TLC Crackdown: The real cost of playing World of Warcraft

Now for something different from the usual mishmash of random crap that has appeared on this blog of late. Last evening I indulged in the most intellectual of conversations with my associate J. Ho PhD Lovematics, and discussed the "cost" of playing World of Warcraft. Below I will provide the results and findings we uncovered during our scholarly chat.

First of all, lets look at the cost in terms of money. We calculated this based on the "loyal customer" or "steadfast consumer", ie. someone who is going to play to max level (with expansion) and participate in a reasonable amount of end-game content. Individual prices are taken from the lowest we've seen of the RRP in Australia. All costs are calculated in AUD.

Step 1.... Rolling start
World of Warcraft CD/DVDs with account key, with 1 month of play = $25
Burning Crusade CDs with expansion key = $50

Now, when Mr (or Miss) New WoW Player starts a new account, they have to either enter credit card details or a game card number in order to "activate" their subscription. You see, this is just how well Blizzard had thought out their business plan. Basically the credit card details are proof of the consumer's ability to keep on playing after the first month runs out. The truth is, anyone who's only going to play WoW for only the initial month is not getting their money's worth.

Ok, so they've just forked out $75 for the game and expansion (all you're really doing is paying for the account keys printed on the CD slips). Now if they don't have a credit card, and only someone with a steady income could keep one and play using it, expect to pay another $40 for a game card, which will be instantly activated and stacked after the initial month. So this forces a consecutive 3 month period of activated gameplay. Basically this gives the consumer no option at all to stop playing after the first month and save their extra 2 months for another time.

Step 2... Level 1 to 60
J. Ho proposed a 2-hour-a-day gameplay plan for our imaginary consumer. How long would an average WoW player take to reach Level 60 on this schedule? I estimated something close to 6 months.

6 months of WoW subscription is....
3 game cards = $120 (if bought from a shop)
3 game cards = $102 (if bought from eBay)

Now, C knows that certain sellers on eBay vendor the game cards at $34 free postage, so we can bring that cost down quite a bit. However, for the WoW player, unless they are well organized (highly doubtful), they will most likely not keep track of their WoW subscription and suddenly one day realize, "Oh, darn, it's run out." The fastest option would be to head down to the local EB and fork out a hefty $40 for the 60-day recharge. For organized people and Asians, eBay is probably the better option simply because its the cheaper option. Though the delivery is not instant, if one has not reached the level of addiction, the consumer could probably survive a few days without it and save themselves $6. Go buy yourself a cookie!

Alright... so our lucky friend has reached Level 60! Ding! Grats!

Step 3... Gearing at 60
Gearing up is a lengthy process, but there are a few different ways to obtain decent equipment. At 60 our player would be pretty experienced at the game by now, but probably has never entered a 40-man raid. So first they're going to take some time to get "attuned" and "keyed", which are fancy terms that roughly translate to "do lots of quests and other menial tasks for a month or two".

I gave our consumer 1 month of gameplay time to get attuned for Molten Core, the first 40-man raid dungeon available. During their time in MC, they'll roughly be spending 3+ hour sessions inside the dungeon with 39 other people. With only a handful of bosses and very low drop-rates, and a total of 8 character classes, and one piece of the armor set dropping if you're lucky, getting enough gear to move on to the next dungeon can be a very long and arduous (sp?) task.

If they decide to not raid and just PVP, the honor required for the 60 epic sets is a reasonably high amount. So that's a lot of PVPing right there, whether its from world or BGs. BGs are a lot faster, but could get old very quick because of random team matchups.

Lets not forget the money required for the Epic mount too. Something close to 550 gold will take maybe a few weeks to farm, if all they're doing is pure farming.... farming day after day for quite a few days. I managed to make close to 400 gold after 2 months of semi-farming from Level 20-45-ish. At Level 60, depending on their professions, the grind for cash could be much faster or slower.

So... another 3 months of gameplay will amount to a total of $60.

Step 4... Grind to 70 and beyond
Alright, they work hard to hit 70 after getting geared and then at 70, it's time to get attuned for more dungeons and raid more on weekends and get geared and then PVP more and whatnot. Maybe this will keep them entertained for 2 months, but usually people will roll new characters. So now they've started a new character and they'll be playing this one again.

Grind, grind, grind and suddenly 3 months of their life has wasted away again.

Let's pretend that's a total of 6 months... which is... $120.

Step 5... Year 2 Maths
Let's sum it all up now, for the cost of someone who plays to Level 70 and enjoys some end-game content and maybe play a new character...

$25 + $50 + $120 + $60 + 120 = $375...

Well, you look at it, and it doesn't seem to be all that much.

Now there are people out there who've been playing since the release, which was like 2 years back... Every year of WoW subscription costs $240. Do the maths yourself. Blizzard must be very very rich.

TLC Crackdown: Harry Potter Book 7 Leaked

The very professional janitors at The Letter C office managed to hijack a bypassing truck earlier this week. First believing it to contain enough beer to solve Australia's drought problem, upon opening the metallic safes (yes, plural), we discovered copies of the first print of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows. Unfortunately, in order to prevent anyone selling them or keeping them for personal use, several of them self destructed. We managed to salvage half of one and a bit of another. From what we could put back together, we have a large portion of the second last chapter, since the self-destruction device was installed in the front of the book, possibly to injure thieving magpies.

Anyhow, here is the excerpt from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows, the seventh and final book of the Harry Potter series, written by J. K. Rowling:

** WARNING: SPOILERS AND EXTREME WIZARD VIOLENCE**

- CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX -

The Dirtiest Deed

Dumbledore's charred remains showered the room and Voldemort blew out his smouldering wand. The dark room continued to remain lit after the spell found impact. Harry could not believe his eyes; the greatest wizard he had ever known was killed in a split second. Strangely, Voldemort's spell did not flash green, but Harry was too shocked to notice.

"You're next Potter!" cackled the dark lord.

Voldemort began walking towards the other side of the room.

"Harry! Harry! What are you doing? Run!" cried Hermione, who was still trapped under the broken pillar. While Harry stood there, he began to feel tears come from his eyes. Suddenly, warm hands came from behind and placed themselves on his shoulders. Harry turned around to find the last person he wanted to see, but the truth was, it was the only person he wanted to see. Malfoy began to stroke Harry's hair, saying, "Potter, it's not over. Stay strong." Harry was so touched by Malfoy's words that he could no longer hold back the tears and started sobbing profusely into Malfoy's chest.

"Spare me the corny soap opera and die! Abra Kadabra!"

Lord Voldemort shoots Rank 1 Death Coil at Harry Potter!

Harry Potter takes 220 shadow damage!

Lord Voldemort is healed for 220 damage!

Harry Potter runs in horror!

"Potter, you can't die now. I have to first tell you the truth about everything," whispered Malfoy. Although Harry had blood spewing out of his chest and desperately needed to go to the hospital, Malfoy turned him to face himself and said, "Harry, I love you. There is nobody else in the world who I would rather spend the rest of my life with than you." Being the type of girl who always did the right thing at the right time, Hermione used the last of her strength to cast a summoning spell to summon Celine Dion to the presence of the amorous lovers, who now had their bodies intertwined on the hard, stone floor of the underground tomb.

- END EXCERPT -

Many apologies to the kids and dirty perverts who really wanted to see more (pun intended). Hope we didn't spoil too much for you of what's to come in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows. You can be sure that the content is retrieved is 100% reliable; no amount of "Made in China" tags are going to fool us. We did indeed get our hands on the real thing, and if Miss Rowling is keen on sueing (sp?) TLC, our army of lawyers will be ready.

Regards,
The Letter C Staff, Amateur Storywriting Department

TLC Crackdown: Solo Roleplaying

Gimme a break 6.43 already!? says (12:58 PM):
yeah it was
either going to be dual monitors
or 30"
[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (12:58 PM):
i haven't decided for anzac weekend yet
Gimme a break 6.43 already!? sends:

Open(Alt+P)

You have successfully received D:\My Documents\My Received Files\DSC00005.JPG from Gimme a break 6.43 already!?.

[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (1:00 PM):
...whoa
Gimme a break 6.43 already!? says (1:00 PM):
yeah the pronz... i mean movies
look reallyg ood
lol
[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (1:00 PM):
nice keyboard... isn't that like $300?
[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (1:01 PM):
i saw that keyboard at harvey norman yesterday and it was going for $300..
Gimme a break 6.43 already!? says (1:01 PM):
yeah thats like hte novaedge or some crap
[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (1:01 PM):
omg
insane
very cool
Gimme a break 6.43 already!? says (1:01 PM):
thankte matey
come play dota next time
lol
[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (1:01 PM):
lol
when?
oh
Gimme a break 6.43 already!? says (1:01 PM):
if u're ever in town
[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (1:01 PM):
man dota on widescreen is soooo weird
lolo
Gimme a break 6.43 already!? says (1:01 PM):
yeah it is a little
[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (1:01 PM):
yeh
[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (1:02 PM):
i play in windowed mode anyway
so i resize it back to golden ratio
Gimme a break 6.43 already!? says (1:02 PM):
what!?
[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (1:02 PM):
you really should play in windowed mode
Gimme a break 6.43 already!? says (1:02 PM):
whats
[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (1:02 PM):
-windowed
Gimme a break 6.43 already!? says (1:02 PM):
'godlen ratio'
[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (1:02 PM):
golden ratio is... 4:#
4:3
the normal screen ratio
like.. not wide
Gimme a break 6.43 already!? says (1:02 PM):
yeah yeah
actually that mite work
there is also some way
[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (1:02 PM):
yeh go for it
Gimme a break 6.43 already!? says (1:02 PM):
to force a lot of programs
Gimme a break 6.43 already!? says (1:03 PM):
to show that many pixels
[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (1:03 PM):
wow
Gimme a break 6.43 already!? says (1:03 PM):
like generals zero hour u can edit the ini
to make it 2560 x 1600
[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (1:03 PM):
...OMgggggg
[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (1:04 PM):
have you played C&C3 yet?
it looks slick
Gimme a break 6.43 already!? says (1:04 PM):
no i haven't
but my friend's bugging me to get it
i'm playing oblivion
its such a bad idea
lol
[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (1:04 PM):
probably not worth the $88
ahhah oblivion
Gimme a break 6.43 already!? says (1:04 PM):
but such a good game
[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (1:04 PM):
oh man
Gimme a break 6.43 already!? says (1:04 PM):
did u play it???
[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (1:04 PM):
it must look good on that monitor
no i didn't
i'm not really into that type of RPG
Gimme a break 6.43 already!? says (1:04 PM):
yeah it looks relaly good
rpgs are soul suckers
[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (1:04 PM):
WoW already takes enough of my time
Gimme a break 6.43 already!? says (1:04 PM):
are u wowing?
haha
hahha
[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (1:04 PM):
i don't really enjoy single player RPG
Gimme a break 6.43 already!? says (1:04 PM):
hahaah
the role play
[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (1:05 PM):
i'm not playing WoW right now... lol
Gimme a break 6.43 already!? says (1:05 PM):
not real enough for u?
[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (1:05 PM):
XD

Gimme a break 6.43 already!? says (1:05 PM):
lol thats so funny
on so many levels
'single player role playing is not enjoyable'
but many people role playing is
hahahaha
[cwong] charles "chuckwardenn" wong [/cwong] for bleach lovers: http://youtube.com/watch?v=WYGLEJ9LV18 says (1:06 PM):
lol

O MAI GAW- TELL ME THIS ISN"T INSNAE

TLC Crackdown: Uglie Nerd Epidemic

Dear citizens of Planet Earth,

A world-peace-threatening epidemic is just beyond the horizon and fast approaching. Possibly by 2010 AD or sooner, a new race of humans known as Uglie Nerds will spawn from a currently non-existent gene pool and terrorise peaceful neighbourhoods and trample our planet's fragile daffodils and ants. Scientists were warned on the 18th of September, 2006 by a man going under the alias "Time Commando". 20th Century geeks have already confirmed that it is not the guy who starred in the PlayStation game of the same name.

So far, we have little evidence that excessive use of the electronic drug called World of Warcraft will be the cause of this disaster. Moreso, many of the world leaders are unaware that the Internet was used for the intake of illegal data - we thought that people only used it to download pornography. In the event that World of Warcraft is indeed the catalyst for destruction, we have decided that no risks can be taken and that the Internet must be cut away.

After browsing various virtual breeding dens of these Uglie Nerds, named "forums", we have concluded that a blizzard will mark the beginning of the uprising. Our top scientists and environmental activists have, for the first time in 220 years, decided to settle their differences and join together in an act of accelerated global warming. We have predicted that if every household of developed nations burns at least 10Kg of coal per day, the global warming process will be complete by 30th of February, 2008. A total of $470 billion US has been allocated for the development of underwater colonies, water-resistant fireworks and waterproof toasters.

In the event that our leadership has got it totally wrong, we implore all females to stay away from the Internet. We fear that the Uglie Nerds will target those of the feminine gender, regardless of age or location. If you are a parent and you have a daughter who has a MySpace page, then we regret to inform you that it is too late. They will be the first to be swarmed by the Uglie Nerds. Fear not, as we have access to government information detailing your daughter's exact whereabouts and her measurements.

See you later, suckers,
World leaders of the arrogant and smug variety

TLC Crackdown: Gay gamers

Doesn't my hair look so good?

Er, I'm sorry.. what? No, I'm not in the photo.

>_>

Crap, my engagement ring is clearly visible.

# SENSUAL R&B MUSIC #

TLC Crackdown: War on Anti-World of Warcraft-ism

Session Start: Thursday, 15 February 2007
Participants: ...-kun" [/cwong] ISO: WoW CD + Account (chibiwong@hotmail.com) (F) gwo™:. (L)

[7:33:18 PM] [cwong] char: i'm gonna play wrodl of warcraft
man
:)
[7:33:31 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: ROFL
ZOMG YOU NOOB
PLEASE DONT
[7:40:40 PM] [cwong] char: i am going to
i think JC doesn't play anymore
im gonna steal his account
lol
[7:41:02 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: dude that wasnt funny
[7:41:30 PM] [cwong] char: dude
i'm not trolling
i am dead serious
[7:41:39 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: dude you rollsrs
dont try and eb funny
[7:41:48 PM] [cwong] char: i watched ep 8
haven't got ep 9 yet
[7:41:56 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: its boring
8 > 9
[7:42:03 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: but 9 made me angry i guess
[7:42:57 PM] [cwong] char: k
[7:43:01 PM] [cwong] char: shhhh
[7:43:09 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: ROFL SHUT UP DONT PLAY WOW
[7:43:12 PM] [cwong] char: NOOOO
[7:43:19 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: DUDE
[7:43:20 PM] [cwong] char: if i can't get JC's discs + account by tomo
rorw
[7:43:21 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: YOULL BE FATTY
[7:43:22 PM] [cwong] char: i'm going out to buy them
no man i'm only gonna play a month at a time
[7:43:35 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: YOU going TO buy BURNING crusade?
[7:43:46 PM] [cwong] char: nope
not until later on
[7:43:59 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: YOU FAGGOT
[7:44:05 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: NO RESPECT EVER AGAIN
[7:46:13 PM] [cwong] char: plz
:(
[7:46:26 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: noever again
NOT EVER EVER
[7:46:51 PM] [cwong] char: NOOOOOOOOOOOOO
[7:46:51 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: srsly

[7:47:31 PM] [cwong] char: k.
:(
[7:47:57 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: SO DONT PLAY
[7:48:08 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: chrasto
[7:49:04 PM] [cwong] char: OMG
[7:49:15 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: HO HO HO
MERRY CHRISTMAS JEW
[7:54:06 PM] [cwong] char: lol
sup nab
[7:54:16 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: YOU SUCK YOU WoW
NERD
[7:54:31 PM] [cwong] char: ROFL
TRICKED
[7:54:36 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: ROFL
NAH
YOU WERE GAY BOY
[7:54:46 PM] [cwong] char: noooooooooooooooooo
[7:54:50 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: I DONT BELIEVE YOU NOW
[7:54:55 PM] [cwong] char: :'(
[7:55:07 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: HIGH PAIRS
[7:55:07 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: YOU SUCKSORS
[7:56:18 PM] [cwong] char: :(
[7:56:43 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: ITS OVER ITS OVER NOW
[7:58:26 PM] [cwong] char: noooooooo
[7:58:32 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: ITS OVER
[8:06:10 PM] [cwong] char: nooo

[10:05:23 PM] [cwong] char: i just downloaded 1gb worth of patches for
WoW
[10:05:30 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: LMFAO
YOU LIAR
[10:06:35 PM] [cwong] char: no mate
i'm not kidding
do you need to see screenshots?
[10:06:49 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: ID RATHER NOT FAGGORT
[10:06:55 PM] [cwong] char: LOL
TROLLED
[10:07:03 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: FAGGORT
[10:07:06 PM] [cwong] char: its k
i'll name my character after you
[10:07:20 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: NEVERRRRRRR
[10:07:23 PM] [cwong] char: LOOLOLOLOL

World of Warcraft is serious business.

TLC Crackdown: When religion and politics collide

My negative opinion on Kevin Rudd is not news to the world, as everyone knows that I think he's an arrogant and smug asshat. Your local postie knows this, your piano teacher knows this and I daresay, I think your neighbour's pet labrador knows it too. There was a time when I (Charles) received a call to do a politics-related survey. One of the questions asked was:

Who do you consider to be arrogant, callous and smug? John Howard or Kim Beazley?

This happened during the time with Mr Beazley was still around, but I said to the surveyor, "Can I say Kevin Rudd?" Unfortunately, due to survey protocol, he was unable to allow me to answer this way and I had to choose John Howard instead, much to my shame because I believe Mr Howard to be a nice man.

I am not the biggest fan of Mr Rudd, considering Kim Beazley, his predecessor was actually my favourite pick for Labor Prime Minster of the modern era. Simon Crean was old and too much of a resemblance to dictator Joseph Stalin, and Mark Latham's forehead was way too damn big.

Upon reading this article, titled Abbott lashes Rudd on religion, we have Tony Abbott, a very respectable man who is widely hailed in The Letter C office as being the "head honcho drug dealing ex-priest-in-training". Now that we know Mr Rudd is a Christian, are we Christians more likely to vote for Labor in the coming election? I do not in any way consider Australia a "Christian country", much in the same way like the United States, and I surely hope to never see the kind of extremist patriotism and condemnation of non-believers.

Is Mr Rudd trying to turn Australia into a theocracy, or is he just really eager for votes that he will compromise his Christian values to gain support of Christians around Australia? I'm glad I will not be voting for this man.

I quote from the aforementioned article:

The minister (Tony Abbott) urged Mr Rudd to produce policies, not rhetoric, to show he was interested in the values of Christians rather than just their votes.

“I just wish he would stop feeding the myth of the Christian right without at least some hard evidence,” Mr Abbott said.

“Not only does it unfairly smear Christian people who just happen not to agree with him on some political issues but it makes him look two-faced when I'm not convinced he is.”

Tony Abbott, respect +10.

TLC Crackdown: When Jack killed Dumbledore

The art of "spoiling" has been thoroughly practised throughout the years - by hoodlums, by parents and by FILTHY FUN-LOVING F(**&^KING NOOBTRASH FILTH OMGGGGG

***WARNING: This post may contain traces of nuts and spoilers of 24 Season 6. Proceed with caution. Wear a paper bag over your head if necessary.

The content of this post may potentially affect you as much as someone telling you the horrible truth that, "You fail at life." C is currently on the roof of the building right now, planning to jump.

We do not condone this horrible crime that hath befallen upon our chief editor, and do not encourage it to be done anywhere else. This act of spoiling has marked the end of a beautiful blogging career of C, a wonderful gentleman who spent his weeknights appreciating the finer things in life - such as Naruto yaoi, Durian flavoured icecream and cufflinks.

This is a condemnation of spoiling and we hope that many others who have had their TV/novel/gardening experience ruined because of a lack of consideration by filthy noobtrash who really "meant no harm" can relate to and find closure by reading this chatlog of C's last e-words.

As we type this final paragraph, policemen are on the roof trying to coax C away from the edge of the building with money, heterosexual pornography, a 5-star holiday trip to Switzerland and a fishing lure shaped like mermaid. Little do they know, C has no interest in any of these things. We must finish this post soon, we cannot bear to see his fragile Asian body float down to the ground floor and risk him floating into the industrial bin where all our stolen PS3s are hidden.

Remember kids: don't spoil anything for anyone you love, not even if it means you will procure that priceless reaction which you could sell on ebay for triple your superannuation.

**LAST WARNING: The following chat log contains spoilers of 24 Season 6. While The Letter C is extremely careful in ommitting sensitive information, there may be traces of meat.











.--------------------------------------------------------------------.
Session Start: Saturday, 27 January 2007
Participants:
...cwong] Hi, my name is Postmodernist. (chibiwong@hotmail.com)
(F) gwo™:. (L)
.--------------------------------------------------------------------.

[12:18:47 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: grahme bauer
theres also josh bauer
[12:18:50 PM] [cwong] Char: OMG
STFU
[12:18:53 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: :P:
[12:18:54 PM] [cwong] Char:
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOooo
[12:18:59 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: LMFAO
[12:19:01 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: you have to dl man
its
an awesome episode
[12:19:04 PM] [cwong] Char:
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
i'm dling part 1
[12:19:12 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: YOU MISS OUT
[12:19:15 PM] [cwong] Char:
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
[12:19:29 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: LMAO
[12:19:33 PM] [cwong] Char: YOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU
[12:19:33 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: this is
freaking gold
WALLID
LMFAO
[12:19:36 PM] [cwong] Char:
FOCKINNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNn
[12:19:37 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: LMFAO
SANDRA
WAYNE
[12:19:40 PM] [cwong] Char:
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
[12:19:42 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: JACK
CHLOE
MILO
[12:19:46 PM] [cwong] Char:
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
[12:19:48 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: BILL
GRAHAME
[12:19:52 PM] [cwong] Char:
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

[12:19:54 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: PHILLIP
[12:19:55 PM] [cwong] Char:
OMGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG
[12:19:56 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: jOSH
[12:19:58 PM] [cwong] Char:
OMGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG
GGGGGGGGGGGGG
[12:20:01 PM] (F) gwo™:. (: JACK
[12:20:02 PM] [cwong] Char: FOCKING
DIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

What a great man C was, a defender of the drug-addicted and wielder of the pen. His last e-words really do carry a special meaning and touch us very deeply in every way. Goodbye fair lady, you will surely be missed.

TLC Crackdown: When journalists report on World of Warcraft

Nothing positive could ever come out of any news article on World of Warcraft if it is by your local current affairs show. Of course, if I were writing something on WoW, I would glorify it and write loads of crap on how it is a positive hobbie to pursue!

Check out how the journalists in this story portray the game as the work of the devil, and how they continue to quote "experts" which are never shown nor even named! Funny how the boy apparently had a job which we can only assume paid for his WoW addiction, but now that he's dropped out of school and work, I guess mum's going to have to pay for it! Isn't it hilaroius how so many parents don't have control over their kids? This kid is only a minor, he's 16 and yet nothing can be done about his addiction.

The Letter C is sitting around laughing at this news story because we believe it has nothing to do with World of Warcraft and is a horrible attempt at scapegoating. The real issue is not the boy's addiction but the mother's inability to discipline her own child. We also believe the external news article on the Chinese boy who committed suicide over the game was very much taken out of context. Oh, let's do a little pan over the headline of the story to show that such a case existed!

We still can't get over the fact that the reporter quotes "expert" opinion. Experts on what? Experts on not showing their face or not having a name? Name the damn expert, damnit! Breakage of journalism ethics there, not attributing your source, filthy scums of the earth. Not only so, but he says, [quote] "World of Warcraft has had such an impact on players that there are chat rooms on the Internet dedicated to addicts." [/quote] LOL? Hello Mr Journalist, there are chat rooms dedicated to EVERYTHING, including furry porn, white chocolate and pineapple plantations on the Internets. I lol'd irl.

And when the kid is explaining himself, he gets cut off! Notice how the rest of his speech was muted and we didn't get to hear him. We only got to hear the most incriminating parts of what he said, to further enforce the fact that this kid is beyond help! Pathetic. This is absolutely pathetic and it happens way too often; journalists cutting and editing the real story to make it work for them. What was with the shots of the kid in dark lighting and the Star Wars poster in the background? Is Star Wars bad too now? How about that shot of the hole in the wall? Why, that really makes him look like a violent thug, considering the rest of the house is in shambles (if anyone noticed).

This is the truth: there are two types of people in this world; good people, and journalists. Absolutely disgusting.

TLC Crackdown: When unabashed DDR players have sleepovers

I swear I am totally innocent! >_>

TLC Crackdown: When journalists don't use their brains

'Failed London bombers' accused of extremist Muslim plot

Mr Sweeney said Omar's one-bedroom flat in New Southgate, north London, was the "bomb factory" and "where the great majority, if not all, of the work required to make those bombs was carried out".

The court heard that the bombs were made of a mixture of liquid hydrogen peroxide and chapati flour, which would burn with the oxygen provided by the hydrogen peroxide. Mr Sweeney said the bomb would be detonated by several grams of triacetone triperoxide (TATP).

Full transcript here: http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200701/s1827427.htm

I saw this news story during dinner tonight. Read the exerpt carefully. This is the result of journalists choosing to report the wrong shit.

Finished reading the exerpt? Ok, let's continue.

I am currently wondering who will take the blame when curious Australian viewers go ahead and try out the "bomb recipe" provided by this news story. Obviously an ABC News journalist did not bother using his/her brain when they wrote this and decided to broadcast it all over Australia during the evening news.

Thanks a lot for quite possibly making Australia a more dangerous place. Maybe nothing will happen over this, but maybe there will. Curious young people might decide to go build their own bomb for kicks and hurt themselves or somebody. Who'll get bashed by the media then? Are they still going to stereotype Muslims as being the only people who do these things? Now everybody who watched that particular segment know what the core components are and can construct their own bomb. Not only so, but both ingredients are available at your local supermarket. Isn't this f-ed up? Oh, soon it won't be "extremist Muslims" blowing shit up, but it'll be random Australian schoolkids.

O shi-, I saw that segment too, and now I know how to build a bomb. I wonder if the journalist did it to raise awareness, or what? This story was about something happening in the UK. Going into the details of how the bomb was made was absolutely unnecessary. There was no need at all to report that, but it was done anyhow. Thanks. Welcome to "the list". The writer of this story is extremely lucky I was too appalled by this news to catch their name.

It is a good thing that the majority of my readers are mature young people. But to broadcast that shit to family televisions around our beautiful country is a true demonstration of how stupid journalists can be. This is an example of how journalism can go terribly, terribly bad.