Join the new world

Here is a tasty recipe! It is especially tasty when served in combination with an e-politics of social-ecology and anarcho-syndicalism, but can easily be adapted to many circumstances and contexts. This basic concept can be adopted by any party, group, nation or organization. And it can be tweaked to meet your local needs and desires. Please keep in mind that this is totally different from things like "low-wage communes" and so forth.

The goal of a producers' co-op is to enrich and enliven the game play of its members by boosting and accelerating their ability to collect cash and gold without having to use a credit card. There is no other organization or enterprise that it is intended to benefit.


First, make a commitment to ground-level democracy. The simplest, most efficient approach is use majority voting, but other methods can work too. Like consensus-building, ranked voting and so on.

Second, make a commitment to openness and transparency. All transactions must be recorded in a ledger that is readable by all members of the Co-op.

Third, begin a membership group and elect a Treasurer. Membership needs to be open, that is, there are no "secret" members. Membership list must be public. The Treasurer will be responsible for collecting and distributing funds, as well as recording and sharing the ledger. Obviously, this needs to be a trustworthy person who is fairly active in the game.

Fourth, collect a starter pool of funding. Ideally this should come from Members' contributions, but in some cases there might be a benefactor like some initial State funding. Contributions are part of the process and should continue over time. But need to decide how much needs to be in the "pot" to get started.

Fifth, be prepared to offer good economic advice to new Members. For example, at present the quickest way to build up an efficient self-sustaining autonomous (WAM-only) personal economy for a player in the eUSA is to have lots of Q4 weapon raw materials factories.

Sixth, open for "business". A Producers Co-op is basically a credit union with very easy, voluntary repayment terms. New members must be voted in by the existing membership. Members, including -- and especially -- new Members who have not contributed to the pool -- may request funding to build up their productive abilities. For example, my first loan from the SFP Co-op was to buy a bunch of Q4 weapons raw materials factories. The granting of loans and the loan amount are voted on by the Members. Members contribute funds back to the Treasurer.

Seven, rinse and repeat! Evaluate the process. See what works. Make decisions in a democratic manner. Some Co-ops may choose to invest the pool in enterprises, and require Members who are managing those enterprises to be "good" for the cash on demand. Others may take a more liquid approach and just keep the pool in storage. The key is to be able to build up and enrich the community, especially newer and poorer players.






Here's a song about the Joy of Producers' Co-ops in eRepublik. It is based on the old tune to "Song of the United Front", which in turn was the basis for Rammstein's "Left, 2, 3, 4!", which is the official marching song of the Socialist Freedom Party, which is played at all party raves and riots.



And just because they're human,
players would like a little gold to spend;
They want no bull and a lot of talk
that gives no cash to their friends.

Refrain
So left, two, three!
So left, two, three!
To the work that we must do.
March on in the Producers Co-operatives,
for you're a producer too!

And just because they're human,
they don't like admin's pistol to their heads.
And they want no servants under them,
and no bosses over their heads.

Refrain

And just because we are players
no one can free us but ourselves.
The liberation of the e-proles
is the task of the player elves!

Refrain











Next time: Why an e-Peoples Congress would be a cool addition to Regular Ol' Congress!





Peace. Love. Friendship. And a little bit of WTF,
Yr sometimes-correspondent and always-friend,
RFW



Join the SFP!
It is guaranteed to spark socialist joy!