What you talking about?
Rat races; it's predetermined that the fatter rat outruns the weaker rat, yet both exert an astronomical level of effort, all for a tiny bit of cheese that won't even make up for all the running.
With more peaceful mergers, every next Strat round becomes more like a rat race.
You guys should hate each other more. It would make lurking Diplomacy more enjoyable, and with more small rather than a few large factions, it's less obvious who is gonna win. I thought NA Strat is better than EU Strat. Try not to form an NA UIF please.