The 95 Theses of Geek Activism

I think that this is a very important thing to read. Now, more I think than ever, you really can't isolate yourself and do nothing about what is happening in the world around you. It is that attitude by the majorities that has gotten this world into so much trouble.

The 95 Theses of Geek Activism

Geek activism has not taken off yet, but it should. With the gamers recognizing the need for a louder voice, EFF gaining momentum and Linux taking on the mainstream on the one hand and recent severe losses in privacy, freedom of speech and intellectual property rights on the other, now seems to be the best time to rally around the cause.

Geeks are not known to be political or highly vocal (outside of our own circles)- this must change if we want things to improve. So here is my list of things people of all shapes, sizes and sides of the debate need to know. Some of these are obvious, others may not be meant for you. But hopefully, some of these will inspire you to do the right thing and others will help you frame the next discussion, debate or argument you have on these topics.

1. Reclaim the term ‘hacker’. If you tinker with electronics, you are a hacker. If you use things in more ways than intended by the manufacturer, you are a hacker. If you build things out of strange, unexpected parts, you are a hacker. Reclaim the term.
   
2. Violating a license agreement is not theft.
   
3. All corporations are not on your side.
   
4. Keep in touch with everyone you can vote for and make sure you know where they stand on the issues you care about.
   
5. More importantly, make sure they know where you stand on the issues you care about.
   
6. Everything will enter the public domain some day- even Mickey Mouse.

[via Boing Boing]

Yunyu - Lenore's Song

After Seeing this on Warren Ellis' website, I decided to post it here. There's some interesting imagery that may be useful for Urban Horror games.



Here's a link to the artist's website.

DIRTY HAROLD?

This is just screaming out to be used in someone's Urban Fantasy campaign. Come on, you know that you want to use it. Share your stories if you do.

A strip club's anatomically correct gargoyle flusters county officials

An anatomically correct gargoyle outside a suburban West Palm Beach strip club has been a moving target of intrigue for county officials who've been snapping photos, debating the creature's artistic merits and commenting on its proportionality.

"Harold," a 1,200-pound, 7-foot-tall statue made of hardened clay, is a fanged, winged creature with a long tail.

T's Lounge owner Gary Odle has moved his 7-foot statue, called Harold, to different spots to allay county concerns.

But they're not the anatomical features getting all the attention and causing T's Lounge owner Gary Odle to move the gargoyle again and again around his property to allay the concerns of county oglers.

Seanbaby's Super Friends Page

Just a random link to Seanbaby's Super Friends page, a website that makes "Superman Is A Dick" look like a Russian Drama.

Seanbaby's Super Friends Page

"For example, people like you can see an oven and grunt outloud, 'oven is hot. hot things hurt. hurt is bad. it is bad to touch oven.' The Super Friends see an oven and shout, 'oven... heat... lava... Great Gotham! The Legion of Doom's headquarters is in the heart of a volcano! Let's roll!' But the most insane part is that they're usually right. After they're done spitting out nonsense, they jump into the volcano (sometimes in protective lavaproof jumpsuits), rescue Aquaman, stop the bad guys without punching them, make a joke about how it was a 'HOT TIME!' and the only thing you did was sit in a room next to an oven and not touch it. You suck."

Fawlty Towers gets a 4-star facelift

Like Monty Python, Fawlty Towers holds a special place in the hearts of geeks everywhere.

Fawlty Towers gets a 4-star facelift

"Check into the Hotel Gleneagles in Torbay these days and you will no longer be confronted with out-of-date kippers or senile Majors. For despite inspiring cult TV comedy series Fawlty Towers, the property has undergone a £1m refurbishment and plans to relaunch as a four-star boutique hotel.

"Under new ownership since February, the hotel's luxury facelift has ushered in a new ground-floor swimming pool and al fresco dining area, a luxurious lounge and a conservatory. Ceilings have been raised and Italian chandeliers installed, while over 40 skip-loads of rubbish have been removed.

"The character of Basil Fawlty was inspired by a former manager at the hotel; he gave John Cleese and the Monty Python team a frosty welcome when they booked in 1971. The ferocious host berated them for not holding their knives and forks correctly and threw one of their briefcases over a wall believing it could be a time bomb."

The Original Flatland Role Playing Game

After hearing about this on a mailing list, I thought that it was a really good idea to pass it along to as many people as possible. If you haven't checked out one of Marcus Rowland's RPGs already, you really should and because of the charity element this is a really good place to start.

I did see an early version of Marcus' Flatland game and it was really intriguing. The guy comes up with some really cool concepts.

The Flatland Page

Imagine a world of two dimensions and plane geometry, in which the very idea of height is considered insanity and the darkest heresy. Where the only thing that matters is the straightness of your sides and the regularity of your angles. Where the slightest deviation from the norm can lead to arrest, imprisonment, execution (and consumption by your peers) or a lingering death by starvation.

Welcome to Flatland. Enjoy your stay…

Action and adventure in a world where characters are supposed to be two-dimensional!

Whether your adventures take you to the criminal classes of The State and an encounter with legendary gang leader “Scarside” Al Gebra, across the border to Polygonia and an attempt to rescue Mad King Euclid, or into the glamorous world of politics and diplomacy with the multi-faceted polygons of the aristocracy, there’s something here for you. Best of all, by buying this game you’re supporting charity: All of the author’s income from this game will be donated to Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders)!

The Original Flatland Role Playing Game expands material originally published as part of the Forgotten Futures CD-ROM, completely rewritten and updated. It includes the novel, complete rules for the setting, three adventures and four adventure outlines, a complete wargame by Matthew Hartley (Tusk, Aeronef, etc.), full-colour cut out character figures, extensive background material, and much more.

You can buy a copy of the Flatland RPG PDF here.

Filk Inflicted Horrors

Filk Inflicted Horrors
Originally uploaded by cjh_cleveland.

From my pictures from Origins (finally getting posted). If you look to the far left you might make out "The Great Luke Ski." Consider yourself lucky that "see" is all you get. I hate filking with a passion and this performance did nothing to get rid of those feelings. Perhaps if GAMA hadn't felt the urge to inflict this filking onto a captive audience...


If you click on the name under the photo it will take you to the photos that I took and uploaded onto flickr.com

Hospital with copyright objects to books - Yahoo! News

I'm sure that the Alan Moore fans around the world are going to want me to burn in hell for stating this (of course I doubt if they are the first or last group to want that) but I am so tired of Alan Moore being so damn full of himself.

The guy writes slash fanfic and thinks that he doesn't stink. After his bitching about other people using his characters and creations in shabby manners I think that he should take a good, long, hard look at what he has done to the characters of others as well.

Hospital with copyright objects to books - Yahoo! News

"A London hospital that holds the copyright to 'Peter Pan' has questioned the appropriateness of a series of books that portrays the character Wendy exploring her sexuality.

"The 'Lost Girls' books, by graphic novelist Alan Moore, are about three world-famous characters: Wendy, Dorothy from 'The Wizard of Oz' and Alice from 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.' The characters meet one another and have sexual adventures. Wendy not only engages in erotic trysts but also encounters pedophiles."

Yeah, because these are stories that are crying out to be told. Good God.

Mind The Gap!

Sorry about the gap in posting. Its been a busy month or so with me. Work is work, and that takes up the usual amount of time. I'm going to Origins at the end of the month. The 2nd Cleveland Gamers picnic is this weekend. I'm doing layout and Art Direction for a supplement for Pelgrane Press' Dying Earth RPG. [Edit: Time constraints have taken this off of my schedule. Since it was a step above volunteering, it was the "best" to choose. Unfortunately.] I've got two projects simmering that I can talk about, but they are going to be pretty darn neat.

There's cool stuff on the horizon. Hopefully there won't be another big posting gap, thanks for your time.

Idaho Girl Becomes Superhero for a Day

I think that everybody should be a wish like this one. This is why organizations like Make-A-Wish exist.

Idaho Girl Becomes Superhero for a Day

"Most days, 6-year-old Aubrey Matthews spends her energy fighting a brain tumor growing behind her eyes. But the first-grader managed to foil crimes and chase an arch-nemesis through Boise on Friday, serving the city as the superhero 'Star'' with assistance from the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Idaho, The Idaho Statesman reported."

A video can be found here.

Edit: Thanks to Jeff for pointing out that the newspaper took down the page linked. Wow, not even 24 hours and its gone. I'll see what I can find. Look here, thanks to Google.