BruceVC

No worries Wormie, your advice has been very useful. You dont need to be an expert on the DS franchise to share anecdotal information because that is what I was also looking for Its interesting how even you are learning new things, the game definitely has complexity I am going to be a Pyro, I will keep you guys updated because I am going start on DS tonight after work or tomorrow in the afternoon....I tend to not work Friday afternoon

True but if you read Hurlshots post the kids in his school are wearing the masks correctly so it can be done But I am not sure I understand your point considering the debate we having? Do you personally think kids must wear masks at schools in most of our countries where the virus level is high and spreading like SA, USA, Mexico,Russia, some EU countries, the whole of South America and most of Africa?

I wanted to say, you know what I really like about your post ? When you mention " he bonfire are not close but neither not far away to became frustrated. You just need to explore as much as possible to not miss any shortcuts, which you can and should open " Thats all I ask from any " hardcore " game like DS, I dont want to get frustrated by being sent too far away when I die and I am more prepared to explore and find meaningful shortcuts and learn about the appropriate strategy to fight bosses so I appreciate you not spoiling anything Thanks Bartie, that is also useful information. I literally know nothing about the DS franchise and I know its easy to research and review guides but I also dont want to spoil the surprise of learning in my gaming journey But now you make me ask a question, I was going to become a Pyro after reading your endorsement which sounds perfect for me. I generally play magic users all the time who have some combat skills But then you mention you shouldnt play magic-only on your first playthrough so based on also what Wormie said about the best initial class being " sword and shield " what class would you recommend Oh and I also generally dont replay games like his . If I complete DS1 I will move onto DS2 so if I will probably only play DS1 once what would your class suggestion be ?

This is a good post to summarize how you feel about volo leaving, I know at the end you and him use to argue about certain points but he did use to generalize about things you didnt say and for some reason he became fixated on you and your views on BLM\Antifa which I never thought was fair and accurate to you because not once can I ever recall you saying things like " its okay for Antifa to kill and attack white people " ....or other things he accused you of But yes for me I just want to make sure he is okay in RL, I asked Gorthfuscious in November 2020 if he had heard from volo and he said volo had logged on so at least he was well back then. But I would still like to know nowadays if he is okay

Do you think kids should wear mask in schools in countries that dont have high level of vaccination and have a high virus load like SA and the USA. In the UK for example masks are optional but they seem to have achieved high levels of vaccination and hospitalizations are down so you can understand their ostensibly controversial health decision This debate for me is not about who is right or wrong because of hubris or from a personal perspective, its about the most effective way to end this terrible, insidious global disease So the question of kids wearing masks should be about the science and the direct impact to the virus spread in all our countries ?

Of course I read the article, I would never waste your time by not reading the article and yes I did Google this particular link. That doesnt mean its not credible and I only posted it because of the exact part of the article you posted The article as you posted it clearly says " However, the presence of high viral loads in infected children does increase the concern that children, even those without symptoms, could readily spread the infection to others." Which is why I stated in my post "and how its very likely they can and do spread the virus " .....you will notice I used the word " likely " on purpose So in fact you doing what you accusing me of.....not doing reading properly and not comprehending So there is no issue and their should be no confusion, the article clearly states that there is a risk of kids spreading the virus. I am not sure why you still questioning that point ?

Gromnir dont feel guilty about Volo leaving the forum, its not your fault ....volo didnt even say goodbye and I was disappointed he left. I use to like volo and appreciated some of his comments. I didnt always agree with what he said and how he repeated certain things but he made debatable points at times But you raise an interesting question, who is the oldest active member on this forum? Is it indeed Amentep ...I would be interested in knowing?

Oh stop being so sensitive, of course we enjoy and value your opinion and views....even if they wrong and dont follow the science But you raised something about the WHO and can we question what they say? Firstly I support the WHO because they part of the UN and they one of several institutions that operate within the auspice of all the good work that the UN does like the World Food Program. Some people question the validity and purpose of the UN because they think the UN is just about the UNSC and the reality of veto outcomes, but the veto system does actually work and is necessary Anyway the point being the UN is about many things and almost all of them are about helping countries in times of crisis and disaster so I do support the WHO But they have said several things during this pandemic I dont agree with so its okay to question them on some things, we dont need to automatically believe everything they say about the virus when its been 18 months since the lockdowns started and Corona became a reality. We can see for ourselves the reality of the virus and how to stop the spread and their are proven methods that work So I am still not sure what you saying when you say " kids dont need to wear masks in schools according to WHO " ......you are welcome to say that as long as you not suggesting that kids dont need to wear masks in schools. This is a relatively easy point to understand and that point is " can kids spread the virus and should they therefore wear masks " Yes, yes, yes they should wear masks, you dont need to believe me but here is a good science based article which I would encourage you read to understand the risk to kids and how its very likely they can and do spread the virus https://www.health.harvard.edu/diseases-and-conditions/coronavirus-outbreak-and-kids

No idea, what do you mean? You little tease....now Im blushing

This is a good point and an even better analogy, I am going to use this is going forward in RL discussions The earthquake example is a simple way to explain the speed of vaccine creation

Congratulations, its always nice to lose some weight and feel good about ourselves

You sound surprised ? Dont be, this is the new Taliban and they said they respect human rights.....I heard they cant wait to see their first LGBT marriage

@213374U Yes thanks Elerond, 2133 you wrong about that one Im afraid. Children can and should wear masks at schools especially where their is high virus load. Its common sense but we all acknowledge you cant expect kids to keep them on all the time or really expect them to

Thanks for sharing Wormie, very informative I think I am just going to start playing DS1 and then once I understand more about the mechanics I may have additional questions. What in your opinion is the easiest class for newbies to start on ?

Malc I am so hardcore do you know I only play permadeath in all games .......even in MMO. That is the ONLY way to demonstrate commitment and skill !!!!

https://www.biznews.com/undictated/2021/08/17/covid-19-vaccines-vosloo Gorthfuscious here is the summary of the misinformation repeated by our prominent doctor, this article also includes comments from other global doctors who question the official truth about the virus and vaccines Its long but it will give you a good idea of the " anti-vaccine " argument which the majority of doctors reject

@Wormerine I tell you guys what has put me off playing DS as of yet and I would appreciate peoples opinions. I dont mind reasonable grinding and I dont mind getting killed lots of times in end boss battles but I dont want to die and have to repeat the last 1 hour of my journey to get back to the end boss fight In DS when you die how does respawning work and if I do die can I restore to just before the battle or something similar ....I just want to avoid unnecessary repetition ?

https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/south-africa/2021-08-13-prominent-sa-heart-surgeon-in-anti-vaxx-video-plus-five-highlights-from-vrye-weekblad/ Unfortunately their are a small group of doctors that are questioning vaccines and science and all it does is support the dangerous views of anti-vaxxers This prominent SA doctor is going to be investigated and will probably and hopefully have her medical license suspended We have a virus crisis in SA with vaccine hesitancy and the last thing we want or accept is doctors pushing misinformation

Im at that very exciting gaming phase where I decide " what next " ? I have Steam, GOG, Epic, Origin and Ubisoft game libraries to choose from with Steam being my biggest list of games and GOG next. I am not sure what I should play next, I am considering Dark Souls 1, Oblivion or maybe NWN1 ....variety is the spice of life

You only have taken that stance because you have such low cases of the virus and you haven experienced the virus running rampant NZ will change its views on kids wearing masks if you go through what most of the rest of the world has gone through with the virus spreading exponentially and the reality of virus mutations. And I hope you dont go through that

Its probably the most relevant point when it comes to kids, daycares and schools and the question " what are the alternatives " In SA our entire school virus measures have been an unmitigated disaster for several reasons but primarily because we are trying to achieve the almost unachievable objective of somehow stopping any kids from getting the virus but we also have the understandable and critical objective of getting schools open again So for example all our public sector schools have hardly been open consistently for 2 months since we implemented our lockdown 18 months ago and kids are really suffering with not doing very well at absorbing school work. One of my brothers has his kids at a good public sector school. One of my nieces is 14 and they have had to hire private tutors because she is not coping with the constant shutdowns of schools and the expectation that all kids can work remotely using virtual classes Our school nightmare is parents send their kids back to school and then after 2 weeks they test their kids and some kids are positive but asymptomatic so they complain to the school board so the school closes for 10 days and then reopen but then other kids test positive so they close the school again and the cycle contains endlessly with the result that kids never complete meaningful time at schools So what is the solution, I am now of the opinion that you quite simply wont stop the virus and its variants from spreading in most schools and most countries. We need to accept this but you need to ensure that parents and teachers are vaccinated as they will be exposed to the virus But you also have to vaccinate kids in the appropriate age group because we are seeing the Delta variant is leading to more kids having real covid symptoms But I dont believe their is an elegant or effective solution to kids not getting exposed to the virus when any schools reopen. I wish their was ?

Why dont you like Epic Store?

The idea that kids are going to wear masks in schools all the time is well meaning but unrealistic I go past several primary schools on my daily walk before 8 am and I see kids playing outside, very few of the kids have their masks on properly or are even wearing them, Daycare will be even harder to enforce a mask mandate I think this is to be expected considering the nature of kids and how they engage generally

Your post is not a thought experiment but is the historical truth around the sequence of events that led to the creation of AQ and the Afghan War heavily influenced the strategy of the Taliban After USSR left Afghanistan Bin Laden created AQ because he believed that the best way to deal with any attempt to undermine or conquer Sunni countries was to use a Sunni army and not rely on foreign countries for defense He wanted Saudi Arabia to not bring the likes of the USA into ME conflicts and blamed the US for the fact Saudi Arabia and most of the ME countries wanted Western countries to help in the Second Gulf War... hence the US became the " great evil " and was targeted by AQ which lead to 9/11 But yes Bin Laden and the Taliban views were shaped by the events and success of Soviet Afghan War But one point I disagree with, the USSR was directly responsible for the Soviet Afghan War. They invaded Afghanistan to support the puppet Communist government in 1979 so I am not sure why you would think they are not ultimately responsible for the creation of AQ as you follow the sequence of historical events because if the Soviets hadnt invaded Afghanistan you would not have had Bin Laden and other foreign fighters flocking to Afghanistan to support the mujahideen https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soviet–Afghan_War https://www.history.com/topics/21st-century/al-qaeda

She is a very good ME journalist and she speaks Arabic. She is one of the CNN journalists that typically covers the ME region in the same way as Nick Paton Welsh