Walsingham

What about editions of National Geographic? Or somesuch? Nothing says 1950s to me like National Geographic. Or if you insist on being fuuuutuuuure it could be something like Intriguing Tales!

Me too. He may be bonkers, but his heart is often in the right place.

I have to say that I concurwith Shryke. Sometimes it is pleasing to cut through convention and mix white wine with rum, cricket with samba dancing, that sort of thing.

I don't think McCarthy was correct, but he was far from mental. Look at the way Communism was spread in Europe including Britain and you see a vanguard of communist agitators and thinkers paving the way. Just have a listen to the fellah in my sig. But this is my point. We can't even agree on whether there were or weren't communist infiltrators. A clearly observable - if not necessarily observed - fact. I'm not suggesting we don't talk about McCarthy, just that kids would be best served by being taught HOW to make up their minds. ASIDE: If a mosquito lands on the back of your neck do NOT swat it as hard as you want to. Ow. Ow. Ow.

Isn't there a book of sci fi on this subject? I think it's called The Trouble with Lichen.

Too cheap to stump up for a new copy! I dug this one out of my friend's attic. The jabberwock has a moustache drawn on it in faded pencil.

I happen to like a challenge, and the metro tunnels were nothing if not a challenge. I have just finished my fourth playthrough and I still have only the vaguest grasp of them. Surely that's a good thing?

I think an anecdote may serve, as has just come back to me. In sixth form (age 17-18) we had one of our shinier teachers sit us down in front of a panel of "visiting experts" to "discuss" abortion. What we got shown was very quickly identified as ran anti-abortion propaganda. The result was a furious an insulted rebuttal of each point by a cross-section of students which went far beyond the time allotted and into class time - something which never happened ever. The point wasn't that we'd been pro-abortion indoctrinated and we were far from liberal in most cases. What saved us from accepting barefaced lies (for example the procedure they described was twenty years out of date as one trainee nurse pointed out) was our critical faculties. Honed in our politics, history, philosophy and science lessons, and further sharpened by exposure to genuinely great spekaers like Douglas Hurd and Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Not to mention a first class school library. I'd like to aim for that raw capability rather than focus on facts first. Although I should say that cognitive ability appears to be closely linked to experience storing, retrieving and manipulating subject specific data. So i'm not saying we should abandon physics and just teach philosophy.

I was going to stand corrected on the respawning enemies thing. It's really just raiders, and wandering monsters. Every other bastard stays dead. EDIT: Enclave respawn but they get flown in, so I don't mind so much. And no-one knows where all the super mutants come from so that's fine too.

I think I follow you, Orogun. And its' got me thinking. Surely the purpose of state education is practical. Its not about Truth. It's about giving people common skills and toa lesser degree creating a shared intellectual context for communication. Therefore I'd ask: given the shocking lack of literacy and numeracy in many children is is appropriate to spend ANY time on ANY theories of creation. Even assuming we wish to tacke larger issues in school, would it not make more sense to teach the mechanical process of logical reasoning than merely indoctrinate? Again, just thoughts occurring to me now.

I'm refereeing a game of old skool (1980s ed) Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay (WHFRP) and I thought I'd lay out the campaign as it unfolds as a resource for other GMs. I'll try and describe each but with specific colour, but with broader themes highlighted. PLEASE DO MAKE SUGGESTIONS if you think of any way to throw in new characters and subplots. Note that I'm startintg with only one PC, and I'm deliberately going to work others in as we go along as a way of building commitment by my mates to the game sessions. ~~~ Stage 1 - 1 PC - Estalia, Irrana Mountains, some 100 miles of difficult terrain southeast of the port of Bilbali WHFRP doesn't let you choose most bits about your character, you roll them so my first player had no choice but to surprise me with a youngish dwarf of sinister disposition who was nonetheless an initiate in the cult of Grungni Dwarven God of mining. I chose the location because I wanted to break away from the classic Warhammer Old World and I'd read For Whom The Bell Tolls quite recently along with a bunch of Spanish Civil War history. The Estalian kingdom is as far west and away from 'official' chaos and goblins as you can get. Politically we're talking pre-Imperial Spain. Geographically we're talking hot dry dusty lands with some fertile valleys. Easy GM territory thanks to limited settlements. The game begins in a dwarven mining colony of some 200 souls. Background for the colony is that they were instructed to set up and colonise an area far from goblin/chaos incursions as a strategic move. They've been in residence only a few generations, but have quarried out the soft sandstone and made a couple of large halls, a chapel, and various dwellings. They trade with local human communities for basic foodstuffs in exchange for building skills, smithying, and copper jewellery. They send shipments of stone building blocks down hill to meet up with the large river where blocks are sent to Bilbali for building. They also have enough material mined to make bronze utensils and fitting for armour, like hinges and rivets, which they also sell. Politically the chief of the clan and his cadre of warriors are aloof, and effective. But the heart of the community is the old priest who is the PC's mentor. He strictly observes all tenets of his faith, including regularly inspecting the mine workings, and checking safety standards. ~ The adventure begins on a feast day. The snows have finally melted past the entrance to the caverns, and to celebrate everyone is indoors letting off steam. The PC is greeted on waking with a sweet but leathery apple and instructed to have fun. The apple, it seems, has come as a gift from the nearby human village in a very astute display of friendship along with a variety of other preserved fruit. Although only a few dwarves are already drinking almost all of them will be tanked up by the afternoon. Most are sharing food, embracing, and singing. Many have brought out private crafts which they have been working on all winter: weapons, armour, clothing, pottery. They will sell these to other dwarves at a bargain rate, and our PC buys a helmet, warhammer, and colourful wool cloak in white, green, and red. He takes part in two arm wrestling matches, but eschews the races on foot seeing participants stripping off naked. He also see the older dwarevs playing a game like chess, which he suggests altering to have drinking between rounds, like chess boxing. People like his suggestion (having passed a intelligence and fellowship test), but failing a leadership test, no one actually tries it. He gets XP. He gets drunk. He passes out. ~ The next day he is woken gruffly by his senior and told that he will be taking a cartload of presents in return to the village. 30 loaves of twice baked bread, two boxes of iron nails, and a handful of pottery urns. It is explained that in order for the dwarves to give a gift it HAS to be given by a priest. Otherwise it forms an unspoken contract of obligation. It shows how appreciative the dwarves were of the fruit that he is being sent. A myriad other pieces of advice are given him, along with the cart, goods, and small shaggy pony. He is expected to arrive at the village mid afternoon, and stay the night with them. Setting out the sky is wide open and blue in an unsettling way for a dwarf. It is sunny, and irritatingly hot (for someone used to living under a rock), but cooled by breezes. The path runs alongside a small stream, the two communities share, flanked by high vegetation and trees. Mildly disoriented he fails two initiative checks and is pounced on by a starving wolf! Fortunately the wolf misses, and the other two wolves fail their cool rolls and don't muster courage to attack. They are all rake thin after winter in the mountains, and appear to have already been in at least one recent fight. The pony, meanwhile crit fails its attack on the wolf, trips over the cart, falls, and snaps its leg. The PC decides aginst fighting and abandons the pony as a means of getting away himself. the wolves feast and let him go. ~ Our PC heads into the village, some hour distant on foot, and explains what's happened. The richest villager gathers his cart and two sons, and goes with the dwarf to the wrecked cart, where they load up the gifts, and come back. There is no sign of the wolves apart from the mutilated pony. All failed challenging intelligence rolls or they'd have noticed that something with a knife had cut some chunks out of the pony. Going back to the village by dusk the dwarf is invited to share a dinner, and most of the village cram into the house of the richest peasant (the one with the cart) and they share round dishes of crumbled up dwarf bread, cheese with nettles, boiled and refried in onions and garlic, mutton sausage, thin red wine, and apple brandy. The elders bore him wth background information on the area, while the young folk flirt inexpertly. It seems the village has six families with a distinct pecking order. The richest one trades goods downstream with his cart and horse. the remainder manage their fruit trees and vineyards on top of small crops of vegetables and hunting the scarce game. Several goatherds work in the area, trading their wares and bringing in information of the surrounding area. All start out disposed to be freindly but teh dwarf fails his fellowship and intelligence test and makes an ass of himself. Although not enough to spoil overall relations. Going outside to relieve himself, the dwarf notices a figure in rags in the shadows clearly fixated on one young human girl with very blonde hair. He pays no notice as the figure backs into the shadows. After dinner the younger folk are sent to their homes to get some sleep for the work in the morning. But the older men stay up to smoke and think and talk and ask questions of the dwarf who is still distressingly too tipsy to answer intelligently. But his good humour makes up for this, and the mood is convivial as the older women clean and sort out who gets which gifts. Suddenly an old woman bursts in an whispers to the third most prestigious family head. He seems unhappy and doesn't want to be bothered, so the woman raises her voice. It seems Lyssandre has not come home. She insists that the men rouse themselves and find her. The dwarf fails his fellowship test so he misses the glances between the men, which suggest she's probably up to no good with one of the young men. But they grab lanterns and head out. ~ Eventually there is a shout of serious alarm, and people rush through the warm night to a chilling sight. On the very edge of one of the orchards, partially drawn into the undergrowth, lies the body of Lyssandre. She has been partly disrobed and stabbed multiple times. A cool check to gain insanity points emphasised the scene quite economically. The dwarf resist the urge to get all crime scene, earning XP, but dscretely looks around the area. He notices that there has been quite a lot of traffic through the undergowth albeit he can't tell how many people or when. The villagers blame each other, and things get heated until one suggests it could be the beggar who has been hanging around. The dwarf needs begging explained to him, and he gets confused, thinking it sounds like a priest. But not being particularly nice he doesn't bother questioning the diagnosis. He offers to stay and protect the women, while the men search, but they insist he goes with the search party since he can see in the dark and they can't. Plus he's the only one who looks like a warrior. A fine rain begins to fall, and the womenfolk wrap up the body with much wailing. ~ The 'chase' through the night is slightly shambolic because nobody is a tracker, but fortunately for them the quarry is sticking to the path, and his feet and stick is very clear. then, as they try to navigate the path near a waterfall the dwarf loses his footing and crashes down on top of the beggar, sending both of them hurtling through a bush and down a scree slope. The dwarf regains his footing as he goes down, but the beggar does not, twists his ankle and lies in a stupor, muttering. While the rest of the chase catches up going the long way down teh dwarf has time to inspect the clearly unthreatening beggar. Intelligence checks reveal all key points: - The beggar only has a stick, not a knife - The beggar is filthy with dirt, but he's not soaked in blood, which he would have been if he'd stabbed the girl - No one actually saw the beggar do anything to the girl - the beggar left the village only shortly before the chase began but the girl could have been murdered hours before. Why wait so long to run? The group assembles and can't agree what should happen. The dwarf points out the flaws in his guilt, but only succeeds in getting them to agree to wait until morning. So they assit teh beggar in walking back up hill to the village. ~ On arrival back at the village they get a shock. Fires are lit outside, and there is much hubbub. It seems that barely ten minutes ago there was a shouted scream, and one of the younger boys disappeared! TO BE CONTINUED

You're all welcome to put heavier items on the camel or the sheep if you buy your own bags.

I thought of something, tho, Cal. I don't mind Communism being taught in schools, even though I think it's gokking insane. The evidence is far more concrete on Communism being terrible, than evolution being correct. As of the last time I studied evolutionary theory properly - and keep in mind I personally think it's absolutely cracking stuff - teh best we could say is that it is helpful in explaining various traits. No-one's actually observed it happening at the species level because it takes too long. And even if we could now it wouldn't PROVE it had happened thousands of years ago. I only just thought of this point, so apologies if it's rubbish.

Just a thought over my morning mango: we could place a naval 'danger zone' around N Korea. Where all NKorean military vessels are liable to unannounced attack. Even if we didn't sink any of them the NKoreans would be obliged to make a deliberate show of putting to sea with a large portion of their fleet, with consequent strain on their support structure. Vessels would wear out, crews become tired. You'd materially damage their naval capability at a time when replacing/resupplying that capability is quite tricky. In exchange for a few words.

I'd like to see anyone trying to teach European history without talking about Religion, Monte! Personally I don't understand this endless risk averse, compensation culture, running in little circles approach to education. I went to public boarding school where the general idea was put kids in rooms with crazed but enthusiastic intellectuals of all stripes (my politics teacher was a Trotskyist, my biology teacher was a hobbit, the head of music was a bit TOO enthusaistic about small boys), under harsh discipline so they were paying attention, and see what happened. The results - excluding all the chaps who have since had irrevocable nervous breakdowns - are salutary in the extreme.

Interesting points all round. But to return to a theme I raised in jest earlier: Surely kids these days get only a tiny fraction of their information from school. Due to a combination of poor school discipline and the titanic information noosphere around them:their social dynamics, culture confrontation with people of other faiths, fashion, TVs, phones, radios, internet blogs, facebook links, viral videos, comedians memes etc etc.

Exactly. I want to bring 'Two Girls One Cup' to Alpha Centauri. Wait. Oh knackers.

Communist rule by committee can make ANWHERE a scarcity environment, Krez. I went to the Seychelles a couple of years ago, and even though limes were literally growing on trees and a key part of the cuisine, the government had still managed to make them a rarity. Couldn't get them anywhere. [The Seychelles isn't called communist, but they are privately; and ignore the Wiki page about free and fair elections] ~~~ Orogun brings up a point I'd been about to raise about change, and the speed of change. I would suggest as a general theory of all systems and organisms that their environment should not change beyond the speed the organism/system can adapt to. Discrepancies will automatically cause problems. Even a transition to a world without any scarcity would provoke social and mental health problems!

Well, fwiiw I like the idea of having to eat and drink. I do it in FO3 just for the sake of roleplaying. Having said that, there is so MUCH food in Fo3 that I have actually started using it to brighten up Megaton. I have a 'lawn' outside my house made of green Blamco mac and cheese cartons, while the pond the bomb sits in is full of Nuka Cola Quantums which gives the town centre a pleasant soothing glow. I should do a screen shot some time.

All it takes to keep a gnome away from home: 2 Belt, soft boots, breeches (1 red 1 green), very floppy velvet beret (not worn, just a reminder on style), cloak, knife sheath, 3 pairs gloves, mittens, 3 tunics, 4 vests, 1 toga (for special ocassions). [12G 6" 1'] 1 well-trained camel at double cost = 100 gp His name is Buckner. At least I assume it's a he. 2 sheep. 4gp Gnome type harnesses for same = 12 gp? Plus some string and tent pegs for the sheep = 1gp ; 2x saddle bags for sheep 10 gp. Total so far = 139G 6" 1' Hooded lantern 7G 2x scroll cases 1G 6" 1 scroll case containing some quite dubious looking soap 1G 1 small oilskin for pitching against side of sheep 5G 1 winter blanket 5" Total so far = 153G 6" Weapons: 2 Nautical harpoons = 40G [ranges 1/10/20/30 - whatever that means] Hemp rope for same = 1 G Horseman's pick = 7G Total so far = 201 gp, 6" I'll keep the rest for when this lot disappears within the first ten minutes of the adventure. Probably as small gems in one of the scroll cases.

I hope to christ you meant to say 'food' shortage. I think the single biggest problem with space exploration is that we are phrasing it as a collective effort. We should make it competitive. Go voortrekker. So nations can claim land on Moon or Mars by having inhabited bases. Total area of land expands from the base for continuous habitation, and drops off if it becomes uninhabited; multiply by population of base. Something like that. Once inhabited for twenty years it becomes fixed and part of China/the US/Russia/Botswana. You'd soon see people get a wriggle on.

Thanks for explaining.

Why am I imagining a cadaverous immortal Stalin, with pincers?

Good bump. I'd been meaning to ask.

I think part of the problem for me is that I can't think of anything we could do to the North Koreans which would be worse than what is already happening to the poor bastards.