mousedroid

I blame a lot of the bad driving we see today on the ridiculous amount of horsepower available in today's cars. A study done by the EPA and Department of Energy shows that in the average horsepower of cars and light trucks in the US rose from a low of 102 hp in 1981/82, to an average of 166 hp in 1997.

I don't know what the average is today, but below are a few of this year's most popular models and the horsepower available in each. Note, I didn't chose hybrids, which still are not very popular, nor did I chose any large sedans, light trucks or minivans, which historically have higher HP than compact and midsize vehicles. The cases where the available hp exceeds the 1997 average are in bold print:

2011 Chevy Cruze: 136 hp base model; 138 hp turbo available.
2011 Chevy Malibu: 169 hp base model; 252 hp upgrade available on high-end models.

2010 Ford Focus: 140 hp base model; reduced to 138 hp in states with strict emissions laws.
2011 Ford Fusion: 175 hp base model; upgrades to 240 hp or 263 hp available.

2011 Honda Civic: 140 hp base model; 197 hp upgrade available.
2011 Honda Accord: 179 hp base model; upgrades to 190 hp or 271 hp available.

2010 Toyota Corolla: 132 hp base model; 158 hp upgrade available.
2010 Toyota Matrix: Same as Corolla.
2011 Toyota Camry: 169 hp base model; upgrades available to 179 hp or 268 hp (hybrid has 147 hp).

Obviously there are a lot very powerful cars on the road these days, and you know what powerful cars lead to? Aggressive drivers (and wasted fuel). I won't get into the politics of legislating horsepower, but I think it is just as important as legislating fuel economy, or minimum safety features in vehicles.

As a last comment, the EPA study I mentioned shows that at the start of the OPEC energy crisis in 1975, the average hp of cars and light trucks on American roads was 137 hp - lower than all but two examples cited above!

If the guys at DCUO were able to steal whatever is intended for I20 and get it into their game faster than the people who've been working on it for months, I would be seriously impressed.

This. If I come up with a really cool name, I roll up a character to go with that name. I won't say I play every one of those characters religiously, but I do try them out. If I end up not liking the concept or the powersets, I delete the character and typically post that I've freed up the name.

In a couple of cases, I've made characters with jokey names that I came up with as background for other character bios. In those cases I am name squatting, but it's mostly names I don't see anyone else wanting (i.e. Spell Czech, The Cinemaniac, Ol' Dirty Blaster).

Definitely worth seeing, but I doubt many will get the chance to see it on the big screen. I saw it with a friend last night and there were only two other people in the theater.

As good as it is, I don't see much success for this film in the American market. It doesn't have a slasher killing half-dressed co-eds, and it doesn't have a gun-toting hero(ine) blasting blood-thirsty zombies, so the audiences that lead to, what six Saw movies and four Resident Evil movies won't be there. It's a shame, but at least a larger number of Americans, myself included, got to experience this story than if it hadn't beed remade.

A couple of questions/observations:

Any thoughts on why it was set in 1983? Usually when I see a movie like this set in the '80s, I assume the lack of "modern technology" will play a role - a lack of cell phones making it impossible to call for help, for example. But that wasn't the case here. I also thought perhaps at the end of the movie we would get a "flash forward" to 2010 and a 39 y.o. Owen stalking prey for Abby, but the last scene made that unecessary. Though a lesser filmaker probably would have thought they needed to hit the audience over the head with such a scene.

Lastly, why did we never clearly see Owen's mother's face? I took it to be symbolic of the fact that she was merely a peripheral influence on him and not an integral part of his life. Interesting that despite providing food and shelter for him, Owen's mother was more distant, and less important to his existance than Abby's "father" was to hers.

They changed their minds? Or maybe Arachnos thoughtthe invasion would go more smoothly if they misdirected all the heroes.

There were several bright red global announcements in chat, including the announcement for heroes to head to AP and PI. I logged in shortly after 7 myself (on villain-side) and I saw them, so they must have been posted between 7:05 and 7:10. Sorry you missed them.

Only the red names can answer this for sure, but if I was a minor, and I was desperate for a code, I'd consider going to the hotel where the M&G is held and hanging around outside the club prior to the 7 PM start time to see if I could get one.

This one happens to me a lot. I'd say about 50% of the time I log ut at a WW, I end up out back when I log in. It might have something to do with how close you are to the back room when you log out because it doesn't see to happen if I log out near the middle to front of the lobby.

No idea what "west villiage" is, but Avatea mentions "upscale casual" in her post, which to me means: no shorts, no jeans, no t-shirts, and nothing with any sports teams' logos. Not sure about tennis shoes or sneakers.

That might just be for the after hours party, but I'd hate to show up and not be allowed into the M&G based on what I was wearing.

I think a safe bet for guys would be khakis, and a polo or oxford shirt. Again, not sure whether althletic shoes are acceptable.

I have no idea what would be considered "upscale casual" for women.