Quote from: beejazzWell... yeah, I guess that makes some sense "as the technology becomes available" but... in the Middle East? One of the last bastions of any kind of sexual uber-conservativism?

...America (or, by the sound of it, Japanese H-fandom) wins?

It's not like sexual mods are accepted by mainstream society.  But in the 23rd century of the novels, self-modification technology of all sorts is ubiquitous, and people do all sorts of things which aren't accepted.  The clash between the self-modification technologies and conservative religious values is one of the focuses of the novels.  The novels have a very "film noir" feel, looking through the dirty underworld of life within the City.  

The main ones are brain chips, known as "daddies" (which provide new skills) and "moddies" (which provide whole new personalities).  But there's also various physical cyberware, bio-ware, and other mods.

Wow. Sweetness. I shall have to check this out.

Also, I read something a while back about a Middle-Eastern comic book company... Anyone familiar or know where I could find more info on associated superheroes?

Quote from: beejazzAny good, you think?

It's not really mecha, or supers. It was a cyberpunk setting, the main tech gimick was that the chipware had gone beyond just providing skills to providing whole personalities.

So you are about to do a black-op raid on some complex, you plug in your James Bond chip, and not only do you gain skills in firearms and espionage but you become a charming gentleman with a ice cold heart fearless and able to kill a man without a second thought.

Of course when you took it out you then have a panic attack over the fact five minutes ago you were hanging from a helicopter skid while pulling the pilot out to fall 300ft to his death, the guilt and fear hits you all at once.

So these "moddies" (I think was the term), are sort of addictive and have parallels to drug use, in fact some moddies just changed your mood like uppers or downers. Some people would never use there own personalities, sticking with one moddie for life, others would serially switch personalities. Most folks used them recreationally, but others for work.

Interesting concept, but I think it worked better as a novel than a RPG game, most players have enough trouble playing one characters personality, let alone half a dozen.

The whole thing was set in some Middle East country, I don't think it touched particularly deeply on radicalised Islam however, but certainly moderate Islam was common in the setting. Everyone seemed to pay at least lip service to prayers and dress codes a lot of the time, but in certain districts life was more seedy than Soho.

One of the more interesting aspects of the Marid Audran trilogy, which I cannot recommend too highly, is that as they develop the main character finds more solace in his faith and becomes more religious.

Not in some nutjob way, just that Islam becomes more a part of his life.

Great novels, among the best cyberpunk ever written.

Quote from: beejazzWell... yeah, I guess that makes some sense "as the technology becomes available" but... in the Middle East? One of the last bastions of any kind of sexual uber-conservativism?

Iran is one of the world-leaders, certainly in that part of the globe, in gender-reassignment surgery.  Wiki article

Hammer's Slammers had more than a few characters who were Muslim, and also had Mulsim's who were the antagonists. I've read a few David Drake books where the main characters were hyper-religious, and some were even Muslims.

Quote from: beejazzExactly. That would be SO win.

Romans: Raugh! Army! Favorite of historians everywhere!
Persians: Fuck yous! MECHA!
Romans: Aaaugh! Retreat! Jeebus save me!
Persians: Jeebus FTL! Eat righteous fire!
Mani: Can't we all just get along?
Romans and Persians: (in unison) Fuck noes!

bwaaahahhahhahhhahahaaaaahhhaahahh!

Quote from: Hastur T. FannonIran is one of the world-leaders, certainly in that part of the globe, in gender-reassignment surgery.  Wiki article

WHAT!?!

WHAT?!?!

Yeah, I've read stories about that. Kinda flies in the face of what we think about Iran, isn't it?

As an Iranian (er... 2nd gen Persian)... I am highly confused and bewildered by this.

Quote from: beejazzAs an Iranian (er... 2nd gen Persian)... I am highly confused and bewildered by this.

BBC News report.

This sounds like the Pundit's comments on homosexuality--how antiquity civilizations like the Romans had a very different paradigm about same-sex relations than the modern Western definitions.  In a weird way, this fits the fundamentalist Islamist viewpoint.  Gender differences and roles are very rigidly defined, but sexual re-assignment surgery is simply a method of correcting an unfortunate birth defect.  I note the creepy implication in the BBC article that some clerics would *force* gays or lesbians to have sexual-reassignment surgery so that their sexual acts would be "correct" according to gender.

Quote from: beejazzWHAT!?!

WHAT?!?!

It makes a kind of sick sense when you think about it.  You see - it's a way of "curing" homosexuality