Hey all. Figured I'd suggest that everyone ought to check out Internet Relay Chat (IRC) as a means to communicate with other Particracy players in real time for free.
It's fairly simple to use. Just go to http://esper.net and click "Chat Now" on the top right. Alternatively, you should be able to link directly to the room you're interested by clicking below. Choose your nickname and join any of the channels listed below to chat about Particracy!
If the above method does not work, you may try accessing via Mibbit's chat client. To use Mibbit, go to http://mibbit.com and scroll to the bottom. Click "Chat Now" and where it asks for a name and channel name first click "Server" above and enter irc.esper.net then your desired username and #Particracy for the channel. Should let you in, I was able to get in this way.
Feel free to let me know about channels you're using and what they're used for, and I'll add them to the list!
Channels in use (alphabetical):
#Particracy - General Particracy discussion