Embassy of The Meritocracy

[PopeHope]

TNI--

Unlimited-- That will only work if you remove my "horns" first.

Black Adder-- I'm too tall to fit in the dishrack, but can I have those goggles?

Tar A-- Ropes, yes please!

RC-- Not even going humor that nonsense with a response.

Mammothistan-- Indeed, and I doubt I could or would do much damage viewing the three new forums visible to me since registering here. I am interested in learning more about this culture, and heck, might even appeal the ejection of my Hopian embassy some day.

SgtPepper & SuuKyi, I have always understood your reasoning in coming here, and know you both have always meant best for TM.

Thanks to (most) everyone for not running me out of this embassy. I've been truly interested in observing the representation of The Meritocracy here from a more interactive standpoint.

[Black Adder]

Sorry Pope, need the goggles for my side job in the Spanish Inquisition.

Look about all you like, you'll be treated with respect. I can't guarantee you won't be asked some edgy questions but no one is about to tar and feather you in here. Can't guarantee your safety when you walk out the door however.......*points to the shifty eyed Christian types in 0000 Trust in the Lord*

[PopeHope]

Damn (about the goggles). Would have went great with this new outfit I was working on!

Thank you for the assurance of respect, and I can offer the same on public boards of my home forums. I have no qualms about answering "edgy" questions from members of the NPO government. I would, however, request that if the queries are ADN related rather than applicable to happenings in The Meritocracy, that a new thread be started out of respect for the efforts of TM ambassadors here.

[Warrior Thorin]

*Checks old trunk full of old Army equipment

Well, I guess since everyone is being so cordial, here you go Pope Hope, and old set of gunner glasses courtesy of the US Army.

Welcome and thanks for looking around.

[SgtPepper]

First off my apologies for not starting to work right away but I was in a car accident 2 nights ago and have since been quite busy. Everything is starting to get back to normal(im fine btw) so expect the wheels of diplomacy to start grinding away. I hope Pope Hope does begin to participate on the NPO boards. Maybe this could become the begining of FUTURE(no way so much misplaced hatred can go away so fast on both sides) better relations.

As for Deadalus(SuuKyi) I thank him for his support and if i am half the Ambasssador he was that will be a great accomplishment.

As a message to the pacific-I am not SuuKyi's "replacement" 100%. Officially i am but I am a completely different personality. I wont try and use long sentences and be articulate as hell. I can be but thats the kind of shit that keeps people separated. I want to be as truthfull and forthcoming as possible. I also like to joke around and have fun a bit so i'll probably go down in Meritocracy history as the least serious but most open minded Ambassador ever.

Well I hope to get started tomarrow.

[Unistrut]

SgtPepper said:

I wont try and use long sentences and be articulate as hell. I can be but thats the kind of shit that keeps people separated. I want to be as truthfull and forthcoming as possible. I also like to joke around and have fun a bit so i'll probably go down in Meritocracy history as the least serious but most open minded Ambassador ever.

Let's hope you do. I hope I can go down in history as the guy that appointed you.

[Tar A]

You were in an accident? I'm sorry to hear that; I hope you're OK.

We'll welcome any sort of communication that isn't blatantly hostile - I doubt you could do an actually bad job here.

[SgtPepper]

The NPO is a bunch of worthless scumbags!

Jesus Chrit how can anybody stomach this god forsaken job!





lol I dont plan to be hostile at all.(BTW I was joking in the begining of this post if you didnt know)

Well in a semi-rush I am going to ask your guys'(the NPO) opnion on a few topic just to "test the waters" and get a better feel of your feelings about the outside world.

1)Current Ireland/The Province Situation
2)Current Meritocratic government
3)ADN
4)The Rejected Realms
5)The Evolution of the NPO-where do you think the NPO will be in 2 months?(numberwise,who is still in,where it is)
6)Past Region Crashing Groups-the ACC,Empire of Power,etc
7)The overall evolution of the nationstates world
8)The nationstates UN and it's evolution
9)nationstates mods/admin
10)the A.L.L. alliance

Now dont feel by any means forced to answer any of these if you feel uncomfortable. the last thing I want is an uncomfortable enviroment. I would just like to know where you stand that way i can begin discussion between our groups about some of these topics.

If you want my opnions in order to break the ice then here they are:
1)Hrmm I have nothing against either side but think its a stupid pissing contest between a little guy(Ireland) and the big guy(ADN) i think Ireland got a case of little man complex(L.M.C. is for instance the little short opuny guy at the gym that bulks up to the point where hhe has too much muscle just because he is trying to hide his small stature)
2)Seems to be going well under the Argryes Administration. Im not sure how I feel about the ADN connections but the government seems to be able to draw the line between thier ADN membership and thier role as a leader of the meritocracy. I think Argryes is doing a good job and is one voice within the ADN that doesnt think the NPO is terrible as depicted. I dont think hes a huge fan because it isnt a democracy but i wouldnt go as far to say he hates the NPO.
3)Little man complex that flourished into a great alliance. i think they are well organized and indeed both good and bad for the world. Thier size makes them a target and a war with them would probably involve a lot of the major groups within the game and I must say Im not all gung ho lets blow eachother's brains out. I think that they do however keep "bad" groups such as those small region crashers trying to make it big in check. i think overall they are good for the game and contribute a lot. The only flaw i have seen with them is thier close minded opnion(not all but quite a few) about the NPO. I have heard thier stories and kind of understand but then again the past is the past no sense in holding a grude for months on end that divdes 2 great groups.
4)The RR.i was delegate of the RR for possibly a month then Kandarin came and took the delegacy by an endorsment and instead of creating the war my commanding officer at the time(i was in the acc at the time) decided it best to move on. i think that Kandarin has done quite a bit for thew region and it is better with him at the helm.
5)cant comment on that basically because i dont know the NPO as well as lol the NPO
6)Mixed feelings. I learned alot of people and places through the ACC plus i think the region crashing/anti-region crashing wars keep the game spiced up however it gets old after a while and sucks for the occupied region.
7)Like a boucy ball it peaked with its greatness in the begining and has its up and downs.
8)Great concept gone down the shitter.
9)Again mixed opnions. Sometimes too laxidaisy(sp?) then again sometimes too strict. Most of the time fair.
10)i like it quite well.

[Black Adder]

Good God man, asking us for a thesis on your second day on the job? Well, understand I claim no official capacity for the NPO in my answers. The opinions are strictly mine alone.

1) Ireland is a pissing match. Its also a slippery slope for the ADN in where the justifications for action I hear from them is its a pre emptive strike to protect weaker regions. It moves the whold focus of the organization from defender helping regions under attack to one rooting out problems before they begin. The mandate becomes one of where they make a judgement call, I question who has that right.

2)The Met is always cyclical in its view. I'm concerned about some of the elements present there and how vociferous they are. They have been most underhanded in how they treat some members to further their own views.

3)ADN is a good concept with the ability to go horribly wrong. Much of their membership has been on the losing side of the NPO. Firstly their faction losing to the NPO for leadership of the Pacific, refusing to accept the outcome, trying to take back control then whining when they are ejected. Secondly whipping up a wave of indignation on the outside in NS based on half truths and their own one sided view. When that effort failed people took it personal. They waged war and they lost, its rather natural to feel badly.

My big concern with the ADN is who's heavily represented there. The recent decisions I find troubling. Gothicville getting off for their part in Italy was criminal based on 'I didn't know it would affect the ADN'. It did, the ADN's decision not to take any action was galling, there was a bad precedent made. The fact they came to the WP to prop up Norion in a legitimate regional election was a bad sign. There may have been a request from one person for help but it was no invasion. For them or members to respond to that call at all is a bad sign there's those who don't see a distinction. They affected an election, not an invasion- the defining lines begin to thin. I don't see an effective apparatus to reign in the membership, it could prove to be troublesome in their future.

4) They've always been a source of some amusement for me. Kandarin always has done a good job of dealing with the malcontents. However the fact the RRA always rises to a position of prominence in any organization I find suspect based on the fact its comprised largely of political rejects. Given so many are former Pac Army no wonder the NPO is constantly demonized. I don't recognize their validity as being an arm of the RR, they are a collection of nations for the most part who have a grudge against someone or some idea based on their own experiences. The recruiting pool is the RR, not their home.

5) The NPO will be here, we are the most stable organization. We will continue to be reviled for that stability having to listen to platitudes about freedom and such. Freedom is subjective, I find we have more here than elsewhere. Democracy is a sham, those who claim they have it are usually more representative of a patrician faction. Most nations sit and answer dilemmas every day, to make the claim they speak for all those is ludicrous. We will continue to reach out to other regions and I expect the foreign affairs ministry to be a very busy place.

6)You neglected to add in the RRA to that. I was in the E Pac when they were routed by the mods. They reformed to a degree, nothing says given a leadership change they wouldn't slip back into old tricks. Empire of Power were good for a giggle, always stomping about . AAC and the ACC bothered me, always taking other regions. Wildly vacillating between defender and greifer, I could never understand why the Met couldn't see what they were up to when they were the military wing of ALL. That seriously marred the Met in my eyes for a long time incidentally.

7) Its a busted machine that was patched poorly at every turn. Moderation was set up to deal with RP forums, not game play out here. Regional controls made it so its feudal states now, the more logical course would have been forcing regions to alliance themselves. Its plagued by ideologues who have no concept of compromise and cannot see anything but their own view. I don't think Max really gives a damn now he's set to make $$ off NS2. Obviously he cares somewhat given NS will stay free, but the focus hasn't been on this for a long time. I've always sensed that the view is those problems will be addressed in NS2. Moderation as a rule has a hard job listening to the thousands of complaints but I do find it offensive we are ignored unless the Pacific has a glaring complaint. Without us most of the ADN or RRA wouldn't have a reason to wake up in the morning. God knows why, we didn't attack them.

8) Joke. Always was and crudely shaped. All the resolutions are aimed at undermining member sovereignity. Again, something meant to be picked up and RP'd with but largely unused, at least in the way it was meant. Busted component which will in all likelihood not be fixed given the way the game evolved.

9)Mods. hmmmm.....tough job in horrendous conditions. I have some complaints in that they think they can reasonably deal with invaders. They can't, none of them understand how it works. They've never been one. Bit like a cop saying he understands the criminal mind, he doesn't, he isn't one. You want to catch a thief you set one out after the thief. Its a rather homogeneous group who are drawn almost exclusively from the RP pool in the NS forums. That is a small percentage of the game. Many have little to know clue of what's going on until they have a problem and then their view is shaped by their hangers on. Sometimes its correct, sometimes not. Little proactivity and its difficult to get that given how swamped they are. The game was meant to be in the forums, given how awful the access was in the early days it shifted out here into cyberspace and they can't control it. NS evolved past a game in a forum to countless games out here all interacting. They don't seem to recognize that to a large degree. NS is larger than just www.nationstates.net now and they can't get the genii back into the bottle ever.

10) ALL. A nice concept which was entirely screwed by ambitions withing the Atlantic. Entirely possible the ADN follows the same path.

[SgtPepper]

Black said:

Good God man, asking us for a thesis on your second day on the job? Well, understand I claim no official capacity for the NPO in my answers. The opinions are strictly mine alone.

I have another suprise to spring up on you guys in a few days

[SuuKyi]

I am grateful to read that you are largely okay for your autmotive encounter Sgt. Pepper and hope you are swift to recover. Having been whacked myself in the past couple of months do forewarn you that you will sport some psychological effects from it for a while longer. These things are at a minimum a life eye opener. In time however a new balance will return.

I do look forward to working with you.

As for your questions and I stress that they are not necessarily representative of any NPO viewpoint but are my own impressions based on experience:

>>>1)Current Ireland/The Province Situation

I was neither involved with this operation nor invited to be so my information on it is sketchy. All I know was that Meritocratic volunteers participated in it and later it appeared that the stated reasoning for going there was flawed and incomplete resulting not in defense of a rightful government but possibly in an unwitting reinforcement of an invader. The motivations in going there however I believe were honourable and should not reflect badly upon those who participated.

2)Current Meritocratic government.

Still a good organization composed of honourable people which is undergoing some changes of prime mission perception and is under more foreign pressure than at any time in it's history. Political leanings aside it remains a premier intellectual haven with a rich history of enlightened thought.

3)ADN

Honestly I feel this group to percieve itself as more of a "good guy" than it really is. This is partially because of some moderator relationships that exist within it which lend a feeling of being always in the right with regard to their judgements of other regions and their actions, such as in Ireland and the West Pacific, which turned out to be bad decisions on their part but for which they will never be called to task. They also conduct operations for which they are very harsh upon others for conducting and have shamelessly benefited from the spoils of other even more dishonourable acts and using the information derived thereof. In a nutshell I feel that group to suffer from political hubris more than any other in all Nation States. They have benefited mightily from operating on the favourable side of a double standard and are able to influence the affairs of other regions and major participants to a previously unseen degree. To be fair however it should be noted that several honourable and worthy people I know are associated with that organization, some of whom have questioned it's actions and motivations in other fora. Most of these are Meritocratic Senators.

4)The Rejected Realms

I'll defer to Black Adder's most excellent "thesis" and agree with his remarks. I have personal issues with their leadership in particular for engaging in acts such as those described above as well as for duplicitous behaviour towards my own person.

5)The Evolution of the NPO-where do you think the NPO will be in 2 months?(numberwise,who is still in,where it is)

In a dying NS world? Our battle will be to keep it all alive and interesting. Perhaps what I admired most about the NPO was how it has held up under attack and subterfuge month after month and our <I am a citizen here now> people all pulled together and rallied behind our leader Francos despite being in an environment of martial law and of having a choice to join in the attempt to overthrow the government in concert with and invasion but nearly unanimously chose not to do so. For this reason I consider Delegate Francos to be both legitimate and the popular choice of the Pacific. The civil code was in my opinion somewhat draconian but also it addressed things that all regions should address like the participants meeting certain standards in civility, language and prudent reserve which is important in an environment frequented by young kids. There is no reason that every single public forum should be allowed to become a bathroom wall. The code has been reworked to relax some of these restrictions and perhaps it could again be reworked some more. But there are good things in the Civil code which other regions should study and apply to themselves in the interest of keeping basic order and in promoting their own stability. I have always felt that the NPO has done well to defend itself and even thrived despite operating on the negative side of a double standard. It harbours a core group of intellectually advanced players and despite a persistent perception to the contrary, enjoys a high degree of free speech.

In two months, either on the collective death bed of all nation states or being engaged in the great outreach in concert with the other Pacifics and all willing regions. I truly hope the latter.

6)Past Region Crashing Groups-the ACC,Empire of Power,etc

Having been a member of the ACC, I have much to say about them and will expand upon that if others desire it in another post. For now it suffices to say that it was a highly autocratic organization that kept too many secrets and "big picture" information from one another as well as from their rank and file and eventually it collapsed from within because so many had to work faithfully to make it enjoyable and rewarding for so very few. Because of the untimely departure of Accelsior and Harry Chapin, It also became one of the worst foreign policy miscarriages the Meritocracy ever experienced. I did not arrive in time to become sufficiently established in the ACC to have a significantly good <and survivable> effect upon that body's policies though later I had some involvement via others. My views on region crashing are that it should not be illegal as that reflects real world reality and would force people to be more cooperative with one another to avert being a victim of one of these. Many of the nation states greats at this such as Mattaton, Xenu and Firepower are now gone or not heard from. Sythia may still be around but not anywhere near his former glory.

7)The overall evolution of the nationstates world.

Unless we can hold something of a summit on this and actively engage the outer Nation States community I think NS is winding down and has entered a "dark age."

8)The nationstates UN and it's evolution

Hopeless morass of highly polar special interests and an attempt at a "one size fits all" style of international government. The UN was never designed to be a world government but only a forum for nations to discuss issues and cooperate with one another in various ventures as warranted by the world situation.

9)nationstates mods/admin

They are burning out and leaving the game. Again a core group of quality players who take this game seriously and not overwhelm others with irrelevant minutae and thousands of "he took my ball!" complaints, will have to rise to the challenge or the game will be gone before the new year. It also could use a real good "cleaning up" of the most offensive elements composed of the scatologically fixated as well as the deeply racist and hateful. I would like to see this done within the game as opposed to moderation but it needs to be done.


10)the A.L.L. alliance

A group that has some good members and some not so good members. They seem relatively inactive but have served as a refuge for some of the Pacific "liberation" movement. I personally think well of Caffeinburg as well as Brian's Room. They are not fully aware that I had a big hand in trying to prevent a major war between them and the old United Nations of Power alliance and also of bringing the Sardaukar Confederacy out of that alliance and into a relationship with Meritocracy.

The ALL has had many conflicts and trouble brought upon it by the frequently miscarrying machinations of one Pilmour whom I challenged in the ACC for his role in illegally assuming the top post there and shoring it up with a closed vote of a handful of officers as well as for negligently instigating a war between the UNoP and the ALL nations which carried over to the Atlantic. The ACC being spared because of moderator intervention.

Free4all however I can longer debate with (in character.) I consider him irretrievably entrenched in his own paradigm and judgements and of obsessively continuing to fight a war long lost. In real life such types take their fights and angers to the very grave itself, an event vigourously advanced by the same.

I did not have much contact with the ALL while a Meritocratic Senator but perhaps other who have could add their insights.

Anyway there are my thoughts regarding your questions Sgt. Pepper,

Director's cut.

[Tar A]

Current Ireland/The Province Situation: It's stupid. An excerise in fultility on both sides. I don't care much about it.

ADN: makes the dynamic of Gameplay interesting. I'm glad they've flourished from the piddly little thing they started out as, but of course, I also think they'll run out of steam. Soon.

The Evolution of the NPO-where do you think the NPO will be in 2 months?(numberwise,who is still in,where it is): Rawr, in a little more than two months we'll be a year old. ;D

Past Region Crashing Groups-the ACC,Empire of Power,etc: they make the game interesting, I suppose, and though some say invading is dying out I hope that it doesn't... it'd get rather boring for most gameplayers, as regional politics is deeply involved with defending/invading

The overall evolution of the nationstates world: I don't have a problem with it. I think there are ups and downs and to the players who think its sucks and are going to quit because of that, I say please go

The nationstates UN and it's evolution: the UN is worthless, its value only from its role in regional politics... I think most of us couldn't care less about the resolutions/proposals.

nationstates mods/admin: For those of you who think the mods are 'out of touch' with the game or they 'dont understand how its evolved' ...
Mods are everywhere and know everything there are a couple mods with invading experience. And more than that with defending experience. You don't think mods ever read off site forums like these? Think again...
It's a difficult job and our current team is getting it done well. you cant, after all, please everyone.
And the only mods who burned out have retired... nothing wrong with the rest of the team.
Give credit where it's due.

[Black Adder]

Tar said:

nationstates mods/admin: For those of you who think the mods are 'out of touch' with the game or they 'dont understand how its evolved' ...
Mods are everywhere and know everything there are a couple mods with invading experience. And more than that with defending experience. You don't think mods ever read off site forums like these? Think again...
It's a difficult job and our current team is getting it done well. you cant, after all, please everyone.
And the only mods who burned out have retired... nothing wrong with the rest of the team.
Give credit where it's due.

I did give credit, and I stand by what I said. Moderation lost control a long time ago. The unfortunate part of moderation is the assholes overshadow the ones that are actually putting forward a good effort. You take your pride in your hands everytime you make a complaint because chances are you'll be met with arrogance and condescention by the more prominent ones, then the moderation whores close in for the kill. The one scene that sums up everything about moderation for me was the UN glitch which removed Franco from the Pacific and Corinthe was trying to sweep in. Sal said it was legitimate and would be allowed to continue, it was quoted offsite on Nationstates radio as well. He was overridden and the thread destroyed, invaders were told everything would be set back exactly as before promised up and down. Everyone leaves because the Mods said they would recreate the event, they needed time to get Violet's say so. What happens? Violet says no deal. Doesn't back up the Mods, message being sent? Don't listen or believe them. There's no rules.

Sure they got a tough job. They constantly talk about how little time they have and how everyone wants help NOW. No one stuck a gun to your head to take the job, if you genuinely want to make the game better you have my respect. If you're taking the job because you get a fancy title out of the deal, so sorry, you voluntarily increased your stress level. They are not infallible and I'm not going to begin kissing arses because Violet decided they should be watching us. I play fair.

[Warrior Thorin]

Here are my thoughts on the aforementioned list:

1)Current Ireland/The Province Situation: Honestly, I'm really not sure what is going there. Perhaps I have been too busy being concerned with my province as well as my own region. All I know is what has been presented here as well as some of the news organizations.
2)Current Meritocratic government: I absolutely concur with Black Adder's assessment.
3)ADN: I don't trust this organization. I think their actions with the West Pacific election confirm my suspicions. I don't know that they believe in the soveriegnty of other regions.
4)The Rejected Realms: I think that Kandarin has indeed kept some semblance of order in a rather unruly place. I don't trust him or many denizens as they tend to easily ally themselves with the terrorist organization, the RRA.
5)The Evolution of the NPO-where do you think the NPO will be in 2 months?(numberwise,who is still in,where it is): It will be a year old and it will continue to blossom. I'd like to think that the NPO will also influence others into creating regions that are similar to this one.
6)Past Region Crashing Groups-the ACC,Empire of Power,etc: I've never really liked crasher groups, but they are an important element to the game. They add an intangible to the daily routine. Let's face it, many of us find ourselves intrigued to see who has captured which new region as well as which group sustains while others falter. Currently, I don't know that there are any well-organized groups, unless you want to consider the "defender" groups.
7)The overall evolution of the nationstates world: I'm curious about that as well. I believe the game itself will be greatly influenced on the Jolt server whenever that time comes. I know many people who have looked at the game and were disgusted with the slow server, many of whom would have been active players. I even considered quitting once because I couldn't check my nations and region. Anyway, if the technology gets better, hopefully quality players will stay in the game and contribute to an interesting playing experience.
8)The nationstates UN and it's evolution: The UN. What a waste of server space.
9)nationstates mods/admin: I think a lot of the mods are trying to do a tough job. What a lot of people forget is that they are indeed volunteers. Some have unfair, but I believe in general that their system works.
10)the A.L.L. alliance: I'm not too familiar with them, but they have quite an eclectic group. I'll have to watch and see what happens with them.

[Mammothistan]

The history of the Atlantic is too complicated to relegate its role in the world to only crashers. In its time they were conquerors, a mutual defense alliance, crashers, counter-invaders/liberators (Accelsior's time), defenders, then pawns for the personal struggles of its next leader exiled from North America and exiled the ACC from ALL, invaders again, region builders and colonizers, always soldiers though. The Atlantic has always put a lot of power in its leaders who used this power to shape the organization to be like them.

Invaders themselves should not be called simply "crashers", and defenders only defenders. All soldiers must realize that they are soldiers, and that means you are an invader. I have seen crashers do defensive missions on a region allied with their organization and I have seen the so-called "defenders" perform aggressive invasions on regions. Let us not forget that the ADN, the organization of defenders, is the most vocal and hostile organization to the Pacific in any region's history.

As far as the Meritocracy, I think it is a very old institution that is beginning to succumb to the inevitable effects of history. Consul Argyres is a capable leader, I know him well, and he probably was the best candidate to come after the unfortunate events of the latter half of Consul Jasque's term. Though it has unfortunately been populated with a few... undesirable elements who hold primary loyalties elsewhere, the leaders are well-chosen, they do a good job of following more rational courses over the reactionary tendancies of some of its population. In short, it is a decent organization that

The ADN is an imperial hegemony that will someday fall like all empires do. It is too intrusive on the affairs of other regions, even those who are not members of its organization, and does not distinguish between a group such as the Army of Power attacking a random region and an act made during a legitimate war between two regions. Its soldiers are overconfident, overpaid, bullies who prefer to go around looking for fights.

I predict in a few months the ALL will overtake the ADN's position in the world as a superpower.

In two months the NPO will still be here, Comrade. In four months NPO will be here. The Pacific will be protected, civilized, and stable for a long time. The question is, what other organizations will still be here in four months time? I personally believe NPO will continue to expand and become even more responsive to its population than it is today (if that is even possible that Francos and the Senate could be better rulers).

It is unfortunate that the system set up in nationstates by the moderators (and a few bad apples who ruined it for everyone) has created the unfair double standard Black Adder and Daedalus talk about, and helped cause so much of the decline in the game. But what can one do?

Very rarely I bother to look at the UN resolutions up for vote. No proposal amusing enough to be worth *my* time has ever made it past removal since the Hippos proposal, which was the last good one I've seen. The two proposals before that that made it to vote but were removed from the floor were also good proposals too.

Not necessarily all of the questions you had asked or in the same order, but I hope I touched a little bit of everything, my sargeant. At any rate one of Mammothistan's famous thunderstorms (probably due to our notoriously bad weather) is going on outside ATM.