Archive for the ‘Pax Ganelonia’ Category
January 1st, 2010 | 
Author: Charles Krauthammer’s take on the Obama administrations handling of our national security is spot on.
IMO, it is not even defensible by the left that Barry’s entire Ivory Tower view is anything other than a fraud and suicidal. The academia mind-set of world affairs is WRONG. It ignores first principles…which is not harmony and social “progress”. It is national defense which allows all the virtues of an enlightened society. That “enlightenment” doesn’t create the foreign policies. It is teh security of a strong foreign policy that allows the luxury of academic fancies.
This is all quite mad even in Obama’s terms. He sends 30,000 troops to fight terror overseas, yet if any terrorists come to attack us here, they are magically transformed from enemy into defendant.
The logic is perverse. If we find Abdulmutallab in an al-Qaeda training camp in Yemen, where he is merely preparing for a terror attack, we snuff him out with a Predator — no judge, no jury, no qualms. But if we catch him in the United States in the very act of mass murder, he instantly acquires protection not just from execution by drone but even from interrogation.
The president said that this incident highlights “the nature of those who threaten our homeland.” But the president is constantly denying the nature of those who threaten our homeland. On Tuesday, he referred five times to Abdulmutallab (and his terrorist ilk) as “extremist(s).”
A man who shoots abortion doctors is an extremist. An eco-fanatic who torches logging sites is an extremist. Abdulmutallab is not one of these. He is a jihadist. And unlike the guys who shoot abortion doctors, jihadists have cells all over the world; they blow up trains in London, nightclubs in Bali and airplanes over Detroit (if they can); and are openly pledged to war on America.
The Dallas Morning News has a great article about how the video game industry has filled the void Hollywood has left on entertainment which extolls the virtues of the American Military.
Hollywood churned out dozens of in-the-trenches, pro-America extravaganzas such as Wake Island and Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo while World War II was being fought.
But the portrayal of the U.S. military during its current engagements has been more subdued and even critical.
Game makers have stepped into the breach. And they’re making huge bucks crafting patriotic entertainment pieces for which the movie industry used to be famous.
Most notable of the new virtual epics is Modern Warfare 2 and its predecessor, both from California-based publisher Activision Blizzard Inc.
Activision’s top executive made it clear where the company stands when he announced an endowment to help military veterans find jobs.
“Business leaders have an opportunity to … reverse an alarming trend of not recognizing the sacrifices made by the men and women of our military service,” CEO Robert Kotick said.
Years ago, back before White Wolf released the Vampire the Masquerade to legions of Proto-Emos and Anne Rice wrung every homoerotic fantasy out of her twisted little brain, vampires were monsters. They were The Bad Things to Avoid and were clearly a thing you did not want to become. They were demonic metaphors for Satan… a liar who bewitches to spread his own damnation. And his minions ate bugs! How grody is that?
Ah… the good old days.
"I want my two dollars!"
The days when creepy dead kids would float outside your window, whispering to you to open it and invite them in.
Back then, you were pretty damn sure that seriously f*cked up sh*t would go down if you opened that window. Hell, I had nightmares about that evil kid, and every scratch sound from my window kept me up at night. In those day vamps were things to be terrified of. They would murder you… and becoming one meant the REAL you… your mind and soul… would be destroyed and replaced by an evil spirit that would likely kill everyone you loved. Your mom, your wife… your kids.(even babies)
Tags: Jonah Goldberg has a great post over at National Review Online about the Climate email scandal. Clock on over to read the whole thing, but here are a few salient points:
In a long string of embarrassing e-mail exchanges, CRU scientists discuss with friendly outside colleagues, including Penn State University’s Michael Mann, how to manipulate the data they want to show the world, and how to hide the often-flawed data they don’t. In one exchange, they discuss the “trick” of how to “hide the decline” in global temperatures since the 1960s. Again and again, the researchers don’t object to just inconvenient truths but also inconvenient truth-tellers. They contemplate and orchestrate efforts to purge scientists and journals who won’t sing from the same global-warming hymnal.
In one instance, Phil Jones, the CRU director, says a scientific journal must “rid (itself) of this troublesome editor,” who happened to publish a problematic paper. In another, Jones says we “will keep them out somehow — even if we have to redefine what the peer-review literature is!”
These documents reveal the trick behind how they hide the dissent. Climate-change activists often dismiss critics by noting that the skeptics haven’t offered their arguments in peer-reviewed literature. Hence why they work so hard to keep dissenters out of the literature! Indeed, whatever the final verdict on the CRU’s shenanigans, two things are already firmly established by even a sympathetic reading of these documents.
And when you loss the Daily Show…
Happy Thanksgiving!
It’s been a long time since I gave this subject any thought, but as part of my scholarly journey into objective comparative theology, I spent a good deal of time studying cultural metaphysics and the occult as viewed from various religious traditions.
I believe think a conclusion that there are events and energies behind what we call “haunting” and/or “possession” is a fair intellectual pursuit… as are the nature of these events and energies open for equally fair debate.
In then end, as a more rational thinker… I cannot commit to any of these suppositions as part of my world view. Regardless of that fact, Demonology is a tantalizing and even entertaining line of study for a genre geek like me, so I put together a reflection on the research I did.
Supernatural events are reported to follow a system of progression. In the following post, I will highlight the 5 stages of Demonic or Spiritual Influence.
In this video, we see a National Geographic photographer meeting face to face with a huge Leopard seal.
I’m cutting Fallen Earth a lot of technical slack as it is an indie game that is working to get it’s act together and offer something new and unique.
Creating the Character
The character creator was similar to that of Guild Wars, but with a bit more refinement to each options. Generally speaking, I was able to make my character distinct and personal… which is all anyone can ask for.
Tutorial
I found it to be very intriguing and entertaining. It threw me into the game world and did so in a very well made environment (the bowels of Hoover Dam).
The combat was similar to that of Hellgate London… a mix of FPS and RPG. Entertaining… but not deep. Again… this is just the tutorial. I expect ore details when other elements, such as crafting, mutations and level abilities are added to the tactical mix.
The “mount” I was able to use was a ATV and it was well done, IMO. Excellent responses, but more of an arcade type of physics than “realism” or simulation.
Starter Zone
After the tutorial, I picked my starter city and got some exploration in. The graphics look a few years old, but the game world design is well done. It’s not the magnificently rendered desolation of Fallout 3…but it is it’s little brother. I kind of reminds me of Star Wars Galaxy, but with vastly superior terrain designs.
I enjoyed the experience enough to want to learn more about what lies ahead so I can give it more than a glancing appraisal. I’ll comb the forums for some directions, because my newb gear is no where near as fun as the tutorial stuff… and I want to approach this wold well-healed.
Note: Technically speaking, the game has some obvious glitches and graphic anomalies. There was occasional rubber-banding of mobs that broke immersion. I’ve also heard reports of patching troubles. I had to download hours of content before getting started, so I can understand the frustration if you did so… and found you had to do it again because of some unreported installation failure after the fact.
This is the $20,000 indie flick that could.
The premise is simple: A young day trader buys a video camera to try and record “paranormal activity” that is graduate student girlfriend has been telling him about. He zealously records conversations about these events, taking the whole thing as a bit of light adventure. His girlfriend is more serious about it as these events scare her and she ultimate just wants them to stop. The main story takes place in these video clips, as well as the very stirring and effective nighttime shots where the camera is left on overnight to monitor them while they sleep… and the activities predominantly occur. As the couple give more attention to the activities, they intensify into oppression.
Comparisons to The Blair Witch Project are apt, in that the film reports to be video evidence that was found by authorities after the fact of the events. The entire film is presented as an archive of real recordings, and for the most part…does a good job in maintaining that level of immersion. While watching the film, I never think of script, direction or acting. It’s very organic and I think most people would view it as if it were made live and with real people who are experiencing he plot, not re-enacting it.
The movie starts out slow, but once we begin with the “Activity”…it becomes engrossing. This is a movie that uses sound… and the absence of sound, most effectively. I found the film to be quite chilling…literally, hair raising. The bedroom scenes are absolutely immersive… you really get into the vulnerability of sleeping people…especially with an unknown menace lurking in the darkness.
Regardless of the chills, Paranormal Activity is not a perfect film. A very regrettable scene with a Ouija board was an odd man out. When you see it, you will know what I mean. The beginning is slower than I think warranted, and the whole feels slightly out of pace. The male lead comes off as kind of a douche-bag… but I think the role called for it. Even so, he was at times unpleasant to watch. The ending was acceptable and even appropriate… but somehow I am not satisfied with it. I do admit it is a better ending than Blair Witch.
I think this is a great flick to see with the significant other… it is scary and leaves you unsettle, much like the end of The Ring. I was most definitely aware of every sound my house made that night… that has to count for something.
