Philosophy

Greetings, Ladies and Gentlemen, this is Dresden.

I find myself endlessly fascinated by the topic of philosophy, so I decided that, for my next few posts, I would do descriptions of the more popular philosophic belief systems. Keep in mind I'm not endorsing any of these viewpoints, just telling you a bit of information about them.

First up, a personal favorite: Solipsism.

Now, at the basic level, solipsism is fairly simple. It is the belief that nothing outside of your own minds can be trusted or confirmed as true. To put it even simpler, I cannot be sure that anything except my own thoughts exist. For all I know, the entirety of existence is just a construct I've dreamed up. Solipsism is a very unpopular form of philosophy, with an infinitesimally small amount of followers. However, it is well known, if only for its radical viewpoints.

Three main points of solipsism are:

1. The only knowledge that can ever be certain at all is my thinking. My thoughts are verifiable and true, but anything beyond that is completely unknown.
2. There isn't necessarily a link between purely mental constructs (thoughts) and purely physical ones (pain, hunger, the five senses, etc.) For all we know, we could be a brain in a vat, who is only experiencing these things through some sort of advanced technology we are unaware of.
3. The experience of a given person can only be certain to that specific person

To a true solipsist, other people aren't real. This does not mean they are unimportant or not to be cared about. As far as a solipsist is aware, other people are just background ideas that their brain has crafted for some ineffable purpose. However, their conscience is, according to solipsism, quite real, and going against causes verifiable mental anguish.

Many people find the ideas behind solipsism to be depressing, but some espouse it as a freeing ideal. If nothing exists besides yourself, then there isn't a real need to worry about external conflicts. However, the positive or negative effects of solipsism on the human brain aren't my concern. That, my dear readers, is for you to think about.

I hope you've enjoyed this, leave a comment if you have a particular philosophic view point you'd like me to research and report back on.

Game Releases

Hello, ladies and gents, this is Dresden.

Seems we've finally hit the tail end of the summer game rush. The month of July seems pretty skint on releases. August too, is looking pretty empty. Really, the only releases of note in these two months is the NCAA game, the new Madden, and Sniper 2. None of which am I chomping at the bit to get at. However, September will pick right back up, with the release of Far Cry 3 and Borderlands 2, both highly anticipated sequels.


Here's a link to the first Borderlands Game of the Year Edition, if anyone wants to check out the original before thinking about playing the sequel.
Take-Two 39982 Borderlands GOTY X360 Video Game

Source: www.VGReleases.com

As always, this is Dresden, signing off.

P.S. To those of you are historically inclined, did you know that July was named after Julius Caesar, and that August was named after Emperor Augustus, his adopted son? I love history.

Shift

Hello ladies and gents, this is Dresden.

Cold Nights is currently in rewrites. For the foreseeable future. So, I figured that if I was going to keep posting literature, I'd better switch stories. This is Shift, an urban fantasy story I've been working on. I hope you guys enjoy it, the link is to the first chapter. It's rated Mature because of the violence, which is occasionally intense.

http://www.writerscafe.org/writing/Dresden/1002874/

Any feedback would be appreciated.

Game with The Wolf crew.

A few of our writers, and the owner of the blog, like to play Battlefield 3 together. If any of you readers would be interested on playing with us over Xbox Live, please leave a comment saying that you're interested.

Octane's Big Uns

Here's the latest list of the top 15 hard rock songs on Octane:

15. Godsmack – “Rocky Mountain Way”
14. Nonpoint – “I Said It”
13. Art of Dying – “Sorry”
12. Baroness – “Take My Bones Away”
11. Five Finger Death Punch – “Coming Down”
10. Emphatic – “Put Down the Drink”
9. Otherwise – “Full Circle”
8. Adelitas Way – “Criticize”
7. Stellar Revival
6. Chevelle – “Hats Off to the Bull”
5. P.O.D. – “Lost in Forever”
4. Thousand Foot Krutch – “Let the Sparks Fly”
3. Evans Blue – “Halo”
2. Rains – “Pressure”
1. Linkin Park – “Burn It Down

Dresden's Shows

I like good TV. I feel that the best-written shows can be just as good at telling a story as a good book can be. With that sentiment in mind, I decided to review a show that was recommended to me by the fine articles of TV Tropes.

Sherlock is aired on the BBC Network and was written by Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss. It sets classic Sherlock Holmes stories in a modern day time period, keeping the original plot alive, while also modernizing the brilliance of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle to this generation. Starring Benedict Cumberbatch as the eponymous Sherlock and Martin Freeman as Dr. John Watson, Sherlock has been met with near-universal acclaim, winning several awards.

Okay. The first thing that we need to get out of the way is that, yes, the writers of the show do make a few changes to the classic Holmes stories. However, these changes are done so beautifully as to impress even the crustiest of Holmes purists. Cumberbatch and Freeman are magnificent in their roles, delivering performances that range from heart-wrenching to side-splitting.

I was skeptical at first of the advisability of setting Sherlock Holmes stories in the modern day, but the concept is pulled off beautifully, and each ninety-minute episode is a masterpiece of storytelling. Each season consists of three hour and a half episodes, and two so far have been released, with a third season already greenlit.

I would recommend this brilliant series to fans of classic Holmes and newcomers alike. The acting is top-notch, the writing is downright unbelievable, and the fine layer of nostalgia sprinkled over the top combines to make a show I'd recommend everyone watch at least once.

Final Score: 9/10. Really, the only reason I couldn't justify giving this show a 10/10 is its brevity. Three ninety minute episodes a season is really just not enough Holmes.

As a side note, does anyone know the point when British television suddenly became awesome?

The Book Store

Hello, ladies and gentlemen, this is Dresden, for The Book Store.

I'm aware that it has indeed been awhile since there was any new activity on this blog, but I felt it was high time to change that. In this edition of The Book Store, I'll review one of my new favorites, Johannes Cabal the Necromancer, by Johnathan L. Howard.

I myself am a huge fan of TV Tropes. Any Tropers who may be reading this, keep in mind that TV Tropes will ruin your life. But, I'm getting off topic. I found this book on one of my frequent Trope binges, and just from the title alone, thought it looked interesting. I was soon proved wrong. This book was not only interesting, it was enthralling. Set against the backdrop of a Steampunk world, the dry wit and fatalism of the eponymous character is especially entertaining. Every twist and turn of the plot had me reeling.

The story starts with our... protagonist... Cabal entering hell to have a chat with Satan. It's revealed rather early on that Cabal once sold his soul to the devil in return for understanding the secrets of Necromancy. However, he has come to realize that the fruits of his labors would be pointless without a soul to enjoy them with. Therefore, he has come to hell in order to strike a new bargain with the Father of Lies. Satan agrees to a wager: if Cabal can, with the assistance of several demonic helpers and powers, deliver one hundred freely-given souls to Satan within one year, he will win back his.

I loved this book. I even got the sequel, and plan to keep reading the series as long as Howard continues to write novels in it. The main character is a cold hearted, manipulative, and all-around emotionless and inhuman bastard, but he is written so cleverly and appealingly, that one cannot help but root for him to succeed. I would recommend any fan of Fantasy to pick up this book. Likewise, any fan of clever wit and sarcasm. Or any fan of the printed word. Basically, I'm telling you to go buy this book. Just... go buy it. Right now.

Final Score: 9.5/10 The only negative thing I can really say is that much of the cast, apart from the main character, seemed disposable, and a bit two dimensional. The superb dialogue and writing makes up for it, for sure, but you'll hard-pressed to remember the names behind the wit.