Where is the declaration of war and what is the definition of it ending? You can't define an end to a "war on terror" anymore than you can have a "war on unhappiness". The countries many of them are from are not at war with us therefore cannot be defined as POWs but as criminal cases therefore must be treated under US criminal law (though actually they should be prosecuted under the law of the nation they were in at the time).
"only by the magnanimity of US leadership that they are accorded rights and privileges normally reserved for regular soldiers fighting under a recognized flag."
If that was the case they'd have been released by now like any other soldier at the end of a conflict. Either they are POWs or criminals, pick one. The status you claim they have been given is superficial. There is no "magnanimity" going on here.
In the US you charge them with something else all the while you really did it because of their name (sounded Arabic). Even bogus testimony by "classified witnesses" who's id can't be reveal because of national security claims. Then you deny them bail and let their case stew in court for ages. By the time all of the appeals have gone through years may have passed.
They've got people in Guantanamo who've been held prisoner longer than many Nazis leaders were after WWII.
Sort of like all of the info that J Edgar Hoover accumulated as head of the FBI? Not very useful in court but great for ruining lives, political careers, etc.
I'd say the social element is the most important. When it comes to things like business deals or hiring the human element matters more than some people would be willing to admit. There are a lot of deals based mainly on trust and personalities.
I played his Exile series many years ago when it first came out. It was great and I replayed them plenty of times. Old-school graphics are fine if you stick to that spirit of them. If you are going for realism you have to go 100% and they usually don't look that great anyway. Cartoon style graphics are just as good, just don't try to be realistic with them. Stick to the abstract feel. The games were so good I never noticed the graphics weren't bleeding edge anyway.
My problem with the story lines of many RPGs is that they revolve around the cliched epic "save the world" storyline. I'd like to see some variety. Maybe stories involving a civil war, trying to start a new settlement, sea exploration, etc. The "The great ancient Poobah has returned to take over the world" or "You have untapped powers" storylines get tired quickly.
Sounds good. I like the strategy aspect of games and being able to layout plans of attack instead of just running into a room swinging wildly.
One fundemental change I'd like to see in an RPG is the experience system. Right now it is a reward system and has nothing to do with experience in real life. You get points for finishing a mission or killing something. If the monster was a badass but the kill was easy you get the same xp as if it was an epic struggle or if you handled the fight like a noob. I'd rather see experience points given based on how often you use a skill and when the last time you used it was. Want to be a thief/mage/fighter? Fine, as long as you are regularly unlocking things, casting spells, and fighting. Don't cast many spells? Then you never become a good mage. Haven't cast one for a while? You'll start to regress and get rusty. In most games if you are thief you could become a high level one even if you've never disarmed a trap or a hard lock. I say if you want to advance you have to try the new spell, harder locks, or fight different enemies. You'd perform poorly at the new skill until you master it by using it. The more over your head the new skill is the worse you'll be at it but you could eventually master it. You could try to progress step by step with competence or focus on rushing towards some high-level skill with extreme difficulty. You'd get xp based on your actions, not your results.
I wouldn't be surprised if someone has already tried this. I just haven't heard about any computer game trying it.
I always wondered in RPGs why the king/guild master/etc would put the fate of the kingdom/tribe/etc in the hands of a complete noob at the start of the game instead of finding a tank or arch mage. No wonder they are reduced to recruiting any lv1 adventures who happen to wander by.
"Mr President, we've located the terrorist's HQ." "Great! Send in the Boy Scouts!"
This was well over a year ago but no, this isn't a joke and yes, barely anything ran on it towards the end. I was using it mostly for email and web browsing but some apps, like MAME, would actually run reasonably well on it. It was so old the CPU heatsink didn't even need a fan. My current video card (Nvida 7800gt) has more memory on it than all the ram in my old machine. I put off upgrading since it seemed I always had another cash priority at the time. The thing NEVER failed amazingly enough (for the record it was a Micron PC). I built my current rig.
I agree. I have the same urge to have the best this-or-that like many people but after pushing my emotions aside my current system (AMD 64 x2 3800, 2gb ram, NForce4, etc) runs like a champ. I wouldn't upgrade until new software starts to grind or I have to run at annoyingly low settings at games. Even then it would have to be at a point where it wasn't just the CPU but the MB, RAM, and video that needed replacing too.
My last upgrade was a complete rebuild of every single component. I went from a 486 VLB system to my current PCI-E one. I think I skipped about 4-5 generations.
If I shouldn't take it up with you, then you shouldn't be saying it in the first place. If you're intending to hide behind a shield of "I don't really know what I'm talking about," then actually behave as if you don't know what you are talking about. Keep your mouth shut unless you've really got something worthwhile to say.
You sound like a hostile politician or CEO, "Now don't get yourself in a tizzy little lady! This is too complex an issue for the public to ever understand. Just be quiet and leave it to us." Please refrain from complaining about the federal government unless you are a Congressman and don't criticize a painting unless you are equal to Picasso.
How about opening up liability laws to make software manufacturers as responsible as any other manufacturer? Build a car with a known, or should have reasonably known, flaw and get sued hard. Build an OS with security holes everywhere and get sued hard. It is time to stop coddling them.
I'll keep buying my Simpsons DVDs instead of looking for copies. Everything from the packaging to the menus are works of art with a great amount of attention paid to every detail. I consider it voting with my $.
Slashdot Mirror
I'd say it is due to the UK literally having an island mentality.
Where is the declaration of war and what is the definition of it ending? You can't define an end to a "war on terror" anymore than you can have a "war on unhappiness". The countries many of them are from are not at war with us therefore cannot be defined as POWs but as criminal cases therefore must be treated under US criminal law (though actually they should be prosecuted under the law of the nation they were in at the time).
"only by the magnanimity of US leadership that they are accorded rights and privileges normally reserved for regular soldiers fighting under a recognized flag."
If that was the case they'd have been released by now like any other soldier at the end of a conflict. Either they are POWs or criminals, pick one. The status you claim they have been given is superficial. There is no "magnanimity" going on here.
In the US you charge them with something else all the while you really did it because of their name (sounded Arabic). Even bogus testimony by "classified witnesses" who's id can't be reveal because of national security claims. Then you deny them bail and let their case stew in court for ages. By the time all of the appeals have gone through years may have passed.
They've got people in Guantanamo who've been held prisoner longer than many Nazis leaders were after WWII.
Sort of like all of the info that J Edgar Hoover accumulated as head of the FBI? Not very useful in court but great for ruining lives, political careers, etc.
I hope you have a copy of the Magna Carta. That damn piece of paper is a threat to UK national security.
I'd say the social element is the most important. When it comes to things like business deals or hiring the human element matters more than some people would be willing to admit. There are a lot of deals based mainly on trust and personalities.
But who the hell can afford to live there anymore? You have to be a millionaire to live in a tiny ranch house (if even that).
I played his Exile series many years ago when it first came out. It was great and I replayed them plenty of times. Old-school graphics are fine if you stick to that spirit of them. If you are going for realism you have to go 100% and they usually don't look that great anyway. Cartoon style graphics are just as good, just don't try to be realistic with them. Stick to the abstract feel. The games were so good I never noticed the graphics weren't bleeding edge anyway.
My problem with the story lines of many RPGs is that they revolve around the cliched epic "save the world" storyline. I'd like to see some variety. Maybe stories involving a civil war, trying to start a new settlement, sea exploration, etc. The "The great ancient Poobah has returned to take over the world" or "You have untapped powers" storylines get tired quickly.
Sounds good. I like the strategy aspect of games and being able to layout plans of attack instead of just running into a room swinging wildly.
One fundemental change I'd like to see in an RPG is the experience system. Right now it is a reward system and has nothing to do with experience in real life. You get points for finishing a mission or killing something. If the monster was a badass but the kill was easy you get the same xp as if it was an epic struggle or if you handled the fight like a noob. I'd rather see experience points given based on how often you use a skill and when the last time you used it was. Want to be a thief/mage/fighter? Fine, as long as you are regularly unlocking things, casting spells, and fighting. Don't cast many spells? Then you never become a good mage. Haven't cast one for a while? You'll start to regress and get rusty. In most games if you are thief you could become a high level one even if you've never disarmed a trap or a hard lock. I say if you want to advance you have to try the new spell, harder locks, or fight different enemies. You'd perform poorly at the new skill until you master it by using it. The more over your head the new skill is the worse you'll be at it but you could eventually master it. You could try to progress step by step with competence or focus on rushing towards some high-level skill with extreme difficulty. You'd get xp based on your actions, not your results.
I wouldn't be surprised if someone has already tried this. I just haven't heard about any computer game trying it.
I always wondered in RPGs why the king/guild master/etc would put the fate of the kingdom/tribe/etc in the hands of a complete noob at the start of the game instead of finding a tank or arch mage. No wonder they are reduced to recruiting any lv1 adventures who happen to wander by.
"Mr President, we've located the terrorist's HQ."
"Great! Send in the Boy Scouts!"
They should test it by removing the the world's oceans and seeing if the sound goes away.
This was well over a year ago but no, this isn't a joke and yes, barely anything ran on it towards the end. I was using it mostly for email and web browsing but some apps, like MAME, would actually run reasonably well on it. It was so old the CPU heatsink didn't even need a fan. My current video card (Nvida 7800gt) has more memory on it than all the ram in my old machine. I put off upgrading since it seemed I always had another cash priority at the time. The thing NEVER failed amazingly enough (for the record it was a Micron PC). I built my current rig.
And yes, I'm a masochist AND a cheapskate.
I agree. I have the same urge to have the best this-or-that like many people but after pushing my emotions aside my current system (AMD 64 x2 3800, 2gb ram, NForce4, etc) runs like a champ. I wouldn't upgrade until new software starts to grind or I have to run at annoyingly low settings at games. Even then it would have to be at a point where it wasn't just the CPU but the MB, RAM, and video that needed replacing too.
My last upgrade was a complete rebuild of every single component. I went from a 486 VLB system to my current PCI-E one. I think I skipped about 4-5 generations.
"Damn it! Who let the bacteria colonies get moldy? All of my staphylococcus samples died and now I have to start all over again."
You sound like a hostile politician or CEO, "Now don't get yourself in a tizzy little lady! This is too complex an issue for the public to ever understand. Just be quiet and leave it to us." Please refrain from complaining about the federal government unless you are a Congressman and don't criticize a painting unless you are equal to Picasso.
Sure it wasn't a movie starring Richard Roundtree?
How about OS's or browsers that are vulnerable to javascript hacks, etc?
Don't worry. I have a bunch of copies of him.
How about opening up liability laws to make software manufacturers as responsible as any other manufacturer? Build a car with a known, or should have reasonably known, flaw and get sued hard. Build an OS with security holes everywhere and get sued hard. It is time to stop coddling them.
And the Low Countries are routers. Everyone just marches through them on the way to somewhere else.
Boot off of a CD then.
Enter your character's name: Dildo
Sorry, that name is not allowed.
Heh heh heh heh!
I'll keep buying my Simpsons DVDs instead of looking for copies. Everything from the packaging to the menus are works of art with a great amount of attention paid to every detail. I consider it voting with my $.
Maybe Vader saves the Emperor by putting him on a strict low chloresterol diet and regular exercise?
"You play Vader the Nutritionist in this exciting, and educational, Lucas Games release!"