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Six mistakes mankind keeps making century after century:
Believing that personal gain is made by crushing others;
Worrying about things that cannot be changed or corrected;
Insisting that a thing is impossible because we cannot accomplish it;
Refusing to set aside trivial preferences;
Neglecting development and refinement of the mind;
Attempting to compel others to believe and live as we do.

~ Marcus Tullius Cicero

Today’s article is going to be a bit different than the standard-issue daily update. Instead, I’d like to focus on some broader aspects of our community. Four and a half years ago, eRepublik unleashed. The Beta launched, and players started pouring into the small Canadian community to build up some of our greatest legends. Some of these have stood the test of time. Others have been long forgotten. But either way, we’re coming up on 5 years, and a broader view to our little world might help some of our current problems.



1) Believing that personal gain is made by crushing others;

There’s lots of ways to climb to the top. Many of us have gotten where we are by hurting other people - driving players from this game or stomping out opposition to make sure we got a bigger piece of the political pie. But let’s face it - the respected players of this community not only get farther, they have the built up auctoritas to unleash more influence than trash-talkers ever could.

Canada is more respected on the international stage, and at the same time there are far fewer trolls romping about than there were 3 months ago. This is not coincidental. The trivial successes certain players make by driving others out of Canada have cost us many times over the years, not least of which in 2012.



2) Worrying about things that cannot be changed or corrected;

We can’t fix a lot of the problems in this game. Would that I could, but woe that I cannot: game mechanics are what they are. And while we cannot undo the damage of theft or treason, we can build a community geared around the younger players. We can get them interested in the fun of this game, instead of bemoaning them about how horrible Canada’s past is.

A few days ago, Homer released another article about the Mentorship program. He’s our matchmaker for new players, and this program is included in the proposed New Citizen Message we’re trying to get out there. Britain’s got so many new players who are vocal and engaged because they’re taking time to foster their community. They don’t start with “this is why Canada is evil, please go troll Alfagrem if you have time.” They remember the injuries of the past, but they also focus on the more useful, beneficial mentorship of a positive future. Take a page from their book and we’ll see the same engagement.



3) Insisting that a thing is impossible because we cannot accomplish it;

For months, our international reputation was in the shitter. And as difficult as that situation was, with threats of a TEDEN-led wipe and an emotional surrender by our leaders, we have moved forward. Yesterday a Terra media release wrote that “Canada has done an excelent job recently, especially on the battlefield helping France in attacking the UK and closing the NE against France.”

We’ve made life easier for our allies and built up new ties with nations we had barely spoken to in the past. While we still face many obstacles, and have not overcome some of the ones we’ve attempted, we are moving forward. That our Sexy War has been delayed much longer than I had planned is not a sign that we should abandon ship and return to trolling. It means we keep working, keep building, and keep proving that we mean business when we say we’re here to help.



4) Refusing to set aside trivial preferences;

We can do better than war with the UK. We can do better than ignore campaigns, the media, summits, and requests for aid. We can do better than degrade other parties under pretense that they are more than a hair’s distance apart in beliefs. I welcome any player who plays for honesty and good faith - who acknowledges the mistakes they have made and is willing to move forward by working toward something we can be proud of as a nation.



5) Neglecting development and refinement of the mind;

eRepublik is more than just button clicking. If that’s all you do on here, cool. But just as you can do more than write “HAPPY BIRTHDAY!” on someone’s wall every 365 days to be their friend, you can do more for the community than simply exist. Parties do best when their leaders engage their members. Congress is most useful when they do more than pound the “yes” button. Pet projects aren’t essential to our survival, but they make the game more enjoyable for the folks who are involved. Sometimes that can be all the difference between whether a newbling stays or goes. And if that newbling grows up to become the next Jacobi or Adam Sutler, fostering their mind might just be more useful than fostering their Yes-man clicking skills.



6) Attempting to compel others to believe and live as we do.

It’s no shock that I identify with arguments of “let them decide for themselves.” If someone agrees with me, they’re going to find that out sooner or later. They don’t need me convincing them all of my friends are the heroes, and anyone who I don’t like is an evil scheming bastard. Certainly I can (and do) let players know what’s come before them. I’m very big on our history - it’s why I’ve spoken about our British context so much in the past week. But while I personally don’t like certain eUKers, that doesn’t need to factor in. I can get by in this game without building up a national vendetta for some random international.



Having had the weekend to recharge in the woods (I’m some sort of Energizer bush), I’m looking forward to this week. You’ll inevitably see news on Canadian wars, internal progress, and an eye toward the future. Thanks for the amazing ride so far, Canada. Let’s gone on to better tracks as soon as we can.

Yours;
Sperry