Rachmaninoff

Part of me thinks I shouldn't laugh at this article and then another part of me can't seem to stop snerking at it. [URL="http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/18463536/detail.html#-"][U]Car, Driver Dragged Half-Mile By Snowplow[/U][/URL] I already know from Beth (who has worked as a Semi-Truck driver) that it's possible for something to hit the rear of your vehicle and you won't feel it. I've just never heard of an accident where something similar to that actually happened. I am glad that no one was hurt, but rear-ending a snow plow isn't the brightest thing one can do. o_O We do see all sorts of weird accidents on account of the weather here, nothing like that yet. Anyway, what's the weirdest accident you guys have seen where you live this year?

[quote name='Jax Rhapsody']You are aware that people of all ages love Dave Chappel, aren't you?[/quote]You are aware that you advised people to drink beer not love Dave Chappel aren't you? =P Hence the underage comment. The commercials, though a little over the top for my tastes, are funny. [B]EDIT:[/B] Before I forget, I figured you were just being tongue-in-cheek with that comment. I'm just saying, on the immediate surface, that's not what it looked like.

I'm still playing [B]Tales of the Abyss[/B]. I think I'm close to beating it but I'm not sure. I had wanted to finish it before I started school again but didn't quite make it. o_O I got side tracked by some quests that took a whole lot longer than I expected them too. I got some great experience for my characters but one area was like they were on drugs when they came up with it. Seriously.

I'm pretty sure I said Tuesday evening is fine for me. Or Wednesday afternoon. I should be home around 1pm if that's not too late. Also I agree that Jian would send others to interfere. He's spent a long time carefully recovering from the war so he's certainly not going to allow some upstart group to interfere with that.

[quote name='Boo][size=1]I would suggest [b]Media Centre[/b'], but people would start arguing about the spelling, so I'll leave it be.[/size][/quote]My only argument would be to change it so it matches up with our current spelling of Theater. However altering the Theater to Theatre to match would be fine by me. I don't really want to return to the previous one and out of all the current suggestions. I like this one the best for replacing Sight & Sound.

The trailer does look interesting, however I wonder if they can really do anymore with this series without it being stale. I'm not sure if I'll bother to see it in the theaters. After the first two I kind of got tired of it. Perhaps I'll check it out on DVD or cable later on. I do agree that Christian Bale as John Connor is a plus though. =P

[quote name='Allamorph][FONT=Arial']I'm happiest when I'm playing an intricate, demanding piece of music for concert band or jazz big band. [/FONT][/quote]Same here, there's just nothing quite like it. After music comes activities like hiking. There's also nothing like enjoying a good stroll out in the woods. :catgirl:

That's too bad, however, I know all about school coming first. XP The thread isn't going anywhere so just put it up when you get a chance. =P

I've seen this before and like Beth pointed out, it's hoax. I didn't save it, but I do remember that the disclaimer used to be up on the site. Taken in the context of making fun of sites that are real, it's kind of funny actually.

I'm sure you've probably already heard of this. How Gov. Rod Blagojevich was impeached. The vote was 114-1, with three representatives not voting. The full article can be found here: [URL="http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/01/09/blagojevich.impeachment/index.html"][U]Impeach[/U][/URL] If you don't know the story, part of the problem is he was arrested last month for charges of trying to sell the U.S. Senate seat that President-elect Barack Obama vacated. Naturally when others called for him to resign, he refused. He claims that he had done nothing wrong. If he really was trying to sell the seat... o_O I'd hardly call that "doing nothing wrong" Anyway, seems that the others didn't believe he was innocent. So what do you think? Everything I've read indicates he's guilty. So it has me wondering who actually voted against the impeachment.

[QUOTE=Raunsgaard]Another thing is once you read something and quotes in from foreign sites then please write the source of information, since there is so much propaganda around not everything said on the internet can be trusted. I can start by saying my information comes from Amnesty International, most likely the best source of information if you want to know about human rights and the costs of war and other cases around the globe. Amnesty International is a worldwide peace organisation, working for human rights.[/QUOTE]I'm well aware that you can't just blindly trust any site out there. Which is why I read around to get more than one article on a subject. You should also hold Amnesty International to the same standard and responsiblity of being as accurate as possible. Like any organization that reports on situations, they are not free from bias. I've read up on them and they've made plenty of incorrect statements over the years and have clearly shown bias towards what they cover and what they ignore. I sincerely hope you're relying on more than them for information. Otherwise you run the risk of repeating stuff that isn't true.[quote name='Tophel']Honoring the ceasefire? I'm not sure what your definition for holding a truce would be, but in my mind, a truce doesn't involve continuing to hunt down and assassinate leaders of your opponent. Or to close their borders and lay siege to a city of 1.5 million. When you do these things, are you really surprise if your opponents retailates in some way? Who broke the ceasefire is not as clear cut as you may think. Both sides are to blame here.[/quote]James already covered this but until you stop using using emotive, one-sided language that lacks objectivity (as James put it), I can't and won't take you seriously. I've not once said Israel was blameless, I addressed the current situation and people's willingness to blindly ignore Hamas role in contributing to the problem. Until people are willing to acknowledge why Israel is not the sole problem here, I don't see a solution. Blame runs in both directions, regardless of what's currently happening. This isn't some argument over who's made the most mistakes or who should be blamed more. That kind of thing will go in endless circles and solve nothing. What is important is getting both sides to stop. And that includes holding Hamas responsible for accepting that Israel has the right to exist. I grow tired of all the anti-Israel sentiment when the other side is equally to blame for idiotic stunts.

[QUOTE=Allamorph][FONT=Arial]Actually, I found the slogans to be rather clever. My favorite was this one: [INDENT][I]?Atheism: Sleep in on Sunday mornings,?[/I][/INDENT] I admit it. I snerked. :animesmil[/FONT][/QUOTE]And that's why I created the thread. Not to spark a debate on whether or not one side should or shouldn't advertise. Or try to attempt to have some [I]perceived[/I] higher ground based on their actions. But because it was funny and I got a good laugh out of it when I first saw it this morning. =P And the best part is, it's still making me snerk a bit.

[quote name='James][font=franklin gothic medium']I can't view that article because I'm not registered with NY Times[/font][/quote]It must be because you're in Australia since I'm not registered and have no issue viewing it. Here's a link to something in your area that also covers it: [URL="http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,,24884283-26040,00.html"][U]Article[/U][/URL] And here's a link to the image that was in NY Times article. [URL="http://i43.tinypic.com/111jfat.jpg"][U]Bus[/U][/URL]

We've been discussing the issues in Israel so how about a break to discuss something else? I've been following news about the crisis in regards to fuel shipments from Russia and Ukraine to other countries. The article I'll be referring to can be found here: [URL="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/08/world/europe/08gazprom.html?ref=world"][U]Article[/U][/URL] Basically as the article says: "All gas supplies to Europe via Ukraine were shut down Wednesday as the pricing dispute between Russia and Ukraine escalated." Now I don't completely know the details, but to have something as critical as gas supplies cut off to entire countries in the middle of winter is alarming. Especially if the article is correct in stating that: "Europe depends on Russia for 40 percent of its imported fuel." It's bad enough that some countries have already issued rationing for industrial customers to reserve for heating for residential buildings. It's a rude wake up call for countries that rely on others to provide fuel. I seriously hope they get it resolved and soon, before people literally freeze to death.

If you haven't read this yet: [URL="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/07/world/europe/07london.html?ref=world"][U]Atheists Send a Message, on 800 Buses[/U][/URL] then I suggest you do so. =P With all the depressing news about other things going on in the world, reading this just made me laugh. I'm not an atheist but I'm not really religious either so I find the concept of ads on both sides amusing. And in a way I agree with the sentiment expressed in the article. If one side can use ads to put their religious interests out there, only seems fair for other views to be out there as well. Best part of the article was the picture by the way. =P

[quote name='Tophel']Cowards make war. Men of courage and conviction make peace.[/quote]You've got a lot of generalizations in your post so I'm not going to bother to address them. But this part that I quoted is relevant so I'll address it. By that definition, it makes the one who violated the cease-fire ([SIZE="1"]Hamas[/SIZE]) in order to live up to their charter/constitution ([SIZE="1"]which includes the goal of destroying the state of Israel[/SIZE]) the true cowards. Israel was honoring the cease fire in spite of the rockets for a long time. If Hamas really desires peace, then they should give up that hateful goal of intending to exterminate Israel and stop firing rockets and building tunnels to attack them. :/ It's really hard to take a side that pulls stunts like that seriously.

[quote name='James][font=franklin gothic medium']If you want to make a Achard character I will be able to help by establishing a basic family tree to start from (as Olivier Achard is currently the patriarch of the family - I have a couple of gaps to fill in).[/font][/quote]That would be greatly appreciated. I know Beth and I are kind of holding back a bit on creating new characters until we know what's available. So seeing what gaps there are for creating a Achard character would be very handy.

If you're a big fan of One Piece d4wood, then look up Ace, I'm thinking he's another big fan of the series. And again, welcome to OtakuBoards. Welcome back Manic Webb. That's a long time to be away. o_O That's from before I even joined so I look forward to seeing you around. :catgirl:

[QUOTE=Raunsgaard]Aye I didn't mean it literally:P The way I meant it was everything, as in everything considering this one case:> But I get your point :P Sorry for the misunderstanding^_^[/QUOTE]Ah, I see. That makes more sense if you were only referring to this case. In that we are agreed. I wasn't trying to imply that it would solve everything. Sadly, I don't think either route will. At the very least he has been caught and arrested for the crime. I know I'll be curious to see how it's handled. Right now they haven't said how they intend to follow up on it yet. Anyway, thanks for clarifying what you meant. :catgirl:

I remember that having her being like that was the plan. I find the whole thing just as amusing as [COLOR="Indigo"]Indi[/COLOR] does. Along with Lucia's usual cutting and condescending manner towards others. Anyway... Now I just need to stop spacing and get my post finished. >_> This vacation has me wanting to continue being lazy and doing next to nothing.

[quote name='Malkav']I was hoping there would be more of an effort from old players to help create Anova. Shy can, but I believe will have trouble, doing it on his own.[/quote]I don't know about others, but I rearranged my schedule so I'd have more time to be involved in rp's. Unfortunately that will not extend to helping create the world or the actual plot. Doing so will only mean I might have time to play as a character but not much else. Anyway, Beth and I were talking about it and we simply don't see our characters up and running around on adventures since they were just starting a family in the last one. It would be completely out of character for them to leave their son with someone and go running around. That being said, when it comes time for the rpg, we'll look at being new characters and our previous ones might show up for specific events but that's about it. I could be wrong, but based on what I've read, they would have no reason to move to Anova either. Anyway, I'll just wait until this gets closer to being launched before I say more.

[quote name='TimeChaser']But just remember, blame Twilight for that and not anybody on the DW production team. ;)[/quote]Oh I do. I've just seen posters for that silly movie everywhere so the pale skinny look just reminded me of it. What I've seen of Dr. Who hasn't disappointed me yet so I'm not worried about it.

[QUOTE=James][font=franklin gothic medium]Are you aware that Hamas's founding principles - their charter or constitution, if you will - refers to the essential need to destroy the State of Israel? Peace can not be achieved by continuing a conflict, I agree. However, peace [i]definitely[/i] can't be achieved when one side's stated goal is to eliminate the other. Hamas must recognize Israel's right to exist before peace can occur. If this fundamental step is reached, you will see a marked change in the behaviour of both sides.[/font][/quote]That always makes me shake my head when people get on Israel's case for wanting to put an end to the rockets. I honestly get tired of the constant [I]poor me[/I] cries from Hamas when they bring it upon themselves, and their citizens who they don't seem to give a damn about. What with all their idiotic actions and drive to destroy Israel.[QUOTE=James][font=franklin gothic medium]Yes, Hamas was elected to power. But so was Hitler. Winning one election does not somehow add legitimacy to the actions of an authority in every case. In addition, the US and Israel are once again blamed for the suffering of the Palestineans - despite the fact that Hamas itself has exhausted itself attempting to destroy its neighbour, rather than preparing its territory for democratic governance. Nobody asks this simple question: Instead of spending so much energy and resources acquiring weapons and planning attacks against a neighbouring country, why hasn't Hamas invested the [i]same[/i] energy in supporting its own people in preparation for a future Palestinean State? Put simply, Hamas clearly has no interest in real governance. It has done nothing to improve the lives of its people and instead continues down a path that only further aggrivates the living conditions of its people..[/font][/quote]I've always wondered about that too. It seems to me that the one truly failing the Palestinians is their own government. They've dragged everyone there into their own pointless agenda of attempting to destroy Israel. Instead of actually doing more to take care of their own people. :/[quote=James][font=franklin gothic medium]Israel tolerated these attacks for a long time, while still honoring the cease-fire that it agreed to. After months of rocket bombardment, Israel has had enough and is now attempting to reduce Hamas's capacity to attack it further. Admittedly war is horrific and it breaks my heart to see the horrific suffering among the Palestinean people. I can not use strong enough words to express this - when I see footage and images of little Palestinean children being rushed to hospital and having no understanding of what's happening, it makes me want to cry. It is absolutely a true horror of the worst kind. And yet, I feel even worse when I think that the elected authority is facilitating adn encouraging this terrible war, when it could change matters simply be recognizing Israel and ceasing its attacks. That, truly, is the greatest tragedy for the long-suffering Palestinean people.[/font][/QUOTE]That's the greatest irony of all. Israel was the one honoring the cease fire and yet now that they're working to end the pointless attacks, they're the one that people are yelling at. I find that really sad actually, that so many people have no problem whatsoever thinking it's okay for them to be attacked regularly just because only a few people have been killed.

[quote name='Raunsgaard']Sorry I did not intend to start an argument with you, I merely wanted to express my opinion :>[/quote]You're fine. It's not an argument, just a clarification. I actually don't know anyone who thinks the death penalty will solve everything so your line of logic made no sense. So I was making sure you're not under the impression that I actually think that. You see most people I know, myself included, see it as a measure to only be considered in the most extreme cases.

[quote name='Raunsgaard]While I completely agree that it is sick and that he must be mental or whatever to do such a horrible thing, I do not quite share the belief that death penalty will solve everything.[/QUOTE]You might want to re-read what I posted since you seem to have taken it out of context.[quote]Cases like this... only confirm my belief that [U]for some[/U], [U]the death penalty is the best answer[/U].[/quote]I did not say that the death penalty will solve everything. Only that for some cases I believe it is the best solution.[QUOTE=Raunsgaard']I somehow feel that in order to actually punish this man (and turn the world into a better place in the end), you need to make people understand and realise that what they did was wrong, once they are aware of what they did and are conscious enough to regret their mistakes, then comes true penalty in that they have to live with what they did for the rest of their lives.[/quote]Allamorph already covered this really well but this isn't about teaching someone the error of their ways, this is about them being required to accept the consequences of their actions. And deliberate murder of a child because you don't want to pay child support is far more serious than someone who has stolen or committed other less heinous crimes. I find it hard to believe that they didn't know that killing their own son was wrong. Anyway, Allamorph addressed it clearly enough, I just want to be clear that not once did I advocate the death penalty as a solution for all crimes. Xeonn, the only one who was cheap, whether the death penalty is used or not, is the one who took the cowards way out and murdered his own son instead of owning up to his responsiblity as a father. There is no lesson to be taught, the deed is done. This is about him facing the consequences of making that choice.