Eternal Sunshine #80 - September 2013

Eternal Sunshine #81

October 2013

By Douglas Kent 911 Irene Drive, Mesquite, TX 75149

Email: diplomacyworld@yahoo.com or dougray30@yahoo.com

On the web at http://www.whiningkentpigs.com – or go directly to the Diplomacy section at http://www.whiningkentpigs.com/DW/. Also be sure to visit the official Diplomacy World website which can be found at http://www.diplomacyworld.net.

All Eternal Sunshine readers are encouraged to join the free Eternal Sunshine Yahoo group at http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/eternal_sunshine_diplomacy/ to stay up-to-date on any subzine news or errata. We also have our own Eternal Sunshine Twitter feed at http://www.twitter.com/EternalSunshDip, and a Facebook group at http://www.facebook.com/?ref=logo#!/group.php?gid=112223650909

Check out my new Internet radio station, “Music You Should Know,” at www.live365.com/stations/musicyoushouldknow

Quote Of The Month – “But you will, and I'll get bored with you and feel trapped, because that's what happens with me.” (Clementine in “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind”)

Welcome to Eternal Sunshine, the only Diplomacy zine that has a new senior Black Lab mix who looks like Frankenstein (temporarily).

Yeah, it has been quite a month. First we adopted Miss Piggy, the super-sweet girl from Waco. Then we got her up here and within a day or two discovered she had tapeworms. Not a big deal…Heather brought her in for treatment and an exam, where they found a lump with cancerous cells in it among her normal fat pockets. Great! (That’s sarcasm, if you couldn’t tell). Her blood work looked okay, so they scheduled surgery for the following week (to remove the lump and clean her teeth). The next morning at 3am I am awoken by a foul stench; Miss Piggy got sick and had a huge gross diarrhea explosion on the carpet (she’s potty trained, so clearly this was a sudden attack). Hours spent cleaning that up, and then a return trip to the vet where it is decided it was likely caused by a reaction to having her tumor poked (it swelled up immediately after they tested it).

Finally this week she had her surgery. The vet called to say they found a second lump which they wanted to remove and biopsy as well, so we told them to go ahead. The expense of all this medical work was quite unexpected (and large), but we had to do it to give her a chance. Once she came home from the vet, with two tumors and one tooth extracted, she’s been steadily getting back to her happy, loving, wonderful self. She loves everybody, and even tries to give the cats kisses (they aren’t thrilled with that idea yet). The tumor that caused the surgery turned out not to be as bad as we feared, but the tumor they found during surgery was a near-term danger to her health and life. Fortunately it was fully excised, the margins were clean, and we’re hoping that will be the end of that. Even her horrendous farting has gotten better!

For those of you who are wondering, her name didn’t come from her slightly plump shape. Instead, it was given to her by her foster mom because she makes little snorting piggy noises when she’s happy or wants something. She’s too cute, and she has already become a “Velcro dog” for Heather, following her around everywhere. Just like Kayza did.

In zine news, check out the new NFL Bourse game Richard Weiss has in his subzine Zero Sum. No TAP or Balkan Wars this issue…but we’ve got another player signed up for the next Diplomacy game, and I’m offering another game of Acquire (which will start when the current game ends). So get off your lazy butts and participate!

Don’t forget October 29^th is my birthday and October 31^st is our anniversary. Presents are encouraged. See you in November!

Playlist: Greatest Hits, the A&M Years – John Hiatt; Horses – Patti Smith; With a Little Help from My Friends – Joe Cocker; Mad Dogs and Englishmen – Joe Cocker.

21 of the Best TV Series Ever

An Eternal Sunshine List Challenge

The late – and much missed – Richard Walkerdine is the one who suggested this topic for the next Eternal Sunshine list challenge. The basis is simple: you submit three TV series per month, over the next seven months, along with any commentary you would like to attach to your choices. In the end you’ll have 21 selections! There is not mean t to be a specific order to your choices; you’re not ranking them from best to 21^st best. Also, the category of “best” in this instance should mean something like “most enjoyable” rather than “most influential.” Finally, you should consider within the context of your choices whether the series holds up in any way…in other words, if you are listing it as one of the 21 best, could you sit down and watch episodes now and enjoy them?

Non-U.S. television series are – of course – welcome. (Many modern American series were reworked versions of English series anyway). To qualify as a “series” the show must have aired at least six episodes. All genres are welcome: comedy, horror, suspense, detective, science fiction…anything you like. Oh, and if the series has multiple incarnations (as many of the more popular science fiction series do, for example) specify which one you mean. You can list multiples, but they each take up a spot on your list…and you only get 21! I am offering prizes: two of the respondents who submit a full complement of 21 TV series will be selected at random for prizes. So to win, all you have to do is play.

Next issue: The fourth set of three TV series from each of you (plus 3 more for each round you have missed), and from me. Remember: These are not meant to be placed in order by you, from top to bottom, unless you want to do that for some reason. And since you only have to submit three series per issue, I hope you’ll give some explanation of why you chose each one.

Jim Burgess: British Comedy: Monty Python's Flying Circus, Allo, Allo and The Vicar of Dibley

Kevin Wilson: OK, as I pick up possible shows from others, my list has grown in excess of 21, almost 2X 21 now. I'm going to run out of list before I run out of shows. Now I'm going to be forced to rank a little just to make sure some actually hit the list.

Thinking of cop shows last time lead me to one of my past favorites and one I think I want to track down on Netflix and review, Hill Street Blues. I remember this coming on Thursday nights in college. Thursday nights were bar nights. But, before we went out to the bars, a group of us sat in my room and watched episodes on a 19" b&w tv then headed out. Frank Furillo, "Counselor" Davenport, Belker, Renko, Bobby, JD and Lucy were well-known characters for us then. As we would all head out, you could hear us all say, "… and hey, hey! Be careful out there."

One I'm ashamed to say I missed when I made my starting list but should be on it and would rank high if we were ranking them is M*A*S*H. I was actually a bigger fan of the later years with Col. Potter, Hawkeye, BJ & Charles than of the early years with Trapper, Radar, and Col. Blake. I never really cared for Frank Burns so I suspect his departure made the show better to me regardless of who came along next. Charles was a much better foil for Hawkeye than Frank.

And, for the obligatory sci fi/fantasy, and something more current, Game of Thrones. The show has been wonderful. The pacing can be deliberate, but so were the books. The show isn't quite to the scale of how I pictured things in my head while reading the books but I don't think you can reflect that properly in a series, on TV. Regardless, the show is incredibly well done and very entertaining. I remember buying the first book in MMPB many years ago during a fantasy stretch in my reading. I must have picked it up and started it 4 or 5 times before going all the way finally. It was one of those books that built slowly and you had to read to a point to set the hook. A point I just didn't reach the first 3 or 4 times. But, once the hook was set, I plowed through the first 3, all that were out at the time, and the next 2 since. The show was one I was most anticipating a couple of years ago and it hasn't disappointed. Most shows I follow I record and watch on my schedule. Game of Thrones is one that I watch same night, every time I'm home. I only do that with a few shows.

Andy Lischett: "I Dream of Jeannie" sounds much sexier in German. I wonder if it is dubbed... imagine Major Healey's bumblings in German.

When you ran 27 Tunes I would get upset when someone else named a song that I'd planned on naming in the future. Now, however, since Barack Obama has instilled in me the Meaning of Life, it doesn't bother me in the least that Per Westing blatantly stole my #11 pick. I will even move "I, Claudius" and my other PBS picks up to 7, 8 and 9.

7. I, Claudius - I got hooked on this PBS soap opera, just like I got hooked on the original version of...

8. Upstairs, Downstairs.

9. All Creatures, Great and Small (the first series) - A sweet show, with pretty scenery. I wanted to marry Helen. I named a game in Cheesecake after Tricky Woo, Mrs. Pumphrey's small dog (a Pomeranian?)

John Wilman: It had not occurred to me that the 21 TV shows game was in any way competitive, and yet I somehow feel gratified by being the first to nominate one that others will then want to watch. I can still remember the first "Colombo" that I saw; it was the one with the longest title, and I immediately wanted to watch more.

Subsequently, my favourite episode became the one in which Peter Falk displayed an unexpected talent for playing the tuba, in a sort of Pied Piper riff. But then, he always was an entertainer, especially of kids.

Star Trek was always a bit hypocritical for me. Sod the Prime Directive, just shoot first and ask questions afterwards!

TNG was the best of the bunch, but only because Patrick Stewart, a Shakespearian actor, actually acted like a captain should act, commanding respect and leading by example - no gratuitous fisticuffs or emotional involvement.

For me, Blakes 7 beats Star Trek because it is more dystopian, and therefore more realistic. Blake is a rebel against tyranny, not a foot on the neck Cold War winner. And his ship, which he pirated, is a lot cooler.

It still comes second to Red Dwarf, which doesn't preach at all, unless the message is anarchy, while Babylon V is a shoo-in for third for the marvelous aliens and back-story, allied to the development of telepathy and psionic powers.

So for me it is 1 Red Dwarf 2 Blakes 7 3 Babylon V.

Heather Taylor: America's Next Top Model, Dexter, Bones

Andy York: The X-Files,The Twilight Zone, Supernatural

Jack McHugh: Let's go with three political series to catch up, all British, that should make Bwad happy....

1. Yes Minister/Yes Prime Minister....the greatest political series ever....just listening to Sir Humphery's long winded explanations is worth the watching the series for alone. Great cast, great writing, great directing...can't say enough about it. The worst thing about it is a BBC series so "seasons" consist about about 8 episodes so even though their are three "seasons" of each show you only have about 48 half hour shows but they are all terrific shows worth watching several times each.

2. I, Claudius....based on the Robert Graves novels I, Claudius and Claudius, the God....well acted with some truly great British actors, including John Hurt's first real role as the demented Caligula....Derek Jacob is wonderful as Claudius and does a nice job aging...going from a teenager to an old man over the course of the 12 hour long episodes.

3. The Black Adder series...hilariously funny shows featuring Rowan Atkinson before he was Mr. Bean and he talks and is much funnier...supported by Steven Laurey before he became Dr. House...the premise is novel with Atkinson playing different historical figures in different historical times...for example, he plays a Laurey's manservent in 18th century England, he's Laurey's commanding officer in World War I England, etc., etc. Would love to get this on DVD and see all episodes...

Next, how about 3 Science Fiction series:

Babylon 5: Great story, great characters and acting....loved the writing as well and the whole over arching store structure..

Battlestar Galactica (the new one)--wonderful acting and writing.....love Gauis Baltar...what a great conflicted villan he was...worth watching in repeats or renting on Netflix...

Star Trek: Deep Space 9...Not so much for avery brooks, captain benjamin cisco--he was sleep walking through the part of the time, underacting is one thing, mailing in your performance is another....great aliens in andrew robinson as garet, the spy who can't go home again turned tailor, armin shinernman as the scheming fernegi barkeep quark and rene auberjonis as the good cop odo whose always mooning over major kira the tough as nails second in command to cisco....

i enjoyed all the intrigue as well and, although it failed miserably for the most part when doing so--especially with regards to economics--clearly all star trek writers are uncomfortable with ANY form of econmy--it was the first and only star trek series to look beyond star fleet and address other issues like religion and economy, that mostly get the "we are the galaxy and live in peace and harmony" short shift from the other star trek series... i will give the last star trek series props for trying to write about the inter-star fleet as well as international relations on a realistic level, actual tensions between humans and Vulcans was a novel approach..

Dane Maslen: Let's have a trio of British sitcoms. That way I can put off making some of the difficult choices that lie ahead. Thanks to other people's choices reminding me of excellent shows that had slipped my memory I now have 18 candidates jostling for the remaining 12 places. It's easy to see a couple that will have to go, but which others will make up the six? Or will it be more than six by the time I've been reminded of other shows?

Dad's Army (UK) - Episodes of this are regularly repeated on the BBC. I confess that I rarely watch them, but when I do, it's evident that the show stands up to repeated viewing: not hilarious, but always amusing and good to watch. It's also something that will never date. Why not? Because it was already dated when it first aired.

Fawlty Towers (UK) - Several other readers have already said all that needs to be said.

One Foot in the Grave (UK) - Richard Wilson as Victor Meldrew was the epitome of the grumpy old man suffering the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune. I rate this as my favourite sitcom of all time, but lately the BBC seem to have given up repeating the episodes. I don't believe it!

Paraic Reddington: The Muppet Show: I love the old muppet show and their irreverent sense of humour. Anyone who does not laugh at Waldorf and Statler needs a sense of humour transplant.

STATLER: Boo!

WALDORF: Boooo!

S: That was the worst thing I’ve ever heard!

W: It was terrible!

S: Horrendous!

W: Well it wasn’t that bad.

S: Oh, yeah?

W: Well, there were parts of it I liked!

S: Well, I liked alot of it.

W: Yeah, it was GOOD actually.

S: It was great!

W: It was wonderful!

S: Yeah, bravo!

W: More!

S: More!

W: More!

S: More!

The Magic Roundabout: Although looking back on this it seems like a deeply disturbing childhood introduction to drug use, I have fond memories of this show.

Postman Pat: As a kid I loved stop motion animation shows. I have since had the pleasure of introducing my own son to Pat, Thomas the Tank etc. And he has introduced me to Timmy Time and Shaun the Sheep!

Andy Bate: OK, since I'm an addict of detective shows, I guess it's time for three of those. My list this issue almost mirrors that of Hank Alme last time, but I don't include Rebus in my list. The books are really, really good, but the TV adaptations have been terrible, in my opinion. They are crying out for a good treatment from the beginning, with two hour (less adverts) episodes for each book. Anyway, I digress.

Midsomer Murders: Yes, the murder rate is preposterously high for the setting, but the stories more than make up for that. A particular favourite involved wine bottles being fired from a catapult, and a TV death by drowning (in wine). The series shows some signs of running out of steam following the change to the new Barnaby (Neil Dudgeon instead of John Nettles), so it will be interesting to see whether a new series appears on our screens any time soon.

Morse: A fabulous TV series starring the late, great John Thaw, with complicated plots set amongst Oxford's gleaming spires. I often watch the reruns on the TV. Unlike Midsomer Murders, whose source books I've never read, I've read the Morse books several times and have kept them to read again, as I never remember whodunnit! Needless to say there were far more TV episodes than books.

Lewis: A sequel to Morse, coming some seven years after John Thaw's death. His trusty sidekick DS Robert Lewis is now an Inspector who has been working away from Oxford following a personal tragedy. Now, with help from his own trusty sidekick, DS James Hathaway, Lewis sets about solving fiendish murder cases in the same vein as Morse, which is not surprising as a large number of the episodes were written by Colin Dexter, the author of Morse. Sadly the last episode has supposedly been made, but I still hope for its return in one shape or another.

Douglas Kent: For my three this month, I’m going with three shows filled with mystery and unanswered questions. These shows are near the top of my list when it comes to favorite shows of all time.

The X-Files: Chris Carter brought us a show of UFO’s, supernatural creatures, Illuminati-like organizations, and government cover-ups, all tied together by the growing bond between FBI Agents Mulder and Scully. For season after season he maintained a high level or excellence, slipping only when David Duchovny wanted to move on and when he tried to move the concept to the big screen. Like all three of my shows this month, it works best when watched from the beginning, and in order.

Twin Peaks: David Lynch’s masterful show of intrigue, mystery, and the hidden secrets of a quiet town. I sometimes wonder how long the show could have sustained itself if the network hadn’t pushed Lynch to reveal the identity of “Bob”…many of the actors say he lost interest during the second season due to that, and they were left feeling somewhat abandoned. But for those two seasons, every episode was filled with surprises, enigmatic characters, twisting storylines, and damn good coffee. You can pick up the Gold Edition which has the pilot and every episode…you won’t be disappointed. The atmosphere of Twin Peaks is one that stays with you, and you’ll find yourself thinking that various movies or shows in the years to come have “Peaksian” moments or scenes.

The Prisoner: Patrick McGoohan’s tour de force, after being the highest paid actor on television for Danger Man (Secret Agent when aired in the U.S.). A highly-placed government agent (some say his character from Danger Man, but McGoohan always insisted this character was actually a scientist) resigns from the British agency he worked for suddenly, not giving his reasons. He returns to his flat, and is treated to a dose of knockout gas through the keyhole. He awakens in “The Village,” a secret and private town which appears much like a holiday resort of the period. No names are used there; McGoohan is told he is Number 6. Each episode “the new” Number 2 arrives and tries to break Number 6, by force, science, or deceit attempting to get him to reveal his reasons for resigning (the theory being once he reveals that, he’ll be ready to reveal much more). But which side runs The Village? The Russians? The British? Someone else? Who are the wardens and who are the prisoners? Much of the series is either allegorical or speaks to a certain aspect of society (topics such as modern art, elections, terrorism, scientific advances, the rights of the individual, and the dehumanization of man by society are all touched on…and that is just a sampling). Besides debating the meaning of so many of the episodes (especially the controversial Fall Out which was the final episode), you can enjoy the debates about what the “proper” order of the episodes should be: the order they were televised, or the more logical order? There will never be another series like The Prisoner, as it is a product of the right people and the right time. But aside from a bit of goofiness when it comes to special effects, it holds up today as well as it did when first shown.

Richard Weiss: Beverly Hills 90210, The Muppet Show, Sesame Street.

Geoff Kemp: One I am currently enjoying is 'Whitechapel' a detective series with a dark twist. Its that little bit different to the norm!

Staying on a dark theme, although going back quite a few years was 'Tales of the Unexpected' which did exactly as it promised, gave unexpected endings to what started off as straightforward mundane stories.

Hmm another in the same vein? nothing seems to spring to mind so switching genre and again back to the 60s 'Time Tunnel' a series well ahead of its time albeit quite short lived.

Heath Gardner: 7. Black Mirror. This is a BBC show that Americans can currently only acquire by not quite legal means. But it's okay, because this show, essentially a 21st century Twilight Zone, is all about how technology is screwing all our human systems up anyway. So downloading a torrent of it seems natural. This is an anthology show (bonus) written and directed by British satirist Charlie Brooker (mega bonus) where all the episodes are a complete and utter mind fuck in one way or another. The episode that shows us how deeply Google Glasses are going to screw us up, "The Complete History of You," has been optioned by Robert Downey Jr. for a film. If it's anywhere near as good as that episode, it's going to be oscar worthy. If you are interested in this show and don't know how to get it, I'd be happy to send it to you on a flash drive.

8. Peep Show. Another fantastic UK show. This one is available on Netflix for all to see, so you don't have to become a computer geek to figure out how to get the episodes. It's definitely the funniest "sitcom", if you can call it that, I've ever seen. Everything is done single-camera and often the camera shows you the perspective of one of the two protagonists, housemates -- Mark, who is incredibly OCD, neurotic, workaholoic and obsessed with WWII history, and Jeremy, a devil may care drug using, work avoiding all around needy person. It's the classic Odd Couple situation, they're best buddies, for some reason -- we're never shown the genesis of their friendship but Jeremy constantly invokes "The El Dude Brothers" every time he needs to mooch in some new way off of Mark. The thing that really makes it work is they speak their thoughts when their perspectives are being shown. So you get many, many threads going at once. It's actually a very unique way to do comedy, much better than the "interview" format that seems so popular recently. If you want to kill some time, there are 8 seasons available on Netflix. It's the type of show that should be watched front to back, but it's worth it to make it to "Shrooming" and "Business Secrets of the Pharaohs."

9. Bridezillas. I'm not above an embarrassingly guilty pleasure. I have to say it was a special woman in my life that introduced me to this show, which I would never have considered watching before, and I am grateful to her for that and only that. It's not something I can watch often, but it's great when you want to see the really ugly side of people, the institution of marriage, and the privileged society we live in. This show actually made me scared to get married but when I met my wife, I knew she was nothing like these women, and the "Bridezillas" actually ended up being her parents. We came very close to eloping just to avoid the BS. But anyway, if you can find humor value in a woman breaking down into tears because the gigantic pumpkin she ordered made into a coach got eaten by the horse that was pulling it (note: not a real example, but close) then you'll like this show. People are insane and the craziest part to me is they're just like, oh hey, sure, go ahead and put me on TV screeching and crying about a 4 year old ring bearer being too scared to walk down the aisle in rehearsal.

Hank Alme: This month is British Humo(u)r

1. Blackadder: Rowan Atkinson is brilliant playing the various incarnations of Blackadder, a supercilious schemer whose incompetence prevents his rise to greatness. In each four series (seasons) plus a few one-off specials, Atkinson plays a descendant of the character from previous seasons, always headed down the socio-economic ladder. He begins as Edmund, Duke of Edinburgh (series 1), is next a noble in Queen Elizabeth I's court, then a butler to the future George IV during the regency, and finally a captain in the British Army during WW I. I watch them over and over and still come close to pissing myself laughing.

2. Coupling: The romantic and other exploits of a groups of three men and three women living in London. That is where the similarities to NBC's Friends end; the humor is more daring than I've seen on the US networks. Stephen Moffat created the show before he put together the reboot of Doctor Who.

3. Peep Show: A sitcom for the comedy duo of David Mitchell and Robert Webb. They play a pair of housemates, the awkward, high strung Mark (Mitchell) and the slacker with delusions of grandeur Jez (Webb). The signature shtick has the audience see the work from inside one or the other character's heads, hearing their thoughts. Hilarity ensues.

Rick Desper: ER, a.k.a. "Emergency Room". The best medical drama of the '90s, and arguably the best drama of the '90s. Great cast (esp. in the early years when Clooney was on), a constant state of tension, and a realistic feeling to the medical language and how it was used. Great guest stars. I preferred the initial cast with George Clooney, Anthony Edwards, Eriq La Salle, Julianne Marguiles, Noah Wyle and Sherry Stringfeld. As the years passed, cast members left, some came back, and new characters were added. I would also add Gloria Reuben, Laura Innes, Alex Kingston, Goran Visnijic, and Maura Tierney as actors who played important characters for several seasons.

Why did ER do that was novel? Well it had been traditional to portray doctors and nurses as god-like figures with access to higher knowledge who were always in control. ER had doctors who sometimes made mistakes, often had chaotic personal lives, were sometimes addicts, were sometimes egotists, and were often self-interested.

Star Trek: What can be said? At the time, Star Trek was notable for its unabashed optimism about the future. The "trek" framework allowed Gene Roddenberry to constantly have new story lines with the Enterprise visiting new planets and civilizations. The aliens encountered ranged from the primitive whose development couldn't be interfered with (the 'Prime Directive') to exceptionally advanced species who were far beyond human comprehension. Also there were Klingons and Romulans to have good fights with. The show only lasted 3 series in production, but it really took off in syndication in the 1970s. It's had countless spinoffs, movie series, and now a reboot series which will allow JJ Abrams to kill everything we loved.

The Twilight Zone. Rod Serling's show about the supernatural was always known for good writing, surprise endings, and great acting, often by up-and-coming actors like William Shatner in "Nightmare at 20,000 feet." Also a good show for marathon viewing. And great theme music.

Per Westling: When I came up with my 21 choices I seem to have forgotten some good candidates. Some might think I am missing out some obvious choices (like Sopranos) but in some cases I have actually not seen the series..., or had forgotten about them. Well, we'll see if I change my my list as some of the choices was obscure.

Review series? Not a choice I would select normally. There are too many good series I have not seen so why "waste" time reviewing something? The same applies to books as well.

Ok, here are #7-9 from my list, today all British:

7. The Young Ones, a Comedy series from the early 80s where four completely different personalities (student) lives in the same house. I think this might be Worth watching again.

8. The Black Adder, Another Comedy sitcom, featuring Rowan Atkins and Tony Robinson. This was actually several different series, taking place in different times. I do enjoy Rowan Atkins more in the role of Black Adder than in the role as Mr Bean. Not a series you would watch every episode of but watch one every now and then. First series from early 80s, as well. I am sure I would enjoy watching seeing a couple of episodes again, but there are more modern series I could watch instead. Would say that it is about the same humour as in Red Dwarf, which I also did enjoy although the latter is SF which is a plus in my book.

9. Misfits, a modern series, which is not humour but social realistic, more SF style. The Brits are good at making those social realistic dramas, both as Movies and TV series. This is a gang of misfit youngsters that gets special Powers after a weather phenomena. I enjoyed the first series which felt a bit non-maystream. After the success of the 2009 series they seemed to have gotten more resources, and the story line became more "American" so I enjoyed 2nd season less.

Dick Martin: so soon!

it must be time for the all-crime issue!

miami vice - stylish, intense, must-watch tv for many years. i was hooked on the show, but never wore loafers without socks.

crime story - michael mann's follow up to miami vice. even more stylized and intense. i think it only lasted two years, but what years! introduced and should have made dennis farina a bigger star, but he did ok.

sons of anarchy - easily the most current show on my whole list, this one is even still going. i've only made it through the first three seasons so far, but almost every episode has some emotional impact. maybe it's the high body count, constant scheming, or focusing a whole season's worth of episodes on a baby in peril. who would have thought a gang of gun running bikers could be so engaging?

Hugh Polley: 7. I Dream of Jeannie ; Was I too young to notice the outfit? No! Somehow Larry Hagman would always find a way to explain the strange going ons. The shrink coming close to a breakdown every second episode was a nice touch.

8. Yes Minister & Yes Prime Minister written by Athony Jay who also wrote Machiavelli and Business. A humorous and somewhat true look at politics.

9. My Favourite Martian - My first TV si/fi Experience, Bill Bixby’s first starring role before the Hulk .

Can someone help me out with the Martian Actor's name. The interfering older female neighbour added a regular humorous scene.

[[Ray Walston is the name you’re thinking of. Despite roles in such films as The Sting and The Apartment, he is best known by more recent generations by his terrific job playing the serious history teacher Mr. Hand in the film Fast Times at Ridgemont High.]]

Marc Ellinger: The Simpsons – for the longest running non-news primetime show, it isn’t as great as it used to be, but the first 10 seasons are some of the cleverest TV ever.

Sanford and Son – Growing up I loved this show with Redd Foxx, who had to be the craziest/funniest old man on TV.

The Carol Burnett Show -- Harvey Kormann and Tim Conway were regulars and every skit they’ve ever been in has been hysterically funny!!

Martin Burgdorf: 7. Invasion von der Wega (Original title The Invaders)

Lest We Forget

This series was watched in the average by 46% in Germany, but there were no re-runs, except for one single episode. I liked the way the aliens started to glow when they died. There was an uncanny atmosphere in this series, with the infiltration of politics, administration and military by aliens, that one could almost not distinguish from human beings. Maybe it really happened, and this is the reason, why today's world is such a mess.

8. Immer wenn er Pillen nahm (Mr Terrific)

9. Mini-Max oder Die unglaublichen Abenteuer des Maxwell Smart (orig.: Get Smart)

Two similar comedy series, poking fun at secret agent / crime stories.

John Biehl: 1) Paladin - I was entranced by the character of Paladin as a youth. This western wasn't on the surface, at least, like all the other shoot em up cowpoke dusters.

2) Beverly Hillbillies - corny comedy with a great cast of misfit characters who really made that show plus its theme song was catchy (and don't we all wish finding oil was that easy) "One day Old Jed was shootin' for some food and up through the ground came some bubblin' crude. Black gold. Texas tea...." (etc)

3) Monty Python - brilliantly, insanely funny especially after imbibing some leafy product (MJ)

4) Hawaii 5-0 (with Jack Lord) "Book em, Danno." Actually, a pretty darn stupid cop & criminal show but Jack Lord played it so cool & tough.

5) Star Trek - to think the original series only lasted two seasons. It was great and ground breaking. Really dumb tactic that the senior ship's officers always went on the away missions (Spock would not have approved, "Illogical Captain, not worth the risk.").

6) Twilight Zone - another ground breaking TV series with drama, sci-fi & horror elements in a 'skit' form. Original and where many a Hollywood actor or actress played a part or got their start.

Brain Farts: The Only Subsubzine With It’s Own Fragrance

By Jack “Flapjack” McHugh – jwmchughjr@gmail.com

(or just email Doug and he’ll send it to me)

Issue #59

My NFL predictions. ..I wrote these before the season got going.

NFC East

Giants--still have the best QB--will start slow and finish strong, if they can avoid injuries they will be formidable in the playoffs like always...

Redskins--continued development of RGIII...don't know if they have the talent to step up but so much in the NFL these days is driven by the QB so I look for them to move up in a weak division even if the talent isn't as good as some other divisions

Cowboys--the usual...lots of sizzle, no steak, team of overpaid free agents that never jell cause their owner is an idiot who won't leave the staff alone to develop a great team...

Eagles--apparently we had to wait for Andy Reid to completely decimate our talent base with the two worst drafts in the NFL in the last two years--we have none of our picks from the first three rounds left...thanks Big Red...go destroy the Chefs now...

NFC North

Packers--still have a great QB and great offense, defense more suspect but I think they can get the job done, but will they go far in the playoffs? aye, there's the rub...

Lions--I know the consensus is to say the Lions are having a down year...I don't buy it, young teams are uneven but that doesn't mean they won't keep developing...I see continued development and could pass the Pack...

Vikings--still struggling for stability...still looking for a good QB, yes they have Adrian Peterson but I'm not sure you can win in the NFL without a quality--not a great but a quality QB--this team should be better than it is...not sure why its not...

Bears---to paraphrase Yogi Berra, they got old pretty young...this is a tough division and i think the bears are better rebuilding than trying to make due with an older roster...however I think they actually aren't that bad so if I were a Bears fan I'd probably want the team to try and win now...

NFC South

Falcons---everyone is picking them to win so I'll just jump on the bandwagon...

Saints--still have a great offense

Panthers--still rebuilding but past the Yuckeneers...

Bucs--terrible team...

NFC West

49ers--up and coming division ...49ers have a better defense and more balanced offense but I like the Seahawks as well....

Seahawks

Rams---last two teams very similar...attempting to develop young QBs...tough to do while rebuilding as both of these teams doing

Cards

NFC Wild Cards..

Lions and Skins

NFC Champion...Falcons

As for the AFC, I will be much less verbose..i don't know much about the AFC so these are more of a guess...

AFC East

Pats

Dolphins

Jets

Bills

Basically one really good team, the Pats, and three rebuilding ones with two, Dolphins and Bills, on the way up and one, the Jets, on the way down. I've been a big Rex Ryan fan for the past two years but its really time to put up or shut up for the Jets.

AFC North

Steelers

Bengals

Browns

Ravens

Ravens got old real fast, the Bengals are coming on but need another year to take over from the Steelers...Browns are getting better but about two years away from a playoff appearance...

AFC South

Texans

Titans

Colts

Jaguars

Texans have arrived...wouldn't be surprised to see them playing in the Super Bowl. Titans still have a great D...Colts getting better but need a lot more talent...Jags are a complete rebuilding project on both sides of the ball.

AFC West

Broncos

Chargers

Chiefs

Raiders

Broncos will use their home field advantage and a more talented team to dominate this division...Chargers need more help on D...Reid is no genius--he's a good coach, terrible player personnel director/GM, if the Chiefs can keep Big Reid from choosing the roster and give him a competent defensive coordinator--they can complete, but if AR is making the player personnel decisions--it’s gonna be a long contract for Chief fans...Raiders--al davis is gone so I don't know what their problem is now, other than a lack of talent...

AFC Wild Card:

Titans

Bengals

AFC Champion:

Texans

Superbowl Champion:

Texans

ZERO SUM, Subzine to Eternal Sunshine, Issue 18 September 22, 2013

Published by Richard Weiss. richardweiss@higherquality.com. All orders (except those for the new game, Richard Morland) are due by 8 AM of the Sunday before orders are due for Eternal Sunshine. For October, I presume that makes the due date October 27.

Current Games: 1. Yahtzee (in process, no new players)

2. What’s My Line – new panelists REQUIRED to join in

3. Drone Wars – a variant Diplomacy, now open and accepting players

4. Richard Morland the 2013 NFL Bourse Game

Potential Game Offerings: If 8 or more people want to participate in another Sports Bourse, let me know. With enough interest, I would be willing to do one or more of the following:

A. NHL

B. NBA

C. MLB

D. Maybe the World Cup – anyone going to Brazil?

GM Musings: This month I thought I’d write the Anti-Jack column for the month in Eternal Sunshine, minus the cartoons. No way, no how, bomb Syria in retaliation for use of chemical weapons by someone. Enough of terrorist America. Spy on whom – oh, everyone, that’s right. Those other countries and citizens of those don’t have Constitutional rights. Oh, neither do we. How many more countries are we going to ruin because of our drug laws that create a huge class of prisoners, gangs, war lords, and profits for the CIA and DEA, and untold thousands of deaths a month around the world. Seriously, open up ABC stores and sell the stuff. Make it ourselves. Raise taxes and employment. Pretend to put some of the profits into health care and rehabilitation, like the tobacco tax revenue. Reduce crime. Be real and curb entitlements instead of discretionary spending. Hold a national bake sale for the DoD. I hope to be one of the first to enroll in Covered California, the CA health exchange, ala Obamacare. For my age they will sell bronze and silver versions. I have prime responsibility for two cats now. Contemplating installing two cat doors – one into the door from outside to the garage and the other from the garage to the house(oops, fire hazard and voids my house insurance). Leave both open when I’m home, only the one into the garage when I’m traveling. Others have experience with cat doors? The alternative appears to be leaving outside until the coyotes or owls catch and kill the kitties. This could be a democratically decided issue. If you want to vote on which alternative I should choose, please do so.

I am offering a new game, the Richard Morland NFL 2013 Bourse. See the last few pages of Zero Sum. Buy and sell NFL teams stock. Performance on the field effects price. Buying and selling effects prices. Why just pick who is going to win, put your money where your mouth is?

I was an avid sports fan as a child, bred into the family. At some age, one was supposed to have a “team.” At about that age, we got a card and board game, APBA NFL. I loved to play with the then first-year Cowboys, because they threw long a lot, weren’t supposed to win, and that suited my personality as the youngest. I became an avid Cowboys fan, including many years (decades) of the Dallas Cowboy Football Weekly. Well, the future was good to me and my team. I would venture that the two best teams in football history (one could argue for the Browns) were the Cowboys and the 49’ers and The Catch might be the best of the best. After that, along came salary cap. Salary cap led to no more “the team” and intro to fantasy.

As the Cowboys changed ownership, style, and I got older and became more distant to the US, I stopped being a football fan. Yes, I’d watch the Super Bowl, for some years at Chuff Afflerbach’s house.

This year, I agreed to be the commissioner of a Fantasy Football League, for my son-in-law. Seems he and the other owners don’t have access to the internet or any other electronic media. They can watch ESPN and some other TV channels. So, I am the intermediary for exact scores, etc. Twelve teams. I guess that is about average. There aren’t many good running backs, are there? I don’t even know the names of 75% of the players. He talks about them and I don’t know what teams they play for or what positions they play. Makes it interesting.

NEW GAME OFFER NEW GAME OFFER NEW GAME OFFER

Drone Wars Diplomacy Game offer to the world of Eternal Sunshine. First seven to sign up are in for this Gunboat with Press variation based on Jim Burgess’s game that might have been called Evil Yuppie Empire Nuclear War Nuke a Gay Baby Whale for Christ Diplomacy. Send me your interest to play and a ranking as to which country you want to be. First in gets first choice. Game will be named Margaretha Geertruida Zelle. My email remains: richardweiss@higherquality.com

Drone Wars Diplomacy is a variant based on the variants Evil Yuppie and Black Hole Dip. Seven players, each a regular country on the Dip board. Gunboat with press. One drone stocked with one nuclear weapon each supply center owned. Each turn order your units and your drones. No requirement to move or bomb. Units ordered same as regular dip. Drones are ordered as to what map location to bomb. Drone orders are valid to any map location. You can name your drones, number them, or just order “Drones to:” and a list of map locations to bomb.

Drones explode with the nuking. Any nuke not used in a calendar year fizzes out, is buried in a container, and sent into the middle of the sun. No carry-over of nukes. Use it or lose it.

A piece that ends a turn in a map location that experienced a drone attack that turn is annihilated. Once a space is bombed, the space remains contaminated with 225 rem (2+ Sieverts) for slightly more than 100,000 years. You may order units through a space with 225 rem radiation. Each unit can survive going through one map location with 225 rem of radiation. Your unit remains carrying the 225 rem of exposure for the rest of its life.

You may build new units in home SCs that have no or 225 rem contamination. SCs that have no or 225 rem both count towards how many drones you can order and how many units you can support

The same map location can experience more than one drone attack. Each drone attack increases the level of radiation by 225 rem. 450 rem is lethal (the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s 50/30 level, with 50 being % of population expected to die and the 30 being the number of days it will take for that 50% of the population to die). Go through two spaces with 225 rem and the unit dies. Go through one space with 450 rem and the unit dies. Cannot birth (build) a unit in a home SC with 450 rem. Units built in home SCs with 225 rem carry that dose with them and die going through another contaminated space (or staying in the home SC for another turn). [Sounds complicated. Play won’t be.]

Start Spring 01. No season separations. Spring and Fall. Autumn retreats, Winter builds and Spring orders together. Last country with a unit and a SC with less than 450 rem contamination wins.

I don’t have an e-map version of Diplomacy. Thus, I am begging for one (probably I need instructions how to use) from those who GM Dip games. Otherwise, this will be one lame appearing game. (Beg, beg)

There is a custodian who assigns variants numbers who has contacted me, Tom Howell, and we will be getting a number once the game (starts or stops?)

There are now two entrants. As one pointed out, this is gunboat, so can’t so who or what country they wanted and may or may not get. Neither is Jesus. Neither is a gay baby whale. The last two sentences refer to my favorite bumper sticker, “Nuke a gay baby whale for Jesus.” Seen circa the final decade of the last millennium.

YAHTZEE AND YAHTZEE VARIANTS

Rules for regular Yahtzee published in Eternal Sunshine #65. Scoring and play modified from Milton Bradley’s Yahtzee Game copyrighted 1982. Hasbro lists the official rules at: http://www.hasbro.com/common/instruct/Yahtzee.pdf

Yahtzee Game: Kim Philby

Round 13 is the last round!

For the next issue of Zero Sum, send in want to score for Round 12 and what you want to save after Round 13 Roll 2.

Scoring at the End of Round 11

*Upper*	Doug Kent	Kevin Wilson	Geoff Kemp	Dane Maslen
Ace = 1	1	4	3	2
Twos = 2	6	6	2	6
Threes = 3	6	9	3	9
Fours = 4	8	12	8	12
Fives = 5	15	15	10	15
Sixes = 6	24	24	18
*Total*	60	70	44	(44)
Bonus +35 if >63	0.0	35	0
*Total Upper*	60	105	44
*Lower*
3 of a Kind	20		24	22
4 of a Kind		29	28	28
Full House = 25	25	25	25	25
Sm Straight = 30	30	30		30
Lg Straight = 40		40	40	0.0
YAHTZEE = 50	0.0
Chance	24	18	21	21
Yahtzee Bonus
*Total Lower*
GRAND TOTAL	159	247	182	170

End of the Eleventh Scoring Round. Last two rounds coming up!

No way Kevin loses. Even without orders, I think.

Oleg Kalugin: What’s My Line?

Apologies, if any needed, in stealing a great idea from the original producers/creators. Per Wikipedia (retrieved 3 May 2013) Produced by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman for CBS Television, the show was initially called Occupation Unknown before deciding on the name What's My Line?

Next Turn: I will answer the question set of ALL players who send them to me (become a panelist). If you know my occupation but want to submit strange and unusual questions that may or may not contain clues to others, please do.

Panelist: Andy Lischett’s questions:

1. More questions? Okay... Yes

2. You said Yes, you are an insurance investigator. Isn't the game over? Shouldn't you flip the cards?

[[ from last month, “Or, I should ask – are you an insurance investigator? The best answer is even the most ridiculous statements out of the mouths of babes carry kernels of truth. Yes.”]] That was a lead, not the definitive answer. Perhaps I should have answered, in part. Or maybe, “investigating insurance decisions is a part of my job. Now learn more.” So, the answer to your two questions is No and No.

3. If not, did you change jobs between admitting to being an insurance investigator and Doug's deadline? No, but I am considering changing between this deadline and the next one.

4. Or do you also have a second job which we need to guess? My other job is dealing with the ennui of life.

5. Did Tom tell you what distractions you have at work? No, I imagined them myself.

6. Do you work for Tom? I report to a Tom who reports to a Tom. Neither are turkeys.

Panelist: Tom Howell’s questions:

1: Are you a tree feller? I like trees. I’ve never lived in a tree to keep it from being felled.

2: Have you ever fallen a tree? Dozens, maybe hundreds. I’ve girdled hundreds that caused them to fall.

3: Are you on salary? Yes. I get paid for work, same amount every month, at present.

4: Is the income on which you pay a very high tax rate entirely monetary? Yes. And, I’m not a tax lawyer, so not sure what type of income is not monetary. Benefits?

5: Are you on commission? No. First no, so we can stop for now.

Panelist: Mata Hari’s questions:

1: Do I have it right that you are paid by a company that doesn’t employ you? Yes.

2. Are they paying you to stay away from working for them? No.
3: Does the company make more than $100 million dollars a year? Yes, in revenue and in profit.
4: Does the company do work for the government? Yes. Some and mostly.
5: Do you help the company make more money? Yes, that is why companies pay persons.

6. Do you help the company make money by investing their money? No.

7. Do you help the company make money by investigating claims against its insurance policies? No

8. The company does do something related to “investigating insurance claims?” Yes

9. Do I need to ask you what kind of insurance claims? Yes.

10. What kind of insurance claims? Gong goes off. My lips had parted and lower jaw went forward. Sound made obscured by the gong.

The Samuel Morland NFL 2013 Bourse Rules

Make the most money buying and selling NFL teams’ stock shares and win. Simple. Sell high. Buy low. Buy more of the SuperBowl champion than anyone else. Or buy contra cyclically and, well, need a Finance Expert to describe that strategy.

1. Any number of people can play. Each player starts with 2 shares of stock in each of the 32 NFL teams.

2. There will be four rounds of selling stock and then, with the money you made selling, of buying more stock.

a. The first deadline for your orders to sell and buy stocks is received on my PC with date stamp not after Wednesday 2 October 2013. I will then send those results out to Doug and all entrants.

b. The second deadline, same rules, is Saturday 26 October

c. The third deadline is Saturday 23 November

d. The final deadline is Saturday 28 December

3. The value of each stock is in the excel sheet posted. Each round, the value of your stock for buying and selling will be posted before your orders.

a. Each stock started the season at $10 per share. Thus, $10 is the Base Value.

b. The difference between wins and losses edges the stock up $1 per share per net victory or down $1 per share for each net loss.

c. After the selling and buying, the share price changes based on how many shares sold and how many purchased. Purchasing edges the price up $1 per share per net purchases. Selling edges down.

d. No share is worth less than $1.

e. Example, Chiefs stock has a base of $10. Their record is 3-0. The price edges up to $13. No one has sold any. No one has bought any. Next turn ten people sold and no one bought. Price drops to $3 after the buys and sells, however, the Chiefs win two more games and that raises the price to $5.

f. Winning a second round play-off game raises the stock price by $5.

g. Winning a championship game raises the stock price by $10.

h. Winning the Superbowl doubles the price of the stock.

4. After each turn. the holdings and net worth of each player is posted. After the Superbowl, the final values will be posted and the NFL 2013 Zero Sum Bourse Champion will be sprayed with both champagne and Yoohoo. The first tie-breaker is earliest date to me of the Zero Sum games naming convention. In case of ties after that, a duplicate tie will be awarded.

5. My decisions are final, unless they are wrong. My calculations, exclusions, and faulty math are notorious. Let me know if I make a mistake. Any mistake not caught before the next turn lives in infamy.

Here’s How to Play

Send me an email, richardweiss@higherquality.com on or before Wednesday 2 October 2013. Tell me your team name. Tell me how many shares of which teams you sold and how much money that left you with. Tell me how many shares of which teams you bought. At the deadline I recalculate the stock prices and your net worth of stock and money. Do it again, three more times. Get rich.

RICHARD MORLAND NFL 2013 BOURSE
National Football Conference				Stock Value	Player and Team Name
NFC EAST	W	L	T		Shares	Value
Dallas	1	1	0	$10	2	$20
Philadelphia	1	2	0	$9	2	$18
Washington	0	2	0	$8	2	$16
NY Giants	0	2	0	$8	2	$16
NFC NORTH	W	L	T
Chicago	2	0	0	$12	2	$24
Detroit	1	1	0	$10	2	$20
Green Bay	1	1	0	$10	2	$20
Minnesota	0	2	0	$8	2	$16
NFC SOUTH	W	L	T
New Orleans	2	0	0	$12	2	$24
Atlanta	1	1	0	$10	2	$20
Tampa Bay	0	2	0	$8	2	$16
Carolina	0	2	0	$8	2	$16
NFC WEST	W	L	T
Seattle	2	0	0	$12	2	$24
St. Louis	1	1	0	$10	2	$20
Arizona	1	1	0	$10	2	$20
San Francisco	1	1	0	$10	2	$20
American Football Conference
AFC EAST	W	L	T
New England	2	0	0	$12	2	$24
Miami	2	0	0	$12	2	$24
Buffalo	1	1	0	$10	2	$20
NY Jets	1	1	0	$10	2	$20
AFC NORTH	W	L	T
Cincinnati	1	1	0	$10	2	$20
Baltimore	1	1	0	$10	2	$20
Cleveland	0	2	0	$8	2	$16
Pittsburgh	0	2	0	$8	2	$16
AFC SOUTH	W	L	T
Houston	2	0	0	$12	2	$24
Tennessee	1	1	0	$10	2	$20
Indianapolis	1	1	0	$10	2	$20
Jacksonville	0	2	0	$8	2	$16
AFC WEST	W	L	T
Denver	2	0	0	$12	2	$24
Kansas City	3	0	0	$13	2	$26
Oakland	1	1	0	$10	2	$20
San Diego	1	1	0	$10	2	$20
						$640

Game Openings

Diplomacy (Black Press – Permanent Opening in ES): Signed up: Paul Milewski, Arthur Shulman, Brad Wilson, Mark Firth, needs three more.

Youngstown IV (Black Press): Ten-player variant, with off-board boxes to make it “worldwide.” A classic. Rules on request. Signed up: Brad Wilson, Heath Gardner, Andy Bate, Jack McHugh. Needs 6 more.

Acquire: Can take up to six players. Will start when current game ends. Signed up: None.

By Almost Popular Demand: Same as By Popular Demand, except the top choice in every category scores zero. Join at any time.

Eternal Sunshine Movie Quote Quiz: Join anytime. New game starts this issue!

Where in the World is Kendo Nagasaki?: Rules in ES #58. Join anytime!

What’s My Line?: In Richard Weiss’ subzine. Ongoing, join anytime!

NFL Bourse: In Richard Weiss’ subzine. Join now!

Drone Wars: Diplomacy variant being offered in Richard Weiss’ subzine. Rules in ES #77 (in his subzine). Sign up now!

Coming Soon?: 1898, Colonia VII-B. If you’re interested in one of these variants, or have a suggestion, let me know.

Standby List: HELP! I need standby players! – Current standby list: Richard Weiss, Jim Burgess (Dip only), Hank Alme, Martin Burgdorf, Paul Milewski (Dip only), Brad Wilson (including Woolworth), Chris Babcock, Marc Ellinger, Heath Gardner, Jack McHugh, and whoever I beg into it in an emergency.

Eternal Sunshine Game Section

Acquire – “Winterbloom”

Players: Tom Howell, Hank Alme, Per Westling, and Martin Burgdorf.

Turn 10

Tom Howell: Plays 2-G. Buys three Luxor.

Hank Alme:Plays 9-H. Merges Tower into Continental. Hank gets $2,000 and Per gets $1,000. Hank trades eight Tower for four Continental and keeps one Tower. Per trades eight Tower for four Continental. Hank buys three more Continental.

Per Westling: Plays 5-I and starts Tower. Gets one free share of Tower.

Martin Burgdorf: Plays 8-E.

Tom Howell: Plays 3-H. Buys three Luxor.

Turn Order for Turn 11: Hank Alme, Per Westling, Martin Burgdorf, Tom Howell, Hank Alme

Deadline for Turn 11 is October 28th at 7pm my time.

Diplomacy “Dulcinea” 2008C, F 25

Austria (Martin Burgdorf – martin_burgdorf “of” hotmail.com): A Belgium Supports A Ruhr - Holland

(*Cut*), F Brest - English Channel (*Fails*), A Budapest - Galicia (*Fails*),

A Finland Supports A St Petersburg – Norway, A Galicia – Silesia, A Moscow - St Petersburg (*Fails*),

A Paris - Brest (*Fails*), A Picardy Supports A Belgium (*Cut*), A Ruhr - Holland (*Fails*),

A St Petersburg - Norway (*Bounce*), A Tyrolia - Bohemia.

England (Hank Alme – almehj “of” alumni.rice.edu): F Barents Sea - Norway (*Bounce*),

A Berlin - Munich (*Fails*), A Holland Supports A London - Belgium (*Cut*), F Kiel Supports A Holland,

A London - Belgium (*Fails*), F North Sea Convoys A London – Belgium,

A Sweden Supports F Barents Sea - Norway.

Turkey (Jim Burgess – jfburgess “of” gmail.com): F Adriatic Sea Supports F Trieste,

F Baltic Sea - Gulf of Bothnia, A Bulgaria – Rumania, F English Channel - Picardy (*Fails*),

F Mid-Atlantic Ocean – Gascony, A Munich - Ruhr (*Fails*), F Piedmont Hold, F Portugal - Mid-Atlantic Ocean,

A Rumania – Galicia, A Serbia Supports A Bulgaria – Rumania, F Sevastopol Supports A Bulgaria – Rumania,

F Spain(sc) Supports F Portugal - Mid-Atlantic Ocean, F Trieste Supports F Venice,

A Ukraine Supports A Rumania – Galicia, F Venice Supports F Trieste, A Warsaw Supports A Rumania - Galicia.

W 25/S 26 Deadline is October 29th at 7:00am my time

Supply Center Chart

Austria: Belgium, Brest, Budapest, Marseilles, Moscow, Paris, St Petersburg, Vienna=8, Remove 3

England: Berlin, Denmark, Edinburgh, Holland, Kiel, Liverpool, London, Norway, Sweden=9, Build 2

Turkey: Ankara, Bulgaria, Constantinople, Greece, Munich, Naples, Portugal, Rome, Rumania,

Serbia, Sevastopol, Smyrna, Spain, Trieste, Tunis, Venice, Warsaw=17, Build 1

PRESS

T => A: Sorry, but the time has long passed for negotiation of the terms, surrender must be unconditional. Do you yield yet, sir?

BOOB => Peanut Gallery: I would think less of Martin were he actually to yield so easily. Let's see what this turn brings....

“Dulcinea” Diplomacy Bourse

Billy Ray Valentine: Probably in his limousine.

Duke of York: Passes.

Smaug the Dragon: Snore.

Rothschild: Sells 500 Pounds. Buys 319 Piastres.

Baron Wuffet: Zip.

Wooden Nickel Enterprises: Also accepting wooden quarters.

VAIONT Enterprises: Resting his eyes.

Insider Trading LLC: Yawn.

Bourse Master: Stands pat.

PRESS

Rothschild to York: Turkey has to send only one order for a solo win: F Spa sc - Mar. If he does not do this, I don't understand Diplomacy indeed.

Duke of York Passes: As the cheering throngs wave, the Duke promises a chicken in every pot at the end. And yes, it's not over yet.

Next Bourse Deadline is October 28th at 7:00pm my time

Graustark Diplomacy Game 2006A, End Game

I am still assembling the data for the EOG report…need some help from others on this one, especially the early game years. I hope to have the report in the next issue.

Russia (John Biehl): I grudgingly congratulate Horrible Harley Jordan on his win as Germany. A hard bargainer and really, when I saw the writing on the wall (his impending attack) I failed to even put up a good defence. I do criticize the German play of allowing Austria to survive and to not attack England when Harley could have gone for the win much earlier. Why did he do this? Just to eliminate me, apparently. Horrible. Another horrible and, ultimately, stupid play was England continuing to attack me even when I was no longer a threat and thereby blowing his own chance to win. Another example of a player, Mark Wiedemeyer, throwing away a chance to win outright for a slavish second place in an alliance. Now I come to Austria, Don Williams, who gets upset with me and then simply throws his ally, Italy, to the Eng/Ger wolves and why? Just because I went for a couple centres. Firstly, Don, you never offered any outlet for Russia to go west into Germany when I brought the subject up and, secondly, you dared me to take the centres so I did (I wasn't going to but you played this obfuscation game with me which led me to doubt your sincerity. Well fine, fix me but at the expense of abandoning your ally to certain elimination? Fie! I have no excuses for stabbing my own ally, Turkey. It was just blatant self interest. I got my payback I suppose when I got eliminated myself. I regret not going through with my original F02 orders which would have ensured Austria's elimination early. Could have & should have. For whatever reason, France never communicated with me in this game (great for Eng & Ger though) and Italy was never serious about an Ita/Rus alliance versus Aus & Tur. Two usual Russian allies and no go. My play in Scandinavia was abysmal - not only

did I lose Swe but I lost Nor by aggravating Eng by building fleets. The only players I have any compassion for are Michael Quirk (Turkey) and Jim Burgess (Italy). What can one say about a French player (Karl Schmit) who fails to even once communicate with Russia (a natural ally) - he got what was coming (the Eng/Ger assault). Austria (Don Williams) was too 'obfuscatory' which led, ltimately, to misunderstanding and mistrust. England (Mark Wiedemeyer) and Germany (Harley Jordan) were just too vindictive in each their own way. Not very wise to antagonize (needlessly) I say (Elephants and Diplomacy players have long memories). Next time.

Diplomacy “Jerusalem” 2012A, F 07

Austria (Melinda Holley – genea5613 “of” aol.com): A Trieste Hold.

England (John Biehl – jerbil “of” shaw.ca): Retreat A Kiel – Holland, A Marseilles - Gascony..

F Baltic Sea Supports A Norway – Denmark, F Barents Sea - St Petersburg(nc),

F English Channel Convoys A London – Belgium, A Gascony – Spain, A Holland Supports A London – Belgium,

A London – Belgium, F Mid-Atlantic Ocean Supports A Gascony – Spain, F North Atlantic Ocean Hold,
F North Sea Convoys A Norway – Denmark, A Norway – Denmark, F Portugal Supports A Gascony - Spain.

Germany (Heath Gardner - heath.gardner “of” gmail.com): A Berlin Hold, A Kiel Unordered,

F Baltic Sea Supports A Berlin (No Such Unit), A Paris – Gascony, A Picardy – Burgundy, ~~F Spain(sc) Hold~~

(*Dislodged*, retreat to Western Mediterranean or OTB).

Italy (Mark Firth – mark.r.firth “of” capita.co.uk): F Gulf of Lyon Supports F Tyrrhenian Sea –

Western Mediterranean (*Void*), A Marseilles Supports F Spain(sc), A Munich Supports A Munich (Impossible),

F Naples - Ionian Sea, F Rome - Tyrrhenian Sea, F Western Mediterranean - Tunis.

Russia (Richard Weiss – richardweiss “of” higherquality.com): A Moscow Supports A Warsaw,

A Sevastopol – Rumania Shore Leave Partiers (Hold), A Warsaw Supports A Berlin - Silesia (*Void*).

Turkey (Geoff Kemp - ggeoff510 “of” aol.com): A Bohemia – Tyrolia, A Budapest – Galicia,
A Galicia – Silesia, F Ionian Sea - Aegean Sea, F Rumania - Black Sea, A Serbia – Rumania, A Silesia – Bohemia,

F Tyrrhenian Sea - Tuscany.

All Draw Proposals Fail

W 07/S 08 Deadline is October 29th at 7:00am my time

Supply Center Chart

Austria: Trieste, Vienna=2, Build 1

England: Belgium, Brest, Denmark, Edinburgh, Holland, Liverpool, London,

Norway, Portugal, Spain, St Petersburg, Sweden=12, Build 1

Germany: Berlin, Kiel, Paris=3, Remove 1 or 2

Italy: Marseilles, Munich, Naples, Rome, Tunis, Venice=6, Even

Russia: Moscow, Sevastopol, Warsaw=3, Even

Turkey: Ankara, Budapest, Bulgaria, Constantinople, Greece, Rumania, Serbia, Smyrna=8, Even

PRESS

London (Oct 31, 1907): King John wishes all to know he had nothing to do with the current proposals.

Emerald Eyes – Ephemeral Lies: Tsk.

Scapa Blow (Dec 6, 1907): First Lord of the Admiralty, Ima Honker, blustered to his steward, "No Seaweed yet, just Licorice first."

Diplomacy “Walkerdine” 2012D, F 03

Austria (Jeff O’Donnell – unclestaush “of” yahoo.com): NMR! ~~A Budapest Hold~~ (*Dislodged*,

retreat to Vienna or OTB), A Trieste Hold.

England (Marc Ellinger - mellinger “of” bbdlc.com): F Barents Sea Supports A Norway - St Petersburg,

A Finland Supports F Sweden, F North Sea Hold, A Norway - St Petersburg,

F Sweden Supports F Baltic Sea - Gulf of Bothnia (*Void*).

France (Jim Burgess – jfburgess “of” gmail.com): A Belgium Hold, F Gulf of Lyon – Tuscany,

A Piedmont Supports A Tyrolia – Venice, F Tunis Supports F Western Mediterranean - Tyrrhenian Sea (*Fails*),

F Tyrrhenian Sea - Rome (*Fails*), F Western Mediterranean - Tyrrhenian Sea (*Fails*).

Germany (Steve Cooley – tmssteve “of” gmail.com): F Baltic Sea Convoys A Kiel – Prussia,

F Denmark - Sweden (*Fails*), A Kiel – Prussia, A Silesia Supports A Kiel – Prussia, A Tyrolia - Venice.

Italy (Harold Zarr - skip1955 “of” hotmail.com): A Albania - Trieste (*Fails*),

F Naples Supports F Ionian Sea (*Ordered to Move*), A Rome Supports A Venice (*Cut*),

~~A Venice Supports A Albania - Trieste~~ (*Disbanded*).

Russia (Hank Alme – almehj “of” alumni.rice.edu): F Aegean Sea - Ionian Sea, A Galicia – Budapest,

F Gulf of Bothnia Supports F Denmark – Sweden, A Rumania Supports A Galicia – Budapest, A Warsaw Hold.

Turkey(Chris Babcock - cbabcock “of” asciiking.com): F Constantinople - Aegean Sea,

F Greece Supports F Aegean Sea - Ionian Sea, F Ionian Sea – Apulia,

A Serbia Supports A Venice - Trieste (*Void*), A Ukraine - Galicia.

Would Paul Milewski (paul.milewski “of” hotmail.com) be willing to take over ANOTHER dreadful Austrian position?

Deadline for W 03/S 04 Will Be October 29^th at 7am My Time

Supply Center Chart

Austria: Trieste, Vienna=2, Even or Build 1

England: Edinburgh, Liverpool, London, Norway, St Petersburg, Sweden=6, Build 1

France: Belgium, Brest, Marseilles, Paris, Portugal, Spain, Tunis=7, Build 1

Germany: Berlin, Denmark, Holland, Kiel, Munich, Venice=6, Build 1

Italy: Naples, Rome=2, Remove 1

Russia: Budapest, Constantinople, Moscow, Rumania, Warsaw=5, Even

Turkey: Ankara, Bulgaria, Greece, Serbia, Sevastopol, Smyrna=6, Build 1

PRESS

(BOOB to LIEGE MY MAN STEVERINO): I hope that is sufficient for your Highness?

Black Press Gunboat, “Fred Noonan”, 2013Arb32, S 04

Austria: ~~A Budapest Hold~~ (*Dislodged*, retreat to Galicia or OTB),

~~F Greece Hold~~ (*Dislodged*, retreat to Albania or OTB).

England: F Liverpool Hold, F London Hold, F North Sea - Edinburgh (*Bounce*).

France: A Burgundy Supports A Picardy, F Clyde - Edinburgh (*Bounce*), F English Channel - Irish Sea,

Mid-Atlantic Ocean Supports F English Channel - Irish Sea, A Picardy Supports A Burgundy.

Germany: A Belgium Supports A Holland, F Denmark Supports F Kiel - Helgoland Bight,

A Holland Supports A Belgium, F Kiel - Helgoland Bight, A Munich Supports A Burgundy,

F Skagerrak Supports F Sweden – Norway, F Sweden - Norway (*Fails*).

Italy: F Adriatic Sea Supports F Tunis - Ionian Sea, A Trieste – Budapest, F Tunis - Ionian Sea,

A Tyrolia – Bohemia, A Venice – Tyrolia, A Vienna Supports A Trieste - Budapest.

Russia: A Finland Supports F Norway, A Galicia – Silesia, F Norway Hold, F Sevastopol Hold,

A Ukraine Supports F Sevastopol.

Turkey: F Aegean Sea Supports A Bulgaria – Greece, F Black Sea Supports A Rumania, A Bulgaria – Greece,

A Rumania Supports A Vienna - Galicia (*Void*), A Serbia Supports A Rumania, A Smyrna - Armenia.

Deadline for F 04 Will Be October 29^th at 7am My Time

PRESS

None. You guys suck.

Diplomacy “Sweet Spot” 2013A, F 03

Austria (paul.milewski “of” hotmail.com): A Ukraine - Sevastopol (*Bounce*).

England (Harold Zarr - skip1955 “of” hotmail.com):.F Helgoland Bight - North Sea, A London – Wales,

F Norway Supports F Helgoland Bight - North Sea.

France (Melinda Holley – genea5613 “of” aol.com): F English Channel Supports F North Sea – London,

A Liverpool – Edinburgh, F North Sea – London, A Picardy – Burgundy, A Ruhr – Holland, A Spain - Marseilles.

Germany (Jack McHugh – jwmchughjr “of” gmail.com): A Denmark Supports F Sweden,

A Kiel Supports A Munich – Ruhr, A Munich – Ruhr, F Sweden Supports A Denmark.

Italy (Heath Gardner - heath.gardner “of” gmail.com): F Adriatic Sea - Ionian Sea, F Ionian Sea – Tunis,

A Piedmont Supports A Spain – Marseilles, A Serbia – Budapest, A Trieste Supports A Serbia – Budapest,

F Tyrrhenian Sea - Gulf of Lyon, A Vienna Supports A Serbia - Budapest.

Russia (Chris Babcock – cbabcock “of” asciiking.com ): F Gulf of Bothnia Hold,

A Moscow - Sevastopol (*Bounce*), F Rumania - Sevastopol (*Bounce*),

A St Petersburg Supports F Sweden - Norway (*Void*), A Warsaw Hold.

Turkey (Larry Peery – peery “of” ix.netcom.com): F Aegean Sea Supports A Greece, A Bulgaria – Serbia,

A Constantinople – Bulgaria, A Greece Supports A Bulgaria – Serbia, A Smyrna - Constantinople.

Deadline for W 03/S 04 Will Be October 29th at 7am My Time

Supply Center Chart

Austria: None=0, OUT!

England: Liverpool, Norway=2, Remove 1

France: Belgium, Brest, Edinburgh, Holland, London, Marseilles, Paris, Portugal,

Spain=9, Build 3 (Room for 2)

Germany: Berlin, Denmark, Kiel, Sweden=4, Even

Italy: Budapest, Munich, Naples, Rome, Trieste, Tunis, Venice, Vienna=8, Build 1

Russia: Moscow, Rumania, Sevastopol, St Petersburg, Warsaw=5, Even

Turkey: Ankara, Bulgaria, Constantinople, Greece, Serbia, Smyrna=6, Build 1

PRESS

(Versailles) - "I'll be back in a few weeks," The Woman said as she closed her suitcase. "I don't think anybody around here can screw things up too badly during that time."

"But, Madam....the war...."

"The English campaign is winding down. They're finished." The Woman dumped her heavy suitcase on the floor and motioned for her aide to take it. When he eyed it dubiously, she sighed. "It rolls, Antoine."

"Ah, yes, Madam." The aide took the handle and began rolling it as he walked behind the Woman. "Madam, I understand the trip to these northern mountains. I myself have enjoyed seeing the glaciers and...bears. I do not understand this West Virginia though."

The Woman whirled around and angrily pointed a finger at her aide. "It's West VirGINia, Antoine! Not West VIRginuh. Got it?"

"Yes, Madam," the aide meekly replied then took a deep breath. "Madam has done something different with her hair?"

"Madam has not," the Woman replied. "Madam's hairdresser did. Like the new color?"

"Absolutely!" the aide quickly nodded. "It's quite...entrancing."

"Hmmm...not exactly what I was going for," the Woman muttered. "Maybe a little more red next time." She shrugged. "Oh well...Now, you have my itenary?"

"Yes, Madam." The aide tugged on the suitcase and began following the Woman again. "Alaska and West...Virginia. Madam, is that the land of the Honey Boo-Boo."

"No! It is NOT the land of the Honey Boo-Boo!" The Woman screeched in fury. "Really, Antoine, I'm going to have to see about the state of education in this place when I come back."

"Yes, Madam. But...the war? I know the English are defeated. But what about the Germans and the Italians?"

The Woman glanced over her shoulder. "You saw me roll the dice. Besides, you French have a saying. C'est l'amour. C'est la guerre. C'est le monde. C'est le morte."

"But we don't put them together like that," the aide muttered under his breath.

(BOOB to SWEET MELINDA): You're quite wrong, you can play France quite well, especially against this group of clowns! I feel sorry for you with those neighbors....

(BOOB to HEATH): You touch ONE hair on her Rivieran head and I'll have yours!!!

GAZIANTEP: THE NEXT SARAJAVEO: I’m always on the lookout for the next Sarajevo (e.g. a seemingly minor and unrelated event that leads to a catastrophic military disaster)! I think I’ve found one in Gaziantep.

Gaziantep, Turkey’s eighth largest city with 1.75 million people (and supposed to grow to 2.3 million by 2025) is the fast-growing center of Turkey’s volatile southeast region, which borders on Iraq and Syria. Hundreds of thousands of Kurdish refugees live in the area and the population of refugees from Syria grows by hundreds, if not thousands, every day. The Turkish government has launched a massive dam building program designed to bring water and electricity to the area (think TVA project) where the average per family income is far below that of more prosperous parts of the country. But those kinds of projects are expensive and take time. There’s a cheaper solution and the Turkish government is rapidly implementing it. Knowing the universal maxim that doesn’t appear in the Koran, the Turkish government has encouraged private investors to build in the area, especially showing centers because, as everyone knows, “Turks love to shop until they drop.” The Prime Mall, just opened in Gaziantep is the city’s fourth largest shopping center, with another one on the way. The new center cost $150 million to build (financed by a German investment company), has 169 stores (95% pre-leased before opening), has four levels with nearly 600,000 square feet of space, and parking for 1,600 cars. Not bad for an area where a generation ago the primary means of transport was the camel and the main shopping site was a souk. All reports after the first few days is that the mall is doing a booming business and bringing in crowds of ex-pats, wealthy local Turks, and rich refugees (Yes, such things do exist).

The only fly in this capitalist ointment is on the hill over-looking the Prime Mall where three hundred US troops man a Patriot missile battalion designed to protect the Mall, and perhaps the city, from an attack coming from Syria. As one American GI said, “This is the first deployment we’ve had where we can actually see the asset we are defending.”

While the Americans are guarding Gaziantep, the Germans have contributed another battalion of Patriots which are down the coast in Adana, located at the center of Germany’s Riviera; and the Dutch have a battalion in Kahramanmaras, probably because they are the only ones who can pronounce the name of the town. Be that as it may, keep your eye on Gaziantep, only 30 miles from the Syrian border and a two hour drive from Aleppo. A war involving Turkey, Iraq, and Syria is only minutes away, and Iran, Russia, and the USA are just over the horizon.

Speaking of Turkey, Syria, and Egypt although the pot isn’t boiling as furiously as it was in June things are still plenty hot. Demonstrations against the Government have turned more complex, sectarian and volatile (there’s that word again) and the latest unrest in Southeast Turkey (surprise) results from the killing of a 22-year-old man in Antakya in southern Turkey. In the meantime diplomats and Diplomats are watching events in Syria and Iran to see if the Syrians can actually get a billion dollars out of the USA government to pay to dismantle the chemical weapons they denied having only a month ago! Why not just deposit the funds to Assad’s Swiss account? The Iranians are taking advantage of that age old US weakness (a desire to be liked by everybody) to wave the possibility that they might cut back on their nuclear program in return for a lifting of US economic sanctions. Stay tuned.

There is one bit of good news out of Turkey this month, just in time for Thanksgiving. Butterball has announced it is recruiting men to take calls on their Turkey Talk Line! And the turkey seller is seeking the first male talk-line spokesman this year as well. The talk line is 32 years old this year and is adapting to changing times by launching a smartphone app, Facebook live chats, Interest posts, and other social media tools. In 1981 the line had 8 operators. This year it is looking for 60. Most operators have a background in food or nutrition and have culinary degrees or are dietitians, food stylists or scientists. They all take a crash course in turkey making at the Butterball University training program, as well. But the main requirement: “You have to want to help people.” The talk line will be staffed during business hours in November and December, reaching up to 1 million turkey makers via all its channels. Imagine, if Dippers filled all those 60 slots and added one line, “May I interest you in Turkey a la Calmer as a change this year?” to their patter how many new Dippers we could attract?

Still, there are other stories of interest this issue.

Take the China luxury cruise liner Henna, now stuck in Juju, Korea when a local court ordered it detained during a dispute between two Chinese companies. Those familiar with the story behind China’s first aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, wouldn’t be surprised at the Henna story. Originally built for Carnival Cruise Lines as the Jubilee, the ship was bought by an Australian company, P&O, and eventually sold to a Chinese company that spent “hundreds of millions of dollars” remodeling the ship in Singapore for a brand new Chinese “luxury” cruise line. Here’s a picture of the ship on its maiden voyage to Sonya. Remember Sonya, our secret Chinese sub base?

Anyway, on its second voyage, no doubt filled with Chinese tycoons and gamblers, the ship became the focus of a dispute over an unpaid bill for a few million dollars. In the meantime the passengers and crew are being flown back to China at the ship owner’s expense. Stay tuned.

Speaking of the Liaoning, the Chinese Navy (Technically it’s the People’s Republic of China Army’s Navy, but who wants to quibble?) must be feeling more confident now that the old Russian carrier is finally at sea doing carrier aircraft launching drills --- the captain (who’s an admiral) of the Liaoning recently accompanied the CNO of the Chinese Navy on a visit to the US, including a stop-over in San Diego where I got to look at them looking at some of our latest naval hardware. The two top admirals and their entourages seemed to be enjoying the tour although I noticed two things: 1) the Chinese group had a much easier time getting in and out of the submarine’s hatches; and 2) the Chinese brass uniforms were immaculate with creases that would have cut through a General Two’s chicken!. The American brass looked positively slovenly by comparison. Hamm. If you want to know more about the Liaoning do a Google search on the words Liaoning, Peter Singer, and Jeffrey Lin. Pay attention to that name Jeffrey Lin. He’s doing much more hard to China than Andrew Snowden is to the USA.

Last item in our China bashing department for this month. Because of pollution concerns, among others, the Chinese government is trying to promote “clean” industry. More than 50 cities in China have answered Beijing’s call for cleaner economic growth with plans for aviation hubs, airports clustered with industrial zones. The problem is that they may not all be needed and even if they were, there may be no place for all those planes. The reason is that in China, rampant flight delays have led to airport brawls. Airline traffic has grown faster than infrastructure to support it, leaving China’s skies in almost permanent gridlock. How bad is it? Beijing ranks number one in the world for late departures, with Shanghai right behind it. Recently one flight from Taiyuan, to Beijing, China that should have taken 100 minutes ended up lasting 18 hours because of traffic delays. In the last ten years the number of airline passengers in China has quadrupled. Amazing. Another big cause for the problem is that in China 80% of the nation’s airspace is controlled by the military, vs. 20% for civilian use. In the USA the percentages are just the opposite. All those millions of new passengers, thousands of aircraft to carry them, and scores of airports to deal with them --- and no airspace to hold them all. Comrade Xi, are you listening? Xi, wearing his dual hats as head of the Party and head of the military, is probably the only person in China who can cut through this Gordian knot and make China’s skies “the friendly skies.”

Are things better at home? Not much. As the media and Congress focus on cuts in Obamacare, food stamps, sequestration, etc. nobody is paying much attention to Obama’s plan to scale back the massive war machine created in the last decade, making clear that large wars are a thing of the past (or so he hopes) while focusing on the use of drones and small forces to protect the American homeland. For more on his thinking read his September 12th speech at the National War College. As an example of what he’s dealing with look at this AP report: “Nation’s bloated nuclear spending comes under fire.” Perhaps even more wasteful is the amount of resources being poured into the various “homeland security” programs and the nation’s intelligence boondoggle. Last year’s Washington Post expose on the waste in those programs is still mind-boggling, but the spending goes right on.

When I was growing up we were reminded constantly that it would only take 30 minutes or so for Soviet ICBMs to reach their targets in the USA and that we had to be constantly on guard just in case. Today things are a bit better; witness the informative article in the 20 September issue of The Diplomat: “Osprey vs. Bison in the East China Sea.” At first I thought the article was referring to the old Russian Bison bomber and mental pictures of a Bison squaring off with the Marine’s new Osprey VSTOL aircraft made me laugh. However, on reading the article I discovered the Bison it was referring to was a Ukrainian-built Zubr (Bison) large hovercraft which the Chinese have built and plan to produce locally. The Osprey carries 24 troops or six tons of cargo at 280 mph. There are 24 of them at the Futenma Base in Okinawa and it would take those about 2 hours to reach the islands now under dispute between China and Japan, AND WHICH BY TREATY WE ARE PLEDGED TO PROTECT. The new Bison hovercraft will carry 500 troops or up to 150 tons of gear at speeds of up to 66 mph. The Chinese are planning to purchase five of the hovercraft immediately. Another Sarajevo waiting to happen.

Other miscellaneous tidbits. Russian President Putin has announced that Russia plans to reopen the Soviet-era Artic military base at Novosibirsk to protect Russian shipping lanes in the Artic which, with global warming, are becoming increasingly valuable. Interestingly, the Russians do not plan to rebuild the naval facilities at the base but do plan to get the airstrips, etc. up and running. On another front the Russia’s have a new stealth fighter, the T-50, which, they say, could outfly and outshoot American jets. The plane is being specifically designed for international markets. The plane is designed to take advantage of weaknesses in US designed aircraft and reflects a different philosophy of air warfare.

Submarines, as most people know, are dangerous. Cold War history and the oceans are filled with the wrecks of the Scorpion, the Thresher, the K-19 and no doubt others. Just a few days ago it was reported that one of the Russian’s most modern nuclear subs, the Tomsk, was involved in a serious fire near Vladivostok. That brings back memories of last year’s fire at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard on board the USS Miami. The fire, which caused hundreds of millions of dollars damage, was caused by a workman’s torch. The Navy has reported the best way to repair the ship is to cut off the bow of the sub and replace it with a bow section from another sub of the same class which was about to be decommissioned. In the meantime, Reuters, in a story called: “Funding cuts would weaken U.S. submarine readiness: Navy” says further cuts in their budget would reduce the number of subs in the fleet from 73 to 52. Something to think about or, perhaps, something to sink about.

Woolworth II-D “Coney Island” 2013Bcb19, W 03

Seasons Separated by Player Request

Austria (Secret): Ret A Bud OTB, Rem F Tri..Has A Tyr,A Vie.

Balkans (Secret): Has A Ser, A Bud, F Alb.

England (Secret): Has F Lon, A Lpl, F Cly.

France (Heath Gardner - heath.gardner “of” gmail.com): Has A Wal, F Eng, A Hol, F Tys.

Germany (Marc Ellinger - mellinger “of” bbdlc.com): Ret F Hol OTB, Build A Kie..Has A Kie, A Mar, A Swi,

A Sil, A Mun.

Italy (Secret): Ret F Tys-Tus..Has F Tus, F Tun, A Ven, A Apu, A Rom.

Russia (Jim Burgess - jfburgess “of” gmail.com): Bld F StP(sc)..Has F Stp(sc), A War, A Lvn, A Ukr, A Gal.

Scandinavia (Geoff Kemp - ggeoff510 “of” aol.com): Has F Nwg, F Nth, A Den.

Spain (Secret): Has F Wms, F Ice, F Nao, A Ruh.

Turkey (Hugh Polley – hapolley “of” yahoo.ca): Bld F Con..Has F Con, F Bla, A Rum, A Bul, F Ion.

Deadline for S 04 is October 29th at 7am My Time

PRESS

BOOBISH RUSSIAN WHINES: Oh I'm so sorry to have to build this fleet, but, well, I had to.

By Almost Popular Demand

The goal is to pick something that fits the category and will be the a popular answer but NOT the "most popular" answer. You score points based on the number of entries that match yours. For example, if the category is "Cats" and the responses were 7 for Persian, 3 for Calico and 1 for Siamese, everyone who said Persian would get 7 points, Calico 3 and the lone Siamese would score 1 point. However, if your answer is the most popular answer, you score ZERO. The cumulative total over 10 rounds will determine the overall winner. Anyone may enter at any point, starting with an equivalent point total of the lowest cumulative score from the previous round. If a person misses a round, they'll receive the minimum score from the round added to their cumulative total. In each round you may specify one of your answers as your Joker answer. Your score for this answer will be doubled. In other words, if you apply your Joker to category 3 on a given turn, and 4 other people give the same answer as you, you get 10 points instead of 5. Players who fail to submit a Joker for any specific turn will have their Joker automatically applied to the first category. And, if you want to submit some commentary with your answers, feel free to. The game will consist of 10 rounds, and the score is doubled for Round 10. A prize will be awarded to the winner. Research is permitted!

Round 8 Categories

1. A team in the National Football League.

2. Something you forget to bring when you leave your home.

3. How many teaspoons (or lumps) of sugar typically put in a cup of coffee.

4. A film with Kathleen Turner in it.

5. A flavor of frozen ice or snow cone.

Selected Comments By Category

NFL – Dane Maslen “No idea which teams will or won't be popular.” Richard Weiss “I'd say Cowboys, but so many people hate them.” Marc Ellinger “Everyone has a favorite, but only people in Minnesota and Chicago don’t like the Pack.” Mark Firth “Tempted to put Houston Oilers!”

Forget from Home – Kevin Wilson “Keys might popular too, or umbrella. Wallet is the worst though.” Dane Maslen “Sadly I'm at the age when I really ought to remember to take reading glasses with me, but usually don't.” Andy Bate “So, keys has to be favourite. Tempted by my mind, but think I'll go with money and hope everyone else doesn't do the second guessing.” Marc Ellinger “Not that we’ve seen much rain, but I do forget it everytime it is supposed to rain.”

Sugar – Rick Desper “Don't care if it's the only possible answer. Give us all zero!” Melinda Holley “Unless you're my sister Terri who does 7 (*shudder*).” Kevin Wilson “I don't drink coffee. When I drink tea, I put in 2.” Andy Bate “I think one is most people's preference, if they have any at all, so hope everyone plumps for more than that to avoid being most popular.” Marc Ellinger “Only losers put anything in their coffee. Black, strong and straight up!”

Kathleen Turner – Andy Bate “Body Heat must be the obvious one, closely followed by Who Framed Roger Rabbit and War Of The Roses. Let's go for War Of The Roses and cross fingers.”

Snow Cone – Kevin Wilson “When were kids we called a mixture of all the flavors a "suicide". I'm not sure where that came from. My kids call it "rainbow" and if it tasted as awful then as now, why we ever did it I don’t know.” Dane Maslen “Chocolate is all too likely to be the most popular choice - it's certainly mine.” Andy Bate “I have to think vanilla, chocolate and strawberry are the obvious ones. Actually, didn't we have this already? Or was that ice cream? Though I'm not sure what the difference is. Anyway, let's go for pistachio again.” [[For clarification, a Snow Cone (or shaved ice) is just crushed or shaved ice with flavor poured on top of it. Ice Cream is a much different product.]] Richard Weiss “Having my first snow cone in NOLA in 1970, the options have so expanded. Cherry, for those used to frozen ice at the convenience gas station stores.” Marc Ellinger “Not my cup of tea, but purple always seems popular at the fair!” Andy York “No idea, don't eat them.” Mark Firth “Dish soap was weird, but snow cone I’ve never even heard in a film; do you have unfrozen ice too?! The glories of language.” [[Yes, we have unfrozen ice. We call it water.]]

Congrats to Dick Martin for pulling a 26, the high score this month. Dane Maslen scored just a 4.

Round 9 Categories

1. A current “guilty pleasure” TV show.

2. A bird which is all or partly red.

3. A Christopher Walken film.

4. A vitamin (not a brand, but a specific vitamin).

5. A yellow food.

Deadline for Round 9 is October 29th at 7:00am my time

Stock	Price	% +/-
AJK - Allison Kent	75	1.4%
ALM - Hank Alme	37	5.7%
AMB - Amber Smith	0.01	0.0%
AND - Lance Anderson	0.01	0.0%
BAB - Chris Babcock	8	14.3%
BAT - Andy Bate	53	1.9%
BIE - John Biehl	120	1.7%
BLA - Larry Peery	52	4.0%
BRG - Martin Burgdorf	108	1.9%
BWD - Brad Wilson	130	1.6%
CAK - Andy Lischett	110	1.9%
CAL - Cal White	0.01	0.0%
CHC - Chuy Cronin	0.01	0.0%
CIA - Tom Swider	0.01	0.0%
CKW - Kevin Wilson	107	1.9%
CKY - Carol Kay	33	3.1%
DAN - Dane Maslen	105	1.9%
DBG - David Burgess	0.01	0.0%
DGR - David Grabar	0.01	0.0%
DTC - Brendan Whyte	97	1.0%
DUK - Don Williams	90	0.0%
FRD - Fred Wiedemeyer	60	-14.3%
FRG - Jeremie Lefrancois	0.01	0.0%
FRT - Mark Firth	105	1.9%
GAR - Heath Gardner	72	2.9%
GRA - Graham Wilson	0.01	0.0%
HAP - Hugh Polley	45	4.7%
HDT - Heather Taylor	108	1.9%
HLJ - Harley Jordan	86	-2.3%
JOD - Jeff O'Donnell	75	-8.5%
KMP - Geoff Kemp	106	1.9%
KVT - Kevin Tighe	11	-26.7%
LAT - David Latimer	87	1.2%
LCR - Larry Cronin	0.01	0.0%
MRK - Mark Nelson	0.01	0.0%
MCC - David McCrumb	11	-26.7%
MCR - Michael Cronin	0.01	0.0%
MIM - Michael Moulton	7	-12.5%
MRC - Marc Ellinger	107	2.9%
OTS - Tom Howell	103	2.0%
PER - Per Westling	107	1.9%
PJM - Phil Murphy	38	2.7%
QUI - Michael Quirk	17	6.3%
RAC - Robin ap Cynan	75	1.4%
RDP - Rick Desper	113	1.8%
REB - Melinda Holley	109	1.9%
RED - Paraic Reddington	118	1.7%
RWE - Richard Weiss	142	5.2%
SAK - Jack McHugh	215	5.4%
TAP - Jim Burgess	140	2.2%
VOG - Pat Vogelsang	0.01	0.0%
WAY - W. Andrew York	106	1.9%
WLK - Richard Walkerdine	141	0.0%
WWW - William Wood	0.01	0.0%
YLP - Paul Milewski	139	0.7%