World of Warcraft Character Becomes Campaign Issue

Dr. Gamera writes "Maine state senate candidate Colleen Lachowicz plays World of Warcraft. The opposing party in Maine has issued a press release attacking her for her Level 85 Orc Assassination Rogue. From the article: 'In an unusual press release issued Thursday, the Maine GOP attacked Lachowicz for a “bizarre double life” in which she’s a devotee of the hugely popular online role-playing game World of Warcraft. In the game, she’s “Santiaga,” an "orc assassination rogue" with green skin, fangs, a Mohawk and pointy ears.' Her incumbent, much to his credit, rejects the attack as 'mudslinging politics.'"

Comments

I bet..

[Anonymous Coward]

I bet she just gained a shit ton of voters in the 18-30 range.

Re:I bet..

[2.7182]

I'd rather vote for an orc assassination rogue than a democrat or republican.

Re:I bet..

[flyingsquid]

It doesn't matter whether you vote for the Horde or the Alliance. It's not a real choice because ultimately both of them are owned by the moneyed interests of the guild banks and the vendors, and will do anything for a few gold pieces and some high-level items. Until we break free of this two-faction system there will never be any change in Azeroth.

Re:I bet..

[WillAffleckUW]

See, this is why you should join Tech Savvy At Risk Youth (TSARY) guild.

We work for nobody.

Well, except for the dragons.

Re:I bet..

[Narcocide]

STFU, Panda coward!

Re:I bet..

[Culture20]

Well, I for one am voting for a third party Panda Bear.

Re:I bet..

[naroom]

And I now have coffee on my keyboard. Well played.

Re:I bet..

[drkim]

Her comeback to this should be, "I KNOW the difference between fantasy and reality. Apparently, my opponent does not."

Re:I bet..

[ZiakII]

god damn it Slashdot why is there no way to undo mods... posting to revert incorrect moderation change

Re:I bet..

[LordLimecat]

Probably a lot easier to find a good pug group now too.

Re:I bet..

[El_Oscuro]

At least Slashdot could have a preview button for mods like regular comments...

Re:I bet..

[flyingsquid]

I would suggest voting Libertarian, but Azeroth is already a Libertarian paradise: no taxes, neither the Alliance nor the Horde maintain a police force, fire department, or public library system; there's minimal public investment in infrastructure like roads (in fact virtually no government to speak of), government does nothing as demons and undead stalk the land (I don't know what the official Libertarian position on a plague of the undead is, but I assume Ron Paul would argue that this should be left up to the private sector). Plus, everyone's on the gold standard!

Re:I bet..

[Gadget_Guy]

What I do is open the message that I want to mod in a new window and mod it there. That way I know that I am modding the message that I want to mod, and that I will not accidentally change the mod with the mouse wheel. I can also see if anyone else has modded the message since I first loaded the page.

I guess it is like previewing the mods in reverse.

Re:I bet..

[chebucto]

The attack assumes the fact that the game is a fantasy world. The substance of the attack is that she spends too much time in the fantasy world.

If she says anything it should be to laugh along with it (haha, maybe I do spend a bit too much time with that game, we all have our foibles), or at most say something along the lines of "it's a private matter that has not and will not affect my job performance."

Re:I bet..

[toastking]

At least they outright tell you they will kill you or screw you over.

Re:I bet..

[jd2112]

Her comeback to this should be, "I KNOW the difference between fantasy and reality. Apparently, my opponent does not."

Knowing the difference between fantasy and reality could be a handicap in the world of politics.

Re:I bet..

[Doc Ruby]

Yes, Libertarianism is an excellent way to run an imaginary world. The real world requires compromise with reality. Like the people forming governments to protect themselves from each other. Especially from bands of marauding warlords.

Re:I bet..

[duk242]

I think the attack is more "SHE KILLS THINGS IN A FANTASY WORLD, WOULD YOU VOTE FOR A MURDERER?" which is why it's such a stupid attack. I don't think their attack would have as much substance if she was a Night Elf Healing Priest....

Re:I bet..

[Z34107]

You may be surprised to learn that the Libertarian party agrees with you 100%.

Re:I bet..

[Kharny]

if it's lordaeron, you can keep it, i'm not into necrophilia.

Re:I bet..

[bhlowe]

I know a few people who are addicted to that game, play it at work and too much at home. Never played it myself.. How many hours does it take to become a level 85 orc assassin rogue? The other question is, how many hours a day playing RPG games is is too many for a busy politician who I'll presume has a family...

Re:I bet..

[Dunbal]

I'm in the fortunate position of not having to work for someone else. However if my employer thinks I just disappear at 5pm and magically re-appear at 9am, and during this down-time I spend all night thinking of better ways to do my job, well, s/he can go fuck her/himself. There's nothing wrong with having hobbies.

Re:I bet..

[Anonymous Coward]

Via quests, I was paid by the leaders or governing bodies to instill discipline workers, to catch thieves, kill murders, and quite frequently to steal supplies, even from commoners on my own side. Considering every adventurer wandering through the town gets offered that too, that sounds like a police force and tax system. They even have this socialist welfare system where they basically pay to walk five feet and talk to someone else. Doesn't sound very Libertarian to me, just a lot less bureaucracy and organization.

Re:I bet..

[Zelucifer]

Just level 85? At this point 100 hour, potentially 75. No way of knowing how many years that was spread throughout, as the game has been out for 6+ years now.

Re:I bet..

[Dahamma]

Yeah, there is a way of knowing, as the link in the article says the account was created in Sept 2011...

Re:I bet..

[Anubis IV]

No taxes? Last time I visited Azeroth (admittedly, a few years ago), they imposed a levy on every transaction via the (government-owned and monopolized) auction house, and because my work (raiding) provided benefits, the government effectively forced me to share my hard-earned wealth with the lower and middle-classes of Azeroth. They didn't call it "taxes" in that case, however. Instead, they called it things like mandatory "repair bills" and "reagent costs" that were the result of them working in collusion with private sector members who got kickbacks like prime real estate in capital cities. And that's hardly the least of their sins.

Rather than leaving the private sector alone to manage itself, as they should, they went on that "Burning Crusade" reform campaign while I was visiting, during which they imposed stricter limits on the number of people allowed to work on a job at any given time. That, in turn, forced my company to eliminate 15 paid positions on their raid team, leaving me destitute and begging for scraps.

And no police? As if! Not only do they have police (who they refer to as "guards", for some strange reason), but the police habitually discriminate against foreigners, even going so far as to physically assault them for doing nothing more than being in the vicinity of a city. I can't tell you how many times I invited friends to visit me, only to have the guards insist that my friend was most unwelcome.

The public transportation system is a hodge-podge as well. The privatized zeppelin transportation seemed to be doing fine, but the publicly-funded tram system was regularly plagued by...odd problems.

Re:I bet..

[Anonymous Coward]

Considering the 10x difference between sell price and buy price at vendors and the rather significant auction house taxes I'd say that the Alliance and Horde war machines are funded by sales tax. Many of the quests are carried out for people in the alliance or horde military, which implies that in fact WoW is a government contractor simulator - now that's a sexy marketing slogan.

Re:I bet..

[Vintermann]

there's minimal public investment in infrastructure like roads

Yeah, but I hear there's a thriving shipment industry very efficient at delivering packages and gathering various goods.

Re:I bet..

[Krneki]

WoW is not Liberal, it's run by totalitarians (moderators) who will strip you from every item and kill you (ban) if you don't play by their rules, without a trial.

Re:I bet..

[Anonymous Coward]

It's probably also not cheap to fund the infinite supply of over-powered guards that you will find throughout Azeroth guarding even some pretty insignificant places. Not to mention the free public transport that takes you across continents and seas in a matter of seconds.

Re:I bet..

[hairyfeet]

Bah! I bet you are saying that just cuz you don't want to vote for somebody green you racist!

Re:I bet..

[Anonymous Coward]

no taxes? how do you account for the missing gold from every auction house transaction.

Re:I bet..

[Doc Ruby]

So does the mayor of Sim City. They each think their fantasy is reality.

Re:I bet..

[Doc Ruby]

That sounds just like the Republican totalitarians who will strip your property and kill you without trial if you don't play by their rules, who created and run front "libertarian" groups like the Tea Party.

Re:I bet..

[Sigg3.net]

Or rather, gangs of marauding war lords create governments to protect themselves from the people.

Of course, reality goes somewhere in between.

Re:I bet..

[jgtg32a]

If you are a guild leader, you should absolutely put it down. The amount of BS and drama you have to deal with is far less than you will ever have to deal with in an actual professional environment.

Re:I bet..

[drsquare]

Azeroth is actually communist, as all workers have free access to the means of production (anvils, forges), as well as natural resources (fishing pools, herbs). If Azeroth were libertarian, you'd have to pay a private owner for access to his copper nodes.

Re:I bet..

[Wovel]

The tea party is far from libertarian. Traditional Democrats hav more in common with Libertarians than the Tea Party.

Re:I bet..

[nedlohs]

And listing WOW as a hobby would be fine (there are positive and negative associations so you proabbly want to consider the audience), but that wasn't the claim. The claim was listing it as a "SKILL".

Re:I bet..

[Wovel]

They have quotes from her discussing WOW in 2009....

Re:I bet..

[dywolf]

I refuse to vote for a rogue. Or frost mage.

Re:I bet..

[snemarch]

Who would vote for a nub with ilvl 345? ;p

Re:I bet..

[ultranova]

Azshara for president. Why settle for the lesser evil?

Re:I bet..

[NeutronCowboy]

Funny. And, living on a PvP server, I am pretty sure that the results are very similar to what you would get in a libertarian world: don't venture outside unless you have a max-level PvP-geared killer on call (whether via an Alt or a guildie), gathering materials frequently involves killing off the competition, and then guarding the spawn points with your friends, your own city gets raided for shits and giggles, at which point everyone who isn't a max-level character can just log off or hide somewhere in the lesser-traveled regions, etc.
Then again, being fully-geared, fully-leveled is kinda fun when you run into some lower levels. Unless, of course, they call in their guild, and proceed to corpse camp you.

Yay libertarian paradise!

Re:I bet..

[operagost]

The WoW strategy will backfire big time. They messed up bit time here... really, the only issue I have is with her talking about drowning Grover Norquist in the bathtub. In my world, death threats are a real concern. Imagine Romney joking about drowning Rachel Maddow or Debbie Wasserman Schultz in the bathtub, and you get the idea. Obviously, the joke is based on Norquist's comment about shrinking government, but there's a big difference between a joke about an abstract concept and a direct threat.

Re:I bet..

[sheehaje]

Why just 18-30? I'm 40 and grew up in the 80's --- pretty much when home gaming started. I don't have the time to play like I used to, but I still play once in a while, and have been involved in a few MMORPG's (EVE Online, WoW, LotRO). I tend to play more games with a pause button, or family oriented games now, but I understand the line between gaming and real life. Not that I'm running for office, but I have no problem with the fact that someone that is plays games. There are plenty of people who work at high levels yet still find time for recreation. In fact, I'm willing to bet most people working at high levels need to find some sort of recreation, whether it be Golf or WoW, people need stress relief.

My mother is 75 and still plays super Mario Brothers. Before computer games, people played plenty of board, card and dice games. I understand they are going after this person based on what they are in the game as much as the fact that she plays it, but I know for a fact (based on my own experience) that what you do in a game does not reflect how you handle real life situations. At least for people considered normal, it shouldn't.

Re:I bet..

[operagost]

Really? Democrats want to shrink the size of the federal government, and return more power to the people and the states? Democrats claim that giving more power to the states and people will result in segregation and anarchy. Democrats want to keep taxes low? How, when they want to increase the size of entitlement programs?

Re:I bet..

[Kelerei]

I can't imagine hiring someone dumb enough to list WOW on a resume. (Hint: employers want to hire people who want to WORK.)

Coming from the perspective of an officer of a large guild and raid leader, I can. This is going to come across as a personal anecdote, but what the heck.

Let's take your average raid team. This is a group of folks playing different classes, different specs, having different roles, playing the game their own way. I have to bring them all together and co-ordinate their efforts in order to defeat the raid encounters. For all of us, that's some serious teamwork right there. For me, it's a test of my own leadership abilities: giving the correct strategy to defeat the encounters, being able to identify any problems (such as "OK, we hit enrage on Zon'ozz because ranged was standing too far away from the boss, and the ping-pong ball was taking too long to travel. If you guys stand closer, that may buy us the time we need" -- and next pull, they did that and we got our first heroic kill), and having the ability to see the bigger picture. (In my case, being INTJ helps... :)

Now, these are all skills that one could bring into the workplace, and indeed into real life. Sadly, the masses out there think that gaming is a real waste of time, induces psychopathic tendencies in people -- we see this brought up all the time whenever some random kid goes on the rampage and shoots/blows up a whole lot of people. And this isn't restricted to World of Warcraft only; we've seen Doom blamed for Columbine, we've seen Call of Duty shouldering blame for last year's Norway attacks (Breivik did admit to use the game as "target-simulation", but here I'd argue that if he were to do that, there's a more fundamental psychiatric issue in there)... it's a rather lengthy list. What a lot of people don't realise is the positive effects that gaming could have. Member of a raid team? The guy knows the importance and value of teamwork. Raid/guild leader? He knows how to lead, and the burden of doing so. (In my case, being unexpectedly thrust into the raid leader role after the established guard suddenly quit the game in favour of SW:TOR has, over the last few months, taught me that I have leadership abilities that I previously never realised I had.) That's just some examples from one game; there's bound to be plenty more from others.

That being said, if you're going to put this kind of thing forward to prospective employers, know your prospective employer. If your employer understands this kind of thing (mine does: we're a fairly large and well-respected ISP in our part of the world), they'll be far more receptive to this kind of thing (a lot of folks play World of Warcraft here, including my direct manager). If your prospective employer doesn't (let's say a large financial institution), then that's probably going to count against you, for reasons I've put forward above.

At the end of the day, what one does outside of the workplace is totally up to them (obviously, so long as it doesn't negatively affect what they actually do in the workplace!). As one of the other people who have replied to this post says: "there's nothing wrong with having hobbies". We're not all mindless drones; we all have a need to get out there and enjoy ourselves. If we get enjoyment from hacking on the Linux kernel, from socialising with friends, from playing games... so be it.

Re:I bet..

[Jawnn]

Until we have instant run-off elections (or the significant number of voters magically do the same thing) , voting Libertarian (or any "third party") is wasting your vote. Sucks, but that's reality for you.

Re:I bet..

[ArsonSmith]

Also, you can see where the government is involved when you and thousands of others are tasked with bringing materials to repair a bridge and yet here, years later the bridge still isn't repaired. Stupid government scam to extract as much money and value while providing only enough service to not cause riots is a bad way to do business.

Re:I bet..

[scubamage]

No, not really. As someone who used to play and had well over 100 days logged, that used to be the case. These days, it's a very casual friendly game. As mentioned earlier, you can hit level 85 in a fairly low amount of time (75-100 hours) which is comparatively low considering the amount of time one can sink into other RPG's.

Re:I bet..

[brown5862]

Leroy Jenkins 2012!

Re:I bet..

[VGPowerlord]

Also, you can see where the government is involved when you and thousands of others are tasked with bringing materials to repair a bridge and yet here, years later the bridge still isn't repaired. Stupid government scam to extract as much money and value while providing only enough service to not cause riots is a bad way to do business./quote?
If we're talking about the Redridge bridge, I thought it was finally repaired in December 2010. It took them over 5 years to repair it, though.

Re:I bet..

[shutdown -p now]

Tea Party is a bloc of social conservatives who want to make government just small enough to fit in one's bedroom - and then fit it there indeed. It's just as much antithetic to any sane libertarian as government control of economics. In fact, those who are rational about it should realize that e.g. criminalization of homosexuality would be far more damaging to human rights than higher taxes.

On the other hand, those libertarians who think that they can buy lower taxes by giving up rights of other people are hypocrites.

Re:I bet..

[s.petry]

There is a logical point that people miss when asking such questions, and where I don't discount people playing video games are better or worse than anyone else.

Lets take a Socratic approach shall we?

How much time does the average person spend watching TV? Is a Gamer spending about the same amount time in a Game instead of watching TV? This tends to actually favor gamers by the way, at least from my experience and the people I have met. The TV is showing you as much fantasy as the Game, the difference is really that TV does not allow one do actually do anything to participate.

How much time does the average person spend in a Bar? Is a Gamer spending any time in a Bar? Usually they don't, so again this favors gamers.

How much time do Gamers spend at Theaters, Concerts, Plays, etc...? Very little compared to average people, and are not both escapes from reality?

The point here, is that when you consider that "Gaming" is entertainment, many people treat Gaming as "bad" entertainment while pretending that their preferred form of entertainment is "good". In reality, it is not different. It's not unusual mind you, that people are biased, it happens all the time. People don't like others to be different and their preferred entertainment methods are no different than skin color, sex, age, etc...

Re:I bet..

[cusco]

You really should find out what the Democratic party (no, I'm not a member) is about rather than just regurgitate talking points. Every major expansion of the federal government over the last 44 years has been done by a Republican president, by the way.

Re:I bet..

[Dahamma]

Yeah, but the question was how much time it took her to level this character to 85, not how long she's been playing.

Re:I bet..

[error_logic]

Something you might find interesting: http://www.rangevoting.org/rangeVirv.html

Re:I bet..

[Rakarra]

And listing WOW as a hobby would be fine (there are positive and negative associations so you proabbly want to consider the audience), but that wasn't the claim. The claim was listing it as a "SKILL".

Playing WOW isn't that much of a skill. But being, say, a raid leader in WOW requires quite a few marketable skills:
* Flattery.
* Begging while retaining a measure of pride.
* Wrangling schedules.
* Recruitment.
* Research.
* Maths (sometimes).
* Dealing with interpersonal conflicts.
* Telling someone they suck but crafting it in a way that they come out of it thinking it was a positive experience and a desire to improve.
* Dealing with the stress as you sit late at night thinking of the raid the next day, wondering "how the fuck am I going to make this work?"

Re:I bet..

[nedlohs]

Yeah, I said their were positive and negative associations to listing it as a hobby.And being a raid leader seems as useful as being "head of the X team" in high school that people like to keep mentioning.

Re:I bet..

[Rakarra]

Yeah, I said their were positive and negative associations to listing it as a hobby

If you put it on your resume, it will certainly require clarification. Like, there's no reason to list the specific game title, saying you serve as the point person and leader for a collaborative team of 25-35 people to play online games on the weekend.

And being a raid leader seems as useful as being "head of the X team" in high school that people like to keep mentioning

That's not a bad analogy. Though the heads of the X teams often have more resources and less responsibility. :D

Re:I bet..

[metaforest]

EveOnline is closer to the Libertarian Ideal.

Limited policing only in core systems. You don't like the popo? Stay out of hi-sec.

The GMs don't give a shit about ISK scamming unless it involves RL cash transfers. Anything goes.

Everyone is armed to the teeth and gang violence is common. Whats not to love?

Re:I bet..

[Doc Ruby]

I'm aware that I'm informed. You, on the other hand, are so lazy that you wasted your comment on a mere insult, greased with a condescension you haven't earned. I bet it's based on your ignorance, and that you care only about bleating in horror when poked with a cluestick.

Re:I bet..

[Doc Ruby]

No, I just told the truth about Republicans. I'm not a Democrat. Though I do live in NY. I don't care what Schumer thinks he owns. Except for the part where he owns a Democratic Senate majority, instead of the hysterical insanity that Republicans would give us with theirs. Democratic majorities aren't good, but they're not the living hell that are Republican majorities.

Re:I bet..

[Doc Ruby]

The US people created a government to protect themselves from the gangs of marauding warlords, and have mostly kept it. To calibrate the degrees these statements are true, see all the other countries. We're relative to each other. Though in this scale, it's obvious the US has mostly slid towards Somalia, with notable exceptions.

Re:I bet..

[Krneki]

This is why Mafia is the ultimate form of free market. :)

Re:I bet..

[Phrogman]

What about the fact that there are tons of Chinese gold farmers screwing with the economy or is that no longer the case in WOW? :P

Not surprising

[Mashiki]

Gaming still isn't mainstream outside of the "sub 35" group in turn this makes them into a loner, even within geek circles(and don't deny it) MMO's still hold that, same with MP games that old stereotype still holds sway with some people. It'll take another few decades before that opinion changes, though it's ugly politics at it's finest and the GOP candidate should be called on it.

Re:Not surprising

[zaibazu]

Actually over the years WoW went from the go-to MMORPG to a cause of massive eye rolling in geek circles.

Re:Not surprising

[Anonymous Coward]

Gaming still isn't mainstream outside of the "sub 35" group

I'd say that number is at least 45 now, and gets bigger with each passing year.

Re:Not surprising

[Anonymous Coward]

I fully agree with this statement. I am 41 myself, and my peers/friends in the same age range (+10 yrs) all grew up playing video games from the dawn of their creation; Pong, Atari 2600, Vic20s, Ti99s, etc.., and continue to do so today.

Re:Not surprising

[bbelt16ag]

considering everyone of them play the birds game.. they are gamers!

Re:Not surprising

[Anonymous Coward]

Agreed.

However, explaining what a MUD is to a young kid is a mistake I only made once. Now I just pretend that MMORPGs just evolved straight from single-celled organisms.

Re:Not surprising

[foniksonik]

West of House
You are standing in an open field west of a white house, with a boarded front door.
There is a small mailbox here.

Re:Not surprising

[Anonymous Coward]

You wait too long and night comes.

You are eaten by a Grue.

Re:Not surprising

[Minupla]

> open mailbox
OK.
> mail absentee ballot
OK.
> wait
Nothing changes.

The future is dark.
You are eaten by a guru.

Re:Not surprising

[LordLimecat]

Nevertheless when you read some of her posts it does look like she has a serious maturity issue. Anyone who resorts to calling the opposing party "teabaggers" probably isnt going to be non-partisan, and probably isnt senate material.

I mean, not a huge fan of this kind of politics, but her maturity and partisanship certainly are relevant.

Re:Not surprising

[Doc Ruby]

Calling those nincompoops "teabaggers" is polite. Pretending that someone running against the Maine Republican Party in 2012 should be "non-partisan" is immature.

Re:Not surprising

[Anarchduke]

Well obviously. Only Republican congressmen should be allowed to be immature and highly partisan.

Re:Not surprising

[DigiShaman]

We need adults, not children running the nation.

Re:Not surprising

[dtmancom]

I'm 41, and I have a core group of buddies with whom I have been multi-gaming since 1995. We met when Duke Nukem 3D came out, and on weekends we would rewire our employer's network to give our workstations the 10MB connections (we were the IT folks) and we would Duke it up all day. Then UO came out, and we were the early adopters of the first cable modem lines, and we would crush peeps with our low pings. And I can't tell you the number of times we were called "low ping bastards" in Team Fortress Classic.

I think my age group... some of us... are the first ones looking forward to being old and infirm so we can chillax in a nursing home all day, owning bitches in online games and watching a torrent of Aliens in 2160P while peeing into a catheter. "dtmancom, you have visitors!" "Go away, raiding." And, of course, we'll be 75 years old and mocking the console noobs.

Re:Not surprising

[sabs]

Not to mention that us 40 year olds were the young 23 year olds playing in Everquest, Ultima Online, DAoC, AO and all of the first generation MMO's that WoW copied from.

Re:Not surprising

[nedlohs]

There are lots of 50 year olds who grew up with gaming but most didn't. And by 16 you've picked other hobbies.

35 is the magic age - the Atari 2600 was released when you were 0.The C64 came out when you were 5. The vast bulk of people 35 and under owned a console/home computer or had a friend who did when they were still aged in single digits.

Re:Not surprising

[LordLimecat]

Calling those nincompoops "teabaggers" is polite.

Here I had been taught name calling in general was puerile, immature, and generally not appropriate to the highest legislative body in the country.

I also recall that its considered a fallacy, but what do I know.

Re:Not surprising

[LordLimecat]

Can you show me where that republican candidate was doing that? If not, cut the non sequiturs, please.

Re:Not surprising

[operagost]

Everyone deserves courtesy. It has little to do with how little you think of them, but how much you value yourself. Singling out people as somehow exempt from common courtesy makes you as bad a person as you believe them to be.

Re:Not surprising

[camperdave]

It wasn't stupidity. It was humour. His statement could be taken to mean that he and his friends are continuing to play the same games they did from the dawn of video game creation; from back in the day when joysticks only had one button. Apparently the moderators and I weren't on the same page that day. Other days, that would have gotten a +5 funny.

Re:Not surprising

[Wovel]

She is not looking to run the nation. Just one district in Maine. Slightly less important than student body president at a large high-school.

This is a campaign for the Maine Senate, not to bethe Senator from Maine.

Re:Not surprising

[shutdown -p now]

Well, the adults haven't done a good job so far. So dismal, in fact, that it might just worth be trying.

Re:Not surprising

[s.petry]

I see a lot of people that have the same problem with Bars and Booze. I see a lot of people that have the same issue with TV shows, I know many that can't do things because one of their shows is on. I know bloggers and facebookers that have the same issue.

It's rather short sighted to claim only "gaming" has a problem, many hobbies are addictive and can distract people.

Re:Not surprising

[s.petry]

Ad Hominem is indeed a fallacy, but at the same time you need to remember what Rhetoric is all about, at least for most people. The Sophists did not use rhetoric for finding the truth, they used it to win the debate. That tradition continues today, it's an extreme minority that use rhetoric for "truth".

There are way more sophists today than followers of Socrates and Plato, in fact I would guess that most people in Politics know the names but not the works.

Re:Not surprising

[Rakarra]

Actually over the years WoW went from the go-to MMORPG to a cause of massive eye rolling in geek circles.

It's still the go-to MMORPG, but MMORPGS themselves seem to be going out of style.

Re:Not surprising

[Doc Ruby]

"Maturity" was invoked here because I called people Teabaggers. Those people are not worthy of more respect than that - they festooned themselves with teabags, choosing it as their symbol. Their failure to appreciate the more established meaning of the word was consistent with their other arrogant ignorance. Teabaggers' kindergarten playground version of history and power, and their own origins (Republican corporate sponsors' campaigns) fails hardest on the maturity angle.

The Maine Republican Party is the Tea Party. Attacking the Democrat merely for playing WoW in some bizarre fear campaign fails the maturity test.

Ooo!

[tylikcat]

...in the steam tunnels, worshipping Satan and listening to death metal, right?

Re:Ooo!

[HornWumpus]

I had a fair amount of fun in the steam tunnels armed with a wicker sword and carpet 'armor'. Heavy metal was involved. Satan never showed.

Re:Ooo!

[tylikcat]

I've spent time in steam tunnels, but it hasn't overlapped much with the time I've spent doing swordplay, either armored or not. There have been examples of metal in many instances. But clearly we had our invocations wrong from the get-go.

Whenever I run across those Chick tracts, I figure we was robbed.

(Actually, as part of a bid to get me to assist with a class during a semester I otherwise wouldn't have had any teaching load, I was recently given direction on our to get in to our local steam tunnels, and which ones had cameras. And our youngest grad student has never had any such experiences... but I digress.)

Re:Ooo!

[Anonymous Coward]

Steam tunnels are for turning homework into buildings you can't get to in the middle of the night, or at least that is what I told the administration (also works for master keys...). Although much to my horror, I realized that was the only thing I used the steam tunnels for my sophomore and junior year, and it wasn't until my senior year when I learned how to get profs to just accept the work the next afternoon instead that I rediscovered they had more creative uses. But I still remember having to go through the steam tunnels at 5 in the morning after a double all nighter, starting to see things and minor visual hallucinations from sleep loss ... I'm pretty sure if someone freaked out down there and killed someone, it would have been because of homework, not D&D.

Re:Ooo!

[HornWumpus]

Camera's and FLIR would have changed my youth, much to the worse. The steam tunnels run for miles and access most of the buildings 'boiler rooms' (though they obviously didn't contain boilers, all being heated by the campus power plant waste heat). We weren't supposed to be there, which was one of the big appeals. Access was as easy as knowing which manhole cover to pull up (close the manhole after your in, someone can get hurt).

I suppose we would have just gone more ninja. Compromising the camera feeds would be a worthwhile mission. It would take more then one access. Install networked DVRs in hidden locations etc.

She'd have my vote!

[bl968]

They say that like it's a bad thing?

The Sword of a Thousand Truths

[Steve1952]

...But the sword was considered to be too powerful for anyone to possess, so it was removed from the game and stored on a one gig flash drive. But it was foretold that one day players who could wield the sword might reveal themselves...

Re:The Sword of a Thousand Truths

[orodos]

The Maine Republicans are stuck with the age old question: how do you kill that which has no life?

I'm sorry, but....

[Anonymous Coward]

Someone with an empty socket in her belt does not deserve our sympathy.

Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[Anonymous Coward]

From TFS, "Her incumbent, much to his credit, rejects the attack as 'mudslinging politics.'"

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[mrchaotica]

It doesn't really matter that it was "technically" the party's SuperPAC that did it; they did it on his behalf and he should be held responsible. Maybe the party would learn to back off a little (although overturning Citizens United is required to fix the problem completely).

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[Intropy]

Absolutely right. And let me just add that anyone who disagrees is a Nazi.

-- Paid for by the mrchaotica fan club.

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[phantomfive]

If negative ads didn't work, you wouldn't see them. Parties use them because people see them and are influenced as a result. They work.

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[readin]

Aren't there strict rules against candidates coordinating with SuperPACs? I thought the reason the SuperPACs could raise so much money was because they are considered independent speech spending. If that's the case then you can't hold the candidate responsible.

Of course the cynic in my has to wonder if the candidate and the SuperPAC coordinated in secret so that the candidate could get the best of both worlds. The damage of the attack is done, but the incumbent gets to look all righteous for rejecting the attack. And because of the rules against coordination the attacked person can't even make the case that the should put a stop to it.

If the laws were followed very strictly, I would think the incumbent could theoretically be breaking the law by rejecting the attacks.

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[SydShamino]

See the Colbert Show episodes where he hands control over his super PAC to John Stewart for just what is "legal".

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[XxtraLarGe]

It doesn't really matter that it was "technically" the party's SuperPAC that did it; they did it on his behalf and he should be held responsible.

If you look at what he said, it sounds like he's being very reasonable about it and distancing himself from the attack.

From TFA: Martin said he has no plans to make an issue out of Lachowicz's alter-ego and explained that the parties frequently operate without consulting candidates in local Maine races. "From the first time I was elected, I didn't like the mudslinging," said Martin, who owns Nitram Excavation Services. "Somebody's personal life is their personal life. What you do in society and in the community is what matters. I've seen three or four attack ads against me from the Democratic Party. We have no control over that, which is unfortunate."

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[jammer170]

Did you perhaps miss the part where he took responsibility? He explicitly stated the attack was nothing but mudslinging and that the individual seemed like a nice person when he met her. What more do you want? Be specific, I want to know exactly what else you think he should have done. In case you have forgotten, we do live in a largely free society, and he can't force them to take the website down or apologize.

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[Doc Ruby]

They work because they're good. While I want to hear from a candidate the constructive claims they make, I want to hear from someone the most intense criticism of the candidate. Who else but their competition to offer that criticism?

Of course lying is worse than no criticism. The mass media is supposed to tell us when they're lying, but it's all far too corporate to say "lie", even when it's in its corporate interest to do so.

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[Doc Ruby]

Hahahaha. And Romney's "blind trust" just randomly gave $10M startup funds to Romney's son.

The reason these groups insist on secrecy of their members and donors is because it's obvious that they're coordinating based on who they are and their other relationships.

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[Doc Ruby]

He's lying. The only way the Republican Party (that's funding his campaign and staffing it) would do that is if they know he accepts it. Why shouldn't he lie? It worked on you.

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[Doc Ruby]

Where did he take responsibility? He blamed his own party for mudslinging, not himself. As if he's not working closely with his own state Republican Party, that's funding and staffing the rest of his campaign.

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[Doc Ruby]

Romney's lies mostly fly through the mass media without challenge. Recently they have met some resistance, since the corporate owners know Obama's going to win, so are going along to get along with the power for 4 more years.

The mass media is populated by journalism majors, they don't have the capacity to truly do good fact checking.

1. There aren't many journalism majors in the mass media, since there aren't many journalism majors, and there are even fewer jobs in the shrinking industry.
2. Journalism majors are the ones with the fact checking capacity (skills), but there aren't many, and their corporate offices don't pay for fact checking.
3. It's the corporate disinterest in facts (to publish) that leaves facts unchecked.
4. Googling "romney lied" vs "romney plan" gives 4900 to 188,000 , 2.6% .

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[jammer170]

You are ignoring the fact that he said the individual he met does not match the description being pushed forward. He actively went against the message being pushed by the party. He also clearly stated he is not working closely with the party - he had to research the subject when it was brought to his attention (imagine that, a candidate that thinks and studies before responding!). The party doesn't pass approval on everything to the local candidates - when they do, there is the "I am so-and-so, and I approve this message." I didn't see anything like that here. The fact is, you are assuming and applying a generalization to this specific candidate.

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[phantomfive]

look in Google news, not in Google.

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[s.petry]

You are confusing "accepting responsibility" with "stating information contrary to the ad", there is a difference. I do get your point, but lets not forget how every candidate claims to hate negative ads. Every single one, yet every election cycle we deal with the same shit from the same people. If it gets them to win, that's all they worry about. Citizens United, PACs and Super-PACs just allow it to happen without anyone being able to point a finger at the responsible party.

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[jammer170]

Then I'll pose the exact same question I did earlier, of which no one has actually attempted to answer: what, specifically, would you define as accepting responsibility? Given that this is a free society, I don't see how we can hold a candidate responsible for the words another person makes, even in support of that candidate, and the best response I would expect would be exactly what he did: rebut the ad and move on.

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[s.petry]

If you read what was in the article, you will see that the candidate actually denied responsibility and blamed a PAC for the ad. I am not sure how you can come to a conclusion such as you have, which is "accepting responsibility".

Taking responsibility would be exactly that. If the candidate stated "yeah, it was my ad and my competition sucks" or something similar that would have been accepting responsibility.

I agree with the last portion you stated, and would say that we (the People) need to have Citizens United overturned. Petition and vote is your method.

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[mrchaotica]

Yes, he's distancing himself in the same way that a father does when his son wins a fight at school: (In front of the principal: "Now, now, son, fighting doesn't solve anything; don't do that again." On the way to the car: "That's my boy! Let's go get ice cream!")

Now, if he's said something like "I demand that the worthless partisan assholes who created that ad immediately cease running it and replace it with an apology ad instead, then go burn in Hell anyway!" then it might count as "distancing himself."

(This opinion applies equally to any Democrat claiming to "distance himself" from a DNC attack ad, by the way.)

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[error_logic]

It isn't typical to outright say "X lied." There are probably many other phrases more useful in determining that sentiment.

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[Doc Ruby]

The "other person" is his own political party. If he took responsibility, he'd say that he's a member of that party, and he'll refuse that kind of politicking if elected, which is what matters more than saying something mean in a campaign. But he said nothing about the party, only a message that conveniently reaches the Republican voters he wants to put him into office even as he distances himself from the message to reach other voters who disliked it. That is standard operating procedure, especially with the Republican Party. You might not realize it, but he certainly does, and took no responsibility for it. He simply blamed someone else, though he's their firm partner.

Taking responsibility would involve forcing the party to take responsibility in a public message, or just publicly rejecting the party and its further support until it apologized. Big difference between any of that and merely blaming someone else while accepting the benefits.

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[Doc Ruby]

OK, on Google News it's under 2.5%, which is about 5% less than Google-all:
"romney lied: 356
"romney lied: 14,300

Give up. If you're not going to even try your own argument before you post it, it's not worth reading.

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[Doc Ruby]

Back that up with proof like I did. You're going to have to find over 50 other phrases to bring the count equal to the mentions of the plan. Then I will find another phrase for "romney plan" and you'll have to do it again. You'll run out first.

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[error_logic]

It seems like you're assuming I have an agenda (making this a competition). I was just pointing out where it might not be so simple.

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[phantomfive]

My argument is that people call the candidates liars in the news. You said they didn't, they do, you were wrong.

My guess is you didn't realize this only because you don't read the mainstream media much. Nothing wrong with that. In the last year it's become the trend for newspapers to 'fact-check' things people say, and call them liars. Or Pinocchio. Or say pants-on-fire.

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[jammer170]

I came to that conclusion because there is zero proof to the contrary. Provide me with any evidence, anything you can find that shows this individual knew anything about the ad prior to the moment he was questioned about it. You essentially have pre-judged the individual with no evidence, and expect that individual to accept responsibility for something he may not have done. You are no better than a crooked cop demanding an apprehended individual to sign a confession.

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[jammer170]

Did you even read the article? He said specifically he doesn't approve of mudslinging. Let me quote it for you...

Martin said he has no plans to make an issue out of Lachowicz’s alter-ego and explained that the parties frequently operate without consulting candidates in local Maine races.

“From the first time I was elected, I didn't like the mudslinging,” said Martin, who owns Nitram Excavation Services. “Somebody’s personal life is their personal life. What you do in society and in the community is what matters. I've seen three or four attack ads against me from the Democratic Party. We have no control over that, which is unfortunate.”

Notice the "we" in that last sentence - he is referring to Lachowicz. Are you equally demanding an apology from Lachowicz for the mudslinging attacks by the Democratic party against Martin? The fact is, both of the parties are despicable and will stop at nothing to get more of their party in office. What needs to happen is for more people to vote for third parties - that would give these politicians better options that they could ally themselves with. Local politicians are just as trapped as voters, and by the time the local politicians have an opportunity to serve nationally, they are so entrenched in the parties that they've been corrupted from serving in the "belly of the beasts". People need to stop listening to the biased news media, stop pre-judging individuals based on nothing more than an accusation, and maybe, just maybe, we can begin to turn this country for the better. But based on the responses on Slashdot recently, I hold no hope that this will happen this election (and little for it to happen in my lifetime).

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[s.petry]

WTF? Do you know how to read English or follow your own dialogue? You essentially have pre-judged the individual with no evidence, and expect that individual to accept responsibility for something he may not have done. You are no better than a crooked cop demanding an apprehended individual to sign a confession. Wrong! I never judged anyone. I stated exactly what the article did, which is that the candidate denied responsibility and blamed the PAC, after you claimed that the candidate accepted responsibility. Did you perhaps miss the part where he took responsibility?

I showed that this quote from you Did you perhaps miss the part where he took responsibility? was factually not correct. You then asked "How would someone accept responsibility?" to which I gave an answer Taking responsibility would be exactly that. If the candidate stated "yeah, it was my ad and my competition sucks" or something similar that would have been accepting responsibility. .

Try opening up the thread and reading the dialogue in context, in English we read left to right, top to bottom. I'm not sure what language structure you are using, but it sure as hell is not English.

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[jammer170]

You know, you can continue repeating bullshit, but that doesn't make it true. I'll ask you again: show me proof the candidate knew about the ad beforehand; otherwise, you have pre-judged the individual guilty with zero proof. Meanwhile, take your ad hominem attacks and shove 'em up your ass, fuckwad.

Re:Stupid gamers can't even read TFS

[s.petry]

Where did I say he did know and/or collaborate? Nowhere did I state any such thing, so learn to read and comprehend before you claim bullshit. What I did state, is that a bill like Citizens United is a problem and PACs are a problem. There is no accountability in the system.

Fist you claimed incorrectly that the candidate claimed responsibility, then you conveniently forget everything you stated, and finally you lie about everything I stated. It's all in the thread fucktard so take your ad homimem whine and pound it up your big fat, failing to read, can't follow your own dialogue, confounded by post history, stinky asshole!

Armory link

[goodmanj]

You're all going to do it anyway, so I'll save you the trouble. Here's her character:

http://us.battle.net/wow/en/character/garrosh/Santiaga/simple

My question is, how the hell can we trust her to work hard for the citizens of Maine when she can't even find the time to pug a few heroic dungeons? Her gear is terrible! Does she even know where the justice point vendor is?

Seriously though, it looks like she played heavily up until a few years ago. I guess she's spent more time lately on real-life issues. Like running for Senate.

Re:Armory link

[jhoegl]

And level 85 was so 1 week and 2 days ago.

Re:Armory link

[WillAffleckUW]

Hey, she has a life. Besides, random heroic dungeons are so lame. They always drop you before the loot at the end.

Re:Armory link

[Nocturnal Deviant]

without any arena xp....not even step into it...yeah.......

Re:Armory link

[Intropy]

How can we trust our government to any rogue who places such a high priority on stamina?

Re:Armory link

[orodos]

She never raided Ony... What if she cant STFO OF THE FIRE?!

In my experiance...

[Kaenneth]

People who roleplay 'evil' characters are much nicer than those who play 'good' characters...

Those who play 'good' (particularly Paladins) tend to think they are always right, while 'evil' (Necromancer players for example) are more open minded and accepting.

YMMV

Re:In my experiance...

[Mike Buddha]

In my experience it hasn't been nearly as cut and dried as this. There are jerks of every ilk.

Re:In my experiance...

[Anne_Nonymous]

>> There are jerks of every ilk.

Don't get me started on the people who play as ilk.

Re:In my experiance...

[brit74]

Ahhh, a trap! We know you're just trying to sucker us into trusting you, necromancer.

Re:In my experiance...

[Lehk228]

i have had the same experiance vis-a-vis christians and satanists

Re:In my experiance...

[cloudmaster]

Damn it, where's the "Like" button on Slashdot? I guess I need to post more often so I'll go back to getting mod points.

Re:In my experiance...

[cbiltcliffe]

That's not Christians. That's people claiming to be Christians while stabbing you in the back with some personal political agenda.

Re:In my experiance...

[Gryle]

As a professing Christian myself, I'm gonna say you're running close to a no-true-scotsman fallacy on this one. Sadly it is possible for people to be Christian and to still use the Bible to push some bizarre agenda over issues God really isn't concerned with. If Islam has to claim the fanatics who detonate themselves because of false teachings from corrupt imams, then Christianity has to take responsibility for the Paul Hills and Jerry Jones of the world. Bottom line: we aren't perfect. Anyone who claims to be is lying. We're just sick people telling other sick people where we found a doctor.

Re:In my experiance...

[Anarchduke]

aka Republicans

Re:In my experiance...

[Anarchduke]

But his point is well taken. A true Christian - that is, a person dedicated to living his life as Christ-like as possible - would never do the things we have seen done by those who merely claim to be Christian. Jesus went among the sinners because that is where he was needed. I would love to point to a sect or church and say there are true Christians, but I'm still looking for a place I can point to.

The "Christian" right wing are going to be part of the horde standing before Jesus after they die begging to be let into heaven saying, "Look at all we did in your name. We eliminated welfare and we started wars and gave money to the military." And Jesus will say, "I know you not, evildoers." (Matthew 7:22)

Re:In my experiance...

[Anonymous Coward]

a person dedicated to living his life as Christ-like as possible-
          Yells at trees for not bearing fruit out of season - Mark 11:12–20
          Hates his family - Luke 14:26
          Doesn't plan for his future - Matthew 6:25
I think I met him, he's living in a cardboard box over by the overpass....

Re:In my experiance...

[Sigg3.net]

Thanks, that really comforts me.

The other people just call me n00b but I know I am good, scraping the bottom of every FPS server out there.

Re:In my experiance...

[NeutronCowboy]

What about those with a Paladin and a Death Knight? Should I delete one of the two? If so, which one? The ganker or the tanker?

Re:In my experiance...

[cbiltcliffe]

The problem with Christians is that they blabber on about God "creating" the entire universe. It's pretty fucking clearly written in the bible that God terraformed ONE planet, gave it a clear atmosphere to see the stars, and genetically engineered one race of intelligent beings.

First verse in the Bible: In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.

In what sense do "created" and "terraformed" mean the same thing? And how about that "the heavens" thing? Wouldn't that mean, in the context of the people of the time "everything above earth"? Which would be, of course, "the universe"?

Re:In my experiance...

[cbiltcliffe]

Errr...well...for the most part, yes. Although I didn't want to turn this into a political debate.....

And thus...

[neminem]

alienating all her Alliance followers. "Death to the Horde" and all, right? ;)

Re:And thus...

[Mike Buddha]

I'd never vote for someone in the Horde. I hope her opponent is Alliance, otherwise I'll have to write in, yet again.

Re:And thus...

[Bremic]

At least she could be a politician who understands truly what it is like to have the wrong person in charge.

I mean, who the hell can still support Garrosh Hellscream?

Re:And thus...

[Jade_Wayfarer]

Well, at least he did much for the Horde, and even led some battles personally, unlike some fancy-hairstyle "king", who, in face of mortal threat from Deathwing, ordered to build a new statue in Stormwind.

Re:And thus...

[Kelerei]

I mean, who the hell can still support Garrosh Hellscream?

This may come as a bit of a surprise to some hardcore Alliance faithful, but there's quite a few Horde players who share that sentiment. I've seen on some realms that, when the Alliance decides to do a raid on Orgrimmar, some person will put up a warning in trade chat, followed by most of the rest of /2 replying with some or other variant of "So? Just clear a path from Grommash Hold to the main gate. Hopefully, this time we'll get lucky and the bastard won't respawn."

Re:And thus...

[Rakarra]

Back in the old days on my server, if you killed Tyrande, Alliance would howl on the forums "Why did you not kill Staghelm instead?? You would have had folks cheering you on!"

These days it's clear that Garrosh is being led to the villain role (it could be something Sha-like, but I'm hoping it points to the return of the Burning Legion) when even the opening sequence to the new expansion goes as:
General: Garrosh, we've discovered a new continent. It's full of pandas and..
Garrosh: WHAT?? Why have you not already burned it to the ground? Why is it not crushed beneath my boots? RRRAWARRRRR!!!

A bit of a stark contrast to the Hellscream of old!

Re:And thus...

[Kelerei]

There's every chance that the Burning Legion is binding their time, waiting to come back. They're still out there: we merely prevented Kil'jaeden from getting summoned into Azeroth at the Sunwell, and of course, we're yet to go face to face with Sargeras. From reading the lore on both of those characters, they are certainly not happy with being on the losing side back in Outland, and I suspect that the time is coming when we'll be facing their full wrath.

Perhaps this is what Wrathion is hinting at...

Rubbish....

[Dr. Donuts]

Screenshot or it didn't happen.

Clan GOP

[Empiric]

I think the GOP just envious that the skill tree of their double life is recognized to be comparatively sparse. As I recall, it was basically like this...

Level 1: Oversized Lawn Mowing

Level 2: Summon Underpaid Lawn Mowing Minion

Level 3: Summon Cardboard Golems With -5 Intelligence and +5 Gold Detection For Dinner Party Disparaging Underpaid Lawn Mowing Minions

I pretty sure at that point they hit their level cap.

She Aint Got Nothin' on Max Destructo

[Penurious Penguin]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=FRhGPVYRsOY

Re:Blind Slaves, most of you...

[Mike Buddha]

Have you seen that study that suggests that tinfoil hats actually attenuate radio signals? I'll just leave this out here.

It could be worse...

[Anonymous Coward]

... she could be a panda.

Good thing she didn't have a Panda Warlock

[WillAffleckUW]

"I am not a witch!"

"But you play a warlock"

"Well, yes, it was either that or get bogged down playing healers all the time"

This might lead to her losing a lot of votes

[VAElynx]

from voters playing Alliance characters.
That said, I love the fact that her "secret life" involves a computer game while that of a lot o republicans involve fucking men in public bathrooms.

Re:This might lead to her losing a lot of votes

[OhANameWhatName]

That said, I love the fact that her "secret life" involves a computer game while that of a lot o republicans involve fucking men in public bathrooms

You're what the republicans refer to as 'the minority vote'.

https://www.mainegop.com/

[bogidu]

503 - Service Unavailable . . . . HA!

Vote Colleen Lachowicz!

[Cl1mh4224rd]

For the Horde!

Rogues...

[theurge14]

Well I was going to vote for Sen. Tom Martin but then I got sapped.

I then waited 8 seconds without trinketing but then the polling booth was obscured.

I gave up and ran.

Could be much worse

[Sponge Bath]

She could be a Farmville player. That disqualifies you to run even a fry cooker.

Re:Could be much worse

[jeffasselin]

Now you can be both! Re: the new Halfhill area in Pandaria.

Re:Could be much worse

[Nemyst]

Farmville actually qualifies you to be a lobbyist. You get to learn how to nag people until they give up and comply or bribe the system if you don't get what you want fast enough, all while doing absolutely nothing good for society.

I expect when Colleen Lachowicz wins over this...

[tlambert]

...they will complain that she ganked the election.

Meh....

[meglon]

As long as she's not a dorf, it's all good.

Good thing

[7-Vodka]

Good thing her assassin wasn't a level 19 Twink.

Lord knows what they would have made of that.

God hates Twinks. Twinks burn in hell!

Or
She couldn't even reach the level cap?

Re:Good thing

[AK Marc]

She couldn't even reach the level cap?

Fewer seem to be sitting at their level caps. Just before BC, 99% of everyone was lvl60. Just before WotLK, 95% were lvl70. Just before Cata, 90% were lvl 80. Just before Panda, 80% were lvl 85. From the groups I hung out with, there was a push to have more alts, and only those heavy into PvP (arena) focused on character optimization. The raiders just leveled their way up in instances, where it was getting easier to play casually. And they didn't level that fast. Most of the hardcore raiders I hung with instead focused on achievements. The push to be the first to down [whatever] wasn't there for Cata or Panda.

Optimization

[Anonymous Coward]

One does not get to be a level 85 anything without some understanding of optimization.
I say it counts in her favor.

Re:Optimization

[Anarchduke]

And from what I remember of the noob orc area, she has been trained to kill pork barrel projects.

Re:What about the debate last night?

[fustakrakich]

Here's the 'debate' in a nutshell:

Romney lied, and Obama died...

Or the one word review? Boring...

And actually Obama is playing the real World of Warcraft. And he's very well equipped! If you get my drift.

Senators should be savvy enough to play a PC game

[Seriman]

Maybe if more Senators were playing games and actually using computers instead of hiding from them, we could get some common sense opposition to some of the more absurd tech related legislation.

Level 85?

[SuperMog2002]

She's a devotee of the hugely popular online role-playing game World of Warcraft

She's still level 85. She's clearly not that devoted.

Orcs in this world are not "evil"

[Benfea]

I'm going to assume that you are making assumptions based on other fantasy novels and games, but in the World of Warcraft, orcs are not inherently evil. Some of them are good, some of them are bad, just like any other mortal race on Azeroth. [TONGUEINCHEEK]Gnomes on the other hand, clearly are evil in the World of Warcraft universe.[/TONGUEINCHEEK]

Re:Orcs in this world are not "evil"

[Anonymous Coward]

The GP was talking about character classes. I think we can all agree that a Rogue, a dishonorable and amoral murderer whose loyalties lie only with the highest bidder, is an undesirable choice for any political office.

A Warlock, on the other hand, is a highly intellectual wielder of magical power with great experience and skill in trafficking and bargaining with demons. A Warlock would therefore do very well in "dealing with" lobbyists and other representatives of the private sector. /cast Demonic Sacrifice

Re:Orcs in this world are not "evil"

[smellotron]

I'm going to assume that you are making assumptions based on other fantasy novels and games, but in the World of Warcraft, orcs are not inherently evil.

I was an avid Warcraft II player, and in that world orcs were definitely portrayed as the evil team. Most of the magic spells were centered around death and "human" sacrifice, distinct taboo subjects. The artistry, backstory in the manual (yeah, paper manual with flavor text!), and voice acting were all distinctly savage and violent. This "not inherently evil" attitude sounds suspiciously like a retcon established for the benefit of WoW's social acceptance.

Re:Orcs in this world are not "evil"

[Rakarra]

[TONGUEINCHEEK]Gnomes on the other hand, clearly are evil in the World of Warcraft universe.[/TONGUEINCHEEK]

They're not evil, just really fun to kick.

Her opponent is reasonable about it ...

[Anonymous Coward]

Her comeback to this should be, "I KNOW the difference between fantasy and reality. Apparently, my opponent does not."

No, it should not be, that would be as dumb and misinformed as the party's statement:

"Martin said he was unaware of the state Republican Party’s press release or Lachowicz’s hobby until contacted by POLITICO. He said he’s met his opponent once so far and she “seemed like a nice lady.” He said he deplores “mudslinging politics.” ... “Somebody’s personal life is their personal life. What you do in society and in the community is what matters."

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1012/82043.html#ixzz28O03FLVo

Re:Her opponent is reasonable about it ...

[retchdog]

plausible deniability gets one the best of both worlds. nothing to see here.

Re:Her opponent is reasonable about it ...

[Anonymous Coward]

plausible deniability gets one the best of both worlds. nothing to see here.

His statement went well beyond plausible deniability. Did the following quote of his confuse you or something?

“Somebody’s personal life is their personal life. What you do in society and in the community is what matters."

Re:Her opponent is reasonable about it ...

[retchdog]

no, i understand just fine. he gets to look like a white knight to the privacy people, while slurring his opponent to the christ-bothering meddlers at the same time through the side-channel. makes perfect sense.

Re:Her opponent is reasonable about it ...

[milkmage]

"What you do in society and in the community is what matters."
no greifing
no camping
no turtling
and use buffs liberally

Re:Her opponent is reasonable about it ...

[drkim]

Her comeback to this should be, "I KNOW the difference between fantasy and reality. Apparently, my opponent does not."

"Martin said he was unaware of the state Republican Party’s press release...

"I had no idea that my campaign manager, ahem, PR organization, um, "some group I've never heard of/Republican Party" did this horrible thing."

Re:Her opponent is reasonable about it ...

[MysteriousPreacher]

Isn't it obvious that Lachowicz herself is behind this? By staging such a ridiculous attack, she seriously undermines the credibility of her opponent who is probably in on this as well.

Any thoughts on that moon landing thing?

Re:Her opponent is reasonable about it ...

[scubamage]

Exactly - "He wasn't aware" but "the PAC supporting him was aware"... so delightfully similar, yet different.

Re:Her opponent is reasonable about it ...

[retchdog]

it wouldn't be the first time. however, since a greater part of the population looks negatively at gamers, it doesn't seem reasonable in this case. maybe if she only sent them to the 18-29 male demographic, but still doubtful.

and, look, the difference between zomg! CONSPIRACY! and plain old dirty tricks is plausibility. faking the moon landing and causing 9/11 would take unbelievable amounts of coordination. but this? one short brain-storming session and a few off-the-record phone calls. it's a plan henry kissinger could set into motion while taking his morning shit.

if you're overly skeptical about there being shady dealings in politics, it just makes you naive, not rational.

Re:Her opponent is reasonable about it ...

[MysteriousPreacher]

My theory on her behind this whole thing is just as we'll evidenced as yours, and only a little less plausible. Skepticism isn't an excuse for invoking the "everyone knows that..." argument when tossing around unfounded allegations. I do agree though the politics, like most things concerning power or money, is a dirty game.

Re:Her opponent is reasonable about it ...

[retchdog]

yes, of course the allegations are unfounded. so what?

while it's not enough for a court of law (which is doubly moot, btw, since no laws were actually broken), i think it's enough to make one hesitate to give this politician any plaudits for his "principled stand."

Re:What about the debate last night?

[blackpaw]

Last nights debate was pure politics - not "News for Nerds". Whereas this involves WoW - definitely nerdy.

Re:WoW needs some mature old choices

[Riddler Sensei]

"Now I'm going to veeeeeeery sneeeeaky..."

*clop* ...
*clop* ...
*clop*

Re:As long as her running mate isn't...

[Riddler Sensei]

"Senator Jenkins, how would you respond to accusations that you have a history of recklessly enacting your policies without considering the possible consequences?"
"At least I got chicken."

More disconcerning

[Gnaget]

I could not support a candidate who believes that DPS stands for "deaths per second". Obviously she does live in her own little word.

Re:More disconcerning

[Anarchduke]

hey if she has an assassin that can calculate deaths per second, she is doing pretty damned good.

Re:You are a fool for being influenced by party ad

[Martin Blank]

I'm not voting either side because of the ad. What I am going to do is write a letter and mail it to the address on the site (since I expect the email inboxes will be full and they're not terribly computer-savvy anyway) and explain to them just how out-of-touch this makes them--and every other Republican to many people--look to a younger generation. Maybe I'll even get a response. It would be amusing.

Lying creep

[PopeRatzo]

Her incumbent, much to his credit, rejects the attack as 'mudslinging politics.'"

Credit my ass.

Is there still anyone in America who doesn't realize that when the party apparatus slings mud and the candidate then "distances" himself from the remarks that it's all bullshit?

It's like the fiction of SuperPACs and campaigns not coordinating their efforts.

It's like those fuckers are laughing at us.

I have to say that I'm impressed with the American people's willingness to overlook this kind of stuff and suffer silently. If it were up to me, there would be pikes around capital buildings with the heads of politicians who lied on them. Of course, we'd have to ramp up pike manufacturing, but that's heavy industry and would be good for the economy.

Tell me most Americans wouldn't feel better to see some politicians' heads on pikes. It improves my consumer confidence just thinking about it.

Re:Lying creep

[Pav]

Northern or southern pike? I don't think the politicians need it though... they already smell fishy enough.

Almost unbelievable.

[flimflammer]

After reading what they said, it seriously looks like a giant prank. And yet it's not. It's amazing how low people will go to try to drag someone in the mud.

I'm not even sure they were successful. The desperation just makes the whole ordeal funny. If I received that in the mail, I'd probably vote for her.

vs Conservative controlled by fictional character

[Anonymous Coward]

I'd rather vote for a real person that spends their free time controlling a fictional character than a real person who wastes their life controlled by a fictional character.

For example, a certain ex-president who claimed that god told him to invade Iraq.

Incidently, that resulted in the Iraqi Christians being liquidated during the US occupation.

Politicians acting like their constituents

[donovansmith]

I don't understand how anyone can take politicians who play video games seriously. I mean, how
Can't do that while sapped
Can't do that while sapped
Can't do that while sapped

I'm Assuming Dwarf Priests are Okay

[konohitowa]

I used to play with a GOP politician from Guam (in the same guild as him), but I suppose the fact he wasn't an evil Orc Rogue but rather a good Dwarf Priest made his WoW playing okay. Sigh.

Re:I'm Assuming Dwarf Priests are Okay

[Stray7Xi]

Depends was it a true christian priest or some heretic priest worshiping some azerothian sun god

Re:I'm Assuming Dwarf Priests are Okay

[konohitowa]

I must have missed the WWJD expansion.

Sufficiently ...

[Martin S.]

... subtle satire is indistinguishable real world politics.

Re:Sufficiently ...

[rsborg]

... subtle satire is indistinguishable real world politics.

There is actually a law similar to this [1], and the modern GOP is comprised of a good chunk of various extremists (authoritarian, fundamentalist, libertarian) and their corporate enablers.

[1] http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Poe's_Law

Re:Sufficiently ...

[dywolf]

Implied fallacies in your post:
-There's no Democratis extremists
-All libertarians are republicans

Re:Sufficiently ...

[Doc Ruby]

No, those are your inferences, not their implications. The fallacies are entirely yours.

The extremist nutters were right...

[Anonymous Coward]

It's a goblin conspiracy!
Just look at how those greedy, big-nosed bastards are exploiting the other races.

Weasel words

[rsborg]

He said he’s met his opponent once so far and she “seemed like a nice lady.”

He should disavow his ad in more clear terms than just not taking credit for it.

Also another reason SuperPACs are the bane of our society - they keep all the connections neatly hidden so proper attribution/consequences for atrocious attack ads or or paid puff-pieces can never be worked out and corporate owners can basically buy elections for their favored rubber-stamper.

Re:Weasel words

[anyGould]

Also another reason SuperPACs are the bane of our society - they keep all the connections neatly hidden so proper attribution/consequences for atrocious attack ads or or paid puff-pieces can never be worked out and corporate owners can basically buy elections for their favored rubber-stamper.

I think there's a simple solution to this - the public should hold candidates to any and all advertising done on their behalf, authorized or not. You don't like it? Then get out there and publicly disavow it.

Re:She's a rogue ... demonstrates a character flaw

[spooje]

Could be worse. She could have picked a huntard.

Surprised

[BluPhenix316]

No one has said yet....... I am Colleen Lachowicz and i'm a Orc Rogue...........whats your game? WE can still win this election...........because Rogues do it from behind Tonight's debate will be held in Barrens Chat(Advisor, no no no, if we do that then they will elect Chuck Norris)

Re:Surprised

[Valor958]

In that case, we should absolutely hold it in Barrens Chat... Elect Chuck Norris and he'll solve all the world problems in one day.
[Insert half dozen or so Chuck Norris lines for emphasis...]
Chuck Norris... nuff said :P

Re:Not directly at least....

[Doc Ruby]

The ad we're talking about is the Republican Party funding his campaign. So "indirectly" (to put it politely) is how.

Re:A real woman playing a female character seems

[YttriumOxide]

somewhat rare. gotta give it to her for Rockin an Orc, they are fun, and so are assassination rogues. it seems that its usually a fat smellly guy you picture behind the female in general chat swearing they are a chic and you and your buddy go, yea right lol

In my experience (limited first hand, since I don't play MMORPGs, but reasonably extensive second hand); males will happily play both male and female characters quite indiscriminately. Females on the other hand almost always play female characters.

I don't have any data, just anecdotes of friends and family (including my wife, who plays WoW with about 6 different characters and all of them female).

Re:orc vs septic tanks

[jsepeta]

"Your mother uses soap!"

Seriously...

[xonen]

What is that with Americans playing on the person all the time?

In Holland, we have had politicians who were publicly known to visit SM dungeons and black rooms. Are publicly gay. Or just unmarried, like our current prime minister. And no-one, literally no-one, makes a fuzz out of that.

Any debate will be about political issues. The worst accusations regarding personal lifes is about possible activist behaviour in the past. Working for greenpeace for example, like the current leader of the big labour party who has been arrested at least 10 times due to his activist history.

So.. I think this is a good thing. I'm not seeing how a politicians personal life, sexlife, hobbies, children, wife or man, has anything to do with the quality of the person as politician, and the message he or she brings. They are ordinary humans just like you and me with human desires, emotions and errors.

So, why with 'you' it is an issue if a politician plays a rogue in WoW? I wouldn't know, and have no issue with it myself untill she ganks me. If any, it only proves she's just as human as the 2 million other rogues around in this game, and is in for some fun and entertainment at a time, proving she's got a modern youthful mind..

2 cents from over the atlantic.

Re:Seriously...

[bussdriver]

Americans are just less civilized. period. I live here, I know.

Re:Seriously...

[Wovel]

We have a couple of well-known publicly gay member in the US Congress.

I believe all of our public officials regularly visit S&M dungeons.

Re:Seriously...

[Shempster]

What is that with Americans playing on the person all the time?

In Holland, we have had politicians who were publicly known to visit SM dungeons and black rooms. Are publicly gay. Or just unmarried, like our current prime minister. And no-one, literally no-one, makes a fuzz out of that.

Any debate will be about political issues. The worst accusations regarding personal lifes is about possible activist behaviour in the past. Working for greenpeace for example, like the current leader of the big labour party who has been arrested at least 10 times due to his activist history.

So.. I think this is a good thing. I'm not seeing how a politicians personal life, sexlife, hobbies, children, wife or man, has anything to do with the quality of the person as politician, and the message he or she brings. They are ordinary humans just like you and me with human desires, emotions and errors.

So, why with 'you' it is an issue if a politician plays a rogue in WoW? I wouldn't know, and have no issue with it myself untill she ganks me. If any, it only proves she's just as human as the 2 million other rogues around in this game, and is in for some fun and entertainment at a time, proving she's got a modern youthful mind..

2 cents from over the atlantic.

They're treated like babies and things are highly censored in a strange way. Something to do with empire maintenance, ya know... keep em fat, happy, ignorant & uninformed. Still, I do like Marshall Dillon in the old b&w episodes.

Re:You are a fool for being influenced by party ad

[nedlohs]

If you vote against this candidate because of the party's ad then you are every bit as much the fool as those who vote for him because of the party's ad.

Why? It's a group the candidate has voluntary associated himself with. Sure, there are more important concerns but if it's a close choice taking that into account isn't foolish.

I care less that she plays WoW...

[argStyopa]

...than that she plays as a rogue.
Every rogue I know is, deep down, a douchebag of the first order.

Ron Paul

[DarthVain]

I always just assumed he was undead.

she looks like her orc

[tatman]

Is it just me or does her IRL photo and Orc AV resemble each other? This isn't meant as a political jab at her, just an observation....

And yet Fantasy Role Playing games were just fine

[Zephyn]

... with New England Republicans when their good friend Curt Schilling and his company 38 Studios came knocking on their door asking for loan guarantees to make Kingdoms of Amalur.

Maybe with all the Steven King settings, Maine would be more into the Horror Survival genre?

Perfection

[Translation Error]

Bottom line: we aren't perfect.

Whenever I see or hear something like this, it reminds me of a card from a very unusual 'tarot' deck a friend of mine has. It shows a hand-drawn not-quite-round circle above the text: "This may not be a perfect circle but it is a perfect..... What ever it is"

OMG Girls play WoW!

[realsilly]

OMG smart Girls play Wow and are Horde!

Hey, me too.

who cares?

[Thud457]

I don't see why her being a MMORPG player is a big deal.

We just recently survived having Leroy Jenkins as Commander in Chief. How much worse could she be?

Re:She's a rogue ... demonstrates a character flaw

[Talderas]

Fucking huntards. Rolling need on every god damn weapon just because they can use it.

Not much of a WoW player

[oDDmON oUT]

If she's still at 85 this far into the expansion.

Re:Ha the usual we are all sinner

[cheekyjohnson]

As an atheist, even I think that everyone has imperfections and improvements to strive for.

The thing is, though, that what constitutes an "imperfection" or an "improvement" is completely subjective.

I hope they....

[hesaigo999ca]

I hope they give her the chair, I mean come on, all those murders....what sort of message does this promote???

I am now banishing myself from WoW, as I see the futility in promoting fun and a means of escape outside my professional environment.
I will now become Max Headroom!

Re:Everquest

[DocSavage64109]

Great. Now I'm going to have nightmares about "SoW" requests...

Re:They will ask for a contribution ...

[cduffy]

Depends on just who this is. Last time I wrote to my state senator -- with a proposal regarding traffic laws (the way state laws are written, a pair of cyclists riding two astride need to yield the lane in cases where a single cyclist is legally able to hold it for themselves) -- I got a personally researched letter back. I didn't agree with his decision (in favor of maintaining things as currently written), but he went as far as to ask the transportation department for their opinion and to make a sound, reasoned argument.

Even today, some politicians actually do their jobs.

Re:Not directly at least....

[Doc Ruby]

You don't know how the Republican Party works, do you?

If he really were not coordinated with and dependent on the Republican Party of which he is a member, he'd be saying something stronger about it in response to the mudslinging. He distanced himself from the ad, not from the ad's sponsors.

Re:Ha the usual we are all sinner

[cbiltcliffe]

"Normal" and "sick" are not mutually exclusive.

In Africa, it's quite "normal" to have HIV. Does that mean those people are not sick? Other places have high rates of other diseases; malaria, TB, measles, not to mention just plain old malnutrition. In these places, all these sicknesses are normal, but they're still sick.