Poke Me In The Eye

If you could have one super power what would you want? Would you use it for good or evil? Would you keep your power a secret or make it public?

Moe’s Answer

I would want to be a very strong telepath. Strong enough so that with a concentrated burst I could throw a tank across a football field or stop a speeding bus or stop bullets. But I would want to have enough control over it so that if needed I could place a penny on it’s edge or pull a single hair from someones head. Having this kind of power would be absolutely amazing. You could fly in a sense, just lift yourself and move yourself around. You’d be able to absolutely blow peoples minds performing “magic tricks”. You could make a fortune in Vegas playing roulette or craps and you could pretty much just be a Jedi master.

I wouldn’t really use my power for good or evil. I would definitely use it for personal gain. Vegas would be one of the first places I’d hit and I’d make myself a nice pile of money. I may eventually become a magician and become the most amazing magician the world has ever known. If I could save some people along the way using my power I wouldn’t hesitate to do so but I wouldn’t go out looking to fight crime or anything.

I wouldn’t tell anyone about my power, or very, very few people. It would be my little secret.

Crawford’s Answer

The first quality I’d be looking for in a super power would be a power that isn’t obvious. Considering there is a distinct lack of super powered people on this planet I wouldn’t want to stand out. You’ve all seen the movies…the government would want to do experiments on you!

But in all seriousness (and to address another part of this question) I’d want it to be “hidden” so I wouldn’t be required to use it to save the world. That sounds like a rather wimpy response but the weight of responsibility would be tremendously hard to bear. Could you imagine it? Every time something bad happens on this planet people would…eventually…expect you to help solve/deal with it. That may be a bit of an exaggeration but it’s easy to see things going that way.

So that leaves me with thinking that my power would be something that would be purely for personal gain. If I can’t (or won’t) use it to save the world…then I ought to use it for something. And that something is going to be me! I believe I am a good enough person to use it for personal gain without harming others…so that takes theft off the list…and really narrows down the choices. So it would have to be something that would make life easier for me, my family, and my friends.

I thought about being able to fly. Yes that would be tremendously handy and a hell of a lot of fun…but it would be near impossible to do unnoticed. Anything offensive (like throwing fire/ice, etc) would be neat but again…not very useful if I’m not a crime fighter. Being able to stretch like Mr. Fantastic could be extremely useful but rather limited in its use. Invisibility sounds intriguing…imagine all you would be able to observe and learn about but there is the whole issue with being naked and/or not being able to carry things.

So my choice is to be really fucking fast. Like so fast that people can’t see me move. I could be sitting here at my desk and WHAM I’m out the door down the street around the corner heading downtown at 7-11 casually walking in. I’m talking about sudden bursts of insane (and sustained) speed. This would not only be un-observable (in my mind) but it would give me all kinds of opportunity in my life. I could cut down on travel time tremendously (if my clothes could handle the super speed without me arriving looking like a freak). There is potential for monetary reward as well here…sure you could steal things easily (and yeah…although I said wouldn’t but c’mon now…sigh).

So super speed is my choice…and the only question left is…how do I go about getting this?

Moe’s Picks:

Who wants some male anatomy for lunch?
If you can figure out this puzzle I will be your best friend
This guy has been collecting bellybutton link for years now
If you ever wanted to catch a seagull, here is one way to do it
The flying spaghetti monster are you a pastafarian?

Crawford’s Picks:

New Mustang? BAH! Gimmie this ’67.
Every single random name generator you could think of (and several I can’t imagine a use for).
Bora-bora looks AWESOME.
A flash video history of WWII in Europe.
Carving a V8 out of block of solid aluminum with a 5-axis CNC machine is breathtaking to watch.

The built in windows clipboard can get the job done but it is severely limited. There are a ton of clipboard replacement programs out there but the one that I have had the best luck with is Clipboard Recorder. Clipboard Recorder works alongside the regular Windows Clipboard and records every piece of data (both text and graphics) that you cut or copy.

With Clipboard Recorder you can do the following:

• Access to your clipboard history is almost as easy as the built-in Windows Clipboard. Clipboard Recorder provides four easy ways to select the records: Popup Window, Floating Window, Menu Window and the Main Window. You don’t need to leave your working application! The selected clipboard records will be pasted to your working application directly just as if you have pressed “Ctrl + V”!
• Supports a variety of formats. Including RTF text, HTML, CSV, Bitmap, Meta file and Embedded Object.
• Supports Transferring clipboard data between computers.
• Works seamlessly with Microsoft Office and other applications.
• Small and Highly optimized. Uses negligible resources.

If you do a lot of work on your computer, especially if you fill out a lot of forms, this program is a real life saver. Check it out.

Download Clipboard Recorder

Crawford’s Picks:

Crank calling, internet style (and yes it works)
Food isn’t always what it seems to be, and I like that.
Is it real or is it Halo?
Do NOT buy cheap shoes! Warning…some nasty pictures follow.
I wonder if I could somehow make this my desktop…

Moe’s Picks:

Here is some seriously bad ass martial arts
The flow chart that the RIAA uses when looking for people to sue
Awesome flash game. Kill Zombies
This is one of my all time favorite flash videos
Nice to see my fellow atheists doing some good in the world

Moe’s Picks:

A trebuchet that launches humans. I want to go for a fling
If you are going to shove a bottle rocket up your ass make sure it will fly out when you light it
Even 22 month old kids can have fun with the Wii
Collection of some cool car pictures. Click the picture at the bottom of the page to go to the next page
Very cool flash movie, check it out.

Crawford’s Picks:

A video of a Skyline GT-R Z-Tune (last of the prior generation Skylines) on the track. Fantastic!!
Another one of those “what happened on your birthday” pages. This time with more UK flavor!
This is a picture taken in Switzerland (I believe next to Lake Geneva). It was pretty cold and windy that day.
A pretty fun flash game which you try to put a square peg in a square hole. It gets pretty damn hard.
A full story in one sentence is not as simple as it sounds.

Engine Location: Front
Drive Type: Rear Wheel
Production Years for Series: 1954 - 1957
Weight: 2,885 lbs
0-60 mph: 8.8 seconds.
Top Speed: 135 mph
Cylinders: 6
Aspiration/Induction: Normal
Displacement: 3.00 L | 183.1 cu in. | 3001 cc.
Horsepower: 240.00 BHP
Torque: 220.00 Ft-Lbs @ 4800.00 RPM
HP to Weight Ratio: 12.0 LB / HP
HP/Liter: 80.0 BHP/Liter
Compression Ratio: 8.55:1

To put it simply, one of the most beautiful cars ever made. It was a serious performer back in the day too. Read all about this amazing car right here.

    
    

Crawford’s Picks:

I’ve always wanted to try lucid dreaming.
Cook while you game…sort of.
A great website showing the scale sizes of various sci-fi spaceships (and other things).
I, often, over use commas. I’m sorry.
An excellent “best of Craigslist” post.

Moe’s Picks:

Being at the right place at the right time at the horse races can make for a funny
Jackass done using computers, pretty neato
Don’t piss off your neighbor or you could get something worse than you started with
Great little comic strip
Looks like there is going to be a Lego MMO game coming out