Playing The Game Of Living
(S.O.S. from KingArthur.com)

Click here to start the soundtrack S.O.S. From KingArthur.com. (MIDI Format) (lyrics)

The time is sometime in the future. How far in the future? That is part of the problem... we do not know.

The situation: players of an interactive game stumble upon a disturbing discovery.

The place(s) and players are several: a few players live in or near major metropolitan areas along the U.S. Eastern Seaboard.

One player (Screen name: The Doctor) had been living in NYC. The Human Viri game (West Nile in this case) and the Y2K game had convinced this player to get out of town prior to terror attacks by other teams. This player escaped before Sept. 11th and now plays from a foreign country. The player's extraordinary expertise is in governance (including security and defense.) The player is on the Buddhist team.

Another player (Self Imposed Discipline Distortion, Screen name: sidd) is a computer wizard and scientist doing research work at a university. The player is on the Godless Heathen team.

There is a player (Screen name: Econome) who is an economist doing both academic and practical work. The player is on the WASP team.

Some players work to fund the game (primarily from the R&D of the game trials. These activities most often take place between NYC and DC.)

Some players are in pursuit of other scientific and/or artistic "applications for economics." (For instance, one player is a Russian musician trying to pay for his dream game by working on a merchant ship... currently frequenting ports in China during an outbreak of a strange new virus... making the Viri games all the more serious.)

And, a wide variety of other players live throughout the world (you will get to know them later.)

The opening scene:

One of the players, Econome, believes he/she has found a disturbing discovery:

"The economic experiment I've been working on all these years is called, The Golden Rule's Social Justification. I originally believed we had 3 more generations before we got to the point-of-know-return.... before the justification.

However, sidd, has pointed out (with his pointy head) that my new theory must be valid. In an email (that I sent out to Sarah about John Nash's work in economics) sidd figured out the "check" on my secret experiment.

In other words, the best responses of all players are in accordance with each other.

To which sidd replies:

"heehee reminds me of the law of chemical equilibrium -- Le Chatelier's Principle

or the golden rule...."

"YES! Exactly. Exactly as I feared. Someone please prove me wrong. Because if this is true, the justification to equilibrium is likely to transpire faster than originally calculated."

[Econome franticly searches for a player that can dispute the findings.]

"Now what? The player I thought would prove me wrong... instead says:

there is the Buddhist concept of the law of cause and effect

unlike older linear style science, the effect is NOT always exactly equal and opposite, - and effects or reactions can be latent or manifest (hit ya now, or hit ya later), etc

Dag-nab-it! The Godless Heathen proves the point... the Buddhist backs him up. Egadz! Can someone show me a way out of this? You guyz were my best bet... my last hope. Can someone please prove this WASP wrong? I wish this Golden Rule gone!

But, instead you tell me the WASPs don't have a monopoly on "a side" of the Golden Rule. The rule seems to be applied to the other teams in exactly the same way as it applies to my team?"

[wheels spin in Econome's pea brain]

"Here I've wasted my time trying to find a way to avoid the inevitable consequences of the Golden Rule.

Not only that... but the other teams... well... are you telling me the Golden Rule applies to your team in the same way it does to mine?

Hmmm... if we are on different teams... wouldn't the rule distinguish our teams? How can we have the same goal and be on different teams?

Noooo... it couldn't be possible that... that it is because... we are actually on the same team?

Argh, crap... I ain't never thought of that.

Hey! No wonder we are getting so good at the game. I mean... are we scoring goals for them or us? I sure hate it when I score goals for the other team.

That means... if our plan to destroy "the other" team succeeds, we will actually be defeating ourselves?

Waaaa....
If we only had more time... had we really been on three different teams, we might have had 3 generations of time left in the game. That ain't what I'm seein'.

You see... though the losing team of players would have been eliminated from this game, there would have been other teams left... with players to form new teams. Now that all known players are on the same team, that is no longer possible if all players are eliminated.

So, we are lucky if there is 1 more generation left.

I think it would be prudent for all game players to assume that this is The Last Game... unless someone can think of a solution?

Can you save our players from their fate? Can you tell us an economical way to stop the elimination of all the players... before their time is up?

$10,000 REWARD
(But, you've got to bring them back alive!)

If you can solve our problem, we will give you $10,000 USD. Mind you, we don't know the answer. However, we must find a solution. Therefore, we'd gladly give you $10,000 as a token of our appreciation.

Other prizes and trinkets will be given out to those who make "a good attempt." In the event that the $10,000 is dispersed through "good attempts," the prize money will be increased to $100,000 USD. (The original prize money was $100. The next gift was for $1,000. It, too, has been dispersed. Each time the money is given away the decimal point moves one place to the right.)

Since the sponsors of the prizes do not know the answer, they are also eligible for the prize money. In fact, everyone is eligible for the grand prize. No purchase is necessary because no purchase is possible. Children should obtain permission from their parents before they enter their personal information. Void where prohibited.

Here are some things you will need to know:

1. My original suggestion: a moratorium on human killing (at least for one day.)
2. I Am A Philosopher
3. The Golden Rule Of Social Justification

   This rule applies to all players and states:

   If responses of all players are not in accordance with each other, then all players on that team will be eliminated.

4. Exactly What Econome Feared

5. Who Is On What Team

6. The Letter To Sarah

7. The Sarah Check

8. What Is A Non-cooperative Game?

9. Hints, Clues & Things To Do

10. Things We Know That Won't Work So Swell

11. The $100 Answer

12. The $1,000 Answer

13. Why Love Won't Work & the Staying Alive Survival Guide

14. The Sleeping Giant Vs. The Ghost In The Machine