Gromnir

bruce forgot to address how he wants the military to stop the terrorist actions in northern nigeria. how does you suspect a western military coalition would defeat boko haram without any long-term presence in the region? what does you identify as the military assets o' a terrorist group when they will strap explosives to a teenage girl and then blow her up in the middle of a crowd? in gaza, hamas used a freaking donkey bomb? you sure as hell ain't gonna target every teen-aged girl and donkey in northern nigeria. oh, and north-west nigeria alone accounts for 25% o' the total population o' nigeria... which would make population in that region alone to be at +43 million? assuming for a second that a military operation could go in and defeat boko haram, what sorta police force would be needed to secure the region until nigeria showed the wherewithal and the ability to do so on its own? is a complete arbitrary number, but be generous and assume that 2/3 o' the temporary police force in north-west nigeria would be handled by nigerians... and that is just north-west nigeria. am doing a good bit of rounding down, but if 20 police per 1,000 is accurate for a stabilizing force, and we is only asking for west to supply 1/3 o' that force (a mistake the US made in iraq were assuming that the locals would supply the bulk o' police,) then according to the study we linked earlier, something in excess o' 250,000 foreign troops would be required. nigeria is a nightmare situation insofar as foreign military involvement is concerned. it took days for boko haram to slaughter those people in baga. the nigerian government either didn't know about the massacre and/or it ignored what were occurring in baga. not fun.

grabbing a guy's facemask when he is about to get away from you is instinctual. +90% o' holding calls is the result o' instinct subverting training. some clown punches you in the helmet and you punch him back is instinctive. dez bryant has a domestic violence charge from 2012 that is still pending... as hard as that is to believe. no doubt he reacted instinctive when he took a swipe at his mom. etc. instinct has never been a valid excuse. bob's dog humps the legs o' strangers and digs holes in the yard when left alone. bob can train his dog to stop humping legs and digging holes. such training may take effort as it would seem to go against doggie instincts, but such training is possible. no doubt dez is at least as capable o' learning as is bob's dog. HA! Good Fun!

keyrock is arguing that the rule is silly, rather than that it were applied incorrect. we agree that the rule should be reviewed as the application o' the rule has, in some cases, made a mockery o' the notion o' what it means to successfully catch a football. if a large number of coaches and players can watch the calvin johnson and dez bryant plays and see a result that contravenes common sense, then perhaps the rule needs be changed. alternatively, given that this rule is a known quantity, perhaps dez shoulda' first secured the freaking ball instead o' reaching for a touchdown. HA! Good Fun!

actually, one wonders how the fed and CA will handle free community college. technically, there is no tuition for community college in CA. we got a per-unit fee as kinda an end-around on tuition. HA! Good Fun!

Okay I see where you have misunderstood my view on USA military intervention, I need to explain my view in a better way I still support military action by Western powers under certain circumstances, its should be clear to anyone where the USA has been absolutely correct to intervene militarily under certain conditions, like Bosnia and the airstrikes against ISIS ( I can give more examples if required ). But that doesn't mean I support all suggestions where the USA has been expected to intervene in conflicts or areas of concern around the world For example the USA could only have attacked Assad if they had ignored the UNSC and that would have meant another illegal intervention as far as the world was concerned...and I don't think I need to remind you of how bad Iraq was for the American image. So as much as I wanted the West to remove Assad because he was a brutal and intransigent dictator I wanted them to respect the UNSC more...and thats what happened. Obama was correct to not ignore the UNSC Then Iran, there was a real concerted effort to get the USA to attack Iran from Israel and certain Republicans. Obama ignored this pressure and now due to the severe sanctions Iran has come to the negotiating table in a way that I doubt bombing them would have achieved. So once again I support Obama in this decision So there is no contradiction in my view of defending Obama but also acknowledging that sometimes military intervention is needed. We have to look at each possible example of military intervention on a per case basis But none of this changes the fact that the West could efficiently engage and defeat Boko Haram if they wanted to. But my point is why should they? This is an African problem and if Africa cannot deal with them then the Nigerians need to make an official request to the UN to get a proper UN military mission funded by Nigeria to defeat Boko Haram. And yes the USA should be part of this because of there experience and effectiveness Finally we aren't talking about the West fixing the economies of a country like Nigeria, they just need to defeat Boko Haram. So no nation-building in this case ok, the last bit is a bit naive. the current government in nigeria is unwilling or unable to stop or even limit boko haram. am not certain what you thinks would be accomplished by a military action designed at nothing more than stopping a terrorist group. also, am not certain what makes you think UNSC is so meaningful. neverthless, what makes you think that a UNSC resolution authorizing military action in nigeria would be forthcoming? indifference perhaps? less than 20 people is killed in france and you got world leaders doing a unity march. 2,000 people are massacred in baga and where is the public outcry for the dead in africa we wonder. unsc? *snort* http://www.bbc.com/news/world-23847169 HA! Good Fun!

one thing to note is that hurl is in CA. community college was extreme affordable here in CA for many years... we says "was" because we have no idea how much it costs per unit nowadays. relative speaking, the csu system and uc system were also kinda cheap compared to other public university systems, though tuition at uc and csu has increased dramatically in the past couple decades. CA might be a somewhat skewed example compared to the rest o' the US. dunno. http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2012/07/18/csu-and-uc-tuition-hikes-over-time am genuine not certain how much community college costs, but truth-to-tell, if we were a CA resident who could not get into (and find some way to pay for) an ivy, stanford, duke, notre dame or other elite private university, we would wonder what would be the particular advantage o' forgoing community college for the first two years o' our higher education. with our community college units being free transferable to uc or csu, the savings by attending a community college would, we suspect, be extreme. am certain many parents attempting to pay for junior's tuition and living expenses at UCLA or csusd would be much relieved to discover that they need only worry 'bout two-to-three year commitment rather than four or five years o' such. ... quick check: http://www.losrios.edu/lrc/lrc_tuitionfees_spring.php community college isn't as cheap as we thought. take 12-15 units is between $552 and $690 a semester, no? however, the tuition is still relative cheap and anybody with a part-time or even a summer job could afford the tuition. if the fed plan is similar to the TN plan, 8 hours o' community service per semester for free tuition still strikes us as a bargain for a student... but yeah, am not certain that the free community college is going to be helping many additional californians get edumacated. HA! Good Fun!

see, this is what we mean. val calls reuters article a lie, but then references something complete different. the reuters article from bruce is 2011. the mere 3,000 american troops current in iraq has been there since... november 2014? bbc, cbs, reuteurs and innumerable sources covered the initial 1,500 man authorization by obama in november. am not certain on that date, so if were earlier, we apologize. is not combat troops per se by us to iraq as they is specific prohibited from engaging isis unless to defend. there is american personnel that is in iraq, and the military personnel were sent for twin purposes o' protecting those small number o' americans, as well as providing training to iraq personnel. btw, the numbers o' americans in iraq is laughable small. iraq requests aid against isis and obama sends 1,500 to protect americans in iraq. obama wanted to be seen as doing... something? HA! Good Fun!

why on earth does anybody take val serious at this point? his proof is that such stuff is "common knowledge" and that he gots "family"? HA! is recalling to mind when bester were telling us that a buk missle system could not have shot down malaysian airliners over the ukraine because he spoke to a random guy somewheres who had claimed to have been part o' a buk crew and his source said buk couldn't hit airliners at altitude. don't let val get away with such nonsense. tell you he gots family going to iraq and spouting off 'bout common knowledge despite complete opposite being the actual reported and documented situation is only funny if you let val get away with such silliness. as for bruce being favorable towards western military involvement in libya and elsewhere, we recall exact the opposite. we has pointed out to bruce on a few occasions that in the US, obama has had to weather criticism for his failure to act with the requisite military response. bruce acted both surprised and defensive towards obama's growing American reticence-- we can dig up posts regarding iraq, libya and syria for a start. *shrug* if you has done a 180 and now thinks western military interventions is a fine thing, we still wouldn't necessarily agree. military responses to terrorism is notoriously ineffectual, even if such actions would appear to be the only plausible response once a situation has escalated. the thing is, if you want the west to intervene and do nation-building in an effort to create stable democratic governments in sub-saharan africa, you gotta be aware that such efforts is monumental in nature. the human and capital resources that need be expended to successful carryout military interventions followed by nation building efforts is not the kinda thing that the eu is capable o' absorbing given their cycles o' economic instability. a genuine western coalition including the US and EU likely could muster the resources necessary to bring positive change to nigeria, but am doubting there is currently the political or economic wherewithal to do so. please note that nigeria is more than three times as populous as iraq. not all other factors is equal as betwixt iraq and nigeria, but... http://www.rand.org/pubs/periodicals/rand-review/issues/summer2003/burden.html is daunting numbers, no? HA! Good Fun!

Well I'm not sure if he is joking or not but there is a valid case around how woefully unprepared most African countries are to deal militarily with Boko Haram So it is not unrealistic that we will need some kind of sustained Western military intervention to deal with Boko Haram, it could be the French, the British or the USA ? But its clear that the AU doesn't have the political will or means to deal with groups like Boko Haram curious. what difference do you see between sub-saharan africa and the rest o' the world? am recalling a much different pov from you regarding other areas o' conflict. is a serious query. HA! Good Fun! But there is just no real political will. I'm not sure if I answered your question properly?If not can you explain in more detail? am trying to get You to explain in more detail. why is the conflicts in sub-saharan africa... different. you has, in the past, applauded western restraint in those geographic hotspots that had potential to become more serious conflagrations. please note that Gromnir is not actual advocating use of military force. that being said, we wishes to know why your pov regarding the possibility o' a western military solution in sub-saharan africa is different than other geographical loci o' conflict. HA! Good Fun!

Well I'm not sure if he is joking or not but there is a valid case around how woefully unprepared most African countries are to deal militarily with Boko Haram So it is not unrealistic that we will need some kind of sustained Western military intervention to deal with Boko Haram, it could be the French, the British or the USA ? But its clear that the AU doesn't have the political will or means to deal with groups like Boko Haram curious. what difference do you see between sub-saharan africa and the rest o' the world? am recalling a much different pov from you regarding other areas o' conflict. is a serious query. HA! Good Fun!

http://awfulannouncing.com/2012-articles/top-10-press-conference-coaching-rants.html some classic coach rants. at the very least, if you have not seen it before, check out the mike van gundy implosion. HA! Good Fun!

the wacky thing is that even today we work with people who seemingly have ZERO impulse control. is more amusing from a football player than from an attorney. HA! Good Fun!

as a ny giants fan, your bias may be bleeding through... just a tad. that being said, we also get more entertainment value from dez bryant anecdotes that is not specific related to his receiver duties. along similar lines, is too bad that guys such ray nitschke and jack lambert didn't have access to social media as we suspect we would have gotten classic bits o' pith from such folks if we were able to get knee-jerk and unvarnished opinions from such folks. am recalling a regular-season game wherein the steelers were losing to the browns, and lambert appeared to be unhappy with the performance o' his fellow steel curtain members. two plays in a row he hits a defenseless brian sipe-- second hit results in an ejection for the steeler's hof mlb. current concussion rules woulda' had sipe outta the game too. espn were in its infancy at the time, so for most american football fans, we maybe get a couple lines in the newspaper regarding the incident. forgotten. oh well. HA! Good Fun!

the bio developers went out o' their way to make the awakening joinables fubar insofar as talents and stats is concerned. sigurn, for example, is a strength-based dual wielding rogue. the tank npc, justice, has ok talents, but is as if bioware were the only folks that don't know the importance o' dexterity for a sword & board tank. anders, who is better written in awakenings than he is in da2, can replace wynne as he already has spirit healer line and the first couple heal-focused creation spells, but the rest o' his spell selection is kinda random. nathaniel howe is an archer... 'nuff said. *shrug* the thing is, bioware added respec functionality to awakenings such that you don't need the mod. there is an awakenings merchant from whom you may purchase respec items. HA! Good Fun!

is likely different in other places, but in the USA there is many dogs in shelters that need adoption or they will be euthanized. http://www.humanesociety.org/issues/pet_overpopulation/facts/pet_ownership_statistics.html "an estimated 3–4 million" cats and dogs is euthanized each year in the USA. we got two border collie rescues, a medium-sized mutt that got maltese in it and is mostly blind but otherwise complete healthy, and something that looks like a black and white shih-poo. gotta couple cats too. one cat and one dog were our sister's. the border collies demand much attention and as they were abused before we acquired them, they got some personality quirks when dealing with strange people and dogs. oddly enough, both o' the border collies accepted our cats immediately. go figure. our cc&rs allow for a max o' two pets, so don't tell on us, ok? HA! Good Fun! ps pet owners is frequently some o' the dumbest folks in the world. "animals love me," says the person who reaches their hand out towards a strange dog. "don't worry, my dog is friendly," says the jogger who don't have their dog on a leash. our border collies is very obedient, but they have... issues. you do not violate their personal space uninvited. we keep 'em leashed if there is any chance o' them being near people or other pets. even so, am not certain how many near tragedies we has had 'cause o' pet owners who know better insist on being idiots.

Yeah, I remember the re-spec mods, but I've been playing it straight. I didn't remember how to go about adding mods, and didn't feel sufficiently motivated to figure it out all over again. Does the Glyph paralysis explosion have friendly fire? I like the hexes for boss fights, but a large area effect paralysis would be very useful. http://social.bioware.com/project/469/#files http://www.nexusmods.com/dragonage/mods/14/? the second link were supposed updated more recently, but both versions appear to be 1.6. a respec raven will appear in numerous locations in the game, including flemeth's hut and your camp. joinable npcs will lose their specializations, but by interacting with the raven, you may reacquire such specializations via a "dialogue" option. having played da:o complete honest a number o' times, we don't feel the least bit bad about correcting peculiar biowarian choices for companion skills and talents. the paralysis explosion does have friendly fire, but it is not targeted line of sight, so it is useful for pre-battle. use the paralysis explosion before your storm o' the century for extra fun. the glyph of warding is useful for melee protection and the glyph o' repulsion (no friendly fire) is ideal for defending squishy mages from melee mobs. is an excellent line o' spells, though we rare bother with the neutralize glyph. for our pc da:o mages, we always go cold spells first til we get cone of cold, then go to the glyphs. the repulsion + paralysis combo for glyphs effectively gives you the benefits o' mass paralysis w/o having to pay for it. is actual a fair bit o' cheese, but again, as we has already beaten the gam,e several times, our level o' guilt is negligible. found a video link. HA! Good Fun!

I've been doing the same. I'm now through the majority of base-DA:O, plus the Shale and Soldier's Peak DLC content-- the Urn quest is the only part of the "assemble your allies" stage that I haven't wrapped up. I really remember very little of the endgame content (mostly, some stuff happens in the Elven Alienage, we sneak into a castle for some reason, Alistair runs off like a petulant child, and there is a very tedious combat slog before the end-boss), so I'm mostly looking forward to seeing that again with fresh eyes. And Awakenings, the other DLC (I'm waiting for Loghain before I do Return to Ostagar), and all of DA2 will be new to me. One thing that is bugging me on this playthrough is that it really feels like they designed their system to push the player to their "favored" NPCs. The two most indispensable combat roles in this system are a "tank" and a controller/damager wizard. And, absent the day-1 DLC, the game gives you exactly 1 character spec'ed to each of these roles. On the other hand, there are 4 off-tank damager melee characters available (Sten, Oghren, the Dog, and Zevran). They also made lock-opening the only class-restricted non-combat ability in the game, and only gave the player 1 rogue who starts with any points invested in it. (To be fair, the practical value of lock-opening is quite low in the game, but, depending on the type of player you are, the psychological impact of leaving l0o+ behind can be significant.) I suppose it's most likely that they were just making sure that the early NPCs one recruits can make a well-rounded powerful party. But, to me, it really feels like they've put their thumb on the scale to get the player to depend on Alistair, Morrigan, and Leliana. A more balanced approach would've helped-- say by giving Oghren a shield and making the 1st-tier healing spell much less effective so that Wynne's specialization has more value. For my part, I'm playing a (admittedly overpowered) PC Mage who largely duplicates Morrigan's spell investment (Cold, Electric, the Hex line, the Crushing Prison line, and the Mana Clash line), and running with Shale, Sten, and Wynne most of the time. I think I'm going to off him at the end, and go with a dagger-rogue build for Awakenings. no doubt enoch is already aware that the da:o respec mods work equal well for the companions as they do for the protagonist. our party is same as enoch, but we prefer sten as our tank and we didn't like wynne's spell selection... so we changed wynne and sten talents. and yeah, Gromnir is a compulsive lock opener-- that is the reason why 2 of our first 3 da:o characters back in 2009 (was it 2009?) were rogues. our first da:o character were a 2-h warrior and the +40 hours o' our initial play-through o' da:o taught us to loathe the provided da:o rogue npcs. even so, most areas with locked chests can be accessed after completing combat and quests, so we clear maps and then drop wynne for leliana to satisfy our l007-related ocd... though we made leliana a cunning focused, dual-dagger rogue in case we wanted/needed her in our group for combats. our mage pc is also similar to enoch. we have cold and crushing prison lines, but we took glyphs up to and including repulsion so we could get the massive paralysis explosion from the combo. we is starting on electric, and will eventual get the mana clash line as well as the animate dead line. am currently done stone prisoner and soldier's peak dlc, but we has only finished the mage tower portion o' the core game. return to ostagar may be next for us. am likely gonna let loghain die and stick with our mage for awakenings. we recall the game very well, but am occasionally surprised by minor details we had forgotten. we played da2, and liked it more than most people hereabouts, though we would still say were ambivalent. we did 0 dlc for da2, so that content will be new for us. regardless, the respec mods is quite useful for Gromnir's play o' da:o. HA! Good Fun!

you shouldn't let val get away with not answering your previous question. *shrug* in any event, we agree that parents play the most significant role in getting their kids educated. so, what is the solution? we is aware that aisians and african immigrants, regardless o' socio-economic means, is diligent about the education o' their children. and while amentep justifiably notes that a college degree is not a willy wonka golden ticket, those who got college degrees is statistically more invested and/or able to get their kids similarly educated. single-parent families, regardless o' race, appear to have more problems with getting children educated. etc. we can easily identify trends and factoids, but solutions is harder to construct, yes? we has mentioned that Gromnir, up until relative recent, loathed affirmative action. as a minority who didn't need affirmative action to get admission to university or to get a job, we were much opposed to affirmative action. regardless o' the effort we expended, there were a pervasive belief amongst peers that our presence were mandated by a government program as opposed to something we earned. initial impressions were often difficult to overcome... get sat & lsat scores tattooed on our forehead mighta helped at school. hated affirmative action. the thing is, we has done a 180 on affirmative action, in part 'cause o' the impact on education. a minority with a college degree is far more likely to have children who go to college. ignore the why and the how behind the result for the moment. if you is attempting to get more kids to graduate from college, or to at least makes them better prepared to do well in hurlshot's class, statistically you got a much better chance o' success if you managed to get the kid's parent(s) a college degree. it is understandable that if you want the next generation o' kids to be prepared to do well in school, you is gonna want to get more college graduates from the current generation, yes? affirmative action and free community college is rational programs that would seem to gets college degrees into the hands o' more folks who would otherwise not gets degrees. such programs is simple and straightforward and busted, but what is the alternative? asians and african-immigrants is diligent about getting their kids educated. so, how do we get poor white trash and single-parent black families to be similarly invested in their children's education? is not as if poor white trash is unaware that education is a positive-- no PSA by a nascar driver extolling the virtues o' a college degree is gonna make a difference. is not as if the single mom working two jobs is unaware that her five kids got a better chance for a decent future if they is doing well in school. attempts to change culture is problematic, and is actual frequent unconstitutional. programs such as affirmative action and free community college is busted, but such programs is rational even if they is more desperation than anything else. nevertheless, what is the alternatives? laws has never been particular effective in changing the hearts and minds o' the people... such an observation should be resulting in a kinda "duh" moment. btw, for some o' the more vocal misguided folks posting in this thread, the republican Govenor from tennessee, bill haslam, were the guy who sponsored http://tennesseepromise.gov/ ... is kinda the inspiration for obama's community college plan. a republican Governor in a red state sponsoring free education? *snort* some o' you folks is too funny. HA! Good Fun!

our pov has always been different. we will note that barbara jordan is a role-model for Gromnir. that is not to say that we has always wished to be a woman o' color who preferred the company o' our own gender, but perhaps due to her influence, we find nothing negative 'bout being an inquisitor. HA! Good Fun!

started dragon age: origins. given how busy we has been recently, am assuming that by the time we finish da:o, da2 and all the expansions and dlc, da:i will finally feel be cheapened and stable enough to warrant a purchase. alternatively, poe will likely be released... though we gotta admit our interest has been waning regarding that title. HA! Good Fun!

is probable easier to do stuff we don't wanna see. ultimately, we would like for the developers to do a game that surprises Gromnir, which necessarily precludes us being able to describe such a game. even so, there is some plots and themes and settings and similar such stuff that we has grown tired o' seeing. bad list: zombies. we loathe zombies. we didn't hate zombies a decade ago, but they has been overdone to the point that we is reflexive antagonistic to anything zombie related. vampires. apologies to shady, but we has never liked vampires. old skool vampire wherein dracula is cursed by God is better than current crazy-sexy-kewl vampires o' the post anne rice era, but we never embraced even the bram stoker versions. God curses dracula by turning him into an immortal monster with superpowers that, not surprisingly, gots a grudge against God and his followers? kinda makes God seem like a bit o' a jackarse, no? post apocalypse setting. nuke apocalypse or environmental apocalypse or... whatever. choose your poison. a blighted sci-fi or fantasy wasteland doesn't have inherent appeal to us. chosen one protagonist. etc. we could continue, but truth-to-tell, we can envision a good zombie, vampire, chosen-one game. execution o' the developer is far more important than is individual aspects. that being said, we kinda like weird west settings, and we would love to see a late 60s or early 70s action movie inspired crpg. Bullitt, Shaft and Enter the Dragon were great entertainment, and in a sense, they were just as fantastic as lotr. play your cop or secret agent character solving crime or perhaps being a criminal? Popeye Doyle appeals to us far more than Aragorn as the inspiration for a crpg protagonist. but again, the bestsest game would be one we didn't envision or imagine, so we cannot possibly describe. HA! Good Fun!

there is a compelling pretension that whatsoever is your favorite crpg, the developers o' that game did more than craft a wish-fulfillment fantasy. is an understandable fiction as few folks wanna admit that their favorite game is just as devoid o' genuine gravitas as is (insert latest mass-market title here). fallout was different. ps:t was art. the stick of truth... ok, we can't actual even complete that thought without it turning into a joke. *shrug* in any event, while chrisA and others recognize that their games is, first and foremost, escapist wish-fulfillment fantasies, we is nevertheless surprised that the developers fail to recognize how the current narrative model is necessarily self-defeating. "power fantasies" lose meaning if there ain't no choice. so, developers attempt to find a kinda ideal balance 'tween choice and traditional narrative. unfortunately, there is no perfect balance. one o' these days, somebody is gonna recognize that to genuine do better, the old balancing efforts will need be scrapped in favor o' a new model. ... 'course if bioware and other developers continue to make successful selling games using the fundamentally limited approach, the motivation to build a better mousetrap is approaching nil. regardless, bioware romances is no-less wish-fulfillment fantasy as is crpgs as a whole. our criticisms o' bioware romances (and those criticisms is legion) is not that such quests is more nontransparent ego-strokes as such a claim would be hypocritical and useless. HA! Good Fun!

hmmm. keep in mind that da:i openness were something that many has been clamoring for since bg1. many people liked bg1 style storytelling. our opinion: open world is not a prohibitive handicap to storytelling. however, one must alter the focus and be aware o' a need to tailor the narrative different. put story and gameplay on rails is gonna make easier to develop a coherent plot that develops in a rational and predictable fashion. have main plot points occur in a linear fashion has obvious advantages, no? we need discuss? 'course many crpgs attempt to maximize the illusion o' non-linearity by making main plot points interchangeable. doesn't matter if you do nar shadda first in kotor 2, or go to orzimar (sp?) as your initial destination o' choice in dragon age. player gets to feel like they is having freedom and making choice. interchangeability is a nifty feature o' assembly lines and military hardware, but it is less efficacious when attempting to develop a dramatic story arc. that being said, within an open world, the writer is hardly prohibited from creating geographic and narrative loci. we stumble across new reno in fallout 2 and we will be having the opportunity to start any number o' quests both minor and major, yes? the depth and breath o' an individual quest is not stymied by open world environment. we do believe that the focus o' the narrative in crpgs, particularly open world crpgs, should be developed with a recognition that the hero's journey is facing different hurdles compared to novels and movies. is difficult enough to describe the heroic journey of __________ when the protagonist needs necessarily be a he/she/snarky/serious/good/evil/ambivalent/mercenary nothing, but to then further uncouple the narrative by making plot points arbitrary is asking a bit much o' the crpg writer. while we has not played da:i, we suspect that the single greatest hurdle in making the narrative compelling is the fact that the story is focused 'pon the tangential and frequent random actions o' a nameless and faceless meat-puppet. da:i is having its focus on the inquisitor, which is a near insurmountable narrative hurdle to overcome. change focus to static rather than dynamic should leads to a more coherent narrative. focus on static characters. focus on developing the tangential quests/stories.am recognizing that such a notion flies in the face o' the crpg as wish fulfillment, but developers not seem to realize that they is facing a narrative brick wall by attempting to maximize illusion o' choice AND write the compelling story o' _____________. we hear developers says that the story in the crpg should be the player's narrative. is hogwash. crpg story, regardless o' attempts to create illusion o' choice and non-linearity (HA!) is always gonna be the writer's story. the pervasive obtuseness o' crpg developers/writers insofar as fundamental narrative limitations is a far bigger problem than is open worlds. HA! Good Fun!

am mildly revolted by some responses... mild. at worst, we see a woman who were extreme irresponsible. her error in judgement may have caused her own death. there is, of course, the possibility that an unfortunate confluence o' small errors resulted in a single tragic accident-- in our line o' work, we see this all the time. what if it were the husband who put the gun in her purse after cleaning? would mrs. ruteledge still deserve a death sentence 'cause she failed to check to make sure the safety were properly on before leaving the house? she might be irresponsible, but deserving of death? story says mrs. rutledge were shopping with her son and three other children. well gosh, is it possible that one o' the children, an older child, had reached into her purse and disengaged the safety on her gun whilst she were driving? mrs. rutledge were visiting relatives. as noted elsewhere, a toddler cannot disengage a safety on any reputable handgun-- would invalidate the point o' a safety in the first place if such were possible. nevertheless, mrs. rutledge's typical routine regarding gun safety may not have taken into account the presence o' relatives. routine has been the undoing o' many a man, or woman. etc. sadly, we can come up with any number o' hypotheticals that alter the scenario at the walmart from being illustrative of a wanton disregard for even the most basic "rules" o' gun safety and transform mrs. rutledge into a largely innocent victim o' happenstance. however, even assuming a worst-case-scenario, the implication that abject stoopidity should carry a death sentence is vulgar. the events described in the linked story is a tragedy. even thirty years ago, the rutledge family woulda' had the option of moving and starting a new life. yeah, the toddler who killed his mother woulda' had to grow up without a mother, but perhaps the family coulda' gotten a fresh start where nobody knew what happened to mrs. rutledge. "oh, she died in a car accident when _________ was two." who would question such a story? perhaps mr. rutledge would be unable to forget the events in the walmart, and that might affect the raising o' his child, but one may hope and pray that the child were too young to remember or to be traumatized by what occurred. move to a new town and family gets a new start. is 2014... for at least a few hours more. we got internet. type "veronica rutledge" into any search engine from now until armageddon, and the walmart shooting accident will be readily discovered. even assuming that the toddler is unaffected by the memory o' what happened, the loss o' a mother, and the possible trauma done to his remaining parent, the child is likely never gonna be able to escape this tragedy. wherever he goes, people will know what happened to his mother and the child will be treated different because o' that fact. am mildly revolted. as an aside, a single incident, should, with extreme rare exceptions, never be taken as a commentary on civilization... that is just silly. ps other than off-duty cops and the like, we is against carrying handguns on one's person. is not simple because we has comical bad aim with handguns neither.

yeah. recommendation: quit watching anime. ever hear that, "sex is like pizza. even if it's done bad, it's still pretty good"? well, anime is apparent the opposite o' sex... or pizza. anime, even when it's done well, it's still pretty bad. oh sure, just as with sex and pizza, you can find examples that defy the general rule. grave of the fireflies and spirited away were excellent storytelling and were beautiful to behold. cowboybebop had great music and better than half its episodes were betwixt watchable and great. however, for the most part, japanese anime is (perhaps ironically) poorly animated and near universal poorly written. the avatar: the last airbender cartoons from nikelodeon were 'bout ten times better than any japanese anime we has seen in decades. we haven't followed korra, so we can't say much about the new stuff. actual happened a couple months ago and is illustrative. a friend o' ours began to try and convince us that _________ anime was worth watching and that we should put aside our prejudice and, "give it a chance." were not the first time a friend had made such a suggestion. our reflex reaction were to argue but then something broke inside us. we reached into our wallet and pulled out $20. andrew jackson gave our friend a humorless stare that contained just a hint o' contempt. being a patriotic fellow, we followed andy's lead. "if you promise to never again try and convince me of the merits of any anime, past or present, you can have this twenty." ... our friend knew us well enough to not be offended. he chuckled... but he took the $20. it were the best $20 we has spent in the last 6 months. HA! Good Fun!