Balance of Power (Sign Up/Rules/Commentary Thread)

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

I'll take Russia.

BTW that map definitely isn't from 1901 (actually I'm pretty sure it's anachronistic in several points). This is better, open in a new tab for a larger/less blurry version (except in 1901 southern Sakhalin and Port Arthur were actually under Russian control):

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

Question: I sent my responses to the three questions to Lumine and Windjammer via PM. Was I supposed to do this or was I supposed to post them openly in the thread?

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

I've liked it.

And yeah, before you even joined the game Britain and I were colluding to destroy Turkey.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

Oh, for a hour of Washington in these dark times!  It was bad enough when McKinley sought to crucify our farmers and laborers upon a cross of gold, but now he seeks to crucify our young men upon a cross of steel.  And as if that were not cruel enough, he does not seek to do so because of any puffed-up insult to our great republic, but seeks to embroil us in a foreign war in the service of foreign princes and potentates!  Shall we meekly accept the vinegary wine of foreign submission that McKinley proffers us upon a soaked sponge as King, Kaiser, Kaliph, and Mikado cast lots for our cloak?  I say no and I devoutly pray that our Congress denies our war-mongering Princeling the Declaration of War he seeks!

I was going to say that Congress still has to declare war.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

We see that the decision to drag America into foreign conflicts it has no business in has attracted opposition within Mr. McKinley's own country. Perhaps it is time for him to negotiate out of this before his party collapses in the coming election?

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

Just for fun.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

I suppose carving up and colonizing our motherland could produce "peace" in some twisted way.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

I am eagerly anticipating an opportunity to continue the successful defense of Mother Russia.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

SnowstalkerKalwejt, clarence, spamage, Cranberry, SJoyce, and Oldiesfreak received yet another stay of execution

ftfy

And I have a few tricks up my sleeve for the next turn.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

It appears that fears that the war we inserted ourselves into would be without any benefit to us was unmerited.  In exchange for placing our men and ships at the service of the Kaliph, we've gotten not one, but two, shiny medals.  No doubt every American heart will be bursting with pride over the medals our president and his heir presumptive have received in exchange for providing the Turks with American janissaries.

If we must go to war, it would be nice to have our blood and money being spent to further American goals rather than those of the Kaliph and the Mikado.  The president speaks of the influence we gain by sending our brave young men to die in foreign wars, yet what concrete benefits can he point to? This most recent war has demonstrated that even our associates act in their own self-interests rather than those of their alleged allies.  Even if by some mischance we needed their assistance in this hemisphere, there is no reason to think they will provide it unless they can wring some advantage out of it for themselves.

I actually offered up the Commander Islands in earlier negotiations if the US left the war, but it seems like I'm keeping them.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

When will Cranberry be back to take control of Germany?

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

Portuguese-speaking Greeks?

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

The German plan is absurd. To suggest that Serbia and Montenegro would be "happy" to lose their sovereignty, even though they are both still fully intact, is utterly absurd, and to suggest that they would not cause minority problems in the same way that annexing a sliver of Western Ukraine would is even more so. I don't know if the Germans are lying or just that dense. We have a duty to protect our allies, the ones we forced to fight alongside us, and unless they have both been completely conquered there is no way to enforce the treaty on them.

I plainly do not want the war to continue. It is the Germans who have threatened us with breaking the ceasefire if we do not accept their terms without question--even though we had agreed to collaborate on any peace treaty that was ultimately signed.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

The German plan is absurd. To suggest that Serbia and Montenegro would be "happy" to lose their sovereignty, even though they are both still fully intact, is utterly absurd, and to suggest that they would not cause minority problems in the same way that annexing a sliver of Western Ukraine would is even more so. I don't know if the Germans are lying or just that dense. We have a duty to protect our allies, the ones we forced to fight alongside us, and unless they have both been completely conquered there is no way to enforce the treaty on them.

I plainly do not want the war to continue. It is the Germans who have threatened us with breaking the ceasefire if we do not accept their terms without question--even though we had agreed to collaborate on any peace treaty that was ultimately signed.

You agreed with this plan, and then you changed your mind.

Yes, because I thought about it and realized how little it made sense.

(note: I accidentally posted this here and not in the war thread).

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

I'm fully aware that I'm not going to win this war; what I'm doing is trying to negotiate a sensible peace treaty, not delay the game. That's merely an unfortunate side-effect.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

But it was anything but for our allies. I've already responded to the "changing my mind" nonsense but you appear to be either incredibly dense or a broken record disguised as a poster.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

Thank you, Lumine

Snowstalker, honestly, you're not going to get a better deal. Germany's determination is very clear and you don't have much leverage.

And btw, I did message you some time ago and said I can try to help you two negotiate a deal, but you ignored me, so I'm simply done. We are at peace, so I won't declare war on you, but I will give every diplomatic and political support to my German allies I can.

I don't remember receiving a message like that.

I would simply point out how nonsensical the idea of annexing Serbia is and how many issues it would cause Austria regardless of how much autonomy you gave them. I've pointed out all the basic issues with it--because it's bad for both us and Austria--but windjammer has failed to give an intellectual response to any of them other than parroting his talking points, of which I've thoroughly debunked all of them. The German plan is clear; propose an unacceptable or irrational peace, force us to continue to fight and lose ground, and eventually force us past the Urals and have all of Europe bow to the Hohenzollerns.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

I'm beginning to doubt your reading comprehension skills (or more likely, how much you care what I have to say). The German attitude towards these negotiations has been consistently despicable from the beginning.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

Thank you, Lumine

Snowstalker, honestly, you're not going to get a better deal. Germany's determination is very clear and you don't have much leverage.

And btw, I did message you some time ago and said I can try to help you two negotiate a deal, but you ignored me, so I'm simply done. We are at peace, so I won't declare war on you, but I will give every diplomatic and political support to my German allies I can.

I don't remember receiving a message like that.

I'm going to give you a benefit of bad memory

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Again, first you committ yourself, they you pull Mitt Romney. No credibility.

Because I legitimately thought about the issue and changed my mind because I believe the proposal is unfeasible? I don't see the problem with this.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

Stop dwelling on the past and start working towards a reasonable peace now. And my "okay" was at most tentative.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

OOC: Woodrow Wilson didn't even hold elected office until 1911.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

Aaaand we might just get a last-minute compromise. I'm sure the negotiations can spill over into the next turn though.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

Aaaand we might just get a last-minute compromise. I'm sure the negotiations can spill over into the next turn though.

Another days of delay. Great...

No delay. This is in regards to the compromise idea I sent to you.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

Question of clarification: Am I currently negotiating for peace with windjammer or Cranberry?

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

Poland is a kingdom within the German Empire, I thought?