NationStates Jolt Archive

I have noted a few threads concerning wording in proposals with much interest.
Since it seems that wording seems to be a bone of contention,perhaps a stickied thread highlighting proposals that are well written and contain "proper" language might be appropriate.
There are some of us in the UN who work hard on proposals on our own(without submitting them here) that it would benefit.

And if there is such a thread I would appreciate being directed to it.

Well, the obvious first suggestion would be to post drafts anyway: I couldn't hope to describe in mere words the amount of contempt you have for people who post in the UN forum, but some of them might produce the occasional helpful comment.

There have been threads of the general sort you're describing - the proposals they link to are almost universally ones drafted through extensive UN forum discussion - but they're a bit out of date. Furthermore, there is no formal rule regarding proposal language: you are entirely correct to enclose 'proper' in sneer quotes, for there is no such concept. A proposal can be well written without REALIZING and OBSERVING and LYING THROUGH ITS TEETH.

So I'm not sure such a compendium of good proposals could really be produced, because there would be so much disagreement about what constitutes a well-drafted proposal (particularly given some authors liked to leave nations quite a lot of leeway in interpreting their resolutions while some did not; it would be a valid, but not a necessarily very relevant, criticism to say that some of PC's resolutions weren't very strongly binding - but it would only be a criticism if one, as he did not, wished them to be very strongly binding in the first place).

Awwww but think of the fun it will deny all the grumpies out there! Where is the joy in the UN if one cannot uplift an otherwise humdrum existence by picking on other delegates lack of appreciation of the finer points of proposal presentation?

Perhaps it would be helpful to have a compendium of proposals that show how not to draft ... oh, wait (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=397276) ....

Seriously, though, the Silly Proposals thread is probably the best way to learn the finer points. Studying successful ones is supposed to be good, too (but don't study the Necrophilia one! Don't! It's wrong! It's evil! Even though it is well drafted! Even though Karmicaria persuaded everyone else to vote for it!).... (takes meds) ... ah, yes, where were we ...

QoD's suggestion is spot on. For people too shy to let their brainchild be savaged in this forum, there are the offsites.

Finally: pick up an intelligent opponent or two. Imagine them, if you have to. Then re-read your proposal as if they were out to get you. Make sure you've subverted their politics, frustrated their knavish tricks and closed any technical loopholes (such as wrong category, wrong strength, too long, etc).

And always stand them a drink in the Strangers' Bar afterward. It is a game, after all.