Author: rowan

That is correct. I’m sure it’s no secret that amongst all geeks who know each other, there is an unending, unspoken struggle for domination, to see who can claim the title of “Lord of the Geeks.”

It is an elusive title, and one that constantly changes hands, much like the coveted WWE Champion’s belt.

Battles for status are fought in many ways: attending conventions, getting such-and-such’s autograph, successfully correcting someone else on some obscure bit of role-playing lore or mechanics (“I’m sorry, but you are incorrect in your assertion that the Saving Throw Table for AD&D 2nd Edition can be found on page 97 of the Player’s Handbook. You are mistaking it with the ThacO by Level Advancement table. The Saving Throw table is found on page 101”), etc.

(BTW, those stats aren’t made up.)

But I believe this week the crown must go to me. For last Friday evening, I had the privilege of hearing the National Symphony Orchestra performing Nobuo Uematsu’s Liberi Fatali (better known as the opening to Final Fantasy VIII) AND One-Winged Angel (Sephiroth’s Theme) LIVE with a full chorus behind them. Also included in the program was the music to World of Warcraft, Sonic the Hedgehog, and of course the two original classics Super Mario and Zelda.

Again, full orchestral arrangements, performed by one of the premier orchestras in the country.

It was, in a word, glorious.

Not to worry, though. I’m sure I will be toppled from my throne by the end of this week. And thus the neverending cycle shall continue…

Hands down. This is the best day I’ve ever had in my life.

College graduation? A paltry comparison. First time on the Folger stage? Meh. First kiss? Hey, that was great and all, but a man’s heart has priorities:

The wellspring of my inner geek swells to bursting, straining to break forth into rivers of joy that gleam in effulgent anticipation.

Why, you may ask. Because I just found a bit of news that I can’t believe I didn’t hear sooner. The import of this discovery would eclipse even Robert Langdon finding Mary Magdalene’s bones and overshadow the uncovering of every single Horacrux known to humankind. That which I have for the better part of my entire life’s span on this frail globe been waiting or, the holy grail whose inevitable discovery I never doubted, the event which promises to unite all the nations in harmony, is soon to be upon us.

Come the fall of 2007, the Companions reunite.

“To produce the meat we eat now, 75 (percent) to 95 percent of what we feed an animal is lost because of metabolism and inedible structures like skeleton or neurological tissue,” says Matheny. “With cultured meat, there’s no body to support; you’re only building the meat that eventually gets eaten.”

Artificial Meat

This actually, if it worked, could have some serious benefits for the world as a whole.

Saw Al Gore’s film last night. Well worth watching. In my opinion, a sobering, well-reasoned look into the global warming situation.

And before people start diving for their respective fox-holes for yet another round of a battle that’s already been fought on this board, I’ll let you know I’m posting this more as a critique of the quality of the documentary then anything else.

Even as a liberal who believes that Bush and nearly everything about his administration was a very, very bad idea, I was pretty disgusted with Fareneheit 9/11. It was pure conspiracy theory, and flimsy at best. The Da Vinci code was based on more solid evidence, for God’s sake, and told better too. Most documentaries have a point to prove. That’s to be expected; if someone didn’t care about an issue, or see a problem in a situation, why would they go to the trouble of filming something about it? I don’t ask that a documentary be completely objective (there’s no such thing, anyway), I just ask that there be some semblance of fact, and that thrust of the film’s argument be derived from a cohesive, logical relationship to said facts.

I found “An Inconvenient Truth” to be such a documentary. Yes, there’s a little bit of biography about Al Gore himself, a little bit of heartstring-tweaking. But the majority of the documentary is simply him laying out a logical argument for his position in which every single time he makes a statement, he backs it up with scientific research. I don’t think he offers a single opinion without providing hard, measured findings from the scientific community.

So essentially, he’s looking at empirical evidence (very little of which, I believe, is in dispute by anyone in the scientific community), and using it to structure an honest argument.

I don’t know, that struck me as the sort of thing that would appeal to the bloggers on this domain.

My favorite kind of argument, the one most likely to change my mind, is where someone comes to me with statistics and evidence, then, without voices being raised, an appeal to a higher power invoked, or any person being demonized, presents it in a way that says “This is the conclusion I drew. Do you draw the same?” Extra credit for going on to say “This is a proposed solution to the problem.”

Matthew changed my mind about the Second Amendment with this particular type of argument on an old, old post on this board. I believe “An Inconvenient Truth” to be a similar sort of argument, and it receives my recommendation.

I’d, of course, be interested in hearing what anyone else who saw it has to say about it. Who knows? Maybe it is a horrifically manipulative film that makes Michael Moore by comparison look like David Hume, and I’m a dumb sheep who doesn’t realize it. 😛 But I don’t think so.

I think nearly everyone on this board has stated at some point that they are men and women of science and of reason, which is why I thought of you all when I watched this film. My own personal style of argument relies on drama, emotional manipulation, weaving a good story to take bits of the truth for my own end, and liberal use of subtle self-deprecation in order to disarm someone’s reservations (I might even be doing that RIGHT NOW, mwa ha ha). This did not look like the kind of movie I would have made. But it did look like a movie many of you would have.

Sigh… this is what happens when I get too bored during a Shakespeare rehearsal.

SCENE. The Yavin System. Before Death Star

Alarum. Enter WEDGE, LUKE, and various other PILOTS

WEDGE:

Once more into the trench, Red Team, once more; Lest Yavin be destroyed by our delay. I know you all to be the best of men: Right gentle in your hearts, desiring naught But peace and order for this galaxy; Yet since the Empire calls us out to war, Now don the inner aspect of the rancor: Let me hear snarling, raging, fervent roars To cow the hearts of your imperial foes. And know this fierce, portentious Rebel yell Will sound across the blackest reach of space, Pouring into the gaps between the stars To fill this hallowed sector to the brim With bold defiance ‘gainst the tyrant’s press. This Star of Death, so I have heard, is called Sometimes the Emperor’s Eye, whose cruel gaze Might pierce the heart of each terrestrial sphere And so transmute our homes to dust and ash. O kinsmen! Brothers! Hold true to your vows That no more Alderaans might ever fall As subjects to such horrid alchemy. For we alone are left in all the world To be the stalwart guardians of the light, The spears against the enemy’s iron flank, The heralds of a New and glorious Hope.

Keep your formation close to me, Unwavering, even though my purpose holds To skim the surface of this grey sea And slip into the narrow road to hell. I know you sit like riders in your pods, Who strain upon the start. The race is on! Now gun your engines, watch your six, and prep Your targeting computers for the strike. We’ll blaze a path in fire to the stomach Of this beast and leave destruction in our wake. So hearken, war-like, to my call, And May the Force be with you all!

Exeunt

Inspired by another post likening Justin to Nicholas Cage (which yeah, I can totally see, although I also think he bears an uncanny resemblance to that dude from Mad TV, I thought I’d start a thread in which people say the celebrity they think they resemble most. You can compare yourself to a) the celebrity YOU think you most resemble, b) the celebrity OTHER people think you most resemble, c) the celebrity you WISH you most resembled with a little bit of tweaking, etc…

For me, I have been compared to Sean Astin a couple times. Also, I apparently look a lot like Iron Chef Bobby Flay.

My wishlist answer, of course, is David Boreanaz. There is a resemblance when in good light. Or possibly bad. I swear that at least one of my old high school students said it was so. Actually, her words were “Mr. Rowan, I was channel surfing last night and I passed by this show and I was like ‘Oh my God it’s Mr. Rowan!’ except it wasn’t, it was Angel.”

Needless to say, she was one of my favorite students.

Kingdom Hearts Two is on its way in a sweet and wonderful Amazon shipped package to me as I write this.

Just caught the first trailer today. It’s got Captain Jack Sparrow in it! And possibly more Sephiroth! And Mickey kicking ass with a ninja sword.

Ah… the best things in life are 49.95…

Hey, everybody! South Dakota just passed a bill banning abortion!

What do y’all think?

(FIRE IN THE HOLE!)

Interesting news article from Vermont today:

VT Judge Increases Sex Offender Sentence

Based just on this article, my inclination leans more towards the judge’s initial ruling as well as his justification for increasing the sentence.

What are y’all’s thoughts? Should the sentence have been much higher to begin with?

And, on a grander scale, what is the purpose of the justice system? Should it be concerned with rehabilitation, or simply provide consistent consequences to those who break the law?

So I went and saw Syriana last night. Pretty good flick. Very heady, definetely makes me want to read the book. But it got me thinking about a few issues that I’ve been batting around in my head for the past few months. Thought I’d submit the issues to the Barnson Board for subsequent analysis and review.

A lot of controversy has been generated recently surrounding possible US involvement in secret interrogation camps and the supposed methods those camps use to extract information.

So what’s everyone’s take on torture? What defines it? Is it to be universally condemned, or is it at times necessary? Should the US use it as a means of extracting information regarding terrorist plots that would threaten homeland security? If so, should we admit to it? And would it be consistent with our current definition of human rights violations?

For that matter, let’s throw assasination into the mix as well. Can the covert assasination of an enemy official be a morally just decision?

Discuss. 🙂