Celebrating the Fall of the Wall

Twenty years ago, we watched the world change. Never forget it.

Toxic Bibles -- NIV

Another great set of videos from Tentmaker discussing the translation of the NIV:
Part 1:

Part 2:

Part 3:

Part 4:

Remember, Remember...

Happy Guy Fawkes Day!



Here is the text of the speech:

Good evening, London. Allow me first to apologize for this interruption. I do, like many of you, appreciate the comforts of every day routine- the security of the familiar, the tranquility of repetition.

I enjoy them as much as any bloke.

But in the spirit of commemoration, thereby those important events of the past usually associated with someone's death or the end of some awful bloody struggle, a celebration of a nice holiday, I thought we could mark this November the 5th, a day that is sadly no longer remembered, by taking some time out of our daily lives to sit down and have a little chat.

There are of course those who do not want us to speak. I suspect even now, orders are being shouted into telephones, and men with guns will soon be on their way. Why?

Because while the truncheon may be used in lieu of conversation, words will always retain their power. Words offer the means to meaning, and for those who will listen, the enunciation of truth. And the truth is, there is something terribly wrong with this country, isn't there? Cruelty and injustice, intolerance and oppression. And where once you had the freedom to object, to think and speak as you saw fit, you now have censors and systems of surveillance coercing your conformity and soliciting your submission.

How did this happen? Who's to blame? Well certainly there are those more responsible than others, and they will be held accountable, but again truth be told, if you're looking for the guilty, you need only look into a mirror.

I know why you did it. I know you were afraid. Who wouldn't be? War, terror, disease. There were a myriad of problems which conspired to corrupt your reason and rob you of your common sense.

Fear got the best of you, and in your panic you turned to the now high chancellor, Adam Sutler. He promised you order, he promised you peace, and all he demanded in return was your silent, obedient consent.

Last night I sought to end that silence. Last night I destroyed the Old Bailey, to remind this country of what it has forgotten. More than four hundred years ago a great citizen wished to embed the fifth of November forever in our memory. His hope was to remind the world that fairness, justice, and freedom are more than words, they are perspectives. So if you've seen nothing, if the crimes of this government remain unknown to you then I would suggest you allow the fifth of November to pass unmarked.

But if you see what I see, if you feel as I feel, and if you would seek as I seek, then I ask you to stand beside me one year from tonight, outside the gates of Parliament, and together we shall give them a fifth of November that shall never, ever be forgot.

We Were Explorers, Adventurers, and Soldiers

This was a very nice essay written by RobbHobb several years ago on the SWG Forums. He recently shared it with the folks over at MMORPG.com. I took the liberty of copying because I feel it was that good:

We were Explorers, Adventurers and Soldiers
The game was just out of beta and 40 of my guild started playing. I was one of my group's
"Planet Side" testers/players, having beta tested it. We are 200 strong spread out now over
8-10 different games.

I would tune in the SWG channel on TS and listen, it was amazing to here the accounts of
things across the galaxy as seen through the eyes of noobs. Everyone was a noob. I had to
be a part of this.

I got the game and away I went. There were people everywhere. Cantinas were jammed, star
ports as well. People running across Dath, no speeders yet. Fighting rancors and
nightsisters. Squills and Tuskin Raiders were things to avoid on our home planet. The
Corellian plains and the swamps of Talus, filled with big cats and their babies was a great
place for the CH, but a dangerous one as well.

The crafting was amazing as well, folks dedicated themselves to mining, harvesting or buying
the best resources, looting or buying skill tapes, and the items they made were top shelf. We knew who they were and we haggled for the best price. Weapons, armor, BE clothing, foods, drinks, etc...

The fighting classes would hire out to protect crafters as they tended their harvesters, or just paid us to bring home the best meat or bone, when ever it would be located that month at various places across the galaxy.

The player cites became sophisticated and well thought out. We would hunt in groups to fund ]the treasury. Recruit top crafters to place their vendors so traffic in town would increase.

Entertainers formed troupes that would travel around and perform at events for hire. Towns would have celebrations, music, fireworks, dancing. The socialization was at its peak.

Bases became focal points for the GCW, defending and attacking, when one went "hot" hundreds of players would be on hand. Theed was a kill zone as was the Bestine-Anchorhead corridor.

Jedi were rare and as the game progressed, more found their way to the Force. But through perma-death, saber TEF and eventually visibility and the BH, showing off with a LS was a bad [align=justify]thing. Removing the BH gank squad made us Jedi more brazen and may have been the first sign of the down hill slide. Jedi should have remained in the shadows.

I remember traveling across many planets and stopping off in camps on a regular basis. Players just out and about were never hard to stumble across. The Master Ranger camp was a sight to see. If they had a dancer, it was a chance to heal up a bit and move on. Before leaving you could often barter for a new pet or some food or drink. Few knew I was a Jedi, it was much safer that way. Regular clothes, carrying a rifle or carbine, with my LS in the [align=justify]tool bar just in case I was not as careful as I thought I was.

Back to a big city, get your speeder, armor and weapon repaired. It was always nice to find a smuggler and get those new items sliced. Stop by the local cantina and enjoy some music and get a mind buff, hit a star port and have a doctor buff you up. Then back out to the open spaces, never far from action.

Player run night clubs sprang up, rented juke boxes, exotic dancers, beauty pageants and
just a place to hang out, waiting for the next assault on the enemy or hunting party. At
one pageant, with about two hundred in attendance, a beautiful young Jedi was competing,
when a BH attacked, the fight spilled out into the street and raged on for 20 minutes before
she managed to escape. I cannot imagine a more "Star Warsy" scene then a fight breaking out
in a Star Wars bar.

You didn't have to run around to find PvP, it would always find you if you were not alert.
NPC's could unmask you as well, and many times you would have to fight your way out of town.
For a Jedi, that meant visibility for sure. Time to be extra careful. But if laying low
was your thing for the moment, there were 100 places to go and things to do. Tend to your
factors, restock, shop, socialize, hunt, the Vette, Theme Parks, The Warren, Black Sun
Bunker, etc... The server forums served as After Action Reports that made the slow times at work more enjoyable.

New players would seek help, and many did help. Taking them under their wing, showing them the ropes, forging bonds, weaken by the tears of this dying game, and friend's lists evaporated as gamers left for greener pastures.
You really carved out your own existence, the greatest Star Wars saga ever told, yours... and if you ran the course and wanted a change, you could start over, 31 more times if it suited you.

Many of us have moved on, others stay and pray that the greatness of this game will return. [/align]Still others, like me, pay for a month here and there just to check in and see for ourselves.

For me, there is a soothing, surreal feeling when I hear the opening music. I stand above my home on Tatooine, in Storm's End, a town we forged from the sands in a place called The Valley of the Wind. I watch the twin suns set over the mountains and remember what the game was like. It truly breaks my heart to think of the friends lost and the good times we had, gone forever, like the sands in a storm. I wait a bit longer, check my empty friend's list and log off.
Yes, we were adventurers, explorers and soldiers, and it was the best of times.

Brings a tear to my eye every time I read this. It really was like that.

Toxic Bibles

A great discussion on different translations:

Part 2:

Blessed Samhain

Bloody Brilliant Muslim Demonstration

Witness Muslims for Secular Democracy supporting free speech!

To all those who say "Islam is evil, Islam is fascism, Islam is fanaticism" -- I call BS. This shows that, given the right philosophy coupled with faith we can all join hands and get along!



Allahu Akbar!

For more information, check out British Muslims for Secular Democracy

Here are the organization's goals and practices, from their website:

bmsd aims to:

* Raise awareness within British Muslims and the wider public, of democracy particularly ‘secular democracy’ helping to contribute to a shared vision of citizenship (the separation of faith and state, so faiths exert no undue influence on policies and there is a shared public space).

* Encourage religious understanding and harmony, respect for different systems of beliefs, and encourage an understanding and celebration of the variety of Muslim cultures, values and traditions which are present in British society.


bmsd will achieve this by:

* Facilitating discourse and raising awareness of democracy particularly ‘secular democracy’ and its benefits.

* Facilitating broad and enlightened theological discourses, to enable British Muslims and the wider public to be better informed about the Islamic faith.

* Raising awareness of religious influence on UK domestic and foreign policies, particularly those which may lead to undue effect on civil liberties.

* Addressing Islamophobia and prejudice against Muslims and Muslim communities.

* Working with UK and global Muslim and other organisations, opposing radicalism and intolerant beliefs.

* Ensuring that politicians and community leaders encourage and practise transparency and ensure legitimate voting practices are followed.

* Engaging with marginalised Muslim communities, helping to identify root causes of deprivation and social exclusion, and help work towards a solution.

* Providing a lively and interesting social/educational programme which showcases the variety of Muslim histories, cultures, values and traditions in the UK today.

* Be responsive to the changing needs and pressures on succeeding generations of British Muslims and adjust and add to its programmes and projects accordingly.

Amen!
/Hat Tip to Real World Libertarian for this little nugget of pure gold.

Lamentations 3:31-32

More inspiring words from pastor Dennis over at not 1 lost:

Lam 3:31-32 (TNIV) FOR PEOPLE ARE NOT CAST OFF BY THE LORD FOREVER, Though he brings grief he will show compassion, SO GREAT IS HIS UNFAILING LOVE!

According to traditional theology “MOST PEOPLE” are cast off by the Lord forever…into a fire pit to burn for all eternity in indescribable pain and unending suffering; without mercy, without compassion. Oh yes, if you look at what traditional church doctrines and religions of the world teach are the qualifications for “ESCAPING HELL” (that’s really what they are trying to do – not trying to go to heaven) there will be few that will meet these religious rules. You say Oh no, it is easy, “all you have to do is believe” well that is true biblically. But I can most assuredly say that if you listen closely to the teachings of these religious institutions you will soon find that; really, they are not really teaching “just believe” and pray the “sinners prayer” or hail Marry or something. No, there are many things you must “do or not do” to get to heaven (out of hell) or prove that you are “really” saved. When you stop and think about it, (I have – a lot) most will not make the grade. Not to mentions that two thirds of mankind probably will not even hear these teachings, read a bible, go to a church or hear the name of Jesus Christ. Oh yeah, they chose that didn't they.

My bible teaches that “The Lord WILL NOT cast off people forever” the very “OPPOSIT” of the majority of church doctrines! My bible and your bible teach that God in his UNFAILING LOVE has planned from Genesis to Revelation, from the eternal past to the eternal future through the plan of the ages; to save every single one of his children and all of creation; He doesn't lose one thing – He cant, He’s GOD!

Amen!

Hey There Cthulhu

Here's a fun one:

I just can't stop laughing. Maniacally, of course!

Here Comes the Judge...

Judge Andrew Napolitano gave an excellent speech about liberty at the Tucson Tea Party:
Part 1


Part 2


Part 3


Nice job, Judge. And Happy Columbus day to a great Italian American.