So Radiman is Back. Now What?
So Radiman is Back. Now What?
by Editor
18:00 July 31, 29476 RST
Peace. It slipped through our fingers.
We were so close. The grains of hope handed to us a few months ago have now been washed away by the rising tide. The termination of the peace talks, the return of the Dust Brigade, and the extended inactivity of the Council have effectively put us back to square one.
It got so bad that last week, clan-leaders demanded that Radiman should step down and disband the Council. Then, out of nowhere, Radiman pops out of his burrow like a leet into a nest of anuns. Presumably to calm things down. Can he?
I've always been a great admirer and supporter of Radiman, and I've had respect for, and confidence in, what he has tried to achieve. But times, and circumstances, have changed.
The Council started out almost a century ago with the aspiration to unite the clans, but what now appears to have happened is quite the opposite: We're drifting apart, dividing. Maybe change is needed?
The independent clans have become too powerful for the Council to remain effective and speak with a unanimous voice. The Council no longer has the backing it needs to bargain with Omni-Tek, and that's why the negotiations broke down. The very nature of the Council depends on that bargaining power, because without it, it's powerless and redundant.
Unless Radiman can pull another ace out of his sleeve and reunite the clans, I don't see how the Council can ever again make a difference, or serve a purpose - political or otherwise. It would be reduced to a private club where a bunch of tired geezers might share a bottle of expensive sherry, complain about the mutant problem, and muse over "the good old times". If the Council can no longer make a difference, then what do we need it for?
Let's have a look at the alternatives:
Number one: We come together, all the clanners, and create our own "corporation": A business run like any other business, where the bosses are fired if they don't perform, and where every employee – clan-member – is under contract to perform specific tasks defined by management. This option might seem like a paradox. Isn't this what we were running from in the first place?
Number two: Complete anarchy amongst the clans, with everyone pursuing their own, individual agendas. We've tried that. Didn't work, did it?
Number three: We agree to disagree, and create a compromise. We let coalitions of clans join together in creating their own ‘council’, one with a stronger backing in the clan community, and with more realistic objectives. Maybe that could work?
Either way, there are a few things one would have to consider: What would happen to the existing achievements of the CoT? What would happen to the Tir Accord? Would OT still acknowledge it? Where would we find a leader as persistent and patient as Radiman - one who enjoys the same amount of respect within the halls of Omni-Admin and with Ross himself? Only one way to find out, isn't there?
The only thing that's absolutely certain is that there is nothing to gain from the situation we've been living under these last few months. Every day we fail to deal with the Dust Brigade, and every day we're unable to uphold our end of the Tir Accord, we're one day closer to another age of a total Corporate dictatorship.
And now .... The Council of Indecision
Well, face it, clanners: I am not whining about the absence of Radiman and the inability of the Council to do anything while he was away. In fact, I have never ever felt any action of the Council and I do know a lot of clanners that don't even know of a person named Radiman. I have decided to make politics on behalf of the wellbeing of my clan mates. The Council never did anything for me, or at least nothing that I ever noticed.
As to the fact of 'elected' members to the CoT: Who elected them? I ask this question again till I get an answer. At least no
free citizen I know has been asked to cast his vote.
And to the frustration of creating an entirely new Council with its own laws and such. In the history of mankind, such things took ages to accomplish, why should we do so much better?
As long as we talk about a democratic leadership, we will have to talk a lot. If we choose to become a Dictatorship, all we need to see is who gets to be the leader, who will be his minions and who are the poor souls that will be his slaves. I guess we don't want that, cause then we could just as well have stayed with Omni-Tek.
President Kasimodo
Bronto Liberation Army
[OOC: Well, there has been a vote lately on AO Stratics on the whereabouts of Radiman and Ross, around 40% answered with 'Who?', and another 25 thought they were trapped in a never-ending game of chess. The CoT never appeared to me in the 10 months I am around, and I can say I played and role-played a lot. Perhaps it was because I chose to play lag-less (RK-2: 'The Forgotten Dimension') , but then again, can we have two Councils?
And who will be elected into this Council, who will be eligible to cast a vote? Well, FC can assure that only each player has a vote, not each alt. Anyways, we're talking about a perfect world here, not one that will happen in the near future. FC has broken far too many promises for me to believe them any more. So why should they fix this?
Anyways, if we imagine a perfect game world where things come true the way we want it, we would like to have a Council that really exists. Real people you can talk to, and the Council really doing some work. Council meetings that happen monthly or bi-weekly (weekly seems to much for me). Each Clanner should have the right to appear before the Council if he really hase something to say.
And we would have NPC and Player members of the CoT. I'm not saying that FC should give all the power to us, but if they choose to participate through NPCs, they should also commit themselves to actually forward the story (yes, you guessed it, this council actually is part of a mysterious thing called main story - something that should have been in the game, and the one who finds this story in the game will get ... well, dunno ... you're not supposed to know it anyways, it's secret). Or perhaps they should think of what story they really want to make up first. After all, the novel and those video clippings are quite erratic.
To the players: Don't expect too much of a Council that is run partially by players. There's as many different oppinions as we have players here, and getting only a part of them to agree to a set of rules will be very tough. And well, role-playing is not a top priority to most players here. So to say, most ppl talk 'out-time', or, for that reason 'out-of-character'. If you start talking ONLY in-character, you will face strange reactions.
To Funcom: Before you pin up another start of a story that never ends, think of what you want to do. Where do you want to be in one year? What do you expect from us, your players and 'valued customers'? ]
great raadimans back - now what ??
First order of business for mr. Radiman:
START A WAR.
That pretty much cover it.
WAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
I Think the pepole has waited to much, now Truth of council shall get us gathered and fight we all have seen the intro when shall it be so I WANT OPEN WAR whoes with me, only way to get the problem away is to terminate it and that for good
Re: WAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
Quote:
Originally posted by Gajar
I Think the pepole has waited to much, now Truth of council shall get us gathered and fight we all have seen the intro when shall it be so I WANT OPEN WAR whoes with me, only way to get the problem away is to terminate it and that for good
Do not fool yourself into thinking that waging an open war with Omni-Tek is the answer to all of your problems. On the contrary, it will spark a Second Corporate War and this cannot be allowed to happen. Don't you remember how the Sol Banking Corporation landed mechanized troops on our world 60 years ago? Do you think they held their fire on Clans and attacked only Omni-Tek forces? Or how about the TruSpace Networks' battleships parked in orbit and started bombarding Clan and Omni-Tek settlements?
If the Clans are truely serious about gaining their complete and total independence, they have to look beyond the petty struggles that plague them now and build the foundation for a more stable future. Yes, the Clans are respectable fighters but there are forces that lurk beyond Rubi-Ka who are much better at making war and want to snatch Rubi-Ka from both Omni-Tek and the Clans. If Omni-Tek decided to leave tomorrow and left everything to the Clans, how long do you think Rubi-Ka will be kept corporate-free while the other hypercorporations race each other to fill in the void? How long will it take the Clans to construct a defense infrastructure? To set up factories to create orbital defense platforms? Do you think the floating city of Jobe will be able to defend the entire planet all by itself from constant attack?
Let me tell you something right now, regardless of how valiently the Clans may fight, they cannot stand against the near limitless resources of the Sol Banking Corporation, BigBurger, or any other hypercorporation. Even if the ICC declared Rubi-Ka completely off-limits to all corporate expansion, the Clans will see very hard times because the hypercorporations will most likely cease all trade with the new Clan regime. Rubi-Ka is still heavily dependent on off-world imports to maintain the quality of life we all enjoy, Clan and Omni-Tek employee alike. Notum is indeed valuable. But the galaxy survived without it for tens of thousands of years and will probably live without the convenience it offers long after. Nanotechnology is impressive but is not yet advanced enough to fullfil every single need.
The Clans must prepare themselves to inherit Rubi-Ka. And like it or not, they must learn to co-exist peacefully with Omni-Tek during this process. Spilling blood and destruction will only get the Clans so far but they have to realize at some point that peace is the only option. Radiman and the Council of Truth are the first step in this process but each and every single Clan member must be completely dedicated to making a better life for themselves and their descendants. Do what you can to raise the reputation of the Clans and make Rubi-Ka a better place to live and be ready to receive Rubi-Ka and keep it once it becomes yours. Because once Omni-Tek is out of the picture, the Clans will be on their own.
Zaedia
Combat Medic, 5th Medical Corps
ICC Expeditionary Forces