MARCON Day 1: Welcome to the Con

Every year, for the last 44 years, Memorial Day Weekend is a big deal as sci-fi, fantasy, and otherwise 'interesting' folks converge in the Central Ohio Convention Center in Columbus, Ohio. MARCON, or Multiple Alternative Reality Convention, is a gathering for fans, readers, writers, and anybody who is interested in comics, sci-fi, and fantasy. The three-day event is one of the most enjoyable I go to in a year, but it is also one of the strangest. Let the tale begin:

I step off of the bus, the stench and the chatter no longer surrounding me. I look up, see the concrete atrocity that is the convention center, and start to wander towards a door. Locked. Next door, still locked. I wander the entire half-mile length of this randomly assembled building until I reach the hotel. Finally, an open door.

I am early, as I need to register as a panelist, yet I am nowhere near being the first to arrive. Even though panels will not start for about two hours, people are all over the center and the hotel, ready to go. It is a Friday, at three in the afternoon, for god's sake, but apparently these people do not work. No, instead they prep their costumes, meet their old friends, and get ready to party -- in a purely Klingon fashion, that is. I make my way though the crowd, hoping to find the green room, only to be taken aside by dozens of groups trying to recruit me. I must resist.

I finally make it to the green room, show my ID, sign in, and get a nice little badge. Looking at the table I see the first of the four con food groups, caffeine. I head over, fill up on Mountain Dew, and head out for my first panel. Tonight I am talking about time travel in fiction and reality. I am really out of place.

I sit down to the panel, surrounded by three high-level physicists and one acclaimed literary critic. Me, I am simply a student who has a passing interest in time travel and have published one story involving it. I swallow, introduce myself, and just hope nobody questions why the hell I am there. During the introduction I am asked that very question. Why does that always happen?

As the panel starts, we talk about the actual physics that make time travel possible; HOLY COW, I am really in over my head. Finally, after about 30 minutes of me sitting there staring at my hands, I am able to talk about something I know: the literary aspect of time travel. Finally I have a place in this panel, and finally I am actually contributing.

For the rest of the 90-minute program we discussed time travel in fiction, the reality behind it (usually nothing), and how it is useful as a literary device. I was finally in my element, and it was a lot of fun. The viewers participated, talked to us, and we answered most of the questions. The panel went well.

As that was my only panel of the day, I meandered through the convention center to check out other panels. At the Mars Society panel I learned about the future of human exploration and expeditions to the red planet. I learned of the proposed ideas, the various prototypes of space-faring vehicles, and the social studies that are being conducted to figure out what sort of crews would be best. More generally, I learned about why we needed to go to Mars and what was in it for us.

I then moved on to a more militaristic condieration of other planets. "Is Planetary Invasion Feasible?" was an interesting panel, as we examined the possibility of invading another planet, as well as the logistics and other highly important features of potential interplanetary warfare. Sadly missing, however, was an explanation of how the Jedi and the Sith fit into the picture.

Overall, the first day was an interesting experience. I learned, lectured, and saw quite a few interesting things. Sure, most of the convention-goers had yet to arrive, but it was enjoyable nonetheless. Saturday will be even more varied, and scarier. Why is it so scary, you ask? Well, they decided to make me a panelist on teaching SF; the concept of being accepted credibly and listened to as a 21-year-old was a little intimidating. The new day will bring new people, new panels, and an even better chance of seeing a hot female-unit in a Sailor Moon costume.

Day 2 will examine more panels and the the various "characters" one meets at a convention. Day 3 examines the Sunday events, my last panels, and the fact that in space, nobody can hear you pray.

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Sexting: The New Craze Sweeping the Nation that I am not Part of – Part 1

As normal, this is a two part series. Today I will be talking about a suicide and the lawsuit that a sexting incident caused. One Monday I will be talking about the punishment for those UNDER 18 and what I think should be done. I will also be looking at the cause and root on Monday.
Enjoy



Spring break of last year and three young women headed to Florida to party, drink, and do the normal teen things. While there, these women took nude pictures of themselves. As with the apparent social norm, the girls then sent these images to their boyfriends. Once they broke up, and the friends had a fight, these images were quickly sent around school. Jessica Logan, one of the girls, was so embarrassed by this spreading of her spread eagle that she decided to kill herself. Now her family is suing the girls, the school, and the city/police force. Let's examine this in detail:

Here are the facts:
All girls were over 18 and consented to the images

Yep, those are the facts, and really everything that matters in this regard. The three girls were all over 18 and they all consented to this. Therefore, there is nothing that the cops could have done, so the city/police force should be dropped out of the lawsuit.

Furthermore, what is the school supposed to do? A school has responsibility only on their property (when they are public) and so whatever happens off campus, and on a persons cell phone, is not their jurisdiction. While they could have talked to those sending the image around, they had no right to confront anybody on this issue. Frankly, without a right, I believe that the school did what they should have. Therefore, the school should not be in this lawsuit and dropped.

So, there is one other group being sued here, and they are the only ones the parents might have a case against. Jessica's two friends are presumably the people who started messaging these images (we have no idea on this though) which is distribution of pornography. However, all people distributing and in the images consented and were of age, which makes it okay. These girls are total ass' and bitches, but they are perfectly in the right to send it. Frankly, these girls should also be dropped from the suit.

So, with this whole lawsuit being dismissed (if I got my way that is) then what is left with all of this? Well, I believe that Jessica herself is the one that should be blamed? She went out and took pictures of herself in a naked state and chose to have them accessible by others. Clearly she never intended this, but she took the risk and fucked up (literally). Don't worry, I am not stopping here, there will be more of this on Monday.
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Blu-ray Review: Without A Paddle

The rip-off of deliverance is available in crystal clear Blu-ray

In 1972, a movie was made about a group of friends who traveled down the fictional Cahulawassee River in rural Georgia. These friends canoe down the river, get mixed up with some hillbillies, and end up losing one of their buddies along the way. Deliverance was a ground breaking film at the time, and has been awarded 3 Academy Awards along with several Golden Globes.



Though it is set up as a parody and rip-off of Deliverance, Without a Paddle is nowhere near as good, nor as ground breaking, as it could be. Instead, Without a Paddle is a teen-flick full of college humor and pranks. From feces filled bags to stereotypical hillbillies, the movie has nothing near the wit and sophistication of Deliverance. Toss in a bunch of pot jokes and bad actors and you have the makings of this movie.

WAP tells the story of Jerry (Matthew Lillard), a corporate tool who loves to serf, Tom (Dax Shepard), a deadbeat who simply seems to continue his college life, and Dan (Seth Green), a hypochondriac doctor who has never been laid in his life, as they attempt to have one last adventure. When they were younger, the guys, along with a fourth friend named Billy (Carl Snell) pledged to find the infamous D.B. Coopers treasure.

Though the three had moved on, Billy had plotted and discovered where the treasure was. Trying for years to get the guys to go on a vacation, Billy was stuck with the knowledge but without his friends to share it with. However, upon the death of Billy (for reasons we never know, but it serves as a good plot point), the guys take this vacation to honor their dead friend. Along the way they encounter a resistant sheriff, two pot farmers, and D.B.’s partner (played by Burt Reynolds as homage to his character from Deliverance). The movie ends with the guys all growing up and fulfilling their duties.

Though the movie is an adventure-comedy, the laughs are few and far between. Too often WAP relies on sophomoric humor and crude jokes. While there are some good scenes (most notably the bear cub scene), the vast majority of the film just roles on with nothing. This lack of humor, with laughs few and far between, made the movie a chore, and not that great of a watch.

Along the same lines, as it is an adventure, you would expect it to be, well, exciting. Needless to say, WAP is not that exciting of a movie. Though the actors all did their own stunts, it is clear that most were within the confines of a stage, and the few that were real were not that good looking. The only real stunt performed was clearly done by stunt doubles, as you could tell from the camera shots on the class-5 rapid near the end of the film. Without any real action, this movie felt boring and really pushed the audience away from it.

Though the acting, script, and action of the movie are severely lacking, I really enjoyed the way it looked on my TV. The water flowed and bubbles realistically, with the sky-blue coloring sticking in my mind. With Tom and Jerry, I could see most of their facial hair and where it was coming from, which made me feel up-close and personal. Overall, the quality of the film, as well as the transfer onto Blu-ray, went a long way in making up for the lackings of the movie itself.

Likewise, the sound quality of WAP was well done and deserved a better movie to go with. I never lost dialog, nor did I have any issue hearing the background noises from the river. I enjoyed having the sounds of nature surrounding me, and this movie happily obliged. Just like with the film quality, the sound of WAP was far better than the actual movie.

As for extras, WAP has none that are really worth while. They have the normal director’s commentary, 13 deleted scenes that were even less funny than the actual movie, and promotional trailers. Frankly, these all were a waste of space, as they fulfilled no need and just served to bore me as I went through them. There was one extra, however, that was somewhat worth it: MTVs look at making the movie. I really enjoy filmmaking and so when I have a chance to see how a movie was made, along with the various techniques and stunts done, I really like it. Sadly this look into the making of WAP was far too short and didn’t make up for the lack any other useful extras.

Overall, I believe that Without a Paddle is not worth the purchase price. The movie is crude, badly written, and really seems like a waste of an hour and a half. Though some people might find it hilarious, I did not, and I do not think that the vast majority of people will. If you are planning on getting the movie, however, the image and sound quality of the Blu-ray version make it worth the upgrade price.

Movie: Though it possessed some good actors, nothing could save it.
Blu-ray Quality: The color of the river will stick in your mind
Sound Quality: surround yourself with the peaceful sounds of nature
Extras: only one extra was worth it, and it wasn’t even that long
Overall: a waste of an hour and a half

Without a Paddle is Rated PG-13 for drug content, sexual material, language, crude humor and some violence.
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Taking a Bigger Bite of a PETA then you can chew

Every group has a purpose. Every person has a goal. And everything action has a reaction. All of these are limited, and all are specific. NRA wants guns for all (no gun control), MADD wants better drinking laws, and the ACLU wants the Constitution to be followed. All of these groups will do things, usually lawsuits and lobbying, to get this accomplished. PETA, on the other hand, has many many goals, all tied together under one umbrella. Go on, read more...



Now, this is not an attack on PETA, even though I always like to insult them, but this is more a quandary about their goals. Unlike most of these other groups, PETA targets 1983983294349234834 (note, number is made up, please don't sue me) issues instead of just one. For example:
-Stop all animal testing
-Stop all medical research on animals
-End certain types of zoos
-A Whole Pet issue
-No more meat
-No more leather etc.
-etc
-etc
-etc
-Oh yeah, and ethical treatment of all animals (animal abuse)

Okay, so, as you can see, PETA has several end goals that they are working on. These goals are vast and diverse, which greatly harms their ability to implement them all. Instead of focusing on one area and using all resources to enact it, PETA is spread out. We all know what happens when things spread out.

Well, on the off chance that you don't know what happen, here is a quick over view:
-You pick your targets
-Get donations
-Spend 100,000$ on each
-Get nothing done

Now, what other people do is spend the money on one target, so like 8,000,000$ on gun rights, and they get stuff done. Why? Because money=power, and the more you spend the more you are able to invest. The more you invest, the more likely you are able to accomplish your goal. Simply for the monetary reason, PETA should focus more.

Even more, however, is the fact that to join PETA you more or less need to agree with all of the goals. Special interest groups wrok because they are focused, not because they want to accomplish a ton. People join ACLU to protect civil rights, they join AARP for benefits, and they join MADD to get tougher drinking laws. People join PETA because they support all of PETA, but that means that others can't join.

If PETA wants to increase membership, maybe they should start to focus on select and specific areas. Almost everybody is against animal abuse and unneeded cruelty (NOTE, I am not interested in arguing this point at this time), but they are against the other things that PETA supports. Thus, instead of getting these voters (and their money), PETA is screwed because they are too wide. PETA should focus in this regard.

Finally, there is one other primary and good reason to specialize. This reason is the best – it limits the freaks you get. As Whalertly pointed out a week or so ago, PETA has connections to terrorists (who are not endorsed) and this harms them. If PETA was focused, they wouldn't be connected to people on the FBI Most Wanted and ELF. Clearly PETA needs to move away from these people, and the best way is to focus. Unless PETA limits their scope, these people will squeeze in, and they will fault the entire system.

My main point is that PETA has great ideas and potential, but because they are so wide focusing and encompass every animal group in the world, they actually are only harming themselves. I believe that PETA needs to close their focus and pick things they can get more supporters for. Always remember, people and their money=power.
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Hand Holding Can Cause Babies

Before we start, the bossman wanted me to say a few quick things:
1) The swine flu thing will come when it goes live on blogcritics the next normal update later
2) His PETA and being careful about how much you try to take on will be the next one after that, or on wednesday, whichever happens first
3) he hates you
4) okay, I added the fourth one

Anyway, moving on


IN case you didn't already know, there is a nice court case in the news about a kid and his dad suing his school. See, the school suspended him (though allowed him to take the finals and graduate) for attending prom with his girlfriend. The school also bans rock music, dancing, and holding hands (After all, that can cause babies). So, this kid and his dad are suing the school. Before you get all riled up and pissy, note that the school is a private baptist institution. (http://m.apnews.com/ap/db_7735/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=KrwI7xzm)

So, we have this kid, and he is suing his school, and this just gets really fun. Why is it fun? Well, it is fun because you have three different areas to look at. You have the fact that the school is acting on an act outside of their jurisdiction, the fact that it is private, and the fact that the dad paid a shit ton to go there. Let's play with this

So, well, for starters, the step-dad points out that the school has no right when it is outside of a school function and off of school grounds. This is a good argument, FOR A PUBLIC SCHOOL, and one that SCOTUS has upheld many times. In this case, however, the school is private and thus free to do as they please within reason. The school informed Tyler of the risk, had a signed contract stating that he would follow the rules, and yet he still disobeyed. The school was well within their rights to punish him in this manner.

Well, I just covered the second point as well. Shit

Another interesting facet of this issue is the fact that the dad is paying tens of thousands of dollars to send his kid here, and yet he didn't read the contract. When you buy anything, a car, a house, a prostitute, and an education, always read the contract. Here, the dad didn't, and now he is pissed off. Frankly, I want the court to throw this out and have the dad pay ALL court costs, serves him right.

Because my second point got covered in the first, just a random fourth (3rd) point. IN all honesty, I believe that Heritage Christian is acting exactly as they should. The kid violated the rules and he is punished. While the school could have kicked him out, they did the proper and Christian thing (hehe) and let him graduate. Frankly, good job to the school.
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More Stanley Cup Playoff Predictions – Round Three

Time for a third period comeback

On Sunday, May 17th, teams resume their quest for the drinking cup of Lord Stanley, thus entering the third round of the 2009 NHL Playoffs. This round, which features the four remaining teams, decides the winners of the Clarence S. Campbell Bowl (winning team from the West) and the Prince of Wales Trophy (winning team from the East). All of the series are best-of-seven. The first two games are played at higher ranked team's home, then two at the lower ranked team's ice. After that, they alternate venues. Using my hard-gained and great NHL knowledge, the following are my predictions for the third round of the NHL playoffs.



For the first round of the 2009 NHL playoffs I was 7/8 which gives me an amazing 87.5% accuracy. For the second round, however, I was 1/4, which gives me only 25% right. Overall, I am 8/12, which is still a respectable 75%.

Eastern Conference
4 Pittsburgh Penguins v. 6 Carolina Hurricanes
You know, I probably should just ignore the East entirely this time. Frankly, I am a West guy, with the Blue Jackets being my favorite team, and I clearly had no idea what I was talking about. I thought Boston would sweep Carolina and that the Penguins would fall in a hard fought battle to the Capitals. I was wrong, very, very wrong.
So, now I am stuck deciding between two teams that I have quickly learned about. The Hurricanes are a force to be reckoned with, as they have won two series as underdogs and seem to thrive when they should be down. However, they started falling against Boston after going up 3-1 in the series, and so I am a bit skeptical of their staying power. Pittsburgh, on the other hand, went up against a very good Washington team, and dominated them in the 7th game in DC. Crosby and Malkin were a force to be reckoned with on their own, and they can dominate anybody on the ice. Frankly, I have learned not to doubt these two, so I believe that...
Pittsburgh in 5

Western Conference
2 Detroit Red Wings v. 4. Chicago Blackhawks
Ahh the Red Wings, a team from up North and the defending Stanley Cup champs. After sweeping the Blue Jackets, the Wings found themselves up against the 8th seat in the West, but it took at a lot to beat them. Chris Osgood finally showed signs of cracking, and it might be time for the Red Wings to leave the playoffs. Chicago, on the other hand, Easily beat the Canucks and was the only team not to make it to a game 7. Having missed the playoffs for several years, and against their long-time original six rival, the Blackhawks are going to be searching for blood, and they will be looking for an early and easy win. This desire, along with the cracking Osgood, should result in...
Chicago in 5
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Flu Swine Attacks

I like that title
anyways, there is a planned series about flu swine on Blogcritics and i have an article in it. As it was supposed to go live today, i was going to give you guys that article... it isn't live
thus, my swine flu article will be on monday, sorry about the lack of an article this weekend Read more ...

Why I am Even Walking Around Campus – Part 3 of 3

As a side note, and amusing antidote, I was eating with Dan (my polysci 520 and astro 102 friend) and he mentioned that on the bus he heard a girl talking to her friend say:
'Man, I hate him, he gave me...'
Obviously the girl noticed where she was, and she caught herself before she admitted that she got an STD from a ex boyfriend, or, even worse, a random stranger.

Anyways, on to my actual post... well, on to it if you click READ MORE...



Well, to answer the question that the title poses, a simple explanation would be that I go to OSU and this is what we do. A less simple look would require me to admit that it is wrong to eavesdrop, even if unintentionally, and I will never do that. So, we can just assume that it is based on the fact that I live on (technically off) campus.

Anyways, there actually is a good and thorough reasoning for me writing about all of this. It is more about the appropriateness, the way we teach our kids, and exactly how comfortable drunk people can be with complete strangers. In all honesty, that is the exact reason I chose to write about this. Let's start:

Appropriateness
This is something that seems to be a problem for today's youth. We answer cell phones while at a job interview, discuss professors online, and will even strip at frat parties (Note, I have only done one of those three... guess which). Hell, today, while walking to a forum on the semester switch, I passed hundreds of ladies in the oval wearing nothing but a bikini top and bottom (oh, and that preacher was there). Instead of coming and fighting against a change they don't want, the rather sit there sharing their bounty with the world. Granted, I didn't complain while walking through all of this, but my issue still is there.

How is appropriate to sit in a dinner and talk about sex? What about on a bus and talk about STDs and what your latest sex-buddy decided to give you? These are not as uncommon as they appear to be, and they are never appropriate. As I hear these things from every party, from all people when I am out getting fatty foods, and just randomly when riding the bus, it is clear that there is a systematic failing of this common conception. Clearly, these people have not been properly educated, and they either do not know what is wrong with this OR they don't respect themselves enough. This, obviously, is something that needs to be fixed.

Hey, look, that leads us to our next sub-topic...

The Way We Teach Our Kids
Clearly there is a failure at some point in the education of these young men and adults. Sure, you should be proud of your body, but you should also be modest in exposing it. I mean, while I might like looking at your flat stomach and voluptuous (my word of the day) curves, there are also those who will take advantage of that. Whole porn websites are dedicated to random images like that, and they are something that should be avoided. Same with the whole sex talk at a restaurant, or discussing how cashed your bowl is when you are at a party. All of these are not proper, and all of these could be avoided simply by raising the kids properly.

Now, yes, I fully enjoy blaming parents for all of lifes problems. Texting, Sexting, Pregnancies, etc. are all partially the fault of parents. Too often parents refuse to act like, well, PARENTS and instead try to act like friends. NEWS FLASH: you are parents, act like it. This is something that parents should teach their children: when you should say something, and who you should say it to. Saying you have STDs to a best friend is one thing, saying it while on the bus is different.

Watch Who You Are Talking Near
this is something that seriously needs to be worked on as well. Certain people are good to talk to, certain are not, but, I can guarantee you, it is never good to talk sex with strangers around - unless you are Dr. Laura, that is... This is true for not only teens and college kids, but all other sorts of people. I have been eating dinner and overheard the person behind me explain to her friends that they left their daughter at home alone (normally she is old enough). If I were a molester, or something of that nature, I would take full advantage of this.




This is something that we need to work on in all levels. There are certain things that you can discuss anywhere (that dress, those shoes, how hot that chick is) and things that should only be discussed, in a non-academic sense, when with those you are close to. Come on folks, there is no justification for talking about this stuff, flaunting your assets (pun intended), or anything else in public. Look around you, see who can hear, and then judge if it is proper or not.
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Random Listenings of a College Campus – Part 2 of 3

Simply by wandering around a campus on a Friday or Saturday night you can learn hundreds of interesting and unique things. You can learn about the fact that the government caused 9/11 (disclaimer, I do not agree with this), how a girl lost her virginity, or simply that a person is super smashed (direct quote). All of these things are simply learned by walking around listening, not even volunteering or anything. Seriously folks, these are just shouted out.



Though this is not in a category, this is the best of anything I have ever heard on campus. We have these crazy preacher guys on OSUs campus all the time, and the lecture, preach, and condemn like the world was about to end. Anyways, one of them yelled at a shirtless Frisbee player ‘put a shirt on you heathen’, which the player responded with ’I have yet to eat the apple, so I do not yet know my sin of nakedness’. Wow, simply Wow. I mean, this dude thought on his feet, was able to respond, and actually cracked the preacher up.



I have been walking down the street, ambling by parties, and overheard the following fun tidbits:

-Man, this pipe is finished, get me some more weed
Seriously man, if you are yelling out that you need more weed then any good cop will come arrest you

-Come on baby, I love you and I want to fuck
Now, I must give the girl credit, she responded with ‘but you’re drunk’ but I still have to wonder exactly what was going through his head, and hers when she chose him

-You know, OSU used to be a military base
Wow, just wow. I really want to see where he came up with that

-9/11 was caused by Osama Bin Laden and he is the president
Either this dude was dyslexic or he seriously had some issues

-Yeah, my first time was on my parents bed, he was so small
I just feel bad for the guy… oh, and her parents


Those, arguably, could be considered private, as they occur at a party. Much more interesting, however, are the comments that happen when you are at a restaurant (read PJs or Buckeye Donuts) at like 2 in the morning

-Man, my thong is riding up to high, I got me a wedgie
(this was followed by me turning around in interest, discovering it was a guy, and then loosing my greasy food)

-Mark screwed me like 15 times yesterday, it was so good
Seriously lady, what the hell? I mean, I understand the concept and all of that, but why would you explain that

-You know, my prof. is pretty hot… I wonder if I can get good grades for fooling around with him
Um, lawsuit anybody?

Even better, that statement was followed up with her friend saying:
-don’t do that… I went to this party once, hooked up with a dude, and it turned out it was my TA. He made so much fun of me
Really, I would have loved to be in that class


I know, you are wondering why I chose to share all of this with you. Well, if you come back on Wednesday you will find out…
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Post up later

My planned post for today, the one dealing with what you hear on campus, will be up later today. I played a bit too much warhammer and didn't have time to write it... Read more ...