knight of 6 wrote:Firstly thank you for posting this in an articulate and well reasoned manner.
while I don't think negotiations were perfect on either side, I will say that neither person is a diplomat by trade and these things happen.
idle and not so idle threats aside
Kane coming from a position on high isn't necessarily a good thing in this case. though he may very well have earned it. starting off negotiations from a position of superiority is unsavory. it's the sort of thing that makes the other person just wanna spite you which is naturally not the goal of a negotiation.
for me at least the negotiation boiled down to this: give us you districts and future channels might open or we will take your districts
well what is the value of the proposed future channels? is good (is it good?) footing with the imps worth it? STB loses the districts either way why wouldn't STB fight it out? also there is the question of the safety of future STB districts which Kane not-so-tactfully avoids, that was a major point of the negotiations, vaugeries like "there is a cool down" wont cut it, specifics were required. why would STB give up it's districts if the new ones earned were subject to the same fate a week later?
then there was the contract set at 50 mill a district, an answer was needed here. a polite no would have been fine really but some answer or written decline of the propose terms was necessary.
mistakes were made on both sides of the table. putting yourself in your enemies shoes might make their motives clear.
I'm no expert and i might have missed something if so please point it out,
ko6
The districts were to be given back once our uses for them were over if I'm reading the script right - it wasn't about setting up a proper relationship with STB - both sides knew that to be impossible from the level of egos involved. The point was so to quicken things - but QG stalled and insulted. At worst we would of given the districts contractors wanted and left - where you guys would have to deal with the new-comers by diplomacy or strong-arming them.
So there would of been no threat of re-imp invasion. But you guys forget we're a merc group first - if someone paid us enough you would be in jeopardy again - but so would any corp in PC. That's just how it is. You asking for a perma-defense from Imps is simply not possible. A grace period is the best that can be offered. And it would of been of pretty good length of time period too.
Everything would of been fine if QG hadn't opened his big mouth and insulted us where he thought we weren't looking. The Rap song didn't help much either. Imps are reasonable - until you "Spit" in there face as QG so elegantly puts it.