I humbly submit the following bill for a "Historic Original Region Governance Act," the link to and overview of which can be found below.
"This Act provides for the custody and administration of the historic original Social Liberal Union region and its respective founder nation to assure their long-term preservation and to protect them against loss or misuse."
A haggard looking man with immense dark circles under his eyes shuffles slowly behind an ornate wooden podium. Both have seen better days. The man coughs once, sending an uncomfortable wave of static through the microphone and speaker system. The buzz of excited speculation, questions, and the clatter of cameras taking photos reaches a crescendo, and then quickly die down. The throng of reporters visibly leans forward, hopeful of being the first to relay a sensational story.
The man in front awkwardly tugs at his creased clothes, mostly grey, with a dozen coffee stains, pulling them back up onto his limp left shoulder, from which they were in grave risk of falling. He coughs again before beginning to mumble his hastily assembled speech at a speed entirely at odds with his appearance and general demeanor.
"...Good morning all, we have a lot of get through today, so I hope you will all be patient as I come to each matter in turn."
Another cough, and another, bending the frail frame of the short figure almost double, and dislodging the recently placed jacket from its temporary seat. The hacking abaited as suddenly as it came on, and before the assembled crowd had time to notice him stand back up, he resumed his speech at the prior lightning pace.
"Firstly, the bit I know you all are least anticipating, domestic legislative options schedules for votes will be released at midday tomorrow, including the regulatory loop..." cough "...hole concerning production of novel consumer goods using untested materials, for which there are six proposals; four proposals about transitory movement of live cargo; and a single joint proposal between two parties on the ongoing matter of land provision with new housing with all others in opposition"
At this point the man took an exaggerated breath, and a swig from a flask that he had somehow smuggled into his hand and unscrewed whilst speaking, all unnoticed. A few drops more lookwarm coffee dribbled off his chin and onto his untidy clothing.
"Secondly, on ministerial overreach, actions will be announced, including the mandatory recall referenda within the next month. All ministers, at every level, have been reminded that their job is to administer the will and principles voted on by the leysan peoples and not to impose their own will"
Another cough, another swig, and then a huge sigh. The man appears to shrink, and the previous air of confidence, competence, and no-nonsence rapidity vanishes as though it had never existed
"Now, for the more difficult matters"
What had been a mumble was now barely audible. What had been said impossibly quickly was now picked over in the manner of a child with food they disliked. The previously controlled expression of the man was now the deepest and most concerned frown anyone had ever seen from him. He looked on the verge of tears. Quite how such a transformation had occured so rapidly could only be explained in the context of the air in the room, which now hung dark, and heavy, mirroring the speaker at the room's head.
"I shall come to the terrorism in a moment. Before I do, I have been asked by Majar to publicly announce our responses to several points within her field of expertise. I will address the food situations within our allies, The council Repubic of North American Republics, and the Commune of Ramelia. It is unacceptable that anyone should be left without sufficient food, least of all, those persuing an egalitarian course. Though we are few in number compared to either nation, we will none the less continue to supply what surplus food we can. In addition we will be sending teams to Ramelia, to help build sustainable vertical farms, with rapidly growing seeds for a variety of crops, which will hopefully allow their people greater food security and independence in future. The same offer is extended to the North American Republics, should they wish it."
"Next, on the situation in An-Astral, and this one will be brief, we are continuing to wait, despite multiple concerning and unethical developments, and hope for a rapid de-escalation, and shift towards a course we would recognise as humane. We do stand ready to support those who show themselves committed to such a course."
A brief hush fell on the room as the man gathered himself, inhaled, and broke into yet another coughing fit. This one was longer than the previous, and an aid scurried from behind the deep, green curtains flanking the podium, to assist the man, handing him an inhaler. After the man had regained his composure, and the aid returned to their skulking position behind the drapes, the tension once again escalated as the man cleared his throat and coughed into a well-worn handkerchief.
"Well... I can't delay it any longer. The terrorism. The attacks two days ago caused unprecedented damage to our shipping infrastructure, cost us two civilian ships, and, more importantly, eighty-one lives. We were lucky it wasn't more."
At this point the man paused, seemingly purely to let that message sink in
"Not only does the Truast Leysa depend upon global shipping, but global shipping depends upon us. We cannot allow such attacks to happen again. However" this one word was loaded with more inflection and emphasis than could be found in many whole novels "nor can we give into the vile rhetoric and reaction that has been swirling around these lands for the last few days. We are better than that."
"I have heard, from political parties, multiple proposals illegal domestically, internationally, or even both, and the same from the navy, along with volunteer requests for missions with such nauseating objectives that would make the strongest stomach turn. Needless to say, as these proposals would contravene the people's sovereignty and the principles in law, they have not been approved and will not be put to general approval."
"That all said, the attrocities will not go unanswered. A number of more reasonable ideas have also been presented, and postions have coalesced to back three proposals, which will be put to general vote. Owing to the critical nature of this matter, I will outline them in full."
"The first proposal is that, and here I quote: "in keeping with our long traditions of recognizing that such acts are rooted in desperation, exclusion, a seperate identity, and a large set of negative pressures. Where this is within our power to fix it is our failing. In answer, we suggest ensuring provision to our large Rossian Diaspora, and finding out the grievances, if any that they hold, and providing proactively to all needs we find." This proposal is backed by: Kastamiðla, Skipa, Brjóta:Brjótani, Veita, Helzt, Leita Sannindi Verða, BRIGDA"
Another pause, and another swig of the increasingly stale coffee, with associated spills, and a slight whiff of a disguised, harder drink
"The second proposal is similar, compatible, and goes further, again, a quote once again: "We cannot stop at our own borders. As we have seen recently radicalisation, nor our ethical responsibility obeys those imaginary lines. Our answer must be outreach and empowerment where the problem originates. Within Rossia itself. We propose treating Rossia as a warzone. Which it is. We propose working with our allies, NAR and Toonela, to rectify the evident social problems, lack of opportunity, and misinformation through empowerment of the Rossians themselves in a time limited mission." Obviously this proposal depends upon our allies agreement. This proposal has the favour of: Grema, Vammblinder, Mannvitallr, Fylgja, Eigaverja, Klifra"
Another pause, this time with no action, nor even coughs
"The third and final proposal to meet threshold is, and I quote: "The Rossian" excuse me for removing the expletives " attaked our home, and attacked the world. Their people may deserve better, but their government deserves no mercy. Work with the NARans, remove that" uhem " and put something good in its place. That'll sort it long term in just one generation." The following parties back this... Less nicely worded... Proposal: Fjotra, Leysfyrr, Biðja, Almáttigr, óglaðr trúr"
Two coughs and another drink, whilst the journalists murmured to themselves. A soft breeze carried pollen from the trees outside into the room, highlighting the unusually calm and sunny weather that was entirely at odds with the gloomy and miserable press conference
"This is an urgent matter," the man began again, talking over the reporters with renewed confidence and vigor "as such, rather than the normal one week, the alliance wide vote shall last for only one day, and we shall be announcing the results tomorrow evening"
"Finally, on this matter, we need to thank our allies for their support in this difficult time, especially Toonela for their offers of aid, and I have been informed that the cabinet intends to urgently begin intelligence cooperation, and engage in talks about further military military cooperation."
At this point the man abruptly stood straight, once again pulled his clothes back to the position they were meant to be in, and began tidying papers and making to leave, apparently forgetting a great deal. The aid once again darted into view as the man shuffled through the oversized doors to the rear, a rip visible in the rear of his coat.
"The-Leysan-Speaker-thanks-you-all-for-your-time. Questions-will-be-answered-from-the-civil-castle-in-Ikx-Gahn-this-afternoon,-the-site-of-the-next-session. Thank-you-all-thank-you-thank-you" The aid blurted out in one breath before hurrying after their boss, clearly flustered
Ginak cast his eyes out across the square, a burnt-out cigarette balanced between his thumb and forefinger.
All around the cafe storefront, the crowds bustled and flowed just as they always had, the hum of traffic never far from an incessant backing track to the sounds of An-Astralian life.
He sighed, and crushed the still smouldering nib of the cigarette against the tiny platter provided just for that purpose. Just because he had been stationed here for years didn't mean he was used to the intoxication of it all. He doubted he ever would.
There was a scrape of metal against stone as the chair just to the left on him was dragged out from underneath the table in a banal display of nonchalance.
Ginak's eye twitched, almost imperceptibly. "Hey Jakob."
The corner of Dafkane's mouth was pulled upwards in a half-smile for little more than a second before he smothered it. "Good morning, Burnd."
The false names they had operated - no, lived - under for the past few years (or substantially longer than that in Ginak's own case) had changed with the seasons of An-Astralian crises. Thankfully for him and his team, there was no shortage of those. 'More practice,' Ginak reflected, more-or-less sardonically.
The creak of Dafkane's seat as his lithe frame lowered itself into it was all but lost over the sounds of the city.
By the table closest to them, a young couple floated, uncertainty painted across both their faces and the way they stood. Ginak could near feel the nervous energy crackling around them.
By the glitter in his young comrade's eyes, Dafkane had already clocked them. Good; the newest quera was significantly better suited to the role than the last pile of crap HQ had sent Ginak.
Apparently 5 years of intensive training was not always enough to sort out the quera from the children who couldn't find their own arse without a wetnurse.
"What's new?" Ginak's An-Astralian had more or less lost any trace of foreign accent long ago. From the reactions of the natives, he had mastered reasonably passing as someone born and bred in Königsstadt.
"Not too much. Bored, though." The younger agent's lilt placed him somewhere to the west of An-Astral, though not Harndon itself, for which Ginak was more than a little grateful; it is one thing to have a cast-iron alibi, but if your nationality dominated your voice, then the whole enterprise was built on boggy foundations.
Especially at a time like this.
"Oh dear. How so?" It didn't take a genious to guess, but getting agents to get things off their chest was never a bad thing.
"I've run out of things to do, places to see. The group that I was supposed to be going to see the sights of the city with have largely been unable to quite organise something yet..." Dafkane's eyes trailed off into the distance along with his voice.
"Don't worry about it. Once they're ready, they'll reach out. There's certainly no point to hanging about like a bad dream if they don't have the time for you." It wasn't only the younger operative that was straining a little against an apparent lack of action on the part of the Communist Party - he'd heard the exact same from nearly everyone in the team over the past day or so. Ginak was just happy to get a break. He'd been in enough of these situations before to know that initial caution and good planning can potentially stop a nightmare down the line. Potentially.
"Besides," Ginak continued, "we have more toys coming over: enough to share. Stuff to write on and with to record our time here, with more than enough spare to gift to our friends. If that's not enough to perk your interest, we've also got some entertainment devices coming over with them."
They'll certainly make an explosive entrance, if nothing else; they had enough arms and equipment for themselves and their own team, but a shipment of Harndonian-made weaponry would equip most of the Communist Party members too.
Ginak rolled the cigarette through his fingers.
The decision had been made to give the An-Astralian revolutionaries recognisably Harndonian equipment, as a public show of solidarity. It was certainly a risk - they could have the same impact without such easy identification. And yet instead there was going to be an announcement of intention in the clearest material way possible.
He just prayed it was going to pay off.
Harsh Realities: Lesson 1
2021-07-28, circa 03:01 Miyana Standard Time
Dozens of Toonelans in civilian clothes stand in rows within the cargo hold of the transport IDN Malchus, their attention drawn (for the most part) to two people, also in civilian clothes, standing on a slightly raised platform nearer the bow of the vessel in the midst of an address to their peers. They speak with just enough volume for all listening to hear, sounding off to one another as they proceed.
Hiempsal: . . . our points of contact are not leaders of movements, propagandists, or freedom fighters. Most are not particularly vocal dissidents and those that are require even more caution. The peoples of this land have been suffering under misinformation and oppression for much longer than any of us can personally even begin to imagine. Their perspectives will be, in part, foreign to us, but this is not to be emphasized when it stands between our common humanity, even if we must always keep it in mind. Whatever stirrings have brought them forward enough to invite us into their domiciles are not guaranteed to last. Some may get cold feet. Others might become too enthusiastic and expose themselves to foolish impulses or idealistic fancies that we will need to be on guard against.
Danel: We must keep our goals in mind at all times. It is imperative that we remain humble. We listen to our hosts, not lead them. We offer advice both when it is sought willingly and when the stakes are too high not to profess our specialties. That is our role here, just as it was back home, even if we have left our Ascensions behind. No matter what our specific expertise might be, our people have selected us for this mission service in order to provide consul in times of particular volatility, with the hope we will learn something worthwhile in return. Personally, I think we are bound to.
Hiemspal: We all know the risks. Detection by the Rossian government, opposition by fanatical nationalists, mistrust by would-be allies wary of our immigrant status, and if things go particularly badly: hostility from Republican forces. If it does not threaten our lives, we should be honest with those we speak with. We are immigrants here to make homes and improve livelihoods.
Danel: The most downtrodden of these people of Rossia, our siblings, cannot be abandoned to be rendered voiceless or lured into uncritical acceptance of any new institutions that claim to govern on their behalf. These missions we embark on will likely take the rest of our lives, even if the Rossian government falls and the Republican-installed regime is short-lived. If our lives are long and merry, then we will have rendered a service to the Onaron in having brought about greater harmony between those striving to understand it. If our lives our short, then we can rest easy knowing our friends will celebrate what contributions we have made.
Hiemspal: The fishing boats will soon be prepared. It shall be risky for us to gather like this again. As the people speak, so they must be heard.
Danel: Good luck, my friends.
- - - - - - - - - - - -
Two uniformed figures stand side-by-side, gazing out of the angled lower bridge windows of the 1st Imperial Defense Fleet’s aircraft carrier flagship IDN Baal with their hands neatly folded behind their respective backs. Their expressions are marked by an almost forlorn calm.
Captain Kanmi: You’re making history, Bodo.
Admiral Bodo: By being the first admiral to take a wartime fleet of our people into the eastern Goncaran Ocean or for agreeing to the Servitors’s madness, Kanmi?
Kanmi: They know what they’re signing up for.
Bodo: I am not sure that will help me sleep when the first reported deaths come back. Most of these Ascended have never seen a firearm aimed outside of the mandatory maintenance drills. It’ll be different than the airship groups.
Kanmi: I know. Did you see the most recent status report?
Bodo: Yes. We’ve got some good people working GEOINT up in those skies. Without some particularly sharp eyes we wouldn’t have caught that armed Rossian group attempting to pass themselves off as civilians. Only two escort frigates were damaged in their sabotage attempt. It’s a miracle of rapid communications it wasn’t worse.
Kanmi: And I take it you expect trouble from the Republicans once they detect us, if they haven’t already?
Bodo: Not directly. Their leadership may be unwise enough to mistake a worm for a snake, but even they can’t risk the diplomatic debacle a unilateral action against this fleet would entail. They’ll hate us for interfering, and they’ll try to watch our every move, but our wars against Rossia are separate affairs now, and we are not here to invade anyone. Orders are to merely monitor the situation, offer ourselves as a buttress for the defenseless, rescue imperiled innocents, accept the Rossian surrender when it comes, and withdraw after delivering what useful surpluses for rebuilding civilian infrastructure we did bring, however limited.
Kanmi: I don’t envy their intelligence services. I’ve gone over the plans in case they attempt to drive us off directly –
Bodo: Aye. We’re too far from home waters to try running, and while the Stratospheric Fleet and Third Air Defense Fleet might help even the odds for the opening maneuvers, if they want us dead they’ll have it.
Kanmi: I appreciate the frankness.
Bodo: I didn’t take the most thankless role in the whole of Toonela to mince words, friend.
A quiet tremor of activity returns to the bridge as the two continue their quiet break before departing ways to attend to their duties.
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that in accordance with the Constitution and laws of the Social Liberal Union, an election for the office of Chancellor will be held for a period of one week within 48 hours after the close of nominations. Nominations open on Friday, 23rd July 2021 at 23:30 UTC and close on Friday, 30th July 2021 at 23:30 UTC.
I, Helvurium, am serving as Election Administrator, and I will dutifully and impartially execute the duties and powers of this position to the best of my ability.
ABOUT THE OFFICE:
The powers and duties of the Chancellor are detailed in Article 9 of the Constitution.
The term of office is five months, as specified in the certificate of election, which will be issued in due form once voting has concluded and the ballots are canvassed, tabulated, and certified according to law. The term for this office may only be renewed once consecutively.
QUALIFICATIONS AND NOMINATIONS:
Any Member State may, if eligible, nominate themselves for this office, or, subject to their acceptance, another eligible Member State. The requirements to hold the office are as follows:
1) Must be a current Member State in accordance with the Constitution; and 2) Must have been a Member State for at least two months; and 3) Must not have served two consecutive terms as Chancellor immediately preceding this election.
Outside the Workers' National Council are four Liberal Party delegates with furrowed brows. An unknown figure stands a distance away. D. Iversen: This is ridiculous. D. Sinagra: Lowry must just be putting on a show for power. D. Frank: He must be. Why else- D. Turner: No, it's something more sinister than that. You hear the way he talks about his constituents. 'Our people.' 'Our councils.' He is directly taking on Tamia and flipped several delegates to boot. My money's on foreign influe- The large body of a man saunters up to the group. It is Liberal Party leader Ricardo Allens. Turner immediately recognizes him. D. Turner: Ricardo! D. Allens: In a stern voice to the group | I could hear you from the steps. We can talk about this later. You never know who's around. (Allens looks at the nearby unknown figure) For now, head to headquarters. Our strategy session is in an hour.
Still outside the Workers' National Council an hour later, the unknown figure gets approached by Delegate David Lowry, leader of the Social Democratic Union. D. Lowry: What do you have for me, Egbert? D. Delmar: Not much. The Libs seem to be a bit concerned about our rise. Think you're organizing a party just for power or that we're getting some kind of help from outside the country. D. Lowry: That all? D. Delmar: No, saved the best for last. Allens and Tamia were talking. Seemed cordial. D. Lowry: Hmm...probably trying to see how easy it would be to squeeze a constitutional amendment out of him. With the War in Rossia and the new powers we would need to govern abroad, it only makes sense... We took that power away from her, you know. D. Delmar: Yes, sir. For the better, too. D. Lowry: We can probably get some good concessions, too, if we jab at her. D. Delmar: Indeed! D. Lowry: In a hushed voice, intended for himself. | Might even be able to...take care of her. D. Delmar: Slightly louder, with concern | What do you mean take care of her? D. Lowry: Quiet, but angrily | Shut up you idiot. I didn't say anything. Go home, read those books I gave you, and try to get me some better info for me tomorrow.
Open Thread
I am standing for reelection to the role of Speaker of the Union. I hope most of you know who I am, but if not; I'm Helvurium (or Daniel!) and have been Speaker for the past term. Before that, I was Delegate of our region and also served in a variety of roles both within this region and outside of it throughout my long stint on NationStates.
If re-elected, I have one main goal I hope we can achieve together; engagement. As Speaker, I want to make sure we encourage more candidates, more debate, and generally just more engagement with our elections. Over the past decade, those within our community have built a solid structure that has brought us together and meant we've stayed together as a community. It is our job to maintain that and ensure that it grows with the times and our community which is why engagement is so important.
Beyond that, I want to work with the wonderful contributors of the LoP to ensure that we keep all of our records updated and easily accessible so anyone is able to get involved, find out about any obscure law they like, and even contribute to changing those records!
Ultimately, this community is immensely important to me, and I'm privileged to have been able to serve it for so long. I hope I am able to continue to do so and in a way that lets us constantly improve and expand what we've already worked so hard to make. Now, with that said, remember to;
I have submitted a resolution that would order the closure of embassies with the International Democratic Union for knowingly harbouring fascist and nazi apologism.
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