"I've followed the gridcosm saga on and off for some time now. I know about Moxie-ing and pity levels and blending vs mirroring vs collision montage. Currently I am inclined to believe that the grid has constructed a very good simulation of the Middle East, where vastly different agendas and opinions compete for arbitrarily divided territory in a space that's too small to begin with."

The novel by Orson Scott Card. Have you read it?