That is my wife and my first daughter Lyriel. She is a little angel.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Monday, September 19, 2011
If I were the Tyrant of the U.S.
If I were to run the country, I would have to be elected as a tyrant. Supreme executive power would be needed for my reign to be successful. After seeing things through I would step down and allow another election for a president. Full on democratic vote though. The Electoral College will be dissolved.
My decrees will be as follows:
No more foreign aid until we have settled our debts.
From now on, all citizens will be charged a 7% tax. No tax shelter laws for corporations to not pay their income taxes either.
Charitable donations are no longer tax write offs. Make those donations because you care.
All senators and congressmen will be paid federal minimum wage. All other government employees will continue at their current pay grades and scales. The Tyrant will be tax exempt and receive a small monthly stipend in addition to his family living in the White House.
All congressmen and senators will be required to pay their taxes while in office under pain of incarceration and release from their position. Congressmen and senators will be part time employees and required to balance their schedules with their other employment and given mandated leave like military personnel on duty.
No state will be allowed to cut education budgets period.
The Patriot Act will be dissolved immediately.
All political prisoners will be executed and sent to their country of origin. All political prisons will be disbanded or converted into state or federal prisons.
All countries who object to these edicts will be allowed to have their ambassador challenge the Tyrant to fisticuffs.
Puerto Rico will be the 51st state. Period.
Mexico will be the 52 state. We already have the people, food, and culture, time for the real estate. Find me a better end to illegal Mexican immigration.
Make it easier and less expensive to receive citizenship. This bullshit has gone on for too long.
With all that new tax revenue it will be suddenly easier to have universal health care.
Lobbyists will be banned. Period.
Televising of small claims court cases will be banned. Sorry Judge Judy.
Once a criminal has been convicted and given the death penalty, they will be allowed one appeal. Period. No more ritualistic last meal, no more knowing the date of execution either. We'll do it Japanese way. Death row inmates will be in solitary confinement until one day the warden decides it's time for the execution. Just watch crime rates drop.
Legalization regulation and taxation of marijuana.
Country-wide alcohol and tobacco laws. 18 to purchase tobacco, 19 to purchase alcohol 17 if in the military. If they are old enough to die for your freedom, they're old enough to smoke and drink. No limit on liquor licenses or any of that other Utah bullcrap.
Country-wide reinstatement of the death penalty. The punishment must fit the crime. Lesser sentences for crimes of passion and harsh sentence for killings during robberies and so forth.
Crack down on prescription pill abuse.
After a reign of no longer than eight years, the Tyrant will retire to be a public citizen. The ex Tyrant and ex presidents will not receive secret service protection.
The NSA will be disbanded. The CIA and the FBI do their jobs just fine.
The department of Homeland security will be disbanded. Security at airports will reach an all-time laxness with an increase in air marshalls and other law enforcement officers for the airports and air travel.
These extreme and totalitarian methods are what will ensure the survival of this country while at the same time ensuring they will never ever happen. I can dream though, can't I?
My decrees will be as follows:
No more foreign aid until we have settled our debts.
From now on, all citizens will be charged a 7% tax. No tax shelter laws for corporations to not pay their income taxes either.
Charitable donations are no longer tax write offs. Make those donations because you care.
All senators and congressmen will be paid federal minimum wage. All other government employees will continue at their current pay grades and scales. The Tyrant will be tax exempt and receive a small monthly stipend in addition to his family living in the White House.
All congressmen and senators will be required to pay their taxes while in office under pain of incarceration and release from their position. Congressmen and senators will be part time employees and required to balance their schedules with their other employment and given mandated leave like military personnel on duty.
No state will be allowed to cut education budgets period.
The Patriot Act will be dissolved immediately.
All political prisoners will be executed and sent to their country of origin. All political prisons will be disbanded or converted into state or federal prisons.
All countries who object to these edicts will be allowed to have their ambassador challenge the Tyrant to fisticuffs.
Puerto Rico will be the 51st state. Period.
Mexico will be the 52 state. We already have the people, food, and culture, time for the real estate. Find me a better end to illegal Mexican immigration.
Make it easier and less expensive to receive citizenship. This bullshit has gone on for too long.
With all that new tax revenue it will be suddenly easier to have universal health care.
Lobbyists will be banned. Period.
Televising of small claims court cases will be banned. Sorry Judge Judy.
Once a criminal has been convicted and given the death penalty, they will be allowed one appeal. Period. No more ritualistic last meal, no more knowing the date of execution either. We'll do it Japanese way. Death row inmates will be in solitary confinement until one day the warden decides it's time for the execution. Just watch crime rates drop.
Legalization regulation and taxation of marijuana.
Country-wide alcohol and tobacco laws. 18 to purchase tobacco, 19 to purchase alcohol 17 if in the military. If they are old enough to die for your freedom, they're old enough to smoke and drink. No limit on liquor licenses or any of that other Utah bullcrap.
Country-wide reinstatement of the death penalty. The punishment must fit the crime. Lesser sentences for crimes of passion and harsh sentence for killings during robberies and so forth.
Crack down on prescription pill abuse.
After a reign of no longer than eight years, the Tyrant will retire to be a public citizen. The ex Tyrant and ex presidents will not receive secret service protection.
The NSA will be disbanded. The CIA and the FBI do their jobs just fine.
The department of Homeland security will be disbanded. Security at airports will reach an all-time laxness with an increase in air marshalls and other law enforcement officers for the airports and air travel.
These extreme and totalitarian methods are what will ensure the survival of this country while at the same time ensuring they will never ever happen. I can dream though, can't I?
The End of the Story
Have you ever hesitated to watch the final episode of a series? I do every time lately. When I was younger, I was always eager for the resolution. Nowadays I've been disappointed by too many filler endings, Gainax endings, and the absolute worst, the shoulder shrug non-ending. We see the worst offenders in anime, when the show catches up to the manga and the studio needs to pull off something.
I always hate getting emotionally invested in a story only to find out that some things will have no resolution, or worse, the creators just stopped giving a damn or executives meddled.
I think the journey is more important than the destination. Life isn't composed of one beginning and one end, and a long story is effective because of how we relate it to life. Stories take on lives of their own. I'm not saying that stories should never end. That's just foolish. What I think is that the ending isn't so important. It just causes me distress when a story doesn't have the RIGHT ending, you know?
I always hate getting emotionally invested in a story only to find out that some things will have no resolution, or worse, the creators just stopped giving a damn or executives meddled.
I think the journey is more important than the destination. Life isn't composed of one beginning and one end, and a long story is effective because of how we relate it to life. Stories take on lives of their own. I'm not saying that stories should never end. That's just foolish. What I think is that the ending isn't so important. It just causes me distress when a story doesn't have the RIGHT ending, you know?
Sunday, September 11, 2011
The Why of Shadowdancer
I have been wanting to write reviews and blogs and such for some time. I got the itch originally from reading my first issue of Fangoria. I thought, "That's the way to be. Write about stories and share them with the world." Easier than writing your own, though I am trying that too.
I want especially to find lesser-known, or unknown stories and tell you about them. Maybe you'll like them. My true passion in life is stories. You can learn a lot about people from the stories they tell and the way they tell them. What details they find important, what virtues they hold dear, what they think is interesting. I enjoy cheesy movies as much as I enjoy good ones. I can enjoy a game that brings something different to the table even if it has many other flaws. Sure, a very well made game is more enjoyable, but there is something about a flawed story that has a special spark that attracts me. Perhaps it's my own image of myself reflecting back at me. A deeply flawed and imperfect man with a story to share. Maybe the story has something special that resonates with the audience, hopefully it's still an enjoyable tale, big ugly hairy storyteller and all.
Got a bit introspective there didn't I? I'm glad to see you're still here. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I hope I'm unique. I hope that my ideas and observations are at least slightly new. Maybe even original. I hope you enjoy them. I hope that we can learn about each other through these stories, and maybe even be friends. I'll try to share humor and objectivity in almost equal measures. I'll find some stinkers to laugh with you about, and I'll find some rough gems tool. I hope you'll be there to share them with. My fourth child will be born soon, and you may see little of me in the near future, during a season that's important to me and the stories I like to share, but I hope you can forgive my absences and be there when I'm back, ready to share more stories and share more ideas about stories.
At your service,
Stephen "Shadowdancer21b".
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Nightmare Video Boardgame
I remember VHS boardgames back in the day. My friend had Nightmare AKA Atmosfear, Clue, and a Star Trek: the Next Generation game as well. I liked Clue and Nightmare the best.
Nightmare was a lot of fun because my friends really got into it and the Gatekeeper was so hammy. We loved playing along with the Gatekeeper. Responding to him in funny ways was a real charm for the board game.
Sadly, the game didn't hold up too well with repeated playings. Since it was a VHS game you got the same stuff every time. Now there are DVD games for Atmosfear! I'm going to try to pick one up and let you know how it works out!
Nightmare was a lot of fun because my friends really got into it and the Gatekeeper was so hammy. We loved playing along with the Gatekeeper. Responding to him in funny ways was a real charm for the board game.
Sadly, the game didn't hold up too well with repeated playings. Since it was a VHS game you got the same stuff every time. Now there are DVD games for Atmosfear! I'm going to try to pick one up and let you know how it works out!
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Who's the best teacher you ever had?
Mr. Kelly Muncy. An encouraging art teacher and later, a solid German Teacher.
Saturday, September 3, 2011
The Scary Larry Show. Funny or Depressing?
Now, this one hits close to home and it really makes me sad, even when I laugh.
Friday, September 2, 2011
About being in the Army
I never got deployed overseas, sadly I never had the opportunity during my career. I had a knee injury and weight problems that prevented me from being deployed. I could easily have gotten in shape while on active duty, but I guess I would have been a liability. I'm very glad that all my brother-soldiers came back. Survivor's guilt would have hit me very hard.
I was a combat engineer. That's the 21B part. When I enlisted combat engineer was still MOS 12B. They changed it while I was at Fort Leonard Wood for Basic Training and Advanced Individual Training. I was at "Fort Lost-in-the-Woods" for 8 months straight. You bet I went crazy. I found Jesus out there too. I had been raised religious but adulthood had made me a less righteous man. The separation from the many temptations of the world facilitated my re-conversion, so to speak. I lost my fighting edge even. When it came time for hand to hand and pugils, I got my butt whupped because I had no aggression in me. I did get it back eventually.
The biggest things that affected my soul were the discrepancies between how I viewed being in the military when I was a civilian, and the reality that confronted me. I was treated like garbage by my home unit because of the knee injury and the failure to meet physical fitness standards that came with it. I admit, there was a time when I tried very hard to get fit and then I just stopped caring. I am to blame as well for my failure. However, I also had a dearth of good leadership. As a young soldier I was not encouraged and given the time and attention needed to get my self together. I was left entirely to my own devices and then berated for my trouble. I am bitter, I admit it.
When I got home from training, I couldn't get a job for six months. This was in 2003 and I graduated high school. No one wanted to hire an Army Reservist, fearing that I would be deployed any minute. Or something. I naively thought that everyone had the same respect and affection for the military that I did. I was proud when I was sworn in. I was on top of the world, 19 years old, and invincible. Poor 2003 me never saw it coming.
I was a combat engineer. That's the 21B part. When I enlisted combat engineer was still MOS 12B. They changed it while I was at Fort Leonard Wood for Basic Training and Advanced Individual Training. I was at "Fort Lost-in-the-Woods" for 8 months straight. You bet I went crazy. I found Jesus out there too. I had been raised religious but adulthood had made me a less righteous man. The separation from the many temptations of the world facilitated my re-conversion, so to speak. I lost my fighting edge even. When it came time for hand to hand and pugils, I got my butt whupped because I had no aggression in me. I did get it back eventually.
The biggest things that affected my soul were the discrepancies between how I viewed being in the military when I was a civilian, and the reality that confronted me. I was treated like garbage by my home unit because of the knee injury and the failure to meet physical fitness standards that came with it. I admit, there was a time when I tried very hard to get fit and then I just stopped caring. I am to blame as well for my failure. However, I also had a dearth of good leadership. As a young soldier I was not encouraged and given the time and attention needed to get my self together. I was left entirely to my own devices and then berated for my trouble. I am bitter, I admit it.
When I got home from training, I couldn't get a job for six months. This was in 2003 and I graduated high school. No one wanted to hire an Army Reservist, fearing that I would be deployed any minute. Or something. I naively thought that everyone had the same respect and affection for the military that I did. I was proud when I was sworn in. I was on top of the world, 19 years old, and invincible. Poor 2003 me never saw it coming.
formspring.me
Anything, military, history, games, movies, books, dance, http://formspring.me/shadowdancer21b
Overlordnetwork
I'm the primary contributor to the Overlordnetwork. http://www.overlordnetwork.com/.
The site is run by my friend Ironfox. He posts the second most. He and I will be making a podcast called the Overcast where we will discuss roleplaying games, video games for couples, and so forth. I need an audio clip of Megosh saying "You boys deserve medals!". If you provide this I will give you a shout out on the podcast and on a Vlog on my youtube channel.
Now, about the Overlordnetwork. We are a group of gamers and reviewers. Users on the site can contribute their own articles and reviews and it is our hope that with that publicly-shared community voice we will bring a lot of voices together and have a mixed bag of entertainment to rival that of other websites with similar structures.
I consider myself to be the court jester of the network.
The site is run by my friend Ironfox. He posts the second most. He and I will be making a podcast called the Overcast where we will discuss roleplaying games, video games for couples, and so forth. I need an audio clip of Megosh saying "You boys deserve medals!". If you provide this I will give you a shout out on the podcast and on a Vlog on my youtube channel.
Now, about the Overlordnetwork. We are a group of gamers and reviewers. Users on the site can contribute their own articles and reviews and it is our hope that with that publicly-shared community voice we will bring a lot of voices together and have a mixed bag of entertainment to rival that of other websites with similar structures.
I consider myself to be the court jester of the network.
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