Black March

Well... Black March has started... if you're anything like me you've been hearing about protests over internet censorship for the better part of the past two months. If you're not, then this image should help.

Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA)
Protect Intellectual Property Act (PIPA) and
Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA)

All really nice words and ideas... sadly a name is not what makes a law. Most people don't even look into what is incorporated into those words. I can't say I do either but I do know that just from looking at the public, it's not a welcomed change. Alas, most people don't care to look beyond the names.

My main issue with them is that they allow for taking down websites based solely on allegation. I was shocked when I found people who thought it was a good idea. I can understand their thinking in a way, allegation is the first step in prosecution but there's a lot of other steps between that and deciding whether the accused is guilty or not. These acts simply give organisations the ability to decide whether a website is illegal or not based solely on their own decision. This in turn gives an organisation a very scary ability. It is now allowed to define what is right and wrong and always be right about it, without anyone having the right to argue their point.

What I found even more shocking is how some have said that while they can understand this point of view, this would not happen because an organisation of power would not abuse such power. This is a fair point since no organisation of power has ever been known to abuse their power.

I'm not really sure when reading George Orwell has stopped being a mandatory lecture in schools but apparently it did happen... either that or someone wasn't paying attention.

No, I don't see any of these as good ideas. They are a clear attack on culture, an attempt to stop people from engaging in it. Copyrighted material is used in speech constantly, talking about films and literature is a past-time between friends, modifying a still from a film as a form of a joke is funny, adding a clip from a film to your video review of it is expected by the viewers, drawing a character from a cartoon with your own hands is what makes people awe yet all of these are apparently illegal and you should be given a five year sentence to serve in prison for putting people out of their job.

This is really what this is about. The companies in the entertainment industry see their profits going down so they lobby to get laws like this passed. They think that by making it illegal for people to engage in their own culture, people will have no choice but to buy the culture they are producing. It doesn't matter whether the product they are giving is better or worse than the one someone else would offer, it only matters that the money goes to them.

So I think this Black March would be a good idea. I do actually like having books and DVDs. Enough so that I buy some on a monthly basis with the disposable income I have. I do want to support the people who are making the things I enjoy but then I am suddenly not allowed to even talk about it. It just doesn't make sense.

I did read an article once about how piracy has changed the entertainment industry. It argued that due to people downloading films, the movie industry doesn't want to invest in productions that they deem risky. In turn this causes the industry to invest in remakes and sequels. While this does make sense from a logical standpoint, it's just not the sort of impression I get from people. Whenever I talk about films, one of the most common questions I am asked is what sort of special effects are in it and what year is it from. This to me indicates that people just want special effects and care very little for the story or content of the film. Give people lots of Computer Generated Images and they'll awe at the brilliance of your film-making. Since this is apparently the main reason why people spend money on film, this is the main focus of film producers. And that has nothing to do with people downloading films.

In the end it all comes down to money and where it's going. A fact that is often forgotten is that you don't have to spend your money. I am amazed at how many people complain about spending their money on something they don't like (which was not a necessity) as if they had no choice in the matter.

Right now I don't like the attitude of the entertainment industry, instead of adjusting to live in this economy and this era, they try to halt our cultural progress. So I won't be buying anything in March and I hope enough people have heard about it so that this can actually work and someone can get a taste of the fear of their people...

Fantasy RPG Class

The Spirit Reaper

25% Strength, 65% Bloodlust, 22% Intelligence, 12% Spirit, 25% Vitality and 40% Agility!

Masters of killing and evasion, the Spirit Reapers can easily eliminate any foe. A slash of of their weapon means certain death. All who stand before them fall in pain and defeat. Using their dark magic, Spirit Reapers can literally transform themselves into shadows and easily sneak up on their foes. The Spirit Reapers trap the souls of defeated enemies within their scythe so that they can summon those spirits in future battles. Creeeeeeeppppyyy! In addition, their weapon is able to absorb the energy and abilities of the people they have reaped. For example, if their scythe slashes through the soul of a spellcaster, their weapon will take on the magical properties and powers of that spellcaster. Spirit Reapers will often hunt down powerful magicians to collect an array of diverse and powerful forms of magic, and with enough magic at their command, Spirit Reapers will become deadly and virtually invincible warriors of darkness. In addition, the souls they've absorbed extend their own lifeline and can even be used as a sort of shield to bear the brunt of any attacks that come their way.

Congratulations on reaching this high class!

You have not mastered any Hidden Power granted by the Genie.

Take The Fantasy RPG Class Test

Far Away Thy Love Lies

I rarely make calendar-themed posts but the subject matter has been on my mind for the past month, the reason for this is shrouded in mystery as deep as the sleep of Cthulhu, and since it's February, it's fairly appropriate I publish it for this day.

Many times I've heard the assertion that long-distance relationships can't work. From what I gather people seem afraid to give it a try because due to a long physical distance it's easy for the other person to do whatever they want. To me this isn't an issue with distance but with trust. Saying that not having someone around 24/7 enabled them to cheat on you is like saying that the act of moving in makes it impossible to cheat on you. Alas, since people divorce each other due to unfaithfulness, distance doesn't seem to be a factor in this.

My main view on long-distance relationships is that they are probably the strongest ones. One obvious thing about being in one is that it is really hard. It is undeniably hard to be away from someone you love for very long periods of time. Now the question is who would voluntarily be in such a hard relationship when there must be easier alternatives. The first thing that comes to my mind is someone who loves you.

Love isn't all beauty and happiness. It requires work: sometimes hard work, other times gruelling work... on the part of everyone involved. This is what makes it special, love that is easily made is also easy to shatter. When you have willingness to work through issues that seem impossible, that's a sign of more than just affection.

I once had this friend who had the choice between two guys and she went with the guy who wasn't about to move out of town. He cheated on her despite living in the same city. Then I have two friends who are in marriages with men who each first met online. One pair started out apart between two sides of a country and the other was transatlantic.

Many years ago someone wished me to find love as beautiful as a rose but with no thorns. To which I could only reply that a rose without thorns is not picking up. This is why I like the rose as a symbol for love. It's beautiful and sweet but must be cared for with a gentle touch or it drains your life away. That's what hard work is; not taking love for granted and making the relationship work despite issues and obstacles.

Naturally, not everyone is capable of that, some just can't deal with too much and there's nothing wrong with that. Everyone has different needs but couples who manage to make such a relationship work earn my respect.

Away for Christmas

As someone on Facebook has reminded me... I did have a lot of bad luck when it comes to travelling... and I haven't talked about it much lately... mostly because I didn't do any recently... in the span of a year I moved into four different places so I didn't really have time to travel anywhere exciting... I didn't say anything during my last trip to see my family in October because my mind wasn't even on this blog... shameful, I know...

I did, however, go for Christmas this year.

It's rare for me to actually be with my family for Christmas since I usually have to either work or go to classes. It wasn't that difficult when I was still living with my parents because it just meant we were spending an evening together instead of the whole day but now it's just not doable if I can't take at least a week off to leave England.

BUT WAIT?!

Do people not get Christmas off?! Why yes... people do get the period somewhere close to the 25th December off... I usually get bored during that time... I was kinda annoyed that my workplace decided to not open on that day... if I knew sooner, I'd probably try making some plans so I don't die out of boredom... on the plus side, I did get holidays without any problems and there were no classes to attend to in the first week of January so I did get to spend Christmas with my closest family... that would be fourteen people currently... though my dad couldn't make it...

WAIT WHAT?!

You can blame Julius Caesar for that.
While most of the world follows the Gregorian calendar for religious practices, I do not. Thus I have Christmas in January. I also have New Year starting on the 14th January.

Anyway...

The process of going from one country to another wasn't all that bad this time around. Neither was the last time I did this, strangely enough. There was hardly anything exciting going on. I went out of the house a few hours early to spend some time with someone . After two hours of chatting I went to catch my train...  I feel like crying just thinking about it... I went to London, I went underground and had to wait half an hour at St Pancras... incidentally they had this really cool tree at the station... it was so cool that I had to do the unthinkable... I took out my phone and snapped a photo...

 

But what is so awesome about this tree that I just had to make a photo of it? I'm glad you've asked, my theoretical yet non-existent reader. Well... in my infinite wisdom I have made a close up specially for YOU...

It's made out of LEGO... most awesome indeed... Lego Christmas Tree... so shiny...

MOVING ON

I caught the last train and had to spend the next couple of hours waiting for my plane. I may have fallen asleep somewhere between Brighton and London but what kept me awake was the paranoia of one of those people at the airport secretly being a brain eating alien from outer space. In order to keep my crumbling psyche intact, I decided to train my Pokemon and beat up two Gym Leaders on my quest to becoming the greatest Pokemon trainer in Unova!

After check-in I decided to dine at an airport restaurant, for breakfast. You see, I always hear tales of how bad the cuisine there is but I've never tried it myself so I couldn't in evil conscience say that it is bad. Now I can say that it's not bad but it's definitely overpriced. Compared to one restaurant in Brighton, the breakfast at Luton is half the size and twice the price. That's really not my idea of a good meal.

The plane was not delayed by a day nor did it crash. Yet something else happened which I haven't had the pleasure of experiencing until that day. Mainly, the announcer was telling over the megaphones that the plane is about to fly off and that all passengers for this flight should hurry up before they get stranded on the airport for all eternity. Strangely enough, everyone was still in line because the plane didn't open the door yet. Some people chuckled... some got annoyed... a kid punched my knee...

I slept through most of the flight. After landing I got my luggage and went to catch the bus, which was already at the parking lot waiting for the driver to finish his break. I slept through most of the ride too. Then I got picked up by my mom and sister...

It took me 12 hours to get from point A to point B so it wasn't bad at all on my usual standards...

Christmas went well... I played on my 3DS with my two Sith Apprentices... though I ended up with a 40 degree fever shortly afterwards and had to delay my flight... which meant I spent New Years in bed instead of with friends like I was planning too...

and I'm still coughing... but there are plus sides, mainly the image below...

Polityka i Logika

Po przybyciu do Polski na święta nieuniknione jest, że zacznę patrzeć co to się dzieje w polityce polskiej. Nie żebym jakoś specjalnie starał się wnikać w tego typu szczegóły ale, że TVN24 jest prawie zawsze włączony a posiłki jemy przy telewizorze, także i herbatę wieczorem się spożywa przy Szkle Kontaktowym, jest to raczej nieuniknione.

Jedna rzecz, która ostatnio przykuła moją uwagę to wypowiedź Kaczyńskiego. Komentował on sposób w jaki Premier Tusk jest na urlopie podczas gdy oficer prokuratury wojskowej próbuje popełnić samobójstwo przy dziennikarzach. Chce pewnie przez to powiedzieć, że Tusk nie nadaje się na Premiera skoro nie rezygnuje z urlopu gdy tylko w państwie źle się dzieje. Jednak mi nasuwa się inna interpretacja tychże słów.

Ostatnim razem gdy Tusk wyjechał z Warszawy by przemierzyć kraj swym autobusem w ramach kampanii wyborczej, ktoś się podpalił. Teraz pojechał na urlop i ktoś próbował się postrzelić. Kaczyński najwyraźniej twierdzi iż są to wydarzenia jak najbardziej powiązane a zatem można dojść do prostego wniosku, że gdy Tusk przestanie być Premierem, przez Polskę przetoczy się wielka fala samobójstw.

Game: Saint Christopher's Orphanage for Lost Children

So soon after another blog post... I suppose it's better for my blogging when my mind is not constrained by posting schedules or a list of topics to cover... instead, it just wanders freely through the labyrinthine maze of my consciousness... or maybe I'm just too bored and aimless as is the usual case this time of the year...

Either way, I ended up thinking about 2006. It was the year that I, as a stranger, entered a strange land... but there was still internet... and coupled with my natural tendency to create narratives, I recessed into gaming...

It so happened that in 2006 I attended DragonMeet... my first convention and an opportunity to meet a lot of the people who I've previously only spoken to online... It was a very fun time... fun enough that I went on a few more afterwards until I couldn't due to employment obligations...

I mention this because on our way back on the underground, Deoq has stated that he'd love to play in a Changeling The Lost game and I said that I could run one provided it would be online and through a forum. Thus I was running a rather enjoyable game... even years from now on, I still fondly remember it... but I still have to go and format the whole archive I have and while I do that, I thought I might as well expose you to all the strangeness that our collective minds created...

I expect many of you won't be able to follow the story that well since we were all somewhat familiar with the setting and terms used, thus many an explanation for the uninitiated has been omitted... but that's what the comment section is for... not that anybody uses it...

Without further ado, I present...

Saint Christopher's Orphanage for Lost Children
Chapter 1: Howls at Night

The above link should send you to the Google Document... I had some trouble editing it due to how it interprets tables and images... let's just say that it looks better in MS Word... but it's still fairly readable... I think... maybe...

A Rather Short Tale of Two Blogs

I had another blog at one point...

I thought I needed a place to ramble on about games and geek related things rather than put them up on here... this being a blog where I most just share stuff about life and whatever strange thought ends up embedding itself into my mind while travelling through the mental aether...

I kinda decided that blog was redundant... I partly wanted to have it there as a way of entry to creating a webzine and just generate interest in some way... I even got a few people to help with it at one point but that ended up not bearing much fruit... then Real Life took over... how I despise it when it happens... alas, it is inevitable...

The other issue was that I ended up not having the time to write. In the end I probably did make the right choice in focusing on writing my dissertation and getting a job that actually pays the bills instead of spending my time sitting at home and writing articles for a website.

I actually have post-it notes on the wall behind my laptop with all the titles of articles I want to write. They hang there and mock me every single day.

Jeśli to czytasz, Panie Q, to zapewniam, że nie zapomniałem o tych obiecanych artykułach i wiedz, że zostaną one napisane. Nadal mam wszystkie notatki... niestety najpierw chcę skończyć tą moją pracę pisać... bo już dłużej tego nie zniosę... z drugiej strony, już mi tak niewiele zostało do napisania, że zapewne skończę jeśli nie w tym roku to na początku następnego...

Back to a language that, statistically speaking, most of you should understand.

Then I had an interesting observation... if I put anything that relates to my geek nature outside of this blog, I end up with not having much to talk about. I mean, sure, it's not all I talk about and sometimes the things I like are only tangentially related to my posts... but when I take that aspect of my life out and limit myself only to things that I can talk about publicly (which you'd think is the norm on the internet... hint: it still isn't)... I'm pretty much left with nothing interesting to say...

I always said I'm a geek... I may not have realised how much though since I don't think I actually behave like some of those internet horror stories I read... some people are really obsessive about games and after witnessing it first-hand, I really can't put myself there...

so what's the point of this whole train of thoughts?

I don't know... just make something up that would satisfy you...