Akakage wrote:

She's not pretty there's bits of masculinity in her face..Ahhh..I'm confused as how to refer her I mean him or her..

Whatever the case, I still refer to people like that as a he 'cause that's what he was born with. Even though he might have had it chopped off and all...... but in essence, it's still a he, TRYING to be a she.

Akakage wrote:

(OMG the world is going crazy)

Oh girl, that boat has past a long time ago already.
Now it's more like insane......
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KouSeiya315 wrote:

That's worse than the old lady years ago who sued McyD's for her coffee being hot. She drove through the parking lot with the coffee she just bought on her lap, holding it between her legs. Of course, she spilled it and was burned. Then she sued, and WON. Um, unless you order iced coffee, coffee is required to be served hot, damnit.

her name was stella lieback and a new mexico jury awarded her $2.9M. you can find that sort of thing at www.stellaawards.com. they have a free email you can sign up for, too - i subscribe to it. people sue for the dumbest things..

ahochaude wrote:

Oh girl, that boat has past a long time ago already. Now it's more like insane......

Yeah, I guess you're right ah..I need a glass of cool Ice water now...

Quote:

Whatever the case, I still refer to people like that as a he 'cause that's what he was born with. Even though he might have had it chopped off and all...... but in essence, it's still a he, TRYING to be a she.

If he's a perverted guy who decided to dress up like a girl because it makes him feel sexy then I'd still call him a he, but usually when people go through sex change it's because they're mentality is female but they have toys for boys so they get an operation to that their body matches their brain. Hee hee I was watching Wired For Sex on Tech TV and they had a show about this.

I, PERSONALLY, think Harisu is definitely the hottest tranny in HISTORY.
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Precious Bamboo wrote:

Hee hee I was watching Wired For Sex on Tech TV and they had a show about this.

lol.. that's cool.. i took some college classes on it.. pretty interesting stuff!

Precious Bamboo wrote:

If he's a perverted guy who decided to dress up like a girl because it makes him feel sexy then I'd still call him a he, but usually when people go through sex change it's because they're mentality is female but they have toys for boys so they get an operation to that their body matches their brain.

As you can see that I've got no love for them.
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If piracy means using the creative property of others without their permission, then the history of the content industry is a history of piracy. Every important sector of big media today - film, music, radio, and cable TV - was born of a kind of piracy. The consistent story is how each generation welcomes the pirates from the last. Each generation - until now.

The Hollywood film industry was built by fleeing pirates. Creators and directors migrated from the East Coast to California in the early 20th century in part to escape controls that film patents granted the inventor Thomas Edison. These controls were exercised through the Motion Pictures Patents Company, a monopoly "trust" based on Edison's creative property and formed to vigorously protect his patent rights.

MORE: http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/12.03/lessig.html

--- groink

Groink, I'm not trying to put you on the spot at all here (in fact, your grasp of the latest tech' info' -- as presented in narrative at this here message board and the "other" KIKU one -- is welcomed and pertinent, all and out ) . . . but, as far as you know, is that "fair and reasonable use" clause for copyrighted material extended to drama traders, exchangers, and collectors?

Just wondering if you know.

The Man wrote:

but, as far as you know, is that "fair and reasonable use" clause for copyrighted material extended to drama traders, exchangers, and collectors?

Good question... By me not knowing or have any written evidence on-hand, I would have to assume that copyright laws include all Asian dramas. The only fortunate thing for everyone is that there isn't any RIAA or MPAA organizations based in Japan. I could only imagine that it isn't the way of the Japanese to be sue-happy like Americans (another thread in its entirety). Personally, I've always said that I'm pro RIAA (being a musician myself and associating with HARA {Hawaii Assn. of Recording Artists} has affected my views on this matter) and therefore never bootleg music. I also don't bootleg any American videos (TV shows, movies, etc.)

As for Japanese dramas and movies, I do go out of my way to buy the originals, if they're available. I think the reason why I go out of my way to distribute KIKU stuff is that, like Keal and Musui, I like spreading the materials to those who can't access KIKU. I wish people would watch our captures like Hotman or Younger Man, then later go out and make some sort of contribution to the people who made them (TBS, Asahi TV, etc.) Other than the KIKU captures, the other two projects I'm working on (UTSR and Imouto Yo) I actually own the FUJI-TV original laser disc copies.

If you really think about it, subbed Japanese anime really started from the underground fansub concept. Howver, unlike Japanese dramas, the Japanese anime fans poured their resources into legitimate projects like videos and conventions. That's why the Japanese companies like Pioneer have invested in putting out English subbed anime. I always believe that if Japanese drama fans did the same things, there would actually be a lucerative market for legit English subbed Japanese dramas. BTW, I spend at least $100/month at Suncoast buying DVDs of anime, and have my Reply membership card and bonus coupons to prove it.

Very hard to explain myself in this situation other than I don't bootleg American stuff, but still have a guilty conscience on Japanese stuff. If an RIAA or MPAA-like organization were to brew up in Japan, I'd be among the first to shut everything down on my end.

--- groink

BTW, to place an addendum on my last reply... There's actually a fight on a totally different hobby of mine, but with identical legal matters... And that's legacy computer software.

I'm associated with a group of Apple II computer users. The computer dates back to the late 1970's. One of the things we do in that group is to release copyrighted legacy software to the public domain.

The whole premiss surrounding this project is that even if an intellectual property (software, movies, dramas, etc.) is no longer available to the market, that DOES NOT give you a free ticket to go out and bootleg the material. In otherwords, if I wanted to purchase Castle Wolfenstein (circa 1979) for the Apple II, I can't just go out and copy it from someone else. Unlike patents where they expire after X number of years, copyrights last a lot longer. So what we do is write a letter to the copyright owner (in this case, Silas Warner) asking him to release it to the public domain. Though he still owns copyright to the game, he has given us permission to distribute the software in the public domain.

People like to believe that if you can no longer purchase a product, that places the product in the public domain. That's not true in any way! This is very identical to the contraversy over Asian captures not otherwise available to the rest of the World. Just because KIKU-TV can't be received in Washington State or Maryland, that doesn't mean mailing VHS tapes to your college kid in the States is legal. To me, that is not part of the "fair use" practice. However, as The Man reminded me about my KIKU-TV statement I made earlier, in simple terms they actually allow for this sort of thing. But remember that, just like Castle Wolfenstein, I searched around to see if distributing their stuff was okay. So the only thing I'm not covered on is my UTSR project (and soon my Imouto Yo project). But that's another matter I must face later on.

--- groink

3 JAPANESE CIVILIANS TAKEN HOSTAGE IN IRAQ

Qatar-based satellite broadcaster Aljazeera said Thursday that three Japanese nationals have been taken hostage by a group in Iraq.

The group, who calls itself "Mujahedeen Brigades" in English, threatens to kill the three Japanese unless Japan's Self Defense Forces (SDF) leave the country within three days, Aljazeera said.

When a reporter asked whether Japan would withdraw its SDF troops from Iraq during a hastily called press conference in Tokyo, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda said, "We are sending the SDF for (non-military) humanitarian reconstruction efforts, and therefore there is no reason to call them back."

Another reporter asked whether Japan would maintain its SDF troops in Iraq even if terrorists hurt the three alleged hostages, but Fukuda declined to answer.

"This act of the terror is unforgivable," Fukuda said.

The government's top spokesman added that Japan would send a top diplomat, Ichiro Aizawa, to Jordan where he will head the government's efforts to handle the hostage crisis.

Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi said that Japan would do its utmost to ensure the release of the three.

The Arabic broadcaster aired the film of the three Japanese hostages. The Japanese passports aired by the broadcaster show that the three are Noriaki Imai, 18, from Sapporo, Soichiro Koriyama, 32, from Miyazaki Prefecture and Nahoko Takato, a 34-year-old woman volunteer worker from Chitose, Hokkaido.

"You have two choices. To withdraw the troops,or we will burn them alive," the group said in a letter sent to Aljazeera.

Koriyama, a free-lance journalist, was in possession of a reporter's pass for Japan's Shukan Asahi weekly, published by the Asahi Shimbun.

Imai, who graduated from a high school in Hokkaido, is a leading member of a non-governmental organization in Japan. He arrived in Iraq recently after leaving Japan on April 4.

Takato began volunteer work in Iraq in April last year.

In Tokyo, shocked government and police officials are investigating details through the Japanese Embassy in Baghdad.

"The information we have is awfully vague. We assumed that if any Japanese was to be attacked, it would be SDF troops," a Foreign Ministry official said on condition of anonymity. "But we face a worst scenario with civilians being taken hostage. At this stage, we don't understand what kind of group detained them." (Mainichi and wire reports, Japan, April 8, 2004)


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http://mdn.mainichi.co.jp/news/20040408p2a00m0fp012006c.html
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kowai desu yo ne.. it seems like NHK is reporting on it too..

WTF? THey're civilians, leave then the eff alone!!! As a veteran, we all knows the rules of engagement, and you don't frickin' touch civilians. Maybe this will lead Japan to amend their constitution and opt to have a military. (altho i would think THAT would be a baaaad idea).

niko2x wrote:

WTF? THey're civilians, leave then the eff alone!!! As a veteran, we all knows the rules of engagement, and you don't frickin' touch civilians. Maybe this will lead Japan to amend their constitution and opt to have a military. (altho i would think THAT would be a baaaad idea).

Yea seriously, civilians aren't part of it so they should be left alone. I hate people picking on others

And building a military again would not be a good thing. I'm not a person in favor of wars so I'm against it but then again Japan's economy isn't exactly booming right now so if they were to build up their military the economy would pick up and this might be the perfect excuse for them. Meh, who knows

I know some of you have served the United States proudly, defending our great nation. And the closest thing I've gotten to War College is Tom Clancy novels . . . yet, I can't help but ask . . . do you ANY of you SERIOUSLY believe that groups like "Mujahedeen Brigades" are playing by any rules?

"This act of the terror is unforgivable." Prrffft. The guy just get out of bed or something? Welcome to the party, pal (in the words of John McClane).

Here, hot off the presses (Dr. Rice was BRILLIANT today): http://wid.ap.org/transcripts/rice.html

Modern warfare has no rules, all this "convention of..." is a huge pile of horseshit. You don't attack civilians, yes, but eh... it's a "bit" hard to avoid hurting or killing them in urban terrain in CQBs.

*looks at Iraq* that's going to pour water on the mills of those in Japan who want to re-arm drastically. After all there have been thoughts of changing the constitution some time ago already. That thought will get some more support now.

And I'm not surprised about the stupidity of those wannabe mujahedin. Do they really think that Japan will pull out her forces? I mean... they're trying to pull that on the country where its military leaders planned to send schoolgirls with bamboo spears at a possible American invasion force, a country where "gambaru" is still one of te most important virtues. Alone for that stupidity those idiots need to be wiped out.

But heck, those aren't even regular civilians, most of them are aid-workers. They're trying to help those people and that's how they get paid back *growls and hisses*

And well, I don't think that the worst those bastards could do would be killing them, there are worse things they could do, especially to the woman. They're fanatics after all...

I still wonder what the Brits are doing down there, apart from drinking tea. Haven't heard anything ina while from them.

*hmmms* you know, there's a really nice counter-propaganda option with those hostages, I mean the took 2 israeli arabs as hostages. Perfect. *would use them as psychologial weapon in a counter-propaganda that would follow the line of "Look! They're also taking their own brothers as hostages and threaten to kill them!"* Those 2 are after all ARABS, it would work well me thinks.

Sidenote, please don't call any nation a "great nation", it's enough that the french do that already *won't further comment on them, will get banned for what he might say about the french* Just let me say... I don't really like them.

*looks at hte US generals responsible down there* well... I still think general Franks is of the same tactical and strategical brilliance as general MacClellan, or Burnside, or Hooker. To put it into simple terms, he has NFI what he's doing. *looks at the offensive when the war started and shakes head* Question: do people ever learn from history?

I wish Patton was still alive... he'd kick those wannabe terrorists in the ass. But there hasn't been anything good since Patton and Zhukov.

*would just go ahead and take 100 Iraqi as hostages now* one of the Japanese or Israeli gets harmed in any way? Execute the 100. If war is what they want, then they can have it.

Or use the infamous "Typhoon"

*now goes off to hope for the US Army to get the XM8 with the 6.8mm upgrade*

Maybe some good news yet:
Japanese hostages may be released

Quote:

AFP - Three Japanese civilians being held hostage by insurgents in Iraq may be released today, a senior foreign ministry official said. "We have received that information from several sources," the official said, referring to a news report from Qatar-based Al-Jazeera satellite TV that the abductors had decided to release the hostages today. But the official, who declined to be named, said Tokyo had yet to confirm further details, including the condition of the abductees or the timing of their release.

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Here's my Facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=logo#/kwan1?ref=profile

niko2x wrote:

Maybe some good news yet: Japanese hostages may be released Quote: AFP - Three Japanese civilians being held hostage by insurgents in Iraq may be released today, a senior foreign ministry official said. "We have received that information from several sources," the official said, referring to a news report from Qatar-based Al-Jazeera satellite TV that the abductors had decided to release the hostages today. But the official, who declined to be named, said Tokyo had yet to confirm further details, including the condition of the abductees or the timing of their release.

Let's keep our fingers crossed...

I hope that they're released alive.


These terrorist pricks piss me the f*** off!
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