Ginger_Warrior

White seems to be more offensively orientated, whereas Black is more stall-ish seems to be the general consensus. The normal DS version is the one we've all been talking about for the last four weeks--the 3DS wasn't out when B/W was released. The 3D version was only released in the US and Canada today, and it's only been in the EU for two days. 3DS games are NOT compatible with normal DS models, but vica versa works. DS games will play on 3DS, like how the GC can't play Wii games, but the Wii can play GC games.

Precisely. I'm not too concerned about whether God does or doesn't exist, I'm more bothered by the process through which people arrive at their own belief. In my eyes, it's fine for someone to state they don't believe in anything that has no evidence, and then say there is no conclusive evidence that God exists, hence they're atheist. The problem is, some people take it further and say there is categorically no God based on no evidence either. It isn't consistent. People try and dress that up by saying, "Burden of proof should go to religious people." That's a cop-out in my eyes. That just says to me neither side has any conclusive evidence.

People have done the same for causes that have nothing to do with religion. The women's suffragete movement, or black civil rights for example. It's just silly to assume that because someone is willing to die for something, that it must be part of 'something greater' that humans are incapable of understanding by their volition. There are many people in America who would defend freedom of speech with their lives if called upon, not necessarily because of religion, but because freedom of self-expression is so valued in American culture. I wasn't claiming that for someone to sacrifice themselves they needed religious reasons, I was responding to a claim saying people that died in name of their religion didn't have any significance. I'm not in any way claiming that people can only sacrifice themselves for religious reasons. Fair enough, I misinterpreted what was meant. I thought you meant that religious believers were privy to some information that was worth dying for, that non-believers were incapable of understanding because they weren't religious. The same accusation would have worked the other way; atheists who instantly dismiss believers as irrational simply because they happen to believe in something they personally don't are just as silly.

People have done the same for causes that have nothing to do with religion. The women's suffragete movement, or black civil rights for example. It's just silly to assume that because someone is willing to die for something, that it must be part of 'something greater' that humans are incapable of understanding by their volition. There are many people in America who would defend freedom of speech with their lives if called upon, not necessarily because of religion, but because freedom of self-expression is so valued in American culture.

Seems quite ironic for an American trailer to say that really, considering most of the British Empire was actually sold off to (you guessed it) the US to pay for the Second World War. Don't recall the Greeks ever being the victim of a trade imbalance during a global financial recession either, though my studies on Greece only ever extended to public health and Hippocrates. I'm lead to believe it was warring city states and inherent instability that killed the Greeks, and overexpansion that killed the Roman Empire. So really, America would be the first 'empire' to fall at the hands of government spending, not the fourth, from my perspective at least. (Sidenote: By the way, if Americans think your government spends a lot of money by GDP compared to most other countries then... this debate ends right here) I remember that trailer being shown as part of a feature on modern Chinese students' attitudes towards the US and their own country's place in the world on Newsnight (UK, not the US version). I'm trying to find a video but if I recall correctly only one out of five of them was openly extrovert about being proud of that trailer--they were more focused on what students around the world care about, namely careers. A few were even considering looking for employment in America. The masses of Chinese students laughing at the US doesn't seem to exist in reality, but as appeal to fear fallacies go, it's a pretty good one. Personally, I think the US 'empire' will fall in the future, but as an inherent flaw of capitalism (in that for capitalism to work, there must be capitalisation in order to acquire more capital for generating profit, and eventually there won't be anything left to capitalise), but China will be just as much a victim of that as anyone, considering the Western capitalist world essentially buys all their products, save for a few dodgy regimes buying small arms in sub-Saharan Africa.

No, because the chances are people were so bored during that hour, that they jumped into their gas-guzzling cars and [bleep]ed up the environment some other way whilst deluding themselves into thinking they were "doin it rite".

If you mean the comments I made on the graphics, I take it back with hindsight. OK, sure--it's not Final Fantasy, but the graphics do justice to the game, which itself is very good. The full 3D cutscene on top of the tower took my breath away actually, without giving away spoilers. I passed on HGSS, so I can't comment there.

The Sudanese authorities killed their own people in what the Bush administration described as 'genocide' for 22 years in a civil war, and British intervention was minimal at best throughout that period, during Thatcher, Major and Blair parliaments. There's a presumed axiom in this debate that we should stop mad, evil dictators whereever they appear. Two questions: 1) Why should we spend our money solving other people's problems when people die unnecessarily on our own doorsteps? 2) Why haven't we followed this logic through to countries whose economic output has no interest to us? "'Coz it makes us feel better about ourselves" isn't a foreign policy.

I half agree with this, in that it's wrong for any parent to raise their child in a strict beliefs system instead of trusting that their children will find whatever they personally believe to be the truth anyway. However, in my room there is a framed photo collection of my birth, including a photo from a local newpaper of my mother holding me in her arms at a pro-choice rally against her then-MP, an anti-abortion campaigner. I also ended up growing up to believe in pro-choice, but I can't say it was ever beaten in to me that if I believed abortion was wrong, I would be punished for believing this. I may not have been doctrinated, but I passively inherited the values my parents believed in anyway. The point I'm making is: Does it really matter how strict parents are about their children's values and belief system when, even if they weren't strict, they'd probably end up believing the same things anyway? So long as we're not talking about abuse, I don't see much of a problem. Parents have different ways of doing things. So long as they eventually teach their child about the value of hard work, respect for others and a tolerance for diversity, does it really matter if they delude themselves into thinking their two-week old child has a sophisticated enough understanding of the Bible to call themselves Christian?

I could never be assed putting them in and out again. Laziness. How do people hunt Ditto on this version? Bulbapedia seems to imply if your lead is higher than 56 but lower than 63 you can force Ditto to appear by repel. Do people still use Repeat balls with Magikarp transforming for a guarenteed snag or is there some other method now?

Veekun had an IV checker that you could usually use to figure out all IVs within ten Rare Candies. Unfortunately, the site has fallen on hard times. Anyone know of other IV checkers online? Given how large the fanbase for Pokemon is I can't imagine Veekun was the only one. That said, they also had an egg move breeding chain tool and I've been unable to find a replacement for that. EDIT: Yeah, didn't need to look far: Serebii's IV calculator. If it doesn't work it out immediately, save, feed it as many Rare Candies as possible, enter the stats and reset. Don't level up via battling or EVs will interfere.

An easier question is this: Would we be involved if there was no oil, and if British interests in the Middle East over the years hadn't created this mess in the first place? Dictators kill their own people everyday. It's an unfortunate, but very tangible political reality of the world we live in. I don't see anyone saying we should get involved in those countries though. If this conflict is an attempt to prove that British interests can extend beyond those countries which provide us with oil, and that our efforts are an altruistic attempt at improving the quality of life and self-expression of oppressed citizens around the world, it's the wrong conflict to pick on. I support the idea of a no-fly zone, but is this seriously the precedent we are going to set? When the next Arab country erupts into political violence, and starts asking the BBC for help, do we unconditionally help them too? Say the rebels do win, and the resulting government proves unpopular and ineffective, resulting in further political unrest. Do we remain involved there as well?

To an extent there's cross party support, in that mad dictators should be stopped from killing their own people (no [cabbage] Sherlock?). You really shouldn't attempt to use that as a way of avoiding the initial embarrassment Cameron found himself in. Stepping in front of TV cameras saying the man you sold arms to only a few months ago should step down, seeking international support for a no-fly zone saying you have US support when you actually didn't at the time, and then saying the whole deal isn't about regime change whilst your foreign minister says 'Gaddafi must go'. I'm struggling to see any consistent foreign policy at all there, except "stop mass genocide" which is a trite and, frankly, obvious statement. Say what you like about the Iraq war. I was one of the two million who marched against it, but at least it was consistent with US and British policy of interventionism at the time. As it is, the Saudi authorities also butchered their own people last week. No one on either side of this country's political spectrum batted an eye lid. I cannot for the life of me fathom why.

You don't sign anything that says, "We will endeavour to remove cheats from the game in return for your hard earned cash". It's at Jagex's descretion. Jesus, Microsoft would be in trouble in this were true given all the unfair glitching/cheating that happens on XBL.

People who label certain genres of music as "emo". Since when the hell was music anything other than an emotional experience? Beethoven. Apparently best emo evar.

Thanks for the advice guys. I suppose with the low effort needed to complete the game I could just train eight or nine Pokemon. For now, Sunny Day Emboar compliments Chloro Sawsbuck pretty well. Might look at a Ninetales combo when I start training seriously.

Pikmin 2, good call. Gamecube controllers were still being made as of a year ago, but they don't feature a Nintendo logo any more so it must be an independent manufacturer who gained the rights off Nintendo. I believe they still go new on eBay. Got two for SSBB last year and they work fine, if anyone needs more controllers. I play GC games on the Wii from time to time. Rogue Leader/Strike, Tales of Symphonia, the Prime series. Wind Waker remains my second favourite Zelda game (behind Majora's Mask). Double Dash of course, but F-Zero trumps it because I once held a national record for one of the mission tracks. SSBM remains the favourite game in the Smash community. Colosseum gives me hope that something thicker than Battle Revolution is awaiting the Wii for Pokemon. Ahh... when the big games weren't ubiquitously FPSs and no-one cared about online stats or K/D spreads. The most competitive it got was a Melee game between friends and Mario Kart time trials over a dedicated Internet fansite. Them be the days. :shades:

Although as a proportion, Britain is more "white" than the US, there are still a number of children in our education system who are not white and may not even be technically British. The biggest ethnic group behind White British and White Other in this country is south Asian, in other words, Pakistani or Indian and most likely Muslim as well. It's no secret what the BNP makes of Islam, even its peaceful and purely spiritual intepretations, yet teachers are expected to teach and respond equally to children from a wide variety of backgrounds, including those who aren't British and aren't white. Why should a person who is incapable of doing their job properly because their own personal viewpoints prevent them using the emotional objectivity required, be paid a wage at the taxpayers expense in the name of 'Free Speech', when he can just as easily take up a job in the private sector (not necessarily teaching) where such judgements are at the employer's descretion? You make it sound like BNP members live in abstract poverty because local government forces them out of any and all careers. If that's the impression you have, lose it. If it isn't, reconsider your use of the word 'unfair'. Furthermore, the BNP has historically been involved with anti-Semitism and homophobia. Some would argue it still is. Shall we remove gay and Jewish teenagers from publicly-funded state classrooms for the convenience of individual teachers and the greater cause of 'Free Speech'?

Yeah, you're right. Early days. I guess it's down to feeling like the main story only lets me use about a quarter of what I actually know about Pokemon's mechanics. I don't even have my IV Dittos or any synchs ffs... at least Roggenrola was generous enough to give an Everstone. Any hints for assembling a bitpart team to complete the main game? I got Pignite, Boldore and Whirlepede, with Zebstrika and Gothita in Sweeper-ish roles (lack of second STAB type is killing though). Any Pokemon I've missed so far that I should invest in, or any on that list I should drop and never speak of again? I'm thinking of putting Vanillite in there as the sixth just to give some protection against Ground and Dragon types.

[hide=]1) On average, how many hours do you spend playing games per week? [ ] - 0-5 hours [ ] - 6-10 hours [ ] - 11-15 hours [ ] - 16-20 hours [*] - 21-25 hours [ ] - 26+ hours 2) At one time, how long would you continuously play a game that you are enjoying for? [ ] - Less than an hour [*] - 1-3 hours [ ] - 4-6 hours [ ] - 7-9 hours [ ] - 10+ hours 3) Which genre of game(s) takes up a majority of your gaming time? [ ] - MMO [ ] - FPS [ ] - Strategy [ ] - Simulation [ ] - Action Adventure [ ] - Roleplaying (Mixed bag, really - all of them) 4) In your opinion, which of these is the most important in creating a great gaming experience? [ ] - Gripping, well told Story [ ] - New and inventive game play mechanics [ ] - Graphics [*] - Soundtrack [ ] - Final reward (achievements, leaderboards etc..) [ ] - Social interaction (chat / play with friends etc..) 5) Which platform do you play most of your games on? [ ] - PC [ ] - Xbox 360 [ ] - PlayStation 3 [ ] - Nintendo Wii [*] - Handhelds (PSP, DS, Gameboy) [ ] - Other (please specify) Please only answer the questions below if you feel comfortable in doing so. 6) Gender? [*] - Male [ ] - Female 7) Age? [ ] - 10-15 [ ] - 16-20 [*] - 21-25 (21 yesterday... Anyway, this cake is great. It's so delicious and moist?) [ ] - 26-30 [ ] - 30+[/hide]

I'm probably about three weeks late on the discussion but... I've got four badges, on Route 6 and... still not really getting into this game (Black version). Graphics-wise I actually think it's worse than Platinum. The blocky avatars for your own Pokemon have returned, and their movement is so limited they may as well not have tried in the first place. To think this game is being released the same time as the PSP exists is a sobering reality of just how far behind Nintendo games are now when it comes to visuals, if not gameplay. As for the game itself, I just feel as though I'm doing the same thing as before. Raising mediocre Pokemon I've met on Routes 1-5, not really caring for IVs/EVs, movesets or natures and getting away with such pathetic laziness because the gym leaders, rivals and E4 are easy enough to allow it. Even if I wanted to take it seriously, I can't anyway without the Vs. Seeker which, for some reason beyond my comprehension, they took out after three out of four successful generations, presumably because they delusioned themselves into thinking we actually care about the main story rather than grinding Pokemon for online competition. The perenial bad guys wanting to steal Pokemon theme is so insipid by now that it's more of an annoyance than anything else. Of the characters I've met so far, I can think of only two who really have any depth: Bianca and the clerk at the Ferris Wheel. As I write this, I can't even remember the professor's name, let alone what she looks like (the fact she's female and wears a white coat is literally all I have in memory). Someone please tell me this gets better as the story is completed, and beyond.

Also: Important bit in red. It obviously requires raising or catching one male and one female of the species to know the desired moves anyway, but the baby will know those moves from Lv1, in which case you can evolve it there and then provided all four moves are accounted for (TMs for example). Sometimes, this is needed for breeding competitive Pokemon - which I don't bother doing these days since so many people PokeSav, AR and Smogon. Kind of ruins it when other people do your hours of work with a few clicks. Bored with Tackle? Lv1 Vaporeon with Take Down? It's possible: Lv43 ♀Eevee w/Take Down + Lv43 ♂ Eevee w/Take Down = Lv1 Eevee w/Take Down Lv1 Eevee w/Take Down → Lv1 Vaporeon w/Take Down.

I think it's actually a party offence for a Labour member to vote for anyone other than Labour without the party's explicit permission. That's just what I heard though, and it's not like anyone will ever know anyway unless you walk into your local Labour club and scream "I voted UKIP lol". I've never rebelled from the party, or so I wouldn't know I guess. There are many people in this country who will perhaps look sheepishly at the forthcoming Budget knowing they rebelled against Labour to vote Lib Dem. It's certainly not 'banned' to vote against a party. The current coalition government is testament to that.

I'd agree with this general viewpoint. As a Labour Party member, I wouldn't say Obama could represent my viewpoints adequately in an election. I'd actually describe the Democrats as being more like the Conservative (big C) Party than either the Lib Dems or Labour. What Americans constitute as 'left-wing' falls way short of the mark in the UK, and even further short in most of continental Europe. The idea that left-wing politics here would argue for something as tacit as the recent Healthcare Reform Bill in America is ludicrous. While Democrats may laud about it, it would be an embarassment for any Labour or Lib Dem leader to stand for this sorry excuse of a reform.

I'm sorry to hear that. I lost my own mother at 9 to pneumonia so I can somewhat relate to it. Your questions got me thinking about the usefulness of medicine at all. If death is an inevitability, why bother trying to keep patients alive, at huge expense to the public purse, for longer than Nature designed to keep them alive for in the first place? I think the OHCM says it best on page 6: This makes more sense to me. Ideally, everyone should die of old age, or of their own sane volition, not in a tragic car accident as your parents did. It is true that life in itself is not a reason for choosing to live, but neither is murder, or a random accident, or a suicidal depressive episode, or an easily treatable medical condition a proper reason for somebody to die. I believe the latter is what is meant by 'misordering of deaths'. To some degree, when a patient dies of old age, there's comfort in knowing nothing could be done and it was almost 'meant to happen'. Judging someone else's "right time to die" isn't what I or anyone else on Earth is here for. I just want to maintain their quality of life until either themselves, or Nature, makes that judgement for us.