Did you know that the concept of the alphabet was invented by the Canaanite civilization?
In the ancient world, most other cultures were using pictographic writing systems (aka if you want to refer to an eye, you draw a literal doodle of an eye). However, the Canaanites discovered that written language could be used to refer to an abstract layer of reality beyond the physical representation of the world.
To me, this is one of the biggest pieces of evidence for the existence of The Divine. It is such an insane thing to invent.
As a result of this invention, the Hebrew language has some unique features that make it stand out from all other languages on Earth.
The Hebrew alphabet has 22 letters,and each one refers to a unique idea. For example, the first letter is aleph (אָ), which always has some connection to God and is completely silent. The second letter is bet (ב‎), which represents a house. When we combine these two letters, we get the word "אב" which means "father" and represents a connection to God in the home.
The third letter of the alphabet is gimel (ג‎), which has connotations of a gift, and the fourth letter is dalet (ד‎), which means a door or a pathway. When we combine these two letters, we get the word "Gad" (‎ד‎ג), which means "good fortune has come." We can trace how this name was invented in the Bible, when Leah's servant Zilpah has a son and Leah says, "Good fortune has come!"
Another example of the unique features of the Hebrew alphabet is the middle letter, mem (מ‎), which refers to water or fluid. When we combine the letters dalet and mem, we get the word "דם" ("dom"), which means "blood" and represents the pathway of fluid in the body. If we add an aleph to the word for blood, we get the name for our species: "אדם" (ADAM). Built within our name is the definition of what we are: part spiritual, part blood.
If this made you curious: I made about an 8 minute video essay about this with more info and backup sources from various Torah Scholars here: https://youtu.be/44FutoWme8A

My oldest sister visited me on my birthday and told me that my mom never felt so happy before since I left and that she could finally live her own life. That it was the best thing that happened in her life since I was born🤮. And my sister also said: yeah we’re having such a great time at home now without you.
I’m back on Reddit again after a short break. Roughly 3 weeks ago this happened and I needed to isolate myself for myself for a while. The good news is that I survived this stuff and I’m getting back on track already. I ended up going no contact with all my direct family members after this and I am starting to feel a big relief.
I wrote this because I could use some support from my CPTSD family.🙏🏻

So we all are familiar with the concept of heaven and hell, as commonly understood in islam and christianity - with heaven being a place of eternal bliss and hell being a place of eternal torment.
We also are all aware that this conceptactually predates Abrahamic religions. Ancient Egyptian religion, for example, featured the god Osiris, who judged the souls of the dead, sending the righteous to a paradise called the "Field of Reeds" and consigning the wicked to a place of eternal punishment. Similarly, in ancient Greek mythology, the underworld was ruled by Hades, who judged the souls of the dead and determined their fate.
Given the similarities between the concepts of heaven and hell in Abrahamic religions and those in other religions, cultures, and mythologies that preceded them, it is (in my opinion) clear that Abrahamic religions drew inspiration from these ancient religions and mythologies and developed over time. Judaism, the first abrahamic religion, was influenced by the religions that preceded it, and the same is true for Christianity and, finally, Islam who was greatly inspired by christianity in my opinion.
​
It raises the question: if the Torah, the Bible, and the Quran were really divine revelations, how is it that people who lived long before the Abrahamic religions also had similar ideas about heaven and hell, as well as the concepts of good and bad deeds?
This suggests that religion is a human invention, created to provide structure and meaning for humans, and that these religions have evolved over time, with each one building upon the ideas of those that came before it.

First Part Start Previous Next

Journal Entry: 33. Date: 1/7/1. Name: Greg Geroge.

So apparently I'm in charge of combat reediness of the personnel on ship. Well, not like, ship-to-ship, but in case of repelling boarding actions or an away mission. Okay, okay. Well, that's a job I can do. There's a decent enough range in the armory, and I could run the grown ups through some tougher drills. It might ruin the reign of terror on the quarters deck by team toddler, though. Shame. Pops is pretty insistent that I actually carry out the duty, as if I would do anything else, but he's kicking himself for being lax in that area. Well, that's understandable. I just still want to be DI for the kids. It's fun. anyway, Master at Arms. An office. I don't know how I feel about this. I worked very, very hard to keep from being promoted out of my MOS, but here I'm just happy to have a useful job at all. Then again, I don't like giving orders. Training is different.
Shit, I need to think this over more.
It was a good mission. No casualties, no collateral casualties. Got all of the officers, and I doubt anybody will try to hurt my family again. Not after that. Fucking hard to hold back, but the dead don't learn lessons very well. Plus, I didn't have the time to really do it properly. Plus no drop pods, so scouting ahead wasn't really an option. Still, I'm post-mission down. Starting to go over all of our actions, all of my orders to see if I could have run it any better. I can hear Dr. Johan saying that it's perfectly normal, and is the brain's way of developing strategies to manage stressful situations. Thanks, internal therapist voice, that's always a good one.
This means I go quiet. Which freaks everybody out. Well shit. Now, I don't want to drive my family away like I did with the new brothers. At least there's not a fucking legend keeping us apart. But I had to have some chats. Like, mostly out loud chats to put everyone at ease, but also Linus needed a talking to.
No denying it Linus went through something pretty terrible. He did very well under pressure, very brave, very smart, all that kick-ass shit. It's still affected him. So, I had to have a chat with him about how he's viewing the events and himself. Not the kind of thing you should have to do with a five-year-old. Had to be done though. Don't want him to grow up like me.
In less depressing news, the Bleivuses have an actually competent justice system. It's adversarial and protects the rights of the accused, so they're being a lot more fair with the captured gangers than I would have been, but I'm a vengeful bastard. They did stick to my threat, though. Kind of. Bread isn't really an option for some of the races, but something called nutripaste is, which sounds like their version of CRAYONs. Good enough. The sheer numbers, not just from my planetside mission, but also the Bleivuses restoring order to the station, had them call in a ship full of Magistrates, and what basically amounts to SWAT and some highly disciplined patrol teams called a Justiciar. The dudes have a class of ship that's whole deal is law enforcement, which makes a lot of sense considering that they're all about ships and shit, but I kind of thouthg their system just sort of used station postings for that kind of thing. Nope, turns out when shit goes wrong it goes really wrong and they have a system in place for running a large number of criminal trials after something like this. Which is relevant because the leader of their SWAT dudes wants to debrief me. I'm actually kind of interested in meeting a Bleivus operator. Might even be kind of fun.
Still need to talk things over with Pops. I think... I think this is life after service. I need to talk to Sarge too. I was pretty harsh with him.
Am I still me without my MOS?

Log: 6000001.0.19, Personal, Captain Yormdrill

Things will be well.
Things are of course, better than they were, but all is clearly not well. My children have been traumatized, my crew injured, my ship marked for valor, yet things will be well. The crew has shown tremendous courage and dedication. Like the Lord Justiciar said, we had the right, but not the duty. However, how could we shirk in the face of such suffering? How could we let the good people of the station labor under the boots of murderers and thieves? We were not the only ship to be offered a mark, but Gregory's medal trapped me into accepting it. There were captains who were happy to have their ships marked. The rescue tugs with the most stars lived the shortest lives. I still remember how my uncle wept when his ship was decommissioned, and the sting of pain I still feel over what happened to the In the Endless Dark Life Finds Life. It isn't only my father and old friends I grieve.
Once again, Gregory is an immense help to the ship. His mere presence has buoyed the spirits of all the children, and many of the adults. Furthermore, he spoke with Yoivdrill about his experiences in a way I would have struggled with. I shall of course have to speak with him too, but Gregory opened the door, which I am grateful for. There were some surprising things in how he went about it. Imagine waking up like that! Stars, what an awful thing to contemplate. I suspect a more detailed telling is forthcoming, but we haven't had an opportunity to sit down for another quiet chat.
The Major of the Landers wants to debrief Gregory and me, which I have no opposition to. I'm hoping that we can get some information on the poacher, as clearly he had some connection to the local gang. Though gang is perhaps not the right word. Crime... crime family? Crime syndicate? Crime something. There's more work to do about them, but they had the bright idea of keeping literally all of their high value hostages in one location. The same location of their leadership. Which means that the planetwide coordination of the syndicate is in shambles, and local authorities are no longer under threat of important people losing loved ones. I expect the electronics seized will also have some information the public will find very edifying.
My anger has cooled somewhat, but the sight of the corrupt barrister who started this entire mess missing one of his arms was immensely satisfying. Stars know how that happened, but he deserves it.
Trevdi and I had a lot of stress to relieve. With all of this stress management, we might end up expecting another child soon.

Dear Diary,

Just because everyone is safe doesn't mean everything is okay. Greg let me listen in to his conversation with Yoiv, and it was...
I think I'll just write out what I remember:
"Hey Linus, may I come in?" he asked, and Yoiv must have signed yes, because he went into Yoiv's room and started, "You know you should talk, to work things out, but you don't want to talk about it. You feel a certain way, and you're hoping if you don't say it out loud it'll go away."
"How did you know that?"
"Well, I felt a lot like that when Ray died, I felt a lot like that. I felt like it was my fault, I felt it all the way down in my bones for years, and years. But I was a child, and the thing that attacked us had the strength of an adult. If I had fought, we would have both died. I know that in my head, with my mind, but I felt like it was my fault for running for so long that it still hurts."
"Oh..."
"So you're thinking about how you got kidnapped. You're thinking it's your fault that we had to go and fight."
"Yeah..."
"Well, If had never gone camping, I would have never gotten kidnapped in my sleep, would have never been rescued by the animal shelter, and never met you, and never lost control in the veterinary office, and never insulted a criminal lawyer, and thus he wouldn't have ordered you to be kidnapped. Is it my fault?"
"NO! THAT IS NOT ALLOWED!"
"Did you try to fight?"
"Yes."
"What did you do when they took you away?"
"I waited for the bad guys to stop looking and got away."
"And rescued a whole bunch of other kids."
"Yeah..."
"Which was very kind and brave of you. I wanted to tell you that I was very proud when I heard."
"Um... I just did what I thought you would do..."
"You helped us win. Knowing that will help, but the feelings you have... Sometimes I still feel like the bad things were my fault. I know that's not true, but I feel it anyway, and it hurts. I have a doctor... I had a doctor to help me with that kind of thing. He said that it's normal to have the feelings, that it's normal to hurt because of them, but it's not okay. Like it's normal to hurt when you fall down, but that doesn't mean you're okay. You follow?"
"I think so..."
"So, since you're hurt, you need to heal, but it's not like a bump on your knee that you can just put some medicine on, and you're scared to ask what to do because you don't know how to explain it."
"That's right!"
"For me, what helps is helping. If I can be useful to people, it makes the pain go away. Do you know how I found out?"
"... Did you figure it out with your doctor?"
"Yup. He's a lot smarter than me, so you'll need to talk to someone smart. Like Pops."
"I... ca-"
"You can try."
"I... I can try."
"Good," Greg said with a wide smile, "something else that helps is getting some exercise. You wanna find some grown-ups to shoot?"
They ran out of our quarters cackling. Sometimes I swear Greg is just an old kid.
Still, his talk with Yoiv has me thinking...
I'm thinking...

Dear Logary,

SnEAky said he is proud of me.
DaDDy said the same thing.
I do not think it was very special.
I was scared the whole time.
SNeAky said I should talk to DadDY.
I am scared DaDdY will be not proud anymore if I say how scared I am.
First Part Start Previous Next

So we all are familiar with the concept of heaven and hell, as commonly understood in islam and christianity - with heaven being a place of eternal bliss and hell being a place of eternal torment.
We also are all aware that this conceptactually predates Abrahamic religions. Ancient Egyptian religion, for example, featured the god Osiris, who judged the souls of the dead, sending the righteous to a paradise called the "Field of Reeds" and consigning the wicked to a place of eternal punishment. Similarly, in ancient Greek mythology, the underworld was ruled by Hades, who judged the souls of the dead and determined their fate.
Given the similarities between the concepts of heaven and hell in Abrahamic religions and those in other religions, cultures, and mythologies that preceded them, it is (in my opinion) clear that Abrahamic religions drew inspiration from these ancient religions and mythologies and developed over time. Judaism, the first abrahamic religion, was influenced by the religions that preceded it, and the same is true for Christianity and, finally, Islam who was greatly inspired by christianity in my opinion.
​
It raises the question: if the Torah, the Bible, and the Quran were really divine revelations, how is it that people who lived long before the Abrahamic religions also had similar ideas about heaven and hell, as well as the concepts of good and bad deeds?
This suggests that religion is a human invention, created to provide structure and meaning for humans, and that these religions have evolved over time, with each one building upon the ideas of those that came before it.

[<< First] [< Previous] [Next >]
​
Synopsis:
Juliette Contzen is a lazy, good-for-nothing princess. Overshadowed by her siblings, she's left with little to do but nap, read … and occasionally cut the falling raindrops with her sword. Spotted one day by an astonished adventurer, he insists on grading Juliette's swordsmanship, then promptly has a mental breakdown at the result.
Soon after, Juliette is given the news that her kingdom is on the brink of bankruptcy. At threat of being married off, the lazy princess vows to do whatever it takes to maintain her current lifestyle, and taking matters into her own hands, escapes in the middle of the night in order to restore her kingdom's finances.
Tags: Comedy, Adventure, Action, Fantasy, Copious Ohohohohos.
​
Chapter 7: Royal Requisition
The draft horse responded well. Likely since he knew I liked his name.
'Apple'.
It was a simple reminder of my orchard, but just in case I ever forgot, I could reach into one of my many saddlebags and draw out a crisp, delicious red fruit. The horse whinnied in joy. No doubt it could smell the aroma tucked away. He'd be able to enjoy them too—after they were used as projectiles to incapacitate any miscreant or monster hoping to invite themselves onto our day's itinerary.
We certainly weren't going to outpace any adversaries, much less any knights that were sent to usher me back to my impending poverty.
This was no battle steed bred for unmatched pace. Rather, the only thing this draft horse would outrun was a cart. And that's if it was the one pulling it.
Still, I stroked the horse's outrageously shaggy mane and declared myself satisfied.
I was fond of horses. They galloped, plodded and stood still. The three functions I required a horse to do. They did not spill wine over my dresses, straighten the wrong strands of my hair or serve me carrots while trembling with tears and apologies. They had their jobs, and unlike my waiting staff, they did it with exceptional prowess.
Beside me, the barkeeper checked the saddle and bridle.
He went about his task efficiently, tugging at the clasps and ensuring the comfort of both horse and rider. My opinion of village barkeepers rose considerably.
“Do you often require a horse for your line of work?” I queried, noting the way he was carefully inspecting the position of the tack.
The barkeeper didn't look up.
“Not often,” he replied.
The man chose not to annotate. I nodded and looked ahead.
Even the fields around this insignificant village looked modestly impressive when beneath such a welcoming moonlit sky.
“There are provisions, but not for longer than a straight ride to Rolstein. You'd best stop by a village on your way. Your … borrowed money is in a separate pouch, as is my letter.”
“Excellent.”
“Both the letter and the horse is to be delivered to Marina, the local alchemist in Rolstein. You'll find her in her store, if it's still there.”
“If?”
“It's been some time.”
“And if this alchemist isn't available?”
“Then Apple will find his way back. He's a smart one.”
The horse gave a small snort. I took that to be agreement.
“All ready,” said the barkeeper, stepping back. “You've my horse and my night's earnings. Anything else you require before you make for the lowlands?”
“That'll be all. Thank you for your service.”
“And yours, young lady.”
I raised an eyebrow.
A deeply seated part of me wished to remind this commoner about the necessity of referring to proper titles, but I'd declared myself to be Juliette and nobody else.
If my masterful deception were to succeed, then I'd need to maintain the persona of a … well, not a commoner, obviously not, but perhaps some countryside lord's daughter? Or would that arouse too much suspicion?
A problem. I was clearly far too beautiful and well-heeled to be anything less than a duke's favoured child. And all of them were accounted for. Do I pose as somebody else? But who? How should I introduce myself? What questions could I reasonably consider likely to be asked?
For two long seconds, I considered this possible issue.
And then I tossed it to the wayside.
Really now! This is why the kingdom was in the state it was. Why think and stay still when I can think and move? I'd surely come up with an answer by the time I needed to provide one. In fact, why dedicate thoughts to mere possibilities at all?
I was supremely confident in my problem-solving skills. Therefore, once this actually became a problem, it was more efficient to simply come up with the answer there and then as required. My head was too precious to fill up with hypothetical concerns. I had real ones to consider.
Such as figuring out which road was the one south.
“Also, I've provided a map alongside the provisions,” said the barkeeper, his stoic exterior looking progressively more haggled. “It's incomplete, but will help where the roads most often disappear where the woodlands overgrow. Though I'm sure you're well acquainted with the land, there are many areas where even experienced hunters have found themselves suddenly lost.”
This ... This barkeeper!
Once I was back, I would promote him to the royal court! He was far too competent to be serving frothy liquor in a pub with customers that disgraced the floorboards beneath his tables. Why, he should be serving the finest fae wine to dignitaries! Those people only soiled themselves in their guest rooms!
However, that was in the future. Right now, I had to provide him with the only reward I could offer.
Asking his name. And maybe remembering it.
“I … I see! Thank you. Thank you most kindly. I'll use it well in the days ahead. I must say, you've been of considerable service. What is your name, Sir Barkeeper?”
“Thomas.”
I gestured at him to continue.
He paused, seeming to hesitate before doing so. An action I saw frequently. Those of lesser status were always fretful to reveal their family name, for fear of open admonishment.
In truth, this barkeeper had nothing to fear. I already ranked him above every nobleman to have ever visited the Royal Villa. Why, if I requisitioned their horse and crowns, they'd protest as if I was some brigand!
“Thomas Lainsfont.”
“... Lainsfont?”
The man nodded.
Curiously, I found myself eyeing some distant cloud as my mind was struck by a hint of recognition. How strange that this should be the case.
Lainsfont.
I didn't recognise it. Nor should I. I had far too many names to forget as it was before I needed to start including the names of commoners as well.
Even so, this one tickled my memory like a word on the tip of my tongue, even where most others failed.
“Thomas Lainsfont. Now why does that name sound … familiar?”
“I wouldn't know. I'm a barkeeper.”
I eyed him, for what was the very first time, and in doing so officially upgraded him from barkeeper to known person of use.
A man in his forties with the beginnings of grey hair in his stubble. Still, he boasted remarkably young eyes. And his stature. It wasn't lowered by the pouring of mead or the hauling kegs for inebriated louts.
Indeed, his frame remained remarkably tall. And proud.
Hmm.
Interesting.
“Were you ever in service to the kingdom, Mr. Lainsfont?”
The man raised an eyebrow.
“By ensuring the layabouts of this village have somewhere to sleep off their drunkenness, certainly.”
“... I see. Well, if you ever wish to hone your skills on better dressed clientele, I may have a prospective offer of employment for you as soon as I return. Note that better dressed does not mean more palatable, however. Just less … unidentifiable stains involved.”
“I'll look forward to it.”
“Good, good.”
Turning my attention from this known person of use, I gently tugged on the horse's reins. He set off on a slow trot. Eventually, he'd need to test his pace. Rolstein was some distance away, while our knights were closer. I intended to ride through the night and into the next day.
It was only then that I realised something very important.
… I hadn't used the restroom yet.
​
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I was late to the initial train a month ago, but then D&D got removed (for the time being) from Steam so I decided may be I can provide some additional context on ‘why the mood between the Korean gaming community and international scene are so different.’ This controversy never lost much steam (pun intended) here, and newer shovelfuls of coal were fed into it every one or so week. I’ll explicate on that, as well as clear up some confusions on why Koreans seem to find fault in parts where American/international viewers don’t readily understand.
 
I’ll mainly be addressing the confusion found in this thread (https://www.reddit.com/GamingLeaksAndRumours/comments/11bne2m/why_dark_and_darker_is_a_stolen_game_additional/). While it’s not the only thread on this controversy, I’m lazy and I just thought handling the one thread with most traction would be best.
 
Before I get on with the post, I should say that I hate what Nexon is with a passion. Nexon (as well as its other “3N” brothers NC and Netmarble) are a bane to the gaming industry, the spectre which has haunted the Korean gaming scene that ruins everything it touches with its haunting grips and anti-consumer, consumer-predatory business models. It has absolutely ruined the Korean audience’s sense of what games are and what we should expect of games. Its vision is unmotivated, its creations lackluster, and its decision makers view the community not as individuals with thought and preference but as sheep to be milked for every bit of their available savings.
 
At the same time, there are reasons I’m skeptical of Ironmace, at the very least on the fence about this controversy. Below are a few points on why, formed in a way that can address some confusions.
1) Is Dark and Darker is a stolen game?
 
No. But it doesn’t end there.
 
Like many have mentioned, this sort of game formula has been tried before and it is not unique to Nexon’s P3. Even if it is similar in concept to the unreleased, never-finished P3, Ironmace’s rendition uses, according to them, mostly store-bought assets and their code. But this, at least to Nexon, was never the central point on why they’re engaged in a legal battle with one of IM’s executives.
Nexon sued IM executive “A” for violating the “Unfair Competition Prevention And Trade Secret Protection Act” (부정경쟁방지 및 영업비밀보호에 관한 법률).

• YNA(Korean version of AP/Reuters) news: https://m.yna.co.kview/AKR20230313130000017
• EN translation of Korean law: https://elaw.klri.re.kkor_service/lawView.do?hseq=60038&lang=ENG

While the the exact terms under which Nexon has sued Person A is not exactly public, Art. 2 (Definitions) No.1 (“act of unfair competition”) line K may be relevant.
 
What’s more is that earlier this month, Korean law enforcement conducted a search and seizure of Ironmace’s Seongnam office. In the Korean criminal code Art. 215, a S&S warrant is only permissible if there is reason to believe that a crime has been committed. Before some people pull out their tinfoil hats, Nexon is not strong enough to move the courts to its sole favor. Hell, it’s the court of a functional, developed democratic country.

• Search and seizure article (SBS Biz): https://biz.sbs.co.karticle/20000106836
• Korean criminal code A.215 (Korean): https://glaw.scourt.go.kwsjo/lawod/sjo192.do?lawodNm=%ED%98%95%EC%82%AC%EC%86%8C%EC%86%A1%EB%B2%95&jomunNo=215&jomunGajiNo=

So the answer to no.1 is that no, the Dark and Darker game is not stolen. But did someone in IM steal from Nexon? Maybe, with a hefty lean towards yes. The reason why the Korean community leans toward the latter conclusion, even when the legal battle is not concluded, is further handled in the next bit.
2) Nexon fired some programmers, so they took their ideas and turned it into a new studio and a fun game. What’s the matter?
 
People get fired in the US all the time. Or that’s what I’ve gathered from my small window of American society, from friends, the news, and my own research as I look for my way to the States. Quite often would people get fired and they find new jobs or begin a business. But the same cannot be said of Korea.
 
In Korea, labor laws are very strong and this pretty much blocks most forms of dismissal save from restructuring. It’s not that you can’t be dismissed, but it’s that any minute blunder made by corporate during the process will get the government to breathe down their neck. And it’s usually not in corporate’s favor. What’s more, any minute flaw in the process will have the union up in arms as well. Coincidentally, Nexon has one of the largest, strongest labor unions in all of Korean IT corporations. In this climate, it is safe to say that most dismissals are handled as recommended resignations.
 
In light of this fact, the sued IM exec was dismissed as part of a disciplinary action. In Korea, to be fired liked this is rare on its own, and to not dispute it or go to court over it is even rarer. So this is circumstantial, in turn weak, evidence that someone in IM did steal assets and code from Nexon. If Person A did not commit these actions that Nexon is claiming, why forgo a hefty severance pay?
 
More circumstantial evidence comes from the most recent rounds of corporation-union negotiation in Nexon. In Feb, Nexon agreed with its labor union to increase pay by an average of 5 million KRW (~3860 USD). This was the big headline, but some of the other publicized bits included that Nexon’s corporate wanted to get rid of working from home, and Nexon’s union agreed. It’s said that P3 code theft happened when people worked from home during COVID.

• https://mobile.newsis.com/view.html?ar_id=NISX20230223_0002203552#_PA

3) In the end, it’s still a fun game. What’s the problem of having a great game on the market?
 
Well sure, if you like splitting the proverbial golden-egg-laying-goose open.
 
This is where I think IM is playing the English-speaking community. IM went on this tirade about microtransactions and Nexon’s anti-consumer business model, which is all true and a good punch against what the company is. But there isn’t any evidence that Dark and Darker (or P3) would have followed that business model. It’s only IM’s claims here. In fact, P3 was being developed not by the conglomerate giant Nexon, but its subsidiary, named Mintrocket. If the name sounds familiar, it’s because you’ve probably played Dave the Diver.
 
This bit addresses one of the top comments of the linked thread asking somewhere along the lines of ‘how realistic is it that Nexon with 7k employees had to scrap a project because of a few programmers leaving?’
 
Well, the answer is that it’s because it’s not a company with 7k employees. That’s Nexon, this is Mintrocket, which a 2022 Nov article tells us that it has around 30 employees. That’s the total number, not the number of programmers.

• Article(Korean): http://www.gameple.co.knews/articleView.html?idxno=204151

 
Mintrocket, fyi, is a bit of a project Nexon is on to fund small studios and develop indie games. Is it still a part of Nexon? Sure. Are they the same, greedy, microtransacting pigs we’ve seen from Nexon? Not so far. So we’re left to believe IM’s word that they(Mintrocket) wanted to add extensive microtransactions on P3. Until Dave the Diver comes out of early access to a 1.0 riddled with microtransactions, I’m calling this claim one-sided at best.
4) In the end of it all, they’re the underdogs sticking it to big money in the industry. Isn’t that worth something?
 
This is another sketchy point. The YNA article I linked above actually handles IM’s connection to that big money. YNA, a very reputable source and one of the largest news source in Korea wrote an article highlighting Ironmace’s potential connection to HYBE. HYBE is an entertainment giant in Korea, whose artists include BTS, LE SSERAFIM, and New Jeans to name some of the largest of the bunch. HYBE has been trying to enter the gaming industry for some time now, even bringing on board a former Nexon exec in 2021 Jul. It’s said that HYBE’s gaming subsidiary will be called HYBE IM, which only fueled more speculation and controversy here in Korea.
 
This story is ongoing and HYBE is actively denying connections to Ironmace. So far it does appear that HYBE was part of Ironmace’s early investors, with reports claiming that HYBE IM CEO’s share in Ironmace to be 5%. But then they came up with a counter claim that they only gave ironmace 500k KRW (~386 USD) as a show of personal support to some exec on the team. I think it’s only natural that HYBE IM deny connections, as if it were proven true, it would be case of employee poaching between two giants in their respective industries. And for someone trying to make a break into the other’s industry, poaching is a surefire way of getting everyone to bunch up against you.
 
But take this part with a grain of salt as the story is ongoing.
 
Still, if this connection were to be true, Ironmace’s rhetoric of the underdog sticking it to the big ones would be worth very little.
To conclude, I’d just like to add that the success of Dark and Darker, in the end, is a double edged sword. It’s a great game, sure. But at the same time 2 points worry me.
 
First is that the indie development scene in Korea may falter right when it proved something with Dave the Diver. Korea is, at least compared to the US or Europe, not a market where a group of ambitious friends can go and make their own studio and a game fueled only with passion and a dream.
 
In large part this is due to the fact that it’s difficult to secure funding for indie games in Korea from Korean companies. But this has begun to change in the last few years or so, as these once-hated companies are beginning to invest more and more on smaller studios and smaller IPs and better games.
 
Are these companies doing it out of altruism for the Korean community? Fuck no.
 
In fact, it’s more likely that they’ve seen the limits of microtransaction as more and more people here are exposed to quality games, compared to a decade ago when the only option we had were glorified slot machines and a very limited library of localized, foreign games. But is the rise of quality indie games and visionary studios a good one? I’d say so.
 
Second is that should IM walk away scott free from this dispute, then these large companies themselves are given a precedent where they can predate on programmers and ideas of other companies and studios. It is not only a precedent in action or business practice, but also a legal precedent.
 
I hope this can shed some light on why the Korean community, the very people that live under the oppressive microtransaction regime beset by Nexon and NC and Netmarble, are on the fence or even siding with Nexon on this one. I just think that because Nexon’s a shitty company, it shouldn’t automatically make Ironamce a saint.

To accompany/supplement your study of the Bible. Such as books, websites, apps, etc.

Hey people of reddit, I hope everyone has had a wonderful day/night! So I(21) am not really good at getting my thoughts on paper while still making sense, so please bear with me!
I have known my SO (20) since she was born, we were great childhood friends and did everything together whenever we could. Skip a few school years due to our parents moving to different sides of the city, while we stayed in touch as best as we could. We started to stop talking im guessing because "out of sight out of mind " but eventually our parents had a little get together decided to share a house and then moved in with us. It was great apart from my rapist sibling who sexually assaulted my SO from the age of 6 until she was 12, and myself from 5-10, we never spoke about what he was doing to us, we didn't know that we were both being assaulted. While that was happening my MIL was using my mother to look after her while she went off being an escort and doing drugs, and not even using that money to look after her child and somehow always being behind or skipping a month's rent (using my mum to pay more than her share). After a while my mum gave up and told her to move out, then my MIL decided to distance herself from us because my mum "abandoned her in a time of need" (lived together for over 1.6 years)
And again we stopped talking until I went to the same school as her(I moved nearby).
So when we finally realised that we had very strong feelings for each other, and decided to start seeing each other when we were 18 and 19, we decided since we already knew pretty much everything about each other's life (or so we thought) I decided to stay at her house (closer to my work) and help with her relationship with her mother as they were arguing and fighting a lot. Over the last 2 years things have gone from AMAZING to depression.
In my mind it is mainly because of her mum, when we started dating (MIL had way too many pets, we constantly stressed how bad this living situation is but she said 'at least cats don't stab you in the back!?' Like what the fuck?!) So her house always smells of shit and piss because she barely cleaned up after them and was embarrassed about it.. saying that it's never like this and she's going to get on top of it and keep it clean, well that lasted about 2 months until she gave up on cleaning and herself. MIL started drinking more and going back into party drugs slowly leaving more and more responsibility on us, and just when we thought things were getting better she "sheltered" fucking 3 pregnant stray cats when she already had 5 cats and other pets, to help with her motherly urge to protect and nurture things. In the long run her motivation to clean, look after kittens, and work was just too much for her and found comfort in a partner. Since finding this amazing person she has slowly left that motherly urge to protect, love and care for her daughter and pets to revert back into her highschooler self leaving us with all the responsibility and stress, no money, no help and no sympathy or empathy for us at all. Because as she lives ten blocks away from her own house (us) with her new partner she pretends that everything is fine and still has the nerve to pretend that nothing happened and invite us to dinner at his house because we can no longer use our kitchen because of the animals over running it.
So I believe that it is wired into her brain that she can do whatever she wants and if you don't like it, it's your fault and you have no right being mad at her cause her life was a lot worse. (She's gone through her own past traumas).
What's even worse is because of all this my partner is too anxious and depressed to get a job so we are trapped here until she starts to feel better, and also that her mum is the only family my SO has so my partner is really wanting to keep her friendship with her mum..(and that is completely understandable) but she has mentioned to her mum multiple times that we are not happy and really need help, but it never arrives so that's why I had a bit of a snap and wrote quite an emotional message for her.. and here it is....
Sorry for all the backstory let's hope this makes sense now. This was a message that I was very close to pressing send I just thought it might add some insight on how our life is going!😁
Hey _____
This is going to be shocking, arrogant and just straight up rude but i have had it, i am sick of playing pretend about our life being all happy and shit. I really dont know how to say it apart from this....
Just first these are my thoughts and a little of my partners she defends you to the ends of the earth but the truth is in my eyes you really do not deserve it.
How can a 40yr old woman treat her kid and myself like we are house maids for a irresponsible pet owner that has abandoned ship to go live with a great person so her life doesn't feel as shitty..
I dont want to say this but what makes you think that you can just give up on your responsibilities as a parent and animal owner leave us day in and day out to clean after stray animals you brought into the house on top of YOUR original pets (5) which is too many to begin with..
Making your daughter and myself either clean a whole house daily to avoid the smell of shit and piss(WHICH WE DONT HAVE ENOUGH MONEY OR WILLPOWER TO DO EVERYDAY!) And when we do clean it takes 12hours to get back to how it was or sit in the matchbox of a room and try to not to go crazy while listening to constant animal noises and the house falling apart
Just how do you stay there 10 blocks away doing coke and drinking alcohol like you are 18.. with no responsibility
NEWS FLASH YOUR DAUGHTER IS STILL YOUR RESPONSIBILITY SHE STILL NEEDS HELP MENTALLY, SHE NEEDS HELP PHYSICALLY SHE NEEDS A FUCKING MOTHER NOT SOMEONE THAT RUNS AWAY FROM HER PROBLEMS AND DOES DRUGS TO HIDE THE PAIN...
Instead of being a adult and fixing your problems you decided to shift them onto kids with no money and if this continues no fucking future
How do you expect us to be happy ____ please I really want to know what you have been telling yourself to help you sleep at night because if you thinks this is ok... YOU NEED FUCKING THERAPY AND A LOT OF IT
HOW CAN WE GROW AS ADULTS WHEN WE ARE EXPECTED TO LIVE IN YOUR FILTH AND "MESS" ALL DAY ?
How can we live and learn to love life if we are trapped in this fucking hell hole of house
Which I can say is doing absolute wonders for your daughters and my relationship
RECAP
FIX YOUR PROBLEMS INSTEAD OF WHATEVER IT IS YOU ARE DOING
HELP YOUR FUCKING DAUGHTER
HELP ME HELP YOUR DAUGHTER
HELP YOURSELF AND YOUR DAUGHTERS RELATIONSHIP BY ACTUALLY BEING THERE FOR HER INSTEAD OF COMING AROUND ONCE A FORTNIGHT - MONTH TO GIVE YOUR CATS FOOD
HELP ME UNDERSTAND WHATEVER THE FUCK YOU ARE THINKING TO PERSUADE YOURSELF EVERYTHING IS FINE
I really dont know why I posted this maybe so she sees this, maybe because I really need advice on how to keep our relationships because as you can hopefully tell by the "message" I am about to go ballistic and need another view on this😅

Hello if anyone is in conroe or surrounding area there is a new church called NO Limits it is a good bible preaching church. The pastor is cody holley and he was called by God to come out here. The church is at candy cane park in the senor center. The address is 1201 candy cane ln conroe,TX 77301. It starts at 6pm

Got you I'm sad to be the bearer of terrible news. I obtained access to the gadget you use to connect to the Internet a few months back. I've been checking up on your internet behaviour since then.
As a frequent user of pornographic websites, I can testify that you are to blame for this scenario. Simply stated, the websites you frequented provided me with access to your data.
To avoid discovery by antivirus software, I posted a trojan with a signature that varies several times per day. It also enables me to use your camera and microphone, and all data, including photos, social media, chats, and contacts, has been saved.
I had the bright thought recently to make a film in which you participate in one area of the screen while the video plays in another. It was a lot of joy!
I'm sure that I can email this movie to all of your friends with a few clicks, and I'm sure you'd prefer to prevent this situation.
With that in mind, here's my recommendation: I'll forget about it if you send the equal of 1000 GBP into my Bitcoin wallet. I will also delete any files and videos.
This is, in my view, too low for my effort. You can learn how to purchase bitcoins by going to https://buy.coingate.com, https://bitpay.com/buy-crypto/, https://invity.io/buy-crypto/, or searching on Google or Bing.
My Bitcoin (BTC) wallet address is 1Cs5LVKyCgnddC5C6UyhBWfcYuh5QUX54J
You have 48 hours to react, and keep the following in mind:
Because the address was created mechanically, responding to me makes no sense. Protesting is also useless because both the message and my bitcoin wallet are anonymous. Everything had been meticulously planned.
If I find you forwarded this communication to someone, the video will be broadcast instantly, and your contacts will be among the first to receive it. The footage will then be made public on the internet!
P.S. The minute you open this paper, the time starts ticking. (There is a stopwatch on this application).
Good wishes, and don't get upset! It was simply poor fate; be more cautious.

Max Verstappen has hit some opposition in the form of apparel giant Nike as he looks to delve into the clothing world.
The Dutchman’s on-track activities in Formula 1 are currently taking him to continuously greater heights. Already a two-time World Champion, Red Bull’s dominant start to the F1 2023 campaign has made Verstappen the overwhelming favourite to make it three in a row this season.
And with his Red Bull contract running until the end of 2028, Verstappen’s Formula 1 endeavours will continue to be the centrepiece of his career for many more years to come.
However, having suggested that he wants to leave Formula 1 for other racing challenges after that, even though he will have only just moved into his 30s by that time, Verstappen already is giving great focus to his life outside of Formula 1.
That is not only in relation to racing either as it would seem Verstappen also wants to launch his own clothing brand.
The plan was to call it ‘Max 1’, though De Limburger reported that Nike have taken issue with that name as they believe it is too similar to their Nike: Air Max shoe range.
And the region’s trademark agency, The Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP), has issued a report that confirms its investigation and opposition from Nike, with the reasons why a roadblock has been put in front of Verstappen’s plans.
As well as suggestions that the similarity of the names could lead to confusion for the public, who may assume there is an affiliation between the brands, the styling also appears to be an issue.
Felipe Massa’s bold prediction: Max Verstappen can break Michael Schumacher record before Lewis Hamilton Why Red Bull should be ‘annoyed and nervous’ over Verstappen/Perez battle David Croft identifies next ‘real deal’ F1 driver who can become World Champion
The report states: “Both signs contain the word MAX, albeit in a different place. In the trademarks invoked, the elements AIR and MAX have equal weight in the overall impression. In the contested sign, the emphasis is on the word MAX. The number 1 will be regarded as a specification of MAX. To that extent the signs agree.
“The goods in question (Nike and Max) are partly identical and partly similar. Visually and aurally, there is a certain degree of similarity between the signs.
“Based on these and the other factors mentioned above and given their interdependence, the Office considers that there is a likelihood of confusion in the sense that the public may believe that the goods covered by the trade marks invoked and those of the contested sign belong to the same undertaking or, as the case may be, from economically linked companies.
“Since it is common practice in the clothing sector for the same mark to be configured in different ways, the relevant public might also think that the contested sign is a sub-mark of the opponent (Nike).”
You can read the full report here.
While Verstappen sets about finding a new route to getting his clothing brand off the ground, he also seemingly has opposition to his World title quests in Formula 1 in the form of Red Bull team-mate Sergio Perez.
The Mexican racer is yet to sustain a challenge against Verstappen across a season, but his impressive performance in Saudi Arabia suggested that could be about to change as he kept Verstappen comfortably at bay on his way to victory, thus sending quite the warning shot.
Verstappen did at least snatch the fastest lap bonus point from Perez, meaning he goes into the Australian GP with a one-point lead over his team-mate.


Source: https://www.planetf1.com/news/nike-max-verstappen-max-1-opposition/

Post good news from allies (solidarity), and messages asking for thoughts and prayers (support) if you or someone you know is going through a difficult time.
​
Remember to practice self-care!

I would like to put together a report style e-mail that I would occasionally update that I would use to e-mail some of my state reps. I feel like kratom doesn't have much of a voice other than the AKA in Louisiana. The thing is, I don't want to give just give them facts that they have probably heard before, or just say "Oh the FDA is wrong and using outdated research" I want to go a bit deeper than that, but also not talk crap about certain news sources in particular. I also think that it would be a good idea to get some testimonials from people who aren't just the average citizen. People like veterans, retired law enforcement, maybe even some people in power had a family member or a close friend that kratom has helped. Any advice?

It's time for our Weekly Good News Thread! Feel free to share any and all good news from the past week, from getting an A in a class to getting that II to getting an acceptance.

Recently I noticed that I'm blocked by two prolific posters in sanfrancisco
One of those posters daily posts dozens of news articles from ktvu.com and sfchronicle.com in sanfrancisco and bayarea.
The other user posts more infrequently, but will make several "feel good" posts in quick succession of photos documenting "chill" BART trips or photos to demonstrate the city is not dysfunctional or crime-ridden, in sanfrancisco and bayarea.
Blocking is interesting, because by blocking a user, not only will you not see their posts and comments, but they won't see yours. Posts are hidden entirely, comments are empty and appear (in my reddit app) to be by deleted accounts.
It's a useful tool to control the conversation: be the first to post a news article about something controversial (drugs, crime, homelessness), and then block any users who don't share your opinions.
When you next post about that, the people you blocked will never see your post and won't be able to comment in it. As a result, you can get a highly visible post where all the comments agree with you, and few contrary comments are made.
Of course you then block any contrary commenters not already blocked, so the comments on your next post are even more purified and free of disagreement.
And when you make a comment, no matter how unfair or unfactual, you'll know that no one you have blocked will be able to see it to refute it.
The first poster I mentioned is close to getting a monopoly on news posts, because they post quickly and often (and the mods remove duplicates, especially about controversial topics).
The second just seems to dislike any disagreement that things are peachy-keen on BART and in San Francisco and Oakland.
So over time, the subs look like one ideology predominates in controversial and feel-good posts, because dissenters never see and can't participate in those posts.
Pretty clever, no?
You can see if you're blocked. Just sort by new, look at the list of posts, then log out and refresh the list. Any posts you now see and didn't see before, were posted by someone blocking you.

Acquiring Wisdom Learn to see things from God's viewpoint so you can acquire godly wisdom
While the world defines wisdom as the right use of knowledge and information, godly wisdom means we have the capacity to see things from God’s viewpoint and respond according to scriptural principles. Dr. Stanley shares the several ways in which we can increase in godly wisdom.
ACQUIRING WISDOM
KEY PASSAGE: Proverbs 2:1-7
SUPPORTING SCRIPTURES: Proverbs 4:10-13 Proverbs 5:1 Proverbs 6:6-11 Proverbs 8:11 Proverbs 8:33-34 Proverbs 9:10 Proverbs 12:15 Proverbs 13:10 Proverbs 13:20 Proverbs 14:16 Proverbs 15:31-32 John 14:6 1 Corinthians 1:18-20 1 Corinthians 3:19-21 James 1:5-6
SUMMARY
There is a difference between knowledge and wisdom.
Our current period in history is described as the information age, and we have access to more knowledge than we know what to do with. But something is still missing—great wisdom. For example, there are many people who boast about their level of education and degrees, but they make disasters of their lives because they lack true spiritual discernment and understanding.
Although few Scriptures advise us to acquire more information, many admonish us to seek wisdom. Because God is the only source of truth, all wisdom comes from Him. He sees beyond the immediate circumstances and knows the future. That’s why, if we follow biblical principles, He will give us understanding and guidance for every decision and situation we encounter in life.
SERMON POINTS
What is wisdom?
The Bible makes a distinction between two very different kinds:
Worldly wisdom is the combination of knowledge and information. It’s based on human understanding and reasoning, but it is foolishness to the Lord (1 Cor. 3:19). Godly wisdom is the capacity to see things from the Father’s viewpoint and respond according to scriptural principles. With it, a person can survive any circumstance. How do we acquire godly wisdom?
It takes time and effort to become truly wise, and it comes as a result of learning from the decisions we make. Throughout life, we’ll face challenging questions and situations that demand a greater wealth of knowledge and understanding than human beings can possibly possess. We can acquire the godly wisdom we need by:
Seeking it. No one is born with wisdom, so we have two options—seek it or face the consequences of living without it. However, we must ask ourselves if we truly want wisdom or if we are searching for something else. The world offers other things that cater to our desires—security, wealth, friends, health, popularity, prestige, or beauty. But Proverbs 8:11 says all desirable things pale in comparison to wisdom. It’s a gift God gives to those who search for it like hidden treasure (Prov. 2:4-7). Wisdom won’t come with half-hearted attempts at reading the Scriptures; it requires diligent pursuit. Meditating on God’s Word. The Bible is God’s mind recorded for us on paper. It reveals His ways, plans, and purposes, and when we read and understand it, His thoughts become a part of us and affect how we live. That’s why we should begin every day with the Lord and ask Him to give us direction from His Word. Since the Lord is the only one who knows what is ahead, we need His perspective concerning our plans, actions, and choices. If we neglect His Word, we can’t understand His ways and will make poor choices. Instead of experiencing God’s best blessings, we’ll encounter discipline because every unwise action comes with a high price. Obeying scriptural principles. Merely having knowledge of the Bible cannot make us wise. God’s wisdom is reserved for those who heed His instructions and choose to apply His truths to their lives (Proverbs 8:33-34). Any time we need divine direction, it’s available to us in His Word. When we believe in and abide by His principles, we’ll reap the blessings of wisdom that come with obedience.
Praying for it. The book of Proverbs doesn’t specifically emphasize praying for wisdom, but James tells us to ask God for it if it’s something we lack (James 1:5-6). However, just requesting wisdom is not enough. We must ask in faith, obey what the Lord says, and watch the results of our actions. Obedience always benefits us, but negative consequences occur when we ignore God and go our own way. To avoid making foolish and costly decisions, we need to begin each day in prayer, asking the Lord how He wants us to operate.
Observing how God works in the world. The Word of God teaches us that wisdom also comes from observing various lifestyles and the results they produce. For example, wise men are cautious and turn away from evil, but fools are arrogant and careless (Proverbs 14:16). God even uses ants to teach us the importance of working diligently for our provisions because laziness invariably leads to poverty (Proverbs 6:6-11). When we pay attention to the behaviors of others, we can see that consequences—both good and bad—always follow. In our culture, which emphasizes personal achievement and pleasure, few people think about the future effects of their actions. But the Bible helps us understand life from God’s perspective and helps us make the wise choices that produce positive results.
Heeding godly counsel. Everyone needs guidance at times, but not all advice is godly. Some people—even trained counselors—can actually lead us astray instead of helping us find God’s way. Whenever we seek out someone for direction, we should examine that person’s lifestyle and determine the source of his or her advice. Is the counsel based on God’s Word or on academic knowledge and personal opinions? Once we’ve determined that the guidance is from Him, we must be willing to heed it and accept reproof if necessary (Proverbs 15:31-32). Associating with the wise. We should never underestimate the influence of friends. They can either help us grow in wisdom or cause us to suffer harm (Proverbs 13:20). That’s why we need to examine our friends closely to determine whether they’re building us up spiritually or leading us astray. We should also evaluate what kind of friends we are to others. Are we willing to tell them the truth based on what Scripture says, or is our goal only to tell them what they want to hear? Giving people bad advice just to make them feel better or to gain approval for ourselves is a disservice.

What's up? How's your day going? I hope it's going well! I'm just a random gay dude who's been kinda feeling I wanna help make your day a little better lately, feel free to chat me and let's talk about things that could be bothering you or if you just want someone to talk with. And if we click, we could be some good friends. As for my interests, well, politics, reading news, nature and food are some of my faves. Feel free to share yours too of course! Message me if you feel like talking with me hahaha. Just don't be a creep, I'll block you or just ignore your message lol and no one above 24 please. See ya!

What's up? How's your day going? I hope it's going well! I'm just a random gay dude who's been kinda feeling I wanna help make your day a little better lately, feel free to chat me and let's talk about things that could be bothering you or if you just want someone to talk with. And if we click, we could be some good friends. As for my interests, well, politics, reading news, nature and food are some of my faves. Feel free to share yours too of course! Message me if you feel like talking with me hahaha. Just don't be a creep, I'll block you or just ignore your message lol and no one above 24 please. See ya!