PRAVDA SPECIAL EDITION #6 - 3rd June 2003 - A NEW CONSTITUTION !

[Jamski]

COMRADES!
WE GREET EACH DAY WITH THE TRUTH!

Lenin's Birthday Edition of the Russian Newspaper "Pravda" which means "The Truth"

Welcome comrades to the sixth special edition of PRAVDA - the offical newsletter of the Human Hive. After the terrible events reported in the last PRAVDA it has been hard times in the Hive, but now finally we can share more glorious joy with the world. All hail to the glorious Chairman Voltaire and the members of the Peoples' advisory council!

In This Issue :

• New Hive Constitution Proposed !
• Getting growth rates up - how YOU can help !
• Public Safety Announcement No2!
• Hive Technology Report
• What's on where - Hive entertainment!
• Public Safety Announcement No3!
• All the news you'll ever need !

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Chairman Voltaire is a true Democrat!
In a bold move to democratic reform, glorious Chairman Voltaire has revealed his draft plans for a new constitition in a desperate attempt to increase his popularity among the drones which will grant new permanant freedoms of speech and assembly to the people, and also define the roles and positions of the Party that so faithfully supports its glorious Chairman. It is unknown at this point if the constitution will be accepted, but PRAVDA has an inside tip that it will recieve at least 105.7% of the popular vote. More on the constitution in the next issue of PRAVDA as the details are finalised

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Chairman Decrees More Births Requried After Tragedy
From a speech given by Chairman Voltaire shortly after the loss of the brave colonists :

[This is] ...the Hive's new 10 child policy... you must have 10 children or else.

To which glorious Comrade HongHu (speaking to the Mothers' Union) replied :

And they have to be twins or triplets.

The next day, addressing a group of latex product workers that had been permanantly reassigned to work in the recycling tanks, Comrade Vev is recorded as saying :

Since most of us are males, we cannot begin to think of the joy of going through that...

He was later nervestapled into unconciousness by HongHu warned that his remarks could be ambiugious.

PRAVDA is grateful as always for these insights into the everyday life of the Deputies of the People's Advisory Council.
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Comrade Gnool Gets Birthrates Soaring



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***PUBLIC***SAFETY***ANNOUCMENT***
Know Your Mindworms

Due to the recent tradegy of our selfless, brave, glorious comrades, the Hive Government will provide information about the dangers of mindworms. The sacrifices of our undesirable dissidents used as test subjects fallen comrades are not in vain as now we know how to conquer these mindworms.

Mindworms are the evil spawn of the planet who wish to see our downfall. They employ cowardly mind attacks hoping to seek to paralysis us. But through our glorious willpower and strength of mind, we shall prevail and cook these foul abominations.

A boil can be spotted by a giant rolling mass of pink wriggling worms. When they come, stand your ground and do not fear them, for they shall weed out the weak minded fools and meanwhile the party shall evacuate using you as a buffer. Their attacks will be persistent, but resist against their corrupting influence and strike back with glorious fury.

Asides from that, they are totally safe and nothing to worry about unless they are used on you for interrogation practices.

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Socialist Utopia One Step Closer Thanks To Our Glorious Environmental Developments

The Ministry of Information today announced today that the "People of the Human Hive are one step closer to the glorious proletariat paradise Marx envisioned centuries ago thanks to the thankless work of our hard working scientists." After nearly a decade of studying our new home, the glorious Hive think-tank has published details of new knowledge and technologies that is simply being called Centauri Ecology. "This wonderious new knowledge will allow us to resculpt the environment as we see fit" said the coordinator of the Centauri Ecology team, Bob Brown. "With oxygen being produced by expansive lush forests, increased productivity in the bases from mines, with energy harnessed from the sun via solar panels and with food for the people being grown on farms (collective, of course), the Hive will be a Marxist utopia before you know it".

The first application of this knowledge, a massive self-contained machine called a terraformer, has already been built and is laying the foundations of a socialist utopia as I write. A second terraformer is currently under production. It is not yet known what effect terraforming will have on the dastardly capitalist mindworms that slaughtered Hive colonists a few years ago.
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Comrade Gnool Helps The Hive Scientists



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Entertainment News
To follow up the glorious musical success that was the Rage Against the Chagrin concert, The Hive (the base) will host the People's Metalfest, featuring many of Planet's greatest ever death metal, grindcore, black metal (and associated genres) bands, including Mindworm Maggotfest, Banal Crunch, Grotesque Fungal Regurgitation, Impaled Northern Pholousforest, Eudamoniac, Planetcarcass and many others. If you like metal, you'll probably want to be there!

There will be a charity ball to help the families of those people killed by the evil capitalist mindworms during our glorious attempted expansion in the month of Gloriousworkerssovietutopia. Enjoy uplifting tunes that remind us all of important historical events, such as the Russian Revolution, our glorious landing on planet, and the birth of Sheng-Ji Yang. You will attend this ball instead of going to work one day and the money we're not paying you will go to the families.

The glorious installing of our first Network Node has led to the establishment of the first holovision and fibre-optic Radio stations on planet, as well as PlaNet (our hively* new name for the internet)!! Be one of the first to experience state propaganda this exciting new entertainment/communications technology and work really hard! (Everyone will have this glorious technology in their homes one day, free, courtesy of the glorious Hive government)

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***Announcement from the Commissioner of Public Safety***

Comrades, your appointed Commissioner Frankychan has announced that new measures have been enacted to protect all Hive citizens from outside influences. The new policies for Public Safety are listed below:

1.All non-essential lights must be turned off by the designated curfew time. The government needs the additional power for use in industrial manufacturing.

2.Police forces will double their patrols of Hiverian territories to prevent harm to our glorious comrades.

3.New covert measures have been put in place to protect our glorious cities from outside, and potentially harmful, influence. Due to the nature of these measures, they will not be disclosed.

The Commissioner wishes all Hive citizens a glorious day.

Glory to the Hive!

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From the Ministry Of Peace:
Top Ten Reasons for Joining the Revolutionary Army of the Socialist People of the Human Hive. The surprising results of a new poll from the Ministry of Peace.

10. Because PRAVDA says I should
9. Because women like men in uniforms
8. Because men like men in uniforms
7. Because I get to blow "stuff" up
6. Because the recruitment video had a good theme song
5. Some vague reference to honour and glory, usually quickly followed by responses 8 or 9 (or both)
4. Because the Glorious Comrade Chairman Voltaire, who is like a father to our faction, and we ALL respect our fathers, don't we, says I should
3. Because my other option was "cleaning" the recycling tanks
2. It gets me away from the wife
1. Because if I don't Comrade Marshal Rokossovky's cronies will nerve staple my family, friends, pets, teachers and pretty much anyone who has ever seen, heard, or thought of me. Er, I mean...
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Everything is Normal, There is Nothing to Worry About
The Party has denied any instances of security breaches in the Hive. "There have been no breaches in security in the Hive. All spies and traitors have been caught and processed," said the spokesman of the Hive Security. "These rumors by rival factions are all lies and, there is no substance behind them." Pravda would like to recall previous incidents of false rumors such as the infamous chairman's personal themepark and the chairman's luxury yatch with onboard casino.

The Commission of Hive Security recommends the citizen to follow these instructions:
1. Believe in the Pravda
2. Do not believe the lies of other factions
3. Report rumor spreaders to the state police

Failure to comply will result in an free holiday to the recycling tanks.
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In other news :

• Secret and illegal contact with other factions reveals that they too are bothered by the idea of spies and infilterators.
• More possible spies were shot, as many as possible actually.
• The people love Chairman Voltaire even more than ever. Latest polls show an incredable197% support for the Chairman.
• Final proof that nervestapling has no harmful effects is provided by this cartoon drawn by Comrade Vev after his reeducation :

Onwards Comrades - the Future of Humanity lies in Cooperation, Brotherhood and Industry - Continue to Work for the Glory of the Human Hive

Editorial Deputy to the PAC - Comrade Jamski

[Jamski]

PRAVDA SMALLS
The next issue of PRAVDA will be accepting "adverts", as long as its not for any profit making capitalist enterprises.

This week :
Comrade Tass is offering old PC games (originals w/manuals) for sale. Also Gameboy with games and accessories. Help him redistribute the wealth by sending him an e-mail or PM for further details. Because he was too lazy to actually give me a list

That's all ATM.

-Jam

[Gnool]

Bravo glorious Comrade Jamski, I propose (after seeing someone else propose it in our forum) we name our next base (which is our 23rd by the way, such is the glory of the Hive) in honour of you.

[Jamski]

Maybe our glorious PRAVDA readers could then suggest a name for it (assuming the colony pod assinged to this task doesn't get mind-wormed)

-Jam

[Snowflake]

JAMSKI CLOVEK (Defending the cavemen) ?

[Drogue]

Jam, the poll, "Yes, because Ayn Rand's books are so well written and convincing" would that be a reason not to be a communist? Maybe "yes, because Ayn Rand is the daughter of the Devil" would be more appropriate

[Jamski]

Drogue, there never will be a good way of showing sarcasm on the internet, (but as this option was placed just for your personal amusement anyway who cares except you and me?), however, your suggestion would be much closer to the truth, just cross out "the daughter of" and its spot on.

-Jam

[Drogue]

I kind of thought it was sarcasm, but was wondering if you saw my last post stating that I didn't like Ayn Rand, and thought she was a commie because of that. However you are much better read than I gave you credit for. I am sorry

[Jamski]

Ayn Rand a commie? That's a good one Drug. She's more like the secret love child of Maggie Thatcher and Harry Potter's Dad.

-Jam

[Jamski]

Here's an Ayn Rand quote from when she was working for the University of Planet :

The demand to “restrict” technology is the demand to restrict man’s mind. It is nature — i.e., reality — that makes both these goals impossible to achieve. Technology can be destroyed, and the mind can be paralyzed, but neither can be restricted. Whenever and wherever such restrictions are attempted, it is the mind — not the state — that withers away.
“The Anti-Industrial Revolution,” The New Left, p145

But her famous line that makes people want to throttle her is :

"Money is the barometer of a society's virtue,"
but I can't remember which book that's from (I have a feeling its the same book)

-Jam

[Cedayon]

Can we arrange a public burning of Ayn Rand's effigy?

[Jamski]

/me uses PRAVDA's contacts to get in touch with "Effigies-R-Us"

-Jam

[Drogue]

Jam: I know Ayn Rand is not a commie. I was saying that if you had just read what I had said about disagreeing (in stronger terms) with her, then you might have thought, due to me arguing FM, that she was a commie. I was unsure if the vote was a mistake or sarcasm, which I now know

As I said before though, she does have some good points, though you have to search to find them. I thought she wrote quite well too, as novels rather than textbooks. If much of it wasn't so appauling, in the sense that I really hope it isn't true, then it would be quite a nice read IMHO.

I think the latter Rand quote is from "Atlas Shrugged".

[Atlantian]

It's not your fault, Drouge. Commies love to get people in trouble, and what makes that worse (but can be an advantage at times) is their ability to stay on one track at all times. It is an absolute circle in there (which suprises me that there is anything at all!).

*Dameon Laughs*

I've played one in a poker game. Imposible to tell if he is bluffing because he can keep a straight face so easily (if you can call a frown a straight face). Lost a few Energy Credits that day.

(PS: Dameon is my character. I play games better if I RP them.)

[Atlantian]

No, stay away. Don't point that nerve stapler at me! No, NO!!!
*Chhh-Chunk*
Must... join... collective...
*staple fails*
AAAGH
*fight starts*
Take that!
*scuffle-scuffle*
*POW! %@$#! WACK! BAM! BOOM! CRASH! BASH! Chhh-Chunk!*
How does it feel to be nerve stapled?
Glad thats over!

[Googlie]

This excerpt was from The Spartan Chronicles - my attempt then to describe nervestapling .....

Kurt moved round in front of him.

Bert's glassy eyes showed the recognition - and wonder. His vocal chords were paralyzed, so he could not utter a word.

Kurt took his backpack from his shoulders, and opened it. He pulled out the contents piece by piece, and showed them to Bert as he arrayed them on the floor beside him.

Bert's eyes were wide with horror as he recognized the items.

Kurt found the power source, and plugged in the base unit. He connected the nodes to their receptacles, then placed the plasteel cap on Bert's head. He connected the sensor filaments, and moistened the pads and placed them on Bert's temples and at the base of his skull.

He connected the filament probes, then looked at the set up. Satisfied, he turned a dial and the equipment hummed to life.

The filaments snaked out and met the sensor pads, penetrating the neural cortex rapidly and easily. They searched for the interstices where the synapses joined and separated, and each time they encountered the join the current surged and the synapse fused. After a few seconds it was done.

Kurt removed the apparatus, and stowed the equipment back into his backpack.

He drew his shredder pistol, set to flame, and turned to the Vidtrance equipment. One burst was enough to incinerate the tape that Bert had somehow manufactured from the dream sequence. The image of Lisa faded from the screen. "I hope you find another man worthy of you" he whispered to the blank screen.

He turned to Bert.

"You've no idea what I'm saying to you, but in case there are recorders operating, note this:

"The nerve prod will weaken in about one hour.

"This attack was not random. It is in revenge for the Hive nuking of the Spartan Command Center through this operative

"I am a Believer"

He padded out and closed the door on the nervestapled Bert.

[Rokossovky]

See! No lasting effects! Perfectly harmless fun for the entire family!!

- Rokossovky

[Vev]

Scientific results shows that nerve stapling does not cause addiction. (WARNING: Nerve stapling may cause submissiveness).

Authorised by "Lucky Strike: Nerve Staples"

[Hercules]

It 's hard to beat a good 'keel haul' first thing in the morning.

[Jamski]

So Drogue, did you vote for the Ayn Rand option? And who was the other one who did?

And Drug, I thought you hated our friend Rand because she's so anti-environmental (You being a green kinda person)

-Jam

[DeathByTheSword]

i must say i always love to read the Pravda....and that for a cyborg with no emotions.......great work......

[Static Universe]

Originally posted by Jamski
So Drogue, did you vote for the Ayn Rand option? And who was the other one who did?

I voted for the "Ayn Rand" option as well.

But now there are three, so I wonder who the other other one who did is?

[Drogue]

I didn't vote at all, I never do on PRAVDA business. It would be an inefficient waste of time for a CyCon to be meddling in the ptty affairs of the Hive. And Jam, that's exactly right, I don't like her for the anti-green, but I do think she has a few points, such as the selfish nature of humans, that should be looked at.

[Cedayon]

The self-interest thing is worth thinking about. I don't think we can completely free ourselves from self-interest in our natural condition... it would be illogical/insane to not care at least somewhat for one's own benefit. The whole matter of self-interest vs. "altruism" is even more of a mess out in the world.

I was taken aback somewhat recently when I realized that I really no longer cared about what happened to me because the only thing I really want is God's will to be done, nothing more, nothing less, nothing else, at any cost. I didn't get to that point of selflessness on my own power; however, so I don't really have much advice to those struggling with self-interest, beyond the obvious.

Anyway, I won't bore you all with more of that, I just thought Ayn Rand would probably have a fit if she had to choose between self-interest and accepting God.

[Drogue]

Cedayon: But is not the reason that you want to do God's will because that is what you want to do. Not only are their the everlasting benefits from an eternity in heaven, but because you believe that that is what is best for the world, and the reward of that "feel good" feeling. You don't have to choose, it is in your self-interest to accept God. If it wasn't, you would not do it.

Take the example of giving to charity. If you give to charity, the feeling you get of doing a good deed, of helping someone who needs that help, is worth more to you than that money does. If it didn't, then you would not give to charity.

[Maniac]

The whole matter of self-interest vs. "altruism" is even more of a mess out in the world.

Well many sociologists would say altruism is just another form of self-interest, since it is in the advantage of the individual to cooperate and be part of a group. So I see no contradiction between self-interest and altruism.

the only thing I really want is God's will to be done... at any cost

Wow. This sentence kind of surprised me I must say. And the "at any cost" kinda scares me. What is God's will according to you, and how did you get to know that will? Just curious: I don't want to start some debate about the probability of some Supreme Sentience's existence or the existence of absolute truths. I guess we both know each other's opinion about that from previous posts on the matter.

[Static Universe]

Interesting that the CyCon are finally outting themselves as Ayn Rand apologists and religious fundamentalists.

Way more ironic than questioning the communist credentials of Hive members.

[Maniac]

Originally posted by Drogue
Cedayon: But is not the reason that you want to do God's will because that is what you want to do.

Well I didn't want to say it so blunt in his face (I was starting with some introductionary Socratic questions ), but that was my first thought too when I read his post. IMHO there is no such thing as "pure altruism".

@ Static Universe:

Edit: Oh btw, what is an "apologist"? I've read that word many times already, but I never really understood the exact meaning. I assume it has little to do with "apologize"?
Edit2: Thanks SU!

[Static Universe]

Originally posted by Maniac

Edit: Oh btw, what is an "apologist"? I've read that word many times already, but I never really understood the exact meaning. I assume it has little to do with "apologize"?

An apologist is someone who defends or justifies a particular idea or creed. There is also a derogatory meaning "to make excuses for".

From dictionary.com:

An apology, in the original sense of the word, was a pleading off from some charge or imputation, by explaining and defending one's principles or conduct. It therefore amounted to a vindication. One who offers an apology, admits himself to have been, at least apparently, in the wrong, but brings forward some palliating circumstance, or tenders a frank acknowledgment, by way of reparation.

[Drogue]

Originally posted by Static Universe
Interesting that the CyCon are finally outting themselves as Ayn Rand apologists and religious fundamentalists.

No, we are finally showing that we believe in freedom of opinion and speech, and that people with radically different views can co-exist peacefully and efficiently. I am no Rand Apologist, I don't like her at all. However I don't dismiss everything someone says because I don't agree with their overall opinion. I am a staunch Atheist, but there are many things written in the Bible regarding how people should behave towards other people that I agree with.

Originally posted by Static Universe
Way more ironic than questioning the communist credentials of Hive members.

Especially considering those that did were PEACE members, not CyCon

However I question quite a bit about a Police State that tries to look Democratic