Activity vs Idealism

Day 257, 17:54 • Published in United Kingdom United Kingdom • by Dishmcds

I have had this debate for some time. I am going to start by outlining my own personal opinions of what or how I think things are done (and as I have said, there are many many ways to do things), and then follow with my opinions.

First, there are many different idealistic groups here. From Belgians to Aussie's to Brits to Scots to Irishman (and women), everyone has an idea of how they like to see things done. Currently the UK runs a more State controlled economy, with Nationalised industry in just about every field. From weapons to gifts, and so on, the UK controls it's monetary value and markets very well. it's the only country that I am aware of that is trying to implement a Union (which Congress passed on the 21st of July), and has tried to take cooperation to the next level.

This can be a good or bad thing. From a business owner standpoint, unless you own a higher quality company you are restricted from making extra money as your pricing cannot really exceed certain ranges. While it is still a "free market", the Government could, at any time, dump 1000 units of food to control pricing. Thats not saying they would, but they could.

The good to that is the UK will always have stock, and should always have a constant value for it's money. I am not sure if GM's are informed of what the Government deems acceptable, but I am sure if they are decent they'll figure it out quickly.

The bad side is that it hampers economic possibility and growth. You have companies such as Aurum, who were founded largely based on the need to grow somewhere, seeing as how Nel's food company was going stagnant (due to the overproduction problem in Erepublik) and lack of sales, as well as some other things that Kaleb and Shadow have been working on. This takes away from the possibilities that newer players could garner from their invites. Most people here, from what I have seen over the last 4 months are rather quick to tell people what they can and cannot do, and are largely unsupportive of new business as it would take away from production (due to simple formula mechanics of Erepublik).

So, where does that leave me?

To be honest, I am all for Free Market with little interference from the Government. If you really want to know, the only time I think the Government should interfere with the market is when the money becomes either too valuable or too unstable. Thats another issue the UK is suffering from, but we'll get to that in a moment as well.

If any government wants to encourage growth, it cannot tell someone that they should leave their country and not be a mindless drone simply to come here and fall into the exact same role. It makes your growth rate stale and promotes the mass emigration from any country. If you notice, over the last three months the growth rate of the UK pales in comparison to others such as my own (the US), Brazil, Turkey and Greece (due to SA forums), etc. Even Pakistan's growth has severly deteriorated since they were the top country some six months ago. It should teach us all that we need to be open minded in bringing people in, as it's the only way we can combat our own worst fears.

Activity is the only way to encourage true growth. Lets say "John Smith" shows up, and finds a job due to our excellent Department of Work. He quickly learns that in times of peace, really all there is to do is the normal two clicks and debate a few politics (which I have already stated has also become stale due to lack of differences). He quickly becomes inactive because he feels bored.

But what happens when he is asked about what he is interested in? If he says stocks, or stats, or wiki, or whatever, he quickly garners interest. Lets say John Smith is, IRL, a Trade Unionist. Would he be likely to head one of our new trade unions? Absolutely. And it would keep him active. Thats why I repeatedly say that political affiliation in any country is nothing more than idealism that would not nor will not apply at any level. I have had everyone from Libertarians to Democrats working under and with me, and we get along just fine. We also get more done.

Money Exchange

I have asked this question many times. How do you alleviate saturated markets? Long term exportation of goods, in all qualities, thats how. The problem? Your money is too valuable. Your GBP is so valuable at this point (I dont recall exactly, but something close to the 5th strongest in the world? Kaleb would know exactly), that you'd have to sell for almost twice as many in most other local currencies to make any money in a foreign market (at least to keep the proper ratio intact). Why don't we (as eUK'ers) do something about that? Why not at least make it in the middle of the pack to open more trade options? Thats how the US has such as high GDP over any 7 day span. I realize your RER is the most important fact to you, but raw numbers dont lie. In my opinion, your money is too valuable in terms of gold.

Thanks, and I hope to at least stir some debate.

Dish