Yoshi

[FONT="Times New Roman"][SIZE="2"]as soon as he excited Fignon's office, Jack breathed a sigh of relief. rubbing his ear, he sullenly gouged the carpet with the spurs jutting out from the back of his sneakers. he shouldn't be so perturbed and terrified by Fignon, but something about those huge hips always seemed evoke a flicker of darkness and pages flapping in the moonlight. [B]"she should know my name by now" [/B] he grumbled to himself. then he turned to Rivendell and immedietly cheered up. [B]"hey!, you're the old lady that did that thing with the ghost cowboys in the desert"[/B] his eyes grew wide [B] "how cool was that? were they real cowboys, gunslingers, and the like? did ya find any neat cowboy items or native american artifacts can i see them? "[/B] they talked as they walked out, with Jack desperately, hoping that Rivendell wouldn't notice that he was no longer lugging the oversized attache case. unfortunately, Rivendell's experience saw through our young intern's ploy and after a good 5 minutes of mostly ignoring Jack's intentionally incessant pestering she stopped, turned, and pointed directly at the case. jack sighed again and drew his trusty lasso. he threw a section of the rope onto a protruding hunters head trophy of a grey and deftly used the loop to snare the brief case. he tugged to test the hold, and once satisfied that the loop would stay he used the head as a pulley and quickly retrieved the case. coilling his lasso he turned to present the case to Rivendell [B]"so... ...where to now boss?"[/B][/SIZE][/FONT]

[b]Name:[/b] jack jones [b]Age:[/b] 18 [b]Profession:[/b] Year Round Summer Intern [b]Area(s) of Expertise:[/b] divine interventions (miracles and their counterparts). cowboys [b]Physical Description:[/b] jack is prematurely graying (not balding). he is of average height with a rather non-descript build (mostly because he wears his shirts one-size too large giving him a ridiculous farmer's tan should he ever remove is shirt). if he ever did wear tailored anythings, people'd notice that he really has... well a non-descript build somewhat toned from walking and biking everywhere freshman year, but also on the verge of a beer-bellied freshman 10. being the intern, jack always dresses casually when on the job except when 'borrowing' other people's clothes when occasion calls. jack really doesn't remember if he's attractive and tends to err on the side of safety and assume he isn't. and he's usually wearing his prized possessions- spurs, lasso, and shiny star. [b]Brief History and Personality Description:[/b] jack goes to prominent university founded long ago by religious figures to teach preachers. he's crafty and a rabid fan of cowboys, he plays a mean harmonica and somehow has the knack for the lasso. he has also mastered the art of college cramming. he just accidently absorbed the wrong book in the old abandoned college church... as a result, jack doesn't quite remember his family history, all he knows is his hair is going white now and that the lawsuit pays his tuition (maybe it was a scholarship of god). despite his possibly holy stipend, he found himself in dire need of emergency expenses for books and shiny things... ...he also found himself in the middle of a dark cult masquerading as an innocent hippie commune, intent on sacrificing students to cthuulic entities deep in the bowels of the earth. luckily, wisened world wide news reporters managed to get that headline, rescue him, and get a new summer intern: jack. jack doesn't really understand what he's gotten into, but its better than dark gods and earth bowels. besides, now he gets a chance to people watch... the irony of the greatest miracles being the most prevalent and disappointing always tickles him as do the irony of 'the paper' and its truths. he's a dry, peppy kid at heart: a huge fan of stories, irony, puns, and pretty things. he's a curious packrat who teeters between talking too much and being too quiet. as a veteran intern he hopes he'll get the intern glock and that he'll get valuable experience, give him college credit, and let him see more of the sacred and profane all while adding to his growing collection. and he hasn't decided his major...

power pop trio champions extraterrestrial rights hedge fund death cult harvests entrails to read market futures wormsignin gobi desert

[quote name='spy46']well consider this. look at Canada, usa, england and Australia. all speak english tho not exactly the same kind. each has a different culture, different laws and systems of government, not to mention different traditions. [/QUOTE] the english each country speaks is not the same: there are a number of different words used, they sound obviously different, etc etc. in essence they don't speak exactly the same language, its more like spanish and portuguese and italian but hasn't drifted that far. it could be argued that these societal differences are in fact reflected in the different dialects of english used by each country. [quote name='spy46'] so does the language make the culture? no. it does help it in small ways to stand out in its own ways, but not as much as some internal belief systems and or styles. [/QUOTE] i'm not arguing to what degree language makes a culture stand out, i'm arguing that it is a reflection of a culture's history and belief system and style. why do the three countries you mention have english as their main languages? because historically the us and australia were english colonies ruled by britain and then split off. would it be possible to have the america we have today if we had french as our main language? i'd say no. not because our material or technological accomplishments would not be possible with a different language (like french), but because there would not have been that historical link between the us and england and then that english would not have been mixed and changed with the influx of immmigrants from europe. is language culture? no. there are some cultural things that clearly aren't the language, but can a unique culture exist without a unique language (i'm not saying it has to be big unique, just distinct)? i'd argue no. [quote name='spy46'] the problem with this is that, Quebec thinks that if they no longer speak their kind of french, they will no longer be who they are, that the language is the key stone to who they are but will not listen to any one that will say other. it would be like an american saying that them not being allowed to own a gun would not make them an american. a brit saying not being able to have tea time would not make them a brit. canadian saying not being able to play hock does not make them a canadian. or some one from australia saying them not being able to have that one kind of had and the boomerang does not make them an auzie.[/QUOTE] i don't think we disagree on this final point at all (i think you're trying to explain the quebecian position after having tried to undermine it, so correct me if i'm wrong) finally, while you are arguing from the standpoint that for quebecians language seems to be a keystone so that if you remove it their culture collapses. i think its clear not that their culture will entirely collapse, but that the culture will change fundamentally into something different without that language. i.e. (quebec w/language) will not be the same culture as (quebec w/out language). and that argument is mirrored in all your examples. an american who doesn't feel threatened by general government baring of firearms ownership comes from a pretty fundamentally different background then one who does. some states have gun cultures some don't, yeah?

AP exam scores definitely look good when applying, as to using them after you get in... ...well there Shinmaru is correct. and at the better schools elective credit doesn't really even kick in unless you get a 4's or 5's depending on the subject. the exception is for AP languages, i think 3s or higher give you a good chance to pass out of college language requirements.

before i launch into my tirade: chibihorsewoman, your korean example is faulty mostly because you emphasize that language and culture was disallowed. disallowed is not equivalent to does not exist. you make it clear that the koreans kept these things alive in secret. this secret upkeep seems the primary reason that korean culture still exists. that and heritage is not the one-to-one equiavalent of culture. anyways, continuing: i dunno anything about quebec... that having been said, i think language is as much a part of culture as food and clothing and on par with religion/superstition (and by superstitions i'm not trying to say its trivial or fake, but like sidhe or rusulka simply more unique legends or mythos of a culture). language itself is something that grows and evolves, it is often synthesized and spliced and amended. this is evidenced in extreme cases by the almost spontaneous formation of pidgeon languages in situations where you have large amounts of people from at least two distinct cultures and language backgrounds with no or few means of communication. in effect, they create a new simpler language to facilitate trade such and exist as evidence of a thriving new synthesis of culture. not the death of either of the constituent cultures, but a small mixing mirrored in the language, a detail solidified by the fact that if such a synthesis continues and children of mixed heritage a born the pidgin itself evolves becoming more expressive and such. lesser examples of this culture reflected in language are more readily seen in life today in things like spanglish and the like. the mixing of english and hispanic cultures in first generation or second generation hispanic families is mirrored in the mixing of the language generally used at home and among those of similar backgrounds. i think there might be enough circumstantial evidence to actual claim that language is an essential part of culture and that without language culture doesn't exist. not only do i believe this is the case because i think language and communication are themselves an integeral part of what it means to be human, but also because languages that have become stagnant and unchanging are generally languages of cultures that no longer exist. consider dead languages like latin where the medium of the language itself has no new words, dialects: no variations of expression being created... ...the culture centrally dependent on that language no longer exists, there is no roman empire. the only time languages stop changing is when the culture entrenched in it no longer exists. things like slang and dialects and the adoption of new variations of expression are evidence that a language is being used, that, in a sense, culture is being exercised. dialects or often geographically linked for good reason, they form where a language is being used/practiced and thus evolving in a unique way: many times evidence of a culture developing in a unique way. what's this mean for irish-americans who've forgotten or never knew gaelic and the like? well, it means they aren't irish. not to be offensive, but i think even they will admit that they are irish-american: a culture that, while it derives much from the same celtic roots, is distinct from its parent cultures. in any case, i just wanna reiterate my strongest point, language itself is central to the concept of a human being because communication and social interaction are central to the concept of what it means to be human. language itself is primarily a result of culture because while we may be wired to quickly pickup languages as children its clear that as children we only* pick up language that we are exposed to language derived from our culture geneologies and ultimately shaped by the adaptions of these geneologys to the time and place where we pick them up. to relegate a culture to its language by saying a culture is fundementally dependant on its language (though admittedly not entirely defined by its language) is not, i think, silly because it defines a culture in terms of how its members primarily communicate and interact with each other. how members of that culture clothe the ideas they create and share, i think, is the main physical manifestation of a culture regardless of that culture is something as small as a street gang, a country, or an occupation. footnotes: *certain cases of children isolated/abused/neglected from birth for long periods of time suggest that if we do not hear human language within certain critical periods we do not end up being able to fluently learn language (incidently this critical period phenomena is also seen in birdsong)[SIZE="1"][INDENT][COLOR="Red"][B]Yoshi[/B], You're off to a great start, however, please use something like hotmail [which is free] or word to spell check your posts. It makes it a lot easier for people to understand what you're trying to say if it's spelled correctly. Good grammar and punctuation along with capitalization is also helpful so please work on that. Thanks. ~Rachmaninoff[/COLOR][/INDENT][/SIZE]

James is right. There are a bunch of people out there who are perfect people. Soulmates are not limited to 2 people and its absurd to consider that. And soulmates aren't limited to lovers, first and foremost they are kindered spirits. The whole "love at first sight" deal? Only works if one or both are attracted to each other at first site and work to make it work (beautiful english, bleh.) the thing about love is that everyone in the world has his/her own little definition of love that differs from the non-existant but much sought after norm. This means people love in different ways, people act in different ways, soulmates exist in different ways. The problem with dreams (especcially this idealized crap of one soulmate etc etc) is that it gives too many people an easy way out of struggling but viable relationships and it tends to cause others to ignore people right in front of them. To a point, soulmates are made not born.

I be ether and air. the wanderer who holds to his own sense of self. and always searches for everything and nothing.

I think it only seems like nice guys finish last because in the first half of the race aggressiveness can compensate (somewhat) for incompetence or inability.

*Kicks Sith_Change for being such a cheapskate as to trade in a 4 day anime expo for a thermal display and a funkily colored overpriced case i'm not cosplaying shy. May 15? but i suppose that means i should worry about getting the tickets. Roadtrip roadtrip roadtrip hopefully my parents remember that they said yes. too bad about the fireworks though. this'll be the third year in a row I'll miss seeing them at home.

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Queen Asuka [/i] [B][color=hotpink][size=1]Those kids will be too corrupt to be worrying about their great great great great great great great grandparents. All they'll care about it sex, drugs, partying, beer, and girls, right? That's what's going to cause the end of the world...[/color][/size] [/B][/QUOTE] Hahaha, but we've been like that for centuries!!! "In the year 2525, if man is still alive, if woman can survive..." Global warming? as you can see we don't care enough about it yet. Nuclear armageddon? As long as the people who love life control the nukes we should be ok. But if fanatics or psychos got hold of 'em... ...well welcome to the Apocalypse. Crime itself is a problem that points out a bigger hole in the thread of society. Crime seems to be a child of some weird combination of personal greed (enhanced by a lack of values) and flaws in society. An increase in crime indicates an aggravation of these flaws and a degredation of moral values that coincides with the idea that we are getting too complacent to value how we obtain what we have and that we have grown too weak to obtain it honestly. Thats kinda why war/violence is viewed as a crime, because it indicates that a nation (large group of peoples more or less)or people have becomes so weak and vulnerable that they cannot obtain what they desire through anyother means but force. I think here there tends to be lots of grey. You talk to anyone who does this sort of thing and they will be able to justify it (at least to themselves) so that to them it is right and good. What you gotta do end the sort of terror and destruction is either give them a way out (not likely) or show them that what they do is evil and unjustifiable (also not likely). If there was an easy way outta this rigmarole we woulda found it. I'm not sure any government regulation could solve the environmental problem. To fix the problem the solution must be made profitable (more profitable than oil sales and immediately profitable enough to offset the huge initial costs required to develop and implement alternative energies most effeciently and continuously profitable enough that it ensures economic stability and success in the longrun). as to overpopulation as an epidemic in a word... no. Let me explain. Historically, overpopulation tends to be equalized eventually by the lack of the carrying capacity the immediate environment required to maintain a population of a certain size. So even if we got to a point it would slowly (and painfully) correct itself through epedimics of new superbacteria and such (from overuse and misuse of antibiotics (antibiotic handsoap was a stupid idea anyways) causing a massive buildup of resistence and immunity in all surviving bacteria. And new strains released by the destruction of rainforests (like Ebola). It is to be noted that though such epedimics tend to severely decimate a population, they NEVER complete eradicate a species. There are so many genetic variations between each member of the species that a significant (though probably very small) percentage of the species can and will survive. And starvation? We'd starve till enough died off that there was again enough food (ie people would slow the production of babies for a while for lack of energy and overabundance of hungry mouths) However all that is contingent on the idea that we'd ever reach such a situation in the first place. Evidence points to the idea that when we become advanced as nations and countries we tend to decrease procreation (take a look at the US. Much much lower birthrate among upper and middle class peoples and over all much lower birthrate than in third world countries) because we have more access to time saving devices (lessened need for little servants), more access to contrceptives and abortion procedures (no more accidents in good fun), and, most importantly, a greater assurance that our kids will survive (less procreation because greater assurance of offspring survival (no reason to have 10 kids in case 9 die off because off squalid living conditions). Chances are we could patch Mr. Ozone. We seem to have the tech. However, it doesn't appear profitable as yet for businesses to get involved, and not being close enough to effect (affect) the next election not of enough concern for governments to REALLY get involved. (though cloning is a completely different concept than patching a hole in the ozone). Laissezz fare (sp) anyone? wait till people care more if a small group of people care enough they might move the rest of the world to care. but then we'd just be sponging of the efforts of others. Freeloading on the smarts and dedication of others. Mooching on their hardwork and living unearned lives (as if the world doesn't do that now? hah) . That seems to be the real problem.

Are you really that desperate for attention? The reason people consider and respond postively to the "13 year-old kid contemplating suicide and a flunked test" you so unfeelingly characterize it, is because they really do feel that way. In other words they aren't trying to do something to make us pay attention, they are doing it because they really need and want advice and comfort. Its all a matter of perspective boyo. If ya feel like crying wolf just 'cause you can't get enough attention and ruining this or belittling this thing we got going here your gonna make it very unpleasent and ruin a good thing. If you want our attention, just be yourself. Do we hate you? I sincerely doubt it, but you've jeapordized your creditability and honor on these boards by deliberately trying to anger people into disscussion and by disregarding other people's opinions in the same disscussions.

I liked reboot, I didn't watch enough so I had only a vague idea of what was happening half the time. But it had parodies within parodies while still bringing out a piece of the morals attached to the it was parodying while somehow attaching it to an engaging storyline with engaging villains and engaging characters. Can you really ask for more (besides me being so repetitive?)

kiseki no umi is better :blackeye: (the Chronicles of the Heroic Knight)

Ok, so planning out your life helps you reach those far away goals and such and such while keeping you motivated and focused... didja guys ever think that by trying to hold yourselves to futures are limiting yourselves? You guys are trapping yourselves in a dream which means that there are somethings just not getting done, and if the dream sours into a nightmare (or just doesn't quite live up to itself) there are very few "easy" paths out.