CAoL (unofficial) Charter

(Originally posted by Roland and Morgan)

   Okay, we're more or less agreed that we need to be more flexible about "rules," and here we are trying to write a charter. 8^)
   My hunny gave me a brainstorm when she mentioned G'Kar, though; why not _let_ him write it? <G>s

   We said, quoting G'Kar, when we faced the Greys:
<<   R: "The universe speaks in many languages, but only one voice. The language is not Narn, or Human, or Centauri, or Gaim, or Minbari. It speaks..."

M: "It speaks in the language of hope, it speaks in the language of trust, it speaks in the language of strength, and the language of compassion. It is the language of the heart, and the..."

   R: "...and the language of the soul. But always it is the same voice. It is the voice of our ancestors speaking through us, and the voice of our inheritors waiting to be born. It is..."

M: "It is the small, still voice that says--

Both: "'we are one.'"

M: "No matter the blood--"

   R: "--no matter the skin--"

M: "--no matter the world--"

   R: "--no matter the star--"

Both: "--we _are_ one."

M: "No matter the pain--"

   R: "--no matter the darkness--"

M: "--no matter the loss--"

   R: "--no matter the fear--"

Both: "--we are _one!_"

M: "Here, gathered together in common cause, we agree to recognize this singular truth, and this singular rule, that we must..."

   R: "...that we must be _kind_ to one another. Because each voice enriches us and ennobles us, and each voice lost diminishes..."

M: "...diminishes us. We are the voice of the universe, the soul of creation..."

And again, the two immortals, each from a different world, a different time, a different reality, speak in unison:

"...the fire that will light the way to a better future. We are one. We are _one!_" >>

   This, IMHO, should be our only "charter." There are times when the discussions of what worked how become nitpicking, true...but eliminating them entirely is unfair to those who enjoy it, and it is sometimes educational. (I was struck by proverbial lightning today while reading "Quantum Reality," an event that may not have occurred without the constant barrage on knowledge gained from traveling with the CAoL.) There are times when arguments are divisive...and there are times when they are fun OOC and good for the character IC. (IMO we just need to be less sensitive about hurt feelings early rather than risking emotional nukes later, and say something right away when someone is about to cross the line. Again IMO, this is a mea maxima culpa.) There are times when all the cosmic, godlike power gets in the way...and times when all that cosmic godlike power is just plain _fun._ What we need isn't a more restrictive set of rules...what we need is greater balance, that's all.
   Sometimes the power needs to be toned down. Other times we need to let it run wild. There are times to argue and times to work together. There are times for discussing minutiae and times for jumping in feet first. But mostly, what we need is to have fun as much of the time as we can manage.
   Whew! That's _my_ rant for the night! <G>

Now it's Morgan's turn :-). I agree, a set of "rules" might end up causing more problems than it would be worth. A set of _guidelines_ and suggestions, however -- something for, as someone put it, new people to hang onto while they find their niche -- wouldn't be such a bad thing.

Let's start with, as G'Kar said, "Be _kind_ to one another." Reading Spider should be encouraged (and not just to potential members <g>), but Driscoll has been a contributing member for many months and is just now reading him. (NOTE: We later found out that Stranger, who _started_ this thread, hasn't read them, either.)

> * The Three Holy Words of any PBEM-type game:
> 1. Politeness
> 2. (Good) Spelling
> 3. (A Sense of) Humor

Referring to Scott's "PBEM Holy Words," "politeness" falls under the G'Kar Rule, and "good spelling" is optional (and leads to some great side threads, like the bra in that jail....). "A sense of humor" may or may not be argued to fall under "kindness," but probably wouldn't hurt to mention. Face it, folx, this game is _not_ for the thin skinned. Unfortunately, the medium seems almost designed to foster misunderstandings. We do our best, but we're human and mistakes happen.

Hmmm, "...And be kind to yourself." Don't let misunderstandings and hard feelings fester. Hey, maybe I should quote back all the advice people gave the newlyweds! :-)

OK, the Great and Profound Callahanian Army of Light Charter:

:-)