I think I may need some help with anger management

madfilkentist thinks I'm playing a game. He is mistaken. He wants me to be original.

Try this. It is the seventies, and the Cold War is raging. An eminent figure on the world stage, respected by one and all, is deathly ill, and only a delicate and never-before-attempted operation can save him. A call goes out to all developed nations for two neurosurgeons who can perform this procedure. America sends their best, a young, idealistic yet hard-headed doctor who has served his time helping people in need in the poorer countries, and backs him up with an experienced senior doctor who has specialised in this area for years. Russia sends a retired chiropodist and the secretary of a medical college who happens to be a Christian Scientist.

This is the situation we are in. America is deathly ill, the result of nearly a decade of mismanagement by (basically) Lex Luthor and Otis from the first Christopher Reeve Superman film, only with Otis nominally in charge. The Democratic party offers from among its best, and whether you like Obama or not I believe you have to admit he is a serious contender for the office of president. The Republican party offers a septuagenarian who will not confirm that he is not terminally ill, and a member of a far-right religious organisation who--

No, wait, here's what really hurts. People who would normally rip me a new one if I ventured to suggest that Bible-literalists and creationists might be entitled to their opinion are BACKING this woman from the Wasilla Assembly of God for the vice-presidential slot. Now that there is quality hypocrisy, ladies and gentlemen, and I don't care if they're offended, because *I* am bloody well offended, and I am calling it as I see it just for God-damned once.

No indeed, I am not playing a game. I am not scoring points for my side, because I am not allowed to have a side here. I do not live in that country. I am not engaging in debate. I am fighting to save the world I live in, because I can only think of a few possible reasons why the Republicans would field presidential and vice-presidential candidates who are manifestly unfit for the jobs, and none of them are good. Perhaps they do not care what the result of the popular vote is. Perhaps they do not care who takes office once the votes are counted. Perhaps they have another plan for America. It may already be too late.

It is no longer feasible to say "it could not happen here." ANYTHING could happen there now, and whatever happens in America affects all of us on Earth. There is a time for toleration and bipartisanship and faults on both sides, and there is a time for straight talking. The Republican party have had their way with America for eight years, and the result is all around you. They think they can get four more, or maybe even longer, no matter who they put up for office. Whatever they are planning can only harm America even more. They must be stopped. They MUST be stopped.

Okay. Anyone want to accuse me of dishonesty? Anyone want to accuse me of being paranoid? Anyone want to accuse me of anything at all?

Bring it.

EDIT: and now this. Please note that the debate had not happened when that advert was posted. And then tell me I'm being extreme when I say that whatever happens in the real world is a matter of indifference to the people running this party.

On the previous post...

In my saner moments I value the fact that I can talk to people on both sides of the political fence, but the more I see of the way things are going the harder it is not to feel that one side is Right and the other side is Wrong and that giving even a little ground is dangerous. All I can do then is hope that I'm not seeing things clearly, which is not a comfortable thing to hope for however you slice it.

Of all the possible futures that Robert Heinlein came up with, if the one that comes truish turns out to be "If This Goes On--" I shall take no satisfaction at all from the fact that I saw it coming years ago. If it doesn't happen, I will have to accept that my perceptions are skewed and think about what I can do about that.

Barrow Hill: a game review

This is another point-and-click adventure thingy like The Lost Crown, which I reviewed a while back. There seem to be a gang of three or four people keeping this branch of the industry going in Britain: long may they wave.

( As before, spoilers for the game behind here. )

All in all, I'd recommend this game (for my personal taste) over The Lost Crown by a narrow margin, but they're different enough that I'd find it hard to choose one over the other for a general recommendation. If you aren't put off by New Age stuff and like a good horror story, try Barrow Hill.