*sigh*
Played more DOTA2 today...
I need help.

Styx would've been appropriately priced if I had gotten it for free. The stealth wasn't bad - when it worked. But there are so many glitches, counter-intuitive controls, and bad collision that it become a chore to play just a couple missions in.

Who here is playing GTA V? I know someone out there must be!
How would you like to stream it for me on Steam so I can ogle the sheer beauty and realism of the game before it goes on sale and I can afford it without burdening my conscience?

The reason why we "allow" women to fight in wars is because wars are now fought with guns. It doesn't matter who's pulling the trigger as long as they're reasonably accurate and learn to take cover when appropriate. The bullet's gonna kill you either way. This is also the reason why militaries have gotten so much bigger since the Renaissance - you don't need to be the well-fed, muscular elite (i.e., nobility) in order to be trained to shoot a gun.
From what I have learned about the U.S. Army and Marine Corps. from my uncles (two in the Marines, one in the Army) is that while they train in hand-to-hand combat, the odds of surviving to get close enough to an enemy to use your hand-to-hand training are low, and means you've done something wrong. They are trained to take enemies out fast and early, and that means guns. Most hand-to-hand training is exercised in formal sparring matches, to keep in shape and keep the skill fresh. I seriously doubt an Army soldier in bodyarmor, a backpack, and a helmet could do his kung-fu as effectively as someone in a robe and colored belt. That goes for any soldier wearing that kind of gear.

TL;DR
Estelle just said the same thing while I was writin' this.

Everything goes with black.
When in doubt, use your teeth.
Smile like a crocodile, eat like a hippopotamus.

I had two separate Emperor scorpions as pets when I was a child. (Mr. Stinger, and Mr. Stinger 2, respectively. What? I was a kid!) Neither were exactly the cuddliest pets I've ever owned, but it was the coolest thing ever to show off a scorpion resting on my wrist.
I think if I got another arachnid as a pet, though, it would be some sort of larger tarantula, so I could always find 'em.

The following is a single example of what Nature is capable of without interference from humans.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UozWJTuhbMQ

Ask yourself if this is a better, the same, or a worse way to impact your environment.

Double post. Though appropriate.

I just finished Styx: Master of Shadows a couple hours ago. I'm questioning whether the $10 I paid for it was worth it. How did you find it, after all was said and done and done again?

I am proficient in Dungeons and Dragons 2nd through 3.5th editions, Warhammer 40K Death Watch or Black Crusade, Gamma World (as distinct from D&D 4th edition), Vampire: The Masquerade/V20 and Vampire: The Requiem/New World of Darkness, and I can fumble my way through Pathfinder, Werewolf: The Apocalypse, 20th Anniversary Edition, a Star Wars RPG, or a Lord of the Rings RPG.
Is it a good sign that I already have a LOTR name taken straight out of The Silmarillion?

That's some mighty nice femininity you've got there.

Is that your final answer?

None of Dickenson's poems were published (or even viewed by many people) during her lifetime. She was an extremely private person, and wrote her poetry for herself.

Doesn't the bride select the bridesmaids? Have you spoken to her about this?
Even if she's okay with it, you could quietly tell her you're not comfortable in that position (the reason being you "don't like being up in front of people", you "don't want to get hit on the whole wedding and reception", you "may not be able to make it that day", etc), and she doesn't select you as one of the bridesmaids.

"Find me a sane man and I will cure him for you." - Carl Gustav Jung

Yep. If you're not a clone, you're a mutant. Kinda puts things in perspective, if you ask me.

After 5 short years, there would be no discernible "mutations" (no third arms, no cyclops, no webbed feet) assuming that N0 (the parent generation) are not related, have no gene-altering diseases, and are not smoking/drinking during pregnancy. N1 (the first child generation) wouldn't even reach sexual maturity in 5 years, so the whole experiment stops right there.

If we were calling it 5 generations instead of 5 years... That would depend on how much intermingling there was. If each couple produces at least 2 offspring, assuming a 50/50 split in male/female... It would still take a couple generations just to establish a "cousin" relationship, and after that, even with only 5 N0 couples, you could find enough genetic versatility to last 3-4 generations before things started getting weird.

(Is it still "N", or did they change the designation on me when I wasn't looking?)

In my survey of dating sites across the internet, I have come across a consistent, rampant misunderstanding of feudal chivalry, its use in modern times, and its application for females. While it is neither my responsibility nor my obligation to correct this misunderstanding, it will not persist based on my lack of trying to spread more accurate information about chivalry.
I found the three articles I link below using the search term "��the female role in feudal chivalry"�� �- terms which I hope will avoid bias that may have arisen by using terms like the "��passive"�� female role, or the "controlling"�� female role. The results are three of the top seven returns, avoiding sites like Wikipedia, which I think would only compound the misunderstanding.

http://chivalrytoday.com/women-chivalry/

http://chivalrytoday.com/women-and-chivalry/

http://www.usna.edu/Users/history/abels/hh315/Chivalry.htm

While the first two articles are not very good -�� they do not go into detail or provide (literary, historical) examples of exactly what women did as part of chivalry - they both agree on an important point: chivalry did not reduce women to a passive or servile role either then or now.
If you take the time to scroll through the third article (an academic one, so be prepared for a read), you�'ll get a much better-supported argument for exactly what chivalry meant for medieval practitioners. If you read just part I, Abels discusses the modern re-creation of chivalry and how it was interpreted by Victorian morality. If you continue on to V.2, V.3 and VI, Abels goes into the courtly demands on knights, which is mostly where the modern confusion centers on. ("Chivalry"�� defined as being polite and nice to women, as opposed to having feudal obligations and courtly manners.)

To sum up a definition of chivalry, it is: a guiding set of principles that governed how a lower-rank noble was to interact with his feudal lord, behave at court, and manage his social inferiors.
To sum up chivalry as it applied to women of the time, women were to provide judgment, wisdom, and guidance (as decided by social consensus), and to moderate and guide violence to serve more constructive ends.

Now, I don'��t much care if this changes your perception of chivalry, or the respective roles of males and females within the structure of chivalry. I suspect most people are going to either ignore the information here, or pick it apart to help "��prove"�� their own gender-biased agenda. I'm just putting this out here so there'��s a slightly clearer understanding of what the term meant, and how bastardized it has become.

Once upon a time I was vaguely tempted to call just to see what was on the other end (emphasis on "what"), but I've never done it. I try not to give out my phone number except to people/companies I know in real life (and know fairly well), but somehow that hasn't stopped my number from getting out to weird numbers who call me up and don't say anything, or want to give m a free/discounted trip to the Bahamas, etc.
I'm much more comfortable chatting online. If you trust someone, then I think the next step is something like Skype voicechat/videochat, where you can control what they see on your end. Then, if things still look legit, you can meet them in a busy public place sometime down the road.

I've never been bothered by the creepy guy on my block. He's quiet, keeps to himself, and to my knowledge doesn't actually creep out anybody on my block besides the fact that he's quiet and keeps to himself.
But, then, how would I know I creep anybody out if I never talk to them?

My neighborhood has gotten a lot more isolated and unfriendly since I was a kid. I used to know a few people up and down the block, but now I barely know my neighbors on either side. Frankly, I'm more bothered by the people who keep parking in front of my house, or the people across the street who smoke in front of their house all afternoon than I am by my own habits.

I know for a very strong opinion, though, that the people who used to live in this house were the creepy people on the block. Given the state the house was in when they left and I moved in, I don't see how they could've been anything else. I'm STILL dealing with the damage and lack of maintenance they left three years ago. And that makes ME look extra-creepy.

"David" is "king/prince", or "beloved", depending on how far back in the Bible you want to go. (I prefer "beloved prince", but Machiavelli tells me otherwise.)
"Comma" is a punctuation mark signifying a separation of clauses, or a verbal pause.
"Geek" means "geek".

Crocodile. Or zebra. Depending on which you think is weirder.
Crocodile is bland and greasy, and zebra is stringy. I wouldn't personally recommend either.

Only if they're getting more head...s.

Checkin' in! Because I desire new and interesting topics, too!
On that note, anybody for talking about the gender politics of BioShock Infinite?