The Writers' Block

[Umbratellus]

I'm sorry but that last one is hilarious, I can only focus on that right now

#408
Sedge wrote it as a joke, and issued it only to Mods & Admins & Editors (to troll those of them that were pro-Pony, as he knew some were: It contained only anti-Pony options...)
Later on, it was also given to Trotterdam who posted it in this forum, and then it went into wider use too for at least a while.

I got Pony Peril within the last year as well, so I'm pretty sure it's still an available Easter egg.

Unrelated but there's no issues about infanticide, right? I got some ideas for one but I wanted to make sure I hadn't overlooked anything.

[Trotterdam]

#408 was never removed. It's still an easter egg and therefore rare, but I've recorded it being answered as recetly as five days ago.

[Australian rePublic]

Knowing that we now have a greater demand for new issues, should I try my idea- Attack of the Flying Saucers- Again?

[Outer Sparta]

I might also revive a prior draft of mine dealing with aviation safety but from a new angle about the safety concerns of new planes and the lack of regulatory oversight such as the 737 MAX or a historical case, the DC-10.

[Alt Capitalist Britain]

Currently thinking about a few issue drafts which may appear in the near future, here are a few summaries of them:

1) (validity: capitalist) An entertainment industry merger causes a scandal and/or causes various shows to be cancelled (thus causing outrage in social media which inevitably leads to people calling on the government to do something).

2) (validity: abolished monarchy, if applicable) After the nation's monarchy is removed, people question what happens to the former monarchs (and/or their properties) ; the new government becomes the arbiter of their fates.

3) (validity: small or non-existent military) A foreign (and more powerful) nation threatens war with the nation after an incident involving the nation's ambassador, and the government must prepare for a possible attack by the aggressor. (While it may be compared to Issue 244, the enemy instead threatens, not invades, the nation.)

4) (validity: picked option 1 in issue 1446 (Yet Another Issue About Periods)) (wildcard idea) Grammarians/Grammar Police Rally in the capital after a recent transcript of a speech by a (youthful) Minister has made the nation's government/parliament an international laughingstock.

[Cataleenia]

I’m thinking about making an issue about formatting government documents (e.g. for helping people with poor eyesight, to make it look pretty etc, etc.) Any suggestions? I’m currently thinking to call it ‘Friendly Formatting’ but I am looking for a better name.

[Floofybit]

I'm thinking about two new issues, one about what the leader will eat for dinner, and another about defacing the coin. Thoughts? Ideas?

[Australian rePublic]

I'm thinking about two new issues, one about what the leader will eat for dinner, and another about defacing the coin. Thoughts? Ideas?

What do you mean by "defacing?"

[Pennyslov]

I Have Submitted Some Issues*, Are They Accepted? Are They In The Pool? Are They Rejected?



*I Already Read The Got Issues FAQ And How To Write An Issue (I Even Know The Author Of It.)

The Issues Are On My Forum User Page.

The Issue Idea Is About A Bombed Palace In The Old Town Of @@CAPITAL@@

[Cataleenia]

I Have Submitted Some Issues*, Are They Accepted? Are They In The Pool? Are They Rejected?



*I Already Read The Got Issues FAQ And How To Write An Issue (I Even Know The Author Of It.)

The Issues Are On My Forum User Page.

The Issue Idea Is About A Bombed Palace In The Old Town Of @@CAPITAL@@

You will be told if they are accepted but if they are rejected, you will not be made aware

For more detail, visit the Got Issues FAQ section about ‘I have submitted my issue, now what?’

[Trotterdam]

You will be told if they are accepted but if they are rejected, you will not be made aware

Though in this case, we can be pretty certain that they were rejected. Or will be, if the issue editors have been too busy to go through the queue yet.

[Floofybit]

I'm thinking about two new issues, one about what the leader will eat for dinner, and another about defacing the coin. Thoughts? Ideas?

What do you mean by "defacing?"

Many coins have designs that patriotically represent the nation, so an issue about someone using the ores to make the coins for profit worth more than the coin

[Australian rePublic]

What do you mean by "defacing?"

Many coins have designs that patriotically represent the nation, so an issue about someone using the ores to make the coins for profit worth more than the coin

That doesn't really make sense, I mean coins get melted down all the time with ware and tear. The patriotic images on them don't really matter as coins get damaged by natural causes all the time
The only instance where it does matter is in Thailand where banknotes have the king's face on them, therefore, you can't step on them. The broader issuer here would be if the coins cost more to mint than what they're worth. If a $2 coin has 50 cents worth of metal in it, you'd have to be an idiot to melt it down. You could write an issue where a 1 cent coin contains 2 cents of metal in it, but I'm pretty sure that issue already exists. Also, if that were the case, the "patriotic images" on them would be the least of your concerns. And if you wanted to melt these coins down just to destroy the patriotic images, that wouldn't work either, as it would be cheaper and easier to print them and publically burn them. I can't see this issue working. Sorry. If you want to persue this, perhaps look into money burning, but wanting to preserve the image of national imagery would be a minute part of that

[Phydios]

I'm thinking about two new issues, one about what the leader will eat for dinner, and another about defacing the coin. Thoughts? Ideas?

Defacing of currency does have some potential as an national issue, though I'm not certain if it's already been covered. Maybe look to the US laws for inspiration:

https://abc13.com/money-coins-us-curren ... g/1566492/

https://www.nevblog.com/is-it-illegal-t ... -on-money/

[Australian rePublic]

Now that Covid is almost over, I was thinking of writing an issue about the Bubonic Plague. Any ideas?

Also, I was thinking of writing an issue about trams (what North Americans call "street cars"), I was thinking of writing an issue about trams/light rail, particularly trams making a global comeback in the form of light rail. Do you think this would work?
The issue would be based on this draft from years ago, and I am interested in how to improve it before trying again:
viewtopic.php?f=13&t=450573

Also, what about an issue about trolley trucks and modern buses? Or would a nation's leader not be concerned with that kind of specifics of regional transport networks (a trolley truck is a truck which runs on overhead wires, and Germany is building a brand new system of them)

[Sedgistan]

It has struck me that many years after Mesozoic Park was published, we still have very few issues on dinosaurs, which are clearly a matter of vital import for nations these days. Some possible perspectives:

• Your nation's wild dinosaurs keep crossing the border into a neighbour who is not happy with these scientific abominations destroying their ecosystem - how do you keep them in, or should you even try?
• Your nation doesn't have dinosaurs, but keeps getting visitors crossing over from a neighbouring country - essentially the opposite of the above.
• Humanity not being top of the food chain (hikers being predated by T-Rex, paragliders by pterosaurs, scuba divers by mosasaurus).
• Farming dinosaurs - ties in with "GM food".
• Military uses of dinosaurs.
• Dinosaur fatigue and wanting to clone or create something more exciting. Potentially tied into Mesozoic Park getting a decline in visitors.
• Road traffic accidents caused by migrating sauropods.

We have willing Editors (or maybe it's just me) wanting to explore this area further.

[RedBrickLand]

It has struck me that many years after Mesozoic Park was published, we still have very few issues on dinosaurs, which are clearly a matter of vital import for nations these days. Some possible perspectives:

• Your nation's wild dinosaurs keep crossing the border into a neighbour who is not happy with these scientific abominations destroying their ecosystem - how do you keep them in, or should you even try?
• Your nation doesn't have dinosaurs, but keeps getting visitors crossing over from a neighbouring country - essentially the opposite of the above.
• Humanity not being top of the food chain (hikers being predated by T-Rex, paragliders by pterosaurs, scuba divers by mosasaurus).
• Farming dinosaurs - ties in with "GM food".
• Military uses of dinosaurs.
• Dinosaur fatigue and wanting to clone or create something more exciting. Potentially tied into Mesozoic Park getting a decline in visitors.
• Road traffic accidents caused by migrating sauropods.

We have willing Editors (or maybe it's just me) wanting to explore this area further.

I'm calling dibs(As if it's going to change anything) on the "Military Use of Dinosaurs" idea. Also, these are some very interesting and cool ideas and I would love to see some issues about it in the future. I hope it's not just Sedg who wants to explore this area further but also other editors.

[Australian rePublic]

It has struck me that many years after Mesozoic Park was published, we still have very few issues on dinosaurs, which are clearly a matter of vital import for nations these days. Some possible perspectives:

• Your nation's wild dinosaurs keep crossing the border into a neighbour who is not happy with these scientific abominations destroying their ecosystem - how do you keep them in, or should you even try?
• Your nation doesn't have dinosaurs, but keeps getting visitors crossing over from a neighbouring country - essentially the opposite of the above.
• Humanity not being top of the food chain (hikers being predated by T-Rex, paragliders by pterosaurs, scuba divers by mosasaurus).
• Farming dinosaurs - ties in with "GM food".
• Military uses of dinosaurs.
• Dinosaur fatigue and wanting to clone or create something more exciting. Potentially tied into Mesozoic Park getting a decline in visitors.
• Road traffic accidents caused by migrating sauropods.

We have willing Editors (or maybe it's just me) wanting to explore this area further.

I'm calling dibs(As if it's going to change anything) on the "Military Use of Dinosaurs" idea. Also, these are some very interesting and cool ideas and I would love to see some issues about it in the future. I hope it's not just Sedg who wants to explore this area further but also other editors.

Unfortunately, you can't call dibs my friend. All you can do is write an issue draft about it and pray that no one writes a better one before yours gets published

[RedBrickLand]

Unfortunately, you can't call dibs my friend. All you can do is write an issue draft about it and pray that no one writes a better one before yours gets published

Yep, all I can do is pray that a better writer than me decides not to make a draft on the same topic. However, I would love to see more issues about dinosaur-related issues published, whomever the author may be. What else can I say? Dinos are cool.

[Australian rePublic]

Unfortunately, you can't call dibs my friend. All you can do is write an issue draft about it and pray that no one writes a better one before yours gets published

Yep, all I can do is pray that a better writer than me decides not to make a draft on the same topic. However, I would love to see more issues about dinosaur-related issues published, whomever the author may be. What else can I say? Dinos are cool.

I encourage you to write some

[Trotterdam]

• Your nation's wild dinosaurs keep crossing the border into a neighbour who is not happy with these scientific abominations destroying their ecosystem - how do you keep them in, or should you even try?

Honestly, it's far more likely that dinosaurs would underperform in modern ecosystems, not overperform. After all, they evolved under very different conditions.

• Humanity not being top of the food chain (hikers being predated by T-Rex, paragliders by pterosaurs, scuba divers by mosasaurus).

Predatory animals that sometimes hunt humans already exist, such as tigers or crocodiles, as do non-predatory animals large enough to trample us, such as elephants or buffalo. Most of them have still learned to avoid us, because it turns out, guns trump everything. Dinosaurs' size wouldn't make them more of a threat to humans, it'd just make them easier to see coming.

Seriously, dinosaurs are animals. Ancient animals different from anything alive today, but still, not that different in the ways that matter. They're not fairy tale monsters. If they didn't happen to be extinct, we wouldn't see a huge difference between them and all those other classes of animals we have running around.

• Farming dinosaurs - ties in with "GM food".
• Military uses of dinosaurs.

We actually do have these already (#655 option 4, #474 option 3), although they don't explore the subjects in much detail so I suppose there could be room for a followup.

• Dinosaur fatigue and wanting to clone or create something more exciting. Potentially tied into Mesozoic Park getting a decline in visitors.

#556 option 3 has you trying to create dragons, which is about as exciting as it gets.

Speaking as someone who's read quite a lot about fossils, I don't think real-life animals (without genetic modification) get much more exciting than dinosaurs and pterosaurs, really. Non-mammalian synapsids are scientifically important and were the dominant fauna for fifty million years, but the only one anyone ever remembers is Dimetrodon. Cambrian fauna was definitely weird, which appeals to some people, but small sizes and the fact they're stuck in the water limits their excitement for the typical "I wanna see a Tyrannosaurus fighting a Triceratops!" crowd (hmm, maybe an issue about the ethics of deliberately making animals fight each other for sport? - in fact, now that I'm looking, I can't find any issues about topics like cockfighting or dogfighting, although I suppose they were already wildly unpopular by the time NationStates got started). There's a few other animals here and there that would interest the discerning scientist - placoderms, megalodons, saber-toothed cats (which have the benefit of being far more likely for us to actually be able to obtain genetic data of, given how recent they were), Hoplitomeryx (which strikes me as the kind of hilariously over-the-top animal a child would have come up with - what the heck does anything need five horns and two tusks for?), Macroeuphractus..., but nothing that can rival the Tyrant King, really. I suppose there could be an academic type who's upset that dinosaurs get all the attention when other fossils are just as important to our understanding of evolutionary history.

Deliberately engineering a "like T. rex but deadlier" dinosaur is stupid unless you're planning a Jennifer-Government-like publicity stunt where you deliberaly plan to release the dinosaur and have it eat a bunch of people in order to put your zoo in the news. It's not going to impress anyone while the animal is in a cage in a zoo.

Honestly it would probably be a better business model to engineer smaller, friendlier, cuddlier versions of the famous dinosaurs, and market them as pets. I'm picturing a cat-sized triceratops knocking things off tables

• Road traffic accidents caused by migrating sauropods.

...This one actually sounds amusing

Sure, smaller animals like deer also cause problems when they clog up roads, but a herd of sauropods trying to cross a road is an evocative enough image that I kinda want to see it now. Plus they were the largest dinosaurs, so the ones that might actually strain existing animal control methods (non-sauropod dinosaurs rarely got much larger than an elephant).

Unfortunately, you can't call dibs my friend. All you can do is write an issue draft about it and pray that no one writes a better one before yours gets published

Dibs aren't a legally-protected right (unless you answered #719 option 1), but many people are likely to respect them, whether out of politeness or just not wanting to waste time working on conflicting drafts when they could do something more unique.

[Outer Sparta]

While we are on the subject of prehistoric history, it would be interesting for an issue based on the idea of having cloned animals (there was a previous issue that allows cloning technology) and the consequences of reintegrating them into their old habitats (such as populating Siberia with mammoths if those creatures are ever to be brought back from extinction via cloning). Issue #33 option 1 gives a slight and subtle nod toward that process, and one can branch off it into that direction.

[Trotterdam]

While we are on the subject of prehistoric history, it would be interesting for an issue based on the idea of having cloned animals (there was a previous issue that allows cloning technology) and the consequences of reintegrating them into their old habitats (such as populating Siberia with mammoths if those creatures are ever to be brought back from extinction via cloning). Issue #33 option 1 gives a slight and subtle nod toward that process, and one can branch off it into that direction.

It's actually more akin to #1501 (saving endangered species by introducing them into areas other than their native habitat). Siberia's still cold, sure, but not as cold or in the same way as it was during the last glacial period.

Or, actually, even more akin to #1246, the followup to the #33 you mentioned, and which is exactly what you describe. Looks like we already have that one, sorry.

[Outer Sparta]

While we are on the subject of prehistoric history, it would be interesting for an issue based on the idea of having cloned animals (there was a previous issue that allows cloning technology) and the consequences of reintegrating them into their old habitats (such as populating Siberia with mammoths if those creatures are ever to be brought back from extinction via cloning). Issue #33 option 1 gives a slight and subtle nod toward that process, and one can branch off it into that direction.

It's actually more akin to #1501 (saving endangered species by introducing them into areas other than their native habitat). Siberia's still cold, sure, but not as cold or in the same way as it was during the last glacial period.

Or, actually, even more akin to #1246, the followup to the #33 you mentioned, and which is exactly what you describe. Looks like we already have that one, sorry.

Didn't know a follow-up was already done, nice to hear. No need to apologize at all.

[Australian rePublic]

• Your nation's wild dinosaurs keep crossing the border into a neighbour who is not happy with these scientific abominations destroying their ecosystem - how do you keep them in, or should you even try?

Honestly, it's far more likely that dinosaurs would underperform in modern ecosystems, not overperform. After all, they evolved under very different conditions.

• Humanity not being top of the food chain (hikers being predated by T-Rex, paragliders by pterosaurs, scuba divers by mosasaurus).

Predatory animals that sometimes hunt humans already exist, such as tigers or crocodiles, as do non-predatory animals large enough to trample us, such as elephants or buffalo. Most of them have still learned to avoid us, because it turns out, guns trump everything. Dinosaurs' size wouldn't make them more of a threat to humans, it'd just make them easier to see coming.

Seriously, dinosaurs are animals. Ancient animals different from anything alive today, but still, not that different in the ways that matter. They're not fairy tale monsters. If they didn't happen to be extinct, we wouldn't see a huge difference between them and all those other classes of animals we have running around.

• Farming dinosaurs - ties in with "GM food".
• Military uses of dinosaurs.

We actually do have these already (#655 option 4, #474 option 3), although they don't explore the subjects in much detail so I suppose there could be room for a followup.

• Dinosaur fatigue and wanting to clone or create something more exciting. Potentially tied into Mesozoic Park getting a decline in visitors.

#556 option 3 has you trying to create dragons, which is about as exciting as it gets.

Speaking as someone who's read quite a lot about fossils, I don't think real-life animals (without genetic modification) get much more exciting than dinosaurs and pterosaurs, really. Non-mammalian synapsids are scientifically important and were the dominant fauna for fifty million years, but the only one anyone ever remembers is Dimetrodon. Cambrian fauna was definitely weird, which appeals to some people, but small sizes and the fact they're stuck in the water limits their excitement for the typical "I wanna see a Tyrannosaurus fighting a Triceratops!" crowd (hmm, maybe an issue about the ethics of deliberately making animals fight each other for sport? - in fact, now that I'm looking, I can't find any issues about topics like cockfighting or dogfighting, although I suppose they were already wildly unpopular by the time NationStates got started). There's a few other animals here and there that would interest the discerning scientist - placoderms, megalodons, saber-toothed cats (which have the benefit of being far more likely for us to actually be able to obtain genetic data of, given how recent they were), Hoplitomeryx (which strikes me as the kind of hilariously over-the-top animal a child would have come up with - what the heck does anything need five horns and two tusks for?), Macroeuphractus..., but nothing that can rival the Tyrant King, really. I suppose there could be an academic type who's upset that dinosaurs get all the attention when other fossils are just as important to our understanding of evolutionary history.

Deliberately engineering a "like T. rex but deadlier" dinosaur is stupid unless you're planning a Jennifer-Government-like publicity stunt where you deliberaly plan to release the dinosaur and have it eat a bunch of people in order to put your zoo in the news. It's not going to impress anyone while the animal is in a cage in a zoo.

Honestly it would probably be a better business model to engineer smaller, friendlier, cuddlier versions of the famous dinosaurs, and market them as pets. I'm picturing a cat-sized triceratops knocking things off tables

• Road traffic accidents caused by migrating sauropods.

...This one actually sounds amusing

Sure, smaller animals like deer also cause problems when they clog up roads, but a herd of sauropods trying to cross a road is an evocative enough image that I kinda want to see it now. Plus they were the largest dinosaurs, so the ones that might actually strain existing animal control methods (non-sauropod dinosaurs rarely got much larger than an elephant).

Unfortunately, you can't call dibs my friend. All you can do is write an issue draft about it and pray that no one writes a better one before yours gets published

Dibs aren't a legally-protected right (unless you answered #719 option 1), but many people are likely to respect them, whether out of politeness or just not wanting to waste time working on conflicting drafts when they could do something more unique.

This begs a different question- did dinos even breathe oxygen?