It's my birthday!!!!!!!

........just saying. :)

He's back!

The Dragon has returned to his lair (yes, this blog is it) after a great holiday in France. Lovely place; too bad the French live there.

So anyway, what's for dinner? Any maidens in distress (or undress) willing to sacrifice themselves to the big bad dragon?

Play some music, maestro.

1. White Stripes: I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself

2. Shakira: La Tortura

3. Britney Spears: I'm A Slave 4 U

4. Ciara ft. Justin Timberlake: Love And Sex And Magic

5. LL Cool J: Doin' It

Watch. Listen. Adore.

Do not underestimate the power of the Empire

Ten reasons why everyone should aspire to being a turtle

10. Turtles are laidback and easygoing.

9. Turtles are not going anywhere fast.

8. Turtles can be great martial artists -- if they can be bothered to learn stuff.

7. Turtles surf the ocean waves. Awesome dude.

6. Some turtles live for more than a century.

5. Turtles are at home anywhere. They carry their home with them. And they're never naked, either.

4. Turtles have survived since the time of the dinosaurs. They must be doing something right.

3. Turtles cannot be stabbed in the back. They've got a shield, you know.

2. Turtles are cute. Period.

1. Turtles don't grow unwanted body hair.

Passion of the Sith

Peace.

I hate the word. Obviously, peace is regarded by its advocates as the ultimate goal, the pinnacle of being.

Peace is a lie.

Sure, a place can be peaceful, and a person at peace. But that is merely a fragment of reality; a camera that focuses on one particular thing -- a subjective truth at best. The eye of a storm is peaceful, yet it cannot be denied that the world around it is not.

This is especially true for people. While individuals may be at peace, the people as a whole are generally not. This is not a bad thing -- restless people try to improve their position, which is of benefit to the whole civilisation, the entire culture. This energy, this restlessness, is often described as 'passion'.

There is only passion.

Naturally, there is not just passion -- most individuals find a balance between peace and passion -- but in a people, passion is most prominent, most important, to that people. Only through passion can we evolve.

Passion is therefore the key to impoving ourselves and our surroundings.

Through passion, I gain strength.

Strength -- not merely muscles -- is what allows civilisations to thrive in hostile climates, amongst competing peoples, from corruption from within.

Walls and soldiers are merely figureheads of a culture's strength. Its true core lies in its people, holding fast to a belief that they can and will endure, no matter the odds.

And against all odds, people often do endure. And grow. And become more respected or feared, and powerful.

Through strength, I gain power.
Through power, I gain victory.

The more powerful a civilisation becomes, the more adept at improving its situation it will become. And this increases its power over potential rivals.

A powerful enough people can conquer the world -- though keeping it is more difficult by far. But more importantly, power is a self-supporting system.

The powerful always seek more power. By definition, this increased power will come from others. They obviously do not want to hand over their might, but attempts at regaining it will be futile if there is a great enough difference in power and ability.

Through victory, my chains are broken.

When one is more powerful than anything or anyone else, one is free to do whatever they want. Nobody can stop them.

The chains of the past, the shackles of that struggle for life, fall away.

And yet... they have no Force.

The Force shall free me.

What does that mean?

I believe, that it means that the Sith Code is true even without the Force. It is true for both individuals and peoples. Whether they act forcefully or gently, their entire existance could not exist without that struggle, that power, that passion that fills their being.

We are all Sith.

Video time

Cheeseburger?

Red Guards find their car stolen

Lovely

Just being around her is intoxicating.

Love - the single most important reason for agony, deception and general suffering. Like a drug, it brings a piece of comfort yet keeps one craving ever more. A beautiful agony.

It is for love that a good guy like Anakin Skywalker turned to the Dark Side.

The Jedi knew the dangers of love, and hence they forbade attachments that could lead to it. Their reasoning was flawed, however, because from detachment comes a cold loneliness inside that, when an opportunity arises, clings to anyone who would give a Jedi a measure of attention. In effect, detachment leads to a greater chance of attachment.

And when someone as pretty and angelic as Padme shows up, it's hard to ignore the feelings that inevitably arise - particularly in a teenage boy.

Suppressing feelings will lead to an increase in such feelings. Detachment is therefore a near-impossible feat and cannot be expected of any person. That, more than any philosophical or practical thing, is what caused the Jedi Order to implode.

Ironically, love is what destroyed the Jedi, and what gave rise to the Sith - although in the end, love took back its rightful place on the side of the Skywalker family.

Fall of the West

Empires rise and crumble. Such is the way of things.

Even so, the downfall of the mighty western empire seems to surprise intelligent people around the globe. America has lost much of its super power, both military and ideologically. Europe, being the older and more careful brother, cannot stand up to replace it and goes down with the United States, while relative newcomers like India, Africa and China are fast becoming more and more influentual and selfassured.

The so-called economic crisis is nothing but the final push over the edge. The real crumbling has been happening for decades, corroding the west from the inside out by focusing on money and superficial perfection -- temporary vanities based on nothing. Spiritual fulfillment is left on hold, emotional satisfaction pending, while the people long to fill the emptiness inside but receive nothing to fill it with.

Which is not to say that the western 'civilisation' does not contain worthy values, nor that great empires are by definition devoid of moral compasses. It was simply not enough invested into, financially or otherwise.

The downfall of the west, and the acknowledgement of this by its people, will happen in gradual leaps in the next few years or decades. Mourn not the lost Empire of Money, for it will become a lesson for future generations and future superpowers.

It's just fucked up that we, as people, get caught in the middle.

Do YOU have what it takes to turn to the Dark Side?

Are you tired of letting those Jedi boss you around? Are you sick of powerhungry politicians and meddling rebels?

You should join the Dark Side; it's fun!

Get your Force potential tested today, at one of the many Sith lairs in a wretched hive of scum and villainy near you. And perhaps you'll be cutting down your foes with your very own scarlet lightsaber by tomorrow!

And there's more. Join today, and you'll get a box of cookies at no extra charge!

Join the Dark Side. It's a way of life - and a way of electrocuting your opponents with your bare hands.

Fear not the darkness

'Maybe there is a beast....maybe it's only us.'
~ William Golding: Lord of the flies

Both for our early ancestors and for modern man, night is a scary time of day. The inevitable darkness hides everything that is not illuminated by the light of a campfire or a lamp post; scary monsters can lurk nearby, just out of sight.

Mankind's active imagination turns innocent noises into threatening foes. It is wise to suspect the worst, so every bird in the undergrowth can be a pack of wolfs in waiting; every backstreet mouse can be a serial killer looking for a victim.

While this simple principle can be effective and even life-saving, it is inherently flawed. The real world holds far less dangers than the mind perceives. Likewise, what is optically revealed by the light is not always so innocent and true to its appearance as one might hope.

People who fear the darkness, fear their own imagination more than anything.

It has been said that most of the human brain is not used. While this statement is controversial, it does imply that mankind may not be living up to its potential, which sounds like a fair assumption. Are you living up to all your potential, in every way? Not likely -- but I mean that without offense. Growing in one direction means simply not growing (much) in another direction.

Much untapped potential still exists, and why would anyone want to waste such precious possibilities? Would you not rather be the person you can be, rather than the empty shadow of that complete self?

Do not be scared of the darkness within you. Explore the deep depths of your own mind, uncover the secrets that are hidden still, and expose the harmless spectres of your own fear. Understand yourself -- improve yourself.

Stop fighting your inner demons; accept them. They're merely another part of you.

Only thus can you face the challenges life throws your way. The mere sight of your confidence will change the mind of many who seek to oppose you.

Imagine, if you will, the imposing figure of Darth Maul. More than his mastery with both the Force and the blade, the complete control over himself and the selfconfidence are what make this Dark Lord so terrifying.

Fear not the darkness within you; embrace it.

He Man

The World Is Mine

Happy New Year!

Better late than never.

Oh, and please keep on treating me like a god in this year, too. :)

It's the little things in life

For all those simple moments in life, when everything seems so carefree, and suddenly, all you can really say is... WTF?

Mickey van Gogh

Love is gone

Did you know...

...that elephants are plotting to conquer the world? They're just not very succesful at it, because their numbers are decreasing rapidly.

...that during the second-to-last Ice Age, hell froze over? The devil's heart is still cold and bitter.

...that that's no moon? It's a crumble of cheese in your eye. Really, get rid of it. It's disgusting.

...that the Second World War, unlike the first one, did not involve the entire world getting into a fight? Antartica didn't fight in the war, for example. It has been the theory of experts that the specialised penguin bomb squad was unavailable due to a mass fishing trip.

...that black is the new black? Gothics worldwide are changing their wardrobe to bright colors.