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Spoke on Wednesday night at the St. Kilda branch of the ALP; primary emphasis of my presentation was on socialisation of land rents and how their private collection contributed significantly to the global financial crisis. Also speaking on the night was Dr. Nicholas Gruen of Lateral Economics who was advocating a state-owned Internet banking service for transactions and for superannuation. On Sunday I gave an address at the Melbourne Unitarian Church entitled "Sympathy for the Devil", where gave an outline of this poor misrepresented spirit, discussed some contemporary organisations that claim some allegiance and concluded that trumping prosaic versions of moral judgment with supernatural versions and excuses ("the devil made me do it"), should be utterly abandoned. Sunday week I'll be giving part II of the "Philosophy of Economics" study with an emphasis on positive economics. A few days beforehand will be the forum on public transport; should it be returned to public management? should it be free?

Last week the Federal budget was announced; ARCS received a massive increase of funding; some $97 million over the four financial years 2009-2013, whereas previously we had $22 million; this is truly awesome especially given the modest number of staff we have (did they read my preceding journal post?). On the other half of my working world, my installation of a CUDA instance of NAMD has seen some excellent results (plus I found a bug). Attempts to install Desmond have been less successful. Have conducted another review of our training course and in my own studies for the Cert IV in Workplace Training and Assesment picked up two more High Distinctions.

On Thursday night finished off our Dragon Warriors campaign with an explosive conclusion; on Sunday ran the first session of GURPS Krononauts which involved an intervention in the time of the fall of the Aztec Empire, a fascinating and tragic period of history. In the HeroQuest pbem, the Crimson Bat has been destroyed by a Rubble Runner with a Dwarven grenade. Now accepting articles for the fourth edition of RPG Review which will include interviews with Dennis Sustare and (apparently) Ken St. Andre!

Date: 2009-05-18 05:51 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] http://users.livejournal.com/_zombiemonkey/
While God and the Devil now leave me kind of cold, I was always partial to Tori Amos' supposed take on the Devil - God was your God for impossible objective standards, while Lucifer was God for when you wanted life to be comfortable, fun, exciting or indulgent. You pray to God for world peace, you pray to Lucifer for chocolate mud cake and good sex.

Date: 2009-05-18 06:00 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] tcpip.livejournal.com
Most contemporary Satanists and Luciferians are atheistic, or at least non-theistic, these days; they take them to be symbolic representations of human conditions (temptation and enlightenment, respectively). Even things like the "black mass" are conducted purely for psychodrama.

Date: 2009-05-19 05:02 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] tcpip.livejournal.com
If you're interested an essay derived from the presentation is now available at: http://melbourneunitarian.org.au/node/100

I think you would also be interested in the comments by a British Cardinal who has claimed that atheists and secularists are "not fully human".

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xbrfz1DIq9Q

Date: 2009-05-18 07:44 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] niamh-sage.livejournal.com
I meant to comment earlier, but I forgot: I wanted to say, I thought your proposal for using LJ/DW technology for the Australian research community was a really good one! Is there any possibility it might get up and running?

Date: 2009-05-18 08:05 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] tcpip.livejournal.com
There is a very high possibility (even more now we've been handed quite a lot of money apparently). I raised the issue with my immediate manager who was quite positive. Initial proposal made in a formal sense, source code downloaded through Mercurial (*ugh*) and soon a sample box or two will be up...

Australian researchers desperately need a technology that combines the 'blogging ability (to the equivalent of Wordpress) plus the social networking ability (to the equivalent of *cough* Facebook). I think LJ/DW is the right tool for the job.

Date: 2009-05-18 08:12 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] fluffyblanket.livejournal.com
Phew - I'm exhausted by just reading of your energetic activity ! Have you seen this community -
http://community.livejournal.com/christianleft/profile
?

Date: 2009-05-18 08:18 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] tcpip.livejournal.com
I have, but I'm not sure it's the right thing for me... Although I am friendly with the Christian left (and indeed have some good friends on said group), I'm not sure it's my place to participate...

Date: 2009-05-18 09:45 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] zenicurean.livejournal.com
Ken St. Andre? Why, I have very fond memories of his Stormbringer RPG, despite the clunky rules.

Date: 2009-05-18 11:55 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] tcpip.livejournal.com
Stormbringer was a wild and crazy game system. It was Steve Perrin's design plus Ken St. Andre's sense of the chaotic. I think it melded together quite well, and was very appropriate to Michael Moorcock's works.

Date: 2009-05-18 05:17 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] janewilliams20.livejournal.com
A rubble runner with a dwarven grenade? This I have got to read!
(reads)
OMG that's brilliant! Right, from now on IMG that is what really happened, and all the other versions are made up by people who didn't want to admit to a Rubble Runner having defeated the Bat.

Date: 2009-05-18 11:09 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] tcpip.livejournal.com
It was such an insane suggestion and yet so aesthetically beautiful it had to come true :)

The Rubble Runner in question is actually a wizard's familiar (who has gone missing) so it has some smarts..
From: [identity profile] tornspacetime.livejournal.com
I picked up something special in Reno last week.
I was prior unaware of its existence.
Possessing this, or it possessing me, makes me remarkably sad that you're approximately 0 holonometers forever away while physically too fucking distant!
Let me share.....................................
(drumroll)
http://www.13moon.com/dreamspell_kit.htm
From: [identity profile] tcpip.livejournal.com
Damn.. That looks like a quite entertaining... this tool provides a breakthrough map of the radial, fractal mathematics of galactic time...

*sigh* I think I'm going to lose time meandering through their website...

And exhibiting a different facet,

Date: 2009-05-19 05:46 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] tornspacetime.livejournal.com
I finally failed to forget to tell you that my dad finally joined LJ.

If you're constrained for time as it is, You're definitely going to have to work on your galactic compression skills!
http://scandalous-dave.livejournal.com/

my dad is rad.

Re: And exhibiting a different facet,

Date: 2009-05-19 11:31 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] tcpip.livejournal.com
Everyone should have a rad dad. If if they don't they should find one :)

Date: 2009-05-25 05:44 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] vaelynphi.livejournal.com
Sweet (on the CUDA subject); I'm looking forward to getting my hands on a GTX nvidia card in a few months, after I've moved and have some spare money laying about... can't wait to start developing some newer code for relativistic research.

Also, you're apparently presentation-rific; go you.

Date: 2009-05-25 05:46 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] tcpip.livejournal.com
The development with CUDA and the GPUs is very exciting for applications like NAMD. A ten times speed up is nothing to be ignored (even if, for obvious reasons, it can't be in parallel).

Also, you're apparently presentation-rific; go you.

"Stirring the possum" is the term we use :)

Date: 2009-05-25 04:21 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] vaelynphi.livejournal.com
Now, that's a funny image in my head...

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