[invisiblemimsy] XODE

[invisiblemimsy]

Banned xode leads xo deaxx! Oppose.

[GalFisk]

Banned code leads to death?
Code: words? Symbols? Code speech? Encryption? Computer code? Steganography (hiding a message inside another message)? Censorship relevant? If death: by disease? Murder? Accident? Execution? Old age? Death of: a human? Multiple humans? Animals? Plants? Bacteria?

[irishelk]

Does "oppose" indicate disagreement? If so, with the xode (code?)? Is it an instruction to "oppose"? If so, meant for us LTPFers?

Is something being encoded incorrectly? Or decrypted incorrectly? Leading to the x's? If so, by a person? A machine?

[invisiblemimsy]

Banned code leads to death? Y
Code: words? Y Symbols? N Code speech? Y Encryption? N Computer code? N Steganography (hiding a message inside another message)? N Censorship relevant? N If death: by disease? N Murder? Y Accident? N Execution? Y Old age? N Death of: a human? Y Multiple humans? N Animals? N Plants? N Bacteria? N

[invisiblemimsy]

Does "oppose" indicate disagreement? N If so, with the xode (code?)? So N/A Is it an instruction to "oppose"? Y If so, meant for us LTPFers? Y

Is something being encoded incorrectly? N Or decrypted incorrectly? N Leading to the x's? N/FA If so, by a person? N A machine? N

[GalFisk]

Technology relevant? Morse? Radio? War? Should we oppose the assumption that banned code leads to a murder/execution? Is banned code used? Is code banned so that the desired message cannot be expressed?

[invisiblemimsy]

Technology relevant? N Morse? N Radio? N War? N Should we oppose the assumption that banned code leads to a murder/execution? FA Is banned code used? NoX by me Is code banned so that the desired message cannot be expressed? FoX now, yes

[GalFisk]

Relevant that you've so far X'ed the letters C, T, H and R? Are there other letters that you want to X? Any vowels?

[invisiblemimsy]

Relevant that you've so far X'ed the letters C, T, H and R? YES Are there other letters that you want to X? YES... just the one. Any vowels? YES, and anticipating the invoke, it's I.

[invisiblemimsy]

************UPDATE************

So, thanks to Galfisk, the code letters which have been X'd are C, H, R, I, T.

From now on, I'll not bother X-ing them.

[irishelk]

Should we try to get you to use those letters? Are you Xing them whenever they appear? When they appear in a certain context? Relevant that "oppose" has none of the bad letters?

Is the code "banned" in the sense that it bans certain letters? Is the code itself "banned"? Was it banned at some point?

Would xx xelp us xo "oppose" xf we xoo "X" out lexxexs?

[invisiblemimsy]

Should we try to get you to use those letters? It's kind of unnecessary for me to use them/not use them specifically, now you know what they are. Are you Xing them whenever they appear? I have been doing, but as per the update (previous post) I'll stop doing so from now on. When they appear in a certain context? No, I've been X'ing them whenever they occurred Relevant that "oppose" has none of the bad letters? No

Is the code "banned" in the sense that it bans certain letters? Yes certain letters are proscribed Is the code itself "banned"? Not 100% what you mean, but I think that's a no. Was it banned at some point? Well, there was a real life situation in which certain letters were banned. This puzzle was inspired by that, but it's mostly IRREL

Would xx xelp us xo "oppose" xf we xoo "X" out lexxexs? Lol, no it would be confusing! In fact, I thank goodness I don't have to now.

[jumpingjacks]

C, H, R, I, T. Those are all the letters, right? Is an anagram of those letters relevant?
Is "Christ" relevant? "Christmas"? So that people can't say "Merry Christmas"?

[invisiblemimsy]

C, H, R, I, T. Those are all the letters, right? Is an anagram of those letters relevant? Yesish
Is "Christ" relevant? Yes "Christmas"? Yes So that people can't say "Merry Christmas"? yes

[jumpingjacks]

Who wants to stop people from saying "Merry Christmas" -- a government? a religious group? some sort of army?
Does saying "Merry Christmas" lead to death? Does writing "Merry Christmas" lead to death?
Does "oppose" mean that we should oppose this ban? That we should say "Merry Christmas"?

Relevant that we can say "Merry Xmas" instead? Hence the X's?

[invisiblemimsy]

Who wants to stop people from saying "Merry Christmas" -- a government? yes a religious group? yes some sort of army? no
Does saying "Merry Christmas" lead to death? no or irrelDoes writing "Merry Christmas" lead to death? yes
Does "oppose" mean that we should oppose this ban? yes That we should say "Merry Christmas"? No, but...

Relevant that we can say "Merry Xmas" instead? Hence the X's? Yes

[jumpingjacks]

We should... write "Merry Xmas"?

Merry Xmas!

[invisiblemimsy]

We should... write "Merry Xmas"?

Merry Xmas!

You're a little bit previous, but thank you! Merry Xmas to you too.

I'll post an update shortly.

[invisiblemimsy]

********************UPDAXE*************************

You now know that the letters C, H, R, I, and T are banned by the government and a religious group. You can get away with saying these if you're discreet, but you can't write, type or print them without imprisonment or even death. Even keyboards have been altered to exclude those letters. Hence, the name CHRIST is proscribed, and you can only say XAPPY XMAS.

There is one particularly upsetting and poignant manifestation of this discrimination which affects many families every day. What is it?

[jumpingjacks]

Are names relevant? First names? Last names? People named Christopher relevant?

[invisiblemimsy]

Are names relevant? Yes First names? Yes Last names? possibly but less important People named Christopher relevant? Certainly, though not the only example

[jumpingjacks]

So they weren't allowed to write their own names? They had to be Xine or Xopher etc? Is it especially upsetting when engraving tombstones of departed Xophers, that they are not allowed to have their names on?

[invisiblemimsy]

So they weren't allowed to write their own names? They had to be Xine or Xopher etc? Is it especially upsetting when engraving tombstones of departed Xophers, that they are not allowed to have their names on?

Yes, exactly.

***********************SPOXLEX**************************

In Turkey, about 80% are Turks who speak Turkish, which is the official language. The Kurds are an ethnic minority, and speak Kurdish. There has been much hatred for the Kurds for decades, and until the 1990s, even speaking Kurdish in public was illegal, resulting in many imprisonments and alleged deaths.

The Turkish alphabet doesn’t contain Q, W and X, whereas the Kurdish one does. Even today these letters are banned in their written and printed form, and Kurdish keyboards are illegal. In 2007 when a Turkish mayor issued a Christmas card to his citizens wishing them a Happy “Nowruz” (which is a Kurdish word), he was arrested and charged with “using an illegal letter”!

Legally, everyone must register a birth and get a certificate. Since these are printed documents, babies must not be given names containing Q, W and X because their parents would be arrested. This is very sad for everyone especially if such a name runs in the family. Imagine, being arrested and possibly imprisoned just because of your name! Even gravestones must not carry the forbidden letters. This means that people who were born before the ban cannot be buried under their given name.

[/b]

Well done to Galfisk, jumpingjacks and irishelk for taking part and to jumpingjacks for the final solve.

[jumpingjacks]

Thank you for the puzzle, and the very creative puzzle-framing!