Alright guys!

Time to get cracking on a little fun tournament that Tim has set up.  All members of the team active on AC6 are expected to check the forums for match times and squadron partners.  We are holding a fun little tournament to get ourselves some practice.

If you have any questions, hit up either Sinner101GR or Tim for answers.  

Good Luck guys, Speed and Angels.

“Most Glorious Service”

Even before the list was published, the British marked down every member of Congress suspected of having put his name to treason. All of them became the objects of vicious manhunts. Some were taken. Some, like Jefferson, had narrow escapes. All who had property or families near British strongholds suffered.

· Francis Lewis, New York delegate saw his home plundered — and his estates in what is now Harlem — completely destroyed by British Soldiers. Mrs. Lewis was captured and treated with great brutality. Though she was later exchanged for two British prisoners through the efforts of Congress, she died from the effects of her abuse.

· William Floyd, another New York delegate, was able to escape with his wife and children across Long Island Sound to Connecticut, where they lived as refugees without income for seven years. When they came home they found a devastated ruin.

· Philips Livingstone had all his great holdings in New York confiscated and his family driven out of their home. Livingstone died in 1778 still working in Congress for the cause.

· Louis Morris, the fourth New York delegate, saw all his timber, crops, and livestock taken. For seven years he was barred from his home and family.

· John Hart of Trenton, New Jersey, risked his life to return home to see his dying wife. Hessian soldiers rode after him, and he escaped in the woods. While his wife lay on her deathbed, the soldiers ruined his farm and wrecked his homestead. Hart, 65, slept in caves and woods as he was hunted across the countryside. When at long last, emaciated by hardship, he was able to sneak home, he found his wife had already been buried, and his 13 children taken away. He never saw them again. He died a broken man in 1779, without ever finding his family.

· Dr. John Witherspoon, signer, was president of the College of New Jersey, later called Princeton. The British occupied the town of Princeton, and billeted troops in the college. They trampled and burned the finest college library in the country.

· Judge Richard Stockton, another New Jersey delegate signer, had rushed back to his estate in an effort to evacuate his wife and children. The family found refuge with friends, but a Tory sympathizer betrayed them. Judge Stockton was pulled from bed in the night and brutally beaten by the arresting soldiers. Thrown into a common jail, he was deliberately starved. Congress finally arranged for Stockton’s parole, but his health was ruined. The judge was released as an invalid, when he could no longer harm the British cause. He returned home to find his estate looted and did not live to see the triumph of the Revolution. His family was forced to live off charity.

· Robert Morris, merchant prince of Philadelphia, delegate and signer, met Washington’s appeals and pleas for money year after year. He made and raised arms and provisions which made it possible for Washington to cross the Delaware at Trenton. In the process he lost 150 ships at sea, bleeding his own fortune and credit almost dry.

· George Clymer, Pennsylvania signer, escaped with his family from their home, but their property was completely destroyed by the British in the Germantown and Brandywine campaigns.

· Dr. Benjamin Rush, also from Pennsylvania, was forced to flee to Maryland. As a heroic surgeon with the army, Rush had several narrow escapes.

· John Martin, a Tory in his views previous to the debate, lived in a strongly loyalist area of Pennsylvania. When he came out for independence, most of his neighbors and even some of his relatives ostracized him. He was a sensitive and troubled man, and many believed this action killed him. When he died in 1777, his last words to his tormentors were: “Tell them that they will live to see the hour when they shall acknowledge it [the signing] to have been the most glorious service that I have ever rendered to my country.”

· William Ellery, Rhode Island delegate, saw his property and home burned to the ground.
· Thomas Lynch, Jr., South Carolina delegate, had his health broken from privation and exposures while serving as a company commander in the military. His doctors ordered him to seek a cure in the West Indies and on the voyage, he and his young bride were drowned at sea.

· Edward Rutledge, Arthur Middleton, and Thomas Heyward, Jr., the other three South Carolina signers, were taken by the British in the siege of Charleston. They were carried as prisoners of war to St. Augustine, Florida, where they were singled out for indignities. They were exchanged at the end of the war, the British in the meantime having completely devastated their large landholdings and estates.

· Thomas Nelson, signer of Virginia, was at the front in command of the Virginia military forces. With British General Charles Cornwallis in Yorktown, fire from 70 heavy American guns began to destroy Yorktown piece by piece. Lord Cornwallis and his staff moved their headquarters into Nelson’s palatial home. While American cannonballs were making a shambles of the town, the house of Governor Nelson remained untouched. Nelson turned in rage to the American gunners and asked, “Why do you spare my home?” They replied, “Sir, out of respect to you.” Nelson cried, “Give me the cannon!” and fired on his magnificent home himself, smashing it to bits. But Nelson’s sacrifice was not quite over. He had raised $2 million for the Revolutionary cause by pledging his own estates. When the loans came due, a newer peacetime Congress refused to honor them, and Nelson’s property was forfeited. He was never reimbursed. He died, impoverished, a few years later at the age of 50.

Lives, Fortunes, Honor

Of those 56 who signed the Declaration of Independence, nine died of wounds or hardships during the war. Five were captured and imprisoned, in each case with brutal treatment. Several lost wives, sons or entire families. One lost his 13 children. Two wives were brutally treated. All were at one time or another the victims of manhunts and driven from their homes. Twelve signers had their homes completely burned. Seventeen lost everything they owned. Yet not one defected or went back on his pledged word. Their honor, and the nation they sacrificed so much to create is still intact.

And, finally, there is the New Jersey signer, Abraham Clark.

He gave two sons to the officer corps in the Revolutionary Army. They were captured and sent to that infamous British prison hulk afloat in New York Harbor known as the hell ship Jersey, where 11,000 American captives were to die. The younger Clarks were treated with a special brutality because of their father. One was put in solitary and given no food. With the end almost in sight, with the war almost won, no one could have blamed Abraham Clark for acceding to the British request when they offered him his sons’ lives if he would recant and come out for the King and Parliament. The utter despair in this man’s heart, the anguish in his very soul, must reach out to each one of us down through 200 years with his answer: “No.”

The 56 signers of the Declaration Of Independence proved by their every deed that they made no idle boast when they composed the most magnificent curtain line in history. “And for the support of this Declaration with a firm reliance on the protection of divine providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor.”

Thanks Victory Institute 

Well, this year turned out to be an interesting year.  The focus was on prolonging the life-cycle for the current generation.  As developers are claiming that we're "good on the graphics" and manufacturers are yearning to make a profit in a tough time due to the economic downturn, the focus this year was expanding the user experience.

3D and Motion Control were the main focus from the Big Three.  Sony Move, Microsoft Kinect and of course the new Nintendo 3DS all made a big show.  Whereas Sony and Microsoft showed off the abilities of the Motion Controllers coupled with providing an expanded user experience for social gaming, Nintendo showed off a 3D capable handheld that will not need 3D glasses.

New Games were also shown off.  We have a slew of titles coming from Nintendo.  All of the big names have a game coming out, with classics such as Zelda, Kirby, Kid Icarus, Donkey Kong and even Goldeneye getting remakes and new titles.  Microsoft has Gears of War 3, Halo: Reach and other big name titles coming as well, and PlayStation 3 users finally get their hands on Gran Turismo 5 and Killzone 3.

So who won this year?  Nintendo.  Sure, we have a whole batch of cool shooter titles and whatnot, but Nintendo is offering a dazzling set of games that will surely entice fans.

My pics for this year:

1. Halo: Reach.  Im a huge fan of the story, this should be fun.   I'm more than sure shooter and MLG type gamers are going to have  a blast.

2. Metal Gear Solid: Rising: Xbox MGS.  Im still wary on what we can do, but the MGS storyline hasn't let us down yet.  The coloring and style were clearly different from MGS4 though, we'll have to see how that goes.

3. Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater and Starfox 64 for the DS.  Hell yeah.

4. Dead Space 2: Gotta get this for PC, it's a heck of a good game

5. Gran Turismo 5.  The Stig.

6. Crysis 2.  The first one was iffy, the styling has always been off, but this game just looks great and plays great.

7. Killzone 3.  YES.

8. Medal of Honor.  Though it looks like the love child of BFBC2 and MW2, it'll be fun to finally shoot up some durka-durkas in a legitimate manner, not some unnamed Middle Eastern country full of terrorists (CoD 4 anyone?)

9. Portal 2.  Valve has never been wrong before.  Seriously, find a game from them you dont like.  Didnt find one, did you?  

It's gonna be a good year for gaming, for all gamers.  Kinect and Move might not have the impact we're hoping for, but the core gamers are getting a good year.  Though its the same rehashed stuff...it doesnt matter.  We love the IPs, we love the games.  It's like 2007 and 2008 all over again.

Oh, new Xbox 360.  No more Red Ring.

If you want more on what I've covered, check out www.industrygamers.com 

This is one of those days where Americans spend their time drinking beer, having a couple hot dogs as they relax by the pool.  To many, this is the "official" start to summer.

Fuck that.

Today is about the courage, sacrifice and honor of those that have paid the ultimate price of service for this country.  Today is about those that have held the line, braved the unknown and have answered the call.  Today is about those that knew full well that this eventuality could occur, and they held their ground in the face of it all.

Today is about the American Soldier.  Today is about the American Marine.  Today is about the American Airman.  Today is about the American Seaman.

Remember Them.

This Memorial Day weekend, the Call of Duty Endowment, a non-profit organization created by Activision Blizzard dedicated to helping Soldiers, Marines, Sailors and Airmen transition from service to civilian careers, is working with Hire Heroes USA to raise $30,000 in funds to support training and employment assistance programs.

Gamers have only to “Like” the Call of Duty Endowment page on Facebook to show support to our men and women at arms.  HHUSA will receive $1 per “Like,” up to $30,000 for purposes of supporting their work.

Get on Facebook, show your support and remember that Call of Duty is a game, and no matter how real it may look, it does nothing to depict the sacrifices that these men and women offer for their country each and every day.  Few gamers realize the hardship and stress that many in our Armed Forces go through, especially during the re-integration back into civilian livelihood.  At current count, over 508,000 vets are unemployed and need your help. 

Gamers get to see the part that media glorifies the most, we get to play High Speed, Low Drag individuals that are literal geniuses when it comes to cognitive ability.  Those people are hardcore individuals with a mindset that keeps them sharp and ready to go.  Most military personnel in combat arms do not have that luxury, and many have a hard time transitioning back to a 'normal life.'  Gamers see the "guts and the glory" side, not the human one.  This endowment is a good step for Activision, and I recommend everyone here go 'like' that group soonest.  

Show your support at the Call of Duty Endowment Facebook Page now; the fundraiser goes until Monday, May 31^st at 12 PM.