Today at 1433, I attempted to post a blog answering the question: "If you were exiled from the United States, where would you live?" However, when I submitted the blog, an error message appeared and I was prevented from posting. Moreover, the draft of my blog post failed to save. Rather than use this time to rewrite my previous blog, I decided to write this one.

Where

If

Seperation of Church and State

Firstly, it is worth noting that the phrase "seperation of church and state" does not occur anywhere in the U.S. Constitution. These words originally apeared in a private letter from Thomas Jefferson to a group of Baptist Christians. In it's original context, the phrase ensured that the newly formed government of the United States would not interfere in religious matters. The Constitution states that the United States shall declare no national religion, therefore I believe religious practices should not be sanctioned by any government institution, including schools. However, a subsequent clause states the government should not interfere with the practice of individual religion.

Stuff

there was a big fight during lunch. I got an earring as a suvenier.

Gun Control

I believe that handgun regulations are against American's Constitutional rights.

Progress

We have made fairly good progress in our game design process. As previously mentioned, I created an intro movie to precede our quiz. We will soon begin our menu and quiz itself.

Game Concepts

The fundamental element of a Flash game is playablility. A game has to be enjoyable and a addictive in order to be successful. Our Flash quiz has multiple levels the playablility the game.

Future Plans

I plan to attend the United States Military Academy and become an Army officer.

I programmed a start button for the introduction video over the weekend.

Military Quiz Introduction

I recently created an introductory Flash movie sequence for our Military Quiz. Below is the link to Team Mudbut's page:http://www.myglife.org/usa/wv/svhswiki/index.php/Team_Mudbut

What frustrates me

I hurt my rotator cuff again. I'm sicker than I've ever been in my life. Thats what frustrates me.

My Weekend

I read my the introduction and the first chapter of my new book, The Ulility of Force. I wrote a review for English 101. And then I slept. And I'm still tired and sick.

Voting

I am planning to vote for John McCain. He is the only conservative candidate running. McCain posesses superior leadership experience and has served our country for all of his adult life. He graduated from the United States Naval Academy, and served in the United States Navy for 22 years, including nearly 6 years in Vietnamese POW camps. His policies, while not ideal, are in every way superior to those of his primary opponent. McCain supports a strong military for a strong nation, decreases in government spending, and holds a limited lassiez-faire economic view to unleash the potential of capitalism.

Favorite Movie

My favorite movie is Kingdom of Heaven. It is a fictitious movie set in the Medieval period, between the First and Third Crusades. The movie follows the protagonist, Balian, from the smitheries of England to the walls of Jerusalem in his pursuit of redemption. The movie directed by Ridley Scott and stars Orlando Bloom and Liam Neeson. It is based on a good, albeit somewhat anti-Christian storyline and features exceptional special effects.

Favorite Television Show

South Park is my favorite television show. It is a crudely animated satirical comedy with equally crude humor. Every facet of American has been satirized and mocked at some point during the show's ten year run. Every American should watch this show.

Favorite Personal Computer Game

My favorite computer game is Unreal Tournament 2004. It is a first person shooter with plenty of destructive armament and proportional gore. The 2004 version is the sequel to UT2003, and is a continuation of a long line of the Unreal franchise; which includes Unreal, Unreal II, Unreal Championship, and the Unreal Tournament series. Unreal is developed cooperatively by Epic Games and Digital Extremes. The various iterations of the Unreal game engine are practical and versitile platforms, and are used under lease in various titles, most notably the Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas series.

Favorite Board Game

My favorite board game is Monopoly. Monopoly is a real estate acquisition game played on a square board featuring various properties and entities with differing worths and strategic value. To win, one player must dominate the real estate market, thus creating a monopoly.

The VP debate was last night.

Somalian Pirates

Posted on Yahoo

The blue-and-white Ukrainian ship Faina has been buzzed by American helicopters since Sunday. Pirates hijacked the Faina and its cargo of 33 Soviet-designed tanks and weapons Thursday while the ship was passing through the Gulf of Aden, one of the world's busiest shipping lanes, en route to the Kenyan port of Mombasa.
Ali said the vessel was surrounded by four warships but he could not identify where the ships were from. The San Diego-based USS guided missile destroyer Howard has been watching the pirate ship for several days and has spoken the pirates and crew by radio.
The U.S. defense official in Washington said the pirates have been moving from ship to shore and back again, bringing provisions including livestock.
He said between 40 and 50 pirates were involved in the hijacking, but a second U.S. official said only about 30 of them were on the ship itself.
On Monday, U.S. naval officials said several other American ships had joined the watch, but declined to give details.
U.S. Navy officials said they have allowed the pirates to resupply the ship with food and water, but not to unload any of its military cargo, which included T-72 tanks, ammunition, and heavy weapons that U.S. Defense officials have said included rocket launchers.
The U.S. fears the armaments may end up with al-Qaida-linked Islamic militants who have been fighting an insurgency against the shaky, U.N.-backed Somali transitional government since late 2006, when the Islamists were driven out after six months in power. More than 9,000 people, most of them civilians, have been killed in the Iraq-style insurgency.

Vote McCain

Impossible Military Quiz

I recently updated the Team Mudbut website to include our first slide from our Impossible Military Quiz. http://www.myglife.org/usa/wv/svhswiki/index.php/Team_Mudbut

16 September

Yesterday I created the Mudbut Team website. The link is down currently but I will provide it as soon as possible.

Week 3, Flash Game Design.

Thus far, game design class has been fun and informative. We have explored the elements of a good flash game, and are in the early design stages of creating a flash "quiz" game. My quiz focuses on technical military knowledge and is impossible. Mr. Reed pwns