Worlds of the Pneumatic Overlords

A great billboard from Idiocracy

2009-01-22T23:57:00.002-05:00

Mice suspected in deadly cat fire

2008-12-19T13:04:00.001-05:00

Mice may be responsible for a blaze that killed nearly 100 cats at an animal shelter near the Canadian city of Toronto, officials say.

The fire at the humane society shelter in Oshawa also killed three dogs and some rats that were up for adoption.

An initial report from the fire marshal says mice or rats chewing through electrical wires in the ceiling are likely to have sparked the blaze.

Offers of help have been pouring in from animal lovers across Canada.

"It's unfortunate and ironic that mice caused the fire that killed the cats," Toronto Humane Society spokesman Ian McConachie told the BBC News website.

"Unfortunately, the mice probably perished in the fire as well," he added.

The $250,000 (£137,000) fire is still under investigation by the Ontario Fire Marshal's office.

Mr McConachie said it would be some days before a final report would be released.

In all, only nine dogs, two cats and one rat were rescued in Wednesday's early morning blaze.

They are being housed in a nearby municipal shelter, while volunteers rebuild the burnt-down shelter for the Humane Society of Durham Region.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/americas/7792475.stm

Freddy Krueger Animeaquette

2008-12-16T14:38:00.002-05:00

A Gentle Giant Sculpt! On Elm Street, Nancy Thompson and a group of her friends are being tormented - in their dreams - by a clawed killer named Freddy Krueger. Nancy must think quickly, as Freddy tries to pick off his victims one by one. When he comes to you in your dreams and turns it into a living nightmare, who will to save you? Freddy Krueger just might come for you too! Gentle Giant has created an animated-style Freddy Krueger Maquette with a twist! Freddy is showcased ready to strike at his victim, who sits cross-legged in front of Freddy wearing a "Camp Crystal Lake" t-shirt holding a plush Jason Voorhees doll. Jason stands approximately 7" inches tall and comes with a Certificate of Authenticity. Painted and ready to display.

*For Original Posting Click Here*

Thomas Paine Quotes

2008-11-28T10:37:00.004-05:00

*These are some interesting quotes from one of our nation's Founding Fathers, I thought they were very interesting. Agree, disagree, think.*

All national institutions of churches, whether Jewish, Christian or Turkish, appear to me no other than human inventions, set up to terrify and enslave mankind, and monopolize power and profit.

Belief in a cruel God makes a cruel man.

Every religion is good that teaches man to be good; and I know of none that instructs him to be bad.

Every science has for its basis a system of principles as fixed and unalterable as those by which the universe is regulated and governed. Man cannot make principles; he can only discover them.

He who is the author of a war lets loose the whole contagion of hell and opens a vein that bleeds a nation to death.

I believe in the equality of man; and I believe that religious duties consist in doing justice, loving mercy, and endeavoring to make our fellow-creatures happy.

If there must be trouble, let it be in my day, that my child may have peace.

It is error only, and not truth, that shrinks from inquiry.

It is not a God, just and good, but a devil, under the name of God, that the Bible describes.

The most formidable weapon against errors of every kind is reason.

The whole religious complexion of the modern world is due to the absence from Jerusalem of a lunatic asylum.

Titles are but nicknames, and every nickname is a title.

To establish any mode to abolish war, however advantageous it might be to Nations, would be to take from such Government the most lucrative of its branches.

We have it in our power to begin the world over again.

When we are planning for posterity, we ought to remember that virtue is not hereditary.

2008-11-24T08:29:00.004-05:00

Money as Debt

2008-10-14T15:03:00.000-04:00

Extremely important to watch!

Gost Rider 2 In The Works!?!

2008-09-04T13:38:00.002-04:00

In a recent interview with MTV, Nicholas Cage who starred as Johnny Blaze/Ghost Rider in the 2007 Marvel Comic adaptation, confirmed that a "Ghost Rider 2" movie was going to happen. “There have been talks and good ones with where to go with the character,” explained Cage. “It looks like it will take place in Europe and the character will work with the [Catholic] Church. It’ll be a completely new experience. It’s exciting.”

Apparently the film is still in very early stages, the studio has yet to even make an official announcement about it, but Cage hints, “It hasn’t progressed to [who the next villain will be] yet to be able to say, but I do know it will be shot in Europe and there will be some sort of connection working with different religious figures.”

(orginally from Marvelousnews.com)

Seriously... why would you do a second Ghost Rider movie? Wasn't the first humiliating enough? And "will work with the Catholic Church"? WTF?

WATCHMEN

2008-07-24T01:08:00.001-04:00

DNA tests exonerate 'Lizard Man' in van attack

2008-05-16T12:06:00.000-04:00

BISHOPVILLE, S.C. (AP) -- DNA testing has shown an attack on a family van some blamed on the legendary Lizard Man appears to have been actually done by a domestic dog. Something chewed up the front fender of Bob and Dixie Rawson's van in February. Bite marks were left on the wheel wells and blood was found on the vehicle.

The Item of Sumter reported that a veterinary lab in California tested the blood and found it came from a dog.

But Bob Rawson isn't sure, saying it would have to be one big dog.

Lee County Sheriff E.J. Melvin isn't convinced either. He thinks it was a coyote or wolf.

Lizard Man became a phenomenon in the area 20 years ago when people began reporting a tall, big-eyed swamp creature. Authorities never figured out exactly what prompted the sightings.

Source

2008-05-13T15:20:00.002-04:00

You every feel like EVERYTHING in your life is just wrong... ugh...

Luckily, EVERYTHING is temporary.

Lesbos islanders dispute gay name

2008-05-01T12:24:00.000-04:00

By Malcolm Brabant
BBC News, Athens

Campaigners on the Greek island of Lesbos are to go to court in an attempt to stop a gay rights organisation from using the term "lesbian".

The islanders say that if they are successful they may then start to fight the word lesbian internationally.

The issue boils down to who has the right to call themselves Lesbians.

Is it gay women, or the 100,000 people living on Greece's third biggest island - plus another 250,000 expatriates who originate from Lesbos?

The man spearheading the case, publisher Dimitris Lambrou, claims that international dominance of the word in its sexual context violates the human rights of the islanders, and disgraces them around the world.

He says it causes daily problems to the social life of Lesbos's inhabitants.

Injunction sought

In court papers, the plaintiffs allege that the Greek government is so embarrassed by the term Lesbian that it has been forced to rename the island after its capital, Mytilini.

An early court date has now been set for judges to decide whether to grant an injunction against the Homosexual and Lesbian Community of Greece and to order it to change its name.

A spokeswoman for the group has described the case as a groundless violation of freedom of expression, and has pledged to fight it.

The term lesbian originated from the poet Sappho, who was a native of Lesbos.

Sappho expressed her love of other women in poetry written during the 7th Century BC.

But according to Mr Lambrou, new historical research has discovered that Sappho had a family, and committed suicide for the love of a man.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/europe/7376919.stm

The Spirit

2008-04-19T16:49:00.001-04:00

Another great photo from the BBC website...

2008-04-09T12:58:00.002-04:00

You can find it among the daily pictures on the BBC site by clicking here.

A great quotation...

2008-04-05T15:27:00.000-04:00

“...the Large Hadron Collider might make dragons that might eat us up.”
- Dr. Arkani-Hamed
Click here for article containing the quote.

Hellboy II: The Golden Army Trailer

2008-04-03T13:59:00.000-04:00

Some neat art from Magic :The Gathering

2008-03-31T16:31:00.005-04:00

I haven't played Magic: The Gathering since like 1994, but I was enjoying some of the art from the more recent card sets. Anyway, below is art from different Magic cards and Magic artists... enjoy!

My personal favorite is below:

To be honest, I always enjoyed the card game Blood Wars more.

Sensors for bat-inspired spy plane under development

2008-03-14T16:03:00.002-04:00

PhysOrg.com, Mar. 13, 2008

The US Army is sponsoring research to build a bat-like, six-inch robotic spy plane dubbed "the bat" that will use quantum-dot solar cells for power and have an autonomous navigation system that's 1,000 times smaller and more energy-efficient than current systems.

(Eric Maslowski, University of Michigan)

The bat will use low-power miniaturized radar and a very sensitive night navigation system. It will recharge its lithium battery by energy-scavenging from solar, wind, vibration and other sources.

(abstract from KurzweilAI.net)

Read Original Article>>

Am I a dork? ...the answer is yes.

2008-03-12T00:17:00.001-04:00

I Am A: Neutral Good Human Sorcerer (5th Level)

Ability Scores:

Strength-12

Dexterity-13

Constitution-13

Intelligence-14

Wisdom-13

Charisma-14

Alignment:
Neutral Good A neutral good character does the best that a good person can do. He is devoted to helping others. He works with kings and magistrates but does not feel beholden to them. Neutral good is the best alignment you can be because it means doing what is good without bias for or against order. However, neutral good can be a dangerous alignment because because it advances mediocrity by limiting the actions of the truly capable.

Race:
Humans are the most adaptable of the common races. Short generations and a penchant for migration and conquest have made them physically diverse as well. Humans are often unorthodox in their dress, sporting unusual hairstyles, fanciful clothes, tattoos, and the like.

Class:
Sorcerers are arcane spellcasters who manipulate magic energy with imagination and talent rather than studious discipline. They have no books, no mentors, no theories just raw power that they direct at will. Sorcerers know fewer spells than wizards do and acquire them more slowly, but they can cast individual spells more often and have no need to prepare their incantations ahead of time. Also unlike wizards, sorcerers cannot specialize in a school of magic. Since sorcerers gain their powers without undergoing the years of rigorous study that wizards go through, they have more time to learn fighting skills and are proficient with simple weapons. Charisma is very important for sorcerers; the higher their value in this ability, the higher the spell level they can cast.

Find out What Kind of Dungeons and Dragons Character Would You Be?, courtesy of Easydamus (e-mail)

2008-03-11T23:58:00.001-04:00

CHOOSE YOUR JESUS AT THE LINK BELOW!!!

http://uncyclopedia.org/wiki/Jesus

Great new comic series!

2008-02-27T23:39:00.005-05:00

I just wanted to mention a great new series I have been reading from Dynamite Entertainment, Project Superpowers. It resurrects some Golden Age heroes like the Fighting Yank, the Green Lama, the Black Terror, the Flame, the original Daredevil (not the Marvel one), and many more. These characters recently passed into public domain and have been used by other companies too, like America's Best Comics where they appeared in Tom Strong in 2001 and shortly following that in their own series. Well, Dynamite Entertainment has also decided to throw their hand into the mix with these characters and have done a great job so far (2 issues). It is co-plotted by Jim Krueger and Alex Ross, with scripts by Jim Krueger, covers by Alex Ross, and finally interior art by Doug Klauba and Stephen Sadowski. Some special covers have also been done by Michael Turner, another fantastic artist. The plot so far has been engaging and surprisingly good. I am enjoying the fact that they aren't throwing too many characters at you at once, just one or two per comic so you can get a little characterization going. Great story, great art, great comic, check it out!

Click on the art below or above for a larger pic.

2008-02-27T10:41:00.002-05:00

Seriously, is it just me or does Courtney Cox look like one of the undead now? WTF happened to her face? (Please forgive me if she has been in a horrible accident or something)

A neat image from the BBC website

2008-02-22T15:53:00.003-05:00

Batman: Gotham Knight First Look

2008-02-15T15:57:00.002-05:00

Bridging the gap between Batman Begins and The Dark Knight is the animated 6 story film Batman: Gotham Knights...

Save The Green Planet (Trailer)

2008-02-13T11:15:00.000-05:00

How about a little soup? The Soup that is...

2008-02-13T10:25:00.002-05:00

Squadron Supreme Mini-Series (1985 - 1986)

2008-02-11T02:14:00.000-05:00

Written in 1985 by Mark Gruenwald, the Squadron Supreme mini-series may well be a transition point in comics. It stands on the line between Avengers/Justice League comics of the 70's and earlier 80's and the darker grittier comics that began about 6 months later with Batman: The Dark Knight Returns. I truly think this series influenced the comic industry and the writers more than most let on to. It is about a bunch of super heroes who after a horrible tragedy try to restore peace and justice through any means possible. The dark, non-powered billionaire with strong moral convictions decides he cannot go along with the plans. Sounding similar to a certain Alex Ross title from 1996? Maybe. Though they do have striking differences, the times were different in 85-86 and in 96. I just reread the entire Squadron Supreme mini-series yesterday. It is still just as good as it was when I read it years ago. It is full of drama, deception, moral and ethical questions, loss, triumph, philosophical quandaries, surprises, and awesome comic book action!

If you aren't familiar with Squadron Supreme, they are a purposeful-marvel-carbon-copy of the Justice League. Hyperion - Superman, Power Princess - Wonder Woman, Amphibian - Aquaman, Dr. Spectrum - Green Lantern, Lady Lark - Black Canary, so on and so on... But what Gruenwald decided to do with these twenty year old joke characters is genius. He put them in a more real world setting. Asking, "If you possessed the power of Superman, how far do you go to bring the world peace? How would the government react? What about the people? What do you do about crime? poverty? prisons? guns?" The answers might startle you, but they follow and make logical sense.

The series impacted so many comics to come too: the aforementioned Kingdom Come, Astro City, Marvel's Ultimates, The Authority, and numerous DC Elseworlds. I see reflections of it in so many places. I think this mini-series should be required reading for an "comic book fan".

Not everything in the mini-series is perfect. A few things seem a little rushed, and in order to get the whole story, you also have to pick up Captain America # 314. Well, you don't really have to pick up Cap #314, because of my final complaint. There is a lot of recapping in nearly every issue. I realize that it was important at that time - if you missed an issue, you were out of luck. I recommend just skipping it when it comes up though.

Neat characters with individual minds and ethical standards and personal drives really make this tale come alive. Whizzer and Arcanna have families, Nuke's parents are dying, Nighthawk is President of the US when the series begins, Lamprey is so blood-thirsty he is comical at times... my point is simply "wow". Couple that with a cool plot, complex adversaries, and a little bit of Utopia and A Clockwork Orange and you get this great achievement in comics.

Pick it up. Read it. Love it.

9.5 out of 10

Let me not forget to mention it spawned a great series from the Marvel Max line called Supreme Power. It is another great work of fiction following a similar scope as the original Squadron Supreme mini-series but more modern day (see pic below) - keep in mind, Marvel Max is very adult in art and themes.

Gorgeous Tiny Chicken Machine Show

2008-02-06T03:04:00.000-05:00

What didn't get enough?

A special sunshine thank you to man of great happy fun time Matt Craver! You so the coolest one Mr. Guy, yeah!!!

Blasphemy

2008-02-05T18:07:00.000-05:00

http://blog.secularphilosophy.com/index.php?entry=entry080127-190527

by Daniel Dennett

The West screwed up badly when the denunciation of the fatwa on Salman Rushdie was not closer to unanimous. (I will never forget or forgive the shameful silence of some writers who shunned the invitation to join in a firm but not hostile rebuke.) The West screwed up badly again when the Danish cartoons were not reprinted world-wide. What many didn’t understand was that the staged riots were a political strike against moderate Muslims, not non-Muslims. The “tolerance” urged by many voices outside the Muslim world played into the hands of the radical Islamists. Now we get a third chance to come to the aide of moderate Muslims all over the world, but so far, I haven’t heard much outcry. Several days ago I sent the following letter to the Boston Globe, which has not yet indicated that it will publish it:

The conviction and pending execution of an Afghani student, Sayed Parwiz Kambakhsh, for blasphemy is an appalling circumstance, but it offers an opportunity that we should all seize. The time has come for Muslims to step up to the plate and demonstrate that Islam is a great faith that has no need for violence or intimidation to maintain the loyalty of its congregation. And we outside Islam must make it crystal clear that we cannot respect or honor a religion that would consider blasphemy a capital crime, no matter how ancient the tradition from which this decision flowed. Muslims who support–or refrain from condemning–the conviction and sentence of Kambakhsh must be made to realize that they share responsibility for bringing dishonor to their cherished heritage, and if we non-Muslims do not speak out, we too must share in the blame. Friends don’t let friends commit, or condone, evil. The best way of showing our good will towards Islam is by helping it shed an indefensible aspect of its legacy. Every religion has much to atone for, but that is no reason to button our lips and tolerate fresh grounds for atonement.

There is no need, yet, for anger. Let us all just remind Muslims everywhere of what they must surely know: blasphemy is not a capital crime in any society worthy of respect. It is now up to Muslims to prevent some of their number from defiling their own precious culture.

A photobraph from the BBC website I liked...

2008-02-05T10:08:00.001-05:00

Orangutans in Singapore Zoo peer at their Lunar New Year gift - a "red packet" filled with melon seeds.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_pictures/7226321.stm

Black Adam: Dark Age

2008-02-04T00:22:00.000-05:00

It's been a bit since I have reviewed any comics, well, here's a review for you of something I was quite ignorant of until recently.

First of all, I completely missed the events leading up to this mini-series (Infinite Crisis, 52, & World War III). I went into it blind, because normally you can pick up a miniseries and just join into the story. I was able to glean a good bit of info about prior events from it, at least enough to know what was going on, so it actually achieved this aim alright. As for the story. It was decent if you are into the true anti-hero story. It's about a man obsessed with his true love and on a quest to resurrect her no matter what the cost. Warning though, Black Adam is not a likable character at all. I mean I know he isn't supposed to be, and there were a few feeble attempts at humanizing him, but I just didn't even care to see him succeed in his quest (or quests). It seemed a bit carelessly written. The art was acceptable, kinda grungy weird. Overall though, I was not too impressed with this run of comics. Too bad, I was hoping Black Adam would be a more complex character. I give this mini-series a 5 out of 10.

*** On a side note, the Rock is slated to play Black Adam in an upcoming Captain Marvel movie, I think it is to be called Shazam! He would be perfect for the role... I mean he looks just like him.

The Big Questons (BBC debate show)

2008-01-29T19:39:00.001-05:00

"Should Blasphemy Remain a Crime (in England)"
and more...

Part 1

Part 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSWlN5fwPbw

Part 3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V4BWS_qa_lQ

Part 4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_rrE65fD1Y

Part 5
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUybZ-SHg5I

Part 6
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1GrZyHMZmQ

Steven Weinberg Quote

2008-01-28T06:47:00.000-05:00

Nobel Prize-winning physicist Steven Weinberg: "With or without religion, good people will do good, and evil people will do evil. But for good people to do evil, that takes religion."

Loneliness Breeds Belief in Supernatural

2008-01-25T18:50:00.000-05:00

Andrea Thompson
LiveScience Staff Writer
LiveScience.com

Fri Jan 25, 7:35 AM ET

For Original Article Click Here

People who feel lonely are more likely to believe in the supernatural, whether that is God, angels or miracles, a new study finds.

Humans have evolved as social creatures, so loneliness cuts to the quick. Living in groups was critical to the survival and safety of our ancient ancestors, and "complete isolation or ostracism has been tantamount to a death sentence," said University of Chicago researcher Nicholas Epley, who led the study.

While group living isn't critical to survival in the modern world, feeling socially connected is. Feeling isolated and lonely is a very painful emotional state for people, Epley said, and can lead to ill health, both physically and mentally.

"Being socially isolated is just not good for you," he said.

When people feel lonely, they may try to rekindle old friendships, seek out new ones or, as Epley's study suggests, they may create social connections by anthropomorphizing nearby gadgets, such as computers or cars, pets, or by believing in supernatural events or religious figures.

Pets and religion

In their study, detailed in the February issue of the journal Psychological Science, Epley's team tried to induce feelings of loneliness in people to see how it affected how they thought of pets and their belief in religious figures.

In one experiment, college undergraduates were shown movie clips and told to try and empathize with the protagonist as best they could, in order to set them in one of three emotional states.

One group was shown a clip from "Cast Away," the movie in which the main character played by Tom Hanks is deserted on a remote island, in order to induce a feeling of isolation. The second group was shown a clip from the crime thriller "The Silence of the Lambs" to promote a sense of fear. A third, control group was shown a clip from the sports comedy feature film "Major League."

All three groups were then asked to describe a pet they owned or knew well and pick three traits from a list that best described them. The list included anthropomorphic traits that related to social connections (thoughtful, sympathetic) and simple behavioral descriptions (aggressive, energetic, fearful).

Participants from the loneliness group were more likely to describe the pet using the anthropomorphic descriptions than those in the fear or control groups.

All three groups were also asked to rate their belief in ghosts, angels, the devil, miracles, curses, and God, and again, those in the loneliness group reported stronger belief in these supernatural agents.

Future predictions

In another part of their study, Epley and his colleagues asked participants from the University of Chicago to fill out a personality questionnaire and were then told that the answers would be fed to a computer which would generate a future-life prediction for them. Half of the participants were read statements implying they would be lonely later in life, while the other half were told they would be socially connected for the rest of their lives.

"We tried to manipulate their loneliness, to make them feel lonely," Epley said.

The participants were then asked to rate their belief in the same supernatural agents in the other study, and those in the "lonely group" reported stronger belief than those in the "connected group." The results were also compared to ratings the participants gave before they got their life predictions, and those who reported a belief in God before and were made to feel lonely reported a stronger belief after the experiment.

"We found that inducing people to feel lonely made them more religious essentially," Epley told LiveScience, though he notes it won't cause any sudden conversions.

Health benefits

Owning pets and religious beliefs and practices are both known to increase a person's sense of well-being, but why exactly that is isn’t well known, Epley said.

Epley and his colleagues plan to probe the issue further to see if anthropomorphizing pets or believing in anthropomorphized supernatural agents is what is responsible for alleviating feelings of loneliness. If it is, it could provide alternate means for people to feel socially connected when connecting to humans isn't an option.

"There are health benefits that come from being connected to other people, and those same benefits seem to come from connection with pets and with religious agents, too," Epley said.

Chaser vs Westboro Baptist Church

2008-01-24T15:22:00.000-05:00

Banned From Church

2008-01-23T16:03:00.000-05:00

Reviving an ancient practice, churches are exposing sinners and shunning those who won't repent.

By ALEXANDRA ALTER
January 18, 2008; Page W1
Click here for original article

On a quiet Sunday morning in June, as worshippers settled into the pews at Allen Baptist Church in southwestern Michigan, Pastor Jason Burrick grabbed his cellphone and dialed 911. When a dispatcher answered, the preacher said a former congregant was in the sanctuary. "And we need to, um, have her out A.S.A.P."

Half an hour later, 71-year-old Karolyn Caskey, a church member for nearly 50 years who had taught Sunday school and regularly donated 10% of her pension, was led out by a state trooper and a county sheriff's officer. One held her purse and Bible. The other put her in handcuffs. (Listen to the 911 call)

The charge was trespassing, but Mrs. Caskey's real offense, in her pastor's view, was spiritual. Several months earlier, when she had questioned his authority, he'd charged her with spreading "a spirit of cancer and discord" and expelled her from the congregation. "I've been shunned," she says.

Her story reflects a growing movement among some conservative Protestant pastors to bring back church discipline, an ancient practice in which suspected sinners are privately confronted and then publicly castigated and excommunicated if they refuse to repent. While many Christians find such practices outdated, pastors in large and small churches across the country are expelling members for offenses ranging from adultery and theft to gossiping, skipping service and criticizing church leaders.

Dave Krieger/Getty Images

PODCASTS

• Hear an interview with Doug Laycock, a professor of constitutional law at the University of Michigan, about the legal implications of church discipline.

• Hear the 911 call made by Pastor Burrick.

* * *

CAST OFF

• Timeline: View a brief history of shunning and excommunication.

The revival is part of a broader movement to restore churches to their traditional role as moral enforcers, Christian leaders say. Some say that contemporary churches have grown soft on sinners, citing the rise of suburban megachurches where pastors preach self-affirming messages rather than focusing on sin and redemption. Others point to a passage in the gospel of Matthew that says unrepentant sinners must be shunned.

Causing Disharmony

Watermark Community Church, a nondenominational church in Dallas that draws 4,000 people to services, requires members to sign a form stating they will submit to the "care and correction" of church elders. Last week, the pastor of a 6,000-member megachurch in Nashville, Tenn., threatened to expel 74 members for gossiping and causing disharmony unless they repented. The congregants had sued the pastor for access to the church's financial records.

First Baptist Church of Muscle Shoals, Ala., a 1,000-member congregation, expels five to seven members a year for "blatant, undeniable patterns of willful sin," which have included adultery, drunkenness and refusal to honor church elders. About 400 people have left the church over the years for what they view as an overly harsh persecution of sinners, Pastor Jeff Noblit says.

The process can be messy, says Al Jackson, pastor of Lakeview Baptist Church in Auburn, Ala., which began disciplining members in the 1990s. Once, when the congregation voted out an adulterer who refused to repent, an older woman was confused and thought the church had voted to send the man to hell.

Karolyn Caskey was expelled from Allen Baptist Church after clashing with the pastor.

Amy Hitt, 43, a mortgage officer in Amissville, Va., was voted out of her Baptist congregation in 2004 for gossiping about her pastor's plans to buy a bigger house. Her ouster was especially hard on her twin sons, now 12 years old, who had made friends in the church, she says. "Some people have looked past it, but then there are others who haven't," says Ms. Hitt, who believes the episode cost her a seat on the school board last year; she lost by 42 votes.

Scholars estimate that 10% to 15% of Protestant evangelical churches practice church discipline -- about 14,000 to 21,000 U.S. congregations in total. Increasingly, clashes within churches are spilling into communities, splitting congregations and occasionally landing church leaders in court after congregants, who believed they were confessing in private, were publicly shamed.

In the past decade, more than two dozen lawsuits related to church discipline have been filed as congregants sue pastors for defamation, negligent counseling and emotional injury, according to the Religion Case Reporter, a legal-research database. Peggy Penley, a Fort Worth, Texas, woman whose pastor revealed her extramarital affair to the congregation after she confessed it in confidence, waged a six-year battle against the pastor, charging him with negligence. Last summer, the Texas Supreme Court dismissed her suit, ruling that the pastor was exercising his religious beliefs by publicizing the affair.

Allen Baptist Church

Courts have often refused to hear such cases on the grounds that churches are protected by the constitutional right to free religious exercise, but some have sided with alleged sinners. In 2003, a woman and her husband won a defamation suit against the Iowa Methodist conference and its superintendent after he publicly accused her of "spreading the spirit of Satan" because she gossiped about her pastor. A district court rejected the case, but the Iowa Supreme Court upheld the woman's appeal on the grounds that the letter labeling her a sinner was circulated beyond the church.

Advocates of shunning say it rarely leads to the public disclosure of a member's sin. "We're not the FBI; we're not sniffing around people's homes trying to find out some secret sin," says Don Singleton, pastor of Ridgeview Baptist Church in Talladega, Ala., who says the 50-member church has disciplined six members in his 2½ years as pastor. "Ninety-nine percent of these cases never go that far."

When they do, it can be humiliating. A devout Christian and grandmother of three, Mrs. Caskey moves with a halting gait, due to two artificial knees and a double hip replacement. Friends and family describe her as a generous woman who helped pay the electricity bill for Allen Baptist, in Allen, Mich., when funds were low, gave the church $1,200 after she sold her van, and even cut the church's lawn on occasion. She has requested an engraved image of the church on her tombstone.

Gossip and Slander

Her expulsion came as a shock to some church members when, in August 2006, the pastor sent a letter to the congregation stating Mrs. Caskey and an older married couple, Patsy and Emmit Church, had been removed for taking "action against the church and your preacher." The pastor, Mr. Burrick, told congregants the three were guilty of gossip, slander and idolatry and should be shunned, according to several former church members.

"People couldn't believe it," says Janet Biggs, 53, a former church member who quit the congregation in protest.

The conflict had been brewing for months. Shortly after the church hired Mr. Burrick in 2005 to help revive the congregation, which had dwindled to 12 members, Mrs. Caskey asked him to appoint a board of deacons to help govern the church, a tradition outlined in the church's charter. Mr. Burrick said the congregation was too small to warrant deacons. Mrs. Caskey pressed the issue at the church's quarterly business meetings and began complaining that Mr. Burrick was not following the church's bylaws. "She's one of the nicest, kindest people I know," says friend and neighbor Robert Johnston, 69, a retired cabinet maker. "But she won't be pushed around."

Karolyn Caskey reads her Bible.

In April 2006, Mrs. Caskey received a stern letter from Mr. Burrick. "This church will not tolerate this spirit of cancer and discord that you would like to spread," it said. Mrs. Caskey, along with Mr. and Mrs. Church, continued to insist that the pastor follow the church's constitution. In August, she received a letter from Mr. Burrick that said her failure to repent had led to her removal. It also said he would not write her a transfer letter enabling her to join another church, a requirement in many Baptist congregations, until she had "made things right here at Allen Baptist."

She went to Florida for the winter, and when she returned to Michigan last June, she drove the two miles to Allen Baptist as usual. A church member asked her to leave, saying she was not welcome, but Mrs. Caskey told him she had come to worship and asked if they could speak after the service. Twenty minutes into the service, a sheriff's officer was at her side, and an hour later, she was in jail.

"It was very humiliating," says Mrs. Caskey, who worked for the state of Michigan for 25 years before retiring from the Department of Corrections in 1992. "The other prisoners were surprised to see a little old lady in her church clothes. One of them said, 'You robbed a church?' and I said, 'No, I just attended church.' "

Word quickly spread throughout Allen, a close-knit town of about 200 residents. Once a thriving community of farmers and factory workers, Allen consists of little more than a strip of dusty antiques stores. Mr. and Mrs. Church, both in their 70s, eventually joined another Baptist congregation nearby.

About 25 people stopped attending Allen Baptist Church after Mrs. Caskey was shunned, according to several former church members.

Current members say they support the pastor's actions, and they note that the congregation has grown under his leadership. The simple, white-washed building now draws around 70 people on Sunday mornings, many of them young families. "He's a very good leader; he has total respect for the people," says Stephen Johnson, 66, an auto parts inspector, who added that Mr. Burrick was right to remove Mrs. Caskey because "the Bible says causing discord in the church is an abomination."

Mrs. Caskey went back to the church about a month after her arrest, shortly after the county prosecutor threw out the trespassing charge. More than a dozen supporters gathered outside, some with signs that read "What Would Jesus Do?" She sat in the front row as Mr. Burrick preached about "infidels in the pews," according to reports from those present.

Once again, Mrs. Caskey was escorted out by a state trooper and taken to jail, where she posted the $62 bail and was released. After that, the county prosecutor dismissed the charge and told county law enforcement not to arrest her again unless she was creating a disturbance.

In the following weeks, Mrs. Caskey continued to worship at Allen Baptist. Some congregants no longer spoke to her or passed the offering plate, and some changed seats if she sat next to them, she says.

Mr. Burrick repeatedly declined to comment on Mrs. Caskey's case, calling it a "private ecclesiastical matter." He did say that while the church does not "blacklist" anyone, a strict reading of the Bible requires pastors to punish disobedient members. "A lot of times, flocks aren't willing to submit or be obedient to God," he said in an interview before a Sunday evening service. "If somebody is not willing to be helped, they forfeit their membership."

In Christianity's early centuries, church discipline led sinners to cover themselves with ashes or spend time in the stocks. In later centuries, expulsion was more common. Until the late 19th century, shunning was widely practiced by American evangelicals, including Methodists, Presbyterians and Baptists. Today, excommunication rarely occurs in the U.S. Catholic Church, and shunning is largely unheard of among mainline Protestants.

Little Consensus

Among churches that practice discipline, there is little consensus on how sinners should be dealt with, says Gregory Wills, a theologian at Southern Baptist Theological seminary. Some pastors remove members on their own, while other churches require agreement among deacons or a majority vote from the congregation.

Since Mrs. Caskey's second arrest last July, the turmoil at Allen Baptist has fizzled into an awkward stalemate. Allen Baptist is an independent congregation, unaffiliated with a church hierarchy that might review the ouster. Supporters have urged Mrs. Caskey to sue to have her membership restored, but she says the matter should be settled in the church. Mr. Burrick no longer calls the police when Mrs. Caskey shows up for Sunday services.

Since November, Mrs. Caskey has been attending a Baptist church near her winter home in Tavares, Fla. She plans to go back to Allen Baptist when she returns to Michigan this spring.

"I don't intend to abandon that church," Mrs. Caskey says. "I feel like I have every right to be there."

2008-01-13T15:15:00.001-05:00

Mark your calendar for 2008’s sky shows

2008-01-11T16:08:00.001-05:00

Look out for eclipses, conjunctions, occultations and meteors

By Joe Rao

Skywatching columnist

Space.com

updated 12:42 p.m. ET, Fri., Jan. 11, 2008

This year's astronomical calendar features not just one, but two pairings of the sky's brightest planets — plus a total solar eclipse visible from exotic locations, and a total lunar eclipse that most Americans will be able to see from their backyards.

There's also a good selection of star cluster occultations, and a promising opportunity to catch August's annual Perseid meteor shower.

Here are some of the more noteworthy sky events of the year. Space.com's Night Sky column will provide more extensive coverage of each event as it draws closer.

Feb. 1
Venus-Jupiter conjunction, Part 1: This will be the first of two meetings this year between the two brightest planets in our sky. This one will occur in the morning sky, low in the east-southeast and is best seen about 45 minutes before sunup. On Feb. 4, a beautiful crescent moon will join the two planets, making for an eye-catching array.

Feb. 20-21
Total eclipse of the moon: Less than six months after last August's total lunar eclipse, we have yet another that occurs during the late-night hours of Feb. 20-21. This eclipse will favor much of North America, occurring during convenient evening hours, although Europeans will also be able to enjoy a view of the darkened moon before it sets.

Totality will last for a bit less time than usual (50 minutes), as the moon slides to just within the southern portion of the Earth's umbra, perhaps leading to a potentially bright total phase highlighted by a brighter southern limb. Adding to this spectacle, a planet (Saturn) and a bright star (Regulus) will be close to the totally eclipsed moon, forming a broad triangle.

May 10
Occultation of the Beehive star cluster: A waxing crescent moon, 38 percent illuminated, will pass in front of the famous Beehive Cluster this evening for North Americans, making for a pretty sight in binoculars and low-power telescopes. The stars in the cluster will disappear behind the moon's dark edge and will reappear about an hour later behind the bright edge.

May 21-22
Jupiter without satellites! Anyone who points a small telescope toward the planet Jupiter will nearly always see some or all of the four famous Galilean satellites. Usually at least two or three of these moons are immediately evident; sometimes all four. It is very rare when only one moon is in view and rarer still when no moons at all are visible. On this night, for parts of the northeast U.S. and eastern Canada, Jupiter will appear moonless for about 20 minutes.

June 30
Occultation of the Pleiades star cluster: This occultation will already be in progress as a skinny sliver of a waning crescent moon rises in the pre-dawn skies over the northeastern United States. Earthshine should also be present, imparting a "3-D effect" in binoculars and small telescopes. The best views will come as the brighter stars of this cluster reappear along the dark lunar limb.

Aug. 1
Total eclipse of the sun: Siberia anyone? From Novosibirsk you'll see the late-afternoon sun completely blotted out for 2.3 minutes. Totality will also be visible from Canada's Northwest Passage, western Mongolia and the western end of the Great Wall of China.

Aug. 11-12
Perseid meteor shower: At first glance, this doesn't look like a favorable year to view this famous meteor display, since the moon will be in a bright waxing gibbous phase on the peak viewing night. Fortunately, the moon will set at around 1:45 a.m. local daylight time, leaving the rest of the night dark for meteor watchers.

Aug. 16
Partial eclipse of the moon: Europe, Africa and Asia will be in the best position to watch up to four-fifths of the moon become immersed in Earth's dark umbral shadow.

Sept. 19
Another Pleiades occultation: A waning gibbous moon will already be within the Pleiades as it rises over the eastern United States and Canada during the mid-evening hours. The reappearance of stars such as Alcyone and Taygeta should be well-seen along the moon's dark limb.

Dec. 1
Venus-Jupiter conjunction, Part 2: This will be the second pairing-off of the two brightest planets in 2008, this time in the evening sky soon after sundown. And as a bonus, the crescent moon will join them, forming a striking triangle and likely making even those who normally don't look up at the sky take notice.

Joe Rao serves as an instructor and guest lecturer at New York's Hayden Planetarium. He writes about astronomy for The New York Times and other publications, and he is also an on-camera meteorologist for News 12 Westchester, New York.

URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22609830/

Welcome To Tranquility

2008-01-10T20:35:00.000-05:00

I just finished reading issues 1-12 of the Wildstorm series Welcome To Tranquility. I enjoyed it a lot. It reminded me in many ways of a Astro City with an equal helping of Invincible thrown in. It is based on a town, Tranquility, where a number of superheroes have retired and raised children and have at this point become grandparents. The main character is the intrepid sheriff Thomasina Lindo. She is just a woman trying to do what is right in a community of superpowered beings. The stories are net and quirky, the first arc was a mystery and the second arc was a "zombie invasion". But really the characters in the series are the heart and soul of the comic. They often get short little comics within the comic done in a number of different comic styles from the past. You can't help but enjoy such awesome characters as Deputy Presley Duray, Captain Cobra and Mongoose Man, and good ole Zeke (the zombie caretaker). I recommend this comic for a fun light read. There's nothing ground-breaking about it, but it is a hell of a lot of fun! 8 out of 10.

2008-01-07T06:55:00.001-05:00

'The Pagan Christ' - CBC-TV Documentary

2008-01-03T14:58:00.000-05:00

Part 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlTtMsHUFak

Part 3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=my97_xZPMo4

Part 4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZZcpeCtllc

Part 5
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FtaJYZwfgRI

Some songs for you to enjoy

2008-01-03T02:29:00.000-05:00

Hard N Phirm - Rodeohead

Home Movies - McGuirk sings

They Might Be Giants

Voltaire - USS Make Shit Up

PETA pics

2008-01-02T13:05:00.001-05:00

I don't know what your views on PETA are. I am down with the whole "no product testing on animals" thing and am fine with "no fur" (leather is a different story we would have to discuss). And as far as food goes, I know personally I am not vegetarian, nor do I plan to be as of yet (though I often have gone weeks without meat and not noticed). I respect the lifestyle choice to be one. Of course, none of this is why I brought up PETA. It doesn't matter what you think of their politics... you gotta love the delivery system: nudity!

Who cares what the message is, as long as you can deliver it naked! Wooho! Keep up the good fight guys (sans clothing of course)!

Researchers Reverse Effects of Sleep Deprivation

2008-01-02T12:47:00.000-05:00

Click here for original article
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine have shown that the effects of sleep deprivation on cognitive performance can be reversed when the naturally occurring brain peptide, orexin-A, is administered in monkeys.
Their results are published in this week’s Journal of Neuroscience.
“These findings are significant because of their potential applicability,” said Samuel A. Deadwyler, Ph.D., professor of physiology and pharmacology at Wake Forest. “This could benefit patients suffering from narcolepsy and other serious sleep disorders. But it also has applicability to shift workers, the military and many other occupations where sleep is often limited, yet cognitive demand remains high.”
Orexin-A, also known as hypocretin-1, is a naturally occurring peptide produced in the brain that regulates sleep. It’s secreted by a small number of neurons but affects many brain regions during the day and people who have normal amounts of orexin-A are able to maintain wakefulness. When people or animals are sleep-deprived, the brain attempts to produce more orexin-A, but often without enough success to achieve alertness past the normal day-night cycle.
The research team, consisting of Linda Porrino, Ph.D., and Robert Hampson, Ph.D, also of Wake Forest, and Jerome Siegel, Ph.D., of the University of California at Los Angeles, studied the effects of orexin-A on monkeys that were kept awake overnight for 30 to 36 hours with videos, music, treats and interaction with technicians, until their normal testing time the next day. They were then allowed to perform their trained tasks with several cognitive problems that varied in difficulty, and their performance was significantly impaired.
However, if the sleep deprived monkeys were administered orexin-A either intravenously or via a nasal spray immediately prior to testing, their cognitive skills improved to the normal, non-sleep-deprived, level. The researchers also noted that when the monkeys received the orexin-A via the intranasal spray they tested higher than when it was administered intravenously.
“Assessments of the monkeys’ brain activity during testing through noninvasive imaging techniques also showed improvement by orexin-A which returned to its normal non-sleep-deprived pattern during performance of the task,” said Deadwyler. “In addition, we observed that orexin-A at moderate dose levels had no effect on performance if the animals were not sleep-deprived.”

A War On Science

2008-01-01T08:40:00.000-05:00

An Image from Hellboy II

2007-12-20T03:18:00.001-05:00

More images can be found by clicking here.

The Four Horsemen

2007-12-20T02:20:00.000-05:00

So, I haven't finished watching these two videos yet (both are one hour long), but they do have 2 of my favorite authors and modern thinkers in them, Richard Dawkins and Sam Harris. The other two men are Daniel Dennett, who I do not know, and Christopher Hitchens, who I respect as a "thinker" but disagree with entirely on political grounds - talking about how my politics differ from Hitchens' is another topic though. The videos are from a DVD called 'The Four Horsemen' which you can pre-order by clicking here or just watch online for free. Don't worry, there's nothing illegal about it, Dawkins is the one who posted it online. Anyway... enjoy this atheist round table.

Today is the first day of Saturnalia

2007-12-17T06:15:00.000-05:00

The Saturnalia was originally celebrated in Ancient Rome for only a day, but it was so popular it soon it lasted a week, despite Augustus' efforts to reduce it to three days, and Caligula's, to five. Like our Christmas, this important holy day (feriae publicae) was for more than fun and games. Saturnalia was a time to honor the god of sowing, Saturn. But again, like our Christmas, it was also a festival day (dies festus) on which a public banquet was prepared. An effigy of the god was probably one of the guests.

The poet Catullus describes Saturnalia as the best of days. It was a time of celebration, visits to friends, and gift-giving, particularly of wax candles (cerei), and earthenware figurines (sigillaria). The best part of the Saturnalia (for slaves) was the temporary reversal of roles. Masters served meals to their slaves who were permitted the unaccustomed luxuries of leisure and gambling. Clothing was relaxed and included the peaked woollen cap that symbolized the freed slave. A member of the familia (family plus slaves) was appointed Saturnalicius princeps, roughly, Lord of Misrule...

Biblioteca Arcana and Nova Roma offer suggestions for turning December 17 into a celebration of Saturnalia.

Bringing trees indoors to decorate is a modern custom. Nova Roma suggests decorating outdoor trees with sun and star symbols, and using swathes of greenery over doorways, windows, and on people. But Nova Roma emphasizes that decorations are secondary to revelry, feasting, drinking, merry-making, pranks, and gift-giving of Saturnalia. If you can get your friends and neighbors in the spirit, wrangle a parade permit from your municipality so you can dance (like a Roman) in the street.

Biblioteca Arcana's suggestions are for celebrating the religious aspects of the Saturnalia and its two adjoining holidays, the Opalia for Saturn's wife, Ops, goddess of plenty, and the Consualia for Consus, "god of the storage bin." The site provides a complete ritual with an equipment list, information on preparation, location, timing, the banquet, and the conclusion.

Io Saturnalia!

Link to original article here.

The New Joker Poster for The Dark Knight

2007-12-14T16:18:00.001-05:00

What would be your caption for this picture?

2007-12-12T15:45:00.000-05:00

Pope approves Lourdes indulgences

2007-12-06T15:46:00.000-05:00

Pope Benedict XVI has authorised special indulgences to mark the 150th anniversary of the Virgin Mary's reputed appearance at Lourdes.

Catholics visiting the site within a year of 8 December will be able to receive an indulgence, which the Church teaches can reduce time in purgatory.

Lourdes has drawn pilgrims since Mary was said to have appeared in 1858 to shepherdess Bernadette Soubirous.

The waters of the French shrine are said to have miraculous healing powers.

INDULGENCES AND PURGATORY

A plenary indulgence offers full pardon of the temporal punishment (suffering in this life or the next) due to sins already forgiven in confession

Purgatory is a kind of spiritual waiting room - for people who do not go directly to paradise or hell after death - to purify souls of residual sin before they enter heaven

The Pope is expected to visit the shrine next year.

The pontiff also said believers who prayed at places of worship dedicated to Our Lady of Lourdes from 2-11 February next year - or who were unable to make the journey - would also be able to receive indulgences.

The decree was signed by US Cardinal J Francis Stafford, who is head of the Apostolic Penitentiary, a Vatican court dealing with indulgences and matters of conscience.

Indulgences became infamous in the 16th century for being sold rather than earned, helping, historians say, trigger the Protestant reformation.

While some might consider indulgences an outdated concept, great spiritual importance have been assigned to them by Benedict XVI and his predecessor, Pope John Paul II.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/europe/7131088.stm

Idiot!

2007-11-29T14:37:00.000-05:00

"In ancient Greece, the inventors of democracy set up a law that required every person to vote, regardless of who they voted for. If anyone was found not voting, the person would be publicly marked and labeled an idiot, someone who thought their own personal needs trumped those of the society around them, and over time, the word "idiot" has evolved into today's usage."
Isaac DeVille, Michgan State columnist

2007-11-29T07:15:00.001-05:00

2007-11-26T19:24:00.000-05:00

2007-11-26T05:49:00.000-05:00

Were 'cursed' rams the first biological weapons?

2007-11-26T05:07:00.000-05:00

Were 'cursed' rams the first biological weapons?

08:00 26 November 2007
NewScientist.com news service
Roxanne Khamsi

Ancient written texts from the Middle East may reveal that the use of biological weapons dates back more than 3300 years, according to a new review.

The historical documents hint that the Hittites – whose empire stretched from modern-day Turkey to northern Syria – sent diseased rams to their enemies to weaken them with tularemia, a devastating bacterial infection that remains a potential bioterror threat even today, says the review.

Experts caution that more evidence is needed to firmly establish that the Hittites intended to spread disease using the animals. But they add that if this proves true, it might represent the earliest known use of biological warfare.

Tularemia, also known as rabbit fever, can pass from animals such as rabbits and sheep to humans through various routes, most commonly through insects such as ticks that hop between species. The bacterium responsible for tularemia, Francisella tularensis, causes symptoms ranging from skin ulcers to respiratory failure.

Modern medication can stop the tularemia from becoming fatal. But without proper antibiotic treatment, about 15% of infected individuals die, says Siro Trevisanato, a former microbiologist who has delved into the ancient texts.

Hittite plague

Tularemia is rare in many countries today, but remains a problem in some countries including Bulgaria, says Trevisanato, now based in Oakville, Ontario, Canada.

He believes tularemia is to blame for a deadly epidemic dubbed the "Hittite plague" which raged through the Middle East in the 14th century BC. Around 1335 BC, letters to the Egyptian king Akhenaten reported a pestilence in Simyra, a Phoenician city near what is now the border between Lebanon and Syria.

The texts describe a terrible illness causing disabilities and death. Most tellingly, they mention that, because of the plague, donkeys were banned from being used in caravans.

According to Trevisanato, this indicates that the people living in the city were hit by tularemia. The disease can infect donkeys and the insects that they carry, so preventing the use of donkeys for transport may have been an attempt to quell its spread.

Roaming rams

A decade later, the Hittites to the north attacked the weakened area around Simyra. "The Hittites were able to steal booty, including animals, and brought the animals home," along with the tularemia the livestock harboured, Trevisanato explains. Not too long after, the Hittites themselves apparently began to suffer from an epidemic of tularemia.

History seems to have repeated itself a few years afterwards when another ancient people, the Arzawans from western Anatolia, saw the weakened Hittites to their east and decided to strike. "They thought, if we attack now, we can push the border back to where we want," Trevisanato says.

But strangely, during this period of warfare between 1320 and 1318 BC, records indicate that rams mysteriously began appearing on roads in Arzawans.

The Arzawans took the sheep to their villages and used them for livestock breeding. Soon after, though, they began to suspect a link between the appearance of the animals and the terrible disease ravaging their communities.

"They started wondering 'Why do these rams start showing up on the road?'" says Trevisanato. He believes that among the Hittites, "somebody must have had the bright idea" to send diseased rams over to their Arzawan enemies.

Ultimately, the Arzawans were so weakened that their attempt to conquer the Hittites failed.

Modern threat

Trevisanato's theory is intriguing, says Jonathan Tucker, at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies in Washington, DC, US who studies the use of chemical and biological weapons.

He points out that there is no vaccine for tularemia and that experts consider it a "possible or likely biological warfare agent" in the present day.

Still, in order to consider the rams as a true biological weapon, evidence is needed to clearly prove that the Hittites understood the full ramifications of these animals towards their enemies, says Mark Wheelis, at the University of California, Davis.

"The intent would have to be not to just freak the enemy out, but to actually transmit disease," he explains. Until such intent to spread disease is proven beyond a doubt, Wheelis says any theory is speculative.

Journal reference: Journal of Medical Hypotheses (DOI: 10.1016/j.mehy.2007.03.02)

T.H. White Quote

2007-11-21T05:54:00.000-05:00

A good friend sent me this quote and I thought I would share it:

"The best thing for being sad," replied Merlin, beginning to
puff and blow, "is to learn something. That's the only thing that
never fails. You may grow old and trembling in your anatomies,
you may lie awake at night listening to the disorder of your veins,
you may miss your only love, you may see the world about you
devastated by evil lunatics, or know your honour trampled in the
sewers of baser minds. There is only one thing for it then -- to
learn. Learn why the world wags and what wags it. That is the
only thing which the mind can never exhaust, never alienate,
never be tortured by, never fear or distrust, and never dream of
regretting. Learning is the only thing for you. Look what a lot of
things there are to learn." '

--T.H. White, "The Once and Future King"

2007-11-21T05:15:00.000-05:00

AP Top Strange News for 11/13/07

2007-11-13T23:28:00.001-05:00

I just thought that the headlines from the AP Top Strange News were especially humorous the past few days. You'll notice I posted the bottom one on the blog yesterday, but the other headlines are great too! Enjoy, and click on the picture to make it bigger.

Best to use tools when loosening lug nut

2007-11-12T22:42:00.000-05:00

SOUTHWORTH, Wash. (AP) -- A man trying to loosen a stubborn lug nut blasted the wheel with a 12-gauge shotgun, injuring himself badly in both legs, sheriff's deputies said.

The 66-year-old man had been repairing a Lincoln Continental for two weeks at his home northwest of Southworth, about 10 miles southwest of Seattle, and had gotten all but one of the lug nuts off the right rear wheel by Saturday afternoon, Kitsap County Deputy Scott Wilson said.

"He's bound and determined to get that lug nut off," Wilson said.

From about arm's length, the man fired the shotgun at the wheel and was "peppered" in both legs with buckshot and debris, with some injuries as high as his chin, according to a sheriff's office report.

"Nobody else was there and he wasn't intoxicated," Wilson said.

The man was taken to Tacoma General Hospital with injuries Wilson described as severe but not life-threatening.

Original AP Story Here

Mmmmmmmm: Fizzy, bottled ham

2007-11-10T15:49:00.000-05:00

SEATTLE (AP) -- Coming soon next to the Coke and Pepsi in a store near you: ham-and latke-flavored soda to make your holiday feast complete. It even will be kosher, the company making it says - including the ham.

Jones Soda Co., the Seattle-based purveyor of offbeat fizzy water, is selling holiday-themed limited-edition packs of flavored sodas.

The Christmas pack will feature such flavors as Sugar Plum, Christmas Tree, Egg Nog and Christmas Ham. The Hanukkah pack will have Jelly Doughnut, Apple Sauce, Chocolate Coins and Latkes sodas.

"As always, both packs are kosher and contain zero caffeine," Jones said in a statement.

The packs will go on sale Sunday, with a portion of the proceeds to be given to charity, the company said.

Jones' products feature original label art and frequently odd flavors. Last year's seasonal pack was Thanksgiving-themed, with Green Pea, Sweet Potato, Dinner Roll, Turkey and Gravy, and Antacid sodas.

For its contract to supply soda to Qwest Field, home of the Seattle Seahawks, Jones came up with Perspiration, Dirt, Sports Cream and Natural Field Turf. The company - fortunately or unfortunately - prides itself on the accuracy of the taste.

Jones also makes more traditional flavors, including root beer, cherry and strawberry sodas.

For Original Article Location, Click Here

2007-11-09T17:26:00.000-05:00

Probably my favorite comic book artist of all time is Alan Davis. He is consistent in his ability to illustrate both interior art with action and dramatic storytelling and his prowess at making a stunning cover for a comic book. I loved his run on Excalibur and his DC Elseworld mini JLA: The Nail (and JLA: Another Nail). Truly a gift to the artistic community and a tresure to comic fans around the world. I salute you Alan Davis!

Alan Davis' Website

Emanuel Swedenborg

2007-11-07T14:53:00.000-05:00

These are some notes I took on a book I read about Emanuel Swedenborg. I found him an interesting Christian mystic - his ideas were very different from others of his time and he influenced a movement that is still around today - Swedenborgianism. If you would like to know more feel free to ask (I also have more notes on specific concepts if you were curious).

Emanuel Swedenborg
- born in Stockholm in 1688
- father was a Lutheran pastor, mother died when he was eight
Ideas

Universality

- The underlying unity of all life, emanates from the one infinite Source described as Love Itself, and all life is on different discrete levels and in forms which are related to or part of an overall form or organism, which he calls - the Grand Man or Universal Human.
- The physical body corresponds to the Universal Human. The mind as well corresponds to the body, the will to the heart, understanding to the lungs. The higher mind, or spirit, is itself an integral part of the Grand Man: the innermost soul itself is the form of what Swedenborg calls the Divine Human, or Son of God - the Christ of the Christian Gospels.
- Mankind is one community. Every religion is a part of one timeless universal religion. Man's inmost thoughts and feelings are not from himself but flow from the higher levels of Divine emanation. Yet each man has a distinct personality enabling him to take his place in the perfection of the whole.

Spiritual Freedom

- In man's inner reaches he is eternally united with the one Source, but the outer levels permit man the freedom correspond to the higherself or to distort the one universal pattern.
- 'Heaven within' is divided into two superior inner levels that Swedenborg puts forth. The higher of the two is the celestial, which is a love and deep appreciation of the whole or One or Good Itself (the Lord), this one is more holistic and mystical. The lower of the two is the spiritual, which is basically the awareness of goodness of the part of the whole (the neighbor), this one is more analytical and structured.

Union with the Lord and the neighbor

- when man is living in the non-heavenly realms of the spirit, unaware of his inner heaven or divine sonship, as is inevitable at first, he feels no love for the Lord or his neighbor, but separated from them; he is in a state of separation termed hell (the degrees of this state are varied from very mild to grotesquely horrifying).
- The Divine Word is manifested to souls through forms or images - nature, music, dreams, sacred scripture.
- When the Word is received, the Divine (Holy) Spirit, is enabled to awaken the seperated depths in man and stir in his heart (or will) to turn around (repent) and seek union with the whole.

Doctrine of Use

- When reunion occurs the lower unites with the Divine will, and loves to do whatever is useful, that is, conducive to the good and happiness of the whole. This is the love of good, usefulness, or service.
- The highest awareness of the truth is thus linked with the motivation to serve the true spiritual interests of all the parts (spirits) in spiritual and practical ways.
- The object of man's highest love is not, therefore, the Infinite, which he cannot ever comprehend, but the Divine Human or Christ which is the form of the Whole which his higher mind can perceive and relate to.

The Fall

- Proprium, meaning 'what belongs to oneself', is the word Swedenborg uses for the capacity of man to experience life as if he were independent of the One (God).
- Proprium is roughly the same as 'ego' or 'I-ness' or self identity.
- The proprium's interpretation of what it sees and feels with bodily senses creates the great illusion into which man falls - the belief that he is separate, independent and essentially alone in a huge alien world. From this arises the emotions of fear, shame, guilt, envy, hatred, etc.

Incarnation and Redemption

- There was a point in time in the history of mankind's spiritual decline on earth when the increasing degree of spiritual darkness grew dangerously close to making it impossible for any one to 'see the light' which enables the Divine within to incarnate and redeem the world. At this time the Divine sent forth out of Itself a special birth of a Son who was to be the Light itself to shine in man's darkness - Jesus of Nazareth.
- Jesus 'overcame the hells through temptations combats' in soul. The total victory gained by Jesus preserved man's spiritual Jesus preserved man's spiritual freedom to see the light and return to the Father, and brought Jesus Christ into a complete and total union with the Divine Father.

Regeneration

- Regenerating man goes through cycles of enlightenment, alternating with an emerging awareness of some evil or 'hellish' proprial tendency which has been lurking - often well disguised - in a deeper part of his mind or life. The ensuing battle, called temptation combat, is between the Christ within (the Light) and the powers of darkness (the hells). Victory over the evil is achieved through a combination of man's willingness and acceptance of the power of the Divine within, while felt as though all the effort were man's own. In this way, the Divine and man are as one and united in the inner struggle and, afterwards, man enjoys the inner peace, humility, and joy that is God's within him, and he is then in the state of heaven. The purifying process is repeated eternally, since total purification of the natural consciousness and life is never completely attained.

Life and Death

- Since this is a shared world, one is able to associate and communicate with others who are sharing the same region of spiritual space, that is, similar inner spiritual condition. The existence of the physical body normally prevents any conscious awareness of this spiritual phenomenon but, in certain circumstances, awareness spirits permitted to break through, giving conscious communication between spirits and men.

Conjugal Love

- The male is... the explorer of new territory (producer of wisdom) and the femal is the integrator and nurturer of what is discovered (lover of wisdom thus produced)... When a truly deep fundamental uniting of both aspects takes place through the union of man with his appropriate female counterpart, Swedenborg calls it a conjugial union. And the human pair who are in conjugal love essentially form one angel - not in body or outer mind but in inner heart, mind and soul.

Dispensations of the Ages

- ...there have been four since the beginning of mankind on earth. with a fifth (the age of the New Jerusalem) about to begin... One such Judgment illustrated mythically in the Bible is the story of Noah and the Flood.

Quote: 'It is the part of a wise man to see and perceive truth from the light of heaven, but not to confirm what is said by others.' - AE 190

William Blake - The Marriage of Heaven and Hell

2007-11-06T00:36:00.000-05:00

If you've never been exposed to the amazing poetry of William Blake I'm sorry. I highly recommend it for anyone who feels they are in the midst of a spiritual journey of discovery. Blake dares to touch on topics that were quite heavy and contrary to the religious teaching of his day. He is especially interesting to one delving into the concepts of good and evil:

Without Contraries is no progression. Attraction and Repulsion, Reason and Energy, Love and Hate, are necessary to Human existence.

From these contraries spring what the religious call Good & Evil. Good is the passive that obeys Reason. Evil is the active springing from Energy.

Good is Heaven. Evil is Hell

All Bibles or sacred codes, have been the causes of the following Errors.
1. That Man has two real existing principles Viz: a Body & a Soul.
2. That Energy, call'd Evil, is alone from the Body, & that Reason, call'd Good, is alone from the Soul.
3. That God will torment Man in Eternity for following his Energies.

But the following Contraries to these are True.
1. Man has no Body distinct from his Soul; for that call'd Body is a portion of Soul discern'd by the five Senses, the chief inlets of Soul in this age.
2. Energy is the only life and is from the Body and Reason is the bound or outward circumference of Energy.
3. Energy is Eternal Delight.

Blake's writing, in many ways, foreshadowed the writings of Nietzsche:

Those who restrain desire, do so because theirs is weak enough to be restrained; and the restrainer of reason usurps its place & governs the unwilling.

And being restrain'd it by degrees becomes passive till it is only the shadow of desire.

It also influenced progressive authors like Huxley (he even took a title of one of his books from the following passage):

If the doors of perception were cleansed every thing would appear to man as it is, infinite.

For man has closed himself up, till he sees all things thro' narrow chinks of his cavern.

The above quoted Blake and the following are portions taken from the poem, The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, I highly recommend reading it (it's short):

The ancient Poets animated all sensible objects with Gods or Geniuses, calling them by the names and adorning them with the properties of woods, rivers, mountains, lakes, cities, nations, and whatever their enlarged & numerous senses could percieve.

And particularly they studied the genius of each city & country, placing it under its mental deity.

Till a system was formed, which some took advantage of & enslav'd the vulgar by attempting to realize or abstract the mental deities from their objects; thus began Priesthood.

Choosing forms of worship from poetic tales. And a length they pronounc'd that the Gods had order'd such things. Thus men forgot that All deities reside in the human breast.

Guy Fawkes Night

2007-11-05T01:25:00.000-05:00

Remember, remember the Fifth of November,

The Gunpowder Treason and Plot,

I know of no reason

Why Gunpowder Treason

Should ever be forgot.

Guy Fawkes, Guy Fawkes, t'was his intent

To blow up King and Parliament.

Three-score barrels of powder below

To prove old England's overthrow;

By God's providence he was catch'd

With a dark lantern and burning match.

Holloa boys, holloa boys, let the bells ring.

Holloa boys, holloa boys, God save the King!

A penny loaf to feed the Pope

A farthing o' cheese to choke him.

A pint of beer to rinse it down.

A faggot of sticks to burn him.

Burn him in a tub of tar.

Burn him like a blazing star.

Burn his body from his head.

Then we'll say ol' Pope is dead.

Hip hip hoorah!

Hip hip hoorah hoorah!

My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult - Kooler Than Jesus

2007-10-25T14:15:00.000-04:00

2007-10-01T02:18:00.001-04:00

Vampires and TV

2007-09-27T15:48:00.000-04:00

So there is a new television series coming out, Moonlight. The tagline in the commercial is, "Only in LA can a vampire be a good guy." Correct me if I'm wrong here, but wasn't that Angel?

Just seemed weird to me that some one came up with an idea... that some one else had like 8 years ago. Producers are out of ideas I guess.

Some Board and Card Games You Should Play

2007-09-23T15:59:00.000-04:00

RA
If you have never played this game you are definitely missing out. It is a fun game for 3-5 players and is what is known as an "auction style game", bidding to acquire pieces. You are trying to be the kingdom that at the end of 3 epochs has the most accomplished dynasty. It has 3 rounds of scoring with an additional scoring at the end of the game. The game play speed varies from very quick games to games of moderate length, but not too long, usually under an hour to play. It is easy to learn but takes time to master and the play dynamic changes drastically depending on if you have 3, 4, or 5 players. Ra has quickly become one of my favorite games to play.

Hollywood Blockbuster
For those looking to play an "auction style game" with a more modern or humorous theme, Hollywood Blockbuster is the game for you. Aspects of it are similar to Ra, but you guaranteed to laugh when you play it. It has about an hour of game play in it much like Ra. It has 4 rounds with scoring during the actual rounds and some "Best Picture" and other awards at the end of the game. Lots of fun for 3-5 players (though it claims two can play too).

Pit
For a game that claims to be over a hundred years old this game still has "it". It is a fast-paced card game of attempting to corner the market in a resource. It's like being on the floor of the stock exchange. The rounds are really quick. The game has scoring in it, but my friends just usually play round to round, that way you can play just as long or short as you want. Fun for just about all ages and it accommodates 3-8 players.

Bang!
Spaghetti Westerns in a card game. This game is fun and devious. It plays with 4-7 people (maybe more with expansions) and it is largely a game of guessing and deduction. Outlaws are out to gun down the sheriff, but who are they? Deputies are there to protect the sheriff, but careful, the renegade might be pretending to be a deputy to thin the herd. Suspicion and gun fire is the heart of this game. It is a lot of fun, but there one drawback, you might get taken out of the game at any time and when you are dead... well, you're dead... go play a different game until the other players are done. Even with this it is a fun game though.

Citadels
A really fun card game about building up a city. You take on different roles as the rounds go by, you might be a merchant one round, a witch the next, and a tax collector or a warlord after. It does have the drawback of time... it takes a long time to play this card based game. But boy is it fun, try it.

Saboteur
You are all dwarves. There is gold somewhere in this here mountain, but where? Saboteur is a fun coop and competitive game. There are 3 rounds where a number of unrevealed dwarves are trying to get to the gold, but there are also a couple of dwarves out there who are trying to spoil your route with sabotage! This is a card based game where you are laying out a tunnel on the table with cards and other people are either assisting or destroying and you don't know who is who... at first... after a few turns it becomes obvious who the mean little buggers are! Easy to learn and fast to play. Great game for all ages and from 3 to 10 peple.

2007-09-19T00:49:00.001-04:00

JLA: Age of Wonder (Elseworld - DC)

2007-09-17T14:33:00.000-04:00

JLA: Age of Wonder

Usually I am a sucker for Victorian era sci-fi/comics, but I must admit the story in this started out strong and then continued a steady descent until the abrupt ending. The first of the 2 comics was good enough, but the second felt very rushed. The flow of the story seemed to fall apart in the second issue, plus the second issue had a few Kingdom Come overtones that were difficult to ignore. I will say one thing very good about the JLA: Age of Wonder, the art was very nice. It fit the feel of the era, clean and dirty at the same time, and hopeful and oppressed. Overall, a 6 out of 10 thanks to the art.

Feline problems...

2007-09-17T14:11:00.001-04:00

I found a ruling by the official Munchkin moderator at the Steve Jackson Forums that I disagree with, click here for thread. His ruling is that basically if you kick in a door and find a Feline race card, then you may immediately become a Feline and use the race ability to kick in another door. I so don't get this, it would seem to me that you would have had to be a Feline already in order to use this ability since you have already opened a door. He seems to say that it functions ex post facto. If anyone can clear this up for me please do. Otherwise, what prevents you from playing this race any time you have opened a door and not found a monster. Combine this with that power in Bites! that give you the ability to pick up cards off the table and bam! all the advantages and none of the disadvantages. Thoughts?

2007-09-17T01:26:00.001-04:00

* For cool Golden Age screensavers like these click here *

Tales of the Jedi: The Golden Age of the Sith

2007-09-15T14:31:00.000-04:00

I just finished reading Tales of the Jedi: The Golden Age of the Sith. It was a mini-series published by Dark Horse Comics back in 1997. I decided to begin reading some Star Wars Tales of the Jedi comics starting from the chronological beginning (at least according to most sources). I must admit I was underwhelmed by the mini-series. The plot was split in three sections:
- the one that followed the brother and sister duo of stellar trailblazers = just plain boring.
- the one that followed two jedi and the Empress of some planets who were warning of the Sith = boring.
- finally the one that followed the politics of the Sith. This section was decent, but entirely predictable.
The art is neat and does add to the feel of the series. I was just so not impressed with the storyline. It could have been so much better. I give it a 5 out of 10, just average at best. There is a series that picks up right at the end of this one... I am going to read it, I hope it is better.

Munchkin News!

2007-09-14T20:42:00.000-04:00

So I was totally stoked about The Good, the Bad and the Munchkin but here's some more big news for you Munchkins, here comes...

Munchkin Booty!

One more time?

2007-09-13T14:31:00.000-04:00

When I was in Europe a few years back, I swear I only heard one song. I think there was a conspiracy to play only that song when I came around. That one song nearly drove me insane. What song you might ask? Daft Punk's "One More Time". I dare you to listen to it about a thousand times and keep your sanity.

And though over the years, I have grown a strange appreciation for Daft Punk. This song still makes me feel I fell down the rabbit hole... one more time.... one more time... one more time... one more time.... one more time... one more time...one more time.... one more time... one more time...one more time.... one more time... one more time...one more time.... one more time... one more time...one more time.... one more time... one more time...one more time.... one more time... one more time...one more time.... one more time... one more time...one more time.... one more time... one more time...one more time.... one more time... one more time...one more time.... one more time... one more time...one more time.... one more time... one more time...one more time.... one more time... one more time...one more time.... one more time... one more time...one more time.... one more time... one more time...one more time.... one more time... one more time...

one more time...

Maroon 5

2007-09-13T14:12:00.000-04:00

You know who makes me laugh? This band Maroon 5. Why you might ask? Well, they sound like a disco band that was trained to sing by a boy band and then forced to play late 90's crap-rock by their agent. I'm not saying they aren't talented. They seemed to be. I'm not saying, people don't like their music. People do. I'm just saying that I can't listen to them without laughing constantly. But in their defense, the video of their's that I have seen is quite hilarious, so maybe they are a comic reflection of the music industry, if so - genius. If they are serious, with their funny music and sleazy/hip dress, then god can't help 'em.

A reply to a post about Mutants (class) vs Mutants (race)

2007-09-10T17:48:00.000-04:00

Re: Mutant Mutant Mutant

I thought we covered this here already, but since there are later posts which add to the confusion:

Mutants are Mutants, even if they're Mutants.

If a card's text refers to a Mutant, it refers to either the Class or the Race, when playing a blended game. This means Monter bonus/penalty, Item restrictions/requirements, Power restrictions/requirements.

Now, you can only have one copy of a Race or Class card, so the concept of the Mutant/Mutant/Mutant is illegal. You can't Old Edition any Class or Race and then play it with another copy of the same Class or Race. I.e., you can't be an Elf/Elf (Old Editioned), so my would you think you could be a Mutant (Race)/Mutant (Class)/Mutant (Old Editioned Race or Class).

Anyway, happy munchkining. . .

2007-09-09T16:00:00.001-04:00

Dragon Cons of the past

2007-09-07T06:32:00.000-04:00

After posting a bunch of Dragon Con pictures from this year, I wanted to post a few from the previous years I have attended Dragon Con. There are less and less photos as we go backward in time, in part because some were on a hard drive that was lost. Let's begin with...

Dragon Con 2006

Dragon Con 2005

Dragon Con 2004

Some Dragon Con 2007 Cosplay Pics from Pylgrim X

2007-09-07T06:04:00.000-04:00

Visit Pylgrim X's Myspace Site, he may post more soon.

2007-09-06T07:12:00.000-04:00

Munchkin FAQ stuff from the Steve Jackson Site

2007-09-05T05:43:00.000-04:00

General Questions (or the base game)

Q. Okay, what about the situation where a Wandering Monster comes along that would ignore or befriend one player in a fight, but not the other? For instance, when the Wandering Monster is an Amazon and one player is female?
A. When one player helps another, the monsters do not fight the players separately . . . so if one player is female, the wandering Amazon would give that one player a Treasure and leave without fighting the other one. Likewise, the Stoned Golem makes a bad Wandering Monster because the victims can just ignore it.

Q. Can I play Go Up a Level cards on another player to make him go up to a level such that a Monster that would previously ignore him will now chase him?
A. This is not the original intent of Go Up a Level cards, but this is such a munchkinly and vile idea that we like it too much to say no.

Q. The Ghoulfiends card says only your level counts in the fight, not your bonuses or items. Can you still use an item to avoid fighting entirely - say, the Magic Lamp?
A. Yes.

Q. Can you sell items that total less than 1,000 gold, just to get them out of circulation?
A. No. If the items aren't worth a total of at least 1,000 gold, you can't sell them.

Q. If a first-level munchkin encounters the Plutonium Dragon, the Dragon won't chase him. So does the munchkin get the treasure?
A. Nonononono. The munchkin may choose to fight the dragon, but if he cannot defeat it, he MUST run away. The dragon won't chase him, so the munchkin lives. But he doesn't get the treasure!
(This seems to contradict what was said way back when in the forums, and seeing as how this is in the actual FAQ, I say this one is the offical one).

Star Munchkin
Q. Are there any limits on when you can remove individual -aser cards? In particular, if you have a great big -aser weapon, can someone Antimatter the whole thing?
A. No, you can drop individual cards any time you need to. And in particular, Antimatter says "one item." The rules say that each card in the -aser weapon is a separate item.

Q. Will dying get rid of an Antimatter item?
A. No. The card says "nothing else will get rid of it," and it means it. The card overrules the normal rules for death. You keep this card through death, and it is with you when your new character appears!

Super Munchkin
Q. What happens if Slackerman is added as a Wandering Monster
A. Oops. . . Yeah, well, what does it say to do on the card? Roll to see if you have to fight Slackerman and if you don't, he and all the other Monsters get passed on to the next player, who must roll to see if he has to fight Slackerman and if he doesn't, Slackerman and all the other Monsters get passed on to the next player who must roll. . . Well, that just keeps going until someone has to fight the collected horde. Remember, until someone actually rolls a 4, 5 or 6, no one may modify any Monster in the horde.

Here's pdf copies of the rules for the games my friends and I own:
Munchkin
Star Munchkin
Super Munchkin
Munchkin Fu
Munchkin Bites
Munchkin Impossible
Munchkin Blender

Some New Rules for my Munchkin Cards

2007-09-05T03:03:00.000-04:00

- The institution of a final round rule: If you are about to win, announce it. If you are beating the monster and no one has placed anything (or haven't played enough for the monster to beat you), then ask if anyone is going to do something, if no one says anything, then count aloud to five. If you reach five before anyone does anything, you win.

- Any Power card that affects other cards, does not affect that specific Power card itself, as it is needed to activate the power.

- The dice is the instrument of player turn change, you pass the dice to end your turn. Once you do, there are "NO TAKE-BACKS" or "OOPS I FORGOT" excuses.

- Players are responsible for reading cards played. If the card reads different than what the card playing player announces, the text on the card takes place and the player loses the card (as per normal). If the other players don't bother to read the card and the player takes another action, too bad for the other players. This is move gameplay along.

- Along with the above, it should be encouraged to say things like, "I'm not sure if this does what I think it does..." This encourages debate and resolves issues before they arise. The drawback, if you decide the card isn't in your interest, is of course everyone knows the card you have.

- No more, "Oh I meant to _____" crap.

- Any other suggestions?

Some stuff to read from the Munchkin Forums:

Ghoulfiends discussion that has implications for other cards interpretations.

Trader ability discussion.

Carried items vs hand vs equipped ... so on...

This is my avatar on the Steve Jackson forums.

Pics from Dragon Con 2007, Click the Pic for full- sized

2007-09-04T06:02:00.001-04:00

August 26, 55 BC

2007-08-26T01:04:00.000-04:00

On August 26, 55 BC, Caesar brought two legions across the channel into the British Isles.

Excellent, All Hail Caesar!!! Civilization at last brought to the Isles. Baths, roads, education, law, philosophy, iron-fisted justice and togas, Romans ruled (for a few centuries at least)!

The GI Joe JoeCon Exclusive Figure for this year is...

2007-08-24T21:02:00.000-04:00

Check this out! The GI Joe JoeCon exclusive for 2007 figure is Roddy Piper!

This is for real btw! I love it! LMAO!

2007-08-19T17:57:00.001-04:00

This is all art by a fantastic comic book artist by the name of Phil Noto. His work really amazes me. It is a remarkable blend of comic book with sixties magazine art influenced heavily by art nouveau with just a hint of cheese cake art thrown in for good measure. It really blows me away. Phil Noto people, Phil Noto.

Check out Phil Noto's website by clicking here!

I talk so much about writers in the blog, I felt I was doing the artists an injustice. I felt compelled to mention at least one who stuns me on a regular basis.

Warhammer 40,000 - Damnation Crusade (6 issue mini series)

2007-08-19T17:30:00.000-04:00

This Boom! Studios mini series is based on the tabletop game from Games Workshop called Warhammer 40,000. It is mankind and various other races in the future, engaged in a constant state of warfare. This mini series focuses on the lives of two individuals from the human forces known as Black Templar Space Marines.

Space Marines are warriors bred for battle and steeped in religious dogma. They are killing machines no matter what form they take, from recruit to dreadnought. They are humanity's best defense against the encroaching xenoforms that are out there in the galaxy.

This series does a good job of giving one the feel of a Space Marine. The dedication to service of the Emperor, the intense training that never ceases, the battle that never ends, this is the life of one of humankind's finest. It is a bloody and violent comic, not sparing any feelings on any fronts. But I will be completely honest with you, unless you are a fan of Warhammer 40K, this mini series will not be that interesting to you. Here is my grades for Warhammer 40,ooo: Damnation Crusade, for a Space Marine fan, this series is an A-, for a Warhammer 40k fan a B- (this is me specifically), for a regular comic book reader a C- (if you're in a good mood).

Who Wants to be a Superhero?

2007-08-18T10:13:00.000-04:00

Alright, so I am usually the last person to watch any reality tv, but there is one show that totally sucked me in last year, "Who Wants to be a Superhero?" It was quirky and fun and I enjoyed every week of challenges and eliminations. Last year, like most people I know, certainly myself included, got the biggest kick out of watching Major Victory, though deep down I wanted and knew Feedback was going to win (he was the comic geek after all). I also liked Ty'Veculus and Creature on last year's show. But enough about last year's show, though I highly recommend watching it if you get a chance.

This year on the other hand, I just haven't gotten into as much. The heroes aren't as interesting in general, the challenges are lame at times or worse just kind of a rehashing of last year's stuff. I don't have a clear favorite. The person I liked the most, Basura, is gone. Maybe I liked her because she was a cute girl. Maybe I liked her because her personality reminded me of a lot of my friends. Maybe it was because she was artsy. Maybe because she was reserved. Well regardless, she's gone. And at this point I am happy she was eliminated because the last show was the last straw for me. I thought the show before this past week's show was boring, so my attention was already waning, but this week surely tears it (even besides Basura leaving). They did a challenge that integrated that stupid e-surance character with the pink hair into a challenge... it was like watching a commercial for 20 minutes in-between commercial breaks. I understand the need for sponsorship, I don't mind mentioning the sponsors, even mentioning them often, it is a necessary evil in television. What I don't want is the sponsor to become the show, boo! boo! boo! boo! Oh well. One less viewer won't be that bad for them I guess.

If you want to watch the show, you can watch each episode at SCI FI PULSE. I recommend the Feedback after show interviews, they are pretty good. Feedback is great, he is soooo into being a "super hero host".

Captain Atom: Armaggedon (9 Issue Mini Series)

2007-08-18T03:59:00.000-04:00

This was technically a Wildstorm series with one DC character crossed-over, Captain Atom. I had no expectations really. Captain Atom is fine as a character in the DC universe and I had read the comics leading up to this crossover previously (although I didn't realize it - being from a direct result of events in the early issues of the Superman Batman comic). So I did like picking up the character from where I had left off.

A quick word about comic history. Captain Atom along with The Question and Peacemaker and various other DC heroes were originally from a different publisher, Charlton Comics. DC acquired the rights to these characters in the late seventies or early eighties. The most holy comic series perhaps ever published, Watchmen, was to be the DC/Alan Moore take on these Charlton heroes. Instead DC decided to include them into regular continuity. Was it a good choice or a bad choice? Well, that's for each to decide for themselves. I for one loved Watchmen regardless, and must specifically point out that Dr.Manhattan, one of the 2 best characters in the series, was based on Captain Atom.

And as a quick interesting side note to the the above, Wildstorm was also a property DC acquired (sometime in the late nineties I think). So this is a DC owned company, Wildstorm, that has a mini series based on a character from Charlton Comics. :-)

Anyway...

The series was pretty cool. Not for the writing, which was good. Not for the art, which was also good. The reason it was cool was that you got to see how a lot of the main characters from the Wildstorm universe contrast with one from the mainstream DC universe. The Wildstorm universe is a grittier, darker, and more complex in many ways that the DC universe. The people there deal with problems in a much different way than say a Superman, or even a Batman, would. They aren't afraid to take the safeties off. The Wildstorm characters aren't monsters but neither are many of them boy scouts. The exist in a realm with a lot more gray than the mainstream DC universe. It is very interesting watching Captain Atom try to deal with this, especially considering in his world he is a second-tier hero. Martial struggles and emotional struggles abound in this series. Questions are posed and answered and not answered.

It is a quick read, but well worth it. I would also like to add, I miss reading The Authority (seeing them in the series reminded me of this) and I liked Captain Atom's Wildstorm gold look better than his usual silver. Oh yeah, and this "event" caused a Wildstorm "reboot" of the universe.

7.8 out of 10 as a whole

Superman - Shazam! First Thunder (4 issue mini series)

2007-08-15T17:14:00.000-04:00

The way and style this mini series was written in is very much like the comics of yesteryear, not to mention the giant robots and the rather generic magical monsters were very 1950's. The villains were pretty paper-thin and their motivations were simplistic, again much like a comic from an earlier age. Even much of the art puts one in mind of a much more simple time in comics. I am not saying stylistically the comic is bad, it's just very "yesterday simple".

The major plus of this comic is the interaction between Captain Marvel (often erroneously called Shazam) and Superman. The contrast between the two characters is something that I was discussing with a fiend very recently. Superman is a completely idealistic man, set in his mold by a mid-western American childhood with mid-western American parents. He has chosen to be a disguised god among men, though his guiding principles are better understood through the eyes of the truth seeking journalist than the flying superhero. Clark Kent is much more the man than is Superman. He is honest and good and well-meaning and does his best in everything he does. He has learned from mistakes but still keeps a positive outlook and follows the platonic form of "good". Captain Marvel is different. Not because he doesn't do what is good or right. Not because he doesn't seek truth or because he isn't well-meaning. The difference in Superman and Captain Marvel is that Captain Marvel is a twelve year old boy. He is a boy with the powers of a god (literally in his case). He does what a child thinks is good and he is modeled after Superman, but he is not a man and that is the difference in the two. He is a chosen of destiny and he is guided by an ancient wizard (Shazam) and is often lost as to his moral direction, but he does the most simple good. This is the strength in the mini series, it explores this aspect of the characters. sadly, it only does so in the most basic way. I would have liked to see a little deeper delving into the psyches of these two. But oh well.

Cool idea, interesting style, but because it falls short and the villains were sub-par, I give the mini series a C+.

Marvel's Annihilation (2006 Crossover Event)

2007-08-14T19:23:00.000-04:00

*A note on Civil War*
This "event", Annihilation, was taking place simultaneously with and overshadowed by Marvel's other crossover of 2006 involving the earthbound heroes during a philosophical/political struggle over identity called Civil War. I did not read Civil War, though the concept sounded interesting. The main reason I didn't end up reading it was because my roommate Pylgrim X was reading it and updating me as it went along. And in general where I wasn't exactly unimpressed with the some of the story in Civil War, I wasn't into it - though they did some ballsy things during it like reveal Spidey as Peter Parker to the public and came down on the side of government control and registration rather than freedom and privacy (kinda the opposite of where they stood during Days of Future Past). And allow me to make this clear, I did not read the Civil War saga, so my opinion on it is based solely on hearsay. Ask Pylgrim X for the lowdown on it. I'll read it eventually...

Annihilation

Annihilation was the crossover involving Marvel's interstellar cast of characters. I can't say exactly what drew me to read it, except every now and then Marvel does a decent cosmic storyline (like the original Infinity Gauntlet and the Adam Warlock/Magus Saga). So I decided to give it a try... here's my opinion on it, which I have divided by series, similar to the way Marvel published them:

Prelude:

Part One (not considered necessary for the series, but included on some lists for it):
Thanos 6-part story arc called "Samaritan"
This story was alright. It kept one's attention well enough, but it just lacked something. It is basically the wandering of the Mad Titan Thanos as he has seemingly lost his way somewhat. He ends up on a prison at the edge of the universe, by choice, and makes some unlikely allies and discovers some elements that play a role in Annihilation but it is not necessary to read these to read the Annihilation crossover proper. If you enjoy Thanos as a character I would recommend these, but other than that just skip them. Writing is fine, art is fine... C- overall.

Part Two:
Drax the Destroyer: Earth Fall
Now this was a surprise and a treat! The art was dark and shadowy and flavored the whole mini series with this almost noir tone. The writing was fantastic too, Giffen was on top of game in this series. I never cared for Drax before this series, but Drax is "reborn" in it and teamed up with Cammi, a smart-mouthed girl who doesn't seem to know the meaning of the word fear, or care about the meaning of the word fear for that matter. The mini is sad and funny, dark and strange, and an immense pleasure to read. This mini-series isn't completely necessary for the crossover either though to be honest, except to know Drax has been "reborn". I still give it a solid A.

Part Three:
Annihilation: Prologue
This is what it is. It sets up the crossover and reveals the villain behind the Annihilation Wave - Annihilus (imagine that). Some important things happen here and it is important to get a feel for the "event". It is a decent and quick read. B-.

Part Three:
Annihilation: Nova
I was never a big fan of Nova (Richard Rider), not to be confused with Galactus' herald Nova (Frankie Raye). He just didn't appeal to me. He was always on the fringe of the comics world and was even in the New Warriors, boo! But, I will say, I enjoyed this mini-series. It was a lot like Spider-Man in space. A young guy thrust with responsibility and power with the universe depending on him, the reluctant hero if you will. It was written well and you get to see a well-known character from Marvel bite the big one in the series, I won't say who. I liked this one, and I'm giving it a B+.

Part Four:
Annihilation: Silver Surfer
I expected to like this one the most. And it wasn't bad. But it wasn't great either. I just couldn't get into it. Surfer seemed odd for some reason and the way he carried out what he saw as right was just strange, same for Galactus. Not to mention that between the characters introduced in this series and the Thanos arc earlier, it was like the made up a few characters without true motivation, they were there it seemed to serve a purpose in the story and that's it... I don't like that. The art was fine, but I was sure what Giffen had in mind when he was writing this one. The letter grade is a C.

Part Five:
Annihilation: Super Skrull
This one was a decent run. Sure, it introduced new characters, but unlike the Silver Surfer series the characters in it made sense. Plus the fact that the Super Skrull was in the Negative Zone for the majority of the series necessitated new characters. What I found especially impressive about this mini was the fact that, although you knew Super Skrull had the perfect motivation for what he was doing, he was still a BAD GUY. And it shows how a villain can still have a heart, though it be black. And good read and nice art. A true A-.

Part Six:
Annihilation: Ronin
I knew little about Ronin the Accuser before reading this mini. Just little bits gleaned from Marvel Universe comics. But where Super Skrull is black-hearted being of self-interest, Thanos is the Mad Titan,Silver Surfer is a tortured noble soul, Nova is the reluctant hero and Drax is the, well, the destroyer, Ronin is the epitome of lawful neutral. This series is about a man trying to clear his name and running into trouble that he feels morally obligated to fix. He is an interesting character and I like the way everything worked out. Neat art and well-written, a A- also.

Annihilation Mini-Series
This was fair. This was where the actual war took place. The outcome of the conflict(s) was interesting and well-thoughtout. There were a few moments that I found out of place, a few characters were thrown in and I wasn't sure why and some of it was a little deus ex machina, on on the whole it was alright. And in the end the landscape of the cosmos was changed and made a little more interesting. A B- overall.

Annihilation Overall Score: B

Hehe...

2007-08-11T20:56:00.000-04:00

Legion of Superheroes

2007-08-08T20:45:00.000-04:00

A youthful comic full of rebellion and philosophical dichotomies. The writing is witty and heart-felt, and the action-packed art is at the top of the comics game. I can't properly express how surprised I am to say that I really enjoy reading The Legion of Superheroes (or Supergirl and the Legion of Superheroes starting at issue 16). The characters are great... you want intelligence - Brianiac 5, dark and brooding - Timber Wolf, smart and strong-willed female - Saturn Girl, reluctant leader - Cosmic Boy, humorous big-hearted lug - Colossal Boy/Micro Lad, tough chick - Shadow Lass, the rebel - Ultra Boy, so on... There is a character for whatever you want, and they are all well-written. Try it, seriously, try it. You might be pleasantly surprised too.

I know what some of you are thinking. I can't take it seriously when every other character is something-Lass or such-and-such-Boy, but it really isn't that bad, and there is a reason, and yes they make fun of it themselves.

Marvel Entertainment's Upcoming Slate

2007-08-07T14:56:00.000-04:00

(for original SuperHeroHype.com article click here)
Source: Marvel Entertainment, Inc.

August 7, 2007

Marvel Entertainment reported its second quarter earnings this morning for 2007 and, as usual, included the company's upcoming slate of projects. Here's the movies, TV shows, DVDs, musical and games in the works:

Licensed Marvel Character Feature Film Line-Up
Wolverine, Fox - Director engaged (Gavin Hood)
Punisher 2, Lionsgate - Director (Lexi Alexander) and lead actor engaged (Ray Stevenson)

Film Projects Being Developed by Marvel - partial list
Iron Man, Marvel - Completed principal photography; May 2, 2008 release
The Incredible Hulk, Marvel - Commenced principal photography; June 13, 2008 release
Ant-Man, Marvel - Writer (Edward Wright, Joe Cornish) and director (Edgar Wright) engaged
Captain America, Marvel - Writer engaged (David Self)
Nick Fury, Marvel - Writer engaged (Andrew Marlowe)
Thor, Marvel - Writer engaged (Mark Protosevich)
The Avengers, Marvel - Writer engaged (Zak Penn)

Marvel Character Animated TV Projects
"Spider-Man," Sony - In development; US distribution agreement with Kids' WB
"Wolverine and the X-Men," First Serve Toonz (India) - 26, 30 minute episodes in development
"Iron Man," Method Films (France) 26, 30 minute episodes in development

Marvel Character Animated Direct-to-DVD Projects
Doctor Strange, Lionsgate - August 14, 2007 release
Teen Avengers, Lionsgate - Targeted July 2008 release
Hulk Smash, Lionsgate - Targeted October 2008 release

Marvel Character Live Stage Projects
"Spider-Man the Musical," Hello Entertainment/David Garfinkle, Martin McCallum, Marvel Entertainment, Sony Pictures Entertainment - In development/opening date to be determined; Julie Taymor director; music & lyrics by U2's Bono and The Edge

Marvel 2008 Video Game Releases (Release dates controlled by Publishing partner)
"Iron Man," Sega - Targeted 2008
"The Incredible Hulk," Sega - Targeted 2008

Something good to read (comics)...

2007-08-01T00:56:00.000-04:00

The Ultimate Universe

Three titles to discuss...

The Ultimate Fantastic Four

This is a much better comic than one would expect. The characters are fresh and different from the mainstream characters (aside from the Thing, whose demeanor I liked anyway). The storyline is very fun and engaging. I even liked their treatment of Doctor Doom, which I have heard far too many people online trashing. The introduction of many long loved characters from the original series have been respectful and thoughtful (I would also recommend the Ultimate Galactus Saga).

The Ultimates (Vol 1 and 2)

A darker, more realistic look at what the Avengers might be like. I promise you, you will dislike a number of the people in this title, but the drama makes it all that much better. Cap, Iron Man, Giant Man, Wasp, Thor, all the favorites are here and many of them different than you might remember. Great reads, and each run is finite.

The Ultimate Spider-Man

This is a fun comic. I like reading it, but I find I am not compelled to read it like I am the two above. I like a lot of it better than the mainstream treatment of Spider-Man in the last few years, and some of the villains are better constructed... if I were a kid, I would LOVE this title, but as an adult, I like it, but it lacks something.

2007-06-23T01:28:00.001-04:00

Super Awesome!

2007-06-13T12:08:00.000-04:00

How about some fresh and tasty...

Not disgusted yet? How about Beer + Milk = Bilk

The Japanese are so super awesome!

2007-06-05T17:20:00.001-04:00

2007-06-04T12:39:00.001-04:00

It's a buncha muncha cruncha human!