I am currently looking for arbiters for a new roleplay I am launching, World in Madness. The basic pitch is as follows:
You are the executive administration of a modern nation emerging from a bitter global cataclysm. It is your task to sway a cynical populace toward your ideals and navigate a world polarized by ideologues and threatened by the specter of the apocalypse. You will guide your the broken remains of a state and reforge the ashes into a bright dawn.
The setting is most aptly described as a roughly dieselpunk-apocalyptic setting heavily augmented by the physics and patterns of our own world. Various superweapons beyond nuclear technology will eventually be available, some of which will not be strictly scientific.
In the initial application phase, interested parties will send in the manifestos of their administration, and then be returned key events in their historical timeline that tie them to the rest of the world. In the final application phase, prospects send in a comprehensive information sheet including their administration's view of their history. After this, a full public and private national information sheet will be assembled with the information the interested has given and a full report of their nations inner workings.
Posts are from the perspective of primary sources in the nation, often state newspapers and required readings, although possibly more independent sources. As such, no post is ever considered actual canon. Two sides can both claim they won a conflict when in reality they tied. Very little minusha-moderation is required, as it is completely possible that multiple primary sources claim different versions of events.
As a note about my personal directing style, I do enforce minimum word counts and a strict style guide. Given such, I have never had to kick anybody for bad writing; only because they broke hard rules. If you are extremely uncomfortable with the idea of word minimums, this may not be the place to inquire. I try to be fair with the actual numbers; they are standards of effort rather than results. Until I see proof that less quantity leads to higher quality, I also won't buy any bit about quality over quantity. If you have further questions on stylistics than what is covered here, feel free to ask.
The roleplay is a competitive one, although not one that will permit blatant rudeness toward any arbitration. High spirits are to be expected but respect is demanded.
In an arbiter, I'm looking for somebody above all committed to creating an immersive and compelling experience. No particular skillset is required, although arbiters will be tasked with interpreting player agendas and formulating results and player information sheets. Some experience with GMing in the past (even if not forum-based or NRPs) is preferred although not required. In addition, one of the chief roles of arbiters is creative development, and in this it should be noted that I am rarely looking for an argument so much as case to be made for a change and/or a diagnosis of an issue. Respecting a design process is key here. Finally, the role of an arbiter also extends into keeping the OOC community active. It is my personal experience that groups of any size live or die based on their OOC activity and bonds with one another, even over the internet.
If you're interested, please say so. I have a fledgling discord set up but if you aren't really sure you want to take the plunge then PMing me or just asking questions is likely the best course of action.
Concept art: Title: Discord Icon: Chalam System: (Chalam system, from left to right: Shemensh, the star, Nagah, the stellar satellite, Sheol the Red Planet, Kokhav, Homeworld, Levanah her moon, Shamayhim the Blue Planet, Madim the Gas Giant, her moon the silent Shabbatai, and the Kesil Belt.) Preliminary Physical Map:
ACCORDING to the formal division of the subject of these papers, announced in my first number, there would appear still to remain for discussion two points: ``the analogy of the proposed government to your own State constitution,'' and ``the additional security which its adoption will afford to republican government, to liberty, and to property.'' But these heads have been so fully anticipated and exhausted in the progress of the work, that it would now scarcely be possible to do any thing more than repeat, in a more dilated form, what has been heretofore said, which the advanced stage of the question, and the time already spent upon it, conspire to forbid.
It is remarkable, that the resemblance of the plan of the convention to the act which organizes the government of this State holds, not less with regard to many of the supposed defects, than to the real excellences of the former. Among the pretended defects are the re-eligibility of the Executive, the want of a council, the omission of a formal bill of rights, the omission of a provision respecting the liberty of the press. These and several others which have been noted in the course of our inquiries are as much chargeable on the existing constitution of this State, as on the one proposed for the Union; and a man must have slender pretensions to consistency, who can rail at the latter for imperfections which he finds no difficulty in excusing in the former. Nor indeed can there be a better proof of the insincerity and affectation of some of the zealous adversaries of the plan of the convention among us, who profess to be the devoted admirers of the government under which they live, than the fury with which they have attacked that plan, for matters in regard to which our own constitution is equally or perhaps more vulnerable.
The additional securities to republican government, to liberty and to property, to be derived from the adoption of the plan under consideration, consist chiefly in the restraints which the preservation of the Union will impose on local factions and insurrections, and on the ambition of powerful individuals in single States, who may acquire credit and influence enough, from leaders and favorites, to become the despots of the people; in the diminution of the opportunities to foreign intrigue, which the dissolution of the Confederacy would invite and facilitate; in the prevention of extensive military establishments, which could not fail to grow out of wars between the States in a disunited situation; in the express guaranty of a republican form of government to each; in the absolute and universal exclusion of titles of nobility; and in the precautions against the repetition of those practices on the part of the State governments which have undermined the foundations of property and credit, have planted mutual distrust in the breasts of all classes of citizens, and have occasioned an almost universal prostration of morals.
Thus have I, fellow-citizens, executed the task I had assigned to myself; with what success, your conduct must determine. I trust at least you will admit that I have not failed in the assurance I gave you respecting the spirit with which my endeavors should be conducted. I have addressed myself purely to your judgments, and have studiously avoided those asperities which are too apt to disgrace political disputants of all parties, and which have been not a little provoked by the language and conduct of the opponents of the Constitution. The charge of a conspiracy against the liberties of the people, which has been indiscriminately brought against the advocates of the plan, has something in it too wanton and too malignant, not to excite the indignation of every man who feels in his own bosom a refutation of the calumny. The perpetual changes which have been rung upon the wealthy, the well-born, and the great, have been such as to inspire the disgust of all sensible men. And the unwarrantable concealments and misrepresentations which have been in various ways practiced to keep the truth from the public eye, have been of a nature to demand the reprobation of all honest men. It is not impossible that these circumstances may have occasionally betrayed me into intemperances of expression which I did not intend; it is certain that I have frequently felt a struggle between sensibility and moderation; and if the former has in some instances prevailed, it must be my excuse that it has been neither often nor much.
Let us now pause and ask ourselves whether, in the course of these papers, the proposed Constitution has not been satisfactorily vindicated from the aspersions thrown upon it; and whether it has not been shown to be worthy of the public approbation, and necessary to the public safety and prosperity. Every man is bound to answer these questions to himself, according to the best of his conscience and understanding, and to act agreeably to the genuine and sober dictates of his judgment. This is a duty from which nothing can give him a dispensation. 'T is one that he is called upon, nay, constrained by all the obligations that form the bands of society, to discharge sincerely and honestly. No partial motive, no particular interest, no pride of opinion, no temporary passion or prejudice, will justify to himself, to his country, or to his posterity, an improper election of the part he is to act. Let him beware of an obstinate adherence to party; let him reflect that the object upon which he is to decide is not a particular interest of the community, but the very existence of the nation; and let him remember that a majority of America has already given its sanction to the plan which he is to approve or reject.
I shall not dissemble that I feel an entire confidence in the arguments which recommend the proposed system to your adoption, and that I am unable to discern any real force in those by which it has been opposed. I am persuaded that it is the best which our political situation, habits, and opinions will admit, and superior to any the revolution has produced.
Concessions on the part of the friends of the plan, that it has not a claim to absolute perfection, have afforded matter of no small triumph to its enemies. ``Why,'' say they, ``should we adopt an imperfect thing? Why not amend it and make it perfect before it is irrevocably established?'' This may be plausible enough, but it is only plausible. In the first place I remark, that the extent of these concessions has been greatly exaggerated. They have been stated as amounting to an admission that the plan is radically defective, and that without material alterations the rights and the interests of the community cannot be safely confided to it. This, as far as I have understood the meaning of those who make the concessions, is an entire perversion of their sense. No advocate of the measure can be found, who will not declare as his sentiment, that the system, though it may not be perfect in every part, is, upon the whole, a good one; is the best that the present views and circumstances of the country will permit; and is such an one as promises every species of security which a reasonable people can desire.
I answer in the next place, that I should esteem it the extreme of imprudence to prolong the precarious state of our national affairs, and to expose the Union to the jeopardy of successive experiments, in the chimerical pursuit of a perfect plan. I never expect to see a perfect work from imperfect man. The result of the deliberations of all collective bodies must necessarily be a compound, as well of the errors and prejudices, as of the good sense and wisdom, of the individuals of whom they are composed. The compacts which are to embrace thirteen distinct States in a common bond of amity and union, must as necessarily be a compromise of as many dissimilar interests and inclinations. How can perfection spring from such materials?
The reasons assigned in an excellent little pamphlet lately published in this city, are unanswerable to show the utter improbability of assembling a new convention, under circumstances in any degree so favorable to a happy issue, as those in which the late convention met, deliberated, and concluded. I will not repeat the arguments there used, as I presume the production itself has had an extensive circulation. It is certainly well worthy the perusal of every friend to his country. There is, however, one point of light in which the subject of amendments still remains to be considered, and in which it has not yet been exhibited to public view. I cannot resolve to conclude without first taking a survey of it in this aspect.
It appears to me susceptible of absolute demonstration, that it will be far more easy to obtain subsequent than previous amendments to the Constitution. The moment an alteration is made in the present plan, it becomes, to the purpose of adoption, a new one, and must undergo a new decision of each State. To its complete establishment throughout the Union, it will therefore require the concurrence of thirteen States. If, on the contrary, the Constitution proposed should once be ratified by all the States as it stands, alterations in it may at any time be effected by nine States. Here, then, the chances are as thirteen to ten in favor of subsequent amendment, rather than of the original adoption of an entire system.
This is not all. Every Constitution for the United States must inevitably consist of a great variety of particulars, in which thirteen independent States are to be accommodated in their interests or opinions of interest. We may of course expect to see, in any body of men charged with its original formation, very different combinations of the parts upon different points. Many of those who form a majority on one question, may become the minority on a second, and an association dissimilar to either may constitute the majority on a third. Hence the necessity of moulding and arranging all the particulars which are to compose the whole, in such a manner as to satisfy all the parties to the compact; and hence, also, an immense multiplication of difficulties and casualties in obtaining the collective assent to a final act. The degree of that multiplication must evidently be in a ratio to the number of particulars and the number of parties.
But every amendment to the Constitution, if once established, would be a single proposition, and might be brought forward singly. There would then be no necessity for management or compromise, in relation to any other point no giving nor taking. The will of the requisite number would at once bring the matter to a decisive issue. And consequently, whenever nine, or rather ten States, were united in the desire of a particular amendment, that amendment must infallibly take place. There can, therefore, be no comparison between the facility of affecting an amendment, and that of establishing in the first instance a complete Constitution.
In opposition to the probability of subsequent amendments, it has been urged that the persons delegated to the administration of the national government will always be disinclined to yield up any portion of the authority of which they were once possessed. For my own part I acknowledge a thorough conviction that any amendments which may, upon mature consideration, be thought useful, will be applicable to the organization of the government, not to the mass of its powers; and on this account alone, I think there is no weight in the observation just stated. I also think there is little weight in it on another account. The intrinsic difficulty of governing thirteen States at any rate, independent of calculations upon an ordinary degree of public spirit and integrity, will, in my opinion constantly impose on the national rulers the necessity of a spirit of accommodation to the reasonable expectations of their constituents. But there is yet a further consideration, which proves beyond the possibility of a doubt, that the observation is futile. It is this that the national rulers, whenever nine States concur, will have no option upon the subject. By the fifth article of the plan, the Congress will be obliged ``on the application of the legislatures of two thirds of the States which at present amount to nine, to call a convention for proposing amendments, which shall be valid, to all intents and purposes, as part of the Constitution, when ratified by the legislatures of three fourths of the States, or by conventions in three fourths thereof.'' The words of this article are peremptory. The Congress ``shall call a convention.'' Nothing in this particular is left to the discretion of that body. And of consequence, all the declamation about the disinclination to a change vanishes in air. Nor however difficult it may be supposed to unite two thirds or three fourths of the State legislatures, in amendments which may affect local interests, can there be any room to apprehend any such difficulty in a union on points which are merely relative to the general liberty or security of the people. We may safely rely on the disposition of the State legislatures to erect barriers against the encroachments of the national authority.
If the foregoing argument is a fallacy, certain it is that I am myself deceived by it, for it is, in my conception, one of those rare instances in which a political truth can be brought to the test of a mathematical demonstration. Those who see the matter in the same light with me, however zealous they may be for amendments, must agree in the propriety of a previous adoption, as the most direct road to their own object.
The zeal for attempts to amend, prior to the establishment of the Constitution, must abate in every man who is ready to accede to the truth of the following observations of a writer equally solid and ingenious: ``To balance a large state or society, says he, whether monarchical or republican, on general laws, is a work of so great difficulty, that no human genius, however comprehensive, is able, by the mere dint of reason and reflection, to effect it. The judgments of many must unite in the work; experience must guide their labor; time must bring it to perfection, and the feeling of inconveniences must correct the mistakes which they inevitably fall into in their first trials and experiments.'(Hume's ``Essays,'' vol. i., page 128: ``The Rise of Arts and Sciences.') These judicious reflections contain a lesson of moderation to all the sincere lovers of the Union, and ought to put them upon their guard against hazarding anarchy, civil war, a perpetual alienation of the States from each other, and perhaps the military despotism of a victorious demagogue, in the pursuit of what they are not likely to obtain, but from time and experience. It may be in me a defect of political fortitude, but I acknowledge that I cannot entertain an equal tranquillity with those who affect to treat the dangers of a longer continuance in our present situation as imaginary. A nation, without a national government, is, in my view, an awful spectacle. The establishment of a Constitution, in time of profound peace, by the voluntary ocnsent of a whole people, is a prodigy, to the completion of which I look forward with trembling anxiety. I can reconcile it to no rules of prudence to let go the hold we now have, in so arduous an enterprise, upon seven out of the thirteen States, and after having passed over so considerable a part of the ground, to recommence the course. I dread the more the consequences of new attempts, because I know that powerful individuals, in this and in other States, are enemies to a general national government in every possible shape.
So, I still don't have a Co-GM, but I am going to try getting out some setting material. If anybody (@Atroposer, @Polybius, @CaptainBritton) has any feedback for what the setting should be or what you enjoy, now'd be the time since I'm starting to pen things.
As an additional update, I plan on launching an OOC when six total people have inquired (including a Co-GM should one apply).
General update, still looking for a Co-GM if anybody reading this is interested. I don't absolutely need one to start, but it would help with making the simulation.
Thank you for all the feedback. No amount or type is worthless.
First two sentences directly contradict one another. Are we chronicling a single rulers reign or several generations of a ruling family?
This may be a fault of my writing but I was attempting to convey that as the roleplay progresses, so to will the generations. Chroniclers are tasked with writing about exactly one ruler, and as multiple do so, the family tree gets filled out.
Oh. Well played. I find that sort of META baiting delightful. Carry on.
Glad you do :-)
I think you should more carefully clarify what the difference between the 'chronicle' and the 'simulation' is. Also, what is the RNG?
This again could be a fault of my writing; looking through the document I can see this isn't clarified until the latter bit of the premise. The idea is that the simulation is what is happening, the chroniclers are recording what happens. Obviously a lot is lost in translation between the two. Hopefully that clears it up.
As far as what the RNG is, well you won't actually know :P That is kinda a GM thing, although things like casualties from battles, timelines of the life of a ruler, trade records, and censuses will all be included as information to base your writings off of.
I fully support this in the spirit of better community unity, although you would probably have more luck finding interest in the casual or even advanced forum (especially if your insistent on the scholarly/academic format of submissions).
The scope of this roleplay led me to the nation forum. I have my doubts about both, since the roleplay has the length requirements of the free section and the stylistics and grammar requirements of high advanced. I did choose the advanced tag since I felt that players proficient with advanced-tier writing would be most at home, but the absence of length requirement is intended to draw in high casual players who may write less than normal due to the stylistics but still contribute something, even if it isn't a massive volume per post.
The reasoning behind this though was indeed, as you said, community. If you wrote once (or even never) and still want to contribute, you can be there. If you just wrote a small entry, you can ask other people to cross reference it. Each entry lives on past the post date; everything is always being contradicted or corroborated.
Which leads me to ask about the submission 'stylistics'. You might want to ditch the more heavily academic requirements if your looking for a large group of casual/non-committal players as A) reading that wall of text intro is probably not suited to that sort of thing and B)Accessibility to the game should be easy as possible.
See, ideally I want 'a large group of advanced/non-committal players'. Casual levels can still totally join and be right at home; diversity in writing talent and time is absolutely allowed. As far as the wall of text goes, according to this, my piece takes eight minutes and 46 seconds to read. I feel that is a representative number of the amount of effort I'd like to see from people that post. I'm not asking for low-effort people, I'm asking for low-committal people. This encompasses a wide range of folks from people who write a ton in short creative outbursts, people who have time on weekends or when school is out but otherwise have a busy schedule, or just people that enjoy this sort of thing. I will admit though, looking through it, I tend to be long-winded. I tried to get this out there at a it of an embryonic stage, and there is room to improve there. I'll likely polish the OOC post to be much more easily read than this.
As a casual player, I want to get in, read and contribute as easily as possible. An alternative would be to try and find only a handful of heavily committed players that are cool with the academic Stylistics you have proposed.
This is the section where I'll write an apologetic for my stylistics. At the end is the important bit I'd like you to actually take away from the entirety of this reply.
I wrote the stylistic section because I feel like a lot of roleplays tend to bounce around too much and rather than being something coherent it turns into ten different formats with ten different voices, and I wanted something that felt academic, even if it meant that some writers would be put off. That was a sacrifice I was and am willing to make. This does sound hrash and maybe even elitist, but really it is in the interest of cohesion.
That said though, looking through it, most of it isn't difficult to follow as it is specific. As a legitimate solution to this grievance though, I'd personally be willing to adjust any post PM'd to myself to the style guide. It wouldn't be a painless fix with some of the directives, but I'd be willing to help on that front.
As a casual player, I want to get in, read and contribute as easily as possible.
Just reading along is perfectly fine, and contributing really shouldn't be ridiculously hard. Even short, 100-word entries can contain fascinating tidbits that flesh out parts of the world that aren't really explored. Above all I'd encourage you to give it a try. Even if you just follow along in the OOC and see what type of posts come out, I'm solidly in the interest of warm bodies. Hopefully the solution I put forth above should help with that.
That's all the notes I'm going to contribute, hope you read this as constructive criticism, not bashing your brainchild. I like your approach, although the more academic stylistics are off-putting.
To the former bit, absolutely :-) All feedback is helpful.
If I may ask, though, what particular stylistics do you find to be the most challenging to work with? I'm not quite sure which you would have found to be the most egregious looking through my text and your own.
Story is character, and for the interested reader (or writer) there must be some emotional attachment to the plot, character and setting.
I don't absolutely agree that this is absolutely mandatory in all texts, but the beauty of the project is that if you like writing stories, then you have full reign to turn your history into a three-act story. If you want to flesh out the emotional life of a ruler, then you can do that! The roleplay needs all sorts of historical accounts, from purely academic volumes to heavily subjective emotional narratives written by people close to the ruler. That said, see below for the light I view this project in.
[. . .] they would constitute not a book but the biggest library ever built, a hallowed place of dedication & lifelong study.
That's...kinda what I want. A giant history textbook. One filled with all sorts of first and secondhand accounts, scattered pieces of numerical records, and a wide range of historical accuracy.
Hopefully this clarifies questions and addresses your concerns. If any of either remain, feel free to share them.
Sincerely though, thank you for the feedback.
EDIT: Sorry for the textwall. It was my attempt to be thorough.
My name is Dead Drop, I am not new to RP as I've done advanced roleplay on other sites before. I decided to join RP guild and experience rp with other roleplayers, hope to rp with you all soon!
Velkomenn.
If you want to chat or roleplay, hit me up. Also new to the site.
[hider=World in Madness: Hunt for an Arbiter]
I am currently looking for arbiters for a new roleplay I am launching, World in Madness. The basic pitch is as follows:
You are the executive administration of a modern nation emerging from a bitter global cataclysm. It is your task to sway a cynical populace toward your ideals and navigate a world polarized by ideologues and threatened by the specter of the apocalypse. You will guide your the broken remains of a state and reforge the ashes into a bright dawn.
The setting is most aptly described as a roughly dieselpunk-apocalyptic setting heavily augmented by the physics and patterns of our own world. Various superweapons beyond nuclear technology will eventually be available, some of which will not be strictly scientific.
In the initial application phase, interested parties will send in the manifestos of their administration, and then be returned key events in their historical timeline that tie them to the rest of the world. In the final application phase, prospects send in a comprehensive information sheet including their administration's view of their history. After this, a full public and private national information sheet will be assembled with the information the interested has given and a full report of their nations inner workings.
Posts are from the perspective of primary sources in the nation, often state newspapers and required readings, although possibly more independent sources. As such, no post is ever considered actual canon. Two sides can both claim they won a conflict when in reality they tied. Very little minusha-moderation is required, as it is completely possible that multiple primary sources claim different versions of events.
As a note about my personal directing style, I do enforce minimum word counts and a strict style guide. Given such, I have never had to kick anybody for bad writing; only because they broke hard rules. If you are extremely uncomfortable with the idea of word minimums, this may not be the place to inquire. I try to be fair with the actual numbers; they are standards of effort rather than results. Until I see proof that less quantity leads to higher quality, I also won't buy any bit about quality over quantity. If you have further questions on stylistics than what is covered here, feel free to ask.
The roleplay is a competitive one, although not one that will permit blatant rudeness toward any arbitration. High spirits are to be expected but respect is demanded.
In an arbiter, I'm looking for somebody above all committed to creating an immersive and compelling experience. No particular skillset is required, although arbiters will be tasked with interpreting player agendas and formulating results and player information sheets. Some experience with GMing in the past (even if not forum-based or NRPs) is preferred although not required. In addition, one of the chief roles of arbiters is creative development, and in this it should be noted that I am rarely looking for an argument so much as case to be made for a change and/or a diagnosis of an issue. Respecting a design process is key here. Finally, the role of an arbiter also extends into keeping the OOC community active. It is my personal experience that groups of any size live or die based on their OOC activity and bonds with one another, even over the internet.
If you're interested, please say so. I have a fledgling discord set up but if you aren't really sure you want to take the plunge then PMing me or just asking questions is likely the best course of action.
Concept art:
Title: [img]http://i.imgur.com/ICan37F.png[/img]
Discord Icon: [img]http://i.imgur.com/GV5YN5C.png[/img]
Chalam System: [img]http://i.imgur.com/NwkiTia.png[/img]
(Chalam system, from left to right: Shemensh, the star, Nagah, the stellar satellite, Sheol the Red Planet, Kokhav, Homeworld, Levanah her moon, Shamayhim the Blue Planet, Madim the Gas Giant, her moon the silent Shabbatai, and the Kesil Belt.)
Preliminary Physical Map: [img]http://i.imgur.com/nn40c6D.png[/img]
[/hider]
[hider=The Last of the Federalist Papers]
ACCORDING to the formal division of the subject of these papers, announced in my first number, there would appear still to remain for discussion two points: ``the analogy of the proposed government to your own State constitution,'' and ``the additional security which its adoption will afford to republican government, to liberty, and to property.'' But these heads have been so fully anticipated and exhausted in the progress of the work, that it would now scarcely be possible to do any thing more than repeat, in a more dilated form, what has been heretofore said, which the advanced stage of the question, and the time already spent upon it, conspire to forbid.
It is remarkable, that the resemblance of the plan of the convention to the act which organizes the government of this State holds, not less with regard to many of the supposed defects, than to the real excellences of the former. Among the pretended defects are the re-eligibility of the Executive, the want of a council, the omission of a formal bill of rights, the omission of a provision respecting the liberty of the press. These and several others which have been noted in the course of our inquiries are as much chargeable on the existing constitution of this State, as on the one proposed for the Union; and a man must have slender pretensions to consistency, who can rail at the latter for imperfections which he finds no difficulty in excusing in the former. Nor indeed can there be a better proof of the insincerity and affectation of some of the zealous adversaries of the plan of the convention among us, who profess to be the devoted admirers of the government under which they live, than the fury with which they have attacked that plan, for matters in regard to which our own constitution is equally or perhaps more vulnerable.
The additional securities to republican government, to liberty and to property, to be derived from the adoption of the plan under consideration, consist chiefly in the restraints which the preservation of the Union will impose on local factions and insurrections, and on the ambition of powerful individuals in single States, who may acquire credit and influence enough, from leaders and favorites, to become the despots of the people; in the diminution of the opportunities to foreign intrigue, which the dissolution of the Confederacy would invite and facilitate; in the prevention of extensive military establishments, which could not fail to grow out of wars between the States in a disunited situation; in the express guaranty of a republican form of government to each; in the absolute and universal exclusion of titles of nobility; and in the precautions against the repetition of those practices on the part of the State governments which have undermined the foundations of property and credit, have planted mutual distrust in the breasts of all classes of citizens, and have occasioned an almost universal prostration of morals.
Thus have I, fellow-citizens, executed the task I had assigned to myself; with what success, your conduct must determine. I trust at least you will admit that I have not failed in the assurance I gave you respecting the spirit with which my endeavors should be conducted. I have addressed myself purely to your judgments, and have studiously avoided those asperities which are too apt to disgrace political disputants of all parties, and which have been not a little provoked by the language and conduct of the opponents of the Constitution. The charge of a conspiracy against the liberties of the people, which has been indiscriminately brought against the advocates of the plan, has something in it too wanton and too malignant, not to excite the indignation of every man who feels in his own bosom a refutation of the calumny. The perpetual changes which have been rung upon the wealthy, the well-born, and the great, have been such as to inspire the disgust of all sensible men. And the unwarrantable concealments and misrepresentations which have been in various ways practiced to keep the truth from the public eye, have been of a nature to demand the reprobation of all honest men. It is not impossible that these circumstances may have occasionally betrayed me into intemperances of expression which I did not intend; it is certain that I have frequently felt a struggle between sensibility and moderation; and if the former has in some instances prevailed, it must be my excuse that it has been neither often nor much.
Let us now pause and ask ourselves whether, in the course of these papers, the proposed Constitution has not been satisfactorily vindicated from the aspersions thrown upon it; and whether it has not been shown to be worthy of the public approbation, and necessary to the public safety and prosperity. Every man is bound to answer these questions to himself, according to the best of his conscience and understanding, and to act agreeably to the genuine and sober dictates of his judgment. This is a duty from which nothing can give him a dispensation. 'T is one that he is called upon, nay, constrained by all the obligations that form the bands of society, to discharge sincerely and honestly. No partial motive, no particular interest, no pride of opinion, no temporary passion or prejudice, will justify to himself, to his country, or to his posterity, an improper election of the part he is to act. Let him beware of an obstinate adherence to party; let him reflect that the object upon which he is to decide is not a particular interest of the community, but the very existence of the nation; and let him remember that a majority of America has already given its sanction to the plan which he is to approve or reject.
I shall not dissemble that I feel an entire confidence in the arguments which recommend the proposed system to your adoption, and that I am unable to discern any real force in those by which it has been opposed. I am persuaded that it is the best which our political situation, habits, and opinions will admit, and superior to any the revolution has produced.
Concessions on the part of the friends of the plan, that it has not a claim to absolute perfection, have afforded matter of no small triumph to its enemies. ``Why,'' say they, ``should we adopt an imperfect thing? Why not amend it and make it perfect before it is irrevocably established?'' This may be plausible enough, but it is only plausible. In the first place I remark, that the extent of these concessions has been greatly exaggerated. They have been stated as amounting to an admission that the plan is radically defective, and that without material alterations the rights and the interests of the community cannot be safely confided to it. This, as far as I have understood the meaning of those who make the concessions, is an entire perversion of their sense. No advocate of the measure can be found, who will not declare as his sentiment, that the system, though it may not be perfect in every part, is, upon the whole, a good one; is the best that the present views and circumstances of the country will permit; and is such an one as promises every species of security which a reasonable people can desire.
I answer in the next place, that I should esteem it the extreme of imprudence to prolong the precarious state of our national affairs, and to expose the Union to the jeopardy of successive experiments, in the chimerical pursuit of a perfect plan. I never expect to see a perfect work from imperfect man. The result of the deliberations of all collective bodies must necessarily be a compound, as well of the errors and prejudices, as of the good sense and wisdom, of the individuals of whom they are composed. The compacts which are to embrace thirteen distinct States in a common bond of amity and union, must as necessarily be a compromise of as many dissimilar interests and inclinations. How can perfection spring from such materials?
The reasons assigned in an excellent little pamphlet lately published in this city, are unanswerable to show the utter improbability of assembling a new convention, under circumstances in any degree so favorable to a happy issue, as those in which the late convention met, deliberated, and concluded. I will not repeat the arguments there used, as I presume the production itself has had an extensive circulation. It is certainly well worthy the perusal of every friend to his country. There is, however, one point of light in which the subject of amendments still remains to be considered, and in which it has not yet been exhibited to public view. I cannot resolve to conclude without first taking a survey of it in this aspect.
It appears to me susceptible of absolute demonstration, that it will be far more easy to obtain subsequent than previous amendments to the Constitution. The moment an alteration is made in the present plan, it becomes, to the purpose of adoption, a new one, and must undergo a new decision of each State. To its complete establishment throughout the Union, it will therefore require the concurrence of thirteen States. If, on the contrary, the Constitution proposed should once be ratified by all the States as it stands, alterations in it may at any time be effected by nine States. Here, then, the chances are as thirteen to ten in favor of subsequent amendment, rather than of the original adoption of an entire system.
This is not all. Every Constitution for the United States must inevitably consist of a great variety of particulars, in which thirteen independent States are to be accommodated in their interests or opinions of interest. We may of course expect to see, in any body of men charged with its original formation, very different combinations of the parts upon different points. Many of those who form a majority on one question, may become the minority on a second, and an association dissimilar to either may constitute the majority on a third. Hence the necessity of moulding and arranging all the particulars which are to compose the whole, in such a manner as to satisfy all the parties to the compact; and hence, also, an immense multiplication of difficulties and casualties in obtaining the collective assent to a final act. The degree of that multiplication must evidently be in a ratio to the number of particulars and the number of parties.
But every amendment to the Constitution, if once established, would be a single proposition, and might be brought forward singly. There would then be no necessity for management or compromise, in relation to any other point no giving nor taking. The will of the requisite number would at once bring the matter to a decisive issue. And consequently, whenever nine, or rather ten States, were united in the desire of a particular amendment, that amendment must infallibly take place. There can, therefore, be no comparison between the facility of affecting an amendment, and that of establishing in the first instance a complete Constitution.
In opposition to the probability of subsequent amendments, it has been urged that the persons delegated to the administration of the national government will always be disinclined to yield up any portion of the authority of which they were once possessed. For my own part I acknowledge a thorough conviction that any amendments which may, upon mature consideration, be thought useful, will be applicable to the organization of the government, not to the mass of its powers; and on this account alone, I think there is no weight in the observation just stated. I also think there is little weight in it on another account. The intrinsic difficulty of governing thirteen States at any rate, independent of calculations upon an ordinary degree of public spirit and integrity, will, in my opinion constantly impose on the national rulers the necessity of a spirit of accommodation to the reasonable expectations of their constituents. But there is yet a further consideration, which proves beyond the possibility of a doubt, that the observation is futile. It is this that the national rulers, whenever nine States concur, will have no option upon the subject. By the fifth article of the plan, the Congress will be obliged ``on the application of the legislatures of two thirds of the States which at present amount to nine, to call a convention for proposing amendments, which shall be valid, to all intents and purposes, as part of the Constitution, when ratified by the legislatures of three fourths of the States, or by conventions in three fourths thereof.'' The words of this article are peremptory. The Congress ``shall call a convention.'' Nothing in this particular is left to the discretion of that body. And of consequence, all the declamation about the disinclination to a change vanishes in air. Nor however difficult it may be supposed to unite two thirds or three fourths of the State legislatures, in amendments which may affect local interests, can there be any room to apprehend any such difficulty in a union on points which are merely relative to the general liberty or security of the people. We may safely rely on the disposition of the State legislatures to erect barriers against the encroachments of the national authority.
If the foregoing argument is a fallacy, certain it is that I am myself deceived by it, for it is, in my conception, one of those rare instances in which a political truth can be brought to the test of a mathematical demonstration. Those who see the matter in the same light with me, however zealous they may be for amendments, must agree in the propriety of a previous adoption, as the most direct road to their own object.
The zeal for attempts to amend, prior to the establishment of the Constitution, must abate in every man who is ready to accede to the truth of the following observations of a writer equally solid and ingenious: ``To balance a large state or society, says he, whether monarchical or republican, on general laws, is a work of so great difficulty, that no human genius, however comprehensive, is able, by the mere dint of reason and reflection, to effect it. The judgments of many must unite in the work; experience must guide their labor; time must bring it to perfection, and the feeling of inconveniences must correct the mistakes which they inevitably fall into in their first trials and experiments.'(Hume's ``Essays,'' vol. i., page 128: ``The Rise of Arts and Sciences.') These judicious reflections contain a lesson of moderation to all the sincere lovers of the Union, and ought to put them upon their guard against hazarding anarchy, civil war, a perpetual alienation of the States from each other, and perhaps the military despotism of a victorious demagogue, in the pursuit of what they are not likely to obtain, but from time and experience. It may be in me a defect of political fortitude, but I acknowledge that I cannot entertain an equal tranquillity with those who affect to treat the dangers of a longer continuance in our present situation as imaginary. A nation, without a national government, is, in my view, an awful spectacle. The establishment of a Constitution, in time of profound peace, by the voluntary ocnsent of a whole people, is a prodigy, to the completion of which I look forward with trembling anxiety. I can reconcile it to no rules of prudence to let go the hold we now have, in so arduous an enterprise, upon seven out of the thirteen States, and after having passed over so considerable a part of the ground, to recommence the course. I dread the more the consequences of new attempts, because I know that powerful individuals, in this and in other States, are enemies to a general national government in every possible shape.
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<div style="white-space:pre-wrap;"><div class="hider-panel"><div class="hider-heading"><button type="button" class="btn btn-default btn-xs hider-button" data-name="World in Madness: Hunt for an Arbiter">World in Madness: Hunt for an Arbiter [+]</button></div><div class="hider-body" style="display: none">I am currently looking for arbiters for a new roleplay I am launching, World in Madness. The basic pitch is as follows:<br><br>You are the executive administration of a modern nation emerging from a bitter global cataclysm. It is your task to sway a cynical populace toward your ideals and navigate a world polarized by ideologues and threatened by the specter of the apocalypse. You will guide your the broken remains of a state and reforge the ashes into a bright dawn. <br><br>The setting is most aptly described as a roughly dieselpunk-apocalyptic setting heavily augmented by the physics and patterns of our own world. Various superweapons beyond nuclear technology will eventually be available, some of which will not be strictly scientific.<br><br>In the initial application phase, interested parties will send in the manifestos of their administration, and then be returned key events in their historical timeline that tie them to the rest of the world. In the final application phase, prospects send in a comprehensive information sheet including their administration's view of their history. After this, a full public and private national information sheet will be assembled with the information the interested has given and a full report of their nations inner workings.<br><br>Posts are from the perspective of primary sources in the nation, often state newspapers and required readings, although possibly more independent sources. As such, no post is ever considered actual canon. Two sides can both claim they won a conflict when in reality they tied. Very little minusha-moderation is required, as it is completely possible that multiple primary sources claim different versions of events.<br><br>As a note about my personal directing style, I do enforce minimum word counts and a strict style guide. Given such, I have never had to kick anybody for bad writing; only because they broke hard rules. If you are extremely uncomfortable with the idea of word minimums, this may not be the place to inquire. I try to be fair with the actual numbers; they are standards of effort rather than results. Until I see proof that less quantity leads to higher quality, I also won't buy any bit about quality over quantity. If you have further questions on stylistics than what is covered here, feel free to ask.<br><br>The roleplay is a competitive one, although not one that will permit blatant rudeness toward any arbitration. High spirits are to be expected but respect is demanded.<br><br>In an arbiter, I'm looking for somebody above all committed to creating an immersive and compelling experience. No particular skillset is required, although arbiters will be tasked with interpreting player agendas and formulating results and player information sheets. Some experience with GMing in the past (even if not forum-based or NRPs) is preferred although not required. In addition, one of the chief roles of arbiters is creative development, and in this it should be noted that I am rarely looking for an argument so much as case to be made for a change and/or a diagnosis of an issue. Respecting a design process is key here. Finally, the role of an arbiter also extends into keeping the OOC community active. It is my personal experience that groups of any size live or die based on their OOC activity and bonds with one another, even over the internet.<br><br>If you're interested, please say so. I have a fledgling discord set up but if you aren't really sure you want to take the plunge then PMing me or just asking questions is likely the best course of action.<br><br>Concept art:<br>Title: <img src="http://i.imgur.com/ICan37F.png" /><br>Discord Icon: <img src="http://i.imgur.com/GV5YN5C.png" /><br>Chalam System: <img src="http://i.imgur.com/NwkiTia.png" /><br>(Chalam system, from left to right: Shemensh, the star, Nagah, the stellar satellite, Sheol the Red Planet, Kokhav, Homeworld, Levanah her moon, Shamayhim the Blue Planet, Madim the Gas Giant, her moon the silent Shabbatai, and the Kesil Belt.)<br>Preliminary Physical Map: <img src="http://i.imgur.com/nn40c6D.png" /></div></div><br><br><div class="hider-panel"><div class="hider-heading"><button type="button" class="btn btn-default btn-xs hider-button" data-name="The Last of the Federalist Papers">The Last of the Federalist Papers [+]</button></div><div class="hider-body" style="display: none">ACCORDING to the formal division of the subject of these papers, announced in my first number, there would appear still to remain for discussion two points: ``the analogy of the proposed government to your own State constitution,'' and ``the additional security which its adoption will afford to republican government, to liberty, and to property.'' But these heads have been so fully anticipated and exhausted in the progress of the work, that it would now scarcely be possible to do any thing more than repeat, in a more dilated form, what has been heretofore said, which the advanced stage of the question, and the time already spent upon it, conspire to forbid.<br><br>It is remarkable, that the resemblance of the plan of the convention to the act which organizes the government of this State holds, not less with regard to many of the supposed defects, than to the real excellences of the former. Among the pretended defects are the re-eligibility of the Executive, the want of a council, the omission of a formal bill of rights, the omission of a provision respecting the liberty of the press. These and several others which have been noted in the course of our inquiries are as much chargeable on the existing constitution of this State, as on the one proposed for the Union; and a man must have slender pretensions to consistency, who can rail at the latter for imperfections which he finds no difficulty in excusing in the former. Nor indeed can there be a better proof of the insincerity and affectation of some of the zealous adversaries of the plan of the convention among us, who profess to be the devoted admirers of the government under which they live, than the fury with which they have attacked that plan, for matters in regard to which our own constitution is equally or perhaps more vulnerable.<br><br>The additional securities to republican government, to liberty and to property, to be derived from the adoption of the plan under consideration, consist chiefly in the restraints which the preservation of the Union will impose on local factions and insurrections, and on the ambition of powerful individuals in single States, who may acquire credit and influence enough, from leaders and favorites, to become the despots of the people; in the diminution of the opportunities to foreign intrigue, which the dissolution of the Confederacy would invite and facilitate; in the prevention of extensive military establishments, which could not fail to grow out of wars between the States in a disunited situation; in the express guaranty of a republican form of government to each; in the absolute and universal exclusion of titles of nobility; and in the precautions against the repetition of those practices on the part of the State governments which have undermined the foundations of property and credit, have planted mutual distrust in the breasts of all classes of citizens, and have occasioned an almost universal prostration of morals.<br><br>Thus have I, fellow-citizens, executed the task I had assigned to myself; with what success, your conduct must determine. I trust at least you will admit that I have not failed in the assurance I gave you respecting the spirit with which my endeavors should be conducted. I have addressed myself purely to your judgments, and have studiously avoided those asperities which are too apt to disgrace political disputants of all parties, and which have been not a little provoked by the language and conduct of the opponents of the Constitution. The charge of a conspiracy against the liberties of the people, which has been indiscriminately brought against the advocates of the plan, has something in it too wanton and too malignant, not to excite the indignation of every man who feels in his own bosom a refutation of the calumny. The perpetual changes which have been rung upon the wealthy, the well-born, and the great, have been such as to inspire the disgust of all sensible men. And the unwarrantable concealments and misrepresentations which have been in various ways practiced to keep the truth from the public eye, have been of a nature to demand the reprobation of all honest men. It is not impossible that these circumstances may have occasionally betrayed me into intemperances of expression which I did not intend; it is certain that I have frequently felt a struggle between sensibility and moderation; and if the former has in some instances prevailed, it must be my excuse that it has been neither often nor much.<br><br>Let us now pause and ask ourselves whether, in the course of these papers, the proposed Constitution has not been satisfactorily vindicated from the aspersions thrown upon it; and whether it has not been shown to be worthy of the public approbation, and necessary to the public safety and prosperity. Every man is bound to answer these questions to himself, according to the best of his conscience and understanding, and to act agreeably to the genuine and sober dictates of his judgment. This is a duty from which nothing can give him a dispensation. 'T is one that he is called upon, nay, constrained by all the obligations that form the bands of society, to discharge sincerely and honestly. No partial motive, no particular interest, no pride of opinion, no temporary passion or prejudice, will justify to himself, to his country, or to his posterity, an improper election of the part he is to act. Let him beware of an obstinate adherence to party; let him reflect that the object upon which he is to decide is not a particular interest of the community, but the very existence of the nation; and let him remember that a majority of America has already given its sanction to the plan which he is to approve or reject.<br><br>I shall not dissemble that I feel an entire confidence in the arguments which recommend the proposed system to your adoption, and that I am unable to discern any real force in those by which it has been opposed. I am persuaded that it is the best which our political situation, habits, and opinions will admit, and superior to any the revolution has produced.<br><br>Concessions on the part of the friends of the plan, that it has not a claim to absolute perfection, have afforded matter of no small triumph to its enemies. ``Why,'' say they, ``should we adopt an imperfect thing? Why not amend it and make it perfect before it is irrevocably established?'' This may be plausible enough, but it is only plausible. In the first place I remark, that the extent of these concessions has been greatly exaggerated. They have been stated as amounting to an admission that the plan is radically defective, and that without material alterations the rights and the interests of the community cannot be safely confided to it. This, as far as I have understood the meaning of those who make the concessions, is an entire perversion of their sense. No advocate of the measure can be found, who will not declare as his sentiment, that the system, though it may not be perfect in every part, is, upon the whole, a good one; is the best that the present views and circumstances of the country will permit; and is such an one as promises every species of security which a reasonable people can desire.<br><br>I answer in the next place, that I should esteem it the extreme of imprudence to prolong the precarious state of our national affairs, and to expose the Union to the jeopardy of successive experiments, in the chimerical pursuit of a perfect plan. I never expect to see a perfect work from imperfect man. The result of the deliberations of all collective bodies must necessarily be a compound, as well of the errors and prejudices, as of the good sense and wisdom, of the individuals of whom they are composed. The compacts which are to embrace thirteen distinct States in a common bond of amity and union, must as necessarily be a compromise of as many dissimilar interests and inclinations. How can perfection spring from such materials?<br><br>The reasons assigned in an excellent little pamphlet lately published in this city, are unanswerable to show the utter improbability of assembling a new convention, under circumstances in any degree so favorable to a happy issue, as those in which the late convention met, deliberated, and concluded. I will not repeat the arguments there used, as I presume the production itself has had an extensive circulation. It is certainly well worthy the perusal of every friend to his country. There is, however, one point of light in which the subject of amendments still remains to be considered, and in which it has not yet been exhibited to public view. I cannot resolve to conclude without first taking a survey of it in this aspect.<br><br>It appears to me susceptible of absolute demonstration, that it will be far more easy to obtain subsequent than previous amendments to the Constitution. The moment an alteration is made in the present plan, it becomes, to the purpose of adoption, a new one, and must undergo a new decision of each State. To its complete establishment throughout the Union, it will therefore require the concurrence of thirteen States. If, on the contrary, the Constitution proposed should once be ratified by all the States as it stands, alterations in it may at any time be effected by nine States. Here, then, the chances are as thirteen to ten in favor of subsequent amendment, rather than of the original adoption of an entire system.<br><br>This is not all. Every Constitution for the United States must inevitably consist of a great variety of particulars, in which thirteen independent States are to be accommodated in their interests or opinions of interest. We may of course expect to see, in any body of men charged with its original formation, very different combinations of the parts upon different points. Many of those who form a majority on one question, may become the minority on a second, and an association dissimilar to either may constitute the majority on a third. Hence the necessity of moulding and arranging all the particulars which are to compose the whole, in such a manner as to satisfy all the parties to the compact; and hence, also, an immense multiplication of difficulties and casualties in obtaining the collective assent to a final act. The degree of that multiplication must evidently be in a ratio to the number of particulars and the number of parties.<br><br>But every amendment to the Constitution, if once established, would be a single proposition, and might be brought forward singly. There would then be no necessity for management or compromise, in relation to any other point no giving nor taking. The will of the requisite number would at once bring the matter to a decisive issue. And consequently, whenever nine, or rather ten States, were united in the desire of a particular amendment, that amendment must infallibly take place. There can, therefore, be no comparison between the facility of affecting an amendment, and that of establishing in the first instance a complete Constitution.<br><br>In opposition to the probability of subsequent amendments, it has been urged that the persons delegated to the administration of the national government will always be disinclined to yield up any portion of the authority of which they were once possessed. For my own part I acknowledge a thorough conviction that any amendments which may, upon mature consideration, be thought useful, will be applicable to the organization of the government, not to the mass of its powers; and on this account alone, I think there is no weight in the observation just stated. I also think there is little weight in it on another account. The intrinsic difficulty of governing thirteen States at any rate, independent of calculations upon an ordinary degree of public spirit and integrity, will, in my opinion constantly impose on the national rulers the necessity of a spirit of accommodation to the reasonable expectations of their constituents. But there is yet a further consideration, which proves beyond the possibility of a doubt, that the observation is futile. It is this that the national rulers, whenever nine States concur, will have no option upon the subject. By the fifth article of the plan, the Congress will be obliged ``on the application of the legislatures of two thirds of the States which at present amount to nine, to call a convention for proposing amendments, which shall be valid, to all intents and purposes, as part of the Constitution, when ratified by the legislatures of three fourths of the States, or by conventions in three fourths thereof.'' The words of this article are peremptory. The Congress ``shall call a convention.'' Nothing in this particular is left to the discretion of that body. And of consequence, all the declamation about the disinclination to a change vanishes in air. Nor however difficult it may be supposed to unite two thirds or three fourths of the State legislatures, in amendments which may affect local interests, can there be any room to apprehend any such difficulty in a union on points which are merely relative to the general liberty or security of the people. We may safely rely on the disposition of the State legislatures to erect barriers against the encroachments of the national authority.<br><br>If the foregoing argument is a fallacy, certain it is that I am myself deceived by it, for it is, in my conception, one of those rare instances in which a political truth can be brought to the test of a mathematical demonstration. Those who see the matter in the same light with me, however zealous they may be for amendments, must agree in the propriety of a previous adoption, as the most direct road to their own object.<br><br>The zeal for attempts to amend, prior to the establishment of the Constitution, must abate in every man who is ready to accede to the truth of the following observations of a writer equally solid and ingenious: ``To balance a large state or society, says he, whether monarchical or republican, on general laws, is a work of so great difficulty, that no human genius, however comprehensive, is able, by the mere dint of reason and reflection, to effect it. The judgments of many must unite in the work; experience must guide their labor; time must bring it to perfection, and the feeling of inconveniences must correct the mistakes which they inevitably fall into in their first trials and experiments.'(Hume's ``Essays,'' vol. i., page 128: ``The Rise of Arts and Sciences.') These judicious reflections contain a lesson of moderation to all the sincere lovers of the Union, and ought to put them upon their guard against hazarding anarchy, civil war, a perpetual alienation of the States from each other, and perhaps the military despotism of a victorious demagogue, in the pursuit of what they are not likely to obtain, but from time and experience. It may be in me a defect of political fortitude, but I acknowledge that I cannot entertain an equal tranquillity with those who affect to treat the dangers of a longer continuance in our present situation as imaginary. A nation, without a national government, is, in my view, an awful spectacle. The establishment of a Constitution, in time of profound peace, by the voluntary ocnsent of a whole people, is a prodigy, to the completion of which I look forward with trembling anxiety. I can reconcile it to no rules of prudence to let go the hold we now have, in so arduous an enterprise, upon seven out of the thirteen States, and after having passed over so considerable a part of the ground, to recommence the course. I dread the more the consequences of new attempts, because I know that powerful individuals, in this and in other States, are enemies to a general national government in every possible shape.</div></div><br></div>
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