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When I meet Springthief in my gentlemen’s club, we ignore the tea and scones and soon settle for cigars and brandy instead. He listens intently to my questions, leaning back, composing his thoughts quietly in the thick of the lingering cigar smoke. As a member of the ADP, the Ambassador to Peru and now for the first time in Congress, this clearly is a man who is going places.

Welcome to the Diogenes Club and thank you for your time, Sir. Here, Henry will light that cigar for you, and pray tell me, what made you decide to run for Congress?

As a returning player (I was here back in the v1 days), I wanted to experience a side of the game that I didn't before. In my last eLife, I was heavily involved in the military, but never in politics.

Ah, the ex-military, many of us indeed start out like that.
How was campaigning for you then?

All I did was put down my name in the appropriate place, and thankfully the ePeople of Australia voted, overwhelmingly, for the party I represent.

An honest enough answer, I suppose. How was election day for you? Nerve-wrecking? Exciting? Did you get a sore wrist of continually clicking refresh?

As a matter of fact, I couldn't log on on election day, as I had RL obligations. But it was a nice surprise when I did log on to see the extra gold in my account and a congratulation letter in my inbox.

I’m sure it was. Speaking of gold, did you donate your congress gold? Why (not)?

Yes, I did. I didn't feel as though I was entitled to it, after all that eAustralia, through the stewardship of Dr Hugh Jardon and Claire Louise's JDS project, have given me. So I donated my gold back to the country, in the hopes that it can help someone else out.

Good on you, sir, well done indeed! Now you are a Congress member, what do you hope to achieve this term?

This term? I hope to gain a better understanding of the political side of the game, because, as it is the first time I have been put into this role, I have VERY little idea of what is expected of me, apart from showing up and voting when needed.

The best of luck to you indeed, as a parting question perhaps, ff you could change one thing about the politics module, what would it be?

If it were up to me, I would find some way to prompt a player that has been elected to take part in discussions and/or debates in their parliament, similar to the work and train area. Maybe an incentive to not sit there and be an absentee MP.

Thank you for this interview, more brandy perhaps?