I've been searching, but can't find more details on Conflux and the WotC pre-release events. Did they ever release the list of all of the cities? I can't seem to find out what is going on in Philly, and need to make plans in advance.
What are the things that come to mind when most people think of Christmas? Santa? A decorated tree? Presents? Getting drunk at an office party and doing embarassing things in front of coworkers? These are all remnants of the old pagan and Roman winter festivals (you can also throw in yule logs, mistletoe, holly, etc). Sure, the church co-opted the date to help ease those pagans into Christianity, but for a majority of people religion is the last thing on their Christmas list. That's why you always hear preachers/ministers/whatever trying to remind everyone each year the 'true meaning' of Christmas, especially after a stampede at your local mega-store. So I contend that it's both still pagan, and still Christian. Personally, I stick to the pagan & Roman stuff.
some here need to do some history studies. war almost is always helpful to an economy of those involved in the war. as long as people are working ( building stuff ) it helps the economy. it doesnt matter if those things are destroyed or not. in most cases the fact those things are destroyed strengthens the economy because it is causing job stability.
This isn't true. War helps the war profiteers, like the US who stood by for most of the first two world wars selling munitions to the allies, but not necessarily the participants. Look at the Nazis, Hitler wasn't improving their economy, he was just printing more and more money to pay for the war until it got to the point that their currency was used for wallpaper. The allies also ended the war in massive debt, mostly to the US. So yes, war is great for some economies, but not all. It certainly did help us become the financial juggernaut that we are (were?).
In this case, the main impact ending the war could have on the economy is a boost to consumer confidence. People's perception of the economy is a huge driver in how well the economy actually works. You may be able to squeeze a slight boost out of it, but not enough to fix the current economioc problem. I don't think the decrease in government debt to operate the war would have an impact, they're already so far in the whole that it won't make much of a difference at this point.
eta: and PLEASE let Philly be one of the tournaments taken over by WotC. Prize support at the last one was awful. If they don't take it over, hopefully there will be much better prizes.
Which is why, in Gray Matter's defense (I agree they suck :p), free entry to events for a year is pretty sweet. PTQ seasons feel a lot nicer when you are saving $90+.
It's free entry for constructed events only. And if you live in the Philadelphia area, and you don't travel outside of the area for PTQ's, that's not a whole lot. And since they don't have to give out cards for a constructed event, that's obviously costing them $0.
The place they hold the events is a dump way outside of the city, so they can't be paying much to rent out the room for the day. At 140 players they made $3,500 just on entry fees, plus whatever they charge dealers for tables. They could have easily boosted prize support by a few boxes, they pay much less than we do for cases of cards.
What about Good Samaritan laws that say you are required to attempt to save someone in that situation? I don't know enough about them to know to what extent you can be prosecuted, but some countries (and if I'm not mistaken, Massachusetts?) have such laws.
edit: it looks like those are also commonly called 'Duty to Rescue' laws, and are in several states.
All of these example are either 1) not metal or 2) not popular. I said it could be done but it wouldn't be popular. This is what I've decided after listening to each.
Bring the Noise: just rap... there's no guitar or any instrument i can hear.
Did you listen to the strictly Public Enemy version, or their version with Anthrax? Because it's not just rap on the version with Anthrax, they definitely play the guitar riff and drums, and do half the rapping. And it was very popular when it was first released.
I forgot about Rage Against the Machine, as Mad Mat mentioned. They are probably as close to a pure blend of the two that you will find (that I know of). I'm not sure how you could say they were never popular???
Back in the 90s there was a movie called Judgement Night, the soundtrack pulled rap and rock/metal bands together to do the Anthrax/PE collaboration thing. Some were metal (Helmet/House of Pain, Biohazard/Onyx), some more mellow (Teenage Fan Club/De La Soul). Worth checking out. I am trying to think of any bands that fuse the two, and I am sure there are, but I am drawing a blank right now.
Me and others have also said that their envelopes looked like they had been previously opened for whatever reason.
This happened to me the batch when they accidently mailed everyone extra ***s. The flap of my envelope obviously got jammed in the feeding machine and was crumpled and didn't seal, but it was mailed anyway. Somewhere between my house and Wizards they fell out of the envelope. They replaced my non-foils, but I didn't end up getting any ***s.
While we're on the topic of generalizations and stereotypes, I think it's safe to say that the comments in this thread have shattered the stereotype that all Magic players are geniuses.
For the most part though, I find that people refuse to forgive when they're too wrapped up in what they're feeling, too angry about how they've been wronged. And those are perfectly realist emotions and are in no way invalid. But I do think that there comes a point where those feelings have to be put aside because seething in them isn't constructive. If you're wrapping yourself up in all those negative emotions about how you've been wronged, you're not really dealing with the situation. I've come to realize that forgiveness is the best way to cast off all those hard feelings and that hanging onto them out of stubbornness and anger isn't the most mature path to take. It happens, I'm guilty of it.
Or you could just move on like some of us, and not care to look back. I'm an adult now, and I have no anger or stubbornness. I just want to leave that part of my life behind me, but I feel no reason to forgive anyone in the process.
To the OP, it's hard to say what to do, especially without knowing more about your situation. I guess you have to do what feels right to you. You don't have to forgive to have a relationship with them. You can just let it evolve, and see how you feel in time. Maybe in a year or two after they earned your trust back, you won't even have to ask the question.
Try a shaving cream bomb. In the bottom of a shaving cream canister there is a black stopper. They are pretty pressurized, so you have to be ready to put your figure over the hole and apply a lot of force to keep it from spraying all over and to keep the gas from getting out when you pull the stopper. Give it a good shake, open the door to a busy bathroom, and toss it in there. The thing starts spinning and shooting shaving cream all over the place. We used to toss them into dorm rooms in college when friends were hooking up. It's pretty harmless, just creates a bit of a mess.
This isn't true. War helps the war profiteers, like the US who stood by for most of the first two world wars selling munitions to the allies, but not necessarily the participants. Look at the Nazis, Hitler wasn't improving their economy, he was just printing more and more money to pay for the war until it got to the point that their currency was used for wallpaper. The allies also ended the war in massive debt, mostly to the US. So yes, war is great for some economies, but not all. It certainly did help us become the financial juggernaut that we are (were?).
In this case, the main impact ending the war could have on the economy is a boost to consumer confidence. People's perception of the economy is a huge driver in how well the economy actually works. You may be able to squeeze a slight boost out of it, but not enough to fix the current economioc problem. I don't think the decrease in government debt to operate the war would have an impact, they're already so far in the whole that it won't make much of a difference at this point.
What alternatives to taxation that are reasonable in current society do you think will work? State owned and operated industries?
Also, I'm not sure what this has to do with 'left leaning' individuals? How would a right leaning individual answer those first two questions?
They block it here where I work also, but I can get into their shadow site. Not sure if it will get past your filters:
http://shadow.wizards.com/magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtg/daily/feature/13c
eta: and PLEASE let Philly be one of the tournaments taken over by WotC. Prize support at the last one was awful. If they don't take it over, hopefully there will be much better prizes.
It's free entry for constructed events only. And if you live in the Philadelphia area, and you don't travel outside of the area for PTQ's, that's not a whole lot. And since they don't have to give out cards for a constructed event, that's obviously costing them $0.
The place they hold the events is a dump way outside of the city, so they can't be paying much to rent out the room for the day. At 140 players they made $3,500 just on entry fees, plus whatever they charge dealers for tables. They could have easily boosted prize support by a few boxes, they pay much less than we do for cases of cards.
edit: it looks like those are also commonly called 'Duty to Rescue' laws, and are in several states.
Did you listen to the strictly Public Enemy version, or their version with Anthrax? Because it's not just rap on the version with Anthrax, they definitely play the guitar riff and drums, and do half the rapping. And it was very popular when it was first released.
I forgot about Rage Against the Machine, as Mad Mat mentioned. They are probably as close to a pure blend of the two that you will find (that I know of). I'm not sure how you could say they were never popular???
The weird anomaly that I faced was only one Cancel in the second box. I don't think I've ever run into that with a common card.
This happened to me the batch when they accidently mailed everyone extra ***s. The flap of my envelope obviously got jammed in the feeding machine and was crumpled and didn't seal, but it was mailed anyway. Somewhere between my house and Wizards they fell out of the envelope. They replaced my non-foils, but I didn't end up getting any ***s.
Canada
UK
France
Belgium
the Netherlands
Switzerland
Germany
India
St Martin
I would love to visit all of Europe, but the crap value of the dollar vs the Euro right now is making it difficult.
Definitely spoken by someone who did not grow up with an abusive/neglectful alcoholic parent.
Or you could just move on like some of us, and not care to look back. I'm an adult now, and I have no anger or stubbornness. I just want to leave that part of my life behind me, but I feel no reason to forgive anyone in the process.
To the OP, it's hard to say what to do, especially without knowing more about your situation. I guess you have to do what feels right to you. You don't have to forgive to have a relationship with them. You can just let it evolve, and see how you feel in time. Maybe in a year or two after they earned your trust back, you won't even have to ask the question.