Practical Marksmanship | Session 4 | 7/30/10

[stayingfrosty.livejournal.com]

As each week, the class met in the Danger Shop. This time, when the students stepped in they were in a shopping mall atrium the place was dank and musty, permeated with the stink of dead flesh. Price and Magnus stood over by a rainbow colored VW minibus that stood on a plinth surrounded by placards declaring it the car of the future. Price just smiled at the students and gestured toward a pile of ammunition and [moddable] weapons.

"Today we're getting back to business. Your task is simple. The only way out of this place is by driving this minibus out the front door of the mall. The problem is, it's got no gas. Strewn about this place are gas canisters, but you'll need to gather about eight of them to get it fully gassed and ready to go. There will be enemy hostiles. And no, I'm not telling you what to expect. I will tell you one thing, that today's exercise is supposed to stress the importance of keeping each other safe and not just yourself."

Ashley nodded. "It doesn't matter how good you are alone. Sometimes you need to have someone watching your back and you damn well better be sure that's someone you can trust."

"We'll be watching over the bus here, but we're programmed as non-combatants. The enemy won't even know Ashley and I exist. We're here to watch, and make sure you don't get in too deep. And no, you can't actually get hurt in the simulation. I'm not about to let you all sue my pants off."

"Oh, and there might be some surprise weapon caches or the like about. You're not the only ones who would've been fighting for survival here. Now... class is on. Let's see what you all can do."

[ooc: I think I hear an OCD, everyone turn off your flashlights... OCD Here! Everybody get on!]

The Five Senses | Period 1 | Friday | July 30

[just-add-starch.livejournal.com]

Today's class had been handwavily informed to meet in the cafeteria. It seemed like the proper place to do a class on tasting. There was one long table with various covered dishes on it. There were also blindfolds, gloves and nose plugs.

( Fraser won't make you taste the dirt... )

Cons & Confidence Men: How Not to Get Taken, Class 4

[magdaofslovenia.livejournal.com]

"Today we're taking a look at pyramid schemes, sometimes called Ponzi schemes after Charles Ponzi, who in 1920 set up an arbitrage system for reply coupons between Europe and the U.S. It quickly changed to an outright fraud. Instead of investing the money in coupons and working out the price differences for a profit, Ponzi simply turned over the latest investors' money to previous investors at a ridiculous rate of return... thus seducing others into investing. Ponzi schemes rely on a constant influx of new investors to prop up the scheme. Eventually they collapse under their own weight, and the director often disappears with everyone's money." She raised an eyebrow. "The most infamous perpetrator of such a scheme is Bernie Madoff, the New York stock exchange manipulator, whose scheme may have been in place for 30 years. When he was finally caught, the estimates of the losses he'd caused were in excess of $12 billion dollars. The SEC here in the states had previously believed no one could defraud more than $400 million. He's currently serving a sentence of 150 years. Which means he'll never make parole, thankfully."

"How did he get away with it? A whistle-blower team tried for ten years to make anyone in the government listen. It was the sheer size of the fraud that made it difficult for anyone to take their allegations seriously." Sophie ticked off points on her fingers. "An investment scheme with a very high rate of return, very quickly-- but no concrete evidence of the product being invested in-- may be a Ponzi scheme. One which operates without transparency of their records. One deeply embedded with the authorities who are supposed to regulate whatever industry it supposedly operates within; Madoff was good friends with the heads of both the SEC and its investigation teams. If you can't touch the product or the records or the person, don't invest."

She shook her head. "There's other types of pyramid schemes, however, which are legal. Today, I want you to figure out how you'd set up your own scheme, and lure investors into supporting your cause."

Dating, Hooking Up and Sex, Class 4, Friday period 3

[saltandammo.livejournal.com]

When everyone filed in, they saw two large boxes set at the front of the classroom.

Dean was dressed in a priest outfit, and bouncing on his toes just a little. ( This was one of his favourite topics. )

Pottery-Making 101, Friday 2, 7-30

[screwyoumarvel]

"Good morning, everyone. Today we're going to get...just a little more advanced. Not much. Don't panic. Meet...the plottery pottery wheel." Steve proceeded to explain how the wheel worked and basic plottery pottery wheel technique. He did not, notably, attempt to demonstrate. "So. You each have a wheel. Use it. If you mess up, don't worry, it's clay. Just remold it into a lump and start over."

First Aid - Danger Shop, Friday, Period 5 [Week 4]

[drywitmartini.livejournal.com]

Hawkeye met the students outside the Danger Shop for today's class. "As you can probably tell from the first workshop, I'm not opposed to a shock factor to get you to pay attention. But I'm not here to make you sick, and during today's class you might be. There's going to be wounds and blood in here that looks, feels and smells about as real as you can get. I'm not pulling any punches because you asked me not to. It's nothing to be ashamed of. A hardened surgeon, a good friend of mine who'd dealt with plenty of blood and organs in his time, saw what violent trauma - especially shrapnel trauma - can do to the human body on his first day in Korea back when it was a war zone. He threw up his breakfast. Chances are you'll do the same and it only makes you human. Or whatever you are if you're not human.

This is what we're going to do. We'll rotate as a group through three activities. I'm going to show you how to treat a puncture wound from a knife, one from a bullet and then we'll go over some basic techniques for immediate on the scene treatment and what you'll need to do if there's no doctor coming any time soon. There are buckets off to the side of the operating room if you need to be sick. As soon as you get in there, make sure you put gloves on. The Danger Shop is a safe environment but blood can carry a lot of diseases and it's a good practice to get into. If you don't want to come inside, that's your choice. I won't hold it against you."