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Topics - Crystalmonkey
26
« on: January 24, 2006, 02:16:24 PM »
Alright, here is the first "chapter".
What is religion? I mean a true/total definition for it, not something like "a system of beliefs based around rituals."
Even a list would be fine, but there should probably be reasons for each point.
1) A rigid system of beliefs that barely changed and struggles to adapt.... etc....
What are the obvious purposes of religion and what are the not so obvious purposes?
What are the pros/cons to religious beliefs? (To both individuals and societies)
Is there a difference between a religion and a cult? (Why or why not)
That should do it for now, if anyone has anything else to add feel free =)
27
« on: January 20, 2006, 01:36:25 PM »
I'm writing something in my free time (I have a lot of it, it seems) called "The Society." Basically, I want to explore the different parts of society in order to find the "ideal" one. It's always confused me when people say "our society is great because of X..." because it seems like they are missing the point of discussion/debate, so I want to look at all of the parts, good and bad, and come to a conclusion.
I think that makes sense, so here is what I want to do (and would like your help on).
I'm breaking up society/culture into different parts, and exploring each one. I've seen the quality of work you guys debate with (much better than my own) and I'd like to get your opinions on each section. I'll have questions I'm looking answers to, but given that we're all adults here (some younger than others) I think it's not necessary to stick strictly to them.
This is not homework, this is not for school, this is not required, but I really would like to see what would come from it. (And see where it goes from there.)
I promise that I'm not making any money off of it, and that if I somehow do I'll consult all those who bring meaningful contributions to it and distribute anything I get. (Saying "that's stupid, n00b" is not meaninful.)
Would you guys be willing?
28
« on: September 29, 2005, 12:54:57 AM »
Slashdot rants, I've found, can be a bit higher quality than LJ rants. Here is an example of it: Has it occured to anyone here that over time, more and more OSS is going to become "borderline illegal"? That we may end up with VLC as a program that you can't import into the USA (because of its DVD capabilities); that Asterix will move out of the states (because it provides private communication without a corporate entity, and will eventually be "regulated" in such a way that only telcos could use it); that even simple tools like GNU shred will "disappear"? B.S. like the E911 service are merely thinly vieled threats against existing VoIP providers, by way of legislation from the dominate telcos to ensure that VoIP doesn't take off...without them leading the way, of course.
I'm beginning to think that I should hoard source code like never before...
Suddenly, that 15-CD debian distro looks better and better, provided the source code is provided.
RMS may sound like a crackpot to our facist overlords^W^Wcorporate lobby, but he's right on the money - if the source code to a program can be controlled (by hardware, software, or firmware, no difference) then you really don't have any freedom as to what you can do. And that kind of freedom scares some people, but not for the reasons that are presented in the nightly news; you have to remember, never in human history have you had a world-wide connected information network that spanned cultures, beliefs, and challenged the status quo in every case. What we are seeing is the slow relentless progress of those entities - governments, transnational corporations, and hyper-wealthy private interests - to "dumb down" or take away from that potential. If people woke up one day and realized that they didn't have to work for someone else to provide for themselves, well, they jig would be up and the few in privledge would find themselves fighting to maintain control, as they always have through the ages. This isn't about political spectrums such as right vs left, democracy vs communism; this is about power, and the maintenance of power. Money, which years ago used to actually have a value of some sort, has degenerated into just another form of power. In this case, CALEA is power applied for both the telcos (who suddenly are felling the heat from VoIP) and government interests (in this case, the existing regime^W administration wants to extend its powerbase).
(Yawn) enough ranting for today, go outside and play... And, because of this, I would like to discuss some of the points he makes in it, but first it is time to go to sleep. This was taken from a Slashdot news story: http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=05/09/28/1930221&tid=158&tid=215
29
« on: September 20, 2005, 09:59:05 AM »
I'm trying to write the most stereotypical livejournal ever, and I need some names. So far I have:
James Dowe
John Smith (I actually know a John Smith, and boy was that confusing)
Richard (Ricky) B. Fayke
The Johnsons
Anything else? I don't want to make it TOO obvious, so a bit of subtly would be nice. Oh, and the LJ name is "jamesdowe".
30
« on: September 02, 2005, 12:21:56 AM »
Alright folks, I feel like starting a D&D campaign. (It's been too long...)
The catch is with implementing it.
The campaign needs:
1) Some folks from "Teh Geekery!!!!111" to join. (It would be interesting if we had one of the mods be DM, but I could do it if nothing else.)
2) Dice rolling. The easiest way is to use the honor system, but that has trust problems for some people. Another way would be to use a 3rd party program to roll, like AIM (It has a dice feature in the chat rooms) or to simply have the DM make all of the rolls.
3) Smooth flow. Posting in this forum is RT for the most part, because replies usually come back in less than an hour, but how would the party move on? It could get a bit slow if you don't have something to move it along. (Picture one person always saying "Right before he does that, I do this." or waiting for hours for the DM to check the board.)
The benefit to all of this is the extensive roleplaying. It would be almost impossible to be a hack-and-slash and still have things moving along at a good clip, though there would be plenty of action.
Thoughts?
31
« on: August 27, 2005, 08:50:59 PM »
A good friend of mine is getting a new video card, but he can't decide between the ATI Radeon X800XL and the ASUS Radeon X850PRO. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814121534http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814102543Here is the conflict: The X850PRO has a higher core/memory speed, and a pixel pipe of 12, while the X800XL has a lower core/memory speed, but a higher pixel pipeline of 16. Everything else is the same. He asked me which I should buy, but I don't know enough about hardware to really say which is better. The price difference is only 10 dollars. Sorry about bugging you guys, but I don't want to make a mistake.
32
« on: August 10, 2005, 04:33:23 AM »
Reading, math standards unattainable, officials sayWow. 'God' forbit everyone become proficient in reading and math. It might cost too much, or worse... let everyone think on their own! *Gasp* [Insert Dramatic Music]
33
« on: July 13, 2005, 02:13:38 AM »
This is a FWD that I recieved from a friend. Great to be an American
A Pakistani arrives in New York City all excited, he stops the first person he meets.
"Good day, Mr. American, thank you to accept me in your nice country, and... "
"The person interrupts and says: "I am not American, I'm Chinese."
The Pakistani continues on his way and meets another passer-by. "Thank you Mr. American for to let my family and me stay here..."
Again, he is interrupted before finishing his sentence. "I no be American, I be Turk!"
The Pakistani continues on his way and meets another passer-by. "Mr. American, me thank you for hospitality you give..."
"But my friend, don't you see that I am black? I am African, not American.
He goes a little farther and meets another American and greets him "Thank you for letting me come to your beautiful country."
"I'm not an American, I'm a Mexican. "
"But," answers the Pakistani distressed, "where are the Americans??"
The Mexican looks at his watch and says, "Probably at work." Before I start tearing this apart, I thought I would let you guys get some first. I may like cake but that doesn't mean I won't give everyone else a slice first...
34
« on: July 04, 2005, 02:55:46 PM »
I've been reading the book "Darknet" recently, a good book for those interested in "Hollywood vs Technology", and it brings up some interesting points about patents/copywrights/etc and what Hollywood is trying to do:
Right now people are creating their own form of interactive media, one where everybody can contribute or comment, like blogs and some websites such as ourmedia.com. Hollywood is concerned by this, after all their current business model is a one-way pipe that take content from them and sends it to us, something which doesn't allow us to play any part in it, and they are forced with two options. Either Hollywood will change and start offering ways to include people, or it will use copywright law to arrest teenagers that are mixing their 'Property' and creating new products.
I'm not talking about pirates, I'm talking about the people that like to take parts of movies and make something new out of them by mixing and matching different things, or does a recreation of a movie like 'Raiders of the Lost Ark.' You'll be very lucky not to be sued.
Discuss:
35
« on: July 01, 2005, 01:00:06 AM »
I just sent in a letter to the editors of the local papers, could you tell me what you guys think of it?
To Whom This May Concern,
Hello, my name is Paul and I used to attend Boston Latin School.
I left at the end of my sophomore year because I moved to Hawaii, but
returned to Boston a year later and was planning on attending my
senior year at BLS.
Because the school that I went to for the year, Damien Memorial
High School, refused to allow me into it's Pre-Calculus class, a
decision made by the head of their math department at the time, and
because of a foreign language / Latin class requirement, the school
would have had me repeat the year and couldn't, more likely wouldn't,
allow any other alternatives such as attendance at a college over the
summer to make up the credit or perhaps to seek tutoring or other
options.
It's this line of thinking that has me concerned. I've graduated
high school recently, from a school called Another Course to College
that was a joy to be in, and the situation put the final touch on
something that has been confusing me for a long time.
I had always thought a school was supposed to promote learning,
the very definition of school is an educational institution after all,
and the definition of education is activities that impart knowledge or
skill. I thought that the student would be shown subject matter from
the teacher, there would be some discussion based on the material, and
new knowledge would be formed by both parties. What I found when I
attended Latin School, however, was something far different.
In a school that tries to "prepare students to be both productive
citizens in a democracy and responsible adults who have an awareness
of global issues," they often stifle independent thought and encourage
mindless habitual behavior.
The teacher asks you to take out the questions he has prepared
based on what you read the night before and to turn them in for a
grade. The fact that the teacher prepared the questions isn't
necessarily bad, even though it doesn't involve the students, but if
you look at the questions they revolve around surface events in the
book that fail to address the ideas being presented to you.
What good does knowing that Jonas rode down a red sled on his way
to the light if you don't discuss it, if you don't think about it, if
you don't talk about it?
An analogy that a teacher I had this year made was that reading
for some people, in this case the kind encouraged by BLS, was like
running down the school hallway. Sure you could vaguely see a piece of
paper on the wall, but you couldn't read what it says or what it
means. It's this style that forces you to miss the meaning behind the
words and it cripples those who practice it.
This doesn't happen in every class, but it happens in far too
many of the classes, and in a school that is supposed to be the
shining example of the Boston Public School System, one of the oldest
public schools in America, what does that say? Maybe it's not the
oldest just because of it's age but because of the way it deals with
education.
What about the impersonality of the teachers, those that refuse
to give that extra bit to help, those that are hard to find once the
bell rings, those that get paid whether you pass or not so they don't
care whether you learn something?
What about the fact that the administration doesn't care about
you, beyond what helps their statistics, or the fact that the alumni
give them money?
Education is important, both from a 1984 perspective for those
that are rightfully paranoid about our civil liberties and from an
economic standpoint for those concerned with money, and the fact that
it is treated so horribly in such a school is a nightmare.
I hear about how people think that BLS is the best school in the
country and I laugh. I hear about how they think BLS provides the best
education and I laugh. I hear how they think their children will learn
to express their creativity at BLS and I laugh. I've decided it's time
to stop laughing. What about you?
36
« on: June 28, 2005, 07:59:33 PM »
Sorry folk, but I have yet another tech question.
What are you guys using to play MP3s and such? I used to use Winamp, but that stopped working and I don't know if it is even worth it to fix.
Is there something better out there? (First person to say WMP gets shanked with this homemade spoon-based instrument I have handy.)
37
« on: June 16, 2005, 12:57:11 PM »
It's late at night and I'm listening to talk radio,  , and the radio host is talking about the Jackson trial and how he was found not guilty. A caller calls in (She sells sea shells...) and makes this statement (or something close to it): "I know he is guilty. I haven't seen any of the evidence, but I know he is guilty." That scares me. Along those lines: A juror in the Robert Durst (I think it was for him anyway) trial said: "I didn't know you could have a trial without the head." Wow, this is frightnening. Not only do these people know very little or nothing about the legal system (very common), this kind of stupidity is the cause of people being sentenced to jail because they look dangerous. I know someone is going to post with something like "You know who scared me? Slain" and that's fine (  ), but I just wonder what the cause of this is (besides AOL) and if there are any events like these that might scare you by how stupid people are.
38
« on: June 15, 2005, 03:35:34 PM »
Alright guys I hate to ask a tech question given all the people lately but I'm going to anyway.
I'm going to put linux on a spare machine that I have and as I don't need it to run games I figured it might be good getting a little experiance with some form of Linux. The question I have is which distro should I use? I know there are a billion of them and it varies from person to person, but how about the most supported? The one with the most drivers available? Where might these drivers be?
Thanks,
Your friendly neighborhood monkey made of crystal
39
« on: June 10, 2005, 05:55:00 PM »
Ok, long explanation short: "Relating to the theory or practical activity of constructing situations. One who engages in the construction of situations."
I've been told a few stories, one of which involves a campaign in France against the government. (Will tell once I get back from Prom)
The daily show is also a form of this, as is weekend update, because they both disrupt what news reporting 'ought to be.'
In honor of this, I am going to the prom dressed as a pimp. Why? Because I am bored and have nothing better to do.
Has anyone else done something of this nature? (And I don't mean specifically dressing like a pimp, I mean interupting how something "should" be)
40
« on: April 25, 2005, 08:21:59 PM »
Geekforum has been shifted. Inbox
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This was in my e-mail. The first thing that tipped me off were the spelling mistakes... Oh, I've been on vacation the past week, and very little computer access. This is the first chance I got to jump on.
41
« on: March 12, 2005, 03:16:23 PM »
While thinking about what Judge said in his story, which I really like (Go Judge!), I was wondering about something.
Is the green that I see the same as the green that you see?
We don't have a real way of knowing this, as our mind may translate the messages differently. If that is the case, is it possible that all humans have the same favourite color, they just see it differently? My favourite shade of blue is the same as Person X's favourite red, but we are actually seeing the same thing.
Just a random thought I had.
42
« on: March 03, 2005, 08:40:05 PM »
The views about to be expressed are not those of Crystalmonkey but his stupid friend.
For everyone who knows the story of Adam and Eve, he/she should also know that it was their souls who gave birth to mankind. Others, on the other hand, have a different idea of how man came to rule the world. These people believe it was science that set forth the birth of mankind. However, both of these ideas had one issue in common. For a person from either group will tell you that in order for his/her theory to be true, his/her theory is needed to prolong man's and woman's life. The religious people know that without the mating of Adam and Eve, there would not be life after them. Scientists know that if males and females did not produce offspring then the human race would end. The religious people know that without the mating of Adam and Eve, there would not be life after them. Scientists know that if males and females did not produce offspring then the human race would end. This can be seen in nature, when one looks at endangered species. When one looks at the tasks in which scientists take to save a species, he/she will notice that the scientists search for a male and female. Once the scientists find a male and female, then the scientists will have the species reproduce. This cycle will continue until there is an adequate quantity of the species.
When the topic of homosexuality crosses the ears of a human. He/she will either take a religious or a worldly approach. A religious person should be against homosecuality for several reasons. First, if the person is Christian then he/she may feel that it is against God's will to do such an act (acting in a homosexual manner). However, if one asks the same question to a person who is not a Christian but a Jew, Muslim or even a Hindu, one will discover that it is also against the followers' religions. The God of all of these religions disapproves of homosexuality.
"Thou shall not lie with mankind as with womankind: it is an abomination" (Leviticus 18:22)
"If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination..." (Leviticus 20:13)
"In popular culture, Hindu movies have dealth with gay characters, but only of caricatures to be made fun of." (http://www.countercurrents.org/gensrivastava200903.htm)
"Islam considers homosexuality to be clearly sinful. As far as Islam is concerned, it is a profound mistake, especially that humans are not homosexuals by nature. People become homosexuals because of their environments." (http://www.islamonline.net/askaboutislam/display.asp?hquestionid=5011)
Science can easily prove that homosexuality, is a disease that lingers in our nations. When we think of a nation bettering itself, or being the best, one must note that the country can't accept homosexuality. From a scientific point of view...
This continues on, but I thought I would let you guys have a crack at it. Is it even worth continuing?
43
« on: February 26, 2005, 12:42:43 AM »
Alright, first things first, please excuse the title of this topic. Moving on:
Would it be possible to start an active campaign on the forum? I know that several people here, if not actively play, then seem to know the rules of the game.
Considering how often everyone posts on the forum, it wouldn't be a stagnant one-post-a-week version that some people do with e-mails and such.
On the other hand, it may not be as fast as some people like it. You don't have the same pace that most are used to and it can become boring to some.
There are also issues such as dice rolling, and combat, but I think because it is so slow the game would be much more in dept story wise, and you could use Private Messages to tell information others in the party wouldn't know about. (E.G. You think those tracks appear to be..., or You notice that the stone is in a wierd pattern, etc.)
I don't know who would be DM, it would have to be worked out, as well as who would be playing, but it could actually work.
I'm pretty sure the idea will get shot down, but I just thought I would throw it up in the air in the off-chance it would actually happen. Even worse, the idea will be accepted and a bunch of morons will post things like "D&D is for L0s3rs" or the game will have no sense of realism whatsoever.
Anyone willing?
44
« on: December 10, 2004, 04:31:55 PM »
At least partly anyway.
Alrighty, I am always surfing Fanfiction.net because I spend endless hours reading Stupid Sexy Flanders fanfics. I also have a program called Peer Guardian which blocks many different things, from universities that would spy on you if you were using P2P (I don't anymore, but one can never be too careful) or simple adds on websites.
Now when I connect to FF.net, it is blocked by PG, so I am forced to lower the protections to get my stories. I usually refresh 20 stories or more in a single click (Go Mozilla!) and after I re-enable the program, I am hit constantly for like 5 minutes, blocking on average 6000 hits a refresh (And I have more than 1 refresh needed. I hit "Open in tabs" because I bookmark a bunch of stories that I check for updates regularly.)
The site is labled as "NHI-NETWORKS-FAKES AP2P"
I've narrowed the possiblities down to 3 things about why it is pinging me so constantly, but I was wondering if anyone could shed some insight on to whether options B and C could prove to be problems.
A) It is trying to communicate with a cookie
B) It is trying to find if I have fake files and things that I do
C) It thinks I am launching some sort of DoSA and is pinging me to see where I am.
Edit:
Also, the rapid ping only happens when I refresh the sites a large number at a time (More than 1 in this case, not sure if it would happen at 2 or 3)
45
« on: December 09, 2004, 07:19:40 PM »
Demo looks like my english teacher, weird.
46
« on: December 09, 2004, 04:43:22 PM »
I've heard from many different places, ranging from teachers to my peers, that religion serves a very important purpose. I want to define that purpose, as well as some of the effects of religion.
Some possible purposes (For other posters to extend if they like):
-Reinforce morals by offering eternal damnation (Karma, Hell, Etc...)
-Soothe those afraid of death by offering them eternal life (Kinda)
I know these are negative views on religion, which is why I wanted to ask you all if you could add your opinions. I'll be making a seperate topic later about "The Right Life" later, so please no preaching until then. This is a discussion of the theory behind religion, not whether each religion is true or not.
47
« on: December 08, 2004, 07:02:15 PM »
We were tackling this issue in English Class a couple of weeks ago, while reading "The Republic" by Plato, and were told to write an 8-9 page paper on it. I thought it might be an interesting topic to bring to the forum. After we debate this out, would anyone mind if I posted, "Do we have Liberty and Justice for all in America," as a follow up? I really like discussions so, I hope you guys don't mind me trying to start some in here. I will try my hardest not to act stupid, though old habits die hard. I'm trying to turn over a new leaf in this forum.
What is Justice in the soul? What is Justice in the state?
Edit: 6-7 pages, woopsies
48
« on: November 26, 2004, 01:04:58 AM »
Sorry about that all, I needed to get school settled and work out some things. Just thought I would post a message in the new geeks section. I'm back =)
49
« on: October 06, 2004, 08:30:25 PM »
Here is some MS Paint for your site, I might as well through some more fun onto the fire.
Having problems uploading pic. Is there a direct way to get it to you?
50
« on: September 09, 2004, 10:03:15 PM »
This is for my High School law class
"Liberty and Justice for all" Is this still true today?
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