Most Amazing YouTube Videos Ever

Typical Apple Product Quality

To no one's surprise, my Apple laptop has a hardware defect, in that the lid cannot close properly. Maybe I should have purchased that extended warranty.

Failed Therapy Session

Recently, I tried to solve my obsession with Titus by speaking to an online therapist named ELIZA. However, my session with her did not turn out so well. Below is the transcript of our conversation. "==>" indicates what I told ELIZA. If you want to have a therapy session with ELIZA, she can be found on http://bcs.worthpublishers.com/psychsim5/Computer%20Therapist/PsychSim_Shell.html. On that page, click the "NEXT" arrow until you are on the fourth page to talk to ELIZA.

==> I always feel an urging to talk about my hero, the Honorable Titus Jahng.
Tell me more about your hero, the Honorable Titus Jahng.
==> Well, Titus was the Editor-in-Chief for the Baron Banner last year. He also scored a 2380 on his SAT. He was one of the fastest runners on the cross country and track team. He should have been valedictorian, but his sport was not a weighted class and therefore lowered his GPA.
Have you told your instructor how you feel?
==> My instructor knows that I admire Titus.
Have you told your instructor how you feel?
==> YES, I HAVE!
Some people would congratulate you for that.
==> Okay?
Have you experienced any psychological problems or concerns that you can share with me?
==> I have a constant obsession with Titus.
Do you believe that this issue is part of your problem?
==> It probably is a problem, yet Titus is so perfect that anybody would admire him.\
Can you put your problem into words?
==> I HAVE PUT IT INTO WORDS! LEARN TO READ!

==> ANSWER ME!
What does that suggest to you?
==> It suggests that I am angry with you, you incompetent psychologist.
Did you come to me because you are angry with me, me incompetent psychologist?
==> No, I come to you because I have an obsession with Titus. However, your inferiority makes me irate.
Some people would congratulate you for that.
==> Why?
Because I think it's important.
==> That I become angry because you are a bad psychologist?
What makes you think I am a bad psychologist?
==> You have not solved my obsession with Titus.
I think that there's something interesting about your obsession with Titus.
==> It's just that Titus is the best person ever.
I see.
==> And he deserves to be admired.
I'm not sure I understand you fully.
==> LEARN TO READ!
Come, come, don't be so shy.
==> LEARN TO READ!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Why did you repeat yourself?
==> Because you won't listen to me
I'd be more interested in hearing about YOUR problems.
==> You won't listen to my problems

==> i.e. my obsession with Titus.
Tell me more about your obsession with Titus.
==> RESPOND!
Can you elaborate on that?
==> I told you before.
We were discussing you, not me.
==> That's why I told you about my obsession.
I think that there's something interesting about your obsession.
==> You know what, I'm outta here. I'll ask Titus about my obsession with him.

==> He is definitely a better psychologist than you are.

Assistance Needed to Capture Titus Jahng Imposter

On Friday, somebody sent me a Halloween gram allegedly from Titus Jahng. However, the handwriting on the card looks nothing like that of Titus, and if the gram had been sent to Cambridge, Massachusetts, and back, it obviously would have been much more dilapidated. I have uploaded scans of the card for others to examine the handwriting in order to apprehend the identity-stealing sender. I suspect that the sender is part of the Baron Banner, as Titus was, and that the low resolution picture was downloaded from a social networking site like Facebook. Please comment to contribute information about this occurrence or conjectures about the sender. Thank you.

"Upgrading" from Windows Vista to Windows XP

After taking my PSAT this weekend, I deleted Windows Vista and installed Windows XP onto my computer. Having dealt with the lethargic beast of an operating system known as Vista for six months, I was fed up with its User Account Control and general slowness.

However, the installation took more time than I had planned. For an hour, I troubleshooted why my computer could not connect to the Internet. I found out that it did not have the drivers for the Ethernet controller (into where the cable connecting one to the Internet plugs), and dumb Windows XP kept on trying to search the Internet, to which it couldn't connect because it could not recognize the Ethernet controller, for the drivers. Despite the minor flaw, everything else turned out okay, and now, my computer is much faster.

Finally, because of these annoying Windows errors, I might receive one of those hideous baking trays for making apple cobbler (also known as a MacBook or MacBook Pro) from my parents if I score well on my PSAT and SAT, the former on which I don't think I did well.

Titus Jahng for President

Support my candidate for the '08 election! As all of America knows, Obama is way too inexperienced and will not bring about change, while McCain is a creaking elitist who states that he was a POW in every other sentence, indirectly revealing that his plane was shot down in the Vietnam War because he flew it poorly. Unlike the candidates from the two leading parties, Titus Jahng will be an intelligent, diplomatic, and able President of the United States.

(Thanks to Zack for discovering the 44th President's campaign video.)

Poll About Titus Results

Is Titus Jahng the most perfect person whom you have ever encountered?

Yes: 11 (73%)

No: 4 (27%)

15 votes

YouTube Video of the Week: John McCain Gets Owned on Meet the Press

I am starting a new series of posts called "YouTube Video of the Week." I will post the most interesting video that I watched that week on YouTube. This first video is about John McCain and his differing opinions on the Iraq War and the lesser-known Somalia Civil War, which began in 1988 and still has not ended.

Poll About Titus

see poll on top right

Bill Gates vs. Steve Jobs Game

This is a fun and interesting game that I found on Current.com. It showcases the leaders of Microsoft and Apple, two of the biggest technology companies, in a lightsaber duel.

Both warriors are evenly matched in this game, but in reality, Microsoft is much better than Apple. Microsoft's products are cheaper, more secure, easier to use, more compatible with other applications and peripherals, and run much faster than Apple's.

The “New” China

From hearing stories about the China thirty years ago from my mother and studying about the Communist Soviet Union in AP European History, I predicted that China would be a drab, controlled, and cultureless country before I stepped on the plane.

From 1966 to Mao’s death in 1976, the Cultural Revolution was a period of extensive propaganda glorifying Communism and Mao. The Red Guards destroyed anything related to imperial China, like religious structures, cultural artifacts, and literary classics because those objects symbolized the old style of thought before Communism. Conversely, from 1981 onward, the Chinese government categorized the Cultural Revolution as a mistake in its official party line and has since promoted Chinese customs.

During my vacation, I surprisingly saw a similar amount of expression of Chinese traditions in China and Taiwan. Especially in Beijing, I witnessed the Communists’ support for Chinese culture. To prepare for the Olympics, the government renovated its tourist attractions, such as the Temple of Heaven or the Forbidden City. Moreover, in most restaurants, the waitresses wear traditional Chinese dresses; in comparison, their counterparts in Taiwan wear western clothing. Additionally, in China, I saw a number of new and old buildings in Chinese architecture. Conversely, in Taiwan, almost the only vestiges of Chinese buildings left were temples and government structures, both of which property developers cannot buy and raze.

Lastly, every day in China, the tour guide took my mother and me to state-owned factories of signature Chinese products, like silk, jade, and china. The products didn’t astound me, but the tenacity of the inordinate numbers of salespeople absolutely flabbergasted me. Everywhere my mother and I went in the store, a salesperson discreetly followed, like a predator stalking its prey. When we had even expressed the slightest interest in the merchandise either by gazing at it or touching it, the employee approached us and encouraged us to buy it. When one person’s sales tactics didn’t seem enough, reinforcements arrived. In a pearl shop, three to four employees simultaneously served my mother: one or two advertised how each pearl necklace my mother tried out complemented her, one helped her take the jewelry on and off, and the last constantly looked for necklaces with different designs, in case my mother rejected previous ones. In all the stores that I have visited in my lifetime, I have never experienced such an inundation of determined salespeople. Even when my mother and I visited a car dealership or a Rolex store, both of which possess far greater profit margins per item sold, the employees did not push the sale as much and left us alone most of the time when we looked at the merchandise. The persistence of those government employees revealed the Communists’ intense commitment to Chinese customs. This new party line, a volte-face with the Communist Party’s past, shocked me at first, but I gradually became used to the government’s efforts to distance itself from its previous reputation.

Opposite of my predictions, China turned out to be a colorful and vibrant nation. Nevertheless, under the impressive visage of this “new” China still lies the traditional manipulation of the Communist Party.

[Repost of the original July 20th entry on www.baronbanner.com/blogs]

A Jook-sing’s Propriety

Being born and raised in the United States, I would consider myself an American and would not be offended if anybody categorized me as one. However, some overseas Chinese would be insulted at the classification. Their hostile reaction is an effect of China’s long seclusion from the rest of the world.

As a result of China’s geographic isolation from other nations due to desert, mountains, and ocean surrounding the territory, no foreign countries influenced it in the early stages of history. Consequently, the ancient Chinese have since regarded their culture as pure and superior than all others, and they have inculcated this idea into each later generation. This belief explains why China closed its doors to Western society for so many years, as it feared foreign influence. In contrast with the Western openness that I, an American, have adopted, many Chinese, especially those raised in the motherland, still believe in the importance of their culture. Therefore, I would be an absolute embarrassment to my mother if any Chinese person in China, even complete strangers, found out that I could not speak Mandarin Chinese.

Even though I have been raised in American society, which does not look down on immigrants who cannot speak their native language, I still feel humiliated when a Chinese person in China finds out that I cannot speak Mandarin Chinese. Due to my Chinese parents, who have stressed the importance of Chinese culture, I feel that I am incumbent to learn about my heritage, despite contradictions from my American upraising.

Surprisingly, because of the typical Chinese ideal that my parents had infused into me, I unknowingly became a hypocrite one night, only to find out when reflecting upon my jook-sing status. One night at Yung Kee Restaurant, a famous Cantonese institution that arguably serves the best roast goose in Hong Kong, I saw a Chinese family speak exclusively in English while I was waiting for my table. Witnessing the unusual occurrence, I became perplexed, as I was flabbergasted how such a culturally ignorant family could even discern what delicious Cantonese cuisine is. The group did not know how to say a single word in Chinese; despite my quasi-illiteracy in Chinese, I still can hold a conversation using simple Cantonese. I pondered whether the family could even distinguish Yung Kee’s food from that of Panda Express. I did not even realize that I was being a hypocrite at that time, as my furtive ridicule of that family’s ignorance came so naturally. It was not until the next day at lunch that I realized my hypocrisy.

At lunch, my mother pointed out to her relatives that I knew several hundred Chinese characters, even though I had forgotten most of them; to test me, my relatives thrust me the Chinese dim sum menu and allowed me to order the dishes that I liked. Staring at a sea of Chinese characters, almost all of which I did not know, I felt like the typical jook-sing once again, and I reflected on my furtive ridicule of the English-speaking family the previous night. Finally, out of “politeness,” I gave the menu to my mother, claiming that I did not know what dishes the restaurant served best.

[Repost of the original July 14th entry on www.baronbanner.com/blogs]

Jook-sing

A Cantonese expression for a Chinese person grown overseas, jook-sing is the term that my relatives in Hong Kong use to describe me. Originally meaning hollow bamboo, jook-sing metaphorically means that I have abandoned my cultural heritage.

Before I went on my trip to Asia this summer, I thought that I had abandoned most of my old Western tendencies:

As a little kid, I preferred McDonald’s over the traditional Cantonese fare, even in Hong Kong. My relatives used to ridicule me that I would still eat American food in Hong Kong, but as I’ve grown older, I’ve learned to appreciate Hong Kong’s Chinese cuisine, especially when I’ve recognized that most of the Chinese food served here in Orange County is almost tasteless compared to that of Hong Kong.

I used to despise having to take public transportation, as nothing trumps the comfort and convenience of riding door-to-door in a private car. To use public transportation, I had to walk to the bus or subway station in the irritating humid, summer climate and wait for the vehicle to come, both of which I was not inured to living in America. Conversely, after being virtually imprisoned in my own home when my parents refused to drive me anywhere for many weekends and holidays, I began to embrace the idea of mass transportation, as I could theoretically access any part of Hong Kong without my parents’ help, even though I have never tried that before.

Consequently, I thought that I would be barely indistinguishable from the teenagers who grew up in Asia, but I was wrong.

Just as I thought that I had overcome the barriers of being an overseas alien, I unexpectedly encountered a new, more significant one on this trip: language.

Because I look like a Chinese native, people in China and Taiwan speak to me in Mandarin Chinese; however, as I don’t know how to speak Mandarin, I remain silent and pretend that I did not hear them. Ignoring them is my only option, as I don’t want to reveal in humiliation that I, a Chinese person, cannot speak Chinese. Absolutely the most embarrassing thing about an Americanized Asian is that he or she is ignorant of his or her native tongue. Every time somebody is bewildered at why I don’t respond, I feel an aura of awkwardness build up around me. The longer that person stares at me, the more discomfort I feel, as I do not know whether he or she is furtively ridiculing me about my lingual and cultural ignorance. As sweat starts to accrue on my forehead and I wipe it off, I wonder if others in the ambient area start to take notice of my discomfort and infer that I do not know Chinese. Finally, the person either asks me again, creating déjà vu and further augmenting my mortification, or leaves me alone.

[Repost of the original July 13th entry on www.baronbanner.com/blogs]

Los Angeles Lakers: Return to Glory?

“I want to go to a Lakers game,” I told my mother during the basketball team’s dominant days from about 2000-2004. Back then, Lakers basketball was actually entertaining, as the duo of Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant made spectacular plays. In particular, Shaq overpowered and dunked his two or three weakling defenders, Kobe made spectacular fadeaway shots despite players’ hands covering his view of the basket, and on the fastbreak, the two stars’ teamwork created spectacular phenomena. In addition, because of the cocky duo, the entire team played with an arrogance that others, especially the Sacramento Kings and their fans, loved to hate. I felt proud to be Lakers fan, so proud that I even bet a Kings fan that my squad would win the NBA Finals. Confrontations often broke out between players, and the energy of both crowds was electrifying, even from my rather quiet and dull seat on the sofa in my house. However, all of this would soon change.

Unfortunately, due to his conflict with Kobe, Shaq was traded to the Miami Heat in the summer of 2004. That was when I stopped watching Lakers basketball altogether. There was simply just no more attitude or entertainment.

However, because the Lakers advanced to the NBA Finals this year against the Boston Celtics, a team with the talented trio of Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, and Kevin Garnett that reminded me of my old team, I decided to watch basketball again. Obviously, unlike the Celtics, the Lakers lacked luster, with only Kobe as their main attraction. Even the Chicago Bulls’ Michael Jordan, arguably the greatest basketball player of all time, was supplemented with his accomplices Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman. Furthermore, Rodman’s erratic antics and appearance made the game all the more entertaining.

The mundaneness of the current Los Angeles Lakers parallels that of FVHS’ sports teams. Belonging to an extremely prestigious institution, FVHS’ sports teams possess a powerful recruiting tool: the opportunity for any skilled athlete attending neighboring schools to attend FVHS. Unfortunately, they are not currently utilizing it. Recruiting such talented athletes helps the teams three-fold: the teams will win more games and possibly the Sunset League and/or CIF Championships, more students will join the teams due to their prestige, and more revenue will be earned due to increases in ticket sales. Everybody wants to be on a winning team, as human nature is oriented toward victory. Additionally, who wouldn’t want to see the next LeBron James in live action?

In case anyone was wondering whether I ever saw a Lakers game, I actually didn’t. The tickets back then were much too expensive due to high demand.

[Repost of the original June 13th entry on www.baronbanner.com/blogs]

Macs still suck.

I went to the Apple Store today and tried out Macs, including the new MacBook Air. However, I still have several grievances.

1. When I click on the red button on the top left hand corner of the screen, the program does not stop running. Only the window closes. Wouldn't it be better to just use the minimize button?

2. The green button does not maximize the window. Instead, it only adjusts it a little bit. Therefore, there is hardly any purpose for it.

3. Macs are slow. My Vista machine with an old Pentium 4 processor started up faster and ran programs faster than a Mac with a new Core 2 Duo processor. I even use DreamScene, a program that allows videos to be used as desktop backgrounds. Therefore, Leopard is more bloated than Vista.

4. Time Machine takes a minute to boot up. On the other hand, Windows Vista's backup has a handy and speedy wizard that guides the user effortlessly to look for a lost file.

5. Expose never shows applications that are open but have no windows. Because that can never happen in Windows, Flip 3D shows all open applications.

6. There is no games folder in OS X, so it is hard to keep track of all the games on the computer.

7. iTunes requires an account to download album art, but Windows Media Player does not.

8. Windows Media Center can record TV shows, but Mac's Front Row cannot.

9. It is easier to keep track of the window that is open in Windows than in Mac.

10. The cheapest Mac desktop costs $600, and the cheapest Mac laptop costs $1100. The MacBook Air costs $1799. Those prices are too high for outdated computers that only focus on design.

I PITY THE FOOL

This is an updated version of a previous post. In place of it is my Spanish fitness project from last year.

A person named "Deep Throat" has influenced me to publish this. He will not be named unless he wants his identity revealed.

Foreword
I pity the fool who reads my blog post, my futile diction that will affect absolutely nothing of the current situation.

A Baron Journalist’s Humbling Trip to Another School’s Newspaper

I often witness how unthankful my fellow Barons are of their school, such as complaining about the seagulls at lunchtime, the vandalism in the bathrooms, and the boring assemblies; however, they should be much more grateful for attending their school. Unlike many schools, FVHS possesses a multitude of interesting extracurricular activities, like the award-winning Baron Banner, one of the most prestigious organizations. As a dedicated writer for our school newspaper, I observed the stark contrast between another school’s journalism class and our own.

In the city of Niatnuof Yellav, I attended a period of instruction for publishing Niatnuof Yellav High School’s periodical, the Norab Rennab. A suburban community east of the close Pacific Ocean, Niatnuof Yellav is located in Citrus Sinensis County. In the following paragraphs are my observations of the typical class period for making the Norab Rennab.

To meet the official start time of 7:15 a.m., the young writers must wake up early. Conversely, their valiant efforts to brave the effects of sleeplessness are seldom acknowledged; rarely is anything accomplished with the lackadaisical pace until the Editors-in-Chief, who also arrive at 7:15, request the class’ attention at around 7:25. Slier students even purposely arrive around 7:20 to receive more of their much needed rest. Why is the precious time of hardworking, anxious teenagers wasted? Why don’t the lazy, selfish Editors-in-Chief come to class earlier than their subordinates to prepare the day’s agenda? In the workplace, it is common, as managers open and prepare the businesses before employees enter. With three of those stooges, they can even alternate who arrives earlier. But of course, this is the shoddy Norrab Rennab, not our coveted Baron Banner.

Then, as one of their ongoing assignments for participation points, the pupils share professionally written articles that they read at home, but they just present the gist of the articles and do not analyze how professional journalists effectively convey their points through their use of literary elements, such as diction, structure, or style. One can skim through an article or even creatively fabricate a story. With this pointless task that wastes class time as well, how can the young journalists improve on their writing? Instead, the leaders should teach universal compositional techniques, like syntax, grammar, and conciseness, everyday, which inculcates those essential elements into students’ developing minds and advances their writing. That way, the Norab Rennab’s writing will undoubtedly improve, and members will feel like they are actually learning something, instead of just sitting around and listening to entertaining but pointless articles.

On most days, the Editors-in-Chief dismiss the class after article readings, but on some days, writers meet with their respective section editors. To add insult to injury, the section editors never help the journalists improve their writing skills either. They just ask the students to sign up for articles to write, but they never discuss the mistakes found in previous ones and how to fix those errors. Furthermore, editors and reporters never collaborate on articles and have yet to discover the benefits of working together as a team, even though the strategy is already highly popularized in academics and in sports. As carried out in the Baron Banner, both the editors and the writers plan out the article together, and the editor only makes suggestions in each of the several revisions; the writer corrects all of his or her mistakes and in the process, learns how to avoid them in the future. In the Norab Rennab, first, the columnist’ articles are sent only once to editors for a one-time edit; next, forwarded to the Editors-in-Chief; finally, published in either the online or print edition of the newspaper. Eloquent writing demands numerous corrections and sometimes even complete redrafts, far from the Norab Rennab’s publications of glorified rough drafts. If the Norab Rennab would conform to the Baron Banner’s highly constructive process towards the articles’ publication, its pieces would possess less grammatical errors, be more fluid, and be more effectual.

Students from Niatnuof Yellav High School have expressed other grievances as well. To begin with, several complained about the lethargy in updating the online newspaper, such as the inexplicable two-month time period between when articles were finished and when they were uploaded. With lengthy delays like that, intended news articles actually become a part of the historical archives, cannot be published, and are wasted. How can the Narob Rennab encourage writers to work hard if it blatantly shows a disregard for its members’ works? In addition, another pupil told me that half a year had passed before the staff’s positions, biographies, and photos were changed from last year’s. Also, another stressed that many of the links were broken each time the online newspaper was updated. Alternatively, the Editors-in-Chief could select webmasters to upload content and maintain the website. From my personal experience of attending a Baron Banner workshop, updating the web page is not even challenging, and this statement comes from a person who calls his DVD tray a “cup holder” and the fan vent of his computer a “foot warmer.”

School curriculum is supposed to improve students’ abilities and help them succeed later in life, but in the course for producing the Norab Rennab at Niatnuof Yellav High School, that is not the case. On the other hand, the journalism class at FVHS for the Baron Banner is the exact opposite, and the Wired Baron, the predecessor to the Baron Banner, was one of the National Scholastic Press Association’s (NSPA’s) Online Pacemaker Finalists in both 2005 and 2007. I am extremely proud to be a part of the Baron Banner. Barons, please have more school spirit!

Ralph Nader Enters Presidential Race

Nader has announced today that he will be entering the 2008 presidential election, the fifth race that he will fail  to be elected. Doesn't he have anything better to do?

RIP HD DVD: We hardly knew ye.

Toshiba announced yesterday that they will no longer produce products for their HD DVD format. Now, we are only left with Sony's expensive, complicated Blu-ray format. Both HD DVD and Blu-ray were claiming to be the successor to DVD. Because the players use blue lasers, which have a shorter wavelength than DVD's red lasers, more content can be stored on the same amount of physical space. While many regard HD DVD to be more consumer friendly, possess more features, and have better image quality, Blu-ray was technically superior because it could hold 25 GB of data vs. HD DVD's 15 GB. It also garnered much more support from movie studios. If you have already bought an HD DVD player, here are five suggestions on what to do with your player.

1. Swap out the internal HD DVD drive bay for a Blu-ray drive, and modify the other hardware components accordingly to transform your now obsolete HD DVD player into a Blu-ray player.

2. Gut the player out, and use it as a case for the MacBook Air because the laptop's aesthetic thinness causes it to be very fragile, in addition to the poor quality of Apple products.

3. Relegate the HD DVD player to shady DVD watching, such as viewing pirated porn, that you do not want to risk breaking your practical Blu-ray player for.

4. Give it to a child in Africa, even though he does not even own a TV.

5. Devise a security system in which the HD DVD player smashes into thieves' heads.

The MacBook Air's Thinness

Every laptop can fit inside a manila envelope, as demonstrated by this IBM (now known as Lenovo) ThinkPad.

My Spanish Fitness Project from Last Year

2008 Election

The media is rambling on and on about the 2008 presidential election. It is therefore appropriate that I should give my view on some of the candidates.

Republican

Mike Huckabee

This YouTube video shows his refusal to new ideas. Another piece of evidence is his naive response to Benzair Bhutto's assassination.

 

Why does this matter?

Loretta Hidalgo Whitesides, journalist of Wired, which has a more detailed article on this incident, explains:

"Huckabee took Republican center stage after the Iowa caucuses, but his clever sidesteps of scientific questions are a warning sign. "Do you believe in evolution?" The short answer? No, he doesn't. People are charmed by him, asking why anyone should care since "[I'm] not planning on writing the curriculum for an eighth-grade science book," and "if anybody wants to believe they're the descendants of a primate, they're welcome to do it." But the real problem is, he will be signing scientific research budgets into law, appointing judges that will be deciding evolution vs. creationism education cases at the state level, and setting a moral precedent that it is O.K. to diss science."

Link to full article below.

http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2008/01/evolution-is-no.html

Rudy Giuliani

Although 9/11 was a terrible event for all of mankind, especially the victims, Guiliani should write Osama bin Laden a thank-you card if he wins the election. Before 9/11, nobody knew the New York City mayor. However, he was pictured as "America's mayor" shortly after the attack, even winning TIME's "Man of the Year" in 2001. What has he actually accomplished to be viewed as such a benevolent man?

 

John McCain

This man is brilliant! He touts himself as one of the most experienced foreign policy candidates but wants to send even more troops to Iraq. Hasn't he learned from his service in the Vietnam War that soldiers are just fighting in vain in the Iraq War? Besides, the insurgents might even capture American troops and torture them, similar to when the North Vietnamese captured prisoners, one of whom was himself, and tortured them. Does he really want the troops in Iraq to suffer what he faced in the Vietnam War?

 

Democrats

Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama

If these two team up as running mates, they will win the election. Period. The combined support of the African-American and women minority groups will cruise them quickly to victory.

 

And...

Two Democrats Who Deserve Equal Criticism as the Above Candidates

Al Gore

According to ABC News, Al Gore's Tennessee home consumes 20 times the electricity of the average American home. The Gores pay $30,000 per year in utility bills alone. This fact alone exposes Gore's hypocrisy and is an example of how politicians repeatedly lie to the citizens.

 

Oprah Winfrey

Endorsing Barack Obama before he even decides to run for president shows this woman's racism. Unfortunately, she possesses too much influence on the American public and can unfavorably influence the election.

Top 5 Halo 3 Team Slayer Tips

An avid Halo 3 player myself, I would like to share five ways I found most effective in "pwning n00bs" at slayer, the most popular multiplayer game in Halo 3. In slayer, one's objective is to kill as many enemies while avoiding death. The team with the most kills wins.

5. Try not to stay alone, especially if you are without any special weapons or vehicles. A group of opponents can easily kill you, even if they are not as good as you.

4. Kill others from long range. Use the sniper rifle, the beam rifle, the Spartan laser, or the missile turret. Hide in a place where there is cover and kill them using the least ammunition as possible. If you shoot too many shots, the victim will eventually find out where the shots are coming from, and if you are out in the open, opponents can see you. If an opponent knows where you are, he will sneak up and surprise attack you in your hiding spot.

 

sniper rifle                                                                                                                                                                                                               

 

 

                                            beam rifle

The Spartan laser has a long charge and reload time, but you can hit any part of person's body to kill them. The Spartan laser, aimed at any part of a vehicle, can destroy them in one shot, unlike the sniper and beam rifle, which require you to hit the occupants' heads.

 

                                    Spartan laser

Only fire on vehicles above the horizon with the missile turret, or the missiles will just hit the ground Fire the missile turret quickly against the vehicle once you have a lock-on because opponents can hear the lock-on and evacuate the vehicle. To ensure a certain kill, fire two shots in quick succession. All vehicles, except the wraith, will be destroyed in two shots. Only use the missile turrets on vehicles from long range because it is extremely difficult to kill somebody on foot using a missile turret because there is no lock-on for people.

                        missile turret

3. Hide somewhere and sneak up on opponents using close combat weapons, such as the energy sword, shotgun, melee, or the gravity hammer. This strategy may seem cowardly, but nobody receives points for honor. The energy sword, gravity hammer, and shotgun will perform a one-hit KO at close range. Using the melee and the gravity hammer will blow your cover more than using the energy sword and the shotgun. The weaker melee requires that you weaken the opponent first shooting them before hitting them. The noise of the shooting will draw attention to you. The gravity hammer, which requires you to swing much earlier than the energy sword, emits a loud noise that opponents can hear.

  

                   energy sword                                                           

            gravity hammer

                              shotgun

2. Use the vehicles. I particularly prefer the banshee, ghost, and wraith.

The banshee is a quick, agile flyer. You can boost yourself using the left trigger and shoot the primary gun using the right trigger. The alternative attack is a more powerful but less accurate fuel rod cannon using the B button. Use both attacks when taking out opponents on foot. First, use the primary gun at longer range, and then, fire the fuel rod cannon at shorter range. The explosive fuel rod canon can kill the weakened enemy even if it does not acquire a direct hit. When attacking vehicles, use the banshee's flying capabilities to your advantage. Only "splatter," or run over your opponents from behind. If they can see you trying to run them over, they will quickly move to the side and try to jump on the banshee to skyjack it. Once your banshee has been skyjacked, any smart opponent would not try to run you over and give you the same opportunity you have given him. The most probably consequence would be that somebody will destroy the banshee with the missile turret, and you would have to wait forever for it to respawn again. Sneak up behind the vehicle, and use the primary gun and the fuel rod cannon. Because the vehicle and you are both moving in the same direction, the vehicle should be easy to it. Furthermore, any vehicle that can fire, except except for the wraith and warthog if at least two people man them, can only fire from the front. This effectively eliminates you from taking damage in the banshee. Avoid taking on wraiths and warthogs if there is one person manning the turret because the turret can deal massive damage to you in the banshee. If you are heavily damaged inside your banshee, eject out from the vehicle by pressing the right bumper. Most likely, there will be no enemy underneath while you recover. Once you have recovered, get back in the banshee and start flying again. In addition, the enemy that has heavily damaged you will probably think that he has destroyed the banshee and killed you inside. Therefore, he will stop pursuing you. Remember to take your revenge on him once you have healed and are back in the banshee.

                         banshee

The ghost is a speedy land vehicle. Use the left trigger for a speed boost. The ghost easily flips over, so drive it mostly on smooth terrain. Sneak up on opponents from behind and run them over. Only use the gun (right trigger) if you are at close range where there is not enough room to gain enough speed or when the opponent is facing you and will jump to dodge the ghost if you come near him.

                                                     ghost

The wraith is a huge tank-like vehicle that can take massive amounts of damage. A second person manning the turret in the wraith will make it much more effective. The energy ball using the right trigger is very powerful, but it is not accurate. A person on the turret weakens the enemies before the energy ball is shot and kills opponents with its splash damage. Be sure to aim the energy ball at the ground because if the energy ball does not come in contact with anything, it will not explode and cannot deal splash damage. The energy ball is great to use on vehicles because the vehicles are much larger than enemies on foot. Be sure no enemies can get close to the wraith or they will jump on and plant a grenade or melee you. Move backwards while shooting enemies, so the enemies cannot approach you. If an opponent is too close, the energy ball has no effect on him. Avoid stopping with the wraith and try to move as fast as you can. The wraith at full speed moves faster than opponents on foot, so you can avoid them coming close to the vehicle. Always drive the wraith on smooth terrain and on wide paths. The underpowered wraith has trouble escaping once it has fallen into a hole and its weak boost does not allow it to cram through tight spaces.

                                               wraith

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And the best way is...

1. Stick together with at least 2 other people on foot and hunt down any enemies using only the assault rifle, the standard grenades, and melees. This method will greatly improve your skills on the default weapons, which can come handy in any type of pinch. In addition, this reduces your reliance on special vehicles and weapons in order to kill other players. Finally, the support of 2 other players makes it much more difficult to be killed.

 

P.S. I changed the song for my blog to a piece from Final Fantasy X titled "To Zanarkand" because I was bored with my old one. This song is one of the most beautiful pieces ever composed and even melodically and harmonically surpasses Pachabel's Canon in D.

A Fallen Monarch: Why Simulations Don't Work From the King's Point of View

In sophomore history, every student is supposed to participate in a simulation about the French Revolution. I received the opportunity to be His Majesty King Louis XVI, and here is my account of my unfair upheaval. In that time period in France, the king would tax the commoners, with half of the income going to the nobles. Additionally, the church taxed the serfs, nobles and the king. During that time period, France was in financial trouble, partly from helping out the American colonies fight for independence against Great Britain.

Because of my monetary woes, I was forced to raise taxes on my peasants. For the first day, I pegged the level at 30%. It was a little high, but I had no choice. The second day, I told everybody to wear something red, and everybody did or was given something red. All were eventually taxed 20%. In contrast, the church taxed 5% and 15% on the first and second day, respectively. In addition, I was forced to sign a Constitution on the second day stating equal taxation for all, including nobility and clergy, while I retained the power to tax at my own whim.

Didn't anyone recognize that the Constitution was actually unfavorable for everybody except me, who the people forced to sign? The Constitution actually benefited me because it gave me the power to tax nobles and the clergy while still still controlling absolute power on taxes.

However, on the third day, I was framed to have attempted an escape to Austria and was unfairly executed, even though I followed the benevolent Constitution. Furthermore, no nobles were executed. Didn't the peasants realize that the nobles were receiving half of what I taxed the serfs? Moreover, the clergy was not executed. The clergy also taxed the peasants, so why wasn't he killed?

This experience goes to show how simulations don't compare even remotely to the real situation; simulations are unpredictable.

Something Interesting Regarding Suicide Bombers

This is an interesting article that I found on the Internet. It relates the mindset of a poor video game player to a suicide bomber.


Suicide Bombing Makes Sick Sense in Halo 3
By Clive Thompson Email 11.05.07 | 12:00 AM

I used to find it hard to fully imagine the mind-set of a terrorist.

That is, until I played Halo 3 online, where I found myself adopting -- with great success -- terrorist tactics. Including a form of suicide bombing.

This probably bears some explanation. I'll begin by pointing out a basic fact: A lot of teenage kids out there play dozens of hours of multiplayer Halo a week. They thus become insanely good at the game: They can kill me with a single head shot from halfway across a map -- or expertly circle me while jumping around, making it impossible for me to land a shot, while they pulverize me with bullets.

I can't do those things. I haven't got enough time to practice as they do: I'm an adult, with a job and wife and kid, so I get maybe an hour with Halo on a good day. I wind up sucking far, far more than most other Halo 3 players, and despite the best attempts of Xbox Live to match me up with similarly lame players, I usually wind up at the bottom of my group's rankings -- stumbling haplessly about while getting slaughtered over and over again.

So after a few weeks of this ritual humiliation, I got sick of it. And I devised a simple technique for revenge.

Whenever I find myself under attack by a wildly superior player, I stop trying to duck and avoid their fire. Instead, I turn around and run straight at them. I know that by doing so, I'm only making it easier for them to shoot me -- and thus I'm marching straight into the jaws of death. Indeed, I can usually see my health meter rapidly shrinking to zero.

But at the last second, before I die, I'll whip out a sticky plasma grenade -- and throw it at them. Because I've run up so close, I almost always hit my opponent successfully. I'll die -- but he'll die too, a few seconds later when the grenade goes off. (When you pull off the trick, the game pops up a little dialog box noting that you killed someone "from beyond the grave.")

It was after pulling this maneuver a couple of dozen times that it suddenly hit me: I had, quite unconsciously, adopted the tactics of a suicide bomber -- or a kamikaze pilot.

It's not just that I'm willing to sacrifice my life to kill someone else. It's that I'm exploiting the psychology of asymmetrical warfare.

Because after all, the really elite Halo players don't want to die. If they die too often, they won't win the round, and if they don't win the round, they won't advance up the Xbox Live rankings. And for the elite players, it's all about bragging rights.

I, however, have a completely different psychology. I know I'm the underdog; I know I'm probably going to get killed anyway. I am never going to advance up the Halo 3 rankings, because in the political economy of Halo, I'm poor.

Specifically, I'm poor in time. The best players have dozens of free hours a week to hone their talents, and I don't have that luxury. This changes the relative meaning of death for the two of us. For me, dying will not penalize me in the way it penalizes them, because I have almost no chance of improving my state. I might as well take people down with me.

Or to put it another way: The structure of Xbox Live creates a world composed of two classes -- haves and have-nots. And, just as in the real world, some of the disgruntled have-nots are all too willing to toss their lives away -- just for the satisfaction of momentarily halting the progress of the haves. Since the game instantly resurrects me, I have no real dread of death in Halo 3.

I do not mean, of course, to trivialize the ghastly, horrific impact of real-life suicide bombing. Nor do I mean to gloss over the incredible complexity of the real-life personal, geopolitical and spiritual reasons why suicide bombers are willing to kill themselves. These are all impossibly more nuanced and perverse than what's happening inside a trifling, low-stakes videogame.

But the fact remains that something quite interesting happened to me because of Halo. Even though I've read scores of articles, white papers and books on the psychology of terrorists in recent years, and even though I have (I think) a strong intellectual grasp of the roots of suicide terrorism, something about playing the game gave me an "aha" moment that I'd never had before: an ability to feel, in whatever tiny fashion, the strategic logic and emotional calculus behind the act.

And the truth is, I'm probably going to keep doing it. Because when it comes to online Halo -- I still suck.

Why Newer Isn't Always Better

As I browsed through the web thinking of what new object to buy with my money, I have come to the conclusion that newer isn't always better. In fact, it seems to get even worse. A few examples:

The new Apple iPods and iMacs

Apple has always been known for their design, but the new Apple iPods and iMacs, with their matte silver aluminum-like look compared to their predecessors' shiny white surface, just look like they've been designed by Chris Bangle, the retarded chief designer from BMW.






Notice the "Bangle Butt," the huge ass lump on the trunk of the car, enough to fit all of Quagmire' s Asian prostitutes in the episode of Family Guy when Peter becomes a redneck and crashes his pickup truck into Quagmire's car, thus releasing all of the women from the trunk.


The new Apple design philosophy is just an absolute disaster. Pictures of the new ugly iPods can be seen in my objective article in the Baron Banner Online.

Windows 98 vs. Windows XP, Vista
Microsoft Office 97 vs. Microsoft Office 2003, 2007

Back in the day, Microsoft Windows 98 was my first computer. Although it basically had no graphics, was extremely slow, and had no hard drive space, it was extremely reliable and worked whenever I wanted to. Then, when I switched to Windows XP six years later, the first thing my computer did was crash due to the amount of viruses. Windows 98 has never crashed on me, albeit there were not as many viruses for Windows 98. And after my few years with Windows XP, the only thing was that it was just much prettier than the drab Windows 98. The same goes for Windows XP and Windows Vista, according to many reviews on the Internet. In addition, my Windows XP is becoming as slow as Windows 98 right now probably due to bad files in my large Internet cache (probably from all the porn sites I visit). And in my opinion, the same goes for Microsoft Office because there is nothing Microsoft Office 2003, the one I currently use, does better than my old Microsoft Office 97.

P.S. For all the Apple fanboys reading my post that think Macs are better than Windows 98, I will list the operating systems that I have used or tried from best to worst: Windows 98 (perfect), Windows XP (viruses), Windows Vista (no drivers or software support), IBM (don't know which release, but I remember using one in kindergarten to help with listening, speaking, and vocabulary, Mac OS X (it finally took Apple that long to close an application with a click on the window instead of going to the finder), Mac OS 9 (it was slow and unintuitive with window closing).

Macs suck big time because they lack the people that the sweaty, lard-ass CEO of Microsoft, Steve Ballmer, chant fourteen times in the following video.



P.S.S. The music in the background is "I Ran" by A Flock of Seagulls. The song is the theme music to Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, one of my favorite games and one of the best games of all time. The game is about protagonist Tommy Vercetti, who goes to a fictionalized city based on Miami, Florida that is called Vice City, to protect a drug deal. However, ambushers attack both parties in the drug exchange and steal both the cocaine and money. Tommy, in his process of taking revenge on the attackers, amasses a large criminal empire, and soon Sonny Forelli, his former boss of the Mafia that originally sent Tommy on the drug mission, wants a share of the profits. Tommy refuses, and on the final mission of the game, he kills Forelli, Forelli's henchmen, and a traitor named Lance Vance.