Freddy

Or, rather than selling expensive tech to anyone they could sell cheap tech to a select group.

Cash and the infra to create it is so much more important than tech. Cash and infra is capital. Tech is labor, but the capitalists don't need the labor to produce $$$. So...there is no correlation to RL capitalist exploitation. As for political power...it's far more a matter of effort (activity) and aptitude. Money is real god damn important to political power, but only if the person with the money or someone directing shit is making good use of that resource. Any sized nation can facilitate the effective use of OPM (other peoples' money).

Our great war is a spiritual war. Our great depression is our lives. Self improvement is masturbation. Now...self destruction... We must denounce our pixels. Sticking feathers up your butt does not make you a chicken. It's only when we lose everything we're finally free to do anything.

There truly is no meaning (or sense) in life, but the one you choose to embrace. You have lost faith in the meaning of the "rat race". You're mourning the shattering of that faith. The human brain is not content to live a meaningless life. And is pained when our illusions of meaning are shown to be nothing more than a self-deception. If you think society needs change - do your part in affecting change. Make that your sense of purpose. You can't change everything...certainly not overnight, but that's not the point. Assign your own, personal purpose to your studies - or abandon them.

I love the OP. IMO, the flaw in your game is that it is too random and therefore gives the public the feeling of safety through anonymity. I'd suggest cutting down the potential hit list to no more than 20 alliances who would actually feel threatened by Kaskus and of course name the alliances on that list.

Something about spouting steam, I guess.

All this bs slander of TOP is making me even more eager to stand beside them in war.

Let it go

"neutral coalition" lol :D

Workers of Bob, unite! lol The problem with any organization that would include all comers is it would necessarily lack culture. Not that that's necessarily what you suggest. In my estimation, the strongest cultures are the ones that reject the most. They reject the inactive, the uncooperative, the unmotivated.

I agree this game does correspond too much with RL. When I attack someone, it's because I want something from them and when I give something to someone or submit to someone, it is also because I want something from them. That says a lot about unchecked or insufficiently checked capitalism. I nearly wrote something about the potential for power inherent in the small nations. Like I said, I got tired and it was against my better judgement to make suggestions like that, anyway. Tywin's "Global Feudalism" thread had me thinking in revolutionary terms. Ultimately, the small nations lack the culture to do any such thing. You may find an ancient re-roll that could rally many small nations, but minus that it would never happen. It's not for a lack of anything, but a cohesive bond between the nations.

I was too tired (and apathetic) to even finish the second half. It's a game, and the real rewards go to the player and not the nation. The prize valued is the prize the player receives. If the individual likes stacking cash or tech, then the financial gain of their nation is also what that player holds dear. Different players seek different rewards. Their desired prize and the effort they put into it and how those are exploited by others are all a capitalist value system. It's a default system, meaning a natural state of affairs we humans resort to when there is no over-riding coercion. Therefore, I would argue, that in this game there is inadequate motivation to act differently than complete self interest. Killing someone is not at all similar to making them do something. If a player values something an opponent can take away, then that too is an individual valuation. Some players hardly care if their nation is entirely destroyed; others will submit at the first shred of lost pixels. The inconsistency doesn't point to a lack of logic in my statement; it supports my point that the world is chaotic because there is no unifying motive - only diverse motives. True, finding and manipulating leverage where it may be found is the heart of diplomacy. It's a rare and beautiful thing when it's accomplished here. I would argue that MK disbanded due to weak culture, not weak nations. This only stands to reason...if an alliance doesn't possess the inner drive to maintain itself, of course they can't project any external motivation (other than their nukes). Then again, maybe it's all for shits and giggles. How the hell can you suggest order exists when nations are destroyed for nothing more than shits and giggles? Chaos is a subjective term, in light of that? No, chaos is absolutely definable here. Anyone will do whatever they please for any or no reason. Until someone (more likely some game update) changes that there will be nothing, but transitory order to this chaos. I argue that chaos is the norm because of a shortage of compelling culture. Keep in mind "culture" comprises every positive method of obtaining cooperation. If culture is inadequate, we have either/both a lack of cooperation and/or excessively resorting to force to promote strong wills. "Apathy" was a word I chose to replace a neutral alliance's complete lack of external culture. "They add nothing to this world", says the neutral haters...They add no culture, says I. If you were to really hold MQ to explain their feeling of the neutral menace, you may hear that conclusion from them. An "average" culture is one that is just adequate to maintain its existence. It doesn't create much of a stir outside its membership. It isn't a derogatory term. It's not even an opinion. It's just a name for a particular level of culture.

Politics on planet Bob are very much like politics in RL. That is to say our politics are generally capitalistic. We are motivated by what we hold dear. What we each hold dear varies individually. The most basic motivation is mutual defense. The majority of rulers trade a degree of their sovereignty for a greater degree of security. Other rulers prize different motives more, so we see some deviations from the average. Some prize their infra above all else, some their sovereignty, some prize power most. Too often we forget that the alliances are made of individuals. No alliance (or individual) can force a ruler to do anything (except "die"). Each alliance must win the cooperation of its members and prospects. This is accomplished on Bob same as it is on Earth - through propaganda, philosophies, culture. These are tools and nothing more. They may be used to create cooperation or hostility between alliances and power spheres. The alliances, blocks, etc. with the strongest culture (which will serve as a simple title for all the various propaganda and philosophical tools) will have the most power. When their culture declines, so too will their power. Why is there chaos on this planet? Because the various cultures say there is chaos. It's nothing more than a stage to promote their particular brand of culture. The most compelling culture will prevail in the competition for cooperation and domination. The world is in decline because it's 2013 and most people are exhausted of the efforts of producing a strong culture. We have a lot of average cultures, which is just about good enough to prevent disbandment. A neutral was attacked because they personify this lack of externally directed culture. It isn't the rage quitting rogues that are killing this world, as so many have claimed. They are a symptom of the bland political condition. They are attacking apathy itself. Otherwise, they would just delete and go quietly.

Why do people keep forgetting what's already been said about which nations have protected status?

MQ has gained only 1.6 million NS. That leaves 1 million NS transferred to another/other AAs. That is a far cry from "not a singal nation".