[Goodbye Blue Monday] You've Got to be Kind
Day 4,683, 22:06
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Published in USA 
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by
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by Paul Proteus
In my life
Why do I smile
At people who I'd much rather kick in the eye?
I was happy in the haze of a drunken hour
But heaven knows I'm miserable now
-The Smiths
mood music
Hi reader. I'm convinced it's just you and me now.
I don't have a lot to say, but I thought it'd be appropriate to put some thoughts to words. Even in this format. Or, especially in this format.
You've got to be kind
The newspaper never really had a clear function in this game, did it? You never won wars by writing well. Subscribers never translated into anything beyond a shiny medal that most people bought anyway. Articles have never been a good form of communication - there's a reason discord exist. Even the people who eschew the forum aren't really big writers, for the most part.
But what's kind of amazing is that, for a while at least, people wrote anyway. And people wrote a lot! And not just "vote for me" or "join my party," although plenty of ink was spilled on those topics too.
Somehow, through this narrow browser game, with its simplistic unrewarding, half-baked media module, we got to read great satirists, surrealists, and poets. We got war reporters and thoughtful interviews. We got, in hindsight, a lot more than we probably deserved.
It's important to also be drinking copiously, I have found
If you've ever heard me ramble on the subject, you'll know my favorite writer when I first came to the eUS was Sam Wystan. The Fieldist was everything I wish my paper could be: clever, funny, insightful, and really well formatted. He was also fun to be around and his excitement over his writing was contagious. Within a few months of my joining the eUS, Sam Wystan was crushed and forced out of the game by a party elite high on their own supply of pixelated power. His last article was titled "America Is Dying. Only You Can Save It."
So it goes.
We Are What We Eat From Our Head to Our Feet
My point is not to bore with some random anecdote that happened 10 years ago, but rather to hopefully lead to some insight, wherever I left it. Maybe in the couch cushion? Anyway, the point is that the newspaper module never became obsolete because it was obsolete to begin with. But at the same time, what actually led this community to last 10 years playing an at-best mediocre game was based on believing in obsoletion. There's something beautiful in the devotion and creativity that has been freely given to this game and this community from so many talented players. Sisyphean but beautiful nonetheless.
This marks the 500th time I've used this image. The entire Fed treasury has been spent paying off the royalties
My enjoyment of this game has always been at odds with the mechanics, and I've been content to step back and work in my party and leave national politics to those who find it more interesting than I do. You're right that some people materially are orders of magnitude more important to the eUS. I won't contest the point.
Still, it is always disheartening to see the trade-offs some of us are willing to accept. Perhaps a press briefing never won a battle, but I'm certainly not here for the innovative game mechanics, and if you are, then I invite you to open a textbook to read about the sunk cost fallacy. There are plenty of things that damage the community that we recognize, but there are also ways to destroy this community that we seem to ignore. I will say it's hard for me to imagine that we save the community by siding with those who look down on the concept.
I digress. In my mind, one friendship here is worth every pixel, every medal, every victory real or imagined, put together. You can feel free to play your way, that's mine. And today, a friend of mine decided it wasn't worth playing any longer.
So it goes.
How many of us are left? How many will be here tomorrow?
I hope everyone who made it so is happy with the outcome of today. I'd like to conclude with another Vonnegut quote that I think about often while playing this game: "We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be."
Yours,
in perpetual death,
Paul Proteus
Why do I smile
At people who I'd much rather kick in the eye?
I was happy in the haze of a drunken hour
But heaven knows I'm miserable now
-The Smiths
mood music
Hi reader. I'm convinced it's just you and me now.
I don't have a lot to say, but I thought it'd be appropriate to put some thoughts to words. Even in this format. Or, especially in this format.
You've got to be kind
The newspaper never really had a clear function in this game, did it? You never won wars by writing well. Subscribers never translated into anything beyond a shiny medal that most people bought anyway. Articles have never been a good form of communication - there's a reason discord exist. Even the people who eschew the forum aren't really big writers, for the most part.
But what's kind of amazing is that, for a while at least, people wrote anyway. And people wrote a lot! And not just "vote for me" or "join my party," although plenty of ink was spilled on those topics too.
Somehow, through this narrow browser game, with its simplistic unrewarding, half-baked media module, we got to read great satirists, surrealists, and poets. We got war reporters and thoughtful interviews. We got, in hindsight, a lot more than we probably deserved.
It's important to also be drinking copiously, I have found
If you've ever heard me ramble on the subject, you'll know my favorite writer when I first came to the eUS was Sam Wystan. The Fieldist was everything I wish my paper could be: clever, funny, insightful, and really well formatted. He was also fun to be around and his excitement over his writing was contagious. Within a few months of my joining the eUS, Sam Wystan was crushed and forced out of the game by a party elite high on their own supply of pixelated power. His last article was titled "America Is Dying. Only You Can Save It."
So it goes.
We Are What We Eat From Our Head to Our Feet
My point is not to bore with some random anecdote that happened 10 years ago, but rather to hopefully lead to some insight, wherever I left it. Maybe in the couch cushion? Anyway, the point is that the newspaper module never became obsolete because it was obsolete to begin with. But at the same time, what actually led this community to last 10 years playing an at-best mediocre game was based on believing in obsoletion. There's something beautiful in the devotion and creativity that has been freely given to this game and this community from so many talented players. Sisyphean but beautiful nonetheless.
This marks the 500th time I've used this image. The entire Fed treasury has been spent paying off the royalties
My enjoyment of this game has always been at odds with the mechanics, and I've been content to step back and work in my party and leave national politics to those who find it more interesting than I do. You're right that some people materially are orders of magnitude more important to the eUS. I won't contest the point.
Still, it is always disheartening to see the trade-offs some of us are willing to accept. Perhaps a press briefing never won a battle, but I'm certainly not here for the innovative game mechanics, and if you are, then I invite you to open a textbook to read about the sunk cost fallacy. There are plenty of things that damage the community that we recognize, but there are also ways to destroy this community that we seem to ignore. I will say it's hard for me to imagine that we save the community by siding with those who look down on the concept.
I digress. In my mind, one friendship here is worth every pixel, every medal, every victory real or imagined, put together. You can feel free to play your way, that's mine. And today, a friend of mine decided it wasn't worth playing any longer.
So it goes.
How many of us are left? How many will be here tomorrow?
I hope everyone who made it so is happy with the outcome of today. I'd like to conclude with another Vonnegut quote that I think about often while playing this game: "We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be."
Yours,
in perpetual death,
Paul Proteus
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Comments
Smarter than the average bear.
"We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be."
Outstanding article.
Some will never learn.
Keep pushing people away.
Sad.
shiloh is right... it is an outstanding article.
and your heros aside... nobody can write like you do
o7
all sadly true
awaking to no press briefing today was grief.
my only hope is that she will again return.
I would argue that the media module has never been obsolete. It has been primarily responsible for my entire political career. Without it Emerick would never have been Emerick, Glove would not have been Glove, people like Custer would have had much less reason to have played, and there would be no portal between meta and game.
Aeriadne is at the top of my list of talented writers, and if she returns as I hope she will, it should be to move her talents from forum to game. She deserved a much broader audience than she receives there, and that broader audience would provide more than mere acclaim. She would have had support.
You, Paul, are also a beautiful writer and a loyal friend. When I stepped away from paying attention to this game on the daily, I wondered, "do people miss me?" I miss Aeriadne already. Tell her I said that.
Incredibly thoughtful words as always, I appreciate it.
Pouring one out for Sam Wystan. And another one for Jack Flufferton.
and for Chutley
Chutley was so good
Political propaganda!!!11
You've treated me like dirt multiple times Paul, but I've never quit.
svs, I don't know you, and my only interactions with you have been in other people's comment sections where you've come in swinging
glad you're still around regardless lol
maybe we should use this unfortunate case of someone being bullied to patch things up?
Always glad to try to be kinder going forward. If you're ever on discord, fine me 🙂
Some things are important to write about. You did. o7
Article about kindness....
From an unkind PTOer
#Irony
"Broforce" always being rude
The Swiss PTO will not be televised
People write articles to voice their minds, and this is important.
o7
voted. be happy