Little Black Box

This is an introduction to a theory handed down to me from above, or up from below. It started as a black spec on a rational, decent, and unassuming brain. It developed into a tumor on a diseased, grotesque, and highly unorthodox mind.

But all that is part of a fantastic and ghostly narrative of the past. My task now is to find my redemption, to free myself from the unhappy shackles fate has cast upon me by outlining this theory, this confusing parable.

The irony of it all is the nature of the theory. It is a theory of games.


In the beginning there was the roll of the dice: the winner, the loser, the impetus for a world of wonder.

Fast forward to 2010… We are fallen, o so fallen. Crack whores are walking the streets; junkies are spurting blood on the ceiling. A couple brothers play craps in the alleyway while whitey is in the casino betting it all on black. Wall Street executives are hedging the bets and minimum wage workers are struggling to get laid. We’re all hustlers looking to make the impossible play for a shot at the American dream. We all want a taste of the good life, of Sodom’s deliciously evil desserts.

God may have created the world, but we, his slaves, have erected and mounted the Tower of Babel while he slept and it is beautiful because it is ours. My fellow humans, friends, confidants, conspirators, and compatriots, lend me your ears and loan me your hearts for I have come to finish that so lovely edifice of Babel, even if it be a psychological or metaphysical Babel (what a future!).

I present to you the IPP, the Irreplaceable Proposition of Perfection, or the Inverse Pyramid of Perfection, if you will. It is simple and completely true.

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/files/440e5967075d1677.bmp[/atsimg]

What this diagram represents is life as a game, one that can be mastered and played in a perfect way that’s proven to be objectively valid. Let’s define the curious words “life” and “game”.

Life – A giant game consisting solely of smaller games.

Game – Any circumstance between a player, or person, and an objective world where there can be said to exist a harmony or interconnectedness (in order for a person or object to exist in any meaningful sense it’s nature must be related to the nature of something else A+B=C).

In diagram 1 each block of the inverse pyramid is a game as is each level of the pyramid as is the entire pyramid. Therefore, there are three separate dimensions to consider. To the left the levels are numbered from 0 to 4 in this miniature version, 0 to 20 in a full size representation. To the right is an arrow pointing upward towards the wider section of the pyramid indicating increased perfection. Downward is a decreased state of perfection.

On the right side of the diagram itself a thick black line separates the games numbered 1-5 from those represented by roman numerals. This line is termed the “abyss” because it separates the real blocks from the imaginary.

This was a topographical overview. Next are the rules and strategy.

Rules:

1. Any circumstance in life where the dominant objective reality is questionable can be correctly ordered by placing it in terms of a larger or smaller game.
2. Any game or collection of games that is imperfect (not perceived as totality) must be part of a larger game, thus on a higher level of perfection.
3. Since highest perfection (higher levels) is the ultimate goal, a player’s status in all individual games will always be judged by their overall level of play. It follows that a loss for a smaller game may be a win for a larger game.

4. All players must be distributed among the levels such that they form a bell-shaped curve. Most players will be in the mid levels while the fewest will occupy the highest and lowest levels. Content of games on the mid levels will be normalized and (assuming a full 20 level diagram) the content of levels 11-20 past the midpoint will be defined based on “Rule 5”.
5. For a player to achieve a higher level they must be fully invested in their imaginary block and at least 2 other players must agree that the investment constitutes a new level. After these 2 criteria are met that player’s Imaginary Block becomes the Real Blocks of the higher level signifying a change in perception and an additional Real Block is added.


Strategy:

The normative strategy for playing and winning this game is loss management. It is impossible to win a game 100% of the time past the first block and lowest level because the higher you go the more simultaneous games are being played with a limited amount of resources.

Diagram 2 shows a player’s investment on level 1’.

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/files/b1125798073ef100.bmp[/atsimg]

Each player has 100 units of investment to spread throughout their games. Here the player’s investment is spread evenly throughout the Real and Imaginary blocks of level 1’.

There is a perfect relationship between investing and time and investing and winning. Investment = Time so all of one’s investment units are always in play, whether that investment is spread throughout 2 games or 10 is up to the player. Winning = Investment so one always win’s a game by the proportion of their investment in that game (In the above diagram the player is 50% invested in Real Block I and Imaginary Block 2 so he is winning half of Real Game I and half of Imaginary Game I). If the player were on level 2’ instead of level 1’ and they were evenly invested throughout their games they would be 33% invested in Real Games I and II and Imaginary Game 3. On level 10’ they would be 10% invested in each game. The only difference between level 2’ and 10’ is the person on 10’ plays eight more games and loses a much higher percentage of each game. He is therefore more perfect partially because he has a higher proclivity for losses.

It is important to keep in mind what was stated in Rule 3. If a player on level 1’ is 60% invested in Real game I and winning that individual game against a player on level 10’ who is only 5% invested it is because the player on level 10’ is invested throughout more games. The players on the highest levels will win less and yet be the most perfect.

Summary: With each new step up the pyramid a player will (because of limited investment unites) be winning individual games at a lower percentage while losing individual games at a higher percentage. For this reason, loss management is a greater skill in playing the ultimate game than is win management.

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/files/c92d23c7883d7b53.bmp[/atsimg]

Diagram 3 shows the imaginary blocks and the Abyss line. The only way to progress levels is by investing in these games. They represent the unknown harmonies, or games, and filling these blocks determines how much chaos a player’s current level is in.

If a player wishes to always remain on their current level of games they need not invest past the abyss. This would insure the maximum potential for equilibrium on their level because all investment is contained within the Real Blocks which are played as if they were the totality of all possible games. Such strategy provides maximum equilibrium and no chaos, but the player is fated to always be playing the same number of games.

Investing past the abyss and into chaos will always damage real investments. It can only benefit a player if they can meet the requirements to progress to the next level (Rule 5). If they progress to the next level all real investments become equal and they are in a state of equilibrium.





This has been a basic lessen on how to conquer life in the physical domain. You have all been very privileged and my charity work is over.

Thanks but i like crack whores and Call of duty 4 is waaayyy better

reply to post by zaiger


Man, typical Zaiger

Classy guy - personally I prefer Baldur's Gate and Ladies of the night, perhaps I'm a refined English gent?



reply to post by AProphet1233


Aww dude, "Seasons In The Abyss" is one of my favourite Slayer albums.



[edit on 14/5/1010 by jokei]

Let's see. My preferences include: crack whores (of coarse), imagining that drinking whiskey is healthy for me by killing stomach bacteria, smoking to fumigate my soul, and I'm awfully partial to long walks on the beach.