Semjaza

Enough is enough I'd say. Let's just get off Cloricus and whoever else and talk about the problems people have here with the mods. Anything I wanted to know was taken care of and Cloricus and I are on some level of understanding now haha. I think a lot of it was more misunderstandings than anything, but it no longer matters. If you hate me, please PM me :)

I have no idea how the movie will turn out. I've not kept up on it. If it has anything to do with the stuff it is based on and keeps the same idea, it should be great. Who knows if that will happen. Saying that looks horrible while hyping The Fast and the Furious is pretty humorous to me, but I guess I just didn't like that movie... so don't mind me. The millions who went to see it obviously think I'm wrong anyway lol.

Hrm. Well this is going into a bizarre spiral heh. On a messageboard, I think at times it is hard to tell what is truly meant and what isn't. In the case of Mnemolth, I have personally noticed (and some others have said this to me as well), that there is this condescending attitude. That nearly everyone here isn't up to the same intelligence level. And yeah, it's true... but eh lol. If it is [i]always[/i] a joke, I don't know... You're making it sound as such, so I'll just take it that way and be done with it. But seriously, I don't really get the point of it. I know when I make posts of that sort, I personally mean most of what I say. No winky smiles and :p faces will change that. That's me though. Either way, I understand your side and I'll drop it. I am glad you responded to my stuff in the way you did at the very least. More than a good deal of people would bother doing and I appreciate that. I wasn't trying to be insulting and I'm glad you saw through it to what my real points were. At least you seem to know where I was coming from, and I have better understanding of where you are coming from as well. Even if you didn't actually answer one thing I asked. And Cloricus... I don't know what you're even going on about anymore. You brought yourself into this, no one else did. If you're going to make useless and accusatory comments towards me and others and not back them up, that's your problem. Nothing you have said has really addressed [i]anything[/i] that is being discussed in here at all. Sometimes I really get the picture that you just want to show up the people in charge here so you can look like you won something. I've seen you do it to James especially, and you've tried it with me in the past. I'm sure others could come up with more examples as well. And honestly, you expect to be able to say things about or towards people and get [i]no[/i] response? I don't understand that. You want to get your punches in without receiving one back. It makes no sense. Considering all that and then some, I find your immaturity comment a bit ironic... Whatever though. I have no real problem with you. We agree to disagree, and whatever else happens happens. I'm done with it heh. I'm not a confrontational person. I'm very patient. I could be going off about this crap all the time if I really wanted to... but I think a lot of this is worth discussing to at least get the various sides and see why people even do some of this nonsense here.

Icybunny... are you referring to that old Sheryl Crow post? You said nothing about anything other than it being "poo". I'd have to say anyone would be in the right if they asked you to come up with a little more to say than that... but whatever. You took a lot more offense over it than I think anyone should have, or even would have in most cases. Also, considering the fact that Adam pays for this place and keeps it ad free and running smoothly... I don't blame anyone for wanting to keep this place cleaned up. The more crap that litters it, the more he'd probably have to pay. I'd certainly want something I was paying for kept under control... otherwise we get a board like Break posted. And that's probably one of the better ones for this target audience lol.

Cloricus - I admit to being somewhat annoyed... but the last post line was just a joke. Sorry about that. I have no hard feelings at this point anymore agaisnt you or anyone else lol. We've gotten into stupid little debates here before and gone on with our lives and had no problems. It's no different now. I get the meaning of your one post. It isn't exactly complex. However, I spent a lot of time trying to explain all of that, and you simply dismissed it in two lines with no real explanation as to why... when you had a simple one sentence post that really added nothing. So I apologize for being sarcastic or whatever else, but in a sense I do believe I was in the right when I wrote all of that. Really, it doesn't even matter in the end I guess. After this dies down everything will be back to how it usually is and everyone will go back to their areas. Just like with that bizarre Newbie Lounge thread.

The only reason I'd say it would be any harder is that PSP doesn't seem to gear itself to layers by default (at least, last I used it). Whereas Photoshop really forces them onto you. So I'd suggest, if you haven't already, mostly looking into PSP7's layer settings (which aren't hard once you dig them out) and playing with the different transparency settings with various colors until things start making sense. That's mostly what you'd wind up doing in Photoshop at first anyway, in terms of this stuff. James is one of the few people I know that seems to mostly work in that program, so perhaps he could be of more specific help.

Well, this is now beyond the original post's point heh. What I, personally, was and am proposing is that the poerty/fan fiction mod (and that is IT) gets some sort of lift on the swearing ban. No other forums... so we won't have people swearing about ice cream or Cheesy Doodles. I think the people in that forum are 1.) mature enough to deal with it and 2.) would not abuse it. Read some of the posts in there from people like Charles that make use of profanity that's all ****ed out. Do any of you seriously think that Charles sounds stupid because he could have picked more "intelligent" words? Sometimes these things are just required in writing. Anyway, that's my side of it. I do totally understand why it won't be done and why a number of you are against it.

Is the Naruto anime series even out in the US yet? I've only seen a few fansubbed episodes... I doubt it really needs its own forum until it's fully released here (if it hasn't been already), but that's just my opinion.

I fail to see how any of what I said was crap. I'd like to see you take what I said on a point by point basis and dismiss all of it. Please. I'd [b][i]love[/i][/b] it. Forgive me for trying to come up with a reason why some mod might be a bit more of a pain at times than he/she might otherwise be. I actually said there are limits to that as well, so I had both ends covered. It wasn't meant to be some bleeding heart apologist article, but I guess that all depends on what perspective you read it from. If you don't buy into any of the points I made, I don't honestly care. That's your perrogative. Even with my personal family problems, work problems, school problems and my responsibilites on here I don't act out against anyone on here on a remotely regular basis. In fact I can only think of maybe 10 times in all of my posts where I specifcally targeted someone with the intent of going after them in a somewhat hostile manner. I wasn't making excuses for myself, because these things have never been an issue in my case. I'm sure most anyone here would back this up. And seriously... I've seen so many times where you have personally been insulting or took some arrogant elitist attitude for basically no reason. For you it's okay? For mods it is not? It was just an explanation as to [i]why[/i] it might happen. Point 1 - I know what I am writing. There was very little of my own hypocracy in my statement. I have no real problem with Mnemolth or whoever thinking this place isn't ran the best way. I still am free to disagree with it, and I would have. The problem is mostly the way it is presented. I simply do not like his condescending tones, joking or not. I could have said this in a more concise manner, but I chose not to. This isn't the first time such things have been said or alluded to by him. It happens on a rather consistant basis and I wanted to say a lot of it already. Hell, any of you are free to disagree with me or think he is the best thing since god. It's not a problem. We're free to debate it as much as anyone is willing. This is a message board afterall. Point 2 - What I said was not what I would call a personal attack. They are freaking observations that most anyone here could see for themselves. I could say you just did the same thing to me, if I wanted to be a jerk about it. I could also say he has done the same to others, even in this very thread. If Mnemolth is as mature as I'm being lead to believe, I doubt he would take the same stance as you and actually address what I've said and why he keeps it up. That's my only real question to him. Something I think he could easily answer if he cares to. If not, no loss really. I have nothing else to say on the subject, and like I said... I have no personal problem with him. Just bothered by a few things really. I could have been nicer about it, but too late now. Either way, you're not even involved in it. However, everyone knows the whole [b]two[/b] (as you so kindly bolded for me; lord knows I would have never been able to count that without your excellent computational skills) posts that I've made since I've gotten to OB the subject are really making things out of hand compared to the dozens from others here in an even shorter period in other various threads. That second post was mostly addressing TN's comment on the subject. I felt most of it was worth saying... which leads me into this, my third real point; the main point of this post in the first place, which addresses what you said directly: [i]Just because I don't agree with his posts doesn't mean he doesn't have a right to say them. Same with anyone else here. I respect his opinion and those of others. I suggest you actually read again before you try calling me out, smart guy.[/i] And really... I'd also like to see the part where it said you HAD to read my post. If you have a problem with the length of it, then do something else. I retract my apology for the length towards you. You're not exactly coming off any more bright than anyone else in here, especially considering you seem to be failing to get my points (yet again... I could point out several threads where this has happened before). I'm sure your "One big happy family" post really lended a lot to the discussion though. Thank you. Welcome to sarcastic, a--hole Semjaza time. I hope you're enjoying it. And here's my wink to make sure that everyone thinks I'm just playing around: ;) :p Edit - Added some more, rearranged it.

Well, I certainly [i]hope[/i] this thread gets some replies. Faith No More was always pretty good, but Mike Patton really brought to new heights. I find people either love him or really dislike him... personally, I'm in the crowd that thinks the guy is near genius. Mr. Bungle is amazing. I can listen to some of their songs constantly. One thing I've always liked about them is how they do different arragements for songs live... They sound almost like completely different remixes in some cases. Anyway... I follow Patton where he goes... Faith No More, Mr. Bungle, Fantomas, Tomahawk, etc. It's all good stuff. I'd guess most people at least know the song "Epic" by Faith No More. That was probably their only real popular hit across the radio.

I listen to quite a few bands because of their lyrical content... of course, they are able to carry the lyrics with vocals and music that I think fits and sounds good. Seriously, if some singer sounded amazing but was singing about the most boring and inane things, you would like it simply because the music is good? I certainly wouldn't, although there are many bands that can carry a song that really does have no point(and do it well). There is no point to music. What's good and what's bad is totally in the eye of the beholder. It's totally subjective. I don't think anyone really has the right to say one person doesn't get music because of this or that (this is outside of people thinking some group or sound sucks, which is something else entirely lol). There aren't rules. Music is a very vague and animorphous thing and does what it wants and what people make it do. If it didn't, we wouldn't even be listening to the stuff we do right now. ----------------------------- [b]What genre do you listen to?[/b] I'm not a fan of subgenres. I divide everything up very simply. I don't care about the 20 forms of punk or 50 of metal or whatever else. So really, I don't have any main preference... other than the fact that most of what I listen to generally fits in the "rock" category. Industrial, punk, metal, hard rock, classic rock... whatever. I also listen to classical, electronica, some hip hop and country and other things. [b]What are your favorite bands?[/b] Hmm... The Top 5 are: The Pixies, Marilyn Manson, Nine Inch Nails, David Bowie and Queens of the Stone Age. Otherwise... The Toadies, At the Drive-In, The Tea Party, The Doors, Led Zeppelin, Curve, Down, Dream Theater, Jack Off Jill, Scarling, The Flaming Lips, Beck, Apocalypse Hoboken, AFI, Bad Religion, godhead, 12 Rounds, Prick, The Cure, Rasputina, Deathcab for Cutie, Deadsy, System of a Down, The Breeders, Hendrix, Cibo Matto, Tool, Nirvana, White Stripes, The Cars, The Police, Phil Collins, Butter 08, G-Love and Special Sauce, NERD and so forth. [b]Why do you like them?[/b] This would take three years to explain. For the Top 5 itself, it's mostly just the fact that I think the final products they put out generally transcend the boundaries put before them. Bowie is basically a rock god, and Trent Reznor of NIN has pushed music in general along farther than most anyone realizes. He was doing some things before other bands even dreamed of it, while simultaneously making industrial in general actually acceptable compared to groups like Ministry. The Pixies, to me, are simply among the creators the whole alternative sound. Very few realize the impact they had in this day, outside of the bands themselves. It's quite a shame that they are falling into the shadows. Marilyn Manson has just always appealed to me. The lyrics are some sort of bizarre poetry, the music is enjoyable and oftentimes beautiful(Mechanical Animals is simply amazing if you like Bowie in any way). They really have to be thanked for at least bringing the show back to rock. Prior to this you'd get to see a few guys sitting in chairs whining at you. I don't seem to have anyone here at OB to really discuss the sound or lyrics with, but they are really full of a lot of meaning. And as for Queens of the Stone Age... I personally just think they are the probably the best hard rock band there is right now. Songs for the Deaf is amazing, especially when the music finally clicks for you and you can get lost in it. Their past stuff is also excellent, although a bit more offbeat really. They also have some great videos, especially the recent Go with the Flow.

I realize there is a wink face at the end of his posts. However, after hearing this same crap week in and week out, I cannot be the only person who thinks he obviously believes what he is saying, however small it may be. You could load it up with as many winks and :D faces as you want. There is obviously some truth in it, or he wouldn't bother saying it... especially considering the stuff said today is the same crap I've heard in the past several times over. My step-father does this same crap and I simply cannot stand it. The posts I see are always laced with some sort of jab or insult. Perhaps people see this as wit, and I can understand that... However, this crap adds up, and after awhile it gets under people's skin. I don't even think most of these comments are even directed at me, but that's besides the point. I know for a fact a good deal of people here don't appreciate it and their feelings and complaints are more of a concern to me than anything I personally think about anyone here. It's part of the job. It feels like I read all these posts and then because there is a wink at the end I'm supposed to laugh because it wasn't serious. I'm sorry, but I simply don't buy that. Saying all this crap and then suddenly "Oh yeah, I'm kidding." It seems more like covering someone's *** than anything else. As for the threads that do get closed... Seriously, how many times do we have to hear the same two points on a subject? The religion threads could be interesting, and often are at first... until they sink into some pointless abyss of arguments and two sides that will never, ever agree. It's pointless and leads to more problems than anything. Same with anything else that's closed in general. I admit, I definitely [b]do not[/b] agree with some rules and actions that are in practice here... but I do understand why they are. There have been many times when I don't get why a thread was closed or why someone took some post in some offensive way (perhaps like I am now, in a sense... although I'm not really offended personally). You just never know what might happen. Anywayyyy... I'm hardly trying to start an argument here, but I don't think some people here have any right to point any fingers at all. I have a feeling most of the people who complain about this place being too strict are people with poor post quality and generally useless topics. There are tons of exceptions I know... but the people who seem to complain the most, that I personally know, have zero right to even open their mouths. I have no real loyalty to anyone here. I don't suck up. I like James and Charles because they are genuinely good people who are trying to do their jobs here. James, perhaps, comes off a bit more serious than he does in any situation outside of here... as do I. As for Charles, I don't know how he has [i]EVER[/i] done anything to make anyone think something bad about him. He has dealt with every situation the best way he could and any of his "ego" is tongue in cheek nonsense. I've talked to both enough about so many different topics to know that some of the opinions on these two is far off base. Besides, none of the mods get anything. We don't get paid. We don't get some sort of nice little bonus. Instead, we get to clean up tons of problems for little to no real reward, get random PMs about who knows what, IMed by people you don't even know - some of which are great, some of which are nearly insane. So really, forgive someone for acting out once in awhile. The times you see a mod get annoyed quickly with someone could be due to them having to deal with some jerk five minutes prior that you have no idea about. The other day I had to delete 15 posts of spam and some other nonsense from one person. I've gone off on a person in the Zelda forum simply because I couldn't take anymore of the BS that was being posted in the Gaming and Series forums at the time. It can be very aggrivating in many, many senses. I know there are mods here that have dealt with this on almost a near constant basis. I've not been a super mod enough to really know yet. I mean, really, I've even been harassed and banned by a member that somehow managed to get into mod accounts. Do you see me being an jerk to all of you about it? I'd say not. However, when you have all this stuff just piling up for something that you basically receive absolutely nothing for, other than some kind comments at times, you try being perfect with the rules and sweet as candy to everyone. I've wanted to quit this place a few times, and I know most every other mod has as well. I am not saying that members should be cool about a mod being a jerk or going beyond what they should (and even then, there are ways to deal with it)... I'm just saying that the people who do complain need to understand a bit more about what is actually going on. I certainly do the same for many members here when they do something out of the ordinary. It's a give and take relationship in a sense. The mods aren't robots, and you just cannot expect to control their personalities in the name of appeasing every person that comes here. We all have different backgrounds and upbringings and perspectives on every damn thing that happens here. I don't know how anyone could expect much better than how this place is currently going, especially given the target age group and topics. Have some of you been to similiar boards? There's barely even a comparison. Whatever though. Everyone has their right to complain about it. I'd like to see some other posts from people saying they have problems with the mods here. I'm sure there are tons, but they'll probably never say for their own reasons. Saving face, not wanting to get attacked by some random moron. If people here can't stand me, I'd rather they just right out said it. I wouldn't hold a grudge about it. I'd rather I was told straight than have to read posts that take jabs at me or try to take me on or whatever else (and there have been a few of them that I have noticed). Anyway, whatever. If people really didn't want you to speak your mind here this thread would have been closed near instantly. If you really think you'd be banned over saying you have problems with this place, I think you just are exaggerating how strict this place really is. If anything, it is fairly lenient... otherwise people like Vesser3 or whoever else wouldn't have been given as many chances as they were. Sorry about the length of this.

Do you pull this "adult" card every time you have something to say? It's more juvenile than any argument that has been presented against you. I agree with many of your points to a large degree. I think a few of the mods here do go beyond the line due mostly to egos or their time spent here (but some of the people you mention as such are rather uninformed). It's a seniority issue. However, I am very tired of seeing people here thrown into cliché groupings by several other here. I have to say I've seen Shy and James act in a more mature manner than I've [i]ever[/i] seen you act, despite your many attempts to wax Shakespeare and pull so many ideas out of your hat at once that it confuses most everyone here. It seems like most agree simply because they have no idea what your point is. A good example is half of the Newbie Lounge thread. You could have presented your ideas in such a concise form compared to that, but you didn't for a reason. I think that reason is that you know if you put out so much that people will barely skim it or these simple minded teenagers (who I've seen you basically call right out stupid and ignorant - very ironic) will simply go along with it... Firstly, they have no idea how to argue against you. And the secondly, they want to look smart by agreeing with something with lots of big words and anecdotes, even if they don't quite get it. I, for one, am very tired of many of the implications by you and a few others here that nearly everyone else here is stupid. I certainly don't appreciate it, and I do not appreciate the sly and purposely hidden insults to many of the members you make here on a constant basis. I, personally, have absolutely no real problems with you. I admit to disagreeing with you in the past, but I hardly dislike you to a high degree... but I'm sorry, this constant crap you pull is simply ridiculous. Especially some of this crap about people like James closing things or avoiding certain issues. Perhaps it has some slight truth in it, but it's more like you see yourself as the one true sane voice here. The only one that truly knows what's going on. A messiah for all the common folk. Give me a break. As for the REAL, issue at hand. I don't feel like addressing it at this point. Some mods are jerks, some members are jerks. Welcome to the world, where people have different personalites that others simply cannot control. I dare you to find many other boards that work any differently, regardles of their target age group. I might have more to say about that later. It depends on how this goes.

I've not seen it in quite a while at this point now, but I thought it was an amazingly good movie. The storyline is just so well setup. They get you pulled in from the start. You want to know what's in the envelope. You want to know what Cy (I think that's the spelling) actually [i]did[/i]. Robin Williams acted the part perfectly. I'm glad he is branching out. He really can give off a very creepy vibe. My favorite part [spoiler]is when you see him in the family's house. You are lead to believe he shouldn't be there, and then the family walks in and they both just stare at eachother. You're thinking "oh crap," because at this point you don't know if he is imagining it or really in there. Then they all just start talking like they've known eachother all their lives, and it cuts back to him sitting in his car dreaming.[/spoiler] I really liked it.

Did you play the action and puzzle modes on their hardest settings? It made a big difference in SH2. I've not played the game yet... although I do own the demo. It lets you run around as far as you can during a 20 minute time limit. Seemed mostly like more of the same, which isn't bad... I love this series. I'm very surprised at your graphics comment though. SH3 is amazing looking. You can actually turn off that grain filter and see it for what it is... it just looks gorgeous. Even in areas where you can actually see all around you and it's not pitch black. The character models in the game are simply outstanding. I think it's a bit ahead of any other survival horror game out currently (especially with the RE games being mostly prerendered). The only thing I've seen giving it a run for its money so far are Ghost Hunter and RE4 (which is one of the best looking games I've ever seen, to be honest). I'm disappointed to hear it's that short though.

I think it's pretty much agreed by most everyone, other than extreme Metallica fans that seem think they can never mess up, that the CD is really weak. I'm certainly not impressed with it. I can't even bring myself to finish it. It's just really weird. You know that there is no way they forgot to play and write good songs, but at the same time why in the world would they be doing this on purpose? Some of it simply does not sound right musically. I can understand the "I'm madly in anger with you" line, as I guess they're replacing "love" with "anger," but it still sounds incredibly stupid. I don't think they'll ever live that one line down heh. I've seen so many people harp on it already. I really like the cover art though. Reminds me of something EMEK would do.

Puressuresed? I don't even know what the hell that means. How that looks anything like "pressured," I have no idea. It doesn't even sound the same if you attempt to pronounce it. [b]Happiest[/b]: I cannot think of one special moment at all. I was very happy when I was dating this one girl that I really did love a great deal. That has since fallen apart, and I wouldn't even call us friends at this point sadly... even though we promised eachother it would never come down to that. I think I'll shut up because this is just turning into a sad moment lol. I'm always happiest when I finish a project I've been working on for some time. Like a site or something else. Of course, a week later I don't care about it and move on to something else. I also think when I'm talking to my friends Ashley or Manny I am really totally content for the most part. Ashley especially, because her and I simply have deeper conversations more often than Manny and I do (despite us being best friends, it's usually on a totally different level). I love both of them a great deal. [b]Pressured(?)[/b]: I honestly cannot think of a situation I've ever been forced into that I think was a big deal. I've never been pressured into drugs or alcohol or even just a normal everyday event, other than stupid random crap by my family. [b]Saddest[/b]: I've had a few. I don't really rank events in my life, so I'll just list them in no particular order. - When my dad died. I was about 7 or 8 years old, and it was shortly before my birthday. He died in a motorcycle accident, but for some reason I still have a fond attachment to the things thanks to growing up around them. My sister and I were adopted by my step father a couple years later. - Breaking up with the girl I mentioned earlier. I think it really just wasn't meant to be. We were both working and in college, and she lived 8 hours south of where I lived. There just was no time to ever see eachother, especially because she didn't drive at the time. Her and I started as normal friends that met here in Chicago, but it kind of developed into a lot more of a meaningful friendship over the phone and internet. I wound up visiting her several months later, and we decided to finally just get together. We were together about seven months before we decided we just couldn't do it anymore. It was too hard, especially considering he is a rather depressed person who needs someone near her. I just don't think it was right to do that to her.... We only got to see eachother three times over the course of those seven months. - When Pogo died. Pogo was a white rat with black spots, kind of like a cow. She was named after the keyboardist in Marilyn Manson (Madonna Wayne Gacy, aka Pogo), my favorite member of the band. I just came home one day and she was in her cage lying there. I always have these fears that my pets are dead when they are sleeping, so I tapped on the cage... and nothing. I finally just tried nudging her and still nothing. So I had to get rid of her, obviously. Definitely the best pet I have ever had. We'd sit at the computer and she'd sit on my shoulder or on top of my head. She was completely cage trained and just an overall amazing animal. Worth my four dollars. - I don't know if this is the saddest, or just a case of me totally over reacting. I think I was actually talking to Jenna when it happened, so she might remember this (was it you? lol). My ferret, Kit, had some cut under her collar. So I tried taking it off, but I couldn't. Somehow, over a short time, she had messed with the collar so much that it digged into her skin. The fur was mostly gone and the cuts were healing onto the collar itself. I finally got the thing off and washed all her cuts... She's totally healed at this point, but at the time I was nearly hysterical. I don't think I ever felt as bad about something as I did that day in my entire life.

First impressions mean nearly [i]everything[/i] to me. There are potentially millions of people I could know or spend time with, in just Chicago alone. If there isn't a good first impression, I generally won't pursue any sort of relationship with you at all. There's always something else to do, and I'm not going to waste my time with someone I think will not turn out to be someone worth the time. I feel strongly about that for mainly one reason... When I meet someone, I get a feeling about the person. It's generally just a good feeling or a bad feeling. The good feeling is at varying degrees, but if I get a bad feeling it's really strong. I tend to not spend time with these people if I can avoid it, even if every one in the world tells me they are a great person or even their actions say otherwise. It probably sounds crazy, but I do not have one experience in my life where my feeling didn't turn out to be true. Of course, people will be like "You didn't like him at the start, so you made sure you would never like him." or something to that effect. That's simply not true. I let the relationship go where it wants to. I've even given these people a chance... and even if things were going moderately well for a while, the person winds up betraying me or doing something horrible to a good friend or something equally as bad. My first impression winds up being true... whereas people I felt good about from the start always tend to work out. Sure, there are problems along the way, but it ends up being a decent friendship at the very least. So really, because of all my experiences with it... I stick with my gut instinct nearly 100% of the time with very, very few exceptions. Maybe someday I'll met someone who will go against it, but it has yet to happen. So, yes, they mean a lot to me. Otherwise, for me personally, I have no idea what sort of first impression I give. In person, people tell me I look pissed off a good deal of the time if they don't know me. However, I'm usually very upbeat and personable if the person actually speaks to me.

Hittokiri's ([url]http://www.otakuboards.com/attachment.php?s=&postid=405170[/url]) is sweet. Despite there apparently being problems with it (I just skimmed all these posts), I think it's definately the best one here in the end. I have too many problems with some of the others... Otherwise, I like the one Nomad just posted and Kaisuke's orangey one. There were a couple others I liked, but many seemed either too cluttered or color faded.

The Ataris have quite of songs that don't involve girls. Quite a bit that are actually pretty heavy and would appeal to most punk fans in general. Of course, this was years and years ago. I don't think they've ever really been as heavy as they were on that old 7" with Elvis Was a Skinhead. Either way, I always considered them more of a pop punk band... they interest me to a larger extent than most others I stick in that grouping. Of course, the Ramones are basically a pop punk band, so perhaps sticking some of the current stuff in that grouping is giving them more credit than they deserve heh. Either way, I like the Ataris. Blue Skies, Broken Hearts is a fun CD and I can't think of much wrong with it. Of course, if you're a freak about genres and what belongs and what doesn't... you'll probably have a problem with them. Personally, I don't give a **** about that stuff and enjoy them anyway. And it's true, I'd say, what has happened with The Ataris. A lot of people had dismissed them with very little knowledge about them. Hell, if I heard only their most recent CD... I'd probably think they sucked too. The production on it is too high, and they took all the distinction out of Kris Roe's voice. Instead of being a band that has been at this stuff for years (even before the current crop of popular "punk"/"emo" bands), they are being stuffed into a group that basically looks at them as yet another "The" band or crappy "punk" flavor of the month. It's really a shame I think. Personally, I don't think the idea of what genre a band is should affect your enjoyment of the band. There are plenty of fusion genres at this point, so I don't even see how it matters. If you don't like the sound, that's cool. I don't see how what genre people want to stuff it in matters in terms of that. People seemed more concerned with image than they are with sound lately, and it really bothers me. Punk fans are actually way up there in terms of that... perhaps beaten only by hip hop fans that need to own any brand of shoes or clothing some star has. I'd probably put some goths up in there as well lol.

Bang and Mary's flight had, for the most part, been very uneventful. The only point of interest was an argument between two of the bizarre looking mushroom people over a bag of airline peanuts. He had already lost sight of the karate guy... mostly because of his day dreams involving the time he'd rather be spending at the beach he had been at just yesterday. The Mushroom Kingdom was a very long way from home. The plane was almost at its destination according to the pilot's recent annoucement. Bang sighed and looked out the plane's side window. The area itself looked rather peaceful. Mostly rolling hills and plains dotted by small houses. He could make out a large castle in the distance, with a rather bright red roof. He assumed it was their final destination, since afterall, they had been invited to this festival by one of the Princess's personal servants. A short time later, the plane finally pulled into the airport. People emptied out of it rather quickly, and Mary grabbed Bang's hand and pulled him in the general direction of the baggage claim. Mary was far more excited than Bang was to be here, as this was not her first visit. She was childhood friends with Princess Toadstool (who she referred to as Peach), although Bang wasn't so sure that the Princess even really remembered who Mary was. It had been a really long time. They hurried past the various gift shops, one of which caught Bang's eye. It looked an awful lot like the stores back home where he got his various supplies on his last mission. He didn't get much more than a glance at it though, as Mary kept pulling him. They finally arrived at the baggage claim, and Bang grabbed the one suitcase he bothered to bring with. Mary, for whatever reason, brought several bags despite them only staying a few days. Bang didn't bother to argue it though since this was his vacation time. He didn't want to deal with such trivial things. They made their way to the exit, dodging all the mushroom-hatted people who were running around. Bang walked through the automatic sliding doors, and was blinded by the sudden brigtness. It had been nearly 20 hours since either of them had been in the sunlight. As his eyes adjusted Bang could hear the screaming and running of crowds of people in every direction. He cursed under his breath. His vacation was already ruined, and they had only been here for 15 minutes. He felt someone touch his shoulder. It was Mary. "Bang, a representive from the castle is here to bring us to our room... We should hurry up before we get lost in the confusion." Bang just stood there, staring into the crowds of people scurrying about the area. His thoughts were conflicted; he wanted to know what was going on, but at the same time he didn't want to get involved. This was his vacation, and he would be damned if this one was messed up just like the last. The representative shook Bang's hand and introduced himself as Captain Falcon. Bang looked him up and down a few times... [i]He sure is dressed weird... We're not in a race. And hat the hell is up with those gold nipple guards.[/i] He kept these thoughts to himself and loaded up the back of the vehicle. Captain Falcon hurried them in, obviously concerned about the events happening all around them. "Make sure you buckle your seatbelts, it's quite a ride." Captain Falcon said as he laughed to himself. Just as Bang clicked his into place, the vehicle shifted into gear and they took off at a high rate of speed. Mary was obviously enjoying herself, listening intently as Captain Falcon explained that his racer was even faster and told short stories about his adventures in Mute City. Bang was not amused... his thoughts were still on what was going on outside. As the sped off, he watched the crowds outside. He saw a fox and someone in a metallic suit arguing as a cloud of dust and smoke settled around them. The person in the suit looked an awful lot like the Samus character he had read about back home, but there was something different about her. He didn't recognize the fox. They kept on, nearing the area where the crowds seemed to be running from. He could see a lone figure walking towards the castle... With Samus and the fox close behind. They had apparently resolved their argument and were bent on stopping the man who had since unsheathed his blade. "Who is that guy?" Bang asked. "Sephiroth." replied Captain Falcon rather calmly, given the situation. "The matter will probably be resolved shortly. Let's just worry about getting you to the castle's quarters right now." Bang leaned back into his seat as they neared the fight. Sephiroth looked toward their vehicle and locked eyes with Bang for a brief time. It sent a slight shiver down his spine, and he turned away... Captain Falcon kept on driving, leaving the fight between Sephiroth, Samus and the fox in the distance behind them.

It's Nostradamus and the plural of prophecy is prophecies. Anyway, no, I don't particularly believe them. As you said, most could be twisted to fit quite a few events... but even so, I do find them interesting. Especially whatever people actually apply them to that actually makes some sense. And in terms of the Bible... I don't find it any more accurate than things said by Mohammad. It's all relative really, and honestly a good deal of what people take from the Bible now has been turned around to fit current needs anyway. That said, I really hope this doesn't turn into yet another Bible debate.

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Manic [/i] [B]Most anime fans that I've met IRL were either Caucasian or Asian. I don't meet very many African-American anime fans, except for online. Apparently we exist, but I've only met one IRL, and I'm related to him.[/B][/QUOTE] That's really surprising, mostly because at my college it seems there are a large amount of black males that are into anime. More so than any other race in the school from my experience.

I wonder what this is for heh... Hmm. My favorite videogame music has always been from Earthbound. It's so quirky and entertaining, especially some of the later areas. I loved that game. It's closely followed by nearly anything in the Dragon Quest/Dragon Warrior games. Koichi Sugiyama is my favorite composer ever. Anime... I have no preference.

I'll run the club from afar. I think that's the best thing to do. You could go to the country and be my local representative or something. I don't think I could handle living in that country... sounds like grade school all over again heh.