Owenmoz

Hmm, on paper Bernie Sanders would definitely do better(if maybe not win) because his votes wouldn't have been split. When Hilary was nominated for the DNC and Sanders lost the voter base split into people that chose "the least of the worst" and people who simply would not settle for "less". I think leaked e-mails are such a non matter here. Trump had rape and assault cases against him, discrimination in the open, also im yet to see an e-mail saying something as crass as grabbing women by their parts, i am sure a person as rich as him would have tax evasion too. Yet all of that didn't even shake the campaign, so how the e-mails mattered in any way is beyond me. I would go as far as to blame DNCs percieved elitism for the loss though. Maybe, as Flower of Susquehanna has said, they'll learn not to make that mistake next time and actually listen to their voter base. On the other side, now that all the ugly and rot has surfaced people know and can openly see the scale of it in America(i mean many can choose to ignore or downplay KKK in the dark corners of 4chan or redit, but you have to be a next level of(im lacking the proper adjective) to do the same with them walking the streets) so, *MAYBE* next election, real plans can be made to adress those social issues. Not to sound bitter, but *most* dnc policies on minorities seemed to be there as a favour not out of realisation that there is a significant problem that needs to be addressed. But im confident that a good person will be in power in 2020. As to why im interested in American politics to the point on participating in something that is none of my business. In short i have friends there, also most of the world future is tied to yours(i.e. rn i believe other countries will take it as a free voucher to crack down on human rights because the moral high ground usa had is kinda lost) and finally i sorta like speculating how i'd act had i a choice in politics, both my countries have a pervasive lack of choice in politics. Which reminds me, i thought of making a poll on Russian or Mozambican elections for the lolz. So i was wondering if anyone would participate. If anything it gives a better notion of the affairs of the world. I'd find it very educational myself. OTOH, it might quickly derail onto a fight on "commies" so i'm leaving it up to the mods and users to decide. I'd add links with the parties, candidates and policies for convenience. Oh, since im in Kenya right now, i could do for the 2017 elections here. But... Making a poll on Kenyan politics would be kinda pointless because the voting is *mostly* based on tribalism not on merit unfortunately. So notion of left right or green disappear.

I don't give in to hate, luckily i almost always have a choice. And i never said hatred is the best option, life is complicated enough without it. i said they are entitled/justified in the hatred. Which they are. And i really hope you get to understand that. In any case, by now its too soon maybe to ask people to forgive. No shade but i doubt not alt right trump supporters regret their actions yet. Same as if you make a mistake in real life, first you gotta know you did it, then you must at least feel bad for it, then ask for forgiveness, then never do it again/begin reparations, the last parts are in no particular order. And even then it is justifiable not to forgive. Besides its not like humans are known for their huge control over their feelings. Even if as you said they hurt them. Might as well tell a depressed person to snap out of ut. Sometimes even when you try even if you want. You can't.

On the haters' side triumph, that mistake whatever reason it had to be. May cost a lot of people a lot. Not to be dramatic but people actually killed themselves rather than to face the very unsure future ahead of them, millions will lose rights and services, in consequence some might lose their lives. Not only that but the social effect of having trump as president is actually alt right people feeling more comfortable with their views(i've seen it happen, e.g. russia was walking slowly toward acceptance of the lgbt community, but when the bill was passed, there was a spike in hate crimes against all minorities, and its still going on to now, the more it lasts the more people accept it as status quo and discrimination becomes normalised), so in a way the agressive hate might help surpress that. I might empathise with someone that made a mistake but i am entitled to hate if that mistake costs me a leg. Of course i'll hate you more if you did it on purpose. But your not doing it on purpose wont get me my leg back

That could work but in this case abstainers would vote blank as well. Its a moot point. Right now just ostracising fellow liberals wont help. I suppose being united is more important.

Not smart. if enough people don't vote there has to be a re run with different candidates. I think most countries need at least a 30% voter turnout. And that enforces democracy.

Yeezzy for president 2020! Ok, but in all seriousness, if not done already try to legally change your name asap before the handover goes in effect. If possible move out of your hometown to somewhere where no one knows you're trans. There is no tattoo on anyone's head saying "im trans" no one can just guess. Keep safe folks. Also; very important, get a passport and get information on visa deals USA has with other countries. Just in case worst comes to worst.

Political abstention isn't childish. It is a form of protest all should have the right to choose the person they want to lead them. In case that person isn't there of course you vote for no one rather than settling for less. I think this time would be the exception. Not because i don't believe in the right to self determination simply because one of the candidates is a possible severe threat to human rights, specially since he has legislative, executive and judicial powers with him. Not really a matter of being childish or not, but for once those elections shouldn't have been about choosing what is best, but at all costs avoiding the worse. So, while shaming people over that is pointless and unhelpful. Those votes would have made a difference. On manufacturing x service economy. A service economy has need of qualified workers. So it is true the shift affected the poor. Specially since higher education is outrageously expensive over there. However to think trump might change it is myopic. American legal labour is too expensive. Much easier to move the manufacturing to India and China or the likes, minimum wage is lower, law enforcement on worker rights is less vigilant and crippling. Etc... And while services are generally required to be of quality; goods have less strict vigilance. So, if that is the main reason people voted for him, they have been very misguided. Specially as he himself is a business man and better than most understands that American labour is expensive. Also idk why the middle class voted for trump. An average middle class person can't afford dialysis. But free healthcare would sort that out. Much better than health insurance which will try it's best not to pay(which also, btw, isn't free). An average middle class person has the need to educate their kids/themselves. Which well, at least to me, is unaffordable over there. So huge loans, long savings or painful payments are the only way to ensure that. While i doubt you'd get free education; government subsidised education would significantly help. I expect 50% would help out most the population. Paying taxes may feel painful, may be complicated, but it completely baffles me how people take it as just lost money.

Still not how it should be. She's competent. Even went to lenghts to connect with her voter base. And told ppl to "Pokemon go to the polling stations" but nobody listened. Now look at this. Sadting.

Yah i misread. But true i only very lightly read the Avadon codex. I suppose its good that avadon is significantly shorter than than the rest. It would be a pain to go through something im not passionate about. On the gameplay i actually prefered da origins rather than d.a. 2. Its like, i was always a fan of strategy games. Aoe, geneforge, avernum etc, and they all allow for like view from top. Allows for better notion of the battleground and control over whats going on. Not so in d.a.2 but i think like the first was made for pc in mind and the second with a game console in mind. Also

Quick diversion, anyone know why the disappointed smiley seems like a smirk in this website? That being said; would people choose a "likeable" business man over a neurosurgeon to perform brain surgery? Some aspects of your personality you can't help, but skill and experience can, and those really matter. Also, here's a comprehensive list of real commies: -Possibly Jesus Christ. -yah, thats it. It is a common misconception that communism may actually be implemented. Real communism would see no need for a government. The people on their own would work for the gopd of all, on their own volition and will, and do the best they can. A good ideal but how many are willing to do so? And i mean without any hope of religious salvation. Do your best for its own sake or the sake of those around you. Not many that i know off. Now if you mean socialism. You had the duty, not right to work, you had the right to housing and were forbidden to beg, you had the duty to be educated, serve on the military, etc.. now the work you have isn't always the one you want. Specially without higher education. Your housing might be a one bedroom houselet, with outdoors bathroom, that you have to share with 3 other families. Universities were highly competitive. It would take many generations of people that are honestly exploited until you have a society where each family has their own housing, being able to do what you want and have access to university without competition. And by the 80s well, things were looking better, but here's how you're mistaken on previledge being only money. For a given job, say chemical engineer, you're paid say 1000 rubles a month in Moscow as well as in Novosibirsk, however, you get cheaper goods in moscow, better services, hospitals and schools are better suplied, imported goods are more common, friends in high places are more accessible, you both would have a 3 bedroom apartment but one in Moscow is obviously worth more. Finally, ask any Russian how they feel about Muscovites, i think "classist hipsters" wouldn't be uncommon to hear. Being one myself i can assure you of that. There is a reason the communist party has never won since democracy was installed. Not to say all was bad. But not all was good

I'm disappointed

The fact that she is a damn good politician is ones of the reasons people have a negative view of her. She can fit most negative stereotypes without straining imagination. Plus, since i started paying attention to politics she has to be the most unrelatable democrat candidate. To no fault of her own, simply democrats rely on the votes of minorities to tilt the turnout. But, the fact that she can't relate to the poor, to ethnic minorities, sexual minorities, etc... Not that she doesn't try, a good part of her campaign was visiting the homes of her voter base. But she was in this aspect; born into the wrong family. She is trying and i think the ammount of effort she put into maintaining this campaign in spite of everything its commendable And by the end she had some sort of edge. That alone speaks of leadership skills. I myself can't strongly mind what she does there. But i hold a bitter grudge against her, over Libya i dislike interventionist policies anywhere. The never lead to any good and with all admiration i have for her, i can't forgive that one. I hope she doesn't make the same mistake again. I was very fond of Libya. But true trump is not even comparable. At one point i thought he was trolling with the election thing or just making a huge publicity stunt. By the time we found out it was for real it was already too late! The disease had spread. There was no way to contain. Only to remedy. *Exit act*

Cool. Its a good thread. Shame if it died.

Yo slartibus! This coming back soon?

Im quoting the whole thing. With D.A. i feel like its too big a world to be able to adress everything so they really tried to focus on a little each time in d.a.2 that actually worked out well but then they got not all good reviews on that one so they tried to go big again but missed what made the first game iconic. Which even being *HUGE*(Seriously by the time you get into orzamar you think its almost done but then the deep roads, by then you're "let me fight the scary dragon already!" But then there is denerim and a whole load of stuff there. Plus side quest and stuff) managed to get you a feel of things like all of the factions(i do remember starting over just to get bellen in power) idk what went wrong in inquisition but still a great game. I do assign all the blame on my lack of zeal on anders. And orsino. Buuuut. I disagree, for one we have the solas plot twist thing, its not petty. And he himself says almost exactly what you said here. You can still pretty much dive into that world and its a good trip. On the other side i suppose having too many choices to make, makes them have less value. Anyway i have too many feelings and opinions on the franchise to be able to coherently express them without going waayyy off topic. But my point is, you care in D.A. You care in Geneforge and you also care in avernum. Even by the end of them you do. But avadon from the start you dont care.

There was alcander with family and past and when he goes to dharam theres that girl that recognised him. Dredric had that but not as well done. I do remember i was better able to empathise with the companions in A1 and A2 than in A3. They didn't seem stale. And honestly had i had family in wyldrim i'd still have disliked the obsessive drama. I mean, i understand their situation but i just don't care. You could have evil colonialist foreigners slaughter my family and i still wouldn't care. Nor think its worth the fuss. There is something fundamentally wrong with how it was presented. Bring me to dragon age. The plight of the elves and of the mages somehow get to you(I guess having to choose yo kill or help "helpless" kids does make you care more on your decisions) . You get to witness both sides of the story on all lights. Here you only ever hear the wyldrim whinning about their land. No one who actually goes there and demolishes circles and forrests to build a trump tower. Even when talking about the rebelion outlanders seem to treat it more as a headache than as something serious. You are better able to empathise with the farlands than your own people. Even then by a3 i only managed to give a hoot about the warborn. Everyone else is like... Meh.I suppose its because their artful show of revolt was pointless completely. And all the bad that comes, they had it coming. But again you don't really get to feel the tawon as well as in a2(cept for poor brasula) the khemerians its pretty light compared to avadon 1 and to add insult to injury you actually get to choose to spare them? I mean... The stead in A1 did nothing really worthy of that much destruction. Whoever ever cared about the rebels? Now the warborn on the first avadon were not portrayed as trully intelligent beings. More so a rowdy rough bunch that lived for pillage and loot also mercenary services(honestly lord svarl striked me as the honestly smartest of the bunch) here you're presented with people you're able to reason with. People that are smarter and have more sense than many around you.

This must be an exciting time for all of you. I can't wait until the results are out.

I disagree with the general idea that avadon has more stories to tell. The world isn't charming and it seems too tied to redbeard which is a person i don't like. The only true mystery remaining is the corruption. I do think however that avadon world has great prequel value. Consider Telera's founding of it(though would be too similar to a3) or better yet; you're Redbeard. Tells the story better than just reading and it gives you insight on what decisions you had to make to become him and how different he would be as a person if he made different decisions.

I had no huge issue with the boat system because the island thing was cool. Made it seem big and exciting. Though god forbid the implementation of skill trees. I liked being able to cast aura of flames even as a guardian. The balance was pretty good i think in terms of combat and such. With the exception of Khyryk there was a noticeable lack of charming or interesting characters. So rewriting everyone would be cool. Litalia being iconic however should still remain a heavy handed terrorist, staining her image otherwise would sorta ruin it. In g3 i think it was important that she showed no emotion. However; other rebels could profit of a serious rewrite of lankan(i personally think there should be a diplomatic option that solves everything but gives a pro rebel rep(real shapers smite them all for insolence) his unwillingness to compromise makes him the trademark rebel attitude, so caught up in the righteousness of their cause that they are completely blind to the consequences of their actions) Gull's and Dohnal's islands should also have a better rebel presence and likewise a better shaper presence(add a few moderates in it) Spells and creations should be the same i agree(tbh prefer them to the purifying rain and shock rain kinda things.) Creatures should be the same but alhoon's idea of doing actual research could be a huge plus on the game. However i am a strong voter for implementing a completely different set of creatures in g1 in line with illegal, barred and experimental shaping present in it. As the first geneforge is the hallmark of shaping in all of history, i don't think tech plays a role. Its just a different line of research. I think only g1 could have a skill tree if that were the case

Jeff said in his AMA thing on reddit that he'd like to really rewrite g3. Anyone have an idea of how it will work out? Like how to significantly change the story, as well as dynamics within the constraints of canon.

Can i just say that i think jeff focused a bit too much on user feedback? It was a first i ever experienced of a developer engaging with the users. And it was nice but... I feel some of what we wanted was implemented but at some cost in detail and writing, like with geneforge games some parts seem simply copy pasted. I was *very* disappointed to see redbeard again. But to me it seemed like a well balanced game, with good mechanics, some very good battles(though both the redbeard fight and the dragon fight in a2 were better than the equivalents here(imo, redbeard in a3 was all over the place and not very challenging)) I can't say that the culmination of it should be much different, a good part of the game's flaws come from the setting. Only trully interesting thing in it is the corruption, the franchise itself brings nothing new to the genre and this one, brings nothing new to the franchise. I actually was very surprised he didn't do the g4 take on things and have us play on the opposite side in the beginning. I was sorta hoping to get farlands warriors. But yah, Jeff seems to slacked on the writing a bit. On the good side we done with the ugly baby series of sw for good. Now we can go back to remaking already good games!

My resignation is still in effect so feel free to ugnore this: In general i refuse to see dogs as equal because they are devil spawn and i dislike them strongly. Esp when they overstep themselves. An equal to me won't bite me when i chide them for peeing on the parquet. So in general dogs shouldn't be in the discussion. Second, the rebelion was simply a more Chaotic and quicker way to bring on change. The society has changes a lot and would have changed more. The marking difference on those two is that serviles wouldn't have been recognised without the war. To g5 quite a few shapers don't entirely understand how come they are able of independent thought. That being said, serviles are able to equal or superior thinking as humans. Thats why comparison with animals isn't good. The power over serviles is mostly military not cognitive. Serviles are actually physically more capable than shapers. And in such a scenario military power is meaningless; let me introduce you to gerilha warfare. Colombian government dragged up a war for 50 something years against a less supplied and less numbered enemies. Most independence wars and insurgencies and coup d'etat s are done like that. And quite a few are successful. Monarch was not known as a shaper before. No one knows where he came from. It is just a matter of assigning blame as convenient with the trajkovites having the upper hand as like they say, shaping was to blame. We work that way though mass murder is justified if we hate something enough and we have the power to do so. Wasn't that how NATO intervened in Lybia? Wether thats right or not its how we work. Always. Finally i read on the AI, as a scientist im not very able to work with something that cannot be worked with empirically, i need facts and observable studies on it. But assuming what you said is known and the only possible outcome. I still do not agree on it. It removes our need to evolve and our freedom. I will not agree on it no matter the pros. The difference between animals and plants is one is animate the other is inanimate.

Btw; I resign!

There are various degrees of sentience. Most commonly we use the mirror test in animals to give it the least degree. But intelligence doesn't equate sentience. A mentally challenged person can in ways be dumber than a dog yet be more sentient. My best example for instance is a computer. It is smarter than us, making calculations faster, more accurately, storing more data and more reliably, able to perform more tasks simultaneously. Etc... But it is not sentient at all. It is also able to learn. Through updates, new programs and repetition. A dog might be smart. Might express a limited array of feelings the family dog manages to display jealousy, which is considered a more complex feeling. But they are not sentient. Definitively not to the same degree as a human. Maybe a literal baby. Would i treat a baby the same as i treat dogs? Tbh i don't like either of them so im not the best person to ask. Depending on where you live you can kill humans legally. Not babies, but that is not too aliens for humans. Leaving babies to exposure wasn't uncommon until way into history. And to be honest we have dogs put down mostly for being overly aggressive and causing significant harm to humans. Until recently a death sentence for the same was common. Hell nobody gave a crap about what dogs do so long as they aren't dangerous to us.o n experiments dogs are unconventional. Usually rodents and simians/primates are used. But true. Since the 40s its not common to hear about using kids in experiments. I don't think dogs are much dumber than wolves. Their skills are simply more adjusted to domestic environment.they learned how to fit in human society not the wild. Much like humans. But true, every human right we have is a previlege for animals. Because we have more power. That is not to say said animals wouldn't do the same or worse to humans. Dogs are capable of killing babies. And they do kill them at points for whatever justifications they have. And dolphins rape baby seals and baby otters. Because they can. Pure and simple. In many ways we manage to be better than them. Not perfect. But better. And still working on it. Yes... It happened because people fought for it. Why they had to is another discussion. But saying thats not what happened is inconsiderate to the efforts and lives spent on it. Now on how we ruined things true. I do remember reading about how when the Jesuits First arrived in the monomutapa kingdom the were faced with a society that was very ok with any gender identity and sexual orientation. Of course they proceeded to erase all trace of that and make them proper Christians. To now Zimbabwe is a shining example of the opposite it once stood for. But its i suppose what they say "it gets worse before it gets better". Still forward we move. An AI could be a good idea. I always think humans are limited by the lack to challenge to their rule. Had we elves and dawrves or something of the kind evolving and competing with us we'd be more united and adcance more/faster. Sadly elves aren't real and AIs are not feasible as of now. Although it is doubtful it would have any moral code. We're bound to learn something. That being said, nothing can be omniscient. We would also never hand over control. You also seem to underestimate nature. Humans are more advanced than you give them credit for, and we can be defeated by nature. The plague eradicated 2 thirds of Europe did it not? If need be we will be extinct or evolve. That is important. For that way we are forced to try and have a sustainable population and society. A machine would have no need for us. Finally freedom is more important than peace and happiness. Also i don't feel comfortable discussing matters that are entirely speculative. we simply don't know and have no way of knowing what and AI will do. We can provide a controlled situation for hypothesis making. But we can't control reality. So that is not quite the solution. And honestly we should sort our own crap out. We would learn nothing by handing over. Finally personally im ok with stop breeding dogs. Less devil's spawn to annoy me. But is it right to enforce the extinction of a whole species? We made them and as such are responsible for them we don't just get to choose out of it. Its the same as having a kid and kicking them out. Worse even. Also oh just let me celebrate alhoon's temporary defeat. Don't ruin this for me. Also if you're older than me which im lead to believe then im honestly surprised you've never had mental exhaustion. Finally; testing people to see if they fit your standards doesn't work the way you expect it to. People don't respond well to tests. Its better and more accurate to just analyse them over time. Edit: i went through the discussion on who would side with the shapers. And im now sure you are an AI trying to inflitrate us and make us more accepting of your kind. The signs are all there. But you will not prevail. God hates AIs! Artificiality is sin! #ProudlyAIphobic. Think of the children!

I think its not much a matter of time than of mental exhaustion. If it was a simple thing it would be easier and faster to answer. Now we have to first skim to have an idea, then read in depth to better understand. Finally sit down and take our sweet time to present a worthy answer that adresses all the points raised. So for instance right now i personally am free but it will take me a while until i say something relevant. Mostly cause school and work are mentally taxing and some time is needed to cool down. Im amazed you can keep it up that well. Also congrats! You beat(at least temporarily) Alhoon! He is unbeatable. The pride and standard bearer of the rebellion. The go to man when you faith is shaken. Etc etc... More honoraries.