Counselor, the Court is moved by your arguments (not now, Bernard) and
their appeal to "fun" as an underlying human principle (not NOW,
Bernard), and therefore finds this VAL... hold on.
(what IS it, Bernard?! I'm judging here, you'd better... ok ok I'll
read it... where did I say that before?
ah.
yes, yes, alright, I see.
yes, I see! All right then).
*ahem* Counselor, my Clerk (you may sit down now, Bernard, thank you)
has brought to my attention the following passage in your arguments:
"Before you censure me for wasting the court's time, I ask you to
consider what I have said"
and referred me to my decision for Rule #8, where I clearly stated that
the phrase 'for you' did not (in the words of the Court) address the
Court with "deserved respect" as per Rule #6. Yet I further note that
(unlike the invalid Rule #8) your immediately preceding sentence
addresses the Court as 'your Honor' and so strikes a generally
respectful tone. I must retire to my chambers to consider. Court is in
recess and will reconvene later today.
> OOC: Find a rule breach in that. :)
Don't get cocky, kid. :P
On Fri, 13 Jul 2018, Aris Merchant wrote:
> Your Honor, I respectfully submit the following argument on Docket #2:
>
> A model longstanding Nomic is the G.A.N. of Agora, under the auspices
> of which we now conduct these proceedings. The G.A.N. of Agora's
> homepage notes that "[the G.A.N. of] Agora is a relatively serious
> nomic; many of its players see it as an experiment in philosophy,
> political science, and group dynamics, rather than just a game;
> sometimes it acts more like a country." [1] I believe that the ends
> pursued by players of the G.A.N of Agora have something to teach us
> about the isqueal purpose of Nomic play. Maybe the game should be
> pursued for the benefit of the art-form of Nomic play, and to broaden
> our understanding of the entire universe around this.
>
> On the other hand, working solely toward abstract pursuits cannot be
> the goal of Nomic, as that ignores the very nature and foundation of
> Nomic play. The G.A.N. of Agora's homepage notes that "On the other
> hand, Agorans [that is, citizens of the G.A.N. of Agora] tend not to
> be above silliness and having fun; some players will do things just to
> see what will happen, or to create unusual situations merely to
> observe the resulting chaos." [1] This shows that, as in most games, a
> critical goal of Nomic is to have fun. Fun and amusement are in
> themselves worthy purposes, and many persons are gainfully employed in
> the entertainment industry providing them to others. Would life be
> truly worth living without any enjoyment? I will admit that Nomic play
> is one of my primary forms of recreation, and I'm not really sure what
> I would do without the break from the rest of my life.
>
> Your Honor, I have played the game (i.e. the G.A.N. of Agora) for
> quite a while, and served in the office of Promotor for some time now.
> In that time, I have had the honor of participating in, playing, and
> contributing to the G.A.N. of Agora. I have learned much from this
> experience, not only in terms of raw knowledge, but also in life
> lessons. I unreservedly state that I am better for the experience of
> my play. I have learned how to carefully report facts, how to write
> proposals and build consensus, and also how to effectively shuffle
> paperwork (I beg the court's pardon for my humor). Perhaps this
> personal betterment and growth is the real purpose of Nomic. I'm
> certainly not suggesting that other parts of life are actually more
> important than Nomic, but is growing as a person not a worthy goal for
> all fallible, mortal, sentient beings? [2]
>
> Your Honor, I sincerely apologize for obliging you to read through of
> my lengthy arguments. Before you censure me for wasting the court's
> time, I ask you to consider what I have said. My Fellow Counsellors
> and I have argued for many different ends to Nomic play. If, at the
> end of the day, one of them triumphs, then the world may be the better
> for that new-found knowledge. However, I think it likely that, at the
> end of the day, the court and all assembled here may be forced to act
> as Socrates was so often forced to, and suspend judgement. If that
> should happen, I ask the court to consider one last dark, but freeing
> idea. Perhaps My Fellow Counsellors and I don't actually know what
> we're talking about in this entire affair. Perhaps Nomic has no
> intrinsic purpose. Perhaps nothing has a purpose, except that which
> we, some of us Honorable Officers of the Court, but all mere living
> creatures, [2] may dare to assign to it.
>
> [1] https://agoranomic.org
> [2] Please pardon me if there any persons here who don't meet that
> description, we don't discriminate.
>
> END ARGUMENTS
>
> OOC: Find a rule breach in that. :)
>
> -Aris
>
