Necromagus

Look, if you're going to take your moral values from a book that tells you it's ok to sell your daughter into slavery, that's your choice. However, you should allow people to make their own decision. We're not forcing anyone to euthenise their relatives, but we're giving them an option to die with dignety. You don't have to use that option if you don't want to, but you have no right to deprive others of the choice.

There's a difference between suicide and euthenesia though. People who equate the two are very shortsighted in my opinion. Suicide is a quick way out for people who think they have nothing left to live for. Euthenesia is a way for people who are already going to die, usually in a slow and painful way, to die in dignity without their loved ones having to see them suffer.

It really depends from case to case, but a few points I go by: 1) Euthenesia should only be allowed when the patient is suffering pain without hope for relief and is unable to recover and live their life in a dignified manner. 2) The doctor that's responsible for the patient should get at least one second opinion from a colleague on whether or not euthenesia is justified for this particular person. 3) If the patient decides that they want euthenesia, they should have at least one meeting with a professional counselor to make sure that the patient in question realizes the full scope of the decision he has made. The counselor should also talk to the patient's family if they want to, to help them cope. 4) If the person can't decide for themselves and has left no instructions beforehand, then their direct family (parents, spouse, siblings, children) may make the decision, but the request to euthenise the patient should not become official until a majority of the relatives has agreed on it. The family should also talk with the counselor. If these conditions are met, I believe that active euthenesia should be allowed. It gives the patient a chance to die a dignified death, yet still allows them to follow the rules of their religion or personal morality. It prevents people from making rushed decisions, yet doesn't restrict them too much.

Enemy Nations is a very nice RTS once you get into it, but the steep learning curve may drive you off if you're not a fan of the genre.

Just get the DOSBox from sf ;) http://dosbox.sourceforge.net I already have DOSBox, but it's just not the same :|

My girlfriend, to be original, and vegetating on a sunday afternoon.

Of every twenty stories I start, I rarely complete more than one. Most end long before they're finished, either as stray .doc's or as scribbles in my notebook that I never even type out. This is one of these scraps. To make up for the fact that I haven't posted anything new in well over two months, I thought it would be interesting to see if anything can be made from these scraps. That's why I've posted the first 1500 words of something I typed up a few months ago. The challenge to you all is to finish this short story in 1000 words or less, so the total word limit will be 2500 words. After a week I'll post my own result, and although I doubt I'll have the time to judge every entry, it'd be fun to see if we can get some sort of constructive criticism going. Even if you're not going to write, you can still help by giving constructive criticism to those that did. --- Shaman SaÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ã¢ââ¬Å¾Ã¢ise watched the shaman quietly. The lithe form perched on the rocky outcrop was a mystery to him. The young woman had come to the village two days ago. Foot traffic had been light for the past few weeks, but the young falconer was sure that even in a carnival crowd the spirit speaker would have stood out quite clearly. She stood well over six feet tall, taller than most men. She was dressed from shoulders to ankles in animal hides despite the desert-like climate that dictated the pace of life this far from the ocean. Every step was accentuated by a breeze of clicks and rattles, betraying the large amounts of talismans and fetishes that were undoubtedly hidden in the many folds of her clothing. The noon sun glared off the fragments of crystal that were wedged in various cracks that ran along the length of her staff. The stranger had walked on silently, ignoring the clamouring of merchants, the patrolling guards that marched along the walkways, the children running and playing in the street. She simply walked on until she reached the main square. There she stopped, right in front of the private sweat lodge that belonged to the villageÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ã¢ââ¬Å¾Ã¢s own shaman. The old crone was a spiritual leader only in title, a woman in her final days more interested in daily gossip than her flockÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ã¢ââ¬Å¾Ã¢s spiritual health. The young traveller had extended the tip of her staff and drawn a circle in the sand. At that point the woman had attracted quite a crowd, but even as she squatted down in the middle of her circle she remained silent. The crowd watched her quietly, and she watched them quietly in return. Finally the mass of onlookers parted, although it was with some difficulty. A bent, withered figure shuffled forward, sending up billowing clouds of dust. By custom, a town shaman was required to greet all fellow spirit speakers, no matter what their business in their territory was. NaÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ã¢ââ¬Å¾Ã¢ila had eyed the visitor suspiciously as she shuffled around her, playing close attention to the tattoos that circled all along the young shamanÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ã¢ââ¬Å¾Ã¢s cleanly shaven head. Then, without saying a word, the crone had turned around and shuffled off again, leaving the young visitor to her own devices and the onlookers to their confusion. After about an hour the crowd had disparaged, but the shaman remained seated. That was two days ago. For most of those two days the visitor had simply sat there, occasionally softly crooning to herself but otherwise silent, not moving even to drink or to eat. Then, at the dawn of the second day of her vigil, she had suddenly gotten up, dusted herself off, and started walking again. This had caused quite a panic among the village elders. Travelling shamans didnÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ã¢ââ¬Å¾Ã¢t just walk into a village for no reason. If a spirit speaker had chosen to visit the town, there had to be some sort of disturbance in the astral world. The woman wasnÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ã¢ââ¬Å¾Ã¢t stopped when she passed the town gate out of fear for offending the spirits, but the elders still called for a volunteer to follow the shaman. SaÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ã¢ââ¬Å¾Ã¢ise was that volunteer. Now the falconer leaned against the withered trunk of an old tree, wishing that the spirit speaker would have chosen a more shadowy place to survey the valley beyond. He mopped his brow with the sleeve of his shirt, fighting a losing battle against the sweat. He had lived in this harsh climate since birth, but even he had trouble handling an all-out battering from the noon sun. The weight of the water skin hanging from his shoulder was reassuring, but even with it he wouldnÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ã¢ââ¬Å¾Ã¢t last another day in the sweltering heat. He had to be back by sundown, but he also had to follow the orders of the elders. SaÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ã¢ââ¬Å¾Ã¢ise never really cared much for spirit worship. He was willing to accept that they were the ones that made the sun come up and the winds blow, but somehow he doubted that they would miss one more voice in the choirs. It was an attitude that seemed to be shared among the younger generation in the desert settlement, and it was one of the few things NaÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ã¢ââ¬Å¾Ã¢ila was still preaching about these days, to little effect. Still, in spite of his apathy towards worship, SaÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ã¢ââ¬Å¾Ã¢ise had nothing but respect for shamans. Especially young, female, raven-haired shamans that gently swayed their hips as they walked. Still, like most others this one would probably be celibate, but it didnÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ã¢ââ¬Å¾Ã¢t hurt to keep his mind busy while he waited for her to conclude whatever business she had here. ÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬Ãâ¦Ã¢â¬ÅDo you believe?ÃÆââââ¬Å¡Ã¬ÃâÃ

Don't get too cocky now, even the most blindoptimist highly doubts that Australia would make it past the group rounds...

Well, make sure they test the bulb for you before they ring it up so that you know for sure if it's working properly. If the new bulb doesn't emit light, you'll have to check the wiring. If it does, I'd still repair the damaged wire coating with a bit of electrical tape to make sure it doesn't damage further.

I still have 5.25" floppies with games like Alley Cat, Paratrooper and the first Police Quest game. Too bad the PSU of my DOS computer is fried, otherwise I'd be able to play them like I used to fifteen years ago :(

Hmm, although it does take about 30 minutes for the bulb to heat up properly, you should see light the moment you switch it on. However, lava lamp bulbs have a notoriously fragile filament, since it's designed to generate as much heat as possible. If it's been used before, it's very easy for the filament to become damaged in transport, so maybe you should check it. Luckily, most specialised stores will carry replacement bulbs, and you should be able to get one for <$10. If the filament isn't damaged, you might want to check the wiring. The wiring of lamps generally isn't too complicated though, so even if it's that it shouldn't be too hard/expensive to fix.

There's reason you can't vote until you're 18, can't drink until you're 16, 18 or 21 and can't drive a car until you're 16 or 18. The law accepts that minors will think and behave differently from adults. They can't handle as much responsibility or make rational decisions like adults. If they could, we wouldn't need these restrictions. This is the same reason why the law should be applied differently to minors when it comes to criminal punishment.

Heh, these things are supposedly all the rage in Japan, the first video game that's more popular with the middleaged demographic than it is with teens.

well, i dont ask you to agree with me, keep that in mind. i realize my opinion may not be all considered normal. but basically it can be summed up: all humans deserve equal rights. being younger than a certain age shouldnt give you special rights.There's a reason we don't let children drink alcohol or 19 year olds rent cars. Their brains simply aren't built to handle the responsibility and the consequences. Your argument for punishing adolescents as adults can also be used to allow them to drink alcohol, vote and operate heavy machinery.

i think you are thinking more on the correction vs. punishment debate. Correction vs. punishment was only the last paragraph, and even then it's directly linked to the matter at hand. Maybe you can tell me why we should apply adult standards to people who don't have an adult's rational capacities?

ill have to agree, doesnt matter what your age, you have to accept the consequences of your actions. Imagine a toddler pushing another toddler into a swimming pool because he took his toy. Say the toddler drowned. Do we charge the little kid with murder? I say a teenager and up, is punished by what they do.Why? If they don't have the rational capacities of an adult, why should we expect them to live up to adult standards?

Heh, we had to answer this question for our yearbook. "Don't worry, it looks perfectly stable. Besides, it's not that far down..."

Ugh, not this discussion again. There is nothing divine about the number 666 as written down in the book of revelations. The nubmer 666 translates to the Roman emperor Nero through Hebrew numerology. When you add up the values of the Hebrew "ÃÆââ¬âÃâàÃÆââ¬âÃâèÃÆââ¬ââââ¬Ã¢ÃÆââ¬âÃâ¦Ã¸ ÃÆââ¬âÃâçÃÆââ¬âÃâáÃÆââ¬âÃâè", Nrwn Qsr, Emperor Nero in Hebrew, you get: r s q n w r n 666 = 200 + 60 + 100 + 50 + 6 + 200 + 50The number of the beast has nothing to do with satan and everything to do with a Roman emperor who lit his gardens with smoldering Christians.

ill have to agree, doesnt matter what your age, you have to accept the consequences of your actions.That makes no sense at all. The black and white standpoint you take here completely ignores everything we know about how the human brain develops over the span of a lifetime. Why do you think we don't teach calculus to toddlers? Because they can't understand it yet. You have to begin at 1+1=2, and build on from there. The same thing applies to concepts of right and wrong. Why did Billy hit Bobby? Because Bobby bumped into him and made Billy drop his ice cream. Billy didn't understand, couldn't understand that Bobby didn't do it on purpose, and that his mother would have given him a new one if he had just explained to her what happened in stead of lashing out. Billy gets sent to his room, he doesn't get three years in jail for assault. This example might sound a bit condescending, but it's just as easily applied to some situation involving adolescents. This is the same reason why mentally challenged persons shouldn't be punished as normal criminals. They simply aren't capable of understanding what they've done wrong. Besides, the purpose of the penal system is not just to punnish, but to correct. They don't use the term correctional facility for nothing. Imagine a fight between two seventeen year old boys ending with one of the boys on permanent life support. What do you think would help society most in this case? Putting the kid in jail with adult criminals for a few years where he will be constantly exposed to violence and abuse, or putting him in a closed facility where he can get counseling to learn to deal with what he has done and an education so that he can make something of the rest of his life when he's released. Which scenario do you think will benefit not only him, but society as a whole more?

Yeah, it's very easy indeed - to get sucked into this sort of online pyramid scams :roll: Seriously, what's so hard to understand about 'No Referral Links'?

I dunno, maybe someone took one of the idea balls out of the tank and they had to improvise at the last moment :P

Ah yes, Sin City... Cardinal Rourke: Will that give you satisfaction my son? Killing a helpless... old... fart? Marv: The killing? No, no satisfaction... everything up to the killing? That'll be a gas.

The worst game I actually paid for was Trespasser. When I looked up the character model with an editor, all it was were an arm and a chest floating in thin air.

1) I before E. 2) This should be in the tech forums. 3) It would help if we knew the type of phone and the way its connected to your computer. 4) Judging from the movie titles, the people over at the Darwin awards would be more interested in your 'freinds' than we are.

General Turgidson: Doctor, you mentioned the ratio of ten women to each man. Now, wouldn't that necessitate the abandonment of the so-called monogamous sexual relationship, I mean, as far as men were concerned? Dr. Strangelove: Regrettably, yes. But it is, you know, a sacrifice required for the future of the human race. I hasten to add that since each man will be required to do prodigious... service along these lines, the women will have to be selected for their sexual characteristics which will have to be of a highly stimulating nature. Ambassador de Sadeski: I must confess, you have an astonishingly good idea there, Doctor. Dr. Strangelove: Thank you, sir. It's exchanges like that that make this movie brilliant. The entire world is about to be nuked out of orbit, and here we have capitalism, fascism and communism all giddy over the prospect of a 100 year orgy.