Lay off the Squirrels, Can'tcha? This Is a Happy Place!

Am I being vague?

When I attempt to express irritation at snarls and drama in my forum, am I accidentally saying, "Oh, and please have more interpersonal conflicts here, everybody!" instead?

Is it too much for me to ask that people be calm, friendly, and respectful to each other, or if they can't, to take it outside?

FWIW, the latest person moved his post out of the forum at my request, hopefully before flames had a chance to kick back up again ... but given that it's somebody who should know better -- and somebody who friggin' read in this very LJ that I was trying to calm things back down, I am beginning to wonder if maybe it's me!

Sheesh. No wonder Moses smashed the stupid tablets.

-The Gneech

Don't Let the Submarine's Screen Door Hit Yer Butt On the Way Out

I heard a report on NPR this morning that Admiral Poindexter, mastermind of the Total Information Awareness idea and the balanced thinker that brought us the Terrorism Futures concept, has been asked to hand in his resignation.

In the words of recent Anthrocon GOH Mark E. Rogers, "The cat shed no tears."

-The Gneech

PS: Take the Department of Homeland Security with you.

PPS: Oh, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.

Mmm, Yummy Crow

I think I may have flown off the handle in reaction to tkarrde98's behavior last night, myself. In my defense dude, you have a history of laying into people who don't deserve it (sorry, but it's true). So when you tell me you're going to tell somebody off, my first assumption is that it's going to be another one of those.

I had one of those "turn into what you're trying to prevent" moments last night, and I apologize. And I'm sorry that I caused you a migraine.

I hope you're having a fun time on your day off, and I hope to see you when you get back.

-The Gneech

Gneech's Anime-fication

I mentioned yesterday (I think it was) about the How to Draw Manga series of books I've been buying. While I know that not everybody goes for willowy, bug-eyed guys with pointy hair hanging around long-legged, miniskirted, cat-eared schoolgirls who stick their tongue out, there is a lot to be learned from anime, artistically, and I've been getting a lot from it.

I have also, and this is where it gets interesting, been seeing a leak over of anime or anime-influenced stuff into other aspects of my tastes. My mp3 jukebox, for instance, is full of DDR and Anime music; the video shelf is crammed full of the complete run of Cardcaptor Sakura as well as Ruin Explorers, X-Driver, and a few other titles. I think this may be because I've been consciously trying to cultivate some tastes in something current.

Let me explain that a bit: for years, most of my favorite things were old news ... Gilbert and Sullivan, pulp adventure stories, ancient history and mythology, etc. And I still like these things, even though many or most of them are getting more and more obscure all the time. Anime is something that's still in the waxing stage, rather than the waning, and after a lifetime of being in the wake instead of on the crest, I find it unexpectedly important to be current for a change.

It's sorta related to my larger goal of reconnecting with the world, of which the Bowflex and Kung Fu are part, as are conventions, wearing shorts in the summer ;), and generally just getting out there and being alive, instead of finding an ivory tower to hole up in.

I know that it's a bit unconventional to look at videos, comics, art, and sf/fantasy/furry conventions as a way to be connected to the world rather than escaping ... but that's because the conventional ideas on the subject have the wrong end of the stick. That's a topic for another rant when I'm not about to leave work on Friday, but it's how I see things. Any time you have people actually interacting with each other, even through the filters of MUCK personas or rainbow-winged mecha pilot babes, instead of doing things in complete solitude, there is connection going on.

-The Gneech