Archangel

Theft of media goods via the internet (a far more accurate definition than the alarmist and frankly fallous term 'piracy') and buying media goods at vastly inflated prices are both extremes.

The reality is that those with the capacity tend to do both.  And whilst theft is extremely difficult to justify, so is the lobbying power and stranglehold on the industry that the few large cartels have.

In the end it is these large cartels that do more damage to the industry than freeloading off the internet.  The diabolically poor cactus protection system on CDs ("Hah, now you cannot play your CDs on PCs, or older CD players or multifunctional devices!") resulted in an enormous consumer backlash, not to mention RIAA's litagation happy stance.

Organised piracy is the real threat - the illicit duplication and mass distribution of such goods for monetary profit.  Further alienating the customer base will simply result in the further drop of CD sales; further squawking from the pigopolists; even more extreme DRM, legislation and litigation countermeasures, further customer alienation, ad nauseum.

This could be avoided by lowering the price of a CDs to a much more reasonable level which would undoubtably lead to greater sales.  

The trick isn't to try and take a bigger slice of the pie, but to encourage everyone to take smaller slices but make the pie larger.

You'd be the bomb at parties and festivals.  Might also be a good laugh for barmen, being able to mix 4 drinks simulteneously.

Eh?  Looks like two seperate threads have had a nasty car accident.

One moment you say that people should be able to try actions when they do not possess relevant skills (agreed, and... er, I think it's in the main rules with yet another skill penalty).

Then you suddenly go off on one about unskilled actions at a skilled level when I have not actually make any reference at all to unskilled actions.

This is all rapidly becoming line noise.

Personal hygine kits and a change of clothes.

PLAYER: "I got to a meeting."

GM: "In the same suit you wore all last week?  Without bathing?"

PLAYER: "Er..."

GM: "Yes, who's been a bad boy?  Fetch me some cola, whipping boy."

PLAYER: "Oh dear."

GM: "Who's your GM?  Say it."

PLAYER: *face in hands* "You are."

GM: "You're damn right."

I have never seen the option used in any games I have run or played in, nor have I ever heard of it being used until now.

On the other hand the weapon-mount link on the shoulder is very classy, if somewhat Predatoresque.

Whoa there, keep that there pecker in your trousers boyo.

I don't think the elimination of possibilities was being put forward, but more the notion that one might either need to know certain skills as as a prerequisite to learning more advanced skills, or to enhance existing skills.

It's an idea not entirely without merit, but it could also be argued that it is needless complexity.

I have yet to try my skill tree idea, but I have confidence it its chances of inject a little more realism (or at least granularity) into how skills are learned and developed.  On the other hand it could bomb.  

I look forward to tracking down rpgers to experiment on when I move to York.  And, of course, to rpg with.

I think we're all forgetting one important thing.

MECHs are bad ass.

I mean, the psychological effectiveness of something that looks not unlike Optimus Prime stomping towards the enemy... that'd be priceless.

Of course watching artillery blow it apart would be equally priceless, but it's the making of something REALLY METAL that counts.

Ye gods this Indian whiskey is good stuff.

I seem to be relatively unusual in having a TOTALLY EXCELLENT CHRISTMAS.  Seriously, it's top banana.

Christmas is still celebrated here, like most festivals are in India.  However whilst they put effort in to do it right, there is none of the forced joviality that typically infects Christmas back home in the UK.

For the first time ever our family went out for Christmas dinner, taking the pressure off Mum.  We went to the local Taj Hotel where the friendly staff of the restaurant know my parents since they stayed in said hotel for about 8 weeks when they first moved out before finding a place to live.  We had a Christmas Buffet which was much much tastier than it sounds, and the turkey was fantastic.  Plus I was able to outside afterwards and sit in the fantastic gardens with my Dad and my younger 21 yr old brother and enjoy a nice sweet havanna cigar in the warm afternoon breeze.

Possibly the finest Christmas day we've all had in years.

Oh yeah, and I had a custom full length leather trenchcoat made from finest leather to replace the old one which has a nasty gash along the kidney region (long story) made for the equvilent of less than a hundred quid which my parents treated me to.  

Which was nice.

Clusterbombs as a mantra?  I notice this particular response has conveniently ignored the other pertinent point - Guantánamo Bay.

As for the latter part: I was wondering when someone would use Darthmurphy to score points in a discussion.  How tasteless and disgraceful.

My disappointment is limitless.

To answer the deliberately contraversial question, I certainly would not try individual soliders. Soldiers do not define policy, and whilst 'only following orders' has been disproved as an ethical position some degree of responsibility still falls on those whom give the orders.

01000110010011110101011101001100010001010101001000100001

Let us distinguish between thievery and piracy.  The former is simply the taking of goods which do not 'belong' to the thief (i.e. have not been paid for or however one might demark 'earning'), whilst the latter is profiting from theft.

I do not support piracy.  It is the actions of a parasite, especially when conducted in a large scale and organised manner.

Whilst I do not support theft I find it hard to condemn stealing from bloated corporate entities, such as downloading copyrighted materials from the internet.  Frankly cartels like RIAA and MPAA have it coming to them with their history of greed and arrogance, whilst the arguments that the artists are being hurt is woefully unconvincing.

Clarification

When I use the term nationalism I refer to the dictionary definition:

  1. Devotion to the interests or culture of one's nation.

  2. The belief that nations will benefit from acting independently rather than collectively, emphasizing national rather than international goals.

  3. Aspirations for national independence in a country under foreign domination.

In otherwords concentrating too much on what makes us different to each other, focusing too greatly on the superiority of one's own nation and a belief in the inferiority of other nations.

Cultural identity is worth taking pride in, as is celebrating diversity.  During my stay in India I have noticed the locals take great enjoyment from celebrating major festivals of many cultures and religions, and not just because everyone loves a good party.  However I urge you not to confuse this with isolationist behavior, racism, manifest destiny, cultural arrogance and other hallmarks of nationalism as defined above.

Disputation I - Methodology

On comparing the methodology of terrorism and recent unilateral actions - allusions have been made to the Coalition adhering to the generally accepted rules of war.  Does this include the use of cluster bombs and the conditions of prisoners held in Guantánamo Bay?

- Article

Disputation II - Greed

greed is not a positive force.  Do not confuse it with 'need' which encourages finding solutions to problems.  Greed is about attempting to acquire more resources than required.  It may drive innovation and strategic thinking, but in the end it is the acquisition of unnecessary resources for selfish reasons.  This is not just a thorny ethical issue - it is a problem for the strategic and logical distribution of resources.

Advancing technology is not about greed, it is at its most basic level about solving problems using tools and intellect.

Reflection

What do I believe to be an 'advanced human'?

Tough one - everyone has there own take on it.  The simplest summary of an 'advanced human' would be a person capable of selfish and harmful actions whom chooses not to engage in said actions through heightened social and environmental awareness and an enlightened sense of self interest.  Furthermore said said individual would arrive to this code of conduct through their own free will and not through coercion.  

This is only a possible single step towards whatever ultimate fate awaits humanity and almost certainly lies several steps beyond mankind's current state.

I simply do not put any stock in Malthusian theory as a preferable 'solution' to actually thinking about and working on existing global issues.  We have the technology, philosophy and resources to support the existing population, curb population growth and eventually explore the universes without and within.

The real obstacles to the advancement of humanity are anarchy, apathy, bigotry, colonialism, nationalism, nihilism, and sheer human greed.

Splendid and most telling.  This deserves to be in General Chat.

Personally I'm a real fan of bringing about something that's really metal.

Perhaps a graduation from SUIT to MECH units, with those minimech armour things from one of the chromebooks representing a median point?

Oooh!  A vacuous and condescending answer!  How RARE!

But in seriousness: this is a good question.  I will answer the latter and less important question first.

I obey most laws of my nation because they usually coincide with my personal belief system and because they protect myself and those I care about.  Most of them 'make sense' in terms of social responsibility and limited ethical awareness.  I also try to maintain consistancy in my actions whilst trying to remain open to new and potentially superior approaches to my self conduct.

However I am not a nation state.  My actions only concern those around me, my family and friends or my current employer, as opposed to the fate of nations.  Whilst there is some symbolic common ground it is nonsensical to compare individual adherence to the law and the adherence of a nation state to international law.

Now on to the juicier topic of social justice, diplomacy and international politics.

Currently maintaining social order (i.e. people not killing each other, attempting share resources whilst proportionally rewarding contribution to society and other excellent conflicting axioms) does require the prospect of proportional response to transgressing against society regardless of the scale we are talking about (local, metropolitan, national and international levels).

Why?  I can think of some complex answers, but mostly it boils down to the very simple observation:

"There's always one."

Solving disputes without violence is not an idea: it is an ideal.

Obviously sticking to negotiation without the possibility of violence is unrealistic and foolish, but it is also a strawman argument used by pro-war apologists.

Granted diplomacy is usually backed by both carrot and stick, but my objection to people being cheerful over any apparent connection between [the invasion/occupation of Iraq and the capture of Saddam] and [Libya being real co-operative] is that it is an incredibly arrogant and dangerous attitude.

It suggests towards a future where there is little difference between a religious fanatic with a big beard saying "Do what I say or I will blow up another landmark" and someone in a suit with a western accent saying, "Do what we say or suffer the fate of our previous opponent."

Whilst liberating and rebuilding Iraq is an excellent and noble achievment, a coalition of unilaterally acting nations "making an example" of rogue states is a terrifying and disgusting notion.

There is a grain of truth in that.  Swinging the billy club and actually bringing it down on someone's head is a most effective way to intimidate others into acquiescence.

However it is also a rule by fear.  There is another word for fear.

Terror.

There is a word to describe the use of terror to obtain political objectives.

Beware of pride when using the weapons of the enemy.

I toyed around with the idea of 3-layer branching skills, with some generic and very expensive skills at the top (combat, social, etc), typical rpg type skills at the middle layer (combat breaking into unarmed, melee and projectile), specialisations at the bottom (melee breaking into blunt, sharp, flail).

I think I came up with about seven to ten skill trees that would cover CP2020.  Unfortunately they are back in the UK.

ROFL.

Splendid stuff, entertaining on many levels.  Spider Jerusalem eat your heart out.

Some cheap and cheerful suggestions.  For each extra option over the normal price, multiply said price.  So a custom cyberthingie with an extra option over the limit costs x2 (including all options), two extra options costs x3, etc.

Extra options may also mean reduced or limited capacities (a custom cybereye with 6 options may only use two at any one time for instance, an overloaded limb has less strength/does less damage than a standard limb).

One might also have to find a specialist cyberdoc.

You mean the way they over generalise and use so many ellipses that their writing becomes virtually illegible?

Is this the same as "most Muslims" being terrorists or "most homosexuals" being depraved and sex crazed debauches?

Or maybe it's the way Tobey Maguire was 'apparently injected with steroids and ecstasy by a gay spider, he admires his new buffed body with widening eyes in the mirror, dresses up in a tight lycra gimp suit and runs around a lot on all fours with his arse in the air, after having setting up (Web?) cameras to record his (s)exploits.'

I'm frightened...

   Your objective is simple: World Domination.

   Your motive is a little bit more complex: Money

   Stage One

   To begin your plan, you must first incinerate a diplomat. This will cause the world to sense a grave disturbance in the force, baffled by your arrival. Who is this ripe #######? Where did they come from? And why do they look so good in a corporate suit?

   Stage Two

   Next, you must obliterate United Nations. This will all be done from a hell, a mysterious place of unrivaled dark glory. Upon seeing this, the world will spontaneously combust, as countless hordes of the religious right hasten to do your every bidding.

   Stage Three

   Finally, you must tauntingly wave your armies of destruction, bringing about something that's really metal. Your name shall become synonymous with dear god no, and no man will ever again dare cross you. Everyone will bow before your superior firepower, and the world will have no choice but to make you their new god.

I've randomly generated America!  Waaaargh...!

SUITs seem more likely in conventional infantry scenarios.  More units, more guns, more flexibility.  On the otherhand in extreme environments (deep sea, orbit, space) heavily armoured MECH units may be more desirable, Moonraker notwithstanding.

It's been a while.  Last week we went flew out to Dehli and on a roadtrip from there to Agra to Rajastahn.  I saw the Taj Mahal (a truly noble building), the Red Fort of Agra overlooking the Taj Mahal, the Amber Fort, Lake Palace and Wind Palace.  I've been up the mountain on an Elephant, done about 5-7 hours of travelling a day and learned more about hand made carpets than I ever wanted to know.

Words cannot describe the magnificence of the Taj Mahal - it really does deserve the accolade of one of the Wonders of the World.  Aside from the symmetry and sheer grace, it has a somewhat inspiring presence.  It is infact a mausoleum, though not in the traditional sense since it is above ground and not in the center of the site's gardens.  An old Rajah built it for his beloved and favourite wife as a tribute to his undying love for her.  Now this may sound quite tragic, but it is also quite an inspiring symbol.  It speaks quietly but deeply.

The Taj Mahal is in an excellent state of preservation given the fact that it is centuries old.  This is in part due to the fact that it is built from the least porous and therefore best quality marble in the world, and also due to the fact that 8 years ago all polutting industries were moved out of the city despite huge protests.  However in turn the remaining industries (tourism, carpets and crafts) pay no taxes, and the city is now in a corridor of virtually zero pollution, and only electric powered vehicles are allowed near or on the actual grounds.

The Red Fort of Agra and the Amber Fort are also both magnificent sites.  Given their antiquity they are also well preserved, but what also impressed me was the elegance of design and engineering so cleverly intertwined with ascetic principles.  Elegance.

We had a guide in both destinations in addition to a hired driver to drive us around the Golden Triangle.  Each guide suggested we pop into a carpet place where they make the carpet and... well, I found a new state of mind called 'rug rage' the second time round.

"No... more... rugs..."

As a side note it is quite obvious and entertaining that the guides are clearly on commision to the carpet places and the jewellers.

Ah yes, the Jeweller.  He deserves the capitalisation.  Time for the story of White Man and the Greedy Jeweller.

In Rajahstahn, so-called gem capital of India, the guide there took us to a quality jewellers, claiming anything you got there would be 20-30% cheaper than anywhere in India.  The parents, in their continuing display of generousity offered to get my brother and I a nice ring each, so we looked at various stones in a viewing office and various bands.  We chose, and the bloke started totting up.  Now I could tell that Mum was frowning when the bloke started writing, and when the jeweller chap finished his sums I could see why.

For a star ruby (slightly inferior to normal highgrade ruby) and gold setting he wanted to charge 85,000 rupees, which is somewhere between 1,100 and 1,200 quid (about 1,800 dollars at a guess).

Well clearly this was taking the pisss, and I managed to keep myself from bolting out of the room in a deep state of shock, instead excusing myself to 'use the facilities'.  My parents declined this offer with astounding politeness whilst my brother sat there stony faced.

Perhaps this is the part where I should point out the drawback of being in a shop in India.  The shop assistants pretty much stalk you around the shop, particularly if you are white.  I... dislike people standing behind me at the best of times (it's just below my all time hatred of people touching my neck unless it's my current partner).  So I had to just find somewhere to sit down in the jeweller's show room before I completely lost the plot.

Fortunately I am not much of an ornamentation man, so it was no great loss.  Our guide was also a subtly irritated with the Jeweller since the gem-man had clearly completely misread us as customers, but quite apologetic to us.  My Dad made it quite clear he had actually been prepared to spend about 200 quid on each of us, and possibly pick one up for himself, though the experience has completely put me off buying any type of jewellry whilst I am in India, and possibly anywhere in the world.

Fortunately I am not a shopping man and the Jewel's Episode only happened at the end of the tour.  I recovered after about an hour or so.  After this experience I also coined the phrase 'White Tax', where prices get raised if... well you get the idea.  This is another reason that Arif is invaluable, because if someone takes the piss he knows a dozen other places to go and get anything one might need.  You'd be amazed at the difference in prices he get get if he pops off by himself to the Old City.

To answer a few earlier questions in this thread and clarify clarify a few points - we don't have a servant, but a maid does come round and do cleaning from 11am to 1pm on weekdays.  Arif the driver is a quality geezer.  Without wanting to sound too harsh it really isn't terribly expensive to have a driver given the exchange rate.

Buggery opportunities are low, chaps.

My parents have generously bought my brother and I new clothes (jeans, shirts, and a custom made leather trenchcoat since my old one is torn, battered and thrashed almost beyond repair) since they are well made and also relatively cheap.  Another reason I am not really keen on getting any expensive jewellry, though I am looking at picking up a letter opener and a small carving from the local craft village to put on my desk back home and abusing the duty free as much as possible when changing flights at Dubai.  So I am taking advantage of the exchange rate, yes.

I'm also hoping to go and see Golconda Fort and a few other excellent sites around Hyderabad before I head back in just over a week's time.