Don't Poo in the Sandbox

Day 1,785, 19:34 • Published in USA USA • by fingerguns

I've been putting together action plans for parties lately to help us grow and be effective and serve newbs and secure elections, etc. There's still lots of work to do, but I've had some stuff on my mind as I work on this and I wanted to share. Or really just barf it out onto my paper.

While I do think the Feds lead by example in many ways, like every party we have things we need to work on. But I'm so very optimistic. There is still life left in this game. There is still a reason to work hard and make political parties amazing- because amazing new players need a place to set up shop. They need a place to discover just how amazing they can be.

In the Feds, we're seeing a revitalization in a number of areas as so many newbs join up and start playing in the sandbox. They're coming up with all sorts of ideas for how we can improve the party and help players and they're putting the work in to make it a reality! They're hitting the media and getting involved in the community. They're asking the right questions.

It's a very exciting time to be a Fed.


Not to get too nostalgic, but it looks very much like the old days when I was PP for a hundred years in a row (well, like 4 months, but whatever). We were young and stupid and there was no real authority telling us we couldn't do something. We had encouragement and constructive guidance and we supported each other, so we built awesome things. Sure there were haters, but we weren't doing all of that work in the party to impress people, we were doing it to help people!

To see this new generation doing the same thing has really inspired me. When I first came back, the sandbox looked more like a litter box. There is endless reflection on the past and longing for a better time. I hear complaining from older players who are upset that they weren't given proper credit for starting whatever program a number of years ago or playing their part in zzzzzzzzzz. Or I see them shooting down new players with new ideas because they are actually old ideas that they tried however long ago and it didn't work so stfu newb. They are constantly reminding people of their accomplishments long past because they lack the energy to continue accomplishing things. What's worse is they can unintentionally make it so difficult for new players to accomplish things, too.



There are sand-covered turds mucking it up for new players who just want their chance to make something their own.

When you play in a sandbox, sometimes you have to tear down something that was already built so you can make something even better. We shouldn't forget that. Stop pooping in the sandbox and give these newbs a chance to create something new. Give them a bit of your sand if you have to. It won't kill you or your ePeen. Help them and guide them and get out of their way. You will never get 'your time' back, but you can recapture some of that feeling that you once had by paying it forward. Or who knows, maybe the best of you is yet to come and some newb inspires you to tackle something you had never considered before?

If you're not interested in the new generation of players, then please go work on the wiki or something. By no means should we walk around like that guy in Memento. We need our history! But our history needs to be useful and help us progress, don't you think?


My apologies for all of the disgusting imagery. I have a cold.