Re: Silliness
At 10:36 PM 12/16/03, Jim Sharkey wrote: Julia Thompson wrote: >Jim Sharkey wrote: >>Julia Thompson wrote: >>>Knock, knock. >>*sigh* Who's there? >Kosh. Kosh who? Glazed Kosh whos are delicious. -- Ronn! :) ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Michael Crichton is Evil and Must be Destroyed (was: Scouted:Environmentalism is Evil and Must Be Destroyed)
From: "Julia Thompson" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Michael Harney wrote: > > > P.P.P.S. I've been in a particularly strange mood for a long while now (a > > few weeks), perhaps stress induced, and encourage others to keep a safe > > distance from topics I feel strongly about. > > Sorry to hear that, and if I start in on something you feel strongly > about, I may have forgotten that you feel strongly about it. Blame the > sleep deprivation. (Although it's getting better) I wouldn't worry too much about it. The topics that I am sensative about are not ones that you tend to bring up, and when you do, you usually do so in a way that is not construed as an attack or challenge, but in the interest of genuine discussion. That, I can typically handle even when I am feeling as I am. I am feeling quite unwell though. Things have even gotten to the point that I am even consuming caffine at mid-day to maintain concentration. I have been limiting my caffine consumption for years now, consuming it only on rare occasion. It is a surprisingly potent drug when used sparingly, but I would rather not use it at all. Prolonged use of caffine (use spanning 4-5 days) typically makes me feel short of breath (which is quite unpleasant) and affects my metabolism for the worse. My moods seem to be forming a pattern though, last year at this time, I was feeling badly as well (though, greatfully, this year hasn't been nearly as bad as last year). Hopefully, it will clear up faster than last year, which spanned right through to the end of February. Part of it is related to holidays. I feel badly around Christmas because I am unemployed and unable to buy other people gifts. I feel bad in January around my birthday because I'm reminded that another year has gone by and things haven't gotten any better. And I am depressed around Valentine's day because I am reminded that I am alone, have been alone all my life, and am likely to be alone the rest of my life if the trend continues. In short, Holidays and Birthdays suck for someone stuck in a rut. Hopefully one of my job leads will pan out before my birthday rolls around so that I will at least feel better about that. Michael Harney [EMAIL PROTECTED] ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
For those who can't get enough JRR/Free telescope(?)Viewing
Was looking for something else and figured somebody might be interested Combining a few loose thread ends :-) Dee ** Saturday, December 27, 5:30-7pm "A Star Shines on the Hour of Our Meeting"- Celestial Sights in the World of J.R.R. Tolkien: Monthly Star Lecture National Air and Space Museum Location: Einstein Planetarium Free Staff astronomer Sean O'Brien uses the planetarium to simulate some of the celestial phenomena used in the mythology of J.R.R. Tolkien, author of The Lord of the Rings. Passages and poetry by Tolkien will be read. Public telescope observing follows, weather and time of sunset permitting. ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: an irksome Amazon comment
Jon Gabriel wrote: >From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >>Horror of horrors, I'm thinking first about getting a second >>Studio Ghibli tape. >Which one? I bought the DVD 3-some from Amazon a few months ago. >(Castle in the Sky, Kiki's Delivery Service and Spirited Away. >Kiki's is an awesome, awesome movie. :-) Of the Miyazaki movies my kids have seen, I'd say Kiki and Totoro run neck and neck for their favorite. Me, I'm a Spirited Away guy all the way. It's a thing of sheer beauty. Jim Sen no Chiriho Maru ___ Join Excite! - http://www.excite.com The most personalized portal on the Web! ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Life Eaters unavailable?
Julia Thompson wrote: >Jim Sharkey wrote: >> You guys *ought* to have ordered it through your FLCS anyway, >>instead of through some nice shiny store where you can get coffee >>and danishes. :) >Is it OK to get coffee and danishes at the coffee shop next to the >comic shop after you've bought it? :) Yes indeed! Mmmm, dani... Jim You can never have too many pastries Maru ___ Join Excite! - http://www.excite.com The most personalized portal on the Web! ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Silliness
Julia Thompson wrote: >Jim Sharkey wrote: >>Julia Thompson wrote: >>>Knock, knock. >>*sigh* Who's there? >Kosh. Kosh who? Jim I think I see where this is going Maru ___ Join Excite! - http://www.excite.com The most personalized portal on the Web! ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: an irksome Amazon comment
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Reply-To: Killer Bs Discussion <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: an irksome Amazon comment Date: Tue, 16 Dec 2003 22:19:05 EST In a message dated 12/16/2003 6:44:21 PM US Mountain Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: > The core element at issue is not religion, ... > There. Said my piece. If you all want to discuss it and decide for > yourselves, let me know and I'll make myself available. > > Wishing you joyous holidays and peace. > > With cordial regards, > > David Brin > www.davidbrin.com > I am four hours away from worshiping what's going to be presented on a mucking big movie screen. I'll go read the full Amazon blurb later. I figure the local full range comic book store would be the best non Internet source for The Life Eaters--when it's in my meager budget. Horror of horrors, I'm thinking first about getting a second Studio Ghibli tape. Which one? I bought the DVD 3-some from Amazon a few months ago. (Castle in the Sky, Kiki's Delivery Service and Spirited Away. Kiki's is an awesome, awesome movie. :-) Jon Le Blog: http://zarq.livejournal.com _ Have fun customizing MSN Messenger learn how here! http://www.msnmessenger-download.com/tracking/reach_customize ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Michael Crichton is Evil and Must be Destroyed (was: Scouted:Environmentalism is Evil and Must Be Destroyed)
Michael Harney wrote: > P.P.P.S. I've been in a particularly strange mood for a long while now (a > few weeks), perhaps stress induced, and encourage others to keep a safe > distance from topics I feel strongly about. Sorry to hear that, and if I start in on something you feel strongly about, I may have forgotten that you feel strongly about it. Blame the sleep deprivation. (Although it's getting better) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Silliness
In a message dated 12/16/2003 7:40:19 PM US Mountain Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: > Knock, knock. > > Julia That's a great pair of knockers you ha. Hey! It's three hours to movie time. Why am I answering this email? Vilyehm Teighlore ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Michael Crichton is Evil and Must be Destroyed (was: Scouted: Environmentalism is Evil and Must Be Destroyed)
Large tirade against environmentalism by Michael Crichton snipped. (snipped to save bandwidth and keep post length down, besides not much of it was particularly quote-worthy). Regarding environmentalists being faith-based beliefs: Not here, most of the environmental "beliefs" I have is based on compelling articles I have read through my years at college and thereafter. Perhaps surprisingly, before college, I was *not* an environmentalist, nor even remotely concerned with the environment. Addmitedly, when I first joined the environmentalist movement, I was more inclined to believe what was told to me without researching the topic myself. Honestly, though, how many among us really does research their beliefs? Certainly few voters really research the candidates that they vote for. Most people trust newpapers and TV news sources just as reliable sources of information, but much of what is presented in the news is skewed, biased, and/or having little basis in fact. It is a requirement of our life now. There is very little time for a person to research the topics, and so many contradicting sources that it is hard to know which sources are reliable and which aren't. Does that mean researching is pointless? No, just that, for most, it is impractical. The trick is to find a source that encompases your beliefs and whose facts upon examination, have reliable sources and data backing them. Regarding DDT: Banning DDT was not a mistake, as a matter of fact, Mr. Crichton's insistance that it was a mistake, and that DDT is safe, are mistakes on his part. It shows that his true bias in the situation and reveals that he is either ignorant of much of the facts or is ignoring them. DDT has been the primary culprit in repeated situations and multiple species in cases of immune supression (which has resulted in deaths of animals), reproductive failure (animals unable to reproduce), and premature births. Not just in birds, but in fish, marine mammals, and others as well (including humans). DDT is highly previlant in coastal areas this is the result of a quite natural process, the water cycle. DDT is sprayed on plants, DDT is then wash onto ground by rain. DDT is then washed into rivers by same rain. Rivers then carry DDT into the ocean, where it collects in the coastal areas and is absorbed into the ecosystem. But I will not do like Crichton and simply state that supporting articles exist, I will actually cite some sources: I don't have the time nor resources to research this in more depth right now, so an internet search of articles with many sources cited will have to do for now: http://www.seaweb.org/background/cetaceans.html Even Nature has articles that confirm some of these contentions (a publication refered to but not cited in Mr. Crichton's editorial). A search for "DDT" on the www.nature.com site revealed some abstracts that support the contentions that DDT acts as a factor in reproductive failure and premature births (I did not find support for the immune suppression, but did not have access to all the search results and did not spend a great deal of time searching). http://www.nature.com/cgi-taf/DynaPage.taf?file=/nature/journal/v375/n6532/abs/375581a0.html http://www.nature.com/nsu/010719/010719-3.html One of these articles is a cost/benefit analysis of DDT, even *it* doesn't say that DDT is safe, only that it may be the lesser of two evils when it comes to human lives. In my book, human lives are not the only ones that should enter the equation, especially since we don't know what kind of effects that the damage to coastal eco-systems can have on humans in the long run. Regarding Global Warming: Denial of global warming, a phenomenon that most of the scientific community now regards as not just theory, but fact, requres rather extraordinary proof, what are Mr. Crichton's sources on global warming that proves it is only fantasy? Regretably, Mr. Crichton provides no real sources for this or any other of his claims. Regarding Antarctic Ice Volume: Even if there is more Ice in Antarctica (Even NASA's site is painfully deficient in this regard, I have searched for good sources on this out of personal interest on the topic, and have found little), how much of the volume is free-floating ice and how much is on land? If the ammount of free-floating ice is increasing but the land-based ice is decreasing, then overall, the ice *on* antarctica is decreasing, and sea-level is rising. I have read documents on the NASA site stating in no uncertain terms that sea level *is* rising at a slow rate (about an inch per decade, IIRC). Surprisingly, the main contributor is not Antarctica, but Greenland, IIRC. A quick search revealed the following page on NASA's site, which talks not only about Sea-level rise but also global warming: http://gcmd4.gsfc.nasa.gov/Resources/Learning/sealevel.html In defence of Mr.Crichton's claims about Antarctica, my NASA search also revealed this: http://www.gsfc.nasa.gov/scie
Re: Life Eaters unavailable?
Jim Sharkey wrote: > > Horn, John wrote: > > From: Kevin Tarr > >>Local Borders: the person on the phone said he shows two in > >>stock, but couldn't find it on the shelf. > >That's EXACTLY what happened at the local Borders here in St. > >Louis. The computer shows one in stock but there's no sign of it > >in the store anywhere. > > You guys *ought* to have ordered it through your FLCS anyway, instead > of through some nice shiny store where you can get coffee and danishes. :) Is it OK to get coffee and danishes at the coffee shop next to the comic shop after you've bought it? :) Julia who bought something else at the comic shop and then bought a pound of coffee for someone's Christmas present ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Silliness
Jim Sharkey wrote: > > Julia Thompson wrote: > >Knock, knock. > > *sigh* Who's there? Kosh. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
A nail in the coffin
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3325573.stm ...of religion "French President Jacques Chirac is expected to express his support for a law that would ban pupils wearing Islamic headscarves in schools. In a speech to the nation on Wednesday, he is due to give his reaction to last week's report which proposed a ban on conspicuous religious signs in schools. The study by an expert commission examined a range of issues relating to religion and the state in France. Religious leaders say the ban would be seen as discriminatory. As well as headscarves, the ban would include Jewish skull-caps and large Christian crosses. "Discreet" medallions and pendants which merely confirm a person's religious faith would be allowed. Christian groups have said the proposed ban could harm the integration of schools. But Mr Chirac has expressed his support for such plans in the past, in the interests of reinforcing France's "secular" identity." -- William T Goodall Mail : [EMAIL PROTECTED] Web : http://www.wtgab.demon.co.uk Blog : http://radio.weblogs.com/0111221/ "I have always wished that my computer would be as easy to use as my telephone. My wish has come true. I no longer know how to use my telephone." - Bjarne Stroustrup ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Silliness
- Original Message - From: "Dan Minette" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "Killer Bs Discussion" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Tuesday, December 16, 2003 9:09 PM Subject: Re: Silliness > > - Original Message - > From: "Julia Thompson" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > To: "Killer Bs Discussion" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Sent: Tuesday, December 16, 2003 8:39 PM > Subject: Silliness > > > > Knock, knock. > > > > My, what magnificent knockers. > Yes...and a pair of them at that! xponent Young Funkenstien Maru rob ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: an irksome Amazon comment
In a message dated 12/16/2003 6:44:21 PM US Mountain Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: > The core element at issue is not religion, ... > There. Said my piece. If you all want to discuss it and decide for > yourselves, let me know and I'll make myself available. > > Wishing you joyous holidays and peace. > > With cordial regards, > > David Brin > www.davidbrin.com > I am four hours away from worshiping what's going to be presented on a mucking big movie screen. I'll go read the full Amazon blurb later. I figure the local full range comic book store would be the best non Internet source for The Life Eaters--when it's in my meager budget. Horror of horrors, I'm thinking first about getting a second Studio Ghibli tape. William Taylor -- I've read lots of bad Amazon reviews. ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: Silliness
Julia Thompson wrote: >Knock, knock. *sigh* Who's there? Jim I just know I'm going to regret this Maru ___ Join Excite! - http://www.excite.com The most personalized portal on the Web! ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: Life Eaters unavailable?
Horn, John wrote: > From: Kevin Tarr >>Local Borders: the person on the phone said he shows two in >>stock, but couldn't find it on the shelf. >That's EXACTLY what happened at the local Borders here in St. >Louis. The computer shows one in stock but there's no sign of it >in the store anywhere. You guys *ought* to have ordered it through your FLCS anyway, instead of through some nice shiny store where you can get coffee and danishes. :) Jim Comic Book Guy Maru ___ Join Excite! - http://www.excite.com The most personalized portal on the Web! ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Silliness
- Original Message - From: "Julia Thompson" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "Killer Bs Discussion" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Tuesday, December 16, 2003 8:39 PM Subject: Silliness > Knock, knock. > My, what magnificent knockers. Dan M. ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Silliness
At 08:39 PM 12/16/03, Julia Thompson wrote: Knock, knock. Arf-arf-arf-arf-arf-arf-arf-arf-arf-arf-arf-arf! Little Yappy Dog Maru -- Ronn! :) ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Silliness
Knock, knock. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
an irksome Amazon comment
Hi all. Just came back to grumble to somebody. A reviewer on Amazon posted a diss of LIFE EATERS stating that in my afterword I stated clearly that it was an 'anti-religion" polemic. This is a damned lie. Indeed, LE makes more and better and more respectful use of the noble side of religion, as a core element of the plot, than any other graphic novel you could point at. Yes, the book pays tribute to science and reason and an open society. But people of deep faith - Christians, Mulsims and Jews - play an essential role in defeating a terrible evil that humanity managed to bring down upon itself. The core element at issue is not religion, but the very notion of human sacrifice as a theologically valid, which was rejected from our common tradition by the story of Abraham, till it was re-introduced by Saul of Tarsus. A few radical Christians have taken insult from the mere raising of this issue as a topic of conversation. Needlessly, I think, since both Christianity and the teachings of Jesus get quite favorable mention. But then, none of these matters take up more than a few pages. So guys like this are just prickly sourpusses. There. Said my piece. If you all want to discuss it and decide for yourselves, let me know and I'll make myself available. Wishing you joyous holidays and peace. With cordial regards, David Brin www.davidbrin.com ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Outlandish but exceedingly fun.
From: "Michael Harney" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > If you think Tinman and a Leviathan gunship are too outlandish, how about > the Scimitar from Star Trek: Nemesis? I almost forgot about Babylon 5 universe. How about the Vorlon planet killer? Hyperspace capable, able to singlehandedly destroy a planet, virtually indestructable... Now *that* is outlandish. How about a more realistic ship. The Excaliber maybe? Tinman, Leviathan gunships, and vorlon and shadow ships out of consideration, my vote would still be for the Scimitar, though it's hard to compare technology from different series. Michael Harney [EMAIL PROTECTED] ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: RE: Life Eaters unavailable?
- Original Message - From: "Jon Gabriel" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Tuesday, December 16, 2003 4:24 PM Subject: Brin: RE: Life Eaters unavailable? > >From: "d.brin" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > >Reply-To: Killer Bs Discussion <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > >To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > >Subject: Life Eaters unavailable? > >Date: Tue, 16 Dec 2003 10:17:57 -0800 > > > > > > > >Hi folks. Just dropping by to ask a favor. I received a report (below) > >from Sean Fagan, that his local Barnes and Noble not only doesn't carry THE > >LIFE EATERS but cannot order in a copy for him. > > > >Do any others find this is true at their local B&N? Borders too? DO they > >explain? AMazon has it and it's reported still in print. > > I asked an intern (yes, I do know it's wrong to do that) to call and check > our local Barnes and Noble. (Lincoln Center in NYC.) They don't have it > (ISBN 1401200982). No Barnes and Noble has it in stock, but can "probably > order it from the publisher". No word in their computer why they aren't > carrying it. > H.. They had at least one copy at my local B&N. Its the only copy I have had a chance to look at...through the shrink wrap. :( This B&N is the only bookstore I ever get to go to with any regularity, so there is little chance that I am confused. xponent Searching Maru rob ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: Saddam not captured, but liberated?
--- Bryon Daly <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > The article states "Left with him were two AK-47 > assault guns and a pistol". > I haven't seen anything about this and even read a > bried blurb about one > of the Iraqi CPA leaders asking Saddam why he didn't > use his pistol (I don't > remember the exact reply, but it wasn't "I didn't > have a pistol"). Do you > have a link to any news articles about him having no > pistol? His reply was, wonderfully enough, to point to a nearby American soldier and ask, "Would you fight them?" > You seem to be assuming that "hard" interrogation > means torture. Do you > think that there are no acceptable strong means of > interrogation that don't > involve torture? > > -Bryon In fact it appears that we conducted the interrogation and we are legally unable to use torture. A prohibition that we appear to be sticking to, since the very fact that we need to ship people resistant to less coercive forms of interrogation off to various unsavory allies suggests that we are unable/unwilling to use those forms ourselves. The person involved probably wasn't exactly comfortable, but given the time frames involved, I doubt they were tortured - there probably wasn't time enough to do so. = Gautam Mukunda [EMAIL PROTECTED] "Freedom is not free" http://www.mukunda.blogspot.com __ Do you Yahoo!? New Yahoo! Photos - easier uploading and sharing. http://photos.yahoo.com/ ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Outlandish but exceedingly fun.
Heh, again I would pick the Zentraedi Nupetiet-vernitz from Macross. The Heavy P-beam cannon would do the job. And if that didn't do it, then the hundreds (possibly thousands) of Regults and fighters will do it... Damon. = Damon Agretto [EMAIL PROTECTED] "Qui desiderat pacem, praeparet bellum." http://www.geocities.com/garrand.geo/index.html Now Building: __ Do you Yahoo!? New Yahoo! Photos - easier uploading and sharing. http://photos.yahoo.com/ ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Outlandish but exceedingly fun.
From: "Travis Edmunds" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Anyway, seeing as how I've made my mind up about the Jem'Hadar, would anyone > care to move on? I still think Scarans are superior. They may be a bit slow, but they are stronger and practically bullet-proof. > Lets take a look at starships. I'll just throw a couple into the mix to > start things off. > > -A Borg cube (standard) > vs > -A Goauld mothership (Stargate) > > Discuss.. Assuming that the G'ould mothership had the latest (in the SG-1 series) in shield and weapon technology, I would say it would win the battle against the Borg Cube unless the Borg Cube was actually piloted by Borg. Star Trek: TNG early Borg episodes demonstrated that the power of the Borg ship in regeneration and defenses/adaptability relies on the actions of the Borg crew working as a coordinated unit. If the Borg are piloting the Borg Cube, the G'ould Mothership wouldn't stand a chance IMO. Personally though, I would choose a Leviathan gunship equiped with a peacekeeper defence field. High weapon power, self-repairing (as long as damage isn't too extensive), and can escape quickly if the situation calls for it. If I had to pick from Star Trek though, I would pick Tinman. Now *that* was a powerful ship. If you think Tinman and a Leviathan gunship are too outlandish, how about the Scimitar from Star Trek: Nemesis? It took two Romulan Warbirds and the Enterprise E just to cripple the ship (and the battle resulted in the Romulan Warbirds and the Enterprise E being even more crippled than the Scimitar, only an internal attack on the Scimitar resulted in its destruction). Michael Harney [EMAIL PROTECTED] ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: Saddam not captured, but liberated?
At 01:29 PM 12/16/03, Miller, Jeffrey wrote: > -Original Message- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Bryon Daly > Sent: Monday, December 15, 2003 03:39 PM > To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Subject: RE: Saddam not captured, but liberated? > > > >From: "Miller, Jeffrey" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > > > >An interesting take on recent news events surrounding > Saddam, and does > >pose > >some potentially intruiging questions. Possibly > meaningless, but the > >suggestion about negotiations IRT the reward money going > sour.. I dunno. > > > >http://www.debka.com/article.php?aid=743 > > Seems ridiculous to me. The US gladly paid out $30 million > to the tipster > for the Hussein boys, and freely stated so. Why would this > be different? I don't understand what your point is - this article only briefly mentions the reward money.. did you actually read the article? If so, this is the best criticism you can come up with, something it doesn't even talk about? Further.. hell yeah, I'd negotiate the reward money if I was a low-level flunky in Dr Evil's empire. You bet your ass I wouldn't accept a check, and cash? Forget it! You think I'd live more than about 2 minutes after driving a car out of the US Embassy loaded with $25M in $100 bills (do you understand exactly how BULKY even $1M in $100 bills is? http://www.cockeyed.com/inside/million/million.html ) I'm surprised no one has commented on the following paragraph from that web site: One, the 5" Zero Halliburton Premiere Silver Attaché Case (US$545) held all the money...exactly one million dollars! Debbie, Donald, Brooke and I took turns lugging it around the store. -- Ronn! :) ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: Outlandish but exceedingly fun.
At 02:20 PM 12/16/03, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: In the ST realm, there was the salt-sucking doppleganger, The Horta (my favorite), Khan's legion of supermen, the Borg (of course), Data and Lor, the lizardman Kirk fought (I think it was "Arena" episode or something like that), An adaptation of a story by Frederic Brown to the ST universe. -- Ronn! :) ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: Outlandish but exceedingly fun.
At 10:40 AM 12/16/03, Travis Edmunds wrote: Also, the planet killer seems to be somewhat of a last ditch effort, to create something so powerful as to be impervious to the Borg and just about anything else (it had a neutronium hull). Forget the neutronium hull. What I want is some of the stuff they used to brace the interior so the neutronium hull wouldn't collapse into a solid sphere under its own weight and self-gravity. Now _that_ has to be strong stuff . . . -- Ronn! :) ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: Life Eaters unavailable?
> -Original Message- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Sent: Tuesday, December 16, 2003 03:12 PM > To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Subject: Re: Life Eaters unavailable? > > > In a message dated 12/16/2003 3:28:59 PM US Mountain Standard Time, > [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: > > > > Local Borders: the person on the phone said he shows two in > > > stock, but couldn't find it on the shelf. > > > > That's EXACTLY what happened at the local Borders here in > St. Louis. > > The computer shows one in stock but there's no sign of it in the > > store anywhere. > > They employees loved reading it so much. > > No local B&M store carried GURPS at all. They couldn't > compete with Amazon's > discount. > > Is Amazon selling Life Eaters at the published price? Hrm... looks like we've got marketplace sellers for it, ya -j- ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Life Eaters unavailable?
In a message dated 12/16/2003 3:28:59 PM US Mountain Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: > > Local Borders: the person on the phone said he shows two in > > stock, but couldn't find it on the shelf. > > That's EXACTLY what happened at the local Borders here in St. Louis. > The computer shows one in stock but there's no sign of it in the > store anywhere. They employees loved reading it so much. No local B&M store carried GURPS at all. They couldn't compete with Amazon's discount. Is Amazon selling Life Eaters at the published price? 8 hours away from watching THE movie... William Taylor ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: Brin: RE: Life Eaters unavailable?
> -Original Message- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Jon Gabriel > Sent: Tuesday, December 16, 2003 02:24 PM > To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Subject: Brin: RE: Life Eaters unavailable? > > > I asked an intern (yes, I do know it's wrong to do that) to > call and check > our local Barnes and Noble. (Lincoln Center in NYC.) They > don't have it > (ISBN 1401200982). No Barnes and Noble has it in stock, but > can "probably > order it from the publisher". No word in their computer why > they aren't carrying it. Our warehouses claim to have plenty in stock, too. -j- ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Brin: RE: Life Eaters unavailable?
Thanks Jon... --- Jon Gabriel <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > >From: "d.brin" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > >Reply-To: Killer Bs Discussion > <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > >To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > >Subject: Life Eaters unavailable? > >Date: Tue, 16 Dec 2003 10:17:57 -0800 > > > > > > > >Hi folks. Just dropping by to ask a favor. I > received a report (below) > >from Sean Fagan, that his local Barnes and Noble > not only doesn't carry THE > >LIFE EATERS but cannot order in a copy for him. > > > >Do any others find this is true at their local B&N? > Borders too? DO they > >explain? AMazon has it and it's reported still in > print. > > I asked an intern (yes, I do know it's wrong to do > that) to call and check > our local Barnes and Noble. (Lincoln Center in > NYC.) They don't have it > (ISBN 1401200982). No Barnes and Noble has it in > stock, but can "probably > order it from the publisher". No word in their > computer why they aren't > carrying it. > > Jon > > > Le Blog: http://zarq.livejournal.com > > _ > Grab our best dial-up Internet access offer: 6 > months @$9.95/month. > http://join.msn.com/?page=dept/dialup > > ___ > http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Brin: RE: Life Eaters unavailable?
From: "d.brin" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Reply-To: Killer Bs Discussion <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Life Eaters unavailable? Date: Tue, 16 Dec 2003 10:17:57 -0800 Hi folks. Just dropping by to ask a favor. I received a report (below) from Sean Fagan, that his local Barnes and Noble not only doesn't carry THE LIFE EATERS but cannot order in a copy for him. Do any others find this is true at their local B&N? Borders too? DO they explain? AMazon has it and it's reported still in print. I asked an intern (yes, I do know it's wrong to do that) to call and check our local Barnes and Noble. (Lincoln Center in NYC.) They don't have it (ISBN 1401200982). No Barnes and Noble has it in stock, but can "probably order it from the publisher". No word in their computer why they aren't carrying it. Jon Le Blog: http://zarq.livejournal.com _ Grab our best dial-up Internet access offer: 6 months @$9.95/month. http://join.msn.com/?page=dept/dialup ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: Life Eaters unavailable?
> From: Kevin Tarr [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > > Local Borders: the person on the phone said he shows two in > stock, but couldn't find it on the shelf. That's EXACTLY what happened at the local Borders here in St. Louis. The computer shows one in stock but there's no sign of it in the store anywhere. - jmh ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Outlandish but exceedingly fun.
Travis Edmunds wrote: > Anyway, the agreed upon plausibility was that the race that was wiped out by > the Borg, and that Guinan is a member of, were the architects of the planet > killer. We know for a fact that Guinan was on Earth (I think it was the > 1800's??) which makes her a minimum of 400 years old. Certainly no later than 1910. :) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Life Eaters unavailable?
At 01:17 PM 12/16/2003, you wrote: Hi folks. Just dropping by to ask a favor. I received a report (below) from Sean Fagan, that his local Barnes and Noble not only doesn't carry THE LIFE EATERS but cannot order in a copy for him. Do any others find this is true at their local B&N? Borders too? DO they explain? AMazon has it and it's reported still in print. Oh, by the way, it makes a great gift! ;-) Have wonderful holidays and may 2004 be your best year yet. With warm regards, David Brin Neither Borders nor B&N list it as being in stock online. Borders has a 2-3 day delivery on it. The DC Comics website does not list it in it's books section. Local Borders: the person on the phone said he shows two in stock, but couldn't find it on the shelf. You can search local Borders stores on the web. Go to the borders/amazon site and click border stores. Out of the five local ones, two show it in stock, three are on order. I didn't call B&N. Kevin Tarr Reporting from South central PA ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: Outlandish but exceedingly fun.
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Reply-To: Killer Bs Discussion <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: RE: Outlandish but exceedingly fun. Date: Tue, 16 Dec 2003 12:20:53 -0800 IIRC, The planet killer came from beyond this galaxy border, passing through the Great Barrier, did it not? Yes. However it was established in the book, that it was built outside the Galactic rim to essentially hide it. When it was ready for action, the plan was to take it into the Galaxy and FIGHT. And of course, after much consideration the most plausible scenario is that Guinan's people built it. If we limit the selections to Star Trek aliens, I would not have made the choice of Jem' Hadar, largely because in the show, they always seemed to lose, often because of their dependency to the "white" (is this correct?) or they were outsmarted. Well, yes. They do have a "built in" addiction to the ketracel white (a tactic of the Founders to keep them completely loyal) but I don't think that's the reason the Dominion lost the war for the Alpha quadrant, so much as it was the fact that the Federatioin/Klingons/Romulans kicked their collective butt. In the ST realm, there was the salt-sucking doppleganger, The Horta (my favorite), Khan's legion of supermen, the Borg (of course), Data and Lor, the lizardman Kirk fought (I think it was "Arena" episode or something like that), and many others... I wasn't completely limiting myself to the Star Trek realm (Note my use of Jaffa from Stargate). However the fact that two of my prime choices were from Star Trek simply reflects my stipulations. I was using ONLY biological species (no cyborgs, and no artificial lifeforms). I was also limiting myself to believeable and not too outlandish species (note my omissions of species such as the Q). Besides, using the likes of Kahn's supermen or the "lizardman/men" (Gorn) presented too many problems. I factored MANY things into my final decision. Moving to the SW realm, how about a million Jedi? Again too outlandish. Heinlein's world - Starship Troopers... Of course... Too outlandish Harry Harrison - Any citizen from Deathworld... Anyway, seeing as how I've made my mind up about the Jem'Hadar, would anyone care to move on? Lets take a look at starships. I'll just throw a couple into the mix to start things off. -A Borg cube (standard) vs -A Goauld mothership (Stargate) Discuss.. _ The new MSN 8: advanced junk mail protection and 2 months FREE* http://join.msn.com/?page=dept/bcomm&pgmarket=en-ca&RU=http%3a%2f%2fjoin.msn.com%2f%3fpage%3dmisc%2fspecialoffers%26pgmarket%3den-ca ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: Saddam not captured, but liberated?
> -Original Message- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Bryon Daly > Sent: Tuesday, December 16, 2003 01:01 PM > To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Subject: RE: Saddam not captured, but liberated? > > > Yes, I did read it. At least twice. The article suggests > that the US > wouldn't want to get Saddam through using a tip-off, for > reason of national > pride. I mention the money because it is proof that the US > *was* willing to > use a tip-off to get the sons, and quite publicly discussed > it, which I > don't think would be significantly different on the > national-pride thing. *suggests* but doesn't posit that as a sole reason. > >Further.. hell yeah, I'd negotiate the reward money if I was a > >low-level > >flunky in Dr Evil's empire. You bet your ass I wouldn't > accept a check, and > >cash? Forget it! You think I'd live more than about 2 > minutes after > >driving a car out of the US Embassy loaded with $25M in $100 bills > > I rather imagined a free ticket to the US, England, or > wherever else they > wanted would be included, and that the money would safely be > deposited in > any bank of the tipster's choice. And while the tipsters > might not want to > trust us, we had already demonstrated that we were willing to > make good on the money promise, with the sons' tipster. I would definately want passage out of Iraq if I turned in the boss.. but not in a Stryker or a helicopter ^_^ > >(do you understand exactly how BULKY even $1M in $100 bills is? > >http://www.cockeyed.com/inside/million/million.html ) > > Yes I do. I worked in the high-security bulk/coin teller > area of a bank > headquarters. I've wheeled carts around containing $4-5 > million in cash and > seen piles of $20-50 million. It is actually surprisingly, almost > disappointingly, small, when you see it. I don't think so at all; most Americans see small briefcases of millions and millions of dollars "here is zee suitcase with zee $10 Meel-yon dough-lahrs, meester Bond.." ..so actually seeing even $2M is impressive (and yeah, I've seen multiple millions myself, in person at poker tournements.. hell, I was impressed ^_^) > side note: $1 > million was stolen from that area just a few weeks after I > left the job! > They never caught anyone for it, even though access to the area was > restricted to at most about a dozen people, and the place was > littered with > cameras. I have my suspicions about who did it, though.) Wasn't that right before you bought that house and the Hummer? ;) > >Yeah, they'll just head down to the local Money Tree or > other Pay-Day > >Loan > >company and cash that puppy... > > No, of course not, as I say above. I was just being a bit > flippant - the giant check would be for PR purposes. Heh.. giant check.. the first thing I thougth was they'd bring out a giant fake check like at the end of golf tournaments... > >They didn't. The AK-47s were above ground, and the Pentagon has > >quickly > >yet quietly backed away from the story that Saddam had a pistol. > > The article states "Left with him were two AK-47 assault guns > and a pistol". > I haven't seen anything about this and even read a bried > blurb about one > of the Iraqi CPA leaders asking Saddam why he didn't use his > pistol (I don't > remember the exact reply, but it wasn't "I didn't have a > pistol"). Do you > have a link to any news articles about him having no pistol? I'll dig a little; juan cole or instapundit or buzzflash had it (my "liberal" sources)..I distinctly remember it was a left-leaning source, though, because it was tucked in with other "liberal" items.. > >Lovely. Did we do the work ourselves, or is this how some > unspecified > >3rd > >country is > >participating in the Coalition? > > You seem to be assuming that "hard" interrogation means > torture. Do you > think that there are no acceptable strong means of > interrogation that don't involve torture? Don't be absurd. Of course I know that. -j- ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: Saddam not captured, but liberated?
From: "Miller, Jeffrey" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > From: Bryon Daly: > Seems ridiculous to me. The US gladly paid out $30 million > to the tipster > for the Hussein boys, and freely stated so. Why would this > be different? I don't understand what your point is - this article only briefly mentions the reward money.. did you actually read the article? If so, this is the best criticism you can come up with, something it doesn't even talk about? Yes, I did read it. At least twice. The article suggests that the US wouldn't want to get Saddam through using a tip-off, for reason of national pride. I mention the money because it is proof that the US *was* willing to use a tip-off to get the sons, and quite publicly discussed it, which I don't think would be significantly different on the national-pride thing. Further.. hell yeah, I'd negotiate the reward money if I was a low-level flunky in Dr Evil's empire. You bet your ass I wouldn't accept a check, and cash? Forget it! You think I'd live more than about 2 minutes after driving a car out of the US Embassy loaded with $25M in $100 bills I rather imagined a free ticket to the US, England, or wherever else they wanted would be included, and that the money would safely be deposited in any bank of the tipster's choice. And while the tipsters might not want to trust us, we had already demonstrated that we were willing to make good on the money promise, with the sons' tipster. (do you understand exactly how BULKY even $1M in $100 bills is? http://www.cockeyed.com/inside/million/million.html ) Yes I do. I worked in the high-security bulk/coin teller area of a bank headquarters. I've wheeled carts around containing $4-5 million in cash and seen piles of $20-50 million. It is actually surprisingly, almost disappointingly, small, when you see it. (An interesting side note: $1 million was stolen from that area just a few weeks after I left the job! They never caught anyone for it, even though access to the area was restricted to at most about a dozen people, and the place was littered with cameras. I have my suspicions about who did it, though.) >In fact, I think that if he had been > betrayed and turned over by his own closest people, it would > have been a > powerful message to the remaining fighters that the cause is > lost. That, > and some happy Iraqis with a giant $25 million check makes > good PR as well, > and could encourage future sellouts among the terrorists. Yeah, they'll just head down to the local Money Tree or other Pay-Day Loan company and cash that puppy... No, of course not, as I say above. I was just being a bit flippant - the giant check would be for PR purposes. Seriously tho, its looking more and more like Saddam had squat-all to do with day-to-day >coordination, and now that Lebenese super-terrorist whotsisface is in southern Iraq (by many >reports)... Quite possibly. I'm not asserting otherwise, just that I doubt that he was a captive of his own people, about to be turned in for the money. > Also, if he was captive, why would they leave him with > AK-47's, a pistol, and the cash? They didn't. The AK-47s were above ground, and the Pentagon has quickly yet quietly backed away from the story that Saddam had a pistol. The article states "Left with him were two AK-47 assault guns and a pistol". I haven't seen anything about this and even read a bried blurb about one of the Iraqi CPA leaders asking Saddam why he didn't use his pistol (I don't remember the exact reply, but it wasn't "I didn't have a pistol"). Do you have a link to any news articles about him having no pistol? For that matter, where was the communications equipment and records required to run an operation the size and sophistication that the Iraqi resistence is engaging in? what, was he yelling orders up that ventilation pipe? Again, I having no idea what his level of control/involvement was. That wasn't my point. I'll just ask my question about your other email here rather than make a second post... From Jeffrey Miller: From Damon Agretto: Apparently it's because the individual did not surrender the information willingly, and had to be subjected to a "hard" interrogation, according to the TV news report last nite... Lovely. Did we do the work ourselves, or is this how some unspecified 3rd country is participating in the Coalition? You seem to be assuming that "hard" interrogation means torture. Do you think that there are no acceptable strong means of interrogation that don't involve torture? -Bryon _ Make your home warm and cozy this winter with tips from MSN House & Home. http://special.msn.com/home/warmhome.armx ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: Outlandish but exceedingly fun.
> Initially we > were thinking that the planet killer was created by the > Preservers. But > taking into account the relative age of the Borg, and the > estimated age of > the Preservers themselves, it is quite an impossibility that > it was created > by them. Especially when considering that the Preservers > either transcended > (a cliche that bothers me) or moved on to another Galaxy, OR > perhaps moved > on to extra-dimensional wanderings, hundreds of millions if > not billions of > years before the Borg even thought of those big nasty cubes. IIRC, The planet killer came from beyond this galaxy border, passing through the Great Barrier, did it not? Also, > the planet killer seems to be somewhat of a last ditch > effort, to create > something so powerful as to be impervious to the Borg and just about > anything else (it had a neutronium hull). > > One more thing about the planet killer. It wasn't a robot, > and it wasn't > sentient per se. Although it did have the collective > consciousness of the > species who created it embedded into the ship itself, it still needed > someone to "captain the ship" so to speak. > > As for my original thoughts in this thread, I have made a > descision. I would > pick the Jem'Hadar. Too many reasons to get into here, but > they far exceeded > the positive attributes of the other two candidates. If we limit the selections to Star Trek aliens, I would not have made the choice of Jem' Hadar, largely because in the show, they always seemed to lose, often because of their dependency to the "white" (is this correct?) or they were outsmarted. In the ST realm, there was the salt-sucking doppleganger, The Horta (my favorite), Khan's legion of supermen, the Borg (of course), Data and Lor, the lizardman Kirk fought (I think it was "Arena" episode or something like that), and many others... Moving to the SW realm, how about a million Jedi? Heinlein's world - Starship Troopers... Of course... Harry Harrison - Any citizen from Deathworld... I'll have to break out my Barlow's Guide for some more ideas Nerd From Hell > > _ > Add photos to your e-mail with MSN 8. Get 2 months FREE*. > http://join.msn.com/?page=features/photos&pgmarket=en-ca&RU=ht > tp%3a%2f%2fjoin.msn.com%2f%3fpage%3dmisc%2fspecialoffers%26pgm > arket%3den-ca > > ___ > http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l > ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: Saddam not captured, but liberated?
> -Original Message- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Damon Agretto > Sent: Tuesday, December 16, 2003 07:25 AM > To: Killer Bs Discussion > Subject: RE: Saddam not captured, but liberated? > > > > I haven't read that link yet but there have been a > > number of reports > > that the informant would not be paid the award > > money. > > Apparently it's because the individual did not > surrender the information willingly, and had to be > subjected to a "hard" interrogation, according to the > TV news report last nite... Lovely. Did we do the work ourselves, or is this how some unspecified 3rd country is participating in the Coalition? -j- ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: Saddam not captured, but liberated?
> -Original Message- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Bryon Daly > Sent: Monday, December 15, 2003 03:39 PM > To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Subject: RE: Saddam not captured, but liberated? > > > >From: "Miller, Jeffrey" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > > > >An interesting take on recent news events surrounding > Saddam, and does > >pose > >some potentially intruiging questions. Possibly > meaningless, but the > >suggestion about negotiations IRT the reward money going > sour.. I dunno. > > > >http://www.debka.com/article.php?aid=743 > > Seems ridiculous to me. The US gladly paid out $30 million > to the tipster > for the Hussein boys, and freely stated so. Why would this > be different? I don't understand what your point is - this article only briefly mentions the reward money.. did you actually read the article? If so, this is the best criticism you can come up with, something it doesn't even talk about? Further.. hell yeah, I'd negotiate the reward money if I was a low-level flunky in Dr Evil's empire. You bet your ass I wouldn't accept a check, and cash? Forget it! You think I'd live more than about 2 minutes after driving a car out of the US Embassy loaded with $25M in $100 bills (do you understand exactly how BULKY even $1M in $100 bills is? http://www.cockeyed.com/inside/million/million.html ) >In fact, I think that if he had been > betrayed and turned over by his own closest people, it would > have been a > powerful message to the remaining fighters that the cause is > lost. That, > and some happy Iraqis with a giant $25 million check makes > good PR as well, > and could encourage future sellouts among the terrorists. Yeah, they'll just head down to the local Money Tree or other Pay-Day Loan company and cash that puppy... Seriously tho, its looking more and more like Saddam had squat-all to do with day-to-day coordination, and now that Lebenese super-terrorist whotsisface is in southern Iraq (by many reports)... > Also, if he was captive, why would they leave him with > AK-47's, a pistol, and the cash? They didn't. The AK-47s were above ground, and the Pentagon has quickly yet quietly backed away from the story that Saddam had a pistol. For that matter, where was the communications equipment and records required to run an operation the size and sophistication that the Iraqi resistence is engaging in? what, was he yelling orders up that ventilation pipe? -j- ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Life Eaters unavailable?
Hi folks. Just dropping by to ask a favor. I received a report (below) from Sean Fagan, that his local Barnes and Noble not only doesn't carry THE LIFE EATERS but cannot order in a copy for him. Do any others find this is true at their local B&N? Borders too? DO they explain? AMazon has it and it's reported still in print. Oh, by the way, it makes a great gift! ;-) Have wonderful holidays and may 2004 be your best year yet. With warm regards, David Brin www.davidbrin.com ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: Outlandish but exceedingly fun.
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Reply-To: Killer Bs Discussion <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: RE: Outlandish but exceedingly fun. Date: Mon, 15 Dec 2003 14:38:42 -0800 There was a Star Trek TNG book that explained the cigar shaped planet killer in the original series, as being a sentient Borg Killer robot - a million of them would be handy Or does the initial requirements of thie thread require that a species fall within a strict carbon-based biological basis? The Borg Killer was searching for its mate. Does this count? Nerd From Hell The book is titled "Vendetta". The planet killer encountered in TOS was an automated prototype of the one encountered in "Vendetta". The purpose of the planet killer was to essentially fight the borg. And you know it's funny, because last night me and a friend were discussing that book. Initially we were thinking that the planet killer was created by the Preservers. But taking into account the relative age of the Borg, and the estimated age of the Preservers themselves, it is quite an impossibility that it was created by them. Especially when considering that the Preservers either transcended (a cliche that bothers me) or moved on to another Galaxy, OR perhaps moved on to extra-dimensional wanderings, hundreds of millions if not billions of years before the Borg even thought of those big nasty cubes. Besides, the planet killer wasn't as advanced as authentic Preserver technology, which for all intents and purposes is undectable, either by energy signatures etc... Anyway, the agreed upon plausibility was that the race that was wiped out by the Borg, and that Guinan is a member of, were the architects of the planet killer. We know for a fact that Guinan was on Earth (I think it was the 1800's??) which makes her a minimum of 400 years old. An individual of a species who lives that long, implies advanced biological evolution, which in turn implies advanced age of that species, which also implies advanced technological capacity. A notion that is backed up in the movie "Generations", when that crazy scientist (who is also a member of that doomed race) knows how to cause a star to go nova, which subsequently changes the course of an unpredictable spacial anomoly (the Nexus). Also, the planet killer seems to be somewhat of a last ditch effort, to create something so powerful as to be impervious to the Borg and just about anything else (it had a neutronium hull). One more thing about the planet killer. It wasn't a robot, and it wasn't sentient per se. Although it did have the collective consciousness of the species who created it embedded into the ship itself, it still needed someone to "captain the ship" so to speak. As for my original thoughts in this thread, I have made a descision. I would pick the Jem'Hadar. Too many reasons to get into here, but they far exceeded the positive attributes of the other two candidates. _ Add photos to your e-mail with MSN 8. Get 2 months FREE*. http://join.msn.com/?page=features/photos&pgmarket=en-ca&RU=http%3a%2f%2fjoin.msn.com%2f%3fpage%3dmisc%2fspecialoffers%26pgmarket%3den-ca ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: Saddam not captured, but liberated?
> I haven't read that link yet but there have been a > number of reports > that the informant would not be paid the award > money. Apparently it's because the individual did not surrender the information willingly, and had to be subjected to a "hard" interrogation, according to the TV news report last nite... Damon. = Damon Agretto [EMAIL PROTECTED] "Qui desiderat pacem, praeparet bellum." http://www.geocities.com/garrand.geo/index.html Now Building: __ Do you Yahoo!? New Yahoo! Photos - easier uploading and sharing. http://photos.yahoo.com/ ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Expatriate writers needed
Alberto Monteiro wrote: > Nick Arnett wrote: > > > > A friend of mine is one of the founders of a new web site > > that is sort of a global collaborative blogging effort by > > people who are expatriates. > > > No idea on how to _become_ an expatriate? > > Alberto Monteiro, tired of paying too much taxes :-( - Spend 30 years in the Air Force, have a Korean-American wife, make sure you get your last tour overseas (Korea in my case), make friends with every contractor you can find (especially those not related to your career field so there's no conflict of interest upon retirement), retire (easy), get hired (a bit more difficult), and stay overseas. Worked for me! George A ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: Saddam not captured, but liberated?
Bryon Daly wrote: > Seems ridiculous to me. The US gladly paid out $30 million > to the tipster > for the Hussein boys, and freely stated so. Why would this > be different? I > don't buy that national pride argument that the US needed to > capture him > rather than get him handed over. In fact, I think that if he > had been > betrayed and turned over by his own closest people, it would > have been a > powerful message to the remaining fighters that the cause is > lost. That, > and some happy Iraqis with a giant $25 million check makes > good PR as well, > and could encourage future sellouts among the terrorists. I haven't read that link yet but there have been a number of reports that the informant would not be paid the award money. http://www.abcnews.go.com/sections/WNT/World/saddam_capture_bodyguard_03 1215-1.html Ritu ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Scouted: Environmentalism is Evil and Must Be Destroyed
On Mon, 15 Dec 2003 19:21:33 -0600, Ronn!Blankenship <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: Remarks to the Commonwealth Club by Michael Crichton San Francisco September 15, 2003 I agree with a lot of what Crichton has to say, but have a few observations. Even if all the non-religious (in the traditional sense) were the kind of religious environmentalists Crichton says they are, there wouldnât be very many of them, so I'm guessing many environmentalists are religious in the traditional sense. Further, there are many non religious people that arenât the type of ideo-environmentalists that he describes. Personally, my environmentalism is based on these tenets: 1. Clean air, earth and water is healthy for humans and other animals. 2. Natural beauty is precious and should, inasmuch as it is practical, be preserved for the enrichment of future generations. 3. Humans don't have the right to wipe out other species of animals, and should, in fact work to keep them from being wiped out. I'm not sure that even a majority of environmentalists believe in the idea of a noble savage or that we need to save the planet (as if we could kill it). The closest I get to "getting back to nature" is my yearly Sierra backpack trip, and I think that that is closer to nature than 98% of the people in the country get to it. And while I enjoy my time in the wild, and would like to do it even more often, after four or five days of it, I'm ready for a hamburger fresh off the grill, a shower, and a place where I can sit down to take a dump, thank you. I challenge the idea that we live in a secular society. In a country where most people are aghast at the idea of removing religious references from the daily indoctrination of our children or from our legal tender; in a country wherein something like 80% of the people profess belief in a god, and most of those think that a judge shouldn't have to remove a religious sacrament from his courthouse; in a country where you have to sit though a hymn at a public sporting event*, the best that can be said is that we have aspirations for being secular. There are countries that have state religions that are more secular than we are. Maybe second-hand smoke isn't as dangerous as professed, but I am sure as hell happy I don't have to breathe it anymore. At least one of the reasons that the population explosion is no longer exploding is that we realized that it might be a problem and raised the alarm. A self negating prophesy. It seems to me that the statement "Our record in the past, for example managing national parks, is humiliating. Our fifty-year effort at forest-fire suppression is a well-intentioned disaster from which our forests will never recover." is exactly the kind of rhetoric he's arguing against for most of the rest of the speech. Never? Doug *This is a pet peeve. If I were a religious person I would pray every night before I went to a game that it was going to be _Take Me Out to the Ball Game_ and not _God Bless America_ at the seventh inning stretch. 8^) ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
