ABOUT THE POUCH

by the Interim Editor


Welcome to the Fall 2014 Retreat issue of The Pouch! Manus and Chris are both taking a well-deserved rest and, like you, I look forward to their return with lots of new ideas and enthusiasm for TDP. In the meantime I have stepped in as Interim Editor for two issues. It seemed like a good mitzvah and an appropriate way to celebrate my 50 years in the hobby and celebrate TDP�s 20th birthday, so here I am.

Since we missed the last issue we decided to make up for it by making this a double issue. A lot of people put a lot of effort into bringing you something special. We hope you appreciate it and if you do we hope you�ll thank us by sending something for our next, 20th birthday special issue.

Old time readers of TDP will see some familiar topics and contributors to the zine. What would TDP be without Sherlock Holmes? Mario has a new chapter in the popular series and he and Graeme worked together on a variant that came about because of an encounter Holmes had with Karl Marx. We�ll pause to remember that WWI commemorates its 100th anniversary this year and what that should mean for Dippers. The hot new thing in Dip is MeetUp and we�re on top of it with three stories with contributions from five MeetUp fans. Everybody has a Dip game or two, right, but 17??? Guess who? Peter Koch takes three words on Smyrna and Larry Peery spins it into 36 pages of Peeriblah; and you might actually find it interesting, or you might not if you never opened A Smyrna - Syria. Alex Hartl argues the merits of Russia moving on Silesia in 1901, BOUNCED gets a promo from Toby Harris, WDC 2015 and San Marino Con hitches a ride in Europe�s �in� Dip spot, Baron Powell Defends France, Stan Johnson reprises his article on Germany from DW #68, and lots more to inform and entertain you.

We�re already at work on the December issue of The Pouch and hope you�ll want to be a part of it. Here are some ideas that we hope will get your creative juices flowing and your fingers clicking: 20 Best From the First 20 Years! Help us find the best articles in TDP�s past by sending us your favorites list; Just for fun send us a list of things you�ve had and used for the last 20 years, Judge fans and other computer Dip fans tell us, will robots replace humans at DipCons in the next 20 years?, what real diplomats from the last 20 years would you like to play Dip with and why? (Warning: Sylvio Berlusconi and Kim Jong Un are early favorites.) are some of our ideas. Let�s see yours and your work. Oh, and do it soon because this is a short deadline. Next up, what you�ve all dreaded: my editorial!

Enjoy the Pouch!



Larry Peery
The Interim Editor
([email protected])

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