MASK OR MENACE

[Buckle in, folks. Edgeworth's got a long agenda today, if the paper in front of him is any indication.

A few items of business.

First, the criminal calling himself Lucifer is still at large. If you encounter him, do not approach him. Instead, notify the authorities. He is to be considered extremely dangerous; if you engage him, you do so at your own peril and very likely death. Again, if you see him, report as much to the authorities, but do not engage.

[And with that grim warning out of the way - ]

Second, if anyone has either been given the power to influence thoughts, behaviors, and memories, or had such a power at home, please kindly speak to me. There's a puzzle I could use a bit of help on, and would appreciate it if you would consult.


Now. I also have a bit of a request - and I am perfectly aware of my phenomenal hypocrisy in making this request, since I should be the first one to follow my own advice. Still, please hear me out, and feel free to mock at me heartily afterwards.

As a prosecutor, I see a great many cases in which people have been murdered or injured because of an altercation stemming from an unkind word. I would not at any moment blame those who give insult for their own deaths; no; the fault lies squarely with the person who would take someone else's life. Yet at the same time, a loss of life could have been avoided if both people had just taken the time to be civil.

This is what I want to beg of all of you: be civil. It seems as though every day, people begin arguing viciously on the network. Every day, someone undertakes to be unkind for no reason other than to be unkind. And I truly do understand: all of us here are frightened, and homesick, and angry, and lonely. All of us want to revenge the wrong that's been done to us, and we so often turn to the nearest target to do so, and the nearest target is so often one another.

But it costs nothing to be kind to one another. There is no disadvantage in decency. We're all here in the same circumstances; we're under equal pressure; and none of us, with very few exceptions, want to see suffering or unhappiness amongst those around us. We're all just trying to get along - and we can all get along a bit better if we spare fewer unkind words for one another.

There are few things I can think of that would be worse than seeing your files cross my desk. I don't want to prosecute anyone's murder. And so I beg of you, first: please stay safe and cautious. And I beg of you second: be kind to your fellows, and try to promote harmony, so that there are no tragedies that come when the wrong person loses control.

Thank you all very much for your attention. Remember, if you ever feel unsafe or like you need help, call the authorities or a friend here on the network. We all just want to help one another.