Mr Changsha wrote:Ffraid wrote:Mr Changsha wrote:...Fog and freestyle options tempt the virtuous...
Ah, but Changsha, I put it to you.... What is virtue without temptation?
Very true, Ffraid. If one considers that a society made up of entirely virtuous indinividuals would be so lobotomised as to effectively stagnate (and I believe this quite sincerely), then instituting an absolute, zero-tolerance policy on farmers - CC's equivalent of the criminal class - would naturally negatively affect the site. My view has consistantly been that we need the very players we castigate, as they are part of what gives this site its verve and edge.
But what am I to do or say when, after musing upon the problem for no small amount of time, I came to the conclusion that the very settings that allow farming to exist have finally corrupted us all? That farming or criminality is not limited to the acceptable - in societal terms - 1 percent or so of the population, but has in fact seeped into the general mass of our virtual world? And when my mind glides from that concept to the general fall in the popularity of the site..what should I say then?
I suppose one could draw an analogy with theft. If no one stole a thing then society woulld be too safe. We need the demon in the shadows to give us the instinctive desire to protect our possessions and our kin. Without it society would, as I said, stagnate. But what would happen if a society created the conditions whereby anyone and everyone could steal, whenever they felt like it? Such a society would be untenable of course. People would move away and find a place to live that made some sense.
That is CC's issue with virtue and temptation.
In your analogy, Mr Changsha, the temptations of the thief are the possessions of the people. Would you remove the very possessions from society in order to prevent them from being stolen? How, then, are you any better than the thief? Of what significance is your virtue if there is never any possibility of being led astray? I feel certain that people, with the exception of John Lennon, of course, would never tolerate such a drastic measure.
You are correct, however, in your assertion that a society in which anyone and everyone could steal, whenever they felt like it, would be untenable. What solution, then? The only conclusion to be drawn is that thievery must be punished and the thief be held accountable for his duplicity.
I shouldn't be concerned that this would eliminate the criminal class entirely, thereby effectively homogenizing society to the point of boredom, for, as Robinette rightly noted, when we emerge from our innocence, having endured the trials of temptation, there will inevitably be some that choose vice over virtue. Even given the existence of punishment, there will always be crime. It is the nature of humanity.
Only in this way, Mr Changsha, can virtue retain any meaning. Plus, you get to keep your shit.
Translation guide (for those who have a problem with analogies):
Options, specifically those of fog and freestyle, are represented by possessions or shit.
The Conquer Club community is society or the people.
The role of the farmer is played by the thief.
Temptation and virtue, as shall ever be the case, remain temptation and virtue.
