A Semi-Personal Statement on Cormac and the OFO’s Closure of Relations
Hey. As you’ve probably noticed, Osiris laid out a pretty harsh letter about Lazarus to every embassy in the game, and we’ve decided to briefly talk about how we feel about it.
We’re not going to write a whole, formal statement legitimizing what has been shown to be little more than an underhanded verbal attack on the character of our community, but we also feel the need to clarify a few things and, in particular, defend the image of a Lazarene who was wrongly accused of being the sort of player to invade a game-created region. So this isn’t a diplomatic statement as much as it is just how we feel on a more personal, non-political level.
So first of all, let’s get something clear: Osiris never reached out to Lazarus about the issues brought up in this statement. There was never an effort to consult us about concerns (if they truly exist) or to clarify whether or not their worries were based on facts. The claims about Lazarus “not ruling out” an attack on Balder are simply wrong – when asked about the source of this statement, Cormac cited Funkadelia’s comment that he might consider hostility towards Balder if the circumstances called for it. In the context of th econversation, he was referring to verbal hostility in the event that Balder sought to act aggressively towards Lazarus, not a reckless and destructive military assault against Balder. He clarified this after Cormac delivered all the statements, but this was ignored. Frankly, Funkadelia isn’t that kind of player, and we hope that those who are familiar with him will come out and support him against the attacks against his character and integrity as player that are part of this statement. Our regional military isn’t actually permitted to invade, so the claim is all the more outrageous.
We’re also a bit bothered that this was done during our delegacy elections, which Funkadelia is running in. While we don’t know whether or not it was intentionally meant to sabotage it, running an interregional campaign suggesting that he- the leading candidate at the time – supports invading a sinker is something that can change the outcome of our election, and thus our entire future.
While we’re not sure of that, we are of the opinion that the OFO’s statement is intended to attack Lazarus’ character. The language about the OFO being bothered by escalation, Funkadelia’s refusal to “rule out” an attack on Balder, and the OFO’s commitment to diplomatic goodwill are not consistent with the facts.
The escalation spoken of us is non-existent, and the PRL’s disagreements with imperialism pre-date the establishment of our embassy with Osiris. Cormac Stark and the OFO have been unable to provide concrete examples of escalation. If you don’t believe us, go ahead and ask him to provide you with one thing that Lazarus is doing towards imperialist regions now that it wasn’t doing when we opened relations with the OFO. Cormac has described us “extremists” who are so rabid in our opposition to imperialist policies that we are willing to threaten the sovereignty of a fellow sinker, but our choice to recognize the OFO because of its native support, despite its alignment, should make it clear that that is fundamentally untrue.
Even so, if an issue existed, or if Osiris felt concerned about Lazarus and its policies, a consultation with our foreign affairs officials would’ve quickly resolved any misunderstandings. But an intentional effort seems to have been made to avoid that productive discourse, and the result is the publication of libel against the Lazarene community. We do not think that that avoidance was a mistake, but, rather, we find the non-communication and tact of this statement to be in line with an agenda of sabotaging the Lazarene community’s public image.
That’s all we really have to say. We’ve had enough of having to defend ourselves and our region-mate from wild accusations, and we implore you to gain first-hand observation and to look beyond Cormac’s statement, and even this one, if you want to get an accurate picture of what happened. I do not believe that I am entirely right or wrong, and I do not believe that of Cormac either, but I do believe that a logical analysis of the OFO’s handling of its concerns, or its lack thereof, and the tact of this statement is consistent with an unfair assault on the character of our community.
Thank you for your time. Your consideration means a lot to us back in Lazarus.
~ Carta