text: Issue 1CoverPage 1Page 2Page 3Page 4Page 5Page 6Page 7Page 8Page 9Page 10Page 11Page 12Page 13Page 14Page 15Page 16Page 17Page 18Page 19Page 20Page 21Page 22Break Issue 2CoverPage 1Page 2Page 3Page 4Page 5Page 6Page 7Page 8Page 9Page 10Page 11Page 12Page 13Page 14Page 15Page 16Page 17Page 18Page 19Page 20Page 21Page 22Page 23Page 24Page 25Page 26Page 27Page 28Page 29Page 30Page 31Page 32Page 33Page 34Page 35Page 36Page 37Page 38Page 39Page 40Page 41Page 42Page 43Page 44Page 45Page 46Page 47Page 48Page 49Page 50 Issue 3CoverPage 1Page 2Page 3HolidayPage 4Page 5Page 6Page 7Page 8Page 9Page 10Page 11Page 12Page 13Page 14Page 15Page 16Page 17Page 18Page 19Page 20Page 21page 22Page 23Page 24Page 25Page 26Page 27Page 28Page 29Page 30Page 31p 32Page 33Page 34Page 35Page 36Page 37Page 38Page 39Page 40Page 41Page 42Page 43Page 44Page 45Page 46Page 47Page 48Page 49Page 50Page 51Page 52Page 53Page 54Page 55Page 56Page 57Page 58Page 59Page 60Page 61Page 62Page 63Page 64Page 65Page 66Page 67Page 68Page 69Page 70Page 71Page 72Page 73Page 74Page 75Page 76Page 77Page 78 Guest ArtTuesdayWednesdayFriday Issue 4CoverPage 1Page 2Page 3Page 4Page 5Page 6Page 7Page 8Page 9Page 10Page 11Page 12Page 13Page 14Page 15Page 16Page 17Page 18Page 19Page 20Page 21Page 22Page 23Page 24Page 25Page 26Page 27Page 28Page 29Page 30Page 31Page 32Page 33Page 34Page 35Page 36Page 37Page 38Page 39Page 40Page 41Page 42Page 43Page 44Page 45Page 46Page 47Page 48Page 49Page 50Page 51Page 52 Issue 5CoverPage 1Page 2NewspaperPage 3Page 4Page 5Page 6Page 7Page 8Page 9Page 10Page 11Page 12Page 13Page 14Page 15Page 16Page 17Page 18Page 19Page 20Page 21Page 22Page 23Page 24Page 25Page 26Page 27Page 28Page 29Page 30Page 31Page 32Page 33Page 34Page 35Page 36Page 37Page 38Page 39Page 40Page 41Page 42Page 43Page 44Page 45Page 46Page 47Page 48Page 49Page 50Page 51Page 52Page 53Page 54Page 55Page 56Page 57Page 58Page 59Page 60HiatusPage 61Page 62Page 63Page 64Page 65Page 66Page 67Page 68Page 69Page 70Page 71Page 72Page 73Page 74Page 75Page 76Page 77Page 78Page 79Page 80Page 81Page 82Page 83Page 84Page 85Page 86Page 87Page 88Page 89Page 90Page 91Page 92Page 93Page 94Page 95Page 96Page 97Page 98Page 99Page 100Page 101Page 102Page 103Page 104Page 105Page 106Page 107Page 108Page 109Page 110Page 111Page 112Page 113Page 114Page 115Page 116Page 117Page 118Page 119Page 120Page 121Page 122Page 123Page 124Page 125Page 126Page 127Page 128Page 129Page 130Page 131Page 132Page 133Page 134Page 135Page 136Page 137Page 138Page 139Page 140Page 141Page 142Page 143Page 144Page 145Page 146Page 147Page 148Page 149Page 150Page 151Page 152Page 153Page 154Page 155Page 156Page 157Page 158Page 159Page 160Page 161Page 162Page 163Page 164Page 165Page 166Page 167 Issue 6CoverPage 1Page 2Page 3Page 4Page 5Page 6Page 7Page 8Page 9Page 10Page 11Page 12Page 13Page 14Page 15Page 16Page 17Page 18Page 19Page 20Page 21Page 22Page 23Page 24Page 25Page 26Page 27Page 28Page 29Page 30Page 31Page 32Page 33Page 34Page 35Page 36Page 37Page 38Page 39Page 40Page 41Page 42Page 43Page 44Page 45Page 46Page 47Page 48Page 49Page 50Page 51Page 52Page 53Page 54Page 55Page 56Page 57Page 58Page 59Page 60Page 61Page 62Page 63Page 64Page 65Page 66Page 67Page 68Page 69Page 70Page 71Page 72Page 73Page 74Page 75Page 76Page 77Page 78Page 79Page 80Page 81Page 82Page 83Page 84Page 85Page 86Page 87Page 88Page 89Page 90Page 91Page 92Page 93Page 94Page 95Page 96Page 97Page 98Page 99Page 100Page 101Page 102Page 103Page 104Page 105Page 106Page 107Page 108Page 109Page 110Page 111Page 112Page 113Page 114Page 115Page 116Page 117Page 118Page 119Page 120Page 121Page 122Page 123Page 124Page 125Page 126Page 127Page 128Page 129Page 130Page 131Page 132Page 133Page 134Page 135Page 136Page 137Page 138Page 139Page 140Page 141Page 142Page 143Page 144Page 145 Bonus Content1234 Issue 7CoverPage 1Page 2Page 3Page 4Page 5Page 6Page 7Page 8Page 9Page 10Page 11Page 12Page 13Page 14Page 15Page 16Page 17Page 18Page 19Page 20Page 21Page 22Page 23Page 24Page 25Page 26Page 27Page 28Page 29Page 30Page 31Page 32Page 33Page 34Page 35Page 36Page 37Page 38Page 39Page 40Page 41Page 42Page 43Page 44Page 45Page 46Page 47Page 48Page 49Page 50Page 51Page 52Page 53Page 54Page 55Page 56Page 57Page 58Page 59Page 60Page 61Page 62Page 63Page 64Page 65Page 66Page 67Page 68Page 69Page 70Page 71Page 72Page 73Page 74Page 75Page 76Page 77Page 78Page 79Page 80Page 81Page 82Page 83Page 84Page 85Page 86Page 87Page 88Page 89Page 90Page 91Page 92Page 93Page 94Page 95Page 96Page 97Page 98Page 99Page 100Page 101Page 102Page 103Page 104Page 105Page 106Page 107Page 108Page 109Page 110Page 111Page 112Break Issue 8CoverPage 1Page 2Page 3Page 4Page 5Page 6Page 7Page 8 Show Comments Markus Patrick's face-punching system is pretty flawed in that it assumes that you're going to be performing your punching in a randomized order. I'm sure with an algorithm that weighted for punch publicity, multipliers in impact of prospective punchee death, ease of mind reading, and a few other nontrivial factors then you could actually get ~50% of the total value of socially change inducing murder within 1-2 years tops. Patrick seriously needs to sleep on some computer scientists, because he should totally understand that that problem is super doable in polynomial time. Darkoneko Hellsing Kill a person to warn 10, eh ? (to which i disagree with the "grossly inneficient" comment Patrick makes on panel 2) D. Schwartz To which 2 follow the warning, 6 consider it to varying degrees and take action or not, and 2 don't care and carry on. So grossly inefficient stands for now. motorfirebox Warning ten people would knock the timeframe down from over a thousand years to over a hundred years—again, assuming that you take no breaks and no new people are made. And that none of the existing people change in the interim. Still doesn't seem very efficient. Darkoneko Hellsing Hmm. But if you broadcast that on TV, you'd warn a lot more (tho there would probably be a backfire of sort) motorfirebox I can't imagine how a 'former' supervillain coming on TV and having a top-tier former superhero kill apparently random people could possibly backfire! Darkoneko Hellsing Oh, just buying a TV outlet or 2 and having them discover the bodies and announce it the "right way". Darkoneko Hellsing Oh, just buying a TV outlet or 2 and having them make news about the bodies and announce it the "right way". … scratch that, just buy all the TV outlet and do heavy propaganda from there, that'd be a good start. Subbak Of course, the obvious problem with doing that is that my criteria for continued existence include "does not murder millions of people in cold blood". Not to mention, if you send the message that it's a moral right to kill bad guys, you end up with more violence, not less. Desecalation is an important thing to have. Even if rape or murder is a horrible thing, I don't think rapists or murderers (even if situation where there guilt is obvious and they show no remorse) deserve death penalty, as it just perpetuates the endless cycle of violence. They need to be prevented from harming other people while respecting as much as feasible their right to life and the pursuit of happiness (current prison system is definitely not good for that on both the count of protecting others from them (prison rape is a thing) and on the count of not needlessly torturing them, but it's still better than dying). Shino Okay, but how does this perpetuate cycle of violence exactly? If people will become afraid to rape and to murder innocents, then less people will murder and rape – leading to LESS victims of vigilante justice. While probably not solving these problems completely, it can probably work in decreasing the amounts of rapes and murders. Mechwarrior Fear of punishment has been shown by numerous studies to be ineffective as a means of deterring crime. Educating people and removing harmful environmental factors* are much more effective as long term solutions. *For example, lead, which causes increased aggression in people exposed to low levels of it for long periods of time- there was a remarkable drop in violent crime rates after lead was removed from gasoline. Rod I don't buy that. Frankly, it seems that such studies lump victimless crimes in with actual, real harmful crimes. When that's done, then of course fear of punishment might not deter crime. For plenty of people, telling them they can't do something they feel is their right (like smoking a plant) might actually spur them on to it. But I suspect that when those crimes are removed from the equation… when clearly legitimate crimes are the only things examined, such as murder, theft, rape (real rape, not that "statutory rape" BS…) that you'd find that fear of punishment *FOR SOMETHING ONE KNOWS TO BE WRONG* is actually quite a disincentive. Mechwarrior Nope, it's actually been studied multiple ways using different crimes. The risk of future punishment just isn't a strong motivator against committing a crime right now for a lot of people. They either don't bother considering it, or they don't think that they'll end up getting caught. And when punishments become too severe, it can actually make crime worse. You may have heard the phrase "in for a penny, in for a pound?" That came from a period in England's history when sentences for criminal convictions were especially harsh, which actually led to criminals committing further crimes- if you were going risk getting hanged for theft, you might as well steal as much as you could since you'd get the same sentence for stealing a single fork as the whole silver set. If mugging and murdering both carry the death penalty, there's little incentive not to kill those you rob. That's the issue. Rod Then I still don't buy it. When a study tries to tell me I can fly through sheer willpower, I'll likewise dismiss that, too. Yes, giving the death penalty for stealing candy from a baby obviously crossed the line of diminishing returns. But it's absurd for anyone to believe that, given absolutely no consequences for their actions, people wouldn't just give into their every whim. There are plenty of things that most people don't do for the simple fact that there will be negative repercussions for doing so (in fact, that pretty much details how people come to learn impulse control.) Vorpal "Fear of punishment has been shown by numerous studies to be ineffective as a means of deterring crime." Not disagreeing, but that's fear of punishment – aka there's only a chance of punishment. In a scenario where there was a 100% chance of being punished because people with magic powers read your mind and know exactly what crimes you did, the data would likely be very different. Mechwarrior Not really. People are remarkably good at convincing themselves that they're special and will somehow beat the odds. It's why people buy lottery tickets. belatedEpiphany What you are describing is the plot of DeathNote… fyrehair Adding to Mechwarrior's point, look around the world at the more authoritarian regimes*. It's not hard to see that permitting institutionalized murder and vigilanteism normalizes violence, to the point where people think it's a reasonable response to relatively minor infractions. This is how you get citizen-fueled atrocities like lynch mobs (that brown-skinned man whistled at a girl! That lady went outside without a chaperone!) and domestic violence (you burned dinner! Now I have to hit you!) becoming the norm, rather than rare and shocking exceptions. Fear is not a useful motivator. Ethics and logic are much better guides. *Not that you'll have to travel far, but examples at home make people uncomfortable. For some reason. Plasma Mongoose So Kira from Death Note was right? Shino Well, we did see New York in one episode, with Twin Towers still standing after 9/11/2001 date, implying that Kira's actions have prevented World Trade Center attacks (after all, all HE needed to off Bin Laden would be a photo and a name). Speaking of which, I wonder if there are biodynamics that can kill people over long distance (perhaps they were the ones of the 'dangerous to the status quo' ones that were killed early on?) zarawesome She has two hands and two feet! She could get four times as much punching going on! Verdant_Samuel Just idle talk, ya know. Not like anyone's been secretly running some kind of organization for that purpose. That'd just be villainous. Ryan Last panel: Most genuinely cheerful and optimistic villain ever. Stephanie Gertsch The last two panels…. Very, very, scary. He looks so reasonable too. It's good storytelling to have a character say something that should be entirely corny but in such a way at such a moment you realize they're totally sincere. Subbak "World domination is such an ugly phrase. I prefer "world optimisation"". HJPEV Enepttastic Liked the quote, googled the acronym and now I'm reading. I'd bemoan productivity but hell, it's my evening now anyways…. Oakreef Except he never actually had a single idea for how to go about optimising the world and the climax of the story and the reader's "final exam" was just how to kill a bunch of people really quickly with magic. God that story didn't pay off at all on any of the ideas it seemed to be going for at the start. Ryan . It's really hard writing an ending to great beginning, and vice-versa. fairportfan "Peace through superior firepower. Ain't nothin' more peaceful than a dead troublemaker." al_tech I like Patrick! I do agree with him too. Does that make me wrongheaded? Sabriel I've been holding a candle for Patrick, but I think he's being insufferable. :-/ Oren Leifer Yeah, but here I think he's thinking too big actually. You don't need to take over the whole world, just the right institutions. Buy your way into controlling a few major colleges, show that crimes go to the police and get all the rapists and other people committing crimes arrested, and push the "Crime-free campus Initiative". And/or Patrick can just offer colleges to pay as much money as they would have gotten tuition for students that are expelled for criminal activity: removing financial incentives for college to cover up crime. Money gives you a lot of weight to throw around. Seastone Those last two panels are just so…cheerfully chilling. Henry Cannon I think I like the first of his alternatives best. TheGonzoMD . "You can't murder your way to a better world." But you can have a blast trying, that's all that matters in the end, right? That's what life is about! evillordzog It depends entirely on who you murder Duke Araja Likewise, the person who meets the criteria at 19 could become a rapist at 25. People are the problem. Oren Leifer The book "Bad Monkeys" by Matt Ruff comes to mind. It's about an organization that targets and kills potential serial killers. At one point the main character is asked to choose between killing an older serial killer who has already killed 10 people but will be caught soon, or a young man who has already killed one victim and is starting a trend. It's not what someone has already done, it's if they're in a certain pattern of behavior, and how to stop/check that pattern. MrSing For such a smart guy Patrick sure knows a whole lot about nothing. That probably explains his time travel plans though. anongal Overthrow capitalism!!! Long live the fourth!!! evillordzog Depends entirely on your definition of villain. As he's explained himself, villains are the people who want to change the world,ergo of course he's never stopped being a villain. Axel_Celosar Yeah, but that's HIS definition of a villain. That doesn't mean he's right. evillordzog In the context of the genre I don't think he's necessarily wrong Axel_Celosar What I mean is, it's like the Aesop of The Wolf And The Lamb: "A Tyrant needs little excuse to justify his tyranny." Ryan https://tollethesen.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/citationneeded.jpg KatherineMW Yes. Historically speaking, there have been a few efficient dictatorships (mainly in eastern Asia), and a whole passel of highly inefficient and ineffective ones. The statistical evidence is mixed, but it doesn't indicate that dictatorships as a whole are more efficient. And here's a citation supporting that point: http://www.development.wne.uw.edu.pl/uploads/Courses/dw_22_p1_1.pdf Despite a sizeable theoretical and empirical literature, no firm conclusions have been drawn regarding the impact of political democracy on economic growth. This article challenges the consensus of an inconclusive relationship through a quantitative assessment of the democracy-growth literature. It applies meta-regression analysis to the population of 483 estimates derived from 84 studies on democracy and growth…Taking all the available published evidence together, it concludes that democracy does not have a direct impact on economic growth. However, democracy has robust, significant, and positive indirect effects through higher human capital, lower inflation, lower political instability, and higher levels of economic freedom. Democracies may also be associated with larger governments and less free international trade. There also appear to be country- and region-specific democracy-growth effects. Overall, democracy's net effect on the economy does not seem to be detrimental. Ryan Thank you for providing a citation for my claim. You are the true hero of this thread. Jon You'll notice none of this is an explanation of why he won't help. It's another distraction. S.I. Rosenbaum Third panel: He's thought about this option. He's done the math. Opus the Poet Well, no, it's just a variation on the "marching chinamen" conundrum. S.I. Rosenbaum Patrick is what happens when you underline the "chaotic" in "chaotic good" about a thousand times Shino More like "chaotic neutral", really. S.I. Rosenbaum No – a neutral either looks out for himself, and/or just does things for shits and giggles. Patrick spends an awful lot of time trying to figure out the "right" thing to do, he just takes a monstrously utilitarian view of what's "right." Classtoise Nah, Patrick is what happens when Neutral Evil makes the jump to Chaotic Good. The tendencies to solve problems in the most efficient (if perhaps least humane) way slowly fade into the tendency to solve problems in the most "righteous" (if perhaps least LEGAL) way. Although time traveling to enforce order takes a running leap BACK to Lawful Evil. "You will all obey me for your own good" is nowhere near the Good spectrum. Elaine Lee Correct! Ryan No, not heartbreaking, Alison. He said head-breaking. Weren't you listening? Classtoise Well I imagine when you're that strong, the force of a face-punch will inevitably cause a few hearts to break, too. KatherineMW As of this strip, I'm liking both Feral and Moonshadow a lot more than I do Allison or Patrick. You can't make the world perfect. It's an impossible goal, because people aren't perfect. So long as humanity remains imperfect, a perfect world is incompatible with free will. But you can make the world better (the starfish parable), even if we dispute whether vigilante murder is an acceptable way of trying to do that. Patrick's a billionaire. If he threw his money into funding people to research a cure for malaria, or tuberculosis, or HIV/AIDS, or into making antiretrovirals available to everyone, achieving any one of those things would save a million lives a year. (Given what he said in the previous strip about how his telepathy works, reading the minds of all the researchers on any of those diseases might well enable him to come up with cures for multiple diseases himself.) Would it fix everything wrong with the world for all time? No. But it would do a lot more good than endless philosophical wankery or mad schemes. Shino Allison's a liberal, and Patrick's a perfectionist, that's the thing. Also Patrick probably thinks that he can accomplish less that the original, super-powerful biodynamics capable of solving world's problems that were murdered in the early years (let's call them "Tier Zero biodynamics"), so he is dabbling in taking over the world and time-travel thinking of a way to change the world big-time. He doesn't WANT to do a little at the time, he wants to make one big change that will change everything – and that's probably why he will fail. Zac Caslar Feel free to quantify your point behind the observation "Allison's a liberal." Classtoise "She holds beliefs that are generally liberal in nature and supports ideals and thoughts generally considered 'liberal'? 😛 Zac Caslar Ah, nevermind. My confusion about the context. Mea culpa. allium That doesn't bode well…after all, the perfect is the enemy of the good. Classtoise Feral I can see, but Moonshadow? Her solution to a problem is "kill it". This does not make the world a better place, as all statistics of crime vs capitol punishment have proven. Also, when your powerset is superstrength and invulnerability, your options on making the world a better place are limited. Sure, Allison can go to school for architecture or become a construction worker and build labs single handedly doing work that no one person could do. Or she can apprehend criminals. Or she can just do literally nothing because she's decided that stopping murderers doesn't mean anything because Malaria will kill more people than she could ever save. Just like in the real world, not everyone can be a doctor. Some of us have to help in other ways. KatherineMW My issue with Allison is precisely that she doesn't seem to like any solution that fails to solve everything. You're right that her abilities are less suited to solving the big problems of the world than Patrick's wealth and telepathically-enhanced intelligence are. I don't blame her at all for focusing on going to university at the moment: that's a wise thing to do, given that her retirement from superheroism was prompted in part by being asked if she would get involved in international wars. She needs some education and thought and knowledge of the world in order to have responses to those kinds of requests, though she already understands intuitively that a superpowered war would be disastrous. What's aggravating is that she seems to be tearing down everyone else's attempts at doing things to improve the world because they're not large-scale enough. (Granted, she also has other reasons – she's obviously and understandably horrified at the amount of pain Feral is putting herself through; she doesn't believe killing criminals is acceptable; and she feels that Pintsize's superhero squad would be more detrimental than beneficial now that all the major supervillains are dealt with. But I think part of the reason she's getting so much pushback from the people she talks to is that she's tearing down other people's solutions without offering anything of her own. What Feral is doing to herself is horrific, but she's saving hundreds if not thousands of lives; the fact that it's not millions of lives doesn't make it the 'wrong' answer. There's definite arguments for why Moonshadow's actions are wrong, but "they don't end all rape permanently" isn't one of them.) I'm likely being too hard on her with that, since she does volunteer with the fire department, which shows she's still wanting to do good things to help individuals even if they don't change the world. I just find the attitude expressed in her and Patrick's conversation here – that any action that fails to fix everything wrong with the world is pointless – aggravating and wrongheaded. fyrehair Thank you for mentioning the starfish parable. It cuts through so much BS. Foxhound Yeah, Feral's plan is totally effective. There's a long version of this but basically, taking the numbers from the comic and all the lowballs particularly, she'd fill out every single transplant American transplant from 2008 except kidneys and joint kidney/pancrease needs. (http://www.infoplease.com/science/health/us-transplants-year-1988-2007.html) Moonshadow suffers more severely from the, "There is a reaction to the application of force". Furnace is classic, but even then men (and women) would apply significantly more silencing pressure if an accusation resulted in a murder. Also, as the opening sequence of this issue shows, not all rape survivors are enthused with the idea of murdering their rapists. But Feral's plan has got gumption, and Alison hasn't achieved anything since she got Patrick to retire by accident. Also, for the record, I think Patrick is reminiscing on why he tried to take over the world, not projecting forward. Shino But the point is not the idea that you will single-handedly kill every bad person, the point is that it's essentially more extreme way of Batman's tactics: You make people AFRAID of doing evil, since you make people ask themselves : "If I will fuck that girl when she's passed out, what if *I* will be the next victim of Invisible Slasher?" It's weird that a mind-reader would forget to put human psychology into equation. Opus the Poet I am heartened by the fact that Patrick is working on the problem of rape culture in some manner. That shows he has a "good" alignment to use a phrase from one of the previous commenters. He has a basic impulse to improve the world, it was just the initial method he used that got him the "bad guy" label. Ryan I still like the theory someone else posted a while ago that Patrick's original antics as Menace were designed to get him off the kill list of the shadowy conspiracy. AvangionQ Far as I can tell, he's lawful-evil … doesn't seem to care about morality much, nor the small scale consequences of his actions, and is quite regimented in his thought processes. Shino Rape doesn't carry capital punishment, actually. And rape prosecution is notoriously inefficient and typically detrimental to well-being of the victim. Classtoise He's totally being manipulative. He's trying his best do dissuade her from thinking on any subject he does not like her thoughts straying to. So far he's derailed her about the people in his office with time travel, and then time travel with talk of Moonshadow, and now Moonshadow with talk of how violence won't solve matters. He keeps leaping to a new topic. Classtoise I think the solution was more to separate the desire for power from gender. So men are not driven to a position of power, and thus do not see themselves as "over" women. It completely ignores that while yes, a lot of rape is about power, that doesn't stop teachers who prey on their students (male or female) and many other types (one example being a woman deriding a man who decides he doesn't want to have sex; rape through coercion) Not only that, assuming that rape is linked to gender identity and a belief that genders are separate is also fallacious. Just because no one identifies as man or woman or otherwise does not mean that rape mysteriously ends. Oren Leifer Can I just say that this comic is the best resource for my "Issues of Race/Class/Gender" class ever? These conversations are so interesting and provide so much food for thought. ampg But the really important question here is…Where did Alison's tights go? Arthur Frayn It's true! I looked at the history of this sequence. Her tights come and go. Sometimes her legs are black and sometimes the same color as the rest of her skin. Molly, wake up! ampg Looks like she changed them back. Thanks, Molly! S.S Guys, I made a Wiki for Strong Female Protagonist, it's a work in progress and I could use some help if anyone is interested. It's here: http://strongfemaleprotagonist.wikia.com/wiki/Strong_Female_Protagonist_Wikia Jayden Crowe I like the way that Patrick thinks. Destroy capitalism, change the way the world sees gender, take over the world (of course!). AvangionQ The worst atrocities of the 20th century have come about due to cultures attempting to force their ideologies upon others that didn't agree. Communism, fascism, and now capitalism, each getting their turn and millions dying in their wakes … the best ideas are the ones people can agree on without coercion. Darkoneko Hellsing Democraty is the majority forcing its views on the minority. MrSing Any other form of goverment is a minority forcing its views on a majority. Darkoneko Hellsing That or everybody agrees and we're all mindless clones. Oren Leifer The problem with Communism is that attempting to push Communism is like hearing the weatherman talk about an earthquake and so setting explosives. The Communist Manifesto by Marx and Engels is a prediction, not a plan. AvangionQ The inherent problem with communism is that we live in a world with limited resources, and that people get greedy over scarcity. The real world problem with communism is that those that led to use communism as their ideology did so in such an imperfect manner that it led to the deaths of millions of their peoples, but this is always true when leaders force an ideology upon their people. https://i.imgur.com/eyUnc.jpg Adrienne Herbst Wow, either he's not very bright or he's massively condescending to Alison, as well as the manipulative redirecting other commenters have pointed out. . Girl, don't date him. bta I can't help but notice that Patrick has gotten the one person who could stop his plans without too much problems emotionally invested in him. This will not end well. Mistress Dizzy Ok, I'm actually scared about how genuinely happy he seems to be. MrSing "What's the penalty for doing something Patrick doesn't agree with?" "Death." "What's the penalty for rebelling against Patrick?" "Death." "Well then…" Guilherme Carvalho Glad I'm not the only one who thought of him right away. 🙂 Elaine Lee I have a similar solution to Patrick's, but it requires me to be Queen of the Universe so that I could stop time (solving Patrick's 1000 year problem) and personally interview everyone in the world. I would then zap all of the most aggressive men and all of the most passive women into an alternate universe. We'd be left with a population of men and women who had much more in common than the current population. That would go a long way to solving MANY problems. Balthazar Very good Patrick! Rationalized villainy is the best kind of villainy. Jun X the problem with people like Alexander the great and Ozymandias is that no matter how brilliant they might have been, they never planned far enough for their own deaths. The lack of a successor just brought their empires to immediate chaos and instability. The moment Patrick dies, the possibility that any good he might do will get instantly undone is kind of high. Jerden Also, there are always people who are unhappy. What's he going to do, kill/imprison/brainwash everyone that disagrees with him? That really sounds like a better world than the one we've got… masterofbones "And now that we are done talking about trifling matters, lets go back to figuring out how to save the world from bigger problems. Like people who kill heroes that could end world hunger." Rufus Saltus Not very actionable? Alison clearly needs to read up on Marxist theories of revolutionary praxis. The only problem for her is that her powers can do nothing to forward the development of proletarian class consciousness that will bring about the revolution. Powerful as she and Patrick are, they are nothing compared to the materialist dialectic that drives history! Jerden I think her point was that people are rather attached to concepts like gender and capitalism and living outside of tubes. It would be hard to get support for them. Oren Leifer The problem with that logic is that Ozymandias was just another name for Ramesses II, who is actually well-known by anyone who has studied Egyptian history for more than five minutes. It's like how people say "Good fences make good neighbors" because it's from a Robert Frost poem, when the point of the poem is that the narrator has a neighbor who says that phrase without it making any sense. Although a point to build on what you are saying is that Patrick is hoping that Templar Industries' work is remembered in a way that Menace and Mega-Girl will not be. Markus Except that Ozymandias isn't about whether or not people remember Ramesses, it's about on what terms they do. We don't look at a statue of Ramesses II and think "Man, Ramesses was incredibly powerful and managed to both embed himself in the annals of history through this immortalizing statue and establish Egypt in a position to dominate the entire globe in the coming centuries, thus immortalizing himself further. I'm really glad I'm lucky enough to read ancient Egyptian, like any self respecting citizen of wealth and class." You're a lot more likely to think "Man, this guy with the eye makeup that loves looking off to stage right sure liked making statues. I wonder who he was. Whatever, I'll just wiki that shit when I get home." We remember Ozymandias on our terms, with our tools, thanks to our strength. If we didn't have all that we have, his monument to immortality would be nothing more than ruins gathering dust. fairportfan No, there just need to be more of us than there are of them. We have the majority, that's democracy. {Can you perceive how far my tongue is in my cheek?} Kid Chaos "What do you want to do tonight, Brain?" "The same thing we do every night, Pinky; try to TAKE OVER THE WORLD!" 🙂 Kid Chaos The problem is, you're not starting (and ending) with Patrick. 🙂 motorfirebox Technically it's on my "how to avoid needing a bucket list" list. motorfirebox Look, weather manipulation just isn't one of his anomalies! Darkoneko Hellsing Well seeing China is capicalism… no. AvangionQ They are now, sort of ~ but they weren't then, back when Mao killed off 70 million of his own people … http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mao_Zedong AdamBombTV Wait… thats the end of the archive? I've caught up? no… No…NO! Cake "…still wouldn't be done in a thousand years." If you went after the top 1% you'd be done in 10 years! That seems achievable to me. Markus I choose to believe this is a portmanteau of by one get one -cide. Matthew Dowd if he has some sort of guarantee that his clone will be biodynamic in the same way he is, he can create the perfect dynastic empire. This being said, it is likely NOT a good thing to do so.


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Nick Abbate Glenbard North
After barely playing as a junior, Abbate developed into a dominant defensive lineman this senior season. The 6-foot-2, 215-pound all-state selection earned defensive lineman of the year honors in the DuPage Valley Conference by notching 72 tackles, including 18 for loss and 8 sacks. "He performed better than we could have imagined," coach Ryan Wilkens said.
Jack Allen Hinsdale Central
Already a two-year starter, this junior center has established himself as one of the area's premier linemen. Allen, 6-foot-2 and 230 pounds, showed the perfect combination of toughness and technique, something the state runner-up wrestler also demonstrates on the mat. "He does things at that position I've never seen," coach Mike DiMatteo said.
Rocco Ammons WW South
A master at run blocking, Ammons became a talented pass blocker at right tackle and earned co-offensive lineman of the year honors in the DuPage Valley Conference. The 6-foot-5, 310-pound senior also garnered an all-state selection with a punishing and relentless approach up front. "He's the consummate right tackle," coach Ron Muhitch said. "He locks on and stays on."
Cam Brate Naperville Central
Among the area's most valuable players, Brate spent many games not leaving the field. The 6-foot-5, 230-pound senior earned an all-DuPage Valley Conference nod as a tight end who caught 45 passes for 484 yards and 9 touchdowns. As a defensive end Brate had 29 tackles, 4 sacks and 5 quarterback hurries. "Just an extremely versatile player," coach Mike Stine said.
Nick Campanella Montini
The Driscoll transfer brought leadership, swagger and work ethic. The senior running back-safety was a Coaches Association 5A honorable-mention all-state and two-time all-conference pick. He ran for 831 yards and caught 67 passes for 747 yards, totaling 11 touchdowns. "We were very fortunate he decided to be part of our program," coach Chris Andriano said.
Kenny Clay Waubonsie Valley
The focal point of the Warriors' rushing and passing games, the senior quarterback ran for a team-high 507 yards and 9 touchdowns and completed 112 of 181 passes for 1,364 yards and 15 touchdowns. All-Upstate Eight Conference and the team's MVP, Clay was a smart leader with quick feet. "He was the engine that made our offense go," coach Paul Murphy said.
Will Cronin Immaculate Conception
The Knights' MVP and three-year quarterback accounted for 24 touchdowns in 2009. Co-offensive MVP in the Suburban Christian Gold, Cronin ran for 507 yards with 9 touchdowns, and completed 58 percent of his passes for 1,071 yards and 15 touchdowns - no interceptions. "On the offensive side of the ball he was in total control," coach Mike Alberts said.
Hayden Daniels Naperville Central
A converted quarterback, Daniels never had played wide receiver before this season. The 6-foot-4, 170-pound junior claimed an all-DuPage Valley Conference selection with tremendous hands and instincts for the position. Daniels caught 52 passes for 815 yards and 7 touchdowns. "Making that transition shows how much he understands the game," coach Mike Stine said.
Mike DeBernardis York
The Dukes' offensive most valuable player, DeBernardis became the program's fourth all-time leading rusher for a season. With a knack at gaining yards after contact, the 6-foot, 180-pound senior running back carried the ball 179 times for 1,123 yards and 11 touchdowns. "His dedication to the team allowed him to have a great season," coach Bill Lech said.
Shane Dierking WW South
A crushing tackler at cornerback, Dierking was equally strong defending the run and pass. The 5-foot-8, 170-pound all-DuPage Valley Conference senior finished fourth in team tackles with 87, including 10 in the Class 7A final, and led the way with 4 interceptions and 8 breakups. "Pound-for-pound, he's one of the most physical players we've had," coach Ron Muhitch said.
Richard Finley Wheaton North
Finley led the way as the Falcons made a surprise run to the Class 7A quarterfinals. The 5-foot-9, 160-pound junior receiver was named the team's offensive MVP five straight weeks late in the season, earning all-DuPage Valley Conference honors along the way. Finley caught 68 passes for 780 yards and 6 touchdowns. "He was huge for us," coach Joe Wardynski said.
Ryan Gorrell Montini
The Broncos' two-year, two-way starter epitomized the Class 5A state champions' desire. Coaches Association all-state honorable-mention and all-Suburban Christian Blue, the senior linebacker made 69 solo tackles, 44 assists, 10 sacks. At tailback he ran for 1,162 yards, 10 touchdowns. "We just call him 'The Beast,'" coach Chris Andriano said. "He was one tough football player."
Idris Hanidu Naperville North
Boasting power, speed and wicked cuts, Hanidu did it all in the Huskies' backfield. The 5-foot-7, 180-pound senior all-DuPage Valley Conference selection moved to fullback and didn't skip a beat. Hanidu rushed for 1,109 yards and 12 touchdowns, and he added 19 catches for 166 yards and 2 scores. "He's a little package of dynamite," coach Larry McKeon said.
Tim Hollowed Glenbard West
The big playmaker for the Hilltoppers' stingy defense, Hollowed played a pivotal role in the team's 3-5-3 defense as an outside linebacker. The 5-foot-11, 190-pound junior made 97 tackles, including 14 for loss, while snaring 6 interceptions and causing 5 fumbles. "He just kept coming up with the big plays when we needed it," coach Chad Hetlet said.
Nick Immekus WW South
Immekus eclipsed a second season on the offensive line by earning all-DuPage Valley Conference kicking honors. The 6-foot, 240-pound senior showed tremendous value at right guard but also booted 10 field goals, including a pair of 47-yarders, and 69 touchbacks. "He brings the same energy to the kicking game that he has on the line," coach Ron Muhitch said.
Joey Ippolito Neuqua Valley
The 200-pound senior quarterback was voted among the Upstate Eight Conference's top offensive players, running for 782 yards, 15 touchdowns, and passing for 1,014 yards. His 1,776 yards of offense, 199.6 a game, are both Wildcats records. Ippolito sped to a 78-yard touchdown on the first play against Waubonsie Valley. "Joey is an intense competitor," coach Bryan Wells said.
Matt Ives WW South
Undersized on the defensive line at 6-foot-1 and 205 pounds, Ives was a terror chasing quarterbacks while coming off the edge. Quickness was the main skill the senior end brought as an all-DuPage Valley Conference pick. Ives made 33 tackles in addition to a team-high 10 sacks. "He's the one you'd watch in third down passing situations," coach Ron Muhitch said.
Jason Jozaites Downers Grove South
One of the area's most electric players, Jozaites managed to get open no matter what defenses threw at him in coverage. The 6-foot-3, 185-pound senior receiver earned all-state honors with 69 receptions for 1,105 yards and 13 touchdowns. "I didn't see a team that could cover him with one guy," coach John Belskis said. "No one slowed him."
Matt Kaiser Lake Park
Tough as nails, the 230-pound senior defensive tackle was honorable-mention Class 8A and all-Upstate Eight Conference. Kaiser made 85 tackles, 9 for loss with 3 sacks and 2 blocked kicks. An Eastern Illinois baseball recruit, Kaiser was also a go-to offensive guard. "Great feet, and he's a hitter," coach Andy Livingston said. "He just comes after you."
Jack Krejci Naperville North
Battling constant shoulder injuries, Krejci succumbed to surgery right after the season ended. While it limited him on offense, the 6-foot-2, 225-pound senior linebacker never missed a practice. The all-DuPage Valley Conference selection led the Huskies with 81 tackles, including 5 for loss. "Jack brought tremendous knowledge to the defense," coach Larry McKeon said.
Mike Laning Glenbard West
A hammer in the secondary, Laning played like a linebacker from his free safety position. The 6-foot, 180-pound junior showed tremendous ability in pass coverage, but his hard-hitting tackling stood out most - especially in the Class 7A title game when he led both teams with 13 tackles. "His ability to cover deep and play the run is incredible," coach Chad Hetlet said.
Nick Lifka Naperville North
Nicknamed "the baby bull," Lifka is attracting major Division I college attention for his abilities as a linebacker and fullback. The 6-foot-2, 235-pound junior had 78 tackles, including 11 for loss. The DuPage Valley Conference's defensive player of the year also rushed for 273 yards and 4 touchdowns. "When the going got tough, he got tougher," coach Larry McKeon said.
Nick Linne Naperville Central
The co-offensive player of the year in the DuPage Valley Conference, Naperville Central's playbook revolved around Linne. The 6-foot-2, 210-pound senior quarterback, who's committed to play baseball at Northwestern, threw for 2,050 yards and 24 touchdowns and rushed for 645 yards and 5 touchdowns. "We don't win eight games without him," coach Mike Stine said.
Connor Loftus Glenbard West
The defensive MVP in the West Suburban Silver, Loftus brought football smarts and physicality to the inside linebacker position. The 6-foot-2, 225-pound senior returned an interception for a touchdown in the Class 7A final and led the team with 111 tackles, including 17 for loss. "He's been a major part of two incredible defenses," coach Chad Hetlet said.
David Lutz Hinsdale Central
A two-way standout, Lutz provided an offensive boost at running back and a punishing presence on defense at linebacker. The 5-foot-9, 185-pound senior rushed for 621 yards and 5 touchdowns and finished second on the team with 53 tackles, including 4 sacks. "He played 100 miles an hour on every play in all phases," coach Mike DiMatteo said.
Jack Marston Glenbard West
A ballhawk with a knack for finding the end zone, Marston showed his mettle defending some of the top receivers in the nation the past two years. The 6-foot, 180-pound senior cornerback picked off seven passes and returned fumbles on a punt and a kickoff for touchdowns. "He's got no fear," coach Chad Hetlet said. "He's always where the ball is at."
Jack Merrithey Glenbard East
A three-year starter and two-time all-DuPage Valley Conference and academic all-state pick, Merrithey epitomized leadership at the quarterback position. Elusive and effective at 5-foot-8 and 145 pounds, the senior threw for 1,174 yards, rushed for 276 and tallied 14 touchdowns. "Players just gravitated toward his leadership ability," coach Dennis Lueck said.
Artie Monaco Lake Park
The Upstate Eight Conference offensive MVP and an Class 8A all-state pick, the senior running back scored 146 points on 1,851 all-purpose yards. Monaco ran for 979 yards, 13 touchdowns and scored on 2 punt returns and 2 kickoff returns, one a program-tying 98-yarder. Earned team awards for desire, leadership. "Artie changed every game," coach Andy Livingston said.
Evin Natick Glenbard North
Imagine the stats Natick could have compiled had he not missed three games with an ankle injury. As it was, the 5-foot-10, 175-pound junior running back carried the ball 240 times for 1,352 yards and 16 touchdowns. The all-DuPage Valley Conference pick averaged 24 yards on 12 receptions. "He plays as intense as anyone we've ever had," coach Ryan Wilkens said.
Reilly O'Toole WW South
A model of efficiency, this 6-foot-3, 195-pound junior quarterback didn't throw an interception in the first 11 games and capped an all-DuPage Valley Conference campaign with a Class 7A state title. O'Toole completed 62 percent of his passes for 2,119 yards and 24 touchdowns and rushed for 358 yards. "He still has so much untapped potential," coach Ron Muhitch said.
Mike Partipillo Glenbard North
A two-time all-DuPage Valley Conference performer, Partipillo was named the co-offensive lineman of the year in the league. Four different Glenbard North running backs posted 100-yard rushing games, showing the effectiveness of an offensive line led by their 5-foot-10, 245-pound senior center. "He plays every play like it's going to be his last," coach Ryan Wilkens said.
Brandon Pechloff Montini
The 6-foot-6 senior quarterback rewrote Broncos records. His 43 touchdown passes this season - on 59 percent passing for 3,194 yards - tie for seventh in IHSA history. Pechloff twice threw for 5 touchdowns. The Coaches Association all-stater's final TD pass and 2-point conversion won the Class 5A title. "That will never be forgotten here," coach Chris Andriano said.
Brian Pell Wheaton Academy
The leader of the Warriors' rekindled program. A tough playmaker who completed 57 percent of his passes for 2,256 yards and 22 touchdowns also made 43 tackles at linebacker. Coaches Association Class 5A honorable-mention all-state, two-time academic all-state, Suburban Christian Gold co-offensive player of the year. "He's just a gamer," said Warriors coach Ben Wilson.
John Pullia Glenbard North
All-DuPage Valley Conference for a second straight year, Pullia was the driving force in a six-shutout campaign by the Panthers' defense. Team leader with 88 tackles, the 5-foot-11, 210-pound senior linebacker had 18 tackles for loss and forced and recovered 3 fumbles. "He led our defense," coach Ryan Wilkens said. "He was like another coach out there."
Jason Rafferty Hinsdale Central
Few people knew it, but Rafferty struggled through much of the season with a shoulder injury. The 6-foot-3, 210-pound senior linebacker approached the game with a workmanlike attitude, leading the team with 58 tackles including 48 solos. Rafferty also picked up 2 sacks and intercepted a pass. "He's an intense guy who loves his job," coach Mike DiMatteo said.
Nolan Randall Naperville North
Randall showed his versatility on the offensive line by making the successful midseason transition from center to left tackle. The 6-foot-2, 220-pound all-DuPage Valley Conference senior continued to make all the line calls, consistently grading out as the team's best performer each week up front. "He was just so versatile and valuable to our line," coach Larry McKeon said.
Anthony Ritchie Wheaton Academy
Twice named all-conference and Class 5A academic all-state, this season the receiver-safety caught 69 passes for 1,031 yards and 8 touchdowns. The 6-foot-4 senior also used his great hands to lead the Warriors in tackles twice, 77 this year plus 3 interceptions. "He was oftentimes the best athlete on the field," coach Ben Wilson said.
Tyler Rocco Downers Grove South
The defensive lineman of the year in the West Suburban Gold, Rocco took care of the dirty work as a tackle. Strong, quick and athletic, the 6-foot-1, 220-pound senior notched 60 solo tackles and 14 sacks while hurrying the quarterback 18 times. Rocco also caused 5 fumbles. "More than anyone, he was the emotional leader on our team," coach John Belskis said.
Mike Runger Benet
Runger had the savvy to get to the ball and showed the "wow" factor while making the play. An inside linebacker, the 6-foot-2, 215-pound senior led the team with 95 tackles, including 46 solos and 9 for loss. The all-East Suburban Catholic Conference pick displayed the talent to play anywhere on defense. "He's terrific getting to the ball," coach Gary Goforth said.
Brandon Salemi Glenbard North
This two-time all-DuPage Valley Conference cornerback was missed when he broke his collarbone just before the state quarterfinals. Solid against the pass and run, Salemi made 42 tackles, including three for loss. The 5-foot-11, 175-pound senior intercepted 5 passes and knocked down 12 more. "He's a guy we turned to in tough situations," coach Ryan Wilkens said.
Alex Schaefer Naperville Central
The emotional leader of Naperville Central's defense, Schaefer's relentlessness allowed him to dominate on the line. The 6-foot-2, 220-pound senior had 55 solo tackles highlighted by 5 sacks. A pure playmaker, the all-DuPage Valley Conference pick forced five fumbles. "From the snap of the ball to the whistle, he never stopped," coach Mike Stine said.
Rickey Simpson Waubonsie Valley
Pairing 4.7 speed and top conditioning, the 215-pound senior was voted the Upstate Eight Conference's No. 1 defender and Coaches Association 8A all-state. The relentless end made 66 tackles with 9 sacks, 9 for loss. The rare lineman who returned kicks, Warriors coach Paul Murphy said Mid-American Conference colleges like Simpson "because he's got a motor that doesn't stop."
Lee Skinner Glenbard East
One of the area's most improved players, Skinner dedicated himself to becoming a top-notch receiver. With a physical, highly skilled style, the 6-foot-6, 210-pound senior was quite a presence while catching 35 passes for 536 yards and 9 touchdowns. "He was the guy defenses had to game plan for every week," coach Dennis Lueck said.
Nick Slezak Glenbard South
Playing receiver, linebacker, running back, safety and quarterback, Slezak earned his all-state selection. Two-time all-Western Sun, the 6-foot-2, 190-pound senior excelled at linebacker with 109 tackles and 4 sacks, and at receiver, where he had 28 catches for 484 yards and 4 touchdowns. "He was our most valuable player," coach Dan Starkey said.
Austin Teitsma Glenbard South
An injury-plagued season didn't prevent Teitsma from garnering a second All-Area selection in his third varsity season. Moving from defensive end to nose gave a boost to the 6-foot-2, 235-pound senior. Teitsma notched 49 tackles, including 31 solos and 2 sacks. "He's just a battler who tried to play through all the injuries he dealt with," coach Dan Starkey said.
Tony Vargyas St. Francis
The Spartans' co-captain is a Coaches Association Class 5A all-stater, voted the Suburban Christian Blue's top defensive player. The versatile senior wingback-linebacker led St. Francis in receiving, averaged 6.7 yards a carry, punted and made 41 tackles, with 2 interceptions in St. Francis' 51-31 win over Montini. "He did so many things," coach Greg Purnell said.
Jordan Walsh Glenbard West
The Hilltoppers rushed for 3,600 yards this season, thanks in much part to the play of this junior offensive lineman. Already a two-year starter, the 6-foot-3, 275-pound right tackle is developing into one of the area's top college prospects with a tenacious, technically sound approach to pass and run blocking. "He's ferocious," coach Chad Hetlet said.
Trace Wanless Glenbard South
Twice named all-Western Sun and All-Area, Wanless achieved all-state status this season. The 6-foot, 185-pound senior quarterback went 16-3 as a starter, leading the Raiders to two state quarterfinal berths. This year he threw for 1,702 yards and rushed for 1,071 while totaling 32 touchdowns. "He has an uncanny ability to make plays," coach Dan Starkey said.
Chandler Whitmer Downers Grove South
A three-year starter named all-West Suburban Gold each season, Whitmer is a two-time All-Area pick who was named to this year's all-state team and was the Gold's player of the year. The 6-foot-1, 190-pound senior quarterback threw for 1,826 yards and 23 touchdowns. "He's as good as we've had in the 30 years I've been at South," coach John Belskis said.
John Whitelaw Hinsdale Central
The Daily Herald All-Area 2009 football captain, Whitelaw owns five all-time program records. Despite missing the playoffs with a concussion, the 6-foot-2, 185-pound senior threw for 1,840 yards and 18 touchdowns and rushed for 1,299 yards and 17 scores. "It's hard to even express what he meant to the program," coach Mike DiMatteo said.
Honorable mention
Mike Barnett (Waubonsie Valley, sr., OL), Tyler Becker (WW South, sr., DL); Adam Bruere (Glenbard West, sr., RB); Nick Burrello (Glenbard West, jr., WR-RB); Reece Butler (Wheaton North, jr., QB); Mike Carev (Glenbard North, sr., WR); Frank Cervantes (Addison Trail, sr., RB); Joe Claver (Downers North, sr., QB); Mike Colatorti (Addison Trail, sr., OL/DL); Clay Cooper (Lake Park, sr., WR/DB), Chris Cortopassi (WW South, sr., OL); Connor Douglas (Glenbard South, sr., WR/DB); Brian Duffy (Glenbard South, sr., LB); Sean Dunn (Willowbrook, sr., DB); Christian Eble (Neuqua Valley, sr., DL), Jack Eshelman (WW South, jr., LB); Ross Ferraro (Montini, jr., DL), Pat Flavin (Benet, jr., OL); Ryan Gerts (Lake Park, sr., LB); Arnas Gintautas (Naperville North, sr., LB/OL); Eric Justiniano (Fenton, sr., QB); Russ Kalfas (St. Francis, sr., OL/DL), Alex Kirk (Hinsdale Central, sr., WR); Scott Kuehn (Waubonsie Valley, sr., WR), Ryan Liss (Lisle, sr., WR/DB), Greg McAndrew (WW South, sr., WR); Nick Melka (Benet, sr., DL); J.T. Mesch (Glenbard West, sr., WR); Kevin Miller (Hinsdale South, sr., QB); Billy O'Donnell (Glenbard West, sr., LB); Soern Osborne (Naperville North, jr., OL); Charlie Perrecone (Lake Park, sr., OL/DL), Joe Pfeiffer (St. Francis, sr., TE/DE), Brandon Phillips (Glenbard South, sr., DB); Carson Rajcan (Wheaton North, sr., DB); Richie Rebmann (Fenton, sr., OL/DL); T.J. Rhattigan (Neuqua Valley, jr., LB), Phil Robles (Lake Park, sr., OL), Matt Rogers (WW South, jr., RB); Owen Saldana (Waubonsie Valley, jr., LB), Will Sayer (Naperville Central, jr., LB); Ryan Spatz (St. Francis, sr., OL/LB), Mack Tracey (WW South, sr., WR/QB); Chris Wahrman (Glenbard North, sr., LB); Tyler Warden (Glenbard West, sr., QB); Erik Westerberg (York, sr., LB); Christian Westerkamp (Montini, sr., WR), Jordan Westerkamp (Montini, so., WR); Nick Wozniak (Glenbard North, sr., OL); Blake Zumpano (West Chicago, sr., DB).

subset: commoncrawl


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Only a few days ago I finished reknitting the toe of a sock made from handspun yarn, my very first handspun, actually. A dreadful hole (three toes wide!) had sprouted. And, of course, this was a pattern with cables and twisted stitches which I had decided to carry ALL the way down to the very end of the toe. Fortunately I had a little bit of leftover yarn, so I soldiered on – ripped back past the hole, got all the stitches onto needles, figured out how to manage the decreases and the pattern, and we were done. No need to do that again for a long time, right?
So today, guess what? Yeah, this –
What have I learned? When knitting socks with handspun yarn, always use a nice sturdy commercial yarn for the toe. Other spinners may be able to produce toe-proof yarn, but clearly I cannot. Oh, and lesson number two – always save leftover yarn, no matter how tiny the squib.


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Published by Bantam
Scott's Rating: 3.5 out of 4
Tash, Zak, and Hoole must make an emergency landing on Ithor, the home planet of the Hammerhead aliens. They need a certain mineral component for their hyperdrive. In order to get it, they catch a ride with an Ithorian to a nearby asteroid mining operation. That Ithorian happens to be the wife of Momaw Nadon, the Hammerhead creature from the Mos Eisley Cantina. While there, the miners show them a strange old Ithorian crypt hidden in the asteroid that holds an unknown secret. Well, it's the Spore, of course. Soon the Imperials arrive to take it from them, led by Jerec. You might know Jerec, the Dark Jedi from the Dark Forces video game and graphic novels. Soon, everything goes down the toilet as Spore begins to take over the bodies of everyone around it. If it reaches the planet of Ithor, everyone will be possessed by it.
This is one of the better stories in the series because it breaks the usual pattern of the books. While the story is not spectacular, it's not bad either. It was well paced and the descriptions of the mining operations and their space suits was interesting. There was also a good scene where some asteroid space slugs (like in ESB) attack an Imperial Star Destroyer. Great stuff! And I like the direction Tash's sensitivity to the Force is developing. It was also cool to see a little bit of Jerec, though he did not have a large part in the story.
I don't think there was any need to make the Ithorian character the wife of Momaw Nadon. It had no relevance to the story and was obviously done to make some connection to the films. The space slugs in the book also shot in and out of asteroids like snakes or something. If they were that active, how come the Millennium Falcon was able to fly into one untouched?
Spore taking over a host body. Kind of like the black ooze from the X-Files movie, eh?


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As of 2015, Magellan's selection of travel apparel includes outerwear, shirts and tops, shorts and pants, and underwear and sleepwear for both women and men. Women also have swimwear, skirts and dresses adapted for travel. Examples of Magellan's convenient travel wear include quick-dry shorts, convertible jackets, pickpocket-proof pants, reversible tunics, and clothing with insect and sun protection.Continue Reading
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Dublin City Gallery The Hugh Lane's Online Catalogue is a brand new feature on this website. Now Art-lovers, the general public and students can enjoy highlights from the gallery's renowned Permanent Collection of modern and contemporary art.
This is an ongoing project so new images and information will be added on a regular basis.


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Suspended BJP MP Kirti Azad has denied that he violated party discipline in his reply on Friday to a showcause notice issued to him for targeting Finance Minister Arun Jaitley over alleged irregularities in the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA).
Azad's reply, which was sent a day after the notice was issued, included a three-page letter, a six-page copy of Lok Sabha proceedings, an 8,000-page document and four CDs.
READ: Why shouldn't you be expelled, BJP asks Kirti Azad in notice
In his reply, the Darbhanga MP reiterated that he had only been pursuing his battle against corruption in cricket and said that Jaitley, who headed the DDCA from 1999 to 2013, cannot use the "shield of party discipline" as the matter is linked to sports, not to the BJP. Azad's reply was addressed to BJP general secretary Arun Singh.
- Why shouldn't you be expelled, BJP asks Kirti Azad in notice
- Kirti Azad demands CBI probe, drags Congress leaders in DDCA row
- Asked to explain, Kirti tells Amit Shah to give him 'proof of anti-party activities'
- Advani, other BJP veterans discuss Kirti Azad's suspension
- Subramanian Swamy to help suspended Kriti Azad draft reply to BJP
- DDCA issue: BJP suspends Kirti Azad, Amit Shah says 'You sided with Cong, AAP to embarrass us'
The BJP had suspended Azad last month for indiscipline after he held a press conference to level allegations of corruption in the DDCA and spoke on the issue in the Lok Sabha too. The party had endorsed Jaitley's position after he denied the charges, saying he was not involved with the day-to-day administration of the organisation.
Sources close to Azad said he would also file a PIL on alleged irregularities in the DDCA with the assistance of BJP leader Subramanian Swamy, who is believed to have helped the MP draft his response to the showcause notice.
Sources said Azad built his defence around the argument that he had not named Jaitley or any other partyman on the issue and that the BJP did not depute Jaitley to be the DDCA head.
In the letter, he stated that he had told party chief Amit Shah and general secretary Ram Lal during a meeting that Jaitley was not BJP's representative in the DDCA. He claimed that he had told Shah that he was willing to hand over all documents regarding irregularities in the DDCA in a joint meeting with Jaitley but got no response.
"Since neither called back, I assumed that a cricketing matter had no relation with any party activity and that I will be well within the norms of discipline if I did not name anybody in the party. I did not name Jaitley or any party person," he said in the letter.
Taking on Jaitley directly, the 53-year-old former cricketer-turned-politician, who joined the BJP in 1993, stated in the reply: "Not one office-bearer apart from Jaitley has reason to feel aggrieved by my or the cricketers' (Bishan Singh Bedi and others) complaint of wrongdoings in DDCA… I do not understand how an individual who has chosen to involve himself in activities that have no connection with the party can later claim the shield of party discipline when instances of wrongdoing in that body are raised and proved."
The reply added: "In case he chose to be the DDCA president he was opening himself to all associated risks that are entitled in running an organisation and that he could not claim the shield of party position if he got implicated in any mismanagement, fraud and irregularity."
The four video recordings attached to the reply include that of his press conference on December 20 in which he first publicly raised the allegation of corruption in the DDCA.
The MP also pointed out that he had been raising this issue for long and the three BJP presidents during that period also realised that cricket had no connection with party activities and Jaitley's role in DDCA was his own concern. He challenged the BJP to present newspaper reports on his "attacks" on party's leadership post BJP's rout in Bihar "despite the rigorous campaign led by the Prime Minister" there.
He reminded the party that he had never "defamed" the party or its office bearers, as cited in Shah's letter suspending him from primary membership of the party. "…I have been a loyal party soldier for last 22 years and I owe my success and identity to BJP." He urged the leadership to "terminate the proposed disciplinary proceedings against me so that I may resume work as a proud member and MP of BJP".
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text: Giant Gallic telco France-Telecom-Orange has jumped for "Glee," with Orange licensing the hit U.S. series for its five-channel Orange Cinema Series premium paybox.Deal was struck with Twentieth Century Fox TV Distribution. OCS' pay TV window kicks in about 12 months before a terrestrial broadcast network bow. Airing in June on OCS' Cinehappy family channel, "Glee" is OCS' flagship summer offer, with large pay potential on Orange's budding mobile TV services. "It's both comedy and music-orientated so since we are more than just a pay TV operator, we can play 'Glee' on two levels: TV and music," said Herve Payan, senior VP, Orange Content Division, Tuesday at Cannes Mip TV mart. In France, Orange has 1 million mobile TV clients.


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Nutritional supplement to improve eyesight released
Persavita Inc. has introduced a natural eye health product, Saffron 2020. The supplement is meant to maintain eyesight and potentially prevent against age-related macular degeneration.
The key ingredient is "super spice" saffron that has been indicated to improve vision in patients with a dry form of AMD. The supplement also includes resveratrol and other vitamins.
"We know Saffron 2020 is special, and we are thrilled to reach this milestone" said Persavita CEO Dr. Mahmood Piraee, Ph.D., PharmD. "We've witnessed amazing outcomes among those who take Saffron 2020, and the patent allows Persavita to offer it to more people suffering from AMD or trying to maintain their general eye health."


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In the publishing world, Jason Pinter has sat on both sides of the desk. As an editor, first with Warner and Crown's Three Rivers Press, then at St. Martin's, Pinter saw his share of the good, the bad, and the ugly as far as submissions were concerned. Pinter, however, wanted to write fiction–gritty, fast-paced urban novels. He sold the first of his thrillers in a three-book deal with MIRA, an imprint for Harlequin/Mills & Boon, a publisher best known for their success in the romance genre and looking to increase the male quotient of their author list.
MIRA's faith in Pinter paid off. His debut thriller, THE MARK, hit a bullseye for MIRA and climbed the bestseller lists. His followup novel, THE GUILTY (released Feb. 26), features the same protagonist from THE MARK, Henry Parker, a Gen-Y reporter caught in a web of deceit and violence.
Pinter is also blogmaster of the highly-regarded Man In Black blog, which features tidbits from the world of publishing from both a writer's and an editor's perspective, and a founding member of Killer Year, an anthology which features the hottest new voices in thriller/noir fiction.
We are pleased to present part one of our interview with Jason Pinter.
Q: Tell us about your road to publication.
JP: It began on a gloomy night on route 666…no wait, that was Stephen King's road to publication. The first thing I ever really tried to have published was a kind of literary suspense mishmash novel called THE REAL LIFE OF JOHN GILLIS, about a bartender who decides to write a memoir in order to get his stalled life back on track. The bartender then finds his life being manipulated by a literary agent in order to make his life more "salable," while his idealistic assistant juggles her feelings for him with her desire to see him succeed. I managed to get an agent for the book, but shockingly most publishers didn't think people wanted to read a somewhat critical novel about the publishing industry. Not that I blame them; publishing itself is as glamorous as shopping at H&M.
While GILLIS was on submission, I knew I wanted to write a true suspense novel, a thriller that I hoped would stand out. This was around the time that the DA VINCI CODE craze was peaking, so I decided my thriller would be without codes or puzzles, no ancient temples or secret societies, just a breakneck story without bells or whistles or feather boas. Though GILLIS never sold, my agent was very supportive and encouraging. Soon I began work on HERO OF THE DAY, starring a young reporter named Henry Parker. That book became THE MARK, and it was a dream come true when it was sold in a three book deal, my publisher desiring for it to be the first in a series.
Q: Your debut thriller THE MARK, received rave reviews and shot up the bestseller lists. Was it difficult writing a follow up novel to such a successful book?
JP: I think success is all relative. I was thrilled with the critical reception, and think my publisher did a great job supporting it. But it's only one book, and from the beginning I really wanted to look at writing as a career. And unless you're Harper Lee, careers aren't made on one book. (and no, I'm not Harper Lee) Writing THE GUILTY was actually pretty easy. The storyline for the book came to me while I was writing THE MARK, and I decided that if THE MARK didn't sell, this story would be the backbone for my next novel. And if THE MARK did sell, it would make a great backbone for the next Henry Parker novel. Thankfully the latter happened, and I was able to take a story I loved and populate it with characters I wanted to write more about. I think THE GUILTY is a more layered, more complex book than THE MARK. And as much as I'm proud of THE MARK, I think this book allowed me to flex my muscles a bit and offer readers something both familiar and different at the same time.
Q: What's the trick to creating characters you DO want to write more about over the course of a series? Making cast members vastly different from one another? Creating loads of juicy backstory and secrets?
JP: I think the characters have to be interesting enough to make you want to read more about them. In THE MARK, I touched on a lot of things, planted seeds if you will, regarding aspects of Henry's life that I knew wouldn't be explored until later on in the series. Something about the characters needs to compel you, the author, to want to keep writing stories about them. Whether you identify with them to some extent, or they're in a certain profession that can support several stories, or they're the kind of character whose personality just keeps getting them into trouble, you need a reason to keep going back to the well. To me, Henry and Amanda, as well as other supporting characters, interested me enough so that I hoped I would be able to write more about them, and I feel fortunate to have that opportunity
Q: You said, "I think THE GUILTY is a more layered, more complex book than THE MARK. And as much as I'm proud of THE MARK, I think this book allowed me to flex my muscles a bit and offer readers something both familiar and different at the same time." Would you say that you grew as a writer between these books? How? And in which ways will you continue to strive for growth?
JP: THE GUILTY was a more complicated story. THE MARK was, as its heart, a straightforward, no apologies chase novel. I wanted it to take place of a short period of time, with no superficial bells or whistles. Just suspense from the get go. THE GUILTY required a lot more research in order to speak about certain historical issues with a sense of authenticity. Additionally, there were a few errors in THE MARK, mostly of the geographical manner, that upset me. So I wanted to make sure I grew not just as a writer, but as a professional. As for growth, it's important that no two of my books are the same. Each one will tell a different story and affect the characters in different ways. And each one also speaks, without preaching I hope, to something a little deeper as well.
Q: In THE MARK, you unpack the pitfalls of celebrity, both contemporary (in a Paris Hilton doppelganger) and historical (in Billy the Kid). What drew you toward exploring the cult of celebrity in your novel?
JP: A lot of it comes from frustration, actually, with our culture's obsession with celebrity, and how it seems to reward and recognize banality and ignorance much more than courage and decency. Billy the Kid was one of the first anti-heroes in American history. And despite being a mass-murderer, more books and films have been produced about the Kid than just about any figure in our nation's history. Billy was, to a large extent, the first person to inspire "yellow journalism." At the same time, a lot of people, then and now, view him as kind of a romantic hero, especially since in a way he was forced into violence by people more evil than he was. I thought it would be fascinating to take a character like that, someone both extraordinarily violent and cold-blooded yet whose motivations, in a way, could be understood, and place him in New York in 2008.
Q: Your novels are fast-paced, with shocking plot-twists and high-stakes, and you chose to tell it in two POV's (first and third). Why did you make that choice, and what are some advantages to using different POV's in the same novel?
JP: I used it in THE MARK for two reasons. First, because I wanted my supporting characters to have a voice, for their motivations to be understood. Even the so-called "villains" have real motivations for what they do, and I thought hearing part of the story in their voice was important to make the characters more believable. The second was, simply, to build tension. Often you'll see other characters doing something Henry and Amanda aren't aware of, so if you know they're about to walk into a buzz saw you'll be biting your nails and sweating to figure out just how the heck they're going to get out of it alive. Kind of like the unwitting babysitter who goes down to the basement to inspect a strange noise, while everyone knows some psycho with a knife the size of Florida is waiting down there.
Q: Your publisher MIRA Books, a Harlequin imprint, is known for publishing romantic suspense, contemporary and historical romances. In fact, part of your publicity campaign is a stop on eHarlequin.com. Has being a male author of gritty thrillers for a publishing empire built on romances been a strange ride for you or has it given you unexpected advantages?
JP: Part of the reason MIRA appealed to me as a publisher was their success in building suspense writers, like Alex Kava, as well as the lure of being published by a house in the midst of becoming a big-time player in that genre. MIRA hasn't been around that long, and having worked in publishing I know that nowhere in a writer's contract does it say that just because you're being published by so-and-so does it guarantee you'll be a success or get the support your book needs. MIRA made it clear from the onset they wanted to support my books, and as someone who looked at writing as a career rather than 'one and done,' having that support was invaluable. They didn't just consider THE MARK a book, but considered me as an author as well. And I think there's a huge distinction there.
Q: Is there an advantage to hooking up with a newer publishing house? What? And: In what specific ways did MIRA make their long-term intentions clear to you? What did they say/do that made you feel, "Yes. Here's a publisher I can count on in the long haul"?
JP: It really depends on each book and situation. While there is something great about being with a relatively new imprint, at the same time you want to be sure your publisher has the right distribution, good relationships with accounts, that the publicists have contacts, etc… You can be at a new imprint and have great success, or be at a more prestigious imprint and get lost in the shuffle.
At the same time, many imprints, like Knopf for example, have that reputation for a reason. Going with a publisher just because they're new, or just because of their reputation, is doing your book a disservice. You need to decide what situation is best for your book, right now, and for your career. MIRA appealed to me at first because of both their desire to publish THE MARK as the first in a series, but also in their commitment to support in terms of marketing and co-op. Again I'm fortunate they chose to do that. And recently they extended my contract for four more books (seven in total). So knowing they have such an investment in time and effort in me makes my job as a writer easier, since I can concentrate on the books without too much worry for the near future. Of course nothing in this business should be taken for granted.
In part two of our interview with Jason Pinter, we discuss Pinter's writing process, his perspectives as an editor, and the pitfalls of becoming the "next big thing" in publishing.
About Kathleen Bolton
Kathleen Bolton is co-founder of Writer Unboxed. She writes under a variety of pseudonyms, including Ani Bolton.She has written two novels as Cassidy Calloway: Confessions of a First Daughter, and Secrets of a First Daughter--both books in a YA series about the misadventures of the U.S. President's teen-aged daughter, published by HarperCollins, and Tamara Blake, for the novel Slumber.


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As it's the time of the month when he sales charts come out, usually someone stands up and says "WHY ARE THERE NO DIGITAL CHARTS?!??!?" and it's true, we don't know the numbers, but it's easy to make a snapshot chart from the top in-app purchases and other automatically generated lists. Brigid Alverson has been doing just that n a weekly basis for Good E-Reader
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Why Is It Still Confusing That I'm a Woman and I Like Football?
If I added up the time I spend watching football, researching players, and writing weekly fantasy recaps for my league, it would probably be at least a part-time job.
So, here we are. After nearly two months of grueling playoff action, the hockey postseason is finally over. The Stanley Cup is back in Chicago, most likely bobbing gaily down Clark Street on river of booze and piss like a jolly tugboat. You'll have to wait until September to see your next NHL game.
But hockey fans, don't fret! There's still a sport going on, and it's a doozy, because the players and the spectators are one and the same. It's called "separating the 'true' fans from the 'fake' fans", and it's going to be played nonstop through the next year at least.
When any team wins a big championship, there's always a backlash against "bandwagon fans," (the ones who claim to be super-devoted but couldn't name their team's backup goalie). But for female hockey fans, there is an added layer of suspicion and snobbishness, and unfortunately, it usually comes from other women. I am speaking, of course, of puckslut-shaming .
For the uninitiated, a puckslut (or, to use a gentler term, "puck bunny"), in the most reprehensible sense of the word, is a hockey groupie. She doesn't care about the traditions or skills inherent in the game; she is strictly in it for the dudes. A stereotypical puck slut is the girl at the game in a pink hockey sweater (always with the name of either the captain or the hottest first-liner printed on the back), wearing false eyelashes and high heels.
She doesn't really watch the game; she texts, tweets and stalks the glass behind the bench. She shoots selfies of herself in front of the scoreboard but can't tell you what the tally is after the final buzzer sounds.
For many female hockey fans, she is to be shamed, avoided and ridiculed, lest she sully the careful image they've built for themselves as dignified fans whose love and interest in the game runs deeper than which defenseman they can end up boning. The fear of being labeled a puckslut is so strong that female hockey fans feel pressured into becoming statistics-spouting superfans, just to prove they're in it for the long haul.
Herein lies the conundrum of the female fan: there's no middle ground allowed. It's very difficult for a lady to simply be a casual fan, she has to be a rabidly serious devotee or nothing. Says my friend and fellow hockey-lover Amanda: "Know too much and you just want to impress dudes. Know too little and you just want to stare at hunky dudes." It's a lose-lose.
Here's the thing, though: While it may on the surface seem like hating on vapid, boy-crazy chicks might be something every self-respecting feminist should do, it in fact is the opposite. Puckslut-shaming is still slut-shaming, and it's ultimately sexist.
Sports fans should be able to be sports fans for whatever reason they like. Maybe you watch sports because your dad was a huge White Sox fan and you're the sentimental type. Maybe you dig the knuckle-whitening drama that comes from witnessing fights or shootouts or extra innings. Maybe you're just really into John Buccigross's twitter. And maybe you like hockey because you've got a thing for burly Canadians with missing teeth.
I still get defensive when someone talks about whether or not a person is a "real" fan or not. I became a Blackhawks fan just two years ago after I moved to Chicago. Homesick and lonely, hockey gave me something to talk to strangers I met on the train, at bars and at parties. People say the Windy City is a football town, and that might be true, but hockey, at that point, was the most Chicagoriffic sport I could find. Like the city, it was ugly yet beautiful, brutal yet graceful. Standing in a crowded bar along with 50 other people in ugly parkas, clutching cans of Old Style, I felt like I finally fit in. That's enough of a reason for me.
Listen, assholes. You know that when you're up on your high horse, scorning other fans, you're ultimately talking about a group of overpaid dudes in one color shirt trying to keep a ball or puck away from another group of overpaid dudes in another color shirt, right? You know sports are, at the end of the day, completely silly and inconsequential, right? So at the end of the day, saying "pucksluts" like sports for a stupid reason is the raven chiding blackness, right? Everyone likes sports for stupid reasons. Even the loftiest of reasons is a stupid reason, because sports are inherently ridiculous.
We need to do away with the term "pucksluts." We could call them "muscular butt enthusiasts." We could make like Principal McGee from Grease and call them "athletic supporters." But I think we should just call them hockey fans.