 |
| Register | Login | |||||
 |
Main
| Memberlist
| Active users
| ACS
| Commons
| Calendar
| Online users Ranks | FAQ | Color Chart | Photo album | IRC Chat |
|
| | ||
|
| Register | Login | |||||
|
Main
| Memberlist
| Active users
| ACS
| Commons
| Calendar
| Online users Ranks | FAQ | Color Chart | Photo album | IRC Chat |
|
| | ||
| Acmlm's Board - I2 Archive - - Posts by Arwon |
| Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 |
| User | Post | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Arwon Zora Level: 35  Posts: 326/506 EXP: 278115 For next: 1821 Since: 03-15-04 From: Terra Australis Incognita Since last post: 5 hours Last activity: 10 min. |
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Or move to 1950s Ireland or something. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Arwon Zora Level: 35 Posts: 327/506 EXP: 278115 For next: 1821 Since: 03-15-04 From: Terra Australis Incognita Since last post: 5 hours Last activity: 10 min. |
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Spain's constitution calls itself a "Nation made up of nations and regions" or something to that effect. It gives a wide variety of autonomy to its regions. The Basques run their own education system in Euskadi, as do the Galicians and Catalans/Valencians in their languages. Some regions have their own legislative body, some have their own fiscal policies... the Basques and Catalans have their own police forces, the Catalans use their own civil law system. The ETA is a dying force, Franco is dead, Spain is a very decentralised nation... the separatists have been marginalised and the moderates co-opted and the realistic frame of debate now revolves around what level of autonomy is appropriate. And Real Madrid and FC Barcelona's ongoing rivalry. (edited by Arwon on 06-23-05 01:42 AM) |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Arwon Zora Level: 35 Posts: 328/506 EXP: 278115 For next: 1821 Since: 03-15-04 From: Terra Australis Incognita Since last post: 5 hours Last activity: 10 min. |
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_politics_in_Finland Finland's population is about four million, so two million firearms is a sizable number. Low crime I don't have a direct source for, but it's frikken Northern Europe so it can't be too bad. Just to add to the psyche issue, because its worth exploring, and societal differences are one of those far bigger factors I am speaking of as regards crime rates. Australia on the surface should have a similar frontier mentality to North America. We're a big empty country that killed an awful lot of natives as we carved out our settlements, just as Americans did. However, there were no big mammals in Australia... no-one needed guns to kill wolves or anything like that, and guns ain't much use against the animals that will kill you in this country. No-one really hunted anything, the main inward expansion was carried out by dudes with sheep (I think the term is, for some reason, 'squatters').... there's never been a significant population expansion beyond the coasts, no great equivalent to the American drive westward. So it's a different sort of a frontier mentality... the imperitaves to defend and hunt just weren't there, and the main enemy in Australia's the harsh and unforgiving climate. And ya can't shoot no drought. Moreover, I suspect that Australia's convict origins have given us a different approach to firearms than other countries. Our cops have always been armed unlike Britain, but I guess initially 75% of the populace... during those first few decades, just weren't armed. Philosophically, the fact that we spent most of that late 1700s/early 1800s golden age of enlightenment philosophy and liberal idealism as military dictatorships built on slave labour probably has dampened this country's enthusiasm for ideals of radical individualism and independence relative to the USA. "Man is born free and everywhere he is in chains" must carry a different meaning when sizable chunks of your populace has actually spent time in chains. Hell, from my Australian education I don't even know the difference between most of those old thinkers and they, I'd argue, exercise less influence here than in America. We're more pragmatic and probably more collectivist. --- Other influences I consider to be far bigger factors in crime would be socioeconomic indicators (especially income inequality and standard of living), policing effectiveness and the drugs situation (for example, there's a heroin drought in Australia which has been credited with lower rates of property crime). --- Finally, the lumping of all crimes into a single entity is a big problem in the debate. Assault, Robbery, Homicide and Burglary are very different things. How do guns affect assaults? It can't be the same as the way they effect burglary or the way they affect robbery, the nature of the crime is different. And conflating them all together can be misleading. Australia, for example, has a steadily increasing crime rate, basically because assault's been on the rise for 3 decades... or possibly reporting of assault has been rising. Homicide is statistically insignificant and fluctuates, and robbery and burglary can trend up or down over the course of a few years. But because of the assault influence, people can bleat CRIME RATES ARE SPIRALING OUT OF CONTROL on either side (of course, it must be said that most of the country probably doesn't give a shit about gun laws being too restrictive or not restrictive enough), and spuriously blame guns or the lack of availability thereof, with practically no effort to illustrate a causal relationship. (edited by Arwon on 06-23-05 08:02 AM) (edited by Arwon on 06-23-05 08:05 AM) |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
(restricted)|
Arwon |
Zora Level: 35 Posts: 330/506 EXP: 278115 For next: 1821 Since: 03-15-04 From: Terra Australis Incognita Since last post: 5 hours Last activity: 10 min.
|
Flamethrowers are no match for... |
THE PACIFIC OCEAN!  (edited by Arwon on 06-23-05 10:51 AM) (restricted) |
Arwon |
Zora Level: 35 Posts: 332/506 EXP: 278115 For next: 1821 Since: 03-15-04 From: Terra Australis Incognita Since last post: 5 hours Last activity: 10 min.
|
For anyone interested, an Extract from Solzhenitsyn's Gulag Archipeligo |
And some Torture Apologist T-Shirts... What Happens in Gitmo Stays in Gitmo. (edited by Arwon on 06-24-05 09:58 PM)
Arwon |
Zora Level: 35 Posts: 333/506 EXP: 278115 For next: 1821 Since: 03-15-04 From: Terra Australis Incognita Since last post: 5 hours Last activity: 10 min.
|
Ogres are pretty owned by REALITY. |
Arwon |
Zora Level: 35 Posts: 334/506 EXP: 278115 For next: 1821 Since: 03-15-04 From: Terra Australis Incognita Since last post: 5 hours Last activity: 10 min.
|
When did "well we're better than zealous psychos and mad tyrants" become an acceptable excuse for ANYTHING? |
Arwon |
Zora Level: 35 Posts: 335/506 EXP: 278115 For next: 1821 Since: 03-15-04 From: Terra Australis Incognita Since last post: 5 hours Last activity: 10 min.
|
Ziff, are you sure the Dutch are mostly Catholic? I was under the impression they were like, Protestant central. |
Arwon |
Zora Level: 35 Posts: 336/506 EXP: 278115 For next: 1821 Since: 03-15-04 From: Terra Australis Incognita Since last post: 5 hours Last activity: 10 min.
|
"Odd thing is that all of these nations are in the majority Catholics." |
It's implicit.
Arwon |
Zora Level: 35 Posts: 337/506 EXP: 278115 For next: 1821 Since: 03-15-04 From: Terra Australis Incognita Since last post: 5 hours Last activity: 10 min.
|
Goldeneye might make an ok movie... |
Arwon |
Zora Level: 35 Posts: 338/506 EXP: 278115 For next: 1821 Since: 03-15-04 From: Terra Australis Incognita Since last post: 5 hours Last activity: 10 min.
|
My first thought on reading the title was "...um, because it's scary?" |
Slay, what are the other three? Mine was Shadowman 64. I still don't know how I forced myself to finish it.
Arwon |
Zora Level: 35 Posts: 339/506 EXP: 278115 For next: 1821 Since: 03-15-04 From: Terra Australis Incognita Since last post: 5 hours Last activity: 10 min.
|
There actually was debt relief stuff outlined in the G8 statement. The real kicker though is the trade barriers thing, and neither America nor Europe is quite ready to end all the trade barriers and subsidies that're so hurting places like Africa. Still, it is movement in the right direction even if these G8 things have a tendency to not live up to the initial excitement. |
Arwon |
Zora Level: 35 Posts: 340/506 EXP: 278115 For next: 1821 Since: 03-15-04 From: Terra Australis Incognita Since last post: 5 hours Last activity: 10 min.
|
I've never even played D&D and all I can think is Chaotic Good alignment. |
I personally don't think The Law has much in common with people's behaviour, it's not much of a moral force. Here's a breif tally of the laws I've knowingly, willingly broken with no moral qualms whatsoever: -underage drinking -supplying alcohol to minors -vandalism -accessory to drink driving -marijuana posession and use -fare evasion -tresspassing -petty theft I'd wager most people have similar lists. Those who drive would have longer ones. This doesn't, in my mind, have much to do with morality or ethics. The law, in its petty, trivial forms, is just something you factor into a cost-benefit analysis, it carries no moral force.
Arwon |
Zora Level: 35 Posts: 341/506 EXP: 278115 For next: 1821 Since: 03-15-04 From: Terra Australis Incognita Since last post: 5 hours Last activity: 10 min.
|
Seems like A's the one you're consciously or unconsciously erring towards... it sounds like your connection with A runs deeper, and that maybe the connection with L is partially clouded by new relationship glow? (4 weeks, right? I know people apply different time frames to these things but I don't think I could possibly form a deep and meaningful attachment to someone in a month, though YMMV). |
I'd be inclined to say give it another chance with A, both of you want it, and you have a golden opportunity to both redefine the terms of your relationship and avoid the problems of last time round. And as others have said, take it slow. Go on a proper and new First Date and stuff like that, the last thing you'd wanna do is slip back into old routines and behaviour patterns straight off, back into the pre-existing comfort zone, I guess. (edited by Arwon on 07-11-05 11:09 PM) (edited by Arwon on 07-11-05 11:09 PM) (edited by Arwon on 07-11-05 11:11 PM)
Arwon |
Zora Level: 35 Posts: 342/506 EXP: 278115 For next: 1821 Since: 03-15-04 From: Terra Australis Incognita Since last post: 5 hours Last activity: 10 min.
|
It's gotta hurt, getting fucked around like that, and when you're in such an incapacitated state no less. You do seem to be handling it about as well as can be expected. I'm not sure whether the forced inactivity of being injured is a good or a bad thing at this point. Probably makes it harder to get over it and move on, but on the other hand you have an excuse for wallowing for a few weeks. |
All the usual platitudes about other fish and time healing... they're cliches for a reason, they're kinda true. Good luck.
Arwon |
Zora Level: 35 Posts: 343/506 EXP: 278115 For next: 1821 Since: 03-15-04 From: Terra Australis Incognita Since last post: 5 hours Last activity: 10 min.
|
What do you get when you fall in love? |
A girl with a pin to burst your bubble That's what you get for all your trouble. I'll never fall in love again. I'll never fall in love again. What do you get when you kiss a girl? You get enough germs to catch pneumonia. After a while she'll never phone you. I'll never fall in love again. I'll never fall in love again. Don't tell me what is all about, 'Cause I've been there and I'm glad I'm out, Out of those chains, those chains that bind you That is why I'm here to remind you What do you get when you fall in love? You get enough tears to fill an ocean That's what you get for your devotion. I'll never fall in love again. I'll never fall in love again. What do you get when you fall in love? You only get lies and pain and sorrow. So, for at least until tomorrow, I'll never fall in love again! I'll never fall in love again!
Arwon |
Zora Level: 35 Posts: 344/506 EXP: 278115 For next: 1821 Since: 03-15-04 From: Terra Australis Incognita Since last post: 5 hours Last activity: 10 min.
|
"But, the basic point he told me was to pay attention to whether or not I love A. I think I do, but a big problem is that I don't want to love A, or atleast I'm hesistant about it." |
In my (albeit limited) experience, loving someone and wanting to love someone are worlds apart. That's kind of the bitch of the thing, why it's so potentially painful, irrational, crazymaking, madenningly difficult, why people make awful decisions and act like idiots and do incomprehensible, out of character things. Why, to fall back on another cliche, "love hurts" and why so many people once burned a couple of times just turn completely inwards, harden so much, and just try to protect themselves from more hurt. I myself am caught in an extremely vague and confusing situation where basically the only thing we know is that we do love each other. It started out, on my side and I suspect hers, as an "oh god, I'm in love... this sucks"... it was not an exhilerating or exciting realisation, but one filled with dread and doubt and the potential for pain. This situation has, so far, has inflicted pain and misery in at least equal quantities to the good feelings. It's not so much a matter of "sticking it out" (though there has been improvement in said situation) but more a matter of feeling that I am compelled to see things through to whatever bloodied trainwreck or glorious paradise things might lead. There's just no other option for me as long as things are vague and open like they are. I suppose my inexperience leaves me less defensive than I might otherwise be. But lets forget about me here, I'm just trying to draw on a couple of aspects that might be related and relevant, or might not. First, the love thing coming, potentially, before the actual relationship (much in contradiction to how "the game" is supposed to be played) and the vagueness and confusion that can come with that, and secondly, the love thing being scary and painful yet pretty damn inescapable and therefore pretty confusing as well. So what I'm saying I think, is that if you do love him, and it sounds like you do despite yourself, then you probably don't actually have a real choice about whether to give it another go or not. I may well be completely off the mark here, but I'd hazard a guess that you've already on some level made a decision, and are either waiting for some validation from us or just using the board as a sounding board to bounce your thoughts off. And you are pretty spot on, its about whether you and A together is something that'll be good for the two of you, but especially you. Love by itself isn't... can't be... enough. It can, obviously, be really really damaging and stupid and painful. So I think you've figured out the parameters of the decision, and good luck with that... Also I'd ask, maybe we're a bit young to realise it yet... but are the comfort thing and the love thing really so different or contradictory? (edited by Arwon on 07-12-05 12:17 AM)
Arwon |
Zora Level: 35 Posts: 345/506 EXP: 278115 For next: 1821 Since: 03-15-04 From: Terra Australis Incognita Since last post: 5 hours Last activity: 10 min.
|
APPROPRIATE LANGUAGE: IT'S ALL ABOUT THE CONTEXT |
Who'da thunk it? | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 |
| Acmlm's Board - I2 Archive - - Posts by Arwon |
