Oxford Dictionary's first definition of force is:

Strength, power, impetus, violence, intense effort; military strength.

I invite any independent observer to review the locked thread: Food Force, and determine for yourself if it is "gibberish":

Originally posted by GoldfishLegs No idea what the heck this is about since half of the posts seem to have been deleted. So this seems like 10 posts of gibberish. Locking.

FYI, the only post completely deleted was the original one, the rest of the content has been saved through quotes. My posts remain unaltered, and retain their original source links and my considered thoughts.

Read for yourself what is considered gibberish and witness the use of force through demeaning comments such as:

Originally posted by brash Your armchair cynicism is truly sad.

Worse, this is not the first time this has happened in the Bowl...

"Something is rotten in the state of Denmark." -Shakespeare

Originally posted by bookhead through demeaning comments such as:

Demeaning, eh? Where does the following fall:
- comparing brash to the organizers of the Hitler Youth
- calling him an "exalted one" while telling him he's killing the world (with the vomit smiley no less)

I read the thread. While bookhead makes a valid point about food ration quality and the importance of diversity and that some rice and beans is inadequte, I also agree with Brash in that it provides children exposure to a serious problem in the world.

World hunger is of course a very complex problem but this game is aimed at young *children* - you have to keep it at their level (and i don't mean talk down to them....). The game may not be perfect but certainly this game will provide more exposure to the problem than the *nothing* they are getting in their upper middle class suburban neighbourhoods. Playing of the game as well as some good dialogue between the parent and child including a disclaimer that this is just a game and explaining some of the complexities at a child's level - i can't see how this can not be beneficial.

reminds me of a story from a while back - My cousin had had her purse stolen and was embarassed when she was talking to the police officer because her 3 year old was looking pretty grubby and said to her 6 year old neice Melissa (who is part of a quite wealthy family and lives in an upper class suburban neighbourhood) that her 3 year old looked like a 'ragamuffin'. And Melissa didn't understand what she meant and my cousin (who is from a small town and rural community) said 'Well you know, are there kids at your school who maybe don't have very much money or aren't as clean or don't wear very nice clothes?" and Melissa turned to her older 16 year old cousin and openned her eyes really wide and said 'Tina, are there kids like that at your school?' Obviously not a lot of exposure to anybody less well off or conversation going on in that family about poverty or really *anything* outside of the bubble of their wealthy Oakvillian neighbourhood...

So i think a game like that is a more memorable way to introduce children to a serious problem and would probably have a bigger impact than a boring old lecture on the complexities of world hunger from mom and dad...

I did not compare bash to the organizers of the Hitler Youth, only the statement he made. (BTW - herding people into camps - does that sound at all familiar?)

I referred to him as exalted one after his initial demeaning comments (not to mention his ongoing degratory attitude in his participation in the Bowl - q.v.: his posting history )

I recommend you read the original thread for context before making further misstatements.

(...and I notice you (typically) did not respond to the main point of this thread...)

Originally posted by bookhead (...and I notice you (typically) did not respond to the main point of this thread...)

Why get mad? You asked for independent reviews, and as a moderator we both know I can't fall under independent. Don't get mad at me for only doing as you asked.

bookhead: I'll make it clear (again):

We do not tolerate:
- trolling
- thread-crapping
- flamewars


Anything resembling the above will be locked or deleted. Please don't insult me by playing dumb regarding these points.

Originally posted by GoldfishLegs bookhead: I'll make it clear (again): We do not tolerate: - trolling - thread-crapping - flamewars Anything resembling the above will be locked or deleted. Please don't insult me by playing dumb regarding these points.

I admit that brash tends to bring me down to his own level - and for my less than gracious comments in that regard, I apologize.

However, I did not appreciate your own insulting comment that my own considered side of the discussion of the game was "gibberish".

Originally posted by bookhead I did not compare bash to the organizers of the Hitler Youth, only the statement he made. (BTW - herding people into camps - does that sound at all familiar?)

Bookhead, the Holocaust was one of the single greatest travesties in human history. Since you provided no source for the comparison, I consider it a cheap and offensive attack. It's easy to try and score points by creating links which do not really exist. I mean, really, using the use of the world "camp"to create a fictitious link to the Holocaust (or perhaps WW2 internment camps)? Would that make the movie "Meatballs" Nazi propaganda?

I referred to him as exalted one after his initial demeaning comments (not to mention his ongoing degratory attitude in his participation in the Bowl - q.v.: his posting history )

There is no ongoing degratory attitude in my participation in the bowl. This is untrue. I disagree with you on a number of issues, and the manner in which you forward your opinion. On numerous occasions I have agreed with you. Generally, I find you intolerant of opinions different than your own.

I've lost count of the number of times you have used when quoting my posts.

Originally posted by bookhead I admit that brash tends to bring me down to his own level - and for my less than gracious comments in that regard, I apologize.

Don't blame me for your "less than gracious comments", you made them. On my part, I retract and apologize for my comment regarding your "armchair cynicism", your cynicism is obviously better informed than I thought.