eUS Dictatorship and the Trrbl Elite (Observations)

Day 2,667, 19:58 • Published in USA Hungary • by JyM23

So basically some of you see how an in-game dictatorship will be similar to an RL one and some don't. Congress will still vote on the forums, so what will change? You may ask. Well, if you censure a congressman during in-game democracy, nothing prevents him from continuing to vote whichever way he wants until the end of his term as is his right set within the gaming environment. In case of a dictatorship, he can be censured and prevented from voting on the forum, which in itself is an add-on made legitimate only because players choose to make it so.



It's pretty cool. In step one of the process, founding members of the forum persuaded the majority of the eUS players to accept this out-game environment as a somehow legitimate venue for their government, sacrificing the inherently greater level of in-game equality and even possibly their RL privacy for a place where the owner/mods and their close friends can clearly exercise a great deal of power and control over a member's access and activity in a way that Plato is not likely to do.



In step two, the current power cabal has taken advantage of a lucky break brought about by a change in game mechanics to convince the population to give up the last remaining shred of power they held in-game (being elected to congress and voting how you see fit) by promising to continue the democratic process in this out-game environment where they hold all the cards and can use coercion far more effectively. Even banning elected congressmen if they don't tow the line.



What will step three be? I must admit that it's a bit frustrating to watch as even those who disagree with what's happening don't question the legitimacy of an out-game environment for conducting in-game government at all.



It's also sad to watch people blame the terrible elite and try to point the finger without realising that no one person (not even Pfeiffer, Oblige or Kemal) can be pointed out as THE elitist. I think eAmerican elitism is a very real phenomenon, but one that transcends individuals. People struggle to become the elite, and some of themmake it. They espouse elitist ideas sometimes when it's in their interest and they sometimes forego them. Some are elitists off and on for years. Some get to the top and fade out quickly. Some even make it to the top with only minimal elitism, relying on populism instead... only to become elitist after. Whatever.



The point is to whomever is reading this: elitism is real, we all do it sometimes but some do it more than others. To gain political power in the eUS, your best bet is to follow the path set out for you by the "terrible elite". Respect how much time they often pour into the game but remember that they don't do it for anyone's benefit but their own. You can think that you can join their ranks only to institute change from within but there are numerous safeguards in place to make sure that any change will be minor and incremental.



Instead think about this: the only legitimate gaming environment for eRepublik is... eRepublik. Out-game forums are moderated by players who use that environment to their own benefit in every way possible through the use of technology. For example, once you log in they know where you live. Think about it. The installation of a dictatorship in game is just that, voting in the forum is a mere formality and a bit of a trap anyway.



In the future, don't call people elitists, just question them on individual choices/recommendations that create further red tape, obstacles and rules that make the game less accessible to everyone - none of which exist in-game. Label these as elitist actions to be avoided. Shift the blame from individuals to ideas, it just might work.

And remember, democracy is worth fighting for!