I would hope that the satelite has some brains, like Brother Eye. One would assume the sat. would also be able to track the power-users too. I can't imagine something like this being so poorly thought out.
"Yes, Mr Congressman, the satellite can give the user almost any power imaginable."
"No, Mr Congressman, tracking of the users has not yet been implemented at this time"
"Mr Congressman, what happened to our funding?"
Well, if you've got this tech to give these powers, why not just power up the entire military? We've literally already got armed forces we've trained, indoctrinated to follow orders, etc. Why empower normal humans with no training and variable morality and ethics, when you could just empower your own people?
As of 2008, we had 120 million men and women in the Armed Forces unless I'm mistaken who were fit for duty. The country is only 3.8 million square miles. You could put 3 super-powered military in each square mile, INCLUDING desert and whatnot.
If it's a question of having a limited number of people empowered, then that kinda goes against the core concept that people will constantly be being activated around the country.
Does it operate outside the USA?
Does it require constant power (like Super Skrull's satellite back in the day)?
Wouldn't most people - given powers like this - simply not help? I mean, you'd have prisons full of people who weren't willing to risk their lives just because some crazy satellite picked them. Not to mention conscientious objectors in general.
Worse, wouldn't a ton of people become villains themselves? Who makes the determination of whether the power is reasonable? If I request super-speed plus invisibility, how is it going to track me down to remove the powers? What's going to keep me from going invisible and hurling a spear at the satellite? It wouldn't have a heat signature, and would likely have too small a profile to do anything about (much less even detect it) before it destroyed the satellite.
What if I got mind-reading/control, and used that to subvert the people controlling the system? What if I got technopathy and directly manipulate the satellite?
thanks for sucking the fun out of tlb's awesome concept
I didn't suck anything out of anything. I'm not saying it's a bad idea; just trying to get a handle on the parameters of the idea.
Or are you trying to say that ANY inquiry that even hints at possible problems is a bad thing?
okay guess I need to clarify a shitton of more things.
there is no set continuity unless you want to reference another writer's story other then HEY THERE IS A SATELLITE that gives you powers. however this is a universe that has normal super heroes doing there thing, and you can definitely see them getting mad at some dude off the street getting better powers than them.
as for the seriousness of the stories - it is up to you! personally, I am going to write comedy shorts because that is my forte. I would caution against too much melodrama as the concept is a fun one to begin with, and the more realistic: once I get enough entries I like, I will put them up to vote for inclusion, and people will tend to vote for the comedy over the super serious unless the super serious is really really good. In fact, everyone who wants to write, send me as many single paragraph pitches as you think you can flesh out into a short story. It helps your chances of having a story you wrote getting picked. Remember- right now we are in the infancy stages and I need to gauge how much content we will have to begin with! And, try not to make a multi-issue arc if possible.
As for the powers. As said, the satellite gives you the powers it deems best for the situation. It may be right, it may be wrong -- that is why you have the ability to swap out powers or temporarily boost the ones you already have. There are limits, such as anything that would enable you to subvert the program faster than it could stop you. You could feasibly do a story about mind control trying to take over, but you can't mind control a sentient satellite. And remember - the satellite does give you powers, but it is sentient like brother eye. So the entire time you have it, it is yammering in your ear and giving you instructions. The way I described it in my notes is to think of it as the Booster Gold and Skeets relationship. Only, instead of information, it gives you powers.
I really like the multiple satellite concept. And actually, if they are all sentient, I can imagine a story written about just the satellites having a rivalry with each other or messing with one guy trying to tempt him to take satellite A's powers instead of satellite B's. Could lead to some stories.
Also, since it is like jury duty, you are allowed to be drafted more than once. In fact, how successful you were can influence you being chosen again. Some people will love it, some people will be angry about it. I am writing a story about a character who gets drafted for like the 13th time and finds out it's because he lives next door to a super villain.
And hey since everyone is throwing out ideas, here is mine for the first story:
A kid is just turning 18 and super jazzed because he might get to be a super hero. Does all the registration paperwork, passes the psych test, etc. So, finally, a super crime breaks out and he is summoned. He goes crazy and starts requesting powers left and right and the satellite gives him super strength just to shut him up. He ends up having to face a low level riddler type character and instead of having his epic super battle, he accidentally bumps into him in an alley, but since he has super strength, knocks him out and loses his powers.
the system is set up to react to threats immediately and it is not global. Do you really think the world would be happy if the US had a military made of superheroes? Plus, it is a silly concept and bringing too much logic into it would suck the possibility of whimsical stories right out.
plus the way I envision it is that this world has just accepted this as a thing you gotta do. Gotta buy food. Gotta breathe. Gotta be a superhero when Thanos decides to attack the Piggly Wiggly.
And just because you are chosen doesn't mean you will succeed. You might get beaten up and another person has to be activated to pick up your slack. You might go rogue and the satellite has to take your gifts away.
I think people are misconstruing the concept. I want stories about the people who get the powers that focus on what kind of person they are. What they will do. Etc. This is not about how the powers affect the people, unless that is a core part of the character you are writing.
If there are multiple satellites (an idea I like), it's possible for a satellite to break/go rogue/be taken over by a villain. Then, satellites need to empower heroes to take down one of their own satellite-brothers.
By the way, the idea of satellites beaming powers down to people totally reminds of the Centurions. In case you're not aware, the Centurions combined with exo-frame weapon systems beamed down from their space station (Sky Vault) to become man and machine, POWER EXTREME.
It would definitely be cool if each satellite had a different personality. You'd of course have the direct and to the point out of the box ones, but then ones that had been up there a while longer might be all, "Heyyyyyyyyyyy. Hey. Hey hey hey. You could try growing plants! You wanna control the growth of plants? Just say you wanna grow plants and you can. It would be cool. Ugh, please? I've never had anyone pick that one. Grow some friggin plants."
143999Tellin' yanot askin' ya, not pleadin' with yaRegistered Userregular
edited July 2009
I do think that more parameters for...if not the deep-down core mechanics of the system, than at least what the end-user would see...might be a good thing.
Will we at least see something like a standard-issue startup/shutdown script for your Deus Ex? Something like "Attention, citizen NAME/DESIGNATION. A Class A threat has been detected in your vicinity. Pursuant to IN-UNIVERSE SATELLITE-RELATED PROTOCOL JARGON, your Sentry Duty has begun. Prepare for SUPERSCIENCE BIOMATRIX SEQUENCING AUGMENTATION THING"?
As of 2008, we had 120 million men and women in the Armed Forces unless I'm mistaken who were fit for duty. The country is only 3.8 million square miles. You could put 3 super-powered military in each square mile, INCLUDING desert and whatnot.
Ummm... what? 120 million troops in the United States armed forces? If you put every active duty troops from the 4 branches, all of the national guard, and all of the reserve forces, the US has maybe 4 million troops. I can see putting a few troops with super powers in every big city, but trying to cover the entire country would be impossible.
Seriously lets talk about what happens when Bobby gets his powers, fights his way across the globe and then has to hitchhike his ass back home! OR when Mrs. Vandersmeck is about to display her prize orchards at the Arbor Day festival thats she has worked for her whole summer and BLAM has to go fight Godzilla. OR The Cult of the Sattelite who worship the damn thing, wondering why Billy Joe done got his shot when he's a lousy Christian! Why have you forsaken me Lord Sattelite!
TLB: I'll send you a PM a little later tonight with some art.
But reading the thread brought up a question and I may have just missed it. When people get zapped and get their amazing powers of awesome, do they suddenly get a costume, too? Is it standard to all of them? Or are they dealing with the local evildoer in whatever they were already wearing at the time?
but the second the villain is defeated you lose them
so you do something stupid like mind control
the villain is subdued
but whoops you lost your powers and now a villain's gonna kill you
I want a story where a dude defeats a villian in an aerial battle high above a city and immediately plummets to his death when his powers cut out
Also a guy gets human torch-style powers, slaps supervillian about and then loses powers but is still on fire and is barbecued.
Basically what I'm saying is a "story" that's just a bunch of situations where people end up getting killed in ridiculous ways because of the system would be pretty fun.
In regard to the point matt brought up, I don't think it makes sense to imprison people who refuse to heed the call of heroism. To me, it's more likely that the satellite would either hit them in the brain with a laser and kill them on the spot, make it so the powers burn out the body if they aren't expended in a fight or rescue, or just couple the power boost with an adrenaline boost or some kind of hypnotic suggestion that makes the hero more inclined to take orders from the satellite. In any case, there's no reason to have a bunch of people just sitting around demanding legal representation and potentially jeopardizing the whole thing.
TLB: I'll send you a PM a little later tonight with some art.
But reading the thread brought up a question and I may have just missed it. When people get zapped and get their amazing powers of awesome, do they suddenly get a costume, too? Is it standard to all of them? Or are they dealing with the local evildoer in whatever they were already wearing at the time?
nope no costumes at all unless the person zapped deems it necessary to give themselves a costume
but the second the villain is defeated you lose them
so you do something stupid like mind control
the villain is subdued
but whoops you lost your powers and now a villain's gonna kill you
I want a story where a dude defeats a villian in an aerial battle high above a city and immediately plummets to his death when his powers cut out
Also a guy gets human torch-style powers, slaps supervillian about and then loses powers but is still on fire and is barbecued.
Basically what I'm saying is a "story" that's just a bunch of situations where people end up getting killed in ridiculous ways because of the system would be pretty fun.
but the second the villain is defeated you lose them
so you do something stupid like mind control
the villain is subdued
but whoops you lost your powers and now a villain's gonna kill you
I want a story where a dude defeats a villian in an aerial battle high above a city and immediately plummets to his death when his powers cut out
Also a guy gets human torch-style powers, slaps supervillian about and then loses powers but is still on fire and is barbecued.
This was the first idea I had while thinking about it.
In regard to the point matt brought up, I don't think it makes sense to imprison people who refuse to heed the call of heroism. To me, it's more likely that the satellite would either hit them in the brain with a laser and kill them on the spot, make it so the powers burn out the body if they aren't expended in a fight or rescue, or just couple the power boost with an adrenaline boost or some kind of hypnotic suggestion that makes the hero more inclined to take orders from the satellite. In any case, there's no reason to have a bunch of people just sitting around demanding legal representation and potentially jeopardizing the whole thing.
Yeah, I mean as long as the thing's fucking with a person anyway, I don't see why it couldn't give them a heightened sense of justice or duty or something.
Though that might narrow the possibilities for stories if every character is compelled to act heroic, so maybe not.
It appears, to me, that this concept has the greatest character development for the villains, and while this isn't the first thing to ever do that, that fact seems kind of neat.
but the second the villain is defeated you lose them
so you do something stupid like mind control
the villain is subdued
but whoops you lost your powers and now a villain's gonna kill you
I want a story where a dude defeats a villain in an aerial battle high above a city and immediately plummets to his death when his powers cut out
Also a guy gets human torch-style powers, slaps supervillian about and then loses powers but is still on fire and is barbecued.
Basically what I'm saying is a "story" that's just a bunch of situations where people end up getting killed in ridiculous ways because of the system would be pretty fun.
do that story then
do it
I shall call it Schadenfreude.
"You are, no doubt, aware of the Sentry Protocol, and the men and women empowered by it to defend our safety and freedom. You may not, however, be aware that most of these people are morons. For example, Federico Alonzo, the mild-mannered janitor who was chosen to save New Jersey from the nefarious Sky-Squid..."
but the second the villain is defeated you lose them
so you do something stupid like mind control
the villain is subdued
but whoops you lost your powers and now a villain's gonna kill you
I want a story where a dude defeats a villain in an aerial battle high above a city and immediately plummets to his death when his powers cut out
Also a guy gets human torch-style powers, slaps supervillian about and then loses powers but is still on fire and is barbecued.
Basically what I'm saying is a "story" that's just a bunch of situations where people end up getting killed in ridiculous ways because of the system would be pretty fun.
do that story then
do it
I shall call it Schadenfreude.
"You are, no doubt, aware of the Sentry Protocol, and the men and women empowered by it to defend our safety and freedom. You may not, however, be aware that most of these people are morons. For example, Federico Alonzo, the mild-mannered janitor who was chosen to save New Jersey from the nefarious Sky-Squid..."
In regard to the point matt brought up, I don't think it makes sense to imprison people who refuse to heed the call of heroism. To me, it's more likely that the satellite would either hit them in the brain with a laser and kill them on the spot, make it so the powers burn out the body if they aren't expended in a fight or rescue, or just couple the power boost with an adrenaline boost or some kind of hypnotic suggestion that makes the hero more inclined to take orders from the satellite. In any case, there's no reason to have a bunch of people just sitting around demanding legal representation and potentially jeopardizing the whole thing.
Ask some of the conscientious objectors of the Vitenam War what happened to them when they refused to serve. I'll give you a hint: it wasn't a laser to the brain.
Without getting too serious, my guess is if someone either refused to help or just goofed off with their superpowers too far, the satellite would just make a note of it and then zap that person back to normal. After all, since it can pick anyone over the age of 18, it can go to the next guy in line and hope for better results. The dissident would likely get charged with a violation of federal law, and face criminal charges.
Thinking about it, it gives the idea of a story about a guy who's on trail for misuse of the superpowers when he ends up torching a city block by selecting fire blasts as his superpower. Turns out, his surprise wittiness is the villain who admits he tricked the guy by swiping his glasses and making realistic ice sculptures of himself on all the buildings.
Well, it's fiction. This government doesn't have to be exactly like our government.
And I don't want things to get all pedantic, of course, but I do think how the government approaches potential hiccups such as unwilling heroes would provide valuable insight into the nature of the program itself and give the writer(s) a great means of fleshing out the program indirectly, as opposed to just outright saying that the whole thing is run by fascists or people who believe that everyone has the capacity for heroism or whomever.
That said, there is no real use debating the finer details as if we could ever come to a conclusion about what's the best/most realistic/most logical between all the possibilities. That sort of thing is just silly, a waste of time, and tends to suck all the fun out of the room, and so I think we're better off just sharing our own ideas rather than arguing for the sake of determining how this would work in "real life", as if that sort of information is of any real use at all.
That said, there is no real use debating the finer details as if we could ever come to a conclusion about what's the best/most realistic/most logical between all the possibilities. That sort of thing is just silly, a waste of time, and tends to suck all the fun out of the room, so at the very least I'll try to avoid that from now on.
This.
Let TLB provide some loose framework, and then have fun with the concept. We are not writing a 12 volume series of novels, but a comic anthology.
If the satellite selects some loser pacifist, I imagine the satellite would quickly find someone else. Quickly, like computer/super satellite quickly, say in about .05 seconds.
You're right Robos...let's concentrate on something more fun
Like, what if at the height of the cold war, in response to the Sentry Protocols, the Soviets secretly launched a satellite that could give random criminals in the United States superpowers? And to up the ante, let's say the soviet satellite "persuades" these newly-empowered criminals to do as much collateral damage as possible.
Think about it: The police are responding to what they think is just a routine domestic dispute only to find a guy shooting lasers out of his eyes pissed off at the world. Or a bank robber fleeing the authorities that suddenly discovers he can fly and a little voice in his head (with a Russian accent, natch) is instructing him on the finer arts of aerial sabotage.
Well, it's fiction. This government doesn't have to be exactly like our government.
And I don't want things to get all pedantic, of course, but I do think how the government approaches potential hiccups such as unwilling heroes would provide valuable insight into the nature of the program itself and give the writer(s) a great means of fleshing out the program indirectly, as opposed to just outright saying that the whole thing is run by fascists or people who believe that everyone has the capacity for heroism or whomever.
That said, there is no real use debating the finer details as if we could ever come to a conclusion about what's the best/most realistic/most logical between all the possibilities. That sort of thing is just silly, a waste of time, and tends to suck all the fun out of the room, and so I think we're better off just sharing our own ideas rather than arguing for the sake of determining how this would work in "real life", as if that sort of information is of any real use at all.
How about the system just randomly selects anybody who matches the incredible loose criteria (1: Physically able, 2: Legal Citizen) within range of the disaster and the government has no further control over the system, in order to prevent abuse to prevent prejudice and political bias from affecting the system.
Posts
Well, if you've got this tech to give these powers, why not just power up the entire military? We've literally already got armed forces we've trained, indoctrinated to follow orders, etc. Why empower normal humans with no training and variable morality and ethics, when you could just empower your own people?
As of 2008, we had 120 million men and women in the Armed Forces unless I'm mistaken who were fit for duty. The country is only 3.8 million square miles. You could put 3 super-powered military in each square mile, INCLUDING desert and whatnot.
If it's a question of having a limited number of people empowered, then that kinda goes against the core concept that people will constantly be being activated around the country.
Does it operate outside the USA?
Does it require constant power (like Super Skrull's satellite back in the day)?
I didn't suck anything out of anything. I'm not saying it's a bad idea; just trying to get a handle on the parameters of the idea.
Or are you trying to say that ANY inquiry that even hints at possible problems is a bad thing?
You really shouldn't be trying to make it realistic or be logical with it.
there is no set continuity unless you want to reference another writer's story other then HEY THERE IS A SATELLITE that gives you powers. however this is a universe that has normal super heroes doing there thing, and you can definitely see them getting mad at some dude off the street getting better powers than them.
as for the seriousness of the stories - it is up to you! personally, I am going to write comedy shorts because that is my forte. I would caution against too much melodrama as the concept is a fun one to begin with, and the more realistic: once I get enough entries I like, I will put them up to vote for inclusion, and people will tend to vote for the comedy over the super serious unless the super serious is really really good. In fact, everyone who wants to write, send me as many single paragraph pitches as you think you can flesh out into a short story. It helps your chances of having a story you wrote getting picked. Remember- right now we are in the infancy stages and I need to gauge how much content we will have to begin with! And, try not to make a multi-issue arc if possible.
As for the powers. As said, the satellite gives you the powers it deems best for the situation. It may be right, it may be wrong -- that is why you have the ability to swap out powers or temporarily boost the ones you already have. There are limits, such as anything that would enable you to subvert the program faster than it could stop you. You could feasibly do a story about mind control trying to take over, but you can't mind control a sentient satellite. And remember - the satellite does give you powers, but it is sentient like brother eye. So the entire time you have it, it is yammering in your ear and giving you instructions. The way I described it in my notes is to think of it as the Booster Gold and Skeets relationship. Only, instead of information, it gives you powers.
I really like the multiple satellite concept. And actually, if they are all sentient, I can imagine a story written about just the satellites having a rivalry with each other or messing with one guy trying to tempt him to take satellite A's powers instead of satellite B's. Could lead to some stories.
Also, since it is like jury duty, you are allowed to be drafted more than once. In fact, how successful you were can influence you being chosen again. Some people will love it, some people will be angry about it. I am writing a story about a character who gets drafted for like the 13th time and finds out it's because he lives next door to a super villain.
And hey since everyone is throwing out ideas, here is mine for the first story:
A kid is just turning 18 and super jazzed because he might get to be a super hero. Does all the registration paperwork, passes the psych test, etc. So, finally, a super crime breaks out and he is summoned. He goes crazy and starts requesting powers left and right and the satellite gives him super strength just to shut him up. He ends up having to face a low level riddler type character and instead of having his epic super battle, he accidentally bumps into him in an alley, but since he has super strength, knocks him out and loses his powers.
If you have any more questions, just ask away.
Not saying this is a bad thing at all.
the system is set up to react to threats immediately and it is not global. Do you really think the world would be happy if the US had a military made of superheroes? Plus, it is a silly concept and bringing too much logic into it would suck the possibility of whimsical stories right out.
plus the way I envision it is that this world has just accepted this as a thing you gotta do. Gotta buy food. Gotta breathe. Gotta be a superhero when Thanos decides to attack the Piggly Wiggly.
And just because you are chosen doesn't mean you will succeed. You might get beaten up and another person has to be activated to pick up your slack. You might go rogue and the satellite has to take your gifts away.
I think people are misconstruing the concept. I want stories about the people who get the powers that focus on what kind of person they are. What they will do. Etc. This is not about how the powers affect the people, unless that is a core part of the character you are writing.
By the way, the idea of satellites beaming powers down to people totally reminds of the Centurions. In case you're not aware, the Centurions combined with exo-frame weapon systems beamed down from their space station (Sky Vault) to become man and machine, POWER EXTREME.
(The Centurions was the best show.)
it'd be a nice one-off story here and there, but I don't want it to be standard
[tiny]I named the satellite after me. I need a legacy.[/tiny]
Will we at least see something like a standard-issue startup/shutdown script for your Deus Ex? Something like "Attention, citizen NAME/DESIGNATION. A Class A threat has been detected in your vicinity. Pursuant to IN-UNIVERSE SATELLITE-RELATED PROTOCOL JARGON, your Sentry Duty has begun. Prepare for SUPERSCIENCE BIOMATRIX SEQUENCING AUGMENTATION THING"?
I was talking to dude with the machine man avatar that I would have to scroll up two whole posts to see the name of
Ummm... what? 120 million troops in the United States armed forces? If you put every active duty troops from the 4 branches, all of the national guard, and all of the reserve forces, the US has maybe 4 million troops. I can see putting a few troops with super powers in every big city, but trying to cover the entire country would be impossible.
NO
NO DEBATING REAL LIFE THINGS IN A THREAD ABOUT SATELLITE BEAMED SUPERPOWERS
And they're debating physics.
But reading the thread brought up a question and I may have just missed it. When people get zapped and get their amazing powers of awesome, do they suddenly get a costume, too? Is it standard to all of them? Or are they dealing with the local evildoer in whatever they were already wearing at the time?
XBL: JyrenB ; Steam: Jyren ; Twitter
http://www.audioentropy.com/
Also a guy gets human torch-style powers, slaps supervillian about and then loses powers but is still on fire and is barbecued.
Basically what I'm saying is a "story" that's just a bunch of situations where people end up getting killed in ridiculous ways because of the system would be pretty fun.
https://twitter.com/Hooraydiation
nope no costumes at all unless the person zapped deems it necessary to give themselves a costume
do that story then
do it
This was the first idea I had while thinking about it.
Yeah, I mean as long as the thing's fucking with a person anyway, I don't see why it couldn't give them a heightened sense of justice or duty or something.
Though that might narrow the possibilities for stories if every character is compelled to act heroic, so maybe not.
http://www.audioentropy.com/
I shall call it Schadenfreude.
"You are, no doubt, aware of the Sentry Protocol, and the men and women empowered by it to defend our safety and freedom. You may not, however, be aware that most of these people are morons. For example, Federico Alonzo, the mild-mannered janitor who was chosen to save New Jersey from the nefarious Sky-Squid..."
"Choose your powers"
"A HUGE DONG"
Ask some of the conscientious objectors of the Vitenam War what happened to them when they refused to serve. I'll give you a hint: it wasn't a laser to the brain.
Without getting too serious, my guess is if someone either refused to help or just goofed off with their superpowers too far, the satellite would just make a note of it and then zap that person back to normal. After all, since it can pick anyone over the age of 18, it can go to the next guy in line and hope for better results. The dissident would likely get charged with a violation of federal law, and face criminal charges.
Thinking about it, it gives the idea of a story about a guy who's on trail for misuse of the superpowers when he ends up torching a city block by selecting fire blasts as his superpower. Turns out, his surprise wittiness is the villain who admits he tricked the guy by swiping his glasses and making realistic ice sculptures of himself on all the buildings.
And I don't want things to get all pedantic, of course, but I do think how the government approaches potential hiccups such as unwilling heroes would provide valuable insight into the nature of the program itself and give the writer(s) a great means of fleshing out the program indirectly, as opposed to just outright saying that the whole thing is run by fascists or people who believe that everyone has the capacity for heroism or whomever.
That said, there is no real use debating the finer details as if we could ever come to a conclusion about what's the best/most realistic/most logical between all the possibilities. That sort of thing is just silly, a waste of time, and tends to suck all the fun out of the room, and so I think we're better off just sharing our own ideas rather than arguing for the sake of determining how this would work in "real life", as if that sort of information is of any real use at all.
https://twitter.com/Hooraydiation
In brightest day! In blackest night! No evil shall escape the sight of my MASSIVE COCK!
This.
Let TLB provide some loose framework, and then have fun with the concept. We are not writing a 12 volume series of novels, but a comic anthology.
Like, what if at the height of the cold war, in response to the Sentry Protocols, the Soviets secretly launched a satellite that could give random criminals in the United States superpowers? And to up the ante, let's say the soviet satellite "persuades" these newly-empowered criminals to do as much collateral damage as possible.
Think about it: The police are responding to what they think is just a routine domestic dispute only to find a guy shooting lasers out of his eyes pissed off at the world. Or a bank robber fleeing the authorities that suddenly discovers he can fly and a little voice in his head (with a Russian accent, natch) is instructing him on the finer arts of aerial sabotage.
As they say, hilarity would ensue.
How about the system just randomly selects anybody who matches the incredible loose criteria (1: Physically able, 2: Legal Citizen) within range of the disaster and the government has no further control over the system, in order to prevent abuse to prevent prejudice and political bias from affecting the system.