Lord Parkin
aka emperor
Hmm, I half-agree with you, but I think the solution you propose is a bit too rigid and extreme. (Also, I hope we won't still be playing in 2011 or beyond. )
Part of the point of going to pitboss instead of PBEM isn't just the speed factor - it also helps a huge amount in getting rid of disputes over wars, because no-one has any possibility of being accused of reloading (i.e. cheating). I've been around democracy games for a number of years now, and one thing I've noticed is that regardless of whether or not anyone actually cheats, there are frequently accusations of cheating, which can cause a great deal of unnecessary bitterness (and can sometimes kill games). So it's no small thing that pitboss removes the possibility for accusations of cheating in wartime. (Well, except for double moves, but at least those are easily detectable - unlike reloads in PBEMs.)
Anyway, I'm still in agreement that we need to reduce the number of unnecessary pauses, but I don't think it's quite necessary to institute a rigid policy such as you suggest.
Part of the point of going to pitboss instead of PBEM isn't just the speed factor - it also helps a huge amount in getting rid of disputes over wars, because no-one has any possibility of being accused of reloading (i.e. cheating). I've been around democracy games for a number of years now, and one thing I've noticed is that regardless of whether or not anyone actually cheats, there are frequently accusations of cheating, which can cause a great deal of unnecessary bitterness (and can sometimes kill games). So it's no small thing that pitboss removes the possibility for accusations of cheating in wartime. (Well, except for double moves, but at least those are easily detectable - unlike reloads in PBEMs.)
Anyway, I'm still in agreement that we need to reduce the number of unnecessary pauses, but I don't think it's quite necessary to institute a rigid policy such as you suggest.