The Shrine

Australia refuses to rate it

http://www.next-gen.biz/index.php?optio ... 8&Itemid=2

Only up to a 15+? They essentially don't allow for adult games? And I thought the Southern US was backwards.....

Nah, I don't even live there, and I've heard many, many tales about the overprotective government over there.

We've got backwards censorship laws, yep. I'll just import it.

Andrew, Killer Bee wrote:We've got backwards censorship laws, yep. I'll just import it.

Import via Bittorrent!

Wow... no 15+? That's like banning R movies in theatres.

I bet most gamers are doing the same thing Andrew mentions-- just import the US version from an online store. If they're strict about that too... I'd send you a copy if you make it worth my while

Why don't you use GAMETRADERS ROBINA? Its your one-stop shop for the games and the trading thereof...in Robina.

lol Yahtzee. Of due note, Zero Punctuation has a new intro/outro sequence, and everybody has an opinion on it! WHOMG!

Tessian wrote:just import the US version from an online store.

Euro version.

I'd love to see them charge people for importing it down there

http://ps3.ign.com/articles/887/887730p1.html

really? just because of the drug use portrayed in the game? Well, maybe the game will just be shit and you'll be better off not having it.


(psssst, I'm pretty sure this game is going to be amazing. I'd probably move off of whatever fuckhole island I was situated on if the elected officials, responsible for emulating my opinions in government, wouldn't let me have it)

I hope the publishers don't change anything because Australia's idiotic government says so. This sort of bullshit needs to be challenged in court. Do you guys have some sort of 1st Amendment over there?

SineSwiper wrote:I hope the publishers don't change anything because Australia's idiotic government says so. This sort of bullshit needs to be challenged in court. Do you guys have some sort of 1st Amendment over there?

Don't quote me... but I actually believe that Australia does NOT have freedom of speech. I bet there are men in our presidential cabinet that watch Australia political news to masturbate to and fall asleep.

Funny, I thought "freedom of speech" was one of the founding tenants of ANY first-world government. After all, if you don't have protection from the government censoring that, what's to stop them from censoring the press?

Yep, we don't have freedom of speech (it's for this reason that we can have government censorship). We don't have a bill of rights, either:

http://www.aph.gov.au/library/Pubs/RN/2 ... 02rn42.htm

Tessian wrote:I bet there are men in our presidential cabinet that watch Australia political news to masturbate to and fall asleep.

If you think the USA is a freer country than Australia you are probably mistaken.

SineSwiper wrote:Funny, I thought "freedom of speech" was one of the founding tenants of ANY first-world government.

Not being an ass, but that's a very American-centric view, Sine. Most places don't even have a semblance of that. Hell, I remember when I was a kid and I went to Israel to visit my family. We went to watch a film and there was like 45 minutes of commercials before it (when we had nothing but previews). I asked why and they told me it's 'cause all TV is government controlled.

Tell me that's free speech

Andrew, Killer Bee wrote:Yep, we don't have freedom of speech (it's for this reason that we can have government censorship). We don't have a bill of rights, either:

http://www.aph.gov.au/library/Pubs/RN/2 ... 02rn42.htm

Tessian wrote:I bet there are men in our presidential cabinet that watch Australia political news to masturbate to and fall asleep.

If you think the USA is a freer country than Australia you are probably mistaken.

I wasn't making that comparison-- purely that I would bet our gov't officials fantasize and pleasure themselves to the thought of running a country with no freedom of speech.

Call me ignorant, but I kinda thought the Freedom of Speech was a right given to most developed countries. I know there are plenty of exceptions like Australia (and of course ME countries), but is it really that rare? Don't Canada, EU, etc have similar laws?

Tessian wrote:

Andrew, Killer Bee wrote:Yep, we don't have freedom of speech (it's for this reason that we can have government censorship). We don't have a bill of rights, either:

http://www.aph.gov.au/library/Pubs/RN/2 ... 02rn42.htm

Tessian wrote:I bet there are men in our presidential cabinet that watch Australia political news to masturbate to and fall asleep.

If you think the USA is a freer country than Australia you are probably mistaken.

I wasn't making that comparison-- purely that I would bet our gov't officials fantasize and pleasure themselves to the thought of running a country with no freedom of speech.

Call me ignorant, but I kinda thought the Freedom of Speech was a right given to most developed countries. I know there are plenty of exceptions like Australia (and of course ME countries), but is it really that rare? Don't Canada, EU, etc have similar laws?

We do, but it's not nearly as powerful as the one you guys have from what I've heard. It's not like you can say whatever you want without repurcussions, the CRTC can take you out based on other things a lot easier than the FCC I think

Zeus wrote:Not being an ass, but that's a very American-centric view, Sine. Most places don't even have a semblance of that. Hell, I remember when I was a kid and I went to Israel to visit my family. We went to watch a film and there was like 45 minutes of commercials before it (when we had nothing but previews). I asked why and they told me it's 'cause all TV is government controlled.

Tell me that's free speech

Uhhh...no, it's not. Way to compare apples and oranges, Zeus. I said FIRST-world countries. Israel is far from that. Just because the US gives them weapons, it doesn't mean that they have free speech.

Sine, what in the hell are you talking about.

Zeus is arguing that Israel does not have free speech. You appear to be agreeing with him in the strangest, most disagreeable way possible.

Also, by what standard are you arguing that Israel is not a first-world country? Have you redefined the term?

SineSwiper wrote:

Zeus wrote:Not being an ass, but that's a very American-centric view, Sine. Most places don't even have a semblance of that. Hell, I remember when I was a kid and I went to Israel to visit my family. We went to watch a film and there was like 45 minutes of commercials before it (when we had nothing but previews). I asked why and they told me it's 'cause all TV is government controlled.

Tell me that's free speech

Uhhh...no, it's not. Way to compare apples and oranges, Zeus. I said FIRST-world countries. Israel is far from that. Just because the US gives them weapons, it doesn't mean that they have free speech.

Ok, hold on, what do YOU mean by "first-world country"?

Israel is a weird oddity because it's not a "natural" country and because its entire existence is based on US support. In terms of economics based on its current situation of heavy US sponsorship, it's totally first world. It's not a "western" country based on physical geography (as it is in the "east), but in terms of economic complexity, capitalism, and democracy, it's totally first world.

SineSwiper wrote: Uhhh...no, it's not. Way to compare apples and oranges, Zeus. I said FIRST-world countries. Israel is far from that. Just because the US gives them weapons, it doesn't mean that they have free speech.

The terms first/2nd/third world countries are obsolete terms; they were used to refer to the countries in the Cold War (NATO / USSR / Everyone else). These days we just use "developed" "developing" and "undeveloped" countries since, you know, the cold war ended.

And by that account, Israel would be a developed country and considered first-world.

I was just trying to see what Sine's definition was as that appeared to be the source of the disagreement

Basically what bovine said, but keep in mind that Israel is certainly not "developed" when it comes to freedoms, which is the topic at hand. Look to countries like Canada, the US, most of Europe, etc. Israel is (to take Tessian's terms) "developing", but they aren't nearly as far as the countries above.

Heck, if it wasn't for the US, Israel wouldn't exist right now. The place is a black sheep among the Middle East.

SineSwiper wrote:Basically what bovine said, but keep in mind that Israel is certainly not "developed" when it comes to freedoms, which is the topic at hand. Look to countries like Canada, the US, most of Europe, etc. Israel is (to take Tessian's terms) "developing", but they aren't nearly as far as the countries above.

Heck, if it wasn't for the US, Israel wouldn't exist right now. The place is a black sheep among the Middle East.

Damnit you idgit... the terms "developed" "developing" and "undeveloped" ONLY ever gauge a country's status in the realms of economic/industrial/technology; it has NOTHING to do with political freedoms or civil rights of that country. If your country is mostly rural villages with no running water and sparse electricity then you're undeveloped. India and China would be examples of "Developing" countries as they are still in the process of switching from the aforementioned undeveloped to developed (Walk into a major city and it'd look like any other US/EU city; but leave the city limits and you're back to huts and dirt roads). A Developed country would be US, Canada, European Union, and yes- Israel.

You can't twist around terms to mean something they don't (at least not without saying anything). And god DAMNIT why are we having a political discussion in a FALLOUT 3 THREAD?!

OK, so by 99.99% of the people's definition, Israel is a developed country