When Games Meet Politics: Democrats & Gamers' Edition

I've been looking at GamePolitics.com for a while and there seems to be one topic that comes up all the time: a state bill that would restrict game sales popping up. Recently, California has passed a bill though both of it's houses to do just that, but Arnold "Govenator" Schwarzenegger hasn't said on whether he would or wouldn't sign it. With that, tons of Democrats from all around have expressed their desire that the Govenator (sorry, I can't help but call him that) should sign the bill.
Senetor Hillary Clinton was only the first among many Democrats to call for the signing of AB 1179, the bill that would restrict violent games to minors. The theory is that Democrats are hopping onto this bandwagon in hopes that they can say they are for "family values".
The problem is that this isn't much of an issue for all but a few people. This topic won't win anyone who's main voting consern is values.
Along side that, there is the restrictions that would happen. Publishers don't like state regulations since they couldn't just send out one product everywhere, but have to micro-manage their shipping. Game Politics also points out that almost all of the bills that come about are based on content rather then work with the ESRB, which in turn will create confusion or futher hinderance of speach then what is even intended.

The problem stems to a major problem all younger voters have, they just don't vote. There's plenty of gamers out there, but because almost all of them fall into the 18-30 year old crowd, it at least appears that most don't vote. Even then, just as videogames aren't a big part of the values crowd, they aren't a big part of the gamer voters as well. Let's face it, there are plenty of larger issues.
The best thing gamers could do to prevent such measures from being passed is not to vote, but to form a lobbying group. This would be far more effective, since it would have some effect not just during elections, but during legislative sessions. It would also prove that gamers are a force to be wreckened with.
The greatest hurdle to this goal, it's the fact that gamers aren't politically active. The closest we have is one website, Game Politics. It's possible that the people behind Game Politics can start to build something, but it's still a pretty big hurdle.
Once something is formed, I doubt money can't be generated. If there's one thing I have learned from the downfall of TechTV, it's that Internet fans are very loyal. As long as enough people discover this new lobby, then the money could easily flow.
Leadership also has to be an important issue. They can't just be the knee-jerk reactionists that will oppose everything. They have to be logical and actually show evidence that the proposed policies are harmful.
As it is, there is already plenty anti-game lobby; it's just they're not organized. Their current advantage is that they vote and are very vocal. Gamers are vocal, but only within their own forums. They need an organization in which to speak out to the general public.
As it is, we do need something like this. Democrats are the only other force that would oppose such legislation, and we can see where that is leading us. Gamers need to know that posting on a message board isn't enough. Not by a long shot.

Corruption or Something Else: Republican Leadership in Trouble

Going off of the first two segments of Countdown tonight, Republicans are reeling from not one, but two congressional leaders being at least suspected of wrongdoing. Bill Frist appearently sold some stock two days before it tanked, basicly pulling a Martha. On the other side of the hall, Tom "The Hammer" Delay is being indicted for laundering illegal funds into political campaigns.
Delay's problem is that it was this money that got him into his leadership position in the first place. Since the early 90's, he was on an active campaign to get more and more Republicans into congress.

I do not believe it is a case where there is a widespread case of the Republican party is corrupted. I do believe it is a case of power corrupts. I can easily say that almost every congressional leader has had problems, some to the point they had to quit. Newt Gingrich has been the most famous example of where a leader has been shoved out of his/her position because of allegations.

However, this series of allegations will effect the Republican party. Frist hasn't been as much of the HARDCORE Republican leader as his predicessor, but he is still a leader in a time where the political divide is wide.
Delay, on the other hand, definatly has earned his nickname of "The Hammer". He has been one of the most strict leaders of any party. He demands that you go along with him or you will get punished. His agressive means of getting his way has set the Republican party down the path it has been for the past few years. Going without this direction will divide the Republican party, much the same way the Democratic party is divided now.
As it is, the Republican party is lost since for the past four years, they have been steadfast behind Bush. Now with his tanking poll numbers, the Republican party is trying to decide between staying on the boat or jumping ship. If these allegations force both Delay and Frist out, chaotic won't even start to describe the position Republicans will be in.

G4: Making Even More Mistakes

Well, their special on the Tokyo Game Show was decent, abiet brief and very late. They did have an exclusive interview with Iwata though.
However, the network as a whole is making even more mistakes. First, they got multiple car shows. Then they got unrelated shows that now consist the "Barbwire Biscuit" line of programs. Next, The Man Show (source: http://www.tvsquad.com/2005/09/27/coming-to-g4-the-man-show/).
A network dedicated to a specific market and the execs there just don't know how to capture it. TechTV was great simply because of it's programing. Although it had a smaller audience then what most television stations would like (mostly attributed to the fact that they just didn't show up in very many places), they got a very loyal audience.
The problem they had was simply they were aiming for the wrong audience. They were aiming for the casual gamer, those who don't really care much for games beyond the actual game. It should have been the hardcore gamer in which they needed to grab.
But with each new move, G4 creaps the other way, toward to being just another channel. One without any unique identity. One that is just another space between the other cable channels.
If there is one thing G4 does need, it's a breakaway hit that is related to gaming. Successful shows spawn more successful shows. Discovery has done this type of thing for years with Junkyard Wars and American Chopper.
There is one show that G4 could easily parellel: World Poker Tour. The show does a great job of conveying what the hardcore poker player does. A similar show about videogame tournaments could do the same thing, as well as capture the hardcore.
The point is that they should not move away from gaming, as they are doing now. If they move toward celebrating gaming, then they may get far more people watching then just the hardcore.

How John C. Dvorak is Wrong: Electoral College edition

John C. Dvorak, noted commentator over at PCMag and This Week In Tech, put up an essay on why he thinks the electoral college will be disbanded: http://dvorak.org/blog/essays/electoral.htm.
The main point he has is that the media, ever since Bush won the 2000 election, is pointing out the problems in the electoral college. While the media has been putting out the whole idea of "red state-blue state" (which I still hate, by the way), it has only been in the forefront since Bush has been a love him/hate him kind of president.
But here is one thing I think he got wrong, and thus wrecked his whole premise:

"The big networks also got stiffed during the last election as all the real money went to states such as Ohio, Pennsylvania and Florida where there were a lot of electoral votes and which were on the fence."

The reality is: this has always been the case. While I can't cite any studies right now (they were cited many times during my college level political science classes), you will see that presidential candidates tend to visit states that are on the fence alot more then those that are garenteed victories.
Which is another point he misses, there has always been states that are garenteed victories. It's something that comes with such a system. For example, Maine has gone democratic ever since the '92 election. Thinking stratigicly, you would have to go to a state that is on the fence and has enough points to carry you to victory.
The media has been a passive organization. When it comes to politics, the news media acts like a sports commentator. They aren't really part of the action, they just call it as they see it (which often falls into the "he said-she said type of mentality).

The real reason we won't see the electoral college changed or disbanded is one that Dvorak glosses over: elected politicians don't like a change in the rules. Think of it logicly, if you win by those rules, would you change them? Would you change the rules to something that you don't know.
Recently, the Democrats shot themselves in the foot over something like this. With the McCain-Feingold reform put into place banning soft money, the Democrats voted along with it. It turned out that the Democrats relied far more on soft money then the Republicans, thus cutting off a huge advantage that they had. Changing the electoral college would have far greater affect over how presidential politics is played.
Even then, what do we change it to? It would have even worse problems if it was purely based on the popular vote. If it was changed to where every state has equal votes, not only would it be more daunting for candidates, but it would put more voting power to people who live in less populated states.

There is only one way the electoral college will change, the voters will have to rebel against it. The only way for that to really happen is if it looks to interfere in their right to vote in a democratic election.
As is, the only change I see is making the electoral votes in a state purportional rather then victor takes all. That is an issue that has to be carried at a state level (and some states do have purportional electoral votes). Plus, as said before, politicans will fight such a change unless they know they'll lose on the issue.
But the issue isn't something that is in the forefront, nor something people consider a problem. There has been only four elections where the victor only won the electoral votes, but lost the popular vote. Bush happens to be one of them. It isn't as much of a problem for the current system as some would make it out to be.
True, one could concievably carry only a fraction of the states and still win, but it's very doubtful. Presidents want to have the support of their electorate, which is the entire US. They want to have at least 50%+1, if just to show that the people support him. Presidents would love to have 60%, since that would be a good mandate (or at least until Bush declared otherwise). The actual rules and metagame make it so then it at least appears problems with the system is minimal. Until a problem that is fully attributed to the rules shows up, there won't be a change. Period.

Podcasts: Not an escape from spin

Blogs have one major problem, many either fudge facts quite a bit or fall into spin as part of their arguement. A few do try to avoid this, and thus tend to be good. However, especially with the political divide we are having, far too many give off inaccuracies of many kinds.
Podcasting is starting to overtake traditional radio, but falls into the same pits that blogs and radio have.
First, many podcasts are just distributing the same thing that you hear over the radio. NPR has many (if not all) of it's shows distibuted as podcasts as well.
If there is one thing a podcast can do, it's fill in a niche that one is looking for. Unfortunatly, I have yet to find the niche that I'm looking for. Looking on Podcast.net, much of what is in the politics section is very defined into one area of politics.
I decided to give at least one a chance, the one that tops the libral and conservative listing on Podcast.net. Both slots happen to be taken by one podcast (which shows there already is some inaccuracy in searching): The Jay Mcfarland Podcast. So I listened to his latest episode (9-22-05) to see if he's any good. Unfortunatly, no.
From what I heard, he isn't really libral. For at least the first half of the episode (Firefox bugged out on me on the second half), he was just on a rant blasting New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin. The main problem I had was that, while do agree the mayor does carry some blame, he uses the "guilt by association" arguement with linking the Mayor Ray Nagin with all democrats.
Although much of my searching is through reading summeries rather then listening, I can't give any recommendations to anyone. I would also like to remind people that because it is said or written, it doesn't mean it is true. Don't just try to find sources that you'll agree with, find those that give out the real facts, with spin.
And again, if you want a good article on Katrina, try here: http://www.factcheck.org/article348.html.

Bush's Budget is Catching Up

Whenever a president hits his second term, they try to do anything to make sure they don't become a lame duck. Bush wasn't any different; he had a whole list of things on his agenda, including social security reform. Then, he went on vacation for too long.
Bush has yet to veto a spending bill, likely his way of apeasing the congressional Republicans. He let every bill though, uncaring if it was pork or not, so then he could get his agenda through. He also had a huge network to distribute talking points to rally conservatives outside of DC (see: http://www.brendan-nyhan.com/blog/2005/09/the_gopconserva.html). With several tax cuts (which hasn't actually done anything to help the budget, as some have claimed) and a major military campaign going on, the federal budget is stretched very thin. Then Katrina hit.
Katrina not only had a horrendous federal response, but has long term damage that could easily cost billions. Bush now has to make a choice.
But yet, based on his comments, he doesn't want to make a choice. He would like to be able to spend the money to rebuild New Orleans, keep the tax cuts, keep full support in military operations in Iraq, and not make any other changes. Fiscal conservatives, who bit their tongue in the past few years to support Bush, now are out in the wood-work and calling for some balance to be made.
The already low support for the operations in Iraq have translated to polls suggesting that Bush should cut down on Iraq. John McCain has called for cutting out all the pork out of the budget. Others, especially in the House, have called to delay the Medicare reform for a few years.
Bush has to make a decision and soon. His PR campaigns are the only reason he has ever been the leader of the Republican party. Now he has to show that he is a leader in substance.

The DS: A case of economics

As Nintendo revealed the Revolution controller, many people made comparisons to the DS. Most commented on how they are still playing the DS, while their PSP is put away, which was the opposite to what they expected a year ago. The comparisons tend to say that the games are more compelling on the DS because of the touch screen and other features, while the PSP poors out the same games we seen hundreds of times.
While I will say that is a factor, I can't help but think this isn't the major factor on why the DS is so much more successful. The reason is simple: the DS is cheap.
When I say the DS is cheap, I don't mean to the consumers (although they too don't have to pay as much); I mean to developers. The best graphics you will see out of the DS is just above what you saw out of the Nintendo 64. The PSP gives at least near PS2 level of graphics. Convention says that the DS will be the simplier of the two systems to develope for.
But there is one thing that is helping out Nintendo; freedom. Sony, while they let pretty much anything go on their console, try to get as much 3D games as possible, to the exclusion of 2D. Nintendo, ever since they dropped their censorship policies, has let developers do anything, including 2D. Sony more often wants to show what their systems are capable of, while Nintendo is letting developers do what they want.
The problem with Sony's 3D-centric policy is that it forces developers to rack up their production costs. Games on the PSP have the same cost to develope as PS2 games. That is one reason you don't see too many $30 games, but plenty of $40-50 games on the PSP. These games just aren't the budget games that normally have come out off the portible market. And with these costs publishers, have to start choosing between home console games and portible games, because they can't afford both.
The DS doesn't have this limit. A developer can make a game that doesn't break the budget. DS games will cost only a fraction of what it costs for home console games. They become side projects that anyone can do.
We already have seen that development costs on home consoles are skyrocketing, forcing publishers to hedge their bets and make fewer, mostly surefire, games. The PSP just shows what will happen if this trend continues: we won't get any good games because too few of them will be released.

Is the Gulf Coast on a clean slate?

With the entirety of New Orleans evacuated and much of the rest of the Gulf Coast in a similar state, many politicians seem to interpret this as though the Gulf Coast now has a clean slate. Much of a Brendan Nyhan post (here: http://www.brendan-nyhan.com/blog/2005/09/conservative_ut.html) I had already heard much of, at least similar things.
What these people don't realize is that the Gulf Coast isn't really a blank slate. People want to go back there; they just want to be in a much safer position first. The evacuees don't want to stay in Texas or where-ever they are currently at. If it takes a year to restore the Gulf Coast to a least livable condition, there will be heck to pay.
This is not to mention that people won't fall for such ideas. People, even those who are not evacuees but have been in the Gulf Coast at one point or another, would much rather see the environment (I'm not just talking about the natural environment, but also the cities and suburbs) seen restored rather then remade.

Will Sony Copy Nintendo?

Nintendo has kept the Revolution controller hidden from public view, supposedly to make sure Sony or Microsoft can't simply copy the controller for their own system. Now the question some have put up is will they. There are even some fake pictures of Sony showing off their version of the controller (they're all just joking, but it is still speculation).
First, I seriously doubt they can do it for the X-Box 360 or PS3. Both are going to be released soon (well, Sony maybe released soon), and neither has the time to implement such a controller at launch. Even if they don't intend to do so at launch, it will take them a long while to do the R&D for such a device (especially if they don't want to impede on Nintendo's patent).
This is of course presuming they even want to. The "mouse stick", as I call it, is unproven in the market. With such a diviation from convention, Sony and Microsoft will likely wait and see if it does well before doing serious work on copying the device.
One peice of evidence these specuators have is that Sony (and subsequently Microsoft) took Nintendo's inovations such as the rumble pak and analog control. Microsoft came in when both were standard. Sony however put out the Dual Shock controller around half-way into the Playstation's lifespan.
The problem was: the Dual Shock wasn't successful until the PS2 was released. The second stick and rumble wasn't really useful at the time, and few games took advantage of both. The reason it didn't succeeded wasn't because of the controller itself, but how it was released. Assessories and perefferals that expand gameplay often has to either be launched with a game or the system itself. This is appearent with Nintendo's idea of Gamecube-Gameboy Advance connectivity. When that was put out, few games even used it, much less used it's full potential. By the time a game that used it to it's advantage, it was too late.
Even if an assessory was put out with a game, it may not succeed beyond that game. DDR has been out for many years, but pads don't come with systems. Dance pads are only available with DDR and similar games. The reason the rumble pak succeeded was because it was a simple to program item. GC-GBA connectivity has programmers put out two screens at least.
As such, even if Sony and Microsoft wanted to copy the Revolution controller, they would have to do it in the next generation (PS4 and X-Box3). That is alot of time to kill, and both would have to stay afloat for at least 4 years, unless they want to pull a Sega (note: Sega cut off the Saturn before it even hit it's prime). By then, the controller would have to become the standard for them to make such a move.
But as Nintendo and Microsoft showed this generation, copying doesn't make a company be number 1. They would have to do something different that shows consumers that they are better. Nintendo may or may not do this with the Revolution, but it certainly seems like a better reason to go buy another system. Sony became number 1 by getting as many developers on their side and pushing 3D. They would have to show how they utilize the mouse-stick to a better degree.
So if Nintendo does succeed with the Revolution, even over taking Sony and Microsoft, the game industry may become an industry of inovation. Both rivals may go a different route, or optimize Nintendo's ideas. If either one is the case, we won't find out for four or five years. Quite alot can happen in just one year.

Gaming Spin: PS3 Demo edition

With the PS3, once again, not playable, the more or less tech demos try to show what the PS3 is capable of. Metal Gear Solid 4 shocked people the same way Killzone 2 did at E3. Hideo Kojima had a presentation that showed that the trailer was running in real time (story: http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3143916).
However, I suspect this is the same issue as the Killzone 2 trailer has. It's not that it isn't running in real time (in other words, actually rendering all the polygons and details), but I suspect that this won't be seen when you're actually playing the game.
Two things are probably happening, at least to what I think. First, this isn't running on the PS3. This is highly likely since many of the X-Box 360 titles weren't actually running on the 360 hardware, but on other systems (including Apple G4's). Even at TGS, the Gears of War demo wasn't running on the hardware. As is, we don't even know that the PS3 hardware is even finished. There were reports after E3 that the graphics card for the PS3 hasn't even been finished.
The second is also likely that the game isn't even running. While graphics do take alot of the processing power, there are other forces at work in a game. Physics is something that has been put to the forefront with Half Life 2. Everything that you see, hear and do takes up processing power. If all you show is a prescripted sequence, you can show a much prettier picture because the computer has nothing else to do. Even the sound has only one track to follow, rather then activating and playing twenty different sound effects at a time.
For the first generation, PS3 games will look much closer to Resident Evil 4 (Gamecube version) then the demo of Killzone 2 or MGS4. You have to remember, the first generation tends to have much poorer graphics just because of the fact that developers have yet to work with the new hardware. This will be more so with the PS3's Cell, which has several cores for developers to work with. If you are to see Killzone 2 or MGS4, it will be at least a year into PS3's lifespan.

Gaming Spin: Revolution Press

With Nintendo finally revealing the real Revolution (the controller), they almost similatiously put out many press releases, including this one: http://cube.ign.com/articles/651/651304p1.html.
One has to remember, the quotes are correct. I have no doubt that developers are interested in the Revolution. The problem is that this really isn't an indication on whether developers fully support Nintendo or if they want something more or different.
One thing I have been reading about all over Revolution forums is that players want another two buttons at the bottom of the "mouse-stick" so then they could at least play SNES games. But we have yet to hear from developers directly.
The people I really want to hear from are not just developers, but publishers. With the amount of money it takes to make the average game these days, publishers have more control over which games get made then ever. Few developers have even a decent amount of control over their games (see the many buggy PC games and subsequent patches). As such, it would give us a much better look at how well the Revolution will do if we get the views from publishers.
But as I said before, the quotes are real. I have no doubt the developers in this press release feel that way, but it isn't their entire view on the Revolution.


UPDATE: Here is a good article that I found scrounging other blogs: http://www.next-gen.biz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1084&Itemid=2

A Day of Two Major Speaches: Bush and Iwata

First, I'll explore what Bush said last night to the country. The thing is, many people, even major critics of Bush, have actually gave the speach a positive evaluation. This was one speach in which wasn't filled with political spin and was more about what needs to be done. The only thing that anyone can call Bush on is if and how he will follow through with this.
One thing that some people won't like is that Bush proposed that the military get more involved with disasters. I am not one of those people. I don't like armed officers, per say, going into disasters unless nessisary. But having the military part of major disasters will give the military a real purpose in times of peace. Heck, the military was ready to give aid this time around (funny story, they just lacked the orders to do so for a while).
There was one thing I don't think was addressed, and that was the money issue. It is very doubtful that taxes will be raised, so the money to restore the Gulf Coast has to come from somewhere. Polls have said a most people support cutting back the Iraq operations to do so, with rolling back tax cuts for the wealthy and not repealing the estate tax comming second and third respectivly. My over-optimistic opinion, cutting pork. But that isn't going to happen.

Now onto the videogames side.
Going off the list in the last post, only the last prediction has come true (I'm still waiting to see Perfect Dark). Sony now seems a little behind.
But the big event was Iwata's keynote that revealed the Revolution's controller. If you haven't seen it yet:
First, why am I your primary source? Two, go to IGN and check out the five or six articles about it.
This was something I thought of since around the time of the "perfect with Pikmin" comment and the split controller rumor spread. I never thought it would be in such a form though, but now I'm interested.
The "mouse-stick" as I'll call it, appears to be more versitile then the DS' touch screen. With the DS, you are directly interacting with the screen. The Revolution can be applied to many things. One obvious thing is being able to swing Link's sword manually.
My major hope is that the joystick attachment is included standard. I'm also not entirely sure how the controller works, but I'm hoping I can use it through walls (and thus, in the bathroom).
As is, I can only imagine the rediculousness that some games will bring along. Warioware will be calm and relaxing in comparison to what other games have in store.
Unfortunatly, Nintendo didn't show one real game demo (they did show a few tech demos, mostly behind closed doors), so it still is hard to tell how well the Revolution will go. I imagine that third party developers have many ideas going through their head, but publishers will be hesitant since this is a system the will force them to take a chance with at least the initial set of games. Nintendo still has to prove that the idea works in the real world.
But as is, it certainly doesn't look like much of a flop. First person shooters will flock to the system, as well as real time stratagy games. So while I can't be confident enough to say they will get the top spot next generation, I do think they are garenteed second place now. With Sony and Microsoft going the technology route, unless Nintendo sells this at a more expensive price point, one of those will fail while Nintendo will take a different place in the living room.

Placing My Bets on TGS

Here is what I expect to see at TGS.

1) Sony will have playable PS3 games. There will also be a greater PSP presence then at E3

2) Microsoft will still have the greatest next-gen presence there, and I'll include a playable Perfect Dark Zero with that

And now for the most anticipated (mostly due to speculation and rumor), Nintendo's Keynote:

3) The controller won't be seen. It's features may be ambigously discussed, but it won't be shown. I hope this isn't true, but I see the odds against that hope

4) The final form of the Revolution console will be shown, as well as it's final name

5) Nintendo will give out more details on their download service, now including at least Genesis games into the mix, if not one or two more Sega systems

6) The online service will be revealed in full, although focused on the DS's online capabilities

7) Zelda will be shown, including one new feature that wasn't revealed that's was included due to the game's delay

8) The phrase "kicking *** and taking names" won't be used at all

With at least the latter six, we shall find out tomarrow night. The Keynote is taking place 6am Friday in Japan, but 7pm Thursday pacific coast time (I believe, I'm going off of what IGN says).

Spam Spam Spam Spamdy Spam Wonderful Spam

While I don't like putting up barriers to posting on here (which anyone is free to), I also don't like spam messages that ruin the whole message board. I also don't like having to delete posts (which I have now done). So from now on, you will have to use the word-image to post.
Here is my rule: Keep the actual comment to the topic at hand. I don't care if the signiture or name is spam, but keep the actual board clean. Heck, I don't even mind generic comments like, "good post" or even "ditto", but I would like to know if the post is sincere. Posts that ahve ads in them are not allowed anymore.
Livejournal seems to be able to avoid the spambots, so this won't be posted there.

Nintendo's Problem With Presentation

Let me start out by saying that no matter what I say, Nintendo is a great developer. It has been a problem among all Nintendo fans, especially fansites, are showing so much negativity toward Nintendo, it just appears that we are reverse-fanboys (those who hate a company). This isn't the case, but we can't help but see that the Big N has been making many mistakes. And unfortunatly, presentation is one of them.
Now, when I say presentation, what I mean is the non-playable parts of the game. It's not only the menu, but the artwork, story, music and so forth.
Nintendo just tries to stick with what they know, how to make a great game. Unfortunatly, in a day and age where one can do much more with videogames, Nintendo far too often sticks with a focus on the gameplay mechanics, even to an extend which backfires on it.
The best example I can give is The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. The graphics are great, realistic in the sense that the world suspends your belief and let's you emerse yourself into it. But then, the text boxes appear. It just takes you out of the game.
Nintendo, in response to critics who disliked the decision not to include voice-dialog in the upcomming Zelda: Twilight Princess, said having text is the last vestage of having the player's imagination imput into the game. Now, this worked when there was limited technology in games, when developers couldn't articlulate the action on-screen. But today, we can get just as good animation as Pixar uses in their full-lenth movies.
But the major problem with Nintendo is that of being "kiddy".
What makes kiddiness a problem? It's that players don't like it when something makes them feel dumb. Not only does it not make us feel cool, but the opposite.
The Gamecube itself, or even it's lineup as a whole, is rather neutral between being "kiddy" or "mature". Other parties, like Capcom or Retro Studios, don't seem to have this problem. Resident Evil is actually appropriate in content and presentation for it's rating, and Metriod doesn't avoid the grittiness that one would expect.
Nintendo has always tried to present itself as a family friendly developer. The problem isn't the goal, there's plenty of examples of success in this arena. Pixar has been one of the best movie studio because they make movies and shorts that appeal to both adults and kids.
The problem is the means in which Nintendo this. They try to go for the "common denominator", but fail to realize what really is the common part of the two denominators.
While Yoshi's Island's theme seems kiddy, it was actually appropriate (since it was showing Mario and Luigi as babies). But continuing the artistic theme for Yoshi's Story and Yoshi Topsy Turvy (even the name is a problem) doesn't help.
This has been a problem for many other artists. George Lucas has been hammered at least twice in the Star Wars Saga (as it's named now), first with the Ewoks then with Jar Jar Binks. While I'm guessing most Star Wars fans have since forgiven Lucas for the former (mostly because he showed that he could do worse), they probably won't ever forgive him for the latter. The reason is that it (Jar Jar) was put in almost soley with kids in mind, and fails to entertain adults at all (which takes away from the movie).
The problem may also stem with the cultural difference. Nintendo is a Japanese company. As PlanetGamecube put out several years ago (here: http://www.planetgamecube.com/editorials.cfm?action=profile&id=130), Nintendo is almost too focused on the Japanese market, often puting in policies that actually hinder them. What kind of presentation works in Japan sometimes doesn't work here.
But Nintendo of America (NOA) has shown that itself doesn't help with presentation. In the past, NOA had a censorship policy (see: http://www.filibustercartoons.com/Nintendo.php) where if a third party doesn't abide by it, the game doesn't get published. Since then, NOA seems to have taken to the right direction (mostly with Retro Studios), but still has to fight HQ in Japan for many things.
Is there a bright spot with Nintendo in this matter? Actually, yes.
The most appearent thing is Reggie. In his presentation made just before E3 2004, he showed that he could make Nintendo actually look cool. If Reggie can get through the obsticle that is Nintendo HQ, then we would start to see Nintendo actually improve in the area of presentation. Remember, Reggie was the one who first put up I Love the 70's while he worked at VH1.
Fans could also be an answer. While it is unknown if the graphical look in Twilight Princess is a case of the chicken or the egg, it does look like a good sign. We also may have to see if the addition for Twilight Princess' delay is for voice or not. But either way, Nintendo knows that it can't lose fans in a time where it is losing market share.
Presentation is something that Nintendo will have to make a call on. We still enjoy the games, but we need to also enjoy the game in it's entirety. One of the major reasons that Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is still the best game ever made is because the story is good. Having such a good presentation in this game shows exactly what Nintendo is capable of, but we have to see if Nintendo is willing to have the same kind of focus in future games.

Honor Amongst Honor?

One thing that Bush has constantly been presenting about judicial nominee John Roberts isn't his actual qualifications, but his personal ones. It just seems to reek of the same type of campaign that Bush held for the 2000 election, which Bush contended that he would bring "honor" back to the White House (it turns out he brought a much worse form of dishonor).
Or is it another unrelated link such as exercise and trust (I remember that Brendan Nyhan had a post on that with Roberts, but I can't find the post right now). Does somehow having a wife and two kids make you a better judge?
By presenting such a mask while avoiding the real questions, it does more of a disservice to people then even comming up with bad phrases. Here is a person who can effect the Supreme Court, and thus all Americans, for many decades to come. While I certainly can't mock a person for having what appears to be a good personal life, it just doesn't show the real qualifications.
And yes, I do want to know what his judical philosophy is. I don't just mean if he's liberal or conservative, I mean if he really is more activist then not. Does he take previous rulings to mind, or what implied rights (such as privacy) does he agree with. These are things everyone should know and take into account.
It just seems that even conservatives should be worried here, since that is what this campaign seems to be targeting. This viel is also avoiding their questions too. I doubt that conservatives also believe that one's personal life shows all the qualifications of being a judge.
This is just another example of how Bush and his adminisration has been trying manipulating everyone.

Dumb Quotes from Possibly Dumb People

Well, this is another entry in which was on Digg. In the poliical humor section of About.com, there are the top 25 quotes about Katrina. You probably already heard them all, but here they are anyway: http://politicalhumor.about.com/od/currentevents/a/katrinaquotes.htm?nl=1 .
Some of these quotes are probably just short burst of ***holeness, like quote number 2 by Barbara Bush. One actually I don't view as asinine as to be humorous, but a bad opinion none of the less.
But the Bush Administration takes the cake here.
From the first day of the 2000 presidential campaign, the Bush Administration has been more about PR then anything else. As some stories are comming out just how much PR is important (see here: http://www.brendan-nyhan.com/blog/2005/09/are_cronyism_an.html ), it shows that perception is more important then reality for this administration.
Katrina did something that nothing else has done, caught then entire administration's PR department (ok, the administration) with it's pants down. When they got their PR going, it was too late. The news media was waist deep (literally) in the story without any word from Bush or his administration.
Now with New Orleans nearly evacuated, the administration's PR is being shored up, but the damage has already been done. Pictures of the Superdome and all of the people who were sheltered there are already out.

With Friends Like These...

Well, you can probably understand why this post has the same name as this post: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6210240/.
On the same program, we got footage of Scott McClellan who would answer a question beyond his own talking point. Actually, it's on the briefing record over at WhiteHouse.gov (specificly, here: http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2005/09/20050907-2.html). Here it is in full:

"Q Scott, does the President retain confidence in his FEMA Director and Secretary of Homeland Security?

MR. McCLELLAN: And again, David, see, this is where some people want to look at the blame game issue, and finger-point. We're focused on solving problems, and we're doing everything we can --

Q What about the question?

MR. McCLELLAN: We're doing everything we can in support --

Q We know all that.

MR. McCLELLAN: -- of the Department of Homeland Security and FEMA.

Q Does he retain complete confidence --

MR. McCLELLAN: We're going to continue. We appreciate the great effort that all of those at FEMA, including the head of FEMA, are doing to help the people in the region. And I'm just not going to engage in the blame game or finger-pointing that you're trying to get me to engage.

Q Okay, but that's not at all what I was asking.

MR. McCLELLAN: Sure it is. It's exactly what you're trying to play.

Q You have your same point you want to make about the blame game, which you've said enough now. I'm asking you a direct question, which you're dodging.

MR. McCLELLAN: No --

Q Does the President retain complete confidence in his Director of FEMA and Secretary of Homeland Security, yes or no?

MR. McCLELLAN: I just answered the question.

Q Is the answer "yes" on both?

MR. McCLELLAN: And what you're doing is trying to engage in a game of finger-pointing.

Q There's a lot of criticism. I'm just wondering if he still has confidence.

MR. McCLELLAN: -- and blame-gaming. What we're trying to do is solve problems, David. And that's where we're going to keep our focus.

Q So you're not -- you won't answer that question directly?

MR. McCLELLAN: I did. I just did.

Q No, you didn't. Yes or no? Does he have complete confidence or doesn't he?

MR. McCLELLAN: No, if you want to continue to engage in finger-pointing and blame-gaming, that's fine --

Q Scott, that's ridiculous. I'm not engaging in any of that.

MR. McCLELLAN: It's not ridiculous.

Q Don't try to accuse me of that. I'm asking you a direct question and you should answer it. Does he retain complete confidence in his FEMA Director and Secretary of Homeland Security, yes or no?

MR. McCLELLAN: Like I said -- that's exactly what you're engaging in.

Q I'm not engaging in anything. I'm asking you a question about what the President's views are --

MR. McCLELLAN: Absolutely -- absolutely --

Q -- under pretty substantial criticism of members of his administration. Okay? And you know that, and everybody watching knows that, as well.

MR. McCLELLAN: No, everybody watching this knows, David, that you're trying to engage in a blame game.

Q I'm trying to engage?

MR. McCLELLAN: Yes.

Q I am trying to engage?

MR. McCLELLAN: That's correct. "

In the book, "All the President's Spin", the authors note just how much of an ally the press actually was for Bush, because they wouldn't refute many false claims or show all the manipulation that is going on.
Now the news media, who was so kind to Bush during 9/11 and far too long after, is his worst enemy. They now have questions in which everyone wants to know, but Bush doesn't want to give out.
John C. Dvorak, of PC Magazine and This Week In Tech fame, has an interesting take (which I'm not entirely agreeance with, but I still found it interesting) on journalists here: http://www.dvorak.org/blog/?p=2744

.

Either way, Bush and his administration will have to take a new political stratagy to shore up support. Maybe something along the line of telling the truth, not falling to spin tactics, firing at least the head of FEMA, and actually doing something to help. No, that would just be too good of a job.

Another Article that Avoids Katrina: Anime Pricing

I first was introduced to anime back in jr. high. This was when I watched the two syndicated seasons of Dragonball Z. This was back when the Internet still mostly consisted of dial up and anime didn't penetrate much of American television, with a few exceptions.
When Cartoon Network first aired Gundam Wing alongside seasons 3+ of Dragonball Z, this was a time I actually became interested in anime. Mostly, if it wasn't on TV, I got my fix from what my friends got.
For Cartoon Network, it didn't take that long for anime to become an integral part of the station's lineup. TechTV also got a short lineup of anime, which is still being aired on G4. We are also seeing it's influence on other series and movies, the major one being The Matrix. Even Disney has anime in it's corner with translating Miyazaki's films.
The Internet also has expanded anime for it's fans, since series or movies no longer need go through a studio to get fan-subs (titles that are subtitled by fans). Studios still go though getting licenses to dub anime into english, as well as channels such as Cartoon Network airing them.

Unfortunatly, anime still has a problem here in the US. Anime is simply too expensive.
Fansubs are free, but are technically illegal (since they usually don't both obtaining the license to do so) and usually stop as soon as an American company obtains those rights.
Until recently, anime wasn't that much different then any other series. With videotapes, only a few episodes could be done on each tape, and those tapes weren't cheap. Few series at all were put onto videotape because of the huge expense.
But then came along DVD.
DVD made things cheaper as well as put more content into each disk. Not too many years ago, American series started to appear on DVD. One of the first successes was the original CSI, which was put into a multi-disk, season long DVD set. While it still isn't the cheapest thing (they retail around $60 per season), they were popular because one could pernamently own the series with only a small investment. Other series also made it to DVD, including The Simpsons (retails around $30-40) and Futurama. One reason Family Guy returned to the airwaves is because of the huge success in DVD sales.
So while every series that is American made is put into season-long DVD sets, anime still goes under the videotape model of seperate $20 DVD's that only contain a few episodes. This makes owning a series expensive, since one would have to collect all those $20 DVD's.
Gundam Wing, for example, costs a total of $200 for the 10 DVD, 49 episode series. The fist season of 24, on the other hand, costs around $45 on Amazon.com. Even the list price of $60 is less the 1/3 that of the anime series.
Movies don't have as much of this cost problem, since they are a one-shot item. But only Disney has done these well.
The reason: extras. Anime DVD's, series or movie, don't include much in terms of extras. There is never a comentary put on (although I would understand that difficulty), and there are few, if any, behind-the-scenes extras that are put in. Whereas American DVD's almost always include an extra disk full of special features, few anime DVD's do this (the original Ghost in the Shell movie does have such a set, but for $15 more).
There are plenty of anime series I would love to own. Evengelion, Trigun, Cowboy Bebop, Gundam: 8th Mobile Suit Team, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, and Full Metal Alchemist would be on top of my list. But they all would cost at least $100 if I followed the seperate DVD model.
In doing some research for this, I have found some refuse. The Gundam series above costs only $45 at Amazon, but it is still more expensive then Futurama, which is priced at $30 (not only containing the same number of episodes, but far more special features then the 0 that Gundam has).

Whereas videogames have to change to get beyond it's current, nearly exclusivly 18-30 year old male, audience, anime has a chance to go into the mainstream. Anime DVD's are appearing at general retail outlets like Target and Fred Meyer. But in it's current form, they simply can't. Only the hardcore anime fans are willing to buy such DVD's, and they can just get illegal copies in a number of places now.
If companies want greater success in anime, they have to actually move toward a better model. As-is, people are more likely to buy only one DVD for their favorite episode. If they want more people to buy the entire series, and thus spend more on anime, they have to make it affordable.
Anime is appearing on American television. Not only that, it is becoming increasingly more popular. If anime series like the ones shown on Cartoon Network can succeed in the DVD market, it has to move on to a different model, one that doesn't consider itself a niche.

The Future that Shouldn't

Now for something that isn't Katrina related, videogames.
I'm probably not the only one who will say this, I'm not looking forward to the next generation of consoles.
Currently, the only thing I am looking forward to is Nintendo's Revolution download service, which is more about retro gaming the current gaming. For Nintendo, I can't get excited about something that isn't (Nintendo: JUST TELL US WHAT THE ******* **** CONTROLLER IS).
As for Sony and Microsoft, I just don't see anything that will come from them that's truely new. If anything, developers are going to have a not-so-great time as well. Gabe Newell (story: http://biz.gamedaily.com/features.asp?article_id=10480) has bashed X-Box 360 for it's lack of a standard hard drive and PS3 for making ports harder by having a multicore machine.
Let's face it, all we are looking forward to right now are sequels. None of the next-gen games are doing things anything that this generation systems couldn't, other then maybe have HD.
Despite some claims to the contrary, Nintendo's President Iwata was right in that there are games that produce games that are almost, if not exactly, the same graphical quality as next gen games will produce.
On a similar point, there have been few games this generation that wow-ed me in terms of graphics. I could easily count them: Star Wars: Rogue Squadron 2&3, Star Fox Adventures/Conker (mostly character models), Half Life 2, Zelda: Twilight Princess and Resident Evil 4. That's a total of seven games.
This in comparison to the 32/64 bit generation where game after game exceeded graphics and wow-ed people. Back then, Nintendo, Rare and (the now dead) Acclaim ruled the day with graphics.
But those days are gone. It now seems like hardware is the only way to produce better graphics, and that's mostly for effects that could easily be simulated and just don't add much.
With both Sony and Microsoft being only really about graphics with the next-gen, I do hope Nintendo gives us a real reason to upgrade to the next-gen. As is, it is all about HD.

Playing Politics with Hurricanes

In a time in which politics shouldn't need to exist to the extent it has for the past three or so years, it has to the complete detrement of the survivors.
Polls such as the ABCNews poll (here: http://abcnews.go.com/US/HurricaneKatrina/story?id=1094262&page=1), even though they may have a larger then average margine of error (see: http://www.mysterypollster.com/main/2005/09/obviously_we_ha.html), it may be due to that partisanship will rise again, bringing along the with red state-blue state mentality we are all too familiar with.

Repeativly, I have heard of Bush's quote that the nobody could have predicted that the levees would break, despite many examples to the contrary (for the best, see last night's The Daily Show). Both The Daily Show (last night) and Countdown (today) showed just how slow and how slow it was for federal aid to arive.
On Countdown, someone from Salon.com (I forget who) told just how responsive Bush was for the multiple hurricanes in 2004 (a election year), and then how slow he was for this hurricane. It was the same thing for FEMA.
The problems for Bush doesn't stop with his lazyness, as I'll call it. As this article shows (here: http://mediamatters.org/items/200509060010), Bush isn't helping even when he is trying to at least appear to.
And then of course, there's this: http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/week_2005_09_04.php#006430. This got someone on Countdown's Worst Person in the World award for the day.

Now while this is mostly bashing Bush, I do think the entire line, from local government to the federal government, screwed up (cue up video of 200 school buses in flooded parking lot). However Bush had more power and resources to do something. Far too many mistakes were made before the storm by too many people (including some evacuees and airlines who left people stranded), but it was the federal government who had to do something after the storm. And Bush wasn't the only one who dropped the ball.

Roberts: Straight to the Top?

Just this morning, Bush has not only decided who was to replace Rehnquist as a Supreme Court justice, but as chief justice. Robert's nomination is now set to fill in the gap Rehnquist's death has left, in both positions.
As of right now, I can't really oppose (or really aprove) Robert's nomination to the bench. However, I do oppose his nomination straight to the position as chief justice. First of all, he has had no experience in the Supreme Court as a justice. One consideration when it comes to such a position, even though it is largely ceremonial, is seniority. Experience also should be a consideration. Even if you look under performance, he has very little even as a federal appointee.
While I would approve of any current justice to be elevated to chief justice, I would actually like to see O'Connor being elevated to the position, even though she is set to leave as soon as her replacement is confirmed. It would not only be a good thing for O'Connor herself, but it would show that Bush does actually see that he can compromise.
By putting Roberts straight to the position of chief justice, it tells me that he wants to control as much as he can, for as long as he can. By putting Roberts in the Supreme Court, it shows that he wants his influence in the political arena to extend as long as possible. I fear that plan might actually work.

Multi-topic Time: Rehnquist Dies, More of Goldberg, and More of Gas

First, I would like to send my condolences to the family of Chief Justice Rehnquist. He presided over one of the best courts to ever exist. His presence will be missed.
But now that he has died, there now goes the proverbial floodgates (sorry, I just can't think of a better analogy). With Justice O'Connor retiring, this would make three confirmation processes that will be fought in the still divided Senate (two for confirming new justices, and one to confirm a new chief justice). If you thought that political groups were raging over Robert's nomination, all heck is going to break loose.
My fear is that Bush chooses a far right conservative, one with a well known track record. Thus far, we have missed the bullet with Roberts since he has little in terms of a real judicial track record.
This not to mention that with two Supreme Court justices gone, it has the potential to overturn a bevy of rulings, including a recent ruling on eminent domain (see previous post here: http://www.livejournal.com/users/political_gamer/12033.html?mode=reply).

Next on the list, Game Politics has a post (here: http://www.livejournal.com/users/gamepolitics/82123.html) on another of Bernard Goldberg's choices of "100 People that are Screwing Up America". Well, if it wasn't obvious before (see previous post here: http://www.livejournal.com/users/political_gamer/13498.html?mode=reply), Goldberg has definatly gone conservative. By putting Take Two's president on the list because of the GTA series, he has shown that not only he is in favor of censorship, but also of the very likely false believe that games cause violence (see another GP post: http://www.livejournal.com/users/gamepolitics/79462.html?mode=reply).
As I will always say to someone when this kind of topic comes along: play the games before you judge them. GTA is a sandbox style game, and one which does discourage many of the things critics cry about.
This is not to mention many of the good things that videogames do cause (which includes meeting people who also play games).

And finally, gas prices have soared since Katrina. Here, we are seeing prices ranging from $2.80 to $3. I'm living in the Northwest, a place that gets no gasoline from the southeast.
The price increase isn't from an actual decrease, it's from a percieved decrease. The southeast does actually have a shortage of gas, but that's because of the huge demand from fleeing drivers. There is no actual shortage here, just one that is foreseen in the future.
I just foresee that prices nationally will increase to beyond the highest prices in history, even counting inflation (highest counting inflation is about $3.30, according to a news report I saw), and it probably won't fall too far down after this crisis is behind us.
If there is one thing one could complain about the oil industry, it's that they increase whenever there's a percieved shortage, not when there's an actual shortage. Prices climbed because of such events and didn't fall very far once the increase was put in.
So here's my question, why isn't there some measure to stop this type of practice from happening? Oil drives our cars and trucks, and thus the entire economy. So who is making sure the industry isn't ripping us off?

The Katrina Blame Game

Whenever a disaster happens, there are people who point out blame for the given travasty. As such, I would first like to submit this article here: http://www.factcheck.org/article.aspx?docID=344.

First, Fox News has been very critical of the state government, especially the Louisiana governor. The problem I have with that is that the state has limited resources, especially with the National Guard. A majority of the Guard has been sent to Iraq, and thus hinders their ability to respond to disasters.

Bush certainly is being hit with this. As the article points out, he has cut funding for making better levees, although it is uncertain that even if those levees were complete that would have helped much. But the one thing that people are grinding Bush about is his response time. The more I think about it, the worse his response time is. It just took the day after the storm that should have made an indication how bad the damage was, and how quickly he should have reacted.

As I had posted before, the problem stems from how many people are still there. If there was one thing I don't think anyone could have predicted was just how many had to stay for one reason or another. Some had to stay because of airlines wouldn't send deadhead flights to New Orleans.
But as it is being pointed out more and more on the news, a large majority of the people there are black, and that's because in New Orleans, blacks take up a good majority of the poverty. Those people just didn't have the resources to escape. If there was one thing Bush could have done before Katrina hit, it was to get National Guard from outside the state to help those people out.
But then again, that's a problem with reactionary politics, foresight is limited. Hopefully, this disaster will give both Bush and all governments, from the local level to the federal level, better foresight so it doesn't happen again anywhere.

Sonic Gems Review

And now for something completely different, a man with three buttox. Or a videogame review.
First, I am not a Sonic fan, or at least until now. I was a Nintendo fanboy back in the day, and now I regret that.
Next, I was originally intending to do multiple mini-reviews with this game. With a game collection as big as this, that would be the most logical thing to do. But as I found out the second night I played this, that would be doing this collection a complete injustice.
When it comes to each game standing alone, only the Sonic platformers are buyable, with Sonic CD far and away the best. The scale of CD's levels is far greater even when you don't consider the time travel element.
While the other games have flaws of their own, I actually found them quite enjoyable. The reason, you don't have to play them for that long.
I just found the Gems Collection as a good game because of choice, you can choose what game to play and for how long. If you feel a little spazmatic with your gaming, go ahead. None of the games are really unplayably bad, but do feel rather average or flawed. As such, somehow by putting these games into a collection, all the games rise beyond the suck that they would normally be.
There are also plenty of unlockables. While the well known unlockables are the two Vectorman games (which are good games, although 1 is definatly better), there are a slew of pictures, music remixes, and demos for those who don't own the Sonic Mega Collection.
But that doesn't mean there isn't some elements of suck in this collection. While you can feel spazmatic in playing the games, you will likely need either a fresh Memory Card 251 or a 1019, because this game can easily take up plenty of room. While the box may say it takes 37 blocks, it takes 10 blocks for the three main games (Sonic CD, Sonic the Fighters, Sonic R), then it takes 27 blocks of memory for EACH Game Gear/ Vectorman game. That's a total of 226 blocks. So while you can play the games sporaticly, you probably can't have your progression in the same manner.
It also won't help the collection if you own the Game Gear games via Sonic Adventure DX. Although those are only available as unlockables (as opposed to having them first thing with this collection), it does take alot away. That would still leave the collection with 5 games that aren't available in Sonic Adventure DX or Sonic Mega Collection.
While I do enjoy this collection much better then the score I will give, I just have the feeling that far too many others will have a different take. There are only a few games worth buying in-themselves, while the others are just not very good. I would recommend this to either Sonic fans or platform fans in general. For others, I recommend to at least try this game out, and not just once. The first time didn't leave me with anything special, but it was the subsequent sessions that got me hooked. It also isn't that bad of a buy, since it only costs $30.

Graphics: 7.5: Mostly the same or similar graphics to the original, with some clean up (mostly with the Sonic CD cutscenes)
Sound: 7.5: Again, mostly the same or similar to the original releases, although Sonic CD and Sonic R still sound good
Control: 7: Ditto to those above.
My own personal rating: 8: Again, the bad games just transcend the suck in this collection, with Sonic CD being worth the term Gem.
Buyability Rating: 3: Average

Katrina Problems

There are plenty of problems in the New Orleans area. Much of it spawning from the lack of preparation.
First, I actually don't mind the after-storm news coverage. During the storm was generic newscasting at it's most...generic. But it is the newscasts that have shown just how much more damage this storm has caused as opposed to other storms. It wasn't just the strength of Katrina itself, but the area in which it hit.

The floods are probably the worst enviromental problem New Orleans faces. Even when homes are just flooded for a short time or destroyed altogether, the turnaround from the damage is a short time compared to how long it will take to repair all the damage the many-day long flood that will happen. Not only that, the water will get to about the perfect condition for bacteria and other diseases, as well as contamination from sewage and oil (oil being the most obvious one that is seen on the news).
The problem with the floods isn't stemed from artificial means of protection. I have been hearing that Bush cut funding for such protection, but I can't blame him for this one since I doubt even if construction was in effect, it probably wouldn't be ready for this storm. But the problem is expansion. All the natural protection from floods, such as swamps and wetlands, has either eroded away or paved over due to regular expansion. If New Orleans is to be protected by hurricanes in the long run, natural flood protections is badly needed.

Looting and the lack of livable conditions are making things worse. People are taking whatever they can get, sometimes even if it isn't needed for survival. Gunfire has delayed rescues and other transportation. Security is praciticly non-existant, especially with much of the National Guard isn't in New Orleans, but in Iraq.
Most of all, the problem is not only the people who chose to ride out Katrina, but those who had no choice. The Superdome was filled with too many people, and with too few supplies. People were dying before news camera's eyes.
There are stories of people taking luggage instead of more people when evacuating from the storm. What was worst is that airlines, while promising not to send passangers to the area, wouldn't send any empty aircraft to the area. This left people who had tickets to get out stranded.

If there is one thing I would like to make clear, these problems are a problem of the curcumstance in which these people are living in. People do desparate things when they need to. It isn't any racial or social economic problem, it's the fact that there are few supplies out there. People are not helping one another. It also doesn't help that any releaf groups are seemingly slow to get to the areas that are needed. There are far too many people in the Superdome alone to transport anywhere in a timely fashion.

I am hoping that help does come soon. As it is, the longer that it takes for releaf to come, the worst the situation will get.