Now this is what I call creative

A very good write up on a murder done motivated by Internet love triangle. Read the whole article here. Let me say that although Internet chatting is not wrong, but do indulge it ONLY if you know the person in offline (real) life. Stay away from chat rooms as much as possible, as the level of deception in those areas are too real. Some excerpts are as follows:

…Then there was the matter of the hundreds of pages of correspondence and dozens of photos he kept on his computer to document, and savor, every moment of his time with Jessi: It was a digital paper trail showing a man careening out of control. Ken Case, the assistant district attorney who worked on the case, said, “He was a guy who prior to this happening was a very dedicated father. To make that much of a transformation, as a result of communicating with a fictitious person, is pretty frightening….”

…Locals say she was “one of the best parents around” and a devoted cheerleader at Jessi’s basketball and softball games. The principal of the middle school that her children attended was so impressed with Mary and her maternal dedication that he hired her for part-time clerical work. In all of Jessi’s 18 years, Mary told me, she had missed only one of her daughter’s games, to work the polls at election time. How could a mother like that, I asked her, hijack her daughter’s identity to seduce strangers? Her answers, unsatisfactory as they are, suggest a profound capacity for self-deception….

…He tried to explain what drew him to his computer. “When I’m talking to Cindy or you like this, face-to-face,” he said, “it’s hard for me to say what I feel.” As Tommy, however, the words came easily. And then there was Jessi. He loved her, or at least believed he loved her, though he knew he was “never going to meet her.” His plan was to “kill Tommy off” in Iraq, but Cindy intervened too soon. He nearly committed suicide because of his guilt about having lied to Jessi. Why, I asked, when he was suspicious of so much of what Jessi said, did he believe she was who she claimed? “She kept sending pictures,” he explained. “One picture, maybe not. But there were so many pictures over a period of time….”  

Although Instant Messaging is a convenient way of contacting people, but the dangers are equally great. How do you know for sure the person who is actually behind the monitor? Like it or not, too much deception can still creep into the scene, even with web cameras… yes, even that may not be a good defence or assurance giver. So don’t waste your life completely by being lazy and not meet up with a person or at least verify the person’s existence before going deeper into a relationship with him or her. When you do want to meet up or verify, ALWAYS do it with another person. If a person only will meet up if you are alone, run away. It is a scam. There is a difference between real romance, and foolish infatuation that is self gratifying. You have to learn to draw the line somewhere or else live with the consequences.

Some consequences are too great. As the aforementioned story would show.

Be smart.

Sita, a prostitute from Kolkata who gave only one name, told of her violent childhood marriage that forced her to flee her home and land in a brothel.

“My dignity was torn to pieces. I used to cry a lot. But I soon learnt some things will never change no matter how much you cry,” she wrote.

Read the article: http://www.reuters.com/article/lifestyleMolt/idUSDEL28321320070730

If we do understand that the chains are heavy, and even heavier on some than it is on others. Very sad, this.

If man is the creator of Robots, Asimov is the visionary for them. Born in 1919… he grew in fame with his epic Foundation trilogy (then) and later with the short stories that made up the “I, Robot” selections and followed by “Robot Dreams” collections.

In his world, robots are mechanical and capable of some limited independent thoughts. Using his logic, based on the 3 robotic Laws, he put forth the conclusion of a zenith law (zero) that would have to restrict (liberate) the robotic way of thinking in relation to their human masters.

All in all, a very intriguing writer whom I highly admire for his span of grandeur in his writing… he tries to connect every book that he wrote with a singular thought and scope that can be read as a whole and yet be detached. Truly a master of epic writing.

But the other point of admiration is his use of science (true scientific knowledge) to fictionalise his stories. Good stories are truly made with a pinch of truth in them. And the truth needs to be researched well before it will work.

Check out his extensive bibliography at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_Asimov

I know you…

Can’t be

Hey…. weren’t you playing at Soulz last semester?

uh-oh, here it comes

Girl, you just freakin’ destroyed the last song! I was like…

Ya ya yeaa… I don’t give a rat’s…

… and Nat was like “she can’t be more than 18! Dressing all red ann…..

It’s 21.

Whuh?

I said, I’m 21.

Oh. You’re much youngeee….

Please, just leave. I’ve had enough, can’t you see I’m really not in the mood to ‘chat’ abou…

Well. My little sister thought the red tie was cute. I mean,

You brought your little sister to a pub at Crossway?  She’s what…? 15? 14?

Oh, Boomer (he’s the jockey up front) ‘kay with it, as long as Macy (my sis) is there for the performance and keeps to the back row… it’s not her first time ‘kay?

…

I mean you’re not going to rat out on her now would…

…

okaaaaaaay… I guess… I should mak…

she liked the tie, eh? Heh.

erm… yea. All ‘Avril’ thingee… as I recall…

Guess something good did come out of it all. Heh.

Well… look’it the time… my ride’s here… gotta go… you just enjoy your, erm… drink there… seriously, it wasnt’ bad… just not up my groove, … style… whatever…

It’s evian.

Cya!

….

….

freakin’ town ain’t up my style. Sigh…

My exposure to Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman’s classic was quite late. It was in 1997, that I picked up the first Chronicle book and devoured it in 2 days. I remember running towards the only shop that housed the remaining trilogy (in Subang Parade, could it be MPH?) and finished each at a shorter time. It was my second ‘epic’ series which I have read, the first being Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings. I liked the premise, and the pacing; it was not much on characterisation, and more on the plot lines moving.

I have collected a dozen of books from the franchise since then. And it is still shocking to compare that to the actual list of books produced (and how they fit in the timeline) for the fantasy universe! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Dragonlance_novels

Can you imagine the amount of money a hardcore ardent fan would have to fork out to capture the whole length and breadth of the series? Wow… I can buy lots of stuff with that kind of money. But then again, that is why the proliferation of titles; to cater to niche markets. But still, I have the ’core books’.

My only complaint now is this: the Dragonlance universe has expanded into a massive ball of complexities where each element relates to each other, to the extent that progression into the newer stories are burdened by the heavy baggage of history collected. Which explains why Weis and Hickman are so wordy as time goes on. Each novels are clocking at about 500+ pages, which in my opinion can be reduced to a manageable 400+ size with proper editing.

Do not judge a book by its cover is ‘actually’ a false statement. In fact, the emphasis on good art covers have never been greater than now! And in this respect, Dragonlance has not failed to deliver on the promise of cool looking art. There’s a book out from TSR that compiles all the covers and related art in one place.

There is still potential left in this universe… and it is always an inspiration for me to build one similar to it. One universe which makes me cringe everytime I think of it is the Star Wars Novelisation Universe (aka Expanded Universe)… http://www.theforce.net/books/ this site gives a very very in depth view of ALL the books that has been produced by Lucas’ company (I fanatically read the site for 4 years). I gave up on the universe when one of the chief writers, Timothy Zhan, wrote a closing duology to the old series. The newer series – entitled The New Jedi Order (under another publisher) piqued my interest for only a few months… it’s war like angle for a dozen over books, really stretched my patience and subsequently my interest in the whole franchise altogether. It was sufficient for me to update my knowledge from fan written plot summaries.

What makes Epic Scale stories attractive? I have no real idea behind this. But analysing Lord of the Rings and Dragonlance, I can say that it is always about conflict and honest characterisation. Conflict that challenges the emotional state of the readers (firstly, the emotional investment must be established) and Honest Characterisation that deals with the reality of human beings (regardless whether they are off-world characters or aliens). Packed around all these things are a myriad of ‘colourful’ universe-specific elements that are original, and a heck of big marketing effort!

from http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article1368918.ece, a tale that boils up my anger…

Three girls who were imprisoned by their mother in a house of indescribable filth for seven years may never recover from the ordeal, experts said last night.

The girls were shut away from the outside world, existing in almost complete darkness, playing only with mice and communicating in their own language.

When they were discovered, their home in a smart, upper middle-class suburb had no running water and was filled with waste and excrement a metre high. The floor was corroded by mice urine.

The cruelty that is shown in this incident is really prove that modern ‘advancements’ does not really advance the heart in anyway. Humans are sinful. Period.

Authorities are now under fire for failing to have intervened sooner, despite repeated complaints by neighbours in the well-to-do Poestlingberg.

It’s easy, too easy, to cast the blame on a backward setting, but no, this was done in a well-to-do community. Right under the nose of those people that we thought had the sensibility of knowing what is right and what is wrong…. of thinking that richness is an elevation of societal pitfalls. For all the richness and progress in thought and physical prowess, all these are insignificant to the age old sinfulness of man’s heart.

So the lesson to learn? Do not be too comfortable with your surroundings and too ill-prepared for the harshness and cruelty of man. Just when you think things cannot sink deeper into the pits, it does.

You want to make people fume in anger? Easy, tell them of these atrocities. Tell them it was done in a rich suburb of modern people. Let that fact sink down into the listener. And wait.

It’ll come up.

God help us, this corrupted nation.

Stories of sacrifices often strikes a chord to most people. Why? Interesting to consider it actually. I am more inclined to think that it has something to do with the fact that we are so selfish by nature and even more so by the blindness that has clouded our westernised culture.

The Martyr walked up to the murderer and lunged into a bear hug, on the spot where we were now standing. The blast ripped the Martyr to pieces which fell along with pieces of the enemy. Ball-bearings shot through the alley and wounded two children, but the people in the mosque were saved. The man lay in pieces on the ground, his own children having seen how his last embrace saved the people of the village. Quoted from here.

Yes, we need to learn how to think of others more and self less. And it is not easy, as long as your attachment is strong in this chunk of rock we call earth. True sacrifices are ones that are not compelled, not expecting any feedback, no… ones who just give up self, knowing that their reward surely is coming from a different dimension and outlook.

Wars are unfortunately the breeding ground of some of the most selfish, inhumane acts of man against other human beings; it is also the same source for the most sacrificial acts that we can see in this modern world.

This strong attraction to a scarce element is why many stories work so well to the general audience. Here is an element in which many wished they were able to conduct, but in their hearts know how they are failures in the same regard.

Story: A man who for the love of the girl of his dreams, would endure the life of an ordinary, mundane garbage collector, all for the sake of catching a glimpse of the girl of his dreams, every alternate day.

Story 2: An angel forsaking his angelic heritage, gives up immortality for the soul of a girl of his desires, who squandered her life in worldly pursuit. The fallen angel is then beaten into a pulp on protecting the resurrected girl from muggers. As the last drop of blood touches the ground, he realised the girl escaped. He smiles and sleeps.

Certainly this is a fascinating theme to draw on. Done rightly, with the right tensions of human frailty and greek tradegy, it can tug the heart of the reader anytime.