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britesparc · 2 years

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Weekend Top Ten #516

Top Ten Most-Played Games (of Recent Years)

It feels every now and again that I have a good idea for a list that’s quite topical and relevant, but then because I have otherideas that are also topical and relevant, I end up writing it a couple of weeks later and suddenly it feels like I’m going “oh, yeah, do remember that?” Anyway that’s what’s happening today.

There was a bit of a to-do recently over Dying Light 2, which developer Techland claimed would take 500 hours to complete. Thankfully for my sanity, quite a lot of people baulked at this, thinking 500 was a lot. Now, I like games; I like playing games. But I don’t really play a lot; at least, it doesn’t seem like a lot if I’m on Twitter or games forums. I only really play a couple of big games a year, interspersed with a bunch of smaller titles; so spending 500 hours on one game seems like a luxury. Did I ever spend that much time on a game? Thinking about it, how long do I spend playing games?

I reckon I’ve hardly ever gone over 100 hours, and 500 hours is way off.

So I decided to try to find out. I used the True Achievements website, the Steam app, and my Switch profile to see how long I have actually been playing games for (it’s a pity that Xbox doesn’t have this kind of functionality built in, but I guess that’s a topic for another Top Ten…). And the results may shock you.

Obviously there’s one drawback to this, which is it’s only been possible to keep tabs on your playtime in this manner relatively recently. I’ve no idea how long I spent playing Red Alert or Duke Nukem, especially if we include using their level editors as time spent playing. Ditto for the likes of Lemmings 2, SWOS, The Settlers, or other games from earlier in my gaming career.

Also this has thrown up a couple of weird “errors”. Killer Instinct was down as being played for over 200 hours, which makes no sense. It’s true I played it a bit in the early days of the Xbox One, but nowhere near that length of time. It would make it, by far, my most-played Xbox game; and when Xbox themselves did a celebratory breakdown of my playing milestones to celebrate the console’s twentieth anniversary last year, KIdidn’t warrant a mention; as such, I’m happy to cite this as some kind of aberration. Also there are a few games that came up where it’s clearly not me playing; I’ve presumably been signed in to allow my kids to play. Therefore I’ve excluded both Roblox and Zoo Tycoon (although the latter wouldn’t have made the Top Ten, to be fair). I was tempted to do the same with Minecraft, but I couldn’t be certain; it’s surprising it’s so high, because I don’t feel I’ve sunk hours into it, so in all likelihood my kids have played it a fair bit “as me”. But maybe it was just me playing it with them? Anyway, I’ve made an executive decision to keep it in.

Here we go, and obviously no game is anywhere near500 hours. Right?

Civilization VI(PC, 2016) – over 1,523 hours: wait, what? Fifteen hundred hours? Fifteen hundred hours? Oh Christ. Oh no. What can I say? I have a tendency to put it on “in the background” when I’m working sometimes. I’ve had it for a few years. I did, genuinely, expect this to be the only 500+ hour game. But one thousand five hundred and twenty-three hours. And this doesn’t count the fact that I’ve played it for about twenty hours on Xbox, too. Jesus.

Stardew Valley (Xbox, 2016) – 127 hours: blimey, that’s a lot. Xbox already told me this was my most-played Xbox game, and I was kinda surprised; had I been logged in whilst my kids were playing? Xbox does have an annoying habit of classing that as you playing a game. But, to be fair, we’ve played it quite a bit as a family, and my wife and I have spent (in-game) years on our farm, getting married and having a kid (in-game… and, er, IRL). So yeah, fair enough.

Civilization V(PC, 2010) – 115 hours: oh look at that. Weirdly I don’t remember ever really getting on with Civ V the way I evidently did with its sequel; it all seemed a little bit too dry and fiddly. All the same, it’s Civ, and I love Civ. This does make me wonder how long I’d spent on previous iterations of the game, and how much of my life has gone into the franchise over the last twenty-odd years or so. Actually, y’know what, let’s not think about that.

Peggle 2 (Xbox, 2013) – 102 hours: now we’re getting into “yep, makes sense” and also “totally fine with that” territory. I got Peggle 2 quite early in the Xbox One generation, and it’s always been my go-to game for a bit of light puzzling or to unwind after a more intense gaming session. I always think I’m crap at these sorts of games, and maybe I am, but I’ve spent so much time on this I’ve gotten quite close to completing every challenge. For me, that’s a big win.

Microsoft Ultimate Word Games (PC, 2017) – 95 hours: again, makes perfect sense; this is something else I’ve often got running in the background whilst I work, popping back over to finish a crossword. For a while there I was trying to get a few achievements on it which necessitated playing it over multiple days. And I stand by it, it’s a great little brain-teaser, even if the crosswords are annoyingly American in their clues, references, and spellings.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons(Switch, 2020) – 95 hours: a new contender emerges… this is a game to sink hours into, and I don’t regret it. I’ve been merrily customising the island for a little while, making it enjoyable for my kids. This was the perfect game for the pandemic, one that rewards repeated replay. In fact, the only reason I don’t play it more often is it takes so bloody long to load, and this SSD generation has put me right off.

Minecraft (Xbox, 2017) – 92 hours: as I alluded to in the blurb, this took me by surprise, but I have played it quite a bit with the nippers so fair enough, I guess. Again, it’s a game that rewards a very deep time sink, far more time than I can give it to really uncover its treasures (literally and metaphorically). The kids love it, though, and happily play with friends and family online. Actually, I wonder how long they’ve spent playing? Maybe best if I don’t find out.

Mass Effect: Andromeda (Xbox, 2017) – 88 hours: finally we start properly getting to the games that I think I prefer (apart from Civ, to be fair). Big, expansive single-player campaigns; that’s where I think my priorities lie. But we’re nearly at the bottom of this list before I get to the latest Mass Effect, I game I know I spent a long time on – it’s a big game, I remember playing it. it’s not the best Mass Effect – in fact, it’s the worst – but it’s still very good, and I really got into my character and her team. 88 hours seems right. I wish I knew how long I’d spent on the three previous entries in the franchise, to say nothing of the three Fable games…

Halo: The Master Chief Collection(Xbox, 2014) – 75 hours: ah, Halo. Probably my favourite gaming franchise. It’s interesting I’ve spent so long with the MCC boxset; I guess I did complete Halo 4 here after I got my Xbox One. And it’s been my go-to multiplayer location for the most part. And I introduced the kids to Halo here, too! So many good memories. Obviously I’ve moved on to Halo Infinite now; really enjoying the campaign so far, and the multiplayer is sublime. I’ve already played that game for nearly thirty hours, and it’ll be interesting to see how much time I’ve spent on it by 2030…

Pokémon Sword(Switch, 2019) – 70 hours: not the most popular Pokémon game but the only one I’ve ever played extensively, so I enjoyed it. We got the Switch (for the kids, natch) the Christmas that Sword and Shield came out and it was a very big, popular game in our house for a while. One of the first games my eldest every completed, and we’ve both enjoyed the expansions too (which I don’t think I have completed, to be honest). It’s quite a good, fast game to get into and get around in, unlike, say, Animal Crossing. But I do find it weird how I’ve not quite vibed with Breath of the Wild, which we got around the same time but which I’ve played a lot less despite liking it a lot more.

So there we are (I feel like I say that a lot at the end of these lists). Quite interesting, for me at least. It’s a bit of a shame that my favourite games – yer Halos and yer Mass Effects – are so low, although I’m not surprised Civ is so high. Genuinely shocked and mildly horrified at quite how long I’ve played it for. It now makes my laptop sound like a jet engine so I don’t tend to play it very much… which is why I bought it for Xbox. Send help.

It is a shame, though, that I can’t find out how long I’ve played Xbox 360 games for. I really do wonder how many hours I spent on things like Halo 3, Fable II, the Mass Effect trilogy, and Crackdown. Also, I’ve no way of knowing how long I’ve played various mobile games for; I imagine Carcassonne – across iOS, Windows Phone, and Android – could very easily outrank Civilization for my most-played game of all time.

I would like to do a similar list based on my recollection of older games, although I don’t know if it should include all games I don’t have stats for, or just games I played 20-30 years ago on PC/Amiga. In the meantime, I’m off to kick the kids off Minecraft and boot up Civ again. Just for one more turn…civi

#top ten #games #gaming #long games #most played #civilization #stardew valley #animal crossing #peggle #halo

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friendshipcampaign · 5 years

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Aberration Conversation

Ditto reads some books and talks to a flumph.

Ditto let the book fall back onto the table, the hollow impact echoing through the room, and let out a long sigh. That long sigh turned into a groan, then a whine, then silence.

"Well," she said to no one in particular, knowing the only people in the room with her were either deaf or unable to understand mouth sounds "I guess any information is better than none."

Or, wait. TikTik and Mynskay weren't the only people who could've heard her, were they? Hubris had mentioned something about the flumphs showing up if you called them. That meant they had to be listening, right? Ditto mentally ran back through all the things she'd been muttering and occasionally yelling to herself while reading over the past few hours and felt her face get a little bit red. Still, a thought occurred to her.

"Hey, uh. . . ." she turned towards the center of the room. "I need a flumph? Please?"

For a moment, nothing happened. Then the air at the center of the room seemed to shimmer and she heard the gentle fwump, fwump, fwump noise the flumphs made as they moved getting steadily closer. The shimmering coalesced into a round, tentacled form, glowing a soft teal-green. It turned its stalked eyes towards her.

"Greetings, Ditto," said a breathy voice in her head. "I am Jagat. What do you need?"

"Hiya, Jagat!" Ditto smiled and waved. "D’you have a minute to talk? I got some stuff that, uh. Maybe someone like you could help me with? Maybe."

Jagat floated closer to her. "Minutes do not exist in the Library," it said. "But I will talk with you for as long as you wish. I hope I am able to allay some of your discomfort."

"Riiight. Infinite library and all." Ditto strummed her fingers on the cover of Onne The Qualyties of Abyrrations. "Well, um. This might be kinda rude to ask but . . . I've never met anyone like you. I mean, a creature like you, you know? But this book says you might be kinda related to the sort of creature I'm trying to learn more about."

"We are not from your reality, yes," said Jagat. "Though I came into existence here and my memories of our ancestral home are faint with many branchings."

"But you remember some of it?" Ditto couldn't hide the excitement in her voice. "Wait, you just said you were born, er, came into existence here? How can you remember it if you weren't there? Did you visit?"

Jagat seemed to ponder the question for a while, its glow shifting to a contemplative violet. "Our memories do not work like yours," it said. "They are not limited to one body or one lifetime. I know the thoughts of many cloisters that came before me. They become fainter, though, as we branch. A mind can only hold so much."

Ditto considered that. She nearly asked what Jagat meant by 'branching' but hesitated, thinking it was probably inherently rude to ask someone about what sounded like it might be reproduction.

". . . That sounds really nice," she said finally. "Sharing thoughts and memories with people that came before you. I'd imagine it's harder to feel lonely when you've got other people in your head with you."

Jagat bobbed its eyestalks in what Ditto guessed was a polite approximation of a nod. "It is a blessing to know they are not gone, only changed. Like stories written in a book. And someday my cloister will be stories also."

"I like that." Ditto smiled, reaching down to scratch TikTik on the back of their neck. "So . . . Did your people come here from the Far Realms? Can you guys travel back and forth?"

"We came here from Beyond, yes, but we cannot return. The distances between our realms is great, and the magic of this world seals it away from the other places. The first cloister traveled across long long ago, when the world was ruled by dragons and giants and the boundaries more permeable."

"Ahh. I guess I can see how that magic sealing the world off is. You know. A good thing." Ditto bit her lip, hesitating. "Uhh. So, I'm sort of. . . ." She failed to finish the sentence, paused, then started again. "I'm looking for someone. Someone who's from the far realms but . . . ended up here. I don't know what sort of creature they are at all . . . and uh, from what I've read about folks from out there it sounds like they might be the sort that's not. Uh. 'Embodied' was the word I read?"

"Oh!" Jagat flushed bright green. "There are very few of those sorts here. This reality and they are not kind to each other."

Ditto made a noise out of the side of her mouth that was somewhere between a sigh and the creak of an old door hinge. "Yeah. I got that impression. I'm trying to find it and help it get back, but. . . it seems like that's gonna be, uh. Kind of a task. I had hoped that Banishment might work, but the stuff I've read so far makes it sound like that's kinda uncertain. What with the Far Realms being . . . Far."

"It is difficult to cross the boundaries," Jagat confirmed, bobbing its eyestalks again. "But Ditto . . . I would warn you. Even when we lived Beyond, my people did not speak to the Great Ones. We could not. Their consciousnesses were so large we would be caught like a leaf in a whirlpool and swallowed up. And we are not alien to them, only small. I beg of you to be cautious. You seem kind. I would hate for that kindness to be your undoing.”

Ditto frowned. "Everyone keeps saying stuff like that to me lately. . . you. My friends. Books." She glanced sideways at the pile of texts on the table by her. ". . .It's not that I think you're wrong. I mean. You especially must know way more than me here, I'm sure you're right. And I want to be cautious. I really do. I don't want to get hurt or anything like that, really."

She sighed and looked up to where Jagat was hovering. "It’s just. It seems like everything I'm hearing is telling me that all I can know about them is that if I learn more about them or talk to them or look at them or think about them or anything something bad is gonna happen. And! Even if that's true what can I do about it? I can't ignore that it's out there and needs my help. And. . . if it's so bad to look at it or be near it or anything then not only is it being hurt but it's gotta be hurting others just by existing. Right? If no one finds it and helps it get back to where it's supposed to be it's gonna keep getting hurt and keep hurting others and I don't want it to hurt me but! What else am I supposed to do?"

Ditto gasped, realizing she hadn't been breathing for the last couple of sentences. Once the words started they wouldn't stop.

Jagat floated towards her, glowing a deep ocean blue. It reached out a tentacle towards her shoulder but didn't quite make contact. "Ditto. I advocate caution, not despair. Your task is difficult but I will not say it is impossible, and your motives are noble. I simply did not wish you to pursue this without understanding the gravity of what you wish to do. But if you do understand, I will not tell you not to try, and though we know but little of this creature the cloister will aid you as we can."

Ditto took a deep breath, nodding slowly. "I...thank you. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to get so. . .you're just being nice and trying to help."

She carefully reached up and put her hand on Jagat's tentacle, giving it a gentle squeeze. "I don't really know if I can understand the whole weight of what I want to do. To be honest, the more I learn about it the more it seems like this might be something I'll never be able to fully understand. But. I know it's big. I promise I do." She bit her lip. "Is it okay if I ask you more questions?"

Jagat curled its tentacle around Ditto's hand. It felt soft and clammy, but oddly comforting. "You may."

"Okay . . . Okay, so . . . ." She spoke slowly at first, thoughtfully, her pace picking up as she continued, words coming faster and faster as the questions built up in her head. "Is there any way for someone like me to protect myself if I have to get close to someone like that? Or like, talk to them, or anything like that? Is there a way for them to protect themselves from this reality? Do you know if Banishment could work on them, especially if they're, uh, consenting? Or is there another way to send someone back? Come to think of it. . . is there a way to open a gate to the Far Realms that isn't, uh, crazy dangerous? And what if, you know, hypothetically someone already had opened some kind of portal or something to there and it looked like it was only open for a second but who knows with portals, right? Should I be worried about that?” She looked sincerely at Jagat. “It's not actually a hypothetical situation at all, it already happened."

"That," said Jagat, "Is many questions." They paused for a moment, cycling through colors. "You will have to turn to the shelves of the Library for the question of protection; your kind is so different from mine that the little I do know would likely not help you. Likewise, since we flumphs do not require protection from this reality I do not know what precautions might help. As for portals . . . I would say you should be worried about any gate to the Far Realms, although I suspect you knew that already. There may be lingering effects and often are, but if the portal was truly closed the remaining bleedthrough should be the sort that can be mitigated with wards. I do not know of any way to open a gate that is not filled with danger, but again, perhaps the Library does."

"That makes sense. Uh. You called them the Great Ones. I." Ditto blinked. "I actually think. I might have heard that term before. But uh. I know they're probably really hard to understand and stuff like that but. . . can you tell me anything about what they're like? I guess that's pretty vague but. You said when your people lived Beyond you still couldn't talk to them. Did you live near them? Was there any sort of, I dunno, interaction?"

"We could always hear them," said Jagat, "But we could not understand them. They were too loud. In some ways they are less like creatures and more like . . . worlds that are aware. They . . . I am sorry; it is difficult to convey. You only know this world and all descriptions are so imperfect. But perhaps . . . consider your Outer Planes. They have . . . personalities, almost. They shape things around them so if you enter unprepared it is difficult to hold onto yourself. The Great Ones are . . . like that, but more--more alive, more powerful, more able to warp land and creatures around them, whether they wish to or not."

". . . Huh. Well." Ditto tried to wrap her mind around the idea. "It's. That's. That's sure some information. But I think that helps, kind of." She paused, sinking down in her chair and hugging herself. "This is gonna sound dumb. And maybe. . . maybe I'm just completely making this up in my head because I want to help it, and I feel bad for it. But I've talked to it a couple times with Sending. And when it talks back it's, well, it's big and loud in a huge way and all, but I do get something out of it. Some kind of feeling that feels like it has meaning that's kind of like words but not. And." She looked up at Jagat. "It feels so helpless to me.”

"Helplessness is . . . certainly not something I have ever heard associated with such a creature. It could be trying to deceive you. Or it could truly feel trapped."

Ditto nodded. "Do you remember, I mean, through the other folks' memories, what living in the Far Realms was like?"

"At the time it felt like home," said Jagat. "That is one of the difficult things about memories. We don't have images or words, we have feelings. And those feelings are about what seemed noteworthy at the time. What would it mean to ask you what living in this world is like if you'd never known any other?"

"Heh, yeah. Guess that makes sense.” Ditto smiled. “Then, do you know what it was like when you first came to this world? How did you guys end up here anyway?"

"We were explorers." Jagat glowed a proud magenta. "We sought out portals to other places--some within what you call the Far Realms, some more distant still--and we sent out voyagers to learn about these new worlds. We always hoped that we could still speak with the Grand Cloister back home, but we understood that sometimes we would be cut off. Not all of the missions were successful, of course. We mourn for those who found themselves on worlds with no sustenance, whose memories cannot be shared with their descendants.

"The portal my ancestors came through was ancient, when the magic of this world was settling and there were still gaps that could let us reach it. We went to the edge and looked through, and we saw a strange landscape--so stiff and rigid, so resistant to our thoughtspeech, so bound by things we did not understand! We were afraid, as we always were. But for all its cold strangeness it was beautiful.

"And as we waited at the mouth of the portal, pondering whether we should go through, we saw a dragon soar through the sky. Its movement was like nothing we had ever seen! Its form was so solid, yet it almost seemed to glow with a force we knew nothing of. And as it swooped past us we could taste its thoughts. How bright they were, and how alien to us! And so the first cloister turned our minds to each other and as one we decided that we would explore this world and study it, and perhaps some day bring back tales of it to our fellows!

"We floated through, and at once the magic gripped us, and the gravity of the place demanding that the world, not we, determine what was "up" and "down," and all the other laws of this world that are subtler and more difficult to explain. It pained us at first, I know, as it would pain you to try breathing in water. But we kept together, and in time we were able to adjust to the magic and the laws and the open skies. And so we have lived, for generations uncountable, still seeking to understand this place that has become our home."

"That. . . sounds amazing." Ditto realized she'd been leaning further and forward while Jagat talked, and had nearly slipped out of her seat. "Are you . . . comfortable in this world now?"

Jagat bobbed its eyestalks at her. "I am. We have adapted over time, as have the other small ones who traveled here. We enjoy living in the Library; feeling the passage of Time is still difficult for us, but here we have some measure of protection.”

"That's good. You and this secret society seem to have a pretty good arrangement going with this place." She considered. "Hey. Uh. So you guys have some pretty intense psychic stuff going on, right? You mentioned tasting a dragon's thoughts just now and I'm not sure what implications to read into that, but . . . ."

"We draw our sustenance from psychic energy," Jagat explained.

"Oh. Okay, it was exactly what I was thinking it was." Ditto tried to push out of her mind the image of something that looked like a teenage girl telling her that it was glad she was afraid. "Uh . . . how does that usually work out for the person that psychic energy is coming from? I don't want to jump to any conclusions here, but. . ."

"It's entirely benign, I assure you," said Jagat. "Most individuals don't even notice unless they're psychically-inclined themselves. We would rather be re-absorbed by the Cloister than cause harm to the creatures we feed from. But here, the awareness of the Library sustains us."

"Oh. Okay. That's good to hear. I mean you seem really nice I didn't want to assume but. Good to hear anyway." Ditto laughed awkwardly, unable to hide her relief. "So . . . could you read my mind if you wanted?" A possibility occurred to her. "Wait, were you doing it already? I promise I won't be mad if you were."

"I cannot help but read your emotions. The details of your thoughts are more clouded; I take what I need to understand your words but no more. We have had the concept of privacy explained to us many times."

"Yeah . . . well, don't worry.” Ditto said. “I've had trouble with that stuff sometimes too. It took me forever to get that just because a door was unlocked didn't mean it was okay to walk into someone's house. But. . .what if I asked you to?"

"I . . . could," came Jagat's soft voice in her head. Ditto wondered if flumphs could control how they sounded or if that voice just happened automatically. "But why would you wish it?"

". . . A long time ago, I caught a glimpse of something that I can't remember no matter how hard I try. Maybe the image just isn't in my head anymore, or maybe my mind shoved it down someplace where it can't hurt me. But even if it's not there, I've been talking to that thing I saw. Its words are hard to focus on but I still remember them. I think that it's one of those Great Ones, but it's so hard to tell when the one thing I know about it is that it's hard to know anything about it. If it possible for you to peek into my head and see or hear it and confirm what it is, that would mean a lot to me. "

"I would have only your perceptions," said Jagat. "I fear that either you would not remember well enough for me to see clearly, or you would remember and bringing those memories to the forefront of your mind would hurt you. I can try, but not while you are alone. Bring someone who can heal you if they must, and can talk to you about other things if there are details that must be resubmerged."

Ditto nodded. "Okay. Yeah. Thank you. I'd appreciate it if you'd try. Assuming I can talk someone into helping, that is. Maybe it's safer to just assume I'm right and not try it but. . . that could be dangerous in it's own way, you know?"

"I think we have established that many things regarding this could be dangerous. The decision is yours."

"Ha. Darn right." Ditto smiled. "I might take you up on that, then. I'll let you know. But either way, thanks. You've just helped me a lot. A whole lot."

"You are welcome, Ditto," said Jagat. "But for now, may I escort you to the entryway? You have been here for many hours, and I know that knowledge is not enough to sustain a body like yours."

"Yeah, okay" Ditto stretched until she heard her joints pop, gathered her bag and hopped off the chair. "Guess I don't want to end up like my old neighbor from back home. He spent so much time in his workshop that he made a cage of half-finished projects around him and couldn't open the front door. I had to crawl through his window and bring him food."

"Yes," said Jagat, offering her a tentacle and beginning to float back towards the center of the room. "Let us endeavor to avoid that situation."

#ditto #jagat the flumph #the fwump of a flumph #i have written the word flumph so many times in the last few days

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diaspora9ja · 3 years

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The Byline Of Phantom Owolabi And Pens Of Sports Minister Dare And Joshua-Akanji By Olukayode Thomas

Sports activities Minister Sunday Dare and his SA Media John-Joshua Akanji responded to my article Sunday Dare’s listing of sports activities icons smacks of nepotism, rewards drug cheats with a phantom title. The duo, as a substitute of countering my assertions with superior arguments, responded with insults, false claims, and delicate blackmail OLUKAYODE THOMAS experiences.

Introduction

The Pharisees and Sadducees by no means had a solution every time they have been confronted with info by our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, as a substitute they resort to mendacity, intimidations, insults and all manners of shenanigans.

Sports activities Minister Sunday Dare and his SA Media, John Joshua-Akanji’s, response to my article Sunday Dare’s listing of sports activities icons smacks of nepotism, rewards drug cheats titled Kayode Thomas piece on Sports activities Icons: pot pouri of half-truths, deceit, ignorance and hatchet work by Oyewole Owolabi suits completely into the best way the Pharisees and the Sadducees reacted to Jesus when confronted with info.

Dare and Joshua-Akanji selected to behave just like the Pharisees and the Sadducees as a result of they knew I wrote an unbiased report and the one approach they may defend their grave error was to go away the message and assault the messenger with lies and insults, utilizing phantom Oyewole Owolabi as smokescreen.

My story and harvest of insults

The problems I raised are germane: That naming medicine cheats as icons is in opposition to world finest practices and should not in step with the beliefs of Olympic motion and World Athletics. I gave examples of Linford Christie, Lance Armstrong, and Marion Jones.

In my article, I said that the phrase icon means an individual worthy of veneration and a drug cheat can’t be a job mannequin. Naming them icons sends a improper sign to younger athletes.

That since Dare is a neophyte in sports activities, he shouldn’t be blamed for the listing however he ought to be humble sufficient to apologize and withdraw it and that these gave him the ultimate listing did sports activities a disservice.

That Falilat Ogunkoya and Sunday Bada can’t be grouped with the Atlanta ’96 4x400m workforce and the Sydney 2000 4x400m workforce as a result of members of the workforce examined constructive to efficiency enhancing medicine due to this fact can’t be icons.

Secondly, that not one of the athletes named as icons matched the achievements of Ogunkoya and Bada and the duo achieved these feats with out testing constructive to medicine.

That the omission of Harmless Egbunike and Yussuf Alli was an aberration. Jon Obi Mikel deserves to be on the listing as his achievements dwarf that of Garuba Lawal and Daniel Amokachi, ditto Mercy Akide over Perpetua Nkwocha and in addition Kadri ikhana deserved to be named icon.

I requested why Aruna Quadri, the one table-tennis participant to have ever fly our flag on the worldwide stage was snubbed and why embrace Dick Tiger whose feats particularly beating French-Algerian Cherif Hamia to the world title in 1957 was earlier than our independence and exclude Emmanuel Ifeajuna, the primary Black African to win a gold medal in a world video games. That if Tiger, whose achievement predate independence could make the listing, why exclude Ifeajuna.

I concluded by praising the inclusion of Olumide Oyedeji, Segun Odegbami, Jighere Wellington, Odion Aikhoje, Modupe Oshikoya, Hogan Bassey, Samuel Peters, Nojeem Mayegun, Rashidi Yekini, Energy Mike, Nduka Odizor and MKO Abiola.

Dare and Joshua-Akanji responded with abuses and insults

Dare, an Honourable Minister, fully ignored the place I counseled the train. As a substitute of responding to the shortcomings I raised with superior arguments, reality and figures, he select to be just like the Pharisees and Sadducees by resorting to lies, abuses and blackmail.

He lied that it’s in my character to run individuals down and that it led to my inglorious exit from The Guardian Newspapers. On your data and for the studying public, I resigned voluntarily from The Guardian November 24, 2008 to hitch Subsequent Newspapers.

The administration wrote me a letter dated December 15, 2008 accepting my resignation. The letter was signed by the then Human Sources Supervisor, Victor Aibaengbee.

You claimed my write up was outright lies and misinformation however you guys failed as journalists to level out the lies and misinformation or counter my lies with the reality quite you simply stored heaping insults on my individual.

You claimed the listing was scrutinized by consultants however why can’t you point out their names or point out those who sponsored my write-up in any case he that allege should show.

Because the Sports activities Minister who has entry to all of the recordsdata within the Sports activities Ministry, I anticipated you to call the committees that I’ve served on and endorsed unethical practices and assist motion that aren’t in step with the very best world practices in sports activities.

Ajunwa and Onyali

Your declare that I’ve private rating to settle with Chioma Ajunwa and Mary Onyali is just not true.

On your data, I’ve recognized Ajunwa since 1996 once I was a cub reporter and I’ve executed in depth work on Ajunwa the athlete and the individual however guidelines are guidelines.

That drug cheats have been moved from the backstage to the excessive desk beneath your watch is a reality. When the likes of late Abdul Karim Amu have been round, drug cheats dare not transfer close to athletics. After her second ban, Ajunwa left athletics fully for Chess.

She represented Rivers State in Chess on the FCT 2004 Nationwide Sports activities Pageant. When AFP requested in an interview in Could 14, 2004, why she took up aggressive Chess she replied. “Life has to go on.”

I don’t have any rating to settle with Onyali both. On your data I hosted Onyali in Lagos the final time she visited my workplace with late Jide Fashikun.

While you began interfering within the affairs of AFN which has led to fractionalization of the board, I spoke with Onyali for over an hour and warned her that Ministers come and Ministers go, however as a educated individual in athletics, many individuals will blame her for not warning you in regards to the implications of your direct interference within the affairs of AFN.

Whether or not Onyali knowledgeable you and also you ignored her recommendation I don’t know however the occasions of the previous couple of months has proven that your motion of siding with Olamide George in opposition to Ibrahim Gusau is improper.

Two courts, an Excessive Courtroom and an Enchantment Courtroom have affirmed Gusau because the genuine president of AFN as we await the choice of the Supreme Courtroom on the matter, it’s necessary to state right here that the Confederation of Africa Athletics (CAA) the governing physique of athletics in Africa and the World Athletics acknowledge Gusau because the genuine President of AFN.

Medals not withdrawn as weak and uninformed argument

Sports activities Minster, your declare in public that drug cheats might be honored so long as their medals should not withdrawn is fake. The conclusions I can draw is that you’re not conscious of the foundations of the sports activities, finest world practices in sports activities, you don’t take heed to your advisers or your advisers too don’t know.

That is how sports activities works. If an athlete wins a medal in a video games or championships and exams constructive, their medal will likely be withdrawn.

But when an athlete has gained a medal earlier than a ban or after serving a ban for doping infraction, the medal is not going to be withdrawn. That’s the reason Linford Christie nonetheless retains all of the 24 medals he gained earlier than he was banned in 1999.

That’s the reason the one medal withdrawn from Marion Jones have been those she gained on the Sydney 2000 Olympics. She nonetheless has the medals she gained earlier than Sydney, ditto Ben Johnson and others.

Ajunwa’s medal was not withdrawn as a result of it was gained in 1996, 4 years after her ban in 1992. Ditto Onyali who had completed serving her ban earlier than successful her medal in Atlanta.

World Athletics, athletics household, US frown at medicine cheats

On your data Sports activities Minister, in September 2020, the World Athletics condemned the election of medicine cheat Ivan Tsikhan as President Belarus Athletic Federation.

“Member of Federations conduct their elections in step with their very own constitutions and their very own congresses as we perceive it was executed on this case. Nevertheless, nobody who has served a doping ban would have the ability to maintain an official place on World Athletics our bodies or constructions at present.” A spokeswoman for World Athletics informed insidethegames.

Paula Radcliffe the previous world document holder in marathon who vowed by no means contact the London 2012 Olympics Contact if Linford Christie carried the contact additionally vehemently opposed the concept of naming Christie a job mannequin.

Requested if she thought Christie’s position is a good suggestion, Radcliffe informed BBC:

“We now have to be sure that the individuals in that mentor position have an integrity and robust sense of ethics and morals. They will need to have achievements that the athletes can look as much as and might belief in and consider in. If you happen to do take shortcuts then you definitely’re not solely dishonest your self and your fellow opponents however you are additionally dishonest your nation and your supporters.”

In response to BBC, United States Senate simply handed a invoice that may permit US officers to prosecute anybody concerned in doping at worldwide sporting occasions.

The Rodchenkov Anti-Doping Act, named after Russian whistleblower Grigory Rodchenkov, is ready to be signed into legislation by President Donald Trump. US Anti-Doping Company (USADA) chief Travis Tygart stated it was “monumental” within the “combat for clear sport”.

The laws, which handed the Senate unopposed after beforehand passing the Home of Representatives unanimously, permits the US to hunt prosecution for doping conspirators at competitions involving American athletes, sponsors or broadcasters.

It targets coaches, brokers, managers and officers quite than athletes, who’re already coated by WADA sanctions. The potential penalties embrace fines of as much as $1m (£756,000) or jail sentences of as much as 10 years report BBC.

Nigerian Athletes Could Miss Tokyo 2020 Olympics Due to Doping

In a season when the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) and the athletics household worldwide have categorized Nigeria as a rustic thought of to have the very best doping danger, the Sports activities Minister honouring medicine cheats on WADA listing is a misnomer.

Nigeria residence primarily based athletes will not be allowed to take part within the Tokyo 2020 Olympics Video games because the AFN has didn’t adjust to Rule 15 obligations.

Hitherto, we have been a Class B nation however due to none compliance, the AIU transfer us into Class A, the implication of the above is that our athletes will not be allowed to take part in main video games and championships in 2021.

To keep away from the above sanction, our Tokyo sure athletes should endure at the least three out-of-competition doping exams earlier than the Olympic Video games.

Litigation and questioning my upbringing

Many times, the Sports activities Minister displayed his disdain for analysis and reality checking the fundamental precept of journalism from the start of his write-up to the top.

The final place I practiced journalism was The Nation Newspapers and there was no litigation in opposition to me or the administration. A easy cellphone name would have clarified this for you.

In my over twenty years within the media, I’ve been concerned in litigation twice. One at FCT Excessive Courtroom in 2007 and Industrial Courtroom in Lagos in 2013, I gained the 2 circumstances.

There isn’t any place in my write-up that I declare to have monopoly of information or being an encyclopedia of sports activities.

What has upbringing, conventional worth and respect for elders bought to do with stating the plain incontrovertible fact that Aliko Dangote and Kessington Adebutu can’t be sports activities icons?

The duo are greats in lots of features particularly enterprise however as sports activities icon no and I’m constructive they are going to be embarrassed that they’re wearing borrowed robes. They are going to be equally embarrassed by your declare that they’ve spent billions in resuscitation of decaying services, this can be a lie.

As at at present MKO Abiola Stadium Abuja and Nationwide Stadium, Lagos are nonetheless works in progress. So why the unfounded declare Honourable Minister?

Lastly, the Minister have to be informed that in or out of presidency, we’re all not simply Nigerians however patriotic ones who hates something that may diminish or tarnish the picture of our nation.

That’s the reason we can’t hold quiet when requirements which are beneath the appropriate finest world practices are being set on the highest stage of presidency.

OLUKAYODE THOMAS is a Lagos primarily based reporter.

PULL QUOTE: Dare and Joshua-Akanji selected to behave just like the Pharisees and the Sadducees as a result of they knew I wrote an unbiased report and the one approach they may defend their grave error was to go away the message and assault the messenger with lies and insults, utilizing phantom Oyewole Owolabi as smokescreen

PULL QUOTE: Dare, an Honourable Minister, fully ignored the place I counseled the train. As a substitute of responding to the shortcomings I raised with superior arguments, reality and figures, he select to be just like the Pharisees and Sadducees by resorting to lies, abuses and blackmail.

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aion-rsa · 4 years

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Xbox Game Pass: New Games for November 2020 Revealed

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Xbox Game Pass is Microsoft’s subscription service for Xbox One owners. It’s designed to be like a “Netflix for games,” where you pay a simple monthly rate and get access to loads of games for download. It’s not to be confused with the Xbox Live Gold membership, which gives users a selection of free games each month.

There was a huge surge in popularity and profile for Xbox Game Pass in 2018, mainly due to Microsoft unveiling a strategy that puts brand new games on the service. Sea of Thieves was the first example of this, followed by State of Decay 2. Crackdown 3 launched on Feb. 15. Since then, the service has seen the Day 1 launch of several Xbox exclusives, including Gears 5, The Outer Worlds, and Halo: Reach on the Halo: The Master Chief Collection.

Membership to Xbox Game Pass will set you back $9.99 per month. You can now also get an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription for $1 for the first month and $14.99 a month after that. The subscription includes an Xbox Live Gold membership as well as all of the games offered on Xbox Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass for PC. Plus, with cloud support, you can play a selection of Xbox Game Pass titles on your Android phone!

New games are added each month to Xbox Game Pass. Here are the games coming in November (with descriptions courtesy of the Xbox team):

Xbox Game Pass: Games for November 2020

Celeste (Android, Console & PC) – November 5

Help Madeline survive her inner demons on her journey to the top of Celeste Mountain, in this super-tight platformer from the creators of TowerFall. Brave hundreds of hand-crafted challenges, uncover devious secrets, and piece together the mystery of the mountain.

Comanche (PC) – November 5

Comanche is a modern helicopter shooter set in the near future. You have the choice to delve into the evolving single-player campaign and make a difference in a conflict of global proportions or compete with other Comanche players from all around the world in the explosive, team-based multiplayer modes.

Deep Rock Galactic (Android, Console & PC) – November 5

A 1 to 4 player co-op FPS featuring badass space Dwarves, 100% destructible environments, procedurally-generated caves, and endless hordes of alien monsters. It’s a one-of-a-kind co-op experience with four specialized classes, a plethora of heavy weaponry and high-tech gadgets, and next-level space mining to collect gold, gems, and other precious minerals for your corporate overlords.

Eastshade (Android, Console & PC) – November 5

You are a travelling painter, exploring the island of Eastshade. Capture the world on canvas using your artist’s easel. Talk to the inhabitants to learn about their lives. Make friends and help those in need. Discover mysteries and uncover secrets about the land. Surmount natural impasses to reach forgotten places. Experience how your actions impact the world around you.

Knights and Bikes (Console & PC) – November 5

Knights and Bikes is a hand-painted action-adventure for 1 or 2 players, set on a British Island in the 1980s. It’s a coming-of-age story starring Nessa & Demelza, exploring the coasts of Penfurzy on their trusty bikes, looking for a legendary lost treasure in a Goonies-inspired tale of excitement, danger, fun and friendship.

Ark: Survival Evolved: Explorer’s Edition (Android, Console & PC) – November 17

Combining the base game (already available with Xbox Game Pass) with 3 massive Expansion Packs, Ark: Survival Evolved Explorer’s Edition is an ultimate way to get even more dinosaur action! The Explorer’s Edition gives you access to the mega hit Ark: Survival Evolved as well as the Scorched Earth, Aberration, and Extinction expansion packs, adding nearly 900 hours of gameplay! Each DLC is available for individual download as well.

Xbox Game Pass: Games for October 2020

Doom Eternal (Android & Console) – October 1

One of the best shooters of 2020 is coming to Xbox Game Pass. Hell’s armies have invaded Earth and now you must become the Slayer in an epic single-player campaign to conquer demons across dimensions and stop the final destruction of humanity. Experience the ultimate combination of speed and power in Doom Eternal – the next leap in push-forward, first-person combat. The only thing they fear… is you.

Drake Hollow (PC) – October 1

Drake Hollow is a cooperative action village-building game set in The Hollow – a blighted mirror of our world – in which players build and defend villages of Drakes, the lovable, local vegetable folk. Whether solo or with friends, players follow the guidance of a mysterious crow to explore a dynamically generated world of islands trapped in poisonous aether and help the Drakes restore their camp.

Brütal Legend (Console) – October 8

Double Fine Productions cult classic action-comedy Brütal Legend is coming to Xbox Game Pass. Follow the unlikely adventure of Eddie Riggs, a humble roadie (voiced by Jack Black!) drawn into an alternate world of gnarly demons, fire-breathing beasts, and heavy metal music. Brütal Legend mixes hack and slash mayhem with huge strategy battles as Eddie and a band of stalwart heroes fight to free the world from a demonic overlord. Featuring a vibrant voice cast and cameo appearances from some of the world’s biggest rock musicians, Brütal Legend is a celebration of all things heavy and metal.

Forza Motorsport 7 (Android, Console, & PC) – October 8

Experience the thrill of motorsport at the limit with the most comprehensive, beautiful, and authentic racing game ever made. Forza Motorsport 7 is where racers, drifters, drag racers, tuners, and creators come together in a community devoted to everything automotive. Drive the cars of your dreams, with more than 700 amazing vehicles to choose from including the largest collection of Ferraris, Porsches, and Lamborghinis ever. Challenge yourself across 30 famous destinations and 200 ribbons, where race conditions change every time you return to the track. Experience it all in gorgeous 60fps and native 4K resolution in HDR!

Ikenfell (Console & PC) – October 8

A turn-based-tactical RPG about a group of troublesome magic students. Use time-based combat mechanics to power your spells and block attacks, explore the twisted halls of a vast magic school, fight challenging monsters and bosses, find tons of hidden treasure, and uncover dark secrets never meant to be found.

Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition (PC) – October 15

Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition completes the celebration of one of the most beloved real-time strategy franchises in definitive form. Command mighty civilizations from across Europe and the Americas or jump to the battlefields of Asia in stunning 4K Ultra HD graphics and with a fully remastered soundtrack. Experience two new game modes: including all previously released expansions and 14 civilizations, plus two brand new civilizations – the Swedes and Inca. Return to adventure with this final chapter in the Age of Empires: Definitive Edition journey.

Heave Ho (PC) – October 15

Grab one another’s hands, climb across dangling bodies, and swing your pals to safety in a wobbly, dangly mass of limbs. Heave Ho tasks up to four players with a simple goal: don’t fall to your death! Players will use their own two hands and the outstretched grip of their friends to grapple across each level on their way to victory. Customize your character with stylish accessories in a vain attempt to remember which of your hands is the only thing between you and the plummet of doom.

Katana Zero (Android, Console & PC) – October 15

A stylish neo-noir, action-platformer featuring breakneck action and instant-death combat. Slash, dash, and manipulate time to unravel your past in a beautifully brutal acrobatic display. Each level is uniquely designed for countless methods of completion. Defeat foes creatively, using spontaneous approaches to eliminate your enemy as you see fit.

Tales of Vesperia: Definitive Edition (Console & PC) – October 15

The fate of two friends will collide in an epic journey that threatens the existence of the world in Tales of Vesperia: Definitive Edition! A power struggle begins with a civilization dependent on an ancient technology, the Blastia, and the Empire that controls it. Relive the most beloved “Tales of” title beautifully remastered in HD with new playable characters, new stories, and more special attacks!

The Swords of Ditto: Mormo’s Curse (PC) – October 15

A compact action RPG that creates a unique adventure for each new hero of legend in the relentless fight against the evil Mormo. Explore a delightful but dangerous overworld, brave menacing dungeons, and improve your hero in a charming village, during your quest to overcome the evil that plagues the island. Grab a co-op friend for an unforgettable adventure filled with delightful characters, extraordinary loot, and heroic battles!

ScourgeBringer (Console) – October 21

From the developers of NeuroVoider, ScourgeBringer is a fast-paced free-moving roguelite platformer, much like a crossbreed between Dead Cells and Celeste. Set in a post-apocalyptic world where a mysterious entity wreaked havoc on all humanity, ScourgeBringer puts you in the shoes of the deadliest warrior of her clan: Kyhra. Help her explore the unknown and slash her way through ancient machines guarding the seal of her past, and maybe the redemption of humanity.

Cricket 19 (Console) – October 22

The official game of the 2019 Ashes Championship is the complete cricket simulation. Featuring a suite of exciting all-new features that add even greater depth and rich new content to Big Ant Studios’ acclaimed cricket engine. Tackle historical scenarios for classic matches through the ages, develop the career of a junior right through to national captaincy. Participate in the fully-licensed Ashes Cricket mode, or lead your nation to the greatest world championship in the classic 50-over one-day mode.

Supraland (Console) – October 22

Save the red-stick figure village in this hit first-person, open-world, action-puzzle platformer. Roam and explore a grand interconnected world, unlock new versatile abilities, and combine them to overcome imaginative puzzles or uncover shrouded secrets. Defeat charging hordes in fast, frenetic first-person combat as you battle your way for an audience with the Blue King. Supraland is the ultimate “sandbox” adventure game and offers players of all ages a unique take on puzzles, exploration, and adventure!

Rainbow Six Siege (Console & Android) – October 22

With a thriving professional esports scene and a community of over 60 million registered players, Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege puts players in the middle of a fast-paced, ever-evolving multiplayer experience grounded in the selection of unique operators.

Using the right mix of tactics and destruction, Rainbow Six teams engage their enemies in sieges, where both sides have exclusive skills and gadgets at their disposal. Defenders prepare by transforming the environments around them into modern strongholds, while attackers use recon drones to gain intel for carefully planning their assault. Creativity and competition are at the heart of this game.

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Carto (Console & PC) – October 27

Separated from her Granny during a storm, young Carto must use her innate cartography powers to map and manipulate the world around her on her quest to be reunited. As she discovers new “pieces” of the game map, players can rearrange them to shape the levels themselves – unlocking new paths, puzzles, and story moments.

Day of the Tentacle Remastered (Console & PC) – October 29

Released by LucasArts in 1993 as a sequel to Ron Gilbert’s groundbreaking Maniac Mansion, Day of the Tentacle is a mind-bending, time travel, cartoon puzzle adventure game in which three unlikely friends work together to prevent an evil mutated purple tentacle from taking over the world! Double Fine’s remastered version is a perfectly preserved piece of puzzle and adventure, and it’s now available with Game Pass! Travel through time and enjoy revamped artwork (or swap back and forth between classic and remastered modes) as you solve puzzles across multiple eras. Day of the Tentacle is an all-time comedy classic and this special edition has been lovingly restored and remade with the care and attention that can only come from involving the game’s original creators.

Five Nights at Freddy’s (Android, Console & PC) – October 29

The Freddy Fazbear animatronics beloved by thousands of children have always been quirky, especially after hours… Many previous night guards have reported they act almost “possessed”, but that can’t be, they are just machines, right? There is nothing for you to worry about. Play through the original four titles and discover for yourself. Just show up for your night shift and do the job well and everything will be alright. Or will it…

Full Throttle Remastered (Console & PC) – October 29

Originally released by LucasArts in 1995, Full Throttle is a classic graphic adventure game from industry legend Tim Schafer, telling the story of Ben Throttle, a butt-kicking biker caught up in a tale of motorcycles and mayhem. Remastered by the mischievous folks at Double Fine Productions, Full Throttle Remastered features all new hand-drawn artwork and fresh audio. There’s never been a better way to experience this classic piece of adventure game history!

Grim Fandango Remastered (Console & PC) – October 29

One of the most acclaimed adventure games of all time arrives on Xbox Game Pass! Manny Calavera is a travel agent at the Department of Death, selling luxury packages to recently departed souls on their four-year journey to eternal rest. But there’s trouble in paradise: a conspiracy that threatens Manny’s very salvation and the afterlife itself. Originally released by LucasArts in 1998, Grim Fandango’s remastered edition comes care of Double Fine Productions and brings revamped visuals and sounds (including fully orchestrated music) to a beloved classic.

PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (Android) – October 29

Land, loot and outwit your opponents to become the last player left standing in a thrilling game experience full of unexpected, adrenaline-pumping moments. PUBG’s new Season 9 is dropping on October 29 with a new map called Paramo. Cradled hidden among the clouds in the highlands of South America lies Paramo, an ancient land with ancient secrets. Paramo is a 3×3 map with a dynamic world new to PUBG. This dynamic world system alters locations between matches, making every trip to Paramo a unique experience. Take on the Battlegrounds like never before with cloud gaming (Beta) with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate.

ScourgeBringer (Android) – October 29

Unruly Heroes (Android, Console & PC) – October 29

Grab your controller and set out on an epic adventure of intrigue and discovery inspired by the timeless 16th century Chinese novel “Journey to the West.” With its simple to pick up, hard to master combat system across 4 playable characters, evolving gameplay and surprises galore, Unruly Heroes is not your run-of-the-mill action-platformer. Take on the roles of Wukong the Monkey King, Sanzang the Sleepy Monk, Kihong the Greedy Pig and Sandmonk the Sensitive Brute as they travel westward in search of the scattered remnants of the Sacred Scroll. Along the way, whether it be solo or in local co-op, master the combined strength of the heroes and kung-fu fight a diverse lineup of creatures and demons within a colorful hand-drawn fantasy world.

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syzygyzip · 7 years

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The Myth and Meaning of MissingNo

A few notes about this essay: first, I have removed the period from the name “MissingNo.” for ease of transcription. I also refer to MissingNo’s sibling as Bar ‘M Bar or [][][][] ‘M [][][][] because its real name is irreproducible in Unicode:

Also, for the purposes of this essay it is helpful to think of Pokémon less as animals and more as a gamut of spectral entities: yokai, devas, fairies, sprites, genies, elemental intelligences, ghosts, servitors, unincorporated astral matter, etc. All those strange and elusive beings who populate world mythology and the collective imagination. In contrast to our world, however, people in Kanto are universally aware of these entities and their relation to ourselves. Much more can be said on this subject, but allow the basic premise to inform your reading when it feels appropriate. The subject before us is liminal by its nature.

Myths, Stories, and Suspicions

When we encounter a glitch in a game the temptation is to say that it broke our immersion. Maybe it’s because children are more easily entranced, but as a child my experience with MissingNo did not feel particularly incongruous with the narrative. The encounter, though strange, didn’t contradict the world of the game -- it expanded it in a psychedelic direction. When I met MissingNo, the battle played out more or less as normal. It was only the image of the creature, the arcane initiation, and the haunting after-effects that were atypical.

As soon as Pokémon Red & Blue came out, one fact of life became very clear: Kids love to spread tall tales about Pokémon. It was quite common to hear about Mew hiding under a truck or Togepi skulking around in the inaccessible wilderness behind Bill’s house. But the purported apparition of something called “MissingNo” or “Bar ‘M Bar” held an especially uncanny sway, because everyone believed it to be true. The basic story was that you talk to an old man, and then fly to an island where you meet bizarre and game-glitching Pokémon – but the many accounts which peppered the playground and Internet each held idiosyncratic details. Some said Mewtwo would turn up on the island, others said they found Pokémon native to the Safari Zone, or rogue trainers, or that you could multiply your items by 100. When I finally initiated what came to be known as the “Old Man Glitch”, I performed it in the prescribed manner:

Talk to the Old Man in the North of Viridian City. He will show you how to catch a Weedle.

As soon as the Old Man is finished, fly to Cinnabar Island.

On the island, walk over to the eastern edge and use Surf.

Surf the very edge of the water, moving up and down.

And sure enough, there appeared a fuzzy Tetris-looking rando named [][][][] ‘M [][][][]. Armed with a little background research, I succeeded in slaying this entity, and came away with 128 rare candies, a glitched out Hall of Fame record, and a whole lot of questions. The experience was so simple and tidy, and the performance of the glitch was just dreamlike enough that my young mind felt the thin silver light of meaning shining dimly from behind the supposedly arbitrary method of contact.

MissingNo and its glitch siblings became well known in the Pokémon community as reliable and functional game exploits, and stuck in the imagination for the peculiarity of their presentation. The programming quirks behind MissingNo’s operations are well understood, and the character has wormed its way into a sizable number of fan theories and creepypastas. Something about this strange little block of static resonates with players, and it seems to have surrounded itself with cryptic clues as to its true nature.

The Method of Contact

The first step to understanding a mysterious aberration in a game is to consider the events that lead up to it. What must the player do in order to find MissingNo? The trip begins by talking to an old man in Viridian City who shows the player how to catch Pokémon by snagging a wild Weedle in a brief scripted encounter. This is an interesting motif right off the bat, because we are meeting a teacher figure who shows us how to catch the worm. In dreams and in myth, the worm is often a symbolic representation of the Kundalini serpent, the principal driving force of life itself which coils at the base of the spine. The Old Man is found near the beginning of the game, and he will show you this tutorial as many times as you like. After all, he is teaching an essential lesson: catch the Pokémon around you to expand your team; or more abstractly: integrate the aspects of nature which complete you.

Viridian city itself is a special place, in that we begin and end our Pokémon journey there. It is the first town we come to after leaving home, and it is also host to the final gym and provides a road to the Pokémon League – the culmination of a trainer’s journey. The next step to MissingNo is to fly to volcanic Cinnabar Island, which is incidentally the last town a trainer discovers. So we have leapt from the site of our first lesson to the final city. Here on Cinnabar we walk straight east to the beach, and use surf to ride a Pokemon up and down the edge of the water. If we venture further out to sea, the ritual is forfeit and we must restart. So we glide up and down and up. Here along the crashing waves, apparitions greet us according to our name. The letters in the player’s name are the values that determine which Pokémon appear – and what form MissingNo takes. With this, contact is made. So let’s take a look at this setting. The island is a classic symbol of self-conception: a crystallization of identity emergent from the undifferentiated ocean. There happens to be a volcano on this island, which is also a timeless symbol: that of the eruption of unconscious content; hidden energy and power which has formerly lain dormant and unknown. We encounter MissingNo in a rather narrow area: a single column of tiles representing the edge of an island. We move up and down this coast attempting to trigger the event, swimming/surfing/pacing along the seashore. This is an incredibly profound detail, because the shore of the ocean signifies the mediation between the mundane terrestrial (the land) and the vast realm of the unconscious (the ocean). The fact that it is the Eastern coast is a bonus, as that is the place where the sun rises in its most prolonged glow, and gives birth to the new day. The island itself is named Cinnabar, home to a research facility that serves a major role in the game’s plot. As we discover through research notes littered about, Cinnabar Mansion was the site of a series of experiments to re-create Mew, which is thought to be a primordial Pokémon. Famously, this resulted in the creation of Mewtwo, an anthropomorphic “clone” of Mew who lacks the originator’s genetic purity (Mewtwo cannot learn any TM, as Mew can), but appears to have gained a humanlike awareness, a trait lengthily elaborated in the first Pokémon movie. Mew as Prima Materia

So what does Mew symbolize? It is known to resemble an embryo, and believed to be the ancestor of all other Pokémon. It is a light pink, which is interesting given that the alchemical prima materia – the formless substance that composes the primeval material of the universe – is said to be dually white and red. In the original games it is only attainable through the metatextual experience of an IRL promotional event, and was allegedly inserted into the game secretly. Mew is clearly meant to be a transcendent being, notoriously elusive and often depicted in space.

Mew is the only pokemon that learns Transform, except of course for Ditto. This has spawned a highly popular fan theory that Dittos are failed clones of Mew. There are some supporting reasons for this idea: they share the same coloration (in both common and shiny iterations), the same weight, the same stats, and Ditto is present at locations relevant to Mew’s story (notably the Pokémon Mansion and the Cerulean Cave, where Mewtwo is found). Unlike Mew, which cannot breed in game, Ditto can successfully mate with any non-Legendary Pokémon. But Mew, critically, is a psychic type. Ditto is “normal.” It is as though the scientists succeeded in recreating the prima materia, but only in a purely physicalist sense. Ditto contains the genetic potential of all current life, but it does not generate new forms. It does not even learn new moves by itself, it must be taught. Science has apparently replicated the form and fertility of immemorial cosmic life, but not its potentiating vitality, its breath of life, its pneuma. I wonder where that pneuma went. Mewtwo, though not having begat novel lifeforms of its own, nevertheless expresses the pneuma in its thoughts and deeds. But maybe pneuma, as a formless concept, could only be expressed allegorically to the player as the enigmatic and varying being known as MissingNo. Revealingly, MissingNo is a Bird/Normal type Pokémon, birds being classical symbols of the spirit. Its cry upon encounter is the default “blank cry”: an unaffected cry of the male Nidoran (the only gendered Pokémon in the original release). But when MissingNo is viewed in the Pokédex, it makes the sound of a Rhydon, the first Pokémon ever designed; we could interpret this therefore as a reference to the voice of creative impulse. There is a caveat to discovering this: the player can only view the Pokedex entry if they have not seen a Cubone. This is another mythic peculiarity, as Cubone’s defining characteristic is its knowledge of loneliness, and its desire for reconciliation with its ancestors. If this sense of separation has never been known, only then can we “read” Missingno’s information, understand its primal utterance, and order it in our Pokédex-pantheon (as #000)

Curiously, Cubone is also host to a popular fan theory: that its missing mother is Kangaskhan. This is believed mainly because Cubone always pines for its perpetually absent mother, and Kangaskhans bear their young in their pouch, but the young are never seen independently. It is therefore supposed that when Kangaskhans die, their young don the skulls of their mothers and become Cubone. I have no strong opinion about this story, but MissingNo closes the circuit thematically. Just as MissingNo has ties to Cubone, its sibling Bar ‘M Bar mysteriously evolves into Kanghaskhan. Additionally, one of the appearances MissingNo can take is the “Ghost” sprite. In the main game, this sprite is only used for the ghost of Cubone’s mother in a unique encounter. Until a special item is used, this ghost isn’t affected by the player; with this guise MissingNo tells us it cannot be grasped.

4 Visions of MissingNo

In addition to the L-shaped white noise and the ghost, MissingNo can appear in two more ways. It can take the form of the fossils glimpsed in the Pewter Museum: a skeleton of Kabutops or a skeleton of Aerodactyl. These constellations of bones further suggest that MissingNo is an ancestral spirit. Kabutops is a water dwelling primordial life-form, whose development name meant “Atlantis,” and who symbolizes the origin of physical life from the first primal waters. Aerodactyl resembles a dragon or wyvern, an intermediary of heaven and earth. These two beasts, like the ghost, are no longer embodied. Though all 3 are potential symbols of the dead, they embody that sentiment differently. Kabutops comes from the water, Aerodactyl from the sky, and the ghost, as a veiled Marowak, would be terrestrial, but its image taken independently refers to the realm of the etheric.

To see these alternative forms, the player must have a certain letter in the 5th, 7th, or 9th slot of their character name: W for Kabutops, X for Aerodactyl, and Y for the ghost. The natural form of MissingNo gives us 4 forms, an apparently timeless property of visionary and mystic experience, from Ezekiel to mandala art and the platonic elements. In fact, there are over 150 such amplifications found in Carl Jung’s General Index, so it’s rather difficult to catch them all. Like many mythological quaternaries, 1 among the 4 is qualitatively exceptional. In this case, of course, that is the so-called “Normal” form, the fuzzy L-block which appears as a result of a much greater variety of player names. Though this natural form is less definite in criteria and appearance, it is actually more definite in its character. The other three forms take their base stats and moves from the last Pokémon in the party (a dittolike effect!); and their sprites, when viewed from the back, are taken from whichever Pokémon’s data was most recently accessed. So when these entities are in use by the player, they resemble something else entirely; they are phenomenologically reordered to resemble a known quantity. The natural form however, has a constant square-shaped sprite when viewed from the back. Though this form is exceptional among the 4, it is reductive to say that this is its “true” image: each of the 4 is a different capitulation of the same idea which itself is formless. Though there is one more peculiarity about the natural form! MissingNo. and Its Twin MissingNo’s natural form is identical with Bar ‘M Bar, as is its Pokédex number, leading many to believe that they were the same creature. However, there are many differences between them. Their height, weight, and stats are different, and they learn slightly different moves. Bar ‘M Bar does not cry like a male Nidoran, but instead sings a pitched-up version of the Zapdos call. This sound resembles birdsong with a background buzz indicating electricity. This pitch-shifted voice tells us that Bar M’ Bar resides even higher in the heavens than the sky-streaking legendary bird of thunder. Its “height” is also coincidentally tied in value with that of Rayquaza, a sacred serpent whose name means “firmament” and is the canonical lord of the skies. Another difference previously mentioned is Bar ‘M Bar’s unique ability to evolve into Kangaskhan. This happens at level 0, but if you glitch it to level 128, it can also evolve into Clefairy. Clefairy is a symbolically rich Pokémon as well; it was the main character of the original manga, and originally slated to be the main character of the anime. It is strongly indicated to be of extraterrestrial origin and is also plainly representative of the fairy kingdom, as indicated by its name and type. Additionally, it happens to be the Pokémon that Bill, a famous internet architect, accidentally transforms into as he is playing with time and space in order to construct a teleporter. We therefore can surmise that Clefairy relates to that which is alien: the alienation of the creature from the franchise, the alien origin of the species within the narrative, and the truly alien experience of inhabiting another body. This changing of bodies is perhaps what Bar ‘M Bar does when pushed past the realm of possibility, into level 128. There is of course a practical programming reason for the number 128, but it also happens to be double the number of possible codons in DNA. The “clef” in Clefairy means “musical key,” or in French simply “key.” Clefairy’s trademark move is metronome, which replicates most other Pokémon moves through the magic of synchronization. What would the world be like if this memetic sprite succeeded in its role as mascot of Pokémon? Would the world be all the more entranced?

When it comes to seeking an audience, Bar ‘M Bar is even wider in its accommodation than its sibling MissingNo. It can be encountered with any name at all – besides the preset options! Bar ‘M Bar’s own actual name, [][][][]M’[][][][] is certainly its most obvious difference. The bars on either side of the ‘M are determined by the actions of the player – Bulbapedia sums it up nicely:

It is most commonly known as 'M, since these are the only typographical characters in its name—its real name is impossible to produce with text, and some tiles in its name are not constant. It is also called 'M Block due to either the glitchy blocks next to its name or the Pokémon's boxy shape.

The first two tiles in [][][][] ‘M [][][][][]'s name depend on which sprite is occupying the spot where the player's Pokémon appears. In battle, the tiles on the left of its name will copy part of the sprite in the bottom-left corner of the screen (the player's Pokémon), while the block on the right will copy part of the sprite in the upper-right corner of the screen (the opponent's Pokémon). Out of battle, the blocks in its name will change depending on the player's location.

We know that MissingNo’s name is constant, and its form is undefined, a result of the player’s bestowed name. On the other hand, Bar ‘M Bar is a definite outcome for any bestowed name, but its own name is defined by the player! Yet it always retains the ‘M in the middle, which is tempting to interpret as the conjunction n’ (and). It looks as though Bar ‘M Bar’s name is something like “This n’ That.” And indeed, that’s what the sprites which comprise the bars draw from: the player’s Pokémon and the opponent’s Pokémon. The fact that these two glitchy blocks are separated by something close to “and” is a beautiful detail. It takes these two oppositional beings and phrases them both, but does so with the separation intact. If it lacked the ‘M between the two samples it would give a different impression. It is the difference between hendiadys (good and ready) and a modified adjective (well ready). It acknowledges that the two things are distinct and in concert, yet they are termed by Bar ‘M Bar in a single body. There is an endless mystery surrounding the mythological motif of 2-in-1, but it is often explored in alchemy and Jungian psychology through the image of the coniunctio, the holy marriage, the reconciliation of opposites.

Can we even say that Bar ‘M Bar is a single entity? It certainly has the strong dual aspect of its twin, MissingNo. Are these two glitch Pokémon the same or not? In the coding of the game, they are not. None of MissingNo’s forms share the constitution of Bar ‘M Bar. Yet they are defined in the Pokédex – the pantheon of the player’s understanding – in the same place, #000, and therein utter the same cry (Rhydon’s). They share an identical sprite and learn nearly identical moves. They cause the same glitch effects to occur in game. The strongest evidence for seeing them as representations of the same essence is in popular conception: Bar ‘M Bar is frequently referred to as MissingNo, and was the first of many other glitch Pokémon subsumed under the generic description of “MissingNo.” It is almost technical trivia to separate them. And most tellingly for the sake of this investigation, they complete each other’s symbolism. So, they are discrete entities AND they aren’t. The mystery of the coniunctio is thus further embodied in this dual being. The Lingering Presence Now that we’ve outlined the taxonomy of MissingNo+, we can begin to look at the consequences. The two most well-known effects of meeting MissingNo are the Item Duplication Glitch and the Hall of Fame glitch. Item duplication occurs after any encounter with MissingNo or Bar ‘M Bar, regardless of whether the player has fled, caught the creature, or knocked it out. When examining the bag after the battle, the player will find that the 6th item in their inventory has been increased by 128 (although this does not occur if the value is already over 128). Given that a player can reorder their inventory at will, this was a famous exploit for getting hundreds of Rare Candies in order to quickly max out any Pokémon’s level, or generating 128 Master Balls ensuring the capture of any creature you meet from then on. Indeed, this is the most common reason for performing the old man glitch, and likely the critical factor in MissingNo’s renown. And what fuel for the legend: a bizarre seaside vision that grants a wish. Another popular exploit is duplicated fossils, normally given only once per game, so that you could resurrect 100 Kabuto, Omanyte, or Aerodactyl. But any item is fair game: you could effectively wish for infinite wealth, health, lives, moves, defense, speed, power, whatever. You hooked the magic fish, what you do with it is up to you.

The experience also corrupts your Hall of Fame data, replacing some of the images with blocks of static, and scrambling names and values of your champion Pokémon. This is a largely inconsequential effect, but it has symbolic weight. Each Pokémon that exists is a symbol of some kind, representing an attitude, or an attribute, and as you go along meeting them and incorporating them into yourself, they accumulate further personal meanings. So consciously or unconsciously, the Pokémon that accompany you to your final battle are in some sense a mirror of the player: they represent your priorities, values, and appreciations. These are the ones canonized by the game in the Hall of Fame. MissingNo then transforms this composite irreparably. This act can be seen a psychic realignment of the player-character.

Summary

Let’s imagine the story of meeting MissingNo as a fairly tale. The protagonist, Red, talks to an Old Man at the edge of town who shows him how to catch a worm. Next, Red flies through the skies to a volcanic island. There on the Eastern shore of the island, he swims the coast. Attracted by his name, some number of foreign beasts appear before him, culminating in the appearance of a totally unexpected entity which defies easy categorization (though there are partial physical descriptions in some versions of the story). He then defeats, captures, or flees from the apparition. Then looking in his bag, he finds some object or capacity of his has been magnified to a superhuman extent. Finally, we find that some of his major psychic precepts have been mysteriously and radically altered for evermore.

So what then what was the encounter? An alien? A deity or holy ghost? The pneuma which animates life? Is it an unconscious complex made manifest? A psychotic break? The disorienting eruption of the Real? Is it a highly coherent and synchronous glitch-experience, or a pareidoliac imprint in static? I don’t believe that any of these answers satisfy in themselves. Like the images of MissingNo, the interpretations are interdependent, forming points along the circumference of a subject whose middle cannot be approached by the intellect. What is easier to parse is the influence of MissingNo on the fanbase. MissingNo is so famous as a glitch that it has become the common shorthand for any glitch Pokémon throughout the series. MissingNo and Bar ‘M Bar have inspired not only countless tall tales, but tons of fiction, fanart, merch, and a featured article on Bulbapedia. Using our imagination, it is rather easy to place MissingNo into the narrative context of the game, conceptualizing it any of the above ways. As much as this being seems keen to disrupt our in-game immersion, it seems equally willing to stride across our imagination, as though it were walking a bridge leading into the world of Pokémon, or our own reality, or wherever its place of origin.

#pokemon #pokemon rgb #pokemon gen 1 #missingno #glitch pokemon #pokemon psychology #alchemy #prima materia #pneuma #old man glitch #pokemon myth #pokemon creepypasta #creepypasta #spooky #pokemon theory #mew

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rickhorrow · 5 years

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10 To Watch : Mayors Edition 41519

RICK HORROW’S TOP 10 SPORTS/BIZ/TECH/PHILANTHROPY ISSUES FOR THE WEEK OF APRIL 15 : MAYORS EDITION with Jacob Aere

Tigers’ Masters victory: other winners and losers. Let’s start with the biggest winner: CBS. According to a release from CBS Sports, Saturday’s Masters coverage was the highest-rated Saturday golf telecast on any network since 2015. It also featured a 5% increase in ratings over last year. Given the Tiger Effect, Sunday’s final ratings will blow the doors off those increases. Other major stakeholders benefitting from Tiger’s victory are Nike, which stuck by him during the troubled years, the PGA and the state of New York, looking ahead to the PGA Championship at Bethpage Black May 16-19, the golf industry as a whole, and fans. But even on this happy sports day, there are losers. The NBA and NHL had to air playoff games across from a Masters final round held early due to weather. Ditto the U.S. women’s hockey team, which defeated Finland to win their fifth consecutive women’s hockey world championship gold medal but likely had few casual fans watching back home. At Bethpage and elsewhere Tiger tees it up, the rest of the field will see its screen time vanish as TigerTV – every hole, every shot – blasts back. The biggest losers? The pocketbooks of 2020 Masters patrons. Secondary market badges averaged $2,500 per day this year. Next year, look for that marker to move north of $3,000.

Heads up! This year, Minor League Baseball fans might notice new digital screens and displays at their favorite stadiums. Together with ISM Connect, over 25 MiLB teams will be adding new smart displays to their ballparks. But beyond delivering unique stories and creative ads to fans during each game, these displays are also equipped with smart cameras to measure audience engagement. These smart cameras will help keep ads and content fresh. The cameras record anonymous interactions -- how long someone watches the screen or their age range -- not individual images of specific people. By measuring foot traffic and engagement, MiLB teams and ad sponsors can better understand who their fans are, what resonates with them, and how they’re experiencing each game. The result is a better, more engaging experience for fans, and a better way for teams and partners to learn how to best serve their loyal audience.

Stanley Cup Playoff storylines intrigue as the NHL enters its second week of the post season. Here are a few big picture scenarios for 2019. First, the Tampa Bay Lightning are in the conversation for best regular season team ever. The Lightning won 62 games, something only one other team has done -- the Detroit Red Wings in 1995-1996. However, of the 13 teams that have finished with the NHL's best record since the 2004-2005 lockout, only two -- the 2007-2008 Red Wings and the 2012-2013 Chicago Blackhawks — have gone on to lift the Stanley Cup. Second, the Stanley Cup hasn't been won by a Canadian team since Montreal took it home 26 years ago. However, three Canadian squads are in this year's mix — the Toronto Maple Leafs, Calgary Flames, and Winnipeg Jets — and Calgary has the second-best odds of capturing the title, per The Action Network. Finally, in his first full season as NHL owner, Tom Dundon helped the Carolina Hurricanes make the playoffs for the first time since 2009. In Raleigh, Dundon is a hero. Elsewhere, he's more of a villain, as he pulled the plug on the Alliance of American Football's inaugural season less than seven weeks after investing $250 million to rescue the league.

Congressmen threaten MLB antitrust exemption over RSN bid. U.S. Representatives Elijah Cummings and Raja Krishnamoorthi threatened MLB’s antitrust exemption over the league’s attempt to buy the 21 Fox-branded RSNs. In a letter sent to MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred, the two House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform members wrote that they are concerned about the potential for “anticompetitive conduct that harms American consumers” if MLB buys the RSNs. “MLB’s potential purchase of these RSNs raises significant questions about the antitrust exemption that professional baseball has enjoyed for nearly a century,” they wrote. “Although the Supreme Court has upheld baseball’s unique, judicially-created antitrust exemption for nearly a century on the basis of stare decisis, the Court has also described the exemption as an ‘aberration’ and recognized Congress’ ability to limit or even eliminate it.” The congressmen gave MLB only two weeks to produce documents relating to MLB’s potential acquisition and operation of the RSNs.

The Trump administration has nixed Major League Baseball's historic agreement with the Cuban Baseball Federation (CBF) that would have made it easier for Cuban players to enter the U.S. legally without needing to defect. According to Axios Sports, the goal of this deal was to help end the dangerous trafficking of Cuban players that has gone on for decades, resulting in players being threatened, extorted or even kidnapped. Take Yasiel Puig, now an outfielder with the Cincinnati Reds. After helping Puig escape Cuba, traffickers affiliated with a notorious Mexican drug cartel held him for ransom on a small island for weeks. The Cuban agreement is similar to the deals MLB has with China, Korean, and Japan, and dates back to the Obama administration’s détente with Cuba, which intended to soften relations between the two nations. However, the Trump White House last Monday argued that the CBF is a branch of the Cuban government and that the agreement, therefore, violates U.S. trade law since MLB would be paying a fee in exchange for each player. A geopolitical war is being waged — and young baseball players with dreams of a better life are the collateral damage.

The Boston Marathon passes $200 million in economic impact, and welcomes seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson to its field. This year's Boston Marathon, held Monday April 15 and carried on NBCSports Network, will be the 123rd running of the race that winds its way 26.2 miles from the town of Hopkinton to the finish line at Copley Square. It is the world's oldest annual marathon, starting in 1897 after the successful debut of the marathon at the first modern Olympics in 1896. The Boston Marathon is traditionally held on Patriots Day, the third Monday in April. The Boston Red Sox also have a traditional home game on Patriots Day with an 11:05 a.m. first pitch against the Orioles this year. Boston is among the six largest marathons, along with Tokyo, London, Berlin, Chicago and New York City. A special prize purse is given to runners who accumulate the most points in the majors. Here's a bit of trivia: Just five national sporting events were held during the two World Wars, and the Boston Marathon was one. The others? The Kentucky Derby, Penn Relays, Rose Parade, and Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show.

NASCAR has reportedly rejected an offer from Monster Energy to extend its title sponsorship of the US stock car racing series in order to push ahead with a new tiered partnership model. According to SportsBusiness Journal, the energy drink brand offered to extend its deal for an additional year to give NASCAR more time to finalize its sponsorship restructure. However, NASCAR has apparently turned down that option to keep moving forward with the new model, with Monster now in talks about becoming a lower-level partner. NASCAR’s switch to a tiered sponsorship model has been rumored for some time, and the series is reportedly asking for close to $20 million per year for top-tier deals. SportsBusiness Journal added that Monster would likely land a second-tier sponsorship deal, although it is not yet clear how much NASCAR wants for those slots. Monster was first named NASCAR title sponsor in 2017 as part of a two-year deal estimated to be worth an annual $20 million. The company then extended the partnership for a further season last April. The new arrangement would see NASCAR’s premier series be known as the NASCAR Cup Series, rather than the title-sponsored Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.

Your Call Football looks to change the future of the game through tech. According to ESPN, YCF is part football, part gaming, part fantasy and allows fans to decide how an actual in-progress game is played, as if Madden came to life. Every Monday night for four weeks in the spring, fans get a notification at 8 p.m. to open the YCF app. They are given a coach-selected "bundle" of three plays to choose from and each fan has 10 seconds to decide what the team's offense should do next on their app. The game is free to play, there are cash prizes, and fans are awarded points when they select what the coach wanted and when their play selection is successful. On the other hand, fans who don't pick with the majority are awarded points when the majority-chosen play results in a negative play, like a sack or an incompletion. At the end of the 10 seconds, the play is radioed into the huddle with the whole sequence taking just 19 seconds, no longer than a normal football game. For a generation of hyper-connectivity, YCF wants to bring the digital world into live sports and give millennials who have stopped paying attention a reason to actually care.

AT&T becomes the first non-apparel company with logo on WNBA jerseys. AT&T will become the first non-apparel partner to have its logo featured on all WNBA jerseys as part of a new deal, with the tech company and the league also planning to collaborate on programs that support women in sports. According to Hashtag Sports, the jerseys debuted during last week’s WNBA Draft held at Nike’s new NYHQ. “Whether it’s women in sports, supporting small businesses like those owned by WNBA players, being a leading voice in LGBTQ rights, or giving back to communities in which we operate, we have much in common and many opportunities to empower these incredible athletes and their fans,” said Fiona Carter, AT&T’s chief brand officer. Sports sponsorship deals can be important gateways to philanthropy. With this latest move, AT&T is demonstrating that giving back is as important to the telecom company as selling mobile phones and service plans.

April is National Autism Awareness Month, and the MLF Bass Pro Tour roster is participating in the way they know best: by catching fish. Most of the field of 80 anglers competing in the next two Bass Pro Tour events are pledging “dollars per pound” donations to their favorite autism awareness organization, and they’re asking their fans to consider doing the same. “Autism affects so many families, we’re just doing our best to encourage people to do whatever they can for their local autism awareness organization,” said Kevin VanDam, who is pledging a robust $5 for every pound of fish he records on SCORETRACKER. MLF anglers participating in April’s awareness and fundraising effort will combine their weights and contributions from the Stage Four event on Lake Chickamauga in Tennessee, and the Stage Five event on Smith Lake in Alabama. With big weights of Florida-strain largemouth expected on Chickamauga and even heavier overall weights of spotted bass on Smith Lake, those dollars-per-pound pledge could add up quickly. The angler with the most weight at these two tournaments will be recognized as the Autism Awareness Champion.

#10 #10towatch

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titleknown · 7 years

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“Unity. Light. Rebirth.”- The Unicorn Foundation’s motto.

Nobody really knows what the fuck the Unicorn Foundation actually does to get its money. Or who runs it. All they know that it provides charitable “services,” such as work training, machinery to build cheap; futuristic homes for the homeless, producing food that it gives to city food banks, and so-on.

They also know that the desparate people who take advantage of their services tend to disappear and show up as either another one of their prostheletyzers in the clean white suits, or as barely human monstrocities only identifiable by their dental records or by scratching their name into the pavement.

But, any accusations never tend to legally stick, with those who try eventually cutting it off with the same strange, rote phrases. Ditto to those who try to investigate the composition of the strange white resin and almost luminescent metal they build all their machinery out of. Either that, or they disappear.

While the higher-ups seem personable and weirdly friendly face-to-face, those who’ve left tend to describe a strange series of almost cultlike, relating to a phenomenon described as The Great Arrival. A few describe ceremonies where they watch the “blossoming” and “unity” of those they serve into strange things, things of luminescent metal and white resin; holy abominations.

Those people who testify also tend to disappear. The monsters, however, have been found, testifying to the truth of the matter, the lucky ones still retaining their human personalities albeit with strange aberrant brain-patterns referred to as “urges”. The unlucky ones work in concert on some strange; enigmatic goal. Which goes much deeper than many think; even the Biopunks; who have been most active in opposing them (For the most part).

At the core of the Foundation’s main headquarters, only accessible to the top level managers, is a white sphere with a piercing horn, a computer system made of that same metal and resin they all use; far beyond that any human has made. It has coordinates broadcasting to what appears to be a celestial body, that only a few astronomers have seen a hint of.

Something of white matter and shining light, Something that wants as its only goal to bring light to worlds. To unify the masses. To rebirth the universe in its image. And it’s coming for us.

There is one thing that could stop it, but that’s for another day...

As per usual for TITLEWave factions, this faction/idea is free to use as long as I, Thomas F. Johnson, am credited as its creator.

And yes I am aware that I used the corniest possible name for my not-Unicron. I am not sorry.

#unicron #planet eater #cosmic horror #cyberpunk #space monster #space monsters #my writing #my art #titlewave #good

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dr-archeville · 7 years

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Tabletop RPGs & Me

Tabletop RPGs I Have Played Multiple Times & Would Like To Play Again

Champions 5E

Champions 6E

D20 Modern / Dark*Matter

Dungeons & Dragons 3E (Greyhawk/Oerth and Forgotten Realms/Toril only)

Dungeons & Dragons 3.5 (ditto)

Marvel Super Heroes

Mutants & Masterminds 2E

Pathfinder

Vampire: The Masquerade

Tabletop RPGs I Have Played Multiple Times But Would Not Mind If I Never Played Them Again

Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd Ed

Dungeons & Dragons Game (1991 Boxed Set)

Mutants & Masterminds 1E

Tabletop RPGs I Have Played Once And Would Like To Play Again

7th Sea

Alternity / Dark*Matter

Big Eyes Small Mouth

Eclipse Phase

GURPS 3rd Ed

Rifts

Shadowrun 2E

Tabletop RPGs I Have Played Once But Would Not Not Mind If I Never Played Again

---

Tabletop RPGs I Have Read Through & Made Characters For But Never Actually Played, And Still Want To Play

DC Heroes

GURPS 4th Ed

Heroes Unlimited

Mage: The Ascension

Marvel Super Heroes Adventure Game

Scion

Shadowrun 3E

Shadowrun 4E

Silver Age Sentinels

Tabletop RPGs I Have Read Through, Never Made A Character For Nor Played, But Want To At Least Once

Aberrant

Aeon Trinity

All Flesh Must Be Eaten

Alternity /Star*Drive

D20 Modern / Urban Arcana

DC Adventures

DC Universe RPG

Deadlands

Deadlands: Hell on Earth

DragonStar

A D&D (Any Ed.) Game set in Birthright, Dragonlance/Krynn, Eberron, Planescape, Ravenloft, or Spelljammer

GURPS (Any Ed.) Alternate Earth/Infinite Worlds, Technomancer, or Transhuman Space

Nightbane

Pokethulhu

Splicers

Teenage Mutants Ninja Turtles & Other Strangeness

Anything from the New World of Darkness, but especially Promethean: The Created

Tabletop RPGs I Have Read Through, Never Made A Character For Nor Played, And Would Not Mind If I Never Got The Chance To

Advanced Dungeons & Dragons (1E) (the first RPG I was ever exposed to)

Dungeons & Dragons 4E

Tabletop RPGs I Have Skimmed Through (At Best), And Am Interested In Learning More/Playing At Least Once

Battletech / MechWarrior

Blue Rose

Call of Cthulhu

Castle Falkenstein

Continuum

CthulhuTech

CthulhuTech v2 (which improves on CthulhuTech v1′s mishandling of certain sensitive subjects, its clunky dice system, and its bizarrely strict canon while retaining the wonderful artwork, fun and detailed combat, and intriguing character designs)

Cyberpunk 2020

Dungeons: The Dragoning

Dungeons & Dragons (5E)

Eon

Exalted

Fading Suns

Feng Shui

Gamma World

Icons: Superpowered Roleplaying

In Nomine

Iron Kingdoms

Ironclaw

KULT

Nobilis

Numenera

Over The Edge

RuneQuest

Savage Worlds

Space 1889

Spirit of the Century

Talislanta

Teenagers from Outer Space

Toon

TORG

Traveller

Unhallowed Metropolis

Unknown Armies

Villain & Vigilantes

The Whispering Vault

Wild Talents

and more I’m probably forgetting

Games I Have GM’d At Least Once

Dungeons & Dragons 3.5

Marvel Super Heroes

Mutants & Masterminds 2E

#about me #personal #RPGs #roleplaying games

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gerryconway · 7 years

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Why I believe Donald Trump is like Jimmy Carter.

As those of you who, for reasons unknown, follow my self-appointed punditing may have noticed, I like to find historical patterns reflected in current political events.

To mangle a familiar phrase, I believe whether you study history or not, you’re often doomed to repeat it.

Like Steve Bannon, I too read the book “The Fourth Turning” twenty years ago, but unlike Bannon, I’ve read other books, mostly centered on U.S. history, including biographies, general historical surveys, critical studies– some popular histories, some academic. I’m particularly interested in American political history and its cyclical nature and apparent contradictions. To me, the political crisis in the decade before the Civil War is more intriguing and informative than the tragedies and heroics of the war itself. Ditto with the era of nascent American Empire in the late 19th and early 20th Century, and the struggle to adapt to modernity that followed World War One.

Similarly, I’m as fascinated, if not more so, by historical failures as by history’s heroes. I love reading about James Garfield and the lost promise of his Presidency, and how Chester Arthur, his successor and a political hack with no previous signs of virtue, rose to the occasion and helped pass the Civil Service Act, which forever changed the nature of political parties in America. I have a fondness for the good-hearted but hapless Warren G. Harding, a man who meant well but was genuinely clueless, and whose wife, Florence, was the real brains and force behind his political career. I admire Lincoln, both Roosevelts, Eisenhower, Johnson, and even Clinton, but I find people like Nixon, Polk, Grover Cleveland, Reagan and McKinley equally compelling.

In my view, history– political history, anyway– moves in cycles, as many scholars and pundits have observed. “The Fourth Turning” makes a case that those cycles are generational, with the generation currently ascendent creating the conditions that will influence the three generations that follow in a predictable eighty year-or-so cycle. This is undoubtedly an oversimplification but it’s a useful construct to discuss something that’s readily observed by anyone surveying America’s political history. And, compellingly, it satisfies the first requirement of any “scientific” theory– it predicts certain results. In the twenty-odd years since its publication, “The Fourth Turning” has had remarkable predictive success.

(Don’t take my word for it.) https://smile.amazon.com/Fourth-Turning-History-Americas-Rendezvous-ebook/dp/B001RKFU4I/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1489945595&sr=8-1&keywords=fourth+turning

Anyway, the predictive success of the cyclical theory of political history aside, we find ourselves in a bizarre moment in American history, one that appears on the surface to have no precedent. Before Trump’s astonishing electoral victory last November, I felt certain we were in the midst of an historical realignment from a Republican/conservative political era to a Democratic/progressive one. Trump’s triumph called that realignment and my belief in historical cycles into question. For several months, until his inauguration, I tried to make sense of what appeared at first glance as a rejection of the cyclical movement toward progressive political dominion. Surely, I thought, the country was done with its embrace of failed conservative economic theories, theories which had produced the worst financial collapse since the Great Depression, higher levels of economic inequality than any era since WWII, and social policies rejected by the clear majority of Americans. How could the country have taken such a weird step– not just backward but, thematically, almost sideways into a strange alternate universe?

Then I realized– yep, almost inevitably, we as a country have been here before.

The realization came to me, in part, while I watched “20th Century Women,” a terrific film I can’t recommend highly enough. It’s set in 1979, an interesting year. Late in the film there’s a scene when a group of people watch Jimmy Carter’s infamous “Crisis of Confidence” speech. At the time, Carter was criticized for his dark view of America at a moral crossroads. In hindsight, of course, the speech is prophetic and ironic, as Carter warns the country against making the moral choice it would end up making when it elected Ronald Reagan as President the following year. Reagan’s election, of course, is seen historically as finally completing the country’s turn against the socially progressive vision represented by the previous forty-plus years of Democratic dominance.

But there’s another way to read the 1970s, and, in particular, Carter’s single term as President– the only Democrat to be elected President between 1968 and 1992.

In 1969, political writer Kevin Philips wrote a book called “The Emerging Republican Majority.” His thesis was that the election of Richard Nixon in 1968 was a watershed event, the turning of the electoral cycle that would produce Republican majorities for decades to come. And Nixon’s massive win in 1972 against the ultimate progressive Democratic candidate, George McGovern, would seem to have borne that out.

But then Jimmy Carter threw a monkey wrench into that analysis.

Because of the unique circumstances of Nixon’s Presidency (the ongoing and divisive Vietnam War, social upheaval due to Civil Rights activism, Feminism, and the youth movement, economic uncertainty, and, of course, the crimes of Watergate and its cover-up) Nixon’s Presidency was a time of polorization and strife. Clearly the old political order was breaking down, and in 1976, when Nixon’s heir – the pleasant but hopelessly establishment Republican Gerald Ford – ran against Jimmy Carter, the outsider who promised a populist Presidency unencumbered by the baggage of a clear political agenda, Ford lost. More clearly, perhaps, the political establishment of both parties lost– because while Ford was the establishment choice for the Republican Party, Jimmy Carter was anything but the establishment choice of the Democratic Party.

In 1976, in other words, the traditional political establishment of both parties lost power.

There were hints this was coming. The Democratic establishment began to collapse politically in the mid-Sixties, reached a crisis in 1968, and imploded completely in 1972. Similarly, the Republican establishment began showing signs of fragility in 1964, pulled together in 1968 and 1972, and began to collapse in 1976 with Ronald Reagan’s challenge to Ford’s nomination (a challenge from ideology very similar, I’d point out, to Bernie Sanders’ challenge to Hillary Clinton last year). When Ford faced Carter in the general election he was the representative of a party divided between its establishment and ideological base. With a weakened party behind him still struggling to settle on its future political identity, Ford was defeated by someone who in fact represented no party or clear political philosophy.

Carter, in 1976, though a very different moral human being than the man I’m about to compare him to, served an identical role to Donald Trump in 2016.

Like Carter, Trump faced an opposing party that, while rising electorally (current situation notwithstanding), is still struggling to define itself in a conflict between establishment and ideological principles. Like Carter, Trump is an outsider who hijacked a party whose political power is collapsing though its apparent electoral effectiveness is still strong. (In 1976 the Democrats were still the overwhelmingly dominant political party.) Like Carter, Trump represented no clear political philosophy, is at war with the establishment and the conservative ideologues of his own party, and has a purely populist, anti-establishment appeal.

And like Carter, I believe, Trump represents a temporary diversion on an inevitable political realignment that, like the Republican realignment which preceded and followed Carter, will have lasting consequences for government over the next thirty to forty years.

If history is cyclical, if patterns repeat, then I predict Trump will be a one term President whose failures (and the failures of his party) will be seen as an aberration, a momentary slip in an otherwise clear movement of a newly progressive-dominant Democratic Party. Just as Reagan conservatives moved from opposition to establishment between 1976 and 1980 (and beyond), Sanders/Warren-style progressives will move from opposition to establishment within the resurgent Democratic Party in 2020 (and beyond).

Just as the Democratic Party of 1976 seemed to be on a roll, only to collapse within the next decade and a half, the Republican Party of 2016 is mid-way through its own collapse. By 2030 the Republican Party we know today will be as irrelevant as the Democratic Party of 1994.

That’s my reading of history and its cyclical nature, in any case.

One thing’s for sure, though: whatever happens, Trump’s post-Presidential legacy probably won’t resemble Jimmy Carter’s. When Trump goes down, I have a feeling he’ll stay down. No second act for this one-term President.

Assuming he lasts a full term.

#Carter #Trump #Presidency #Republican #Democrat #History

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friendshipcampaign · 5 years

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Session Recap 9/9/18: Dreamscaperer-ers

Gammer Neetstooth asked the trio how Auntie Eyren was doing, and Kriv informed her that the other hag was likely thriving, given all her new charges. He then explained their beholder problem to her, and she admitted to not liking beholders too much herself, seeing as they also tended to roam the dreamscape and leave a bit of a mess.

Neetstooth pulled out a pitch-black jar that seemed to intensify the gloom around everyone as she produced it. She told Kriv, Voski, and Erwyn that it was called a “night jar” and served as a container for ephemeral things that only hangs could create. Telling them that it would be able to contain the beholder, she said she’d let them borrow it. It would help them remove the threat, assuming they could get the jar -- and a contained Xakhesit -- to an individual called Sonorous at the next Goblin’s Crossing market. In order to capture the beholder, they would have to enter Ditto’s dreamscape and touch Xakhesit with the jar, which would trap her inside for transportation.

She gave the trio a little box made of bone and told that they would need to place something belonging to Ditto inside in order to reach her dreamscape. Voski asked about a way to get Erwyn to actually fall asleep again -- although when she suggested they go back and talk to Bakewell, Erwyn replied that just hitting him over the head to knock him unconscious would probably be less painful -- and the hag offered to teach them how to make sleeping draughts. Kriv took her up on it.

Back at the inn, Amaranth, who was watching Ditto while she slept, saw three tiny, singing gazers manifest as she dreamed. They headed towards the window, but couldn’t get it open. When Amaranth tried to grab one, it bit her. She tried tossing a blanket over the creatures and they attacked it. When one of them sent her flying into the wall as it glowered at her, Amaranth decided to try hitting Ditto with her tail to wake her up.

Ditto had been dreaming about Xakhesit again. The beholder asked Ditto if she was a fan of hers, and Ditto continued to assert that she thought Xakhesit was very impressive. The beholder told her that she was going to need a little bit of a boost to come back to power -- and that she expected Ditto to provide it. She then exerted some sort of influence over Ditto.

When Ditto was awoken, she took in the scene in the room and said, “What’s happening, are we fighting?” Amaranth yelled at her about the little gazers just as one of them succeeded in cracking the window and zoomed into the night. Amaranth finally managed to grab one of the remaining ones, and Ditto got a hold of the other. They stuck both of them in one of their bags, causing the tone of the gazers’ nonsensical singing to grow slightly angry -- until it gave way to munching noises when they discovered the rations within.

Voski, who had asked to be dismissed from the dreamscape somewhat earlier while the boys learned about sleeping draughts, walked into the room at this point, as Amaranth was saying, “Maybe we can get them back in your brain somehow?”

“You have to be joking,” she said. “They’re here already?”

Ditto looked directly at Voski and mouthed, “Help,” as the bard took in the scene. Thinking quickly, Voski started going on about how if the gazers got loose too early, they would spoil the upcoming premiere. She asked if Xakhesit could recall them somehow, but Ditto seemed hesitant, arguing that she wanted to look for the one who got out. As she went on, it became clear that Ditto really wanted to get outside the inn, saying in a very panicky fashion that it might be best if she went out to go look at some other theatrical venues.

She moved to walk out of the room but Voski shut the door, suggesting she have some tea and get back to sleep. Ditto kept talking in an incredibly manic fashion, bent down to look under the door, and Misty Stepped out into the hallway. When Voski opened the door again and looked into the hall, Ditto was running in the direction of the exit. Amaranth dashed out, calling after Ditto and hoping to catch her, but failed. Tiktik headed after Ditto.

On her way to the theater district, Ditto hurried past a dwarven woman and asked if she wanted to come along with her. When the woman said no, Ditto tried to cast Charm Person, but the spell fizzled. She immediately continued on her way. Next, she came across a human gardener and tried the same thing on them, this time successfully charming them and convincing them that she could show them something really cool. She asked the gardener about outdoor theatrical venues that were open late, and they suggested the moot in-between some of the old taverns, where people performed all through the night. Ditto headed that way with her new friend in tow.

Back at the inn, Voski stuffed the bag of gazers (who were still singing) under a pile of pillows and told Amaranth to wake Kriv and Erwyn. As Amaranth shook the boys awake, the night jar manifested in Erwyn’s hands. She filled them in on the situation as best as she could, and Kriv immediately said they had to knock Ditto out. He opened the demiplane and took the night jar from Erwyn to stash it there for the time being. In the other room, Voski tried to see if she could pick up anything in the gazers’ singing using Comprehend Languages. The spell allowed her to hear some kind of underlying aberrant power in the melody, a rumbling that appeared to be the words: “Come forth.”

The rest of the party set off running. Amaranth, having been to the theater district earlier in the day, seemed to recall a venue that might be open this late. Ditto, in the meantime, had managed to pick up a few more people following her, and eventually reached the outdoor stage where a dwarf playing a strange, giant instrument was currently performing. She tried casting Sleep on them, but the spell failed -- so instead she floated up to the stage with the use of her flying shoes, applauding and saying, “Great job! But I got an act that’ll knock your socks off.”

Now up on the stage, Ditto started making little Minor Illusions in the air. A burly security halfling moved to drag her offstage, but stopped in surprise when she suddenly cast a massive image of Xakhesit above her using Major Image. She started to sing, first in her normal voice, but as the song continued, another, different voice in the background started to manifest. By the time the party showed up, a shimmer was starting to form on the illusion.

Voski approached a guard, immediately slipping into the persona of an embarrassed friend on a night out gone wrong. She claimed that Ditto was drunk and the group had promised her they wouldn’t let her do this again, and implored security to cast Sleep on her if they were able. At the same time, Amaranth started amping up the crowd and convinced them to try to crowd-surf her closer to the stage. She got a little nearer to it in the process, but didn’t make it all the way before getting dropped. The guard Voski had been talking to tried blowing a whistle and getting closer herself, but the ones up front seemed too entranced to do anything.

Noting there was no easy path to Ditto, Erwyn cast Misty Step and teleported himself up next to her, immediately trying to tackle her. She wriggled away and he faceplanted into the stage. From behind the crowd, Kriv tried to cast Command on Ditto to tell her to stop. Someone in the crowd overheard him, and when they asked Kriv who he was telling to stop, he grabbed them by their shirt and very firmly told them they needed to run. The bystander was intimidated into listening to him and took off.

Voski tried taking on the beautiful glamoured appearance she was able to use to draw people near to her when performing on occasion, but it didn’t seem to have any effect on Ditto. Amaranth got knocked down again as she tried to climb onstage, so she pulled a ball bearing out from her back and threw it hard enough to hit Ditto in the face. It also had no effect. Pulling himself up from where he had hit the floor, Erwyn readied himself to make another pass at Ditto, slamming into her as hard as he could and knocking them both to the stage this time. With the success, his face instantly took on an anxious, sheepish look as his single-minded determination slipped away and it suddenly seemed to register that he was up onstage in front of a lot of people.

As Ditto hit the stage, she finally came to her senses, and the image of Xakhesit faded away with a snarl. Amaranth started wildly applauding and claiming it was all a part of the act, but the crowd didn’t seem entirely convinced. Erwyn lead Ditto offstage and down towards the others as the dwarf who’d been playing before climbed back up to resume their set. When the two of them passed the gardener Ditto had charmed, she released him from the spell and apologized. He didn’t seem to mind in the slightest.

As they reached the others Ditto started to apologize more, but Voski said “Quiet” and magically compelled her to be silent for a bit. The bouncer Voski had been talking to came over and apologized for not being able to help more, and told Ditto to be more careful in future. The group headed back to the inn. On the way, Tiktik asked Ditto what had happened, as they were very confused about the whole situation. They didn’t believe her when she tried to suggest everything was probably fine.

When they got back to the inn, Voski pointedly critiqued the venue that Ditto had chosen, and said she had some experience that might mean she’d be able to help her look for a better one tomorrow. She sent Kriv to the kitchens to get Ditto some tea.

Kriv slipped off and took the opportunity to talk to the staff about an ingredient for the sleeping draughts that he still needed. Specifically, for Erwyn’s he needed a plant called elvish poppy, which was often used in decorative gardening but known to have a sleep-inducing effect on elves. It turned out the inn had some on hand. When he returned with the plants, he and Erwyn snuck off to their room where he brewed a draught, with Erwyn nervously interjecting with anxious instructions as he was worried about it turning out okay. They debated if they should still present the one intended for Ditto as tea, and decided that it seemed like maintaining surprise seemed like the right idea.

“It may not spare us the wrath of the beholder,” Erwyn said, “But it might spare us something from Voski.”

Once they got Ditto to take the sleeping draught and fall asleep (Voski played a Song of Rest to expedite this), the others clipped a piece of her hair and retreated back into the boys’ room. Kriv finished preparing sleeping draughts for everyone else, and the three who had been to the dreamscape explained the plan to Amaranth. They retrieved the night jar, giving it to Amaranth, who they deemed the most likely to successfully sneak close enough to use it, and placed the lock of Ditto’s hair in the little box they’d been given. Quickly, they all fell asleep on each other in order to head into Ditto’s dreamscape.

Ditto, in the meantime, was stuck talking to Xakhesit once more. The mind theater she inhabited had replaced its usual clear sky with a roiling, angry storm. The beholder seemed more than peeved at the failure earlier that evening. She did admit to appreciating Ditto’s cooperation, and that it would keep her from destroying her for the time being. Ditto nervously babbled about working to find another venue as Xakhesit dramatically moped. Then suddenly the beholder’s eyes all focused on a different part of the theater, where the rest of party had just manifested.

Voski immediately began assessing the theater inside Xakhesit’s mindscape, making comments on the venue and the beholder herself and politely clapping when she introduced herself after noticing the group. She asked some questions about the acoustics and ambiance the beholder required, saying she and the others would need to keep this in mind when they looked at venues in Wayspell tomorrow. As she talked, she manifested a little dream paper and pen to take notes. Having never been in a theater before, Kriv glanced around curiously while this went on, then raised his hand after a bit. When Xakhesit called on him, he asked if seeing her performance would ruin all other ones after it. She insisted it would, and he said he was excited anyway.

Xakhesit curiously asked the rest of the party how they’d ended up in the dreamspace, and Voski suggested that perhaps it was due to the beholder’s sphere of influence growing. She didn’t buy it, and her eyes focused in on Kriv, who was holding the little bone box with the lock of Ditto’s hair in it. He felt it start to rise out of his hands. Xakhesit asked the group if they cared to explain why they had decided to travel by magic. Asking if she could speak candidly, Voski stage-whispered that she was worried Ditto was not living up to Xakhesit’s expectations, and the group was hoping to provide some assistance.

The second admission also failed to convince Xakhesit, who suggested she didn’t think Voski’s intentions were as magnanimous as they seemed, particularly seeing as it had been the rest of group that had stopped Ditto earlier in the evening.

During all of this, Amaranth kept noting the moments where Xakhesit was distracted and began sneaking through the theater seats. As the beholder dismissed the second lie, she managed to slip into the backstage area, which turned out to be populated by weird monsters and some cats that were definitely products of Ditto’s mind and not the beholder’s.

Just as Amaranth started to climb up the catwalk, Xakhesit took count and noticed she was missing from the group. She asked them what they were up to and Voski continued to try to use flattery to placate her. The beholder grinned horribly, and as Voski tried to continue, Erwyn placed a hand on her shoulder. he said, “Voski, I know you like using words, but the jig is up,” before firing a Ray of Frost straight at Xakhesit.

The beholder retaliated immediately by shooting several eye rays at them both. Erwyn was first struck with a powerful wave of fear. The next attack slammed into him too, filling him with extreme pain and throwing him against the seat behind him. The third ray hit Voski and paralyzed her where she stood. Seeing this, Kriv dove into action. He aimed directly for the beholder’s main eye with his lightning breath, shouting, “FUCK OFF.”

In retaliation, Xakhesit fired another eye beam at a still-paralyzed Voski, this one powerful enough to destroy her dream form instantly. Ditto, exceedingly distressed by seeing this, started wildly looking around for Amaranth. She spotted her crouching on the edge of the catwalk, trying to get Ditto’s attention with small waving motions. The gnome floated upwards slightly, asking the others what they were doing.

Erwyn tried to hit Xakhesit with an arrow and missed, head still spinning from being hit by the beholder’s disintegration ray, but his second shot, using the lightning arrow that he’d purchased back at the Goblin Market, struck true. Xakhesit angrily fired another eye ray back at him that missed, turning the chair behind him to stone, and he was able to shake off the supernatural fear she’d inflicted on him.

Out of the dreamscape and back at the inn, Voski woke up and immediately dashed to the other room, where Ditto was still sleeping. She seemed to be twitchy and agitated in her sleep. Voski knelt down and whispered into her ear.

In the dreamscape, Xakhesit continued her assault on Erwyn and hit him with yet another eye beam, which caused him too to disintegrate on contact. Kriv struck back, jumping up and successfully dodging the eye rays that she fired at him to punch her in the face. Seeing her chance, Amaranth leapt from the catwalk above and hit Xakhesit with the night jar. She vanished instantly, and Amaranth slammed the lid on the jar and curled herself protectively around it as she continued to fall. Kriv rushed forward and caught her on the stage.

The three party members still in the dreamscape all started to laugh hysterically with relief and Kriv and Amaranth explained to Ditto that Xakhesit was trapped in the jar. As Ditto profusely thanked them, Kriv said, “Get over here, idiot,” and pulled Ditto into a group hug. Amazed, Ditto asked Amaranth if she realized what she’d done, saying, “You surprised a beholder!”

In the waking world, Voski noted that the humming from the gazers stuck in the bag had turned much less intentional-sounding, and Ditto’s face suddenly relaxed as she seemed to be laughing in her sleep. She wandered back into the boys’ room and, noting that a dazed-looking Erwyn was also awake now, asked how the beholder had been looking when she got him. He admitted he didn’t think they’d done much damage, but Voski noted that Kriv seemed to be smiling a little in his sleep.

Ditto shifted her dreamscape to look like a forest, and she, Kriv, and Amaranth just sat there for a while, waiting to wake up back on the Material Plane. They chatted with each other, finally able to talk to Ditto openly again about everything they’d done to fix the situation. Kriv and Ditto both also told Amaranth that she had looked really cool when she flung herself at the beholder. Eventually, the dream around them started to fade.

While they waited for the others to wake up, Voski tried Comprehend Languages on the gazers again and noted that their noises were now only meaningless babbling. Eventually, Amaranth shot upright and shouted, “We got her!” so excitedly that she almost forgot she was holding the jar. Kriv, now awake as well, opened up the demiplane so they could put it on a secure shelf for transportation. In the other room, Ditto woke up to Tiktik sitting on her chest and reassured her familiar that the beholder was gone.

When she joined the others, Ditto gleefully hugged Voski, who was leaning against the doorframe, causing the bard to tense up immediately. Letting go, Ditto thanked her and Erwyn as profusely as she had the others, and went to give the elf a tight hug as well. With everyone gathered together again, Erwyn, who was still sitting on the floor, made an announcement.

“I’ve decided,” he said, “that I hate sleeping.”

#session recap

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schraubd · 7 years

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“Can You Be a Zionist Feminist?” Who Knows!

"Can You Be A Zionist Feminist? Linda Sarsour Says No." blares the headline of The Nation. The Jewish press dutifully followed their lead, writing "Pro-Palestinian activist: Support for Israel and feminism are incompatible."

And so I thought "well apparently Sarsour's experiment with treating mainstream Jews respectfully has come to an end." But dig a little deeper and ... well, it's confusing. Because if you actually read The Nation interview, Sarsour never actually takes the position ascribed to her in the title. Now to be clear, she doesn't disavow it either. It's just ... not what she was asked, and not what she answered. Indeed, just compare the title and the subtitle:

Can You Be a Zionist Feminist? Linda Sarsour Says No

The prominent Palestinian-American feminist responds to claims that anti-Zionism has no place in the feminist movement.

You'll notice that these are two very different statements -- the first affirming that Zionists have no place in feminism, the second affirming that anti-Zionists do have a place in feminism. Now, they could be reconciled: One side says Zionists, but not anti-Zionists, can be feminists; the other side saying anti-Zionists, but not Zionists, can be feminists. But this of course obscures a median position, which is that both can be feminists -- or, more conditionally, both can be feminists if they meet certain qualifications regarding respect for all women (including those women whose rights and security are often thought to be undervalued by the movement in question).

So what position does Sarsour take? Is she saying that yes, anti-Zionists have a place in the feminist movement? Is she saying that no, Zionists have no such place? Is she restricting her critique to "right-wing Zionists" (Sarsour actually never speaks of "Zionists" simpliciter, only "right-wing Zionists")? Or is she saying something different entirely, namely that Israel is a country, which does things criticizable, and therefore a feminist movement has to be open to criticism of Israel?

It's entirely unclear, and that unclearness is I think primarily attributable to The Nation. I honestly don't know if The Nation understands there is a difference between saying Zionists are categorically barred, saying that anti-Zionists should not be excluded, and saying that a feminist movement will sometimes entail criticism of Israel. These clearly distinct concepts are so consistently run together that I really have no idea if The Nation grasps that they're not the same thing. And so while it's entirely plausible that Sarsour does hold to the hardline position ascribed to her in the title, The Nation ends up obscuring more than it illuminates because when it comes to matters like Zionism, anti-Zionism, and Jewish inclusion, it's really, really not good at its job.

None of this is to say that there aren't elements of what Sarsour does (clearly) say which can be critiqued. Take her statement that "anyone who wants to call themselves an activist cannot be selective. There is no country in this world that is immune to violating human rights." Perfectly defensible in the abstract, but it elides the reality that there is in fact there is in these movements in fact quite a bit of "selectiveness." The Women's Strike Platform's characterization of the "decolonization of Palestine" as "the beating heart of the movement" is the only international controversy to gain any mention anywhere in the document (the reference to Mexico is, in context, clearly about American actions, not Mexican ones). It's like Curtis Marez's famously blithe defense of singling out Israel for boycotts -- "one has to start somewhere." It's a far less effective retort when one seems to end there too.

Still, it is quite right in principle that a feminist must be an advocate for all women, and a critic of all policies (national or otherwise) which act to exclude women. And I'll go further: Zionism is a diverse movement with many streams, including ones which are liberal in the criticism of malign Israeli policies and insistent on securing Palestinian equality (this is one of the reasons why a flat exclusion of "Zionists" from the feminist pantheon is unjustifiable). Yet it is undeniable that, in its primary political manifestation (that is, as state policy), Zionism has frequently resulted in severe injustices to Palestinians (men and women alike), of which the continued denial of Palestinian self-determination is only the most severe. It is not fair to impute that to all Zionists. It is fair to ask that persons who call themselves Zionists grapple with this history and practice in a way that demonstrates serious commitment to rectifying it.

Yet critically, the same goes for anti-Zionists. They, too, cannot be "selective"; they, too, must be open to critiques about countries and movements and practices that have served to oppress. And in doing so, they too must stand for all women, including Jewish women, including Jewish Israeli women. Anti-Zionism, too, has its gendered oppressions; its moments and practices where it leverages the vulnerability of Jewish or Israeli women or explodes into grotesque violence. We remember, after all, the feminist lawyer in Egypt who reportedly endorsed rape as a tool of anti-Zionist resistance; extolling to the Israeli women across the border "leave the land so we won't rape you." And today offered a particularly vicious illustration of the intersection, as Ahmed Daqamseh -- a former Jordanian soldier who massacred seven Israeli eighth-grade girls visiting his country on a field trip -- was released from prison. Upon his release, he told reporters that "The Israelis are the human waste of people, that the rest of the world has vomited up at our feet. We must eliminate them by fire or by burial." When deciding whether someone who helped blow up two more Jews in a supermarket should take on a leading role in this new feminist movement, this practice should matter.

The easy move here is to dismiss the above cases as aberrations or, supposedly more damningly, as disconnected from power. But here, too, we must note that, while anti-Zionism is a diverse and variegated movement in how it manifests in academia or social circles, in its primary political manifestation as state policy it has frequently resulted in severe injustices to Jews (men and women alike). Anti-Zionism as a political form claims as its most decisive political action not the liberation of Palestinians but the mass oppression and expulsions of Jews from Middle Eastern countries, undertaken explicitly under an anti-Zionist banner. If it seems like anti-Zionism-as-politics does not currently manifest in this form of direct, unmediated danger to Jewish lives, that's primarily because there are virtually no Jews left in the locations where anti-Zionism manifests as politically dominant. Again, this does not mean that all anti-Zionists endorse these acts. It does mean that persons who call themselves anti-Zionists must grapple with this history and practice in a way that demonstrates serious commitment to rectifying it. Because feminism really cannot be selective, it cannot be concerned with the fates of only the right sorts of women.

We all have our blind spots and things we need to work on. It is perhaps relevant, then, to mention the occasion where I first encountered Linda Sarsour. It was after she spoke at the First Annual Jews of Color conference, telling Mizrahi (Middle Eastern) Jews that "We will welcome you and embrace you in your full complexity. We’re waiting for you at the Arab American Association." JIMENA (Jews Indigenous to the Middle East and North Africa) promptly asked her if she would be willing to partner with them, a predominantly Zionist organization.

@lsarsour Does your “embrace” of Mizrahi Jews in “our full complexity” include Zionists? Interested in partnering? https://t.co/eT0U1dPEck — JIMENA (@JIMENA_Voice) May 5, 2016

Sarsour proceeded to ignore them entirely. Some complexity. We weren't off to a good start.

Yet despite all of this and as cutting as I might seem here, it is important to emphasize also that there is a fair amount of rhetoric ginned up around Linda Sarsour that is -- without mincing words -- complete bullshit. The most grotesque is that which invokes her support of "Sharia law", using language that echoes in form and tone efforts to demonize observant Jews by reference to the most extreme iterations of Halacha (I can look favorably upon Jewish law and still find the Agunah doctrine execrable; likewise Sarsour can speak positively of Sharia while not endorsing crediting women half that of men. Only antisemites and Islamophobes think otherwise, or think it is fair to ascribe monolithic -- and reactionary -- uniformity to a pluralistic and contested legal tradition).

Likewise those who accuse her of opportunism when she helped raise funds to restore desecrated gravestones at a Jewish cemetery in St. Louis. The raw fact is that she came through -- in deed, not just word -- when those Jews needed her, and I can be critical of problematic elements of her political profile without needing to look a gift horse in the mouth. Ditto her behavior as Women's March co-organizer, where in contrast to her flamethrower reputation she did not act in a way that would have functionally excluded the vast majority of Jews from participating (indeed, it was these steps that made what I initially took to be her statement to The Nation something disappointing, as opposed to predictable).

In any event.

Palestinian women are women. Israeli women are women. Muslim women are women. Jewish women are women. And, since we ought to be intersectional about it, Middle Eastern (Mizrahi) Jewish women are women. A feminism which does not stand with, protect, uphold, promote, elevate, and engage with all of these women is a feminism that fails. Because Linda Sarsour is absolutely right: feminism cannot be selective.

#antisemitism #arabs #linda sarsour #Israel #Palestine #feminism #gender #zionism #anti zionism #jews

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bharatiyamedia-blog · 5 years

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Energy Dressing: How netas stroll the discuss with their wadrobe - Nation Information

http://tinyurl.com/y6g43xok Garments have lengthy been visible shorthand for netas to speak their politics. So, if Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s half-sleeved kurtas and well-groomed look give the impression of a person who is aware of his thoughts and likes order in all the pieces he does, his major political opponent, Congress president Rahul Gandhi, portrays a youthful picture in his kurta-pyjama and sneakers. Sister Priyanka evokes the picture of her grandmother, Indira Gandhi, along with her quick, wavy hair and brightly colored cotton handloom saris. Matching her sari for sari is textiles minister Smriti Irani. West Bengal Mamata Banerjee, then again, is an image of austerity in a white sari with colored borders, a costume code she caught to even on the current marriage ceremony within the Ambani family. BSP supremo Mayawati eschews the sari altogether, opting as a substitute for the informal salwar-kameez, in her favourite color, pink. Within the south, politicians hold it easy: white shirt with white veshti. ‘I AM EVERYONE’ Narendra Modi Prime Minister of India Campaigning for the BJP (Photograph: Vikram Sharma) Nobody is aware of the import of energy dressing higher than Prime Minister Narendra Modi. From efficiently co-opting the Nehru jacket and making it the Modi vest’, as South Korean president Moon Jaei-in referred to as it in a tweet, to launching the half-sleeved Modi kurta’, the prime minister has given the world of political vogue a lot to speak about. He carries the identical aesthetic to the marketing campaign path, choosing muted, pastel-shaded kurtas, and teaming them up with elaborate headgear or vibrant scarves, following within the custom of political leaders carrying the apparel of the locations they go to. If he wore the japi hat whereas campaigning in Odisha, in Pune, he traded it for an elaborate pagdi. He has additionally been recognized to sport Bvlgari spectacle frames, Movado watches and Mont Blanc pens. The final might have been changed with a lotus cutout. With no place for the Nehruvian pocket rose, the PM selected to hold it in his hand in Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh. Yoot Icon Rahul Gandhi President, Congress Campaigning for the INC (Photograph: ANI) The scion of the Nehru-Gandhi household retains his look youthful and his apparel informal. He’s aware of the occasion’s and his household’s legacy of khadi and might, subsequently, be seen most frequently in a white kurta pyjama in his political appearances, however then he’ll pair it with no-nonsense sneakers. The rolled-up sleeves present he means enterprise. At Chennai’s Stella Maris Faculty in March, Rahul was seen carrying a gray polo T-shirt, denims and sneakers, a glance that might simply resonate with the younger millennial viewers that he was addressing. Gone is also the scruffy, unshaved look he was sporting some time again. It’s as if the 48-year-old chief of the Congress has realised the significance of a well-groomed look to tackle rivals. Daughter of the EastPriyanka Gandhi Basic Secretary In-charge, East UP Campaigning for the Congress (Photograph: SANJAY KANOJ IA/ Getty Photos) A couple of days earlier than she was assassinated, Indira Gandhi, whereas strolling on the lawns of the Nehru visitor home in Srinagar, reportedly advised a detailed aide that she noticed herself in Priyanka. It’s a likeness her grand-daughter makes use of to good impact on the marketing campaign path. Priyanka, says Nandita Abraham, CEO, Pearl Academy of Vogue, Delhi, understands the psychology of clothes. Be it a crisp white shirt with black trousers that resonate with Delhi’s cosmopolitan crowd, or a handloom saree when she’s with the individuals she is serving, the look is fastidiously crafted. The handloom sarees are reminders each of her Indianness and of her likeness to her grandmother. It’s commonplace then to seek out the 47-year-old Priyanka draped in colour-blocked cotton sarees with distinction borders, whether or not accompanying mum Sonia in Rae Bareli, brother Rahul in Amethi or whereas campaigning in Ghaziabad. In Varanasi, she accessorised a striped cotton handloom with rudraksh beads. Energy of Pink: Mayawati, President, Bahujan Samaj Social gathering, former Chief Minister, Uttar Pradesh Campaigning for the BSP (Photograph: Virendra Singh Gosain / Getty Photos) Mayawati’s purse is an inalienable a part of her persona, refusing to depart her facet even in her statues. It’s greater than a mere accent, it’s a assertion of energy, assertion, an appropriation of a privilege that was as soon as the protect of the elite. Ditto for the memsaab’ bob minimize and the diamond earrings. The conspicuous markers of privilege and luxury are arguably thought to be emblems of collective delight by her Dalit following. The Mayawati purse has gone lacking this election marketing campaign. What hasn’t is the 63-year-old BSP supremo’s love of pink or of masculine watches. Seen right here at an election rally in Larger Noida, Uttar Pradesh, on April 8, in a salmon-coloured salwar-kameez. JUST A COMMON MAN: Arvind Kejriwal Chief Minister, Delhi; Convenor, Aam Aadmi Social gathering Campaigning for AAP (Photograph: Debajyoti Chakra borty/Getty Photos) Just like the aam aadmi he represents, Arvind Kejriwal clothes principally in polyester shirts and trousers. In response to Delhi-based superstar clothier Rajesh Pratap Singh, it’s a non-threatening look. Examine it to the white kurta pyjama which, just like the white Ambassador, has develop into an emblem of corruption greater than honesty. AAP has famously resurrected the upturned boat-shaped Gandhi topi and made it a marker of its identification with the AAP identify and ballot image, a brush, printed on it. Each cap and the boys it matches greatest made an look at a ballot rally in Delhi Cantonment on April 1. White Knight: Stalin, President, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam Campaigning for the DMK (Photograph: Jaisong) Simplicity is the hallmark of the south Indian politician. A white shirt with a white veshti is nice for many events. Even kasavu, or gold, is forsaken, lest it present the politician as an elitist. When the 66-year-old DMK chief strayed from the sartorial scriptwearing shirts in pastel coloursit was frowned upon. Again it was to white shirt and veshti, as throughout this visit Thiruvarur in March. Ma, Mati, Mamata: Mamata Banerjee Chief Minister, West Bengal; President, Trinamool Campaigning for the TMC (Photograph: Debajyoti Chakra borty/Getty Photos) Didi shuns ostentation as if it had been a illness. The white cotton saree with a blue border she’s carrying on this April 10 rally is sort of Mom Teresa-esque in its impression of selflessness and austerity. The colors of the border change, however not the stark whiteness of Mamata’s saree, or the rubber chappals. There’s a uncommon concession she has made on this image, although. She is carrying the occasion coloursyellow and inexperienced in a gamcha. All else stays the identical. Saffron Weft: Smriti Irani Union Minister for Textiles Campaigning for the BJP (Photograph: Jaisong) The BJP chief has been constant in her espousal of the reason for the sari, launching, because the Union minister for textiles, a social media marketing campaign hashtagged #Iwearhandloom in 2016. Seen right here in a inexperienced and purple weave whereas campaigning for NDA candidates in Chennai on April 14. King of Amaravati: Chandrababu Naidu Chief Minister, Andhra Pradesh; President, Telugu Desam Social gathering Campaigning for the TDP (Photograph: Kasif/ Mail At present) Seen principally in trousers and shirt combos in white, yellow or cream, Naidu broke with custom this February when he and his cupboard colleagues wore black shirts to the legislature in protest in opposition to the Centre’s refusal to grant Andhra particular class standing. The aberration aside, Naidu was again in purposeful apparel whereas campaigning for the JD(S) in Mandya, Karnataka, on April 15. My Title Is Crimson: Akhilesh Yadav President, Samajwadi Social gathering; Former Chief Minister, UP Campaigning for the SP (Photograph: Vikram Sharma) The 45-year-old SP chief is fairly conservative in his selection of marketing campaign garments, opting principally for brief kurtas and pyjamas in white, coupled with a sleeveless black jacket. Nonetheless, whilst he fights the election in alliance with a former enemy, the BSP, he has chosen to retain the previous socialist image of the pink khadi Lohia topi. He did give it a classy, sporty, youthful twist in 2012, signalling a shift from the occasion’s Luddite picture, however has since gone again to the unique, as is clear on this look on the gathbandhan rally in Deoband, Uttar Pradesh, on April 7. Source link

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