After a hiatus to adjust to the new baby and a rigorous work out schedule, I’m back with a lighter theme (one that is hopefully not as hackable as the previous one proved to be). If you reached the site at irregular times over the past six weeks, you have my apologies. The lovely Kate Baker had been doing an estimable job of removing the malware exploit that hit not just my site, but others with the same theme.
I’ve updated the 2010 reading list to reflect the current status of my reading habit (trimmed a bit with the busy life that I lead, but still robust). Stay tuned in the near future for more stories about writing, science fiction, and video games.
We live in a crazy country when healthcare reform, temporary nationalization of the auto industry, and bailouts to financial institutions trump Ad Astra.
It is no surprise that our President, full of the hope and change that catapulted him into office, is killing the initiative to put man back on the moon by 2020. His “bold new initiative” is anything but. The initiative is tantamount to turning our back on US-sponsored manned space flight. It is an egregious and short-sighted mismanagement of our nation’s space policy, unfortunately coupled with the retirement of the Space Shuttle program. The United States will soon be left without a way to get our astronauts into Earth orbit for the first time since John Glenn’s famous 1961 mission.
As usual, Obama is a master of framing the debate for public consumption. The annual budget for NASA is increasing by $276 million to $19 billion. This is intended to mollify those in the space policy community by illustrating the administration’s willingness to invest in NASA. However, by killing the Constellation program, the Obama administration is ruining our near-term prospects for a US-Government owned/operated means of putting men and women on the international space station. We will instead be relying on Russia, the sole remaining nation with astronaut delivery capability, to be our taxi service.
NASA is also charged with investing in the private sector, but the technology and sustainability of cheap, commercial space travel has yet to prove itself. This portion of the NASA budget will be $6 billion (according to Joel Achenbach of the Washington Post). That means that the NASA budget is down a net $5.24 billion. Since we’re about to be reduced to bumming rides from the Russians, this paltry budget “increase” is actually a decrease in operating budget for NASA.
NASA itself stands to lose thousands of employees with the retirement of the shuttle program, which amounts to an unparalleled loss of knowledge and experience in the history of man. Some of these are likely to go to private companies, but many will be forced to pursue other forms of employment. The technical base of our workforce is about to be irreparably damaged, and the only people who notice are the congressmen and women who represent them.
The part that almost makes sense is Obama’s vision for NASA: to focus on developing technologies that make space travel more efficient, safe, and cost effective. Obama’s plan puts emphasis on the private sector (throwing a bone to all conservatives, right?), but it eviscerates aerospace companies who have invested the lives of their employees and their stockholder’s money in a dream of returning to our former glory. Lockheed-Martin and Alliant Techsystems have already spent $9 billion to develop the technologies necessary to meet this dream. If Obama’s plan is approved by congress, this money is essentially wasted, as well as an additional $2.5 billion in contract cancellation fees.
In the future, NASA could also be forced increasingly into the role of a regulatory agency, a function that strays from its core competency of exploration and technological development. I can envision a future where NASA is the space-based arm of the FAA, more interested levying fines and propagating its bureaucracy than exploring the rings of Saturn.
John Logsdon of the Space Policy Institute at George Washing University was cautiously optimistic: “It is a somewhat risky proposition, but we’ve been kind of stuck using the technologies we’ve developed in the ’50s and ’60s.” I couldn’t agree more. I railed against the use of chemically powered rockets for our return to the moon, but they have the advantage of being proven technology with easy to obtain fuel. The environmental impact (aside from heat) is almost negligible, and while the weight-to-payload ratios could be more favorable, the important point is to put people out there. Invest in the infrastructure that we need in low Earth orbit or on the moon to make travel sustainable, then use the technological gains to refine our boost methods and capacity.
Perhaps you think that a citizen with a distaste for big government is being a tiny bit inconsistent here. Perhaps you’re right. However, $6 billion divided between the Russians and whatever aerospace companies can get a piece of the pie just isn’t going to push our frontiers outward. It unfortunately requires the kind of spending power and leverage that only our government has to kick start a sustainable space program and provide a skeleton of profitability before publicly traded companies will invest in space travel. There must be a permanent, easily reachable presence in Earth orbit or the moon to make it worthwhile to provide services and technology. Furthermore, that presence must show some kind of revenue generating potential. Without these, companies such as Lockheed-Martin will be unwilling to commit the future of their business on such a venture.
Like most everything else Obama has done in office, his “bold, new initiative” for NASA is a disaster in the making. We are now spectators in the space race, while Russia, China, India, Japan, and the EU overtake us with both the will and capital to reach for the stars. In the US, we’ll continue to reach into our pockets.
One of my 2010 goals has been to play more video games.
Yes. That’s right. I want to play more video games. I did a piss-poor job of it last year, and I missed out on some gaming goodness. Pursuant to that goal, I’ve been playing a more this year. While I’m deriving some enjoyment from my primary hobby, there are several things that fill me with rage, decanting their liquid anger into my empty soul like the devil’s own urine. Here’s a random sample of items that get my goat:
Borderlands Expansion Pack
The first time I played it, Mad Moxxi was cute, boobalicious, and sarcastically witty. Now, every time I play the arena, her voice grates, her taunts wear on me, and the loot that she drops from her high tower makes me want to put Brick’s (the tank character, and my main toon) fist through her face. This was high concept with poor execution–the arenas provide replayability, the potential for loot is great, and you get enemies/bosses from the entire game. The bad news is that it is all recycled content, and the voice tracks are repeated way too often. Couple this to fact that this should have been patched content support and not a paid expansion pack, and my knuckles want to taste flesh. (But I still play it almost every night. Go figure.)
Battlefield Bad Company 2
If you’ve known me at all, you know that I am a Battlefield fanboy. I even played that atrocious “sequel” they called BF2142 (the fewest hours I’ve spent in any Battlefield game). Now, we get scraps from the console table (Battlefield Bad Company was never a PC game, and we only got the sequel because someone in their company decided to throw us a bone). The game officially releases on March 2nd, but you can play in a one-map beta test with a pre-order. Saddling up with the old Battlefield crew (*fist bump to TulsaLAN*), I downloaded what was supposed to be a beta game.
In reality, it is an alpha, because beta at least implies functionality out of the box. I currently cannot run the game through Steam, I cannot use Ventrilo (VoIP software) unless I key the transmit button during the load process so that my mic stays open all the time, the server browser crashes to desktop, and the friends/matchmaking system is broken. When I finally do get in the game (by finding the game executable buried in my Steam directory and right-clicking to “run as admin”), it’s pretty okay. It tries a little too hard to be Call of Duty (the damage model is terribly unforgiving, and the movement isn’t as fluid as other Battlefield games).
Sniper rifle and RPG zooms are toggles, while battle rifles and light machine guns require steady “holds” on the right mouse button to bring up iron sights. Crouching isn’t a toggle either, you must hold it down. There is no prone. That’s right, boys and girls, this is a war game, and you can’t lay down on the fucking ground and avoid enemy fire. When I quit the game tonight (playing with the wonderful Kate) and reflected on my experience, I realized that I wanted to fly to Sweden and punch the lead developer of Battlefield: Bad Company 2 in the face. Twice.
They’ve taken my beloved franchise, dumbed it down for the console retards, and then castrated what they didn’t break. I can only hope that someone in the mod community can fix these issues about four to six months down the line, or maybe even give the game something like Desert Combat was to the Battlefield 1942 series. If not, it may top Battlefield 2142 for fewest hours played in a Battlefield game.
Steam
Steam is the elephant in the room when it comes to digital distribution. I’ve been a retail box kind of guy, but recently I’m transitioning to steam. For example, I bought Borderlands and Dragon Age retail, but I’ve gotten Mass Effect (the first one), Torchlight, and now Battlefield: Bad Company 2 through Steam. It’s nice that my games and profile reside in the “cloud.” It’s a pity, though, that Steam still forces SecuROM copy protection/DRM on me when technically I don’t even own the content. I have to be connected to their authentication servers to even play the damned game, and they still saddle me with copy protection.
Are you kidding me?
Really?
I’m not going to pirate games; as a content creator myself, I fully believe that artists should be compensated for their time. Supporting a platform like Steam implicitly recognizes that I’m willing to put up with managing still another on-line account in exchange for content security and file management. That copy protection is a by-product of this should be a win for everyone. Instead, game companies have taken the opportunity to ram their DRM phallus into my mouth in an attempt to make me swallow their load of resource-hogging superfluous garbage. It’s like people are trying to kill PC gaming. I’ve refused to go the console route on general principles (no mouse and keyboard, auto-aim in first person shooters is lame beyond belief), but if I continue to have to wear an “Exit Only” sign on my ass when I buy and play PC Games, then I’ll be forced to turn my back on the platform. That sucks for everyone.
Reponse to Infinity Ward Petition
Infinity Ward is the maker of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. I’ve boycotted the game (and encouraged others to do so, as well) due to the lack of dedicated server support, the ten dollar price tag increase over standard PC Games, the lack of mod/community support. After signing the petition, I received a mass email from a community manager that was basically a big “Dear Pete and everyone who signed this petition: Fuck you.” They detailed their sales of the PC version, the number of players playing during peak times (via Xfire statistics), and the fact that they’re “on the cutting edge” and they’re “changing the way PC Gamers interact with online content.” If by cutting edge they mean “Xbox 360″ and they want to strip features that PC Gamers demand in their games by taking an intentional step backwards, then sure, I guess it’s a success. I felt more like they were rubbing the noses of the 125,694 signers of the petition in the fact that their opinions and money didn’t matter. (It would be interesting to know how many signers actually bought the game despite their “commitment” not to.) That alone earns the responsible cretin of this organization a punch in the nose.
Let’s play Infinity Ward’s game and do a little math here. Let’s assume that 20% of the signers followed through on their promise to not buy the game (Is that optimistic? Look at the Amazon review for it.) That’s 25, 140 people.
Multiply that by the $59.99 ($60 for convenience’s sake) premium for the game: $1,508,077 sales dollars are now left on the table. If you assume a 10% profit margin, they’re leaving about $150,000 of pure, bottom line, dividend-producing money untapped. That alone is more than enough for a business unit to spend the month that it would take a couple of programmers and a user interface specialist to put in those items.
Oh, and did I mention that it uses SecuROM, too?
Since they want to play the math game, I’ll chortle to myself every time I leave the game alone in Best Buy or the Steam store and say: “1.5 million dollars, haha!”
I’m not normally one to write poetry, but sometimes I’ll feel the lyrical bug bite me. This particular poem I’ve titled “The Muse,” and it provides a description of the relationship I have with the most elusive of inspirations. Sure, it’s doggerel, but I can’t deny the emotions of frustration, wonder, awe, and catharsis that rattle me when I’m in the Muse’s grasp.
As you may have noticed, I’ve welcome a new addition to my family, a baby girl named Abigail Grace.
Her character is different than my son Jackson already. She’s less fussy, a little more laid back, but certainly into her food. Although perfectly formed, she does not share her mommy’s eyes or her maternal great-grandmother’s eyelashes like Jackson. Instead, she remarkably resembles a female cousin on my dad’s side of the family. She was born with hair…quite a bit for an infant, considering Jackson was bald until he was nearly one.
One thing, however, remains constant. I love the little booger more than I thought possible.
When Jackson was born, I didn’t know what was coming. I had no idea what would be involved with late night feedings, dirty diapers, sacrifices of time, and sheer exhaustion. I had confidence that I could work through it (and I did), but I didn’t expect to be so completely smitten. I knew what was coming this time, but I was afraid that I would unconsciously short-change Abigail in the love department. I know this sounds irrational if you’re an experienced parent, but consider the depth of love you have for your children, and then imagining that multiplying. I couldn’t fathom that until it happened.
Things have settled down into a little bit of a routine around here, so I should be back to regular posting. In the meantime, I’ll continue to enjoy the blessing of a new child while trying to still the inner voice that rails against the lost time. After all, is it really lost?
Friend, Linux Journal Editor, and occasional commenter Shawn Powers lost his home in what appears to be a freak electrical fire. If you’re a denizen of his site as well as mine, or if you feel like giving a little bit to help him out, you can donate here.
I met Shawn at Penguicon in Michigan a couple of years ago. He was a really neat guy–grounded, hilarious, and earnest. My thoughts and prayers go with him.
My daughter, Abigail Grace, was born on Tuesday, January 12, at 12:17 PM. She weighed seven pounds, three ounces, and was nineteen and three-quarter inches long. We’re all finally home from the hospital today, so thus begins our expanded family!
As you’ve probably surmised from the headline graphic, my pick for television series of the year is Torchwood: Children of Earth. This was a five part miniseries that featured the characters of the BBC’s Torchwood doing what they do best: protecting the Earth from alien and time traveling invasion/exploitation.
Where Children of Earth differed was in its approach. In most alien invasion films, the director opts for the grotesque, placing it on par with a cheap horror film. Then there are those that go for the cheese–think Independence Day or the latest iteration of War of the Worlds. Children of Earth finds a happy medium, and muddies the waters with a moral quandary of such unthinkable proportions that you can’t help but simultaneously sympathize with the people involved and be revolted by the bad decisions they make in order to “save” humanity.
The lesson, of course, is that we cannot make some decisions, no matter how terrible. To do so robs us of the very thing that we’re trying to protect. I won’t discuss more details, because to do so would give too many spoilers. If you’re looking for something to put on your Netflix list, give this a chance.
Film
I’m reluctantly giving the nod to Avatar for film of the year. No, I don’t like the politics of the movie, and no, Cameron isn’t a modern-day Shakespeare, but in no other movie have I felt the same sense of awe. He’s recaptured the feeling I had when watching Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings, only this time, he sustained it for two and a half hours and made me forgive his terribly transparent attempts to indict the former Bush administration.
The first viewing of this film was mind-numbing in it’s awesomeness; I’m waiting a bit for a second viewing to see if it holds up as well.
I also have to give credit to Sam Worthington, the actor who plays Jake Sully. I felt that Sam Worthington was the only reason why the recent Terminator: Salvation was any good, and his performance here elevates the ham-handed lines probably more than they deserve. Hollywood may very well have found their next big action star. He’s likable, charismatic, and he’s not such a pretty boy that action movie junkies are turned off by him.
Just to get it on the record, I’m calling several surprise Oscar nods for the film. You heard it here first.
After a week of contemplation, here are the winners of the (coveted, I’m sure) Peter Hodges annual awards.
Book of the Year
There were so many good novels out last year, including several that I didn’t have a chance to mention even in the nominations. I picked stand-out novels from among my favorite, established authors for consideration. This meant that I left out Acacia by David Anthony Durham, Maelstrom by Taylor Anderson, Eye of the Storm by John Ringo, and Lamentation by Ken Scholes, all of which were great reads and deserve recognition for their contributions to the genre for the year.
Head and shoulders above them all, though, is Joe Abercrombie’s Best Served Cold. He takes a standard revenge story, sets it in the harsh world of his Last Argument of Kings trilogy, and adds such memorable characters and tight plotting to it that it rises to the level of masterpiece. Abercrombie has a gift for making each character in his narrative sound distinctly different–haughty nobles, sorcerers with the weight of ages, obsessive-compulsive serial killers, and charismatic barbarians sound and feel alive. Each of them is writing their own story with their own voice within the greater narrative, to the point that I lose myself so completely in the book that I will surface hours later. The voices are different enough that they could have been written by the characters themselves. Add to this the fact that the characters are not typical fantasy constructs–none of them are wholly good or wholly evil (not even the OCD serial killer). Best Served Cold provides a visceral, satisfying, and entertaining read that has resonated enough with me that every time I finish a book, I contemplate re-reading it before starting another new one.
Video Game of the Year
I played so few video games this year, that it almost seems a little unfair to nominate and pick a game for this award. I spent quite a bit of time with the Wii, but none of the games there are more than idle version. Gaming as a medium for solid storytelling is reserved mostly for the PC (with a begrudging hat tip to some console titles and developers that have forsaken the PC). My taste in games has changed over the years, as well. I used to live for the perfect frag, the epic flag capture, or the best tank/zerg/grunt rush. Now, I’m looking for immersive story lines, good laughs with a few close friends, and a sense of shared accomplishment.
Team Fortress 2 filled all of those roles (save for a storyline) off and on for a good portion of the year, but the game has been out for nearly two years. Even though, hour for hour, this is where the bulk of my game time was spent, TF2 was ineligible for consideration. That left Dragon Age: Origins and Borderlands as the serious contenders.
Borderlands was the most fun I’ve had in a shooter since Battlefield 2. The coop play is implemented better and more smoothly than anything I’ve ever played before, but I can’t give the game the award for several reasons:
Forcing gamers to use Gamespy for a match-making system is a travesty. That might have been acceptable in 2001. It’s not in 2009. Either use Steam (Valve makes an excellent product) or code your own.
Uneven pacing toward the end of the game was generated by the high expectations of the early game. I expect my excitement to crescendo through a game, instead of getting derailed.
The last boss battle was anti-climatic to the point of frustration. Were it not for all the things Borderlands did correctly, I would have mailed Randy Pitchford of Gearbox software a picture of me giving him the finger.
This makes it sound like I’m giving Dragon Age: Origins the award by default, by that isn’t entirely fair. It is hands down the best RPG I’ve ever played, lacking only a good coop system to elevate it to true greatness. Games like Dragon Age are meant to be enjoyed by parties of people, and the fact that Bioware worked so diligently to give you intelligent, meaningful interactions with the NPC characters in the game shows that they understand that. I would have loved, though, had they expanded the mechanic of the game just enough to let two human players each play with an NPC companion. This would have made a nearly perfect experience sublime.
As it stands, Dragon Age will be long remembered as one of the near-misses of my PC Gaming career, and my winner for video game of the year.
Gallup is reporting that conservatives finish 2009 as the most popularly self-identified ideology in the United States. Based on the graph and the commentary, June of 2009 was the turning point in which voters who had previously classified themselves as independent increasingly identified themselves as conservative.
What this means, exactly, is hard to say. Of course, I’d like to immediately jump up and pound my chest and say: “See? Everyone was sold a bill of goods by Obama, and they’re finally waking up.” Instead, I think you’re seeing a large segment of the population who had given the administration the benefit of the doubt actively change their ideological identification. Is it because the ideas themselves are suspect? (I think they are, but not everyone agrees.) I would wager that most independent-minded Americans (hard to find here in Texas) have come to grips with the economic realities behind the grandiose campaign promises. Health care reform may not cost all the voters who put Obama in office money, but it will certainly cost the people who could keep him there enough that they’ll be gun shy about sending him back for a second term.
Couple this with the general dissatisfaction that America has with Congress, and you have a recipe for a mid-term change-over. It’ll be interesting to see if the Democrats lose just their anti-filibuster in the Senate, or if they lose their true majority.
The only thing that hurts the burgeoning movement on the right is the lack of a clear focus. No one has stepped forward to articulate conservatism in such a way that they’re rallying anyone outside of the rank-and-file Republicans (and if anyone mentions Sarah Palin, I’m going to mail you a spring and a boxing glove so you can build a mechanism to repeatedly punch yourself in the nuts).
At any rate, I’m glad I’m not the only one living through the nightmare of an impending socialist dystopia.
