deanb

and of course we have total hands off gov't...

Good good. Was thinking something had to be iffy there. Any idea of where overall national expenditure would be listed then?

Grand total cost to you--someone else was forced to pay for it. Damn here's me thinking I'd already headed that response off with the "I'm aware of taxes". Yes I'm aware the magical NHS fairy doesn't just shit out medicine and doctors. Question though: What has total cost being for you? The direct costs that is. I'm not really sure where it's been shown "time n time again" that gov't = higher costs. Our entire NHS is cheaper than just the half-arsed stuff you guys have with Medicare n whatnot, never mind the inclusion of private health care on top. (17% compared to 23%)*. As far as the whole "corporations" I'm talking "big-pharma". It's probably why you guys have such huge costs is there's no cap on it. As the saying goes "give em an inch, they'll take a mile". If pill A costs 50p to make and the company sells this to the gov't for £1 the gov't shouldn't just go "okay", should tell them to fuck off. It's the gov't after all. My understanding of Medicare as it is now, the gov't doesn't own..anything. It just sort of pays the bills. Bit like our housing benefits (it pays the rent on private accommodation, as opposed to council housing where the council owns the houses. So the private rent could be as high as landlord asks n the gov't will pay it). Similar thoughts here. And looking at the whole expenditures thing you guys really need to re-jigger. The US gov't needs a mum. Like when you're in a store and you pick up the super turbo action man with stealth goggles and eagle eyes and she says "Do you really need that?". Increasing taxes won't do diddly squat if a fifth of that is just getting blown on wars. Just seems a bit opposite to the whole "government of the people, by the people, for the people" you guys were meant to have going on. *you know looking at those, fuck health care, education doesn't even appear as its own section on US expenditures, it's "discretionary spending". (please tell me I'm reading it wrong. I really shouldn't be that low. 1.4%?)

I've bought "HP7 part deux". I seriously wonder if that is at all confusing the children or if they know exactly what they're getting (heck all they need is a short term memory to realise there's a pattern to my presents)

Necromancers are specifically an issue. Especially with the tri-weilding of spells most mages seem to get and being able to revive their fallen comrades. Many times I've put the final blow on a necromancer only to hear a feeble "wurrhehh" behind me n see an ash pile collapse. When you kill someone they're meant to stay dead. The ward shield thing they use too is a huge pain. Blocks like 99% (if not 100%) of damage and they can switch around in an instant. I don't mind them healing up, but being able to negate pretty much all damage is wrong. That alone makes them hard to kill, then you're having to kill them twice it gets a pain. Dragons, Draugurs, Chuarus, Falmer, Forsworn. They're fine. Challenging but not stupidly easy (base draugur n bandits are a tad though). Mages and especially necromancers are a pain and they are annoying and they really break the flow.

Well for when you guys start rolling new dudes here's a great name generator. It sucks a bit for argonians and Khajits. But it definitely rocks for nords.

Is your interest piqued because of the Famitsu score or other things? Cos these days Famitsu giving a perfect 40 isn't exactly special these days.

Aren't the demographics pretty much "those with" "those without". Those with cash, an education, good health, and those without. I've completed my state funded education, I am in good health and hopefully I'll soon have cash(however for now I am "without"). I'll gladly pay taxes to fund education, to help someone with the ill luck of bad health, and to keep people in housing, warm in winter. I guess it's just how I've been brought up. sharing is carting n all that. I'll agree the NHS is not a perfect system, but it is an awesome system. I'm a cesarean with jaundice, I split my head open when I was a kid, was in a sling after accident in PE, had part of my finger sliced off, been bitten by a german shepard, I've worn glasses since I was 13 and early this year I had a filling. Grand total cost of 22 years of healthcare: £40. (And however much I paid extra for the coating on my glasses, I think £20). Up until a few years ago when I started kotakuites n hanging out with americans the thought that health care would cost had never ever crossed my mind. (yes I'm aware, taxes). I'm not really seeing how size would be an issue, people still have same illness n ailments whether you have 50 people or 50 million. If the NHS could run fine 70 years ago in a time before internet and data management, I'm sure it's not a huge issue to scale up with micro-management of services. America is home to thousands of global corporations that manage billions of customers, I'm sure it's not to hard to serve just 300million customers. Run it like a corporation, just don't be a corporation. You guys run a census yes? What the hell do you use them for now if not to micro-manage the lives of 300million people. We don't just have the NHS as a body controlling services for all 70million folks at once. It's broken down into Primary Care Trusts, which work on a local level. Here's mine for example. They use census data to dictate what is needed where. So if one area has more old folks than normal, then more care homes n care workers are added. I think the main issue America has with socialised services isn't size, it's the same issue that you guys seem to have with pretty much everything else these days: corporations.

Salvation Army is a religious organisation though. Surely something a bit secular like Red Cross would be a bit better if you're donating? However charities and gov'ts tend to have different aims of what they fund (I reckon the US gov't spends consideriablly more on the US people as opposed to something like Red Cross spending tons on international aid) so it's hardly akin to taxes just cos you're paying for something. As a commie brit I'm all for socialised services. The awesome knowledge I could step outside and get ran over and everything will be okay. I just don't think I could put into words how awesome it is to have that knowledge. It just seems so insane to see Americans so vehemently opposed to socialised services like an NHS. Heck just the idea that most Americans are Christian, yet most of the nation is also so opposed to helping the ill n suffering. It's like lolwut.

Spiderman: Web of Shadows: Into the Museum of bad game mechanics Rage: Does exactly what it says on the tin From Dust: To Dust

http://store.steampowered.com/news/6943/ - Steam version has updated. Dunno about consoles. Johnny I may. Though it seems that it manually splits your saves apart if I'm reading it right, and you need to activate it before launching. I'd hope for something in-game.

What the shit. And here I thought the whole Skyrim E/R thing was bad. Oh n for anyone else who didn't notice, the new TOS waive your right to class action lawsuit (I did say more n more companies will be doing it)

Only reason I've started a new guy is cos I posted an image to r/skyrim and tons of folks were suggesting I give the other play styles a shot. I am currently slightly afraid I won't get back to my mage, but then again I've got different quest paths for them (mage is pro-stormcloack, orc is pro-empire, one is mages guild, other is companions guild, etc etc) so it's nice to be able to mix n match. Shame Skyrim has no (current) method of splitting saves into categories by character. @Ethan: Then you realise that dragons rarely land. It's my biggest problem with the current Orc melee guy. I've got archery sure but it's a pain to shoot at them. And even when they're all lined up arrows cause pitifully weak damage compared to what I could do with destruction magic. Sneak perks n such = awesome damage. But if you're "detected" and using a bow then it's pointless.

Duke just RT'ed this. Problems: Gays can serve openly in military Kids can't celebrate Xmas lolwut. One of these is made up and the other is something recently put into law. Let's work out which one is which. Also it was my understanding that being Christian is a-okay, it's the "I'm not ashamed to admit I'm atheist" that's the big huge political no-no in US.

Example of the positive "the": Batman Beyond was the shit Batman Forever was shit Also fuck aesthetics, play as TAS batman.

How? Even my mage dude with robes n hood still has space for gauntlets and boots. Only 0 armour version of those I've seen are the Brotherhood mages gear, however the boots and shoes come with same perk, but the boots provide armour too. And as a mage you don't really need the gloves. Something off I've noticed is my current heavy armour orc dude is that I'm hardly coming across any ores or ingots. Leather sure, but I'm not a leather wearing guy. Whereas my mage was all over the stuff. Not been anywhere dwarven yet though, will do soon though I want to upgrade my gear, only have a dwarven shield. Also no soul-tap weapons (or a ready supply of soul gems) so enchanting is a bit bummed. Might have to start buying raw materials. I've become a bit more precise this time too. For example on my mage I'd just come across a new ritual stone and activate it (most of the time, sometimes I wasn't much for it), but now I'm actively using Kynaerath shrines (boost to stamina) and using the guardian stones too to manage my levelling up, at the moment I'm doing dark brotherhood/thieves guild related quests so using the Theif stone to power up my Sneak n Archery faster. Also how'd you go about levelling up pickpocket? Are weightless items completely unnoticeable, so you could reverse pickpocket arrows or something/steal coins and have little detection? Just I'd like to level it up for the burden perk, but no idea how. At least if you cock-up picking a lock no one turns on you. Oh n Nvidia have a tweak guide up that Elder Scrolls posted about, it'll apply to ATi too since not much is Nvidia related: http://www.geforce.com/Optimize/Guides/the-elder-scrolls-v-skyrim-tweak-guide Most of it I'm sure you've figured out by now.

no terrible as in when you're up against it. You guys all missed Waldorfs ALL CAPS POST? @madbass: Hardcap is 81. By that point you'll have all the perks available.

Yeah it was a while until I went "oh wait, why am I hoarding my Cure Disease potions?" Ice storm is pretty terrible.

We call Nachos nachos. It's a Mexican word after all. (and tacos n fajitas n such) And yes, crisp/chips are a very very early one. Though we do call the thinner chips fried. What we have as chips are close what you guys would call steak fries.

I'm thinking you're maybe taking it a bit too far when you turn up to the Finnish presidential palace wearing this. http://multiplayerblog.mtv.com/2011/12/06/wife-of-rovios-peter-vesterbacka-wears-angry-birds-evening-dress-at-finnish-presidential-ball/

We have crackers too. I'm gonna trust you guys figure it out with regards to the cookie/cookie thing.

that Canadian "biscuit" is a scone. (pronounced as in gone, not as in stone, unless you're an uncivilized lout). They're both savoury and sweet, depends on what you put in them. @FDS: But how do you figure out what kind, or is it pretty much a case of physically bringing over the box of biscuits(cookies)

So if someone offers a cookie, how'd you differentiate between all cookies and cookies. Like I could ask if someone wants a biscuit, which would be offering a selection, but if I offered a cookie it'd be the chocolate chip type biscuit. (should note they're not always chocolate chip, but it seems everyone in the example pictures is)

When we say biscuit it's covering a rather broad range of sweet baked goods. When we're talking cookies it's a very specific type of biscuit. Biscuits cookies (chocolate chip to be exact) However wiki tells me these are what you'd call cookies The ones on the top n bottom right are what we'd call cookies, one in the middles are gingerbread ...men/people(it depends if folks are being PC or not) In fact, what do you guys call the things we call cookies? We have names for all sorts of biscuits(digestives, nice, hobnobs, rich tea, melting moments, hovis etc), but if you're using cookies in place of biscuit as a whole..then what is the chocolate chip thing?