Lord Liaden

It's true, the Flashmen did occasionally do some legitimate good, when it was convenient and at no risk to them, particularly if there were cameras or a reward involved. OTOH they were not above paying people to commit minor crimes so they could stop them on camera and get publicity.

This suggestion is extreme munchkinism, although not unprecedented; but since it's for an NPC you can keep it manageable: Extra-Dimensional Movement (to a "dimension" where the character can't be hurt), 0 END Persistent, Fully Invisible, Only Prevents Damage. You will need to buy Transdimensional for the character's Strength and any other attacks.

Sour puss.

That photo juxtaposes several visual elements in a way I find rather unsettling.

For big business, maybe. For Republican politicians, the survival of their political careers depends on an ignorant, and therefore frightened and manipulable electorate. They have literally nothing else to persuade people to vote for them.

This is where it has to start. Fear and hatred thrive on ignorance. But powerful political and economic factions in America have staked their survival on keeping Americans ignorant. That's going to make reforming education that much harder.

The Star Hero genre book discusses psionics as one element of a sci-fi campaign, but not in any depth, and without much in the way of examples. Various characters written up for the SH line do have psionic powers as part of their character sheet. It would be helpful if you would give more details as to what kind of source material you're interested in. I'm afraid "blue book" is not a self-explanatory term.

If what you're looking for is detailed examination of how powers of the mind work, optional rules for their use, and the like, then I agree with the above recommendations. However, if all you're interested in is lists of prebuilt Powers, then I would recommend Champions Powers. The book provides a vast array of builds over a wide range of categories. "Mental and Psionic Powers" is one such category, but CP includes many other Powers whose Special Effects could easily be declared Psionic, e.g. Telekinetic Powers, Precognition Powers, Illusion Powers, and Emotion Control Powers.

I'm so sorry your family has had to go through this, Archer. The frustration and anger you and your wife feel is natural and justified. It sounds like you did everything you could to try to forestall this tragedy. Perhaps everything that's happened will open the eyes of some of them to reality, so at least something good might come out of this mess.

Americans have at least taken a step up from July 4 2020.

Very valid questions. Accountability to the electorate is supposed to be one part of that incentive. So are checks and balances like those within the American system, which are intended to prevent any individual or group from gaining so much power that they can work for their own benefit and against the interests of the state. Of course as we've all seen, for those to work they require the majority of government officials to not be purely motivated by selfishness, and the majority of the electorate to be reasonably informed, critical, and responsible. That can no longer be assumed.

If you mean this PDF mini-book, The Raven and the Midnight Brigade, the names of each of the Dusts would appear to be self-explanatory. I.e. "Mists of Morpheus" would be some type of sedative drug, "Vapors of Vulcan" would be incendiary, "Fog of Phobos" would be a drug that makes the victim more susceptible to fear. Their Power write-ups describe precisely how the Dusts work game-mechanically. If that's not clear or you'd like some other info, please specify.

Sci-fi authors have been promising these for only, what, seventy, eighty years? But it's finally here!

I tend not to rush to see a movie in a theater as soon as it opens, so I don't usually experience packed houses, and that may color my perceptions; but I've rarely had a theater visit outright spoiled by audience members. However, what I experience in a theater is different from watching a movie at home. The big screen in a big space, the sound around me and through me, the responses to the movie by the other audience members... there's a sense of community there, of sharing in a collective event, of being part of something bigger than myself. IMHO no home theater setup, however elaborate, can offer that.

There is, or is supposed to be, a fundamental difference between markets, which in our society are driven by capitalist priorities, and governments driven by representative democratic priorities. Markets are always under pressure to maximize profits for those who own or have invested in the businesses involved. That's how their success is measured. To do this they'll usually curtail aspects of their business which are not sufficiently profitable, even if those aspects benefit their consumers. The more unscrupulous ones will attempt to deceive or manipulate their consumers, or engage in other predatory practices highlighted in previous posts. Representative governments are obliged to deliver necessary services to all their citizens, and to protect them from harm, and to be accountable to their citizens if they fail to do so. In principle, profitability is not a factor, beyond assuring that incoming revenue balances expenditures. The goal of democratic government is supposed to be the greatest practical beneficence to the greatest number of people, "practical" of course being subject to much interpretation. Each system has its inherent flaws, but IMO those flaws are multiplied when the two priorities are conflated; when those who profit from the markets gain excessive influence over those who govern, and when those who govern place their own profit above their obligation to their citizens.

Once again, Archer, I apologize that my response offended you. And on this specific topic, you're right, I have no intention of discussing it, as anything more I could say would not be fruitful. If you wish to discuss it with anyone else here who wants to take it up, you'll hear no objection from me.

Hey, wool is wool.

Quite apart from your scenario as to what might have led up to this "joke" being pure speculation, anyone directing KKK symbology at a black American is evoking generations of American history when that was tantamount to a death threat. Assuming the police chief didn't mean it as a death threat, he either knew that fact but didn't take it seriously because it never impacted his white experience, or he's colossally ignorant of what it means to be black in America. Neither case is an excuse for what he did, especially for a person in a position of authority and leadership, who literally needs to know better. This is practically on the level of someone trying to make a joke to a woman about sexual abuse. EDIT: I'm sorry if I came across as harsh to you, Archer. You're not who I'm angry with. I'm neither black nor a woman, but I'm close to enough people in both categories that I have some idea of how raw those wounds remain.

A well known American professional wrestler from the 1980s, who was translated into a character on the GI Joe cartoon series.

"It was just a joke" has been the excuse for expression of racist attitudes for generations (along with many others). They don't recognize or acknowledge that the subjects people consider fit for jokes reveals what they really think about them.

In Confucianism yin and yang have clear ethical dimensions attached to them, and were used to justify patriarchal society. So antagonism isn't a stretch.

Pure political theatrics. Fifty Guards will make absolutely no difference on the border. This is just to stir up the Republican voter base. But when those Guards signed up I'm sure they never expected to be deployed as mercenaries bought by a private citizen.