Embassy - The North Pacific

[McMasterdonia]

A copy of a message I have sent to Delegate Woonsocket on behalf of The North Pacific:

Delegate Woonsocket,

On behalf of the North Pacific's Government, our citizenry, and our Delegate Jamie Anumia, I would like to wholeheartedly apologize for the actions taken by interim-Delegate Blue Wolf, following my resignation as Delegate of The North Pacific.

The North Pacific has enjoyed positive relations and dialogue with Ten Thousand Islands for some time, only interrupted by the Embassy closure the last time Blue Wolf II was in transition to our newly elected Delegate Eluvatar. We have developed a positive relationship, based on dialogue and the sharing of intelligence related to security and regional sovereignty. During my time as Delegate of The North Pacific, I enjoyed a strong working relationship with Anime Daisuki and Field Commander of TITO Wordy. Eluvatar, before me, also enjoyed a positive relationship with Ananke, focused largely on World Assembly Voting.

We appreciated the information provided to us by TITO about United Koryo and the endorsement patterns that were occuring in our region. The newly elected government led by Delegate Jamie Anumia wishes to continue this positive relationship, and sincerely apologizes for the damage caused in recent weeks.

No nation should be arbitrarily banned from the North Pacific. We apologize for this incident, and in conclusion say that the actions taken by Blue Wolf II faced some strong opposition from members of our community. While some of us are not surprised that Blue Wolf took this action - it does not change the fact that we do not feel that his actions had the support of the community as a whole. I personally apologize that due to real life circumstances, the outgoing Delegates opposition to his actions were not made clearer and in a more public fashion.

Lastly, we directly apologize to Valoniah-, Markanite,Land filled with people and Controlitia WA for their banning from the North Pacific.

Finally - on behalf of the North Pacific I wish 10000 Islands a Happy 10th Birthday.

I understand the strain that this incident has put on relations between our two regions. We hope that the actions taken by one has not damaged relations between our regions to an irreconcilable point.

I will also be posting this apology to our embassy on your forum.

Regards,

McMasterdonia
Minister for Foreign Affairs

[McMasterdonia]

I'll be hanging around to answer any questions people may have about this incident, and hopefully satisfy some concerns.

[Ananke II]

Thanks for that post, McMasterdonia and for unbanning the TITO nations. It's appreciated.

[Fruition]

Thanks for the update.

[McMasterdonia]

Statement on the Coup of The South Pacific

Greetings. The North Pacific has been incredibly troubled by the recent events in The South Pacific, so feels compelled to release this statement.

The North Pacific will always stand by our allies in The South Pacific, and will support the legitimate government. In this case, we regard Milograd, who is hereby declared persona non grata in The North Pacific as the illegitimate and illegal delegate of our ally.

The North Pacific condemns the ejection of natives of The South Pacific, and considers such actions illegal, and we stand by the legitimate representatives of the government of The South Pacific.

An attack on The Coalition of The South Pacific is an attack on The North Pacific, and we will not tolerate such actions.

The North Pacific promises all its available resources, both diplomatically and militarly to helping to restore The South Pacific to the rule of it's legitimate, native government.

Signed,
Jamie Anumia, Delegate of The North Pacific

[Gladio]

March and April 2013

The Government of The North Pacific

Delegate: Jamie Anumia
Vice Delegate: Blue Wolf II

Minister for Foreign Affairs: McMasterdonia
Minister for Communications: Romanoffia
Minister for Defence: Kiwi
Minister for Culture and Entertainment: Alvino Castillion
Minister for World Assembly Affairs: Mall

Speaker of the Regional Assembly: Crushing Our Enemies

Security Council:
Chairman: Blue Wolf II
Members: Great Bights Mum, BlackShear, Grosseschnauzer, Romanoffia, Former English Colony, Eluvatar, Blue Wolf II

The Court
Attorney General: Gaspo
Chief Justice: Abbey Anumia Associate Justices: Sanctaria & PunkD

Directory
Forum: forum.thenorthpacific.org/topic/
Map: map.thenorthpacific.org/
TNP-Wire:http://tnp-wire.tumblr.com/
Facebook: on.fb.me/xMGxYi
IRC: cbe001.chat.mibbit.com/?server=irc.esper.net&channel=%23tnp
Laws: forum.thenorthpacific.org/pages/laws/

Jamie Anumia elected Delegate

[/big][/center]
Following McMasterdonia's resignation from the Office of Delegate due to real life reasons, elections were immediately called to fill the vacancy. In the first set of voting, Eluvatar had a clear lead and had almost reached the majority requirement to avoid going to a run-off election. Blue Wolf II went to the courts to seek judicial review to determine if Eluvatar was in fact eligible to run in the election as he had recently served two terms of office.

The Court ruled that Eluvatar was in fact ineligible to run and new election had to be called. Eluvatar endorsed Jamie Anumia's candidacy for the office of Delegate. Jamie Anumia pulled ahead and defeated Blue Wolf II in the run off.

Following his election Jamie Anumia appointed his cabinet, retaining Mall, Romanoffia, Kiwi, and Alvino from the previous cabinet, and appointing McMasterdonia as Minister for Foreign Affairs.

Jamie outlines his plan for The North Pacific:

A successful delegate is a delegate who maintains activity and is able to maintain respect both at home and abroad.

As for my grand vision..good question. I don't have an 'end goal' as such - it will be more to continue the work established by our previous delegates and expand on it - I want TNP to be more active culturally, more active internationally as well as more active militarily - I want us to expand on our current operations and look at ways to further engage new members and get them involved in the NPA. I want TNP to make its mark on the nationstates world through both our actions as well as our words. I want us to strengthen our bonds with our fellow GCR's as well as tightening our relations with our current allies as well as seeking new allies.

Congratulations to Jamie Anumia!

Written by McMasterdonia

From the Army
The last two months since the previous NPA update have gone by really quickly and while they have certainly had their ups and downs, I continue to be optimistic about the future of the NPA and our role as the military of the North Pacific.

Previously I've used this update to talk about our successes as a military but this time it seems more prudent to recognise the recent losses of the NPA. We have had roughly nine resignations / discharges from the military for a number of reasons including outside commitments but mainly resulting from insubordination, failures to follow orders or failing to respond to reasonably made requests. The NPA prides itself on being neutral in the R/D game and we always try and allow our soldiers to be active members of other militaries if they choose this path but even that must have its limits. So my one request is that the region take pride in our military for a change and SUPPORT OUR TROOPS!

I would like to formally welcome Borndisaster, one of our new recruits who has proven to be a real asset to the army.

Changes? What changes, you say? To the credit of Mall, he has suggested that we split our forces into several groups to make better use of the recruits we do get and also allow soldiers to pick what sort of role they want to have in the NPA. A concept I am hugely in favour of. The current proposal being discussed by the NPA High Command allows for the military to be split into three parts:

• The Regional Guard - As a member of the regional guard, you would remain on a contact list of people that would be contacted if we need to defend the region against rogue parties who might try and take the WA delegacy from the legitimately elected delegate.
  
• The Auxiliary or Pilers - Pilers do not have to be around during either update but rather need only check their email, forum PMs or nation telegrams to check if they need to move and reinforce a position during any given time. The benefit of being part of this cross section is that you are not required to be online at update and will be given a rank. It is notable that you will not gain promotions as fast as the third force, the Updaters.
  
• Special Forces or Updaters - Updaters as mentioned above, are required to be online close to update so that they might move into a region at a given time. Updaters will be promoted much faster than the Auxiliary and are also considered to be members of the regional guard and the Auxiliary.

These proposed changes are very exciting indeed and we welcome any feedback.

My favourite part of this job is recognising the hard work of dedicated soldiers. Borndisaster and Hileville are thus promoted to the rank of Corporal after assisting in recent missions and following orders to the letter. Alvino Castillion aka "Almond" has proven to be an exemplary recruit, always undertaking missions with diligence and professionalism, accordingly I congratulate him on making the rank of Colour Sergeant. Finally I would like to congratulate Kingborough on his promotion to Warrant Officer 2.

The North Pacific Army recently participated in an invasion of the Greater German Reich, with the South Pacific, Sovereign Confederation, and the Kingdom of Denmark. The Greater German Reich has been a serious annoyance to the North Pacific with it's constant adspam. The mission was dependent on when the founder would return, but overall is considered a success.

As always the NPA welcomes any requests for assistance, military co-operation or any new recruits who would like to be a part of our military.

Written by Kiwi

Ninety Nine Problems, But Multiing Ain't One.

Yes folks, The North Pacific may got ninety nine problems, but World Assembly multiing is certainly not on-

...Oh, this is embarrassing. It appears I was wrong on that, and the number.

Recently, the Moderation Team of Nation States went on a banning spree against 108 different World Assembly nations in the North Pacific. The bans lit up the Regional Happenings in an instant, and many expected that the Updates were out of sync somehow. These suspicions were put to rest suddenly when it was discovered that the nations that were being banned all had two things in common...

They were all endorsing then Vice Delegate Blue Wolf and they all originated from the same player.

"It was like watching a dragon devouring its victims one-by-one." Johz told us, excitedly. "Enough to put the fear of Mod back into your heart, I'll say. Hallelujah!"

Artist depiction of Moderator banning the World Assembly Multiing Puppets.

Indeed, there was much surprise and quite a bit a fear as bit by bit, they whittled at the puppets that were endorsing Blue Wolf. The 108 bans was a massive blow to Blue Wolf's endorsement count, which dropped drastically. Eventually, the banning subsided, though many in the region were still left gaping in the aftermath of the banning. In the end, many in the region talk about it as a moment when the system to detect multiing was absolutely undermined.

Written by Alvino

The Mentor Program

TNP's Newest Teachers... The Community Itself?

Yes folks, you heard me right. The community that makes up the North Pacific is now its teachers for new members in the North Pacific's Mentor Program. Spearheaded by the new Executive Council, the Mentor Program seeks to improve the quality and activity of the region as whole.

"The TNP Mentor Programme represents an ingenious development in the way we educate, inform and welcome new members to the region." Kiwi, the Minister of Defence stated. "It has tremendous potential to change TNP for the better for all concerned."

The Mentor Program as a whole is seen as a great boon to the region. Members sign up to the Ministry they desire to work with to be Mentors. Once a new (or old) member applies to receive Mentoring in that Ministry, they are assigned a Mentor. Over time, the Mentor learns how to give advice and develop a style of teaching, The "student" learns new skills and how to improve in the area of their interest, and both form closer ties and possibly friendships that could last a long time.

The Five Ministries will each have their own Mentor Program. This means anyone can learn the art of Role Playing, Gameplay, World Assembly resolution writing (and debate), Regional Foreign Affairs, and mass media writing. As the Mentor Program goes on in the region, students shall in time become teachers for new members as well.

The project has already begun under the watchful eye of the Executive Council. It is still too early to tell whether the entire project will be successful or if it will grind to a halt in failure.

Written by Alvino Castillion

The UDL Trials

Relations between The North Pacific and the United Defenders League hit an all time low when it was revealed that Ravania a member of the North Pacific Army and a Lieutenant in the United Defenders League had leaked a PDF copy of a thread in the North Pacific Armies private headquarters.

This was discovered due to a conversation between Unibot and McMasterdonia about introducing a NPA Deployment Override, that led to Eluvatar discovering logs that indicated that Ravania was responsible for the leak. This resulted in a heated discussion in the Regional Assembly, especially as some members were unhappy with the initial response and the suggestion that Eluvatar had been removed for showing loyalty to his home region.

The Interim Delegate Blue Wolf II ordered that embassies be closed and that cooperation with the United Defenders League cease immediately. Ravania has been formally charged and will face trial soon in the North Pacific Court. It is unclear how many other dual members of The North Pacific and the United Defenders League may be charged for their involvement at a later date.

The North Pacific appreciates the expressions of support the South Pacific, Osiris, and Sovereign Confederation in this matter. The North Pacific Wire will be following this matter through to conclusion, and will keep it's readership informed of events as they unfold.

Written by McMasterdonia

Breaking News from The TNP!.....


No More Room On The Fiqh Court Swing-Set! Belschaft Furious!

(TNP Wire - Magicality City, 14 April 2013)

Supplicants to the Flemingovian Fiqh Court await the dispensing of justice. Belschaft furious that The Court of The North Pacific has no swing-set. Demands immediate seating on the swing-set.

Several high members of government constructing the new Fiqh Gallows...I mean swing-set.

The Flemingovia God soundly castigates Belschaft for his intrusion and sends him off for 'time out' in the corner. "You'll swing for this as soon as one of the children gives you a chance!"

Written by Romanoffia

Thanks for reading our Update!

[Anime Daisuki]

Thanks for the update! Interesting the part about the muliting puppets.

They were all endorsing then Vice Delegate Blue Wolf and they all originated from the same player.

The Mod must have had a great time banning.

[Wordy]

Indeed~!
It was quite a sneaky tactic however not quite sneaky enough

[McMasterdonia]

I just wanted to express my personal thanks to 10ki and TITO for their help in sorting out the mess in the South Pacific. Special thanks to Field Commander Wordy for her efforts.

We all are thankful and appreciate the help and work you put in.

[McMasterdonia]

4th June 2013

The Government of The North Pacific

Delegate: Jamie Anumia
Vice Delegate: KiwiTaicho

Minister for Foreign Affairs: McMasterdonia
Minister for Communications: Vacant
Minister for Defence: Kiwi
Minister for Culture and Entertainment: Alvino Castillion
Minister for World Assembly Affairs: Sanctaria

Speaker of the Regional Assembly: Crushing Our Enemies

Security Council:
Chairman: KiwiTaicho
Members: Great Bights Mum, BlackShear, Grosseschnauzer, Romanoffia, Former English Colony, Eluvatar, Blue Wolf II

The Court
Attorney General: Gaspo
Chief Justice: Vacant Associate Justice: PunkD

Directory
Forum: forum.thenorthpacific.org/topic/6903327/1
Map: map.thenorthpacific.org/
TNP-Wire:http://tnp-wire.tumblr.com/
Facebook: on.fb.me/xMGxYi
IRC: cbe001.chat.mibbit.com/?server=irc.esper.net&channel=%23tnp
Laws: forum.thenorthpacific.org/pages/laws/

---

Delegacy Elections

The North Pacific has once again gone to the polls for General Elections for the position of Delegate, Vice Delegate and Speaker. Running for the office of Delegate is incumbent Jamie Anumia, Mall and Abstain. Jamie Anumia is running on a platform of the desire to complete his goals started in the previous term as having been elected at a special election he has only held office for a few months. Mall is campaigning on a platform of regional destruction and purges, and Abstain has no campaign at all. Jamie Anumia was solidly re-elected to the office of Delegate, and Crushing our Enemies had a strong win in the elections for Speaker.

Jamie Anumia celebrates election victory!

The Vice Delegacy was contested by Romanoffia, incumbent Blue Wolf II and current Minister for Defence KiwiTaicho. The elections had to be restarted after Romanoffia was left off the ballot by the election commissioners. KiwiTaicho was victorious in the election winning 56% of the vote.

Written by McMasterdonia

Changes to the Cabinet

Following the re-election of Jamie Anumia to the office of Delegate there have been some small changes in the cabinet. Mall has been removed from the position of Ministry for WA Affairs and replaced with Sanctaria.

From Left: McMasterdonia, Sanctaria, Kiwi and Jamie discuss policy

Mall responded to his dismissal, accusing the Delegate of demoting him because he contested the Delegacy elections.

Then they came for me, and the voters will remember which person lived up to his campaign promises, and which person fired his election opponent immediately after the Court validated the elections results...

Delegate Jamie Anumia also dismissed Romanoffia as a Minister, to which Romanoffia gave him thanks for doing so. It is unclear who the new Minister for Communications will be.

Written by McMasterdonia

The South Pacific Liberation

The South Pacific is one of the closest allies of the North Pacific, and Delegate Jamie Anumia quickly took action in releasing a statement condemning the actions and declaring Milograd persona non grata. The Delegates statement is viewable here

The North Pacific Army was proud to serve in the liberation attempt with senior members McMasterdonia and Eluvatar serving on the Supreme Council that helped organize the liberation attempt. We are pleased to see the South Pacific free, and we are glad to have been there for them in their time of need.

Following the overthrow of Milograd there have been some concerns and questions raised about the persona non grata status of Milograd. Delegate Jamie Anumia released a statement concerning this, which can be viewed here.

Written by McMasterdonia

Court News

The Court of the North Pacific has had a busy few weeks. The Case of TNP v Ravania has come to a conclusion with a verdict of guilty for Espionage and not guilty for treason. This was following issues with the Administration team about the posting of IRC logs onto the regional forum, and the Attorney General calling off his involvement in cases until the issue was resolved. The new policy regarding IRC logs on our forum is that all logs regarding gameplay matters are fair game and may be posted. Logs relating to personal matters are not granted the same leniency and must have the consent of both members for them to be posted on our forum.

The Court was flooded with reviews during the general elections, due to Romanoffia's name being left off the ballot. The Court ruled that the Election Commissioners have the power to establish and enforce rules regarding the running of elections. The Election Commissioners chose to restart elections for the Vice Delegacy due to their mistake in not explicitly saying they required that at the beginning of the election. A full statement from the election commissioners is viewable here

Written by McMasterdonia

Regional Assembly Weekly Digest
(2013-05-24 - 2013-05-31)

Old Business: Please find below a list of proposals that have passed and failed this week.

1. Recall Eluvatar: Failed

New Business: Below can be found a list of proposals currently before the assembly.

1. Contempt of Court Bill: Under debate
2. Security Council Reform Bill: Under debate
3. Election Streamlining Bill: Under debate

Other Business: See below for other matters that may concern you as a member of the RA.

1. We extend a warm welcome to our newest Assembly members: Malashaan, The SCG, and Scumshire!

2. We bid a fond farewell to those who have left us: Ator People, Ndocciata, Freesoc, Richalpoaz, Windy, MahendoSat, Aikku, Matthex0, Markus Wolf, Malanasia, and Felasia. We're sorry to see them go.

3. The Speaker's procedure for proposal and voting is undergoing revision! If you'd like to have a say in it, post in the relevant thread in the main Regional Assembly forum. The new procedure will be finalized sometime next week - possibly as early as Monday!

4. The Honorable Chief Justice Abbey and the Honorable Justice Sanctaria have resigned, and nominations are underway for a Special Election to fill their seats on the bench. Details may be found in the Elections subforum of the Agora. In the meantime, Gracius Maximus and Hileville have been appointed as Temporary Hearing Officers in their places.

[nation]SillyString[/nation]'s Silly Advice
Justices are required to vote in every third proposal put before the Regional Assembly, excepting ones where the text contains a prime number. TJOs may freely vote FOR or AGAINST any proposal, but are prohibited from abstaining.

[nation]General COE[/nation]'s Cautionary Words
Strange times are at hand. Avoid the court when possible.

Written by Crushing Our Enemies

Court Shakeup!

"For REVENGE!" the words echoed around the chamber. "For CHAOS! For DESTRUCTION! For LEGIONS UPON LEGIONS of DISARRAY and CONFLICT for the Delegate and his godforsaken ELECTION COMMISSIONERS!"

These were the maledictions that flew after the breaking point of Chief Justice Abbey Anumia, who swore vengeance upon the throngs and masses that stormed the Court Filings offices every day, seeking innocent advice from the all-powerful sorcerer of justice, whom was rumored to have more power than the Delegate himself.

Chief Justice Abbey Anumia retires

The Wise One Sanctaria had apparently been convinced into the dark side as well. "The Chief Justice hath triggered the Special Election of the AGES!" shrieks came from inside the private halls in which no member of the AG's office dared enter. "I will add MASS upon MASS to this fire, and burn the infrastructure to the ground! From now on, I shall be known as SANCTICON, GOD OF THE DEEP!"

Protesters outside the halls of justice..

Remaining Justice Punk Daddy rushed to shield The North Pacific from the oncoming disaster. He promised swift and decisive wiccan control through temporary hearing officers, unorthodox maskings, and post cleanup, promising the Resigned would not stop the Court and its Region from chugging along and doing what it does best: more special elections.

Written by Iro

Thanks for reading our update!

[Anime Daisuki]

Thanks for posting the update! Looks like the font sizes didn't post over so well. I hope our forum codes didn't screw up your newsletter display too much lol

(Blame...Proboards)

[Land]

Thanks for the update McMa! An interesting read as always

[McMasterdonia]

I was surprised to see that it had displayed this well on first try

[Woonsocket]

Due to repeated bannings of TITO personnel as they passed through The North Pacific, and other security concerns, the Council of Nine has voted to close this embassy.

Woonsocket
WA Delegate
10000 Islands
June 2013

[Paffnia]

This embassy has been reopened!
McMasterdonia Ananke II

[Louisistan]

Welcome back, TNP!

*hands out rum cocktails*

[Eluvatar]

Great to see!

[McMasterdonia]

New Super Pac helps elect Delegate SillyString

by mcmasterdonia, Political Correspondent

For the first time in the history of the North Pacific a Super Political Action Committee took on a major role within the North Pacific General election for Delegate. The September General Elections were a highly anticipated event, with Delegate Zemnaya Svoboda announcing months in advance that he did not intend to seek reelection for a second consecutive term. Political leaders around the North Pacific rallied and began to prepare for the inevitable fierce campaigning that was to come.

This led to a new political action committee emerging onto the political landscape. The P.A.C called "Sillisary for the North Pacific" was formed by former Delegates Eluvatar and McMasterdonia, and former Vice Delegate and TNP Stalwart Democratic Donkeys. The P.A.C was committed to drafting Silliary Slinton to run for the Delegacy of the North Pacific. The bio for the P.A.C stated the case for electing Silliary as Delegate off the North Pacific:

"SillyString has served as Acting-Delegate, Vice Delegate, Court Justice, Deputy Speaker of the Regional Assembly, Regional Assembly member, and Security Councillor during her time in the North Pacific region. A practicing lawyer, law reformer, and mentor, SillyString has dedicated herself to a significant number of roles since joining the North Pacific in April 2013 and has proven her strong ability and dedication to every challenge set before her."

The P.A.C pointed to Silliary's "strong leadership" and her pro-reform agenda as key talking points in favour of her election. Many members of the North Pacific quickly rallied to the cause of the political action committee - with more than 16 members joining the committee. Members included Minister of Culture Lennart, Security Council Member and one-time Delegate Romanoffia, Speaker Crushing Our Enemies, and Malvad, Former Minister of Culture and Education.

Members of the P.A.C changed their avatars in a campaign pledge to support Silliary Slinton for the Delegacy. This decision was a key factor in Silliary's decision to campaign for Delegate. She acknowledged that she was "out-numbered" by the mass showing of support and said:

"Thank you all for your support! It has been instrumental in my decision. I hope I do not let you down." - Sillisary Slinton

Ms. Slinton was joined in the election campaign by Bootsie Sanders - then Minister of Communication. Mr Sanders campaigned encouraging TNPers that together "Let's do more" to improve the forum community, recruit new members, and increase activity in the Ministry's. While the campaigning was intense, Silliary Slinton was sworn in as the new Delegate of the North Pacific. Her Worshipfulness Pauline Bonaparte was elected Vice Delegate, following Flemingovia's decision to withdraw from the runoff election. Following Madam Delegate Slinton's election she promptly appointed her new cabinet - McMasterdonia O'Malley as Minister of Defence and Education, Kialga as Minister of Communications, Pauline Bonaparte as Minister of Foreign Affairs, Tomb as Minister of Home Affairs, and Lennart as Minister of Culture & Entertainment.

---

The Return of The North Pacific Army

by mcmasterdonia, Military Correspondent

The North Pacific Army has once again returned to a strong period of activity and operational success. The new Government led by Delegate SillyString was quick to make the North Pacific Army a priority for the administration. Recruitment efforts are a focus of the new Minister of Defence, McMasterdonia, and the Minister of Home Affairs & NPA Chief of Staff, the Democratic Republic of Tomb. In the last month, the North Pacific Army has been involved in multiple operations, including the defence of the West Pacific, the invasion of the Greater German Reich, and the liberation of Warzone Australia.

The West Pacific operation saw a large coalition of GCR forces & friends coming to the aide of the West Pacific, who were in open rebellion against the regime of then-Delegate United RussoAsia and forces from DEN. United RussoAsia had handed control of their nation to DEN's Knot, also known as Ivo, who later briefly gave control to Cormac Stark. The operation saw the North Pacific send in approximately 11 soldiers, who were constantly moving in and out, in a game of ping-pong with the sitting Delegate. This is the largest operation the North Pacific Army has been involved in since May. It would appear that the aggressive recruitment style of the Minister and his team is paying off, with many new recruits being the most eager participants in the operation. The RMB saw a huge amount of activity during this time, but most importantly, the operation fostered new found friendships between TNPers and West Pacificans, showing a possible greater future for cooperation and partnership between the two regions.

The training operations conducted by the NPA leadership team have extended into spotting for foreign invasions. Last month, the North Pacific Army joined with allies in the Taijitu Citizens' Militia and pre-emptively defended several regions. NPA officers could see a DEN-affiliated force of approximately 16 updaters staging in Nugut, and deployed to Middle Earth, Asia, and Belgium, in order to preemptively defend those nations from DEN. DEN then surprisingly "liberated" the region of The Eternal Realm from the forces of Auralia. (They have not, of course, actually restored the region to its pre-invasion state.)

The North Pacific Army continues to go from strength to strength, and it is fully expected to be an active and prosperous term for the North Pacific Army and the region. NPA High Command is currently working on a number of proposals that will cover both NPA membership reform, and a broader NPA communications policy. Stay tuned for future updates.

---

[RP Feature] Floresque Elections

by Myroria, Role Play Correspondent

This column does not represent the views of the Government of The North Pacific.

Floregasque election: Ruling party wins reelection, shakeup in Ward 6

EDITORS' NOTE: The following article has been omitted from the Floregasque Edition of the International Gazette in order to meet the guidelines of the Undesirable Propagation Unit.


FLORESQUE, FLOREGASQUE REPUBLIC - Official results from Friday's general elections have been published, with the ruling National Unity Party (NUP), controlled largely by the Gonfaloniere Alessandro d'Avelocci and his close family, winning 14 of the 15 seats in the Signoria. The party has won every election since its formation in 1948, and the Aveloccis, the richest family in Floresque, have controlled the city-state's government in one form or another for almost 200 years.

The opposition, led by the Workers' Party (WP), held onto the one seat in the legislature that many analysts view as a concession given to them by the NUP-dominated government.

The big surprise of the night was the stunning victory of opposition candidate Catarina Tiraboschi, who won the election for ward-mayor in Ward 6. Ward 6, traditionally considered an NUP stronghold, is located near the prosperous Business District in Ward 5. Tiraboschi's victory may startle some hardline conservatives in the Signoria, who are already rumored to be skeptical of the Gonfaloniere's moves to liberalize lower-level elections in Floresque.

Tiraboschi has been dogged consistently by rumors that she supports the Tenants' Representation Front (TRF), an opposition organization suppressed by the Floregasque government for "anti-civil activities". Tiraboschi has consistently declined to comment on these rumors, an ambivalence that may be concerning to the security-minded NUP.

The Gonfaloniere, if he was shaken by the opposition's success in Ward 6, did not show it. He said he was "ecstatic to see how well our party has done", and thanked the people for "the continued mandate they have given us".

Turnout in the election was reported to be 81%; like all electoral figures from the Republic though, this should be considered suspect. International observers view elections in Floresque to be largely fraudulent, charges that the Gonfaloniere and Signoria deny.

The results of this latest election make clear that, in spite of the Gonfaloniere's apparent attempts to hold fair elections for lower-level positions, opposition parties have a long road ahead of them to reach equal footing with the Avelocci-dominated National Unity Party.

---

Series: Interview with Cormac Stark (Part 1)

by Lord Ravenclaw, Gameplay Correspondent

This column does not represent the views of the Government of The North Pacific.

The North Pacific's own Lord Ravenclaw sat down with fellow citizen of The North Pacific and fellow Pharaoh-Emeritus of Osiris Cormac Stark to discuss some events in the recent past as part of a series of interviews to be exclusively posted by The Northern Light.

This is the first part of the Interview. Part two shall be about The West Pacific and Part three shall be about a controversial but important issue facing NationStates players in our world.

This interview was originally conducted at the start of October 2015 and details events before that time.

---

Lord Ravenclaw: Thank you for joining me Cormac Stark, Pharaoh-Emeritus of Osiris.

Cormac Stark: Thanks for having me!

Lord Ravenclaw: You've done a lot over the past three years, would you be able to remind our readers of your origins in NationStates? I understand that the feeders weren't your first home.

Cormac Stark: Well, my origin, aside from a very brief stay in 10000 Islands, was in a now mostly forgotten region called Exshaw, which was founded by Durkadurkiranistan II (aka John Ashcroft Land among older Feederites) as an imperialist region. From there I got involved with other imperialist regions like The New Inquisition and The Land of Kings and Emperors, as well as independent Europeia.

Cormac Stark: I also founded my own region, Asgard, in 2012, it was fairly short lived but much publicized. Of course all of that changed in September 2012 when I switched to defending, but we don't need my whole life story.

Lord Ravenclaw: I seem to recall something about Asgardia during that period as well, what was the story with that?

Cormac Stark: Well, after I joined the UDL in September 2012, Isidor abdicated the throne of Asgard in frustration, and Jagermeister assumed the throne. He ultimately ended up destroying the forum after being made root administrator and abandoning the founder account. I tried to relocate the community of Asgard to Asgardia after that, but unfortunately the damage had been done and it was over for that particular region and community. We're getting into some seriously obscure history here now!

Lord Ravenclaw: Not to get too far off topic, but who was Jagermeister? Forum destruction is a horrible act and people who do it shouldn't go unpunished.

Cormac Stark: He had been a newbie to Exshaw and had come with us to Asgard. He was very prominent and active in Asgard, and all the turmoil when I joined the UDL hit him pretty hard. I've also been told since then that he had some very serious stuff going on in real life, and I've forgiven him for the forum destruction. As far as I know he stopped playing after the forum destruction and hasn't been back.

Lord Ravenclaw: How unfortunate; it's troublesome when real life interferes with our virtual communities - something we know only too well. I hope he's in a better place now.

Cormac Stark: Me too. He was a nice guy, except obviously for that incident, and I wish him all the best.

Lord Ravenclaw: As I understand it, you were first brought to the Game Created Regions because of the World Assembly of all things, would you mind enlightening our readers as to why?

Cormac Stark: Well, in July 2012, Asgard invaded Christmas and after a lengthy occupation imposed an invisible password. Mahaj, then a Lieutenant in the UDL, proposed a liberation resolution and Asgard did its best to fight it. It ultimately passed, but by a narrower margin than most liberation resolutions, so I became convinced that Asgard could actually defeat defenders in the Security Council if we became more involved in more influential regions, i.e., the Feeders and Sinkers. So that was initially why I got involved in The North Pacific and Osiris, in 2012.

Lord Ravenclaw: So, the World Assembly was your passage into two very different regions. But as we both know, you have a long history in Osiris. What happened there?

Cormac Stark: Well, I got involved in Feeders and Sinkers to co-opt their influence for my own ends, but it was actually they who ended up co-opting me. I made friends in both TNP and Osiris, but particularly Osiris, and particularly the Pharaoh at the time, Earth (Lyanna Stark). So over time I became less interested in using these communities and more interested in actually participating in them, and that was especially true in Osiris.

Lord Ravenclaw: Speaking of Stark, what's the history there? You just mentioned Lyanna, so is it mere coincidence or are you two related in some way?

Cormac Stark: It actually was coincidence at first. Stark is popular from Game of Thrones, and my family in Exshaw and Asgard started using it well before I knew anything about Earth. We did later become related when Unibot adopted me as his son, and Earth became my step-mother. There have been some disownings since then. NS families are silly.

Lord Ravenclaw: Onto a different topic and back to Osiris for a little while.

Cormac Stark: Sounds good.

Lord Ravenclaw: How did you go from coming to the desert star of NationStates in order to influence the WA Voting Pool and end up where you are now?

Cormac Stark: Good question. I'm not sure I know the answer, honestly. I was in the right places at the right times or the wrong places at the wrong times, depending on your perspective. I had some legislative and minor executive jobs before I was first elected Pharaoh. I ran for Pharaoh sensing something was off, at a time when people were very discontent with the incumbent, and beat the incumbent for the first time in Osiran history. He couped, of course, and the rest is history. Since then I was until February of this year integrally involved in every major event in Osiris, especially co-founding of the Osiris Fraternal Order.

Lord Ravenclaw: What changed?

Cormac Stark: What changed is I deliberately committed treason to get a lengthy ban from Osiris, because it had become not good for me, and vice versa. I had always said I didn't want to become like a certain other Osiran power player that the OFO permanently exiled - and when I saw myself becoming him, I exiled myself.

Lord Ravenclaw: It's interesting you say that; arguably, there have been eight players over Osiris' history who have had huge impacts on the region - not always for the better either. However, all of them with the exception of two are no longer involved in Osiris. Where does the region go from here?

Cormac Stark: The region goes up, I hope. When I pleaded guilty to treason, I urged the dissolution of the OFO because I believed its institutions were flawed, but I think I was wrong about that. It is the attitudes, not the institutions, which are flawed in Osiris. To make a very long story short, what needs to change in Osiris is that Osirans need to stop seeing themselves as being in perpetual crisis and start seeing themselves as a normal Sinker community again. If they can do that, I believe they will become more cooperative as a community and less reliant on the Pharaoh -- we're always more reliant on leaders when we feel we're in crisis -- and I think it will only be up from there.

Lord Ravenclaw: What do you think Osiris needs to do in order to become less reliant? We've seen at least one Pharaoh of the OFO, including myself; get panned for "not doing enough".

Cormac Stark: What needs to change is the perception that there are problems that one person needs to solve or a crisis that one person needs to address. Regional activity is not a problem, nor a crisis, but rather an opportunity, and it's an opportunity for the entire community. Again, what needs to happen is a change in attitude. The community of Osiris needs to stop seeing so many problems and start seeing all of the opportunities that are right in front of it. At the end of the day, all "activity" means is doing stuff together. When they start wanting to do that again, activity will follow.

Lord Ravenclaw: Can you see yourself returning to Osiris when your sentences expire?

Cormac Stark: I honestly don't know. I don't think so, but I won't rule it out.

Lord Ravenclaw: There have been talks of an unofficial government shutdown, to focus the attention of the community entirely on recruitment and integration efforts. Do you think an unofficial approach like that would help or hinder the community?

Cormac Stark: I think it would hinder the community. What Osiris needs from its government is optimism and a sense of creating opportunity, instead of hearing from the government that the lack of activity is a "crisis." Activity doesn't come from obligation or a sense of duty in a game, it comes from opportunities to have fun. That's what Osiris needs from its government, and it is the government's job to govern. It has a responsibility. We have essentially seen the government of Osiris shut down during the terms of several Pharaohs, and it has not empowered the community.

Lord Ravenclaw: On another note, in an editorial published by The Raven Post, you stated "Gone are the explosive arguments between prominent regional figures, dividing the community into "us vs. them" factions. Personalities will clash in any regional community, but Osiris seems to have turned the page on the chapter of its history that was characterized by divisive and ultimately destructive personality politics"; is this not a result brought upon by the fact that these powerful figures are no longer involved in the community?

Cormac Stark: I don't think so, no. Because after the people who used to have the explosive arguments and power struggles retired, other people would just step up to take their place. It was an institutional and cultural problem in Osiris. I didn't used to be one of the power players involved in the arguments and power struggles, but before the establishment of the OFO I became one of them, and even after Empire was exiled from Osiris, power struggles continued. But those have largely stopped and I do believe it's because of the strength of the OFO's institution, which makes actually winning factional power struggles impossible.

Lord Ravenclaw: Perhaps, although I think that it's more down to the fact that overall, there has been a more unified opinion and approach to Osiris recently, there is no longer quite so much disagreement with direction. So where do -you- go from here? I noticed that you've been endotarting in The North Pacific and were recently readmitted to their Regional Assembly.

Cormac Stark: That's what I'm doing. I don't intend to join (or re-join, as the case may be) any other regions right now, if ever, I'd like to try just focusing my time and energy in one place. TNP has always been welcoming to me, even with all of my past questionable behavior, and so it seems like a community I can contribute to without constant questioning of my motives and loyalties.

Lord Ravenclaw: Is it true that you are planning to reform the Regression Party? Also, is there any truth to the rumour that you are also courting the Queen of Balder? I've also been told that you are trying to undercut the North Pacific's economy and make a profit on the exports of North Pacific Spiced Rum?

Cormac Stark: No truth to any of those rumours, though I do hear Balder is lovely this time of year and the Queen is even lovelier.

Lord Ravenclaw: I have been asked some questions for you, if you wouldn't mind.

Cormac Stark: Sure.

Lord Ravenclaw: What prompted you to return and what do you think is the allure of NationStates? Also, who are you and why do you want "my" lunch money?

Cormac Stark: I was prompted to come back because I do miss people, friendships I've made over the years, and this remains the best way to communicate with them since we don't know each other in real life. I also feel like my time away did me a lot of good and I can participate in the game without the bad feelings I had before.

Cormac Stark: The allure of the game? I think it's different for everyone. For me, it's the friendships I've made that have lasted three years now. For others it may be something else.

Cormac Stark: And I'm Cormac and I want your lunch money for something sketchy and top secret. *smirks*

Lord Ravenclaw: Thank you for joining me Cormac Stark; it's been a unique experience in the two and a half years we've worked together.

Cormac Stark: It has indeed!

Lord Ravenclaw: Okay, is there anything that you'd like to let our readers know before this interview ends?

Cormac Stark: It's nice to be back in NationStates. I feel that my month long break did me a lot of good, that I've changed and grown in my attitudes toward the game, and I look forward to others seeing that as well. And of course thank you for the interview, it's been a pleasure.

---

SillyString's Silly Advice

by SillyString

This column does not represent the views of the Government of The North Pacific.

Dear SillyString: I'm redecorating my room, and I want my room color to really express my personality. How would I go about choosing the perfect shade of color so that I won't have to repaint it again for a while?
- Painterrific

This is a dilemma that afflicts so many of our viewers, so I'm glad you asked it!

The first step you must take is to bring yourself to a good psychologist. After all, before you can begin choosing a color that fits your personality, you must first determine whether you have DID (dissociative identity disorder) and if so, how many personalities you need to match for.

With a diagnosis in your hand, your next step should be to take one of the many online "What color is your personality" quizzes. Though they appear simple, or even trite, these quizzes are designed with exceeding scientificity and can definitively match you to the right color for you. If you do indeed have DID, be sure that each one of your identities takes the quiz independently.

Armed with your scientifically verifiable personalized colors, you now need to turn those colors into paint. If you have only one identity, or if the colors of your multiple identities are all relatively similar, this isn't too hard. Take their average, get yourself to a paint store, and let the smart paintmongers do their job. They'll decide where you fall on the glossy-matte stage, and they can also estimate exactly how much paint you'll need. Once they whip you up a batch, simply apply paint to walls. You're done! Enjoy your lovely new walls.

If, on the other hand, the colors your identities are diagnosed with are significantly different, the averaging method will not work. When this happens, it becomes necessary to come up with an alternate solution that allows each one to be happy. My best suggestion is to rig up some sort of filtered lighting that will alter your perception of wall color, and then test various different shades of paint under these different lights. That way, whoever you wake up as in the morning will be greeted with their own preference when they turn on the right light. Easy peasy!

Alternatively, if you enjoy certain hard substances, you may choose to doodle on your walls with markers while under their influence. This will surely show off your inner... personality... in a way that paint never can. Good luck!

Seriously silly,
SillyString

---

The Northern Lights: Beauty in Truth
Publisher: SillyString :: Executive Editor: Kialga :: Graphic Artist: SillyString

The Northern Lights is produced by the Ministry of Communications on behalf of the Government of The North Pacific and distributed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Except where otherwise indicated, all content represents the views of the Government of The North Pacific.

[Paffnia]

Thanks for the update, McMasterdonia!

[McMasterdonia]

Plembobria forms dynamic cabinet of fresh faces and seasoned officials

by Praetor

With Plembobria's election to the position of delegate for the remainder of 2016, he summarily set about appointing ministers.

Initial appointments returned Gladio to the position of defense minister and Praetor as the minister of foreign affairs. Syrixia was appointed minister of cultural affairs. Kasch retained his post as minister of gameside affairs. Applications for the remaining ministries – communications, home affairs and World Assembly affairs – were opened and filled quickly. Bootsie, Tomb and Pallaith were appointed respectively to their positions. When asked what expectations he had for the upcoming term, the delegate replied, "Ministers will get stuff done or be flagellated!" The ministers have a wide variety of experience between them which will serve the delegate well in the upcoming term.

Gladio has been the minister of defense for the last term and is a general in the North Pacific Army. He is one of the most highly regarded individuals in the north, and his commitment to the NPA is unparalleled. He initially joined The North Pacific in 2012 and has been a member of the North Pacific Army since then. During the spring in 2014 he was made the deputy minister.

r3naissanc3r promoted him to defense minister in May 2014 and he remained as such until January 2015. He lead an impressive renewal of the department, and within two terms managed to elevate the NPA from a rarely seen force to being able to field 20 endorsements in a single update. Gladio is highly decorated with 44 ribbons and over 100 operations – the most in TNP. For this term, his "ultimate goal is to break the record deployment number" of 25.

Praetor first joined TNP in February 2016 and was appointed minister of foreign affairs by Lord Ravenclaw after his unsuccessful run for the delegacy. He led an effort to replace inactive ambassadors and recruit more department staff. More than 30 individuals joined the ministry during his term. After another unsuccessful run for elected office, this time for vice delegate, Plembobria reappointed him to the cabinet.

Syrixia is a longtime member of the community, joining in October 2014. Highly active in the roleplaying community and a long time member of the cultural affairs ministry, this is his first term in the cabinet. He says he wants to “lay the groundwork for my plans for the ministry of cultural affairs” through a program dubbed A.S.S. – “Activity, Simplicity, Spirit.”

Kasch is another new member of TNP, joining in April of this year. He applied and was accepted to the position of the minister of gameside affairs for the previous term. The ministry of gameside affairs has a large role in getting new nations onto the forum. Kasch's focus was on the creation of a brand new ministry, including the appointments of regional mentors, recruitment officers and RMB moderators.

This term, he is "going to encourage a more active presence on the RMB” and “make sure that every single one of our staff members knows what they need to do to get our new players from the game and onto the forums.” He says these duties include “releasing helpful dispatches and threads, showing people the ropes of recruitment and welcoming new members."

Bootsie was impartially appointed to head the communications ministry after running for the delegacy against Plembobria. His prior two terms as vice delegate had him heavily involved in the government, with last term's appointment to chief of staff. He has also previously served as the minister of communications, as well as the deputy minister of home affairs. He has been a deputy speaker and the elected speaker of the Regional Assembly.

With the last issue of The Northern Lights being published in late April, there is a lot of pressure on him to ensure one is published. A challenge he will have to face in addressing this is "a lack of dedicated members that want to write 400 word essays. People love to contribute all day to recruiting or coming up with ideas for a festival, but there aren't many who'll sit down and write a column for a newspaper." The Northern Lights is one of the major policy tools of the communications ministry. The lack of a publication has harmed TNP's foreign affairs, so the new edition is much anticipated.

Tomb has an extensive history in The North Pacific, previously serving as minister of home affairs, foreign affairs and communications, as well a deputy minster of several departments. He most notably served as delegate from February to May 2015. Tomb is quickly seeking greater involvement in the off-site community. His team sent almost 4000 telegrams manually in the span of a few days.

Tomb claims home affairs is a vital department because "the minute that the H.A. Ministry goes inactive, the bloodline of new members into the region is directly affected. And so it is important and necessary to keep the executive staff active and interested. In the past, we've offered no incentives. This time, I plan to put in place a rewards system to serve as an incentive for people to join the H.A. executive staff, as well as a way of rewarding existing members."

With Tomb's credentials it is quite likely that he will be able to create a system to improve recruitment and retention of citizens.

Pallaith is the newest cabinet member, with no prior ministerial experience. He joined in September, just prior to the election. He applied for the position and was accepted by Plembobria. He rolled into a job with only a few hours until the contentious resolution "Commend Benevolent Thomas" went to vote and performed admirably in handling this challenge. He aims "to make TNP a haven for resolution authors and bring W.A.L.L. back to forefront, so that the ministry of WA affairs can do its part to enhance diplomacy with our neighbors and put our region's immense influence to even greater use and effect." The World Assembly Legislative League, or W.A.L.L., is an under-utilized treaty designed to enhance the signatories' power in the World Assembly. The North Pacific has the largest voting bloc in the world by a wide margin. Hopefully, Pallaith can further bolster TNP's influence.

The ministers of The North Pacific have a considerable amount of power, with that power comes a lot of responsibility. Ministers are responsible in ensuring the government runs smoothly, to advise the delegate, and most importantly, to improve the community. Each ministry is unique and should one not accomplish its tasks, it has a significant impact on the region.

The ministers are not alone in this, however. Each department has a dedicated staff usually featuring between 20 to 40 members to assist them in their role. With such a large staff, communication occurs on the forums, as well as the Discord servers for executive staff and the NPA.

The community of The North Pacific looks forward to seeing what its new cabinet can accomplish in the closing months of 2016.

---

The second edition of the Northern Cup swings into action

by Kasch

What started out as an idea, floating around quietly on one of our Discord channels, has slowly and steadily grown over the past few months. The Northern Cup has expanded into a tournament with 32 teams and its own qualification process.

Almost nothing like this had ever been managed before the very first edition of what I called the Northern Cup. It was a big surprise to see how quickly we acted upon what started as a simple conversation in Discord. I already knew that quite a lot of people would be interested, and so I decided to go ahead with it and get it up and running.

I have learned from this experience that doing something while you have the time is better than finding a reason not to do it. I am hoping to introduce a whole new team of people into the management of the The Northern Cup, from Adjudicators to Reporters, as there will always be people who want to help.

All of the time taken to care for each little detail and to ensure that people are seeing my best work, all of that has paid off and I can proudly say that I am looking forward to running this cup every year or so from now on. I guess you could say that it was the people around me that gave me the motivation and the inspiration to begin the tournament.

When sports role play is introduced to a forum, there are always people who do not like sports, people who love sports, and everyone in between. But no matter who they are, there should always be opportunities for them to take part in events and tournaments.

One of the aspects I have enjoyed greatly whilst running this tournament is the opportunity to design the tournament's graphics. It has been a real eye opener to see how much of a difference a graphical effort can make. Although it is not necessary, it has certainly brought life to the skeletons of text.

All role playing regions should have the same goal: if there is an idea, put it into action. If somebody suggests something, take the time to listen and understand. Without the encouragement of many people on NS, the forums and Discord, I doubt I would have even continued with TNC.

I don't know how tournaments in the future will turn out or what features may be added, but I do know one thing: starting TNC and working to build it all up has really given me a reason to keep role playing sports and to keep regularly setting up events. I hope to expand on it even more in the future, but nobody can be sure of what may truly become of the Northern Cup.

Let's just hope things get even more interesting than they already are now.

---

A race to remember: Region's finest on display in September elections

by Tomb

Every January, May, and September, The North Pacific holds its general elections, in which it elects the delegate, vice delegate, and speaker of the Regional Assembly. Needless to say, general elections are a time of high buzz and activity in TNP. With experienced citizens, rising stars, and new members all competing for the three highest seats of government, TNPers are often faced with hard decisions at the polls. However, no recent election has matched that of the September 2016 race in terms of the quality of the candidates, level of competition, and the overall amount of campaigning.

The race started out with outgoing Vice Delegate Bootsie and then Minister of Home Affairs Plembobria declaring their candidacies for delegate. Both candidates ran on a joint ticket system with Bootsie choosing Praetor, the minister of foreign affairs as his running mate, and Plembobria choosing former Deputy Attorney General Yeraennus. Both candidates for delegate ran on platforms promising to continue the progress made in the past eight months under outgoing Delegate Lord Ravenclaw while also incorporating their own ideas for the region for the next four months. As far as credentials go, Plembobria emphasized his strong record as a former chief justice and his executive branch experience as the minister of home affairs. Bootsie highlighted his consistency as the region’s vice delegate for the past eight months and his familiarity with the executive branch through his role as chief of staff. As no further nominees would accept a nomination for the delegacy, the race for delegate looked to be an extremely close match between Plembobria and Bootsie.

In the race for vice delegate, Praetor and Yeraennus started out as the major candidates; however, the state of the race would dramatically alter after Lord Ravenclaw, the outgoing delegate, decided to join the race. Raven’s candidacy came as a surprise to those who expected him to take a break after his eight month tenure as delegate of the region. Raven explained that his candidacy for vice delegate allowed TNPers to have another option for the position, since many voters were wary of the ticket system that was adopted and implemented by both of the candidates for delegate. Raven also expressed his desire to continue serving TNP in an official capacity. He went on to cite his experience as a veteran of the region’s executive branch, which could be put to use in either a Bootsie or Plembobria administration. Also joining the race for vice delegate were current security councilor and long time TNP citizen, Romanoffia, and former Minister of Culture Lord Lore. This put the number of candidates for vice delegate at five, with each one of them having the necessary skills and experience to fulfill the job.

The race for the speakership of the Regional Assembly was dominated by Zyvetskistaahn (Zyvet), the incumbent speaker and sole candidate for the office. Zyvet emphasized the fact that he was the region’s longest serving speaker and promised to continue performing at the same level of excellence that he had shown TNPers in his previous terms.

The elections were highly contested, and for many voters it was a really hard decision. As a result, a debate was conducted for both the delegate and vice delegate races. The debates were moderated by former delegate and long time TNP citizen, Eluvatar, and they really helped showcase the candidates’ knowledge on issues as well as clarify many of their positions and policies. Lord Lore and Romanoffia were unavailable for the vice delegate debate, and so it was to be held between Praetor, Yeranennus, and Lord Ravenclaw. It was agreed that Lord Ravenclaw won the Vice Delegate debate; however, both of the other candidates performed well and were knowledgeable on almost every topic asked. The results for the delegate debates, which were attended by both candidates, were inconclusive as both of them put forth a strong performance. And so all candidates continued to campaign until the last day of voting. The results were announced on Sept. 13 with Plembobria winning the race for delegate with 43 votes compared to Bootsie’s 34 votes. Lord Ravenclaw won the vice delegate race with 44 votes. Praetor came in second place with 18 votes, and Romanoffia, Lord Lore, and Yeraennus finished up in third, fourth, and fifth place, respectively. Last but certainly not least, Zyvet handily won the election for speaker, mustering 66 votes. The votes were all certified and the voter turnout was placed at 83 votes, an extremely high number even for a GCR.

It is elections like these that really help showcase how strong democracy is in TNP. Not only was the voter turn out high, but the citizens themselves had many viable, experienced candidates for each seat. And so it is this active electorate coupled with a dedicated list of candidates and crazy competition that make TNP the best region in all of NationStates.

---

The region you choose matters: First impressions from a new arrival

by Pallaith

Every single player in NationStates begins their journey in the most populous and influential regions in existence. When we arrive we are new, wide-eyed and awestruck by their size and the number of players interacting. The regional officers look imposing with all their endorsements, the RMB is bustling and we probably don’t know any other people there, and to top it all off, within minutes the recruitment telegrams have stuffed our inboxes. It can be very intimidating. While a lot of nations decide to stay in the region, most take a good look at those telegrams and make the first important choice in this game.

My first nation in this game was Ghostopolis, and I spawned in The North Pacific. A few friends in another online group got into NationStates and showed me the site. I had no clue how any of it worked, outside of a few tips those friends gave me. One of the things they mentioned was that all players start out in a GCR, and to hear them tell it, if I decided to stay put I would be swimming in an ocean where I would be one of many schools of fish, destined to be eaten or outswam by the sharks and whales that resided there. I came to believe that if I wanted to take the game to a level higher than answering issues and voting in the WA, I would have to aim for a small pond or a large lake where I could swim freely and be counted as a valued part of the region. So I left, choosing one of the regions who reached out to me.

These regions make a lot of promises: activities, a shot at political success, a friendly and welcoming community. I figured the odds of that would be better in one of the other regions, but I figured wrong. My first region was small but was an elite club of people who knew each other longer than they knew me and didn’t seem much interested in letting in anyone new unless they were carbon copies of the people in charge. We had RP but alternative viewpoints were not welcome. We had elections but the outcomes were predetermined. Following their rigid ways and playing along with all their ideas meant that innovation could not take root, and there was very little reason for anyone to do much. I left for another region within the year, completely burned out from the experience. I answered issues and voted in the WA, but that was it. My second region was a good one, and I could have had a lot of fun there, but I was so disappointed by the experience and still intimidated by the idea of incorporating myself into another group of strangers who were all friends that it took me almost two years to get invested in the game again.

The region you choose matters. You can travel around looking for a better fit, but even if you find it, you may not be ready or able to appreciate it. The people who enjoy this game the most are the people who make an effort and get involved. There can be a lot of trial and error in NationStates, and that word trial is important. You have to try, but so does the region. The North Pacific put all the tools at my feet, and I just had to decide to pick them up. I have been a citizen of TNP for less than a month and I am blown away by the experience. I have found here what I thought I could not when I was a newcomer. Where else could a new arrival have a platform like The Northern Lights, let alone be appointed a minister so quickly? Everyone I met has welcomed me with open arms, they put up with my dumb jokes and my endless questions. All I had to do on that first day was stop by the forum and start posting. I could have enjoyed this game so much more from the start.

I absolutely vouch for TNP and admit that my friends led me astray, and all my worst assumptions about them when I joined were wrong. TNP is not just another GCR, it is a fantastic, open, encouraging region. I could write another paragraph of positive words, but that isn’t enough. You have to experience it for yourself. Sign up, take a look around, visit Discord. There are no limits to what you can do or what this region can do if we all take a leap of faith together. I don’t think I will ever run out of things to do here, and I definitely don’t have any incentive to stop. I’m not presumptuous enough to claim to speak for all new nations in the region, but I wanted citizens old and new to hear from one of the new guys for a change. I for one appreciate the work the veterans and architects put into the region as it exists today. I appreciate the outreach, your friendliness, your helpfulness, your patience. It goes somewhere; it makes a difference. If you’re new like me, take advantage of your new region’s effort, and give back to them. This will make everyone’s game so much better, and you’re here to play, aren’t you? So let’s play some NS.

---

The Northern Lights: Beauty in Truth
Publisher: plembobria :: Executive Editor: Bootsie :: Managing Editor: Kondratev :: Graphic Artists: SillyString & Imki

The Northern Lights is produced by the Ministry of Communications on behalf of the Government of The North Pacific and distributed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Except where otherwise indicated, all content represents the views of the Government of The North Pacific.

[abc]

The North Pacific
Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Magicality City, 3/26/2017

---

Dear Markanite,

The government of The North Pacific entreats you to accept ABC as an ambassador between our two regions. They have been a citizen in good standing of The North Pacific for 142 days and a legislator in our Regional Assembly for the same period and we believe they will meet the duties of this posting admirably. Their responsibilities will include above all keeping your region informed of important affairs in The North Pacific, supporting our interregional ties by interpersonal ties through social involvement, keeping our government abreast of affairs in your region, and providing services to dual citizens should they be needed and welcome.

By accepting ABC as an ambassador, we hope you will continue to honour the long lasting relationship between The North Pacific and 10000 Islands.

Sincerely,
Guy
Minister of Foreign Affairs.

[abc]

Sorry for not posting this sooner, this is last month's edition of The Northern Lights:

Foreign Ministry Introduces Diplomatic Teams

by Cerian Quilor, Citizen

The expectations and workloads of diplomats and ambassadors is always variable. If a region has many embassies, but few ambassadors, those few will be stretched thin to do too many regions each, and the expectations will, assuming a fair Foreign Minister, be comparatively low (post the update, check in once a week for inquiries, usually small things like that). When you have a lot of ambassadors, and few embassies, you can run the risk of what is essentially 'unemployment' (that is, more demand for jobs than jobs available). And while opening more embassies can solve than, opening embassies is somewhat more important than just 'job creation'. Still, an option.

And sometimes you end up with something of an embarrassment of riches - lots of ambassadors, and lots of embassies. And then too many ambassadors still. Ideally, an ambassador should be establishing a rapport with their assigned region, socializing, flying the flag of your region, and keeping up on all publicly available current events. Sometimes, a region is too active to keep up on everything and stay social and handle whatever else an ambassador has to do.

TNP, proving how robust our regional community is, has reached that 'embarrassment of riches' stage. We have more ambassadors than embassies to assign them. And thus, to that end, Foreign Minister Bootsie has launched the creation of diplomatic teams, wherein multiple ambassadors are assigned to one region, for the full purpose of bearing the flag, representing the region and all other duties. The trial regions were The West Pacific and The East Pacific.

So far, the results seem to lean positive in the long run, with one saying they felt that, over time, the program would "steadily produce competent diplomats and would further TNP's good reputation in NationStates," while another commented that they appreciated the fact that the program made it so that they didn't have to be "the only one faced with the responsibilities of a region, especially one as large as The East Pacific."

While so far, it's too early to tell just what the impact of this program will be, or if it will be extended to other regions, but the only way to find out is to keep our eyes on newly appointed Minister Guy and the rest of the Foreign Ministry.

---

The Spotlight #2: An Interview with the MoWAA Sil Dorsett

by Kasch & Sil, Min. Communications & Min. World Assembly Affairs

Kasch: Hello and welcome to the second interview as part of the Spotlight segment for The Northern Lights, Issue XI. Today, I am joined by our current Minister of World Assembly Affairs, Sil Dorsett.

Sil Dorsett: Thanks for having me, Kasch! It's a pleasure to be here.

Kasch: It's great to have you on the Spotlight! So, first question - how has your term as Minister of World Assembly Affairs been going so far?

Sil Dorsett: It's been a busy first month! The Security Council has been really active with resolutions of all kinds; liberations, condemnations, and even a commendation for our own r3naissanc3r! It's been keeping us active, and I'm glad to see it. We're in a bit of a slow period with nothing at vote right now, and I don't mind the break, but I'm looking forward to things picking up again.

Kasch: At the beginning of the term, what vision did you see for the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs and how did you, or do you still plan to achieve it?

Sil Dorsett: One of the visions I had for the ministry was for us to be able to generate deeper discussions on resolutions. A lot of times, when I opened a voting and discussion thread, the responses mostly just had the vote, without any explanation as to why. Providing reasoning for a vote was what I always tried to do even before joining the staff, as it generates discussion, so I've been encouraging that in the opening post of the threads. I've also been closely monitoring the proposals and seeing which proposals are likely to reach quorum and starting the discussion threads early, which gives us time to have a solid discussion, rather than rushing through, tallying votes, and just coming up with something to send out to the rest of the WA nations in the region.

Kasch: It certainly seems like you have a defined vision for the ministry! Next question, is there anything in particular you like most about being the MoWAA?

Sil Dorsett: I think the thing I like most about being the Minister is the closer interaction that I have with the rest of the Executive Council. It provides me with the ability to gain insight into the inner workings of TNP's government. When I was Deputy Minister, Pallaith trained me well on the inner workings of the WA Ministry, but now there's so much more open to me, and much more to learn, and I really enjoy that.

Kasch: Going away from the WA for a minute, what were your first impressions of TNP and how its government works?

Sil Dorsett: Hmm, there's an interesting question. To be honest, when I first joined the game I was founded in TNP and never really thought to look outside the region. TNP was the largest region and it was very active, so I was satisfied with staying. It wasn't until after being introduced to the World Assembly Develoent Program and endotarting that I joined the forums and was welcomed. I think there was one comment that said "Finally, the elusive Sil reveals himself." It was a good introductory experience. As far as the how the government works, my first impression was that it just worked, and that nothing seemed radical and out there.

Kasch: From all the people you've met so far in this community, who has had the largest effect on your NS Career and why?

Sil Dorsett: Absolutely would be Pallaith. No question there. Pallaith took notice of my efforts in a WALL thread where there was a proposal on its way to being submitted that I thought was amending other resolutions, which isn't allowed. Although I was completely wrong, it wasn't really amending, he appreciated the effort and research that went into my analysis and offered me the Deputy Minister spot. He strapped the rocket on my back.

Kasch: Pallaith was a very good WA Minister during his term, so I can fully understand that. Okay, from the time you've spent here and on NationStates, what has been the most important thing you've learned?

Sil Dorsett: The most important thing I've learned is that there's more to the game than answering issues and voting on resolutions. There's communities out there, on-site and off, that make the whole experience much more fulfilling. You just have to be willing to dive in and take a chance on it.

Kasch: I couldn't agree more. And since you are a relatively new nation, who do you look up to most in either TNP or the whole of NationStates?

Sil Dorsett: That's a tough one, because there are plenty of people who are such a positive influence. Honestly, I can't mention just one. Just can't do that. From a gameside perspective, I appreciate the commitment and dedication of both Lord Ravenclaw and r3naissanc3r, and everything they've done inspires me to work harder for the region. From a cultural and roleplay perspective, I have to give it to Goyanes for his creativity and artistic skill. Every time he posts more details about his nation or a new map it makes me think of how I can flesh out my national identity more.

Kasch: Some very well-respected names there, now, for other regions - which region, apart from TNP, is your favourite in NS?

Sil Dorsett: Oooh, an even harder question! But it actually goes the opposite way than the last question. As I said earlier, I haven't really looked at other regions. Perhaps I'm due for a stint in Foreign Affairs to make up for it! I will say that we have a solid ally in Europeia, through collaboration on the World Assembly Legislative League and CAIN, so I think I'll give them the nod.

Kasch: Okay, enough time away from the WA, back to it! What are your views on the WADP and its effects on not just our endorsement levels, but the region as a whole?

Sil Dorsett: I think the WADP is one of the strongest retention and activity generation mechanisms we have. We don't place arbitrary low limits on endorsements and threaten to ban for crossing it. Well, let me correct that, there are still limits and we can kick for getting too close to the Vice Delegate, but the number to hit is ridiculously high that it shouldn't be a problem for anyone. It also makes us the safest region to be in, because all those endorsements means more influence, which protects you. The combination of those things I think makes others want to stay here.

The awards system that the WADP has encouraged me to get started with endotarting. When I first saw the awards system, I wanted to be Click-to-Endorse champion, and within the first month of my nation's existence I did that. I spent one night doing over 1500 endorsements to get there. And then once I had the championship, I figured it was time to introduce myself to the forums. So, I also think WADP drives overall regional activity, probably in part through retention of nations. But that's based on my personal experience.

Kasch: It really sounds like you dedicated your time to the WA! But now, if you could give one piece of advice to any nation considering getting involved with endotarting and the WA, what would you say?

Sil Dorsett: "Join. Endorse. Vote." Join the World Assembly to expand your gameplay experience. Endorse everyone, especially the Delegate and Vice Delegate. We have tools available that can help, including a page on our forum that'll tell you everyone you haven't endorsed. Finally, vote on resolutions, because every vote counts. I sent a telegram to the entire region about this not too long ago.

Kasch: Going forward, what does a potential MoWAA need to know if they want your position?

Sil Dorsett: Potential ministers should know that they're responsible for the content and distribution of our recommendations, and there are tools available to the minister and deputy ministers that make it simple. They'll also need to be prepared to answer a lot of questions from the community. Also, keep a close eye on proposals, and also read what's being posted on the on-site forum, though really I encourage everyone in the staff to do that. Awareness of everything that's happening around the World Assembly subforum is crucial.

Kasch: Great advice, and leading onto the next question - if you could change one thing about this community, what would it be and why?

Sil Dorsett: I'll be honest, I can't really think of anything I would change. TNP is such an open and welcoming community with its own unique culture, and I'm not one to think about changing it while I'm still learning and adapting. So, I apologize for the non-answer there, but I think it should still speak to how great the community is.

Kasch: Totally valid answer there, it was a hard question! So, we've spoken about the WA and TNP in general, now for another topic. Other than the MoWAA, what other ministries could you see yourself managing, and why?

Sil Dorsett: Well, the first thing I need to do is be more active with Home Affairs. I've already been encouraging others to join the forums when I'm answering WA related questions, but it's about time I start ramping up activity in HA and encourage even more to come aboard. Once I have some experience there, perhaps I'll apply for a Deputy Minister spot there to gain the managerial experience.

Kasch: If everyone else was to CTE, and you could only save five nations from dying, who would you save?

Sil Dorsett: Haha, only five? Wow! I don't even think I could save myself under those conditions. Let's see. Guslantis, because who doesn't love guinea pigs? HMS Unicorn (r3naissanc3r) deserves it. I'll save BouncyAbbeyKitty too. You (Kasch) because you've had a hand in everything and can do everything if it comes down to it. And I have to let Pallaith live too. There that's five, and that's with me CTEing too.

Kasch: I feel very honoured to be on that list, but I am sure there are a lot more nations we could have mentioned. Now, if you could go back in time and tell the first few hundred nations anything, what would you say to them?

Sil Dorsett: Absolutely, that's why five was incredibly hard. Now, to the first hundred nations, I'd go back and tell them ahead of time of how much NationStates will grow, to give them some inspiration. There's been over five million nations created. That's an impressive feat, and it all started with them.

Kasch: After all, not even this interview would be happening without some of those first nations. While we're on the topic of history, what has been your favourite moment since joining NS?

Sil Dorsett: When the General Assembly stopped talking about nukes. Haha, just kidding, That'll never happen. My favorite moment in NS, in the 6 months I've been around, was when the WA nations came together and were able to flip the result of a liberation repeal when Eternal Scholars was invaded a second time in the middle of the vote. We got the job done, the region stayed liberated until the new invaders were out, and now just recently we were able to hand that region back over to its rightful owners.

Kasch: That must have been pretty memorable, and in terms of the MoWAA and its work in writing recommendations, how do you think the ministry could be improved and changed so that writing these becomes easier and more efficient?

Sil Dorsett: That will come with more input in the discussion threads and with the staff reading through the on-site forums to gather up feedback from others across all of NationStates. With more input, we'll be able to write an informative recommendation faster. We should also continue to collaborate with our World Assembly Legislative League allies, letting them know when we start a discussion thread, letting them know what our vote is, and working together on the recommendations, and try to have everything ready to send within a day of a resolution coming to vote.

Kasch: Okay, and in terms of communication with our allies over GA and SC Proposals, are there any regions which stand out in terms of legislative capability, other than TNP?

Sil Dorsett: I'd say Europeia and Balder have very solid WA programs and are heavy hitters with high endorsement counts. Together we make up a large chunk of the available vote. They are two of our WALL allies, and we have our own Discord server with them and International Democratic Union, so communication and collaboration with them is easy. IDU also has an advantage as their delegate is a member of the GA secretariat.

Kasch: Since we're nearing the end of the interview, just a few more questions. Firstly, what were your thoughts on NS before you joined? How did you see the community beforehand and what did you expect from it?

Sil Dorsett: To be honest, I went in with no thoughts or expectations at all. I started out as one of those players that was just curious about answering issues and how a nation would change as a result. It was a legitimate leap of faith that I took in joining the TNP community, and I'm glad I did.

Kasch: Penultimately, if you could move to any other region in the game, and leave TNP behind, what region would that be?

Sil Dorsett: Haha, if it really came to that, I'd at least go to one of our allies, and definitely to a large, safe region. Which one in particular? I couldn't really say. I'd want to do more research and see which regions share our values, something I haven't worked on yet. If I feel up for it, maybe I'll move a puppet around and see what's out there, but I'm personally in no rush to do so.

Kasch: Personally, I would very easily choose Europeia, that's just me, though. Now, final question - you have one day left to do anything on NS before it shuts down forever, what do you do and why?

Sil Dorsett: Last day, I'd go through all of my nation's information pages and print them. All the charts, print those too. Regional information pages, do them too. That way, I have a final report card of my nation to look back upon. I don't trust the internet's Wayback Machine site to do it right!

Kasch: Well, it's been absolutely great having you on the Spotlight with me today, and I wish you the best of the luck with the rest of the term! Folks, that does it for this month's Spotlight!

Sil Dorsett: Thanks for having me, Kasch. It's been a pleasure.

---

NBS Radio becomes TNPs first radio show

by Kasch (co-edited by King Leonidas), Minister of Communications & Citizen

The Northern Broadcasting service was developed under the supervision of myself, and FrozenTopHat. We both noticed the activity and the use of the Discord voice chat channels. We soon realized that not only could there be a potential advantage to the voice chats, but there could even be an entire project that can contribute to it. Inspired by a similar program run by Europeia, we knew that it was not quite an original idea. We suspected that many regions might have tried and failed at it before. Yet we were strong-willed, as leaders of the Communications Ministry, to assure the voices of the North were heard at all costs.

If you have never heard of the Northern Broadcasting Service before, it is the group of members responsible for the development, hosting, and participation of weekly broadcasts and events for the pleasure and entertainment of the community and others who wish to follow up on current events. A program contained within the Northern Broadcasting Service, NBS Radio, was founded by FrozenTopHat and myself about five weeks ago. It has continued to work well alongside the Northern Lights and other ministries within the region.

Our motivation to progress this project was the lack of goals and objectives. I had rebuff the belief that The Northern Lights would be my only working point as Minister of Communications. We understood that focusing on numerous projects at once can reduce the quality of our work, but I truly saw something within the NBS. How it could be managed by the ministry, the potential in the people and the ministry itself, and FrozenTopHat vehemently agreed. It is one thing to perusal text on a screen, but it is on an utterly new level when the voices behind that text are presented to the community.

How did the first broadcast go? Well, when planning the very first broadcast, I must say, I was incredibly anxious about it. We did not quite know what topics that should be discussed in our broadcast, neither how it should be presented, but with some poking and querying, I managed to obtain a list of several topics for the show. Everything went splendiferous that day, we have almost consistently maintained our reliable starting times, and efficiency in producing great content for all of our listeners. The number of people taking interest and listening to our broadcast is steadily on the increase, so hopefully to come at the end of the term, we attain a regular, dedicated group of listeners.

We have a variety of ideas for the Northern Broadcasting Service and hope to establish some of them in the coming months of the term. One of those conceptions being an interview show, which is already in action through The Spotlight, a monthly segment in the Northern Lights. The first session went successfully, with Tomb as our very first guest. I am thrilled to announce the next person on the show will be Sil Dorsett, current Minister of WA Affairs! As you can presume, there are almost endless possibilities when it comes to the Spotlight, with new topics, questions, and people to interview every month! Not just through text, voice interviews are very much on the table.

Another idea some of the broadcasters and I were going over, was an opportunity for broadcasters of NBS and the EBC to collaborate on some projects. To produce excellent content for both shows would be an incredible chance for us to work with them on a broadcast. If you are part of the EBC, and do regular broadcasts through Mixlr, contact me so something can be arranged! I think it would do both communities a massive favor in terms of increasing popularity, listeners, and regular air time. It would also give our broadcasters a chance to meet others from Europeia. 

All of the broadcasts from then on have followed the same patterns, and have all been produced and executed excellently by all of those involved. It is a great pleasure to work with everyone on this project and watch it grow from its infancy. I would to thank numerous people for their help on this project, and I believe some credit may be overdue for all of its expansion and growth. Essentially, to FrozenTopHat, for lighting the sparks of inspiration within me. Thanks to everyone who had contributed to the broadcast so far. NBS Radio could not have been what it is today without you and I know that this is only just the beginning.

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CAIN conference keyword density analysis

by Nasania, Citizen

This column does not represent the views of the Government of The North Pacific.

Nationstates is a political game and ideologies do have a place in Nationstates politics-though it may not always be acknowledged as such. My hypothesis is that political ideologies can be measured by taking a tally of the buzzwords the political actor chooses to throw around. The words you choose to use matter, and that certain biases can show themselves in the particular kind of language you use. First off we need to set goal posts that do not move based on personal feelings or such. It is logical to identify the core ideal that an ideology espouses..The ones I shall use are taken from Daniel Berk's Ideology quiz, which I have found to adequately measure 99.6% of respondents who have taken the quiz (around 500 people have taken the quiz) and are Liberty, Equality, Stability.

Buzzwords for Liberty are: Discretion, liberty, liberate, free, freedom, one, choice, enterprise, Conscience, Deregulate, reason, each, option, own, optional, Individual, opportunity, open, any, voluntary, unlimited, unrestrained, person, private, consent, self, independent, freely, Volunteer, Domination (when spoken in negative), dependence (Negative).

Equality= Redistribution, fair, equitable, social, society, expand, equalize, equality, people, fairness, universal, every, community, together, justice, common, sense, sensitive, masses, group, balance activism, all, same, access, distribute, share, shared, Discrimination (negative), differences (negative).

Stability= Experience, the region, leader, leaders, peace, order, law, stability, member, citizen, tradition, heritage, authority, decision, decisive, certain, some, protect, safe, safety, secure, security, insure, establish, fundamental, trust, permit, reliable, Chaos (negative), Activity (negative).

Using these keywords all we have to do is read the document and start tallying for all synonyms or derived words of the above. References such as 'I hate equality' will logically be tallied as negative Equality stance. We then subtract negatives from the positives to get overall score. The Ideology of Liberty is Libertarianism or Anarcho-Capitalism when radical; Equality is Democratism and Communism when radical; Stability is Conservativism and Fascism if radical. 2/3 % score is radical threshold-if one prizes a principle over the others to this extent they qualify as an extremist.

The document we shall analyze today is the CAIN treaty and see what kind of bias is hinted at in the document: First the preamble:

"We, the undersigned governments; mindful of the impact Nazism has on the community we all share, devoted to combating scientific racism, appalled by the glorification of Nazi Germany, determined to overcome gameplay differences, and committed to making the NationStates community more accessible; do hereby establish and join the Coalition Against the Ideology of Nazism, herein referred to as "CAIN", and agree to recognize and adhere to this Treaty and the commitments set forth within."

So, by the buzzwords, I have counted there are 6 Equality Keywords and 1 conservative keyword. Let's sum them up and find proportions 6+1=7 6/7=85.7% Equality bias and 14.3% Stability. So the Preamble is showing a conservative communist signature - this is likely a response to the Nazi ideology in which hierarchy is seen as the Fundamental order of nature and Society is best organized as a hierarchy of fuhrers. It's also likely appealing to the Nazi's natural enemies - the communists. Now this doesn't mean this a communist document (in fact we will soon see that the author is NOT a communist). So let's continue to the next section which seems to be pro-stability as it's setting standards of law and order.

These are the numbers I counted:

+L=1 +E=2 +S=9

-L=0 -E0= -S=1.

.L=1 E=2 S=8 1+2+8=11 so 72.7% Stability

So it scores Fascist... If this score is valid-then we have to assume there was some pandering to a fascist group-Nazis are NOT fascists-the two groups in RL actually nearly went to war with each other over Austria-the main thing about Nazism is it's virulent anti-communism while Fascists were actually an offshoot of the socialists. In Nationstates the closest equivalent to Fascism is Francoism.

For the rest of the document I am going to do some cursory tallies.

The Membership admin section scores as follows: L=8 E=3 S=22 8+3+22=33, 22/33=66.7% Fascist

Functions section

L=5 E=1 S=13 68% Fascist

General Provisions

L=4 E=1 S=8 61.5% stability Hardline Conservative

Now I add up the totals of the above and I get:

Total= L=18, E=13, S=52, sum the results 18+13+52=83, find percentage 52/83=62.6%, Hardline Conservative.

And at that a Liberal Conservative. the score of this document is similar to Imperialist and Independent Manifestoes when I scored them several years ago (to be exact Liberty =33% Equality=18% Stability=48% Moderate Liberal Conservative: Emperor Onder of LKE had a score of L=22% E=15% S=63% ), so I would have to conclude that the conservatives had a lot of power over the procedural aspects of this document. This alliance of Imperialists/Independents with Communists will probably have a lot of problems as they don't see eye to eye with each other (Radicals of one ideology will perceive even moderate members of another ideology as their radical counterparts e.g. a communist will perceive a conservative as a fascist and a Fascist will see a moderate Laborist as a communist). The KDA predicts the Communists would most like the preamble but dislike the definitions section -they would probably prefer to replace "region" with "communities" so it’s less overtly statist-and likely include a condemnation of Fascism. Communitarians might also be a little wary about this treaty as Equality is the lowest score in the document (communitarians like to balance Equality and Stability)... Brunhilde was the author so we have to ask: What was Brunhilde's score using a quiz I designed to measure ideology based on a similar system? Liberal Conservative or Right Libertarian Independent/Imperialist (54% Liberty, 46% Equality, 77% Stability).

From doing a survey of regions with 500 respondents- Lazarus, TCB, and TRR, and TSP tended to be communist or heavily left-leaning... TNP, TEP, TWP all were Communitarian or conservative. The Communist Bloc used to have communitarians but many of them have since left their region and formed regions such as Wintercrest, so TCB is largely dominated by communists at this time. Osiris and the Pacific have a lot of Francoists so Osiris was likely the CAIN member most opposed to adding Fascism to the list of target ideologies. Conservatives also likely were opposed to adding it as they themselves might get labeled as "Fascists" (even though they're not) by hardline leftists. LKE is likely satisfied with this treaty considering their scores are an almost exact match, Looking at the list of signatories only 3-4 regions are outright communist or had a communist past. Imperialist-Independent-National Sovereigntist-monarchist regions seem to make up the majority (62.5%) of signatories with at least 15 of the 24 signatories (Note I am separating Communist regions from Independent ones). "Democratic" regions made up at least 7.

If I were to predict what will happen and considering the bias of the dominant members of this coalition .some of the more left-leaning regions may de facto leave this coalition at some point in the future-especially as the Nazi's continue to lose power... many left-leaning and especially Libertarian Socialists will lobby in their home regions to leave this coalition, possibly viewing this as something that increases Imperialists' power in Nationstates or not "fair" to their own regions-however those regions will likely stay in the coalition as their own establishments will want to keep them in the coalition. 

---

North Pacific Army Bulletin

by Owenstacey (edited and co-authored by Kasch), Citizen

February was a quiet month for the NPA, as most of the operations have been for training purposes. The NPA has deployed at least 6 troops on each operation, and considering the regular inactivity spurts that occur around this time of the year, this is an impressive level of consistency.

At the start of February, the NPA conducted three successful detagging operations, with nine participants. This was a good operation for setting up the level of activity and commitment for the rest of the month.

After this, the NPA were deployed to Taijitu for the second time, as the founder had ceased to exist again. The operation secured the region until the natives could resolve the situation. The operation was successful, with the founder being restored. In total, 18 troops were deployed.

The third operation of the month came around the 10th of February, when a joint force of 8 troops performed some more training exercises in both Warzone Australia and Warzone Asia. This operation was successful, and rounded up the end of the month nicely. We can expect to see more of the same over March, and as usual, Gladio has executed his duties with great maturity, efficiency and strong leadership.

To summarize, the NPA conducted three detagging operations, helped Taijitu recover their founder for the second time and conducted two additional training exercises nearer the end of the month. That rounds it up for February, more to come next time.

---

The Northern Lights: Beauty in Truth

Publisher: Plembobria :: Executive Editor: Kasch :: Managing Editor: Tomb :: Assistant Managing Editor: FrozenTopHat :: Graphic Artist: Imki + SillyString

The Northern Lights is produced by the Ministry of Communications on behalf of the Government of The North Pacific and distributed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Except where otherwise indicated, all content represents the views of the Government of The North Pacific.

[Markanite]

Thank you for the update abc, glad things are going well in TNP!

[abc]

General Elections for Delegate, Speaker & Vice Delegate have terminated.

Pallaith has been elected the Delegate.

The Vice Delegate election was won by the outgoing Minister of Communications, Kasch.

The Speaker election was won by Bootsie.

Pallaith has appointed Sasten as the Minister of Defence, and Sil Dorsett as the Minister of WA Affairs. He has also appointed SillyString as the Minister of Culture, Siwale as the Minister of Home Affairs, Sankami as Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Scorch as Minister of Culture. The New Delegate appointed Eluvatar, r3naissanc3r, Lord Ravenclaw, and Bootsie as Advisors to the Executive Council and the Delegate. They also pointed the former delegate, Plembobria to the same.

The government is looking forward to a productive term.

[Markanite]

Lots of changes in The North Pacific!

Congratulations to all! I can't wait to see what the next few months brings to your region.

[abc]

Thank you Markanite! I haven't been as active as I hoped, but would like to continue to keep you guys updated regularly, The Northern Lights should come out in a few weeks or so.

[Markanite]

Hope everything is still going well over in The North Pacific! Glad to see you popping back over to say hi!

[abc]

Regional Assembly Highlights

by Owenstacey, Deputy Speaker

The Regional Assembly has been very active over the last month, with three votes going to the floor and another three currently under discussion.

The first vote on the floor was the Election Reform Bill which was briefly mentioned in last month's edition. The main premise of the bill was to create a group of election commissioner, that is confirmed by the RA, to take control of all elections in a six month period. As well as this, the Attorney General election would move to the General Election cycle. The bill proved to be very popular and passed convincingly with 16 voting for, 6 voting nay and 10 abstaining from the vote.

The second bill to go to vote was the Delegates’ Day Bill. This was a much simpler bill than the last and was proposed to change the to not only spread out the holidays but move it to a date that had a little more meaning to the day. The proposed date, 9th September, is important to Delegates in The North Pacific because it was the date of the first transfer of power under the first ratified constitution. When reaching the floor the bill was hugely successful with The North Pacific Citizens, of whom 29 voted aye, 4 abstaining and no one voting nay.

The final vote was the Election Commissioner confirmations brought to the RA as a result of the Election Reform Bill. These confirmations were brought to the RA for discussion after Pallaith, The North Pacific’s Delegate, announced Crushing Our Enemies, SillyString, Darcania, Eluvatar, Syrixia, and Siwale as his choices for the positions. After a short discussion, the vote was brought to the floor and all of his choices were passed with a large majority with each only getting one nay vote.

There are currently three bills under discussion: the Mandatory Ministers Bill, the Regional Officers Clarification Bill and the Copyediting the Constibillocode.

Overall, this month has been a busy one for the Regional Assembly with multiple bills being introduced and voted on with some major changes being made to TNP law.

---

North Pacific Army Bulletin

by Iraelia, Citizen

Since the last issue of The Northern Lights, the North Pacific Army was notably less busy, with only three operations have occurred compared to the seven that occurred last month. This has been the first full month that the newly appointed Minister of Defence, Sasten, has led the NPA.

The first NPA operation was a raid on Warzone Asia along with the West Pacific. The raid was attempted at the major update and failed due to mistiming. A second attempt was made at the minor update, but soldiers from the Grey Wardens got in before us.

The next attempted NPA operation was a raid on Novis Vandium intended to liberate the region, which was a success. Six NPA soldiers took part in this operation.

The final NPA operation was a raid on Anterra. We once again raided the region with a West Pacific-North Pacific coalition, but some defense forces had beat us into the region and our forces suffered a six second mistime. Five NPA soldiers took part in this operation.

---

Communications over the Years

by Kasch, Vice Delegate

The Ministry of Communications is certainly not a stalwart of the government in comparison with ministries such as Defence and Foreign Affairs - both legally required along with Home Affairs. It has, however, earned a well-deserved vein in the strong, beating heart of the North Pacific, has faced and overcome a barrage of immense challenges in the past, from the cogency and literary acme of The North Pacific Wire to the inconsistency and inadequacy of previous ministers.

But the important question is: where did it all begin?

One of the primary associations made with Communications is the publishment and production of regional news. Before any recognizable elections took place for the minister position, writers and editors were already keen to make an impact. The first step in establishing a regional news platform appeared towards the end of July in 2004. Forum user Multaan opened a thread announcing the creation of 'TNP News Central, A new source of news.' A forum area where users could post news and articles independently.

The second step towards and official news publishment for the region was taken on September the 8th, 2005, when Tresville announced the North Pacific Wire, an off-site blog where Tresville and other contributors wrote articles and posts for the whole region (and other communities) to see. TNP Wire saw unprecedented success, spearheading the publication of news in the North Pacific for a majority of 2005 and saw a re-opening in May 2007. Overall, over 60 items were published by TNP Wire - a feat which has not yet been matched.

A Communications Ministry was a requirement in the constitution of the North Pacific Confederation back in 2005. Elections for the position took place much longer before this was an established legal document, however. The first of these elections was in August 2004. The accepted candidates for the election of the Minister of Communications were Sydia, Hiooland and Cathyy. The results of the election are shown below.

[/b][c]Votes[c]Percentage[c]Sydia[c]29[c]64.44[c]Cathyy[c]13[c]28.89[c]Hiooland[c]3[c]6.67[/table]
Sydia won the first election for Minister of Communications over 12 years ago. It is unclear what Sydia did during their term as the minister because I was unable to locate any sources of information on the Old Blue forum in relation to it.

The dozens of the ministry can be unequivocally identified through independent research conducted on Old Blue. Tresville, Hersfold, Erastide, Sydia, WishyWashyWonder and Ator People were stanchions of the ministry who kept it upright and strong for so many years. There were others who have been lost in the floods of countless archives, but who most probably had similar influence.

Over the next year or so, more of these elections took place and more ministers were elected. To round off 2005, the Regional Assembly approved a forum move from S2 (Old Blue) to S13 (our current forum).

TNP Wire vacillated between various states of success and failure over the next decade or so. It was managed by countless different ministers all tasked with similar jobs. There was a structure to news publication, but to form an organized, chronological report would take hours upon hours sifting through pages of archives trying to find some sort of timeline. Even then, it would go from a news item to a fully-fledged novella - something for another day, I suppose.

In 2014, under the Delegacy of HMS Unicorn, a new publication emerged named 'The Northern Lights'. This effectively ended the fitful reign of TNP Wire and begun the era of cleaner and more organized newspaper publishment. Below is the index of all the issues published by TNL.

SPOILER: Click to show

[/a][*]Issue XI, March 1st[*]Issue X, February 1st[*]Issue IX, October 5th[*]Issue VIII, April 27th[*]Issue VII, November 6th[*]Issue VI, February 26th[*]Issue V, January 10th[*]Issue IV, October 27th[*]Issue III, August 2nd[*]Issue II, June 29th[*]Issue I, May 25th[/ul][/spoiler]

SPOILER: Click to show

SPOILER: Click to show

SPOILER: Click to show

Projects and ideas such as the Northern Broadcasting Service, founded by myself during my term as Minister of Communications, have had the chance to develop and make an impact on the ministry, but so far have not prevailed. With time, great things will come. Communications has a lot more to offer, and a lot more quality to bring to the table. With strong and guided leadership, this ministry has the potential to reach heights never reached before.

---

Monthly Memoirs

by Kasch, Vice Delegate

To try and get a larger perspective on the collective experiences of members from all over the North Pacific, the Monthly Memoirs segment of the Northern Lights asks a set of questions every month and gathers the responses. I hope that this segment can serve as a reference point for times in the future when we want to look back and identify what exactly makes us North Pacificans and the experiences that we all share.

This month, we asked the following questions:

These were the responses:

Brendog (Deputy Minister)

A1: My earliest memory was actually this year when the I was appointed to The East Pacific as ambassador. It was my first time in another region as well as my first contribution to the Ministry as executive staff. Over that month I would go on and apply to more and more ministries.

A2: Unique. There are many facets to TNP, both in-game and on the forums. We are unique, being active in all parts of NS, from the World Assembly to role play and we care for all nations. This is seen in the various ministries that help players on game and also through the different platforms, from discord to the forums and even the RMB which facilitates the many sides of TNP

A3: Firstly I was founded in the region, I looked at it and it seemed a bit too much. I moved around regions for a few days and didn't find any other region which suited my interest. Eventually, I came back to TNP and have stayed here since mainly. With opportunities that it presented, I am happy to be part of TNP

A4: Praetor has had the biggest influence on me. I met him through the Forum Mentoring Program and he introduced to me the forums. The forums are another totally whole life to NS. It has provided me many opportunities that otherwise may have taken me longer to realize. He has to lead me to the place I am in the TNP today.

Kasch (Vice Delegate)

A1: My earliest memory of the North Pacific has to be moving to the region after I was found in the East Pacific. I considered getting involved there but decided to give myself more of a challenge by joining the largest region in the game. I remember clicking that join button so clearly, it almost feels like yesterday.

A2: Phenomenal. Everything about this region, from corner to corner, offers unique and enjoyable ways to get yourself involved and help the community. The view is great wherever you stand, and I haven't seen that with any other regions.

A3: I wanted to stay in the feeders permanently with my nation because I didn't think I was going to spend as much time as I have on the game. The North Pacific pulled me in straight away. It was, from the very beginning, a place where I could really play the game and see it for what it is.

A4: Lord Ravenclaw, as he appointed me as Minister of Gameside Affairs. This was my very first involvement with the government, so if this had not happened, I most likely wouldn't be close to where I am now. I've remained a part of the government for over a year and I have loved every second of it. Not only did LR introduce me to the government, but he put up with me as I pestered him with questions and suggestions as a beginner.

Scorch (Minister of Communications)

A1. My first memory of The North Pacific was getting a PM notifying me that I was allowed to vote in the September 2016 General Election. Shortly after, I would vote even though I had no idea who the candidates were or what they were talking about.

A2. Extraordinary. We have so much activity in The North Pacific and there is always something going on. People are always accepting of new members and often encourage them to get involved in the region. New faces are constantly appearing and The North Pacific has many appealing aspects that don't always appear in NationStates regions.

A3. My nation was founded in The North Pacific and for a day or two I just wandered around on the NationStates website trying to figure out what to do. Eventually, I joined Discord and the forum and I began to figure things out.

A4. This is a very difficult question as many people have made an impact on me so far. There have always been multiple people willing to answer my questions and help me. There have also been many people who have helped me with different aspects of NationStates so I don't think I am able to just pick one person.

Mystery Player (Citizen)

A1. I think it was the occupation of The United Reddit Nations that the NPA did in early September. There wasn't anything special about it, it's just the first thing I remember.

A2. Impressive. The fact that we have the activity to manage everything we have here is impressive, as well as what the activity achieves.

A3. Read the dispatch on why I should be in TNP, it had pretty good reasons, so I joined.

A4. This is a hard question. Nobody has left an impression on me more than anybody else. If I had to answer, I would say the whole community, as it is pretty impressive what it has managed to achieve here.

Atlae (Ambassador)

A1. A while ago, sometime in May, I joined TNP's Discord. I had long wanted to get involved in other GCRs, but that plan got stalled, so I muted TNP for a while. Then I joined officially.

A2. Overwhelming. To be honest, coming from the relatively small feeder TEP had given me different expectations, and TNP was different in many ways. TNP had many more nations, had a different government, etc. It took quite some adjusting to.

A3. My big project was to join all the GCRs to see what they were like. I fully implemented it a while ago, starting with joining the Discord servers, and I later became a citizen to be more engaged. No regrets.

A4. That's a hard question. Pretty much nobody had an influence on me since I functionally already knew how GCRs worked, so I was practically independent. But at the same time, the whole community acted on me and was an influence.

Hopefully, with the continuation of this segment, more and more members of our community will answer each month's set of new questions as I continue to collect and share the experiences of people in the community. To be a part of the Monthly Memoirs segment for July, the first thing you need to do is contact me either through forum PM or telegram through NS expressing your interest. I will add you to the list of people who receive monthly questions so that you too can be a part of TNL.

---

The Northern Lights: Beauty in Truth
Publisher: Palliaith :: Executive Editor: Scorch :: Managing Editor: Brend0g :: Assistant Managing Editor: Nasania :: Graphic Artist: Imki + SillyString

The Northern Lights is produced by the Ministry of Communications on behalf of the Government of The North Pacific and distributed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Except where otherwise indicated, all content rep
resents the views of the Government of The North Pacific.

Index of issues

[abc]

Sasten's (our former Minister of Defence) nation CTEd and Darcania (Zephyrukul) is now the new Minister of Defence.

[abc]

Roleplay Reel

by Iraelia, Citizen

One of the most important aspects of NationStates is role play. After all, the premise of the game is acting as your nation's leader and answering issues to determine the status of your nation. Of course, that's just about, answering issues. However, for those whose minds are entranced by fiction, there exists more than just issue answering, there is role play. There are many ways to role play in NationStates: on the NationStates forum, in your own RP world, but the most prominent form of role play in The North Pacific exists in the world of Eras.

Based on The North Pacific forums and operating their own discord server, Eras RP has been used as a setting for about three years now and is open for anyone in TNP to join. Order is maintained by a team of role play moderators who ensure that people are obeying the rules of North Pacific RP. While things have slowed down recently in Eras, a lot of important events have occurred in the past few months that will shape the future of role play in Eras.

The biggest such event currently ongoing, though somewhat stalled due to the two key people being busy with real life, is the Council for the Reaffirmation of the Alliance of Northern Unions (ANU). In Eras, many nations have banded together to form alliances and unions in order to strengthen their nation’s position in the world. The two largest alliances are the Pan-Gotic Union (PGU) and the Phoenix Union (PU). The PGU is a union of nations that are ethnically Gotic, the Eras equivalent of German. The PU is a union of nations that are positioned on the Phoenix Strait, an area of strategic and economic importance in Eras. The predecessor to the PGU, the Northwestern Union (NWU), had been working on an agreement with the PU which would form the Alliance of Northern Unions (ANU). However, before either party could ratify the agreement, the NWU was disbanded and replaced by the PGU. Now that the PGU is firmly situated, members of both the PU and the PGU have gathered at a conference to discuss the actual ratification of the ANU. However, the proposed alliance is seeing significant opposition from powerful nations like the Ilian Coalition and Xentherida, members from within the proposed alliance, and it's future is most definitely in question. 

Another important event that has been transpiring is the formation of the Trillium Compact (TC) which is the successor to the Trillium Accord (TA), and is an organization of democratic nations designed to further the goals of national sovereignty and voluntary cooperation between nations. The TC, having just been ratified, has now gone searching for new members to join their ranks. These proposed nations are Iraelia as an Associate Member and Goyanes and Syrixia as Observer Members. Many of these proposed members have received criticism from some sitting members of the TC. Syrixia is a self described autocracy and fails to meet the important democratic requirements in the eyes of the Ilian Coalition, Xentherida, and the Hastfradic League. Goyanes, while democratic, has strong allegiances to the PGU and PU which has off set several members of the alliance. Iraelia is also a democracy, but a history of racial tension in the nation has put the TC on edge. Needless to say, these nations will have to fight tooth and nail for entrance into the TC.

On a more local level, there have been several ongoing national role plays. One such story is Modergen, a character RP within the nation of Goyanes which centers around a terrorist attack on a newly built subway station in Goyanes by an organization seeking to re-institute dictatorial rule to the nation of Xentherida. They bomb the station under the guise of fascists from the nation of Ninhundland, a neighbour and sworn enemy of Goyanes, in the hopes that it may lead to war and further their end goal. Another active story is Yavneh Roya which is a traditional Iraelian holiday celebrating independence from the nation of Syrixia. This Yavneh Roya, the Prime Minister of Iraelia invited nations of the world to celebrate with the Iraelian government. The final major event that is ongoing is the Post Crown Conflict wherein Eras had recently gone through a major conflict where the nations of Samaria and Scallendovia declared war on the nation of Cogoria. The conflict has devastated the region and resulted in the destruction of Scallendovia. As a result, both Cogoria and Samaria have sent representatives to the Merillian League, acting as a neutral third party, to sign a peace treaty. Both nations signed the treaty, and the conflict has finally come to an end.

This has been Roleplay Reel #1.

---

Discord Analysis

by Atlae, Deputy Minister of Home Affairs

This column does not represent the views of the Government of The North Pacific.

There have always been things that separate regions, from the truly dedicated to the inactive ones, and is practically mandatory for activity: a means for communication. Many regions simply utilize their RMB to communicate, while others talk offsite on platforms such as IRC, Skype, or Discord. Today, we’ll be discussing Discord, specifically for the feeders, or the Pacifics.

First stop, the North Pacific. As a control, let’s analyze TNP. It has a general channel, #the-agora; a debating channel #poolside (formerly #the-ring-of-fire); a gaming channel, #tnp-gamers-union; a music channel, #music-hall; and a spamming channel, #the-sewers. It’s RP, however, is located on another server dedicated to TNP RP. As for its governmental and regional functions, #magicality-grand-plaza and #regional-assembly-private are reserved for citizen-only activity, and #world-assembly, discussing WA activities. TNP has 8 voice channels, all of them accessible except for the ones reserved to the Security Council and the Administration.

Next is the East Pacific. Its Discord is much less active as its citizens prefer Skype, using it to talk about RP, politics, and as a general chat. However, they do have channels akin to TNP’s, with a general channel (#hotel-california), a gaming channel (#gaming), a music channel (#hall-of-music), and of course, a spamming channel (#spam-games). Unlike TNP, they have an RP channel similar to TNP’s but held within TEP’s main server, called #tep-evolved. However, it is not active much due to most RP talk on a Skype chat, also called TEP Evolved. Its only citizen-exclusive channel is #the-plaza, and their April Fool’s nuclear command center was held at #strategicaircommand. TEP has only two voice channels, General and Music Hall.

The Pacific, commonly referred to as NPO (New Pacific Order), has a quite active Discord server, with a general channel (#pacifica_harbour), a music channel (#radio_pacifica), and a spamming channel (#spam_fields). It has its roleplay in its server, (#roleplaying_discussion), and has a channel called #bot_development, which is hopefully self-explanatory. The Pacific also has a citizen-only chat called #the_square. It has three voice channels, dedicating a general, gaming, and a music channel. 

The South Pacific, whereas, is very active when it comes to Discord. Like the previous regions, it has a general channel (#lampshade-bar), a gaming channel (#games), and a spamming channel (#coconut-grove). However, it has two channels dedicated to RP: #bantam-harbour and #roleplay-discussion. The latter is an advisor chat where one gets questions answered, while the former is a much more recent development, RPing within the Discord server (much like the recent trend of RMB role-playing in TNP’s RMB). TSP, however, has 8 citizen-only channels about regional government (TSP refers to residents as citizens, so Legislator is the equivalent). It has 8 voice channels, two of which are restricted to the regional government. 

The West Pacific is our last stop for now. It has a very active Discord and a considerably less active Skype. As usual, it has a general channel (#the-lounge), a music channel (#karaoke_lounge_and_tiki_bar) not just for Karaoke Friday, and a spamming channel (#the-clubhouse). It also has a politics channel (#politics_and_stuff), a military recruitment channel (#twpaf_recruitment), and another channel called #celebrate-twp (the purpose is hopefully obvious). It has 5 roleplay servers, dedicated to Discord RPs of differing genres. It also has a channel dedicated to D&D (Dungeons & Dragons). It has #hall_of_nations as its citizen-only channel and has 4 voice channels (one general, one Karaoke Friday, and two D&D). 

To conclude, we have seen many different utilizations of Discord. What each of the servers has in common is some general and spamming channels and a regional politics chat which makes it a characteristic of their region. While activity among them varies, it certainly sets them different from regions that do not have Discord servers.

---

North Pacific Army Bulletin

by Iraelia, Citizen

This month, only four operations have been performed. This has been the first month under which Darcania has been the Minister of Defense.

The first operation was a training op in Novis Vandium. Six soldiers made it in and the operation was a success.

The second operation was a training op in the regions of Warzone Australia and Warzone Sandbox. Four soldiers took part and both operations were a success.

The third operation was a training op in the regions of Puppet and abandon nations dump and The New Old South. Only the operation into the Puppet and abandon nations dump was successful. Five soldiers took part in this operation.

The fourth and final operation was a training op into the regions of both The New Pacific nations and Warzone Africa. Both operations were a success. Six soldiers took part in the operations.

This has been your monthly NPA Bulletin.

---

Monthly Memoirs

by Kasch, Vice Delegate

Monthly Memoirs is back again for July! This month, I put a spin on the questions and how they were submitted. This July, you got to ask the questions! Overall, 5 questions were asked and 22 answers were received! We had questions submitted from members in all corners of the community.

Here are those questions

From Wicheye to all TNPers: How much time do you give NationStates per day on average?

From Owenstacey to all citizens: If you could run a new region with any one other TNP citizen past or present, who would it be and why?

From Atlae to the staff of the Ministry of Communications: Why did you decide to be a part of Communications?

From Atlae to all TNPers: If TNP was somehow suddenly disbanded overnight, where would you stay and why?

And here are the answers!

What has been your best experience in the North Pacific?

In all honesty, I have had a lot of very good experiences in The North Pacific. If I had to pick though, my best experience would have to be when I became an ambassador in the diplomatic team to TEP. It was the first time I really got to interact with members of TNP and other regions. Before that, I had mostly just answered my nation's issues and occasionally talked on the RMB but because of that I got a lot more involved in the region.

How much time do you give NationStates per day on average?

Too much. But in all actuality, I give NS about 2-3 hours per day on average scrolling through the forums, talking on Discord, and carrying out my duties as a DM. I also occasionally go on OOC binges spending up to 2 hours at a time trying to count to 10 without being interrupted by Siwale.

Why did you decide to be a part of Communications?

Communications lets me express myself openly to the residents of TNP and beyond. Also, I really enjoy writing and certainly get to do a lot of that in the ministry. The biggest reason I joined the ministry is because I wanted to interview members of TNP to get to know more about them and it's interesting to see how their stories both are similar and different from your own. So far I haven't had a chance to give an interview, but look forward to doing one in the near future.

If TNP was somehow suddenly disbanded overnight, where would you stay and why?

Ugh. This is hard. The region I've had the best experience in (only as a diplomat) has been 10,000 Islands. They've always been very friendly to me and are fun to talk with. I wouldn't mind being a citizen in their region and think it would suit me well.

What has been your best experience in the North Pacific?

I'd say that my best experience in The North Pacific has been in the role play world of Eras. I joined NationStates mainly because I have a passion for creating fictional worlds and universes and I thought it was incredibly cool that their was a game that could let me do that. Eras let me expand that, as I was able to create my own nation in an entire imagined world. It enabled me to create interesting characters, backstories, and to tie those stories in with my fellow RPers' stories. It has been fun.

How much time do you give NationStates per day on average?

That all depends. During the school year, maybe an hour or two a day as I really don't have time for anything other than sports and studies. During the summer, however, I give it anywhere between 3 and 5 hours a day because, at least for this summer, I really haven't had anything better to do.

Why did you decide to be a part of Communications?

I had an open class on my schedule and I didn't really know what to do with it so I decided to take Journalism. It was a pretty fun class, but it got a little boring and repetitive towards the end of the year. My friend and I would finish our articles within the first thirty minutes of class and it would take the editor forever to edit our papers so we would just mess around on the computers. One day, I was browsing through the forums and I noticed that we had a regional newspaper. I read through a copy of it and thought it would be fun to be a writer and I applied to join the ministry.

If TNP was somehow suddenly disbanded overnight, where would you stay and why?

Hmmm, that's kinda tough. I suppose I might stay in either another GCR or in The Kingdom of Great Britain. What I really like about TNP is the amount of activity that you don't really see in other regions, so the second best thing would be to join another GCR. However, TKoGB has some very interesting role play, so I really can't decide.

How much time do you give NationStates per day on average?

Usually an hour each day with the weekends being two to three hours normally.

Why did you decide to be a part of Communications?

I decided to be part of Communications as I had spare time and writing for a reason helped me to relax as well as being productive and writing for a goal.

If TNP was somehow suddenly disbanded overnight, where would you stay and why?

I would stay in one of the feeders, most likely The East Pacific as I have slowly established a connection over there. They have an interesting system of government and a great RP scene in which I want to explore more.

If TNP was somehow suddenly disbanded overnight, where would you stay and why?

The forum will still be here, but gameside? I'd let Lord Ravenclaw die at long last.

How much time do you give NationStates per day on average?

About 1 or 2 hours on average, it very much depends how active everything is, if a big RP is going on like 2 days ago it can rank up to 5 or 6 hours i guess.

If TNP was somehow suddenly disbanded overnight, where would you stay and why?

I would probably try to gather all the people i usually play with and would likely start a new region.

How much time do you give NationStates per day on average?

I would say anywhere from two to four hours a day depending on how busy I am in real life. Usually during the day I have a couple ten to twenty minute periods where I get on and then I try and get on for at least an hour in the evening.

How much time do you give NationStates per day on average?

I normally give a few hours to NationStates, and I'm most likely underestimating it because I'm obsessed.

What has been your best experience in the North Pacific?

Coming downstairs in 2004, logging on to my computer, and finding that TNP had been liberated overnight in the Puppetmaster liberation. Quite unexpected, and very welcome. 

If you could run a new region with any one other TNP citizen past or present, who would it be and why?

thess, or Blackshear. 

How much time do you give NationStates per day on average?

1-2 hours. Less just recently due to work pressures. 

If TNP was somehow suddenly disbanded overnight, where would you stay and why?

Nowhere.

How much time do you give NationStates per day on average?

I usually spend a few hours, maybe 2-3

If TNP was somehow suddenly disbanded overnight, where would you stay and why?

I might retreat to any of my puppet regions.

---

The Spotlight #4: An Interview with Security Councilor Lord Ravenclaw

by Scorch & Lord Ravenclaw, Min. Communications & Security Councilor

Scorch: Hello and welcome to the Spotlight segment for The Northern Lights, Issue XIV. I am joined today by former Delegate, Lord Ravenclaw. Thanks for joining me on the Spotlight. It is great to have you on.

Lord Ravenclaw: No problem, it makes a change from sleeping on my recliner these days.

Scorch: Let's get started. First question. What was your first impression of TNP?

Lord Ravenclaw: Intimidation, quite honestly. I was a reasonably new player at the time I first encountered TNP, I was still new to regional politics and I was the Foreign Minister for an ally of TNP, Osiris at the time. The community, specifically the Regional Assembly and the Court intimidated me a lot as it was so much more rigid than Osiris or anything I had experience with prior.

Scorch: I had a similar reaction however TNP was my first experience in NationStates. My next question is what drew you to Foreign Affairs in NationStates?

Lord Ravenclaw: Well in a past game browser-game called Travian, I developed a knack for diplomacy and building alliances and factions so when I started looking for things to do in NationStates I figured that things wouldn't be too different from there… boy was I wrong.

Scorch: Interesting. What was your first official government position in any region in NationStates?

Lord Ravenclaw: Interior for Earth Reborn sometime in early 2009.

Scorch: What has been your favorite position to hold in TNP?

Lord Ravenclaw: Delegate was fun, it was a unique experience unlike anything else I've ever encountered within NationStates.

Scorch: It seems it is a position like no other. Has the development of Discord been something that you expected when you started having TNP use Discord?

Lord Ravenclaw: Well we have to remember that I started promoting Discord in November of 2015, starting with Alexandria. Gradually other regions tried it out for themselves, regions which shared some relationship with Alexandria, so Albion and Europeia were early adopters, the South Pacific at the end of the year, and TNP followed when I had the means to promote it here (when I was Delegate). I didn't expect it to catch on at all, truthfully. I had hoped, but never expected it so I'm rather pleased to have been surprised by this. We recently passed 800 members of the main TNP server.

Scorch: That is incredible. It is crazy to think about how much Discord is used now. What has been the biggest change in NationStates since you started playing?

Lord Ravenclaw: Well I can't pick one so I'll pick two: the influence changes to the GCRs which introduced decay back in 2013 and the Regional Officers implemented in 2016; both of these significantly change the dynamic and really do require regions to think more cautiously about their security.

Scorch: Both of those events happened before I arrived but it is hard for me to imagine NationStates without either of those aspects. What has been the most surprising event for you in your time in TNP?

Lord Ravenclaw: Surprising? The most surprising thing to me is that I stopped being afraid of the Constitution, Legal Code and Courts. I have always preferred roles which do not require me getting tangled in legalese, treaty-writing notwithstanding on that. That said, the days of me authoring legislation are gone, and they never visited TNP as I'm still terrified of even attempting to do that here.

Scorch: Is there a position you wish you had served in TNP?

Lord Ravenclaw: Hm, well I've held the positions of Minister of Foreign Affairs, Vice Delegate, Delegate, Minister of Culture, Senior Diplomat, Temporary Hearing Officer, Deputy Minister of Culture, Advisor to the Delegate and Security Councillor. Honestly, I think that I've held any position which interests me or that I have skills in.

Scorch: Final question. What has been your favorite part about playing NationStates?

Lord Ravenclaw: I've met some very interesting people, and I've formed some amazing friendships - McMasterdonia, Hileville, Xoriet and several others. I'm always surprised by the diversity of the people I encounter in the game, as there truly is a huge range of players of varying backgrounds within NationStates and if you make an effort to get to know some of these players they can offer you a unique insight into what their life is like, and it's a unique dynamic that is one of the most fulfilling things about forming a friendship with someone from a different part of the world.

Scorch: You really can meet interesting people through NationStates and form amazing relationships with them. Well, thank you for joining me today on the Spotlight. It has been a pleasure.

---

The Northern Lights: Beauty in Truth

Publisher: Pallaith :: Executive Editor: Scorch :: Managing Editor: Brend0g :: Graphic Artist: Imki + SillyString

The Northern Lights is produced by the Ministry of Communications on behalf of the Government of The North Pacific and distributed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Except where otherwise indicated, all content represents the views of the Government of The North Pacific.

Index of issues