BioShock 2 coming in 2009

I rented BioShock for the Xbox 360 from a nearby video store over the weekend to see if this game lived up to the good word that I've heard about it. There haven't been many spare moments lately 'cuz of various projects but I've got to say: no other video game that I've ever played has had me so looking forward to chances to playing it more as has BioShock. Right now I'm in the Medical Pavilion level, which I think is still very early in the game so I don't know anything about where this story is headed. But even so, I'm going to definitely be buying this game for my permanent collection and I'm going to be posting a review of it soon.

So if you too have fallen in love with the haunting beauty and mystery of the underwater city of Rapture, you'll be happy to know that Take-Two Interactive has announced BioShock 2 for the fall of 2009. BioShock's lead creator Ken Levine will be involved with the sequel but what his precise role will be hasn't been announced yet.

Okay, I'm off to play some more BioShock. Maybe this time I'll finally get past the Big Daddy...

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Fred Reed sez: American democracy is a sham

Democracy in America is not about government derived by the will of the people. Rather, democracy in America is about how deeply-entrenched political elites and the corporate press control the people. Such is the case articulated by Fred Reed in his latest essay, and it's hard to disagree with him...

To disguise all of this, elections provide the excitement and intellectual content of a football game, without the importance. They allow a sense of Participation. In bars across the land, in high-school gymns become forums, people become heated about what they imagine to be decisions of great import: This candidate or that? It keeps them from feeling left out while denying them power.

It is fraud. In a sense, the candidates do not even exist. A presidential candidate consists of two speechwriters, a makeup man, a gestures coach, ad agency, two pollsters and an interpreter of focus groups. Depending on his numbers, the handlers may suggest a more fixed stare to crank up his decisiveness quotient for male or Republican voters, or dial in a bit of compassion for a Democratic or female audience. The newspapers will report this calculated transformation. Yet it works. You can fool enough of the people enough of the time.

When people sense this and decline to vote, we cluck like disturbed hens and speak of apathy. Nope. Just common sense.

Much more at the above link.

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Oil now a record $107 a barrel

Actually, as of the most recent report it's $107.44 to be accurate. And there's little doubt it will be up quite a bit again by the end of the week.

Average gas price right now around here in north-central North Carolina is $3.19 per gallon.

Why is the cost of gas and everything else skyrocketing? It's not that there's a dwindling supply as many people will argue. No, right now it's more because of the depleting value of the U.S. dollar. With diminished buying power comes high prices across the board.

And lowering the interest rates combined with pumping more Federal Reserve notes into the system is not going to do a damned thing to help matters. In fact, they will make things considerably worse by further driving down the dollar's value.

Nor will this "stimulus package" pushed on us by George W. Bush and Congress do anything. "Stimulate the economy by encouraging spending"? Feh! If President Bush actually bought his own food and pumped his own gasoline (something I doubt he has done in at least fifteen years) he would realize that for most Americans the money from the "stimulus" is going to be gone within a day, used on bare necessities like gas to get to one's job, and food for the children.

No folks, the "stimulus" by Bush and Congress is just another socialist program disguised as a cheap ploy to distract our attention while the economy falls into ruin. If these supposedly "brilliant" leaders wanted to really remedy the economy, they would (a) seriously cut taxes, (b) SERIOUSLY cut spending, which will never happen and (c) get the United States the hell out of places that it has no business being in the first place, like Iraq, which has become a drain down which $12 BILLION a month of our money is being flushed... to say nothing of the cost in human life. And again, for no reason other than the arrogance and grandeur of a few who should have never been trusted with power and responsibility to begin with.

The things that these people wanted to do and are doing was going to come at too high a price to begin with. Now we are all having to pay for it.

Maybe it's for the best. Perhaps it takes being knocked down a peg or two to come to our senses. And given the course that America is now hellbent on pursuing, maybe letting our economy fall into utter collapse will be a good thing in the long run. Lord willing, a stronger, hardier and wiser people might rise from the rubble, having learned the lessons of the folly of this current generation. If America is to yet have a bright and shining future, her posterity will be beyond false dichotomies and petty pageantry.

I still think that it's possible with this country. But if we want that for our children, we are going to have to suffer for it after having suffered fools more than we should have.

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Final poster for INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL

Drew Struzan delivers as classic a poster as I've ever seen for the last (?) chapter of the Indiana Jones film saga...

Is it just me, or does Karen Allen look even more beautiful in this poster than she did in Raiders of the Lost Ark all the way back in 1981? Her face is positively radiant!

What I would give to have this poster on my own wall. Hope they make them available for sale soon!

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Jenna and Lou are GETTING MARRIED!!!

And now for the best news that this blog has reported in quite a long time...

Word has reached me at this late hour that our dear friend and fellow blogger Jenna Olwin was asked by her boyfriend Lou if she would be his beautiful blushing bride.

And... Jenna said "yes"!

No word yet on when exactly the wedding will take place but Jenna says it will likely be before this coming fall.

Congratulations on your engagement, Jenna and Lou! May God bless you and keep you in His care in these no doubt very crazy months leading to your wedding, and all the days that will follow :-)

UPDATE 12:33 a.m. EST 03/10/2008: Jenna has posted on her blog an account of how Lou popped the question on her, told in her own unique and special way.

Congrats again you guys. Lisa and I are so happy for you! :-)

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Obama, Clinton, and McCain: Just Say NO!

Me calling into Star Talk on WGSR Star 39 a few nights ago...

I've voted in every election for as long as I've ever been able to be a registered voter. And more than that, I've gone the extra mile and run for public office. Nobody can ever accuse me of being an apathetic citizen.

But I mean it: as things stand now, I won't be casting a vote for either the Democrat or Republican nominee for President this year. Because none of these people have demonstrated that they sincerely want to serve the American people.

Voting for the lesser of two evils is still voting for evil. There is no excuse for it.

Not once did I vote for Bill Clinton, and not once did I ever vote for George W. Bush. The two worst Presidents in American history can never claim that I cast a ballot for them. I'm proud of that (though I will admit that had I been wiser I would have refrained from voting for President at all in 2004). Why should I cast a vote for President this time, knowing full well that Obama, Clinton or McCain would ruin America even more, no matter which one of them is elected?

I've got a Ron Paul bumper sticker on my car. It's going to stay on there 'til well after this coming November. If I get the chance, I'll write in Ron Paul's name on the ballot come Election Day. But I sure as hell won't vote for any of these three losers.

Time to just say no.

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California court rules most homeschooling is unlawful ... and what to do about it

In light of my current activities, which no doubt will soon become widespread public knowledge, I understand what it's going to look like to come out with an opinion on this. So for sake of clarification: the views and commentary that I express on this blog are my own, and not necessarily those of anyone else.

(What I mean by that will be made clear in the very near future.)

A California appeals court has ruled that most homeschooling is illegal. Only parents with the proper teaching credentials are now legally allowed to homeschool their children.

In other words, the vast majority of homeschooling families in California, per the 2nd District Court of Appeals, are now criminals if they continue with teaching their own children.

And according to Justice H. Walter Croskey in his decision, "Parents do not have a constitutional right to home school their children."

That this could be said at all by a judge in the United States raises a huge red flag and screams out bigtime how much trouble we are in.

Again, this is just me talking, folks. Not anyone else and not for anyone else.

Every so often, there is a time when we the people have to tell those in government that "to this point and no further."

This is one of those times.

I cannot imagine something worth defying Those In Power more than when it comes to our own children and the love we have for them.

Lisa and I, Lord willing we have children someday, we have every intent to homeschool them. That is certainly our right, and it's going to remain our right, no matter what some black-robed Nazgul in a courtroom somewhere decrees.

The American people have been living in fear of judges and politicians for far too long. We have forgotten what it means to take hold of our own destiny.

Some of my fellow Christians are going to come back and tell me that we should "obey those who are in authority", "those who have the rule over you", as they say it's in the Bible.

If you've been a longtime reader of this blog, you know me. You know that I have to get very darned upset to use language like this. Well, I'm upset, and I don't particularly care for lack of civility right now. Harsh language isn't a sin against God. Sin against polite society, maybe, but God isn't going to condemn me for what I'm about to say. He might even approve heartily of it.

That we must not stand up to the government, on grounds that they are "in authority" over us, is (EDIT 11:53 p.m. EST: Harsh expletive removed upon cooler head prevailing).

And you wanna know why? Because God did not set government over us in America. God established that we the people are the government in America, and we are the ones who have been given the authority. It doesn't belong to someone who's been elected or appointed at all.

And God is going to judge us someday for what we have done with that which He has trusted us with. Indeed, that we are letting this happen among ourselves indicates to me that He's judging us even now.

We are surely falling. But we don't have to fall. It's our choice, if we want it.

So here's what I'm going to suggest to the homeschool families of California, and I am absolutely serious about this...

Keep homeschooling your children. If you love them enough, you will persist in your practice. You are the ones who love your children. The State of California doesn't give a damn about them, and you'd better accept that fact.

If state officials tell you to stop homeschooling, ignore them.

If they send you a threatening letter, tear it up.

If they send some busybody "social worker" to your front door, slam it in his or her face.

If they send a law enforcement officer to your house to take your children away, shoot him. Or her.

I'm serious. If they come for your kids, take them down. However you can. They don't deserve to live, if they consent to following some judge's orders to take your children without question.

Any agent of the government that comes for your children solely on the grounds that the state has decreed that you cannot teach your children as you see fit, in my mind has given up any claim to possessing an individual soul. Your children though have a future that's worth fighting for. It's worth dying for. It's absolutely worth making some heartless automaton of the state die, if they try to come in between your child and that chance.

I am completely beyond patience with some people. The ones who are making life a living Hell for the rest of us. They have only gotten away with it because we've bought into the lie that we can't do anything to stop them.

On anything else, I might feel lenient. But not here. The line is drawn here.

Fight.

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God as defined by quantum physics

Here is my current proposal for a quantum mechanics definition of God:

In reference to a system encompassing the totality of the physical universe, God is that outside observer which has the unique properties of comprehending the position and momentum of every particle and all energy within the system without violating the observer effect and simultaneously across all points throughout the spacetime of that system.

I think that such a definition easily allows for the occurrence of un-scientific phenomenon as "miracles", since if God is comprehending all quantum behavior throughout every point and moment of the universe's existence, that this means He can pretty much do whatever He wants to with the universe. He can manipulate the quantum state of anything, including altering mass and energy so that water turns into wine. What's more, such a definition might not violate the laws of physics at all. It seems to fit comfortably among them, even.

I might and probably will revise this later on, but right now that's the current model that I'm going by.

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Are you ready to behold the WATCHMEN?

I was just about to turn in for the night after a long day when I went to the Ain't It Cool News website for ummm... cool news, and they've got these first officially released images of the Watchmen cast in costume.

Words fail. And for once, it's in a good way.

I am fast losing any doubts - and there were many - about the big-screen adaptation of Watchmen. They have nailed the look of the graphic novel so well, that I don't know if it could possibly be improved upon. Here's our first look at the Comedian...

There's plenty more at this link, including pics of Rorschach, Silk Spectre, Ozymandias, and Nite Owl (standing in front of "Archie" the Owlship!).

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Something I have learned today

I do not need to ask God to give me some overwhelming mission in order to have a purpose in life.

I only need to wait on Him, and trust that He will deliver in His own time, and know that He will give me exactly what He requires of me.

I do not have to try to fight and win the entire war. I only have to fight the battles closest to me, as best I can with what strength is given me.

This is all that He asks from each of us. If we follow through on that, to the utmost of our ability, then that is enough.

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Gary Gygax and Christianity: Dungeons & Dragons creator was a believer

Yesterday I posted about the death of Gary Gygax, who co-created Dungeons & Dragons and is regarded as the founder of the role-playing game genre. Lots of people who are around my age will probably remember that Dungeons & Dragons aroused considerable controversy in the early Eighties because a lot of Christians claimed that the game promoted witchcraft, demonic worship, suicide, and pretty much every other undesirable practice that you can think of. Many of these people wanted the game to be banned completely.

It wasn't enough to stop publication of Dungeons & Dragons but the game has never completely shaken-off the stigma that it is somehow a breeding ground for followers of Satan.

This afternoon I received an e-mail from a reader of this blog, and I learned something quite fascinating: that Gary Gygax, the mind behind Dungeons & Dragons, was a born-again Christian. That link takes you to a discussion that Gygax took part in with the Christian Gamer's Guild in 2007.

And then there is this e-mail that Gygax sent to a fan a month and a half before his passing...

Thank You, Michael,

All I am is another fellow human that has at last, after many wrong paths and failed attenpts, found Jesus Christ.

Via con dios,
Gary

"Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven." Matthew 5:16

I thought this was worth making a whole separate post about, because Gygax and his work did suffer a lot of unfair criticism over the years. It's said that the Christian army is the only one that shoots its own wounded. Well, looks like that happened here too.

And so far as some of the more tragic situations involving Dungeons & Dragons that have happened since the game's inception go: yes, this game unfortunately became an idol to some and in their minds more than it was supposed to be. But that same dark potential can be found in practically everything else in life too, whether it be sex or sports or television or whatever. Anything taken to excess becomes a thing that diminishes us and hurts our relationship with God, before it invariably destroys us. In that regard, Gary Gygax certainly did not add anything new to the equation.

And after the past month's sabbatical, some of which I used to study and contemplate what it is to seek after Christ, I now have to wonder if much of the so-called "Christian counter-culture" that I see around us is doing far more damage to the cause of Christ than rolling some dice in a basement ever accomplished. And I'm absolutely serious about that.

But really, this is all still seeing through the glass darkly. The thing that matters most is that yesterday morning, Gary Gygax did "miss his saving throw" as some have joked... but he still won the game before going Home.

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Gary Gygax has passed away

It's weird: I was just thinking of Gary Gygax last week, after reading a review of the new 4th edition of Dungeons & Dragons. It was back in the early Seventies that Gygax, along with Dave Arneson, created the first Dungeons & Dragons game. Gygax has since been widely hailed as "the father of the role-playing game".

Now comes the sad news that Gary Gygax has passed away at the age of 69.

I think it's safe to say that Gygax's influence on popular culture for the better part of the past four decades has been profound, if subtle. Gygax's rules for Dungeons & Dragons became the basis for not only pretty much every role-playing game that followed, but also made an enormous impact on video games and even some real-world simulations and tools for education. Gygax's work had a tremendous effect on many movies and television series... to say nothing of the mammoth library of novels that the Dungeons & Dragons franchise and other role-playing games has spawned over the years.

And let's face it: for those who ever played the original "pen and paper" Dungeons & Dragons, it was - and I've heard still is - a heckuva lot of fun! The first "D&D" game that I ever encountered used one of Gygax's modules (those were pre-packaged "adventures" that you'd buy in a bookstore or wherever). Gygax was not only a brilliant innovator, but he also knew how to be downright lethal: I saw a LOT of characters perish from his traps and monsters. Something about a game like that as opposed to a computer-driven role-playing game: you really did have to use your imagination, and you could do pretty much anything no matter how wild and crazy. We've yet to see a video game that gives you that kind of freedom.

Anyways, part of this blog's purpose is to chronicle and celebrate people who have lived interesting lives, and Gary Gygax certainly had that. Farewell, great Dungeon Master.

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CASTING CALL: Be in a TV commercial ... and get PAID for it!

So how does the prospect of being in a television commercial that will be broadcast all across the state of North Carolina sound to you? How would you like to earn money from the gig? Well, have we got something for you!

As of tonight I'm putting the word out via this blog and a few other places that we are making a wide-spread casting call. There is a very cool project that the KWerky Productions/Knight Vision Media staff is working on right now.

And for it we need actors and actresses of all ages and all physical types. We especially need young children, from ages 5 to 12-ish, who have a bit of patience and aren't easily intimidated especially by loud noises. Good screamers are particularly needed. The child actors will be compensated also for their time.

Interested? Then you need to send me an e-mail at kwerkyproductions@gmail.com and make sure the subject line says "commercial talent" or "actor for commercial" or something like that. If you have a headshot and/or a resume, please send those too.

We are under a bit of a deadline so the sooner you can contact us about this, the better. There is a possibility that this could turn into an extended bit of work, too.

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Back

Things are about to get very interesting. I'd better return.

And it was a good break.

Probably won't be posting at the usual frequency for awhile, 'cuz over the past few weeks I've wound up with a lot of stuff on my plate that I'll be needing to tend to in the near future. But yeah, I'm ready to get back into it.

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Goodbye

For now.

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Game Boy: Toughest product ever?

Slashdot has a neat discussion going on, which was inspired by this article at CNET about the most durable gadgets made. And right now wide consensus is that the original Nintendo Game Boy might be the toughest product to ever hit the market. There's one neat story about a Game Boy that was dropped into a lake and was on the bottom for a week before a guy in SCUBA gear recovered it: after drying out for a few days, it worked fine. I personally know of one guy who thought he'd lost his Game Boy after it went flying out of a car window in a minor fender-bender. He found it a few hours later at the bottom of a paved spillway: not a scratch on it! And then there's this Game Boy (pictured at right) which saw hostile conditions in the first Gulf War. It's now on display at at a Nintendo store in New York City and as you can see, it's still playing Tetris.

Not bad at all for a product that's almost twenty years old! Now if only iPods and every other popular gadget on the market nowadays had such durability...

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