PRIORITY SHIFT~~ 

ENDLESS GIG

that title's just meant to be a fancy way of saying goodbye. (who wants to spend the rest of their endless gig playing video games? i mean, there's like, people dying out there...)

i think i enjoyed the time here on gamespot. but i'm realizing that i can't see myself playing videogames for the rest of my life.

i'm playing RE4 again...great game.

i still play SSBMelee with my little bro...it's like we've finally crossed over from beginners into intermediate after all these years! but i know i'm using too much time there.

my ideal way to finish my time with games? well, first, i think i'm really curious about the next Super Smash. i don't know if i'll get it, but i think i'd at least like to try it.

for the longest time, i thought i couldn't go without a zelda game. then i did, so ha.

i'm also close to finishing SH3 a second time. and i have yet to get the best ending in SH4...stinking haunting nightmares...lol, that game's hardly fun anyways--i feel like beating it more out of necessity, for peace of mind than for anything.

but what i really, really feel like doing is playing through all the MGS games again. and then the ones i haven't played. MGS 3, 4, Peace Walker. and after all that, what better than to finish it off with a bang with MGSV/Ground Zeroes?

well, i've never played them before, so who says i won't be fine if i never do? but those ideas, those themes, man i like the stuff Kojima writes.

if you haven't checked out ghost in the shell--the artwork of which comprises my avatar and banner--do yourself a favor and watch it. and then think. or, if you figure that's not your priority in life, to watch--then don't.

but the least you could do for yourself is to think.

now, where's the BOOM button on this account? wait, are you telling me there is no BOOM button? 

hmm...

oh no, that's right! i've already pressed it. this last blog post IS the BOOM button.

thanks for reading. or not. lol.

have a great life.

~~kakashi552

d^__^b

So my last blog was titled "motivation." This blog's existence addresses exaclty that laziness within me. Yeah, i'm publicizing the possibility of writing something so that it might become reality. If i think there may be someone listening out there who wants to hear what i have to say, I might just say it. But how would they know that I want to say it if i never actually said that i wanted to say it? I mean, everyone declares their intent to say something before saying it, right??

The motivation may have come in part from the new editorials that GS staff have been writing. Hey, I like analyzing my video games, too!

What is it that I'd like to say? Well, I was thinking about violence in videogames--not in the same "[insert latest M-rated banned-in-Australia gorefest] ruins children" sort of argument that pops up every now and then, but from a variety of views--all linked by my own.

I was thinking about why we like violence in video games--though I'm sure it's been addressed before, I'd just like to try once myself. If i come to writing it--which I hope I will--I'll look at some neuroscience--but since I'm only a dabbler in the field, the studies I reference may not be the most direct in addressing the violence issue. I'd also like to throw in my own views, which link to my religion, and I might throw in some of the existential philosopohy that's been floating around my head this past semester. Maybe ethics, too?

I don't know much about female gamers, but video games in general have always appealed mainly to males--and some of the best selling ones (halo i admit i liked, but i dare not touch call of duty) are violence-focused---testosterone, anyone?

War is not a game. There are dangers in growing fond of war. But I have to say that I've been training since i was a kid in martial arts, in ways to hurt people--though i'd like to claim they are all for self-defense--and enjoying it very much.

Here in the first paragraph is a sort of reality of it--or some journalistic version of it anyways.

Here comes a touchy subject, but revealing in so many ways who is included in the victims of war. The boy's conclusion says a lot. If i include this, i guess I may be discussing politics, too...

Metal Gear Solid is probably my favorite video game series, but it does deal almost exclusively with war. MGS2 does comment (a little? i don't exacly remember how much, or even how) on the difference between the VR and the reality of war. MGS4 opens by telling us how war has become nothing but a game between those in power, those who own the means of production, (military-industrial complex?) and the rest of the game may be seen as a potential future for our world, if it's headed in that direction. But, even commenting on these games, Metal Gear Solid is still a very violent game in itself--

--and then, I think i'll have to define what a "violent" game is. I don't think a game needs to be Dead Space/Resident Evil/good ol' zombie guts to be violent. Even without much blood, games like Star Wars: Battlefront, or Battlefield (i don't think the earlier games featured blood...am i right?), fighting games (smash bros can't be that bad...can it?), and RTS games (wait, I'm just commanding them to be violent. that doesn't count! hey!) contain much, well, fighting and violence. Such a broad definition, isn't it...maybe it's more deeply ingrained in our culture than I thought...and maybe some of it is permissible. It might even be dismissed as sport. But, now, sport, isn't that where we see violence actually materialize? Here, I may be genderalizing (tell me, is that a good portmanteau? i always thought portmanteaus a little corny), but that physical triumph over another, in team or in individual matches, spars, bouts, whatever they may be--isn't that a manly sort of testosterone sort of thing?

And maybe if I write it all out, I'll be able to find out, at least for myself.

Well, then, to redefine the question (that i really hope I answer sometime soon):

Why is it that we (yeah, i enjoy them, too!) enjoy violence in video games so much? Should we? Shouldn't we? What does it do to the mind--how does it affect its wiring, and what implications does this have for the everyday? Is there any way violence in gaming or for leisure in general could be permissible, or even liked?

Um--wait, that's not "the" question, that's like, ten! Oh, this might be harder than I thought.

But in any way, I'm not starting this project-type thing until after final exams...which I should totally be studying for. And i have a t...t...ten page paper to write. Ugh, I wish i could write on this, something I'm genuinely interested in, instead of existentialism in some piece of african american literature--not that there's anything wrong with that.

Well, see you guys later. Keep it fresh.

P.S. I categorized this as a "rant." I'm glad GS allowed for this category, because the scope of this could be so wide, i'm not sure if it would fit anywhere else!

I've realized that i really need to get in the mood to do anything. I like doing all sorts of things, but many of them require a "____-doing mood" or extra energy or something. I guess i'm just a bit lazy.

I guess the whole point of this blog was really just to post this post from OT about religion and my life in America that i thought was really good. I thought i expressed my opinion well, unlike most of my writing. I probably need real motivation for writing, too. Maybe that's why i can never focus in timed essays. My AP English teacher said that the class focuses on honing essay skills, so i still have some hope left!

I feel pretty cheap posting this in two places, but without recording it here, it might be lost. Anyway, here it is:

The way i see it, America is mainly Christian, but has become more progressive over the years, allowing room for atheism. Other Eastern religions have a hard time subsisting, though, so i think it's pretty safe to say America is Christian.

Saying it's religion is "all religions" is pretty darn ignorant. If there is a non-Chistian religion subsisting in America, it's either having a hard time doing it, or it's reconciled its ways with the American culture. I myself am a non-Christian, and i find practicing my religion to be pretty hard, especially if peers question the way i do things.

I recently visited a country whose national religion is the same as mine, and i had no trouble fitting in and practicing at the same time. In America, if you're practicing something other than Christianity, or sometimes if you're practicing at all, you're seen as different. You're not accepted by masses who have a different culture. They're not your people; they don't love you. All these things put a lot of pressure on people with foreign cultures, often resulting in abandoning tradition and conforming to America and its culture. And this pressure--it keeps you from being free.

I'm in my last year of high school, heading off for college soon, but I still have to stand up each day for the pledge of allegiance, which blatantly recognizes the existence of God. It was under Eisenhower that the pledge began its way into public schools, made to differentiate theistic America from atheistic commies.

Now tell me that the USA is not a Christian country!

One thing I am motivated to do is to keep my religion, Islam. It's hard growing up here in America as a Muslim, but it's a something i've grown accustomed to. I'm not complaining about living in the pro-Christian US; I'm rather using the fact as reason to look upon myself as a fighter, as one who endures, as a survivor. Because if you are not confroming, you are fighting the way conformists call "natural."

...wow. that almost makes it seem like i actually do something, with the fighter reference and all. but past the psyche,i really am quite a lazy guy.

Writing this whole thing made me look again at the bleakness of blogging. I tried reading my blog as if it were someone else's, and the picture i saw of myself was extremely dissatisfying. It was nearly nothing like the real me! I guess the word, once written, becomes a carrier of a feeling preselected by the language. When spoken, the word carries more than just meaning, it carries a voice. Now i find it a struggle to re-create a voice from those words. It's like having a desk shipped right into your room for free, finished to the last bolt, with a catch that you have to make assembly instructions from the finished product. It's insane!

I lost my train of thought. Methinks it's been derailed. I guess it's a good thing, 'cause i have to finish my homework and get to bed!

Anyway, thanks for being an audience. It helps to know that someone somewhere is reading what i write. Either that, or i think that it helps because i read in a book about a person who wrote and felt better after knowing that it helped. George Orwell's 1984.

Later.

I've thought about solipsism, and i've thought about my religion. If we really are a chance happening, and we really did evolve from monkeys for no particular reason, then there's no reason why not to be solipsistic and self-centered. But if there's no accountability and nothing really matters and all, believing in God sure won't make a difference either!

what i'm really trying to say is, atheism is pointless because it says the creation of everything was random and pointless, and solipsism is pointless just as atheism is because if the self is the only accountable, nothing matters, and that religion-bashing by atheists is pretty pointless. Even if they are right --which i doubt highly-- and life is pointless, then there's no harm in believing that it does have a point, or some ultimate goal.

yeah, i've got me four ap tests this/next week. So far US Gov. & Politics wasn't so bad. Computer Science is next, then BC Calc (which i should probably be studying for...i really stink at it!) and finally Chemistry. I did well with Chem in our mandatory midterms, but the comprehensive whole might be a problem...

The only good thing about AP Tests is that i get to miss the First half of school! It really takes a lot of stress out of the day.

Good luck to all you other AP Test-takers out there!

was a few weeks ago in the summer. I had just finished my third driving lesson with my driving instructor. At Metro Driving School, you drop off the person finishing their lesson before you start yours, so I had to sit in the back while this other guy drove me home.

I thought it was pretty cool, being able to actually be of use to someone. I was a little scared, thought, because all the other driving lessons i had had were the last in the line, so i never sat in teh back before.

This guy that was driving me home now was forgetful, reticent (like me), tall, and wore glasses (not like me). I thought i had something in common with him, so maybe we'd talk sometime later. But now was the time for him to drive.

I sat in the back, thinking i was the worst driver in the school with no driving experience (except the other instructed driving lessons and some "experimentation" in a parking lot). I felt a little relaxed after i thought this. Until...

The instructor told him to reverse. He lightly let go of the brake pedal, and we gradually and easily slid backwards throught the driveway. We were going a bit slow, so the instructor told him to tap the gas. He slammed it. We swerved out into the street, our heads thrashed to the side, and after a while (he didn't let go of it right away) we stopped. We were lucky he lived in a rather quiet residential area, otherwise we might have done some real damage.

After that, he drove slowly and carefully (again like me); I'm guessing he didn't want to screw up again like he did before. My heart was pounding, I thought "What else is this guy going to do?" The way to my house was a good distance from his (Metro Driving isn't in my local area), which generally increased my stress level. I also remembered driving through a particularly difficult slithery-turning-varying-incline place which was quite nerve-racking without this guy in the car.

But, as I'm typing this today, he didn't crash and we didn't die. Yay! But he did cause quite a scare. Boo.

The only other event this one could compare with was the first time I drove on the streets...

I do detest those people who think they know about Islam. They think they can tell Muslims what their religion is. Some crazy atheist gets up on television, or the internet, or some ex-Muslim fanatic who never even knew Islam in the first place rants on youtube, and people think they know every last thing about Islam! Do you even know how to learn about Islam? Through the Qur'an! Not the people who translate it and quote out of context! The fact is, you can't tell me what my religion is. My religion is what I make it.

I'm no preacher, but i do know one thing: The Muslims do not even know their own religion. If they actually tried to see why they needed to follow the guidelines in Islam, they wouldn't be so violent, so cruel, and so heartless. It seems that some have stopped questioning their religion and have therefore fallen in ignorance. They follow the rules because they are there, not because they are Muslim by choice.

Those who choose Islam--converts--are often much more devout and better practicing than those born Muslim.

If you're angry with Middle-Eastern people, i'm with you. They are making a lot of mistakes, including making their religion what it is not, and what it should not be.

I get reaaaal angry whenever somebody thinks they know Islam and most certainly don't. I get reaaaaaaaaal angry whenever i see a Muslim practicint wrongly (there are quite a few). But, i'm pretty much done with my rant.

EDIT:

ugghhh, i just hate some people on the internet! they are so ignorant, but hink they know so much! every time i see them talk my blood boils. they know nothing and talk like they've credentials! it drives me crazy! Je déteste l'ignorance!

And another thing i was thinking:

Islam is simply submission to God. The rules-- such as what is forbidden, what is allowed, how people are to behave-- are set by God in order to help us worship Him.

Let's put it this way:

If a teacher assigned a project that conveys the overall message of what you had learned in your claass so far so he/she can see how far you have progressed, students would be going crazy trying to get every last piece of information the teacher might want on it. To make it easier for you, your teacher sets guidelines and rules to the project to better convey the material the teacher wants to see. If the teacher says, "Ah, make it a timeline!" students would have much, much less to worry about. If the teacher orders fifteen important dates on the timeline and five dates relative to the time, students would have no trouble at all showing how far they had progressed.

But what if your teacher hadn't given you any instruction? You would simply have to convey what your teacher is looking for most.

If the teacher gives guidelines, and on top of that an example, a student's job of showing the teacher how far he/she has progressed would become much easier.

That is what Islam is--showing God what he wants of us. Many times an good and pure intention is enough to please God. He tells us what he wishes of us through His books, and He shows us how to do it through his Prophets.

-------------------------------

While I do want to be known as a Muslim, I'm not a totally overacheiving devout humbleman (otherwise i wouldn't be on gamespot). Typing this just made me feel that some people might think that.

and for the record, javascript stinks. it made me spell incorrectly!

With Solid State Society, i've finally finished watching Production IG's interpretation of Shirow Masamune's Ghost in the Shell. It's a great series. If you like anime and are interested in complex analases of civilization and just life itself, I suggest you check it out. It's highly intellectual, so if you can't keep up with the English dub (which I think was executed masterfully), you could always try subtitles. I've had to pause quite a bit to really understand what was going on!

Aside from a few things, I think Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex is amazing. It takes you through the problems of today and how they will affect us in the future, but also presents a large group of well-developed characters that are worth remembering. It also includes plenty of action, but also lots of important and rather lengthy dialogues. If you didn't have to think, they wouldn't call it "mind-boggling"!

Hope you check it out!

Later.

I realize that i take a lot longer than most people do forum posting, so if you don't see a response (and i already displayed interest in responding) don't get discouraged!

Its kinda funny that this is the first 'blog post that has to do with me. But then again, i didn't expect for anyone to care.