Hamtaro

Really any kind of Rock going back from the 50s to today (not really fond of the generic/synthetic 80s stuff, though). Alternative Hard Rock would probably be my favorite sub-genre (Breaking Benjamin, Sick Puppies, Billy Talent, etc.). I listen to Metal as well (mostly Metallica and Machine Head). I also enjoy upbeat big-band jazz, such as Maynard Ferguson (who composed the original Rocky theme song). If I had to pick two favorite artists from each (completed) decade of Rock/Metal, it would probably be Breaking Benjamin & System of a Down (00s), Nirvana & Alice in Chains (90s), Metallica & Dio (80s), Pink Floyd & The Eagles (70s), Jimi Hendrix & The Doors (60s), and Chuck Berry & Elvis (50s). A Day to Remember and Hail the Villain are definitely bands to watch out for this decade, imo. I'll listen to pretty much anything from before the 80s and I avoid all genres ending in the letter "p" for their lack of natural (meaning without auto-tune/voice "correction") singing and real (meaning "non-computerized" and not just talking) instruments (which, you know, I always thought you needed at least one of to make music). That's not meant to be an insult to those genres, but I just don't have an interest in any of them :?.

I couldn't put down the 7th book when I originally read it, so one week to read it shouldn't be a problem :razz: Right now I'm reading SuperFreakonomics. It's the same concept as the first book, but just discusses new subjects. It's a pretty interesting read so far and I would recommend it to anyone who enjoyed the first one. Also, I just finished reading 1984. It strongly reminded me of The Giver and Fahrenheit 451 (so 1984 is probably where those authors drew their inspiration), but I was fascinated by the perspective Orwell offered of the future. I found it curious how some of it has come to fruition. CCTV (the cameras placed all over the UK to keep watch everywhere outside, all the time), texting/internet grammar (similar to Newspeak, where the language is seemingly shrinking and diminishing to a very basic/primitive vocabulary of innumerable acronyms and abbreviations), and Guantanamo Bay (reflective of the Ministry of Love where, instead of making martyrs, they try to have the prisoners denounce their radical beliefs and confess through torture of crimes they did and did not commit) all hold great resemblance to the book. 1984 may have come and gone, but it is definitely approaching.

Are those two parts of your statement related :huh: ? I am by chance actually writing a rather big fictional :P It will still take some time until I'm finished, though... I forgot the 'also' in that response lol. Edit - Sour skittles to anyone who can figure out the Easter Egg in the fictional. (Hamtaro excluded from this :o) I guess no one found it :razz:

At this point, I wouldn't be surprised if Jagex operates some of the gold-selling sites. I probably won't quit until Jagex is finally sold to Disney to die, though.

Can't believe the Lions pulled off a 34-3 win with 20 of those points being from non-starters. Then again, the Lions had a 4-0 pre-season record to accompany an 0-16 season in 2008...

This gave me a good laugh this morning. Thought I'd share it here.

I do a max farming run (6 palms, 5 magic trees) as soon as I log in, turn in any long/curved bones (haven't played enough the last 6 months to have any), and then usually train agility. I probably won't train agility this time, though, because I already have the level I wanted. Anyone have any suggestions (not really interested in herblore)?

so was everything in 1984, so good job proving the books point. I'm actually in the process of reading it right now. While my post took a sarcastic tone aimed at a certain continually hypocritical poster (who asked his college professors what he should believe in, in order to be a free thinker :rolleyes: ), I have to disagree on this point. The government in 1984, quite literally, didn't care about any of its people (vaporizing people from existence for being too intelligent, perpetual war, lying about production numbers of boots when half the people go barefoot, etc). It's not like being president or prime minister where you at least pretend to care so you can get votes. Obama's record for internet policies so far have included, but aren't limited to, massive "piracy" crackdowns, internet IDs for Americans, and the internet kill switch (the global internet, not just for Americans). [sarcasm]Even though I'm against all of that, he can't do any wrong because he has a (D) next to his name on the ballot![/HeActuallyBelievesThisThough] If you want a hint as to whom I'm referring to, it's the user that derailed the thread in the first place. I won't drop any names, though.

I don't think shutting down particular communication methods to prevent riots would necessarily be a bad thing. It's not all that different from Obama's Internet Kill Switch. It's there for the protection of law abiding citizens, not some 1984-type regime. I think Cameron and Obama are in the right here.

Chris L and one of the Gower brothers or MMG

Yeah, Vancouver's situation wasn't all that different. Riots for no legitimate reason by kids looking to cause trouble. The real people from these cities rise up after to condemn the actions and help to undo/stop them. I'm not all that familiar with the situation among the youth across the pond, but it sounds like political trouble to me. Needless to say, I'm impressed by the clean up effort.

So apparently the Central European Bank could end up seizing Ronaldo and Kaka from Real Madrid (possibly to sell to other clubs?): http://deadspin.com/5825637/cristiano-ronaldo-could-end-up-being-seized-by-the-european-central-bank http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/europe/8265563.stm I wouldn't think it's appropriate to use a person as monetary collateral, but apparently not everyone sees it that way.

Still looking forward to Manchester United vs. MLS All Stars tonight. Landon Donovan won't be playing because of injury and Hernandez most likely won't be because of Copa America. Looks like there won't be so much strain on the MLS defense to keep up with Hernandez, but MLS will also be without their main play maker. I think it will be a lower scoring game than last year, but Man U will probably still come out on top. Edit: Well, that was disappointing.

"There is nothing which I dread so much as a division of the republic into two great parties, each arranged under its leader, and concerting measures in opposition to each other. This, in my humble apprehension, is to be dreaded as the greatest political evil under our Constitution." - John Adams; Letter to Jonathan Jackson (2 October 1789)

I agree. My near apathy is unmatched by the tea party and hippies alike - I'm like the Glenn Beck or Keith Olberman of centrist views. Because of that, I apologize if you were offended that I pointed out the lack of a significant difference between political parties. I'm also sorry that I implied the party you like is pretty much the same as the one you hate. Because I disagree with you, I'm obviously a crazy political person. Thank you for this epiphany; I think I'll start agreeing with everything your party does, so I won't be considered crazy by you anymore.

Watched a few games recently. I was very surprised by Uruguay's win over Argentina at Copa America. I thought for sure that Argentina would have pulled it out, but I guess not. Real Madrid vs. LA Galaxy was unfortunately a blowout; was hoping for a 2-sided match. Manchester City (albeit without Tevez) vs. Vancouver was surprisingly evenly matched it seemed. Vancouver was definitely playing at their best, and I was impressed to say the least. Watched the women's world cup fina tool. That was one of the best games I've seen (other than the dirty red card at the end of extra time). I was disappointed by the outcome, but Japan definitely outplayed us and deserved the win. Looking forward to the Man U/Barca rematch and the MLS All Star Game against Man U. Copa America has been pretty eventful too, so that should be exciting.

Love playing soccer. Hockey is probably my favorite to watch, followed by international soccer, followed by American football, and then club soccer. Least favorites to watch would be baseball and basketball.

Letters: CryPtIC Clue fEst three

I don't have an issue with it, considering I supported it (see my location). My only criticism of it was that it took until 2010 for the dealers to be reimbursed in full. The whole point of my post can be summed up in this picture:

I completely agree with magekillr. [sarcasm]The letter next to a name on a ballot makes all the difference in the world. A man who has no ability to write bills or create laws is clearly responsible for ones not passed in congress and, as a result, clearly has full control over the economy. We should entirely blame this one man for everything bad that happened while he's in charge, but hold a double standard for someone with a different letter next to his name on the ballot. Even though there are no distinct differences between the two parties, one is clearly superior to the other. Inner city poor people and country poor people are clearly in different socio-economic classes, where one is more intelligent than the other, even though both lack any higher education; even though big businesses and the news media both lie out the ass for profits, one is clearly more evil than the other; those who vote for someone because of race are clearly less racist than those who don't vote for someone because of race; churches of the same faith who take different sides of the political scale are only good members of that faith if they agree with me and my interpretation of that religion; it's clearly worse when one side ignores science, but the other has no basic understanding of history from which to see "new" ideas they present are old ones that failed miserably before. Clearly the ®/(D) makes a ginormous difference. If you disagree with me, you're probably just an idiot so I don't care what you say, seeing as I'm probably smarter than you anyway and even though tea partiers and hippies are the same damn thing, but with opposite beliefs, one of them has been right about every social issue ever.[/condescending rollseyes face] No wait, overly political people who spout none-sense is just as bad and annoying on both sides. I also find it funny that Bush's second term economic policies (tax cuts, bailing out the auto industry, extending the war) are virtually identical to Obama's presidential ones (extending the Bush tax cuts and then some by slashing social security taxes, bailing out the banks + Cash-for-Clunkers, extending the wars until literally today), but it's only bad if the guy I didn't vote for does it. This idea I'm about to say may come off as shocking to overly-political people, but in reality, it turns out that the president and congress aren't the same thing after all (shocking, I know), so we should blame both of those presidents for having to deal with some of the worst sessions of congress since the pre- and post-Civil War days. It kind of sucks for Obama and Bush to receive criticism (that in many cases happens to be unjustified) because there are children in congress playing the my-party-is-better-than-yours game (hmm, whom does that remind me of?). I do actually agree that the Republicans probably won't put out a decent candidate, though, and I'll most likely be voting to reelect the president.

11th best team in the MLS beats the 11th best team in EPL (not to mention San Jose's goalkeeper scored form 90 yards out) and New England held Man U to a 0-0 draw at half when Man U had all of their starters (including Rooney) playing. Nice to see MLS isn't a complete joke anymore. Looking forward to L.A. vs. Real Madrid soon too.

Detroit, Michigan, United States please :grin: