A sexy schoolgirl being spanked. Not a serious photo for a serious issue.
Should spanking kids be reintroduced back in to public schools as a form of punishment?
I think the lack of discipline is the major reason that public schools are so messed up in this day and age. Along, of course, with taking God out of public schools; thus not teaching kids the Ten Commandments, right from wrong, or to pray for others and treat others like they want to be treated.
So the Question of the Day for September 24, 2012 is, should schools bring spanking back?
My answer is yes. This is how schools were always run when my dad grew up, and back in those days kids were scared of breaking the rules and being physically punished. These days, the kids KNOW that there is NOTHING the school can do to hurt them. And kids that break the rules or bully other kids are overjoyed if they get suspended, it means they no longer have to go back to school! They see it as a vacation! If our parents survived just fine, why is it a no-no today? Doesn’t make any sense….
Spanking Kids, Abuse or Not? From The Rickie Lake Talkshow Part 1
I never knew that several U.S. states STILL ALLOW SPANKING in public schools. 31 states have abolished it, while 19 of them still spank kids. The Supreme Court ruled that spanking in schools is LEGAL, as long as the local laws allow it. Which is very interesting. Read this Fox News Story for more on a new case where a preteen girl was spanked by a male principle, which has caused an uproar. However they can only spank with parental permission, although the mother didn’t think the spanking would leave marks, or that it would be done by a male…
This was proposed by Daniel Pipes who is president of the Middle East Forum. And I believe this is a very good idea. To quote from the article,
“A Muhammad cartoon published each day, or Koranic desecrations on a quasi-regular basis, would make it harder for Islamists to mobilize Muslim mobs. Westerners could then once again treat Islam as they do other religions – freely, to criticize without fear.
That would demonstrate to Islamists that Westerners will not capitulate, that they reject Islamic law, that they are ready to stand up for their values.
So, this is my plea to all Western editors and producers: Display the Muhammad cartoon daily, until the Islamists become accustomed to the fact that we turn sacred cows into hamburger.”
… Are your soul and ears prepared for the blistering power of IAM from Becoming the Archetype? I think not.
I AM Review: Becoming the Archetype returns to show the kids how it’s done. With a brand-new lead vocalist, a whole new seat of background singing vocals (something BtA fans are used to ever since “The Physics of Fire”) and enough heavy tonnage to crush every bone in your body; these guys do not mess around. And they DO NOT disappoint.
I AM is easily one of the most anticipated and heavy-hitting Christian metal albums of the year, and this beast devours the death metal scene in fine fashion, while keeping to that melodic touch, poetic streak and God-praising intricacy that Becoming the Archetype is known for. Striking a homerun, I AM scores in all the areas that matter.
It is extremely heavy, deep growl-infused, clean-vocal singing prone when it matters, and shines through with lyrics that any other band would kill for.
Like albums past, the spotlight is on our Lord at all times, and Christian meatlheads will NOT go away empty handed. No, they will be headbanging down the street and into next year with this killer. The lyrics, I’m extremely happy to say, are the definite high-point in what is overall an incredible album from beginning to end. The intellectual meat is very thick on these bones. Just how BtA fans like it!
… I Am from Becoming the Archetype will be released in stores and online on September 18, 2012! PRE-ORDER IT!
Now for the song-by-song breakdown, with my individual song reviews as I listened to them for the first time.
Song #1: The Ocean Walker
I’m the type who loves albums to start off with a BANG. As such, this song left something to be desired. Even so, it is quite a beautiful piece, and thus it is suitable as an album opener if this is the type of song you dig. I am not a fan of the sung vocal style here, but it works fine. I think “Time Bender” would’ve been better placed in this spot as the album opener (it being the only song I heard pre-review copy), then again, Ocean Walker transitions nicely into Time Bender. Overall this a good song, but after listening to it as the first track, I feel like it (hopefully) is one of the weaker ones… [Ed note: And I was right in that assumption!]
Song #2: The Time Bender
Now this is IT! This song is flat out awesome in every single way possible. It not only melts the brain with awesomeness, but it gives you potent, intellectual words to chew on. Words that will stay with you long after the song has ended. Lines like, “I have seen you breath your last” and “I am holding your beating heart” are absolutely genius. This song is a winner and a AAA beast of as song. This song is the “Artificial Immortality” of I AM and this song proves that I AM delivers with exaclty what you want from Becoming the Archetype. You will NOT miss Jason Wisdom for one second after hearing this BtA masterpiece…. I love the guy, but this new vocalist Chris Heaton (formerly of Knoxville, TN based hardcore band “Dear Lovely”) has stepped properly into his shoes and filled them snugly. Buy this song!
Song #3: The Eyes of the Storm
Hol-y CRAP. That is my reaction after hearing this song. In true Becoming the Archetype fashion, this song is full of POWER. And the lyrics speak to God’s ability to both create and utterly destroy. But where many Christian metal bands would leave it at that… BtA takes the listener to the green on the other side of the pasture by telling them exactly WHY and for WHAT PURPOSE destruction is allowed by the triune Godhead. “To make your weak hearts quiver. To make you tremble. To create in you a sense of fear. To open your eyes to desperation.” Powerful stuff, and an equally awesome song to go along with it. This song is a definite winner and a heavy beast of a track.
Song #4: The Sky Bearer
*huff huff huff* Things keep getting better as we transition to this epic piece known as “The Sky Bearer”. The equally badass name is fitting, as this song has some flat out incredible lines. This song also features the first true solo on the album along with a powerful section of singing vocals that really put on the emotion and it is performed quite beautifully, especially once the heaviness kicks back in and the guitar really revvs up at just the right moment. Even still, I can’t help but feel that they could’ve done better on the clean vocals, just not a fan of this type of singing overall…. But I digress, it’s great for what it is and I can’t knock it. Singing in metal is often hit or miss, and I’d say this was a hit. The Sky Bearer really hammers home exactly how powerful our God is, whose might is beyond our wildest imaginings. And the lines truly give me chills. “I carried the sky on My back. All of the world had turned black. And stared into the mouth of Hell.” It doens’t get more epic! Overall, awesome song.
Song #5: The Machine Killer
Now THIS was unexpected. I was literally hit by a blast of shock as the first piano keys played, as I was expecting some of roughest metal headbanging to take place in a song with the title “The Machine Killer”… and didn’t notice the words “Instrumental” until the song started playing. I was literally picturing Terminator 2’s opening future with giant tank-tredding robots crushing skulls…. ahem. As such, that reality left me a bit wanting, until the final note of this very cool instrumental flipped the frown upside down. This is a great, beautiful, somewhat haunting little piece. It’s not overly complex, but hits all the right notes. A great track. I just miss my metal…. I think BtA should release a bonus full non-instrumental song version of this track just to give us music that REALLY suits the song title! Music that Arnold would be happy to kill to! *clears throat again* Moving on…
This song is all you need to listen to on this album and YOU WILL BUY IT.
This monster track absolutely kills in every way, shape and form. 10+++++ = 15 out of 10!
Like a double-edged sword, the lyrics cut to your very soul and leave you gasping for breath. So poignant and so powerful are the words to this song, that you’ll want to share it with everyone you come into contact with as soon as the final note plays. This song is absolute power, beautiful poetry, death, destruction, life and resurrection, all rolled into one. Color me blown away. I believe a song this amazing cannot be topped… BUY IT NOW!
Song #7: The Weapon Breaker
The middle of this song is absoloutely glorious. Just glorious. The song is a true death metaler unlike anything you’ve seen before from BtA (erm, well….). It’s brutal and yet slow in vocal style (except when it’s fast…. natch). “War Ender” also contains some badass lyrics: “The scars of your lives. And the sounds of your cries. Destruction/Obliteration.” I don’t really like the way this song ends however. And I’m not a big fan of the “All these shall see their…. end” sections, with the long drawn out pause before the word “end”. Even though it makes sense, it just kind of comes off as weak without the PUNCH that I feel was needed. This song is okay but not the best on the album I feel. But, even so, overall this is a great song, brutal and heavy as heck, just not quite up to the level of “The War Ender”. Which I feel is definitley the top, best song on the album so far (we shall see…). This song is among my least favorites, alongside “Ocean Walker”.
Song #8: The Planet Maker
Absolutely BEAUTIFUL. Like “End of the Age” on Becoming the Archetype’s Dichotomy album, this song has an air of worship about it that gives it true beauty… Outright worshiping our God is scarce within the metal world and we need more songs like this one. This song will make you happy to be alive and happy to serve the Maker of worlds. The music is brutal and yet has a joyous feel to it that must be heard to be believed and is absolutely wonderful. The vocals are as heavy as you get, the lyrics are powerful, and then the singing kicks in… and you’re in a place of worship as you stand in awe at the splendor of our Father. “New life is my occupation. New creatures of my creation. I make things that need making. I wake the worlds that need waking.” *in Shao Khan voice* OUTSTANDING.
I must note though that the singing, the clean vocals here, are much too high for my tastes. BUT, the juxtaposition with the heavy vocals once they kick in is absolutely fabulous and pulled off perfectly. Thus it fits really well and grew on me the more I raped the replay button (dirty…). Sooo, no complaints from me! This is my second favorite song on the record and an absolutely incredible track. Unless…..
Song #9: The Sun Eater
WOW. Once again the lyrics on this album are incredible, and they strike again with this powerful song written from the perspective of Jesus, the Mighty One who forever sits at the righthand of the Father. This song is POWERFUL, however it does not have the melodic beauty of The Planet Maker, instead it is all crush and crunch straight through. With clean vocals that sing, “I am the Light. I alone make the darkness bright”. So. Awesome. This song is incredible, although I’d put it behind “The War Ender” and “The Planet Maker” for third best song on the album. That only leaves the finale……
Song #10: I AM
PHEW. *wipes sweat off brow* Did I speak of power before? This song SWINGS IT HOME. Melodic, crushing, mind-blowing vocals, deep growls of the most metallic kind, and Biblical verse whose power cannot be ignored. Jesus Christ said, “I AM THAT I AM. Me and My Father are One”. It sends shudders down your spine, and this song will rock your world. The long intro is the icing on the cake.
However, watch out that you don’t cut your gums on that wooden toothpick sticking out, it’s sharp… ‘What in the heck does that mean?’ You say. Towards the end of the song, just as it’s badassery is about to tear you to shreds and eat you alive, comes an out-of-no-where STUPID, STUPID, STUPID talking section in the background as the music is pounding. This section is so hideous it completely 100% took me out of the moment. It is beyond lame, and is virtually a song killer. I almost started this song review with “Ugh”. That’s how bad it is.
Thankfully, and praise God, this song is so beyond incredible and absolutely awesome, with a completely redeeming ending, that one spikey sore spot doesn’t ruin that oh-so-sweet after taste. This song is a winner, and hands down the heaviest track on the album. A fitting end to an incredible musical masterpiece overall.
Indie Albums
* In Loving Memory of Everything… I Never Had – Demo released when the band was called “Nonexistant Failure” (Released: 2002)
* The Remnant Album – Self-released Indie Album when the band was called “The Remnant”, this was their debut self-titled album. (Released: 2003)
* Death, Destruction, and Mayhem – Demo as “The Remnant”, followed self-titled album before the band changed names to Becoming the Archetype (Released: 2004)
These Indie albums are VERY tough to find, even online. If I find them or can host them, I’ll let everyone know.
Romney is almost completely concealed in balloons along with his family at the RNC2012.
Was the RNC2012 (Republican National Convention) a success in your mind? Do you think the party succeeded in raising enough buzz with the public and/or giving undecided voters what they wanted to hear?
… The classic zombie scene is the cover of the Sega Saturn version of Resident Evil released in 1997.
This Resident Evil 1 (Saturn) EGM Review from issue #100 tells you what kind of stir the game caused back in late 1997/early 1998; August 31st 1997 to be exact.
This release came about a year following the original debut of the game on PS1 on March 30, 1996.
Resident Evil 1 (Saturn)
Publisher: Capcom
Developer: Capcom
EGM Preview In #97
Players: 1
Best Feature: The Gory Gameplay
Worst Feature: Voice Acting Of course
Awarded EGM Silver
8.0 From Sushi-X
Normally, I loathe to compare the same game on different platforms, unless it’s an arcade-to-console translation. In the case of Resident Evil for Saturn, however, an exception must be made. Resident Evil was made famous on Sony’s PlayStation; in fact, some say it made the PlayStation famous instead.
Now, a year and a half later, Saturn owners get to play the same game PlayStation onwers have conquered and are now using as a coaster. Why it’s taken so long is clearly a mystery, but the sad truth is that most Saturn owners also own a PS1, which means most of you own this game already. And believe me, there is little difference between the two console versions (Saturn and PlayStation).
The biggest difference between versions is a slight cleaning up of some gory details, like Kenneth’s well-known Decapitato Scene (sounds like a South Park theme to me). Now poor Kenneth really looks messed up!
But, other than that, the game plays exactly the same, with the same timing and floor layout as the original PlaySation version. That said, if you are one of the few Saturn owners without a PlayStation (I know you’re out there, you complain every month about the lack of Saturn games) definitely pick Resident Evil up. What you’ll get is a Playstation classic, gracefully translated to the Saturn in time for the holiday season. At any rate, it’s a great game.
Gameplay footage of Saturn Resident Evil
8.5 From Crispin
Yep, it’s Resident Evil all right. This Saturn version looks and plays pretty much like it did on the PlayStation, except with a little more gore. And I like this game just as much now as I did when it was released nearly a yer and a half ago. Of course, I also have the same gripes with its gameplay. I’ve never been a big fan of RE’s save-game system, and being forced to battle armies of zombies with a knife can be frustrating. Still, it’s a must-buy.
9.0 From Shawn
How long has it been since the PlayStation version came out? But enough of that – the Saturn version is here now and that’s what counts. The conversion is incredible! This one has some of the best FMV on the Saturn and the game is awesome! The graphics are perfect, and the same terrible dialogue is intact (which is a good thing… really). Saturn owners: If you’ve been waiting for this one, it has been well worth the long wait!
6.5 From Kraig
I remember playing this game before, when it was called Alone in the Dark. Resident Evil borrows heavily from that classic, but it isn’t as good. Although the graphics are good, the gameplay is slow, methodical and repetitious. Most of the game involves killing bloody variations of zombies in order to get an object. Then, repeat many times. Overall, RE is barely above average because of it’s ho-hum puzzles and repetitive gameplay.
Turok 3: Shadow of Oblivion is the oft-forgotten N64-exclusive sequel to Turok 2.
Turok 3: Shadow of Oblivion for Nintendo 64 is Episode 11 of On the Cutting Room Floor (Games I’m Longing to Play). Turok 3 marks a little-known, oft-forgotten, somewhat rare N64 sequel that few gamers played and even fewer remember. It was released on August 30th 2000 exclusively for the N64 as the sequel to the beastly Turok 2, which was itself sequel to the original Turok: Dinosaur Hunter.
After a very long, sad, hiatus, I am back with my original series of “On the Cutting Room Floor” articles. I never meant to take a break for as long as I did (the last entry I did was in early July!) but it feels good to be back. :)
If you know me, you know that there are TONS AND TONS of videogames I’ve never played. Sadly, although I consider myself to be a “hardcore” gamer, I really am not compared to most “gamers”. The reason for that is because, unlike other more productive people, I can never seem to find the time to play games. Period.
So I thought it would be fun to go through some of the games I’d LOVE to play and still plan on playing someday, but never have up to this point and why I want to play them. Hopefully I’ll play through them in the near future. :)
EPISODE #11 – Turok 3: Shadow of Oblivion Released: 2000 System: N64 Re-Released: No Genre: First-Person Shooter Developed By: Acclaim Studios Austin (Formerly Iguana Entertainment… I think) Publisher: Acclaim Is There A Digital Version?: No. I highly doubt there ever will be… though there should be already!
The Turok series of the late-90s greatly helped to propel the Nintendo 64 into a first-person shooter fans dream-console, alongside other high-profile console FPS games like GoldenEye 007, Doom 64, Duke Nukem 64, Quake 64, and Perfect Dark (among others).
A sealed Nintendo 64 copy of the awesome Turok: Dinosaur Hunter.
These games also helped to rewrite what to expect from the FPS genre in the days where first-person shooters were known as “Doom Clones”, and greatly changed the game. Turok: Dinosaur Hunter (February 28 1997), Turok 2: Seeds of Evil (October 21 1998), Turok 3: Shadow of Oblivion (August 30 2000), Turok: Rage Wars (October 31 1999), GoldenEye 007 (August 25 1997), and Perfect Dark (May 22 2000) are the title that literally redefined the definition of what a first-person shooter could be, away from dungeon corridor crawling games and into more of a sprawling adventure-style.
In the process they also rewrote what to expect from both a single-player and multiplayer console FPS, in the days before the Internet on consoles.
Awesome black-bordered European Turok 2: Seeds of Evil N64 box art.
Both Turok 1 and Turok 2 were huge smash successes for the N64, however Turok 3, while recieving favorable reviews (but not spectacular scores) is not a well-remembered game and many people forget that they even made a third Turok title (not to mention Turok: Rage Wars, a multiplayer-only title that I won’t even get into).
Sadly, I myself have never even played Turok 3, nor seen it been played, nor have I ever bought it. Literally all I know about the game is what I can recall from reading about it in EGM magazine. What I do remember is that the game has you playing as one of two different characters. A male or a female, the sons and daughter of the Native American hero from the original Turok game. You know the one, of “I AM TUROK!” fame.
Each of the characters has their own special abilities (I recall one of them can fit into small spaces) and I believe they each have their own different campiaign as well as their own unique weapons that they gain access too.
Obviously, I could look the game up and find all of this information out, but Turok 3 still represents a game I want to play for myself. Since I know nothing about it, I want to hold the surprises for whenever I pick the game up and pop it into the system myself. Which is why Turok 3: Shadow of Oblivion has made my “On the Cutting Room Floor” list.
To this day I am a HUGE fan of Turok 1 AND Turok 2. I still think both games are so highly unique. What really sells the games, outside of the large worlds and steep difficulty, is the incredible music. If anything, play these games again just for the music. But they also offer very unique experiences. The weapons are so iconic and cool to use, and unlike anything else in the FPS genre really (especially these days, in which “realism” [yawn] has seemingly replaced epic coolness) and they enemies were also unique and fun to fight.
I still really want to track down and play the Xbox 360, PS3 Turok revival (title simply “Turok”) which was released by Disney in 2008. I was really hoping THAT game would sell extremely well and revive the series, since Dinosaurs definitely make some of the coolest FPS enemies of all time… Sadly the game bombed, essentially putting the arrow in the coffin (ahem, er, nail… or maybe I should say arrow in the knee) of the Turok franchise (FOR SHAME!)
Sadly, and mind-boggingly, known of the Turok games have ever been re-released. You’d think that someone would have had the sense to do an HD remastering of the games for modern systems, release a “Turok Trilogy” title for Wii, or, at the very least, re-release each of the Turok games in their original N64 forms for the Wii Virtual Console. But that amazingly has yet to happen.
Hopefully it still will. In the meantime, definitely try out Turok 1, 2 or 3 for N64 if you get the chance (some of them, like Turok 1 and 2, are also available for PC). The second game is well-known as one of the hardest games of all time. I tried diligently to beat it legitimately a few years back, and finally gave up on it wholeheartedly. I still want to try it out….
But despite that, each of the games is really a milestone videogame achievement and they are worth tracking down and playing. And now, for that iconic drumming Turok 1 theme!
Out of all of these, the only bands I’ve ever listened to out of this list are Tourniquet (absolutely awesome but extremely nerdy metal band), As I Lay Dying (Of course, goes without saying) and Zao. The rest? Not a single song (although I’ve heard of some of them).
A badass Jesus Metal logo.
I actually left a comment on this list complaining about how this is an old-guy’s list, and most kids who only started listening to metal post-Korn/Slipknot or post-2000 will not have heard of most of these bands.
All of the great modern Christian metal bands that have changed the WORLD OF METAL (not just the Christian industry), from UnderOath to Demon Hunter to War of Ages to August Burns Red to Becoming the Archetype to Norma Jean to The Showdown to The Chariot to Impending Doom to As I Lay Dying are no where to be found on this list (er, with the exception of the latter).
Which is a crying shame. But instead of finding this list to be absolute crap, I instead decided that it was a pretty good list of OldSchool Christian Metal bands that a lot of modern listeners of my generation (I’m 27) have probably not heard of or checked out.
So what are you waiting for? EDUCATE THEE SELF!
Tourniquet – If Pigs Could Fly
“If this song was put out by Metallica, we would’ve heard it on the radio daily.” Couldn’t agree more, this song is absolutely awesome.
Tourniquet – Trivializing the Momentous, Complicating the Obvious
One of my favorite songs of all time will always be this one. This song is nerd-metal to the core, but infinitely compelling and ultimately awesome beyond description. Before I even truly new what metal was, I knew this song was insane.
A new Romney Obama election 2012 study by the University of Colorado that analyzed the state by state data for the upcoming election has the Obama Biden ticket gaining 218 Electoral College Votes and Romney Ryan winning handily with 320 Electoral Collage Votes.
In this prediction they also predict that Obama will LOSE the Popular Vote. So not only does he lose in the Electoral Collage, but also loses the direct vote, with Romney gaining 52.9% of the Popular Vote to Obama’s 47.1%.
According to their conclusion, Romney sweeps most, but not all, of the battleground states and easily clinches the victory with a clear majority of winning states.
It’ll be interesting to see how it pans out and if the study is accurate. Based on the data, Romney should win by a landslade. The study basically says that the economy is so horrible that if Barack Obama wins, it goes against all logic and all historical precedent (essentially).
ROMNEY RYAN 2012! :D
A President Romney will be all about the jobs, which has been his major platform.
A University of Colorado analysis of state-by-state factors leading to the Electoral College selection of every U.S. president since 1980 forecasts that the 2012 winner will be Mitt Romney.
“The key is the economy”, says political science professors Kenneth Bickers of CU-Boulder and Michael Berry of CU Denver. Their prediction model stresses economic data from the 50 states and the District of Columbia, including both state and national unemployment figures as well as changes in real per capita income, among other factors.
“Based on our forecasting model, it becomes clear that the president is in electoral trouble,” said Bickers, also director of the CU in DC Internship Program.
Barack Obama vs Mitt Romney. Who will win?
According to their analysis, President Barack Obama will win 218 votes in the Electoral College, short of the 270 he needs. And though they chiefly focus on the Electoral College, the political scientists predict Romney will win 52.9 percent of the popular vote to Obama’s 47.1 percent, when considering only the two major political parties.
“For the last eight presidential elections, this model has correctly predicted the winner,” said Berry. “The economy has seen some improvement since President Obama took office. What remains to be seen is whether voters will consider the economy in relative or absolute terms. If it’s the former, the president may receive credit for the economy’s trajectory and win a second term. In the latter case, Romney should pick up a number of states Obama won in 2008.”
Their model correctly predicted all elections since 1980, including two years when independent candidates ran strongly, 1980 and 1992. It also correctly predicted the outcome in 2000, when Al Gore received the most popular vote but George W. Bush won the election.
This is an official photo of TOTUS. Teleprompter of the United States, Mr. Barack Obama.
Teleprompter in Chief, TOTUS, or Teleprompter of the United States = President Barack Obama on August 20th 2012.
I generally don’t like to layer on too much regarding Barack Obama. Since I oppose him and his policies and his party and platform, I generally try to speak positively about him more than negative. And I don’t like to layer on insults or lower myself to the level of most people who speak ill of the other party.
But this one is too good to pass up. This is an OFFICIAL photo of the President of the United States, who goes nowhere without his Teleprompter, as is well-known.
I don’t know if you’ve ever watched a speech where our Great Communicator of 2012 didn’t use a Teleprompter, but if you have you’ve noticed how rough it is for him. He stutters more than President Bush, is extremely long-winded, and has a real tough time speaking well without the timing of the Teleprompter to help him out. I think it speaks ill of him, and if I was him I would’ve made it a goal to go a whole year without using the Teleprompter, just to prove the naysayers that you can speak well without it.
This is a compilation video of Obama’s stuttering, often times when speaking without a Teleprompter.
Either way, it’s pretty bad when an official photo like this gets taken where the Teleprompter just happened to get in the way of Obama’s face. Something the media has gotten pretty used to by now (how to avoid getting the Teleprompter in the shot if possible) but its not always possible depending on your angle.
I hope, and I’m confident, that the Romney Ryan team will forego the teleprompter altogether, even though it is widely used in our modern times for public speaking and the like. But just because it is there, doesn’t mean its always wise to use it.
Because if you rely on it too much, like our President has done, it leads to situations like this when the teleprompter literally comes crashing down and shatters right in the middle of the President’s speech.
