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You got the other thread locked with the same kind of inane spam. One would think you have learned, but apparently that's too much to expect from you. If you want to post random imagery, go on and start a thread for that; I'll be sure to contribute. But don't kill an otherwise perfectly good thread just because you have nothing else to occupy your time with. PS. That was not funny. Just childish.

No, it's not stealing. You aren't taking anything, you are merely copying. No matter how many times you say it is, it's not going to become so, because the word defines an entirely different action. You might want to invent a new word for it. But then again, the entire thing would lose strength as it wouldn't have the attached stigma and you would no longer be able to call P2P'ers thieves. It's a clear appeal to emotions, and therein lies your fallacy. I know pointing you to a dictionary isn't necessary, as due to your profession you are well versed in semantics. But not everyone is, and I thought I'd expose this particular malicious misuse of language. Except for the stealing part, which I have already discussed, that is 100% true. But what can I say, I'd rather ignore the terms of use and make sure the entertainment I put my money into is worth it, than be absolutely legalistic and find out that whatever I bought blindly is crap. That wouldn't be so much of a problem if I could have my money back, but that's not an option either. Maybe you have the money to indulge yourself in that kind of blind consumerism, but I don't. I expect you to post figures, and to prove beyond any measure of doubt that P2P'ing is killing the movie, music, or video game industry. If you can't, you'll have to take those claims back. You seem to have missed the part where I said I believe in supporting the authors I like. If I don't enjoy the product, I'm not going to buy it, or otherwise keep using it. No damage done there. And if I do like it, I'll pay for it. So no, I'm not picking anyone's pockets. I have thought about it.

All the strength of your discourse, much like that of RIAA and MPAA lies in the fallacy that P2P'ing is stealing. Well, it's not. I am not taking anything from anyone when I download music. I'm not depriving anyone of a movie when I download it. I'm just copying it. As for the second part of the argument, that which assumes I'm causing economic losses because of that copying, it's debatable at best. Can you prove I'd actually purchase the music I download if I couldn't get it via P2P? I doubt it, as there's very little music that stays in my HD for long. And that which does, I end up buying eventually, as I believe in supporting the authors I like. Is P2P'ing copyrighted material illegal? Most certainly. But then again, it's also illegal to walk across the Minnesota-Wisconsin border with a duck on your head.

Agreed. I'm going to turn your argument around, though. If sailors had absolutely no reason to observe discipline, and still they did, that kinda speaks volumes in favor of the efficiency of physical punishment as a deterrent. Also, there aren't many good incentives for good behaviour when you are pulling exhausting and rather hazardous shifts for a laughable wage, with the only reward being a wheat "cookie" ridden with worms, and maybe, a jar of grog at the end of the day. Not to mention a large amount of the sailors had actually been forcibly drafted.

Yes, the same examples that pop up everytime. The difference is that those examples are part of the past. So distant a past, in fact, that nobody who participated in the crusades still lives. There are no Spanish Inquisitors still around. Those were other times, marked by different mindsets. Pretty much. I was thinking that Christian faith has evolved to be able to coexist with the modern conception of the secular state, while Islam has not. But that's actually not true. Lots of muslims live in secular states and are as open-minded as anyone else. And there are many Christian fundamentalists that would feel right at home in the Middle Ages. The Scriptures haven't been adapted to cope with the new times, and theferore, the doctrines remain unchanged. The only thing that has changed is how literally these scriptures are interpreted, and how much are they allowed to take precedence over other social and individual considerations. It all boils down to a lack of civic conscience in those countries, regardless of the religion they follow. Not every muslim is a barbarian, and not every barbarian is a muslim.

Happy lashings in exchange for happy slappings? Sounds like a fair deal to me. I guess it depends on how the whipping is conducted (ie, if the convict faints, he is removed until recovery ensures he can fully enjoy the whipping), and the severity. I'd say no less than 50 strokes. Let's not forget that this kind of punishment was widely used in European navies for a long time, and it worked great to keep aggressively disgruntled sailors in place. I figure it would have an even greater effect on that juvenile scum. The only thing I regret is that we no longer have such great things as lashings and forced labor over here, in the oh-so-humane West. I mean, sure, a $500 fine hurts like hell. But how many of you would pay $500 to avoid getting lashed?

Yes, that sucks, alright.

Because if you don't want to lose, you are forced to finish it before the AI does. Which is a forced, artificial endgame as soon as the technologies are discovered, as the AI goes for it even if it's painfully obvious they don't stand a chance. I don't much like space victory either. It keeps my industrial centers busy building useless crap when they could be building overwhelming amounts of stealth bombers... "

It's really great. Those of you that haven't watched it, do it now. To think that stuff this good got the shaft and other crap is still going strong makes me want to kill some TV exec. The show has some of the best lines ever, too. "Say, this "emergency" wouldn't happen to be taking place in someone's pants, would it?" Mal 4TW

Get out of my head! Okay.

Yeah, OK. It's just that whenever I hear something about a scientific theory that "postulates" things, I am reminded of Bohr's atomic model, which was, in a great measure, fine-tuning of other people's work, albeit very cleverly done. I'm not sure I'd like that. I'd be forced to comment on it, you see. I don't want my cover blown and everyone to find out I'm actually a science nerd. :ph34r:

Sounds like fine-tuning... "

You Rep?

Yeah, we have this funny tendency to pass stupid and impossible to enforce laws here in Europe. Guess the real world is too complicate to legislate for.

Yep. Just another bullcrap excuse to have the player start off without a lightsaber and no Force powers. Yeah, in Mysteries of the Sith, Kyle falls to the Dark Side for no good reason, other than give Mara Jade something to do in her spare time. Except for that weak spot in the plot, the expansion pack is quite cool.

μ? μ, what?

I'm too sexy for this thread.

Welcome back man, hope everything worked out all right.

Aww... this thread isn't fuzzy enough for ol' Launchie. I wish Funsworth was here. He'd know how to cheer things up for sure! French editor fired for reprinting the cartoons Hooray for standing by freedom of press.

It's like... crappy. Except for vehicles, it's a 1-hit-kill system. That works well for the weaker units around the map, but it kills any semblance of dueling with other players. The parrying system really sucks, too, and the most complex combo you can do is a 3-hit forward one. The Force is limited to push, pull, choke, lightning, and saber throw, but you can't have more than two of those at any given time. Even the old Jedi Power Battles for the PSOne was awesome compared to this. Well, come think of it, that game was awesome, with the 2 player coop mode and all. This has to be the first positive comment I've ever seen about that game. I haven't tried it myself, but I was rather pissed when it was official it would not be out for the PC. Oh well...

For all its faults, the JO/JA combat system is like light years ahead of BFII's. And it's impossible to have anything resembling Jedi duels in that game. It's more like "the first to connect wins". The game does feature playable Jedi, but PvP Jedi combat leaves quite a lot to be desired. Does JK need to evolve? Sure. Just not into a RPG.

Making the only online-capable Jedi action game into a KotOR-style single player RPG? I doubt "most would welcome it". No, that's not the NJO era. That's the "New Republic Era". The NJO has the New Republic crumbling and the unspeakably lame Vong roaming around and causing trouble and being overall meanies. Suckage. Outcast is the best, story-wise. And it's not such a big deal. JKA is probably the best from the action standpoint, but no game in the series is too movie-like when it comes to lightsaber combat. It's more like dancing around the opponents and throwing blows at the air in front of them than actual fencing. It has quite hefty amounts of rolling and jumping, too.

Yeah, OK. I didn't catch your meaning the first time. I thought you were trying to hint that freedom of speech had been abused in this case. I agree with you, then.

Thanks for pointing out the obvious. Now, to go along with the trend, let me remind you that harassment is a punishable offense by law. The same with discrimination when it applies to serious, tangible stuff, such as job applications. If it's been dismissed by the prosecutor, it's neither harassment nor discrimination. And yeah, discrimination is a terrible thing. Maybe if they stopped segregating themselves, it could go a long way towards easing up frictions.

Cinderella Man. T'was OK, but with each subsequent movie I watch with Russell Crowe in it, the less confidence I have on him as an actor.