PROPOSAL ARCHIVE (2151-2200)




Proposal 2151 - Sun, 22 Jun 1997 02:43:55 -0500
Advanced Topics in Literature
Vynd (John McCoy)
Decision: Accepted
Ammend Rule 210 Literature in the following manner.

Delete the following phrase, enclosed in quotation marks, from the first sentence of section A). "found below in section IV"

Add the following text, contained within the $$$ signs, between part B) and part II.

$$$

C) Even if the quotation meets the above requirements, it is invalid if it is does not actually become part of a Rule, or a Rule in and of itself. Quotations are invalid if they are contained within double curly braces as described in Rule 346, unless the entire text of the proposal is in double curly braces. [In other words, the quote has to actually go into the ruleset, as opposed to being Self Deleting text.]

$$$

Delete section III and replace it with the following text, enclosed within the !!! signs.

!!!

III. A proposal is a Great Work if it meets the following requirements:

a) All of the text that is ammended to a Rule, or becomes part of a new rule, consists entirely of quotations and citations as described in section I.

b) It creates at least one new rule, or makes at least one ammendment to existing rules, and these ammendments and new rules must include a total of at least 42 words quoted as described in section I.

c) It is not Modest.

If a proposal that is a Great Work passes, then the player who authored the Great Work will gain A$200 in royalties, in addition to any other bonus or penalties caused by the passage of the proposal. All players who voted against a Great Work that was accepted will lose 7 points, for their poor taste, in addition to any other bonuses or penalties caused by the passage of the proposal. Great Works that do not pass have no special effects.

!!!

Delete section IV and replace it with the text enclosed within %%% below.

%%%

IV. The Literature list is not a Rule, nor part of a Rule, but rather a document on which is kept the list of sources that can be quoted as Literature by following the procedures described in this rule. Entries on the Literature list can be either Artists of Works. They must follow the format of: Artist (or Work): name of Artist ; descriptive information. Artists can be any individual, or any group of people who collaborated to produce quotable material [For example, The Police]. Works are some type of recording of words. Collections of connected works [such as the Star Wars trilogy] are permissible as a single entry, but not collections of unconnected works [such as an anthology of work by several authors]. Descriptive information is information that helps to clarify exactly who or what a given entry on the list refers to [Artist: The Police ; band with Sting as lead singer. ; or Artist: George Washington ; First President of the USA]. Any entries on the Literature list which do not abide by this rule, and follow the format described above, are invalid and cannot be quoted from. Inclusion of descriptive information is, however, optional. The Literature list may only be altered through the use of Proposals or the Spelling Bee.

It is a duty of the Web-Harfer to maintain a publicly available copy of the Literature list, and to link it with this Rule. He is encouraged, but by no means required, to maintain links to sites about the various sources on the list.

%%%

When this proposal passes, the text of the Literature list will contain all of the sources listed in Rule 210. These sources, as well as the line "The Literature list:" immediately preceeding them, will then be deleted from Rule 210.

Place the following paragrpah at the end of the Rule (after all other paragraphs).

This Rule takes precedence over all other Rules dealing with Literature, the Literature list, and Great Works.

{{[OK. Here is the much hyped additions to the list that I offered to lump together. As before, I urge you not to vote this proposal down just because you don't like one or two of the people on this list, or because I didn't include your suggestions. Plenty of time for that after the other stuff gets fixed. Of course, if you don't like my fixes, that's a whole other problem. I, of course, urge you to vote for it anyway.]}}

Add the following sources to the Literature list:

Artist: Monty Python's Flying Circus
Artist: Dr. Seuss ; children's author
Artist: Douglas Adams
Artist: Terry Pratchett
Artist: Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Artist: Albert Camus
Artist: Leo Tolstoy
Artist: Descartes
Artist: Chaucer
Artist: Charles Dickens
Artist: Plato
Artist: Aristotle
Artist: Sophocles
Artist: Ayn Rand
Artist: Jean-Paul Sartre
Artist: Hermann Hesse
Artist: T.S. Elliot
Artist: William Butler Yeats
Artist: Paul Simon ; with or without Garfunkel
Artist: Friedrich Nietzsche
Work: The Prince ; by Machiavelli
Work: The Decameron ; by Boccacio
Artist: George Orwell
Artist: Aldous Huxley
Artist: Oscar Wilde
Artist: Winston Churchill
Work: The Art of War ; by Sun-Tzu
Work: the Star Wars trilogy ; original three films
Artist: Dante Alighieri ; you know, The Inferno guy
Work: The Aeneid
Artist: W.H. Auden
Work: It's a Wonderful Life ; film
Work: the Magna Carta

Proposal 2152 - Sun, 22 Jun 1997 09:36:18 -0500
Orgs want dividends too
Niccolo Flychuck (Uri Bruck)
Decision: Accepted

This is a Modest proposal.
In R508 "Bond Yields"
a. Replace the string "paid to the player" with the string "paid to the entity"
b. Replace the string "transferred from the player" with the string "transferred from the entity"

Proposal 2153 - Sun, 22 Jun 1997 13:27:42 -0500
Junque
Malenkai (Randy Hall)
Decision: Accepted

This is a Modest proposal.

{{[The nameless horror rule is absorbed into the entity naming rule, attempting to preserve some subject organization of the rules]}}

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Amend rule 500.1, "Entity Names" to add the following paragraph directly before the one starting with 'An alphabetic character can be "accented".':

"
If a named entity at any time ever does not have a name, it shall immediately take the name "Nameless Thing #X", where X is the lowest positive integer creating a legal name for the entity. If this would result in multiple entities having the same name, one of them is chosen at random. If this method does not produce a legal name, the entity remains unnamed.
"

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Repleal rule 2064, "The Nameless Horror".


Proposal 2154 - Sun, 22 Jun 1997 14:03:48 -0500
I don't try to surf *all* the loopholes :)
Malenkai (Randy Hall)
Decision: Accepted

This is a Modest proposal.

{{[back when the machine rule was originally proposed, this was a hot topic and loophole. It was reintroduced in "The Ackanomian", although it takes a bit of luck to exploit it. Lets make a general fix]}}

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Amend rule 595, "Gadgets", to append the following new section to the end of the rule:

"
(vii) A Gadget is a Qualified Gadget if and only if its Blueprint has existed for at least a fortnight.
"

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Amend rule 910, "The Ackanomicon", to replace:

"
Ancient artifact (1 page): A page describing the workings of a powerful ancient device. The reader loses A$50, and gains a Gadget (choosen at random with equal probability), which is broken when the reader recieves it. This page has no effect on a player without sufficient A$.
"

with:

"
Ancient artifact (1 page): A page describing the workings of a powerful ancient device. The reader loses A$50, and receives a newly created random Qualifed Gadget, which, if its a mechanical Gadget, breaks when the reader receives it. This page has no effect on a player without sufficient A$.
"

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Amend rule 1211, "Boons of the Ancients", to replace:

"
A random Gadget from the pool of Blueprints which have existed for at least 14 days
"

with:

"A random Qualified Gadget"


Proposal 2155 - Sun, 22 Jun 1997 15:42:56 -0500
Finger On The Pulse
Alfvaen (Aaron Humphrey)
Decision: Rejected

Amend Rule 594, "Blueprints", in the following way:

Add a clause vi) immediately after clause v), as follows(delineated by TRAAL):

TRAAL

vi) If a player believes that an existing Blueprint is unbalancing to the game, e may publicly ask the Senate to evaluate the Blueprint, as long as e has not done so more than once previously that calendar month, providing if e wishes eir reasons for objecting to the Blueprint. The Senate will then examine the Blueprint and decide whether they believe it is unbalancing to the game(not necessarily for the reasons provided by the objecting player). If they do so, then they may do one of the following:

1. Cause the Blueprint to be destroyed, and any existing Gadgets made from that Blueprint.

2. Ask the Scientist who submitted the original Blueprint(it e is still an active player)to submit a modified Blueprint which addresses the problems specified by the Senate. If the Scientist fails to do so, or the Blueprint e submits is unacceptable to the Senate, then the Senate may choose another option.

3. Forward the matter to an Ad Hoc Committee created for the purpose, which will have the power to change the Blueprint in question.

TRAAL


Proposal 2156 - Mon, 23 Jun 1997 03:00:10 -0500
gravity
two-star (Alexandre Muniz)
Decision: Rejected

The Universe is a self-modifying game of rules. The Name of the Universe is "hunt a resonant fungus". All players must always abide by all the rules then in effect, in the form in which they are then in effect, and interpreted in accordance with current game custom.

The rules and the state of the Universe may only be changed as described in the rules. Actions described in the rules may only be performed, and shall only have those effects, as specified by the rules. Whatever is not explicitly prohibited or regulated by the rules, however, is permitted and unregulated.

Game custom, spirit of the game, and linguistic interpretation are external concepts and are not regulated or part of the game state.

A player may not win the Universe. A player always has the option to leave the Universe. The Universe recognizes the existance of Ackanomic, and all of its constituent entities, although they may only have an effect in the Universe as specified by the rules of the Universe. The only player in the Universe is the player known as two-star in Ackanomic. This player may change the rules of the Universe at his discretion.


Proposal 2157 - Mon, 23 Jun 1997 03:00:11 -0500
Summer Holidays
Alfvaen (Aaron Humphrey)
Decision: Accepted

This is a Modest proposal.

Amend Rule 255, "Vacationing", by replacing all occurrences of "30 days" with "60 days".

{{ Recalculate, using the modified rule, the expected return date of any players who are currently on vacation and either specified a return date of longer than 30 days or "the maximum". [This is probably only Bascule and Red Barn.] }}


Proposal 2158 - Mon, 23 Jun 1997 03:00:14 -0500
The Dark Side of the Moon
/dev/joe (Joseph DeVincentis)
Decision: Accepted

Amend Rule 905, "The Blue Cross", by replacing the text:

A player with at least two Ruby Slippers may wear them on his feet and may click them together to transport himself to Kansas, by publicly announcing the action, but only if he is not wearing any other form of footwear, and only if Kansas is a place defined in the rules, and only once per calendar month. Ruby Slippers are magical, so they adjust to fit left and right feet, and any size feet, as needed.

with:

A player with two Ruby Slippers may wear them on his feet; any two Ruby Slippers so worn are considered to be a spaceship. A player wearing a spaceship may click the two Ruby Slippers together to launch himself to Kansas, provided he obeys any other restrictions in the rules on spaceship launches.
Kansas is a moon of Acka; it is a location not in Acka, nor on either side of Acka. Ruby Slippers magically adjust to fit any feet as needed.

{{[ Has anybody out there tried this Dark Side of the Moon + Wizard of Oz thing yet? ]}}


Proposal 2159 - Mon, 23 Jun 1997 03:00:15 -0500
Start the Conquest on Familiar Ground
/dev/joe (Joseph DeVincentis)
Decision: Rejected

{{[The United States of America and South Africa are two nomics that contain the letters h, a, r, and f. I wish the ambassador the best of luck in capturing them. In the meantime, we should set simpler goals.]}}

Amend rule 101, by inserting at the beginning:

The name of this game is "The Horror of Ackanomic", but "Ackanomic" shall be considered a valid synonym for this name.

Amend rule 414, "President", by relabeling privilege b) as c) and inserting before it the following text:

b) The President is the almighty Harf god, the supreme deity.


Proposal 2160 - Mon, 23 Jun 1997 18:42:56 -0500
Less Wok = More Fun
Calvin N Hobbes (Thierry Joffrain)
Decision: Accepted

{{This is a Modest proposal

[ This proposes to repeal a few of the new rules who are just hanging in the rule set and cause work. I would consider a number of them fun, interesting, but fun is good in moderation, like everything else. I'd rather see 10 new concepts that do real wonder for the game rather than have the same game bogged down in paper work and details. I have NOT included in this hit list rules that do nothing but waste space. Sure they waste space but they don't cause any real harm ]

Repeal R2094

[ It doesn't really create any work right now, but if we are going to use this, then it should be part of a better system. This could be more work than anything else and cause legal problems for our scientist ]

Repeal R2096

[ I believe most of our proposals are harfy enough. As Harfmeister recently, my proposals contained plenty of obscure references, but I would never do it if it was forced on me. It isn't fun when it's forced labor ]

Repeal R2099

[ It's not a 25 line max, or min, it's a 25 lines exactly requirement. It also forces new players to have one more thing to do on top of trying to understand the game. A waste of time and effort. If people really want hats, make it like the optional foreheads, that was a good implementation ]

Repeal R2101

[ Too much work and it simply isn't fair (I'm poor and that's fine). Plus there are blatantly easy way to get around it, given more paper work, so it's just useless ]}}


Proposal 2161 - Mon, 23 Jun 1997 19:40:04 -0500
Less Paper Work = More Fun (part 1)
Calvin N Hobbes (Thierry Joffrain)
Decision: Accepted

{{This is a Modest proposal

[ This proposal will not alter any rule(s) significantly. However, it will reorganize a number of them. It will also save on useless work, things that can be done in multiple ways ]

Repeal R1305
Repeal R1306
Repeal R1315

Amend R1307 to read:

"The Earth is flat. The Earth is flat. Contradiction of this fact is Heresy.

If a Player publicly refers to the Earth being round any other Player may start a Witchhunt by sending a public message that names the alleged witch, quotes his or her allegedly heretical message, and calls for a Witchhunt, provided a Witchhunt is not already in progress against that player, and provided there are less than 5 Witchhunts in progress.

A Witchhunt is a Hearing. It is also a Very Grave Matter. The valid responses to a Witchhunt are 'No! E said the Earth is flat' and 'BURN THE WITCH!' The Player who tabulates the responses to a Witchhunt shall be called Witchfinder General while it is in session.

If the verdict is 'BURN THE WITCH!' the alleged witch shall be branded a witch and heretic. E shall then be incinerated atop a bonfire large enough that it not only reduces the witch to eir component atoms but also inspires righteous terror in all who see it. When a witch is burned, e shall enter the Ackanomic Afterlife, and shall lose 10 points. Any player who has ever been burned as a heretic is considered Enlightened. An Enlightened player may never have a Witchhunt called against them, or be burned as a heretic.

A member of a Church may save any player from being burned as a witch, or as a heretic, provided e posts a public message (before a Witchhunt called on that player is resolved) saying 'I am running to the Church', then the name of the Church of which e is a member, then 'and I hold the Altar by the Horns for' followed by the player's name. This is called granting Sanctuary Of Salvation."

[ This cuts down on the paperwork, on the various methods and the multi-steps procedures down to a leaner solution. It retains however, all the textures of the various rules ]

Repeal R1112.2
Repeal R1112.3
Renumber R1112.1 to R1112

Amend Rule 1112 to read:

"At any given time, there will be, at most, a single player with the title of Harfmeister. The title of Harfmeister cannot be transferred or awarded except as described in the rules. If, at any time, no one has the title of Harfmeister, or the player with the title is 'on ice', the title is given (or transferred) to the Speaker.

The Harfmeister may designate proposals currently under consideration (in the voting queue) as Harfy, by publically announcing that he or she is doing so. No more than three proposals may be designated as Harfy at the same time. Once so designated, a proposal may never lose its Harfy status, until it is accepted, rejected, or otherwise removed from voting consideration. The Harfmeister may not designate his or her own proposals as Harfy, however. Proposals may only be designated as Harfy by methods explicitly defined in the rules.

If a Harfy proposal passes, its author gains 5 points (a score change based on proposal content) and the title of Harfmeister passes from the current Harfmeister to the author of the Harfy proposal. If two or more Harfy proposals are accepted simultaneously, the title of Harfmeister shall go to the author of the highest numbered one.

The Harfmeister may use his or her discretion in determining what is to be considered Harfy for the purposes of this rule, but it is considered bad form to designate a proposal as Harfy that is not really Harfy, and other players are permitted to sneer.

If any voting player feels the Harfmeister is hogging the Harf [that is, sitting on the title of Harfmeister with no intent to designate any proposals as Harfy], they may start an Inquisition by publically calling for one. An Inquisition is a Hearing. It is also Strange. The valid responses to an Inquisition are 'No! He's going to share the Harf!', or 'Yes! He is Hogging the Harf!' If the verdict is the latter, the Harfmeister is guilty of hogging the Harf and must immediately go to his or her home if he or she may legally do so. The person who called for the Inquisition then becomes the Harfmeister."

[ This also cuts down on paperwork, mergest two solutions while keeping all the variations, I think. It also saves on space in the rule set. It also means less work in both the SOS and Altar situations. Scapegoats is also useless since everyone who has been burned is now Enlightened ]}}


Proposal 2162 - Mon, 23 Jun 1997 20:28:15 -0500
Don't exclude the Archaeologist from selection
/dev/joe (Joseph DeVincentis)
Decision: Accepted

This is a modest proposal.

Amend rule 593, "Ackanomic Research Guild", in section C, by changing "who is not already a Scientist" to "who is not already a Scientist other than the Archaeologist."

{{[ If it hadn't been for a score correction for the Whamiols, in the Azpiazu thread I would have missed getting the Archaeologist assignment at the end of cycle 14 due to already being the Archaeologist, which doesn't seem exactly fair. ]}}


Proposal 2163 - Mon, 23 Jun 1997 21:13:39 -0500
Less Paper Work = More Fun (part 2)
Calvin N Hobbes (Thierry Joffrain)
Decision: Rejected

{{This is a Modest proposal

Award 6 points to Niccolo Flychuck, substract 6 points from Calvin N Hobbes.

[ This is all NF's work. I apologize for messing with it at all. It's just that a few things were redundant. Plus I wanted to make procedures simpler. It's a great setup that's fun and doesn't require to be too complex. I did not change anything beyond those simplifications, hence the lack of RFC and demand for points ]

Amend R1003 to read:

"Organizations are unownable, named entities.

1. Forming an Organization
Any Player may form a new Organization by announcing a name that is legal publicly. That Player becomes the Founder of the new Organization and its only member. Organizations formed in this way are Player-sanctioned Organizations.

An Organization may be created and defined by other Rules. Such Organizations are Rule-sanctioned Organizations and need not have a Founder.

Any player may request membership in an Organization. The Organization may then grant the request as a public action. When a request for membership is granted, the player becomes a member of the Organization.

A player-sanctioned Organization may, as a public action, give a particular member the ability to grant any request for membership in that Organization, without waiting around for the consent of the rest of the members. A player-sanctioned Organization may also, as a public action, establish an open admissions policy, which means that anyone can join that Organization at any time.

2. Organization Disbandment
An Organization is disbanded when a rule calls for the disbandment or when an organization has no members. When an Organization is disbanded, everything owned by the Organization is transferred to the Treasury, and the Organization is then no more.

3. Organization Size
The Size of an Organization is the number of members it has. Terms such as 'larger' and 'smallest', when applied to Organizations, refer to the Sizes of the Organizations being compared. [ For example, to say that one organization is larger than another is to say that it has more members ]

The Active Size of an Organization is the number of Players who are members of that Organization and are not on vacation.

4. Organization Similarity
For any two Organizations X and Y, orgsim(X, Y) is defined as the percentage of members of X who are also members of Y. The H Similarity between two Organizations, A and B, is the greater of orgsim(A, B) and orgsim(B, A). The L Similarity between two Organizations, A and B, is the lesser of orgsim(A, B) and orgsim(B, A). The M Similarity between two Organizations, A and B, is the average of orgsim(A, B) and orgsim(B, A).

5. Player Liberty Clause
No player may become a member of an Organization without first expressing their consent to joining it. A player may leave any Organization of which he or she is a member at any time.

6. Assets
An Organization may own and trade currency and assets. The Founder manages the Organization's Currency and Assets."

Amend R1301 to read:

"1. Churches are Organizations. Church, Church membership, Foundership, Priesthood, and Church Dogma are Protected.

2. Any may Player may declare eir intent to found a Church. A Church officially exists when the player has three Followers in addition to eirself, and publically announces all of the following details of the Church:

a) the name of the Church
b) the name of the Founder (who must be a church member)
c) the names of all the members
3. Church Policy
Each church may have a Church Policy and a church Dogma. The first is a private document, the second is a public one available on request.

A Player who disobeys the Church Policy of a Church of which he or she is a member is guilty of Iconoclasm, which is a Crime. It is impermissible for a Player to take a game action which constitutes Iconoclasm if he or she has any legal alternative which would not constitute Iconoclasm. [That is, Iconoclasm normally doesn't happen unless there is no alternative. It is possible for a player to commit Iconoclasm by inaction, though ]

The initial Church Policy will be set by the Founder. Church Policy may only change according to Church Policy. Church Policy has no effect over the power to ordain Priests. It cannot take this power away from the Founder, neither can it give this power to anyone else.

4. Priests
The Church Founder has the power to ordain Priests. Only members of the chuch can be priests in that church. In the absence of the Founder, the most senior Priest will perform the duties, and have the authority of the Founder, except for the power to ordain Priests. If seniority is not defined in Church Policy, then the seniority of a Priest will be defined as the length of time that has passed since that Player has been ordained as a Priest in that Church, most senior being oldest.

If a decision is to be made by the Priesthood, and no method for making such decisions is defined in Church Policy, then the decision will be made by a simple majority rule. If there is still a tie after this, then the Founder will break the tie.

5. Terminology
A Church may define its own alternative terminology for the Church specific terms defined in this rule. Any terms that the Church intends to use in a public forum, must be defined in Church Dogma. If undefined terminology is used by Church members in a public forum, any player may publically request the Church to provide an explanation of that term. Members of the Church may respond to this however they like, and any such response has the official Ackanomic Seal of Politeness, regardless of how brain-stoppingly offensive it is. A Church mailing list is not considered a public forum.

6. Membership
A player may not be a member of more than three Churches at the same time. Any player may petition the Founder of a Church for membership in that Church. If Church Policy has nothing to say on accepting new members, then Church membership will be up to the Founder. However, a Player cannot become a member of a Church until the Founder of the Church sends a public announcement to that effect.

7. Disbanding
If a Church ever has no Priests or (Heaven forbid) has fewer than zero Priests, or it has less than 4 members, that Church is disbanded. For purposes of membership, the Church Founder is considered a Priest. Any function that can be performed by a Priest, can also be performed by the Church Founder. If a Priest refuses to recognize that his Church has been disbanded, then the remaining Church members may be known as a Cult. A Cult has no official status whatsoever.

This rule defers to all other Rules which do not contain this sentence outside of quotation marks."

Amend R1001 to read:

"1. Institutions
There exists a class of entities called Institutions. Institutions are Protected. An Institution is in session when it has more than 2 member.

2. Votes
This part defers to rules governing decision making in Institutions. An Institution votes 'in favor' of something, or 'in support of an action' when a simple majority of its members vote 'in favor' or 'in support'. An Institution votes against something, or opposes an action when a simple majority of its members do not vote 'in favor', or 'in support'.

If a vote or action has more than two possible outcomes (excluding abstaining), then a simple plurality of its members determines which of the options the Institution supports. If the members of an Institution are tied with respect to a specific action or vote, and there is no provision for breaking ties in that Institution (or the application of such provisions does not result in the tie being broken), then that Institution neither supports, nor opposes that action, nor votes in any way on the matter.

3. Voting Period
When an Institution is called on to vote, the voting period ends after 7 days. A public report of the results of the vote, and how each member voted should be made. Any member who did not vote, and was an active player at any time during the alloted time, is placed in Contempt and considered to have abstained. If the Institution fails to report a vote result (or lack of) in accordance with the above, all its members are placed in Contempt.

The composition of a Institution is taken to be its composition at the end of any voting or decision period. Acting members are considered to be members in place of the members they are acting for, except that acting members may never be placed in Contempt under any provision of this rule.

4. Joint Assembly
When two or more Institutions are called to vote on a matter in Joint Assembly, then all the members of all the Institutions in the specific Joint Assembly vote on the matter as if they were all members of one Institution, with the exception that each player votes once for each Institution in the Joint Assembly that he is a member or an acting member of. If two or more Institutions are called to vote on a matter and a Joint Assembly is not explicitly specified, then each Institution votes seperately.

5. Assets
An Institution may own and trade currency and assets. The Institution representative manages the Institution's Currency and Assets. Institutions not in session may only accept fees from new members."

Amend R1303 to read:

"1. There exists an Institution called Synod.

2. Each Church or Organization with a Trade License (TLO) may have at most 1 seat in the Synod. No other entity may have a Seat in the Synod.

3. Seats
A Church or TLO which does not have a seat in the Synod can purchase one for an Entry Fee of A$100. If A Church or TLO withdraws from the Synod within 14 days, it is refunded the entire Entry Fee. If a Church or TLO withdraws at any time after that, it is refunded half of its Entry Fee. Entry fees are transferred from the Church or TLO to the Synod. Refunds, when paid, are transferred from the Synod to the Organization receiving the refund.

A Church or TLO may leave its Seat unoccupied. No Seat may be bought by a TLO until at least one church owns a Seat. When a Seat has been left unoccupied for a period of four weeks then that Organization is considered to have withdrawn from the Synod. If a Organization which owns a Seat is dissolved, then its Seat is destroyed.

4. Sitting Members
A Church which has a Seat in the Synod may appoint a Priest of that Church to occupy that Seat. The Priest is known as the Church Delegate, and the Seat is known by the name of the Church, or an abbreviation approved by the Church. A Delegate may resign or be replaced by the Church at any time.

A TLO which has a Seat in the Synod may appoint a member of that TLO to occupy that Seat. The appointed member is known as the Trade Delegate, and the Seat is known by the name of the TLO, or an abbreviation approved by the TLO. A Delegate may resign or be replaced by the TLO at any time.

5. Yor-Delegate
One of the Church Delegates is given the title of Yor-Delegate. The Yor-Delegate is always the Delegate of the largest Church in the Synod. In case of a tie then the Delegate representing the church who has owned a seat longest and with no church larger than it, shall be the Yor-Delegate.

The Yor-Delegate has the duty of representing the Synod. The Yor-Delegate may have other duties defined by other sections of this rule, or by other rules.

6. Synod Actions
All actions carried out by the Synod or in its name must be approved by the Delegates. Each Delegate's vote is multiplied by the number of non-vacationing members of eir Organization.

7. Profit Sharing Day
Whenever the Synod has been in session for at least 14 consecutive days and there was no Profit Sharing Day for at least 14 consecutive days. An Organization is eligible for getting a share of the profits if it has a Delegate in the Synod.

Profits are defined as the amount A$ currently owned by the Synod. Each member receives an amount of A$ equal to profits divided by number of Seats in the Synod, rounded down to the nearest integer. It is the duty of the Yor-Delegate to track and declare Profit Sharing days, calculate the amount of A$ each Organization receives, report it to the Financier, and record the amount of A$ at the end of the Profit Sharing day.

8. Membership
A Church is not eligible for a Seat in the Synod if there is at least one Church which already owns a Seat in the Synod whose M Similarity with the former Church is equal to or greater than 30. A TLO is not eligible for a Seat in the Synod if there is at least one Organization which owns a Seat in the Synod whose M Similarity with the former Organization is equal to or greater than 60. When ever a Church acquires a Seat in the Synod, any TLO which becomes ineligible for a Seat loses its Seat in the Synod and receives its full entry fee as a refund, regardless of the time that passed since it joined the Synod.

For the purposes of this rule, and for the purposes of all Synod actions, TLOs are considered to have an active size of 1 regardless of eir actual size."}}


Proposal 2164 - Mon, 23 Jun 1997 22:25:48 -0500
Apollo 19-21
two-star (Alexandre Muniz)
Decision: Rejected

{{[I like the idea of off-world travel in Acka, but R 2094 is rather vague on the specifics.]}}

Repeal Rule 2094 Destination Moon.

Create a rule entitled Locations in Ackacosmology, numbered 1312, {{[not sure if it should fit here or in the 800's]}} with text delimited by GANYMEDE below:

GANYMEDE
Spaceships are a class of entities, to be used for offworld travel as described below. Spaceships may not be created, destroyed, ridden, or launched except as permitted by the rules. If a player launches a spaceship, e must post a public message including the words: "COMMENCE OFFICIAL INTERPLANETARY EXPLORATION. DESTINATION: <name>", where <name> is the name of the a location that can legally be visited by a player riding a spaceship. If the rules describing a type of spaceship do not specify otherwise, a spaceship is ridden by the player who launches it, and no other player. When a spaceship is launched, it becomes a location floating off-world, and all players riding the spaceship are moved to that location. Three days after a spaceship is launched, all players riding the spaceship are transfered to the destination location, and then cease to be riding the spaceship.

All Locations are either on this side of the Earth, on the other side of the Earth, floating off-world, or attached to the aluminum and stainless steel sphere surrounding the world. If no rule specifies which state a location is in, it is on this side of the Earth.

No player may move to or from a location floating off-world without a spaceship. (This does not preclude players with wings from visiting floating buildings, since they really aren't that floating that far away.) No player may move from a location on the aluminum and stainless steel sphere surrounding the world to a location that is not on this sphere, or vice versa, without a spaceship.

Moons are a class of locations floating off-world. A location is not a Moon unless the rules specify that it is.
GANYMEDE


Proposal 2165 - Mon, 23 Jun 1997 22:31:55 -0500
Fire Bad!
Vynd (John McCoy)
This proposal violates rule 2096.
Decision: retracted by author

This is a Modest proposal.

Ammend Rule 597 by adding the following text to the end of part i) :

The sentence is also invalid if it contains any of the following words: fire, flame, smoke, flammable, inflammable, burning, seared, soot, ashes, charcoal, barbeque, campfire, bonfire, roast, toast, ignited, torch


Proposal 2166 - Mon, 23 Jun 1997 22:31:55 -0500
Brigadoon
two-star (Alexandre Muniz)
Decision: Rejected

Create a rule entitled Brigadoon, numbered 856, with the following text:

Brigadoon is a Common Location. On the first three days of every month, it is on this side of the world; at any other time it is a Moon.


Proposal 2167 - Mon, 23 Jun 1997 23:08:10 -0500
Fire BAD!!!
Vynd (John McCoy)
Decision: Rejected

This is a Modest proposal.

Ammend Rule 597 by adding the following text to the end of part i) :

The sentence is also invalid if it contains any of the following words: fire, flame, smoke, flammable, inflammable, burning, seared, soot, ashes, charcoal, barbeque, campfire, bonfire, roast, toast, ignited, ni!, torch


Proposal 2168 - Wed, 25 Jun 1997 21:01:29 -0500
More less work
Malenkai (Randy Hall)
Decision: Accepted

This is a Modest proposal.

repeal rule 927, "Silly Vacation Hat"

{{[we have enough new must describe harf. Lets clean out some of the old must describe harf. This one is especially difficult to remember, and is sort of boring anyway, as compared to W-File and Phoebe and whatnot.]}}


Proposal 2169 - Wed, 25 Jun 1997 21:01:31 -0500
Filling The Empty Centuries
Alfvaen (Aaron Humphrey)
Decision: Rejected

Amend Rule 303, "Proposal and Rule Numbering", as follows:

Replace the existing text of Section II.3.

{{[ 3. Otherwise, the new rule uses the number of the proposal that created it as its base rule number. If some other rule already has this number, then the new rule takes a sub rule number as large as necessary to have a rule number different from all other rules. ]}}

with the following(delimited by SAVUKA):

SAVUKA

3. Otherwise, determine the new rule number as follows: Let N be the number of the proposal that created it, Subcentury(N) be the last two digits of N, and Century(K) be the first two digits of the largest rule number currently in existence(or first digit if the largest rule number is less than 1000). If (100*Century(K)+Subcentury(N)) is not the number of an existing rule, then that is the new rule number. Otherwise, (100*(Century(K)+1)+Subcentury(N)) is the new rule number.

[What this boils down to is that all new rules should be placed in the corresponding spot in the latest Rule Century until there is no more room for them. This means that newly-created rules with no specified numbers won't come into existence on the other side of an ever-widening gap from the rest of the ruleset.]

SAVUKA


Proposal 2170 - Wed, 25 Jun 1997 22:44:46 -0500
Sovereignty
Malenkai (Randy Hall)
Decision: Accepted

This is a Modest proposal.

Amend rule 101 to append the following sentence to the end of the first paragraph:

"
The term "rules", as used in the rules, means the rules of Ackanomic.
"


Proposal 2171 - Wed, 25 Jun 1997 23:26:14 -0500
Conseaeaeaecuter
Alfvaen (Aaron Humphrey)
Decision: Accepted

This is a modest proposal.

{{[ Just a spelling fix, that the Spelling Bee would be powerless to deal with effectively... ]}}

Amend Rule 217, "Overturning Judgements", by replacing "Proseacuter" with "Prosaecutor" and "Consaecuter" with "Consaecutor".

Amend Rule 218, "Trials By Jury", by replacing all occurrences of "Prosaecuter" and "Proseacuter" with "Prosaecutor" and all occurences of "Consecuter" and "Consaecuter" with "Consaecutor".


Proposal 2172 - Wed, 25 Jun 1997 23:27:42 -0500
Aleph Beth Gimel
Alfvaen (Aaron Humphrey)
Decision: Accepted

Create a new rule, numbered 349, with text as follows(delineated by DALETH):

DALETH

Whenever it is desired that the alphabetical ordering of two names be determined, the following procedure is followed:

1) The two names are compared word-by-word, where a word is considered to be a series of non-whitespace characters delinated by whitespace. Further, each word is considered as if it were all lowercase. An initial "the" or "The" is ignored.

2) Words are compared letter-by-letter, where a series of digits is considered to be a single letter, an accented letter is treated as its unaccented form(except as specified below), and non-alphanumeric characters are ignored. A numeric "letter" precedes another numeric "letter" if its numeric value is less, or, if they have the same numeric value, if it has fewer leading zeroes. A numeric letter always precedes an alphabetic letter. An alphabetic letter precedes another alphabetic letter if it comes earlier in the alphabet. An unaccented letter precedes an accented letter if neither would otherwise precede the other. (The alphabet is in the order: "abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz".) If neither of two letters precede the other, they are considered to be identical. A word precedes another word if the first non-identical character precedes the corresponding character in the other word, if no such character exists, the words are considered to be identical.

3) If one name contains fewer words than the other, and all the words in the shorter name are identical to the corresponding words in the other name, then the shorter name is considered to come first. Otherwise, the name whose word was considered to come first in the last comparison done is considered to come first.

4) If the above procedure does not yield a relative ordering for the two names, then they are ordered in ASCII collation order.

An "alphabetic list" shall be a list of names whose elements are ordered so that if there are any two elements A and B such that A occurs before B in relative alphabetical ordering, as defined above, occurs before element B in the list.

DALETH

Amend Rule 594, "Blueprints", by changing the sequence of words "first in an alphabetic list(using ASCII)of their titles" to "first in an alphabetic list of their titles".

{{ Transfer three points from Alfvaen to Mohammed. }}


Proposal 2173 -
Decision:

[this number was skipped, due to errors by the promoter]

Proposal 2174 -
Decision:

[this number was skipped, due to errors by the promoter]

Proposal 2175 - Thu, 26 Jun 1997 00:17:41 -0500
thatcher
Vynd (John McCoy)
Decision: retracted by author

Upon the acceptance of this proposal. Thatcher shall become the official King of Ackanomic, and all the Harf therin.

Proposal 2176 - Fri, 27 Jun 1997 23:37:21 -0500
Volunteers For Science
/dev/joe (Joseph DeVincentis)
Decision: Accepted

{{[ Here is how I think the literature should work. ]}}

Create a new rule, numbered 1132, titled "Alien Abductions of Players"

Within 3 days after a rule is abducted by Sinister Aliens, any player may make a call for Alien Volunteers by announcing publicly "There has been a spacecraft sighted, flying high above the sky." [They Might Be Giants, "For Science", 1st verse]

After such a call, players may volunteer to meet the aliens by posting publicly "Yes, I will kiss the girl from Venus, for science." [They Might Be Giants, "For Science", 3rd verse] until either 3 days have elapsed or there are 3 such volunteers, whichever comes first.

However, at any time before this procedure ends, any player may announce "Now listen all you swingers, don't you try to tag along." [They Might Be Giants, "Absolutely Bill's Mood", line 12] After a player does so, no additional Swingers may volunteer in the above manner for that abduction, though any Swingers who have already volunteered are not affected and non-Swingers may continue to volunteer.

When the aliens return the rule whose abduction prompted the call for Alien Volunteers, if there are any volunteers, one is selected at random to be abducted in the Aliens' spaceship (in addition to any rule that might be abducted). Within 3 days of being abducted, the abducted volunteer should announce the spaceship launch together with the name of a moon; the player is then transported to that moon. If he fails to do so within this time, he is found to be left behind by the Aliens in a far-off field in the Wilds of Ackanomia. [You didn't think they landed in the middle of downtown, did you?]


Proposal 2177 - Fri, 27 Jun 1997 23:37:43 -0500
Pipes
Niccolo Flychuck
Decision: Rejected

I. Create a new rule entitled "Pipes" which contains the following text:
"
Pipes are ownable tradable entities.
Only entities with Pipe Operating Licenses may operate a Pipe. Any entity may request a Pipe Operating License. An entity receives such a license only if its request is approved by Party Hall.
Pipes are the only means by which extra Ackanomic entities may be transferred into Ackanomic, or entities from Ackanomic may be transferred outside Ackanomic.
Pipes come in three sizes, Single Entity, Six-Packers, and All-Purpose. A Single Entity pipe can only be used to transfer a single type of entity. A Six-Packer can be used to transfer up to six different kinds of entities.
An All-Purpose Pipe can be used to transfer an kind of entity. Any player may purchase a Pipe from the Treasury by posting a public message to that effect, the size of the Pipe, and, if the Pipe is not an All-Purpose Pipe, the type of entity or entities that it can transfer.

The prices for Pipes purchased from the Treasury are as follows:

Single Entity Pipe A$100
Six-Packer A$400
All-Purpose A$800

Whenever an entity is transferred into Ackanomic via a Pipe it receives the following name in Ackanomic (OWNERNAME)ORIGINALNAME

Where OWNERNAME is replaced by the name of the owner of the Pipe, and ORIGINAL NAME is replaced by the original name of the entity.
{{Renumber this rule to 520}}

"

II. In R500.1 "Entity Names"
After the string "and the space character." Insert a blank line, and following the blank line insert the following text:
"Parantheses may be used as name characters only in the names of imported entities."


Proposal 2178 - Fri, 27 Jun 1997 23:37:44 -0500
Otzma Card Type Garage Sale
Guy Fawkes (Robert Shimmin)
Decision: Rejected

Create a new rule, a member of the Otzma Card Rule Suite, with text as follows:

{{[ This card could get some cash back into circulation, if the "stagnant" wealth of long-neglected Trinkets ever becomes too much for the Ackonomy to bear ]}}

An Otzma Card of type Garage Sale is played in the public forum. At the same time as it is played, the player playing it may post a list of Trinkets e wishes the card to affect.

None of these Trinkets may be in the Museum [protecting our cultural treasures] or specifically mentioned in the rules [the Golden Frog's Chalice Vault condition won't be broken; similar setups are also protected]. Furthermore, the owner of any of the listed Trinkets may object to the inclusion of one or more of eir Trinkets' inclusion on the list. Such an objection will remove those Trinkets from the list, as per the owner's request.

Three days after the card was played, all Trinkets remaining on the list are destroyed. The value of a destroyed Trinket in A$ is awarded to its owner at the time of its destruction; if unowned, the A$ go to the Treasury.

Counter-action: If an Otzma Card of type Garage Sale is countered within three days of it being played, the destruction mentioned in the previous paragraph does not occur. If it is countered after its destruction of Trinkets takes place, the countering has no effect. [THAT would be something I wouldn't want to un-harf].


Proposal 2179 - Sat, 28 Jun 1997 01:04:34 -0500
Zuriti'ili
Mohammed (Jason Orendorff)
Decision: retracted by author

[Our first proposal. :o) Note that if you do not vote for this you are an unpatriotic heathen pinko commie.]
  @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
 @                     @|
@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ |
|          |          / |  TTTTT  h      ee
|          |         /| |    T    h     e  e
|          |--------/ | |    T    hhh   eeee
|          |=======/  | |    T    h  h  e
|          |      |   | |    T    h  h   eee
|          |      |   | |
|          |------|   | |
|        o |======|   | |
|          |      |   | |   CCCCC         b     i          ee     t
|          |      |   | |   C   C   aa a  b        n nn   e  e  ttttt
|          |------|o  | |   C      a  aa  bbb   i  nn  n  eeee    t
|          |======|   | |   C      a  aa  b  b  i  n   n  e       t t
|          |      |   | |   CCCCC   aa a  bbb   i  n   n   eee     t
|          |      |   | |
|          |------|   |/
##################|   /
                  |  /
                  | /
                  |/
[I found the word zuriti'ili in an ancient Tome of Law I discovered in the Library the other day. The rest of the page was so faded that I couldn't really make out the context, but it was clear that the Ancients considered zuriti'ili the most heinous of crimes, an immense danger to society, immoral, sacrilegious, and unfashionable (except in certain, *very* perverse circles.) I don't know what it is exactly, but if the ancients held it in such ill repute, then it is my duty as President and as a responsible citizen to bring about the absolute ban of this reprehensible and nightmarish act in the still-young- and-quite-impressionable democracy of Ackanomia.]

Rule 719, titled "Zuriti'ili", is created, reading:

```

Zuriti'ili is a Crime.

As it is not yet entirely clear what constitutes the heinous Crime of Zuriti'ili, the judge of a CFCJ alleging that such a Crime has occurred is granted an unusual amount of latitude in setting forth a verdict. He or she is encouraged to research ancient tomes before reaching a decision, and in presenting the verdict may set forth a single guideline relevant to the current case, to aid future judges in similar situations. Naturally, the guideline may not conflict with the existing guidelines or other rules, and it must agree with the verdict itself (otherwise it is ignored for the purposes of this rule.)

[Recommended guidelines are of forms like "Xxxx does not constitute Zuriti'ili," or "It is possible for an act of Zuriti'ili to involve xxxx." To stretch the fun, they should be broad and vague so that the definition of Zuriri'ili sharpens slowly over time.]

On appeal, this guideline may be upheld (if the verdict is upheld) or overturned and possibly replaced with another guideline (even if the verdict itself is upheld) as long as the resulting guideline and verdict agree with one another and with the rules. When it becomes illegal to appeal a Zuriti'ili CFCJ further, any guideline from that CFCJ that was not overturned on appeal is added to the list of guidelines below.

{{[Note that we're sort of counting on the Supreme Court to strike down un-fun or scammy "guidelines". I think this is safe because we can impeach one or both Justices before the three allowed appeals run out. But if it's still shaky, speak up and I'll retract/resubmit.]}}

Guidelines:

. At least once in the history of Ackanomic, a player has committed Zuriti'ili.

. Zuriti'ili may be related to one or more entities that can be owned.

'''

[how's that for vague? :o) ]


Proposal 2180 - Sat, 28 Jun 1997 01:16:25 -0500
By Anti-Gum
Alfvaen (Aaron Humphrey)
Decision: retracted by author

If Rule 904, "The Anti-Gumball", does not exist, then create a Rule, numbered 904, named "The Anti-Gumball", with the following text(delimited by LEAPER):

LEAPER

There exists a unique entity called the Anti-Gumball, which may be chewed only on days whose dates are prime numbers greater than seven. It tastes much like the Gumball in many ways, but has a distinctly opposite flavor.

If any player legally announces he is chewing both the Gumball and the Anti-Gumball in the same message, the Officer in Charge of Random Things shall determine which of the following equally probable events happen:

1) Quantum Inflation: The fabric of the Universe strectches, forming new mass-energy, and the chewing player is awarded a Boon of the Ancients.

2) Thermonuclear Annhilation: A (REALLY) big explosion occurs. All trinkets in the player's possession are obliterated (their monetary value goes to the Treasury), along with all eir non-indestructible Gadgets. In addition, e suffers a -10 point penalty for each player (emself included) in eir current location, and e, along with all other players in the same location, is sent to the Ackanomic Afterlife. It is a Crime to cause Thermonuclear Annhilation where other players are present. In addition, both the Gumball and the Anti-Gumball are blown into the Stratosphere and cannot be chewed for the remainder of the day.

LEAPER

Add the following text(delimited by KABOOM)to the bottom of Rule 904, "The Anti-Gumball":

KABOOM

3) Ground Explosion: If the player is in a building, that building's suction cups are damaged and it starts to dangle. If the player is in an empty kaa of land, a hole is blown in the surface of Ackanomic, and the player is charged A$100 by the Frobozz Earthmoving Company for repairs, which will be completed in seven days; in the meantime, no buildings may be built there. If the player is in the Wilds of Ackanomic, e is fined A$200 for disturbing the wildlife.

4) Ectoplasmic Eruption: The W-File pair show up and take the player away for questioning about "extradimensional forces" for 48 hours, with effects like that in Rule 1118.

5) Gamma Ray Dosing: The player becomes Radioactive, and remains so for the next thirty days. While the player is Radioactive, e may not possess any living entities; for the purposes of this Rule, that includes the Chartreuse Goose, the Little Lamb, and the Amber Banana Tree, which go Somewhere Else, and Chartreuse Goose Eggs and Amber Bananas, which are destroyed. (The Steel Flea is luckily immune to these effects.) Furthermore, e may not enter any location where there are other players, and must immediately leave such a location if e is in one at any time while Radioactive.

6) Energy Vortex: The player's score is exchanged with that of another player, chosen at random, including non-active players.

7) Energy Spike: If there are any Proposals which were submitted by the player before chewing the Anti-Gumball, and whose voting periods are not yet over, one is chosen at random, and a Bonus Vote is created and instantly used to vote either for or against(chosen randomly)said Proposal, subject to the limitations on Bonus Vote usage per proposal in Rule 317. (In other respects, though, this clause takes precedence over Rule 317, as a non-player usage of a Bonus Vote.)

KABOOM


Proposal 2181 - Sat, 28 Jun 1997 01:16:26 -0500
Magic Number Reset
Alfvaen (Aaron Humphrey)
Decision: Accepted

Modify Rule 666, "End of Cycle", as follows:

Reletter clauses k)-o) as l)-p), respectively.

Insert the text below(delimited by BIG)as a new clause k):

BIG

k) If the cycle was won by points, then amend Rule 603 to change the base value of the Magic Number to the smallest prime number greater than (the current Magic Number*1.2). If the last two cycles were not won by points, then amend Rule 603 to change the base value of the Magic Number to the smallest prime number greater than (the current Magic Number*0.9). Reset the Magic Number to the base Magic Number.

BIG


Proposal 2182 - Sat, 28 Jun 1997 12:24:36 -0500
RISC
Malenkai (Randy Hall)
Decision: Accepted

{{[this will make processing chips trivial to harf; the bot could now do it if we wanted to. This seems a reasonable compromise over their outright repeal]}}

This is a Modest proposal.
-------------------------------------------------------------------

Amend rule 935, "Processing Chips" to read:

"
The Tradeable Entities known as Processing Chips exist and are considered raw material. A Processing Chip is an eight pin dual-in-line package (DIP) with the first two pins bent up at 180 degrees. The back of the DIP is covered with scorching. It resembles a rather large, distinctly ugly bug.

When a Proposal is accepted, a Processing Chip is created and given to the author of that Proposal.
"


Proposal 2183 - Sun, 29 Jun 1997 00:11:34 -0500
Generic Proposal Title #2183
Vynd (John McCoy)
Decision: Rejected

Create a new Rule numbered 860 with the name "I claim this planet in the name of Mars!" and the following text:

In addition to his other duties, it is a privilige of the Ambassador to choose the official name for any new Nomic which he discovers. The Ambassador may, as a public action, declare that he has discovered a new Nomic, and it's name is "X", where X is the name which he has chosen. This name may not be the same as that of any entity in Ackanomic, or of any other Nomic. It is also the Ambassador's duty to accurately include the name of the Nomic in it's native tongue (the name used by the Nomic's players to refer to it) in any such declaration. This name, while not official, may be used in place of the official name in all cases where it is not specificly forbidden. It is possible for a Nomic's native name to be the same as it's official name.

Once such a declaration has been made, a 7 day waiting period begins. Durring this waiting period,the President or the Speaker may publicly object to the official name of the new Nomic.

If the 7 day waiting period ends without objection, then the newly discovered Nomic's official and native names are added to the lsit of known Nomics below. If an objection is made by the President or Speaker, then the names of the Nomic are not added to the list below, and the Ambassador may not make another official name declaration about the newly discovered nomic in question for at least 14 days, and may never again suggest using the objectionable name as an official name for a Nomic.

It is the duty and privilige of the Ambassador to keep the native names of other Nomic's current with the name it's natives (players) are currently using. The Ambassador may change the native name of any Nomic on the known Nomics list by publicly announcing the change. it is a Crime to change the nativ name of a Nomic to anything other than the name that the players (or members, or natives) of that Nomic use to describe it.

The list of known Nomics (note that this list is not necessarily inclusive, in that other rules may describe non-Acka Nomics not found here):

"Thatcher Farms" - known to it's natives as Thring

"Hot Banana Roofing" - known in it's native language as Rishonomic

"Wibble Hawks Roam Free" - known as Micronomic II to it's inhabitants

"Thoth Army Refugees" - known to it's citizines as Agora

"Hardly any Strafing" - called Pumpkin Patch Nomic by natives

"Charter to Freedom" - called InterNomic by its (few) natives


Proposal 2184 - Sun, 29 Jun 1997 09:59:44 -0500
I said what?
Vynd (John McCoy)
Decision: Accepted

This is a Modest Proposal

{{[Some minor fixes to dumb things I've said in my proposals.]}}

Ammend Rule 910 The Ackanomicon by removing the sentence "Reading this page is considered a use of a Paranormal Power by the reading Player." from the the end of the paragraph begining "Mutation".

{{[The whole point of the page is to give the player a psi power, but scold and Mold would then immediately use alien sedatives to take it away again.]}}

Further ammend Rule 910 The Ackanomicon by adding the following to the end of the rule:

Not so Forbidden Fruit (4 pages): The player has an out of body experience in which he is transported to an primordial jungle where he is worshiped as a god by the natives. Upon waking up, he will find that all he has left to remember it by is an Amber Banana.

Ancient One (1 page): The player warps time and space with a terrifying incantation of power, summoning the Ancient Powers into his presence. The Chartruse Goose is immediately transfered into his possesion, and it's not happy. If the reading player was already in possesion of the Chartruse Goose, then it goes Somewhere Else (and is REALLY not happy).

{{[Sorry, had to do it.]}}

Ammend Rule 1320 This is the way the world ends by adding the following as a seperate paragraph at the end of the Rule:

This Rule takes precedence over any other Rule discussing the End of the World, or the singing of the Fat Lady.

{{[Otherwise, she wouldn't be singing R.E.M. like she's supposed to. =( And now one I didn't write.]}}

Ammend Rule 1319 Round Earth Restoration Society by deleting the following text from the second paragraph:

The first player to make such a contribution becomes Chairman of the Round Earth Restoration Society, and it is his duty to keep track of how much money has been transfered to the Treasury on the Society's behalf. Should the player ever go on vacation or leave the game, the next player to contribute shall take over the title and duty.

And replace it with the following:

It is a duty of the Financier to keep track of how much money has been donated to the Treasury on behalf of the Society, and by whom.

{{[The old system takes something that is really quite easy to keep track of, and brings in the possibilities of all kinds of problems when the Chairman-ship changes hands, much like the now corrected problem of the Mad Scientist having to track all parts ever submited for a Monster, accepted or not...]}}


Proposal 2185 - Sun, 29 Jun 1997 15:06:14 -0500
Repeal Default Votes
Mohammed (Jason Orendorff)
Decision: Accepted

[I read something a while back that noted that certain UNIX commands, such as fsck, have options -y and -n that supposedly allow them to run without a human actually there reading each question and answering 'yes' or 'no' intelligently. "fsck -y" is the same as invoking fsck normally and answering 'yes' to all the questions without reading them. Likewise, -n indicates 'no to all'.

The point was, that answering YES to all questions is too dangerous to be of any use ("Reformatting operator's brain. Continue?"); and answering NO to all questions is almost always far too paranoid. There's no substitute (yet) for human judgement.

I think this applies to proposals and voting as well. Voting YES or NO by default is foolish or cynical at best, and voting PRESENT by default is unlikely ever to have any effect at all, except to dodge quorum. (We might as well just repeal quorum.)

This kills default votes but not proxy votes. Only one player has a default vote (it is PRESENT).]

1. All players who have default votes are stripped of their default votes.

2. The following shall be removed from Rule 106 (Voting on Proposals):

```

A Voting Player may specify a default vote, provided that they have no Proxy. To do this, a Voting Player must send a message to the Tabulator stating what their default vote will be. Their options are YES, NO, and PRESENT. A Voting Player may cease to have a default vote by sending a message to the Tabulator stating that they no longer want a default vote.
'''

3. In Rule 106 (Voting on Proposals), this:

```

At the instant before the end of the voting period of a proposal (hereafter referred to as Proposal A), if any Voting Player has specified a default vote, or if any Voting Player has a Proxy, then the following sequence of events takes place in the instant prior to the end of the voting period of Proposal A(delimited by ~):

~
1. All Voting Players that have specified default votes, AND have not already cast a vote on Proposal A, will cast a vote on Proposal A corresponding to the default vote they have specified. (ie if a player's default vote is PRESENT, and they haven't already voted on the proposal, they will cast a present vote on it)

2. All Voting Players that have not cast a vote on Proposal A, and have a Proxy, will cast a vote identical to the vote cast by their Proxy (if their Proxy cast a vote) on Proposal A. If a player's Proxy has abstained, than that player will cast a PRESENT vote on Proposal A.
~

'''

shall be replaced with this:

```

At the instant before the end of the voting period of a proposal, all Voting Players that have not cast a vote on the proposal, and have a Proxy, will cast a vote identical to the vote cast by their Proxy (if their Proxy cast a vote) on the proposal. If a player's Proxy has abstained, then that player will cast a PRESENT vote on the proposal.
'''

Proposal 2186 - Sun, 29 Jun 1997 15:44:51 -0500
More More Less Work
Malenkai (Randy Hall)
Decision: Accepted

This is a Modest proposal.

Amend rule 217, "Overturning Judgements", to remove the following text:

"
In the event that the judges have not returned a verdict within one week, the judges shall be fined A$2 each, for each additional day beyond one week until a verdict is given. In the event that a majority of the justices are vacationing, the one week timer shall start as soon as a majority of justices have returned.
"

{{[the amount of money in question is trivial, and the Justices put forth a good faith effort to deliver a well-reasoned verdict as quickly as possible. If there is some sort of scam that requires the Justices to sit on an appeal, the current ones can do so for over 250 days without going broke. Impeachment is the answer with or without the A$2 penalty in these cases. In otherwords, another low fun/work ratio thing to track]}}


Proposal 2187 - Sun, 29 Jun 1997 18:37:57 -0500
Dealing with Dealing with the Paranormal
Malenkai (Randy Hall)
Decision: Accepted

This is a Modest proposal.

{{[this does two things. One, standardizes the 10 day periods to weeklong periods, which are easier to track and remember, and it takes out the 24 hour volunteer period, which causes the rule to be two things to remember for little added value. Now the Krykec can be selected at the same time as the paranormal event, thus keeping the essential functionality of the rule while making it easier to harf]}}

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Amend rule 1118, "Dealing with the Paranormal", as follows:

I. Replace:

"
If a non-player entity makes use of a Paranormal Power, then the W-File Pair will investigate the incident. The first player to volunteer within 24 hours will be assigned to help them, otherwise one player will be randomly assigned by the officer in charge of random things, to be called Krykec for the purposes of this rule.
"

with:

"
If a non-player entity makes use of a Paranormal Power, then the W-File Pair will investigate the incident. In this case, a player, to be called Krykec for the purposes of this rule, will be randomly selected to assist in this investigation.
"

II. Replace all occurrances of "10" with "seven" where it appears in the fourth paragraph of the rule.


Proposal 2188 - Sun, 29 Jun 1997 20:01:20 -0500
Personal favorites
Vynd (John McCoy)
Decision: retracted by author

This is a Modest Proposal

{{[Stuff I like but didn't want to see the Literature list possibly fail for.]}}

Add the following entries to the Literature list:

Artist: The Rolling Stones
Artist: Pink Floyd
Artist: Led Zepplin
Work: Snow Crash ; novel by Neal Stephenson
Artist: Bruce Sterling
Work: Dr. Strangelove ; film
Artist: Steven Wright


Proposal 2189 - Sun, 29 Jun 1997 23:03:06 -0500
More than a pasing fancy
Vynd (John McCoy)
Decision: Accepted

This is a Modest proposal.

Add the following to the Literature list:

Artist: The Rolling Stones ; the rock band
Artist: Pink Floyd
Artist: Led Zepplin
Artist: Bruce Sterling
Work: Snow Crash ; novel by Neal Stephenson
Work: Dr. Stangelove ; film, in which the word spong may or may not have been used
Work: Citizen Cane
Artist: Steven Wright
Work: The Usual Suspects


Proposal 2190 - Sun, 29 Jun 1997 23:03:06 -0500
making the Harfmeister happy
Vynd (John McCoy)
Decision: retracted by author

This is a Modest proposal.

Ammend rule 2096 Wibble Revisited (or viva McSpong) by replacing the following qouted text with the text delimited by $$$ marks below:

"All proposals which are made by the Harfmeister"

$$$

All public messages in which the Harfmeister designates a proposal to be harfy

$$$

Add the following text between the words "thatcher," and "yeenewkleorrrrmeeesseilllllee." in Rule 2096:

llama, ptang-ptang,

{{[This is really quite a difficult contraint to work under witout resorting to simply throwing out the words in comments like this one, witness the above. I like the concept though, and I'd rather see it made a little less cumbersome than outright repealed.]}}


Proposal 2191 - Mon, 30 Jun 1997 03:38:53 -0500
Zuriti'ili
Mohammed (Jason Orendorff)
Made harfy by Vynd at Wed, 2 Jul 1997 23:55:27 -0400.
Decision: Accepted

[||
  @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
 @                     @|
@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ |
|          |          / |  TTTTT  h      ee
|          |         /| |    T    h     e  e
|          |--------/ | |    T    hhh   eeee
|          |=======/  | |    T    h  h  e
|          |      |   | |    T    h  h   eee
|          |      |   | |
|          |------|   | |
|        o |======|   | |
|          |      |   | |   CCCCC         b     i          ee     t
|          |      |   | |   C   C   aa a  b        n nn   e  e  ttttt
|          |------|o  | |   C      a  aa  bbb   i  nn  n  eeee    t
|          |======|   | |   C      a  aa  b  b  i  n   n  e       t t
|          |      |   | |   CCCCC   aa a  bbb   i  n   n   eee     t
|          |      |   | |
|          |------|   |/
##################|   /
                  |  /
                  | /
                  |/
||]
[I found the word zuriti'ili in an ancient Tome of Law I discovered in the Library the other day. The rest of the page was so faded that I couldn't really make out the context, but it was clear that the Ancients considered zuriti'ili the most heinous of crimes, an immense danger to society, immoral, sacrilegious, and unfashionable (except in certain, *very* perverse circles.) I don't know what it is exactly, but if the ancients held it in such ill repute, then it is my duty as President and as a responsible citizen to bring about the absolute ban of this reprehensible and nightmarish act in the still-young- and-quite-impressionable democracy of Ackanomia.]

Rule 719, titled "Zuriti'ili", is created, reading:

```

Zuriti'ili is a Crime.

As it is not yet entirely clear what constitutes the heinous Crime of Zuriti'ili, the judge of a CFCJ alleging that such a Crime has occurred is granted an unusual amount of latitude in setting forth a verdict. He or she is encouraged to research ancient tomes before reaching a decision, and in presenting the verdict may set forth a single guideline relevant to the current case, to aid future judges in similar situations. Naturally, the guideline may not conflict with the existing guidelines and other rules, and it must agree with the verdict itself (otherwise it is ignored for the purposes of this rule.)

[Recommended guidelines are of forms like "Xxxx does not constitute Zuriti'ili," or "It is possible for an act of Zuriti'ili to involve xxxx." To stretch the fun, they should be broad and vague so that the definition of Zuriri'ili sharpens slowly over time.]

On appeal, this guideline may be upheld (if the verdict is upheld) or overturned and possibly replaced with another guideline (even if the verdict itself is upheld) as long as the resulting guideline and verdict agree with one another and with the rules. When it becomes illegal to appeal a Zuriti'ili CFCJ further, any guideline from that CFCJ that was not overturned on appeal is added to the list of guidelines below.

{{[Note that we're sort of counting on the Supreme Court to strike down un-fun or scammy "guidelines". I think this is safe because we can impeach one or both Justices before the three allowed appeals run out. But if it's still shaky, speak up and I'll retract/resubmit.]}}

Guidelines:

. At least once in the history of Ackanomic, a player has committed Zuriti'ili.

. Zuriti'ili may be related to one or more entities that can be owned.

'''

[how's that for vague? :o) ]


Proposal 2192 - Mon, 30 Jun 1997 04:41:44 -0500
Retro
Mohammed (Jason Orendorff)
Decision: Accepted

This is a Modest Proposal.

[I found myself wanting to make deeper changes here, but timing is a topic for another day; the Cabinet is working on that.]

Section (6) of Rule 205 (When Score Changes Take Effect) is amended by removing the subhead "a)" and by replacing this:

```
b) Score changes can occur retroactively if an event in the past which caused a score change is altered or nullified due to a Judgement verdict.

c) Score changes can occur retroactively if an error or omission in scoring is discovered, and that error or omission occurred within the 14 days preceding the public announcement of the error or omission.

d) Except as specified in b) or c), retroactive score changes are not possible or permitted.

e) This section (6) has precedence over sections 1 thru 5, where there is a conflict.
'''

with this:

```
Retroactive score changes are not permitted, but corrections to the scores are allowed when an error is discovered. This section (6) has precedence over sections 1 thru 5, where there is a conflict.
'''


Proposal 2193 - Mon, 30 Jun 1997 11:41:26 -0500
I'm An Automatic Fool
Alfvaen (Aaron HUmphrey)
Decision: Accepted

This is a Modest proposal

{{Amend the Blueprint for Automatic Sculpture as follows:

After the second paragraph, insert the following text as a third paragraph(delimited by TAFKAP):

TAFKAP

When an Automatic Sculpture transforms itself into a Trinket, The Officer in Charge of Random Things shall choose a player at random(who will be called the Mad Sculptor). The Mad Sculptor shall be responsible for providing a description of the trinket formed by the Automatic Sculpture. Should the Mad Sculptor not publicly post such a description within three days of being selected, e shall lose one point and the Officer in Charge of Random Things shall select a new Mad Sculptor.

TAFKAP

[On the model of the Mad Hatter, if you couldn't tell...]

}}


Proposal 2194 - Mon, 30 Jun 1997 13:41:31 -0500
By Anti-Gum
Alfvaen (Aaron Humphrey)
Decision: Rejected

Create a Rule, numbered 904, named "The Anti-Gumball", with the following text(delimited by KABOOM):

KABOOM

There exists a unique entity called the Anti-Gumball, which may be chewed only on days whose dates are prime numbers greater than seven. It tastes much like the Gumball in many ways, but has a distinctly opposite flavor.

If any player legally announces he is chewing both the Gumball and the Anti-Gumball in the same message, the Officer in Charge of Random Things shall determine which of the following equally probable events happen:

1) Quantum Inflation: The fabric of the Universe stretches, forming new mass-energy, and the chewing player is awarded a Boon of the Ancients.

2) Thermonuclear Annihilation: A (REALLY) big explosion occurs. All trinkets in the player's possession are obliterated (their monetary value goes to the Treasury), along with all eir non-indestructible Gadgets. In addition, e suffers a -10 point penalty for each player (emself included) in eir current location, and e, along with all other players in the same location, is sent to the Ackanomic Afterlife. It is a Crime to cause Thermonuclear Annihilation where other players are present. In addition, both the Gumball and the Anti-Gumball are blown into the Stratosphere and cannot be chewed for the remainder of the day.

3) Ground Explosion: If the player is in a building, that building's suction cups are damaged and it starts to dangle. If the player is in an empty kaa of land, a hole is blown in the surface of Ackanomic, and the player is charged A$100 by the Frobozz Earthmoving Company for repairs, which will be completed in seven days; in the meantime, no buildings may be built there. If the player is in the Wilds of Ackanomic, e is fined A$200 for disturbing the wildlife.

4) Ectoplasmic Eruption: The W-File pair show up and take the player away for questioning about "extradimensional forces" for 48 hours, with effects like that in Rule 1118.

5) Gamma Ray Dosing: The player becomes Radioactive, and remains so for the next thirty days. While the player is Radioactive, e may not possess any living entities; for the purposes of this Rule, that includes the Chartreuse Goose, the Little Lamb, and the Amber Banana Tree, which go Somewhere Else, and Chartreuse Goose Eggs and Amber Bananas, which are destroyed. (The Steel Flea is luckily immune to these effects.) Furthermore, e may not enter any location where there are other players, and must immediately leave such a location if e is in one at any time while Radioactive. This clause takes precedence over other rules regarding the location of players and entities.

6) Energy Vortex: The player's score is exchanged with that of another player, chosen at random, including non-active players.

7) Energy Spike: If there are any Proposals which were submitted by the player before chewing the Anti-Gumball, and whose voting periods are not yet over, one is chosen at random, and a Bonus Vote is created and instantly used to vote either for or against(chosen randomly)said Proposal, subject to the limitations on Bonus Vote usage per proposal in Rule 317. (In other respects, though, this clause takes precedence over Rule 317, as a non-player usage of a Bonus Vote.)

KABOOM


Proposal 2195 - Mon, 30 Jun 1997 18:07:08 -0500
Prologue
Vynd (John McCoy)
Decision: Rejected

Create a new Rule numbered 10, with the tiel of Prologue, and the following text:
"O for a Muse of fire, that would ascend
The brightest heaven of invention,
A kingdom for a stage, princes to act,
And monarchs to behold the swelling scene!"
[William Shakespeare, The Life of Henry the Fifth, Prologue, lines 1-4]
"Piece out our imperfections with your thoughts;
Into a thousand parts divide one man,
And make imaginary puissance;
Think, when we talk of horses, that you see them
Printing their proud hoofs i' th' receiving earth.
For 'tis your thoughts that now must deck our kings,
Carry them here and there, jumping o'er times,
Turning the accomplishment of many years
Into an hour-glass; for the which supply,
Admit me Chorus to this history;
Who, prologue-like, your humble patience pray
Gently to hear, kindly to judge, our play."
[William Shakespeare, the Life of Henry the Fifth, Prologue, lines 24-34]

Proposal 2196 - Mon, 30 Jun 1997 21:45:54 -0500
The condition my condition is in.
two-star (Alexandre Muniz)
Decision: Accepted

This is a modest proposal.

Amend rule 104 by replacing the sentence, "(Ambiguous, conditional, retroactive, and/or meaningless effects are ignored.)" with the sentence, "(Ambiguous, retroactive, and/or meaningless effects are ignored.)"

[Here's the context for everyone's convenience:

If a proposal is accepted, one of two things happen. If the proposal consisted of a list of one-time effects, such as changes to the rules, then those effects shall be applied, one at a time, in the order in which they appear in the proposal. (Ambiguous, conditional, retroactive, and/or meaningless effects are ignored.)]

{{Malenkai gains 1 point}}

{{two-star is ambushed by Thargoids, loses one point, and all his gaol house rock shovels are converted into pulse shovels.}}


Proposal 2197 - Tue, 1 Jul 1997 12:53:08 -0500
Ad Hoc=Unorganized
Alfvaen (Aaron Humphrey)
Decision: Accepted

This is a modest proposal.

Amend Rule 1080, "Ad Hoc Committees", by replacing the current section 5.

{{[
5. Once a Committee has been formed it has 7 days to post its decision on the matter in question. It is a Crime for a player to falsely represent the decision of a Committee. If a Committee fails to reach a decision in 7 days, or reaches 0 members before it reaches a decision, all of its members are held in Contempt, it is dissolved, and another one is called on the specific matter in question.
]}}

with the following text(delimited by TOFFLER)

TOFFLER

5. Once a Committee has been formed, it has 7 days to come to a decision on the matter in question, and three days to post it. It is a Crime for a player to falsely represent the decision of a Committee. If a Committee fails to post its decision in 10 days, all of its members are held in Contempt. If this occurs, or the Committee reaches 0 members before it reaches a decision, it is dissolved, and another one is called on the specific matter in question.

TOFFLER

{{[ So, there are now three days to post the Committee's decision. Also, I decided that there's no point in punishing the Committee's members with Contempt if it reaches zero members, because that's sort of a null punishment, or should at the very least be phrased differently... ]}}


Proposal 2198 - Tue, 1 Jul 1997 13:00:33 -0500
Thargoid Weapon Dealer Crackdown
Alfvaen (Aaron Humphrey)
Decision: Accepted

This is a Modest proposal.

{{[ Rule 2104 somehow fails to appear on the web pages, but the Proposal archive says it passed, Malenkai and I have taken advantage of it(or attempted to), and I don't recall seeing it renumbered... ]}}

Amend Rule 2104, "More Blatant Elitism", by removing the text "the replacement of any Military lasers in the player's possession by Pulse lasers, and"

{{[ What this will leave is "leading to the loss of 1 point". ]}}


Proposal 2199 - Tue, 1 Jul 1997 13:28:54 -0500
Throw The Walls Into The Fireplace
Alfvaen (Aaron Humphrey)
Decision: Accepted

This is a Modest proposal

Renumber Rule 1141, "Committee for the Protestion, Preservation, and Integrity of the Arts", to 1082. {{[ No reason it shouldn't go with the other Ad Hoc Committees, IMHO...]}}

Repeal Rule 1399, "Thank You Yakko" {{[ I believe that it has served its purpose in having passed in the first place. ]}}

Repeal Rule 1046, "Another Truly Deplorable Pun" {{[ If we're cracking down on rules that add little or nothing to the ruleset...unless we want to add "Ferdinand Feghoot" to the Literature list...]}}

Renumber Rule 2087, "Ad Hoc Committee on the matter of Fine Art", to 1083. {{[ Maybe it should go in the 600's, but then the "Skylines" one should go in the 800's, so we'll just put all the Ad Hocs in one place ]}}

Renumber Rule 2103, "Doomsday! Part II" to 1322. {{[ Yeah, maybe this should go away too, but we'll leave it on the books for a few months. ]}}

Renumber Rule 2104, "More Blatant Elitism", to 1324.
Renumber Rule 2105, "Universal Nomic strikes back!", to 1325.
Renumber Rule 2106, "Gimme that Gnome yet again", to 1326. {{[ See 2103, above. ]}}

{{[ And now one that's in the queue... ]}}
Renumber Rule 2177, "Pipes", to 502.


Proposal 2200 - Tue, 1 Jul 1997 16:36:43 -0500
Foolishly Foolish
two-star (Alexandre Muniz)
Decision: retracted by author

This is a modest proposal

Amend rule 207.3 "Foolishness" by replacing the sentence,

"Whenever a Foolish Proposal is accepted or rejected, all scoring effects from rule 207 related to its acceptance or rejection shall be doubled."

with,

"Whenever a Foolish Proposal is accepted or rejected, all scoring effects from rules 207 and 207.3 related to its acceptance or rejection shall be doubled."