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The Oldest Alliance in CyberNations


Manis B

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[b]Why join the GATO Alliance?[/b]

[b]Watch our Recruitment Video[/b]

Interested in joining our Alliance? If you've got some spare time, take a look at our recruitment video hosted on YouTube. To watch the video, click [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lguArTeptQ0&search=CYBERNATIONS"]here[/url]. The link will open in a new window and you don't need to be registered with YouTube to view it.

[b]An exciting time of change and progress[/b]

The GATO Alliance over the past month has gone through a period of great change. While this may be seen as a cause of concern for some, this can be seen as a great opportunity for change and advancement. We are always looking for bright, young spirits to help improve our Alliance. We want to make GATO a fun, safe and enjoyable environment to play Cybernations in. If you want to be part of someone great - GATO is the Alliance your looking for.

[b]Great things stand the test of time[/b]

The GATO Alliance is the oldest established alliance in Cyber Nations, which gives us the wisdom of time. GATO upholds the values of honor, unity, and equality, making us one of the most respected alliances in the game. Our values have remained consistent over time, and this is reflected in the relationship we have with other Alliances in the Cybernations community.

[b]Strength in Honor, Unity and Justice[/b]

We are one of the strongest alliances in the game, which means we can offer your nation protection in the game from rogue attacks. We also have a well lead and organised military system. The GATO Alliance takes the decision to go to war with the utmost seriousness. We will not go to war until our Alliance's security has been breached and all other methods of resolution have been followed. We provide the highest standard military training for new recruits. If the Alliance is ever forced to go to war, we can provide loans and grants before the war, during and afterwards.

[b]Democracy Works[/b]

Additionally, our democratic government allows new nations such as yourself ample opportunity for advancement and leadership. The GATO Alliance has many career opportunities for new recruiters and older members alike. We also have many committees and consultation areas for GATO members to actively participate in if you choose to.

[b]Progress through Investment[/b]

Our internal programs, including a banking and trading system, will help to ensure your nation gains money and trading partners, allowing you to rise in the ranks quickly. Our friendly Ministers and senior members alike are also on hand to give you advice and support whenever you need it.

[b]Make Friends[/b]

Our active private forums and IRC channels are a great way to make new friends and feel part of the CyberNations community. We make no distinction between senior members and newer members alike - all are welcome to participate.

[b]An Alliance you can be proud of[/b]

The GATO Alliance takes great pride in the individual contributions of its members. Do something special - join our team today.



Join us at www.GATOForums.net

Edited by Manis B
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[quote]The Core Values of GATO:

Honour is justice is not just a saying, it's a way of life for Gatoans
Gatoans hold their heads high, because they hold themselves to a higher standard. They maintain that higher standard also. In the darkness of evil, the light is maintained here.
A Gatoan is someone who takes all the enemy can give and keeps on going. Time and time again Strength in unity has been shown to all bob that no matter what the enemy can dispense- we remain.
We maintain and uphold these values wit hthe utmost respect deserved of them.
However this still is not all of where GATO pride comes.
A Gatoan takes pride in knowing that their alliance has been there , survived that, helped those allies and soldiered on.[/quote]

-Gym, The Glory of GATO

http://gatoforums.net/index.php?showtopic=14018

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  • 2 weeks later...

Perhaps the greatest fallacy that the Global Alliance faces today is that it is a great alliance because it has endured. The concept that many foreign alliances, and some GATO members themselves, hold is that GATO is great because of what it has endured. We fought the first major war in CN’s history. We tasted victory riding along side our allies during Great War I, but tasted bitter defeat during the second and third. We have been crushed, maimed, and placed under tyrannical subjection . Yet, the Global Alliance has emerged mightier and more determined than ever before. This is a great accomplishment, and being the oldest standing alliance in all of the Cyberverse is also something that sets GATO apart from all others. This, however, has lead to a concept that GATO is great because it has endured. This could not be further from the truth. GATO has endured because it is great.

The name of this series is the Glory of GATO. It is undeniable that the Global Alliance is glorious, and as I said before, great. What makes GATO great, though? Where does the divine stream of light that guides GATO originate from? How does an alliance made of mortal men manifest itself into the mantra of “Strength in Unity, Honour in Justice?” This is a difficult question to answer because, in a way, the glory of GATO is a silent glory, a whisper in the ear of its most iconic leaders and steadfast members. The clues, however, may be faintly found in the frames of GATO’s history.

In 2006 there was a small, new nation named the Scots Empire. It was ruled by some newbie named Sir Sci who joined the Cyberverse. Finding an alliance was a difficult choice though since it was an essential part of survival. The alliances available were the New Pacific Order, The Legion, the Grand Global Alliance, the Green Protection Agency, the LUEnited Nations, the National Alliance for Arctic Countries, the Grey Council, the Orange Defense Network, the League of Small Superpowers, and the Global Alliance and Treaty Organization. A total of ten alliances were all that existed in the Cyberverse. GATO won out upon a private message from a GATO member named Das Girl, the only recruitment message that Sir Sci received. Just days after joining GATO the Scots Empire was attacked. A GATO member named JayhawkColin sent the Scots Empire what was then a huge sum of aid, about $100,000. The aggressive nation was easily defeated. The above event is a simple one. An alliance aided a member that was attacked. After all, that is what alliances were created for. Although nothing extreme, this eager willingness to aid a new, unproven nation is part of GATO’s roots. GATO is an alliance that does the basics right. Its nations are cared for, and none are overlooked. This stands as an ideal similar to the other fundamentals such as honoring treaties, having a government that is open and honest with the membership, and holding true to the charter.

GATO’s other ideal that can be found in history is that GATO’s membership has striven to determine what is right and wrong. This is a concept that is difficult to grasp in an alliance, as that its membership comes from many different backgrounds and perspectives. It is also difficult to mesh personal feelings of morality in terms of the OOC world with the morals that may exist in the Cyberverse. Questions of morality have included if unaligned nations should be raided. Does an alliance have the right to claim an entire sphere for itself, or to a lesser extent, the right to claim all senate seats for its team? What defines an aggressive war? Should one alliance be able to attack another simply because it does not think it should exist? These questions have on many occasions been asked by GATO members and leadership. The truly great thing about GATO is not that it answers the questions, though. It is that GATO acts upon the answers.

The motto that GATO stands behind is “Strength in Unity, Honour in Justice.” It is quite a simple motto, but the concept and ideals are difficult. What truly is Honour? How do you define Justice? How can you achieve Unity in a democracy? These are questions that have no clear, concise answer. Yet, GATO’s silent glory continues to flow through these words, these ideals, these truths.

Best Regards,

Sir Sci
The Glory of GATO
Part III

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May 29, 2006. I looked at my brother and asked, “If you can name your own nation what would it be?” the response “Chronictopia.” Two hours after creations I received a PM from Duncan007, my one and only recruitment message, a message about GATO and about GOOMBA. I joined GATO that day and was assigned a mentor, the very awesome and very missed, Lagavond. Now what GOOMBA stood for I can’t tell you but I can remember getting a huge aid package of…….$50,000. Within a week and always being on IRC I found out GATO was not just an alliance. It was a home. Always on IRC would you find an average of 20+ members including YT, CK, Yoda, Das Girl, King Gregory, and so many others. 2006 and 2007 were rough years for me in the real world and I was always able to come to GATO for support and to take my mind off my problems. GATO has been through the thick and the thin, through high points and through low but this place is not an alliance, it is a family, and a place where you will always come back to, and filled with people you will always want to talk to. I’ve left GATO many times but I have never been able to find a home like this place. We are not just about “Strength in Unity, Honour in Justice” but about friendship, trust, honesty, and doing whatever we must to help another out. GATO is a home, a family, GATO is simply, awesome.

Much love,
Greg23
Glory of GATO IV
[img]http://gatoforums.net/public/style_emoticons/default/imagesir2-2.jpg[/img]

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  • 2 weeks later...

GATO means somthing to me. Ill try to explain, but how does one explain a feeling? An emotion? Some of you know what im talking about. Some of you havn't had the chance yet.

Four years ago, I stumbled upon a game called Cybernations. My first game of this style I had played was called Kings of Chaos. I had gotten my roomates into it, but it was decidedly overcompicated. One of my roomates came across Cybernations on Reddit possibly, he loves that site. We noticed it was simple right away, and so all 3 of us started, and formed our own alliance. The ABC Alliance for nations, Ataraxia (now Tommorow Land), Bolognia, and Caesura. The next day at work, I persuaded Jsims8 to join. These of course were more innocent times, where you were allowed to have multiple nations on one IP. Jsims8 was approached by GATO and joined right away. Towards the start of GWII I believe, he was very involved...and I had lost Ataraxia and Siverbells44 to the war and Bologina to inactivity. Later that week, I joined GATO.

I never thought I would ever be important to GATO. How could I, in an alliance of hundreds. But somehow I did...suddenly I found myself helping out in ministries, and mentoring the new guys. Suddenly im having pm disccusions about real life issues with people who are suddenly my friends. And it hits you, suddenly, that maybe this isnt an alliance after all. Not a collection of nations, but a family.

If you step back and take a look at cybernations, its almost impossible to see paralels to real life. Often people laugh when I say that and say "its just a game", but remember behind every nation is a real person. So unlike a Goomba, this person has real emotions and real reactions to stimulus. You can see this every day. In declarations of war, in debate, even in tech deals. Human beings are the #1 reason why this game is so succesful. Look at your nation page. Its not all that interesting is it?

Its this sort of realization that allows you to play this game at a whole different level. My interest came in the form of growth. Initially I became MoDA, but as you have so generalously voted, I have become Minister of Finance. Of course I never woke up and became Minister. My real life interest had also shifted towards economic theory and these theories were tested under the banner of Manis_Bank. Using poverty techniques taught in India, Africa, and South America, I created microfinance rings and increased the growth of groups of nations by 25% with only $200,000. This sort of thing was unheard of in CN, but ultimatly failed due to the human element.

Tying the human element to economic theory has become my obsession. GATO has become my second full time job and what I hope to soon become a real life career. The things ive learned from GATO, about people in different situations have helped shaped my life and who I am today. Standing side by side with your family at 3 in the morning against certain destruction and the commradery that comes out of it...the selflessness of our nations to aid without hesitation people they have never even spoken to...and now the fact that Im one of the many who work over countless hours a week working to keep this alliance the best in the world. And not because I have to. Not because I was elected to. But because I want to. I cant help but to fulfill this obligation.

So, what does GATO mean to me? I suppose nothing. Its the people that matter here. The friends ive gained and exeperinces ive lived could have come under any name. Now here I am today, willing to sacrifice everything for my family. For GATO.

Strength in Unity,

Manis_B
Glory of GATO V
http://gatoforums.net/index.php?showtopic=14018

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  • 2 weeks later...

It has been three and a half years since I was part of GATO. My time in the alliance is one I remember with both great fondness and great sadness, and I have little doubt that those remaining from that era have a similar feeling, though the exact degree of each of the two will likely vary from person to person. GATO's culture has left its mark in my heart, and I will freely admit that I have heard it call to me several times. And whilst I am sure that that time has led to experiences that meant great shifts in both our identitites, I recognize very well the burning light of this brown land. So, what does it mean to be a part of GATO? For me, it meant quite a lot, and something I still long for. But for everyone else, it will mean something unique and removed from something an ancient man experienced, so I will speak to you with the future, and not the past, in mind:

In order to embrace any culture, you must figure out what it means to you. Values cannot be merely handed down on a piece of paper, they have to be breathed and bled for, and withstand the test of a challenge from all directions. To treat any existing practice as unassailable simply because it is the status quo is something that must be avoided at any cost. Everything must be open to debate, for nothing is sacred. Any existing process, from the charter to the government structure to the very democratic fabric itself, is a means to an end, and must therefore be treated as such.

If something is wrong, it should not be tolerated or excused because it is seemingly a part of the “democratic ideal” that lies at the core of the alliance. If we are to take as a premise that improvement is always possible – a fairly reasonable assumption - then falling into the trap of letting ideology dictate process without allowing that process to feedback into ideology means stagnation. If you avoid the trap, any negative aspect can be pruned without removing the counterbalancing good aspects. You can have a democracy without an ochlocracy, questioning without radicalism, debate without infighting.

But being cautious is paramount. Some readers will have already concluded that this is a process which can end up attacking the very core values of the alliance. That is true; when you approach nothing, not even the fabric of society, as sacred, then the entire community is vulnerable to the slow adoption of a perspective that abandons everything for the sake of a pure Machiavellian materialism. However, the reverse is also very true: a proper self-examination would also call into question – quite prominently – the essence and purpose of materialist thought. The end result, if the process is carefully managed, is the alliance as a whole being able to sharpen the sense of its own identity, and better adjust it to the internal changes it goes through.

However, sharpening means friction, and this is where one aspect of caution must come into play. Like many other alliances, GATO has had its share of infighting, though compared to other alliances, it has stood up remarkably to the test of internal and external pressures. But a process of continuous self-examination, and the debate that follows, is not without dangers. Questioning someone in public will, by default, put them on defensive, regardless of the intent, validity or seriousness of the claim. Attempting to change the status quo will disrupt those who have a vested interest in it, regardless of how much they themselves might agree with the change. Such friction might always exist, but it can and should be combated. As well as being able to celebrate the collective public processes, GATO members should respect the individual in the collective, and be always willing to forge and sustain the interpersonal bonds and connections that forms the oil on the gears of an alliance. Working with an individual can pre-empt many of the drawbacks that come with public entrenchment, so my advice to every conscientious citizen would be: do not be afraid to approach each other. Do not be afraid to put your idea or complaint directly to a person. Do not be afraid to put your innermost thoughts directly to the most hostile of interpreters: you might not have the safety net of an audience to support you, but your counterpart will also lack the smoking gun of that same audience's opinion. Those willing to talk amongst themselves before talking to the world will find that debate turns from a (sometimes) diverging process desined to win an argument to a converging process of perfecting some common ground, even if vague.

Of course, this must not be taken to another extreme: too much back-room action means no transparency, and democracy without transparency is hopeless. Interpersonal discussions work best when they have the public as their ultimate goal. Regardless of size or significance, the information exchanged or decisions formulated in the private arena comprise of a power that affects the public, and therefore must feed back to it. Power is a coin, and on its flip side lies accountability. So, how can accountability be established without public entrenchment? It is a very difficult balancing act.

Whilst this might sound corny, the belief of every alliance member in themselves, their commitment to the core values and the core identity of the alliance, and their love for their fellow comrades is the strongest possible check of them all. The road to hell is paved with good intentions, but in the end, so is the road to heaven. Being able to pick between the two needs an understanding of, and respect for, the impact of any act on the feelings and interests of the brothers and sisters standing side-by-side in the alliance, both as a collective and as a collection of individuals

So, if there is only one critical lesson to pay attention to, it is that very duality of action and reaction. Reaching for Strength will react in Unity, striving for Justice will critique its Honour. Accepting this duality means that the opposing force to any action can be, with a little foresight, turned into a complementary Yin/Yang rather than a head-on collision.

- Letum
Glory of GATO Part VI:
http://gatoforums.net/index.php?showtopic=14018

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[b][center][u]Duty, Honor, Country[/u]
The responsibility of being a member of the Global Alliance.[/center][/b]

In an alliance as venerable as the Global Alliance many factors have wrought change upon it as an entity from time to time, sometimes these changes have manifested themselves in dramatic circumstances and the changeover of faces at the helm. However throughout the ups and downs of the history of this great community has stood one constant, the core values of GATO. Upon this rock GATO has been anchored with a continuity that has always allowed the alliance to survive whatever is thrown at it, as it has on more than one occasion.

GATO is one of those rare breeds in CN, a Democracy. It is that system of government that empowers its membership, but with that individual power comes responsibility; Duty. The Global Alliance provides a framework where every single member has a say, a chance in his or her own way to influence the overall direction of the community, but such a community must be defended with blood, iron and steel.

Each member has a duty to fight to the last for his fellow member, to be willing to launch oneself no matter the odds at the enemy to defend the flag you fly so proudly. Nothing is of higher moral value than the sacrifice of ones pixels in defence of flag, community and comrades, (CN) history has shown that time and time again. To fight to the last and give your all is not only a duty but a moral obligation.

Hand in hand with Duty comes conduct, and Honorable conduct is something that must be adhered to, respect for ones Comrades and ones enemies is a must, for GATOans at all times must be mindful that individuals bearing reflects on their community as a whole. Bad conduct tarnishes the good name of GATO and such a stain can never be easily removed, while honorable conduct enhances both the profile and self-respect of not only the community but also the individual.

A sense of pride in your community is paramount, such patriotism must be nurtured and never spurned, for you as members are the inheritors of a long history of sacrifice, of course GATOans you must look to the future yet never neglect the past. We now face a new world, a world of change, and each and every one of you must remain dutiful, honorable and patriotic for GATO is not a monolith…GATO is each and every one of you.


I shall now quote General Macarthur whom I have respected on some levels as a soldier and as a leader of men..

[i]''Duty, Honor, Country. Those three hallowed words reverently dictate what you ought to be, what you can be, what you will be. They are your rallying points: to build courage when courage seems to fail; to regain faith when there seems to be little cause for faith; to create hope when hope becomes forlorn.''[/i]

Let this mantra be your gospel when the forces of injustice threaten to extinguish GATO, let this mantra be your guiding light when GATO seeks to expand in peacetime. Hold your heads high comrades and fill your hearts with pride when you see the brown standard fluttering in the wind, raise a clenched fist in salute to your community and utter those hallowed three words with reverence and determination ''Duty, Honor, Country''.

-Cataduanes
Glory of GATO Part VII
http://gatoforums.net/index.php?showtopic=14018

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[quote name='katashimon13' timestamp='1356442719' post='3067842']
traitor shamwow xP

for the oldest alliance u have a pretty young topic D:

i ugess u make up for that with crazy old cat men

rawr
[/quote]

made a new one at some point, so we didnt spam the world.

rawr!

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