General Domestic Issues

[jonisilk]

An excerpt from the first board meeting under our new President, Meurig Halloran.

T - In the last few months, your campaign has seen you say many things you might have to walk back regarding the Holy State.

H - I’ll walk nothing back, but they will be given an olive branch. We’ll be helping with the investigation into their Seijin’s assassination.

S - Our mutual friend has been told to provide them with all assistance necessary.

E - I’m glad to hear it.

T - A shame Darius turned down the vacant position on the board, he would’ve been an ideal replacement for you, but we’ll have a new Member elected to the board shortly, once the candidates have been vetted.

H - Darius made his intentions clear, he has other goals to pursue, another 6-8 years of study, but he’s got a lot of influence and as soon as he’s ready, I’ll have a position waiting for him.

E - You mean to appoint him Honoured Council? When the position isn’t yet vacant?

T - Before he becomes a Grand Master?

H - Do you know how many Grand Masters there are? At last count, twenty-two, and none of them under the age of 140.

S - The first Honoured Councils weren’t Grand Masters either. June Unurka didn’t become a Grand Master until 20 years after he began serving on the governing body, but he was the right man at the right time.

H - We’re going to need fresh blood, and the people hold him in high regard, so as soon as he’s ready, the position will be his.

T - And what does our current Honoured Council have to say about this?

HC - Times change, and we must change with them. My council is no longer sought as it once was, and I’m not getting any younger. I’ve seen many changes in my time. The world I knew when I came into this position was radically different to the one we now live in. Darius understands this world. He is a product of it, a fusion of cultures - Phoenician and Baunari, Craft and Janisism. He is the balance you seek.

E - You only need to put in another 20 years and you’ll get a rebirth.

HC - I am reborn every day. In heart, mind, body and spirit. You never did seem to grasp that about the Craft, did you?

S - And whether he makes the century or not, you’ll be rewarded for his services Arwen.

HC - Which I appreciate, but decline. I see no need for a second life, when I know I couldn’t live it any better than the first.

H - Darius will make an exceptional Honoured Council, when his time comes.

E - You don’t think it could be seen as nepotism, appointing the nephew of a governing body member to a position he isn’t fully qualified for?

S - He’ll be ready.

E - Naturally you’d jump to his defence, but I don’t know if the president has thought this through properly… your political opponent, given the second most powerful position on the governing body - with the right to cast the deciding vote. Are you trying to undermine yourself?

S - He only gets that vote if we’re deadlocked.

H - And there’s a lot more to the job than just casting a vote and making public appearances, not that you’d know as you’ve never even studied the Craft

E - Just because I subscribe to one less belief system than anyone else here, doesn’t mean I don’t know one when I see it. It might be a religion without a god, but it’s still a religion.

S - It’s not a religion, it’s a philosophy of life, the guiding principle of which is to do no harm.

T - Essie, even I have to admit, your understanding of the Craft is atrocious for someone so highly placed in the Corporation.

TLDR - Meurig still isn't a fan of the Holy State, but the PCG is helping them investigate the recent assassination of the Seijin.

Aslo, Darius ap SaZi is being positioned as the future Honoured Council, placing a younger man in the role who is uniquely qualified to navigate the present political and religious climate due to his background, upbringing and evident popularity (having missed out on the presidency by just 1.5% of the vote)

Also, also, I think I'm going to start using the term "Phoenician's" to refer to the people of the Corporation. It's sorta been used elsewhere by others and it's better than just calling them "citizens", like they were drones. Phoenician is a nicer label to wear and implies an established cultural identity beyond that of the usual corporate-speak used to describe ourselves. (It's only taken 900 years to settle on it, lol).

[RedSun]

This is the thing I've been OOCly told to keep out of, right?

Whoever is judging this let me know. I have some historic interests in Spain.

Also what gives Cyon? I thought you were content just staying in Latin America? What are your interests in the Mediterranean?

Well, the Latin Empire has the goal of reuniting Spanish-speaking peoples from across the world. Also, I have several oversea interests that would benefit from a stronger presence in Europe. I also want to match West Africa's military presence in France.

Finally, this is actually the start of a negotiated event between MK and me. If you want to get involved, you should a) probably do that before West Africa does anything and b) probably be ready for a full-scale war if you tick off Ceona again. Just FYI.

I mean I want to know whose willing to judge before I decide to do anything.

[mat.gopack]

Whoever is judging this let me know. I have some historic interests in Spain.

Also what gives Cyon? I thought you were content just staying in Latin America? What are your interests in the Mediterranean?

Well, the Latin Empire has the goal of reuniting Spanish-speaking peoples from across the world. Also, I have several oversea interests that would benefit from a stronger presence in Europe. I also want to match West Africa's military presence in France.

Finally, this is actually the start of a negotiated event between MK and me. If you want to get involved, you should a) probably do that before West Africa does anything and b) probably be ready for a full-scale war if you tick off Ceona again. Just FYI.

I mean I want to know whose willing to judge before I decide to do anything.

I'm willing to give it a shot, since I can't intervene for OOC reasons - unless beads thinks I'd be too biased. I would want a co-judge on it though, musashi/Zander/kingpie would seem fitting.

[mat.gopack]

In what turned out to be a closer result than earlier indications would've suggested, Meurig Halloran has emerged victorious after a successful but hard-fought campaign.

Meurig Halloran secured the election with 38% of the vote (only 1.5% more than Darius ap SaZi, who secured 36.5%, with Lucas Tarsitan taking just 25.5% of all votes) and will become the Corporations next president. He will take office with immediate effect and is expected to travel to Earth in the coming days to meet with other world leaders.

Famously outspoken on recent events in Asteria, the new president faces a complex situation that his relative inexperience makes all the more unpredictable, but has already shown that he has the political intelligence to surround himself with the experience that he himself lacks, handing Lucas Tarsitan an olive branch in the form of a new position overseeing the deployment of Ambassadors to other nations.

In addition to this, Darius ap SaZi has also been offered the newly vacant position on the governing body, but has chosen to decline the offer, saying that he would prefer to remain outside of the politcal sphere at this time and instead, will look to concentrate on further advancement through the Craft, going on to add that he one day would hope to join the governing body, but if not as President, then as Honoured Council, once he has earned the title of Master Teller.

The UMC extends its compliments to Mr. Halloran on his successful election to the presidency of the PCG, and hopes that his tenure will be a successful one.

[MinnesotanKaiser]

OOC: I'm okay with Matt being judge. I doubt he would have much bias despite the logic that he would have an interest in being biased.

IC:
The Worker's Syndicalist Union of Terra is dismayed at the geopolitical move by Cyon to upset the precarious balance of power in the Mediterranean. The Supreme Council and Secretary General wish to advise the Cyon delegation to pull back its "offer" of a military alliance and the request of a military base. This "offer" is clearly backed up by the force of the Cyon military making it more of a threat than an offer. Until this threat is taken back, the WSUT government will need to prepare for worst case scenarios in the Mediterranean. Hence, an additional standard ground core will be based in French WSUT in order to counter military buildup in the East Mediterranean. Furthermore, trading entities of the BSU and WSUT are being advised to channel trade through orbital transportation over the more threatened naval access point at Gibraltar.

As diplomatic affairs become tense, troop movements are recorded as military units open up another base in the southern quarter of France. Trade flow declines less than expected likely thanks to a lack of sufficient orbital trade capacity. A petition is currently under way to dramatically boost the currently pitiful spending on orbital transport infrastructure.

[MinnesotanKaiser]

In regards to business, the affair in the Mediterranean is ruffling feathers. As aforementioned, trade continues at a considerable rate yet already there seems to be a hunkering down of businesses in preparation for a potential war or cold war. Brice Marjani, a multi-millionaire foreign minerals importer with West African nationality has been quick to pounce on a beleaguered trade situation. With the cost of transportation by orbital vessels rising the price of ore from the outer reaches of the solar system and the wider universe still remains at the same low value at which it has rested for a few decades. This has led to a growing deficit by the WSUT government in running an increasingly outdated and inefficient fleet of mining vessels and operations. This now leads government negotiators to come to the table with Marjani to sign an agreement to buy his cheaper ore delivered by his more modern fleet. While protests have not emerged, many workers in the mining industry are beginning to express their anger with the betrayal by their government. Many workers now face the risk of losing their jobs to the monopolistic Marjani.

[MinnesotanKaiser]

In a dark room somewhere in the Brazilian interior a man waits. With fingers fidgeting, sweat beginning to run, and thoughts racing, Temitope Armelle stares blankly at a glowing red light on the wall in front of him. While faint, its enough to lightly illuminate the room enough to show the perfect square room in which he sits. The walls are painted infinite black, the popular name for a shade of black so black that its as if you could walk into the color and slip into nothingness. Behind him is a door also painted in the same color. To Temitope, it's like floating on the bottom of an immense, silent, black ocean.

Temitope has been here before. Or has he? You see, for Temitope, this room isn't a place you choose to go to. You're taken there. For Temitope, the soon-to-be-head of the Armelle Crime Family, he's a common attendee of the room. Before coming to the room, Temitope remembers eating some remarkable Kedjenou cooked by his personal chef. Yet somewhere in that moment memory faded and in its place was the room. So, for a day, Temitope disappeared and his family thought nothing of it. Temitope's summonings were becoming more frequent in light of his father's failing health, and these summonings seemed to show that the Committee was transitioning to Temitope.

As Temitope stared at the light, fading in and out of present and past, he failed to acknowledge the entry of a silent figure into the room through the door. At the snap of the figure's finger, Temitope snapped back into reality. Knowing the strict rules of the summoning, Temitope stared forward. The red light had gone out at the man's snap and so went all light. Nothingness consumed the room. Then the man spoke.

"Tem, you have a task ahead of you. The Committee has decided that your family could use a change of scenery. The water in West Africa is getting warmer. We need you to move assets and men elsewhere."

At this, the man paused as if making sure Temitope was registering this information. With a click of a finger by Temitope the man continued on with his cold voice.

"We'll send you more detailed instructions through our agents in R. Legio so you may proceed. Don't take this wrong way, Tem. The committee knows you're fresh and prone to error but we do still hold your family in favor. There is no risk of life to you."

Another pause and click by Temitope.

"Our birds in the north tell us that a loss of life is coming. To get your boys caught up would threaten affairs. Volatility is not yet our policy. Just as a hen stands guard over its eggs we watch you. Remember."

At the click of the man's finger, Temitope is struck by a dart and all goes black. An unknown time later, Temitope wakes in a pasture on the edge of some unknown estate. A black, unmanned shuttle owned by the Committee awaits him. Two hours later, Temitope returns home.

Upon reaching the door, it swings open and his elderly mother, per usual, requests that Temitope tell him of his summoning. With an unusual seriousness, Temitope mutters, "We have work to do."

[kingpie3]

The Consortium's Entinates are shocked and disgusted at the attempts to thwart the rise of a Janisist nation on the world stage. There is obviously a subversive element at work either within the Holy State or outside its borders aiming to delegitimize the new order, a state of affairs that is wholly condemned by the Janisi herself. The entirety of Consortium intelligence resources are being made available to the Holy State's counter-terrorism officials during these troubling times and military aid of an undefined nature is being dispatched to secure the current government.

Though there are ideological disagreements that divided the Holy State and Consortium, the bond they share is of utmost importance to the faith and thus it is essential that the world community gather together in solidarity against anti-Janisism. This must also be accompanied by harsh economic and political penalties against the attacking nation when they are inevitably revealed.

[beadsman]

I'm willing to give it a shot, since I can't intervene for OOC reasons - unless beads thinks I'd be too biased. I would want a co-judge on it though, musashi/Zander/kingpie would seem fitting.

This is fine by me. OOC, I trust you.

[beadsman]

Also, I think any of the co-judges you mentioned would be fine.