The Slings and Arrows of Outrageous Fortune

Day 2,476, 21:34 • Published in USA USA • by Tyler Bubblar



This is an aerial shot of what was once a vibrant neighborhood in Detroit, Michigan. As you can see it's abandoned, ruined, and large sections have been leveled. Unfortunately this is not an isolated occurrence in what was once the 4th largest city in the United States.





Over the last 60 years the population of Detroit has dropped by more than 1.1 million people. This mass exodus has been driven by a variety of social, economic, and political factors. Entire neighborhoods now lay abandoned. Schools, hospitals, libraries, theatres, police stations, and homes more than 100 years old are rapidly falling into ruin. The beautiful architecture of these magnificent structures only adds to the tragedy. You might ask what Detroit has to do with the eUSA and/or the presidential campaign.




Determining what the active population of a country actually is poses some difficulty. The best way to see the true population of the eUSA is to look at elections. The Country President election of May 2013 was the first one after I returned to eRepublik. I juxtaposed it with our most recent Country President election. The findings are rather alarming (unsurprising though), the voting population has dropped by more than 2/3 in 15 months. Some of the decline is a result of breaking the Ajay insurgency. Hundreds of PTO combatants went home and multis have been banned or allowed to die. That only accounts for a portion of the decline though. Much of the rest occurred during last summer's season of wipe. However the downward trend has been an ongoing process for quite some time. The wipe just accelerated the drainage.





In spite of our enviable geopolitical position in game, we're not really a first tier nation anymore. We are at the front of the second tier, and we still have a lot of clout, but we're not what we were. So what do we do eAmerica? Do we suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune and go quietly into the night? Or do we take arms against a sea of troubles,and by opposing end them? There is no silver bullet to slay what ails this game. It at times seems painfully obvious that folks at the eRepublik Labs are more interested in draining every last drop of blood from their dying cash cow than to invest in strengthening and growing the game. There is only so much that we can do to overcome Plato and his flawed business model. However, that doesn't mean we should just abandon ship.





eRepublik, for all of its flaws has much that is good about it. Otherwise we would all have been long gone. We still have communities that are clinging together in the parties, MUs, and in the nation. IRC is not as full or active as it once was , but it's still there with people who log in faithfully on a near daily basis. The media module isn't what it was, but the quality articles that are published are in a way that much easier to find. The community is still here begging for fresh blood and more participants. Over this and the next several articles I will unveil my plan to try to change our trajectory.


The stage is set. We're ready for a comeback.



Transparency. Outreach. Inclusiveness. Opportunity.
Those are the four aspects of a Tyler Bubblar administration that I am going to ask my cabinet to focus on. Let's fire away on them.



Transparency: I have been impressed with the results of the Daily Press releases and I will be keeping them around and I will be publishing regular updates from my own paper. In addition to this I will ask my various Departments to publish routinely as well. I will not promise public PDB as it defeats the purpose of having a PDB, but we will keep you informed.

Outreach: As I have said there is so much that is great about the eUSA. Some of it is obvious. Other aspects need a little more advertising. We will shine a light on programs and players that go above and beyond like never seen before. I will routinely message the Party Presidents asking for the names of promising players that would benefit from work at the National level.

Inclusiveness: Once upon a time the Party Presidents of the loyal top 5 were given access to PDB and #whitehouse. That tradition will be returning. Over the last several months a lot of inroads have been made in terms of forging closer ties between the PMUs and the executive. This will absolutely remain a priority.

Opportunity: Heavy emphasis will be placed on staffing up the Departments. I will be adding a new Department. There will be new and expanded programs in the existing Departments. I will ask each of my Department Heads to hire a Deputy with the intent in training that individual to be able to run that department. If you are interested in working for the executive please fill out this form (http://tinyurl.com/TB4CPadmin), a place will be found for willing hands.





Time and experience have taught me that it's impossible to please everyone in this game. We have a community with diverse expectations, interests, and style of play. I went to Staples the other day and they were fresh out of the easy buttons of the magical variety. However sustained hard work paired with a positive attitude can accomplish much in this eWorld. It won't be easy but it will be worth it.