Go Quentyn!

[TMLutas]

I'm still trying to figure out one point: Why the middle of the night?

Anything Quentyn has said could be said during regular hours. I don't know about Rac Cona Daimh, but if you wake up a group of elderly humans at Oh-Dark-thirty, they will likely hold it against you even if you have every right to do so.

You're quite right that it would have to be quite a serious matter to justify a midnight council meeting. So does this qualify?

Let's count the felonies:
Interfering with the Questor in the performance of his duties
Illegal restriction on the right of free association
Illegal restriction on the right to earn a living
Illegal restriction on the right to travel

The only thing missing would have been passing all this in Council which would have made it ten times worse as these things would have highly embarrassed their village when they were struck down by higher authority (by whoever has the right to pull a village charter, I'm not quite sure who).

Imagine what the Millfolks and their barrister would have done to the Council once they heard of these restrictions. Imagine what the free trader friends Quentyn has accumulated would do. Assuming this society has something similar to the english based common law/precedent legal system, the sooner this is killed, the better for the village's reputation.

With a messenger in the know (remember he heard Quentyn read the letter out loud), waiting until tomorrow would have risked these "road apples" getting out on the rumor mill circuit among the villages. Now at least, the rumor mill will likely carry not only the shameful tale but how it was spiked by the right-thinking majority within a few hours.

Does this provide a reasonable rationale?

[Maxgoof]

Next thought, is the science of handwriting analysis developed in this society?

The heck with handwriting analysis. Most raconans have a certain amount of lux control. As such, even their handwriting may have remnants of their "lux fingerprint" in it. It may be possible to find out who wrote something using lux itself.

[Maxgoof]

I'm still trying to figure out one point: Why the middle of the night?

Three reasons (thank you, Ralph, for the principles of Wildsage the Younger):

1) Quentyn received the note in the evening, probably intentionally. By calling the meeting the very same night he shows that he considers this very seriously. Serious enough to call for a meeting as soon as he possibly could.

2) Certain members of the council want to push him around, to do what *they* want him to do. He is just showing that he can push back.

3) The council is tired. They will want to go to bed, rather than stay up and argue the point, as they have other jobs to attend to. Questoring *is* Quentyn's job, and as such he doesn't have to worry about getting up tomorrow to do something else. By calling the meeting in the middle of the night, he is reasonably sure that it will be over with quickly.

[The JAM]

He's pulling a FILIBUSTER!! Or, a type of filibuster. This is gonna get THICK...

[Maxgoof]

Anything Quentyn has said could be said during regular hours. I don't know about Rac Cona Daimh, but if you wake up a group of elderly humans at Oh-Dark-thirty, they will likely hold it against you even if you have every right to do so.

One in particular already holds things against him from day one, so write him off.

Lady Rose may or may not be insulted. It all depends on how he presents himself. Remember, she has regard for the "old traditions". He may be able to stay on better terms with her, but I suspect that she may still consider him as getting too big for his britches already.

The adjudicator is a mystery. We don't know a lot about him. If he is a good one, he will understand exactly why Quentyn is doing what he is doing, and realize that he takes his job seriously.

Rillcreek, I'm sure is already happy to see Quentyn doing this. He knows it's a risky move, but every indication is that he is prepared this time. He is learning. As an educator, Rillcreek will respect that.

The rest....no idea.

[EdBecerra]

If Gilder really is serious about treating the Questor seriously, I don't think he'd be a part of this mess. I imagine it quite possible that he'll surprise everybody by voting against an illegitimate Council letter which would go very well with his "law and order" ideas but that he'll blame Quentyn for putting temptation in the way of whoever it turns out to be at fault for writing the thing.

That's the coward's way out. If someone falls to temptation, it's their fault, not the fault of the person who presents the temptation.

Even after all these months, I'm still not quite certain what's going on, but I get the feeling of an impending crisis of sorts. Particularly that one statement...

"But we're a nation of law and order now. That kind of swashbuckling frontier justice is-- incompatable with our society."

Every time I hear someone say that, I always cringe. Because it's like being in a horror movie and shouting "What could possibly go wrong?"

NO society is ever more than a few weeks, four at the most, from dissolving into a barbaric, anarchic disaster. Any political sort who pats him or herself on the back, congratulating themselves that they've "finally civilized things" is a fool of the worst sort.

[Jaydub]

Mike Fang Wrote:

Oh, yeah, and Jaydub...how about you NOT sound like you assume every single journalist is a bleeding heart liberal out to nail the military for something? Some of us are actually conservatives, and while I can understand and without a second's hesitation agree with someone saying that the MAJORITY of reporters are a bunch of pinko commie liberals out to undermine and present a bias picture of many current governmental and military actions, saying they're ALL like that is just prejudice.

Sorry about not saying the Liberal Media. We do have more conservative Journalist now because of the greater ways they can get their words out. However, during the Vietnam war I don't think there were very many conservative journalist or if there were they never saw the light of day in the "Big Media Outlets". I still fault the politicians more. They were more worried about what was on the news a 6:00pm and what they could do to get themselves re-elected than what we could do to finish the war. The Liberals are trying the same tactic today only it is not going as easily for them. We have conservative outlets now who tell the real story. I am glad to here that you are reporting from the consertive side of the issue.
Thank you.

[Mike Fang]

No problem. And to clarify a bit, I say I'm a journalist when I suppose more accurately I could say I'm training to become a journalist. I'm still in college, one more semester to go. But I'm a conservative, and don't plan on playing sides once I'm in the field. The facts as they are will remain the facts as I report them, no doctoring things to slant the viewpoint. 'Cause you are right in that often that's what many media sources do. They used "loaded words" that carry a positive or negative feeling to them, overemphasize or de-emphasize certain things depending on their politics, it's a mess sometimes.

[Jaydub]

No problem. And to clarify a bit, I say I'm a journalist when I suppose more accurately I could say I'm training to become a journalist. I'm still in college, one more semester to go. But I'm a conservative, and don't plan on playing sides once I'm in the field. The facts as they are will remain the facts as I report them, no doctoring things to slant the viewpoint. 'Cause you are right in that often that's what many media sources do. They used "loaded words" that carry a positive or negative feeling to them, overemphasize or de-emphasize certain things depending on their politics, it's a mess sometimes.

It is nice to hear about someone in the news arena who wants to report the news as news and not reporting news to make a difference or to change the world. I bet you had to keep a low profile in class. From what I understand most Journalism Professors teach from the prospective that the Journalist should make a difference and change the world. Of course only into their image of the world.

[Sharuuk]

THIS is what I admire so muchabout these forums. Mike, you and Jaydub just hashed out a misunderstanding of syntax, and nobody got flamed, bitched out or called vulgar names. This is the level of character and class that attracted me here to begin with.

Thanks......BOTH of you!

S'aaruuk

[Chaser617]

You know, I just had a thought, what if this was a 'test' by Master Rillcreek, to see what Q would do.

Again, completely off the reservation but.....

[Mike Fang]

Sharuuk: *rubs the back of his neck* Heh, thanks, I do what I can.

Jaydub: Well actually I was pretty blessed. I go to a small liberal arts college, and my professor is actually pretty conservative. In once class for a book report, he let me borrow his copy of "BIAS: A CBS Insider Exposes how The Media Distort The News" By Bernard Goldberg. One Chapter later, I couldn't put the book down, save for the occasional time I had to stop reading to say "They did WHAT?!" By the end of the book, I was, in a word, galvanized. Liberal media was going DOWN, so help me God.

[SolidusRaccoon]

Sharuuk: *rubs the back of his neck* Heh, thanks, I do what I can.

Jaydub: Well actually I was pretty blessed. I go to a small liberal arts college, and my professor is actually pretty conservative. In once class for a book report, he let me borrow his copy of "BIAS: A CBS Insider Exposes how The Media Distort The News" By Bernard Goldberg. One Chapter later, I couldn't put the book down, save for the occasional time I had to stop reading to say "They did WHAT?!" By the end of the book, I was, in a word, galvanized. Liberal media was going DOWN, so help me God.

Have you read his follow up book, Arrogance?

[Mike Fang]

Not yet, but I probably will.

[Jaydub]

Sharuuk: *rubs the back of his neck* Heh, thanks, I do what I can.

Jaydub: Well actually I was pretty blessed. I go to a small liberal arts college, and my professor is actually pretty conservative. In once class for a book report, he let me borrow his copy of "BIAS: A CBS Insider Exposes how The Media Distort The News" By Bernard Goldberg. One Chapter later, I couldn't put the book down, save for the occasional time I had to stop reading to say "They did WHAT?!" By the end of the book, I was, in a word, galvanized. Liberal media was going DOWN, so help me God.

That sounds great. You should have let me know I could have loaned you my copy of BIAS. An eye opener isn't it. Of course it did not get much play in the liberal media.

Sharuuk Thanks, It was just an omission on my part. Overall I think we are on the same page.