things looking grim from '01

I think a moderated group would be just as dead as this
unmoderated one; the only way to get signal is to write
some.  Removing noise doesn't actually help if there is
no signal.

In the spirit of that:

Every once in a while I have a game where I know from 
the initial round of negotiations that I'm in really
bad trouble.  A nice set of alliances has fallen together
and it doesn't include me, and no amount of '01 negotiation
seems likely to change anyone's mind.  People aren't
listening anymore; they have to get going with their 
plans (we play on a tight clock locally) and those plans
seem to involve my immediate demise.

What are strategies to use in that situation?  I observe
that players who give up and roll over are invariably
rolled over, and that the really good players can sometimes
pull out a good result from games like this.  I know I
should be postponing my tactical destruction as best I can on
the board.  But what are the diplomatic strategies, other
than looking for and exploiting fault lines in the enemy
alliances?

Mary Kuhner mkkuhner@[EMAIL PROTECTED]