http://www.cracked.com/article_18732_6- ... juana.html]6 Things You Won't Believe Are More Legal Than Marijuana.
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN1519575920100915]Journalist, author and grammarian Edwin Newman passed away in England last month, according to a CBS news announcement yesterday.  He was 91.
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.

http://www.tgdaily.com/software-feature ... ource-code]Diaspora is now available for crowdsourcing.
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.

When I logged in just now, I got a security alert. It started with "Unable to verify the identity of rcweb3 as a trusted site.", and went on to describe how the browser couldn't verify the security certificate of rcweb3. (I selected "Do not accept certificate and do not connect to the website"; it seems there's no ill effect in doing so.)

Anybody know what rcweb3 is? If it's an ad site or a tracking site, then maybe we shouldn't report this issue. (Because if they fix it, we won't know that they're chipping away at our privacy...)
--
Rob Kelk
"Governments have no right to question the loyalty of those who oppose
them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."

- Michael Ignatieff, addressing Stanford University in 2012

moved from the Sabre thread so's not to derail the good work over there. --Mal

Hokay, so. This is a raw take of what’s in my mind re: the US political landscape ca. 2009 - 2017.

The general political landscape:

The vast majority of Ameri’Danes don’t really give much of a shit about Fenspace in general; they’re busy with their own lives.

Perception of Fenspace (i.e. the Convention) is largely neutral, trending toward negative. The perception of Fen (i.e. the people of the Convention) is more negative.

Mass-media stories about Fen doing something crazy on US soil (like the Corners launch) or about Fen-on-’Dane crime (like the mess in Kentucky Dakota and Dartz are working on) feed the negative impression of Fen as superpowered lunatics who should stay out there and not bother honest, decent folk.

Fen-positive stories do exist in media, but they’re often non-local (the Blue Blaze Irregulars saving the day somewhere in not-America), of niche interest (Starfleet researchers exploring the brave new world of Pandora discover a new beastie) or relegated to “fad/lifestyle” news (a Fen company releases some pretty new chunk of Future from the WFC).

Pro-Fen forces exist both in the general public and in the government.

Handwavium panic lurks beneath US-Fen relations, and it’s not going away anytime soon.

Giuliani was elected in 2008 based on handwavium panic, esp. the rantings of people who figured that terrorists would use handwavium to do something non-specific but nasty.

President Rudy’s administration was an epic low point for presidencies. His generally autocratic & dickish behavior didn’t play well with Congress, the courts or the public.

Panic fatigue plus a tendency on Giuliani’s part to blame everything wrong with his administration on the Fen led to an ebb of ‘wave panic in late ‘09 - early ‘10. This led to the ratification of the Kandor Treaty.

Coming into the ‘12 elections Giuliani was faced with a hostile party & public. He intended to use the “War on Fen” much the same way earlier presidents had used the “War on Terror,” “War on Drugs,” etc. as part of a Patriotic Lawn-Order campaign. It didn’t work.

Giuliani was faced by a surprisingly strong primary campaign by (*rolls dice*) Ron Paul. Strong enough that the President ended up dropping out of the race halfway through.

The ‘12 GOP Convention was a bloodbath, radicals & moderates scrambling for the prize, no real presumptive nominee. Great TV, if you like that sort of thing. Eventually a compromise candidate - one supported by everybody & nobody - gets nominated.

Things proceed from there. Eventually somebody wins, haven’t decided who yet. Whoever it ends up being, it’s a relative moderate on everything.

‘Wave panics start coming back into vogue in late ‘12 early ‘13 as the Boskone War intensifies. US public perception of Fen as lawless criminals increases, then breaks apart once the Patrol starts operating. Lots of CNN images of Osaka, Serenity Valley, the goonrush on the Black Tower, etc.

New president comes in ‘13, things start to stabilize a bit. By summer it’s obvious that Boskone is on the back foot and it’ll all be over by Christmas (well, not really, but close enough). As peace starts to return to the Inner System relations between the US and Convention get a little warmer.

There’s still some rumblings in the mist, however. A lot of senators who voted to ratify Kandor (more as a “fuck you” to Giuliani than any love for Fenspace) are experiencing buyer’s remorse.

And then the Artemis program starts flights, and things go crappy. Again.

Public perception is ambivalent on the whole thing; while the people who care are happy to see NASA flying again, the whole “backroom deal with the Soviets” smacks of dirty politics (which it is) and also strikes a chord in the heads of venerable Cold Warriors all over the country. Mal Fnord’s open trolling of the Joint Committee on Extraterrestrial Security doesn’t exactly help the situation, though Daily Show and Colbert Report writers joygasm over it.

Relations stabilize when (OMGSPOILERS for Mr. Fnord Goes To Washington) President What’s-His-Face and General Fnord come to an agreement to let the US openly vilify the VVS in exchange for not investigating the Artemis cabal any further.

The Artemis evidence is disposed of shortly thereafter in the infamous April Fool’s Day Purchase. This actually leads to a pro-NASA backlash in the ‘14 midterms, as a bunch of Representatives who supported the shuttle sale were lambasted as all-but-traitors and thrown out.

That brings us to 2015 or so and that’s where the train of thought derails. Discuss.
Mr. Fnord interdimensional man of mystery

FenWiki - Your One-Stop Shop for Fenspace Information

"I. Drink. Your. NERDRAGE!"

Dawn
arrived on Peregrine Island, shining into the windows of a high-rise
apartment.  One of the occupants made strange noises that might have
passed for the missing link between chimpanzee screeches and English as
she stumbled across the living room, tracing an uneven beeline for the
fridge.  Several cups of juice later, higher brain functions resumed and
Lynna began working on the morning checklist for breakfast.

By
the time that Valles had made it out of the bedroom, there was a warm
plate sitting on the counter, bearing some toast with a little jam on
it, and a bowl of cereal with a spoon. Lynna slid a can of pop across
the counter into Valles' waiting hand, providing the final food group of
caffeine.

“So, what’s on the agenda today?” Lynna asked after both had consumed enough of their breakfasts to engage in conversation.

“Scanning
the latest areas of Pantheon Earth,” V-chan mumbled around her
Hami-O’s. “Zombies, zombies, and more zombies, with occasional side of
insane cultists and fragments of crazy gods. You?”

“Going out to work. I should be back home before you are.”  Lynna grinned.

“If
I didn’t know better, I’d think you were streetwalking or something to
bring in that much money for that little work,” the Peacebringer said
with a mock-dour look.

“It’s
tips based off my sparkling personality,” Lynna said, taking in a
breath that thrust her chest out a little bit more. All the more
noticeable, given her early morning attire consisted of nothing but
all-natural fabrics. Which was to say, nothing at all.

“One of these days, someone’s going to look in that window and get more of a view than they expected,” Valles snorted.

Lynna laughed. “Maybe I should charge a viewing fee? I’d say I’m worth it.”“...well, yes,
but still...” V-chan said, finding that logic hard to refute in the
face of ample, prominent evidence.  She turned her head slightly and
caught sight of the small can sitting on the counter, a lonely, small
dollar bill poking out of the top, and sighed.  

Lynna followed her gaze
and resisted the urge to sigh herself. “I was talking with the landlord, and he’s willing to drop the rent some.”

V-chan looked over at her suspiciously. “What did you do to him?”
“Nothing!”
Lynna said “I just pointed out that it’s just been the two of us for
the last month or so, so charging us for three people’s rent was a
little excessive.”

V-chan
started to say something as Lynna continued, cutting her off. “Hey, I’m
the last one to say she can’t do what she want, but if she’s not going
to be here, I’m not gonna get charged for it. Neither of us are
charities.”

Valles looked at her, before nodding. “You’re right. I know you are. It’s just...”

“It’s
just that you’re a softy,” Lynna said, smiling. “Hey, I figure, she has
things to do, same as us. She’ll be back or she won’t.” Truthfully,
Lynna didn’t have any preference there. While the flaming redhead was a
good lay in bed, having V-chan all to herself was a rather relaxing
experience, she was finding. “So, are we still planning on that trip to
see your folks tomorrow?”

“Yes,”
V-chan said, brightening a little. “Though you’ll have to put on
clothes in the morning, I note,” she teased, as Lynna laughed.

“What? Worried that my raw sex appeal will seduce your entire extended family or something?” she returned with a grin.

“You wish you were that good,” the Peacebringer chuckled.

***

She really should get going. She’d only meant to stay for a few hours.

But it felt so good.

In fact, to anyone else, it’d almost be a little creepy the extent to which they’d gone.

But it felt so good.

Physicists
would probably weep tears of frustration at how they were violating the
laws of thermodynamics. Theoretically, absorbing the heat and fire from
one source to produce an equal reaction from another source which fed
the first reaction was essentially impossible. Never mind the fact that
every time they flared up in unison, her world went bright gold with the
sheer, mind-blowing pleasure of it. That and the hands, fingers, the
taste....everything was so hard to ignore. So much feeling, so much
sensation, so much...ohhh...she’d never felt like this before. And it
didn’t stop. Neither of them got tired or had to finish early to get out
of the house and go to school or work. They could just go on and on and
on...

And it felt so good.

Braende gasped as she leaned up from the covers, gaining a sultry look from the woman bent over her. “I....what time is it?”

“Does it matter?”“I....I
might be late getting home,” she said, barely sounding like that was a
reason even to herself. Like there was anything better than this waiting
back there?”

“Oh,
I’m sure things will be fine. Everyone needs a little time to
themselves now and then,” Enynn grinned as the aura of fire about her
pulsed again, merging with Braende’s and creating another sympathetic
surge in heat and pleasure.

It
wasn't until much later -- days, weeks, how much, Braende would never
be sure -- that she rose from the bed to stand unsteadily in the
residual cherry glow from the reinforced alloy walls, staring down at
Enynn.  The other woman slept on.  Braende reached out with one hand,
feeling the sympathetic resonance of their abilities even without
conscious effort on either of their parts, and the urge to crawl back
into the warm cocoon of their power swelled again within her.

She clenched her fist and forced herself to step back.  She needed... she needed...

... she needed to find Valles.  After that... maybe things would make more sense.

***

Dear brother,
So
much has happened since the last time we talked!  I won't bore you with
ALL the routine bits, so in summary: Mom and Dad are fine, Jonesy had
puppies (I still say we should have renamed her when we figured it out),
and Aunt Marion wants to know if you can take a look at some old coin
or something she found next time you get a chance -- I think she's
hoping it's gold and not bronze like I told her it was, but whatever.

Now, for the fun part: I'm coming to Paragon City!

You
read that right, Kentucky.  You can't hide from your little sister!
 I'll be visiting the week after Dad's birthday -- don't forget to send
him a card -- and don't worry, I won't crash your swinging bachelor pad.
 I've already arranged for a hotel room.  I won't even insist on
hanging out with you all the time.  I'm sure I can find more
entertaining things to do in the big city than -- ugh! -- follow my big
brother around all over the place.

But Mom and I have decided: I WILL be meeting your girlfriend.  We know you have one by now.  You can't hide her forever.

My
train is supposed to arrive at 11:50pm on the 16th.  I know you're
busy, but it'd be nice if you could meet me at the station, at least
long enough to say hi before you vanish back into your most recent
digsite.

And
I'm bringing a surprise for you.  I think you'll like it.  Mom and Dad
don't know about it yet -- I want to surprise them, too, so don't say
anything.

See you soon!

Love,
V.
---
"Oh, silver blade, forged in the depths of the beyond. Heed my summons and purge those who stand in my way. Lay
waste."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xc90UhV6hJA

Apologies to Glenn Greenwald, from whom I borrow the amazingly appropriate quote from Alice in Wonderland.
The Obama Administration, who last April targeted American citizen Anwar al-Awlaki for a kill-on-sight order by the CIA (and as of late has made missile strikes in Yemen to attempt to kill him... you might know Yemen as a country that the United States is not at war with, so hooray for American exceptionalism!), is now considering filing criminal charges against this American citizen just in case, you know, he gets captured alive by the Yemeni government before the CIA can kill him.
So yes, the American citizen that the CIA has been given a kill-on-sight order for has never been charged with a crime:  "...counterterrorism officials regard al-Awlaki as a terrorist operative, not just a preacher, but they have revealed few specifics". Because, of course, the track record of the US means you should absolutely trust that anybody they say is a Bad Guy totally is and that is an excellent reason to invest the President with the authority to order the killing-without-trial of American citizens because that is totally a good thing for the President to be able to do that will never ever lead to bad things no sir.
The charge that is being floated around, according to the article, is "supporting terrorism", and the basis is "violent sermons" (what First Amendment?) and aiding in propaganda for Al-Qaeda. The sentence for that charge, incidentally, is 15 years. But of course that charge will only happen if the CIA fails in their mission to assassinate the American citizen before he ever goes to trial.
Barack Obama is an evil piece of shit. This is not a new opinion of mine, but I felt it bears mentioning. Every Democrat who supports this (the vast majority of them) is also an evil piece of shit, and so too is every Republican that does (the even vaster majority). Supporting the authority of the Dear Leader to assassinate American citizens without trial or even revealing specifics of their alleged crimes is anti-democratic, and that's about the nicest thing one can say about it. It's hard to think of a more dramatic overreaching of executive power than targeted killing of American citizens - even Bush never did anything like that. The joke of them now floating the idea of laying charges against him, many months after revealing his execution order, is just the icing on the cake.
He's an evil piece of shit. And so is everyone else who supports this. That is all.

Spinning this off into its own thread:

Proginoskes Wrote:

robkelk Wrote:I suspect we might want a consensus (or a Word of Mod) on what to do with the toys left behind by folks who've lost interest in Fenspace...

I suggest that orphaned elements of Fenspace (characters, places, and things whose authors left Fenspace without explicitly declaring them "open") be considered "moderated" or some similar term, basically meaning "open, but use subject to greater (possibly more formalized) scrutiny by the Collective than open items usually are".

Computerworld: http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/ ... onomyId=17]Microsoft issues blanket licence to Russian NGOs

Why is this a "yay!"? It seems that the Russian government has been seizing the computers of NGOs that oppose it on the pretext that they're running pirated Microsoft software. Microsoft just torpedoed that particular excuse to crack down on dissent.

(One roadblock to true democracy removed, far too many to go...)
--
Rob Kelk
"Governments have no right to question the loyalty of those who oppose
them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."

- Michael Ignatieff, addressing Stanford University in 2012