James

[color=#808080]SS, you said that nobody gave him a chance to be liked. And that is particularly what I was responding to. [i]Everyone[/i] who joins the boards has the opportunity to be liked. But if you are rude to others, you have to expect that sooner or later, someone will dislike you for it. I'm not passing judgement on anyone and I'm not saying whether or not Harry is right. That's for everyone else to judge. What I'm saying is that Harry was given every opportunity to have a constructive conversation, but through his own behavior, he brought disrespect upon himself.[/color]

[color=#808080]SSJ Pud, thanks for the tip. But, you'd need to email Adam with that information. [email][email protected][/email] is Adam's email address.[/color]

[color=#808080][b]Character Name:[/b] Jin Hazuro [center][img]http://www.otakuboards.com/attachment.php?s=&postid=359727[/img][/center] [b]Anime Stereotype:[/b] Traditional Jock/Captain of the Soccer Team [b]Bio:[/b] Jin has only been at Tokyo High School for a year. He's now in the senior class and, as you might guess, he's the object of nearly every schoolgirls' (and some schoolguy's) desire. Of course, within the year he's spent at the high school, he has risen to the ranks of Soccer Captain for the Tokyo High "Maximum Aggressive Brown Bears". Under his leadership, the team has won several matches throughout Japan. Despite Jin's outstanding sporting prowess, the same kind of successes cannot be found when it comes to study. Jin tries his best, but he's not the brightest of stars. Jin is partial to tight shirts, anything western, funky "new youth rhythum movement style" music and styling combs. [b]Powers:[/b] Jin is a successful martial artist (did you have any doubts?) and his skills with a soccer ball are both impressive as a sport as well as devistating off the field (when hit by a speeding ball in the face, that is). [b]Sworn Enemy:[/b] Good sports players and people who don't like pool parties.[/color]

[color=#808080]SS, as I said...people here are generally pretty nice. They don't just dislike you for nothing. Harry "earned" that dislike through some of his behavior. The ultimate solution would be for him to actually become a little more respectful of others and thus, to earn some more respect from the membership. As for his sister...I'm not touching that whole issue with a 10ft pole. I can see how it could be true and I can see how people doubt it. If I'd had a clash with Harry, maybe I'd doubt his story. Maybe he should think about that.[/color]

[color=#808080]Most of this is really pretty irrelevant. Harry gave a bad impression for two reasons. First, his thread about education was wholly legitimate; nobody is complaining about that. However, if you look at his replies to various people, some of them were quite rude. You can talk about people taking Harry's posts out of context, but in many cases he did not have the courtesy to provide a detailed response to those who had posted well-conceived opinions. Secondly, look at his thread on religion. It was totally and utterly inflammatory. There was no attempt to utilize any tact whatsoever; it was designed and crafted to annoy people. And thus, it was closed. I don't care if people have legitimate debates on OtakuBoards, as long as those debates can be carried out in a manner of mutual respect. It comes as no surprise to me that Harry built a bad reputation for himself; his responses were sometimes rude and flippant. If he had worded his thoughts (his responses) in a more respectful way, perhaps others might not have jumped on him like they did. I don't think OB is generally a disrespectful place; most people here are friendly and kind. But when you get into a serious political discussion, you can't expect everyone to be all fluffy and happy. You're bound to get people expressing very passionate opinions on issues. And yes, tempers can flare. However, even if that happens...it's up to the members themselves to take a step back and to realize that it's just a debate. And that, ultimately, personal attacks and such are not warranted. The thing I dislike most is when a perfectly good discussion is hijacked by one or two people. Jenni, you might very well complain about people's treatment of Harry, but you yourself were responsible for some quite rude and immature comments. And those comments are what helped to hijack the discussion and drag it into the gutter, resulting in little more than a mud-slinging match. I realize that you have apologized after this, so I hope that matters will improve on that point. And Harry is free to create threads about political/social issues if he so pleases; but he must do so in a sensitive and reasonable way. Creating something that essentially says "all religion is stupid" is just ridiculous. He [i]knows[/i] that it is inflammatory. And thus, it's unacceptable. If he's worded his post in a more respectful way...and if he had attempted to have an enlightening discussion, it would not have become an issue. Let's not think that Harry is an innocent victim here. Yes, some people were too rude to him. But by the same token, those people were not being rude for nothing; Harry's attitude did occasionally provoke that reaction. It's a give and take situation -- let's not think that it's always one sided.[/color]

[color=#808080]Basically, I think the school does have the right to create (and to enforce) a dress code. If I go to a restaurant that is suit-and-tie only, and I wear a ballerina outfit and they throw me out...I'm not going to say "OMG! You're violating my first ammendment rights! Call the police!" Basically, the school has the right to make that judgement. However, I personally believe (regardless of whatever laws are in place) that if the school does not enforce uniforms...then whatever message you have on your t-shirt shouldn't matter. I mean, if you had a message that threatened a specific teacher or had swearing...maybe that would be different. But if you want to put some ill-informed political tagline on your t-shirt, I don't think the school should necessarily get involved. Really, it doesn't matter. As I've said before, if the girl wanted to make a fool of herself, that's fine. Let her bear the consequences of that. Whether or not she chooses to bring up her ideology in the appropriate forum (such as a class discussion on politics) or not is really not relevant I think. [/color]

[color=#808080]Where on Earth did you get that from, Breko? ~_^[/color]

[color=#808080]I deleted your post, Mnemolth. And it was 100% warranted. You had made several posts in that thread (most addressed to Lady M), which were both off topic and slightly rude. If Moderators were to PM every member whose posts they remove, we'd be sitting here all day. The staff do not have the time (and are not in the business of) informing members whenever a post is removed. Whenever you post something at OtakuBoards, we always reserve the right to make a judgement on what you post and to determine whether or not it is appropriate. If it's not appropriate, the post will be removed. In this case, I'd left your other posts in place, despite the fact that they were most inappropriate and unwarranted. But, your more recent post seemed to be the continuation of a trend; so I put a stop to it. As I said, we don't have the time to send a courtesy call to every member who may have their post/s removed for whatever reason. I'm sorry if our own processes do not adhere to your personal timetable, but we are simply not going to change our administrative operations based upon the fact that you had one post deleted. Note: I'm sorry if my post comes off as a bit harsh or blunt...but Mnemolth, you [i]do[/i] complain at the drop of a hat. [/color]

[color=#808080]Oh god, DOK...don't tell me you're one of [i]those[/i] people. lol It doesn't matter whether or not the message is true. If she wants to wear a t-shirt with an ignorant political message, let her. She is free to publicly embarass herself; it probably would have been more punishment to actually let her wear it. lol I don't think the school has the right to just force people not to wear that sort of stuff. If it had swearing, yeah...maybe. But if she wants to make a fool of herself, let her.[/color]

[color=#808080]I have absolutely no idea. I've not ever heard of this problem occurring. It [i]sounds[/i] like a cookie-type problem, but I really have absolutely no idea. Maybe someone more tech savvy can help you.[/color]

[color=#808080]Let's not make this a discussion about the history of religion, please. As for Cloricus' comment...well, you're kinda wrong about straight and gay people being different. The love/sensuality (as TN was referring to) that either a gay person or a straight person may feel for another is absolutely identical. The only difference is the object of your affection. So, imagine if I was in love with a gorgeous girl and you were in love with an ugly girl. That would be like saying "My love is more pure than yours because my girlfriend has different genetics to yours", or something. What I'm saying, is that things like sexuality and race are differences in the very same category as the difference between eye colour or hair type. The question is not whether these differences are acceptable (of course they are, but even if they weren't, who are [i]you[/i] to decide what is acceptable in society?), but whether or not we choose to use these differences to discriminate against another human being. Moreover, the question is whether or not we choose to focus on these differences, rather than judge a person by the content of their character. You won't have the right answer until you have the right [i]question[/i].[/color]

[color=#808080]Proteus dashed down the white hallway after Reverb. Finally, he caught up. He grabbed Reverb by the shoulder and pulled him to a stop. Reverb recoiled immediately and aimed his buster at Proteus. "Hey! Agh, sorry Proteus. I got a fright; I thought it might have been a security droid or something," Reverb lowered his buster and smiled. "Why are you here?" "I came to cover you," said Proteus. Reverb nodded in response. Somehow he suspected that Proteus would try to protect him. The pair began walking down the hallway a little more casually, perhaps bolstered by each other's presence. Reverb was clearly very alert. Proteus noticed the sharp movements of his eyes, as they scanned the hallway further ahead. Reverb was ready for anything. Proteus was very curious about Reverb; about his origins and why he was here. "Heh, I wonder how many unactivated reploids they have down below us," he muttered. Reverb nodded, but continued scanning the halls dilligently. "Yeah, it makes you wonder, doesn't it?" "I still don't feel like I belong. Well, not completely," said Proteus. At this, Reverb did glance over at Proteus for a brief moment before fixing his gaze on the corridor once more. "Why do you say that?" Proteus paused. He wasn't comfortable talking about personal issues, mostly because he never knew how to express his own feelings. Even though he'd had years of experiences and years to come to terms with emotion, he'd never really been able to understand his feelings. "I don't know. We get produced, we perform our professional duties and then what happens?" "Well, we [i]are[/i] designed for the Maverick Hunters. We're owned by the United Nations. This is what we're here for, I guess," said Reverb. "But doesn't that bother you?" "What?" "The fact that you don't even own your body. The fact that we're just military tools for some beauracratic organization. I mean, what if I want to retire? I don't get paid and I don't have any chance of living outside this place." Proteus went silent after these remarks. He didn't realize what he was saying while he was talking, but it suddenly occurred to him that he'd provided a major revelation about his own uncertainty of the future. Reverb also sensed this. But he did not appear to be uncomfortable at all. "It doesn't bother me, I guess. I'm proud of my job. I'm proud of the fact that I protect peaceful citizens from the Mavericks and everything...that's enough for me, I guess," he said. Proteus merely nodded and continued walking. Several minutes later, Proteus stopped dead in the hallway. Reverb did a double take and spun around. "Hey, why did you stop?" he asked. "Reverb...that strike on ALED...did Duke know that ALED was even there?" Reverb rubbed his chin for a moment thoughtfully. "Well, I don't know. Maybe he thought it was someone else and we accidentally attacked the wrong people. Maybe it was an honest mistake. I guess we should at least [i]assume[/i] that it was a mistake," he replied. Proteus shook his head slowly. "But what if it wasn't? I agree that there's a small chance of it being deliberate. But if that chance exists, what then? If we confront Duke about this...and if we are wrong in assuming that it was an accident...we don't have any chance of resolving the problem", said Proteus. Reverb nodded slowly. He understood what Proteus was saying; better to be careful, just incase they're wrong. "So what do we do?" asked Reverb after a moment of thought. Proteus sat down on one of the thick curves that was jutting out from the tubular wall. "I don't know," he said. "Perhaps," began Proteus, "we should make some sort of secure area within Hunter HQ. I mean, we should find a place where we can store munitions and communications equipment, just incase things get nasty." Reverb sat down next to Proteus. "Do you have any idea where we could go?" Proteus shook his head. "No. Maybe we could use Iota's apartment, it's on the outermost sector of Hunter HQ...if anything, the security droids here would be looking at the Sub-Levels and other sensitive places. Duke isn't looking for us [i]yet[/i]. So, we can take advantage of that." Reverb nodded. "So, we make a base of operations and then we create a plan for dealing with this?" "Yes. We have to find a secure place to talk and work things out. We won't be able to stay in the Sub-Levels for a very long period of time" Proteus and Reverb both stood up and began running back to the storage room for the others. Little did they know, they'd find some resistence on the way there...[/color]

[color=#808080]Oh boy...that definition of "poser" is [i]so[/i] apt for certain people that I know. lol The short answer is yes; I've come across these people. Does it worry me? Not really. If someone wants to be two faced with me, I'll just disregard them altogether. I tend to believe that it's not worth wasting my time on people who are constantly behaving in a double faced and/or subversive way.[/color]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by HyperShadow [/i] [B]How could we not? I love reading announcements... [/B][/QUOTE] [color=#808080]I always get the sense that most people don't read 'em. A lot of people ask questions that are usually answered in my announcements. The thing is, announcements often include really useful information on certain subjects. Anyway, I hope that those who don't read 'em take a look at this thread and give it a go. ~_^[/color]

[color=#808080]I'd say the most time I spent on an RPG was with FFVII. I spent about 75 hours on it, getting everything. Other than that...I don't spend as much time on games these days. FFVIII was something like 40 hours to the end...FFIX has so far been about 30 and I'm [i]near[/i] the end (I just haven't continued in a long time)...and FFX, I'm at about 35 hours or something. I forget.[/color]

[color=#808080]Deus, your post is totally correct. What I mean by comprehend is that it's difficult to actually get your mind around the idea of an atom. If you say to someone "you can fit one million atoms on a pin head", it's very hard for a human brain to actually comprehend the size of that matter in their mind. Know what I mean? That's probably a terrible way of explaining it, though. I must admit, I'm not quite sure what Harry's purpose was for creating this thread. The thread itself isn't against the rules or anything, so that isn't my concern. But to me...it just seems like a totally moot question. Trying to define the center of the Universe is utterly impossible, for the reasons mentioned above. And talking about the size of the Universe...it's like saying "how long is a piece of string?" It's something you really can't answer unless you have certain information -- information that nobody has at this point at least.[/color]

[color=#808080]I don't think a human being can comprehend the size of the Universe. Just the same as we can't comprehend the size of an atom (or sub-atomic levels). Scientists do say that the Universe is expanding at a rapid rate. And there is evidence to support that idea. But really, even if that was the case...even if the Universe has finite boundaries, I don't think it's even worth considering. I doubt that mankind will ever be able to travel fast enough to reach the "edge of the Universe". It will take centuries for mankind to get to the point where we can even exit our own solar system on a regular basis.[/color]

[color=#808080]Matt is right. This is exactly why all members should read my Announcements. ~_^[/color]

[color=#808080]I fully support Mitch's decision to close this thread. Harry, it seems like you've been creating threads such as this simply for controversy. It might be nice to have a constructive conversation; but this certainly [i]is not[/i] constructive. [/color]

[color=#808080]Jenni, maybe it's not me you should apologize to. It might be better to post what you said for those in this thread to see. I'm sure they'd forgive you just as I have. [/color]

[color=#808080]I'm personally looking forward to both Dark Cloud 2 and Star Ocean. I never bought the first Dark Cloud, but after reading various reviews...and seeing some movies, I'm greatly looking forward to the sequel. It's like Zelda with more RPG-esque elements. And it seems to be an overall great game. The last RPG I bought was FFX...and I really haven't been buying many RPGs lately. So I'm eager to buy some of the newer ones coming over the next few months.[/color]

[color=#808080]You said "if that were true, there would be a lot more gay people". There is no logic to that statement. I assume you were referring to my post with that first part of your post.[/color]

[color=#808080]Cloricus, that is an absolutely inane observation. How on earth would that mean that there are more gay people in the world? The gay sector of the community makes up about 10% of the population. Nobody is suggesting otherwise for other species. I'm saying that it's always a minority thing; it wouldn't be useful to have 50% of the population as homosexuals. That would be counterproductive. It needs to be a small enough percentage so that it doesn't cause a big impact (but enough of an impact). My idea about it being natural for [i]that reason[/i] (population control) is, I think, logical. But I'm not saying that it's right. I'm just saying that might be a reason. [/color]

[color=#808080]And let's not forget that CN is a children's channel. Most of this content [i]must[/i] be edited. However, if you had a 24 hour anime channel that included unedited works...well, that'd be different. CN isn't an anime channel. It's a general cartoon channel that throws a bit of anime in now and then. People need to realize the nature of CN; you're lucky to be getting [i]any[/i] anime at all. So I think people should put up or shut up; I mean, really...it's the best you can get for now.[/color]

[color=#808080]Tenton_Noir, I think your psychology teacher is wrong. There is ample evidence that homosexuality occurs within animals. I remember once watching an episode of Donahue years ago, where they were discussing sexuality. A doctor was showing video tape of two male octopi mating -- they were [i]gay[/i] octopi (I think that's the plural of octopuss, please correct me if I'm wrong). Of course, I think it's fair to say that we don't analyze our own pet's sexual behavior too closely. And the fact that it's not a majority of the population suggests that you're even less likely to spot that behavior. I think homosexuality is nature's way of controlling population among species, really. That seems pretty logical to me -- and probably the best way of achieving population control.[/color]