Hurlshort

Episode 7 is up, and this was a fun one. I try to get rid of my can bias and talk a bit about Prohibition. Also 21st Amendment pulls off a parody beer perfectly. https://historyofhops.com/podcast/history-hops-episode-7-21st-amendment-chat-pack

Saw Rogue One. It was great, but also emotionally draining. It was like the Saving Private Ryan of the Star Wars universe, except Private Ryan dies at the end in his mom's arms. I enjoyed it, but I am not rushing back to the theaters to see it again. It is much less space fantasy than anything else that has been done. Which if we are getting a new SW movie every year, it is good to have them break the mold a bit. Tarkin and Leia were a bit creepy, but close enough. Darth Vader was a sight to behold.

Out of curiosity, how many Americans say that they are English by heritage? I mean, we get Irish-Americans, and Scot-Americans who proudly claim their heritage (or at least the Hollywood version of their heritage and large drinking). I don't think it is any type of slight against the British, I think it is more that it is simply so common to have English roots somewhere in the family tree that it isn't much of a distinction. I can also trace my roots back to the Mayflower and a Pilgrim named John Alden, which is a cool story, but the Italian great grandmother who went by Mama Mia, never learned English, and had a tattoo is a much more interesting one.

This was a good read as I prepare for my next podcast episode, which features an all-can lineup. https://breweriana.com/beer-can-appraisal/history-of-beer-cans.html#.WFWjaEjkQGE.twitter

Obama is Kenyan, in that his father is from there. I'm Italian, in that my great grandmother boarded a ship from Northern Italy to go work in the Ghiradelli factory in San Francisco. Being an American doesn't mean you have to set aside your heritage.

I enjoyed Suicide Squad because of Robbie and Smith. They both seemed like they were having fun with their parts. That was more entertaining than the super serious Superman and Batman. If you treat Suicide Squad like a campy horror comedy, it is much more entertaining.

Spectral was also recommended to me by Netflix. It was pretty decent. Kind of had an XCom feel with this scientist who kept upgrading gear on the fly to fight new enemies. I mean, they make a plasma gun at the end.

Technically we don't know if either of them are killers. One is an actor from a horror movie and one is an actor for a fast food restaurant. My money would be on Ronald to have a few bodies buried in the backyard, if I had to choose.

Are we talking about the candidates or supporters here I don't know, I am lousy at math.

On a morally principaled scale of 1-10, Clinton voters are a 3 and Trump is a 2. Sanders supporters were a 5, but they dropped to a 4 if they switched to Clinton. This is math people.

As morally lacking as the rest of the Clinton voters I suppose. (Which is to say, you are probably reading too much into these rather glib comments.)

Volo, of course, is right. I guess I should say "morally principaled compared to the rest of our politicians."

Labels are for small minded people.

I was listening to a radio show go over the sound clips from all the candidates we had this year in the two big parties, and I was trying to figure out who, out of that cast, I'd probably prefer to be president. I'm thinking my list would be something like: 1. Rand Paul (arguably the most intelligent of the candidates) 2. John Kasich (fairly moderate choice) 3. Bernie Sanders (morally principaled) That's as far as I got.

Wait a sec, all you did was complain about The Force Awakens. Why would you bother with Rogue One? I'm probably more upset because I have a cold and haven't been able to go see it myself.

Great. Makes sense now that they simplified the companions. I love that I don't have to give them a full set of gear anymore too, and any one of them can heal me. edit: So that probably means if you get your BH to the KOTFE, you get to kill Gault.

The BH storyline is pretty weird anyways. There is no real good reason why they are connected so closely to the Empire. Most of the planet storylines don't go well with the whole idea.

I did notice in one of the expansions I had an option to kill a companion. I didn't do it, but I wondered if it lets you follow through or it is simply a threat. edit: I hate Gault, but thankfully I can just use someone else on my BH.

Yep, players are the worst. I'm actually enjoying playing through the expansions with more than one character because of all the dialogue options. My trooper is a pretty typical good guy soldier, while my Jedi Knight is arrogant and power hungry. The game gives me a good deal of control over that development. Sometimes the conflict over light and dark side choices is actually pretty good too. Example:

I don't think any of this is true. I think you are trying to convince me, and you are worried about me wasting my money, and that is why you responded to my posts. I also do not buy products on zero information. Instead I read great stuff on these forums, from great posters like you, who put up neat pictures and tell interesting stories about the games. I also just tend to buy games from developers I've liked in the past. It doesn't really matter what the word on the street is, the developer has equity with me and I'll support them with my dollar until they lose it.

Ignore everyone, really. Games are much more fun when you play them for what they are instead of 800 people taking turns telling you what to hate them for. Yeah, because being a completely uninformed consumer sounds like a great idea. Your point would be more poignant if it weren't for the fact that opinions in games are incredibly subjective. Really the only thing you will get a consensus on is whether the game runs or not, after that it is going to be individual mileage. There should be a review site that just tells you whether the game will crash. That would make me an informed consumer.

I feel I should also point out that TOR seems to be doing quite well financially. There is no real evidence that it will be shutting down anytime soon. It may not have found the goldmine that WoW managed to unlock, but it seems like it has settled into a decent sized player-base that should sustain it for years to come.

TOR is what we have, and they wrapped up the Revan storyline, regardless of people liked it. I doubt they will try for a reboot anytime soon. I am actually glad TOR has moved away from the KotOR stuff. The Eternal Empire stories have been a good deal more engaging as a single player rpg experience. They also made the emperor somewhat more interesting. But yeah, play through the 8 TOR storylines. It is rigged so you can just do story mossions now instead of grinding through side missions.

I don't really pay attention to advertising. Or previews. Or reviews. I find that is the key to happiness.

Congrats and commiserations to TN. Might be a bit upsetting for the kid, no ? The kid was 19, I believe. Maybe a bit traumatic, but I'm sure the kid realizes his dad died doing something he loved.