at the time so I'm leaving it in). In closing if you are wondering why I feel I have the right to say all these things it's simple. Because I fucking Can...

Compromise: Served with the short: Elitism and you and others and so on...

Elitism is the belief or attitude that those individuals who are considered members of the elite — a select group of people with outstanding personal abilities, intellect, wealth, specialized training or experience, or other distinctive attributes — are those whose views on a matter are to be taken the most seriously or carry the most weight or those who view their own views as so; whose views and/or actions are most likely to be constructive to society as a whole; or whose extraordinary skills, abilities or wisdom render them especially fit to govern. This comes right off the definition of the word from Wikipedia. So what we got is people who are better than us cause they are better at things. Really when you get down to it everyone will fit this definition at some point. The real bit is when there is people who seem to be put into this position and then given the power to stay there. Any politician falls into this as their views are always given priority over other views. Like the guy in massachusets who ran saying he will vote down the health care bill just cause he is a republican and better than the rest of us. Just to note his state has a health care plan so he would get it even if the rest of us don't. However in this example you see how the elite and other elite are able to fight over things in their own way. By that I mean instead of getting hit in the face they go for the low blow and attack America itself. The worst thing is that people in this position rarely ever have to deal with the situations that come as a result of their bickering. They will never do us good and the whole "better than you" attitude from the social elite is a problem pretty much anywhere you go. On a smaller scale this attacks the little people in our normal lives. The cool kids at school, or the rich kids, and lets not forget the pretty ones. They teach us at a young age that there is a fundamental difference between people and that "because they are" is the only reason they need to be better than us. The group dynamic also to a lesser state shows this. In every group is a leader whose actions and decisions seem to influence the group as a whole. Over time this being becomes bigger and better in their mind and when they don't contemplate that they aren't always right and the best person for every job heads will butt. This becomes a problem and people resent others when they get into this mode. The social upbringing leads one to compare these individuals with the ones presented in the media and in ones own life. Resentment sets in and oddly sometimes leads to others to stage social uprisings which result in them taking on the qualities of the elitist they despise. Over time the roles change and a viscous cycle continues. Some times the only way to deal with ones differences (And all government people gotta learn this...and I mean now!) is to shoot them all and let god sort them out... I mean compromise. This is a thing that can be the best and worst thing ever. They essential truth behind this is that one can find a middle ground in which two or more parties are able to find common ground. This is supposed to give people closure and prevent bickering. When one looks at this there is something most people don't realize. Some where in all of this someone usually losses something they want. Where this is part of the process often one makes compromises they really don't want to (again government, I'm looking at you). The way I look at it is when one loses things they fight for they in essence lose a part of themselves. So now compare this over time. The more one agrees and compromises; unless they are the party that gets all or almost all of what they want (for some reason this happens alot) they begin to resent the "deal". Most people can deal with this over time but not when it occurs all of the time. The more one gives the more one gets. This is what most of us always thought but in every battle there is a winner and loser. When one doesn't stand up for their side enough often they will lose more than they would giving up (once again united states government get off your asses and make things better). True compromise is often impossible and would in theory be awesome but from experience most people aren't willing to deal with problems directly taking the time needed (seriously government...flying cars. We should have had them already but what the fuck...No starships or enhanced dna soldiers or virtual sex bots and light beer that doesn't suck even if it says that it doesn't) to make things right. Most like a quick fix. Lets say this and do this for a while. Later when it begins to degrade and the issues go back (and to the left) to where they were we once again confront them. Sometimes it takes a few times to get things right. However pushing something back and then to the front and back again essentially loses the issue and after a while no one gets what they want and refuses to fight for it anymore. When good soldiers stop fighting the ideals they protect often go the way of "New Coke" (seriously google it if you don't know what it is). The point that I try to make is that things will rarely be talked about and dealt with in the manner they should be. People should take all things to the table and fight for all they can get. Only when all is put on that table can things be resolved so that the loses are mutual and the gains shared by friends and allies and not democrats and republicans (destined to bicker like little bitches until they are replaced with younger little bitches with faster cars). The theory comes full circle that often it's the elite that benefit from compromisation (new word I call it) between parties and the common man is the one wondering that if what he came away with is really worth the fight for it and the casualties that fell during the war. Till the time when all is one I will contemplate this and more. Because I (wait for it) (seriously wait for it) (almost there) can.