Nintii

President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe ... because no matter happened, what he would always ensure that we humans would somehow win the vote if the aliens decided to land and settle here ... as he has successfully seen to it the "seventh" time around in his own country.

Good question ... the developers added the tri-beam's to the Overlord's as a greater enemy with a more effective weapon because of the DLC - Broken Steel - just to make it tougher. Without posting spoilers I'd just like to say that variants of the tri-beam laser are to be found in Fallout 3 long before Broken Steel ... as a matter of fact one specific laser rifle fires "nine" beams. This tells me that laser technology is still very much alive even after the Nuclear exchange took place that wrecked the world. Anyhow, to the main question, if you "study" for want of a better word, the super mutant history you will find that the super mutants on the East and West Coasts are not from the same group who merely migrated in both directions. They have separate origins ... the super mutants in the Capital Wasteland, according to the historians were first developed by the scientists in Vault 87. Though they are not that intelligent, many of them still retain a fair measure of intelligence ... the mutant you speak to in vault 87 might not be rocket science material but "it" isn't that dense either. And so according to the historians, though they have limited intelligence they are still able to; 1) organise themselves into raiding parties, like Galaxy News Radio etc., 2) they also have the knowledge as to how to turn a human into a mutant with the FEV virus, as you well know that one of their main goals is that they're constantly trying to make more of themselves by capturing more humans - that's if they aren't hungry enough to eat them first. Which means they have at least a fair amount of understanding of biological matters, and, 3) therefore, it's logical that if they still have that measure of intelligence, then it's fair to assume that they also have an understanding of science etc., enough for them to create laser type weaponry. Therefore, my take on your question is that the super mutants created the Overlords and also modified the laser weapons into tri-beam lasers.

If you play the "vanilla" game (no mods at all), you're going to discover a number of immediate things; 1) The game weapons might not pack the punch you want. 2) The overall lack of ammo (even if you do by chance find a weapon that you like). 3) The lack of "caps" - the in game cash. 4) Lousy armour and, 5) An early player home or base. 6) And lastly, your overall character's look - your hair, eyes, skin, face etc. Let me start off by saying that you can solve 4 out of the 6 issues above without using any mods at all. You can do this by entering in "console commands", let me explain. Let's say you wanted to use a shotgun, in the game there is a unique shotgun called "The Terrible Shotgun", it's an up close high damage weapon ... to get this gun and it's related ammo you would do the following; 1) Hit the tilde button (while playing the game), and then type the following "player.additem" ... you always use this "prefix", if you'd like to call it that, whenever adding something to the game through the console (keyboard). 2) In this case it's "The Terrible Shotgun" and the code for the weapon is ... 0006B534. It will look like this ... player.additem 0006b534 1 ... the "1" behind it is for how many of the item you want, and then hit enter button and the weapon will appear in your inventory. Now to get the weapons ammo you would hit the tilde button again and repeat ... player.additem. and the ammo code is ... 00028EEA. So it would look like this ... player.additem 00028eea 1000 ... the "1000" is for how many rounds of the ammunition you want ... you can change it to any amount you'd like ... and then hit the enter button. Now you've got a weapon and ammo without using any mod whatsoever. Here is a link to the codes available (this is just one of many) ... http://vgstrategies.about.com/od/pccheatsf/a/Fallout3Weapons.htm There are sites that have complete lists of weapons, ammo and armour. If you go for Mods, go this route First off, download NMM (Nexus Mod Manager), this is going to save you a lot of tears and frustration. For me the big one is a decent, central base of operation to sleep and store stuff etc., and the best one in my humble opinion is ... The Mini Hideout by Rayek ... http://fallout3.nexusmods.com/mods/6394//? it's simply awesome. Then as far as weapons, armour etc., goes, check the Nexus Mods page and choose your poison. So whether you're going to go, straight vanilla, console codes or mods, remember to just enjoy the game.

@ MajKrAzAm ... Talking of immigrants, I have family who stay in Boston ... when in the States they're left wing, they vote left and support Obama etc. These are the same people who used to criticize me when I chose same sex relationships. Yet they have conservative mindsets. The reason they do not vote right and I suspect the same reason goes for many immigrants is because the right wing in the US comes across as old style racist, the very thing they hate. I reckon the moment the right in the US begins to include immigrants in their patriotic, conservative, paternalistic, family-orientated lifestyle (not saying that the left is not family orientated), but the moment the right does this, the just as conservative immigrant will begin to join their ranks. But as long as they continue with their "verkramte" attitudes in the press they will continue to drive people away because it seems like they're promoting old style "white" politics. Having said that, this could always change overnight if some nut job decides to launch an attack on the States like on the 9/11 attack ... then the entire US goes into war mode and the right wing snatches the poles and spends another good few terms in office.

Alright so I've hunted down your story after the link you provided failed ... and lo and behold, it had sweet nothing, zip, zero, niks, nada, to do with "non-professional people owning wild animals" ... at all. The python in question escaped from it's enclosure/tank in a Pet Shop in New Brunswick Canada and made it's way to an apartment above the shop where it killed two children. A far cry from people with the "need for penis extensions" and "nuts who masturbate with uzzi's" ... don't you think ? :laugh: Me thinks you need to concentrate on the "animal" at hand ... pardon the pun. Owning exotics (snakes and other reptiles), in my province is fairly easy and no permit is required, it's only the indigenous ones that require a permit and that's easy enough, all I need to do is join a Herpetological society. As to the social ramifications of owning said creatures, indigenous Africans are terrified of snakes ... a lot of folklore and superstition has seen to that, so it's predominantly the Euro-Africans like myself who keep them, though I prefer "normal" pets like dogs.

Five times only ? My word, dear Watson ... what a brilliant deduction ... I lost count at six, when I last stuck my finger into one of those dykes. Yes indeed, it was murder most foul when the factories flooded and the strange sausages wearing wristwatches ran for high ground. Have you ever seen a sausage jump ? I thought they were drugged, but no, I discovered that it's quite natural for them to do the "bendy bit" and then straighten out again ... memory they call it. You know when you squeeze a sponge in your hand and then release it, it bounces back into it's former shape ... memory. Btw, rubber especially Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer has an excellent memory though the trick is to keep the black carbon low so as not to create an electrical circuit that ultimately promotes rust and would have been simply brilliant as a plug in the dyke. But well you know how it goes, too many plugs not enough holes and somebodies got to pay for it all ... equals murder.

I find laws that try and "make me love someone" to be extremely offensive, because I love whom I choose to love, that's my right ... but in all honesty if certain laws were not passed that somehow protect people then many, many more would be suffering violence right now. We all make mistakes, but if we on the ground do our bit to try and close the gaps between each other ... now I'm not advocating we all just hug and kiss like it's all ok, but if we at least try ... try ... then that's a start.

Aha, so my clever introduction of virgins fooled you ! And no, China was not their place of origin that was in fact a red herring. Knowing your train of thought that the mass marketer of massive mass ... would be able to produce such a scarce commodity I injected the term "extra" ... so got you there hahahaha. But I must admit that a plastic virgin version is on the cards and it's coming from Holland where they grow tulips. And flowers as you very well know are the true commodity.

It's all perspective, you have it if you believe you have it.

Once upon a time I found a razor, and so I shaved and shaved and shaved ... everything I could see and everything I could not ... bald felt good, bald was delicious ... so I upped the ante and poured on a litre of extra virgin. I slipped and hit my head on the bath ... concussion is a b*tch. I'm better now. Anyhow, yesterday my BF spoke to me like dirt ... but hah, I'm not one to bear grudges, I've decided to walk in the opposite spirit ... so I invited him over for a bit of "us" time tonight ... I'm definitely going to treat him right ... Bought a few things from the Mall this morning ... a lovely big bunch of bright red roses, a bottle of Jack, some really yummy oysters, a pair of rubberized shoes from the hardware and of course a razor and some oil ... I hope the rat, oops sorry, I uh, hope my shaky-legs-when-drunk hunk of a man likes candlelight in the bathroom ... (@ Maharg67 this kind of weird ?)

Winston Smith felt truly liberated when he was totally enslaved ... so perhaps illusion is not even needed, just a mental paradigm shift as to what is and what is not ... and shazam ... you believe ... yes master my beating is my reward ... I love you.

You are the machine in the workplace. Watch the link provided - the whole thing - and then tell me if this does not scare you ... you are being numbered, monitored and "re-educated". Your freedom is being challenged from a young age and as a parent you're powerless to act and if you do you will get nowhere. The "free will" you think you have is the type that is cooked up by the person who controls your universe. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ErL9zPHdH4A I would then follow up by watching this one ... the result of "Outcomes based education" ... wow is all I can say ... and it's spreading ... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJUT7peGRo4

interesting list well here's my response; 1) Technology has increased ............and so have new ways of destruction, annihilation and murder. 2) Health and life expectancy ........... so true but lifestyles, mental illness and stress related diseases have gone through the ceiling. 3) Education increase ....................... yes sirree, but so has stupidity, with all the FREE information out there we should all be gazillionaires. Are you aware of all the "dumbing down" that's out there ... the increase of education has only served to show how dumb society really is. Read Charles Sykes. Idiocracy more real than we realise. Do you realise that only a couple of books on stupidity have ever been written and half of them are anecdotal. 4) Democracy has increased ............ And so has death by dictatorship, failed political systems and war in general. 5) Free will has increased .................. And so has spying on Society. At the end of the day for all of our advances we're still holding ourselves back ... maybe it would e better to have a society run by AI and hook up to an alter ego or a Surrogate. We can always end the "robots" out to beat up the enemy. Didn't Einstein say something like "stupidity being as infinite as the universe ?"

I have not been here for a few days so it took me by surprise at all the comments and I'll try to work through some of them that grab my attention ... for a start to : @ Lisn. ... Yes, it is quite sad that people have tried to ruin his legacy - to their shame - what is worse is when it's family. @ Kendo2 ... P W Botha the President of the time was a hardline racist who would have perpetuated his fierce resistance of anything Communist, Marxist or otherwise with violent force no matter the cost. My father and uncles etc., all received their "call up" papers during their last year in high school ... and were all drafted into the army, navy and air force when they left school. Many went to the "Border" (South West Africa - now Namibia and Angola) and fought in the Bush War, and killed the "enemy", Russians, East Germans, Angolans, SWAPO, ANC etc. No African nation south of the equator was safe from P W Botha, and together with Israel he built a couple of nukes and according to my dad he would have used them if necessary. He also ruled the National Party with an iron fist, however, he had a minister in his cabinet called F W De Klerk who was well liked by the public (whites) and on a day when PW (nicknamed the "Great Crocodile", I kid you not), suffered a stroke FW stepped in and wrested control and deposed PW. It is he who opened real dialogue with the ANC and it is both he and Nelson Mandela who paved the road to peace in this country. THAT, is why I consider Nelson Mandela to be a great man, because he "chose" the path of peace instead of civil war to build a new nation. There is hardly a white person in this country (though the Right wing does still exist though not publicly) who does not have a great affection for Nelson Mandela, he was a tremendous nation builder and the efforts he made at reconciliation between the races is absolutely stellar. And yes, Mandela did join the SACP (South African Communist Party), but that is beside the point, as he opted for something other than communism in practice. @ platton ... I understand where you're coming from but you're confusing the current idiot government with Nelson Mandela. @ rizon72 ... the country is now worse. @ TRoaches ... Correct on many points, especially that Apartheid was capitalist ... that is just twisted.

Nelson Mandela ... Today this hero of liberation and peace lies in a hospital bed hooked up to a life support system and is monitored 24/7 by team of doctor’s who watch his every breath. It’s sad to realise that he is going die but not even people of his stature can live forever, we are all headed down that road. The big debate is whether or not they should turn off the machines and let him go. The whole country is waiting with baited breath, we have all come to accept the reality that “Madiba” doesn’t have much time left. Had he passed away suddenly that shocking news of his sudden death would have caused tremendous upheaval and possibly chaos. That it has not happened in this fashion and the fact that we have been “acclimatised” to his gradual decline in health has been a blessing in disguise though painful to his family and friends. The most shocking thing has been his families behaviour concerning his legacy. His grandson has had three of the bodies of Nelson Mandela’s children dug up and “reburied” in another area where he is building a cultural centre and a lodge ... for tourists, yup it’s all about money babe. Subsequently Graca’ Mandela (Nelson’s) wife and others have gone to court to have the bodies “retuned”. This is a quote from one of the local papers ... (enjoy the madness) ... “At a press conference at his Mvezo homestead last week, Mandla Mandela boasted of the influence of his grandfather, who had put the kibosh on his ambitions of becoming a DJ and instead urged him to study politics and become Mvezo’s chief. Chief Mandela then accused two of his brothers of being illegitimate, and said that one of them had impregnated his wife. Meanwhile, a war of words has erupted between Chief Mandla and the head of the Thembu clan, King Buyelekhaya Dalindyebo, who is by tradition also Nelson Mandela’s tribal leader. Following the dispute over the graves, the king called into question Mandla Mandela’s chieftaincy and then declared him stripped of the title—even though it was the king himself who formally appointed him head of Mvezo village. Mandla Mandela, rejecting his dismissal, hit back at the marijuana-loving King Dalindyebo, saying that whatever the king was smoking had affected his ability to think clearly. Other royal family members have asked President Jacob Zuma to dethrone King Dalindyebo. It is all a royal mess that is likely to rumble on for some time yet.” End quote. And now the pot smoking King Buyelekhaya is on a regular rant against the President calling him, “a drunkard and a parasite born from a parasite and a silly little tribal Zulu boy”. This is causing a lot of tension between the Zulu’s and the Xhosa’s (Nelson Mandela’s tribe), as they are old rivals and have no stress in shedding each others blood. The money, the “who’s inheriting what”, the tribal power conflicts and the illegitimate children that are popping up all over the show would all be very funny if it wasn’t so sad. Yet despite all of this Nelson Mandela refuses to go quietly into the night, he’s hanging in there and we are all rooting for him, yet we are all aware that it could be anytime. I could take this topic in so many directions, what do you think, maybe it’s just best as an article, a commentary, you decide.

New Vegas was way too cute for me ... aghhh where to begin ... anyhow, I hated the music and especially, "This is Mr New Vegas", I would have shot him first if I ever found him. The DLC's were laughable except for the Lonesome Road which I thought was just brill. The dialogue was better than F3 but the rest of the game really defeated it's good points ... say no more. F3 had that dark apocalyptic feel, that lonesome warrior survivalist atmosphere, that's what made the game outshine NV by far.

When you do the Point Lookout DLC you will be asked to find a mysterious book in one of the quests and it's linked to the underground pillar in the Dunwich bldg. You must burn it or something like that if I remember correctly, it's supposed to be "evil".

Though he might be viewed as a traitor he will not be charged as one, he's being charged firstly as a "thief" for stealing Gov. property and then under the Espionage Act. Also, when you say, "people all over the place" consider Snowden as a traitor, that's not necessarily true ... there are plenty who consider him a patriot (within the US) and multitudes more abroad consider him a hero.

It all depends on where you want go the specimen ... some are static others not ... are you a mere observer or do you have an agenda ?

If I was him I'd go to Zimbabwe ... no one hates the West more than Pres. Robert Mugabe ... and seeing that the British are sitting on top of Robert Mugabe's hate list (along with everything Western), as an icon of Western corruption he'll fit in quite nicely there. Ah yes, nothing like sipping a good French brandy as the huge red sun goes down over Lake Kariba and the cry of the fish eagle echoes across the waters ... *klink* cheers.

A different angle though not necessarily acceptable one ... We are all too familiar with terroristic acts of violence, revolutions, wars etc., that are happening in the world at the moment, and these are widely publicised on the daily news via the printed media, radio, television, and the web ... yet beyond what is "commonly" broadcast is the massive "Cyber War" that is raging all around us. This "war" is not really something which has captured our attention ... if I were to ask you to name any ten (10) "conflicts" that are taking place or had recently taken place, I'm almost certain that NOT ONE OF THEM YOU WOULD MENTION WOULD BE A CYBER CONFLICT. Right ? Did you know that Iran has the fourth largest "cyber army" in the world ? And here for your reading pleasure ..... http://english.farsnews.com/newstext.php?nn=9107141074 The constant attacks against Western interests from even afar afield as China are a constant fact of life. Now, I've said all of this not to excuse ANY governments (legal/illegal) activities against both it's own citizens or those foreign but at least this opens up a whole new front, a broader vista if you will, of the kind of unseen conflict that is taking place and the measures which are being employed to try and counter act "the enemy". Perhaps now our understanding (though not necessarily acceptance) of such programs used by the NSA like PRISM and the German "Staatstrojaner" make a bit more sense. Let's face it, "the weapons of our warfare are not carnal", war has evolved, we no longer smash each other in the face with a rock, mace or spear ... with the invention of firearms we moved to another level ... "And behold they looked upon their guns, bombs and tanks and said, "Cor blimey, now I can kill that dingaling from over here". And so on and so forth until the nuclear age ... where all we had to do was press the big red button and say "kiss my cannoli" from the warm comfort of our secure concrete bunker and watch our enemies lights go out. Every leap in technology saw the battlefield and it's weapons change. Today, thank heavens we've moved away from the big red button ... and we now mainly fight on the new evolutionary battlefield a type of conflict that is largely fought behind that which we can see ... major Political and Economic wars rage out there ... I no longer have to send my older brother to beat you up with his baseball bat or have him shoot you, I can do it with my computer. Welcome to the new wars. And welcome to the new ways we fight those wars ... um sorry if I tread upon your rights and freedoms, I uh, will try not to get caught doing it again ... that I promise you.

Remember this gem ... back in 2012 "Information released last month by the German government shows that between 2008-2011, representatives from the FBI; the U.K.’s Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA); and France’s secret service, the DCRI, were among those to have held meetings with German federal police about deploying “monitoring software” used to covertly infiltrate computers. The disclosure was made in response to a series of questions tabled by Left Party Member of Parliament Andrej Hunko and reported by German-language media. It comes on the heels of an exposé by the Chaos Computer Club, a Berlin-based hacker collective, which revealed in October that German police forces had been using a so-called "Bundestrojaner” (federal Trojan) to spy on suspects". But it is the German government’s response to a series of questions recently submitted by Hunko that is perhaps the most revealing to date. In a letter from Secretary of State Ole Schröder on March 6, which I have translated, Hunko was informed that German federal police force, the Bundeskriminalamt (BKA), met to discuss the use of monitoring software with counterparts from the U.S., Britain, Israel, Luxemburg, Liechtenstein, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Switzerland, and Austria. The meetings took place separately between Feb. 19, 2008, and Feb. 1, 2012. While this story has been covered in the German media, it hasn’t received the English-language attention it deserves. Both the FBI and Britain’s SOCA are said to have discussed with the Germans the “basic legal requirements” of using computer-monitoring software. The meeting with SOCA also covered the “technical and tactical aspects” of deploying computer infiltration technology, according to Schröder’s letter. France’s secret service and police from Switzerland, Austria, Luxemburg, and Liechtenstein were separately briefed by the BKA on its experiences using Trojan computer infiltration. The use of highly intrusive surveillance technologies in any context demands some level of democratic scrutiny. How many police and government agencies are sanctioned to use hacking and Trojans as a means to surveil their citizens, how frequently does it happen, on what grounds, and with what oversight? The fallout from Germany’s Bundestrojaner scandal may have shed some much-needed light on this murky world, but still we are left with many more questions than answers. (Quotes from Slate ... a Division of The Washington Post company) Well in the light of the Snowden revelations it seems that we have just a few more answers ... don't we ! This is merely a continuation, another ripple in the water, so to speak, of the ongoing deceit we face from an ever encroaching attempt at organised society ... wonder what's next ... oh yes, the chip, LOL. Oops silly me, that's only going to happen after the universal Patriot Act. And for your entertainment I present ... ttp://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/jun/10/patriot-act-nsa-surveillance-review

He who flings mud loses ground ... he who flings mud and sends ricin letters goes to the bottomless pit.

@ Lisn ... To be sure, this is no easy task and I don't claim to have the answers but I can say this ... Well seeing that this is a war for hearts and minds, you as an individual, an American ... do what you do best, where you can and when you can. By this I mean WIN OVER in your daily life within your sphere of influence, the hearts and minds of the "people" who are most likely to become tomorrow's aggressors. Secondly, these mullahs etc., in the mosques across the US need to realise that if they are going to spread their "jihad" then they are going to spend the rest of their jihad life behind bars. Arrest them for inciting violence, arrest them, fine them, and jail them if they're spouting outright hatred. I ask you do you not think it is Un-American to want to kill Americans in a time of war and it is such a time ... damn right it is, it's treasonous ! Betraying the trust of your nation is treason. The Boston bombers didn't live in a vacuum they were influenced and according to their uncle that influence came about in the city of Boston. Now who was filling their minds with that junk ? A traitor. Arresting someone under the Laws that deal with treason is no violation whatsoever. I have a cousin living in Boston, they're fine but might not have been, it could have been personal.

Correct, because firstly ... you are fighting an ideology, which is an enemy intangible ... an illusive enemy, with no fixed address, who enters your realm of existence through every known channel ... radio, television, theatre, film, books, magazines, the internet etc. ... every common channel of communication. And to directly suppress this enemy you are going to strangle civil liberty and freedom. Besides, your approach is wrong ... you're attacking the fruit and not the root. This is a war for hearts and minds. To beat this enemy, or at very least slow this enemy down - without treading on the rights and freedoms of people - you have to go to the fields where this insidious fruit is planted. And wherever the "infectors" are found ... burn out the roaches ... where you can, by inflicting fines, jail sentences, or deportation ... threaten the death penalty if you have to, to all those who spread their DOCTRINES OF VIOLENCE. If you don't do this in your own backyard then you will eventually be faced with a growing mass of disillusioned people who will ultimately compromise to keep what they hold dear but will lose it in the process. I close with a quote from Ron Paul ... “Liberty is lost through complacency and a subservient mindset. When we accept or even welcome automobile checkpoints, random searches, mandatory identification cards, and paramilitary police in our streets, we have lost a vital part of our American heritage. America was born of protest, revolution, and mistrust of government. Subservient societies neither maintain nor deserve freedom for long.”