I saw Pixar's latest film, and - as usual - it's good. It's got some genuinely funny moments, but I'd almost categorize it as a more "touching" movie, since a lot of the plot revolves around the main character's deceased wife and how he deals with the loss.

My only complaint - and it's a very minor one - is that the villain never seemed to have much in the way of motivation. He somehow went from hero and explorer to batshit psychopath, and there doesn't seem to be any real explanation for it. (I don't consider his scientific "disgrace" to be reason enough to become so paranoid and murderous; paranoid, perhaps, but not murderous.) Even so, that doesn't detract much from the movie since there are some really excellent and amusing scenes involving our main antagonist.

By the by, Dug is one of my new favorite characters EVER. That dog definitely got some of the best scenes and lines. He's just so lovably dumb, but he still displays enough of his own sort of intelligence and loyalty that one can't help but adore him. That goofy grin still cracks me up: "Oh, PLEASE, be my prisoner." Also, "SQUIRREL!"

Although the best line has to have been: "I was hiding under your porch, because I love you."

I am drinking coffee from a Diovan mug.

That is all.

After a major gas crisis, and after it's been pointed out TIME AND TIME AGAIN that there is a finite amount of fossil fuels (particularly coal and oil) and that we WILL eventually run out (not quite true - it will just become so cost-prohibitive and expensive to obtain at some point as to be LIKE we have run out), people are STILL fucking bitching about how hybrid-electric and the upcoming electric cars don't actually 'save money' compared to gas. Nevermind the whole hydrogen debate.

Goddamn, but people are fucking dumb.

The point is not necessarily to SAVE MONEY over gasoline - not yet. The point is to find a feasible means of individual transport that is less reliant on fossil fuels (it will still, of course, require some fossil fuels to produce the electricity for the foreseeable future). Cost-effectiveness will come EVENTUALLY. But to have large car companies invest the sort of effort into improving electric car efficiency, they have to have their foot in the door. Manufacturers are NOT going to invest a lot of research and development dollars in making a more efficient product that they are not certain the people will BUY. Once there is some clear demand for electric cars (not just people talking about them, I mean a significant number of cars actually SELLING), THEN they have some incentive to refine the technology.

Imagine, for a moment, the sort of crap that first surrounded gas engines - same thing. People complained that horses were cheaper, they had prohibitive measures against automobiles near towns (lighting a flare at every intersection and waiting 10 minutes before crossing, etc.), blah blah blah. It took Henry Ford to make the automobile popular (one of his almost accidentally good deeds, but the man was a bit of a fascist nut and never benefited others if without benefitting himself first) by making his Model T not only fairly inexpensive (for the time), but then (and this really is a bit of business genius) paying his employees enough to BUY ONE.

I make that example to make this point: the early gas engines were SHIT for efficiency compared to the ones today. Thing is, once people were buying cars (and once the gas-guzzler market collapsed) there was some impetus to make the engines BETTER. If people has hemmed and hawed until gas engines, and thus automobiles, attained some 'ideal' efficiency, we'd have a market for designer horsewhips, and 'exhaust' would be a different issue (figuratively and literally) altogether. Basically, I wish people would quit their bitching about cost and do more to encourage these new technologies so that the large companies that pretty much control the mainstream flow of technology (no small startup makes a major innovation without being bought up!) will have some good reason to improve it.

We'll never HAVE the improved, efficient second- and third-generation electric cars if small-minded and short-sighted asshats don't let the damn FIRST generation out.

I finally got a cheap hip flask...

...and filled it with Pomegranate liquer.

I'M STRAIGHT OKAY I SWEAR.

Incidentally, I don't COMPLETELY suck at this game (although at times it seems like a race to the bottom between me and the AI). Anyone interested can find me on XBox Live as 'ArinWestron'.

I've been asked a few times (and once, somewhat embarrassingly - albeit in hushed tones - in public) whether or not I would identify as a 'furry'. Back in heady early days of the fandom, when porn was something you had to really SEARCH for, I might have said yes. Now that, in the eyes of the world at large, 'furry' is viewed as more-or-less synonymous with bestiality, pedophilia, and unsavory fetishism at large, one would be hard-pressed to get an affirmative from me without employing bamboo shards under my fingernails - and then only maybe.

This is not to say that I do not ENJOY porn and certain fetishes; one look at my choice of favorites on this site attests to that. So long as it hurts no-one else, and so long as there is no drive to convince others who do NOT share these interests that it is, in fact, perfectly okay and that any revulsion on their part confirms them as insensitive bigots, then I feel that all is right with the world. Sadly, there began a movement (in the bowels of the fandom, har) to perpetrate that very latter bit of my credo. Suddenly, it was not okay to say 'ew, gross' when confronted with the latest multilimbed hermaphroditic dick-nippled slimebeast engaged in anal vore (to say nothing of what one said when they finally got to the ARTWORK - again, HAR). As a counterpoint, imagine the BDSM scene, which was until recently one of those ultimate taboos: if you encountered something that you did not like, for the most part, you could say as much, opt out, and those involved who DID enjoy that sort of thing would generally bear you no ill-will. That's why BDSM is more accepted now, methinks, and I renew my vow daily to smash the face of whoever it was who coined the term 'fursecution.'

Not a FAIR comparison between BDSM and furry, I know; at the core, BDSM is about sex and furry is a fandom akin to, say, Star Trek or Final Fantasy or Battlestar Galactica. But furry has become PERCEIVED as about sex, and so might need to comport itself as such - at least for a while - if it wants to gain any credibility back whatever. And while there is assuredly porn contained within all fandoms, IT IS NOT ALLOWED INTO THE FOREFRONT. Do some digging and one can find porn of BSG (original OR new, I'm sure), Final Fantasy, and Star Trek, yes. But that is the point: one has to DIG a bit, to seek it out. Throw a brick at any furry convention (often an appealing prospect, I know), and odds are good that it will wind up as an abrupt and impromptu paperweight for hardcore porn.

Websites such as this one, by their nature as a depot of artwork are - by their nature - allowed and expected to have porn. Many fandom sites, I'm sure, have discreet little 'adults only' sections as well, and others surely exist exclusively as receptacles for fandom porn. But again, one needs to go looking. And, more importantly, those who DO go looking do not announce it to the world nor do they expect that world, when they are caught at it, to enjoy it just as much.

So, while I know that it is too late to make a 'long story short,' I will at least summarize. I won't admit to being 'furry,' because the meaning for that label has changed - and not for the better. Those individuals who harass those who do not like the same fetishes, etc., as they do need their heads battered against nearby walls until they learn to respect the fact that others MIGHT just view a propensity towards, say, 'taurs as a bit odd, and that this is ENTIRELY OKAY. I, for example, while being 'gay for furry,' or at least 'bi for furry,' do not find human males in the least bit appealing, although I appreciate the fact that there is a subset of the population (straight/bi women, gay/bi men) who DO. In fact, my prospects for sex rest entirely on the shoulders of a significant portion of that subset! (Straight/bi women, for anyone not paying attention.)

So let's all of us get our heads out of our asses (unless that's your thing, I guess) and stop acting like the world is out to get 'furries' because they don't all get off on furry porn.

Your Guy Side

[X] You love hoodies.
[X] You love jeans.
[ ] Dogs are better than cats. (I like both.)
[X] It's hilarious when people get hurt. (Depends. Getting purposefully hurt by others isn't funny, but by accident without serious injury or through their own stupidity = LOL.)
[X] You've played with/against boys on a team.
[ ] Shopping is torture.
[ ] Sad movies suck.
[X] You own an X-Box.
[X] Played with Hotwheels cars as a kid.
[X] At some point in time you wanted to be a firefighter.
[X] You own a DS, PS2 or Sega.
[ ] You used to be obsessed with Power Rangers.
[ ] You watch sports on TV.
[ ] Gory movies are cool.
[X] You go to your dad for advice.
[ ] You own like a trillion baseball caps.
[ ] You like going to football games.
[X] You used to/do collect baseball cards.
[ ] Baggy pants are cool to wear. (Not really, but the current trend for guys to wear painted-on jeans is even more disgusting.)
[ ] It's kinda weird to have sleepovers with a bunch of people.
[X] Green, black, red, blue, or silver are one of your favorite colors.
[X] You love to go crazy and not care what people think.
[ ] Sports are fun.
[X] Talk with food in your mouth. (Occasionally, to my eternal shame.)

Total = 13

Your Girl Side

[ ] You wear lip gloss.
[X] You love to shop.
[ ] You wear eyeliner.
[X] You have some of the same shirts in different colors.
[ ] You wear the color pink.
[ ] Go to your mom for advice.
[ ] You consider cheerleading a sport.
[ ] You hate wearing the color black.
[X] You like hanging out at the mall.
[ ] You like getting manicures and/or pedicures.
[X] You like wearing jewelry. (Mainly the odd ring and occasional necklace/pendant.)
[ ] Skirts are a big part of your wardrobe.
[ ] Shopping is one of your favorite hobbies.
[ ] You don't like the movie Star Wars.
[ ] You are/were in cheerleading, gymnastics or dance.
[X] It takes you around 1 hour to shower, get dressed,/ and put on make-up and accessories. (Not usually, but it's been known to happen.)
[ ] You smile a lot more than you should.
[X] You have more than 10 pairs of shoes.
[X] You care about what you look like.
[ ] You like wearing dresses when you can.
[X] You like wearing body spray/perfume/cologne.
[X] Used to play with dolls as little kid.
[ ] Like putting make-up on someone else for the joy of it.
[ ] Like taking pictures of yourself with your cell phone/camera when you're bored.

Total = 9

13-9. Close game, but eh. I pretty much just do what I enjoy, without a lot of regard for whether it's considering more a 'guy' or 'girl' thing. And hey, some women really dig a guy who can cook up a decent creme brulee.

Since I was blocked from this person's journal (because they TOTALLY didn't care, and I had not 'gotten to them' AT ALL), I figured I'd post the response I would have left had I been able. If MinnieShoof finds their way to this, and feels the need to comment, they will not find themselves blocked. I actually don't mind debate, and when I state that I do not take things so personally I really mean it.

Anyhow, the intended post as follows:

Actually, this is the most intelligible response you've made so far. You explained your reasoning, on balance, moreso than you simply argued along the lines of 'I'm right and you're a jerk.'

To be entirely fair, I *do* try to help correct grammar, diction, etc., but I also try (usually - not, granted, so much this time) not to be a dick about it. I don't see any issue with trying to raise the bar, as it were - and certainly not when certain words are being BLACKLISTED by English language experts because of their rampant over- and inappropriate use. I did formerly keep out of such things, but since it has only appeared to get worse over the years I chose to be, if not always part of the solution, at least not part of the problem (via inactivity). Claiming both that I suffer from - to paraphrase - extreme arrogance and "happy optimism" are (while not entirely contradictory) at least at odds. And I would hardly call listing official definitions an outside source in a argument primarily over semantics.

Anyway, my personal lexicon still balks at the term 'incorrect fact'; I tend to leave it at 'incorrect'.

As for the attack on my character, intelligence, etc., you do not know me outside of the text I have put down on this site. Unless someone mentions their job, work, and so on, we have no idea as to their true level of accomplishment. For all you know, I might be a graduate student of particle physics, specializing in theories on muon neutrinos, a professor of biochemistry at a major university, a medical doctor, or even some miscellaneous Ph.D.

For as much, too, as you claim I have not 'gotten to you,' and such - I promise - was not exactly my end goal, blocking me (if this has indeed already been done; I will know once I hit 'post') and stating that "reading you people makes me sick" does not support this assertion. I don't mind one iota that you dislike me, rather than the argument. This is not because I don't care, or even due to lack of respect. Simply put, it DOES NOT MATTER that you don't like me, because that is not a requisite of any debate or argument. While mutual respect is certainly NICE in any debate, it is not a given. You don't even have to agree or change your mind, as neither of these is required by argument or debate, either.

Anyway, while I'd like to address each point you make, I'd rather not waste any more time should your 'block' be in place. Although I happily admit that your chosen list of insults was, this time, far better (if a bit derivative).

For anyone curious enough, this is the series to which the above is my reply.

http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/565371/

I don't expect many - or any - to really care. I just had a personal need to make certain that the debate/argument isn't ended by the arbitrary decision of another to simply stop and to prevent any rebuttal. That struck me as a *little* childish: to have the 'last word,' as it were, and block, rather than simply block. The latter at least gives the illusion that the argument might have been settled, if not in that forum then at least privately. Even so, I suppose SOME kudos is in order for publicly stating that they were blocking me.

Still, I can't complain overmuch; I was about ready to call it quits myself, honestly, due to boredom with the topic. The above would have been MY final word, most likely.

The 'threat' to consider continuation of the argument as harassment is a similar, somewhat childish thing to claim. While I might certainly agree that SOME such arguments might be considered harassment, ones that involve citation, quotation, and multiple formatted paragraphs (rather than a few lines of mostly four-letter words) do not routinely make that cut.

If you build a man a fire then he's warm for a day, but set a man ON fire and he's warm for the rest of his life.

It's not the size of the wave OR the motion of the ocean; it's how high your house is compared to both.

Optimists always say that the cup is half full. Notice that they never specify of what.

When life gives you lemons, choke on them and die. Stupid lemon eater.

How likely is it that scientific websites dealing with the giant hadron collider have received 1000% as many hits due to dyslexic porn addicts?

All food tastes, to some extent, of tongue.

If it's a trap(!), why do so many people seem to fall into it? Or onto it.

Bouncing balls from a vending machine on concrete: great fun. Bouncing balls from a manfriend on concrete: tragedy (or kinky).

You cannot win if you do not play. You cannot lose what you do not have. But if you bet everything when you already have a bunch of cool shit, you better hope like hell you win.

The only great tragedy of life is that it ends.

I never really thought I'd get anything other than mediocre coffee from Starbucks, although they did drastically improve after the "retraining" several months ago. Even then, their house blends were never something I really went for, even for my own personal use at home.

HOWEVER!

Someone gifted me with a bag of their Caffe Verona blend and, because I hate to waste coffee, I brewed it up in my press. IT WAS REALLY GOOD. And just so we're all clear, here, I drink the rough equivalent of somewhere between 2-4 "normal" cups of coffee in every one of my cups (God how I love the coffee press). I think that certain COLUMBIAN coffees are "smooth, but a little too bland." Just so you know where I'm coming from.

So yes. Starbucks does actually have some coffee that I would buy for home use.

That is all. Carry on.

Okay, so it is definitely a new story. If you haven't played the last three, you can jump right into this one.

Ten minutes into the game, and it's clear that I made a good choice in buying it. The Prince is a delightful smartass. To wit:

Elika: Whay ARE you helping me anyway? Is it because...that look. I know that looks.

Prince: Look. You're cute, but you're not 'stop a dark god' cute.

Elika: And what if my father had asked for your help?

Prince: He's not that cute, either.

I'm sure those aren't the EXACT lines, but they're close. I had to laugh at that. I like it when you can tell a lot about a character just based on what they say and how they say it. And in the first few minutes, no less!

I've been developing different styles of homebrew, and came up with the greatest set of names EVAR. On the plus, the beer so far has been pretty good too!

The hardest part has been getting the right labels for it. I've got a few ideas, but so far haven't heard anything back from the few people I've approached. So if you actually read these things that I post, and if you think you've got it in you, feel free to design some label artwork! I do propose some sort of compensation, and without being too specific let's just say that while one cannot legally sell homebrew, sending it along to someone for 'taste-testing' is A-OK.

The main thing I really want are labels for the main types I already have recipes for and/or are developing right now. As you might have guessed from the title, the 'brand' is Zombeer, and human zombies are requisite. Here's what I have I have in the immediate pipeline, although I do have other types already named.

Zombeer - the 'basic' line. Aiming to have a nice, hoppy (possibly oatmeal) stout with a moderate amount of residual malt sweetness. Probably along the lines of an Imperial Stout like Old Engine Oil or Mephistopheles. Still developing the recipe, but aiming for 7-10% ABV. As for label, a nice menacing group of zombies is really all that's needed. Or a zombie bartender pouring a beer and totally missing the glass, for the more whimsical. The latter, on reflection, is probably the better idea.

Zombeer: Raisin' the Dead - pale ale made with raisins (of course), with a bit of cinnamon and cardamom dropped in for a little hint of extra refreshment. Can't really tell they're there until pointed out. Very nice, with just a touch of hop. Recipe essentially finalized at 4.5% ABV. Need a label with a zombie clawing its way out from under a gravestone, ideally with an occult book of some sort in front. Dribbly candles optional.

Zombeer: Honey..? - hybrid 'mead' ale, to have about half of the malt replaced with honey. Probably something of an amber style, once I get to it, so that the malt character isn't overpowered. Light on hop flavor and bitterness, too, for the same reason. Likely to have 6-8% ABV if all goes well. This label aims to be my FAVORITE. A man in the distance down a hallway, mouth to hand and clearly calling out. Facing us, around the corner: a recently turned female zombie. Possibly, she is next to a side table on which is a photo of her living self and the man.

As I said, I have other styles in the works, but none of them have really reached the 'development' phase yet.

Anyone named Alvin. They're usually cocks.

Tufted mice. They're a bunch of tits.

Norwegian guys named Ars. They're completely backwards.

Guys named Marco in Polo shorts. Obviously.

Girls named Sherry. They're sweet, but they ask too many questions and require high proof.

People who play lyres. They're all two-faced.

Anyone who's low-key. They keep trying to stab me with mistletoe.

People who lisp and complain loudly about being sore from the gym, like they're some sort of Norse god.

More as I think of them.

[01] Do you have the guts to answer these questions and re-post as The Controversial Survey?

Green. Wait, I mean blue!

[02] Would you do meth if it was legalized, and become a strung-out, withered husk of a man/woman you are now?

No chance of that. I know how meth works, what it does, and what it causes. I'd sooner freebase sewage, and keep my teeth. It's one of the few drugs I'd actively OPPOSE legalizing.

[03] Abortion: for or against it?

It's a necessarily loaded question. On one hand, it's not my body - so who am I to dictate what's done or not done to it? On the other, we do need clearer guidelines as to when it's okay and when it isn't. I don't buy the whole 'ensoulment'/damnation/lost potential schtick, or even that God will cry, but I do believe that PURPOSEFULLY ending a life before it's begun (hell, spontaneous abortions happen all the time; and probably 2 of every 3 potential pregnancies terminates itself without anyone the wiser) is something deserving of grave consideration.

When it's a matter of a ball of cells, no problem. Still looks pretty much like a chicken embryo, no problem. Starts looking undeniably human, hm. However, by the time someone who wasn't expecting to be pregnant figures it out, it may be to- or past this stage. That's a tougher nut to crack, and it's why I revile any pharmacist who fails to provide the so-called 'morning after' pill so that we can avoid this conundrum more often. It's really just a bigger version of standard over-the-counter birth control pills, meant to pack enough hormonal punch to make the uterus - briefly - a place that really does not want a fertilized egg, should one happen by.

I won't even touch the subject of partial-birth abortions, which are so barbaric even most pro-choice proponents won't support them. Don't get me wrong: if it's a life-and-death situation, where the mother is going to die, then DO IT - but not otherwise. By the time you start talking partial-birth abortion, you should have already bought baby clothes and had the nursery painted. Better, at that point, to do an open adoption. Those are catching on, and allow a birth mother to not only pick the couple her baby winds up with, but allow her to stay active in the child's life, if she wants to.

Anyway, all-in-all I'm pro-choice...but I disagree with partial-birth abortions and I'm a proponent of open adoptions.

[04] Do you think the world would fail with a female president?

Certainly no further than it's fallen with male presidents.

Come on, people! We're pretty much the only developed nation who HASN'T had a female president yet. INDIA has a female president. Fucking HAITI and LIBERIA have had female presidents!

[05] Do you believe in the death penalty?

Another loaded question, by its nature. To keep it brief, I think we ought to try rehabilitation more. Prisons currently just keep people in holding patterns: they don't really have to learn any new skills that will help them once they're back in society at large. Hell, if anything they learn how to be better criminals - and possibly how to be more cold and brutal - while in prison. Rehabilitation is harder and robs us of that feeling of 'getting even' we love so much (myself included), but it would be better in the long run.

Still, there are DEFINITELY people who cannot be rehabilitated. Sociopaths - think Richard Speck, for instance - have no conscience, no guilt, no desire to change, and they want to keep causing harm. Those people deserve to be put to death: not to punish them, but to protect the rest of us.

[06] Do you wish marijuana would be legalized already?

I personally hate the stuff (the smell of it is - to me - revolting), but I think it's less harmful (or equally so) than alcohol or cigarettes. It's also a fantastic drug to help control pain and enhance appetite, particularly in certain types of cancer. Try to get someone to eat after a round of chemo, and you'll see why the munchies can be helpful.

Sure, they've tried to use derivative compounds to achieve the same effect, but it hasn't worked. There's something about the whole plant that we can't yet synthesize to good effect. So since it's useful and harmless, I'm all for people being allowed to use it just as I can drink (I do) and smoke (I don't) if I choose.

But I do think cigarettes should be illegal, and tobacco executives dragged through the streets and beaten.

[07] Are you for or against premarital sex?

Oh, I'm definitely for it. Placing too big an onus on sex is really unhealthy. We obsess more over something when it's prohibited, and a culture of denial and misinformation leads to terribly unsafe practices. Perversely, when (premarital) sex is most strongly forbidden the STD and pregnancy rates GO UP. The kids still have sex - they just don't know how to do it safely. Add a certain degree of desperation to that, and risk-taking sexual behaviors go up even more. Plus, once those kids have fucked each other blind, AND THEY HAVEN'T ACTUALLY GONE BLIND, the credibility of adults has just been shot - now they may not trust any information from adults, even if it's correct!

Take the pressure off sex, make it not such a big deal, and I think a lot of our self-made problems will fade.

[08] Do you believe in God?

Lots of loaded questions, here. I could write a book on this subject if I were so inclined, and a shit-ton of other people have already. Suffice to say, I believe that if there is a God, then They are so much more advanced than we are that They would have a completely alien mindset. We cannot, by definition, understand God, and there is no guarantee that God - if one exists - could (or would want to) understand us. How many of us try to understand ants, or even try to avoid stepping on them?

[09] Do you think same sex marriage should be legalized?

Loaded! This depends on if you mean a state marriage or religious marriage. States have to follow the Constitution, and THAT pesky little bit of parchment contains the Fourteenth Amendment, providing that

"No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."

Also, that whole "Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness' bit in the Declaration? There's a reason they picked that order. So long as you're not depriving anyone of their Life, you can have whatever Liberty you can stand in your Pursuit of Happiness. If marrying someone of the same gender and/or sex as you makes you happy, then you should be allowed to do so by the states!

HOWEVER. We exist (supposedly) with the ideal of separation of Church and State. The government doesn't tell religion what to do, and vice-versa. IDEALLY. That does still mean, however, that there is nothing that requires Catholics, Christians, Baptists, Jews, Muslims, Mormons, Hare Krishnas, OR ANY OTHER RELIGION to approve of or condone same-sex marriages. That being said, they have to TOLERATE it (no impinging on your Life or Liberty, right?)...but they do not have to like it.

[10] Do you think it's wrong that so many Hispanics are illegally moving to the USA?

This is a hard one to answer. The issue people (read: neoconservatives) like to dig out now is crime. When someone comes into the USA illegally and commits crimes, that's an issue, but it has nothing or little to do with country of origin. I'd have to say that, on balance, most illegal Hispanic immigrants are doing wrong (it IS against the law, after all) for the right reasons: to try and earn money - and provide a better life - for their families that they could not earn back home.

If anything, what is wrong is the amnesty that occurred several years ago. Illegal immigrants that came forward and were registered during that time were fast-tracked to citizenship, assuming no criminal record was uncovered. This was basically spitting in the face of every Hispanic immigrant who had done all of the mind-numbing paperwork and shuffled through the bureaucracy...and who were given no special dispensation after having done everything within the law.

[11] A twelve year old girl has a baby, should she keep it?

That's a decision to be made by the girl and her family, technically. However, at the risk of sounding like MORE of a snob, I'd posit that any family whose twelve-year-old gets pregnant (barring rape) has already indicated itself as unfit to parent.

[12] Should the alcohol age be lowered to eighteen?

Yes. If you can join the military (or be drafted) and get shot at, you should also be allowed to drink. I honestly don't see why this doesn't make sense to others.

[13] Should the war in Iraq be called off?

Tricky question, this. Saddam needed to be removed, no question. He was - along with his sadistic sons - brutalizing his people and anyone else within range who couldn't readily fight back. On the other hand, we went in under blatantly false pretenses. We hadn't yet secured Afghanistan, and spreading our military needlessly thin to settle a Bush family grudge mach was excessively damaging to our nation's reputation. The fact is, we should NOT have gone in when we did.

However, leaving is not a simple matter, either. Our credit in Iraq was already low after Desert Storm. The Iraqis felt like we'd come in, done some damage (to civilians as well), cowed Saddam SLIGHTLY, then booked and left them again without recourse. Right now, they're hesitant to ally with American troops against the insurgents because of that - because if we leave after they pick sides, they're left defenseless with a lot of angry people with guns who they just snubbed. So they're waiting for the proverbial other shoe. And if we DID leave, we'd have to do so with the expectation that we could never go back; the Iraqi people would never trust us to help them again.

[14] Assisted suicide is illegal: do you agree?

Depends. In cases where there's really nothing more to be done - medical intervention is futile and the only guarantees are more pain - then I think being able to choose to get one's affairs in order and to decide to go out as comfortably as possible would be very empowering and far more peaceful.

But then you got a jackass named Kevorkian who showed the potential dark side of assisted suicide. He "helped" people die who were not terminally ill, or in pain - at least, nothing that couldn't be alleviated. He DID kill people who were depressed and might have improved with medication...but we can't know that, because they're dead. In fact, Dr. Kevorkian was a typical doctor-type serial killer; any physician who paid attention to the Hippocratic Oath or had a scrap of ethics would not help a depressed but otherwise healthy individual (or even someone with something else that was treatable) to kill themselves. He used the "dying with dignity" tagline as his excuse for his murders.

If we do legalize assisted suicide, the decision will likely need to require a panel of physicians to make a decision. I'd want to see at least one Phychiatrist and one Oncologist of every such panel, personally.

[15] Do you believe in spanking your children?

Depends on the child, I suppose. I'd rather not, but if all else fails... At the very least, a child needs to be told WHY they were spanked, if spanked they were. Otherwise you can't expect them to learn any sort of lesson.

[16] Would you burn an American flag for a million dollars?

Burn a symbol of a country whose laws specifically protect the right to burn symbols of the country? Cash or check, bitch?

[17] Who do you think would make a better president? McCain or Obama?

OBAMA. Jesus Christ, has anyone been WATCHING McCain? He looked like a senile old man during the debates: he seemed lost, and I half expected him to start pissing in a corner. Add to that the fact that he KEPT ON pointing out how he was "never called Miss Congeniality" as if he were disappointed (but would certainly show them all, after the surgery). He's batshit, and the fact that his own campaign manager has stated that "[McCain] doesn't necessarily speak for the campaign" (or close to that) should have been an OSHI- moment for the nation.

[18] Are you afraid others will judge you from reading some of your answers?

Afraid? No.

Certain and terrified? Yes.

[19] The President has been kidnapped by NINJAS! Are you a bad enough dude to rescue the President??

Considering that the current administration is run by PIRATES, one might say the battle was foretold by destiny. I can't interfere with DESTINY.

1. Open your music library.
2. Put it on shuffle.
3. Press play.
4. For every question, type the song that's playing.
5. When you go to a new question, press the next button.
6. Don't lie and try to pretend you're cool.
7. ???
8. PROFIT!

Songs:

Opening Credits: Mechanicalcobrena - Project Majestic Mix (FFIV Remix)

Waking Up: Dreaming - BT

First Day At School: Remind Me - Röyksopp

Falling In Love: Big O! (TV Size) - The Big O Original Score (THE CARTOON I SWEAR)

Fight Song: Immune - Godsmack

Breaking Up: Vamo' alla Flamenco - The Black Mages (FFIX Rock, by original composer's band)

Prom: Brat - Green Day

Life's OK: H.T. (Destroying Angel Mix) - Trigun: The 2nd Donut

Mental Breakdown: Permanent Vacation - Trigun: The 1st Donuts

Driving: What is Rock - Blue Man Group

Flashback: A Change of Seasons - Dream Theater

Getting Back Together: Smoke on the Water - Deep Purple

Wedding: Freak of the Week - Marvelous 3

Birth of Child: Sweet Home Alabama - Rockapella (those dudes from the Carmen Sandiego game show!)

Final Battle: Within the Giant (Remix) - KFSS Studios (FFIV Remix)

Death Scene: Greensleeves - Mannheim Steamroller

Funeral Song: Under Martial Law - FFVI OST

End Credits: Sniper - Hybrid


Well, I got through that without looking like TOO much of a goof. Although the Wedding/Birth combo of Freak of the Week and Sweet Home Alabama was humorously appropriate, if embarrassing.

Incidentally, Big O! showing up for Falling in Love made me LOL. Har.

I saw a few memes I actually liked, for once. I decided to try them out.

ALL OF THEM.

Okay, two.