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A place to discuss topics/games with other webDiplomacy players.
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ssorenn (0 DX)
16 Apr 14 UTC
Team game
Is it possible to create a WTA full press game,where each country had two players play it? Press could come from either player, and would be received by both players...
2 replies
Open
Dharmaton (2398 D)
16 Apr 14 UTC
Astrology
Sharing some videos to carry you through this Intense month !!!
5 replies
Open
ezra willis (305 D)
15 Apr 14 UTC
2 team game
Would any of you guys be interested in joining a game that starts out with just 2 sides? One side would consist of England, France, Germany, and Italy and the other would consist of Turkey, Russia, and Austria. The game would be drawn once one side is eliminated.
9 replies
Open
krellin (80 DX)
15 Apr 14 UTC
GM Is Innocent
As above, so below:
34 replies
Open
Chaqa (3971 D(B))
15 Apr 14 UTC
The King is Dead at vDip
Hey guys, just want to advertise that I'm going to be making another game (or more) of King is Dead games. Check out the thread on the vDip forum to sign up and give input.
0 replies
Open
ILN (100 D)
14 Apr 14 UTC
(+2)
Why libertarian is so dangerous.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbNFJK1ZpVg

A worst case scenario.
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Theodosius (232 D(S))
15 Apr 14 UTC
Mediators help sides to talk and develop opinions. They do not make judgments and can't do anything binding. It works best if both sides want to talk and have a vested interest in resolving a conflict. It's better than court in those circumstances, but that's a pretty narrow field to work in with a much bigger field outside.
Someone who sold you a house that falls apart or shoots your daughter has a vested interest in the status quo and walking away, not in talking about it.

And though having fewer, less complex laws makes for fewer criminals, most laws start off simple and get complicated to take care of the loopholes created by having simple laws. A noble sentiment, but hard to put into practice. Throwing out hundreds of years of legal precedence from the sober minds of the judiciary is tempting, but I defy anyone to improve on it as a whole. I think that will become more of a mute point as expert systems are getting much better at sorting through piles of legal documents. Free legal advice from expert systems may happen in my lifetime (maybe, or at least it would be possible), which would simplify legal matters.

Stable economies don't come from "Low taxes+ Strong property rights + consistent stable regulation" Strong economies, yes, but not stability. Did any of those three things stop or reduce the last banking crisis that pretty much took down the world's economy? No. Consistent stable STRONG regulation has a partial effect on economic cycles, but it still can't account for when when greed takes over everything else.. But who regulates? And who makes it strong, with only mediation?

Actually, I've worked a bit in the weights and measures industry. And devices that weigh and measure have to be certified and sealed against tampering so they can be trusted. Yes, that could be done with private firms, but the level of trust would be a lot less. And trust is needed for economies to work. Hundreds of other standards need enforcing. Do you trust pharmaceutical firms to tell you the truth about their products without verification? They have been caught fudging or ignoring their own tests many times before. What about food inspection?

I agree that some level of decentralizing is better, but I'm not sure why you think that will make everything better. It brings in a bit more accountability, which is why I like it, but it largely just changes the problems, not eliminates or reduce them just because they are local. Accountability is better, but it will make politics more petty and personal. Talk to people on reserves, good and bad ones, and find out for yourself what handling everything in the community actually entails, including the politics, instead of an idealistic version.
It will mean phone calls late Saturday night because you are the financial officer, two doors away, and the water tastes funny after eating a box of crackers. Or someone yelling outside your house at four in the morning because the pothole reported eight hours ago hasn't been fixed yet, and you're the one that arranged the road repair contract two years ago, Yeah, I've worked in municipalities and talked with people living on reserves and these things are commonplace, and pretty minor compared to some of the shit that has to be dealt with.
I'm not saying it's insurmountable, the same as getting a community-minded spirit, I'm just saying that its going against the flow and it's a lot more work for a small amount of benefit.
People want convenience. Libertarianism isn't convenient. It's hard work in exchange for more control. That will appeal to some, but not the majority of people. In Canada, the politicians do best that you never hear from. People want the things that keep the country running to happen invisibly in the background. But, you probably already know it's an uphill battle.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Fasces349 (0 DX)
15 Apr 14 UTC
So the basic of his argument is that worst case anarchy would end up becoming like modern day governments, but for those who see value for government isn't that a best case?
Theodosius (232 D(S))
15 Apr 14 UTC
First Nations people have gained a lot of rights in the last few generations. They are now considered Canadian citizens. Some first nations vets returning from WWII weren't allowed back into the country because they weren't considered citizens, so that is a big thing. They can own land. They can hire a lawyer. They can sell things off of a reserve. They can create corporations. They can create or extend reserves by buying farmland or setting up shop in nearby towns and cities, paying donations in lieu of taxes. They can get an education and still be considered a treaty Indian. None of these used to be the case, so yeah, they've gained quite a bit, that way at least.

Not that solves a lot of problems, but they are steps forward.
OutsideSmoker27 (204 D)
15 Apr 14 UTC
(+1)
I would make a pun about the First Nations wanting an equal voice and the government giving them Nunavut, but I suspect that's considered neither funny nor clever. On the other hand, if you want to talk about them getting the right to vote, there's not much more incongruous (and therefore hilarious) than Diefenbaker in a feathered headdress. I know it was a good idea and showed proper respect to the First Nations who gifted it to him and that what he did was a very positive step and all that, but still, the imagery just doesn't work.

But on libertarianism: I make recourse to James Madison, who I think summed up well the great problem of creating an adequate government: "In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself." Libertarianism is great at doing the second, but a bit, shall we say, weaker on the first. I still find libertarian arguments appealing because of the controls they place on governments (which is one reason I generally prefer the American system of presidential government to the more common parliamentary version), but I've become steadily less sympathetic to them the more I recognize how little practical importance they give to the serious need to control the governed. The purest form of libertarianism -- which is essentially anarchy -- falters, much like that other great utopian anarchic system (i.e. communism in its theoretical form), on its inability to recognize the ingrained flaws of human nature. I thank Theodosius for pointing this out.

I think social democracy is on the whole preferable to libertarianism because it recognizes the importance of social responsibility, but I'm certainly no social democrat. I think social responsibility is the responsibility of society, not of the state. I certainly understand the potential problem of free-loaders, but if there are enough of them, the society will get the punishment it deserves: deterioration into social unrest or a state that steps in to take up slack that civil society should be carrying. State involvement in social service provision is not an ideal choice. I like to think of myself as more of a liberal democrat, in which the government actively combats injustice and protects the weak against oppression at the hands of the strong but facilitates the social and aspects of justice much more than actively participating in them.

But then again, the government that is most adequate is the one best suited to the society at hand. If you have a society of self-controlled, upstanding citizens, then libertarianism or communism should be viable options -- at least for the first few days until the self-control and upstandingness give way to baser human instincts. After that, something more liberal-democratic would be generally in order. If you have a population that more resembles a Hobbesian state of nature, then you might want to think about putting up a Hobbesian leviathan -- at least until he becomes so oppressive that he's worse than the original state of nature.

And on the point of being a liberal democrat, to my fellow Americans (especially krellin):
I'm a liberal democrat, not a liberal Democrat. (If anything, I'm more of a small-c conservative.) Also, America has liberal Democrats, not Liberal Democrats. To find Liberal Democrats, you have to go to places like Australia (where they're outright libertarians), the UK (where they're more similar to what you think of as liberal Democrats, only even more so), or Japan (where they're the "natural" party of government and are less concerned with ideological distinction than with gaining and holding office).
Theodosius (232 D(S))
15 Apr 14 UTC
Thanks, OS.

All political systems have contradictions. I think the one I learnt most here is that the problem that the Libertarian focus on individual rights fights against their desire to also have community-minded citizens. You can focus on individualism or communities, but not both, and joining them, while not impossible, is not a comfortable fit.

I enjoyed a conversation a few years ago with some European friends that considered Canada somewhat right-wing. Americans largely consider us left-wing. And America has two right-wing parties, just one more right wing than the other. I agree that you'd have to go elsewhere to find true Liberal Democrats as a going political concern.
damian (675 D)
15 Apr 14 UTC
I think we're going to wind up talking past each other no matter how much we attempt to have a productive dialogue. When it comes down to it I don't believe that humans are just waiting to regress to Hobbesian state of nature only forced into civility by the government.

"you must first enable the government to control the governed"
I have no desire to see people controlled. So on a fundamental level I am anti-government.

"All political systems have contradictions. I think the one I learnt most here is that the problem that the Libertarian focus on individual rights fights against their desire to also have community-minded citizens. You can focus on individualism or communities, but not both, and joining them, while not impossible, is not a comfortable fit."
Again, I don't agree. I don't see this necessary contradiction you're endeavouring to point out. I don't really have time to get into it today however.


66 replies
greibek (0 DX)
15 Apr 14 UTC
Guys! there are interested in the five-minute?
?
7 replies
Open
BenGuin (248 D)
15 Apr 14 UTC
LIVE GAME!!!
5 min turn regular 10 pot
Starts in an hour, JOIN JOIN JOIN!!!
gameID=139864
3 replies
Open
BenGuin (248 D)
15 Apr 14 UTC
Be There or Be Square
gameID=139842
1 day, low pot Modern Europe Map
JOIN!!! :D
0 replies
Open
greibek (0 DX)
15 Apr 14 UTC
go Quick play-5
http://webdiplomacy.net/board.php?gameID=139859
0 replies
Open
ERAUfan97 (549 D)
14 Apr 14 UTC
this stupid kid......she took it way too far!
http://myfox8.com/2014/04/13/teen-has-apparent-meltdown-after-tweeting-terror-threat-to-american-airlines/
32 replies
Open
SYnapse (0 DX)
15 Apr 14 UTC
People stop ukrainian tanks
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDcQTBYY4kE
3 replies
Open
goldfinger0303 (3157 DMod)
15 Apr 14 UTC
Taking Bets Now
Will Russia take more of Ukraine?
Will Ukraine fight back this time?
How far will the Russian economy fall because of this?
And finally, how much shit is Putin33 gonna eat when this happens?
14 replies
Open
Draugnar (0 DX)
15 Apr 14 UTC
(+1)
What the hell are they thinking at Great American Ballpark?
It is pouring cats and dogs and the in field is a fucking swimming pool yet they are still playing!
12 replies
Open
stupidfighter (253 D)
14 Apr 14 UTC
Should this country be in CD?
Not finding the written out rules in the FAQ or Rulebook section of the site. My impression was missing two phases opened the country for a replacement. Germany in gameID=137674 has missed a diplomacy and retreat phase but is still in the game. Does it have to be 2 diplomacy phases?
4 replies
Open
Barn3tt (41969 D)
12 Apr 14 UTC
High Stake GB Game
http://webdiplomacy.net/board.php?gameID=139716

join
6 replies
Open
Partysane (10754 D(B))
10 Apr 14 UTC
(+2)
Ghost Rating Update
I am waiting for it.
15 replies
Open
g01df1ng3r (2821 D)
14 Apr 14 UTC
Why No Press is Best
Seems like most games are no-message games. But isn't the core of Diplomacy the diplomacy between people and that the moves are just the outcome of that?

I'm not saying No Press is *Not* Best. Just trying to understand why it seems to have more appeal these days.
15 replies
Open
SplitDiplomat (101466 D)
09 Apr 14 UTC
2014 end of the world EOG
Or - what could have happened if it had been continued? Is the ending premature?
This is a raw model gb playing that could use all the students from SoW for studying,Imo.
Any comment or a question is wellcome.
(someone provide game ID,please)...
25 replies
Open
SYnapse (0 DX)
08 Apr 14 UTC
The server has been down for a few hours due to an attack
Seriously, these Chinese are getting out of hand. What did webdip ever do to antagonise anti-western powers?
12 replies
Open
kaner406 (356 D)
14 Apr 14 UTC
Future see through computer touch screens
Does anyone see the benefit of this technology? Specifically how do these see-through touch screen monitors improve anything that is in existence today? I as in regards to why the entertainment industry seems to have a fetish with displaying computers with this special effect?
18 replies
Open
steephie22 (182 D(S))
14 Apr 14 UTC
Online payment systems for people under 18 (or other ages in some countries perhaps)
I want to receive money from someone who wants to send it via PayPal, but PayPal is 18+ in my country while I'm 16 years old. I'm already working on online banking, but apparently sending the money to a bank account is a problem, so I need some other account to receive the money on. My parents could receive the money and send it to me I suppose, but since I plan on making this general practice, I'd rather not do that.
Idea's?
10 replies
Open
Ogion (3882 D)
14 Apr 14 UTC
Need one or two more for friendly game
We have a good group starting an anonymous game, but need one or possibly two more. PM me if you'd like to join:

http://webdiplomacy.net/board.php?gameID=139762.
0 replies
Open
krellin (80 DX)
13 Apr 14 UTC
Syria Chem Weapon - Part 2
Uhh....yeah....remember when Obama drew that line in the sand...rattled his sabre...and then like a punk-ass bitch tucked tail and ran when Putin bitch-slapped him and told his to fuck off and leave Russia's ally alone, and Obama said, "Problem solved...Russia'll take care of dem chemical weapons...
http://news.yahoo.com/syria-rebels-government-report-poison-gas-attack-143934868.html
9 replies
Open
President Eden (2750 D)
13 Apr 14 UTC
Attention: Replacement needed! (urgent!)
Hey y'all, a player in two of my invitational pseudo-gunboat games has to drop due to serious IRL issues. The player fortunately has not NMRed and both games were paused in time, so the game has not been affected by this emergency. However, I'm in need of replacements. Please post here to state your interest in either game and I will PM you with specifics. Thanks!
5 replies
Open
sacredgnome (244 D)
13 Apr 14 UTC
QUICK Modern Diplomacy starts soon!
If anyone is bored and wants to do a quick run through a Modern Diplomacy map, here's the link:

http://webdiplomacy.net/board.php?gameID=139768
4 replies
Open
Crazy Anglican (1067 D)
11 Apr 14 UTC
Ireland
Mrs. Anglican and her mom will be going there this summer.
13 replies
Open
Spaceman98 (135 D)
12 Apr 14 UTC
Is it possible to join a game by replacing a banned user?
I would like to join a game that is in progress, where one participating user has been banned (I would like to replace the banned user). Is this possible? If so, what should I do?
26 replies
Open
necktile (100 D)
13 Apr 14 UTC
account deactivation
Greetings fellow diplomats. I would like to know if it is possible to deactivate my account. I won't be able to log in for a long time as I won't have internet access, and I don't want to harm the players that are already in the game with me.
2 replies
Open
krellin (80 DX)
10 Apr 14 UTC
(+1)
Waco, TX..Ruby Ridge..Nevada???
What is it with Democrats bringing out armed Fed's to execute sieges against American's?
http://www.infowars.com/cliven-bundy-calls-on-sheriff-to-start-arresting-blm-feds/
http://lasvegas.cbslocal.com/2014/04/10/expect-to-see-a-band-of-soldiers-militia-members-arrive-at-nevada-ranch/
41 replies
Open
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