| Pages: 1 [2] 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 :: one page |
| Author |
Topic |
Odre Echee
Equestrian Knight Order of Lolicon
    |
Posted - 2008.07.16 01:42:00 -
[31]
Edited by: Odre Echee on 16/07/2008 01:48:23
 Originally by: Andreus Ixiris
Correction - officer- or faction-modified modules, implants, etc. cannot be sold on local markets, but they do have SCC database entries with corresponding information and there are schematics for some of these items that, while not neccessarily being liscenced by the SCC, conform to standardised regulations, allowing them to be manufactured at any compliant station. This is what enables them to be transferred through the SCC's contract system. The NHB Ultra Happy Chip has no such database entry, and it is quite likely that a ship's computer, if one were to loot a shipment of them, would not recognise what they were.
I see, I see. This SCC-business seems simpler than I originally thought it was. I shall thank you for this correction.
Originally by: Andreus Ixiris
Brother, I would advise in the strongest possible terms against installing any Sansha wetware. I don't even trust SCC-cleared Slave implants, to be perfectly frank.
I do not either, but this is something I wish to be documented. Dangers, effects, benefits they claim, and other various influences this implant can produce, I wish to be documented. If something is truly dangerous and is a threat, I believe that it should be studied and understood better, so countermeasures can be made against if need be, and its vile mechanics and science contribute to humankind for better. That is, after all, is why we scientists exist. I have contacted my former lecturer to aid me in this endeavor. I do thank you for the concern. I shall endeavor to return from this more or less untouched.
((board formatting is funny and apprently doesn't like capitals in tags))
|
Garion Avarr
Amarr
Zero Zero Traders
YTMND.
|
Posted - 2008.07.16 01:57:00 -
[32]
Originally by: Odre Echee
Originally by: Andreus Ixiris
Brother, I would advise in the strongest possible terms against installing any Sansha wetware. I don't even trust SCC-cleared Slave implants, to be perfectly frank.
I do not either, but this is something I wish to be documented. Dangers, effects, benefits they claim, and other various influences this implant can produce, I wish to be documented. If something is truly dangerous and is a threat, I believe that it should be studied and understood better, so countermeasures can be made against if need be, and its vile mechanics and science contribute to humankind for better. That is, after all, is why we scientists exist. I have contacted my former lecturer to aid me in this endeavor. I do thank you for the concern. I shall endeavor to return from this more or less untouched.
Even so, I would highly advise against this. There of been cases of others that have been given implants from Naqam and . . . well, while I am not certain anything can be proven, there is certainly reason for suspicion.
________________________________
This is not a signature. |
Carcosa Hali
Naqam
|
Posted - 2008.07.16 02:15:00 -
[33]
The blatant fedo-love starts here:
Originally by: Andreus Ixiris
The SCC has no record of the NHB Ultra Happy Chip on their product database, which means that it's being produced and marketed without SCC liscencing, which is in itself a grievous violation of CONCORD laws. Secondly, there is no Federation Customs record on the UHC, which suggests that they are either mass-producing it in Gallente space (again, without an SCC liscence or SCC-registered blueprint, which is illegal) or smuggling it in (which is of course a violation of Federal Customs and Import laws).
Lastly, my request to see certain sections of the chip's schematics and transceiver software were summarily denied by Silver Night. Given that the schematic in question was the primary neural interface, a section which is virtually identical on almost all similar chips and indeed quite a large amount of the schematic would be intimately familiar to any pilot who has the Cybernetics skillbook downloaded into his brain, and also that the sections of code I wanted to see (which dictate the information the chip sends and recieves) would not be particularly useful to anyone trying to create a duplicate version given that they are simply a complex value table that would be easily duplicable independently by any relatively adept programmer, and I was interested in the data the chip sends and recieves, rather than the structure of the code - ah, well, this sentence runs on a little bit.
Basically, I asked for access to proprietary data that would not in any way be useful to me were I to want to create a competing product (which I don't, as MXD is a paramilitary, whereas Naqam claims to focus mainly on R&D and industry). This would, incidentally, have been less data than they would have been required to submit to the SCC in order to obtain registration and liscencing for its sale. My aim in obtaining this data was to analyse whether the chip could be used in ways other than its advertised purpose - for instance, as a backdoor override to a subject's higher brain functions, as Sansha are fond of doing.
At every turn Naqam have been evasive on the true capabilities and purpose of the chip, and have almost certainly violated SCC and Federation Customs restrictions on the manufacture, transport and sale of sensitive neuroelectronic equipment.
and ends there.
Firstly Ixirus; you didn't ask for 'certain parts' of our proprietary schematics, you demanded a copy of the whole thing, a request that only a fool would ask for in the first place.
Second, every single one of the governmental and regulatory agencies you listed has records of our involvement with them.. Everything has been above the board since day one. Would we have started a clusterwide advertising blitz if we were trying to be all 'nefarious'? It's a matter of public record; anyone can find them with just a little work. But not you apparently...
You were high again, weren't you? Less than six weeks ago, you showed up on this very network blasted out of your skull on Mindflood. So much so that your friends ended up asking us for help because they were afraid you were going to pilot your ship into a star.. You have bragged, bragged about your drug use while piloting machines capable of killing thousands with one twitch of your hallucinogen soaked nerves! And now you come on here spewing inane accusations as to our business practices.
Just stop bothering people and go back to rehab, you stupid drophead.
--------------
Sometimes you lose it all...
Sacrifice: The Sansha War |
Akre Sari
|
Posted - 2008.07.16 02:20:00 -
[34]
Edited by: Akre Sari on 16/07/2008 02:22:17
delete
|
Andreus Ixiris
Gallente
Mixed Metaphor
|
Posted - 2008.07.16 02:50:00 -
[35]
Oh dear! I seem to have touched rather a nerve. That famous Achura composure seems to have slipped a little, Ms. Hali.
Originally by: Carcosa Hali
Firstly Ixirus; you didn't ask for 'certain parts' of our proprietary schematics, you demanded a copy of the whole thing, a request that only a fool would ask for in the first place.
Complete lies. I never even considered asking for a complete schematic - I asked for information on the transceivers only.
Originally by: Carcosa Hali
Second, every single one of the governmental and regulatory agencies you listed has records of our involvement with them.. Everything has been above the board since day one.
Then please, provide notarised copies of the SCC and Federal Customs certificates (which list no proprietary information other than the product's SCC "callsign", product code and patent owner and are generally provided as standard), and explain what happened to your chip's SCC/FC database entries.
Originally by: Carcosa Hali
Would we have started a clusterwide advertising blitz if we were trying to be all 'nefarious'?
Two words: Protein Delicacies. I think that's all that really needs to be said about nefarious operations being disguised as something benign.
Originally by: Carcosa Hali
It's a matter of public record; anyone can find them with just a little work. But not you apparently...
Surely at least one person would be able to find "NHB Ultra Happy Chip" in a product database somewhere in the NeoCom interface. I know both Duvolle Laboratories and Kaalakiota have had serious rollout issues with their operating systems recently, but surely if you were telling the truth SOMEONE would have provided a NeoCom screen capture to prove me wrong.
Originally by: Carcosa Hali
You were high again, weren't you? Less than six weeks ago, you showed up on this very network blasted out of your skull on Mindflood. So much so that your friends ended up asking us for help because they were afraid you were going to pilot your ship into a star.. You have bragged, bragged about your drug use while piloting machines capable of killing thousands with one twitch of your hallucinogen soaked nerves! And now you come on here spewing inane accusations as to our business practices.
Just stop bothering people and go back to rehab, you stupid drophead.
Coming from a member of a corporation that plays puppet for a dead fascist dictator, known to use brainwashing, invasive implant technology and coercive mind-altering simulations, that's rich. No, that's beyond rich, that's opulent. That's so rich it's rich like the contents of Istvaan Shogaatsu's wet dreams.
-----
CEO, Mixed Metaphor
Dance Commander
Asuka Smith > not even goons can make 30m ISK this interesting. |
Devilish Ledoux
Caldari
State Protectorate
|
Posted - 2008.07.16 02:51:00 -
[36]
Let me see if I have this straight: Ixiris is warning Naqam leadership that, after 48 hours, a wardec will be issued on Naqam by Mixed Metaphor. After the war is declared, there will be an additional 24 hours before sanctioned hostilities can commence.
If one of your people warned Naqam of the impending wardec 2 days in advance, you'd call him a traitor. When your ego causes you to tell the entire capsuleer community (and anyone else who happens to be listening), you're a ... a what? A poor tactician at best; an idiot at worst?
When you run up against a well-prepared Naqam force (including any allies they may have), make sure your people know who sabotaged their chances of victory.
|
Silver Night
Caldari
Naqam
|
Posted - 2008.07.16 05:42:00 -
[37]
Where to begin. Well, Naqam podder operations are minimal to non existent in the Federation. They may increase now, as a pilot or two might move to the Federation just to help illustrate how useless this is.
Your accusation that the Chip isn't SCC approved just because you don't find it in the standard podder databases is absurd. My Egonics headset isn't specifically listed either, but it is perfectly legal. Likewise millions of other items. the truth is this is an item for personal use by primarily non-podders. There is no reason for it to be on the podder accessible market interface next to Heat Sinks and Bulk Wheat. I imagine it is listed somewhere in the byzantine labyrinth underlying the 'small electronics' category.
I did deny you, a stated enemy of my corporation's ideals - which include the freedom for individuals to choose what technology they utilize for example - full access to our proprietary design schematics. There is, of course, nothing preventing you from analyzing a chip yourself. I also pointed out to you - repeatedly - that the chip has no remote uplink or downlink capability. In effect, I can't show you that part of the chip because that part of the chip doesn't exist outside your imagination.
The Chip has been repeatedly analyzed by parties outside Naqam and often not friendly to our cause and I've yet to hear of any of them finding anything nefarious in its design. Because despite your paranoia, there is nothing to find. Do you think we are stupid, Mr Ixiris? What would possess a Nation loyal corporation to sell chips with any kind of hidden functions? Even if we wanted a bunch of random civilians on random planets altered somehow - and why would we? - no matter how well designed and hidden, they would be found out.
You claim to support freedom, Mr Ixiris. Yet here you are, threatening bloodshed over a chip who's only purpose is to make people happy, and a program that is both utterly open about its goals and also designed to protect people and give them a better life. thats the problem though, isn't it? You can't stand that your precious Federation might not be everything you desperately want it to be. Because you know, if it isn't, there is no justification for all the things you've done and people you've killed.
Just because it might siphon off a few people from your precious Federation, we must be exterminated in your space? Is it so hard to believe that some people would want to leave? With men like you running around trying to put your boot to their neck and force them to stay, to be free your way? I do hope you weren't threatening to kill the innocent civilians attempting to leave the Federation for the crime of wanting a better life. I would hope to think better - even of you - than that.
Free so long as you follow the party line?
Regardless, while we are trying to build a better world, and turn our influence and power toward a good cause, we are still podders here in Naqam. That means that we are not, when push comes to shove - and you have certainly shoved - nice people. You won't be getting the transports full of refugees (you would no doubt term them traitors to assuage your feelings of guilt over massacring them) or Chips you probably hope for. Both of those - for security reasons - go primarily through civilian channels anyway. What you will get, if we decide you are worth the effort of a clone jump, is Naqam combat pilots.
--------------
The Clown Man.
GLS Mr. State
Caldari Patriot.
Sansha's Nation Supporter
|
Yoshitaka Moromuo
Lai Dai Infinity Systems
|
Posted - 2008.07.16 07:43:00 -
[38]
Mr. Ixiris, I do believe that Silver-haan has gone over - at the very least - a rough description of the chip's functions in another discussion, which I believe to be archived here on the IGS. I cannot recall which one, but it can indeed be found.
I have read over that description myself, and I do believe the only stated function of the chip was along the lines of simple mood alteration. At least, that is what I could glean from it.
Statements in the above post, unless otherwise specified, are not the official stance of Lai Dai Infinity Systems. |
Silver Night
Caldari
Naqam
|
Posted - 2008.07.16 08:02:00 -
[39]
Originally by: Yoshitaka Moromuo
Mr. Ixiris, I do believe that Silver-haan has gone over - at the very least - a rough description of the chip's functions in another discussion, which I believe to be archived here on the IGS. I cannot recall which one, but it can indeed be found.
I have read over that description myself, and I do believe the only stated function of the chip was along the lines of simple mood alteration. At least, that is what I could glean from it.
He knows, Mr Moromuo. The problem isn't what the chip does, it's what Mr Ixiris imagines it does. He apparently has a paranoia regarding the Nation that borders on the superstitious.
Thank you, though, for trying to help. Some people just refuse evidence before them because they can't believe it isn't all some fairy tale plot.
--------------
The Clown Man.
GLS Mr. State
Caldari Patriot.
Sansha's Nation Supporter
|
Heartstone
Jericho Fraction
The Star Fraction
|
Posted - 2008.07.16 09:44:00 -
[40]
Being that I have been attempting for a few years now to reverse engineer the Nation's Slave class implants (my study results should be released soon) I managed to get my hands on some of these NHB Ultra Happy chips in order to see if there was anything correlational between their design and the Slave design to make it easier to study the Slave chips. During these studies I have certainly not noticed anything untoward in the chips. They simply do seem to do as advertised as far as I can tell.
Of course there is the possibility that there is something buried deep in the wetware that escaped my notice but I prefer to stay away from such conspicuous scare mongering as to insist there must be something untoward in them simply based on their production being carried out by supporters of the Nation. Despite my personal feelings towards the Nation based on the relics activities Naqam seems to have produced a product that does exactly what it says it does. Not an implant I would encourage of course as the distraction from the realities lead to further enslavement by those in power.
---
 |
|
Arial Rakon
Amarr
Imperial Academy
|
Posted - 2008.07.16 10:09:00 -
[41]
Mixed Metaphor are going to war dec you?! Run away, run away. 
 |
Aria Jenneth
Caldari
Ghost Festival
|
Posted - 2008.07.16 10:13:00 -
[42]
Edited by: Aria Jenneth on 16/07/2008 10:15:09
Gods and spirits....
You know you're notorious when you can go to war against Sansha's Nation assets and the weight of public opinion is against you.
That, or Silver Night's propaganda campaign is actually working. This seems marginally unlikely considering the persistent, unsettling undertones, though I've certainly seen people defending Super Happy Chips (as a note, no, I don't think they contain some hidden mind-control device; Silver Night's specialty is public relations, and that sort of holovid-villain plot is the diametric opposite of his approach. What people should be looking at isn't whether the PR devices are dangerous; it's what they're public relations for).
In any event, I, at least, will wish you good hunting. The Nation's capsuleer roster can't be destroyed by the means you intend, but perhaps you can deal it a setback or three.
Ghost Festival is recruiting! |
Rodj Blake
Amarr
PIE Inc.
|
Posted - 2008.07.16 10:18:00 -
[43]
Originally by: Andreus Ixiris
Edited by: Andreus Ixiris on 15/07/2008 22:33:13
I object to the term "crochety" nutjob. Rodj Blake is a crochety nutjob. Gaven Lok'ri is a crochety nutjob. Darth Sage is a crochety nutjob. I'm only 25. You can't be crochety until you're at least forty. I'd say I'm closer to a "narcissistic" nutjob.
Leave me out of this, you degenerate piece of filth.
Dulce et decorum est pro imperium mori.
|
Uroborus
Naqam
|
Posted - 2008.07.16 11:56:00 -
[44]
Edited by: Uroborus on 16/07/2008 11:56:35
Originally by: Silver Night
They may increase now, as a pilot or two might move to the Federation just to help illustrate how useless this is.
I'll volunteer to make that pilgrimage.
--
 |
Silver Night
Caldari
Naqam
|
Posted - 2008.07.16 12:48:00 -
[45]
Originally by: Aria Jenneth
Edited by: Aria Jenneth on 16/07/2008 10:15:09
Gods and spirits....
You know you're notorious when you can go to war against Sansha's Nation assets and the weight of public opinion is against you.
That, or Silver Night's propaganda campaign is actually working. This seems marginally unlikely considering the persistent, unsettling undertones, though I've certainly seen people defending Super Happy Chips (as a note, no, I don't think they contain some hidden mind-control device; Silver Night's specialty is public relations, and that sort of holovid-villain plot is the diametric opposite of his approach. What people should be looking at isn't whether the PR devices are dangerous; it's what they're public relations for).
In any event, I, at least, will wish you good hunting. The Nation's capsuleer roster can't be destroyed by the means you intend, but perhaps you can deal it a setback or three.
Please, you can call me Silver, Ms Jenneth.
As to setbacks, anything is possible but I think it fairly unlikely. Honestly my second thought upon seeing this war declaration was that given that we - the capsuleers of Naqam - don't operate much in Gallente space anyway the war declaration would be maintained for a week or so and then Mr Ixiris would declare victory based on the fact that there (still) weren't Naqam pilots in Federation space.
Originally by: Arial Rakon
Mixed Metaphor are going to war dec you?! Run away, run away.
This, I think, largely sums up the feelings about the war declaration, both within and outside of Naqam. With the phrase being sarcastic, I hasten to add. I wouldn't want any particularly pedantic people becoming confused.
To be fair though, until it comes to actual combat, it is hardly fair to judge them. Difficult though it will be, we will I'm sure try and think of Mixed Metaphor as a serious threat and act accordingly. Good practice for the real thing, I suppose, if nothing else.
--------------
The Clown Man.
GLS Mr. State
Caldari Patriot.
Sansha's Nation Supporter
|
Aria Jenneth
Caldari
Ghost Festival
|
Posted - 2008.07.16 14:18:00 -
[46]
Ah, and here was me thinking perhaps Andreus knew something I didn't.
Still, I suppose his point has less to do with the location of your base of operations and more to do with not wanting the Super Happy Chip and its kin sold in Federal space.
Ghost Festival is recruiting! |
Andreus Ixiris
Gallente
Mixed Metaphor
|
Posted - 2008.07.16 16:54:00 -
[47]
Quote:
2008.07.16 16:40
Mixed Metaphor has declared war on Naqam.
After 24 hours fighting can legally occur between those involved.
I have nothing more to say, other than that the remaining time on my offer now stands at 24 hours and counting.
-----
CEO, Mixed Metaphor
Dance Commander
Asuka Smith > not even goons can make 30m ISK this interesting. |
Heartstone
Jericho Fraction
The Star Fraction
|
Posted - 2008.07.16 17:26:00 -
[48]
Originally by: Andreus Ixiris
I have nothing more to say,
Oh if only... if only...
---
|
Sui Gintou
Naqam
|
Posted - 2008.07.16 18:00:00 -
[49]
Originally by: Andreus Ixiris
Quote:
2008.07.16 16:40
Mixed Metaphor has declared war on Naqam.
After 24 hours fighting can legally occur between those involved.
I have nothing more to say, other than that the remaining time on my offer now stands at 24 hours and counting.
Please do some research before declaring war or you're just wasting millions of isk.
You won't find the majority of Naqam, because we're all busy elsewhere.
Your petty posturing falls on ridiculing ears. Even those outside of Naqam have summed up this illogical action and plotted them alongside your history of actions.
Maybe, some of us will deign to make an appearance, but you'll not make a point. We of the Nation will continue to use Federation space periodically long after you have turned to dust or madness.
I rarely care for the posturing of fools, but mistress Izzy is inconsolable with laughter.
Go frig a feddo.
|
Stitcher
Caldari
Duty.
|
Posted - 2008.07.16 22:00:00 -
[50]
Originally by: Kaianna Sela
Good God.......I'm certainly no fan of some of the Sansha ideals, but please Naqam, do the cluster a service and kill this idiot a few times.
Kaianna, I know you're entitled to your opinion and all, but I'd appreciate it if you didn't insult one of my best friends. There's a yawning gulf that separates flamboyancy from idiocy, and Andreus isn't on the "idiot" side of it.
Far as I'm concerned, it's simple: Naqam are vocal member-supporters of Sansha's Nation. That makes them impossible to trust, in my opinion, and you'll note that Duty. has them at -10 in our standings database for precisely that reason. We're opposed to mind or mood-altering implants of any description, and the Happy Chips fall into that category. Seeing as Naqam takes considerable delight in peddling said chips, we are b extension opposed to Naqam.
For the record, Andreus, I think "Crotchety" kicks in at 30. Above 40 it's "Curmudgeonly".
Good luck with the war, Andreus.
-
Lt. Verin "Stitcher" Tarn-Hakatain. |
|
DeadRow
Mercenary Forces
|
Posted - 2008.07.16 22:41:00 -
[51]
Originally by: Stitcher
We're opposed to mind or mood-altering implants of any description, and the Happy Chips fall into that category. Seeing as Naqam takes considerable delight in peddling said chips, we are b extension opposed to Naqam.
Duty. might be but MXD, or at least their CEO, are known to take Boosters. His problem stems from him thinking that they do something else, which even Heartstone and his research has revealed nothing.
Quote:
Iz in ur base, implanting ur dudes
|
Stitcher
Caldari
Duty.
|
Posted - 2008.07.16 23:13:00 -
[52]
Edited by: Stitcher on 16/07/2008 23:13:30
Boosters and implants are two quite different things. For starters, boosters wear off after a while.
Personally, I don't touch either. performance-enhancing implants purchased from the Caldari Navy, and the occasional Eifwyr&Co. hardwire, but that's it
-
Lt. Verin "Stitcher" Tarn-Hakatain. |
Vikarion
Caldari
Onyx Syndicate
|
Posted - 2008.07.17 00:37:00 -
[53]
First, I should note that I'm no fan of the Sanshas. I've killed hundreds of Sansha ships, if not thousands, and I've never bought a Sansha or Naqam implant for personal use.
But I am amazed, I must admit, at the hypocritical and typically bloodthirsty behavior of Andreus Ixiris. His modus operandi here, however, is no different than in other instances, and it stems from his inability to see himself as he really is.
Andreus styles himself as a stalwart defender of freedom, of democracy, and reasonable thinking. He not only considers himself on the right side, but in the right, a morally superior person.
The truth is that Andreus Ixiris is a fanatic. He is a killer who enjoys the death and suffering of others with whom he disagrees, but he cannot admit this to himself, so he wraps himself in the flag of Gallente ideals when criticized.
Consider the ways in which he expresses his displeasure with Naqam: there is no reasoned discourse, no purchase of the chip and investigation, only the immediate threat of brutality, cruelty, and death. Of course, these actions are counter to the ideals of the Gallente Federation, which allow Naqam and others to fly and sell their products within Gallente space - but no matter...Ixiris sees here an opportunity to indulge his ego, and takes it, counting on the unpopularity of Naqam to cover his blatant contradiction of the values he claims to hold dear.
But it isn't really about Naqam. Andreus, for all of his ravings against religion, holds to a peculiarly religious fanaticism himself - a devotion to the idea of "good" as he sees it, rather than the traditional libertarian view of the Federation. It is not enough to run ads opposing the "happy chip"...no, he fears to fight in the arena of ideas because he understands on an almost subliminal level that most people do not hold to his version of sacred scripture.
The truth is that there is no particular reason for the Gallente Federation to order the UHC out of their space - it's harmless. And, by Gallente ideals, anyone who wishes to leave the Federation for Sansha space should be free to do so.
But that doesn't matter. You know why? Because Andreus Ixiris is a Defender of Freedom, a Crusader for the Religion of Liberty. And, apparently, Freedom and Liberty are so precious that only Andreus Ixiris has the wisdom to know to whom it should be gifted.
You know another word for the selective gifting of freedom?
Slavery.
He's come full circle.
--------
Burn The Heretic, Kill The Mutant, Purge The Unbeliever
Innocence Proves Nothing |
Silver Night
Caldari
Naqam
|
Posted - 2008.07.17 10:22:00 -
[54]
Originally by: Stitcher
We're opposed to mind or mood-altering implants of any description, and the Happy Chips fall into that category. Seeing as Naqam takes considerable delight in peddling said chips, we are b extension opposed to Naqam.
I'm curious Mr Tarn-Hakatain, what is Duty.'s position regarding Ishukone Corporation?
I thought we had worked together rather well with pilots such as yourself and Mr Avarr during the Malkalen tragedy. I'm sorry to see that century old propaganda and prejudice still colors otherwise reasonable people's opinions so much. Good flying to you regardless.
--------------
The Clown Man.
GLS Mr. State
Caldari Patriot.
Sansha's Nation Supporter
|
Lucian Alucard
Caldari
Black Vice Industries
|
Posted - 2008.07.17 10:48:00 -
[55]
*blinks*
WOW!.....Ok I am crazy enough to slap Izzy's rear but even I am not dumb enough to wardec her. Have fun being used as spare parts or lab rats.
|
Stitcher
Caldari
Duty.
|
Posted - 2008.07.17 11:06:00 -
[56]
Originally by: Silver Night
I'm curious Mr Tarn-Hakatain, what is Duty.'s position regarding Ishukone Corporation?
The hell with Duty.'s opinion, I'll give you mine, seeing as how I spent my entire pre-capsule life working for them.
Ishukone was, in the past, one of the most bloodthirsty, amoral and ruthless corporations in the State. Any route to profit, regardless of morality, was explored. The CEO at the time was Les Akkilen, and under his administration the corporation saw some of its most shameful scandals and biggest losses ever, not to mention participating in some of the most debased and... well, evil schemes the State has ever given rise to. Many Ishukone citizens are still unaware of these transgressions of course - the only reason I know is because I've since thrown a lot of money into rumour-chasing over the past three years, and my eyes and ears are sensitive indeed.
The vicarious sting of shame at being even loosely affiliated with such barbarity has never quite left me, despite the fact I was completely innocent and ignorant at the time. The chips you are alluding to in your query were a product of that era.
I had only just graduated from Ishukone Medical College in the year when Akkilen was abruptly and inexplicably replaced by Otro Gariushi. It took less than a year for the whole structure of corporate life within Ishukone to change. Divisions were axed, new ones were formed, and I myself was part of a surgical team reassigned to a research facility in Korama, where I assisted in the development of a new surgical tool to assist in limb-grafting operations (although the credit for the breakthrough - the Nuulaki brace - went to my team leader). Worker's wages picked up across the board, a new high-profit product pipeline - the Raven - was released, living conditions improved, and Ishukone creches and schools across the State were issued new curricula to teach, with a strong moral component closely tied in to the traditional Caldari values that I embraced during my student years, and that Gariushi apparently adhered to as well.
My position on Ishukone is that it is a redeemed monster, and I still love it very much for what it became under Mr. Gariushi's control. The sins of its past serve as a lesson and warning.
I don't actually know what the official Duty. stance on Ishukone is, or whether we even have one.
-
Lt. Verin "Stitcher" Tarn-Hakatain. |
Silver Night
Caldari
Naqam
|
Posted - 2008.07.17 11:22:00 -
[57]
As you may be aware, I worked for Ishukone as well. I was, in fact, born in an Ishukone creche.
If you will recall fairly recent history, it was under Mr Garushi that a deal was brokered to sell Transcrannial Microcontrollers - literally mind control chips - to the Khanid. Interestingly they were originally developed for medical applications, and were later turned to less... broadly acceptable uses.The Federation was able to offer a better profit on them, and so the deal was severed.
Now, Mr Garushi was largely seen as the best of an ultimately ruthless lot in charge of the State. The question remains:
Do you support this supposedly most liberal corporation's actions? Do you support the State at all Mr Tarn-Hakatain, with all its dirty corners and dingy blemishes?
You can't have your cake - or outrage as the case may be - and eat it too. Ishukone currently still sells these selfsame chips. What will it be?
Of course, blind hatred against us based solely on the propaganda that you've been spoon fed about the Nation your entire life is your right. I respect you, Mr Tarn-Hakatin, and what you have done for our people - despite our differences and the harshness of my questions. But I object to the hypocrisy of a State supporter denouncing us on the basis that we sell a harmless chip that helps people feel happy.
--------------
The Clown Man.
GLS Mr. State
Caldari Patriot.
Sansha's Nation Supporter
|
Stitcher
Caldari
Duty.
|
Posted - 2008.07.17 12:13:00 -
[58]
Support for an entity does not require unconditional acceptance of everything within it. I do indeed support the State, with all its dirty corners and blemishes, because I believe that they are outweighed by its merits. That does not mean I endorse the blemishes, however.
Those chips are precisely one such blemish. I was uncomfortable with the idea of transcranial microcontrollers from the beginning, and still am - this is one area where I believe Mr. Gariushi's judgment failed him. My opposition to them was partly moral, but mostly practical - while as a medic I appreciated their application in the treatment of clinical depression, I also foresaw the potential for abuse.
There is only one person who needs to be made happy, and those are the people who suffer from clinical depression. Everybody else's unhappiness is environmental, and can - should - be ensured without invasive surgical procedures and permanent alteration of their neurostructure.
I can have my cake and eat it. Maybe you weren't old enough to remember, but one of the changes the handover to Gariushi brought with it was that the citizen's right to voice dissent within the corporation was massively expanded. Constructive criticism of the corporation was actually encouraged, as a way of improving performance and keeping Ishukone on the straight and narrow. Previously, it had been vigorously suppressed. To this day, I continue to voice my dissent at the sale of the chips, and I'm not alone.
For the record, my... distaste for Naqam and the Nation is not founded on propoganda at all. It's founded on observation. I've blown up a great many Sansha ships in my time, on behalf of all sorts of employers, or sometimes just to collect the CONCORD bounties, or simpply because they attacked me first. My disrespect for Naqam is founded upon my deep-seated belief that the human brain should only ever be enhanced, not altered. The post-Malkalen "Safe Harbour" project disgusted me, frankly, because you were encouraging people to escape from their grief, rather than deal with it in a healthy way, and cynically spreading your own propoganda at the same time.
Fact is, pilot, I'm vaguely insulted by your esteem for me - I certainly do not respect you, the organization you represent, or your policies. The one time I've ever seen you do something I could respect you for was when you rolled up your sleeves and got stuck in at Malkalen, and even then you went and polluted the nobility of that action immediately afterwards by effectively setting up a Nation recruitment station and enticing mentally vulnerable survivors and bereaved to surrender themselves to chip-induced fake bliss.
Your chip may help people feel happy, but it's far from being "harmless". It's a drug, an addiction, an escape for the mentally vulnerable to leave behind a reality that, but for their own weakness, they could help to improve. You sell an emotional crutch that people shouldn't need, and proudly proclaim that you are helping them, when all you are doing is ending them. The moment those chips are installed and turned on, the person who was there before is gone forever, replaced by a vapid, smiling idiot, indistinguishable from every other chip-head out there. Even if their bodies still move, the person - the personality - is dead and gone.
-
Lt. Verin "Stitcher" Tarn-Hakatain. |
Silver Night
Caldari
Naqam
|
Posted - 2008.07.17 12:53:00 -
[59]
Edited by: Silver Night on 17/07/2008 12:55:47
Well, your objection to Naqam was two fold, or perhaps three since I'd like to address your concerns regarding the Malkalen Tragedy separately:
1) The NHB Ultra Happy Chips which we market.
Now, this can't be that big of a problem for you. It isn't enough for you to do more than 'voice dissent' in Ishukone's direction after all. As you no doubt are aware, the TCMCs were not meant to treat depression or unhappiness. The TCMCs were meant for more heavy duty medical applications, involving actual physical injuries, brain damage and the like. That such powerful technology would be so twisted is telling.
I object to the TCMC being used on involuntary subjects as well, by the way. It smacks of the same mistakes made in the later days of the first Nation. People's free will shouldn't be preempted. It is a good thing for Ishukone they are part of an empire and so protected.
It is, however, silly to say you object to people's consciousness being altered in any way. Do you believe drinking should be outlawed? What about exercise? Sex? These are all activities people engage in at least in part to give themselves a little bit of euphoria via simple chemical alteration. Now, some people would argue that these have negative effects, and they are right in some cases. Drinking especially of course. The Happy Chip is different.
The Happy Chip does nothing more than give a mild sense of contentment and well being while counterbalancing it with a sense of drive and ambition. How can you really object to that? Especially as it is both voluntary and can be removed - at no cost - at any time. It doesn't alter who a person is, their motivations, anything about them that defines who they are as a person unless they are defined by unhappiness and apathy. Nor does it prevent them from feeling the full range of emotions. You can feel grief for example, and be prepared to deal with it, or you can feel grief and let it swallow you. Which do you think is the better course?
2) Your many and varied encounters with True Slaves.
Well, as I have mentioned, exhaustively it sometimes feels, the True Slaves are not the Nation, nor the Ideal of the Nation. They are a mistake and the reason that the First Nation didn't succeed. We accept them as part of our responsibility when we take up the banner of the Nation, and we can only hope some day we are strong enough to help them. Rehabilitate them into the new society if possible. The entire use of motivational alteration was not anything to do with what the Nation was about, but about the last sad eccentricities of a once great mind. So, on this front, is it really the Ideals of the Nation and Naqam you object to, or the relics of the past?
3) Malkalen.
As has, once again, been pointed out again and again:
a) The Safe Harbor program is entirely voluntary.
b) Should a person decide they would like to join the new Nation, there is a waiting
or 'cooling off' period to make sure they are fully aware of what they are doing and in their right mind. We can only coddle people so much before they have to be allowed to make their own decisions. That's what being a free thinking individual is all about.
c)The NHB Happy ship is also completely voluntary, and has an even longer 'cooling off' period than the Safe Harbor program. In addition to that, for refugees, the chips are not made available until they arrive in their new homes, giving them even more time to deliberate.
Were it you, Mr Tarn-Hakatain, just how much would you usurp these people's right to make decisions for themselves? Would you, like Mr Ixiris, just assume that you know what's best for them?
The irony of someone with our reputation needing to explain the idea of free will to all of you would be hilarious were it not so sad.
Edit: I realize you might have a bit of a misconception about the Happy Chip. It is not an escape from reality. It helps people better deal with the reality around them and encourages them to improve themselves.
--------------
The Clown Man.
GLS Mr. State
Caldari Patriot.
Sansha's Nation Supporter
|
Stitcher
Caldari
Duty.
|
Posted - 2008.07.17 15:57:00 -
[60]
Originally by: Silver Night
It is, however, silly to say you object to people's consciousness being altered in any way. Do you believe drinking should be outlawed? What about exercise? Sex? These are all activities people engage in at least in part to give themselves a little bit of euphoria via simple chemical alteration.
the difference being, those states are temporary, fading naturally with time. the sense of euphoria induced by a chip is a good deal more permanent, in that it requires invasive surgery in order to remove the chip - surgery that the patient is unlikely to consent to given that they are in a permanently altered mood.
Quote:
Well, as I have mentioned, exhaustively it sometimes feels, the True Slaves are not the Nation, nor the Ideal of the Nation. They are a mistake and the reason that the First Nation didn't succeed. We accept them as part of our responsibility when we take up the banner of the Nation, and we can only hope some day we are strong enough to help them. Rehabilitate them into the new society if possible. The entire use of motivational alteration was not anything to do with what the Nation was about, but about the last sad eccentricities of a once great mind. So, on this front, is it really the Ideals of the Nation and Naqam you object to, or the relics of the past?
Why call yourself a part of Sansha's Nation at all, then, if your ideals are so wildly different? Make no mistake, the True Slaves were not an error, even if Sansha failed to foresee the lengths to which the other empires would go to end the practice. They were a fully intended and planned outcome of the Nation's technological progression.
If you reject them, then you reject the Nation itself. Either you are part of the Nation, in which case you embrace Sansha's ideals of mental control via implantation, or you reject those ideals, in which case you are at most a splinter offshoot of the Nation, not really affiliated with it at all.
In either case, declaring fealty to an organization with such an odious reputation surely can't be good for your public image?
Quote:
Were it you, Mr Tarn-Hakatain, just how much would you usurp these people's right to make decisions for themselves? Would you, like Mr Ixiris, just assume that you know what's best for them?
If they are in a position where, owing to emotional strife, grief and shock brought on by a traumatic event, their judgment is suspect, then I will most certainly assume that I know what's best for them. Being a fully qualified surgeon, and having headed up several progressive medical research teams in my time, I might even be able to say that I'm qualified to know what's best for them in the field of neuroimplantation.
If people want to sign themselves over to an unnatural presence in their heads that makes them feel happy all the time, then I can't stop them from doing so. What I can do is provide them with a warning, enough of an opposing point of view to give them pause.
-
Lt. Verin "Stitcher" Tarn-Hakatain. |
|
| Pages: 1 [2] 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 :: one page |
| First page | Previous page | Next page | Last page |