The press in foreign countries has been more open to hearing the allegations from Larry Sinclair of a drug and sex encounter with Obama in November 1999. I know first hand that the Sinclair allegations are being reported in Australia.

So, for the big question:

Will the press ask Obama to comment on the Larry Sinclair allegations during his trip?

Does anyone in the press have the guts to ask Obama?

On an ummm lighter note, my Korean friend Martin won the award for best speaker today. I got to break away and go see him give his presentation and he did a great job of it. There were three speakers and two of the three spoke of God. On speaker was from El Salvador and spoke of how God changed his son's life. And Martin spoke of God's beauty in nature and what I wrote about yesterday. When we finished, Martin gave me a ride back with his other Korean officer and instead of going back to work, they headed to the DFAC to get lunch.

I excused myself and said I had to get back. Then walked back to the office. When Martin came back he had a "to go" box lunch for me with an apple, orange, and coffee cake, plus a Gatorade to drink. That was really thoughtful of him to understand that I missed lunch to hear him speak and then he made sure I got a meal. Good stuff.

When we go to the chow hall, all you do is go through security and show ID, then go help yourself inside. So we have a running joke that whenever someone does a good job on something we'll say, "Good job. Tell you what, dinner's on me tonight, anything you want." Actually it's on you guys...and there's no telling how much the government gets charged per meal. I've heard each bottle of water is over $2 and I must drink at least three of those a day. Multiply that times 146,000 of us and there's some tax dollars getting spent. I heard the figure of $69,000 a minute but who knows if that's remotely accurate or not.

So thinks for buying the veggies and the water. Much appreciated! We all really appreciate the support back home and this blog is a little way for me to voice how we are grateful for your support and how we put that support to use. God bless you!

TheRealNews

More at http://therealnews.com/c.ph...
Tom Engelhardt: What corporate media won't write about.

[vodpod id=Groupvideo.1403686&w=425&h=350&fv=%26rel%3D0%26border%3D0%26]

Warning

.

This video may contain images depicting the reality and horror of war/violence and should only be viewed by a mature audience.

linktv

Headlines coming soon!

[vodpod id=Groupvideo.1403696&w=425&h=350&fv=%26rel%3D0%26border%3D0%26]

Is it fair to give your foe or foes a second chance during war time?

What if I told you, you have already given them the 'second chance' before,
that not only did they take it in vain, but they used it to sherd your status quo.

I am not broken, nor do I hold a grudge, for they are humans too,

Their stench of hypocrisy is repulsive.

Associating with foes and their talks of "peace" would indicate what a fool
I would be for not learning from my miscalculations.

I don't raise my hand to maneuver a fleet of vengeance, as I am peaceful.
I don't bring judgement  upon others.

I still regret our loss, for I am compassionate.

In the field of spirituality, Satan absolutely hates any Catholic who takes their Faith seriously, for as in doing so, they are example to those who do not have the light of Christ, and are able to gain grace for lost and confused souls. So the Joker's new tag-line keeps ringing in my mind, as he constantly questions, "Why So Serious?" We have to be serious if we are to ever get anywhere in our Faith, Catholics that are wishy-washy are the reason the world is in its present state, if we are ever to fight Satan (the Joker), we have to seriously fight for what we believe in. But don't think it's an easy ride of just 'living the Faith,' Satan's war against us is never at an end, and he will constantly throw obstacles and hurts into our lives to try to divert us from God's Path. Satan is not just a little angel with horns, a forked tongue, and tail that goes about tempting us to sin, (indeed he does, as he did so to Our Lord in the desert,) but he is also a cunning beast who'll throw everything he can at us, since after all, what's he got to lose? (Of course God regulates the power of Satan. Not one hair shall fall from our head without God's knowing of it, so basically, everything Satan does is permitted by God. God never allows the impossible, only the difficult. An example of the constant heavy burden of undergoing spiritual attacks can be found in the Book of Job, which tells the story of how God allowed the Devil to deprive Job of all his possessions and all that he held dear, in order to turn him against God.)

Back to the parrallel of the Joker, we see that throughout the film, he is constantly working to bring Batman down, physically and emotionally. Through a series of his crimes, he manages to turn District Attorney Harvey Dent into a villain, by driving him to the edge of his mind by killing his love and destroying everything he worked to build. There was another part of the film I'd like to cite, but the wikipedia article was cleaned up a bit; but in scene, the Joker proclaims to the people of Gotham that he's in charge now. The people attempt to flee, but he tells them that he has a surprise waiting for them in the tunnel and on the bridge leading out of the city, so the people flock to two ferries to escape. But the Joker's sick mind has a surprise, the two boats have bombs on board each, with the remotes on the adjacent ships, he tells the people that if they don't blow up one the opposite boat themselves, that he'll destroy both boats himself with another remote.

We can see how his character is completely insane and embedded in evil, but we can also look at it as a demonic character. How many times does the devil enjoy pitting us against a loved one in family arguments and such, making us think we are in the right, yet in the end, both are wrong, as both people involved in the argument end up sinning? How many times does Satan throw obstacles and trials into our lives which often drive us to the edge of our minds/Faith? Testing our faithfulness to Christ amid the near insanity of our lives? In the end, it boils down to one question, "Did we let evil win?" Whether it be in temptations, trial, or any situation, do we give in to Satan's Pressure? Does the Joker/Satan, have the last laugh as we go to hell? Or do we persevere to the end?

Papa Dee Allen, American musician, War

National Public Radio has been spending much news time on Darfur in Western Sudan where a great deal of human suffering and death are occurring. The military conflict has been brought on in part by climate change, according to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. Drought is forcing nomads in search of water into areas occupied by other claimants. No doubt the conflict is tribal and racial as well. The entire catastrophe is overseen by a government with few resources other than bullets.

Now an International Criminal Court prosecutor wants to bring charges against Sudan’s president, Omar al-Bashir, for crimes against humanity and war crimes.

I have no sympathy for people who make others suffer. Nevertheless, I wonder at the International Criminal Court’s pick from the assortment of war criminals? Why al-Bashir?

Is it because Sudan is a powerless state, and the International Criminal Court hasn’t the courage to name George W. Bush and Tony Blair as war criminals?

Bush and Blair’s crimes against humanity in Iraq and Afghanistan dwarf, at least in the number of deaths and displaced persons, the terrible situation in Darfur. The highest estimate of Darfur casualties is 400,000, one-third the number of Iraqis who have died as a result of Bush’s invasion. Moreover, the conflict in the Sudan is an internal one, whereas Bush illegally invaded two foreign countries, war crimes under the Nuremberg Standard. Bush’s war crimes were enabled by the political leaders of the UK, Spain, Canada, and Australia. The leaders of every member of the “coalition of the willing to commit war crimes” are candidates for the dock.

But of course the Great Moral West does not commit war crimes. War crimes are charges fobbed off on people demonized by the Western media, such as the Serbian Milosovic and the Sudanese al-Bashir.

Every week the Israeli government evicts Palestinians from their homes, steals their land, and kills Palestinian women and children. These crimes against humanity have been going on for decades. Except for a few Israeli human rights organizations, no one complains about it. Palestinians are defined as “terrorists,” and “terrorists” can be treated inhumanely without complaint.

Iraqis and Afghans suffer the same fate. Iraqis who resist US occupation of their country are “terrorists.” Taliban is a demonized name. Every Afghan killed--even those attending wedding parties--is claimed to be Taliban by the US military. Iraqis and Afghans can be murdered at will by American and NATO troops without anyone raising human rights issues.

The International Criminal Court is a bureaucracy. It has a budget, and it needs to do something to justify its budget. Lacking teeth and courage, it goes after the petty war criminals and leaves the big ones alone.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m for holding all governments accountable for their criminal actions. It is the hypocrisy to which I object. The West gives itself and Israel a pass while damning everyone else. Even human rights groups fall into the trap. Rights activists don’t see the buffoonery in their complaint that President Bush, who has violated more human rights than any person alive, is letting China off the hook for human rights abuses by attending the Olympics hosted by China.

President Bush claims that the enormous destruction and death he has brought to Iraq and Afghanistan are necessary in order for Americans to be safe. If we are accepting excuses this feeble, Milosevic passed muster with his excuse that as the head of state he was obliged to try to preserve the state’s territorial integrity. Is al-Bashir supposed to accept secession in the Sudan, something that Lincoln would not accept from the Confederacy? How long would al-Bashir last if he partitioned Sudan?

Last October the Atlanta Journal-Constitution had a photo on its front page above the fold of an elderly man with mikes shoved in his face. Paul Henss, 85 years old, is being deported from the US, where he has lived for 53 years, because Eli Rosenbaum, director the the US State Department’s Nazi-hunting bureaucracy, declared him a war criminal for training guard dogs used at German concentration camps. Henss was 22 years old when World War II ended.

A kid who trained guard dogs is being deported as a war criminal, but the head of state who launched two wars of naked aggression, resulting in the deaths of more than 1.2 million people, and who has the entire world on edge awaiting his third war of aggression, this time against Iran, is received respectfully by foreign governments. Corporations and trade associations will pay him $100,000 per speech when he leaves office. He will make millions of dollars more from memoirs written by a ghostwriter.

Does no one see the paradox of deporting Henss while leaving the war criminal in the White House?

Paul Craig Roberts was Assistant Secretary of the Treasury in the Reagan administration. He was Associate Editor of the Wall Street Journal editorial page and Contributing Editor of National Review. He is coauthor of The Tyranny of Good Intentions.He can be reached at: paulcraigroberts@yahoo.com

[:End of Transmission:]

Title

...it was not regret any longer but a sensation of abundant people that washed over her. She thought of her entry into this world, the harami child of a lowly villager, an unintended thing, a pitiable regrettable accident. A weed. And yet she was leaving the world as a woman who had loved and been loved back. She was leaving it as a friend, a companion, a guardian. A mother. A person of consequence at last... This was a legitimate end to a life of illegitimate beginnings.

The second novel by Khaled Hosseini, author of The Kite Runner, A Thousand Splendid Suns is both complimentary and contrasting to The Kite Runner. The first novel, masculine and brutal, while the second feminine with the underlining current of endurance and sacrifice. Both books are about Kabul, Afghanistan, where Hosseini is from, and both books are tales of survival. While The Kite Runner is a book about a family who left Afghanistan after the soviet invasion and takeover, A Thousand Splendid Suns is about a family who stayed in Kabul throughout nearly all the almost thirty years of the city's turbulence and war. Both have messages of love and sacrifice.

A Thousand Splendid Suns is an emotional story of two women, Mariam and Laila, who are married to a violent and malicious man. Their husband, Rasheed, reminded me of a concept I had read in Harlan Coben's Hold Tight: Evil people are always evil, and when they are given the approval to be cruel they will do so with great relish. Rasheed had been a wicked, controlling violent man before the Taliban, but with the absolute freedom of men to do whatever they want to their female family members, Rasheed's true abusive nature becomes his unabashed identity. He can do whatever, whenever, he wants to the women, and no police will save them because it's a family matter, no court would believe them because he's a man and they are women, a class of people who are "only slightly less contemptable than a communist."

...you'll learn nothing of value in those schools. There is only one... skill a woman like you and me needs in life, and they don't teach it in school... Only one skill. And it's this: tahamul. Endure.

This book is a beautiful story of a deep love and companionship of two women, of their ability to endure beyond their imaginations, of survival, and of the ultimate sacrifice love can make: The laying down of one's life for another. It is the story of redemption and reunion, Mariam's illegitimate and loveless life being redeem by the love Laila, Aziza, and Zalmai give her and the reunion of the star-crossed lovers.

A Thousand Splendid Suns is a visceral account of life in a war zone, the horror, the sounds and the bodies. It is beautiful at times with poetic passages and loving moments between characters, while revealing the life of oppression women were forced to endure during the Taliban rule in Afghanistan. It is haunting, depressing, joyful, and hopeful.

... like a rock in a riverbed, enduring without complaint, her grace not sullied but shaped by the turbulence that washes over her.

For me, whenever the events were stamped with the date, winter of 1993, Summer of 1994, Fall of 1999, etc, I thought of what was going on in my life at the same time, birth of my daughters in clean hospitals, having water that poured from my tap, using an indoor flushing toilet and bathroom with a shower. Not to mention I could walk my kids to the park and not worry about them getting killed by sniper fire and taking it for granted my daughter wouldn't be raped by soldiers passing by. Never once fearing we'd take a trip out of town and returned to find our house now the possession of the government.

Because this book is graphic and shows the reality of war and domestic violence, this book is not for people who are sensitive to such things. There are several passages that will rip your heart out, and several that makes your stomach sink with dread and worry for Mariam and Laila. I am sure there are people who find the story too depressing to finish.

I didn't think it was possible that I could like this better than The Kite Runner, but I do. The focus on the women, their struggles, their endurance, their support of one another, and their ability to dream and hope for escape and freedom despite all they go through is humbling and encouraging. I feel a sense of kinship to them, a sense of shared suffering and not giving up, fighting back in the face of hopeless odds. It has a softer and steadier voice than The Kite Runner, as if told by a female narrator instead of a man. It is an incredible journey of forgiveness and redemption.

Listed below are my very favorite books about photography in general and/or lighting in specific. You will not find any "bad" reviews here, because I am not gonna waste our time telling you about something that sucks.

I have brief descriptions here, but most of the still-in-print books have full reviews posted elsewhere on the site. Those are noted in the text. Some are easy to find, and some are obscure or out of print. Fortunately, with the internet, everyone now has the biggest bookstore in the world within easy reach. So the links go to Amazon.

The ones that are out of print will be noted by an "OOP." But Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is The Man, 'cause he can hook you up with OOP books through used sellers on Amazon, too. So links to there you will help you start your search.

Books/DVDs on Lighting

Joe McNally's book, The Moment it Clicks, is the best photo/lighting book I have seen in a long time. And by a "long time" I mean, well, ever.

He has completely opened up his photographer brain for your inspection. The photos are great, and the stories are even better. If you can only afford to get one book as you are cruising through this book faves page, get this one.

Here's a Nikon promotional video about the book. But seriously, I can't say enough good things about it. Full review is here.
____________________

A contemporary, tell-all lighting and portraiture book by one of the hottest A-list pros, Michael Grecco's Lighting and the Dramatic Portrait is more of a book suited to those who want to learn about what it takes to be working at the cutting edge of high-end portraiture today.

Grecco's book does not have as much heart and pure knowledge exchange as does McNally's. But I found it a very good read for those interested in learning his techniques, which are all centered on shooting people and thinking outside of the box.

Grecco brings a unique thought process and a willing-to-try-anything approach that yields fresh, non-dirivative portraiture. You can read a full review here. But it is important to note that that review was written before McNally's book (which I prefer) arrived.
____________________

Hunter, Biver and Fuqua's "Light - Science & Magic, 3rd Edition" is a full-color, updated version of the underground classic. This book is where you get the foundation you need before you step off into your own creative lighting style. It is literally about the physices of light, and will help you to understand the mechaniz of lighting. But do not look to here for creative inspiration.

You need to learn the rules before you can break them. And L-S&M is full of core knowledge. Highly recommended.
____________________

Matters of Light and Depth, by Ross Lowell, is the old-school classic. It was written for motion picture photographers, but has been adopted by the still crowd, too.

All the more relevant as we progress into the age of multimedia, still photogs looking to enhance their video lighting skills will find this book to be a double bonus.
____________________

If you haven't heard about this, it is basically Joe McNally (a really good shooter) using a handful of SB-800's and -600's in Gee-Whiz TTL mode to do a lot of stuff most people would need big lights for. If you want to learn more about the Nikon CLS wireless TTL flash system, this is a good example of using it for high-end stuff.

You can get the video here. Preview below:

War Photographer, (DVD - nonfiction) Directed by Christian Frei

This isn't even a book. But as I told you, I am throwing the best stuff up here on the bookshelf and War Photographer has to be included.

This Academy Award-nominated documentary film from 2001 allows us to tag along with James Nachtwey, one of the world's greatest photojournalists, while he works. They filmed him at close range, and even mounted a tiny camera on his camera to capture his point of view while he was shooting.

Plenty of "back story" is given, too.

Nachtwey covers war and conflict, and he is widely seen as the best there is within that genre.

But the film gives us a rare look into the motivations, technique and work ethic of a truly great photojournalist.

Watching this movie will re-set your internal compass, no matter what you cover as a photojournalist. It bears repeated viewing, and should be in any serious PJ's library. Keep it in your computer bag and watch it on your laptop.

Nachtwey's books are not to be missed, either. Inferno and Deeds of War will be listed in the bookshelf when time permits. Although, sadly, the latter has become an OOP collector's item and is priced beyond the range of most of us.
here.

President George W Bush has told the Israeli government that he may be prepared to approve a future military strike on Iranian nuclear facilities if negotiations with Tehran break down, according to a senior Pentagon official.

Despite the opposition of his own generals and widespread scepticism that America is ready to risk the military, political and economic consequences of an airborne strike on Iran, the president has given an “amber light” to an Israeli plan to attack Iran’s main nuclear sites with long-range bombing sorties, the official told The Sunday Times.

“Amber means get on with your preparations, stand by for immediate attack and tell us when you’re ready,” the official said. But the Israelis have also been told that they can expect no help from American forces and will not be able to use US military bases in Iraq for logistical support.

***********

Power can only be attained in this world when we give it away at the expense of our own self empowerment. 

Humanity has trudged a long and winding road through the darkness that fell onto this planet several millenia ago.  As we look back on the past twenty-five-hundred years alone we have seen Empires expand then collapse with endless carnage and debris from wars fought for domination and Crusading hatred.  The tremendous power of those who are wired to feed off the fear generated among the masses to maintain power and control has been part of the only reality we in this cycle have known.  I perceive that they are keenly aware that an extremely ancient global castastrophe so overwhelmed the psyche of the survivors as to carry down genetically to this day and use it to manipulate the planet.   A few scattered Enlightened beings have intervened in our long journey and endeavored to seek out those in the ongoing generations who would carry the torch lighting the way toward the Knowledge, Light, and Harmony that once existed for the ancients and will exist once again.  The realm of wired power mongers, feeders on negative energy, seized their messages and turned them into an entity called religion (supernatural constraint, perhaps from religare to restrain, tie back) in order to keep the thumb to the screw and the lid on the Truth.  Jesus, Ghandi, Quetzalcoatl, Buddha and other Enlightened beings had no intention of organizing their messages into a tightly controlled box.  They simply gave guidelines, road signs, and Faith to keep moving toward a return of Self-Realization of our own incredible Spiritual capacity. 

As horrible and tragic a day as 09/11/2001 was, it also opened a doorway to Light that the "supernatural constrainers" in this reality would never have perceived since dark thoughts focus only on dark outcomes.  Until that day in Earth time, the revolving-door mentality still had the masses going in circles.  The schizophrenic dimensional split occurred that day and the revolving door began morphing into a Light-emitting open door.  It took a few years in Earth time to realize that we could even leave this contained circle dance and walk away and another few Earth years to have the courage to step into the Light and speak Truth to Power. 

I have witnessed a dramatic change in focus and attitude of people I know personally, those in the community at large, and those in the larger world and realize that a point of critical mass was reached about the beginning of our year 2006, and that forward swinging door has been swinging back to kick the Feeders on the Dark T-Shirt Team ever since.

I recall a thought running through my mind when I heard that the Human Genome Project had published its first draft report on the full DNA sequencing in April 2000 (official completion came in 2003**).  That thought was Oooh, the 100th monkey just might tip the collective flow of consciousness soon  (recorded in my diary). Odd thought, I know, but it occurred to me even then that with the DNA sequence essentially completed, the very manifestation of that knowledge would kick in soon....but I was not sure exactly WHAT would manifest.  After my "planes crashing in the East" dream and then the following day of 09/11/2001 occurred, I began to ponder this more deeply.

I am beginning to sense (and literally am witnessing in our culture) that unlocking the DNA in years 2000-2003 somehow began unlocking the sleeping  (or engineered damage of the remaining) DNA of Earth forms, thus allowing Light photons (via the Sun) to again enhance rather than damage dysfunctional DNA by having access to the correct coding (which I have a hunch is contributing to extinctions in some cases and new lifeforms in others). It has been a slow process from the point of view of Earth time but truly, I sense that the minds of darkness that have ruled endlessly are now being squeezed ever more between the twilight and the dawn of the human collective consciousness.  A day hardly goes by anymore without those in the public eye such as government/politics, religion, finance,  media, filmmaking, etc. who had carefully been able to conceal their dark intentions for humankind by throwing a cloak of glamour around themselves can no longer do so.  Why? Because there has been a massive shift on the collective level.  The masses are beginning to see the Light more than ever before...it is coming in leaps and bounds now.  Personally, I believe that the trigger was the completion of knowledge about DNA sequencing and the fired shot was 911.  I think the joke is on the Dark T-Shirt Team because the probable intention for this Knowledge was to have yet another point of control over Earth (biological weapons, viruses...***) but it is the White T-Shirt Team, the Lightworkers, who will be the beneficiaries. 

From my perspective, we are learning quickly how to step out of the circle dance and to Trust that Light in the doorway.  I suggest that our DNA is helping us in our baby steps.  As more and more pick up the Trust opened to us, the darkness between the twilight and the dawn will be subsumed.

There is always dishonor among thieves; many wannabe thieves will soon find themselves starving for Light as their cohorts go down one by one….it is the nature of the Beast. 

Collectively, we must overcome fear and turn off the human switch feeding the Supernatural Constrainers

Do not fear the Beast….defang it. 
BE THE LIGHT SOLDIERS!

**********

Defanging the Beast:
The rest of the story as Paul Harvey would say
(from previous post but re-posting here with updates)

CEO JIM ROGERS: Bernanke should be fired

ENGLAND: Blair Government Police Investigation for War Crimes
(Doubtful that you'll see this in the MSM)

BBC5 We Are With You Global March
(Ditto)

JAPAN:  Councillor (Congressman) Yukihisa Fujita
on 911
(double ditto)
Japanese MP Yukihisa Fujita of the Democratic Party of Japan, a member of the House of Councillors in the Diet of Japan is the single most important person to step forward to ask hard questions about 9/11 and the “War on Terror” this year.

AUSTRALIA: Australian voters throw Howard government out of office
"The vote represents a decisive repudiation of the Howard government’s record of lies and criminality."

PAKISTAN 03/24/08:  New Pakistani Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani
"ordered on Monday the immediate release of all judges detained by President Pervez Musharraf after he imposed emergency rule in November."
throwing down the gauntlet to the US-backed leader Musharraf

CONGRESSMAN DENNIS KUCINICH: ...to Investigate 9/11 Insider Trading

CONGRESSMAN DR. RON PAUL: Constitution written to restrain government, never  people.
Sponsored a bill to overturn the Patriot Act

Eliot Spitzer Downfall: His Hypocracy or Politicorporate assassination?

BRATTLEBORO, VERMONT: Passes indictment of Bush and Cheney
"I hope the one thing that people take from this is 'Hey, it can be done,' aid Kurt Daims, 54, who organized the petition drive that led to the Brattleboro vote."

CANADA: 9/11 Petition Read in Canadian Parliament
"New Democratic Party Deputy House Leader Libby Davies delivers a Parliamentary Petition signed by over 500 Canadians demanding a new 9/11 investigation, in Canada's House of Commons during Routine Proceedings at 1:10 pm on June 10, 2008"

 VIDEO: TRUTH RISING
Alex "InfoWars" Jones
"Seven years after the attacks of September the Eleventh, a global awakening has taken place, the likes of which the world has never seen. As the corporate-controlled media dwindles into extinction, a new breed of journalists and activists has emerged. "

THATS THE SPIRIT! 

***** 

Finally, my Plea to Political Stepford Wives:
WAKE UP, ORGANIZE, and LEAD the Charge of the Wife Brigade!

Jersey Girls: Widows and Families of 911 victims Press for Truth!

Naomi Klein: Author of the Shock Doctrine
"Raking in billions out of the tsunami, plundering Russia, exploiting Iraq - this is the chilling tale of how a few are making a killing while more are getting killed. "

** I find it interesting that the U.S. Department of Energy (Genomics Energy Gov) plays a big part in the application of DNA sequencing.
***Research into the "accidental" or "suicidal" deaths of way too many top-tier biological scientists since year 2000 is an eye opener.  What Really Happened (?)

We here at WAAAGH! Labs have been slaving hard to find the right formula to deliver the E3 experience straight to your brain, but considering that you might end up like Keen over there, it'd probably be best if you abstained and just read through some of the info out there.

End Game RvR Explained - I think this makes a bit more sense now. The way it goes is that each of the three tier 4 zones of the game have their own fortress (a massive keep) that is the initial focal point of end game RvR. If Order can manage to capture two out of three of the fortresses, the Inevitable City becomes open to attack; likewise, if Destruction can capture two out of three, Altdorf swings open its doors to enemy invaders. It makes all three zones worthwhile to fight in, followed by narrowing the fight down to a single city.

Then you have the concept of the "rotating capital cities" or whatever they're calling it. How I see it is that once more capital cities come online, they'll either just activate two of them during a set time frame (for the span of a month, for example) or declare only two of them vulnerable to capital city siege.

Open Grouping - Sometimes the smallest things are the most beloved, and I think open grouping has the potential to set the standard for all MMOs in breaking down the barriers between solo players and getting into a good group. The way it works is that you can start a group and flag your group as "open" or "closed". If it's closed, then only people you personally invite can join the party. If it's open, then anyone else who wants to find a group in the area can easily see what open groups are available and where they are, then just click a button to automatically join that party. No fuss, no muss.

Really, open grouping is party construction in reverse. Typical group formation is done from top down: one person takes the job of finding players and adding them. Open grouping is the players forming the group themselves for the leader. This'll make joining groups for PQs or general zone questing or PvP so much simpler.

UI Customization - Reportedly, the standard UI in WAR will be almost completely flexible for resizing and relocating screen elements (hotbars, radar, etc.). A lot of people -- myself included -- need to tweak their UI to fit their playstyle just right, and this looks to be offering them as much flexibility as possible for that.

Armor Sets - Over 400 sets are in the game! No, really. Plus dyes. That works out to 20 armor sets per class, which is quite a wide range, all things considered.

Beta is starting and the end of the world (of  warcraft) is neigh!

Unfortunately I have not received a Beta key (at least as of yet) and I don't need to bore you by re-writing what others already have done. Good information can be found in the following places (that I know of so far)

New talent trees

MMO Champion

Beta patch notes hosted on WowWiki.com

There is a lot more out there, I'll be doing a lot of reading myself when I get off work.

Random opinions to follow when I get a chance to digest some of this info.

The Second Coming, William Butler Yeats

Turning and turning in the widening gyre
The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere
The ceremony of innocence is drowned;
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.

Surely some revelation is at hand;
Surely the Second Coming is at hand.
The Second Coming! Hardly are those words out
When a vast image out of Spiritus Mundi
Troubles my sight: a waste of desert sand;
A shape with lion body and the head of a man,
A gaze blank and pitiless as the sun,
Is moving its slow thighs, while all about it
Wind shadows of the indignant desert birds.
The darkness drops again but now I know
That twenty centuries of stony sleep
Were vexed to nightmare by a rocking cradle,
And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,
Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?