Intergalactic Summit

Good Caldari = Caldari who remember their people, the lower class, that which founds their State and allows the funding of their capsuleers. Caldari who contribute, who matter to mortals, their roots. Caldari who adapt and evolve over hiding behind methods that might have worked for them in the past.

Bad Caldari = The opposite. Those that hide behind their capsuleer titles. Those who see one man's (Heth's) crime and become so incredibly naive that they become puppets of the Caldari Elite. Those who only contribute pointless sarcasm over any form of constructive substance.

These are the things that inspire this Jaijii to serve.

It intrigues me how frequently sacrifice and the greater good are equated, and are held as being fundamentally opposed to the quest for wealth and power.

Yes heiian exists, but something that does not receive the same frequent attention is the notion that the greater good can in fact be served by becoming wealthy and powerful. Which really is the entire point behind the State's capsule training program and the reason the megacorps are willing to tolerate the existence of any breakaway Caldari freecaptains. They recognise what isn't often spoken aloud - that a powerful economic driver like a freelance capsuleer is, properly exploited, a powerful force for collective benefit in their own right. Indeed, that's the notion behind the megacorporations themselves.

One capsuleer's greedy and callous power-brokering is a multi-billion ISK industry, with all the associated jobs that such industries generate.

If you need proof of that, just look at Jita 4-4. how much money does the Navy make off taxes and service charges at that station? And that money flowing into the Navy benefits the State, the megacorporations and their citizens.

Capsuleers can paradoxically be "good Caldari" in the sense of contributing to the well-being of our people, by being "bad Caldari" in the sense of being solely self-interested.

Hung over, Anslo?

Caldari are about being Caldari. Tautological, I know, but a more in-depth examination of that thought would border on being an essay.

Our cultural independence is part of it, yes. Meritocracy is another. Then there's tradition, loyalty, industriousness, collectivism, Heiian, meritocracy, comradeship...

I don't think of it as a linear spectrum with "bad Caldari" at one end and "good Caldari" at the other, but more like a spiderweb graph. Speaking for myself I think I'm a very good Caldari in some areas, and a catastrophically bad one in others.

It's made all the more fuzzy by the way my definitions of "good" and "bad" in any given category may differ wildly from those of my countrymen. I tend to be of the opinion that it is a Caldari virtue to be intellectual, of inquiring mind and sharp insight. Others would have it that having faith in the intelligence of others while keeping your head down and working hard rather than smart is superior.

Anybody who claims to understand Caldari culture is lying. Especially if they are Caldari.

Oh, a network graph is an excellent idea for mapping cultural traits. I like that!

Funny enough a lot of the procurement and business intelligence classes I took at the Uni started off with a brief explanation about Caldari culture and history before moving on to business models.

Caldari culture and by proxy the Caldari as people were often painted ruthless, corporate, and uncaring.

I found the last thing to be very far from the truth.

The alternative is that they're mistaken.

But where are the relation heuristics? :(

Oh.

Ohh.

I could just make some.