Notes Towards a Basic version- Martin Collins

Martin has played the new game this is his response...

Interesting....I need to get my head round it for a few..The pawns still appear to be laying down their lives to protect the interests of the ruling classes..Keeping them apart without changing their values is not enough I feel. Here are a few salient points towards an end to my ramblings for the big brother thing.

Notes Towards a Basic version

In dungeons and dragons (which I have never played , though don’t tell anyone) you have to choose an identity, and also the powers/weapons / capacities and relative weaknesses you have to achieve your goal.

So for example you may choose moral and ethical excellence Revolutionary or religious power, and marketing skills, over economic power, traditional power, or control over army and police. They overlap of course and shift from one to another (see Bertie Russell's "power")

Really it would be ideal if the player represents him/herself , and maybe one way to do it is by asking a series of multiple choice questions of a Psychological personality analysis type vein, to ascertain core values , however vaguely conscious. The point of the game is to make one more aware of how vital they are…..through experiment and consequence.,

The responses could create a political/social profile, and your possible ‘bedfellows" intellectually, philosophically and morally .One may be shocked at whose ideas you vaguely carry. A "realm " of ideas, a perspective , from which to tackle problems. Words and meanings are deliberately vague and interchangeable , in everyday discourse, and artistic discourse. This attempts to provide an antidote to woolly thinking .





Like I said , the chess pieces represent the meta-structure, which is itself a representation of constants within society and a projection of the structure within ourselves. The existing meta -structure is re-ingested within us, in each generation, appearing the only reality / and becomes detremental to development , new ideas/realities and values.

The game could change that by demonstrating new possibilities, yet grounded in believable realities and projections.

The aim of the game is to provide the most opportunity to develop for the most amount of people. That fruition requires a movement up in the majority to enjoy the possibility of the privelidges enjoyed formerly by the few, while retaining the positive values of difference and excellence. How to define excellence is intrinsic to the game.

Role models. Choosing role models is really important as they represent core values , a "simple" image (yet oh so subtle/subconcious structure). Maybe as problems /crisis come up , the player is asked to choose role models to aid one to resolve the situation.

Role models penetrate so much more easily than rational thought, argument. And the good players should of necessity be "artists" ie creative, and form-finding in being able to create them.

Basic decisions:

How to cut pies. You have budgets for various areas of your culture Education , Housing, Development, health, welfare, infrastructure, the economy, the military, defense, and then censorship/ ehical questions.. Each has sub budgets. Ie Education Teacher pay , Core sylabus, values….

All these sub decisions will affect the macro structure, and also the lives of your control group. Imply new decisions/responibilities.

Decisions on taxation, etc Who do you favour, ie what section of the community.

You could use finite models like england in the 80’s , and see if you could do better than thatcher.

That’s about it …for now…...and I think best left as unfinished symphony..as suggested. As it’s bound to be headache. Someone might be out there to take it on .

I do have some alternative economic structure ideas too.