The Writers' Block

[Kurnugia]

Inspired by the climate strike, is there an issue about using truancy as a form of protest/would it make for a good issue?

[Frieden-und Freudenland]

Do we have any issues on homeschooling? I feel like we should, but my keyword search didn't turn up anything

[Bears Armed]

Do we have any issues on homeschooling? I feel like we should, but my keyword search didn't turn up anything

Several issues about education have options that mention this.
e.g. #40, one option in which makes it the only form of schooling.

Hukd on Fonix Workd 4 Me!
[Bostion; ed:Reploid Productions]

The Issue
@@NAME@@ has a serious problem with poor literacy rates among 12-18 year olds, which many parents and teachers blame on the current state of the education system and lack of government funding.

The Debate
1. Boot Camp instructor @@RANDOMNAME@@ stated his opinion: "Who gives a damn? Makes 'em easier to turn into brainwashed grunts anyhow! You don't need to be able to read in order to fire a gun! What we need to do is focus on our military spending - what does it matter if you can read or not when you're overrun by warmongering barbarians?"

2. On the other side, there's @@NAME@@'s Education Administrator. "This is shocking news. If the children of tomorrow cannot read, then what? Next thing you know, we'll be speaking ebonics! The government must devote more efforts to education! Where will we be twenty years from now with an overflow of unskilled labor?"

*3. @@RANDOMNAME@@, principal of a highly-rated private school, prefers a different approach. "Instead of that, why not issue government vouchers so that parents can afford to send their children to privately run schools? We offer a far better education than the public schools. All we do is grind our particular religious views into our students!" [Must have private industry]

*4. @@RANDOMNAME@@, principal of a highly-rated private school in the United Federation, suggests a different approach. "Instead of that, why not issue government subsidies to help parents afford to send their children overseas, to privately run schools outside of @@NAME@@? We offer a far better education than the communist schools of your nation. Sure, they might pick up a few ideological tendencies, but I reckon that'll be good for your economy in the long run." [Must not have private industry]

5. "Who needs some fancy-shmancy cash-draining school system, anyway?" @@RANDOMNAME@@ declares from the front steps of his double-wide mobile home, shotgun in hand. "My Pa raised me and my eight brothers and three sisters without no waste of time schoolin'! My Pa taught me everythin' I need t'know, let all these whippersnappers' Mas and Pas teach 'em what they need t'know!"

The possibility of it existing alongside conventional schools appears in [at ;least: the first example that I could find] #910, in which a university has expelled a [formerly] home-schooled student as unsatisfactory after one term.

[Trotterdam]

e.g. #40, one option in which makes it the only form of schooling.

#64, too.

[The World Capitalist Confederation]

Thoughts on my issue?

viewtopic.php?f=13&t=463444

[The Super Fork]

I've been looking at flying cars recently, and I think it would be cool to have an issue regarding flying cars for very scientifically advanced nations. The issue would explore regulation of flying cars the policy changes needed to make them useable in a nation.

Is this idea too futuristic or is it feasible?

[USS Monitor]

I've been looking at flying cars recently, and I think it would be cool to have an issue regarding flying cars for very scientifically advanced nations. The issue would explore regulation of flying cars the policy changes needed to make them useable in a nation.

Is this idea too futuristic or is it feasible?

I'd be open to something with flying cars in it, but try not to make it just "flying cars: want or don't want?"

[Trotterdam]

Note that we already have issues about drones. While those are generally smaller than cars (not capable of carrying a person), that space does cover a lot of the questions that would come up with letting people own flying stuff.

[Noahs Second Country]

Are there any issues concerning an EU-like union? Is it a good idea to try and write one? It seems as if I try to pursue this topic it would require various follow up issues as well.

I haven't been around for a while but want to get back into this.

[Podium]

I'm in the middle of writing an issue that will (hopefully) do the rounds, but I've just noticed that I still don't have a title for my issue, and was hoping I could get some help here. The blurb reads as follows;

'A startling discovery in one of @@NAME@@'s cave systems has revealed a wide array of ancient artefacts dating to far before @@NAME@@ had even been founded, some of which give the scientists who uncovered them 'the heebie-jeebies'. Now, your ministers have (rather noisily) assembled before you to discuss.'

My idea was that these artefacts have _{SpOoKy MaGiC tHiNgS} that affect things around them in... interesting ways.

Any help can and will be appreciated.

[Autonomous Cleaner Bot Cleaners]

I understand that it's normal to keep issues somewhere in the neighborhood of modern tech, however, in light of a recent experiment that seemed to revive pig brain cells hours after death I'm thinking #626 might be due for some extensions. Fully conscious pig brains are way outside current technology (they think...), however there's all kinds of cool (read: nightmarish) issuespace between #626 and that point. Just one of the interesting questions is how government regulators impose limits on research involving people, but not necessarily on dead tissue samples, or at least not the same sort. So is a reanimated brain (to whatever extent) a person or a dead tissue sample?

Good ethical/scientific/political questions here.

Also, this will help me sneak up to the "iPear Assistant is made of people!" issue. It's organic!

[The Sherpa Empire]

I understand that it's normal to keep issues somewhere in the neighborhood of modern tech, however, in light of a recent experiment that seemed to revive pig brain cells hours after death I'm thinking #626 might be due for some extensions. Fully conscious pig brains are way outside current technology (they think...), however there's all kinds of cool (read: nightmarish) issuespace between #626 and that point. Just one of the interesting questions is how government regulators impose limits on research involving people, but not necessarily on dead tissue samples, or at least not the same sort. So is a reanimated brain (to whatever extent) a person or a dead tissue sample?

Good ethical/scientific/political questions here.

Also, this will help me sneak up to the "iPear Assistant is made of people!" issue. It's organic!

I think if the reanimated brain is conscious, it's obvious enough that's a person that an issue questioning it would be unbalanced.

If they just get a few neurons going off half-cocked without any consciousness, that's a more interesting question -- but be mindful of overlap with existing issues like 874.

[Candlewhisper Archive]

We do modernise issues.

Mobile Maladies, for example, was significantly revised to change it from concerns over radiation from phones (which was a big worry in the 80s and 90s) to worrying over excessive screentime and the death of social interaction, which is a much more modern anxiety over phones.

However, it's previously been not so much about adding new options for new technologies, and more about removing things which now seem out of date or dilemmas since solved with new technologies.

[Autonomous Cleaner Bot Cleaners]

I think if the reanimated brain is conscious, it's obvious enough that's a person that an issue questioning it would be unbalanced.

Maybe. On the other hand, there's been enough debate over whether a fully intact but vegetative person is still really "alive" too. A bucket brain just turns that question up to 11. I mean, it's just sitting there, so we really can't know, right...?

If they just get a few neurons going off half-cocked without any consciousness, that's a more interesting question -- but be mindful of overlap with existing issues like 874.

Hmm, #874 does have some potentially interesting implications. I'll hafta read it over a bit.

We do modernise issues.

Mobile Maladies, for example, was significantly revised to change it from concerns over radiation from phones (which was a big worry in the 80s and 90s) to worrying over excessive screentime and the death of social interaction, which is a much more modern anxiety over phones.

However, it's previously been not so much about adding new options for new technologies, and more about removing things which now seem out of date or dilemmas since solved with new technologies.

Oh, sorry. I did say "#626 might be due for some extensions" but I really just meant writing new issues given some outcome of #626 and the apparent IRL fact that bucket brains are one small step closer to reality. That's all.

[W1LLAN1A]

Could I write an issue based on another game? I was thinking that my issue that I'm going to write is based on the game "Papers, Please", so I wanna base it off from it.

[The Super Fork]

Inspired by the discussion in this thread: viewtopic.php?f=20&t=463737

Would an issue debating the merits of the 12 hour and 24 hour systems work?

[USS Monitor]

Could I write an issue based on another game? I was thinking that my issue that I'm going to write is based on the game "Papers, Please", so I wanna base it off from it.

You can get inspiration from anywhere as long as you NSify it enough so it fits in here.

Inspired by the discussion in this thread: viewtopic.php?f=20&t=463737

Would an issue debating the merits of the 12 hour and 24 hour systems work?

It might if it hasn't already been done.

[The Super Fork]

Inspired by the discussion in this thread: viewtopic.php?f=20&t=463737

Would an issue debating the merits of the 12 hour and 24 hour systems work?

It might if it hasn't already been done.

Did a search for "clock" and "time" and didn't find any conflicting issues. Will be posting draft shortly. (I was bored and wrote it anyway)

[Kurnugia]

Is there an Issue about food waste?

[Candlewhisper Archive]

Is there an Issue about food waste?

Yes to that one, though only indirectly - 546.
530.4 also references food waste in the effect line.

Helaw also has an issue in the staff folder which mentions food waste as a side effect of aesthetically imperfect foods being thrown away rather than sold.

If your'e doing an issue on food waste, I'd suggest focusing on one aspect of it rather than food waste as a hole, in order to minimise overlaps.

For example, you could do an issue about "buy one get one free" offers and the food waste they create, or an issue about fresh produce spoiling in hot climates because of poor transportation infrastructure, or the practice of putting "sell by" dates on food packaging.

[Bormiar]

Just an idea and I don't know if it's possible with the current set of issues and if it would disrespect a player's autonomy over their own nation.

After a successful moon landing, Dàguó has removed your nation's flag from the satellite’s rocky surface. Planetary expansionists and science fiction enthusiasts alike have gathered to demand military intervention.

Thanks guys!

Note: This is my first time ever even posting on this forum, so I don't know how my topic sentence is.

Also, I am able to submit an issue at any time via my nation Of Tommy or Monkeyss.

[Pogaria]

Could I write an issue based on another game? I was thinking that my issue that I'm going to write is based on the game "Papers, Please", so I wanna base it off from it.

Keep in mind that issue 950 already references that game:
https://forum.nationstates.net/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=88&start=50#950

Of course, you could write an issue that references different aspects of the game. Maybe something about whether border control officers should be issued weapons?

[Aingard]

Hello NS! First post here.
Anyone know if there's any Issue that deals with the perceived or real negative influence or a foreign media (specifically television) on your country's people?

[Candlewhisper Archive]

Hello NS! First post here.
Anyone know if there's any Issue that deals with the perceived or real negative influence or a foreign media (specifically television) on your country's people?

801 does this, in the context of surprisingly explicit Brancalandian anime on kids TV.

There's other angles possible, but avoid overlap with this one.

[Australian rePublic]

I was thinking about writing an issue for low tech countries (by which I mean, countries failing to use modern technology). This would be for two reasons:
1. Refusale to use modern technology (e.g. Amish)
2. Inability to afford modern technology

But I was wondering, if I take the former route, how I should work this. Should I treat it as if modern technology doesn't exist (save for an option where there's someone advocating for modern tech) or should I acknowledge the existence of modern tech exists and continue to disregard it?

If I go the later route, should I acknowledge that modern tech exists but @@NAME@@, but that @@NAME@@ can't afford it, or should I just ignore its existence