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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 20:55:07 GMT -5
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 20:56:20 GMT -5
Tales of the Green Lantern
Issue 4: "The Legion Virus Saga, Pt. 4: The Rogue!"
Written by Scott Kruger
Cover by Darth Lantern
Edited by David Charlton |
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 20:57:02 GMT -5
Hal exited the General’s office, squinting into the early morning light. He and Gardner had been locked in separate rooms all night telling their stories… in excruciating detail… to General Flagg, his staff and a few odd individuals that may have been civilian contractors. Neither man had done anything wrong, it’s just not every day an alien spacecraft crashes into a California desert, forcing them to "land" two very expensive planes.
One thing that had sparked up interest, especially in the civvie named Faraday, was the lack of even a bruise on Hal.
Hal claimed that he had just been lucky.
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 21:02:13 GMT -5
"I don’t buy it for a minute" The man in black known as Faraday whispered to his young female assistant, Agent Sullivan, out of earshot of General Flagg.
The two sifted through crash site photos of the two planes & the alien spacecraft.
"Look at this image…" Faraday added showing her a picture of an ejector seat splattered with dried blood. "You don’t just walk away from a crash like this without a mark."
"And DNA results prove that this blood is Lt. Jordan’s." Agent Sullivan added.
"Then there’s this…" Faraday picked up another photograph, this one of a blackened chunk of the alien spacecraft. The burn mark on the metal partially revealed a Green Lantern symbol. "Do you recognize this?"
"It seems vaguely familiar sir… but I can’t place it." She replied.
"Of course not… you’re not as old as I am…" he said with a smirk."There was a guy, a long time ago, that wore this symbol. He was one of the ‘mystery men’ of the 1940s… I was just a boy, but I remember reading in the rags about him and his pals’ exploits…"
"You don’t look that old, sir…" She interrupted.
"Shut up… I aged well. This man and his buddies, the Justice Society, they were the reason the DEO was formed. They went into hiding… in ‘51. Pull the file on them at headquarters for confirmation, but if I recall his name was Green Flame or Green Lantern or…"
"Memory going sir?"
"Sullivan… You’re really starting to piss me off."
"Do you want me to detain Lt. Jordan for further testing?" She asked.
"No… set up Surveillance Protocol 2…" Faraday gazed down at the picture of the Green Lantern symbol again, "Let’s keep an eye on this kid."
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 21:03:03 GMT -5
Hal stared absently at his right hand while he wandered back to his base housing. Guy Gardner followed behind.
The ring Hal was given nearly 36 before was gone. If it was still there on his finger, he couldn’t feel it. It was as if it simply vanished from existence.
What did the ghost say? Something about recharging the ring every 24 hours… God I need sleep… The few hours rest in the base hospital didn‘t do me a lick of good… how much sleep can you get in a hospital bed though. Nurses coming in every hour to check vital signs… stick you with needles and crap… on someone that hasn’t a scratch, no less. Taxpayer dollars well spent. Tonight, after a good rest, I’ll try to recharge the ring. Maybe see what you can really do.
"So… where did you go?" Hal asked to no one in particular as he glanced down at his hand again.
As if on cue, the ring materialized.
"Oh crap!" Hal grabbed his hand and ran for his quarters.
Last time the damn thing appeared the uniform came with it!
Guy stopped dead in his tracks as Hal began his sprint. From where he stood it looked as though Hal had an emergency bathroom visit in mind.
"What the hell…? Swear to God Jordan, you are a freak." Guy said to himself as he slowly continued the trip to his own quarters.
Hal burst through the door in his quarters and quickly locked the door behind him. The ring had just enough of a residual charge to appear... but luckily no uniform followed. Taking a deep breath, Hal stumbled over to his couch and collapsed. Within moments he was sound asleep.
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 21:03:51 GMT -5
In his sleep he dreamt of flying. Not a plane, actual flight. Below he saw the streets of his hometown, Coast City. He saw his mother’s home, his brother’s apartment building, Ferris Aircraft. Everywhere he flew, the people below stopped and stared up at him, pointing. Crowds gathered and the people called his name. He landed in the town square… but the scenery had changed.
Gone were all the trees, replaced by burning embers. The grass had been reduced to ash. The buildings were a smoldering ruin. The air was thick and it became hard to breathe. As he labored to take a breath, he noticed the people around him were dead. The putrid smell of burning hair and flesh filled his nostrils. A hand touched his shoulder… he spun around coming face to face with the ruined frame of his mother.
"Hal, why didn’t you stop him…?" Her decaying corpse asked as it pointed to a building on the far side of the square. Her skin turned to dust and crumbled before his eyes.
"Mother, no…" He turned away from the empty clothes she wore and saw city hall. A figure stood atop the pinnacle of the building. Something was familiar about the figure…
Each breath, a labor, he walked toward the building… A giant banner hung from the buildings edge… a flag with a Green Lantern symbol. But the symbol was not green, it was a sickly yellow and black. The figure standing above the flag was wearing a Green Lantern uniform, but also in the altered colors. Hal lifted himself off the ground and donning his Green Lantern uniform and came face to face with the one responsible for the atrocity.
He saw… himself.
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 21:04:23 GMT -5
Hal awoke with a start. Falling off the couch, he landed with a dull thud. He had been sleeping with a pillow over his head… explaining, at least, a portion of the nightmare.
Some man without fear… weird ass dream.
Hal looked at the clock on the wall… he had been asleep for over 6 hours. He glanced down at his right hand and saw that his ring was still there. A faint emerald glow seemed to emanate from the jewel in its center.
"You must need a recharge, don’t you? Well, not here… not until I can actually see what you can do." He said to the ring.
Hal walked into his bedroom, changed his clothes, gathered his coat and grabbed the keys to his jeep. He ran to his jeep, anxious to test the ring’s power.
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 21:05:19 GMT -5
From his porch, Guy Gardner sat on a chair smoking a cigar, watching as Hal’s strange behavior continued. Hal ran from his quarters toward his jeep, hopped in and started the engine before his rear hit the chair.
What he Hell…? Alright, that’s it…
Gardner reached behind his chair and grabbed his bomber jacket. The keys to his El Camino (Wisconsin license plate "GUYSRYD", of course), already in his pocket.
Guy followed Hal in his "pimped out ride", as he liked to call it, going East down Highway 18. The highway was mostly deserted, as it usually was late at night. Joshua trees, mountains, sage brush and the occasional jack rabbit the only things keeping him alert as he drove.
Hal’s jeep made a slow left turn onto a side road. Guy passed the side road reading the sign "El Mirage lakebed 5 miles". He pulled over to the side of the road and waited a moment before following Hal down the narrow road. About ½ a mile out on a small hill, Guy parked his El Camino, overlooking the whole of the lakebed.
Being a weekday, the lakebed was completely deserted. On the weekends you would find the weekend warriors on their dirt bikes & ATV’s at all hours of the day. The only vehicle on the lakebed that night was Hal’s jeep. Guy exited his car, and zipped his jacket up over his "Green Bay" tee shirt. He snuck (for no real reason, nighttime in the Mojave desert, even if lit by the moon, was incredibly dark) to the nearest Joshua tree and hid behind it, still chewing the end of his cigar.
What the Hell are you up to Jordan?
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 21:05:49 GMT -5
The black unmarked car followed in the distance. The tracer that had been planted on Hal Jordan’s jeep transmitted a signal into the receiver on Agent Sullivan’s dashboard. Lt. Gardner’s pursuit had been an unwelcome surprise, now she had to keep her distance from both.
When Jordan’s jeep came to a complete stop and Gardner’s vehicle stopped she continued driving. Once Guy’s El Camino was out of sight she made a sharp left turn onto a dirt road. She grabbed her camera just before it fell onto the floor of the passenger seat.
Years ago she had photographed something in her hometown… something unexplainable. Something that had set her on her path to the DEO… that something had turned out to be one of her best friends. She swore to herself that she would never tell anyone, and so far, she’d kept that promise. She didn’t know Lt. Jordan though and she’d be damned if she passed up another opportunity like that.
She cut her lights and came to a stop on a hill overlooking the lakebed. From her position she could see Hal and Guy. She checked the power levels on her digital camera and took aim at the lakebed below.
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 21:06:16 GMT -5
Hal Jordan stood alone, in the center of the lakebed. The pale moonlight the only illumination.
Let’s see what you can do… something about an oath.
He held his left hand out and thought about the lantern battery he had held in his hand two days earlier. As if on cue, it materialized in his outstretched hand. The pale green glow of the ring on his right hand intensified. No longer being completely controlled by himself, he held the ring to the face of the lantern. Words formed in his head as mysteriously as the battery had appeared in his hand. He recited the sacred oath…
"In brightest day, in blackest night, no evil
shall escape my sight. Let those who worship evil's might, beware my
power... Green Lanterns light."
The emerald light emanating from the power transfer lit the entire lakebed.
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 21:06:39 GMT -5
Guy Gardner dropped his cigar onto the desert floor. He turned and ran back to his car. Throwing the door open, he reached into his glove compartment and pulled out a pistol.
I don’t know what the Hell you are freak… I’m taking you in or bringing you down.
He began his trip down the hill towards Hal, no longer worried about being seen.
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 21:07:10 GMT -5
Gardner’s sudden departure went unnoticed by Agent Sullivan as she snapped photo after photo of Hal Jordan in the odd green and black costume.
Sullivan and Gardner were not the only ones to notice…
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 21:07:38 GMT -5
Luna, Earth’s pathetic moon. Sinestro had stood in the same spot for what seemed like an eternity. His mind had a singular goal. Power. More power. His masters demanded it… assimilate or destroy. Sinestro had been a good man. Some said the Corps best. If he had control of his faculties, he would have been sick with his behavior since his encounter with the Qwardian. Quite uncivilized. If the ring was itself, it would have told him where Abin Sur was, even if Abin’s ring had no charge.
But neither Sinestro nor his ring had been "themselves" for months. LEGION had them both, and it would hold them until Sinestro’s dying breath.
There… an energy spike. The Northern Hemisphere. You and ring 2814 are ours, Abin.
He streaked off towards Earth, a sickly yellow smear in the inky blackness of space.
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 21:08:18 GMT -5
Hal Jordan stood there in his new uniform, ring fully charged, amazed by his circumstances. He willed the power battery away and glanced down at his gloved and ringed right hand.
What a rush… The ghost said you could do anything I wanted… just a matter of willpower. Let’s see what you can do.
"Fly"
Soundlessly Hal streaked into the sky, an emerald beacon in the night.
"YYYYEEEEAAAAHHHH!!!" he screamed into the night sky as he flew, performing aerial acrobatics.
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 21:08:41 GMT -5
Below, Guy Gardner stopped in his tracks and stared upwards at Hal. Wordlessly and inexplicably angry, he cocked his .45 and continued his trek to the lakebed. For some reason he felt that it should’ve been him. But now he knew the truth, Jordan was a freak and must have been responsible for the crash in the desert. Deep down he knew this was just his fear talking. Which was the only reason it was not him flying, unaided through the night sky.
Agent Sullivan stopped taking the photos the instant Hal streaked up into the sky. She hadn’t been this excited about anything in years… Was Lt. Jordan an alien? Was he imbued with power from the crashed alien spacecraft?
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 21:18:41 GMT -5
Hal came to a soft landing on the lakebed floor.
Amazing… I am supposed to be able to create anything I wish, as well. Just think it… and it will happen. X-23 Stealth fighter.
A beam of light emanated from the gem in the center of Hal’s power ring & to his astonishment, before him, in perfect detail, an X-23 stealth fighter. Hal circled the fighter. Every detail perfect. Down to the last rivet. Even his call sign ‘Highball’ just below the canopy.
Incredible. Bigger, something bigger.
The fighter dissolved & was replaced by a B-52 bomber. Also perfect.
This is so cool.
The ring alerted him a fraction of a second before he heard the unmistakable voice.
"OK, alien commie freak..." Guy Gardner shouted, the sound of panic in his voice. "I don't know what you are, but I always knew you were too normal to be human." Guy was pointing his .45 at Hal’s forehead.
In the distance, Chloe was suddenly struck with fear for Hal… for Lt. Jordan.
"Whoa, Guy… just listen, put down the gun, let me explain…" Hal replied calmly.
"Don't give me that $#!^, Jordan… just keep your hands where I can see them."
"Guy, listen I got this from the crash… it’s…"
"I said shut the $%@# up and put you hands on your head. I know you caused the crash!!!" Guy screamed furiously.
"Guy, you know me, that makes no sense, why would I…?"
"I SAID SHUT THE $%!# UP!!!"
Guy squeezed the trigger twice. The sound of the double-pop, forced Hal’s eyes shut. Nothing. Hal wasn’t sure what he expected, but it was not bullets hanging stationary in the air in front of his face… held still by a green glow that surrounded his body.
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 21:18:58 GMT -5
Agent Sullivan breathed a sigh of relief, her hand moving away from the gun in her ankle holster. Not quite sure why it was that she felt… whatever it was… that she felt for Jordan. She shelved her protective feelings and began taking photographs again.
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 21:19:57 GMT -5
As the bullets fell to the ground, Hal pounced on Guy. A transparent green hand slapped the gun away as Hal grabbed Guy by his jacket.
"WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU, YOU BRAIN DAMAGED IDIOT???"
"Go ahead, freak, kill me." Guy bit back, fury in his eyes.
Hal, shocked, let go of Guy. "I'm not going to kill you...I’d like to knock your teeth out right now, though."
Guy’s only response was to look over Hal’s shoulder, a look of sheer terror over his face. Suddenly, Hal and Guy were surrounded by a green protective aura as an explosion rocked the lakebed. The force of the explosion sent them flying regardless of the protection.
Chloe was knocked backward as well losing grip of her camera.
Hal looked up and stared into the beady black eyes of Sinestro. Yellow & black veins cover Sinestro’s uniform, emanating from the yellow power ring on his right hand. A look of irritation & disappointment on Sinestro’s face. There was no sign of Gardner.
"You have something that belongs to me Terran. Hand over Abin Sur’s ring and your death will be swift… Please--- resist." Sinestro demanded.
Fists and teeth clenched, Hal stood & stared defiantly into the eyes of his attacker."I don’t think so Pinky."
Hal was knocked skyward after receiving a punch from a giant yellow fist. His ring absorbed some of the shock… but not enough. He landed with a dull thud on the lakebed floor. Sinestro’s inane laughter was the only sound.
OK… That hurt. Yellow... ring doesn't work against yellow. Dammit
"I was hoping you’d say that…" Sinestro sneered as he threw a giant yellow hand construct out to pin Hal against the ground. "I repeat… give me the ring, NOW!"
"Pfft… How about… NO!" Hal spat as he slammed Sinestro in the head with an enormous green boxing glove. The yellow hand pinning him dissolved as Sinestro’s concentration broke.
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 21:22:11 GMT -5
Chloe watched astounded as the events below unfolded… it was like a scene out of Star Trek! It wasn’t the first time she had seen metahuman activity… Hell, she was the first person ever to encounter Superman… there had been dozens of other ‘superheroes’ cropping up since Superman went public six years earlier. But it was the first time she had discovered a new metahuman since Clark.
If only she could find her damn camera… She began groping the desert floor struggling to find it.
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 21:23:11 GMT -5
Sinestro, picked himself off the ground, dusting dirt from his uniform and wiping purple blood from his lips. "Oooh, this is going to be fun. Uncle Sinestro is going to take you & everyone you love apart for that, boy…"
Hal produced a spear and hurled it towards Sinestro "Yeah, I heard you the first time…"
The spear shattered as it struck a yellow shield. "Are you done yet?" Sinestro growled. He created another giant yellow hand and backhanded Hal. "You could have just given me the ring, and I'd have killed you quickly, but now, I'm going to make sure it hurts... real bad."
Hal shot a simple energy beam at Sinestro hoping that simplicity would work. It didn’t.
How the Hell am I supposed to beat this guy?
"Is that the best you have rookie, even Abin had more imagination than that." Sinestro taunted as he shot 3 yellow ninja star like weapons at Hal. Hal evaded the first two, but the third tore through his protective aura like it was made of butter and grazed his shoulder.
Dammit, he's right. If he can block anything I send at him, I've got to get creative...
Hal manifested two M16 machine guns in each hand and squeezed the triggers. Sweeping both guns side to side, Hal unleashed a barrage of emerald bullets at (and in the general direction of) Sinestro. The bullets disintegrated against another shield of Sinestro’s… all but one. A single bullet shot the second Sinestro lowered his shield. His ring failed to create a protective aura. The bullet struck Sinestro in the shoulder. Sinestro stopped, looked at the wound and began to chuckle.
Wait a minute… My ring tries to protect me automatically… He needs to create a barrier to stop my…
Hal’s thought was interrupted by sudden hysterical laughter as Sinestro created an enormous mallet and swung it in his general direction.
"Oh shi…" Hal cursed as he was hit in his injured left shoulder by the mallet. The green shield his ring produced disintegrated as the mallet hit him, absorbing some of the shock.
Damn… that hurt. I need to start thinking 3 dimensionally, or I’m gonna end up a red pasty smear.
Hal was suddenly pinned to the ground, once again, this time by yellow chains. Sinestro’s incessant laughter eased for a moment. "Haaa... You have spirit, child, maybe I should infect you after all. Then we can kill your family together."
"Go to Hell, psycho" Hal spat back, the memory of his dream that day still fresh in his mind. Hal maneuvered his ring towards the desert floor.
The ground beneath Sinestro erupted like a volcano, sending rock, debris and one very surprised Korugarian flying. In the center of the blast, was a giant green fist.
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 21:23:39 GMT -5
Guy Gardner awoke to find himself not in his comfy bed or chair at home… but in the middle of the @#$%ing desert, with dirt and rock pelting him from above. It took a brief moment for him to remember what was happening. He rolled onto his back, spitting sand and rock, and saw Hal in that obnoxious green & black costume leaping into the air after someone. He scrambled to his feet, and began searching for his .45.
Chloe’s hand landed on her camera… it had fallen onto a rocky outcropping. It was broken beyond repair. Hopefully the memory chip would still be intact. The sound of the explosion and the shaking of the Earth snapped her back to reality as she saw the yellow and black clothed alien humanoid flying in her general direction. She quickly dove behind a boulder, dropping her camera again.
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 21:24:42 GMT -5
Hal flew into the newly created crater & knelt against its wall.
I have to keep him distracted and off balance… he can only block things with a shield.
"Don't hide, rookie... you're supposed to be fearless... or are the mighty Guardians giving their rings to the first person they come across...?" Came Sinestro’s high pitched whine.
"It's called Guerilla warfare @$$hole…" Hal shouted as he leapt from the crater, using the ring to hurtle rock & debris at his foe, while generating a giant bat behind Sinestro’s back.
Hit him with everything I’ve got…
Sinestro easily deflected the debris, but was caught off guard by the blow to the back of his head with the bat. Sinestro went down face first, dazed. Hal made the bat hit Sinestro over and over, but he began to rise. Hal took to the air.
Fall dammit!
Hal sent transparent fists at Sinestro, each striking him in the face. Sinestro’s attempts to block it failed; he fell to his knees.
Fall!
"I will… not… be beaten… by you." A bloody, battered and beaten down Sinestro shouted, spewing blood from his mouth. He created a yellow energy beam and hurtling it at Hal, missing by a mile. "You… will… NEVER… beat me…"
Fine.
Keeping Sinestro distracted with transparent green fists, Hal lifted his jeep into the air.
"Kill… you…" Sinestro choked.
The jeep smashed down on top of Sinestro, igniting in a fireball. Sinestro attempted to block it with a shield, but failed, only softening the blow. Sinestro was defeated, pinned beneath half a ton of metal debris.
Exhausted, bruised and thoroughly surprised that he survived the fight, Hal glided back down to the ground… and collapsed. Automatically, his ring shielded him from site.
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 21:25:53 GMT -5
The battle was over.
The quiet after the explosion from the jeep caused Agent Chloe Sullivan to peek out from behind the boulder. There was no sign of Hal… of Lt. Jordan, nor sign of the pink alien. That’s when she caught site of Guy.
Guy Gardner, .45 in hand, approached the wreckage that was Hal’s jeep. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the fallen form of the creature that Hal fought. He approached it, carefully and looked down into the fallen alien’s face. The black and yellow veins covering his costume were retreating into the ring on the creature's right hand. Guy watched, amazed.
As the final vein retracted into the ring the alien suddenly opened his eyes and gasped for air. Purple blood spurted from the wounds on its face. Guy reflexively aimed the pistol at it…
"Please… help me before… it’s too late…" the alien hissed while reaching up at Guy, but not in a language that the Air Force Lieutenant could understand. He took a step back and fired his gun once into the aliens head.
Alien scumbag…
The alien’s fallen hand hit the ground sending the yellow ring rolling from its finger. Guy reached down & picked up the ring. The air seemed to charge around Guy as he held it in his palm. He saw what Hal did with the one on his hand… and this one was identical to Hal’s… except in color. With childlike enthusiasm he began to wipe the dust from the rings face.
I can fly too…
He placed the ring on his finger and thought about flying… The ring awoke hungry for a new bearer. The pain was excruciating. The veins began to slither from the ring up his right arm. He dropped his gun and tried with all his might to pull the burning hot ring from his finger. Searing hot flames seemed to engulf his chest, then his legs and his left arm. He screamed in white hot agony as the burning tendrils climbed his neck.
Then nothing. Cool. Calm. Power.
A single word formed in his head… he knew without truly understanding the words meaning. The ring was beckoning him to return home. He looked up into the night sky and flew. The word…
{Qward.}
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2006 21:26:43 GMT -5
To be continued!
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Post by mockingbird on Jul 31, 2011 13:10:47 GMT -5
To let us know what you think of this issue, please visit the letters page here!
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