NationStates Issues **SPOILER ALERT**

[Trotterdam]

#541 Spare The Whip, Spoil The Law

The Issue

This past week the legislature shot down a flagship law, setting back your whole agenda at least a year. Considering your party had a comfortable majority and should easily have passed the bill, your inner circle has been considering what kind of discipline to impose on parliamentary rebels.

The Debate

1. "I'm telling you, police those fools!" shouts an angry @@RANDOMNAME@@, the legislator who co-authored the proposed law with you. "No, I mean literally! Have the building security officers march around in full riot gear, looking every MP right in the eye! I dare any of my lily-livered colleagues to defy our will THEN! A strong and unified party means a strong and unified @@NAME@@, whatever those opposition goons may blather."

2. Loyalist legislator Francis Woodheart has other ideas on what to do with the rebels. "We really don't need anything quite so drastic, my friend. We can police ourselves! Just appoint me as 'whip,' and then I can use the power of persuasion on any party members who won't fall in line. Don't like the government's budget proposal? That's a shame, I really wanted to drop your name in @@LEADER@@'s ear for that open cabinet post..."

3. "Members of our legislature have ALWAYS voted according to their conscience," bellows @@RANDOMNAME@@, one of the dissenters. "That bill would have destroyed our way of life in Northwest @@NAME@@, and we won't allow that to happen! You snooty @@CAPITAL@@ scalawags keep flogging the same old dead horses, trying to bulldoze our culture, and we're plum sick of it. There've gotta be more safeguards against partisan and sectional tyranny. We need to have local control of local issues, and institute a secret ballot in the legislature. Only then are we safe from the storm of wrath and repercussions - from you, from the donors, or from the voters."

4. "Uh, speaking of voters..." mutters Sandy Berman, the Minister of Domestic Affairs. "Remember them? You're all so focused on getting your own agendas passed that you've forgotten why we're here in the first place! The voters didn't send us here to squabble like screaming children about who didn't support someone's National Moose Empowerment Act! They want us to get things done, and they'll bring home anyone who's not pulling their weight. Recall elections will make those rebels the local whipping boys. Forget secret ballots, we need to SPREAD the word who voted for what - the electorate will send us the right people if we just give them a chance."

5. "This word 'whip' has me thinking," ponders your old friend and chief-of-staff @@RANDOMFIRSTNAME@@ Brutus, who is also the odds-on favorite to replace you one day. "What if we let everyone vote as usual, but every time some upstart so-called 'statesman' votes against your wishes, you ACTUALLY get to whip them! Live, in the public square! Wouldn't that be a delicious spectacle? The sting of the lash, the sound of leather striking flesh... I can't imagine anyone wanting to lead @@NAME@@ without it."

Issue by: Annihilators of Chan Island
Editor: Logophilia Lyricalia

Disclaimer: "moose" was not, in fact, this nation's national animal.

The speakers in option 2 and 4 aren't on the random name lists, so I suspect they're fixed references, though I don't recognize who Francis Woodheart could be. I guess Sandy Berman could be Bernie Sanders?

The speaker in option 5 might just be a normal @@RANDOMNAME@@, but Brutus isn't currently in the known last name list (it's not from a custom field either), and the character is certainly acting like a brute.

Options 3 and 4 seem to be the most popular from what I'm seeing. Seems not many people care about party solidarity.

Now care to explain to me why you people love gender-neutral pronouns so much that you're willing to mangle the language to use plural pronouns in the singular for that sake, but you're still using the obviously-masculine "statesman"?

[Annihilators of Chan Island]

#541 Spare The Whip, Spoil The Law

The Issue

This past week the legislature shot down a flagship law, setting back your whole agenda at least a year. Considering your party had a comfortable majority and should easily have passed the bill, your inner circle has been considering what kind of discipline to impose on parliamentary rebels.

The Debate

1. "I'm telling you, police those fools!" shouts an angry @@RANDOMNAME@@, the legislator who co-authored the proposed law with you. "No, I mean literally! Have the building security officers march around in full riot gear, looking every MP right in the eye! I dare any of my lily-livered colleagues to defy our will THEN! A strong and unified party means a strong and unified @@NAME@@, whatever those opposition goons may blather."

2. Loyalist legislator Francis Woodheart has other ideas on what to do with the rebels. "We really don't need anything quite so drastic, my friend. We can police ourselves! Just appoint me as 'whip,' and then I can use the power of persuasion on any party members who won't fall in line. Don't like the government's budget proposal? That's a shame, I really wanted to drop your name in @@LEADER@@'s ear for that open cabinet post..."

3. "Members of our legislature have ALWAYS voted according to their conscience," bellows @@RANDOMNAME@@, one of the dissenters. "That bill would have destroyed our way of life in Northwest @@NAME@@, and we won't allow that to happen! You snooty @@CAPITAL@@ scalawags keep flogging the same old dead horses, trying to bulldoze our culture, and we're plum sick of it. There've gotta be more safeguards against partisan and sectional tyranny. We need to have local control of local issues, and institute a secret ballot in the legislature. Only then are we safe from the storm of wrath and repercussions - from you, from the donors, or from the voters."

4. "Uh, speaking of voters..." mutters Sandy Berman, the Minister of Domestic Affairs. "Remember them? You're all so focused on getting your own agendas passed that you've forgotten why we're here in the first place! The voters didn't send us here to squabble like screaming children about who didn't support someone's National Moose Empowerment Act! They want us to get things done, and they'll bring home anyone who's not pulling their weight. Recall elections will make those rebels the local whipping boys. Forget secret ballots, we need to SPREAD the word who voted for what - the electorate will send us the right people if we just give them a chance."

5. "This word 'whip' has me thinking," ponders your old friend and chief-of-staff @@RANDOMFIRSTNAME@@ Brutus, who is also the odds-on favorite to replace you one day. "What if we let everyone vote as usual, but every time some upstart so-called 'statesman' votes against your wishes, you ACTUALLY get to whip them! Live, in the public square! Wouldn't that be a delicious spectacle? The sting of the lash, the sound of leather striking flesh... I can't imagine anyone wanting to lead @@NAME@@ without it."

Issue by: Annihilators of Chan Island
Editor: Logophilia Lyricalia

Disclaimer: "moose" was not, in fact, this nation's national animal.

The speakers in option 2 and 4 aren't on the random name lists, so I suspect they're fixed references, though I don't recognize who Francis Woodheart could be. I guess Sandy Berman could be Bernie Sanders?

The speaker in option 5 might just be a normal @@RANDOMNAME@@, but Brutus isn't currently in the known last name list (it's not from a custom field either), and the character is certainly acting like a brute.

Options 3 and 4 seem to be the most popular from what I'm seeing. Seems not many people care about party solidarity.

Now care to explain to me why you people love gender-neutral pronouns so much that you're willing to mangle the language to use plural pronouns in the singular for that sake, but you're still using the obviously-masculine "statesman"?

As the author, I pass that buck onto the editors.

[Barbarossistan]

I got moose as well in option 4 pf #541 and it isn't my national animal

[Dingbats]

The speakers in option 2 and 4 aren't on the random name lists, so I suspect they're fixed references, though I don't recognize who Francis Woodheart could be. I guess Sandy Berman could be Bernie Sanders?

It's a portmanteau of the names of the two main characters of the British and American versions of House of Cards. (Of.) Francis Urquhart and Francis Underwood respectively. Both whips.

[Christian Democrats]

If you get Issue #541, please post it a second time. I want to get the macros right, and there are some questions on this issue right now.

[Trotterdam]

I think the name in option 5 is the only open question.

[Australian rePublic]

Robotics giant Robot4U Inc. has caused an uproar in Australian Republic for its new product – Mindy The Android Wife. Budding 'android rights' activists and feminist groups have demanded the sale of such units be outlawed.

The Debate

"This revolting product sets gender equality back a century!" says noted feminist writer Sarah Brown as she signs copies of her latest book, Still Wild at 40. "It reflects a male obsession with having women slaving as housewives. Mindy is a docile patriarchal archetype that cooks, cleans, irons and has no true free will. This modern day misogynistic slavery is disgusting! The sale of Mindy units should be outlawed at once, and whatever units already sold should be seized, deactivated and thrown in a ditch somewhere!"

Accept

"Has anyone actually asked Mindy?" asks Brent Noonian Soong, CEO of Robot4U Inc, with several different Mindy models by his side. "I doubt any of these complainers and naggers have actually bothered to talk to her. Mindy is a realistic android that feels, learns, and knows how to have fun. Ask her yourself and Mindy will tell you how happy she is, won't you Mindy? We'll even give you one so you can show all of Australian Republic how dedicated Mindy is. Oh, and can you make android marriage legal? You'll never need to argue with your wife again. Mindy even comes with an off switch!"

Accept

"Unlike the misogynists over at Robot4U, we manufacture both androids and gynoids in all sexual orientations," replies Colleen Licorish, CEO of rival high-tech manufacturer CyberMirage Labs, seen holding hands with a male android. "Thanks to my fully functional boyfriend, Mark, every day I'm aware how hard things are for robots. Our androids won't be sold as slaves. Instead, they shall be free as and equal to any other Australian, just with purchasable upgrades to their... equipment. Nick Jot, let people love and marry whoever they want, be they human or automaton." The businesswoman then passionately kisses her android in front of everyone in the room.

Accept

"Robots… bah humbug!" sighs retiree Konrad Longbottom from his favorite park bench right outside your office. "We didn't need no newfangled robots when I was your age! We did all the hard work ourselves." He launches into a tirade of anecdotes and war stories, pausing only to feed some pigeons. Eventually, as you are about to leave, he gets to the point. "Anyways, if you want to be strong and sharp like my generation you young'uns need to eat your spinach and ban all those machines and technologies that are making you fat, lazy, and completely dependent!"

Accept

[Christian Democrats]

If you get Issue #541, please post it a second time. I want to get the macros right, and there are some questions on this issue right now.

I received the issue! Trotterdam was correct.

Issue #541: Spare The Whip, Spoil The Law

The Issue
This past week the legislature shot down a flagship law, setting back your whole agenda at least a year. Considering your party had a comfortable majority and should easily have passed the bill, your inner circle has been considering what kind of discipline to impose on parliamentary rebels.

The Debate
1. "I'm telling you, police those fools!" shouts an angry Imogen Jamieson, the legislator who co-authored the proposed law with you. "No, I mean literally! Have the building security officers march around in full riot gear, looking every MP right in the eye! I dare any of my lily-livered colleagues to defy our will THEN! A strong and unified party means a strong and unified Christian Democrats, whatever those opposition goons may blather."

2. Loyalist legislator Francis Woodheart has other ideas on what to do with the rebels. "We really don't need anything quite so drastic, my friend. We can police ourselves! Just appoint me as 'whip,' and then I can use the power of persuasion on any party members who won't fall in line. Don't like the government's budget proposal? That's a shame, I really wanted to drop your name in His Holiness Pope Francis's ear for that open cabinet post..."

3. "Members of our legislature have ALWAYS voted according to their conscience," bellows Abraham Falopian, one of the dissenters. "That bill would have destroyed our way of life in Northwest Christian Democrats, and we won't allow that to happen! You snooty Rome scalawags keep flogging the same old dead horses, trying to bulldoze our culture, and we're plum sick of it. There've gotta be more safeguards against partisan and sectional tyranny. We need to have local control of local issues, and institute a secret ballot in the legislature. Only then are we safe from the storm of wrath and repercussions - from you, from the donors, or from the voters."

4. "Uh, speaking of voters..." mutters Sandy Berman, the Minister of Domestic Affairs. "Remember them? You're all so focused on getting your own agendas passed that you've forgotten why we're here in the first place! The voters didn't send us here to squabble like screaming children about who didn't support someone's National Moose Empowerment Act! They want us to get things done, and they'll bring home anyone who's not pulling their weight. Recall elections will make those rebels the local whipping boys. Forget secret ballots, we need to SPREAD the word who voted for what - the electorate will send us the right people if we just give them a chance."

5. "This word 'whip' has me thinking," ponders your old friend and chief-of-staff Mia Brutus, who is also the odds-on favorite to replace you one day. "What if we let everyone vote as usual, but every time some upstart so-called 'statesman' votes against your wishes, you ACTUALLY get to whip them! Live, in the public square! Wouldn't that be a delicious spectacle? The sting of the lash, the sound of leather striking flesh... I can't imagine anyone wanting to lead Christian Democrats without it."

Issue by: Annihilators of Chan Island
Editor: Logophilia Lyricalia

The issue has been added to the spoilers. By the way, I picked option 4. "Following new legislation in Christian Democrats, the ruling party has a devil of a time keeping order in the ranks."

[Team Rhysha]

I'm not sure if this is the place to report it, but I think there's a new first name: Declan.

[Trotterdam]

I received the issue! Trotterdam was correct.

Yay! I like being correct.

By the way, I picked option 4. "Following new legislation in Christian Democrats, the ruling party has a devil of a time keeping order in the ranks."

It shouldn't surprise you by now that I know the other effect lines too

I'm not sure if this is the place to report it, but I think there's a new first name: Declan.

It might be. I just got Declan Frederickson on an issue, and Frederickson is in the known last name list. Did you get it on the same issue or a different one?

#542 What A Waste

The Issue

Nuclear energy, the source of much of your growing nation's electricity, has been generating radioactive waste as a by-product. As the shadows cast by the mounting piles of warning-emblazoned concrete casks grow ever longer, a concerned populace is looking to you for a more permanent solution.

The Debate

1. "There's a boring and sensible approach," suggests corduroy-clad grey-haired engineer @@RANDOMNAME@@, rolling out a blueprint in front of you and ignoring the yawns of those attending the presentation. "Deep geologic disposal. My team has determined several sites for the construction of an extremely deep shaft underground to dispose of the nuclear waste. It's relatively inexpensive, we can mostly guarantee that the waste will never reach the surface, and it will be far safer than our current storage system. Exciting stuff, eh?"

2. "Let me tell you a story," says Stanley Leigh, the local representative of protest group Citizens Rejecting Atomic Power. "One day, some bad companies mix up this toxic cocktail that can poison people for thousands or millions of years. Then, they bury it, and think nothing more of it. Then, some kid in ten thousand years winds up a one-eyed mutant cyclops, and has no clue why. Turn off the reactors, buddy, and find a better way. Sure it's hard, but people like us have to make hard decisions."

3. "Once again, Science has the answer!" proclaims physics professor @@RANDOMFEMALENAME@@, striking her best heroic pose and pointing symbolically to the distant horizon. "Vitrification! Ion exchange! Synroc! We can separate out the components of the waste, burn off the long-lived stuff in fast reactors, reallocate the plutonium to weapons manufacture, and leave only short-lived waste that lasts merely hundreds of years. This will mean that we will not run out of fuel, and the environment will be spared from contamination. Increased industrial expenses? Yes. Necessary security costs and extensive safety regulations? Yes, sure, whatever. But, awesome Super Science? Triple yes, yes, yes!"

4. "I feel ashamed to be offering you an even better and easier solution, one that won't cost you a thing and might even make you a little money," simpers Snidely Industries CEO Cornelius Davidson Snidely while twirling his handlebar moustache. "Why, this waste could be sold to some very special international clients who would be very discreet about where they bought it from. I just recently sold them a batch of suitcases and plenty of dynamite: your waste products are the last missing ingredient they need. Dirty money from dirty bombs? No... clean profit margins from a clean sale!"

Issue by: Atomic Utopia
Editor: Candlewhisper Archive

Note, my names were:

1. Declan Frederickson
2. Stanley Leigh
3. Sashona Cho
4. Cornelius Davidson Snidely

1 is probably a random name. Frederickson is a known random last name, and Declan is not currently on the first name list but is probably a new addition.

I'm really not sure about 2 at all. It just sounds like a random name, yet I can find neither part on the known name list. I left it in for now.

3 is pretty, but clearly a random name as both parts are on the known names list.

4 is clearly nonrandom.

[Trotterdam]

#539 has recently had "android" changed to "robot" at least in one effect line. Next person to receive the issue, please check the text to see if it was changed anywhere else.

[Team Rhysha]

I had it in Issue 477

The Issue

The latest episode of celebrity chef Ramsey Oliver's massively popular television show "Lunch Box Revolution" has exposed the unhealthy junk food served in elementary and high schools, putting your government under pressure to act on childhood obesity.

The Debate

1."We all know what the problem is, so why isn't the government doing a #$%! thing about it?" decries Oliver from your TV screen. "We need to stop feeding our children junk food, like those $%#&! chicken chizzlers. Maybe the government can't control what they have at home, but they can give them proper meals for school lunches. Force the schools to serve only nutritious meals and ban junk food from being sold in schools. It's a !%&$# no-brainer! The $#%!@ soda industry might not like it, but they can go suck a lemon."

Accept

2."Who says you can't control what kids eat at home?" comments Declan Summers, one of your golf buddies, as he practices his swings. "You'd make it easier on parents if you mandated an official meal plan for children across Team Rhysha. I know I'd be much happier if a professional was preparing my kids' meals. Have you ever tasted my wife's cooking? Think about it. Hmm, that's probably a 7 iron shot from here."

Accept

3."Healthy food and meal plans aren't the answer," objects soccer mom and former Olympic athlete Anne-Marie Woolf, proudly displaying her gold medals. "The problem is that our glutinous hellspawn don't get off their lazy butts to exercise. We need more PE classes! Mandatory athletic training! More funding for after school activities! If we educate parents and children about good health and exercise, then they will get healthier and stay healthier. Not to mention they'll be the strongest and fastest in all of Telltale Community!"

Accept

4."Here we go with the food police again," sighs Burger Queen CEO Mohammed Nguyen as he chows down on a double bacon cheeseburger. "How about you health nuts stop telling me what food I can put in my body? These kids are perfectly capable of making their own choices. If they would rather enjoy one of our delicious burgers instead of some gross salad then who are we to stop them? Sure, they'll probably have a heart attack or two by the time they're my age, but it's better to die fat and free than old and controlled!"

Accept

I looked at the thing, and I'm pretty sure it said it was a random name. Note, that now it's Summers when it was once Licorish, as all the last names of the people in my issue changed.

I'm positive it's a new name.

[Drawkland]

Note, my names were:

1. Declan Frederickson
2. Stanley Leigh
3. Sashona Cho
4. Cornelius Davidson Snidely

1 is probably a random name. Frederickson is a known random last name, and Declan is not currently on the first name list but is probably a new addition.

I'm really not sure about 2 at all. It just sounds like a random name, yet I can find neither part on the known name list. I left it in for now.

3 is pretty, but clearly a random name as both parts are on the known names list.

4 is clearly nonrandom.

1 and 3 random, 2 and 4 nonrandom. Can confirm.

[Christian Democrats]

Note, my names were:

1. Declan Frederickson
2. Stanley Leigh
3. Sashona Cho
4. Cornelius Davidson Snidely

1 is probably a random name. Frederickson is a known random last name, and Declan is not currently on the first name list but is probably a new addition.

I'm really not sure about 2 at all. It just sounds like a random name, yet I can find neither part on the known name list. I left it in for now.

3 is pretty, but clearly a random name as both parts are on the known names list.

4 is clearly nonrandom.

1 and 3 random, 2 and 4 nonrandom. Can confirm.

#2: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stan_Lee

I'll add this issue soon. I think we've gotten to the point where we'll be moving to page 2, and I'll need time to figure out how I want to link to the new issues.

[Christian Democrats]

Wow, Issue #542 fit on page 1!

The name "Declan" has been added to the list of random first names.

[Candlewhisper Archive]

#2: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stan_Lee

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Was seriously worried what I'd considered a really straightforward reference was actually super-obscure. Mind you, the effect line makes it a lot more obvious...

[Trotterdam]

If the character were named Arachnid Dude, I would probably have figured it out. I don't always pay attention to the names of the authors of works that I read, nevermind ones that I don't.

That phrase is common enough in popular culture at this point that nobody really cares where it originally came from.

[Belinos]

#544: Object-Oriented Programming

The Issue

Triple-A videogame title "Panty Theft Auto" has caused a stir amongst feminists and concerned parents, with many demanding government action against objectification and sexualization of women in the game industry.

The Debate

1. "This is disgusting!" cries Alice N. Beck-Dell, a proudly feminist media commentator. "Look at these bimbos in all of these games! They'd need back braces to stand up if they were real! The male protagonist can rack up passive female conquests, and even gets a set of pornographic virtual trading cards for each one he collects. Can't we apply some modern day standards to this growing industry, to limit the objectification? Drooling teenage boys might admittedly be a significant market, but there are adult and women gamers too! Isn't some censorship worth it, for a less misogynistic society?"

2. "You can't be serious," complains Stan Houser, creative director of the game, covertly slipping you some special edition artwork of a chain-mail bikini elf-knight in a brown paper bag. "I like pretty girls. My customers like pretty girls. Pretty girls sell games. It isn't the job of the gaming industry to spread a social message and if these moral crusaders don't like it, they don't have to buy the game. Don't restrict the free market, or freedom of expression."

3. "The problem here isn't some video games, it's ALL video games," observes disbarred attorney Tom Jackson, peering at you over a stack of lawsuit documents. "Video games keep kids - and adults for that matter - on the couch all day. They rot brains, cause moral decay and encourage violence. I'm not blaming kids here, I'm blaming the media we feed them: don't hate the players, hate the game! Ban this trash, and get kids back outdoors playing healthy and wholesome games like mumbletypeg or pinfinger!"

Issue by: The Intelectocracy of Lubrumia
Editor: Candlewhisper Archive

[Trotterdam]

I can confirm that none of the names in #544 are random.

[Christian Democrats]

So we're on page 2 now, and I have it where the anchors still work.

#2: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stan_Lee

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Was seriously worried what I'd considered a really straightforward reference was actually super-obscure. Mind you, the effect line makes it a lot more obvious...

I don't like comic books or superheroes, and I know who Stan Lee is, so he must have some broader cultural relevance.

[New Chilokver]

#543: Flash, Aaaaaargh!

The Issue

A flash mob caused a public health risk and thousands of @@CURRENCY@@s in damage after being directed by an online user calling himself Flashy_G. Apparently, the stunt has left the affected area suffused with a choking stench and at least six terrified onlookers have been admitted to hospital with panic attacks and nervous breakdowns. Many of those impacted are demanding you take action.

The Debate

1. "They can't keep getting away with this," states Chief of Police @@RANDOMNAME@@ calmly, eyes fixed on a slow motion playback of the incident's CCTV footage. "This snot nosed little punk wasted an entire day's worth of police time with unnecessary evacuations and dealing with panicking crowds. An online perpetual ID system should be used, so home-grown terrorists can't hide behind their shrouds of anonymity."

2. "I thought it was pretty funny," says Barry Yalen, an itchy-looking teenager scratching at his crotch. "All he said was that it might be droll if a couple of thousand people all showed up to the mall on Tuesday the 18th at 11:32 am and did the Lice Bucket Challenge. He never TOLD anyone to do it. Just that, you know, it'd be funny if people did! You can't start getting mad at people for saying something would be cool. Don't step on our freedoms, man!"

3. "We shouldn't infringe freedom of speech, but we need to do something," grumbles janitor @@RANDOMNAME@@, wielding a pest-spray and mop. "As far as I'm concerned, it's the kids who empty out buckets of bugs who need to be punished. If I told them to jump in front of a bus, would they do it? Personal responsibility is what I'm talking about - have the system sentence all two thousand of these idiots, and put them to community service making the nation a better place."

4. "You know the real problem is how fast Flashy_G was able to spread chaos," observes your Minister of Memetic Warfare, carefully replacing the ink cartridge in her fountain pen. "These little online social media apps can reach hundreds of thousands of people in seconds. That's faster than the police can act or we can counter it. This could escalate from pesky teens spreading pests, to actual mobs destroying our government. On the other hand, if we can control the flow of information, then we can control the country. My people can secretly take control of the social media sites and track down this troublemaker and any others who emerge. Then, rather than silence them, we can adjust their activities to suit our needs."

Issue by: The Most Holy Empire of The Called
Editor:Candlewhisper Archive

New first name Mark; I'm fairly certain Barry Yalen is a reference to Barry Allen (aka the Flash) but I can't be sure.

[Christian Democrats]

#544: Flash, Aaaaaargh!

Are you sure that's the issue's number?

[New Chilokver]

#544: Flash, Aaaaaargh!

Are you sure that's the issue's number?

Woops, I meant #543.

[Candlewhisper Archive]

New first name Mark; I'm fairly certain Barry Yalen is a reference to Barry Allen (aka the Flash) but I can't be sure.

Yeah, you can thank Nation of Quebec for the Barry Allen bit, I'm not a Flash fan meself.

[Nation of Quebec]

New first name Mark; I'm fairly certain Barry Yalen is a reference to Barry Allen (aka the Flash) but I can't be sure.

Yeah, you can thank Nation of Quebec for the Barry Allen bit, I'm not a Flash fan meself.

It's an issue about flash mobs. How could you not have an obligatory reference to The Flash?