Vestnik

Re: Worst comic book superfight ever I think this scene is ripe for exploitation by the gay porn industry.

Re: Musings on Random Musings Zornwil, Regarding our earlier conversation on Cold Wars -- don't you find this an incredibly grim prognosis? As Russia and China advance, as they will, the US must try to limit them, resulting in violent conflict? We have weapons that can annihilate all life on the planet. We've gone through this before. Do we have to do it again, and again, and again, when new geopolitical rivalries exist, etc., for ever? Or until the final button is pushed.

Re: Orcs as Druidic/Celtic analogs?

Re: Orcs as Druidic/Celtic analogs? I like the idea of Aztec orcs. They would be more urbanized (at least one big city), tropical orcs driven to constant war in order to acquire new victims to sacrifice to their gods. Might have to fiddle with the technological level. Did the Aztecs have metalworking? My hazy memories are saying "no." Can't get much bloodier than the Aztecs.

Re: Orcs as Druidic/Celtic analogs? Why not orcs as Aztecs? The whole "empire based on human sacrifice" bit. Cool gods in that pantheon too that could be modified.

Re: Dyson Sphere (shell) - Dysonica Anyone? You know, you're likely already familiar with them, but if you're looking for a fictional treatment of a civilization that could do something like this, you might look at Greg Baxter's Xeelee novels. The Xeelee are so advanced they fight wars with superstrings (at a geological scale of time) and manipulation of stellar orbits.

Re: What Are You Listening To Right Now? Hellhounds on my Trail -- Robert Johnson.

Re: Musings on Random Musings

Re: Musings on Random Musings I am German by birth, American by citizenship and upbringing, and Russian by loyalty (I've lived in Moscow for 6 years and feel strong allegiance here -- all my friends are Russian.) I do not want a new Cold War. That would be bad. And yes, Russia is recovering rapidly. We have had 10% growth in real wages every year for the past 6 years.

Re: Musings on Random Musings Well, it makes sense in Cold War logic, but to keep doing it AFTER the Cold War is a bit crazy. The Cold War ended around 1989. I don't think a Cold War between the US and China is possible (fortunately). The economies of the two countries are too linked. They're almost symbiotic. Any disruption of that would cause great damage to boith countries.

Re: Musings on Random Musings You mean that Washington's support of an Islamist cause (the muj) would improve its image in Muslim countries? That's interesting -- I hadn't thought of that. There was also the Pakistan involvement of course, which was big. (And one reason why the USSR and India were such close allies.)

Re: Musings on Random Musings Yep, it was part of their brilliant "contain Russia" plan. Up to and including when the mujaheedin took Kabul, killed the president of Afghanistan and his family, hung them up on poles and stuck his genitals in his mouth. Russia spent most of the 90s telling Washington that Islamists were a much bigger threat to the US than some hypothetical resurgent Soviet Union, but it made no difference. Fell on deaf ears. One of the biggest tragedies of the 1990s in my opinion.

Re: Musings on Random Musings

Re: Musings on Random Musings

Re: Musings on Random Musings Incidentally, it is much-forgotten today, but at the time the Soviets repeatedly told the US that they were fighting Islamist extremism in Afghanistan and so both countries should be on the same side. The US dismissed such claims as Soviet propaganda.

Re: Musings on Random Musings Russian civilians were too far away to be targeted, but the mujaheedin would regularly kill teachers who taught girls. This mysteriously unreported by Dan Rather.

Re: Musings on Random Musings The Iranian leadership (at least the prez) expilictly wants Israel gone, but I don't think they've ever said "All Jews Must Die."

Re: What Are You Listening To Right Now? Public Image Limited, The Flowers of Romance It's blast back to adolescence! Give me my dyed-orange hair back, dammit!

Re: Here's Me Bitten by a radioactive emu, of course!

Re: The Italian Connection Looks awesome. I'm still worried about his defenses. If he ever gets involved in combat, he's going to be crushed like a damned soul writhing under a rock.

Re: The Italian Connection I'm thinking about it. Gotta run -- have a meeting.

Re: The Italian Connection Hey, shouldn't he have some Knowledge Skills like "14th-century Florence" and "Catholic Theology"? And AK: Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven. Distinctive Features: Always Speaks in Rhymed Triplets.

Re: The Italian Connection If you want biographical data, I was born in Germany, grew up in the US and moved to Russia six years ago. I think he looks cool. I don't picture him as having a 6 SPD (Kung Fu Dante!; but then he is a 700+ point character!) and his defenses seem really low not counting the VPP. What is Dimensional Technology? Is the stuff all focussed-based? You gonna write up Beatrice?

Re: Help with alternate U.S. history? You know, I could see something like this actually happening in 50-60 years, if the red state/blue state divide increases (but then I haven't been in the US in years, so I might be totally off).

Re: ORCS! What makes them our favourite enemies???