Let the ranting commence!

Me and Nick have finally got the blog up and fully running, and have already begun littering it with entertaining rants targeted at the mainstream media and politicians in general.

If you’re feeling frustrated with how the media continues to warp the truth, or with how both Republican and Democratic nominees are being demonized by either side, then No Safety Labels is for you.

New Blog!

Yup, I made a new blog. This one isn’t so much a personal blog, as a group project. I gathered up some friends who enjoy writing up long intellectual rants, and started a blog where we can act like elitist jerks. We all occasionally need to blow off some steam, and attacking politics, clearly biased blogs, idiots, world events, and the media in general seems like a good way to do just that.

It just got off its feet, but if you’re interested in reading a snarky blog done for the shits and giggles, this is for you. We won’t have any funny political cartoon diddles, but I hope eventually in the future we can find someone interested in joining our project who could contribute art. Until then, enjoy the un-biased rants.

Silver Fire and Starlight

Maranaë let free a wistful sigh as her slender body languidly stretched within the meadow, luxurant grass and fragrant flowers caressing her pale flesh. Her face, considered one of the fairest amongst her people, was shadowed with worry and sorrow. She was attuned to the land as were all her kindred, and she could feel the earth itself trembling in fear of what was to come.

There was talk of dark things stirring in the depths of the night. Every elf could feel within their very soul that a great tragedy was about to befall the children of Eldanar, and yet all they could do was stand by helplessly as the wheel of time continued to turn without them, uncaring and unmoved by their plight.

The young elven maiden let free a wistful sigh, her eyes hued the shade of midnight sparkling with the reflection of the glittering heavens far above. Her hair was as dark as the purest of onyx, its thick waves fanned out about her head, shining with its own luminescence. Her mother had once lovingly commented that she was the light of the stars, and though it always brought a warm smile to her face to remember back upon those sweet memories, there was naught that could be done about the shadow that had befallen her heart.

She feared for her people, and for the future. The world had become restless, and a terrible dread had slowly welled within her bosom that all that she held dear would soon perish.

* * * * *

He was the silver flame. He was the air upon which he soared, and the stars beneath which he dwelled. His domain stretched as far as the eye could see. He was majestic and terrible at once. He was both generous and greedy, giving and taking at whim. He was one of the most ancient of beings to dwell upon Eldanar. He was a god cast out from paradise, and yet his heart knew no shame nor regret.

What his heart did know, however, was loneliness.

Ilsarúva stretched forth his massive wings, his silver scales glittering beneath the glow of the moonlight. He appeared as though a massive jewel amidst the tapestry of the sky, a flame of silver that rocketed across the heavens effortlessly. He had existed since the beginning of time, and within the depths of his eyes swam the wisdom of ages past.

His was a great power to direct. Though he no longer held claim to full godhood and much of his glory had been stripped, there were yet many wonderous feats of which he was capable of. Yet, for all its worth, he felt an emptiness from within that slowly gnawed away at him. There was no true joy within his life. He simply existed, doomed to dwell in solace with no company. Those who had suffered the same fate as he had been condemned to a deep sleep. They were cursed to never again interact with each other. When at last his time had passed and he felt the great slumber upon him, another would awaken as his own eyes slid closed.

It was perhaps the most cruel part of their punishment. An eternal life was theirs, but what good did that serve him when all he had was himself for company?

It was in the middle of these bitter ridden thoughts that something caught his eye from afar, and as his wings made slight adjusments to veer him in that direction, he realized it was an elven maiden alone within the middle of a meadow. She seemed adrift in a sea of pale lavendar, the flowers about her in full bloom only at night. His eyesight was even more keen than that of the elves, and he could see in agonizing detail the extent of her beauty.

Ilsarúva felt a stirring within the lonely caverns of his heart, a deep and ever hungry greed springing to life. She was more fair than any piece of treasure he had ever accumulated, and immediately he felt an intense pang of jealousy. No other deserved to ever lay eyes upon her. She would be his most prized jewel. A living, breathing creature that would outshine all other possessions. She was beautiful, and she would be his.

* * * * *

Maranaë had been lost within her own musings, and so when at last a shadow fell across her features and she tilted her head to glance over, she was embarassed to see a tall, elven noble all but standing over her. A heated blush immediately crept into her cheeks as he extended forth his hand, and as she delicately accepted his help to stand to her feet, she could not help but somehow feel inexplicably drawn towards his gaze.

His eyes were the most startlingly shade of silver she had ever seen. They seemed as though quicksilver, their glimmering depths seeming to shift as she fell further and further within those twin glaciers. She forgot time and her surroundings as she stood there, slowly lulled beneath his enchantment. Maranaë could see the wisdom of years beyond his countenance in those eyes, and beneath it all, she saw something else lurking.

She saw sorrow, and immediately her heart was moved to compassion.

Ilsarúva had no need of words to lure Maranaë beneath his spell. He was tall and muscular, shoulder length hair the same hue as his eyes and armor framing his stoic features. It was a guise, but it was necessary. His true form was massive, and while he knew himself to be the very embodiment of perfection and glory, the mere sight of his true form had the tendency to strike terror into the hearts of the lesser races.

So, with his gaze alone did he weave a spell of charming over the lovely maiden, and with the gentlest of caresses upon her cheek did he seal her love for him.

McCain or Obama?

Sharing stage, Obama and McCain split on abortion

By CHARLES BABINGTON and BETH FOUHY, Associated Press Writers

LAKE FOREST, Calif. – Presidential contenders Barack Obama and John McCain differed sharply on abortion Saturday, with McCain saying a baby’s human rights begin “at conception,” while Obama restated his support for legalized abortion.

(…)

Obama said he would limit abortions in the late stages of pregnancy if there are exceptions for the mother’s health. He said he knew that people who consider themselves pro-life will find his stance “inadequate.”

He said the government should do more to prevent unwanted pregnancies and to help struggling new mothers, such as providing needed resources to the poor, and better adoption services.

McCain expressed his anti-abortion stand simply and quickly, saying human rights begin the instant a human egg is fertilized. McCain, who adopted a daughter from Bangladesh, also called for making adoption easier.

(…)

Obama said America’s greatest moral failure is its insufficient help to the disadvantaged. He noted that the Bible quotes Jesus as saying “whatever you do for the least of my brothers, you do for me.” He said the maxim should apply to victims of poverty, sexism and racism.

McCain said the nation’s greatest moral shortcoming is its failure to “devote ourselves to causes greater than our self-interests.”

After the September 2001 terrorist attacks, McCain said, there should have been a national push for joining the Peace Corps and other volunteer organizations. His comment seemed an indirect criticism of President Bush, who had urged tax cuts and more shopping at the time to stimulate the economy.

McCain also said he would pursue Osama bin Laden “to the gates of Hell,” another goal that might be seen as a swipe at the Bush administration.

Both men said marriage is a union between a man and a woman. Obama added that he supports civil unions for gay partners, which would give them rights such as hospital visits with one another. He said he opposed a constitutional ban on gay marriage, calling the matter a state issue.

McCain’s answer was less clear. If a federal court ordered his state, Arizona, to honor gay marriages allowed in Massachusetts, he said, “then I would favor a constitutional amendment. Until then, I believe the states should make the decisions within their own states.”

In several cases, Obama gave a Christian interpretation to his generally liberal political views. He said he is redeemed by Jesus, who died for his sins.

(…)

When Warren asked Obama to define the word “rich,” the Illinois senator teased the pastor about the mammoth sales of his book, “The Purpose Driven Life.” Obama noted his plan to add a new Social Security payroll tax to incomes above $250,000 a year.

McCain said, “some of the richest people I’ve ever known in my life are the most unhappy.”

He said being rich should be defined by having a home and a prosperous and safe world. Without mentioning Obama, he said some want to increase taxes.

“I don’t want to take any money from the rich. I want everybody to get rich,” McCain said.

(…)

Obama, asked his most significant policy shift in the last 10 years, cited welfare reform. As an Illinois state senator, he worked to mitigate what he thought could be “disastrous” effects of President Clinton’s welfare reform effort. But over time he said he came to embrace Clinton’s approach.

“We have to have work as a centerpiece of any social policy,” Obama said.

Asked why they want to be president, Obama said the United States should be an empathetic power for good in the world, a mission he fears is slipping away.

McCain said, “I want to inspire a generation of Americans to serve a cause greater than its self interest. . But I also believe we face enormous challenges, both of national security and domestic.”

Source.

I want to know who everyone intends to vote for, as well as the reasons why. Will you be voting for McCain or Obama? Feel free to reply with brutal honesty as no flame war will erupt over this. I’m starting to consider myself undecided, so you never know, you may just sway my own opinion and win another voter for your guy. I expect well-thought out reasons though, so let’s keep the lulz to a minimum, please.

Well-adjusted Heroes?

A well-adjusted hero is someone with a relatively normal and happy life who goes on to do heroic deeds. They possibly set out on their quest simply because they feel it is the right thing to do, and know that while their own life is perfect that other people out there are suffering. Unlike many other heroes found in fictional works, the well-adjusted hero’s parents were not slaughtered in some horrible way, the love of his life did not die the day they were to be married, his children were not seduced by the dark side and become conniving, evil brats, and most importantly of all, the hero is not the last of his kind and is the world’s only hope for salvation. He’s just an Average Joe who does remarkable things.

In the end, isn’t that what makes what he does so remarkable? We can relate to him. He’s a normal human-being, with mortal frailties just like us. He can feel fear, and he can feel hesitation. He doesn’t have any super powers to help him, and he may not even have any magical weapons to help smite his foes either. He’s just like us, and yet he goes on to become a hero. We can picture ourselves possibly doing what he does in real life circumstances, and it endears the character even more to us.

However, a person could argue that well-adjusted heroes are incapable of existing. People become heroes because of tragic circumstances in their life. Their wife was slain by a group of bandits, and the hero embarks on a quest of retribution. Those with happy, well-adjusted lives do not become anything grand. They’re happy with the state of things, and do nothing to change the world around them. It takes something of significant important to spur a person to go above and beyond what is normally expected of him.

I tend to disagree. I think there is always an exception to any rule. It still begs the question: Do well-adjusted heroes exist? Can they even exist?