From: TicAttack Subject: [OT] The DS / PHD War = The Truman Show Date: 29 Aug 1999 00:00:00 GMT Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.space-sim and we're all in it! Paul, kudos to you for seeing the entertainment value in all of this. You've got the right attitude to say "This looks like fun, and im going to pick a part and play it." There's only one person who would ever have to take any of this stuff seriously (and even he doesnt "have" to) , the rest can just have fun playing their roles or just ignore it. Usenet is what you make of it: entertainment, information, free advertising... or even a needless source of stress and aggrivation if you take the wrong attitude. Your soap opera analogy is a good one... maybe the WWF soap opera is more appropriate because of the elevated absurdity factor. Ive been semi-following these DS threads for over a year and its precisely because of the entertainment value it provides that i still occassionaly go through these posts. Its true, in this soap opera everyone is playing their roles. You have the people who are trying to "get their newsgroup back" , the detractors, the supporters, the infamous trolls, instigators and devil's advocates... this along with an endless series of subplots makes this the most theatrical series of threads in usenet's history. Im sure all of the major players in this show are getting a kick out of it, including Mr. Smart. Perhaps also from Mr. Smarts perspective, its a case of any publicity being good publicity...) Like or not, when Mr. Smart talks in this newsgroup, people listen... detractors included. He has a captive audience here and as a salesman, you cant ask for anything more. One person holds the power to end this soap opera and dont think for a second that he doesnt know it. It continues because he allows/wants it to continue. I'm sure his Lawyer has asked him plenty of times "Why do you keep doing this?" and im sure Mr. Smart tries his best to convince him that he's only doing it because he's not going to take this lieing down... be held hostage by a bunch of teenagers... etc" but for Mr Smart, its probably a game just like it is for the "detractors." Perhaps a different game though.. a game of wits maybe... but with higher stakes for the not too careful detractor? I say, for those who want to get involved and know how to have fun without getting themselves into any legal difficulties in the process, good for you. Mr. Smart can say what he likes. The detractors can say what they like. Its the people who take all of this too seriously that should probably take a few steps back and think about just exactly what it is they are getting upset about. The "interactivity" of all this as you pointed out is key. I think it also relates very closely to the warm fuzzy feeling people get when their newsgroup post generates alot of followups. Even the people who never posted to the various DS threads must admit they want as many people as possible to reply to a post they make. It makes people feel good when a huge thread forms off of their initial post and in this group you're guaranteed a half dozen or more followups to anything you post that has PHD or DS in the title, What do you get when you know that you have a post that will get read by many people? Well two things i suppose... you get the "class clown" posts (all negative connotations aside ) and you also get alot of people who want to post articles where they can express their creative sides or perhaps "show off" (not trying to make this sound negative either) their intelligence in some way. Its like, "I'm not going to spend several hours coming up with clever DS jokes, witty passages, long analytical essays, etc unless i know people are going to read it, and demonstrate that they've read it by following up to my post." A DS related post is less risky in that regard and the chances for the author to post something he/she feels is significant and / or has spent significant time on and not get read by (or not perceived to have been read by) many people is reduced. So join in on the "PHDS War." Showtimes are ... well, all the time. Its like the Truman Show ;-) If you're already in it, stay for as long as you like. If you're thinking of trying... why not, as long as you have fun! If you dont want to, thats cool too. But for your own sake, never get mad. Lifes too short to get upset over such trivial matters. -mike What can a kill filter do that i cant do by excersizing a little self restraint? Paul Gifford wrote in message news:37c8b880@news1.us.ibm.net... > > Ed Bain wrote in message > news:37cc3072.4666064@news.mindspring.com... > . > > > > Paul, are you in LOVE with Derek Smart? You -are- caught up > > in the DS groupie attitude of some of the others, in case you > > haven't noticed. > > > Ed, > > Good point. Let me explain: > > Some months ago, I came to this ng for discussion on XWA. I began reading > the BC3K/PhDS threads. Very interesting stuff, at the core (there are only > a few people I read posts from - I don't have the time to read every little > "LOL" or mini-pissing contest that goes on in the periphery). In fact, I > found the whole saga to be like a soap opera (not that I watch them but I > understand their addictiveness). > > At first I was more or less in the middle, as idiots abound and it's hard > to tell who is wearing white or black hats. I thought PhDS may have a PhD - > I could see the antagonistical logic behind withholding the information. I > looked at Huff's stuff, found it a wordy but complete archive. I looked at > past posts. Here's the kicker: I actually believed PhDS when he wrote > about lawyers, getting Huff, getting Spook (ok, the "Nick" thing I wasn't > really buying...). Louis was a done deal - he hung himself. > > As the posts rolled on, a clearer picture took shape in my mind. Here's > the picture: Capt Queeg. Familiar to you? He is a centeral character in > "The Caine Mutiny" (Herman Wouk). I can't recommend either the book or the > movie enough...the book won a Pulitzer and the movie was nominated for Best > Picture (I think "On the Waterfront" (is that the right title?-Marlin Brando > flick) won that year). The characterization is slightly different in the > two versions - for my purposes I refer to the movie version of "The Caine > Mutiny". Queeq is a ship's captain (mine sweeper, Pacific, WWII) who > appears to be paranoid, and comes more unglued as the story progresses. At > the same time, looking at his actions from a different viewpoint, he appears > perfectly normal. (It really is a brilliant story - go rent it, then read > the book after) PhDS began to look more and more like Queeq to me. It was > like one of my favorite stories come to life! (I don't believe Queeq > actually uses the word "detractor", but he comes awfully close). > > Here's how much BC3K - TOG is like Caine Mutiny...in the story, one of > Queeq's officers does research on paranoia, keeps a log on the actions the > fit the paranoid personality. What did Spookie do? The same thing! The > book has come to life right before my very eyes! It is very twilight > zone-ish... > > On another front, PhDS's own posts have convinced me any advanced degree > is not from any accredited university. (That and the fact that Huff rolls > on - what more evidence could PhDS need? What is his case lacking that Huff > hasn't said?) These same posts have shown him to be a liar (Spookie, > Louis)...generally he appears to be a man of less than solid character. So > now I think he's a lying, degreeless schmuck...all thanks to his posts! > > This brings me to my alleged "love" of PhDS. As I said at the start, this > whole thing is a soap opera. However, it's better than a TV soap opera > because it is interactive. We all get a role! In just a few short months, > however, I find my favorite soap to be going stale. I've seen the > bankruptcy thing enough, I don't care about the degree so much because I am > convinced that any advanced degree is from an non-accredited institution, > he's stopped talking about taking Huff to court (that plot line had > tremendous potential...I love John Grisham novels too), he showed himself to > be a liar again by failing to answer Spook's multiple choice house number > quiz (another plot point...dramatic showdown). His screen shots provide > some comic relief (besides the 2 commanders who walk funny, what's up with > all the purple mist? And lens flare? (that may have been in the 1st game > rather than a screen shot) Who sees lens flare when looking with their > eyes? He's not the only one guilty of that...it's a pet peeve of mine) but > basically things have gone stale (although the Coke machine story is > priceless and provides endless fodder for jokes) > > I was attempting to direct my favorite soap opera in a possibly > interesting direction and open up some new plot lines. One day whilst > reviewing the ng, I thought "I bet his ex-wife has some stories!". So I > trolled (yes, I admit it), wondering if that had come up previously. I will > say this: the appearance of aldusm definitely has possibilities. An old > nemesis come back from the grave? a coma? a battlecruiser in the purple > nebula? Hmmmm... > > So that's the short answer to your question, Ed....thanks for asking. > > p > > -------------- Caine Mutiny spoiler below -------------------- > > > > > > > > > > > > Don't go any further if you don't want to know about the ending of the > movie! > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > ps. I keep waiting for PhDS to self-destruct like Queeq does in the > courtroom. I hope it happens before I get bored with the ng and move on! > > > > > > > Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/ Share what you know. Learn what you don't.