Forum
A place to discuss topics/games with other webDiplomacy players.
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kestasjk (64 DMod(P))
21 Oct 08 UTC
Monetization via distributed processing ?
After the trial a week ago distributed processing seems to be a potentially effective way to monetize the site without irritating ads or premium accounts. It's not as lucrative, but it is better and more consistent than donations, and it would still provide an incentive for me to work on the more mundane coding which I'm otherwise not interested in

I think most people would gladly trade some (otherwise unused) CPU usage while playing to see further development on the site (and perhaps leave their browsers open as an alternative to direct donation).
But I'd like to hear from those who experienced crashes a week ago, it was the only negative aspect of the trial and it seemed to only be a small subset of Firefox 3.0.1 users, so hopefully it can be resolved and I can go ahead with it
139 replies
Open
Churchill (2280 D)
28 Oct 08 UTC
Why was Good Times-2 drawn?
Not all of the players voted for a draw, and now I have received less points than I paid to buy-into the game.
Could a Moderator/Administrator explain and possibly rectify the situation?
13 replies
Open
diegobarcos (1520 D)
29 Oct 08 UTC
Maggie Simpson - 250p game
Hello all. I just created a 250 point / 36 hour game. Feel free to join.
0 replies
Open
PirateJack (400 D)
25 Oct 08 UTC
Suicide bombing as a method of revenge: Good or Bad?
Message down below >_>.
28 replies
Open
blahblab78 (100 D)
29 Oct 08 UTC
an easy game of diplomacy is under the name blahblah
learning how to play and learn strategies, doesnt care if wins just wants to learn how one wins
2 replies
Open
EdiBirsan (1469 D(B))
29 Oct 08 UTC
Massive NMR's in -01 why do you punish yourselves this way?
I just looked at the open games and found two that stand out with 3 or 4 countries that did not move in 1901. Why are you all remaining people playing these games? Call for a draw and end the misery. It is not Diplomacy if you do not have 7 active players.
1 reply
Open
Spell of Wheels (4896 D)
29 Oct 08 UTC
Blue Danube
52 points to join....36 hour turns....PPSC.
Need 4 more!
0 replies
Open
maintgallant (100 D)
27 Oct 08 UTC
Rules Download
New to the game and the site... where do I download a complete set of rules? The obvious ones I get, but the more remote ones I'm having trouble with. For instance, if I make an attack out of a country, can an army retreat into it from if dislodged out of another area (not where the attack is directed)? Is my support to a third country cut when the army attacking me is dislodged?
6 replies
Open
kestasjk (64 DMod(P))
28 Oct 08 UTC
To Linux users:
They're giving out free copies of Crossover Office today, fyi

http://lameduck.codeweavers.com/
2 replies
Open
Otto Von Bismark (653 D)
27 Oct 08 UTC
500 Point Buy in Game
Ok lets try this better to find people who want in. Who is in?
10 replies
Open
Jacob (2466 D)
28 Oct 08 UTC
New 20-pt game: Here I Stand
Join! =)
0 replies
Open
defiant1214 (100 D)
28 Oct 08 UTC
Joining Mistake Quesiton
Any way to quit a game you joined by mistake before it starts?
7 replies
Open
TheMasterGamer (3491 D)
27 Oct 08 UTC
@moderators or Kestas
I took over a cd in game http://phpdiplomacy.net/board.php?gameID=6148 only to find that all the other players had voted for a draw in a paused game. What are our options now? If I allow the game to be drawn, what is my return on my investment in points? Might I be permitted to be removed from the game, as if I had never joined, so that I do not take a "draw"?
26 replies
Open
Cuchulainn (100 D)
28 Oct 08 UTC
Password Change
Is it possible to change your password?
1 reply
Open
whalen (373 D)
18 Oct 08 UTC
The American Empire...
I feel always more interested in using this Forum for non-dip conversations... I wonder how strange other folks see that. Anyway, here we go.
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Sicarius (673 D)
21 Oct 08 UTC
no no, china is EVIL!!!
america doesnt do anything wrong!
sure some people might die because of us, but they either didnt work hard enough to improve their own life (jesus helps those who help themselves) or they were of terrorist descent, damn islamo-fascists!
but china puts people in jail just for disagreeing with the gov! that doesnt happen here. I mean there were all those protesters thrown in jail, and the media and medics, but that doesnt matter because they were probably anarchists, and I'm sure if they would have just listened to the police they wouldnt have got attacked. and yeah our government did assassinate black guys who wanted equal rights, but if they would have just went along with the white pacifists they woulda been fine
and china makes all that cheap shit that never works and is usually dangerous, if they would only stop making it, we would stop buying it!
china kills lots of people, look at tibet.
I mean america did do that whole injun thing, but there wernt that many and they shouldve just gone to the reservations anyway!
I mean china's evil dude, bro they meddle in forgein affairs, look at taiwan!
I mean we have the whole iraq thing, and the vietnam thing, and the korea thing, and all the wars and coups in central and south america, and that war with russia in the 20's, and the serbia thing, and the somalia thing, and the.. look the point is, we did that for those countries own good!
America doesnt crack down on our citizens rights like china!
I mean there was all that civil right stuff, and now theres the repression of dissidents and evironmental activists (aka eco-terrorists) but they're just tree hugging hippies anyway, wood has gotta come from somewhere dude, bro we cant just fix up the multitude of abandoned houses and apartments, no we have to just keep building more and sprawling so far that eventually america will be one big city.
but china represses it's media!!! we dont do that. I mean, there are lots of journalists getting arrested all over the country, and sites like indymedia and infoshop are getting shut down, but we have fox news and msnbc and cnn, I mean it says right on fox news that they're fair and balanced so they must be, duh! and it's not like they would ever leave out important news or twist real news to their own ends, never that!!!
and besides china just a bunch of gook COMMIES!
COMMIES! COMMIES! COMMIES! COMMIES! COMMIES!
at least in our country everyone has an equal chance to make something of themselves, any little child can grow up to be president. I mean, we've never had a president thats come from a poor family or wasnt white... but theres barack obama!!! he's half black and he has a funny name! and in our country everythings fair, so if you work hard you can be a millionaire with a mansion and lots of kick-ass cars, and if you're homeless or hungry its your own fault!
look the point is america is the best country, like ever.
we're a melting pot. everyone comes here. I mean sure theres pretty brutal repression of central and south american immigrants who need to come here to find work because we completely fucked them over with NAFTA and they have families to feed, but they have the chance to do it legally, I mean if they can just learn more about america and it's laws and history than most americans ever know, then why not let them work at taco bell? see we're FAIR, and we're GENEROUS
America is like, so totally awesome.
and its cool.
and if you're not american you dont matter anyway and you're probably an islamo-fascist or one of those weird indian guys who have names I cant pronounce so shut the fuck up so I can hear my patriotic country music and eat my fast food and watch my television in peace god fucking dammit

anyway america has GOD on our side


Invictus (240 D)
21 Oct 08 UTC
Finally we agree!
Sicarius (673 D)
21 Oct 08 UTC
I'm glad I know thats a joke, what I'm concerned with is to what degree you are actually not joking
Centurian (3257 D)
21 Oct 08 UTC
Sicarius. This is exactly what I'm talking about. Journalists aren't getting arrested en masse.

Of course, I might just be a government agent sent to further brainwash the masses here on php to make sure you don't incite them to revolution.
Sicarius (673 D)
21 Oct 08 UTC
en masse? no, but they're being arrested for being journalists. the fact that its happenig at all is very disturbing


maybe. but I really strongly doubt it
mac (189 D)
21 Oct 08 UTC
Sicarius, that was entertaining! ;)

Centurian: the amount of visible repression is proportional to the amount of visible critique a regime receives. This is why it's more convenient to forge news and public opinion and silently "fix" the problematic people rather than doing something "a la Mugabe"... Also the one that is not seen (like journalists being fired or being relegated to write pieces on the groundhog day and the inauguration of the local store) counts as a sneaky, silent, almost invisible form of repression...
jnwilson (366 D)
21 Oct 08 UTC
America is not an empire - America is an idea, a set of ideas that are superior to all others on the planet, therefore America shall never decline. Personally if you are an American I would worry about your own life - America will be fine.
CJ 92 (179 D)
21 Oct 08 UTC
"America is not an empire - America is an idea, a set of ideas that are superior to all others on the planet, therefore America shall never decline."
But those ideas are hundreds of years old and too ambitious to survive in today's world and have cost too many lives. America must adapt its ideals or it will definetley decline.
Archonix (246 D)
21 Oct 08 UTC
America as an individualistic state is not America as an idea. The ideas behind it in 1776 have since been developed and are often fulfilled to greater degrees in other parts of the world.

If America's standing and political 'weight' - which is what most people seem to define as the 'American Empire' - declines the world will change. Whether for better or worse. That will decline if other powers rise.

The pre-recession prediction was that China's economy would overtake America's within a couple decades - I believe that will be faster now with the American economy being hit much harder. Without economic superiority I doubt America will be able to mantain military superiority. When more countries in the developing world become less dependant the US loses its direct power and is less able to force itself on them without support.

IMO all of these events would independantly constitute a relative decline of the 'American Empire'.
Jerkface (1626 D)
21 Oct 08 UTC
Did you guys know that in China, book printers have to get their materials checked and censored by the central government. Maps of China, for example, are censored and altered so that not only is Tibet considered a part of China but they expand their coastline to make the country look bigger. If you have a map of China that was printed in China, it is almost certainly wrong.
sean (3490 D(B))
21 Oct 08 UTC
"America is not an empire - America is an idea, a set of ideas that are superior to all others on the planet, therefore America shall never decline"
im not sure whether to laugh or cry at this kind of delusional thinking .
America had some nice deals with the founding fathers-agreed
these ideals were superior to others at that time- agreed.
America is still an nation of ideas - debatable but in part true
current American ideals- what would they be? Privative profits, socialize the losses,use governments to tax the middle class(but not the rich) and maintain largest military industrial complex on the planet, trickle down economics...hmmm they seem like the current ones america seems to be focused on these days.

the most delusional was believing America isn't an empire. Im sure the Romans. the Ming dynasty, the British etc all said exactly the same thing.

What are lot of people seem to be focusing on is if people say that America is an empire and thats a bad thing then it is assumed that you are pro Chinese or you want the Russians to come in and take over. thats ridiculous, we should be working towards a human society that doesn't need to have empires. not there yet of course but that should be the goal.
Archonix (246 D)
21 Oct 08 UTC
I guess this is kind of irrelevant but the British and Romans considered themselves empires at their height. They did though 'justify' their actions by considering themselves better than the rest of the world. Romans believe that they had a 'right' to rule the lands that they conquered. The British felt the same way - to the point where they considered most of the world 'uncivilized'.

Americans generally seem to hold more or less the same idea. That they have the best way, the only way, and that other ways always fail. History has shown that no organization is infallible.
Chrispminis (916 D)
21 Oct 08 UTC
As a Canadian, I am always baffled by the absolute reverence given to the Founding Fathers. Sure, they were great men with great ideas, but honestly... they were still human, they were just as fallible, and could not predict what would happen nearly 250 years later... But yet, they're drawn upon in debates as an infallible higher source and justification for policies today, when their ideas may be outdated or inapplicable to present day situations. I wonder if the Founding Fathers would approve of the reverence given to them...
aoe3rules (949 D)
21 Oct 08 UTC
@sean: i pick cry.
valoishapsburg (314 D)
21 Oct 08 UTC
I think one thing Americans seem to overlook is the large amount of debate that took place between the founding fathers themselves. They did not all agree. In fact the ideals the country was founded on were not completely understood. We can see this in the Ratification of the constitution, who should have power, who can vote, whether to declare independance or not, exactly what the extent of liberty was, etc.
Sicarius (673 D)
21 Oct 08 UTC
just read the federalist papers and the antifederalist papers, as well as the constitutional congress's debates
mac (189 D)
21 Oct 08 UTC
ARE the U.S.A. AN EMPIRE?

I think this is not an interesting questions, and efforts spent in trying to demonstrate one or the other thesis are surely interesting but of little use to the discussion. I think a far more interesting question is:

ARE THE U.S.A AN IMPERIALISTIC POWER?

Wikipedia defines imperialism as: "the imperialistic attitude of superiority, subordination and dominion over foreign people, a chauvinism and comportment relegating foreign people to a lesser social and or political status. To clarify the distinction, the French colonies in North America treated the native races with great diplomacy, whereas the British colonies early on began treating native Americans chauvinistically, as savages and lesser creatures. Imperialism is often autocratic and sometimes monolithic in character."

I think that 30 minutes spent reading any newspaper or watching any news around the planet would suffice to answer positively this question.

In my opinion saying "decline of USA Empire" is equal to say "change of the USA status in the world, so that they will have less and less means to implement imperialistic colonies"...
aoe3rules (949 D)
21 Oct 08 UTC
mac: you mean reading any newspaper not in america. the censorship nazis control our media.
orathaic (1009 D(B))
21 Oct 08 UTC
@ : Zarathustra you said:"The first Gulf War was probably one of the quickest and most successful military actions in history. It reinforced the UN's power and helped to show that International Treaties have some bite (Iraq had repeatedly violated the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty by failing to report all nuclear development to the IAEA as required by the treaty). We then helped Iraq rebuild its infrastructure."

no i believe the war showed the UN resolutions mean something when backed up by hte US military, and the UN continued to employ economic sanctions agaisnt Iraq which crippled the country, (and affected mainly the population as the dictator forced them to endure the worst of the hardship.)

I mean the intenions may have been noble, or it was just as probably that the US wanted to show other countries in that region that they couldn't just walk over the US's allies without fearing serious consequences.

All in the national interest, and so when the MacDonalds empire relies on the US for security and economic support these other countries are not interested in war with the US.

That is why the US have taken serious issue with countries which refuse the american economic system (read : venezuela, Russia, and north Korea) Iran doesn't really fit into this category, it has religious ideals which conflict with American culture, and oppose the introduction of anythign american, (while indivdual Iranian citizens like the idea of imrpoving their standard of living, and for example having plastic surgery. though this kind of decadence is opposed not just by islamic fundamentalists but also European idealists.)

anyway, if the American empire is that creature which is a globalized world, made up of countries which due to trade have no interest in war, then no i don't think it is in decline, not yet.
Sicarius (673 D)
22 Oct 08 UTC
aoe3rules

hey wow, there are sane, informed people here
mac (189 D)
22 Oct 08 UTC
aoe3rules: " mac: you mean reading any newspaper not in america. the censorship nazis control our media". Not at all. Your comment clearly shows that control of the media is easily spotted by whoever has his judgement capacity and the curiosity to use the Internet for something more than just porn... ;)

As for the first Gulf War:
1 > "Quickest and more successful"? From 1991 to 2003 (remember that USA and UK have kept on military operation until the 2nd gulf war) does not seem particularly quick. The WWII was quicker, indeed. The very fact that a "second war" was started is a proof the first failed. (In effect, the second war started on the basis of forged evidences, but this is another story).

2 > "Reinforced the UN power"? Does the following events ring a bell for anybody here? "Rwandan Genocide (1994)", "Srebrenica Genocide (1995)", "Kosovo (1999)", and many, many, many more... ?

3 > "International treaties have some bite?" Hmmm... like the "Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty" and the "Geneva convention", both of them left not respected by the USA, sitting member of the security council of the UN?

4 > "Helped Iraq rebuild its infrastructure"? What? Ok... You have a house, I bulldoze it, then I lend you the money to rebuild it and ask for it back with - in addition the interests. I am happy you perceive this as "help". When I should come over with my caterpillar?

I am wondering if these kind of statements are done just for the sake of trolling (in which case I blame myself to follow them up) or if this is FOR REAL what US citizens believe (in which case I am proposing a fundraising here on phpDiplomacy to launch a "Marshall plan" to help the USA to rebuild their education system, so that people living there will have the chance to learn history...)
whalen (373 D)
22 Oct 08 UTC
mac... I don't think you understand that these example statements you put forward are not trolling whatsoever... In fact they represent the honest opinions of some of the more educated and insightful Americans. That fact should be quite scary! The average American is much more nationalistic and jingoistic than these posts represent. There are many people in the US (not just after 9/11 but to this day) who openly call for bombing the entire Middle East and turning it into a parking lot. That being said, try not to be too hard on Americans, because they have been indoctrinated since birth with this patriotism and vitriole. We've trained our people to be ignorant and violent, because it allows the US to perpetuate violence and control world-wide. Control of the media, for example, is not that apparent to folks who don't have internet access, or who have been trained to think that anything other than internet porn is boring. Less than one in ten Americans read a newspaper daily, and this is not because they were born dumb, they had it drilled into them.

And I say this as an American... Please! Bring on the reverse Marshall Plan!
Thucydides (864 D(B))
22 Oct 08 UTC
The Economist is British.

I read that.

I do not believe America is imperialist.

Fault me, I dare you.
mac (189 D)
22 Oct 08 UTC
> Fault me, I dare you.

Sorry, I am uninterested in this challenge. If you want clarification about my original post, I will be happy to provide them, though.
Archonix (246 D)
22 Oct 08 UTC
To be fair, 'British' isn't very far enough from 'American' as a pro-west news source. For a non-diluted view you should probably be using multiple websites for general information.
Gobbledydook (1389 D(B))
22 Oct 08 UTC
You should be using the Al Qaeda's news source. They are fairer than the Americans in the part that they recognize the fallacies of America.
Gobbledydook (1389 D(B))
22 Oct 08 UTC
Also, Heil Hitler. Hitler is twice as good as Bush. (XD, and no offense)
Sicarius (673 D)
22 Oct 08 UTC
are you referencing my suggestion that al jazeera is more accurate than fox or nbc
Archonix (246 D)
22 Oct 08 UTC
The 'pride in your own ignorance' is always amusing :P
Sicarius (673 D)
23 Oct 08 UTC
oh al jazeera has an arabic name, it must be for terrorists, aka all middle eastern people

how could I have been so blind?

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146 replies
mac (189 D)
28 Oct 08 UTC
Timestamps
A question and 2 proposals - see first comment.
5 replies
Open
SlkySmoothOtter (969 D)
26 Oct 08 UTC
Cheaters
In a recently initiated game (Good times-2), 5 accounts were made and joined a 100 point game all together and all within one hour of each other. Additionally, they all submitted and finalized orders within this same hour and all appear to be working toward the two countries not controlled by the suspected owner of the 5. If you look at england's opening in particular, the move to Clyde seems odd.
18 replies
Open
lazysummer8484 (0 DX)
27 Oct 08 UTC
Quick question
Suppose you have a fleet in the Mid-Alantic and another fleet down in Spain's south coast.... is it still possible to support hold each other ?
8 replies
Open
TheGhostmaker (1545 D)
27 Oct 08 UTC
@ mac
Can you send me an email if you want to play in the league still? There may be a place forming in League A

Thank you
7 replies
Open
spyman (424 D(G))
25 Oct 08 UTC
Metagamers
So what are we supposed to do about them. Do we name and shame them?
40 replies
Open
Churchill (2280 D)
27 Oct 08 UTC
Rescuable Game
The game is paused, so no-one starts in a CD position.
It is a high buy-in, but as the points are added to the pot, you stand to make a significant profit.

2 replies
Open
GodofWar (100 D)
25 Oct 08 UTC
End of Game Etiquette...
A purely hypothetical question: Is it against the point of the Diplomacy game to be gracious to someone who is about to get defeated from a game in what is obviously the last moves?
8 replies
Open
EmperorPalpatine (380 D)
26 Oct 08 UTC
Any proud gay players in the house?
=)

Yay to diversity!
124 replies
Open
trim101 (363 D)
24 Oct 08 UTC
please can i be france again!
even england would do!
46 replies
Open
whalen (373 D)
27 Oct 08 UTC
Account change notice....
This is just a quick notice that I'm planning on killing my yahoo mail account. This means that I would like to open a new account on this site using a different email/password. I will not be joining any single game with both accounts and I plan to let the games on my yahoo associated account wind down before I switch.
4 replies
Open
Maniac (189 D(B))
26 Oct 08 UTC
Top 20 countries based on....
Top 20 countries based on how long they have lived peacefully without going to war.
32 replies
Open
Sicarius (673 D)
06 Oct 08 UTC
Dow jones fell 500
below the 10,000 mark now.

229 replies
Open
EdiBirsan (1469 D(B))
27 Oct 08 UTC
Stand By/Baby sitting/how does it work here?
If a player is going to be out of net reach for a vacation or some illness, how does the stand by/temporary player work here?
3 replies
Open
Sioraf as Killeens (195 D)
27 Oct 08 UTC
Is this racist?
I think it's just for a laugh:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LhXaFUlTwm0&NR=1
1 reply
Open
Acheron (100 D)
27 Oct 08 UTC
Quickie for Practice
Just opened a new game (12 hour rounds) for some more practice:
http://phpdiplomacy.net/board.php?gameID=6406
1 reply
Open
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