Chinese Used Video Game to Train Policemen?

According to the bastion of VERY UNBIASED news, the state-run People's Daily Online, it seems policemen used the video game Counter-Strike to improve their counter-terrorism tactics. According to this article,

Keyboards ready, headphones on, Chinese police moved in for the kill.

More than 300 police officers in China's northern port city Tianjin were "mobilized" to an Internet cafe Wednesday for a three-day competition of the terrorism-themed computer game Counter-Strike.

I want to stop you and have you think about that first sentence there. This really seems to convey the fact that the police want to shoot first and ask questions later. The police officers whose keyboards were "ready" and whose headphones were "on" are all about firing indiscriminately at anyone who looks like a terrorist. I have an inkling that Chinese police are more likely to square off against their own citizens rather than Islamic-looking terrorists. Just a thought.

Also, let's be serious here. Counter-Strike just isn't a realistic game. You don't have to shoot someone twelve times with a Glock to be able to put them down. Also, things usually blow up a lot more devastatingly if you throw a HE grenade at it. And I'm pretty sure you can't jump down two flights of stairs in real life without injuring your leg. This article is so propagandized that it becomes absolutely laughable. Yes, folks, brace yourself for the Chinese police, they have military training FROM A VIDEO GAME. THEY ARE ABSOLUTELY UNSTOPPABLE NOW.

Here's another snippet from further down the article:

Counter-Strike, played by hundreds of thousands of gamers worldwide, is a tactical first-person shooter video game and features real-world weapons.

This is an argument ad populum because it implies that it's a really good tool for law enforcement because it's been "played by hundreds of thousands of gamers worldwide". This article is correct that it features real-world weapons, but these guns don't do real-world damage. And I'm pretty sure that Chinese police officers don't run around with Desert Eagles or akimbo Beretta M92FS pistols.

And in the next paragraph, it just keeps getting better (emphasis added):

Han Zhen, a tactical instructor of Tianjin police, found the game very helpful. "Given its close resemblance to real-life scenarios, the game greatly enhances the terrorism awareness of our officers," the five-year veteran gamer said. "And it is very important as terrorism has become a global issue.

Um, first, I'd like to point out that take issue with the fact that there's no closing quotes on the last sentence of that paragraph. Apparently the People's Daily Online doesn't care very much about copy editing their great works of journalism. I also think it's funny that they keep repeating that it's realistic. They're playing themselves if they think that you can't potentially die from one bullet. And I don't see why terrorism being global necessitates the police to play video games. It's not a very well-thought-out idea.

And even the ending to this article is made of fail:

During the competition, a panel of referees were introduced to ensure no cheating, such as "peeking".

"In actual situations, you have no way to peek at the terrorists' position," Han, the instructor, said.

O RLY. You had referees. That's super. I bet that happens in real life terrorism scenarios too, right? A super high-tech way of preventing the police from screen-cheating.

By the way, if this post didn't convince you that Counter-Strike isn't like real life, maybe this picture might help:

Counter-Strike Source: Because Chinese policemen might have to defend against terrorists trying to blow up a European castle.

Pokémon Nostalgia

I was the biggest Pokémon fan back in the good old days. My earliest memory about this game dates back to when I was six years old and playing AYSO soccer when I used to live in the San Fernando Valley. I remember I was chilling out at some benches after a game and some kids were playing Pokémon. I thought it was the coolest thing in the world and couldn't stop thinking about it. I finally got my opportunity to play this game for myself when my parents bought me a Game Boy so I wouldn't be bored when I went up to my grandparents' house near Sacramento, CA. I remember playing the game nonstop for the entire drive up and being so engrossed in the game; it was one of the most exciting experiences I can remember. Part of why it was so exciting was because there was some epic weather happening on the I-5 freeway and it was raining pretty hard while I was playing the game. This ambience must have contributed to my sense of excitement and wonder about Pokémon. At the same time, I began to watch the Pokémon animated series on UPN-13 during the week before I would get driven to school. Then I would wake up at 6:00 and watch several hours of cartoons on KTLA-5 during the weekend. I remember Pokémon was the most hyped show on the entire block of cartoons and came on at 9:30 AM. I used to go to school, go to an after-school program on the campus, do all my homework, get driven home, eat dinner, and then play Pokémon or some computer game for the rest of the night until I fell asleep. It was an obsession. That was nearly all I talked about with my friends for a couple of years (from age six to nine or ten). So naturally hearing these clips on YouTube of the epic Pokémon music from the original Red/Blue/Yellow gave me the chills and filled me with nostalgia. I thought i might share some of these clips with you, and what these clips make me remember.

This is the bike theme. It's a really short, catchy tune that stuck in my head as a kid. Hearing this clip reminded me of the fact that I would always make the bicycle my first item in the trainers' backpack.I could press start, down, down, A, A, and I would get on the bicycle and be on my merry way.


This is, of course, the Pokémon battle theme, played on a piano. There are some mistakes on here, but you get the idea. The piano is making it sound pretty epic, I gotta say.


This was the music that played when you're just starting with your quest. It's really a nice tune that makes you want to continue playing the game. Route 1 is the route between Pallet Town and Viridian City, if I'm not mistaken. This is where you encounter your first wild Pokémon, such as Pidgey and Rattata.


I hoped you enjoyed this trip back in time as much as I did.

Some Old Stuff

I used to play a Japanese 2-D top-down bullet hell game (danmaku) called Touhou. I thought I might dig up a couple remixes by enthusiasts of the game. They made some interesting Flash music videos (just like Deltron did several years earlier) that have now been ported to YouTube for your convenience. Forgive me if this is a huge shift away from hip-hop music; it's just that I had some different musical tastes in 2006/2007 compared to today...

IOSYS - 患部で止まってすぐ溶ける　～ 狂気の優曇華院


IOSYS - 魔理沙は大変なものを盗んでいきました


Cis-Trance - ポイズンボディ ～ Forsaken Doll(MAKINA MIX). Yeah this isn't IOSYS but it's just another example of a Touhou remix to which I frequently listened.


Next update: hopefully some political commentary...