Change I Can Believe In?

Now, I have been, and continue to be, supportive of President-elect Obama, but the latest bit of news that I have come across has created some doubt for me.

According to Daily Tech, the Obama transition team is looking to scrap the next-generation manned spaceflight booster program. The Ares was being designed to replace the Space Shuttle and has been in development since 2005 (though initial concepts were thrown around as far back as 1995).


Note: Ares IV development has been discontinued.

Now I realize that the economic crisis and need to cut the federal budget means that money is at a premium, but I must iterate the importance of the space program. Mr. Obama, among others, has talked about investing in the future of America and it's hard to find a better symbol for that future than the manned spaceflight program. I cite the 1960s NASA programs that inspired a generation of young Americans to become scientists, engineers and advocates.

Critics legitimately point-out that the costs of the Ares program are ballooning and that using old heavy-lift rockets such as the Delta or Atlas series would be cheaper. Cost estimates of the Ares program have usually hovered around $3 billion, which is a lot, but nowhere close to other major government aerospace programs of the 21st century. In 2000, four years before the first delivery, a Congressional committee report indicated that the cost of developing the F-22 fighter aircraft would be $14 billion (up nearly a billion from six months earlier). In 2005, the Washington Post reported on the $44.8 billion cost to development of the F-35 strike aircraft (cost was partially mitigated by contributions from other governments). 2006 Department of Defense budget: $527 billion (not counting expensive things like foreign wars); 2006 NASA budget: $15 billion.

The safety of the Delta and Atlas rockets is also a major concern. Right now, these boosters are used to get satellites and probes into space. The benefit of the Ares is the top-to-bottom focus on delivering people into space. Furthermore, Delta and Atlas boosters are not true heavy-lift rockets and would not be able to send astronauts to the moon. If we want to send astronauts to the Moon and beyond, which we should want for a plethora of reasons, we need to rediscover and reinvent the heavy-lift capability of the 1960s. In order to illustrate the heavy-lift question:

Delta IV Heavy: 23,000 kg to Low-Earth Orbit (LEO)
Atlas IIIB: 10,000 kg to LEO
Ares I (shuttle replacement): 25,000 kg to LEO
Space Shuttle: 24,000 kg to LEO
Ares V (heavy-lift): 188,000 kg to LEO/71,000 kg to TLI (Trans-Lunar Injection)
Saturn V: 118,000 kg to LEO/47,000 kg to TLI

As I blather about the manned spaceflight program, the other important things that NASA does, like planet-side research and development, should not be neglected either. As the Daily Tech article noted, during the campaign, Mr. Obama was inconsistent in his plans for NASA. Fortunately, Mr. Obama has nominated some very smart people for science and educational roles. Hopefully, they can keep the next administration from neglecting science, research, technology, and the future.

Twice in one week?!

That's what she said...

Anyway, of late I have rarely taken the time to post on my blog twice in one week, but I came across something on the interwebs that I had to mention.

For about six months now I have been visiting Tom's Games, the gaming and movie portion of the Tom's Hardware site. On Wednesday, they announced that they will stop doing video game and movie commentary. In its place, they will have a "cutting edge site designed to deliver the latest in online games." What a shame.

Now, I occasionally play online flash games like almost everyone, but this is a shameful step. Tom's Games offered interesting and insightful commentary, opinions and reviews. However, their greatest asset was the distinct lack of fanboy-ism that permeates that particular sector of the internet. They had an deep appreciation for the PC game platform, but did not let that cloud their judgement of console games. Lastly, the discussion forums are usually civil, another rare thing for this neighborhood of the internet.

Now Tom's Games is going concern itself with the lowest common denominator of the gaming world. These are cheap, simple, mindless games that are trumped by only the great World of Warcraft in amount of lost productivity.

The two editors-in-chief of Tom's Games, Rob Wright and Travis Meacham, wrote a letter to their readers which can be read here. If you are so inclined, take a look at their weekly video series, Second Take; it was one of my favorite internet video series.

A dark day for quality gaming journalism, indeed.

On a brighter note, the Red Wings completely annihilated the San Jose Sharks tonight! For those that haven't been following hockey as closely as I, San Jose has a very good team this year. A little over 30 games into the season, San Jose had lost only 3 games in regulation and were among the top 10 teams in nearly all the major statistical categories. They are on pace to break league records for number of wins and points in a single season. The Wings are hardly having a bad season, but the sheer brilliance of the San Jose squad makes the great Wings team look a bit tarnished. This was definitely a big statement game for the Wings.

That Time of Year

Anyone who appreciates sports (at least the way I do) recognizes the magical times of the year when certain schedules converge:

March-April: NCAA Basketball Tournament, MLB Season Openers
October: NCAA Football mid-season, NHL season begins, no NBA until end of the month
Late December-Early January: compelling NFL games, NCAA Football bowl games (hopefully future playoff games), more NHL games including the Winter Classic

Since I don't want to talk about football anymore, the NHL is the topic for the day.

Ice Hockey is the most under-rated sport in America. It's fast, physical, entertaining and the athletes are, for the most part, not overpaid children like those littering the other major sports. Unfortunately, the NHL is a sick business. League revenues have been declining for years, labor disputes have ended multiple season over the past 20 years and the only place to watch a hockey game on TV is the Versus channel or local sports channels if you live in the right place. Fortunately, the source of these problems is easy to point out.

Gary Bettman is the current commissioner of the NHL. He has presided over the decline of one of North America's great professional sports leagues. I won't even go into the heretical rule changes that he has allowed to pass (most meant to compensate for his biggest blunders). His first big blunder was failing to completely resolve the labor dispute during the 1995 lockout half-season. Nine years later, the NHL lost an entire season because management and the NHLPA could not agree upon a salary cap. The two parties were within $10 million of each other, but they decided to lose a season instead. The NHLPA ended up being the biggest losers in the deal since the post-lockout deal was the worst deal offered.

After the 2004-05 lockout season, the sport lost sponsors, TV coverage (yes, ESPN used to cover the NHL and even had a dedicated analysis show), and fans.

However, before the Lost Season, Mr. Bettman decided to expand the league into untested southern markets through awarding franchises and relocating franchises out of traditional hockey markets. Minnesota, Quebec City and Winnipeg all lost franchises. New franchises were given or moved to Dallas, Phoenix, Raleigh, Tampa Bay, Anaheim (stupid Disney), Ft. Lauderdale, Nashville, and Atlanta.

Currently, most of these southern teams are in financial trouble. 30 teams seems like a good number for a professional sports league, but, in the current state of affairs, all of these teams are hurting league revenues and diluting the talent on the ice. The best solution for this problem is a league contraction and franchise relocation. It just so happens that I have a plan.

Franchises to fold or move:

Tampa Bay Lightning
Florida Panthers
Nashville Predators
Carolina Hurricanes
Atlanta Thrashers
Phoenix Coyotes
Columbus Blue Jackets

New Franchises:

To be honest, I'm not sure where to put new franchises. They should be in Canada at the very least. For the sake of argument, we'll put a franchise in Winnipeg and another in Quebec City.



I'm not terribly pleased with the extra team in the Eastern Conference, but New Jersey could be on the cutting block. I also feel sad about leaving an Original Six team, Chicago, alone in the West, but it's their own fault for being on central time.

Still Alive

As the title of this post would have you believe, I am still alive. I had a bunch of family over for the holiday weekend and between the food and Rock Band (one of my guitars partially broke) I had little time to blog. For those who are concerned, I think one of my brothers-in-law was a bit over-zealous with his strumming and the down-strum detector died. However, this brought upon a fascinating new discovery! I was playing the bass part of a song with up-strumming only on Hard (yeah, I am a badass) and when the song was over, I received the "Authentic Strummer" tag under my completion percentage. One of my brothers-in-law, who is actually a guitarist in a band, informed me that the game wasn't lying, then I recalled watching jazz bassists and rock bass players plucking the strings when they played. Rock Band: Fun and Educational as long as you don't play alone or "sing" a Beastie Boys song.

I don't have anything in particular to talk about, so I'll just point out some great stuff on the internet that everyone should look at this week.

The first is for fans of Valve's Half-life games. The official trailer for Black Mesa was released over the weekend! Black Mesa is a top-to-bottom remake of the first Half-life game using the Source engine that powered Half-life 2, Portal and Left 4 Dead. What makes this all the more interesting is that Valve has nothing to do with this game (except for the inspiration and developer tools). You can visit the developers here and view the trailer below!



Once again, the BCS is at the center of a season tainting controversy. Oddly enough, I can't actually blame the BCS for the mess, but the mess definitely exposes the weaknesses of the BCS system. Anyone who follows college football on the internet (save Okla-homers, haha) has undoubtedly read a number of articles condemning the Big 12 tiebreaker methodology. Long story short, Texas, Oklahoma and Texas Tech were tied for first place in the Big 12 South with a spot in the Big 12 Championship game on the line. The Big 12 rulebook dictates that BCS ranking breaks the tie in the current circumstances. Going into Thursday, Texas was #2 and Oklahoma was #3. On Monday, Oklahoma was #2 and Texas was #3 with both teams winning big. This is where things get bad. Earlier this season, Texas beat Oklahoma, on a neutral site, 45-35.

The claim made by BCS defenders that the regular season serves as a playoff is truly foolish now. The winner of the Big 12 South is a virtual shoe-in for the BCS Championship game. Missouri, the Big 12 North champ, is a mediocre team with little chance of success against Texas, Oklahoma or Texas Tech. Texas beat Oklahoma head-to-head at a neutral site, end of story. If there is any justice in college football, then the regular season playoff victory of Texas over Oklahoma is all that should matter here. However the current state of college football is a greed-driven, farcical fraud perpetrated by the BCS and its delusional advocates in collusion with ruling bodies of the Big 12 and other BCS conferences. If you want to read more, I suggest checking this and this out.

Only one thing will make this more amusing, a Missouri victory on Saturday. Here's a list of potential opponents for the Alabama-Florida victor should this happen:

• Texas: failed to win it conference or division, but the most deserving*
  

• USC: lost to Oregon State and plays in the relatively weak Pac 10

• Utah: highly questionable strength of schedule

• Texas Tech: see Texas, maybe more deserving* than everyone except Oklahoma
  

• Penn State: lost to Iowa and plays in the relatively weak Big 10

• Boise State: see Utah

• Teams ranked 10-119: unprecedented, dream on

*Texas Tech beat Texas 39-33 at Texas Tech with that tragic dropped interception with 11 seconds to go.

Dear Santa,

I will sacrifice all of my Christmas gifts for the next five years if you will get FBS college football a playoff system this year. I really want an epic 16-team tournament, but I will settle for an 8-team playoff. If you give FBS college football a "plus one" system, a.k.a. bandaid over the chainsaw laceration, then you only get one year of sacrifice.

However, I know that bargaining with you is like bargaining with God, it doesn't work like it does in the movies. I expect to see Prince of Persia for my Xbox under the tree this year. Failure to comply will result in more meaningless letters in the future.

Yours truly,

Dan

Miracle on Turf

With such a busy news day and an even busier weekend upon us, I thought that another blog post would be appropriate. The veritable flood of news on Friday gives me a fair bit of material to talk about, but there is really only one story that dominated my day: The Game.

The annual grudge-match between Michigan and Ohio State has taken a backseat to other more "important" games this Saturday. Oklahoma-Texas Tech and Penn State-Michigan State might be more fashionable or more loaded with BCS implications, but The Game is always the most interesting game when people least expect it to be.

Michigan has a historically abysmal team at 3-8. Ohio State has a good team that has come up short of expectations at 9-2. In any fair and logical universe, Ohio State wins this game by 20.5 points. Unfortunately, the fair and logical universe is but a distant parallel to the one which we occupy. The best and most memorable games of the series have been won by the underdog. However, the underdog in tomorrow's game has never been so poor. Quite frankly, there are virtually no ways for me to reasonably plot a Michigan victory tomorrow. Michigan can keep the game close, but it would take an epic collapse from Ohio State to push Michigan over the edge.

I dare not make a final score prediction, but I will be surprised if Ohio State covers the spread.



Every year, I am amazed by the emotion that this game brings out. I hate Notre Dame/the Yankees/the Cowboys as much as any other American and Michigan State is always an amusing distraction. Ohio State, though, is in a different league. I maintain a certain degree of respect for Ohio State that Notre Dame could never earn, but at the same time I feel a deep vitriolic loathing of the Buckeyes. I always forget what it feels like a week after and that feeling doesn't return until the Wednesday before the next meeting. I want Michigan to win badly, but this year will require a miracle of 1980 US Olympic Hockey team proportions. I believe in two things: Ohio State sucks and miracles.

Recommended viewing this weekend:

- Michigan-Ohio State game
- NOT the new film Twilight. Honestly, a little bit of me dies every time I see media coverage of squealing high schoolers at theatres across the country, not to mention flashbacks of boy bands in the 90s. Here's a great idea. Instead of going out to see an underage, vampiric, love-drama fest, go to your local library and borrow Bram Stoker's Dracula.
- Detroit-Tampa Bay football game. Feel free to ignore the game and look for me in the crowd, or, rather, amongst the empty seats.

Recommended reading this weekend:

- Aforementioned Bram Stoker's Dracula with conditions
- The National Intelligence Council's Global Trends 2025: A Transformed World

The NIC's latest Global Trends assessment is a fascinating projection of international relations, trade and conflict in 2025. Weighing in at 120 pages, it is by no means "light reading," but it is not overloaded with techno-babble or difficult concepts. You can obtain your own personal pdf here.



GO BLUE!

Under My Skin

This past weekend I went to the movie theatre to see Quantum of Solace, the latest James Bond movie. The movie was exciting and an overall enjoyable experience. It wasn't as good as Casino Royale, but it was definitely better than the last few Pierce Brosnan films. On a quick aside, I find it an interesting coincidence that the director of Casino Royale was the same guy who directed Goldeneye. In my opinion, those two movies are the best Bond films since at least 1980.

Anyway, this post comes to you today in the name of the two worst things about the action sequences in contemporary films: shaky cam and absurdly over-powered punch effects.



The first case is prominently featured in Quantum of Solace. In fact, the opening action sequence makes heavy use of the shaky cam, to its own detriment. The up-close and unstable camera shots fail to provide an adequate view of the setting, which I have actually visited and is quite amazing, and doesn't provide the most exciting and comprehensive view of the action. Furthermore, these shaky cam shots can be nauseating after not too long. Unfortunately, Youtube does not have any clips from the opening chase sequence from Quantum of Solace, so here are some notable chase sequences from Casino Royale and Goldeneye (for those who have seen Quantum of Solace, note the lack of shaky cam).



Some might like the shaky cam action of Quantum of Solace, and I'll admit that it can be effective when used with discretion, but I feel like something is lost when the shaky cam becomes the staple camera shot for action scenes.

"Absurdly over-powered punch effects" is the other element of action sequences that annoys me. I first noticed this particular effect when I saw The Dark Knight this past summer. Again, The Dark Knight was a great movie, and, unlike Quantum of Solace, it surpassed the excellence of its predecessor. Back to the punching, the sound mixing folks for this movie went completely overboard. Since I want to have some diversity in my audio-visual aids, I will use pictures and language to illustrate the problem.

If you were to take an M1 Abrams tank...



Fill the M1 Abrams tank with uncooked meat...



Then take that meaty machine up in an airplane, drop it from 10,000 feet, and record the sound made on impact...



You would get a close approximation of the sound made by a single punch in The Dark Knight!



Perhaps the effect was exacerbated by watching the film in an IMAX theatre, but I know that other movies have mixed their sound effects in a similar fashion.

On a final and somewhat related note, I was really disappointed with the villain in Quantum of Solace. Dominic Greene was a bit of a wimp and his plan was remarkably low key. If writers want to go for the evil businessman as a villain, then they need to write and cast better. I thought that media tycoon Elliot Carver from Tomorrow Never Dies was an interesting character and Jonathan Pryce did a great job playing the part.

For those that do not go see Quantum of Solace, make sure you check out the new trailer for the J.J. Abrams Star Trek movie! A download mirror is linked at the bottom of the first page of comments if you want to save a copy to your computer.

Treading Water

The big news this week is the potential government bail-out of the "Big Three" Detroit car manufacturers (General Motors, Ford, Chrysler). In complete opposition to my blog mantra, I don't think I take a very moderate viewpoint towards this entire debacle. I disagreed with the $700 billion bail-out dealt out for the sinking financial markets, but I will also admit that my understanding of the situation doesn't warrant me adding my voice to the din. When it comes to the Detroit automakers, I can understand the situation from living in Michigan for a long time and from the fact that understanding the financial mumbo-jumbo with AIG, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, etc. is impossible for the layman.

At the most basic level, the "Big Three" do not deserve a bail-out of any form. These companies having been hemorrhaging money for years and have clearly lost their ability to innovate at a competitive pace. For the past decade, these automakers have fattened themselves on truck sales while barely paying lip service to the market for fuel-efficient vehicles. For every published success of a Detroit car company, they gloated. Whenever Toyota or Honda was mentioned in a positive story, they patted themselves on the back and tried to figure out how to do it better.

I honestly doubt that a bail-out of the "Big Three" will ignite innovation or even save them from bankruptcy. In fact, if the government decides to prop-up these industrial dinosaurs, they will be stifling innovation from competitors like Toyota, Honda or even Tesla Motors. Today, many of the airlines that declared bankruptcy in the post-9/11 airline bloodletting are in better shape than they were before. Perhaps the same will happen for the "Big Three," if not, I won't shed a tear for the companies.

However, the real danger from letting these companies hit rock bottom is the effect on the massive supply infrastructure. If the "Big Three" bottom-out, then auto parts suppliers, machining shops, dealerships, mechanics, employees and pensioners will suffer. This chain of companies and people that rely on the success of the "Big Three" are not the ones responsible for a sagging industry. A government bail-out should protect the chain while the car manufacturers stumble, not the other way around.

Amidst all the noise generated over the Detroit automakers, we can easily lose sight of the fact that this economic downturn does not merely damage U.S. companies, but foreign brands as well. Toyota employs over 36,000 people in 13 facilities in the U.S. and Honda employs more than 25,000 people across 25 facilities. The recession within the automotive industry is not limited to the "Big Three," they are just being hit harder because the management has lost the ability to run a business. If Toyota or Honda fell on hard times, I somehow doubt they would get the attention that GM, Ford and Chrysler are getting.

What upsets me the most about this situation is that these stagnant car companies are going to get their money. A truly epic political lobby is fighting for the bail-out and anyone with a sane perspective can't get a word in. Governor Granholm, the United Auto Workers union and nearly every major representative of Michigan in Washington, D.C. lobbies heavily in favor of "Big Three" bailouts and limp fuel mileage restrictions. I really like Senator Carl Levin when it comes to foreign affairs and matters of state, but I wish he would shut-up when it comes to dealing with the "Big Three." Former Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney came into Michigan during the nomination campaign and spouted lofty rhetoric pandering to the auto companies and workers. John McCain came to Michigan and offered some of his "straight-talk" (back when he was still "straight-talking") and lost the Michigan primary by a mile. I think President-elect Obama made a mistake in inviting Governor Granholm to his provisional economic committee and he would make a huge mistake in giving her a cabinet position. In my eyes, she has done very little to improve the economy in Michigan and holds no credibility whatsoever in economic matters.

The Detroit car manufacturers and their lobby are well overdue for a rude awakening.

A few months ago, I visited the Ford Rouge plant in Detroit. The facility is really amazing. Ford has gone to great lengths to create an eco-friendly building, and, hopefully, it becomes a model for all future industrial sites. Then the great ironic tragedy of Ford appears. The Rouge plant is used to make the popular, gas-guzzling F-150 pick-up truck. Even worse, the facility was shutdown (it was not the weekend) and the tour guides said that the shutdown was on indefinite terms.

If the bail-out is inevitable, then what can be done to strong-arm the "Big Three" to innovate? Three things: strict gas mileage restrictions, purge the management and protect the aforementioned chain. Again, I want to reiterate that American-flavored innovation has rarely been done through governmental strong-arm tactics. Great American innovators like Henry Ford, Orville and Wilbur Wright, and Thomas Edison created new ideas and things without governmental interference. What would Henry Ford say if he were still around today? Hopefully, he would tell his descendant to sell the Lions to an owner that actually cared about the franchise.

For those of you seeking another, parallel perspective: Thomas Friedman to the rescue!!!

With all this silly talk of bailing out sinking motor vehicle companies, I felt the need for a more uplifting message to close this out.



In the face of all this doom and gloom, remember that happiness is just one Yakety Sax video away.

Aftermath

"The true strength of our nation comes not from the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals - democracy, liberty, opportunity and unyielding hope."


200,000 people + 1 Obama in Grant Park, Chicago

So, a lot of Americans were joyful, inspired, and amazed on Election Night. You can count me among them. However, I cannot help but feel bittersweet about the results of the election.

Watching Senator McCain's concession speech was one of the saddest moments of the election for me, and I mean that in the most sober and serious way that I can. That speech embodied the exact reason for John McCain's loss in the election. I found the behavior of the Republican core represented in that crowd to be repulsive. They booed when McCain acknowledged Obama's historic victory and urged reconciliation of petty party divisions. The Republican Party is a dinosaur and the hardest of the hardcore supporters are members of shrinking demographics that are ignorant of the country that America has become. John McCain represented the potential for Obama-esque change within Republican Party, but instead he was forced to bow to the party base. The true John McCain did not run on the Republican ticket this year. John McCain was turned into a puppet of the party and ultimately sacrificed in an election cycle that Republicans lacked the perspective to compete. He deserves much better. The media often talks about the muzzling of Sarah Palin, but the disfigurement and mutation of John McCain was the greatest sin of the Republican party. He does have a share of the blame, but I have a hard time placing true culpability on his shoulders.

This brings me into speculation about the future of the Republican Party. In the coming months, Republicans are going to have to pick up the pieces and figure out how to go forward. There are two schools of thought within the Republican Party in these seemingly post-apocalyptic days for the conservative brand: The Palinites (noted for a distinct lack of thought and attachment to ancient political methods) and the moderate wing of the party. My fear is that Republicans will latch onto their criticism of John McCain that he wasn't conservative enough. If the Republican Party swings more to the right under the leadership of Governor Palin, then they are doomed to irrelevance and a third party will emerge to replace it.

My case against such a move is the dearly departed Republican hero, Ronald Reagan, and the Republicans' adopted son, John F. Kennedy. Look how these two guys swept their way into the White House: they appealed to centrist ideals and created entire demographics carved out of the opposition to vote for them. These men enjoyed immense success in their elections, governance and legacies. They are counted among the greatest presidents in the history of America. Now look at George W. Bush. He paved his way into office by supercharging his ideological base and governed through strong-arm tactics. He exploited the divisions in our nation to push his vision of America. No one in America, except that party base that still supports him, can deny the immensely negative legacy that he leaves.

I will admit that I am encouraged by the closing months of the Bush Administration. He has demonstrated a distinct willingness to be helpful and has graciously and humbly acknowledged the impact of Barack Obama's victory. Mr. Bush is probably trying to end his tenure on as high a note as possible and I think that is admirable.

David Brooks of the New York Times said, "Reagan had an immense faith in the power of ideas. But there has been a counter, more populist tradition, which is not only to scorn liberal ideas but to scorn ideas entirely. And I'm afraid that Sarah Palin has those prejudices" (CNN) The Republicans need more people like McCain, circa 2000, not fewer. I hope that they are not so blinded by their righteous rage that they fail to notice how they were beat and how they have been successful in the past. Republicans need to survive because they do have ideas that are good for America.

As expected, Republicans across Washington were mauled in the election. This phenomenon is not surprising, but it was, in some cases, unfortunate. John McCain will return to the Senate where I hope he will return to he old ways. He will not be joined by two of his moderate Republican compatriots: Gordon Smith of Oregon and John Sununu of New Hampshire. These victims of the D.C. purge will be missed greatly. The next Senate needs Republicans that offer constructive resistance to Democratic legislation. We cannot afford to lug the weight of bitter right-wingers that seek to block every attempt at progress. What really makes me angry is how good guys like Smith and Sununu get voted out of the Senate, but convicted felons like Ted Stevens of Alaska are given another chance. These Alaskan conservative mavericks are definitely not the right thing for America. Hopefully, the not corrupt members of our Senate will swiftly "/gkick" this idiot and get an honorable person to fill his seat. Maybe Smith and Sununu will play a role in the reshaping of the Republican Party from outside the spotlight; after all, President-elect Obama said I could hope.

CNN was reporting on Wednesday night that Obama would be receiving his first Top Secret briefing on Thursday morning. I wouldn't be surprised if this contained a great deal of information concerning the Russia's latest reaction to the plans to build a anti-ballistic missile shield in Eastern Europe. On Wednesday, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev promised to deploy short-range missiles in the territory of Kaliningrad. It is certainly difficult agree with such a move, but it is not terribly difficult to understand why Russia is doing it.



The harsh realities of the world shaped by George W. Bush are going to hit Obama from day 1. I know that Mr. Obama has the ability to tackle the big problems facing America and he has my support. I hope he finds a good group of people to support and advise him, but he would have to try really hard to make poorer selections than the current President. Again, to Mr. Bush's credit, he has demonstrated some willingness to pick a few competent cabinet members, even if it took him more than one try.



P.S. I couldn't find a copy of the Wednesday New York Times or Chicago Tribune anywhere in Kalamazoo today. If anyone knows where I can get one, as long as it is not a $100 copy from eBay, let me know!

Update:

I just dug up an interesting article about the future of the Republican Party on BBC.com. The article is spot on with most of the analysis; however, I do take exception to the final point. The Republicans need more than a compelling leader to turn around their fortunes. Regaining the trust of the electorate, as Obama and the Democrats did, requires a compelling leader delivering a compelling message which speaks to people at that point in time.

What is so impressive about Mr. Obama's campaign was its inclusive nature. Not too long ago (3-4 election cycles), many of the things said about the Republicans now were being said about the Democrats. In particular, the claim that the diversity of the party would cause an internal battle. The post-Clinton Democrats were internally divided like the Republicans of today. The difference is that this battle was inevitable after years of Karl Rove's strategy of supressing moderate voices and supercharging the conservative base (created a confusing message this time around). Now that the Democrats have kicked the Republicans out of the places of power, the moderate voices want to restore the Republican party to relevance. However, the old guard of the G.O.P. don't want to sacrifice a sliver of their ideology for the sake of inclusiveness and progress.

So, I expect to see some fireworks over the coming months. Republicans may not see the White House until 2016 or even 2022, but they'll have to find a voice and a message first.

Democracy

I'm not going to endorse a candidate. I believe in the power and sanctity of the secret ballot, not to mention my Constitutional right to a secret ballot. My earlier posts have indicated my preferences and I don't see much reason to publicly acclaim my vote.

What I do want to acclaim is the importance of participation in government. I personally believe that America is in the midst of a historically pivotal moment. Politicians tell us about how dire and important every election is, but they are wrong. Granted, saying that requires perspective and a certain degree of historical hypothesizing, but it is hard to ignore the gravity of the decisions that need to be made over the next 4-8 years.

Essentially, all Americans are stockholders in this nation. In a nation so populous, wealthy and powerful, it is difficult to realize the power of an individual. By voting, one declares one's willingness to choose a representative most able to make the nation thrive and, thus, one's choice to improve the nation, community and self.

Millions have sacrificed themselves over millenia to preserve freedom and democracy. Most notably, people of non-democratic societies have even sacrificed in order to preserve democracy. One always thinks of the Athenians at Marathon, Cicero in Rome, Parliamentarians in England, American Revolutionaries at Saratoga and the Allied armada at Normandy. What about oligarchic Spartans at Thermopylae, or the Communist Russians in Stalingrad? They aren't the shining defenders of democracy, but their contributions were significant nonetheless. Voters don't need to participate to such a degree, they need only cast a vote.


Unsung heroes of democracy?

If you don't know who you want to vote for in the presidential race, go vote anyway. State and local elections are also important and they have a more direct impact on your day-to-day life. I suggest looking up a local chapter of the League of Women Voters in your state and district and read over the voter's guide (here's the one for Michigan). If that fails you, then local newspapers often print a voter's guide (hopefully with an online version).

If all these arguments fail to convince you recalcitrant voters, then maybe Aristotle will...



"If liberty and equality, as is thought by some, are chiefly to be found in democracy, they will be best attained when all persons alike share in the government to the utmost."

The Coming Storm

Great storm clouds billow and broil on the horizon. From the swamps of Florida to the coal mines of Pennsylvania to the oil fields of Texas a great tempest is upon us all. The great national nightmare has returned to haunt the dreams of Americans once more. PLUS, there is an election tomorrow which could prove to be of some interest!

The great disaster which will soon strike our nation has terrorized us for years with visions of dreams unrealized and truths unrevealed. Indeed, the horror of which I write is none other than the Bowl Championship Series of college football. Football is passionately followed by untold millions in America and across the globe (Canada, too). In my opinion, college football fans are the most passionate because of the close ties people develop with the schools they attend. Furthermore, the regional nature of conferences and rivalries brings out a spirit of competition that hearkens back to the days of pre-federal government. That silliness aside, these fans, schools, conferences, leagues and entertainment networks have instituted the most nonsensical and unjust system to determine the best team in the land.

Outside of the FBS (formerly known as Division I) denomination of NCAA football teams, champions are decided through a playoff or tournament system. Furthermore, all of the other major college sports (basketball, ice hockey, etc.) also determine national championships through tournaments or playoffs. All of the major professional sports leagues also decide their champions through playoff systems. The BCS system was put into place to assert some form of legitimacy to the random national championship awarded to the winner of one of the major bowl games at the end of the season. Some computers and supposed experts vote on the best 25 teams in the FBS subdivision of NCAA football and the top two teams at the end of the season play each other for the national championship. As a result, the bowl games maintained an air of tradition (which I admit is of some value), the regular season games maintain their importance (also a good thing), the student-athletes get to maintain their focus on studies (*rolls eyes*), and the entertainment networks and corporate sponsors get to fatten their cash cow bowl games through sponsorship and intense controversy. Unfortunately, the victims of this ridiculous system are the legitimacy of any national champion and the fans.

So, back to this impending doom thing. I guess I am over-hyping this whole situation, but I feel the need to fight fire with fire and I don't want to have to do another BCS rant post. This happens every year and it is going to happen once again. More than one team is likely going to be eligible for the national championship game based on a number of factors. These factors, of various legitimacy, include: number of losses, late season losses, quality of schedule, relative conference strength, recent team/conference bowl records, most recent victory (teams that play weeks after others have complete equally lengthy seasons hold significant advantages). In the current situation, rumors are swirling that an undefeated Penn State team could get snubbed by a one loss SEC team, Big 12 team, or, God forbid, USC. Granted, there is still a lot of football left to be played, but the fact that this situation is even remotely possible is unacceptable.



I'll admit that I have my own opinion on the Penn State snub hypothetical. I believe that any undefeated team from one of the BCS conferences is deserving of national championship consideration over ANY one-loss team, regardless of the circumstance. If the BCS is supposed to turn every regular season game into a playoff game equivalent, then one loss is damning evidence of inferiority. This situation is irrefutable simply because it is the nature of this BCS god that we worship before the altar of commercialized football.

The only way to restore common sense and legitimacy to college football is to implement a playoff or tournament. I care little for how it's done, aside from the fact that we would need, at least, an 8-team playoff to preserve the current bowl system.


Here's one potential solution that include all of the FBS conferences.

I would make only one request: create a major bowl game that is held at a northern site. I want to see how SEC, Big 12 and Pac 10 schools deal with a "neutral site" game away from their home stadiums in the balmy south and west. Let's see how the Floridas, USCs and Texases deal with a game at Soldier Field in January.


Yeah, they'll probably have to take down that ski jump for the game.

Update:

Barack Obama just endorsed a college football playoff system on the Monday Night Football halftime show! If that doesn't put some momentum behind the Revolution to Overthrow the BCS, then I doubt anything will. John McCain wants to stop the use of performance-enhancing drugs. A good answer, indeed, but a better one would be to address the third great sin of American sports: the goal line trapezoid in NHL hockey!


"WTF" indeed...

A Confession

I bought Fallout 3 on launch day. You may ask, "Big deal..." Here’s why…

First of all, I absolutely hated Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. I played its predecessor, Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, to death. Morrowind was a wonderful open-world, fantasy RPG from Bethesda Softworks. The story was engaging and epic, and the world was brilliantly crafted with unique regions that had distinctive plant, animal and humanoid life (along with different styles of architecture). I will admit that the visuals have not aged well (plus the game was poorly optimized at launch) and the combat system was a bit wonky.

In the lead-up to Oblivion, I was really excited. I even pre-ordered the collector’s edition for PC and bought a DVD drive for my computer (undoubtedly the best thing to come out of that debacle). Then, I played it. It was terrible. Everything that I loved in Morrowind was not present in Oblivion; furthermore, Bethesda managed to carpet bomb this game so bad that collateral damage was inflicted across the game. The world was expansive, but bland. Every area was essentially the same view with the same creatures. Even though the world was big, Morrowind felt bigger (the benefits of reduced render distance, no mounts and no fast travel). The graphics were pretty (save character models, especially the faces), but it was a system hog. The combat and magic system was improved, but the scope was reduced. The most damning indictment of Oblivion was a gross “dumbing down” of the RPG elements. NPCs were lifeless, dialogue trees were sparse, and every enemy in the game leveled with you. This produced the ridiculous phenomenon of bandits and highwaymen clad in ebony armor and brandishing glass weaponry. I’m sorry, but why do they need to prey on travelers when they can afford to acquire and maintain some of the most expensive equipment in the world?


Guess which map comes with the quality game...

In defense of Oblivion, the complaints raised against it are similar to the ones raised against Morrowind by devotees of its predecessor, Daggerfall. I never played Daggerfall, so I clearly lack some perspective. However, if Daggerfall fans disliked Morrowind, then they probably felt the same about Oblivion.

So now Bethesda has got its greedy little fingers on the Fallout franchise. Needless to say, I have been a bit worried. Fallout 1 & 2 were deep, post-apocalyptic, isometric-view, turn-based RPGs. Fallout 3 is a first/third-person shooter with RPG elements (“Oblivion with guns” is the flame-bait). This worry was exacerbated by the last two years when I lived with a roommate who vehemently criticized Fallout 3 (if you are reading this, Hi Jackson). I sympathized with his views entirely, and, after the Oblivion disaster, my reservations were inflamed into true concerns. Yeah, it looked damned cool, but it clearly isn’t even close to the Fallout RPG standard.

A few weeks ago, I decided to take matters into my own hands. I bought a copy of Fallout 2 so I could decide for myself if Fallout 3 was truly an Oblivion treatment for the Fallout franchise. Unfortunately, Fallout 2 came up short of my high expectations. Fallout 2 did have some impressive open-world RPG elements and the dated graphics weren’t terrible. However, Fallout 2’s game design has aged terribly and I do not doubt that if Fallout 2 were released today, ignoring the visuals, it would probably not be reviewed very well. This game is hard as hell. I frequently died in the early areas and the combat system seemed cumbersome and unreasonable. The game manual suggests to save often (after and before battles) and in as many save slots as possible. Not only is this immensely frustrating, but it is bad game design. In an RPG, I want to focus on managing my character and immersing myself in the game world. Having to save every few minutes prohibits the suspension of disbelief and indicates that the combat system has not been properly balanced. Fighting a level 1 ant should not be a battle of attrition that, 50% of the time, leaves me unable to kill a second one without using a very finite supply of healing abilities. Adding auto-save functionality would not fix this game, but it would solve some of the tedium of saving.

Ok, so I didn’t enjoy the five hours I spent in Fallout 2. This assuaged many of my doubts about Fallout 3. The arguments of the Fallout purists began to convince me less. I think that Bethesda’s re-imagining of the Fallout world is a welcome one, but they should strike the “3” from the title because I don’t think that it is a true sequel. I would suggest: Fallout: Road to the White House, Fallout: Washington, etc.


Sweet, sweet irradiated brains.

Delay induced update: Fallout 3 is great. I'm only a few hours in since I have to split time with Fable 2 and taking care of dogs (*sigh*). So far, I am impressed. Running and gunning, like in a shooter, is a surefire way to get killed. Using the RPG-esque V.A.T.S. system is the way to go and the slo-mo kills are cool. The most impressive feature so far: beard selection for male character. The number of facial hair styles available is mind-boggling and truly unprecedented (no "five-o'clock shadow" option, but the "Honest Abe" makes up for it). Unfortunately, you can definitely tell that Fallout 3 runs on a modified Oblivion engine. The animations are, at times, very poor, especially if you play from the third-person perspective.

In other news…

Fable 2 is also awesome. I have been slashing, sniping, blasting, price controlling and farting my way into the hearts and minds of the people of Albion. I am on an open-world game overload with GTA IV and Fable 2. Fallout 3 is really piling on the gaming hours (plus Gears of War 2 coming next week). Once again, this is the most wonderful time of the year for lovers of the video game.

Bioware and Lucasarts made the rumors official and announced the continuation of the Knights of the Old Republic series with Star Wars: The Old Republic. They are hoping to craft a truly story-driven MMORPG. The interviews that have been given so far have gotten me excited, but I still have reservations. First and foremost, I really wanted KotOR III and not an MMO sell-out game. It’s no use getting all worked up now though. “SWTOR” is 2-4 years from release and probably closer to 4.

Update coming soon[ish]!

I intended to make a post last Friday, but I ran into some unforeseen delays.

I had the actual post written up with pictures and proofreading, but I decided to do it in MS Word 2007. I thought I could simply copy + paste the text into the composition field, import the pictures and publish the post. Unfortunately, doing so created all kinds of ugly HTML error messages. So then I tried to copy + paste the word document into a Wordpad document (where I have successfully composed blog posts before), save it in Wordpad, close Wordpad, open the Wordpad document and copy + paste it into the blog. No luck. I tried to use the special blog post wizard thingy that Word 2007 has, but then I can't upload my pictures. I guess I am going to have to rewrite the whole bloody thing in the composition field when I am feeling especially patient and/or bored.

Woe is me...

My Emperor... I've failed you!

One of my favorite video game quotes. I felt it was appropriate for the following...

Interesting article out this week concerning the state of the election. I admit I find myself in a similar position. Most of my family (notably: my father) is conservative and I have inherited some of these tendencies. I also really liked John McCain before this election. My mind is made up on who I am going to vote for this year and I am truly thankful for the secret ballot.

Following up my praise for CNN's David Gergen last week, I found this article from the same site as the previous one. I look forward to his commentary for the forseeable future (probably until Nov 5).

Speaking of which, the final presidential debate is tonight. I am a sucker for the build-up to a debate. The same thing can be said this afternoon, even after the disappointing precedents. Oddly, enough when I watch a debate, I don't really watch much. I am usually glued to my laptop reading about Fable 2, football or the Electronic Arts DRM debacle. I find that if I focus on what the candidates say and not what they look like, I get more out of the debate.

The ongoing phenomenon of the Nixon/Kennedy TV vs. Radio debate outcome has gotten out of hand. Candidates are so focused on avoiding looking bad (and today, avoiding gaffes at all costs) that debates have become sterile facsimiles of campaign stump speeches in bite-sized chunks. Where is the passion? Where is the unveiled, un-manufactured, un-spun (i.e. genuine) concern? Am I actually witnessing a debate? My hope in avoiding directly watching the debate is to filter out something of value; at the very least, I'll read something that will get me more excited about Fable 2. Wish me luck...

UPDATE: I guess that the third time is the charm. This debate was everything I expected and more. Furthermore, I actually closed up the laptop and watched. I approved of every talking point save two. The discussions over negative campaigning and Supreme Court Justice appointments were inappropriate. Talking about negative campaigning is a waste of time because neither candidate will denounce their own campaign (or contributors) nor will they accept excuses from their opponent.

The Supreme Court appointments are an important topic, but the way in which it was asked was wrong. Injecting Roe v. Wade into the discussion turns an important debate over Constitutional interpretation and bench ideology into a divisive and destructive battle in the culture wars. The latter is a continuation of the partisan Bush-Clinton dynasty. The former is a key debate that is not always divided between existing political ideologies.

The culture wars prevent progress in America and will continue to do so as long as politicians cling to it as a way to squeeze more votes out of the party base. While Americans scream about abortion, gay rights and sex-ed, the real problems (economy, healthcare, social security, deficit spending, Iraq, Afghanistan, nuclear proliferation, etc. ad nauseum) quietly make Americans poorer, less safe and less free. Both Obama and McCain have demonstrated a hesitancy to put on the war paint of a culture warrior. Unfortunately, since McCain has been doing poorly in the latest polls, he has undoubtedly been advised to put on the war paint. I credit John McCain for historically side-stepping the culture wars in order to push the important issues. However, Mrs. Palin represents the worst in the Republican party. She is the poster child for a 21st century conservative culture warrior.

I hope and pray that the closing weeks of this election are not tainted by the culture wars. Instead, why don't we talk about how we can solve the real problems facing all Americans from Joe the Plumber to Joseph the CEO?

Wednesday Smorgasbord

A few quick items since I don't feel like writing a lot about a little. I'll do a little about a lot this time...

I made the fateful choice to purchase Warhammer Online today. As I have said before, I used to play World of Warcraft (level 70 Dwarf Paladin, Burning Blade server). I always used to think the forum kiddies who said that Warhammer would smash WoW were a bit crazy. I was right, but hold the presses. WoW at release was amazingly well polished, it remains a very well polished product today, and Wrath of the Lich King will undoubtedly be more of the same. Warhammer lacks the spit-shine of WoW, but it has some fun content and has other good things going for it.

Thomas Friedman is the man. I also enjoy the commentary of David Gergen on CNN.

Things aren't looking good for John McCain, and Barack Obama looks to be in good shape (reminder: still a month or so to go). Sarah Palin is gearing up for her 2012 run for president (God forbid America should be subjected to such a fate). Nope, I don't like Sarah Palin. Friedman covers the basics, but I have a few reasons of my own. She might even qualify for a more thorough post in the coming weeks.

At long last, the great dark time of the year has ended and hockey once more emerges from the golf clubhouse to fight mediocrity. I love hockey. The most perfect combination of conditions come together to make hockey amazing: speed, physicality, passion (not to mention steel blades, carbon fiber sticks, armor, and a playing surface composed of ice). The Red Wings have a solid team this year and they stand a good chance of repeating a Stanley Cup Championship. There are a lot of good hockey posts to be had. Also, you better believe that the college football BCS will get a post by December. Michigan football is in the crapper this year (unless they can pick off Ohio State), so I need to get excited about something. Granted, I get excited (read: incensed) about the BCS every year.

This weekend: half-sister's wedding (avoiding political discussions with legion right-wing family members), going to Michigan-Toledo game, Red Wings home opener (banner goes up, Toronto's pants go down), and the new Russell Crowe movie.

A Comedy of Tragic Proportions

So, I watched President Bush's primetime address a few nights ago. For the first time in my life, I witnessed a U.S. President present his solution to a national crisis in a manner of complete futility. Undoubtedly, the economic crisis facing the U.S. is a serious subject, but the fact that the President lacks any form of credibility or power to connect with Americans is a sad reflection of the past eight years. I don't want to talk about the financial situation, I'll just get angry and rant about some half-baked plan to deport corporate executives and seize their assets in the name of Truth, Justice and Apple Pie. The tragedy of the Bush Presidency is the topic du jour.


Hmm, no flagpin on the left, COMMUNO-FASCIST!!! Ok, official White House portrait photoshoppers are good, but he looks worse in reality after 8 years...

Defining moment of the Bush Presidency: 9/11/2001 (duh)

Nothing significant was supposed to come out of the Bush Presidency. All signs pointed towards him joining the legions of Presidents that enjoyed relatively quiet terms. Furthermore, his 2000 campaign was constructed around applying "compassionate conservativism" to the economic and diplomatic accomplishments of the previous three White House occupants.

"If we don't stop extending our troops all around the world in nation-building missions, then we're going to have a serious problem coming down the road. And I'm going to prevent that."

Hard to believe that George Bush actually said that. I call that prophetic rhetoric. So, Bush got a curveball tossed at him; past Presidents have dealt with worse under more dire conditions. In my opinion, President Bush's biggest failure was the appointment of his cabinet (with the exception of Colin Powell). Numerous members of the cabinet took advantage of the aftermath of 9/11 to implement some personal pet projects ranging from surveillance programs to vast military restructuring to a resolution of the Iraq Liberation Act.

The terrorist attacks on 9/11/2001 drastically altered the direction of his Presidency. The following seven years would be defined by war, the Patriot Act, Neanderthal diplomacy (a great cultural term, but it turns anthropologists' hair gray) and a tax cut n' spend budgetary policy. By the halfway point of Bush's second term, his credibility was shot as well as any chance of establishing a legacy apart from aforementioned accomplishments (immigration, healthcare, social security, and the latest crisis all lost causes).

I personally hate it when I hear about the pre-ordained judgement of George W. Bush's historical legacy. It is, in my opinion, a misuse of the power of historical judgement. Decades of perspective are required to properly judge a leader's historical impact. We can, however, gleans two things from the Bush Presidency. First, he is very unlikely to be counted among the greatest U.S. Presidents (Lincoln, FDR, JFK, etc.). He will probably end up in that strange historical Limbo of Nixon, Wilson, and Truman. The second and perhaps the most unfortunate result of the past seven years has been the destruction of the conservative party platform (it's all cyclical anyway, Repubs are on the downswing).

Update:

I know I promised to avoid the issue, but today's nonsense in the Congress is simply unbelievable. The details of the deal were in place and, as of Sunday, agreed upon in a bipartisan fashion. America is completely handicapped by partisan squabbles. Democrats and Republicans are equally culpable and repugnant. A crisis of this magnitude could not have occurred at a worse time in American history. I fear that our leaders are incapable of solving the problems in America. In my opinion, the best vote that could be cast this Fall is a vote to remove incumbents.

Nero fiddled while Rome burned

The Force Unhinged

The Force Unleashed is the latest Star Wars video game released by Lucasarts. The intention of the developers was to create a Star Wars action game which revolved around the concept of "kicking ass with the Force." Without a doubt, the game delivers on this promise, and more. However, this game suffers from a number of shortcomings that prevent it from being the next Knights of the Old Republic, Dark Forces: Jedi Knight, or TIE Fighter. I played the Xbox 360 version on the intermediate "Sith Warrior" difficulty level.



This friendly-looking fellow is the protagonist of the game. The only name provided for him is "Starkiller." Joining Starkiller is a cast of interesting characters from the movies and some new ones. Starkiller's droid partner PROXY, pilot Juno Eclipse, and evil master Darth Vader are the major characters. All the characters are strong, and, most importantly, compelling. Sadly, the characters lack some development and I got the feeling that a lot of interaction between the characters was left unexplored. Perhaps this is a reaction to the infamous half-hour cinematics of the Metal Gear Solid series. If so, then the cinematics of The Force Unleashed are a woeful over-reaction. These minor shortcomings aside, the story of the game is its strongest asset. Those familiar with the story of Star Wars can easily predict the ending for the game, but that doesn't make the experience any less enjoyable. Perhaps the greatest praise I could give this game is that it reminded me of the original trilogy, not the prequel trilogy.

Action games live and die with gameplay. Unfortunately, the gameplay in this title could be equated to the Ottoman Empire in the early 20th century.

As I said before, the game does deliver on the promise of "kicking ass with the Force." The Force powers are indeed over-the-top and made me feel like a genuine bad-ass. The leveling system is unremarkable. A similar system was used for Dark Forces: Jedi Knight II and that worked well enough. There are a number of unlockable items that encourage exploration and experimentation (costumes, lightsaber crystals and accomplishments). The combo system is surprisingly deep and lacks a steep learning curve (note: the aerial combos are awesome).



This is where the 20th century Ottoman Empire reference comes in. From what I wrote just now, you would think that this game is the great, but this game is the sick man of Star Wars games. The targeting system in this game is maddening. One can never be sure who or what they are targeting without stopping and delicately rotating Starkiller into position. This is anathema to action games. Aside from the targeting system, the toughest bosses and enemy encounter feel like they are tough because they are cheap. More than once, I found myself skulking like a thief behind barriers, popping out occasionally to attack before retreating once more. Many reviews of this game revile the inclusion of Quick-time Events (timed pressing of buttons as instructed on the screen), but I have no problem with them whatsoever (label me as "out of touch" or "old-fashioned" if you want). However, one encounter involving a Quick-time Event was egregiously bad. I don't want to spoil too much, but this should have been one of the most awesome parts of the game. Instead, this encounter qualifies as one of the most frustrating gaming moments of my life; which is saying a lot, I played (and raided) World of Warcraft.



The presentation of this game is, mercifully, a strong point. The art is stunningly beautiful, haunting, gritty, etc. The graphics are also very nice with some minor framerate slowdowns. I did encounter a few bugs where I got stuck in some terrain, but I was lucky enough to avoid some of the more serious bugs reported by others. The sound and music are top-notch as with nearly every Star Wars game, good or bad. Some of the voices are poorly casted (Darth Vader and Palpatine), but there are no weak performances. The voice acting of Starkiller and Juno Eclipse is particularly strong.

Overall, this game doesn't deserve some of the dismal reviews it has received. On the other hand, this game was heavily hyped and failed to live up to expectations. I had a lot of fun playing The Force Unleashed, but I would not recommend purchasing it right now unless you really liked the demo and you are a Star Wars fan. Wait for a price cut, borrow it from a friend or rent it.

Shameless plug: If you want to experience the story, but don't want to buy/rent the game, I would recommend going to your local purveyor of books and purchasing the graphic novel. The illustrations are fantastic and you'll pay less than half of what you would for the game.

Image sources:
http://s3.gadgetreview.com.s3.amazonaws.com/Stars_Wars_Force_Unleashed_3.jpg
http://www.xboxfocus.com/uploads/image/Crash_ForceUnleashed.jpg

Video source:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YpuIsSdcFs

The Manifesto

This is my blog, or "blag" for you xkcd.com readers, for random thoughts and rants about various topics. My goal is to produce quality, yet entertaining commentary without being preachy or excessively partisan.

I'm not going to explain the title of my blog, instead I'll let my intrepid readers do the research. I will reveal that it is related to both my philosophy towards internet culture and the gentleman named in the blog url (m-t-cicero = Marcus Tullius Cicero). Cicero is one of my favorite historical figures and a kindred spirit.

In this blog I will talk about the things I find interesting. Things of interest include: politics, sports (primarily football and hockey), and video games. I reserve the right to talk about other stuff, but my praise, ire and time will be primarily spent among the listed topics. Hopefully someone else on the Internet will find something worth reading.

Since this is a manifesto post, I should summarize my personal views on the topics I intend to discuss.

Politically, I am chronic fence-sitting moderate. I don't dislike Republicans or Democrats, but I hate the vast right-wing conspiracy as much as the vast left-wing conspiracy. Both parties have some great ideas about how to run the government and they usually do good things if they work together. A psychologist might say that my politics are derived from a latent desire to be labeled as a "coveted member of the electorate" by the media during every election cycle.

When it comes to sports, I am a big hockey and football fan. As a Michigan alum, my undying loyalties lie with the Wolverines. Detroit sports teams are my favorite professional teams, especially the Red Wings and Lions. This will be the first and last time I will talk about NASCAR, because it is a terrible excuse for a motorsport. European Formula One is much more exciting with the diverse teams, left AND right turns, a global tour, and shorter races.

My political stance definitely affects my opinions on video games. First, I like lots of different video games. First-person shooters (FPS), role-playing games (RPG), real-time strategy (RTS), turn-based strategy and adventure games are my favorite genres. Second, PC gaming is not dead. Tell Stardock or Blizzard that PC gaming is dead. Lastly, console fanboy-ism is stupid. I own an Xbox 360 and a decent gaming computer. I enjoy playing games on both platforms and I can appreciate the gaming experience on a Nintendo Wii and a Playstation 3.

That about covers the basics for the Hannibal Ad Portas blog. Enjoy!