Star Wars is a product with global appeal. The entire Sci-Fantasy genre enjoys a level of interest that spans the planet. It's not just a Western thing, it's a human thing.

Turns out, so is the Dark Brotherhood.

Far less ominous than its name implies, the club is actually a terribly interesting melting pot of different countries, cultures, and good people who find common ground despite the oceans and borders between them.

Last night on "Shots with the Grand Masters," (Yeah, you need to come drop by if you haven't seen this...NC-17!) in Google Hangouts, we had at least three different countries represented. Four if you count New Jersey as a separate country which most of us Americans do.

But I learned a lot. For instance, did you know Canadians have distinct accents? I didn't either. Tarax was completely unintelligible to me! I couldn't understand a word he was saying. Wuntila is British and I understood him just fine. But I had to work to understand Tarax's unique cultural point of view.

By the end of the night most had blocked Tarax due to the obvious language barrier. But their cultural insensitivity gave me the resolve to stick with it and in the end, I think we made a breakthrough. I was so impressed that I'm now looking for "Canadian" in the Rosetta Stone collection because I want to be able to better understand what he's saying. Others must be as passionate because I'm having difficulty finding a copy.

But the lesson I was reminded of was the strength of this diversity. Taldryan/Canadian. Arconan/British. Brotherhood/Brothers & Sisters. So regardless of which unit you find yourself in: Tarentum, Plagueis, etc., know there are common bonds between them. Their passion is your passion. The same is true regardless of which country you find yourself in: Canada, Britain, New Jersey, etc., know those same bonds exist.

Their passion is yours.

So what I'd like to do, if you want, is just have you comment on this post with where you're from. Show everyone, current members - future members, that the Brotherhood is a global phenomenon as is its Star Wars heritage. Sure it's on your dossier, but who looks at those? I know I only ever stare at my own. For hours.

(You guys do that too, right?)</font color=#575757>

Many Flags, One Passion.

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See you out there,

• R