Intergalactic Summit

She made agreeable noises at the argument, not the person making it. You are very focused on who makes arguments rather than the arguments themselves sometimes. That said, if it's about who makes the arguments, am I partisan? Well I have a great deal more experience with the Empire than you, both intimate and distanced at that. I've come to this position as a result of that, so like it or not, agree with it or not, it's a reasoned and valid viewpoint with a whole lot of backing.

You can call that 'partisan' if you wish, but that's not going to make it go away nor invalidate it.

Heh. Huffy.

Well-- and even if they all got wiped out at some point, a generation or two down the line there'd probably be another crop.

Only, the thing is, Sani Sabik seems like one of those belief systems that would tend to attract ambitious, impatient people. It might teach subtlety, but I'm not sure it's much for nuance.

That would probably make it tricky to stay hidden in the long run.

So, on the one hand, technically true. On the other, Sani Sabik in positions of power seem to tend to reveal themselves by being awful to people; Sani Sabik isn't considered "dark" just because of the drapery, and seems a little unlikely to appeal to people uninterested in wielding and abusing their power freely.

Also, this line of evidence-free theorizing kind of smacks of ... well ... scratching your own back for no other reason than because it feels nice.

("Maybe we secretly run the WHOLE WORLD!" [insert wild cackling here])

Uh ... actually, no. It wouldn't. It'd be extremely boring.

More specifically, it'd be hard to tell the difference between that world and the way the more cynical sort of political observer already thinks the world works.

The power structures of this world already appeal strongly to ruthless people who like gathering and nurturing power for its own sake. That doesn't mean that everyone has Sani Sabik as leaders, but there are probably a lot of leaders whose personal values are a little ... Sani Sabik-ish. Possibly the main difference between the a gathering of the NOH board of directors as it currently stands (it's a "Practical" corporation, which, in the State, basically means "unprincipled and horrible") and the NOH board of directors staffed with Sani Sabik would be how the room's decorated and what's in the punch.

Add in the point that there's absolutely no rule Sani must or even should work together, and....

What's troublesome to me about the Sani Sabik cults is that they validate that sort of thing as something admirable. And ... sufficient, spiritually. Power is important, sure, but it's not everything. Sometimes I wish I didn't have as much as I do.

(Servant, so, not powerful, but, also, capsuleer, so, scarily powerful.)

There's so much more to the world.

The world being ruled by people who thought power was the only thing that really mattered would be just kind of sad.

With the disparate groups of Sani Sabik out there I would see little more in political fiefdoms then domination of the cluster.

However, I have come across a few individuals who espoused a secret governments under the influence of Sani Sabik sects. Those who principally relied the power that ISK has.

As a result you don't have the CONCORD mandated models, but rather some lurking in the hallowed halls of those ivory towers held dear by each faction.

This goes back to the earlier discussions about Revan and Silas, two Sani Sabik who essentially operated without fear of faction or Alliance. They are certainly worth the study beyond their combat records.

Obviously in studying their successes, one must also study why they no longer exists.

My teachers, successful in the ways of the Sani Sabik were also mindful of such "secret societies" and I think that is what concerned them the most. When some sort of neophyte would make mentioned of the, they would be easily dismissed and the tone of the conversation would change.

Considering their own personal concerns of my teachers. They suspected that there was something more sinister than they hidden somewhere in the dark. Though the evidence for such was elusive.

I would be very interested in your thoughts regarding this topic. After you had some strong opinions.

Perhaps you have changed your mind about Empress Jamyl?

Are you implying that she will resurrect again in time of Empire's need?

Somehow I imagined that there is a hidden deadspace complex somewhere that houses an outpost-shrine holding rows of cryo-pods containing the frozen bodies of Empress Jamyl Sarum. On each and every pod there will be a pick, a hammer, and a sign that reads, "Break glass in time of the Empire's greatest need".

Well, consider the Scriptures.

"The Wrath of God is Immense. His Justice is Swift and Decisive. His Tolerance is Limited."

"Which test reveals more of the soul, the test that a man will take to prove his faith, or the test that finds the man who believed his faith already proven? If you know this answer, then you also know which of these challenges bear the greatest penalty for failure."

One could quite easily say that the collapse of the Takmahl Empire, was due to a collective failure of the Takmahl to strive for real greatness.

By contenting themselves with relatively petty power struggles, they neglected to, oh I don't know, construct an orbital laser based asteroid defence network.

And lo, the Hammer of God, struck them down for their hubris.