Embassy - The North Pacific

[Haor Chall]

Campus News

[align=right]by Marcus Antonius, Chancellor of The North Pacific University[/align]

The North Pacific University Has A New Chancellor

Chancellor Marcus Antonius

On March 9 2019 I took on the mantle of Chancellor of The North Pacific University


I would like to thank St. George [nation]The Notorious Mad Jack[/nation] for his hard work and efforts as chancellor within these hallowed halls of the university and for personally recommending me to take up this honorable position.


Within the university there have been fits of activity that have subsided almost as soon as they have begun, my efforts included. I am grateful that there are still forum members that contribute to our knowledge database. It is my intention to try and maintain and encourage their efforts.


I have a great personal passion for history and the arts. This is reflected in my humble submitted efforts. That aside we must remember that the university was created for bringing education and knowledge of NationStates and The North Pacific to the populace of the region. I am aware that our Delegate, Ghost [nation]Pallaith[/nation], has a vision of developing the University. As chancellor, I shall endeavor to bring about his vision. I would be interested to hear feedback and ideas on what is needed to make this vision become a reality.


One of my first acts as Chancellor was to appoint St. George [nation]The Notorious Mad Jack[/nation] and Prydania [nation]Prydania[/nation] as my Vice-Chancellors. They will be the first members of the University Committee. I will be seeking further members as my tenure continues.


I have also commissioned a Coat of Arms for the University.

The design was composed by Prydania [nation]Prydania[/nation] with further embellishments by Malpe [nation]malphe[/nation]. It comprises of the following elements. A sun rising over water, indicating the sun always shines over the Pacific. The open book, meaning study, with the numbers 2012, the year the University came into existence. An Owl, the universal symbol of wisdom, teaching and learning. The crossed pens, symbolizing the work of the student. The symbolized star, a commonly used motif in The North Pacific' heraldry, representing The North Star or to give it the correct name Polaris. Finally the motto “sequere Polaris“ which translates from the Latin to “Follow The North Star”.


I would take this opportunity to thank all who have supported the University in the past and appeal to them to continue to do so. I would also appeal to any budding writers out there, who have lectures or articles they would like to share in the University to get in touch with myself [nation]Ethnon[/nation], [nation]The Notorious Mad Jack[/nation] or [nation]Prydania[/nation].You will find The North Pacific University here forum.thenorthpacific.org/forum/3038622/ so please, come and visit us.


I have a real passion for the university to become a shining beacon in the minds and lives of the nations of The North Pacific, I hope you will find this too.


"in victoria!" (To Success!)


MARCVS ANTONIVS

Chancellor of The North Pacific University

[nation]Ethnon[/nation]





[align=left] Judiciary Election Results[/align]

[align=right]by BMWSurfer, Acting Minister of Communications[/align]

Bootsie and friends celebrate victory in the elections and form an "Eluvatar"

The dust has settled on the first Judicial Elections of the season. An impressive total of 23 people were nominated for this election, and in the end, 7 candidates ran in the election. Let’s take a look at them:


Eluvatar

In his campaign, Eluvatar drew from his extensive experience going back to 2006, including being delegate of TNP and writing many of her laws. Eluvatar, in an exchange with McMasterdonia, did an in depth analysis of the fictional hearing found in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Eluvatar also defended the length of time it takes for the courts to conduct reviews, saying that procedural correctness must be followed. He did, however, say that the courts should take suggestions on how to better do this.


Lord Lore

A 2 time former justice, Lord Lore kept his campaign simple, directly opening up his campaign thread to questions. I’m contrast to Eluvatar, Lore agreed that court reviews take too long and that they should be shortened. He also dismissed the argument that the court doesn’t get new people very often.


Bootsie

Bootsie, a longtime security councilor and former Justice, made communication the center of his platform. He believes that the court should communicate with the people better. When asked about review lengths, Bootsie said that reviews should be optimized to take as little time as possible, while still maintaining the integrity of the process.


Dinoium

Dinoium had by far the most complex and involved platform of all the candidates. His campaign was based around a more active judiciary. He proposed creating several programs to achieve this goal, including the creation of an appointed court staff and a joint program with the Attorney Generals office. He also promised that he would review all Regional Assembly legislation to ensure their legality.


Romanoffia

Romanoffia, a former Security Councilor and Justice, also kept his campaign simple. He promised that he would follow “Due Process, The Constitution, Legal Code and Separation of Powers”.


King SillyString

SillyString, a longtime member of TNP and justice, ran on a platform of precedence. In her campaign post, she emphasized a new policy that was adopted by the courts last term. She, like Eluvatar, defended the length of time taken by the courts for reviews. When asked about the lack of new faces on the bench, she said that the courts were not suited to newer players.


Janus

Janus, also known as isimud, posted a late campaign thread that focused mainly on his history and background as a part of TNP.


King SillyString, Eluvatar, and Bootsie won the election.


Discussion

SillyString, Eluvatar, and Bootsie clearly won due to their previous experience in the region and the courts. Dinoium was also a favored candidate in the election, but his activist views on the courts likely cost him votes from the more traditional voters of TNP. Lord Lore was another favored candidate due to his experience, but just couldn’t get voters excited about the courts like the others. Janus didn’t have a campaign until just before voting started which likely hurt his prospects, and Romanoffia had a lengthy exchange with the admin team in his campaign thread which may have alienated voters against him.





[align=left]NPA Bulletin[/align]

[align=right]by Bobberino, Minister of Defense[/align]

The North Pacific Army swept through February and March in fashionable terms. The soldiers went from region to region, sweeping clean of native scum; or went from region to region, sweeping clean raider scum and reinstating native unity, depending on the direction that former Minister of Defense Darcania's floof flowed in the wind that particular day.

Warrant Officer Rank Tab

Important news; the NPA passed a resolution proposed by then-MoD Darcania to institute a new rank, Warrant Officer. The officer test no longer could fulfill the standards of the draggo, who regularly orders his soldiers into 40-tags to "test their switching speed." and thus the Warrant Officer rank allows the MoD to hold rightful officers hostage until either they are burnt out to oblivion, or the oligarchy permits the torture to stop. Yet another power grab by the reckless and harsh policies of the oligarchy while the people are left behind yet again.

NPA forces at The Battle of WinterFell

For the lolcow of the report… we have Winterfell! We spun the wheel of floof because the wind wasn’t blowing that day. So we landed on a raid. It started off harmless, with Bob being asleep at the major and being pingspammed, Dino quoting the legal code and stating “Correct”, and a smol lil incident thanks to some memeposting. We also did some border control work for when we ban Siwale for TSP interference in the election. More to come on that.

Bobberino, the new Minister of Defense, in discussion with his staff.

The day this was due, Bob became MoD. So instead of doing this on time like a good DM of Comms would, Bob decided to write this blurb. And before Bob is attacked and dragged away by the oligarchy, he'd like you to know that ----- muffled screams ----- Everything is fine and under control in the NPA. O7





[align=left] Spotlight #17: Interview With BMWSurfer[/align]

[align=right]by Bobberino, Deputy Minister of Communications

Views in this interview may not reflect the views of TNP's government[/align]

BMWSurfer is surprised and caught, by Bobberino, for an interview.

Bobberino: Welcome to The Spotlight, BMW! I am excited you were able to take part in this edition.


BMWSurfer: Thank you! I’m excited to be here!


Bobberino: So let's start with your beginnings - how did you first join NS?


BMWSurfer: Well, a friend who was building a communist paradise on NS invited me to join. I initially didn’t play very much, and I almost CTEd in the beginning. But, I eventually was sucked in like everyone else.


Bobberino: Oh, that sounds interesting. Was that in a UCR of his? Or simply his nation?


BMWSurfer: His nation. He didn’t last very long in the game, though.


Bobberino: Gotcha. So what brought you to the shores of The North Pacific?


BMWSurfer: Well, I originally founded in The South Pacific, and hopped around UCRs for a while, but decided joining the biggest region would allow me to figure out the game before moving to a smaller region with more responsibilities. I liked this region so much that I decided to stay.


Bobberino: I actually ended up similarly - I just founded in TNP and stayed. How'd you get involved with TNP's gov?


BMWSurfer: Well, after I joined, I spent a few months joining and participating in all of the various Ministries and in The North Pacific Army. I eventually found my niche, which was World Assembly Affairs. Eventually, I became a deputy there and was very dedicated to that position. This gave me name recognition, and eventually got me hired as Minister of Home Affairs.


Bobberino: That makes sense; again, I draw similarities to myself there. What has been your favorite position thus far?


BMWSurfer: Honestly, my first term as Deputy Minister of World Assembly Affairs was my favorite. We had lots of fun, and I didn’t have as many responsibilities as a deputy.


Bobberino: I'd say Fiji has me working, as do you! Lol Where do you foresee yourself in TNP in a year?


BMWSurfer: Well, I see myself still serving my region in whatever way I can.


Bobberino: Do you see another Delegacy run? Y'all and your endorsements SMH. So what made you stick in NS? What do you like most about it?


BMWSurfer: Well, for me its the people. I have met so many great people on NS and that has been the reason I stay.


Bobberino: Definitely; we got a lot of good eggs in NS. Very interesting to learn about the host of personalities that take part in such a niched game.


BMWSurfer: For sure! It is interesting how borders dissolve and national identities become irrelevant on the internet, and on NS especially.


Bobberino: Definitely. Speaking of, is there one positive memory that sticks out in your mind in terms of your NS career?


BMWSurfer: The first time I was able to successfully plan and organize a defensive operation in the NPA, and the night I became an officer. I just remember thinking for really the first time in my NS career, "I got this. I know what i'm doing."


Bobberino: My officer test stuck out to me too, yeah! What advice would you give to TNP's new folk?


BMWSurfer: I would say: jump in! Get as involved as possible and be as outgoing as possible. Once you find your niche, you can start focusing on that, but having the experience of the various aspects of the region is priceless.


Bobberino: Awesome stuff and true advice. Who do you look up to in TNP? Who are your mentors or trusted friends?


BMWSurfer: The two people I most look up to here are El Fiji Grande and Deropia. Deropia was my first boss and a true mentor to me. I wouldn't be here without him. Fiji is one of my most trusted advisers.


Bobberino: I miss Dero. Great dude and a trusted friend. I wish him well wherever he is. Is there anything you're never asked you feel you should be?


BMWSurfer: I don't think so.


Bobberino: Is there anything you'd like to be remembered by? Not expecting you to leave, but in case you pull a Dero. (Cries)


BMWSurfer: I would like to be remembered as an honest, generally good person. Nothing fancy. (sticks out tongue)


Bobberino: I'd prefer to be remembered as the eccentric, hardworking memer. Just who I am.


BMWSurfer: And that you will be, bob. (sticks out tongue)


Bobberino: You're the groundhog I fed the other day right? Those carrots were poisoned.


BMWSurfer: Uhhh.... I don't feel so good... *BMWSurfer left the channel*


Bobberino: Victory is mine!


BMWSurfer: Ha! ha!


Bobberino: Is there anything else you'd want to add?


BMWSurfer: Nope. Thank you for your time!


Bobberino: Likewise! Cheers!





[align=left] Regional Assembly Highlights[/align]

[align=right]by Artemis, Speaker of the Regional Assembly[/align]

Regional Assembly March 2019


Speaker of The Regional Assembly: Artemis

Deputy Speakers of The Regional Assembly: Bobberino

Artemis looks on at events in the Regional Assembly

Vote


Passed


Amendment to the NPA Doctrine, put forward by Knightblood.


Status: Passed


Summary: Previously the Legal Code of the North Pacific recognized the legal name of the military of TNP as the North Pacific Armed Forces (NPAF). Knightblood proposed amending Chapter 8 of the Legal Code to rename the military as its commonly known name, The North Pacific Army (NPA).

SPOILER: Click to show

{Voter Breakdown} – Votes in Favor (20)

Great Bights Mum


Gladio


Zaz


Owenstacey


artiza


Pallaith


Sil Dorsett


Brendog


Siwale


TlomzKrano


mcmasterdonia


BluieGamer


Syrixia


Sanjurika


mtboy66


Knightblood


Haor Chall


Yuno


Dreadton


Severisen



Votes Opposed (4)

QuietDad


Dinoium


Bobberino


St George



Abstentions (6)

Romanoffia


Artemis


bowloftoast


Koopa103


Darcania


Golden York

Current Business



Vice Delegate Check Efficiency Bill, put forward by Sil Dorsett.


Status: In Discussion


Summary: Vice Delegate Sil Dorsett has proposed an amendment to Section 6.1 of the Legal Code which deals with the Vice Delegate’s Security Checks of nations applying for citizenship in TNP. This bill continues to be in discussion before the Regional Assembly.





The Ministerial Ethics Law, put forward by Wonderess.


Status: In Discussion


Summary: A proposal to establish a Mandatory Ministry that will be charged with ethical affairs of the government of TNP. The purpose of this office will be to decrease corruption in the regional government by advising the Delegate on issues regarding ethics and producing public reports of government activity that will be available to the citizens of the region. This bill continues to be under discussion.





Recall Reform Act, put forward by Romanoffia.


Status: In Discussion


Summary: A discussion brought forward to add specific instances that a government official of TNP can be recalled by the Regional Assembly. Currently, the Regional Assembly can recall any official for any reason with a 2/3rds majority vote. While no specific changes have been proposed, the thought process is to prevent a recall of an official unless a specific violation of a specific law or legal requirement of position is cited. The Regional Assembly would still be required to meet a 2/3rds majority to recall an official. This bill continues to be discussed before the Regional Assembly.





Making sense of who are government officials, put forward by Haor Chall.


Status: In Discussion


Summary: A discussion started to properly identify the role that certain officials, primarily Deputy Ministers have as government officials. The debate has led to a proposed constitutional amendment to Article 7 and amendments to Chapter 6 and 7 of the Legal Code.

[align=left] World Assembly Digest[/align]

[align=right]by Marcus Antonius, Deputy Minister of Communications[/align]

General Assembly

Improving the world one resolution at a time.

Repeal: “Defending The Rights Of Sexual And Gender Minorities”

Status: Failed

Delegate's Vote: Against

Final Vote (World): For: 4088 Against: 11740

Final Vote (TNP): For: 128 Against: 457 Percentage of WA nations voting: 40.2%

Recommendation: The targeted resolution, in application, is one of the most far reaching and beneficial pieces of civil rights legislation in recent WA history. While there are certainly holes to be filled and issues to still be addressed, a full repeal is not the way to achieve this. In knowing that the author had the best intention for those who have lacked civil rights in the past, this ministry hopes that extraneous legislation is introduced to patch the potential loopholes pointed out by the repeal.


In conclusion and hopes for additional legislation to be introduced, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommended a vote Against this repeal.

Repeal: “On Tobacco And Electronic Cigarettes”

Status: Failed

Delegate's Vote: Against

Final Vote (World): For: 3230 Against: 12698

Final Vote (TNP): For: 61 Against: 521 Percentage of WA nations voting: 40.5%

Recommendation: This repeal focuses on the issue of the word "should", and how the interpretation of its application may affect compliance in member nations. The use of "should" allows some optionality in how member nation can print labels for the products covered by the proposal, which further allows nations to use the appropriate language that would most benefit certain communities. As such,the intent of GAR 459 was never to create overbearing regulation on member nations. In the event warning labels are printed in a language that would be ineffective and deliberately avoid the intended effects of this proposal, member nations would still be required to educate smokers and non-smokers alike on the dangers of tobacco and the greater safety of electronic cigarettes as an alternative. Barring the possible consequences of nations applying this resolution unfaithfully, this resolution will still benefit the majority of NS communities and ultimately achieve what it set out to do.For these reasons,


The Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote Against this proposal.

"The Cloning Conventions"

Status: Failed

Delegate's Vote: Against

Final Vote (World): For: 6001 Against: 9185

Final Vote (TNP): For: 131 Against: 429 Percentage of WA nations voting: 38.8%

Recommendation: This resolution attempts to deal with the cloning of organisms and the legal landscape surrounding that process. Unfortunately, there are several concerning issues that arise from its mandates. The proposal attempts to limit the cloning of prenatal sapient organisms without a direct consent from the organism which couldn't possibly be provided. Further, there is no allowance for a parent or legal guardian to give that consent on behalf of the organism, regardless of its viability. Given that these organisms lack the capacity for cognizance or feeling, due to low development, this prohibition places unnecessary limitations on medical research, and specifically in the creation of cloned organisms for the beneficial harvest of stem cells. This resolution, in clause 5, permits the cloning of organs or like unfeeling organisms from people. It does not include a requirement making that cloning contingent on consent. Insofar as the proposal permits people to have their genetic material harvested without their consent, it may be in violation of previously passed resolutions.


In accordance with the reasoning above, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote Against this proposal.

Security Council

Spreading interregional peace and goodwill, via force if necessary.

"Condemn Civil Defence Siren"

Status: Failed

Delegate's Vote: Against

Final Vote (World): For: 2016 Against: 13366

Final Vote (TNP): For: 46 Against: 497 Percentage of WA nations voting: 37.7%

Recommendation: The Ministry of WA Affairs cannot decide if we should be dumbfounded or impressed. It is incredible that the collective fragility of CoCD's egos was able to produce such a profound, instantly back-firing garbage fire. Not only was there actual monetary investment in a campaign to support the proposal, but there was also an apparent lack of spellcheck. This concoction of utter incompetence has led to the most impressive aspect of this proposal, the record for the quickest discarded proposal in SC history.


The Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recognizes that the vote now no longer matters but recommends a vote Against regardless. Furthermore, we award you zero points and may the Civil Defence Siren have mercy on your souls.

"Commend Severisen"

Status: Passed

Delegate's Vote: For

Final Vote (World): For: 11236 Against: 3701

Final Vote (TNP): For: 516 Against: 37 Percentage of WA nations voting: 38.3%

Recommendation: This commendation is generally well written and properly exemplifies the achievements and contributions of Severisen to the communities he has spent time with and the greater NS community. Amoung things not mentioned for whatever reason, Severisen has also been active in and contributed to The North Pacific during different times in his NS career. Furthermore, it can be found that Severisen is widely acknowledged as being 'good people', and the ability to maintain that overall impression among a wide cross-section of one's peers, after nearly a decade-and-a-half, is a testament to the quality of their character. Seeing this long standing reputation and his previous contributions, Severisen is quite deserving of this commendation.


In accordance with reasoning presented above, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote For this commendation.

The North Star: Lighting The Way To The Truth

Publisher: Pallaith :: Executive Editor: BMWSurfer :: Managing Editor: Marcus Antonius


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


Index of Issues

[/spoiler=code]

[Haor Chall]

We are aware that not everyone is equally appreciative of image-based NS newspapers. As such, we've included the standard format mostly plain-text version of the newspaper in the spoiler below. We hope you enjoy reading this month's issue! If you have any questions, comments, concerns, or suggestions, feel free to telegram the current TNP Minister of Communications [nation]El Fiji Grande[/nation].

SPOILER: Click to show

Editor's Note

by El Fiji Grande, Minister of Communications

Issue XXVIII of The Northern Lights was intended from the beginning to be WA-themed, and seeks to accompany the WA Symposium hosted by The North Pacific a few days ago. This Issue includes a host of authors from around the NS world discussing their views on the WA. It is our hope that The Northern Lights becomes a recognized place to discuss issues that confront NS as a whole. As always, no views espoused in this or future Issues represent the official TNP government stance unless otherwise stated.


El Fiji Grande

TNP Minister of Communications




World, Assemble: Why Every Region Should Participate in the World Assembly

by Pallaith (Ghost), Delegate of The North Pacific

Like any aspect of NS, the World Assembly has no shortage of critics and proponents, and a wide variety of perspectives for how best to utilize or mitigate its impact on the game. And that is true just by looking at the dedicated subset of players who engage in the WA every day. Expand the lens to the game as a whole, and that collection of opinions and ideas for the WA grows a great deal larger. As of the writing of this article, there are close to 25,000 nations in the WA, eclipsed by the over 175,000 nations the game currently boasts (keeping in mind that a great deal of those nations are puppets and not all separate individuals). Considering that player influence grows the more endorsements a player has, and a region’s voting power in the WA grows with each endorsement given to delegates, this discrepancy seems strange. Why is it that such a significant part of the game is underutilized? Granted, it can be hard to mobilize a great number of people to endorse delegates, to get them to agree to be part of a collective effort that doesn’t always give them a tangible benefit and many times appeals to their pride or regionalism. And a lot of people oppose the WA because of the extra votes delegates have, benefiting more populous nations at the expense of those who cannot muster the same number of votes.


Nevertheless, I firmly believe that all regions should make the effort to include WA activity as a central pillar of their governments’ agendas. The WA offers a myriad of domestic and foreign policy benefits for all regions regardless of size, R/D affiliation, GP or RP culture. While every region divides their ministries and duties in their own way, we all generally cover the same ground. Obviously our World Assembly Affairs ministry is concerned with our WA voting and campaigns, and any region that chooses to participate in the WA would likely have something similar. When it comes to the rest of our ministries, every one of them is enhanced by WA participation. Defense benefits from the WA differently than the rest, because it is the endorsements themselves and not the effect of those endorsements in votes that affect it. Obviously the more endorsements a delegate has, the harder it is for raiders to take over. But as we have demonstrated in TNP, more nations maintaining a high number of endorsements also makes it more difficult for coups to remove key players and purge those with greater residency in the region. There is a kind of herd immunity that makes the region as a whole more secure. Engaging in WA initiatives enhances the number of nations exchanging endorsements and contributes to that herd immunity. In short, the more people join the WA and endoswap, the more secure a region can become.


In every other ministry, WA engagement enhances influence and the endorsements’ value as extra votes is the aspect that is the focus. TNP divides its internal affairs into three ministries, Home Affairs, Culture, and Communications. Home Affairs is the primary internal ministry and is concerned with coordinating participation in the other ministries, informing the region of events and activities and in many cases managing those activities, and recruiting from within to bring more players to the offsite areas. In recent years Home Affairs has also been concerned with linking the gameside-active players to the offsite areas, and regulating the RMB. Every player has an aspect of the game that calls to them, and some of those players are either interested or primed to be interested in the WA. Obviously reaching out to those players and appealing to that interest will activate them as players who can contribute their talents to the region at large. Many times the initial interest serves as the gateway for broader participation in a wider variety of departments a region may have. Any region’s recruitment or internal affairs department should include WA engagement to harness this cohort of players.


Engagement with the WA has an added benefit of being one of the clearest examples of NS activity that is strictly and primarily game-based. Of all the potential categories of government or activity in a region, WA is built into the game’s DNA and is a tangible example of game-based activity. In a game state where R/D is not as central to defining a metagame in NS, participation in the WA offers an alternative, or even another arrow in the quiver of specific gameside activities that regions can point out to prospective new players. Recruitment and activity efforts are boosted when players have clear things they can do, and if they are more inclined to favor the gameside over offsite forums or Discord servers, being able to point to a robust WA program, particularly one with a competitive edge in delegate votes, makes for an easy selling point.


When defining a region’s purpose or niche, and selling the region to a prospective player, the WA can be an important aspect of a region’s identity. Some regions favor roleplay over gameplay and vice versa, but in either case the culture of a region can be enhanced by the WA. Clearly gameplay-oriented regions have an easier connection to the WA, but the two chambers play to either kind in different ways. Roleplay regions are far more likely to get something out of the General Assembly, particularly if their roleplay in any way is informed by the game’s stats and how game issues are answered by their players. Gameplay regions on the other hand will be far more likely to get something out of the Security Council, which has long since been considered the aspect of the WA geared toward GP. Most of the time liberations will be the aspect that most informs their gameplay, but commendations and condemnations can help build loyalty and notoriety, as well as be useful tools for alliances and relationship building (as can be seen when I explore foreign affairs). But there are ways to pick and choose which resolutions get a region’s focus to help inform what that region is in the grand scheme of the game.


Regions like Forest, known for its environmental advocacy, can use the WA to live out their own code and focus on issues they care about. The resolutions a region supports or opposes tell the rest of the game what their purpose is and if they can enhance their influence in the WA they can make sure they stand out more in that area, or successfully contribute to the game with important victories in their policy area. This is clear in the GA but can also be seen in the SC depending on which regions they help or oppose, or choose to recognize. In this way the point is not simply to get a lot of endorsements and be able to help swing votes, but to be influential enough that when a vote comes along that appeals to a region’s interests, they can better ensure that it goes the way they want it to. As a region starts to rack up victories in the WA, or becomes part of successful efforts to pass resolutions they like, they build a case for being an authority in particular areas and can utilize that experience in teaching the incoming players and making a successful case for why players who share their beliefs or passions should join them.


For those regions who do not have particular interests or much of a desire to be involved in the WA, participation in the WA still offers them a valuable tool. Of course, regions can enhance their relations with other like-minded regions, or can use their influence to defeat natural enemies or rivals. But if they have neither of these things and are not defined in large or small part by their WA activity, having a greater vote in the WA can be used to entice other regions or deter them. Assuming another region is involved in the WA or utilizes it for one of the aforementioned reasons, a region with little interest in the WA can effectively strategically deploy its WA vote in any given vote. Allies can count on them for additional votes, or enemies can fear their involvement. When a region truly has no stake in a vote, not utilizing their votes strategically is a huge missed opportunity. Instead of abstaining or opposing votes reflexively, a region in this situation could vote for something one day and against something else based solely on arrangements with their particular friends or foes. The greater the influence a region has in the WA, the more potent that option becomes.


We have seen the rise of voting blocs in the WA, which provide a great way for allied or friendly regions to enhance their cooperation and relationships with each other, while also boosting their collective global influence. TNP is part of the World Assembly Legislative League (WALL), an arrangement consisting of signatories who all also happen to be treaty allies with TNP, allowing our alliance to work toward clear goals and practice working with each other outside of the classic military operations that most often dominate the concrete examples of allies working together. As of late another bloc, the Interregional Legislative Coalition (ILC), has come on the scene with a more pointed goal of supporting resolutions that appeal broadly to the generally left-leaning regions that make up the bloc. This fits more with the culture-enhancement aspect of WA activity, but achieves the same things as WALL in terms of cooperation and finding ways to deepen and enhance the partnership made by neighboring regions. There are plenty of regions with relationships similar to the regions in these blocs, and perhaps WA activity is one way they could build stronger bonds and achieve goals that fit their respective cultures.


Note that at no point was actually drafting WA resolutions, or participating in the editing and advice process in drafts on the forum specifically mentioned. The nitty gritty of WA resolution writing is a very specific thing that does not interest most players, especially as so few have an affinity for it. Everything else, from concerns about the “lemming effect” to the fact that some regions have way more votes in the WA, can be mitigated by greater focus in participation and outreach in WA affairs. A robust, successful WA program like the one in TNP is not developed overnight, and smaller regions will have to choose their battles more carefully, pull off more successful recruitment of new players, or collaborate with other regions in official or unofficial voting blocs. But there is simply too much untapped potential and benefit in becoming involved in the WA for regions to ignore it entirely. It can be utilized in so many ways direct and indirect, and tailored to fit the needs or interests of the regions who are willing to invest in its exploration.


More regions should be working toward becoming bigger players in the WA, and if this were done in any significant way, new avenues of gameplay could be opened up as the established order of things would begin to change shape. As more people become involved and find novel ways to make use of the WA, how we understand it would continue to evolve and those already participating in it would have to evolve along with it. In short, it isn’t just for their own good that regions should get involved in the WA, but for the game as a whole. But even if most regions don’t get on board with the “greater good” argument, that’s just more of a reason for individual regions to step up their game. Just as the few regions we currently have dedicated enough to build their endorsements to high levels benefit from the lack of challengers in that regard, new regions willing to step up can do the same. Nature abhors a vacuum, and the WA is still very much a space with much more room to be filled by those brave and creative enough to make the effort.




WA Blocs: When Will We See a New One?

by Salvarity, ex-Legatus Prefect of the Empire of Mare Nostrum

Introduction

A spectre is haunting Gameplay - the spectre of blocism. All the powers of old Gameplay have entered into a not yet official alliance to exorcise this spectre: Admin and Emperor, Glen-Rhodes and United Massachusetts, Southern Defenders and Western purge-squads.
Bad communism fan-fiction aside, those of us in Gameplay have probably noticed the World Assembly Voting Blocs which have risen around us. They are scary and big and are coming for all of our sovereignty. We will all end up democratic and will be forced to run elections every week, by the time they are done with us. Well maybe not necessarily. The current voting blocs are built on very specific circumstances that just do not exist elsewhere in the current diplomatic climate and the system they seek to dominate is just not one regions are obligated to care about. 
The most prominent, successful, and the biggest boogeyman around is of course WALL, or the World Assembly Legislative League, consisting of: The North Pacific, Balder, Europeia, Europe, and the International Democratic Union. Less well known but still going strong is the Interregional Legislative Coalition, abbreviated to ILC, consisting of: the Democratic Socialist Assembly, Social Liberal Union, The Communist Bloc, The Internationale/Grenada, The Leftist Assembly, and The Versutian Federation. Finally, perhaps more known but a whole lot less successful is the Strategic Interregional Exchange for Growth and Equity, colloquially known as SIEGE. SIEGE is currently not an existing bloc and the membership list was never publicly announced; but we know it was proposed by The East Pacific and that The South Pacific, The West Pacific, and The Pacific were at the least in discussions in regards to it. These three blocs stand as the most high profile. Each was and is different however.


The Blocs in Existence

The ILC

The first WA bloc I would like to look at is the ILC. The ILC is a bloc created entirely of User Created Regions (UCRs). These UCRs with the exception of The Versutian Federation and the Social Liberal Union are members of NSLeft. A rather storied and the most closely knit UCR political sphere. Within the ILC we recognize The Communist Bloc as the largest and most dominant force, controlling almost fifty-percent of the delegate endorsements in the entire bloc and NSLeft as a whole controlling more than eighty-five percent of the endorsements. What is interesting is that even with The Communist Bloc as the dominant region size-wise, the current chairman of the ILC is from The Versutian Federation.. The ILC controls north of five hundred World Assembly votes which puts them as the smallest bloc, by a significant margin.


WALL

Now, we could not mention WALL without talking about The North Pacific. Because, TNP very much is WALL. Proportionally their position in WALL is even more dominant than The Communist Bloc in the ILC, TNP alone controls over fifty percent of the delegate endorsements This presence and dominance within WALL naturally elevates TNP to a leadership role in WALL. Furthermore, much like the ILC is built out of a pre-existing diplomatic sphere, so was WALL. Europeia, Balder, and TNP are all signatures of the Independent Manifesto and heavily base their regional diplomacy around that document. WALL as a whole controls over two thousand World Assembly votes, the largest World Assembly bloc in existence.


SIEGE

Now, SIEGE was being built with a motive in mind. The name alone should give away their intention to be an opposition to WALL. The four regions together would have had parity with WALL, and the addition of another region (The Rejected Realms for example) could have set them above. But they also would have had parity with each other. No member region of SIEGE would have had the WA dominance, and by extension bloc dominance, that TCB and TNP enjoy. Not necessarily a negative but a noticeable difference. However what is definitely a negative is the lack of a pre-existing diplomatic sphere. SIEGE would have been built on at best shaky diplomatic foundations. It would be generous to call the ties between the regions close, considering TSP’s and TWP’s recent historic diplomatic agreement is detente. Not a Treaty or even a Declaration of Friendship, just detente. It was indeed a historic agreement, but not exactly the foundations of a sphere. Looking at the numbers, the four regions combined would have been at twenty three hundred endorsements, two hundred ahead of WALL.


Why We Will Not See A New Bloc

Intro

Overall, I think the diplomatic foundations upon which WALL and the ILC were built are special and they do not exist elsewhere on NationStates. With WALL and the ILC we saw existing diplomatic spheres being capitalized upon and turned into the WA Blocs. These spheres range from rare to non-existent in the rest of NationStates. Furthermore, while WALL is very scary, the mechanical forces at play are not strong enough to force a new sphere into existence.


Diplomacy

Spheres like the Independent Sphere and the NSLeft just do not exist in the rest of NationStates. Aside from Out-Of-Character documents pertaining to the safety of individuals, there are not many multilateral diplomatic ties between major regions. Taking a look at the bloc-less regions, few of them are in a diplomatic position to form a bloc. In the UCR world itself, the chance of a legitimate bloc forming is next to nil. Of the five largest UCRs, two are in WALL already, one in the ILC, one is Ten Thousand Islands, which is a historically isolationist region, and the other is a blacklisted region. Then as you continue down the list, the regions and the WA counts continue to get smaller. If any bloc were to form in the UCR world, it would be tiny and irrelevant in comparison to the existing ones.

When we look at the bloc-less Feeders and Sinkers, they at least have numbers on their side. The East Pacific and The South Pacific alone both have the endorsement counts to outnumber the ILC. But I see these regions as lacking the diplomatic ties and the political will necessary to form a WA bloc. As we noted with SIEGE, it was built to counter WALL, but to build a counter bloc is to generate animosity with the other group. TSP and TRR are both regions that are deeply tied with The North Pacific, in order to start generating animosity with WALL, it would take considerable political and diplomatic will; diplomatic will that may very well not exist. Looking at the remaining GCRs, The Pacific stands rather isolated now, lacking treaties, and at war with Lazarus and Osiris. The East Pacific and The West Pacific would be the best bet for a potential bloc forming, but I doubt they would.


Mechanics

Now, to explain why I do not think TEP or TWP would form a World Assembly bloc, we must take a look back at the World Assembly itself. Overall, The East Pacific and The West Pacific can be characterized as Gameplay-centric regions, which means they do not care about the General Assembly and there is no incentive to care about the General Assembly. This is coupled with a Security Council that has grown rather unimportant and ineffectual. Both Commendations and Condemnations are seen as badges of honor. They may be nice to have, but do not affect anything. Liberations are the only resolutions with a mechanical effect but they diminish in value and priority with each passing day. We see joke proposals, like SCR 247 Liberate The East Pacific, or offensive liberations being the most common use for liberations. Neither of which help the situation, but the real nail in the coffin is the mechanical effect in and of itself. Liberations are for R/D, a segment of the game which can be best characterized as dying. There is no tangible benefit to forming a WA bloc and fight for control over a segment of a game that becomes less relevant every week.


WALL Plays Nice

The nail in the coffin of why I do not see another WA bloc rising is the very behavior of WALL so far. Frankly they have not behaved how we expected them to. They have not strangled the World Assembly in order to enact their pro-Democracy agenda. They have yet to bend the lemmings to their will and doom us all. Overall they vote for good resolutions and against bad ones. Maybe they will become the big bads in the future and NS will have to band together to stop them; but that has yet to happen.


Conclusion

So to wrap it all up. I do not think we will see another diplomatic bloc on NationStates. Nothing like NSLeft or the Independent Sphere, upon which the ILC and WALL are built upon, exist anywhere else. Furthermore, the mechanics of the World Assembly are not valuable or important enough to necessitate a group rising to oppose WALL and to complement it all, WALL has not behaved in a manner which demanded opposition.




Comitiārētur

by Imperium Anglorum, Delegate of Europe

A few years ago, I told a friend of mine about our somewhat peculiar WA proclivities. When asked about Committees, I repeated the standard GA dogma: Committees are perfect, since otherwise, they become meaningless. I thought about his response: then why not have the Assembly take direct control of all member nations? If they are perfect, then they will always do better than whatever the imperfect member nations would do.


This is an important point. Member nations are regulated and proposals are repealed due, sometimes, to enforcement issues. At other times, it has to do with some policy not suiting all nations. Implicitly, under a Committee-perfection standard, if all these responsibilities were given to Committees, they would never happen. In fact, a perfectly administering and knowing Committee would be, by definition, always more responsible, proactive, effective, and accountable than any member nation could be by virtue of their imperfection.


If that is the case, and member nations always perform more poorly, why should we not delegate every single operation of the state to the World Assembly, which would be more efficient and proactive? Why not delegate over the maintenance of jails and criminal justice if the WA cannot make mistakes and will always execute the laws perfectly? Why not delegate over welfare programs if nobody under WA welfare can cheat and nor can any member nation skim off the money? The consequences of this dogma lead only and inexorably towards a single, near-universal authority with unlimited jurisdiction.


But let us first examine the emergence of this doctrine. With all committee matters, it emerged shortly before the creation of the post-Enodian ruleset by The Most Glorious Hack and others. At the time, Hack viewed committees as a metagaming violation – that attempting to create a committee in fact did not, to the site, create one, thus falling outside the scope of the then-NS United Nations. This view was reversed amid strong protest from many then-NSUN members, arguing that removing the ability for the GA to use committees would doom every possible proposal into endless minutiae and enforcement provisions.


Part of this was the Moderators at the time wanting to avoid committee staffing being specified in resolutions, as that would enshrine certain nations or regions into resolutions. In these discussions, Hack proposed something of a compromise that ended up taking root: that Committees are staffed by “gnomes” which spring into existence for the purpose of those Committees and have no connection to any specific member nation. From here emerged the view that no committee can be biased towards or against any member nation, and ergo, all committees are perfectly neutral and unbiased.


By the formation of the current forums, the gnomes on the GA committees and the gnomes responsible for the enforcement of WA resolutions had become conflated. The latter gnomes - those responsible for WA enforcement - were ascribed omnipotent and omniscient powers to enforce WA resolutions. It was they who affected the statistical changes associated with a resolution and changed the laws mentioned in every World Assembly telegram. The later development of what is now somewhat derisively called “magical compliance” further extended to the committees staffed by gnomes. For if the gnomes enforcing resolutions are all-powerful, why would the same sort of gnomes sitting on committees not be?


Much more recently, one of my resolutions, Compliance Commission, was a significant part of overturning the view that non-compliance, due to the existence of the gnomes, was impossible. The total exclusion of even the concept of non-compliance from the World Assembly’s roleplay had severe consequences. And by removing it, we have expanded the scope of roleplay generally as well as created space for a detailed and substantial discussion on the enforcement of GA resolutions writ large.


That space has been partially occupied by a resolution which Separatist Peoples and I worked on, Administrative Compliance Act. Its explicit recognition of non-compliance and provision of a mechanism to fight it has firmly rooted magical compliance out of the Assembly. There are many more means by which compliance can be ensured or protected, as well as debate about whether the current or possible future means to do so are justifiable. All of those debates would not have happened but for magical compliance’s defeat.

Yet, if gnomes are endowed with their omnipotent powers by magical compliance, such magic’s demise should also yield the fall of their omnipotence. Verily, the intellectual foundation for endowing the gnomes with such god-like abilities has been firmly discarded. The internal contradictions between that magic and any reasonable conception of the world have been resolved by depriving magic of its wonder.


A theory of perfect gnomes has similar pretensions. It too carries the same contradictions against any reasonable conception of how the world of NationStates ought to work. Their perfection, unto apotheosis, does not accord with any sense. We as players should not simply accept what comes from the past as mos maiorem without independent thought of our own. That this conception of committees was handed down from the past is no reason not to examine it with the same intensity with which we have re-examined magical compliance.


The internal contradictions of the perfect gnome must too be resolved by their perfection’s removal. With the demise of magical compliance, there is no reason to retain the absurdity of perfect gnome-staffed committee and the implications of the utopian unitary state it conjures. Perhaps the radical international federalist (perhaps a contradiction in terms, for at this point, it verges on the abolition of the nation) may protest, but it was always thus, for the public writ large has never ascribed to this most peculiar belief of the Assembly.




The Case for Liberations

by BMWSurfer, Minister of Home Affairs

The World Assembly is celebrating a special anniversary this year: the introduction of the Liberation into the WA ten years ago. The Liberation has been used in many ways: to free regions oppressed by raider regimes, to allow NS historians to retrieve historic regions, and (lately) to punish regions who do not fall in line with the ideals of the World Assembly. While some of these goals are controversial, most people can agree that liberations do far more good than harm. Cormac, in talking about offensive liberations, summed up my views perfectly on the matter. He wrote:


“I don't think offensive liberations are inherently either positive or negative, it just depends on what one does with them. I do think we've seen offensive liberations used in positive ways in the past -- against NAZI EUROPE, to be sure, as well as some other regions. So I don't regret being one of the people who pioneered that tactic. It does seem they're being overused now by certain authors, but on the other hand those authors haven't had much success passing unwarranted offensive liberations. At the end of the day, I think WA voters can be trusted to responsibly decide when an offensive liberation is warranted and when it isn't, and I think offensive liberation remains an important tool. It would be as much of a mistake to take a kneejerk stance against all offensive liberations as it would be to pass offensive liberations that are unwarranted. We should take a middle ground approach and use them only when warranted.”


The World Assembly, especially with Liberations, is very careful to ensure they are not overused. Many times, a Liberation won’t even pass forum drafting if there are no natives to the region that can be identified. However, some members of the WA believe that Liberations are a dark mark upon the esteemed assembly. I disagree and would like to counter their main arguments.


The first, and possibly most realistic argument, is that raiders can use liberations to be able to raid founderless and passworded regions that still have active delegates. This situation is certainly plausible. However, most raiders are well known to WA members, and if they attempted to propose a liberation of this nature the liberation would fail. Additionally, if a liberation like this did pass, defender forces could assist the delegate in retaking the region and overturning the liberation. Raiders cannot immediately take control of a region and refound it; they would need time to accumulate the necessary influence. This time could be preemptively lengthened by a strong endotarting program like the ones seen in many GCRs. Additionally, creating strong alliances with other regions can help repel attacks.


The second argument is that it is up to natives to secure their own regions. For example, a region which recently became founderless could refound their region with a more responsible founder. However, not all regions have the expertise or want to put in the effort to do this. What’s worse, for bigger founderless regions it may be impossible to refound. Additionally, GCRs never had founders, and they never will. There must be a last-resort mechanism for these situations. That is not to say that regions should ignore security since they can just be liberated anyways. Regions can and should do their best to secure themselves, whether that be through endotarting programs, alliances with other regions, or military forces of their own. Sometimes, though, things just don’t work out. Regions may not be big enough for formal endorsement programs. Military forces, whether at home or abroad, might not be able to counter the raiders until it is too late. Small regions may not have enough publicity, and large regions may have political adversaries actively working against them.


The liberation is the best tool we have to restore regions to their former glory. Liberations can bring awareness to regions which may have slipped under the radar. Through international discourse, political rivalries can be subdued to allow regions to thrive again. Regions can learn from their mistakes, and can get valuable assistance from defender organizations who restore the regions. Above all else, liberations give regions a chance to recover, if they choose to.
 This does not mean that we grant liberations to everyone who asks for them. There is validity in the argument that the liberation can be abused. The Security Council should do its best to seek out and verify true natives. If no natives are available, the region should either be put into the hands of a player deemed trustworthy, or not liberated at all. After a region is liberated, prominent members of the WA should teach natives how to properly secure themselves.


Liberations are not just about regional defense. They can be used to create monuments to former communities or to punish misbehaving regions. For example, Nazi Europe was Liberated and eventually taken over by defender forces. For Nazi Europe, condemnations were badges of honor, but a liberation was its downfall. Even then, it was years before the region could be taken over, years in which the region could have appealed to the SC to remove the liberation. If they had been shown to change their ways, they very well could have been granted that appeal. This shows that even when used in unconventional ways, liberations are not an immediate death sentence. Many regions were taken over by Nazi Europe, and the creation of liberations made it possible for them to be revived and returned to their rightful owners. This was true for many others, too.


Opponents of liberations claim that liberations decrease regional security by allowing raiders to liberate and take over passworded and founderless regions. While these claims have merit, liberations are a last resort for regions that have been raided and could not have been saved. Liberations, however, are not a total replacement for regional security measures and should be used by the Security Council with caution. If used correctly, liberations can be a massive force for good in the world of NationStates.




Finding Yourself in the World Assembly

by bowloftoast, Deputy Minister of WA Affairs

World Assembly resolutions regularly come and go, and it’s very easy to get into a habit of skimming over the text, getting a sense of the overall subject matter, and making a quick decision to clear the docket.


Efforts have been made to create greater engagement among members, but always with the emphasis on the betterment of the Assembly. I’d like to shine a light on some of the personal benefits of taking things a bit more slowly when reviewing and deciding on resolutions.


While we may take it for granted, membership in the WA affords an often overlooked opportunity for personal and political growth, and a means to gain a deeper understanding of self.


Much of who we are politically is influenced by our environment. As individuals, we are bombarded by ideas and exposed to a variety of perspectives from the earliest age. Directly, our friends, families, teachers, religious leaders, and our media choices all contribute to what eventually becomes our individual mosaic of political opinion. We are also - often unwittingly - subject to more subtle, cultural influences like ethnocentricity, nationalism, notions of exceptionalism, religion, and so on.


Political mosaics often form when we are young, and can stay with us, influencing our actions and choices for a lifetime. Too often, we don’t give our mosaic a second thought. We simply believe we are who we are without putting our system of political beliefs to any kind of rigorous self-examination.


It is possible to walk through life wearing your political views like borrowed clothing. They may keep you in the fashion of the moment. They may even serve as a form of camouflage and keep you out of conflict. In time, however, these ideas can cement, and what you are left with is something familiar and comfortable, yet not entirely your own.


It is imperative to question the origins of your mosaic and ask if that which has accumulated over time truly reflects your innermost beliefs.


As 19th Century essayist Ralph Waldo Emerson once wrote:

“Be not the slave of your own past… But dare rather to quit the platform, plunge into the sublime seas, dive deep, and swim far, so shall you come back with self respect, with new power, with an advanced experience, that shall explain and overlook the old.”


Emerson’s quote is felicitous to a discussion about the World Assembly, because the WA - and particularly the General Assembly - is just the sort of platform from which a deep dive can be taken. It’s an environment tailor made for the acquisition of new power, self-respect, and advanced experience. Its periodic resolutions provide an opportunity for personal political reflection using an ever-changing situational model.


Situational models are often the most revealing when conducting this sort of political check-in, because they create a tangible connection between the issues, and lived experience. They give you an opportunity to stretch your imagination, and look at things from a variety of angles. These are important abilities to have, but must be refined through practice. So, where to begin?


I strongly recommend an online search for The Political Compass, a quick, anonymous test that will provide you with your unique placement on their custom x-y political grid. It does this by asking for your level of agreement with a series of practical or situational statements. Not only is it a great starting point in understanding your deeper political mind, but it’s a great thought experiment that will prime you for deeper consideration on future WA resolutions.


It is critical to really drill down on each question when taking the test. Do not take an ideological, politics-first approach. Don’t attempt to steer the test towards the position on the spectrum you believe you occupy. Instead, weigh each question independently of the others, follow a few of the steps outlined below, and let the placement on the spectrum occur organically.


Here’s a sample question, taken right from the Compass test: Military action that defies international law is sometimes justified.


Using the above sample statement about military action, ask yourself under what specific circumstances it might be okay to defy international law? Consider real-world examples where international law has been violated, such as POW torture to extract information, use of chemical weapons in civil conflicts, or ‘extrajudicial’ detentions. Consider the outcomes of those violations and their collateral effects on civilians. Consider the historical events that led up to the creation of these international laws, and what it was, as a society, that we were trying to achieve, or avoid.


Imagine yourself in a scenario where you might be impacted by a violation of international law by an invading or occupying force. Whenever possible, immerse yourself and visualize. Run each question through the ringer before giving your answer and you will get a result that is much closer to you than to your mosaic. Be brutally honest with yourself when answering each question.


I’m not suggesting this approach as a means to convert you to any specific political viewpoint. I wholeheartedly respect your individual right to take any position you wish, on any subject. The emphasis here is not on how you answer, but how you arrive at your answer. What I want to ensure is that at the end of the process - and with the benefit of broad consideration - you can reasonably justify your position to yourself. If you’ve put in the effort and done the heavy intellectual lifting, then you can own that position in confidence and in good conscience. That is tremendously important.


The most common issue in our increasingly political world, is that many can’t justify their positions or make a coherent argument for their reasoning. A lot of the time, that’s because it isn’t really their position - it’s a product of their mosaic. It isn’t born of consideration, or empathy, or lived experience, or critical evaluation. It’s just what’s been picked up over time, and that’s a skin worth shedding.


This use of practical scenarios by which to gauge individual politics is nothing new. In fact, it’s pretty much the foundation of NationStates and nation evolution. Unlike daily issue answering in NS, though, where our choices may be subject to how we roleplay our nation, WA votes tend to align more with our personal political beliefs.


Granted, some carry the nation role forward into their WA decisions and keep it completely in-character. For the most part, however, our nations are the sandbox where we can be whomever we like, and our WA votes are more closely aligned with our individual real-world beliefs. Those who lean libertarian in life, either right or left, tend to favor national sovereignty over WA encroachment. Those who favor socially liberal values in life, tend to vote favorably for similarly aligned GA resolutions. Those who favor a firm leadership hand in the real world, tend to vote more favorably on crime and punishment legislation.


Given that, you can use each resolution as a tool to bypass the mosaic, and to exercise your political mind. It doesn’t need to take all day, but twenty or thirty minutes to give each resolution genuine consideration from a variety of angles. Treat it like a meditation or a workout. Take it slowly, and find your ground.


Essentially, what resolutions do is suggest that there is a problem and provide a series of possible solutions to that problem. Ask questions of the resolution: Is the problem being presented really a problem? Is it the kind of problem the WA should be addressing, or is it more for nations to decide? Are the solutions realistic, and do they adequately address the problem raised?


If you can answer yes to those, then go a bit deeper: How will this solution affect my nation? How will this solution affect the theoretical citizens of my nation? Is it fair and just? How will this solution affect other nations and their citizens? Is the solution best accommodating the wide variety of nations in the Assembly? If this solution were being applied to me, in real life, would I be comfortable with it?


Bestow gravity on the questions that arise in your mind from the scenarios painted in the resolutions. Read each resolution in full, and pay attention to those pieces of text that spark a reaction in you. Once you’ve found those things that have caught your attention, give them more attention.


If you’re unsure about some specific element of a resolution or its overarching subject matter, do a bit of quick research, and then see if you can find an opposing point of view to consider as well. If you’re having trouble deciding, ask for others’ perspectives. Bounce ideas off your peers, on your forum or on Discord. Exchanging ideas with others is critical in gaining perspective. Seek opposing viewpoints as readily as you seek those that confirm your own. Avoid the echo chambers of the universally like-minded. No harm can ever come from hearing another opinion. You always hold the power to politely disagree.


Sadly, civility in political discourse has deteriorated significantly as the left-right paradigm has become increasingly polarized. More and more frequently, we hear about the rise of political tribalism, and that can make the free exchange of ideas incredibly difficult. Often, it’s something more akin to trench warfare, with each side taking shots at each other, but neither gaining any ground. The rise of identity politics has made political bullying fashionable, and that can have a stifling effect on communication, and a narrowing effect on the mind, both for those engaging in such tactics, and for the recipients.


Take a cue from Nietzsche: "He who fights with monsters should look to it that he himself does not become a monster. And if you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss also gazes into you."


Whenever possible, avoid the name-callers, the blamers, and the shamers. They are the toxic enemies of free thought, and intellectual growth. Similarly, avoid ideologues who seek only to convert you to their way of thinking. They are the hopeless prisoners of their own mosaic.


Instead, seek out those with an open approach to debate and a willingness to consider all sides. They are a critical sounding board for ideas and can often give you a new insights into an issue that you may not have considered. Then, be that to others.


Be thoughtful. Be brave. Become the owner of a political mind in agreement with itself, and a political psyche comfortable in its own skin. Take the deep dive into the next WA resolution, and enjoy the swim.




Stop Thinking About SC Condemnations as Badges

by Funkadelia

During discussion of Security Council resolutions, or even discussion of the idea of writing one, there is an argument that is frequently bandied about that claims that the resolution should or should not be written or proposed or voted for because the resolution would result in awarding a “badge” to the targeted nation or region. Of course, this argument is usually reserved for condemnations by the nature of how condemnations work. The frequent refrain is something to the effect of “That nation/region should not be awarded with a condemnation badge. That’s exactly what they want! It’s just a trophy for them.” This argument has been utilized when discussing condemnations of certain individuals as well as entire regions and organizations across NationStates. This argument should not be seen as legitimate.


The idea that commendations or condemnations are nothing more than a badge for the recipient is essentially moot. Of course it’s a badge. The entire point of the Security Council is to give in-character badges to individuals and regions. That it is anything else is essentially a fabrication. Commendations are and should be written for nations or regions who have some lasting positive impact on the game, engage in some sort of heroic acts as far as the game is concerned, and/or engage in very good roleplay that is internationally known as very positive and high quality. On the flip side of that coin, condemnations are and should be written for nations or regions who have some lasting in character negative impact on the game. Whether it is for their exceptional ability to play a villain, their Benedict-esque turn-coating abilities, or their dastardly (but still high quality) roleplaying, that is all up for debate in the halls of the Security Council, and rightly so. However, what is not up for debate is whether or not someone should be condemned because “a badge is exactly what they would want.” It is simply a pointless discussion.


The idea that a Security Council resolution can be considered a badge by the recipient is not new. Certainly, it is something that has been brought up since the creation of the Security Council. This argument has not gotten more compelling over time, nor has one application of the argument been more compelling or persuading than the other. It has been discussed in terms of several commendations and most notably with condemnations. It’s been argued regarding prospective condemnations ranging from The Black Hawks, Land of Kings and Emperors, United Massachusetts, and Stujenske. Across all these wide-ranging prospective nominees, the argument has been much the same. Indeed, the search term “badge” in the Security Council forums and WA Archives on NationStates appears a total of 3,833 times alone. Clearly, this is an argument that many people find to be totally solid. However, this premise serves only as a quick way to invalidate the arguments of legitimate proposals.


Ultimately, the measure of what is an acceptable Security Council resolution should be based upon those aforementioned criteria. “Has this player or players done enough to warrant a resolution?” “Do their actions have historical weight, and can they stand the test of time?” “Did they really act like a hero in this moment?” “Were they especially good at being a villain, and did it really frustrate people?” These are the questions that should be asked and the debates that should be had when discussing a prospective nominee for a Security Council resolution.


This is a game where the drama and most of the action is based almost entirely on in-character activities. As such, the discussion of the Security Council, in my view, should be based around a meta discussion of those in-character actions, whether they were good, bad, or ugly. At the very least, most prospective Security Council nominees deserve an honest discussion about the legacy of their actions rather than a vapid, superficial discussion about whether or not the recipient would view the resolution as a “badge” or not. We can all do better than that as a game wide community. Of course, these discussions of badges will still occur regardless, but the community as a whole should move more toward the meta discussion of a nominee’s actions and their merit rather than these things. Certainly, this is not one of the most pressing issues out of all issues out there in NationStates, but encouraging more honest and fact- based discussions in the Security Council can perhaps make the game more enjoyable for everyone involved.


Why TWP Votes The Way It Does

by Saint Mark (Halo), Delegate of The West Pacific

The West Pacific has been said to be anti-World Assembly for quite some time. Is this the case, and if so, why? To some extent, this is true. Although we consider Security Council resolutions on a case-by-case basis, General Assembly proposals are another matter. The Delegate of The West Pacific will vote AGAINST almost any proposal unless there is a compelling reason not to do so, and FOR any proposed repeal. Why is this?


In my opinion, it all stems from our region’s firm position on the primacy of game mechanics. For example, recognition of the superiority of game mechanics is what underpins our support for Delegate Supremacy. The primacy of game mechanics also recognizes that every other WA member nation has the same right as the Delegate to vote his/her conscience on all proposals that come before the World Assembly.


With regard to the World Assembly itself, and especially the General Assembly, I would interpret it this way. The oldest and most fundamental mechanism by which to play NationStates is choosing a response to an issue. This has been a constant throughout the history of the game and is the only way a player can change their nation. It is really the only purely game-created mechanism. All other play is either meta-game, developed solely by the players, or at least influenced by players, like the development of the World Assembly. I’m not going to go into the history of the World Assembly here, but suffice it to say that the World Assembly (originally the United Nations) was created in part because of the support of the concept by some of the players.


The West Pacific is a strong proponent of national sovereignty. It is of the opinion that a player should be able to be the sole creator of their nation, uninhibited by outside influence. The World Assembly, specifically the General Assembly, forces nations to change, albeit only slightly. We hold that the sovereignty of each nation should not be violated! One might argue that a nation does not have to join the World Assembly, but not to do so would exclude a player from participating fully in their region. World Assembly membership, endorsements and influence have become integral to the NationStates meta-game.


The West Pacific holds that game mechanics are the foundation of NationStates. This is at the base of all of our policies – Delegate Supremacy, Independence … and an aversion to World Assembly interference in national sovereignty.




The Two Faces of the WA

by Tlomz, Minister of WA Affairs

NationStates, as with most political simulations, lends itself towards the drawing of parallels with real life politics and situations. Everything from historical events to modern political party lines comes into the crossfire of debate and legislation. Within this Molotov cocktail of law, come two primary schools of thought. There are those who are able to shelve either all or part of their real life convictions in favor of adopting differing ones to roleplay their nations, and then there are those who are more attached to their real life beliefs and allegiances, which they then pursue and perpetuate in the NS world. An additional way to represent this divide is between in-character (IC) and Out of Character (OOC) beliefs held by players.


While neither way of playing the game is objectively wrong, their conflict in various parts of NS inherently causes issues even with players acting in the best of faith. This becomes especially apparent in the World Assembly as potentially inflammatory and controversial topics are legislated upon and the fallout of arguments, repeals, and redrafts commence.


Specifically in the General Assembly, the topics of abortion, LGBT rights including gay marriage, and environmental reform have had their fair share of heated debate and controversy. While very civil and constructive debate can be had regarding any of these topics, they tend to spiral out of control on a regular basis, some more than others of course. Abortion in the WA has been host to it all, seeing many attempts at resolutions and repeals of said resolutions. These discussions include thousands of comments on hundreds of pages of forum threads.


The most heated, perhaps even toxic debate comes from those who blindly apply their real-life beliefs without considering the other side’s position. Instead, the WA should be seen as an opportunity to build a more nuanced and balanced understanding of the topics at hand. Additionally, topics like LGBT rights and environmental reform open the floodgates for the more toxic parts of real-life politics to pour in through passionate and often shortsighted debate by those who do not separate their out of character beliefs from their in character persona. Things such as identity politics and labeling of opponents lead to open flaming in forums, as well as near OOC harassment directed at those who oppose proposal efforts.


Sadly, while the Security Council possesses these same problems, the partisan split can be much more obvious at times. This can be most easily observed in the use of condemnations and liberations targeted at the more extreme ends of party lines such as openly fascist and communist regions and players. While the extreme of any political stance is sure to be toxic and harmful to discourse in real life politics, no thought is given to the in game aspects of in-character role play and the separation between someone’s IC vs OOC stances. This causes the verbal crucifixion of people who try to rationalize and defend the “tainted” groups when those groups come under attack by those who are unable to separate IC vs OOC stances. No matter how reasonable and factual their arguments made may be, those who try to think rationally and see from a neutral perspective will be labeled as sympathizers to the undesirable group and be cast aside by the unhinged opposing party. To many of those who apply their real-life beliefs here, a zero-sum game is played in which advancing their chosen agenda is all that matters. They pile on excuses and irrelevant OOC items to justify toxic and harmful IC behavior which can begin to hamper moderation efforts as well. Unfortunately, this reduces complex and nuanced topics regarding extremist politics to flame wars and muckraking, with those who wish to participate in logical debate staying quiet and waiting for the storm to blow over.


A concerning symptom of the examples above is observed in the quality of proposals which manage to make quorum during these times of heated debate. More common in the Security Council, this can be best observed during the string of preemptive liberations targeting allegedly fascist regions which were consecutively proposed some eight months ago. While there may have been due cause for these liberations to take place, their writing was well below standard but still easily made quorum and were subsequently passed following heated and toxic interactions as described above. Some of these liberations were of such a quality that they were repealed a short time after passage. This can be so easily done in the SC because the proposals only have a singular function with the text of each proposal simply being reasoning. Many players may approach this with a Machiavellian mindset and ignore quality flaws for the sake of the passage of the proposal and the result it entails. This is, in my opinion, one of the greatest issues as it allows for a degradation of writing standards at the hands of inflammatory politics and player divides, which will ultimately harm the WA.


In conclusion, heated debate and passion is healthy and normal for the WA. I encourage everyone to find an issue they are passionate about and write or support legislation on it - that's how our community grows. However, issues arise when players begin to assume that their opposition is arguing with the worst possible motives or that they believe that they can harm their opposition and their argument by abusing an IC or OOC position. When debating and attempting to understand someone’s position, it should be a priority to understand where they draw their convictions, or else you may be arguing from two whole different perspectives and only toxicity and flaming will follow. This is not to deny that bad faith actors exist in the WA, but rather to outline that there are differences in the way people argue and hold their convictions, and the differing stances between two opposing parties doesn’t necessarily indicate bad faith, or any disrespect at all.




Why Liberations Are Flawed

by Mikeswill, Delegate of NationStates

In October of 2003, my cousin Steve emailed me about a new online political game he had heard about called NationStates and - knowing my interest in all things political given that I have a degree in Political Science - urged me to explore it. I tend not to be too interested in internet games, but decided to give it a shot anyway. As such, the nation Mikeswill was born into a Pacific region with the Eagle of Albania on the eve of NationStates’ first birthday. In the ensuing days, I spread the word of the game to another friend who joined and created a region called ‘NationStates’ and asked me to move. My first puppet, Mikes Hope, became resident number twenty-one.


The earliest days of the game were hectic and reactionary mostly because it was never meant to become a sustained platform. Max Barry initially created the game simply to promote his book “Jennifer Government,” but in the explosion of interest, a true game was formed. As such, the original game mechanisms were not made to deal with a plethora of player activity and antics, and had to constantly evolve.


A purview of the News bulletins from 2003 exemplifies the challenges of early game play especially as it tried to deal with “obnoxious morons”. Password hackers, griefers, region crashers and UN (now WA) Cheats were unforeseen problems that required a response. Prior to April 29, 2003, nations could move at will throughout the multitude of regions, spam at will, and create multiple UN identities with little recourse. As such, regional controls were created which allowed the delegate and founder to eject nations and password-protect the region. In May, NS Etiquette was introduced in part to define region crashing ie. raiding/invading. June saw the creation of Moderators: “kind, noble players who have volunteered their time to weed out some of the obnoxious elements.”


During this period, legend has it that the NationStates region was often raided and fought over due to the fact that it is named after the game and also because of its founderless status. Regional population was minimal until November. Thus, by the time Mikes Hope became UN Delegate of NationStates in early November of 2003, raiding was a major threat and password protection was the last line of defense. Moreover, without a founder, the power and responsibility to keep the region safe and secure was left solely to the delegate.


As the game increased in popularity, the region of NationStates grew exponentially and added players from around the world. September 2004, saw Mikes Hope deleted for griefing (not my best moment) and the region in flux as players split on the future direction of the region. Despite my humiliation, I was determined to be a candidate for the delegacy and thought I had a chance because I had personally recruited nearly every player in the region. By the end of the month, I secured the delegacy as Mikeswill and have remained in this position ever since. The other faction split off and continues to this day as a small, tight-knit community of fifteen nations.


By late September of 2004, the game unveiled the process to repeal previous UN/WA Resolutions. At first glance this mechanism looked to have much merit as it gave the UN/WA electorate to reconsider past legislation. Resolutions were no longer etched in stone, rather, they had to be able to stand the test of time. Unfortunately, this mechanism would become the most abused tool in the World Assembly and in the yet to be created Security Council.


Fundamentally, it makes sense to have a mechanism to correct flawed or erroneous legislation or to amend legislation which no longer reflects the essence of a changing environment. The United States has examples of changing course via legislation (the 18th and 21st Amendments regarding Prohibition) and judicial review (Plessy v. Ferguson and subsequently Brown v. Board of Education regarding segregation). In each case the ethos of a nation was heard and altered. In general, however, legislation has a long lasting effect and is difficult to undo.


Not so in our World Assembly where the opposition of legislation has written a repeal before the initial resolution has concluded the vote. What has become important is not the essence of the legislation rather the artistry of persuasion to convince a haphazard, easily manipulated, electorate to alter their position minutes after they cast their votes. Often times it seems that Repeal writers are more interested in authoring a repeal than the substance of their position.
 Thus, in my region most of us vote for a resolution one week and against the repeal the second week. Unfortunately, the first legislation which passed with say 80% approval in round one dies with the same percent in round two. The result is a perceive travesty of justice and an inclination to believe that the overall electorate is easily manipulated. Were we overly engaged we could have submit a fix whereby no Resolution could be repealed for a period of six months.

Meanwhile, the game continued. In 2006 Regional Influence was added to the game in another attempt to stem the tide of Invading. The result was that WA Delegates had greater power to keep invaders out and the Regional Power ranking minimized many threats. Undeterred the Raiders continued. May of 2009 saw the addition on Commend and Condemn Resolutions which had the effect of creating a badge of excellence for the Condemned. And in July 2009 came the worse mechanism of the game, in my opinion, the Liberation Resolution.


Liberation resolution: “A Liberation Resolution overrides any Delegate password in the nominated region, allowing other nations to enter freely. (It doesn't restrict the Delegate's ability to eject, ban, or do anything else; nor does it affect regions with Founders.) This allows the World Assembly to further its aims of bringing freedom and justice to the world, or grossly overstep its moral authority, depending on your perspective”.


The purpose of Liberations is basically to free a region that has been raided and return it to the natives. Whereas the idea has a degree of altruistic merit it is the most dangerous piece of legislation ever to threaten the NationStates region. How so? As a founderless region, it potentially removes my last line of defense as WA Delegate of the region. And sure enough the use of Liberation Resolutions soon became a tool of organizations to manipulate the borders and member nations of a region only then to use the repeal mechanism to revert back to the security of password-protection once they established hegemony over the region.


Moreover, the rationale for a resolution that nulls a game mechanism was flawed from my perspective. The reality was that regions without founders were most likely to be affected by such a provision mostly because they were easy to attack. Regions with founders are not favorable given the omnipotence of a founder. The cries of so-called natives that their precious region had been disturbed by raiders overshadowed their own irresponsibility to secure their own region, either by a strong Delegate or the refounding of their region.


In a nutshell, our fear is that an unscrupulous author will manipulate the electorate to usurp our Regional security via a Liberation and then Invade the region in such numbers to successfully take the Delegacy. As Condemn/ Commend/ Liberation were moved into the Security Council in February 2010, I petitioned for and received an Anti-Security Council Tag. Since that time we have voted against all liberations and for their repeals even when said repeals were merely the completion of power politics. And until such time as the travesty of liberations are removed from existence we shall continue in this direction so long as I am WA Delegate.




The Northern Lights: Beauty in Truth

Publisher: Pallaith (Ghost) :: Executive Editor: El Fiji Grande :: Managing Editor: BMWSurfer


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

[Haor Chall]

We are aware that not everyone is equally appreciative of image-based NS newspapers. As such, we've included the standard format mostly plain-text version of the newspaper in the spoiler below. We hope you enjoy reading this month's issue! If you have any questions, comments, concerns, or suggestions, feel free to telegram the current TNP Minister of Communications [nation]El Fiji Grande[/nation] or Minister of Culture [nation]Prydania[/nation].

SPOILER: Click to show

Editor's Note

This is the first Issue of the Roleplay Reel (RPR), a joint publication by The North Pacific's Ministries of Communications and Culture. This magazine is designed to show off TNP's roleplay community to the NS world, and to highlight the interesting characters, nations, and worlds that roleplayers here have put so much effort into creating. What follows are a series of showcases that draw attention to roleplays worth reading. We hope you enjoy a closer look at all the stories being told, and hope it inspires you to become a part of this community if you aren't already.

The Editors of the Roleplay Reel

El Fiji Grande, Syrixia, MadJack, and Prydania



A Look at For The King, To Valhalla: A Forum-Based Roleplay and Character Study

[align=right]by Prydania, Minister of Culture and RP Moderator[/align]

The continent of Craviter on Eras is a place where tradition and modernity clash violently, where romanticism and materialism struggle for supremacy. The wheels of history are moved by the blood of these clashes. Kings, Emperors, and Generals all did what they did for personal glory, honor, and what they thought was right. It’s a land of heroes, villains, revolutionaries, lords and ladies, and of the epic struggle of the human spirit. Prydanians, despite having origins among their Andrennian brothers on Gothis, are right at home in Craviter in this regard.



Prydania had been, since 2002, under the control of the Syndicalist Party. The country suffered under the radical left wing regime, and it was William Aubyn’s Front of National Unity that offered the best hope to topple them. It was among the FNU that Prince Tobias Loðbrók found a father. His real father, Prince Robert, was executed in 2002 along with the rest of the Royal Family. William raised the Prince, and in 2012 the seventeen-year old Tobias received his family’s sword Veiðiblað. And he asked “are the stories real?”



Tobias asked that of Jørn Stöðuvatn when he was handed his family’s heirloom sword. The sword had been in his family for long time. A very long time. Back before the Loðbróks were even a dynasty. So it was natural Prince Tobias would ask that of Jørn when he was handed what was once Æschere Loðbróki’s sword. Did he really pull Veiðiblað out of an oak in ancient Andrenne to lead his people against a wild and ferocious enemy? Jørn never answered that question. Instead he pivoted it to remind Tobias of his place in modern Prydanian history. Of the role he played as their country burnt around them, and how Tobias could potentially save it. That is the story of For the King, to Valhalla. It’s the story of a young man who carries the weight of a nation on his shoulders. Who struggles with faith, love, loss, and the implications of his family’s legacy.



Tobias himself is not particularly remarkable. He is a kind-hearted young man who has had to deal with personal tragedy and loss from a young age, and who has the unfortunate case of having this tied into a civil war - a war for the soul of Prydania itself. Tobias is not a stoic general, a brave warrior, the chessmaster, nor a particularly charismatic figurehead. He’s just the last of his family - a family that happens to stretch back into the murky past of myth and legend. He needs to find a way to carry this responsibility and be the symbol of hope people want him to be, all without losing his mind or cracking under the expectations. This is the real power behind that very old sword known as Veiðiblað.



It’s through Veiðiblað that Tobias is finally able to understand the connection that allegedly stretches back to the semi-mythical Æschere. To Heorot, Hróarr, Vortgyn, and the rest of his family’s legacy. He can now touch it, understand it. Whether or not the stories of Æschere and the sword are true doesn’t matter. What matters is that he understands his place in history. Tobias will never be the grand figurehead or general so many expect him to be, but with this sword? He understands the role he has to play in being a beacon for hope for his people. He understands how he is the universe’s counterbalance to the tyrannical Syndicalist President Thomas Nielsen. The sword’s power isn’t magical, its power lies in being able to convince Tobias Loðbrók, a boy who has suffered tragedy after tragedy, that he can be King Tobias III and help save his country from those who would see it burn.



I began my stint in TNP’s Forum-based RP community with a novel idea. What if, instead of roleplaying a civil war, I roleplayed the immediate aftermath? Most people like to roleplay civil wars, but the aftermath is rarely fleshed out. I wanted to do something different, so my first roleplay, Over the Hills and Back, started with Tobias’ coronation. The war was over, the FNU had won, the Syndicalist tyrants were vanquished, and Tobias was King at the age of twenty-two, fifteen years removed from the Syndicalist coup.

I had a blast writing Over the Hills and Back with my fellow Eras roleplayers, but the details of the civil war I had chosen to skip nagged at me. That said? Fifteen years is a long time. There is a lot of minutia in that timeframe. And so I thought about the civil war and how it affected Tobias and the rest of the country with no real outlet. I kept putting it off until fellow Eras roleplayer, Sil Dorsett, inspired me to do a collection of stories from the civil war. And thus For the King, to Valhalla was born.



I admit this structure leaves it a bit odd to read, as it rarely has chronological order. It’s a series of individual “episodes” from the war that I write as I feel inspired to. So the order is all over the place. Still, the timestamps should help. Regardless? I hope that despite this quirk it’s something people remain interested in. I’m quite proud of it, mostly because of how much fun it is to write. Of course I had the basics of Tobias’ character set and ready to go, but For the King to Valhalla allowed me to really dig into what makes him tick, what he’s like, and why he’s like that. Not just now, but over the course of fifteen years. It does focus on other aspects of the war besides Tobias of course, but he’s the focus. In many ways, it’s the story of how he became the young man and King he is in Eras’ present.



I find Tobias so much fun to write because of how human he feels. As I alluded to in my description of the roleplay above - he’s not even the leader of his own cause - his adoptive father William Aubyn is. Tobias is just a kid for the early parts of the war - a kid who has to make sense of a world that is trying to tear itself apart, all without his parents. He is unsure, scared, vulnerable, rash, and emotional. Who wouldn’t be? It’s his journey through these stages of his childhood and young adulthood, however, that matter almost as much as the FNU’s struggles against the Syndicalist government.



I admit this structure leaves it a bit odd to read, as it rarely has chronological order. It’s a series of individual “episodes” from the war that I write as I feel inspired to. So the order is all over the place. Still, the timestamps should help. Regardless? I hope that despite this quirk it’s something people remain interested in. I’m quite proud of it, mostly because of how much fun it is to write. Of course I had the basics of Tobias’ character set and ready to go, but For the King to Valhalla allowed me to really dig into what makes him tick, what he’s like, and why he’s like that. Not just now, but over the course of fifteen years. It does focus on other aspects of the war besides Tobias of course, but he’s the focus. In many ways, it’s the story of how he became the young man and King he is in Eras’ present.



I find Tobias so much fun to write because of how human he feels. As I alluded to in my description of the roleplay above - he’s not even the leader of his own cause - his adoptive father William Aubyn is. Tobias is just a kid for the early parts of the war - a kid who has to make sense of a world that is trying to tear itself apart, all without his parents. He is unsure, scared, vulnerable, rash, and emotional. Who wouldn’t be? It’s his journey through these stages of his childhood and young adulthood, however, that matter almost as much as the FNU’s struggles against the Syndicalist government.



I’m a strong proponent of character roleplay being the best vehicle to explore national roleplay. In so far as that goes, Tobias Loðbrók is the “main character” of my roleplay with Prydania as a nation. For the King, to Valhalla began as an experiment to see if I could use the random episodic method to cover fifteen years of potential stories regarding the Prydanian Civil War. It has become perhaps the best character piece I’ve ever written in over thirteen years of NationStates-based roleplay. I hope it’s something people enjoy reading. If you find yourself checking it out, enjoy the journey!



The Political System of the Sutherland Federation

[align=right]by Wonderess[/align]

The Sutherland Federation is one of the newest nations of Eras having broken away from the Kingdom of McMasterdonia on February 8th, 2018, in an area which remains in dispute to this day. Sutherland was formed as a safe haven for the Courantist minorities of McMasterdonia, tired of persecution and second class treatment by both the Royal Family of McMasterdonia and the military movements of the Flemingovian bishop Gunrei amidst a civil war in the nation.



With this in mind, the government of Sutherland was formed to allow for religious freedom and the federal unity of small communities and local customs. The nation attempts to avoid nationalism without causing fracturing and becoming a nation too decentralized to accomplish national goals. To achieve this, Sutherland has dominions or states that act as the central level of government. Below are Sutherland’s dominions along with the unorganized Territory of Thane:



Each dominion’s government is made up of the leaders of each governmental district within them which each contain about 10,000 people. The Council of the Dominion in each one handles “state level” affairs such as healthcare matters, welfare, and defense organization. The populous and their character drastically affect the priorities of each dominion when it comes to legislation and spending. The Dominion of Alderon by far spends the most on defense due to its more antagonistic character and proximity to the McMasterdonian border to its south. The Dominion of Lake Prime trends towards labor training and pro union legislation due to the great number of manufacturing jobs in the City of Lake Prime. Below the dominions are broken down into their governmental districts and the colored areas are the governmental districts grouped into their Core General (legislative) districts:



The federal government of the Sutherland Federation mainly focuses on foreign affairs, international economics, university education, disputes between dominions, nationally coordinated defense, as well as the civil organization of the nation. With this in mind, it is actually possible for the federal government to dissolve a dominion or create a new one even though their jurisdiction over the governance of dominions is limited. The foundation of the federal government is the head of state: the Arc-Wonderess of Sutherland. The inaugural Arc-Wonderess is Nathan Jarreau, the founder of the Sutherland nation and the main visionary for its development as a united Courantist (Eras version of Roman Catholic) people. Official portrait to the right.



The Arc-Wonderess must be a Courantist who is unmarried and has a doctorate in philosophy or sacred theology. The Arc-Wonderess’s actual governmental power is limited, however his advice and centrality to Sutherlan culture makes his influence significant on the rest of the government. He or she has the right to enter the legislative chamber of the nation, the Core General, and be a speaker of preference at anytime that the Core General is deliberating legislation. The Arc-Wonderess is removed through resignation, death, or by the confidence vote of the Core General. The confidence vote requires two separate votes of the nation that are three months apart. The removal must be confirmed twice in order for the removal to succeed. The Arc-Wonderess is the embodiment of the “philosopher king” and therefore acts as challenger and critic of the Core General’s actions if those actions appear politically charged or opposed to the spirit of Sutherland.



The Arc-Wonderess has major influence when it comes to the election of the Core General. At any time, he may ask the people of Sutherland to push for a vote on a new Core General election. This requires a simple majority in the affirmative by the populous with governmental districts being counted. If the motion succeeds, he may then pose a dilemma to the people of Sutherland. Their two responses will act as the future coalitions of the Core General members. The first question in the history of the Federation referred to the Sutherlan relationship to McMasterdonia in which an Anti-McMasterdonian Coalition and a McMasterdonian Tolerance Coalition were formed. The second and current question was based on the theo-cultural posture of the nation as a faith based outlook (Fidei Coalition) or a reason based outlook (Ratio Coalition). Sutherland does not have political parties and only uses general coalitions in response to the Arc-Wonderess’s question until the next election cycle. Here is the current makeup of the Core General:

The Ratio Coalition controls 285 seats to the Fidei Coalition's 267 seats.



The Core General serves as the national legislature and has the duty to deliberate on obstacles and conflicts that face the Sutherland Federation. It is made up of representatives from districts that include around five governmental districts. The Core General is divided up into the Committees of Heart, Doctrine, Passion, and Wisdom as modeled after the national rule of life of Sutherland. Heart deals with matters of welfare and charity, Doctrine deals with law and order, Passion deals with defense and foreign policy, and Wisdom deals with finances. The Committee of Passion is subdivided into the Diadem of Sutherland which is its united defense force and the Wings of Sutherland as its department of state. Below is the Palace of the Core General:



The final part of the Sutherland government is the Court of Inspirators. This court is the advisory body of the Arc-Wonderess and its members act as advisors and mouthpieces for the work of Sutherland at home and in the international community. Important nations may receive an Inspirator as an ambassador. Their main purpose is to serve as the group from which the next Arc-Wonderess is to be chosen. They are each chosen from a collection of governmental districts that are their “kingdom” or Inspiraria. Map of Sutherland Inspirarias:



The Chamber of the Inspirators, their central meeting place and offices:

The government of the Sutherland Federation serves to make Nathan Jarreau’s vision of a free, independent, and thriving Sutherland financially as well as culturally a reality. It requires the dedication and steadfast hope of the people to keep Sutherland together and united for a better tomorrow. The dominions accomplish this by caring for their people, the Core General does this through its dialogues and acts of unity for the one nation, the Court of Inspirators do this through their dedication, and hard work for the vision and ideals of the Arc-Wonderess. The Arc-Wonderess does so through his lifelong dedication to Sutherland, his land, home, and people.



The Queen and the Empress

[align=right]by Salgado[/align]

From the land of vast taigas, open seas and the largest cities on the face of Northern Osea, a dark-skinned Queen and her adopted child boarded the earliest flight out of Esperanza City to meet the Empress of the Rynese, another grand country separated from Azenyanistan by thousands of miles of earth and water as well as the fact that both countries resided upon different continents and were a part of strange alliances. Just as the two members of an ancient royal family settled down in their comfortable first-class seats, the adorable young woman noticed a troubled expression coming unto the face of her adoptive mother. She reached out to her hand and grasped it firmly while she smiled at her mother. The older woman, despite the pain crawling up and down her arm, a price she paid for using wild and evil magic made evident by the horrifying scars that traced over her arms hidden by the sleeves of her top, smiled back and reassured her only daughter, without a word spoken, that she would be okay. The plane, in minutes, soon left the airport and gave its last witness to the land of the Azens and their kingdom.



This is a taste of the start of one of the most intense and passionately written roleplays that surfaced on Strangereal just recently.

This roleplay has no title made by both players involved in this romantic and incredibly character focused collaboration. Yet, it seems that the most basic working title could always make up for the lack of a proper name. So, dear readers, please allow me to introduce this month’s featured roleplay, The Queen and The Empress.



A month ago, this roleplay began quite innocently and absentmindedly in what was supposed to be a routine diplomatic chat between two heads of state controlled by the players Rynese Empire (Ryn) and Azenyanistan (Azen). On the backgrounds of both players, Ryn is an old player of The North Pacific's Strangereal RMB RP. He is the humble owner and creator of The Rynese Empire, a vast and powerful member of an alliance of nations called the Ironblood Zwei. Meanwhile, Azen is a new addition to the region, hailing from the modern tech region of New Ausozera. He is a young roleplayer focused on modern tech and character-focused roleplays. And just like Rynese, he is the owner and creator of Azenyanistan, a kingdom dominated by both magic and technology as a member of the strict but outstandingly strong Warsaw Pact.



Returning to focus on the roleplay itself, both players expected that it would end quickly and wouldn't matter much. For the article, it was fortunate that both players agreed to an interview.



What did you first expect from this RP?

At first, I thought it would be a short lived meeting between two queens.

Okay. And what can you say about how it turned out?

It turned out to be a long and planned out romance story. It’s something I’m totally okay with. I’m actually glad it happened.

That’s nice. So, are you willing to continue the RP with Azen?

Absolutely! This is one of the roleplays that I can’t really say no to continuing, even if it turns into a lot of filler.

Do you truly enjoy it?

It’s hard not to enjoy it.

If you and he were to work together again on a similar or different project, would you?

Absolutely! Azenyanistan has proven to be pretty much the most reliable guy around. I’ll always be up for working with him again.

That’s really nice of you. As for the roleplay, what comments would you like to make? How romantic is it really? Is it over the top or genuine?

I’d say that I like the way it is, with slightly over the top love. To me, I feel like it’s the correct amount of everything, considering everything from both sides, though to a third party it might seem a little, as I said, over the top. It’s enjoyable to write, which is all I really care for. The story itself is good because both writers involved had fun writing it.

Alright. So, we are almost done with the interview, what would you like to say to our readers about one on one roleplays like this one?

They’re probably the backbone and femur of roleplaying in general. Not to mention, easy to pull off and probably the type of roleplay to have the most potential structuring and planning for.

Thanks. That was a wonderful interview.

You’re welcome!



According to Azen, he started that, "It was wonderful to play with Ryn. I didn't even expect this RP to lead not only to a thriving In-Character friendship but also an Out-of-Character partnership."



Ever since the two resumed the roleplay just a few days ago, so much warmth has been exchanged between the two players. In both private and in public, in their own company so shared or in the company of many others, both friend and stranger, the two writers have closely tied themselves to the other without a hint of coldness or hesitation.



In the end, the roleplay continues between the two. The current arc is situated around Empress Tiara attempting to bring back Queen Natalia to the Rynese Empire after a serious misunderstanding.



Federalist Party Swept into Mensedag in Stunning Repudiation of the Establishment

[align=right]by Syrixia[/align]

April 7, 2019, NIDAROS - Vallanders registered their dismay and frustration with Nidaros' political establishment on Friday, April 6, 2019, handing a party both relatively new in the national scene and widely considered irrelevant the largest share of seats in both the Vårtinget and the Lånsevar. The surprise outcome defied polls that showed the Messianist Democratic and Confederation Development Parties coming in 1st and 2nd respectively.



For the party's leader, Mark Hellstrand, an actor and entrepreneur-turned politician with no government experience, the results were triumphant in particular. The voters delivered a powerful rejection of the establishment forces that had assembled against him and his party, from the public sector to the private sector; from one wing of the political spectrum to the other.



Before Hellstrand, the Federalist Party was a nearly unheard-of fringe party essentially run by the Kelten family, who had run it for decades, and for 3 generations. Its third leader, Gert Kelten, in particular, stressed the party's radical single-issue agenda: the abolition of the cantonal system and the Confederation as a whole in favor of a federal republic, during a point in time when Vallanders became more and more angry at a dual-hung legislature and a stagnating economy.



However, in November of 2014, Kelten became caught up in a sexual harassment scandal that endangered his and his family's leadership- and rocketed his party to national news. It was at this point that, during the chaos engulfing the party, that Hellstrand first registered as a member. His star power and his brief career as a lobbyist propelled him to the upper echelons of the party relatively quickly, and just months before the midterms, Hellstrand was elected Leader of the Federalist Party with 88% of the vote.



What followed was a massive effort by Hellstrand to transform the party from a fringe federalist movement into a force appealing to Vallanders everywhere, galvanizing a largely overlooked coalition of mostly blue-collar and middle-class voters who managed to swing cantons that had been reliably in the camp of much more established parties for decades.



In the 2015 midterms, the Federalists managed to break into the Vårtinget with 29 seats, but were still considered fringe by political pundits and the three major parties alike, as well as much of the public. However, that wasn't enough for Hellstrand, and for 4 years, from 2015 to 2019, the Federalists ceaselessly criticized government division and called for strong action, while slowly but surely mobilizing grassroots campaign efforts.



Erna Hareide and her husband Rasmus, two 32-year-old newlyweds, walked out of a polling station in Vikstad on Friday and said they had cast their votes for Hellstrand and his party, despite usually voting for the CDP. Their comments suggested that Hellstrand's longstanding grassroots efforts had paid off, and they weren't alone.



Voters, as the results show us, were willing to take a gamble for change, and gave the Federalists 340 seats in the Vårtinget, compared to 184 for the Messianist Democrats and 163 for the CDP. Meanwhile, the Centrist Union, previously the largest political party in the country, was eviscerated, and is now the smallest with 46 seats. In the Lånsevar, 60 seats went to the Federalists, whereas 28 went to the Messianist Democrats, 24 to the CDP, and 12 to the Centrists.



While the Federalists were not able to gain an absolute majority, they were able to gain a simple majority- a tool Hellstrand can use to appoint a Federal Council with a Federalist majority. The Federalists also performed a number of feats that, to many political pundits and pollsters, seemed impossible. By taking Halsen, they performed the rare Skjednak- a political term meaning "cutting the neck", referring to the Litefjord; where the traditionally Centrist strongholds in the Litefjordstad region and the Outer Plains region are not connected by a fully Centrist-controlled Litefjord region.



More importantly, though, the Federalists stole the South from the Messianist Democrats, who have traditionally held the region, just as the CDP have traditionally held the North and the Centrists the West. The Messianist Democrats were, however, able to compensate for this by winning over many suburban voters, as well as through the personal charisma of Lotte Jensen, their leader.



Due to these factors, Jensen had become the primary opposing force to the rise of the Federalists, and the Messianist Democrats, though they had lost the South, made significant gains in the North, flipping districts and cantons previously held by both the CDP and the Centrists. However, as a consequence for Never-Hellstranders, the results have yielded no united opposition to the Federalists in the Mensedag. The Messianist Democrats and CDP, though united in their disdain for Hellstrand, are fundamentally center-right and center-left parties respectively.



This gives Hellstrand and the Federalist Party a larger advantage, and makes their success story all the more fascinating, whether you support or dislike the Federalists' agenda. However, only time will tell what this new party and its firebrand leader will be able to do, and whether they will be able to deliver on their campaign promises to cut the power of the big banks, get Valland more involved in the international community, bring in new jobs, and bolster the economy.



In short, though the campaign- one of the most brutal in Valland's history- is finally over, a new political era has dawned. After years of waiting and tireless campaigning, the voters have put the Federalists in power; and time will tell if they are able to, as their mantra states, Set Valland Forward Again.




Rump, Tony Scheduled for Duel at Dawn

[align=right]by Deerfenland[/align]

(Freetown, SL) - The President of the African Caribbean Republic of Deerfenland prepares for the duel after he was challenged by the Minister of Defense concerning the state, Markaz Tony. This individual engagement is cataloged for Sunday at 6:30 at the Revolutionary War battleground.



The Minister of Defense of the African Caribbean Republic of Deerfenland approached President Rump yesterday at around 19:45. "Careful how you proceed, good man. Intemperance indeed, good man. Answer forth the accusations I lay at your feet, or prepare to bleed, good man," were the words the Minister of Defense yelled to the President. The President was seen smiling. "Your grievance is legitimate. I stand by what I said every bit of it."



This goes back to the President saying that the Minister of Defense was: amoral, a disgrace, and unprofessional along with other strings of insults. Then, we heard the MoD yelling towards Rump. "Then stand, Donald. Freetown, dawn. Guns, drawn." We can see the president standing up and shaking the minister's hand. "You're on."



There has been a feud between the two. Politically and emotionally, the feud has been between the men for years. The vendetta must be resolved. One man will die, one will survive. The battlegrounds in the middle of Freetown was the place where the Deerfenese Revolution ended after the Deerfenese Colonial Forces surrounded the British.



These grounds were later deemed the only duel grounds. These are the only places where duels are legal. So far, a total of 222 duels have been fought here. One winner and one loser. A companion and a doctor will be with each man. There is a moat that surrounds the battleground. They will row across it at dawn.
 President Rump endured a journalist colloquium. Here is something he had to state: "I know you have learned that Defense Minister Markaz Tony and I have challenged each other to a duel. Here are the details. The Minister of Defense's second will be Jévon Booker, the former Vice President. My friend who will accompany me will be Henderson Moore."



Markaz Tony served as the Minister of Defense under the Dapaah and Addo Administrations. He made himself known when he called for the operation to invade the Nikolas in World War IV. He also called for the invasion of the numerous labor camps in the Special Administrative Region of Zhumu (瞩目) in the times of Alerian and Tiristanian occupation.



Markaz Tony also has a marksman’s ability and a tremendous shot. He served in the Deerfenese Armed Forces during the times of Nikolas occupation. He also served on guard ready to attack orders of a Toshavoan Invasion. This man has killed hundreds of opponents in war. He cut down several Niks alone in the fourth World War.



Donald Rump also has a marksman’s ability. He is known for not throwing away his shot. He had been in one duel before Sunday’s, which he won by a long shot. The opponent was never able to shoot.



It will be really difficult to decide on a winner. However, this duel will end long political tensions between the two men. However, it will remain to see who wins. However, who do you think will win? Who has the best shot? Who will not throw away their shot?



The Roleplay Reel: Showing the Beauty of Storytelling

Publisher: Pallaith (Ghost) :: Executive Editors: El Fiji Grande, Syrixia, MadJack, and Prydania



The Roleplay Reel is produced by the Ministries of Communications and Culture on behalf of the RP Community of The North Pacific.

[Haor Chall]

[​IMG]​
[​IMG] General Election Report
by bowloftoast, Political Correspondent​

[​IMG]
The Region is now "Fijitastic" with the election of our new Delegate.​

Spring has sprung for those in TNP’s northern hemisphere, and the May General Election provided verdant democratic ground for both perennial candidates and budding new political talent.

The Delegacy:

Keeping to his campaign promise of a single term, previous delegate Pallaith opted not to run this round, creating the opportunity for new leadership to rise, and keeping alive TNP’s tradition of encouraging citizens to engage in the pursuit of leadership positions.

El Fiji Grande was the first candidate to declare, riding momentum from recent election to the Security Council, and having displayed great acumen as Minister of Communications. In his platform, Fiji emphasized a willingness to learn as he led, if chosen. Fiji deferred to those with greater experience during the campaign, and his platform became a work in progress. This willingness to adapt to the views of the community went a long way in building confidence in his candidacy, securing him 88% of the votes, and victory.

St. George (Madjack) declared shortly thereafter. A former Delegate in Osiris, St. George brought executive experience to the campaign. St. George placed an emphasis on Ministerial liberty and gave a specific mention of the importance of an unfettered RP community. Previous indiscretions came to light, however, and with matters before the courts, St. George withdrew from the race.

Not wishing to see El Fiji Grande gain the Delegacy uncontested, Lady Raven Wing rose to the occasion with an intriguing platform of Evil – and one must assume the accompanying chaos. Light on policy, heavy on goats, pants, and perhaps even goats in pants, this irreverent but timely campaign garnered nearly 12% of the popular vote, proving there can be no light without darkness.

The Vice Delegacy:

Hotly contested, with several vying for the number two job, the Vice Delegate race provided the counterpoint to the fait accompli that was the Delegate race.

Incumbent candidate Sil Dorsett was going to be difficult to unseat on the heels of a nearly infallible term. Sil’s platform relied mainly on a positive track record, with some additional emphasis on regional security, continuing promotion of WA membership, and a well-executed Star Trek reference. These elements combined into a win and a second consecutive term, with 57% of the popular vote.

Little is known about candidate Kirostan, but it is a testament to the region that a relative unknown may enter any race and run for office. Despite having no platform to speak of, Kirostan’s courage is laudable, and the candidate even captured a couple of votes.

Praetor’s campaign for Vice was similar to Sil’s in focusing on regional security, but Praetor put a greater emphasis on game-side improvements and advocated for somewhat increased transparency. Overshadowed by the battle between a very popular incumbent and an exceedingly well-rounded rat dude, Praetor garnered 4 votes.

Malphe came at the candidacy with a past experience in most TNP Ministries, a predisposition to security, and proven accountability. The emphasis of the platform was reliable execution of tasks matched with an openness to learn and evolve into the position. The Vice Delegate position is likely in Malphe’s future, but this time out, a respectable 35% of the popular vote wasn’t quite enough.

Speaker:

Fairly new to TNP and NS, Dreadton took on the mammoth task of unseating a popular incumbent, both out of a belief that that no candidate should run unopposed, but also with confidence in their understanding of the role. Stepping up is never easy, and Dreadton was rewarded with a respectable 12% of the popular vote.

There was little doubt that Artemis would reacquire the Speaker role, and the variety of common-sense procedural amendments implemented over the last term spoke for themselves. More-of-the-same seemed to be all the refrain that citizens needed to secure 88% of the popular vote, and another term in office.

Attorney General:

With the future of the region’s AG position in question, three candidates declared, each seeking to carry the office forward. Two prevailed, but a runoff was required to determine the ultimate winner.

Dinoium presented a comprehensive platform emphasizing greater public education of TNP’s laws to citizens / residents and outlined a potential internship program. Ambition to resurrect the AG office to greater activity in TNP garnered 23% support among voters. Not enough, however, to qualify for the ensuing runoff vote.

Funkadelia gathered nearly 30% of the vote, and that was close enough to the frontrunner to trigger the eventual runoff. Emphasizing the need for reform in the region’s justice system, to a less adversarial construct, Funk expressed a desire to adapt a more inquisitorial format, to better expedite future cases before the courts.

Once the runoff was complete, Darcania emerged victorious with 70% of the popular vote. The majority feeling was that Darc’s previous experience and acumen as AG would be critical as the RA decides whether the office should be maintained, or if the duties of the AG are to be parsed out to others in government.

Summary:

Delegate: El Fiji Grande
Vice Delegate: Sil Dorsett
Speaker: Artemis
Attorney General: Darcania
[​IMG] NPA Bulletin
by Robespierre, Deputy Minister of Communications​

[​IMG]

Leadership

Minister of Defense (MoD): General Bobberino
Deputy Ministers of Defense (DMoDs):
Colonel Knightblood and Colonel Koopa​

[​IMG]

Uh oh! It seems as though our Minister of Defense here in the North Pacific, General Bobberino, has once again fallen asleep for today’s updates (like usual...). Not to worry though, it looks like I, Sergeant Robespierre, will be reporting this time around instead!

Spoiler: Promotions

Let me tell you, folks, this month your favorite soldiers from the North Pacific Army have been putting in the work necessary to serve the region proudly and have loads of fun while doing it! It started off with a nice World Assembly block operation lead by Lieutenant TlomzKrano on the region Authoritarianism Is Cool Kind Of, a mission where six of the Army’s finest (including myself for my debut raid in the NPA) deployed on the eighth of May at NationStates major update to swiftly capture the region.​
​
From there on out, it was more of the same. Raid after raid, officers took up arms in the spirit of peer leadership to seize many more regions. “Keep on keeping on” was practically the motto of the North Pacific’s personnel for the past month. On the nineteenth of May’s minor update, General Gladio and company were successful in targeting a couple of regions on yet another operation. On the twenty-third of May’s minor, the Army headed by Malphe struck again! And, on the major and the minor, troops lead by General Malphe and Lieutenant TlomzKrano combined to hit two more regions. Looks like not all of Malphe’s six rats were asleep either since on the twenty-fifth of May’s minor update his group of men took four more regions in the name of the North Pacific’s glory.

Let’s not forget - it wasn’t all raiding either for El Fiji Grande’s Ministry of Defense. From the eighth of May’s minor update to the thirteenth of May’s minor update, the North Pacific Army worked in cooperation with the Warzone Federation to effectively secure multiple Warzones in the face of oncoming invaders. This was a lot like the time in late April when eighteen soldiers from the North collaborated with the Europeian Republican Navy to hold Warzone Africa. The highlight of the operation was Warzone Airspace, during which an astounding seventeen NPA soldiers took part in the campaign that spanned several updates.

Upon the conclusion of the Army’s mission, Minister of Defense Bobberino saw fit to award those who participated with a Regional Liberation Award. In addition to such, all who displayed unwavering commitment and insurmountable strength to the task at hand were presented with the Warzone Federation Liberation Award.

Lastly, in addition to everything mentioned above, the North Pacific Army found itself more than happy to assist its valued allies in the Rejected Realms with their standard procedure Delegacy transfer. From the twentieth of May to the twenty-third of May, sixteen NPAers deployed to go out and support newly-elected Delegate Kyorgia in his ascendency to higher office. Following that, the troops who participated were once again given a special ribbon to commemorate their sense of teamwork and unity to the goals given. "Exemplo Duceneus" - we lead by example! ... But, we're also still awaiting the awakening of Bobberino... for some reason... Gladio, it's coup time! ​

[​IMG] Spotlight #19: Interview With Darcania
by Dinoium, Deputy Attorney General and Gameside Advocate
Views in this interview may not reflect the views of TNP's government​

[​IMG]
Darcania was happy to hear that they could get a redo interview after a year of a previously attempted interview.​

Dinoium: Hello there and welcome to this month's The Spotlight. Today we will be interviewing Darcania! How are you doing this fine day, Darc?

Darcania: Well enough.

Dinoium: Great! Can you tell me a summary of your background in NationStates and The North Pacific?

Darcania: Well, Darcania was founded in The North Pacific right away, and while I looked for a good RP UCR to settle into I never found one that met my needs, and so instead I became a roleplayer in TNP. During my first stint here, I quickly became a Citizen and joined the NPA as well. I first rose to prominence when I was a Deputy Minister of Home Affairs under Andrew, reviving the decaying Mentoring program and helping to set some standards for it. Later on, I also became a Roleplay Moderator when that program was revived, and also served as the NPA Chief of Staff under Eluvatar. Unfortunately, a conflict with how RP was led and moderated led to me leaving NS for about a full year.

A year later, I came back after some prompting from Syrixia pointing out that RP leadership had improved since I left. While I intended to get back into RP, I never managed to really get back into it and become a mainstay of RP like before. Instead, I became more involved in the regional government, becoming a Deputy Minister of Culture under Syrixia and Goyanes, and one of Ash's many Deputy Attorneys General. I even ran for Delegate, though I withdrew my candidacy before voting.
After Ash left NS, I was elected into office for the first time as Attorney General, where I would serve for the better part of a year. It was also during Pallaith's first Delegacy that I was appointed into my first Ministry position, Minister of Defense. Nothing of note happened during either, though I was appointed a forum administrator during this time.

Soon after, I was elected Speaker in a special election, where I served with distinction, bringing much-needed speed and consistency to the office. Many were wondering when I would run for Delegate, though I never did. Soon enough I declined to run for another Speaker term to run for Vice Delegate, though, again, I dropped out of the race before voting began.

I then left NS for a second time about a month later, though this leave wouldn't last for a full year. I returned to NS and, while I had lost much of the influence I had during my heyday, I was still appointed for a second Ministership, once again as Pallaith's Minister of Defense. Though I resigned before the term was over, I remained to assist the incoming Minister, Bobberino, as he took the reigns for his first time. And here, we reach the present day.

Dinoium: That seems to be an impressive background. Which one do you think was the best position in your opinion?

Darcania: While I served well as Speaker, better than my terms as Minister of Defense, in my opinion, I also caused undue stress on myself due to undertaking all of its duties on myself, due to inactive Deputies. At the time, I also had to handle the majority of forum and Discord administration. I also failed to leave the office in any good state when I left it, leaving behind almost no resources that future Speakers could take advantage of, beyond Feyt's (now Madeline's) autorole functionality for the Discord server.

My second term as Minister of Defense was by far my favorite term in office. While there was still paperwork and spreadsheets to take care of, both of which I excel at handling if you'll pardon the pun, I also had to consider "soft" data as well, such as the state of my soldiers and our relationship with other military organizations. While I was unsure how well I would handle this coming into my second term, it proved to be a challenge that I overcame with zeal. The various challenges of a Minister position are a far cry from the sleepy days as Attorney General or the rote tasks as Speaker, and I enjoyed tackling these challenges and innovating new ways to handle them.

Dinoium: Interesting. Seeing how that was your favorite experience, who do you think was the best Minister of Defense in terms of leadership and merit?

Darcania: It's tough to beat the legendary Gladio. His experience in the position is unrivaled by any current NPA soldier, and even after a term in TNP's Security Council, his triggering remains top-notch. While most of the newer soldiers, including our current Minister of Defense, have never experienced Gladio in the position, I have, and his sheer consistency in the office is unmatched. Recent MoDs would have to step back after only a term due to how much work the office entails, yet Gladio managed to serve many terms in a row without tiring from it.

Dinoium: Yeah Gladio is a great Minister of Defense. Without releasing anything operation secret, what do you think is a great tactic to use when Raiding or Defending (i.e. Programs to use; strategies, etc.)?

Darcania: Most organizations by now, when requiring precision, will use a program to find targets, a program to find trigger regions, then use manual triggers from those regions. For looser operations like detags, there are also some programs that will figure all that out on their own for you, but nothing remains as accurate as manual triggering. As for the details, I believe they'd be outside the scope of this interview - so anyone looking to try them out should look around for these programs themselves or even join their local military organization (for example, the North Pacific Army) to get some hands-on practice in.

Dinoium: Alright then. Who in your opinion was the biggest mentor to you in NS?

Darcania: I can't particularly point to a single person who was a larger mentor than anyone else. Ever since I joined, I've generally acted independently and learned on my own, or from simple observation. Through various leaders in TNP I've learned from their successes and their mistakes, and I would often butt heads with these leaders due to my independent streak. However, my general laid-back attitude and friendly demeanor have prevented most of these incidents from damaging my friendships with these leaders. From MadJack to Raven and from Ghost to Gladio, there is no shortage of experience that a new player can learn from, nor a shortage of mistakes that a fresh set of eyes can see and resolve when they rise to the top spot.

Dinoium: That must be good to mentor yourself by observing successes and mistakes. Is there any specific advice you would like to give to anyone reading this on how to become as successful as you?

Darcania: I would say to start out by finding your niche, or niches. I started in roleplay, for example, and Bobberino found his niche in the NPA. As you devote your time and effort there, you will eventually find success, and from there, you can blossom out and find other areas you can succeed in. You'll already have a foothold in your home turf, so to speak, and as you gain more well-rounded experience, learn from more leaders, and gain a name for yourself in many areas, you'll quickly find yourself being talked about as a future Delegate. For example, I explicitly avoided anything law-based when I first joined, but as I learned more about it and made more of a name for myself as a legal mind, I now have a small measure of notoriety in that area.
That said, there's no reason to shoot for the high spot. In other areas of the game don't suit you, don't force yourself. There's nothing wrong with being a leader in your own spheres and niches.

Dinoium: How do you come up with the Floof/Fluff and why do you think has it made much importance.

Darcania: Well, it's a bit of a long story, but a long while ago, Yalkan and I would talk late into the night in TNP's main Discord server (making it the most active NS Discord based on the Heartbeat's data), and as time progressed our RPs together became more serious. However, after two years of RPing with the same characters, we realized that our characters had grown to the point where they had no character arc left, and thus were no longer interesting to RP. We retired those characters and brainstormed new characters, furred dragons from a waning dragon clan in the far tundras of the north. These new dragons were furred dragons, and of course, I changed my Discord avatar to match my character - and I chose a red and white dragon with a crown on its ear [picture seen above].

At the time, I also held citizenship in TWP, and they (mostly Altino) noticed right away. A short time later, I met TWP native Skymoot, aka Fedora Dan, and the two of us in a way helped to kickstart RP in TWP's Discord server. Skymoot later joined TNP's server, and he, Yalkan, and I managed to associate my NS persona with Floof by our conversations. It became a bit of a meme in TNP after that, and with my growing popularity and influence in TNP at the time, it rather quickly became a staple of my persona. As time passed it became on par with Flemingovianism among those members too young to remember its heyday.
Nowadays it's not as important, due to my own waning popularity after my own heyday. Yet, it retains some importance among some members, as well as some fond memories of my own heyday, and fluffy dragons at this point are too tied to my NS persona to warrant a change now.

Dinoium: Seems like Flemingovianism really had a competition huh? Well, that seems like that's all the questions we have today. Is there anything else you would like to say?

Darcania: Hail floof.

[​IMG] Regional Assembly Highlights
by Artemis, Speaker of the Regional Assembly​

Regional Assembly May 2019

Speaker of The Regional Assembly: Artemis
Deputy Speakers of The Regional Assembly: Dreadton, Funkadelia and Brendog



Vote

Passed

Onsite Authority Enhancement Bill, put forward by Pallaith.

Status: Passed

Summary: TNP Law is very strict in the manner that nations can be banned from the region, and did not allow bans of individuals who have been banned from the forum by Administration. This proposal expands the authority of the Executive to issue a regional ban of individuals banned from the forum by Administration for the same length or shorter.

Results: 37 Ayes, 3 Nays, and 3 Abstentions.


Treaty of the Northern Passage, put forward by Minister of Foreign Affairs McMasterdonia.

Status: Passed

Summary: A Bilateral treaty negotiated by the Minister of Foreign Affairs between the North Pacific and Europe to strengthen ties and develop a natural alliance between the two regions. TNP and Europe wish to develop further relations and open dialogue. The Treaty received a large margin of support.

Results: 33 Ayes, 0 Nays, and 1 Abstentions.

Confirmation of Crushing Our Enemies and Siwale as Election Commissioners, put forward by Speaker Artemis.

Status: Passed

Summary: The newly elected Delegate, El Fiji Grande, appointed veteran members of the Election Commission Crushing Our Enemies and Siwale to serve for six months as Election Commissioners. Debate was quick as many felt that these two individuals both wielded experience in dealing with elections in the North Pacific.

Results: Crushing Our Enemies - 27 Ayes, 3 Nays, and 1 Abstentions.
Siwale - 24 Ayes, 4 Nays, and 2 Abstentions.



Current Business


On a Proposed Amendment to the Wording of the Legal Code, put forward by Antityranicals.

Status: In Discussion

Summary: An amendment to the Legal Code to strike the word planning from Section 1.7.22 of the Legal Code and insert the text “, or colluding towards the goal of committing such a crime. This section of the Legal Code deals with the Criminal Code of TNP and specifically defining the crime of Conspiracy. The Author offers that this amendment will help provide clarification to the definition of Conspiracy.


Criminalising Espionage in Our Partner Regions, put forward by St George.

Status: In Discussion

Summary: This bill further restricts the ability of the North Pacific to conduct espionage by prohibiting the practice in regards to any region the North Pacific has passed a treaty with. Currently, the law states that the North Pacific will not conduct espionage against regions that the Regional Assembly specifically exempts.

The AGORA Act, put forward by Siwale and Crushing Our Enemies.

Status: In Discussion

Summary: Former Attorney General Crushing Our Enemies and Former Deputy AG Siwale introduced legislation to abolish the office of the Attorney General and roll the duties into the Courts of the North Pacific. Currently the proposal indicates that a prosecutor may be appointed by the Delegate to handle matters on a case by case basis. If the Delegate is under investigation, then the next individual in the Line of Succession will make the appointment.


Delegate’s Report Bill, put forward by Brendog.

Status: In Discussion

Summary: A bill that would require the Delegate to present a regular report to the Regional Assembly summarizing the activities of the government. Discussion has mainly centered around the time and frequency that the report must be presented. The current text of the bill stipulates that the report must be given after 7 and 14 weeks upon the Delegate taking office.


Siwale’s Security Council Application, put forward by Sil Dorsett.
Status: In Discussion

Summary: The Security Council of the North Pacific nominated Siwale to join the Council following a vote of 8 ayes, 0 nays, 1 abstain, and 1 not present. The motion was presented to the Regional Assembly and is currently under discussion on the merits of the applicant and if they would help provide for a secure TNP.

[​IMG] World Assembly Digest​
by Deerfenland, World Assembly Correspondent​
[​IMG]

General Assembly

Improving the world one resolution at a time​

Repeal: “Endangered Species Protection”

Status: Passed
Delegate's Vote: For
Final Vote (World): For: 13,539 Against: 2,859
Final Vote (TNP): For: 478 Against: 92 Percentage of WA nations voting: 38.72%​


Recommendation: The target, Endangered Species Protection, is well meaning but flawed as outlined by this proposed repeal. The target possesses vague definitions and is ambiguous on how far certain aspects it extends its protection to, which causes concern on what is protected and why is neglected in application. The resolution also does not prevent items such as harming organisms in a non-fatal manner, which allows for avenues for abuse. Furthermore, the repeal calls for restorative action to prevent species from remaining low once protected. Finally, replacement legislation must pass as soon as possible so as to protect those various organisms during this repeal.

For this reason, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote For this proposal.​
​

Protection Of Airspace

Status: Passed
Delegate's Vote: Against
Final Vote (World): For: 9,737 Against: 6,749
Final Vote (TNP): For: 171 Against: 390 Percentage of WA nations voting: 38.5%​


Recommendation: Protection of Airspace possesses many flaws, the majority of which stem from the proposals definitions. "Aircraft" in the way that it is defined requires sapient beings to have total control over the vehicle at all times. This becomes problematic in UAVs/Drones and even autopilot for manned vehicles as neither would be 'aircraft'. Furthermore, air-foil based flight at increasingly high altitudes is much more complex than a question of whether it is possible or not at any given altitude. This definition also makes the application of all clauses and definitions forthcoming subjective as nations will vary. Finally, this proposal only aims to supply an arbitrary amount of sovereignty that is most likely already present unless further legislation is given. It then further requires supplying information to the ITSC for international travel despite not having any additional mandates to accommodate for the aircrafts responsibilities and works abroad.

For this reason, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote Against this proposal.​


Preventing Species Extinction​

Status: Passed
Delegate's Vote: For
Final Vote (World): For: 13,528 Against: 1,522
Final Vote (TNP): For: 533 Against: 49 Percentage of WA nations voting: 39.97%​

Recommendation: This comprehensive resolution seeks to expand on protections initially outlined in the recently repealed GAR#66 and enhances regulation to encompass the full scope of living species. The resolution also clarifies the objectives of the WA Endangered Species Committee to better track and adjust for natural fluctuations in species' populations, and to take a more proactive approach in general conservation through strengthened enforcement protocols. Greater onus is also placed on WA nations to ensure habitat protection for at-risk species to reduce encroachment through human development. Nations must also develop plans for species recovery from near-extinction events, update both conservation and recovery plans frequently to align with the most recent science, and make greater efforts to reduce species-threatening pollution within their borders. Finally, the resolution allows common-sense exemptions, with WAESC approval, for nations to waive regulations when species pose a threat to the wellbeing of citizens, and eradication represents a net positive for the overall, living environment.

For these reasons, The Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote For this resolution.​

[​IMG]

Security Council

Spreading interregional peace and goodwill, via force if necessary​

Condemn Darkesia​

Status: Passed
Delegate's Vote: For
Final Vote (World): For: 13,757 Against: 2,020
Final Vote (TNP): For: 526 Against: 46 Percentage of WA nations voting: 37.65%

Recommendation: Darkesia is a long time player with an extensive history of condemnable acts. They began in the Pacific, serving under the New Pacific Order and advancing their agendas and influence where possible. Darkesia also participated in countless intelligence operations against other regions, namely The West Pacific. Furthermore, Darkesia participated and supported numerous coups in The North Pacific, The West Pacific, and The East Pacific. In conclusion, Darkesia has a history of espionage and undermining of sovereign governments, perpetuating their own agenda wherever they may see fit.

In accordance with the reasoning posted above, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote For this condemnation.​

Liberate Politics Amino​

Status: Passed
Delegate's Vote: Against
Final Vote (World): For: 11,650 Against: 3,169
Final Vote (TNP): For: 261 Against: 267 Percentage of WA nations voting: 36.5%​

Recommendation: This proposal is factually incorrect and misrepresents the current situation in the target region. Politics Amino is currently not under the control of raiders but is under the control of a defender. This proposal thus miscategorises a defender as a raider. While a repeal of the liberation is not a bad idea, the situation remains fluid. As such, it is important to ensure the contents of the proposal are factually accurate before decisions relating to the repeal are made. In this proposal a significant error has been made. Given all of the above, Politics Amino is currently in protective hands, and there is no reason to rush to change its liberated status.

For these reasons the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote Against this repeal.​

Condemn The Land Of Kings And Emperors

Status: At Vote
Delegate's Vote: Against
​

The North Star: Lighting The Way To The Truth
Publisher: El Fiji |Grande :: Executive Editor: Pallaith :: Managing Editor: Marcus Antonius

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

[Haor Chall]

Spotlight #20 Interview With Zazumo

by Robespierre, Minister of Home Affairs

This month Zazumo is in the spotlight. Zazumo has served three times as the Minister of Defense under Siwale, taking a small break during Siwale's second term before coming in at the end to relieve Loz. He currently serves as a Gameside Advocate in Fiji's government. When asked to describe Zazumo in five words, his peers said that he was ‘competent, friendly, smart, active and a good teacher.’ He's also a lot of fun and brings positive energy to the region wherever he goes, and I was very pleased to get the chance to speak with him. He had a lot of interesting things to say, but he's very busy and we didn't want to stop talking to him, so the following is only part 1 of my interview.


Robespierre: Good evening, TNP! Today, I’m joined by General Zazumo of the North Army! Zaz, how are you doing on this fine day?


Zazumo: I'm just fine. Thanks for reaching out. How are you? Getting getting used to the minister life yet?


Robespierre: Haha, I’m doing quite well actually. Have enjoyed a few days of vacation since leaving the Midwest this past Friday, now I’m on the east coast! Ooh, those midnight major update times... It’s great to hear that you’re doing fine. Now, as we do with most interviewee’s on the Spotlight, let’s start out with a couple of basics: The name Zazumo - any ideas as to where its origins lie?


Zazumo: Lol if it does I've since forgotten. I thought it sounded cool at the time. Guess I just wanted a name as weird as I was.


Robespierre: That’s fair enough, have you been in the game for a while by this point or was the North Pacific your first ever region?


Zazumo: I vaguely remember leaving TNP early to join The Realm of Unrestricted Science. Those were very early days. I learned soon after that TNP was the world's largest region and I really want to be involved with such a large community. I've been stuck here since.


Robespierre: When it comes to NationStates aren’t we all ‘stuck’? But hey, the good news is that when it comes to the warm and welcoming regional community that we have here in the North Pacific it makes the job of being stuck a lot easier doesn’t it?


Zazumo: Oh absolutely, I only regret not being active Gameside sooner. For all the negatives many people instantly assume about the RMB, there's so much awesome to it as well. Mainly the people. There are so many folks on the RMB that make my day.


Robespierre: Oh really? You mention Gameside activity, and that actually brings up something I wanted to talk to you about. I know you’re a Gameside Advocate as well in addition to being on the NPA’s High Command, what’s it like having the opportunity to interact with some of our newest nations?


Zazumo: It's interesting. Obviously, you'll meet less than friendly people or trolls occasionally. But then there are newcomers who stay. People who have become a regular part of the community since joining. And that's fantastic. I don't consider it an opportunity. It's literally why I play the game. Oh and also cards.


Robespierre: You guys are quite integral parts to the integration process, especially when it comes to the transition from the RMB over to the forums. Once you get them there the rest is history, but how difficult is it to steer newcomers in the right direction while also having your own personal favourite sets of activities in the region?


Zazumo: We regularly advertise the off-site community throughout the day. We can only point them there. We can't make them join. It doesn't for me personally get in the way of other things since I'm already on the RMB slacking off.


Robespierre: That’s true, you can’t make them join - obviously. But, I definitely think it helps that we have active GAs such as yourself who are comfortable on the RMB and willing to be patient with those who have questions. In my mind, it really sets the tone for our community’s integration process really should be about, wouldn’t you agree?


Zazumo: I think that's accurate. You have to bear in mind that anyone new can be a young person. So patience is sometimes very necessary. cough Not naming names. cough But most importantly you gotta remember you're playing a game.


Robespierre: Of course, and at the end of the day that’s exactly what we’re all participating in: a game.


In the next part we discuss scouting RP'ers on the RMB and finding players who may be interested in other parts of the community, as well as Zaz's history with R/D and his rise in the NPA. Plus I get to the bottom of his legendary feud with Aerilia and I ask him what everyone is dying to know: just who is Aber? Don't miss it!


NPA Bulletin

by Robespierre, Deputy Minister of Communications

& Knightblood, Member of the High Command

Leadership


Minister of Defense (MoD): General Bobberino

Deputy Ministers of Defense (DMoDs):

Colonel Knightblood and Colonel Koopa

Lieutenant Robespierre and Lieutenant Yuno proudly display their new 'butterbar' officer insignia shortly after having been promoted to the North Pacific Army's corps by General Bobberino

SPOILER: Click to show

Private Trondstorm was promoted to Private First Class

Private First Class Trondstorm was promoted to Corporal

Sergeant Yuno was promoted to Lieutenant

Sergeant Robespierre was promoted to Warrant Officer

Warrant Officer Robespierre was promoted to Lieutenant

It's me, it's me: it's the name that starts with an 'R' and ends with an 'e', your 'MacMilitant' Minister of Home Affairs, Robespierre! ... No, but seriously, with that bit of monthly narcissism out of the way - we're back at it again for round two of the NPA Bulletin with your favourite Lieutenant in the second month consecutively! Unlike last time, we unfortunately actually do have a more substantial amount of defender activities to report.


Although the North Pacific's flag continues to wave above the world factbook entries of hundreds of regions captured during tag raiding, it seems as though there will now be more joint missions between the Army and allied avengers to speak of in the future. Recently, the North Pacific Army deployed to the region of Anontia alongside the Rejected Realms Army. The operation was a success, and at present, the High Command has ordered all available personnel to pile into the region in support of the liberation. Even so, that's not what you're here to read about now is it?! Nope, definitely not! I know what you want to read about: the adrenaline-pumping adventures of the NPA's dirty deeds done dirt cheap - that's what. Well, not to worry, we have plenty of raiding in store for you sprinkled throughout this update as well.


Back to our winning ways: On the third of June's minor update, General Gladio coordinated a tactical assault on a region known as the 'Coalition of Authoritarian Nations'. Though, perhaps after being barraged by eight of the North Pacific's finest, they weren't so authoritarian for much longer after all, because everyone knows there's only so much exposure to democracy and ingestion of rejuvenating rum a few nation's people can take before they too start giving up their restrictive policies in favour of freedom. It didn't stop there either, as later in the week on the seventh of June's major update General QuietDad lead a squad of six soldiers on brief tag run that saw four regions fall.


On that note, the High Command kept 'em coming! Just three days later on the eleventh of June's major update, General Bobberino spearheaded another charge behind enemy lines on an operation for which six soldiers seized two more regions. The next morning, yours truly was promoted to the rank of Warrant Officer, effectively making me the second ever holder of the rank since now-Lieutenant TlomzKrano held it earlier on in the year. Quick to use this newfound authority, I decided to take the troops out on a four region fire run. That operation marked General Darcania's one-hundredth mission completed while with the North Pacific Army, so as a congratulatory token to his excellence on the General's Staff all tags that night were plastered with messages hailing the Floof!


Relentless in our resilience, I was promptly promoted to the rank of Lieutenant alongside my fellow soldier, Trondstorm, who was promoted to the rank of Corporal; and on the thirteenth of June's minor update we set out together yet again in a fruitful effort that landed us six more sieged targets. Everyone got in on the action too, when multiple points that included General Malphe, General Zazumo, General Bobberino and Captain Owenstacey were all called upon to hit each target with ease. That night, we'd go on to rinse and repeat with another eight regions falling at the hands of Colonel Koopa and co. In a small team showdown, two soldiers joined me on the seventeenth of June's minor update to raid another set of regions. But it wasn't all rosy coloured pictures of raiding either, since, on the twenty-fourth of June's minor update, our favourite rat broke the streak of capture consistency when he and a small platoon of five other personnel detagged five native regions.


In true-blue North Pacifican fashion, we just had to end off on a high note! I'll give you some highlights: How about a lightning fast tag run on the twenty-ninth of June?! Sixteen targets were hit and eight NPAers deployed. But what's most impressive is that Major Bluie actually came out of his sickened state IRL just to join in on the fun! Kudos to him for that, and it looks like he had some more excitement earlier in the day at minor update too because that was when General Bobberino took seven more troops on a tour to go see Kyorgia's Puppet Storage. I tell you, they must really have paid the Delegate of the Rejected Realms a good, long-overdo visit because he's been getting pinged in the spam channel ever since!


Anyhow, this concludes another month of the NPA's mayhem. I hope you all enjoyed it, especially the natives who were kind enough to host us during our missions. We look forward to visiting many other regions soon!

Regional Assembly Highlights

by Artemis, Speaker of the Regional Assembly

Regional Assembly June 2019


Speaker of The Regional Assembly: Artemis

Deputy Speakers of The Regional Assembly: Dreadton, Funkadelia, and Brendog




Vote


Passed


Nomination of Siwale to the Security Council put forward by Sil Dorsett.


Status: Passed


Summary: The Security Council voted to nominate Siwale to join its body. Siwale received broad support from members of the Regional Assembly, many citing his prior service as Vice-Delegate and Delegate as being the foundation for their support.


Results: 40 Ayes, 4 Nays, and 3 Abstentions.



Amendment to the Line of Succession put forward by Sil Dorsett.


Status: Passed


Summary: As some time has passed since the line of succession was updated, and several members had been added to the council and others leaving, the Security Council and the Vice-Delegate felt it was prudent to amend the Line of Succession. There was little opposition to the proposed Line of Succession and passed by a wide margin.


Results: 30 Ayes, 3 Nays, and 0 Abstentions.


Confirmation of Eluvatar, Owenstacey, and Brendog as Election Commissioners, put forward by Speaker Artemis.


Status: Passed


Summary: The Delegate, El Fiji Grande, appointed veteran members of the Election Commission Eluvatar, Owenstacey, and Brendog to serve for six months as Election Commissioners. The debate was quick as many felt that these three individuals both wielded experience in dealing with elections in the North Pacific.


Results: Eluvatar - 19 Ayes, 3 Nays, and 1 Abstention.

Owenstacey - 21 Ayes, 1 Nay, and 1 Abstention.

Brendog - 21 Ayes, 1 Nay, and 1 Abstention.




Current Business



Instant Runoff Election Bill, put forward by Gorundu.


Status: In Discussion


Summary: An amendment to the way that elections are run in the North Pacific. This bill introduces the idea of implementing an instant runoff voting system for the General Elections. Talks are centering currently regarding the use of "Reopen Nominations" on the ballot and how it will be counted.

Security Council Member Standards put forward by Praetor.


Status: At Vote


Summary: The Security Council Member Standards bill was introduced to address an issue that several individuals felt in regards to the Security Council. As the law currently reads, members of the Security Council do not have to maintain citizenship in the region. This bill amends the constitution to remove that exemption for maintaining citizenship from the Security Council.

World Assembly Digest

by Gorundu, World Assembly Correspondent

General Assembly


Improving the world one resolution at a time

Right to Farm



Status: Defeated

Delegate's vote: Against

Final vote (World): For - 5061; Against - 9728

Final vote (TNP): For - 141; Against - 433; Percentage of WA nations voting: 40.65%

Recommendation: This proposal, while well meaning, fundamentally falls short in application and methodology. The proposal intends to create exceptions in nuisance laws for properly performing agricultural entities but fails to recognize the complexity and diversity of agriculture throughout the WA community as well as broadly asserting the inherent ability to own and maintain property despite nations' sovereignty to control those specific rights. Furthermore, this issue would be better handled on a property zoning basis where exceptions could be built in except where an entity violates the law similar to to 'accepted and standard agricultural practices.


In accordance with the reasoning displayed above, and in hopes of a potential redraft, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote Against this proposal.

[h][/h]

World Assembly Justice Accord



Status: Passed

Delegate's vote: For

Final vote (World): For - 11753; Against - 3001

Final vote (TNP): For - 451; Against - 91; Percentage of WA nations voting: 38.66%

Recommendation: The World Assembly Justice Accord effectively creates an overarching court system directly facilitated by the greater World Assembly. This is accomplished by created the World Assembly Judiciary Committee which will exist to maintain and appoint officials to the various courts held within this system. The purpose of these courts is to prevent noncompliance and fight it where ever it may be used to violate the rights of parties within noncompliant WA member nations. This is very important as compliance is the very essence of the World Assembly. Without proper discipline issued to those who simply ignore passed resolutions, there is no reason for nations to follow any resolutions, thus defeating the point of the WA. In an ideal world in which everyone acts according to the law, this would not be an issue, however this appears to be no perfect world.


And thus, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote For this proposal.

Prevention of Mutually assured destruction



Status: Defeated

Delegate's vote: Against

Final vote (World): For - 2472; Against - 12247

Final vote (TNP): For - 69; Against - 434; Percentage of WA nations voting: 39.40%

Recommendation: Prevention of Mutually Assured Destruction, while well meaning, is flawed and somewhat useless in application. The definition of Mutually Assured Destruction is not one synonymous with what players would be familiar with in real life, which leads to a misleading title. Furthermore, the proposal takes no steps to prevent its own defined version of MAD, therefore not achieving what it fundamentally sets out to do. The only binding clause is one that arbitrarily bans 'response systems' to nuclear attacks while never actually defining or specifying what it is banning. Due to this lack of clarity, non-lethal or even productive systems could be banned due to faulty interpretation because of the very open worded clause. Finally, this proposal creates a committee that collects and reports uses of MAD to the WAJC, despite it not being illegal. This indicates that the author is simply using this proposal as a stepping stone to push more constraining legislation in the future.


For these reasons, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote Against this proposal.

Security Council


Spreading interregional peace and goodwill, via force if necessary

Condemn The Land of Kings and Emperors



Status: Defeated

Delegate's vote: Against

Final vote (World): For - 6790; Against - 8503

Final vote (TNP): For - 234; Against - 333; Percentage of WA nations voting: 39.65%

Recommendation: The Land of Kings and Emperors has committed various actions in the past which make them worthy of condemnation. However, this Ministry believes that the proposal does not properly address the condemnable aspects of LKE and even goes so far so as to spread a potential falsehood within its text. In clause 12, this proposal states that an individual was scapegoated after being caught violating inter-regional standards on recruitment practices. There is no evidence of this ever occurring which brings significant concern to the legitimacy of any other claims that are not directly substantiated.


In accordance with the issues raised above, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote Against this proposal.

Commend Woonsocket



Status: Passed

Delegate's vote: For

Final vote (World): For - 10871; Against - 3613

Final vote (TNP): For - 504; Against - 31; Percentage of WA nations voting: 38.11%

Recommendation: Woonsocket has a long history in 10000 Islands, a region also commended by the Security Council. In his time, he has served in numerous positions and through them contributed to NS as a whole. He has deployed over 400 times to defend regions and has participated in multiple operations to secure lawful delegacies in Game Created Regions. He has also spent an enormous amount of time recruiting for his region, enabling 10000 Islands to be the commended region that it is.


For these reasons, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote For this commendation.

Condemn Pierconium



Status: Passed

Delegate's vote: For

Final vote (World): For - 12250; Against - 1715

Final vote (TNP): For - 487; Against - 36; Percentage of WA nations voting: 37.33%

Recommendation: The Emeritus Augustus Pacificus of Pierconium, as he is known at present, is a nation that posseses a long, tumultuous history within various spheres of NationStates GamePlay (NSGP). Having been one of the original four founding members of 'the Empire', Pierconium's long-standing history of participating in and/or supporting various subversive activities that seek to undermine legitimate governments across NationStates is the subject that plagues the Security Council at this very moment. Despite the fact that his existence predates all records readily available, the practice of duality has enabled the continuance of Pierconium's unapologetic nature for his atrocious actions that span over the past decade. On two separate occasions the nominee has been the perpetrator of tyranny in the North Pacific; and as an influential member in Gatesville (a region known for its opposition to the World Assembly) it serves to reason that he'd be held partially responsible for the coup d'etat of Osiris in 2013, the overthrow of a legal East Pacifican government in 2008, the survival of the authoritarian Triumvirate of the West Pacific, and for the brutal purging of five thousand and five hundred natives between his reigns in both the Pacific and the North Pacific respectively.


For the above reasonings it's suffice to say the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs strongly suggests a vote in favour of FOR the resolution.

Condemn Durkadurkiranistan II



Status: Passed

Delegate's vote: Against

Final vote (World): For - 8459; Against - 5594

Final vote (TNP): For - 195; Against - 302; Percentage of WA nations voting: 35.60%

Recommendation: The proposed condemnation of Durkadurkiranistan would be the second time this player is condemned. While they are deserving of being condemned for their various acts, namely against this very region, this proposed condemnation falls short in a few key places. The delivery and writing is uninspired and conveys its items more akin to that of a laundry list than a convincing condemnation. Furthermore, there are concerns that this proposal could be used to justify the repeal of the original condemnation at some point in the future. This concern is present due to the fact that this proposal does not and cannot fully outline the various actions Durka took against TNP and its interests. Despite communication with the author on some of these issues, they remain even if not taken advantage of by them.


In accordance with the statement above, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote Against this proposal.

Commend Common Territories



Status: Passed

Delegate's vote: For

Final vote (World): For - 12250; Against - 1715

Final vote (TNP): For - 426; Against - 49; Percentage of WA nations voting: 34.37%

Recommendation: The proposed commendation of The Empire of Common Territories, herein referred to as TECT, is one based primarily on a legacy of significant contributions to RP they have made in the various RP communities they have participated in. These include an international arms smuggling manufacturing company, money laundering services investing and banking services, and blood thirsty, imperialist hitmen peacekeeping private military forces. Overall, TECT is a well respected player who deserved this commendation and acknowledgment of their RP content on both a regional and international level.


Following the reasoning above, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote For this proposal.

[h][/h]

[small]The North Star: Lighting The Way To The Truth

Publisher: El Fiji Grande :: Executive Editor: Pallaith :: Managing Editor: Marcus Antonius


The North Star is produced by the Ministry of Communications on behalf of the Government of The North Pacific and is distributed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs externally and the Ministry of Home Affairs internally. Except where otherwise indicated, all content represents the views of the Government of The North Pacific.[/small]


Index of Issues

[Haor Chall]

Editor's Note

by Pallaith, Minister of Communications

Since reimagining The Northern Lights at the start of the year, we have strived to focus on particular themes or topics, ones that our authors could explore at greater length and could be applied to the game as a whole, not just The North Pacific. Issue XXIX is all about regional outreach and engagement. We brought together authors whose experience in NS has given them insight into the best ways to motivate and interest players and in so doing help change the culture and character of their regions. These perspectives should prove useful not just in the authors' home regions, but to any region willing to apply what they have learned, and were so kind to share with us in these pages. We hope that the wisdom they share lights the way to enhanced activity and a richer gameplay experience.


The views espoused are the authors' own and are not the opinion of The North Pacific unless otherwise stated.


Pallaith

TNP Minister of Communications

A Little Culture and Community

by Escade, of Gameplay Magazine

The number one question players in NationStates often ask is some variation of “How do I develop my community?” or its fraternal twin, “How do I engage players in my region?” In this article, I’d like to provide some of my thoughts on the topic of developing player engagement by developing a strong culture and community.


Part 1 - Develop Your World

Provide your players with a singular or unique experience by developing a detailed world for your region. Build a cohesive culture to give players a home to rally around. This is also where you assemble your team of like-minded individuals who work towards this common goal together.


Part 2 - Know Your Players

What does your ideal community look like in terms of people and activity? What kind of players do you want to attract? Are you interested in quality or quantity or a median point between the two? Are your goals realistic based on the amount of time, effort and practical experience you have with community building?


Part 3 - Burn Out and NationStates

How many players do you know who have said something like, “Region or players of region don’t appreciate or recognize my hard work?” I’ve lost count. Building a region isn’t easy, maintaining a region isn’t easy. The Ozymandias effect sometimes obliterates everything a group of dedicated players have done. This part is about how to focus less on what other people think or do and more about what you can do for yourself to avoid or mitigate burn out.


Part 4 - Questions and Answers

I get a lot of "How do I.." kinds of questions from “How do I advertise/hype?” to “How do I make other people play this game that I created?”. This section will be devoted to answering some of the oft-repeated ones in one place. In addition, players in good standing who have questions about any of the above are welcome to DM me or post below and I will add to the list as appropriate.


Develop Your World

What is culture? It’s a set of shared values, ideas, interests, and goals. What does this mean for a region? These are the symbols, theme(s) and customs that unify your region and demarcate it as a unique place, as a space to spend time in. Building a cohesive culture gives your region and players something to rally around.


Many regions attempt to do this in some manner or form (with titles, names, flags, etc). Some regions, like Balder and Osiris, have pre-built mythological imagery to work with. Others, like The North Pacific, have cardinal directions that give them a lot of leeway. Sometimes too much choice can result in a muddled mess. If you can’t describe your region’s identity or culture in a few words, then go back and treat it like a world you are building. Look up and answer a set of world building questions online and, with your team, plan out your community as if it were a world. Of course someone will say, “I’m creating a region not a roleplay community,” but a region is a space where people roleplay and in the case of NationStates, roleplay a political simulation of sorts.


It’s always surprising to me if a member of a region can’t explain their flag or what their region’s color scheme means, or if I ask the creator/leader of a region, “Hey, what is your region about or for?” and their response is unclear. Some people might think such details are frivolous or shallow but if you think of your community as a world, then your world building should be detailed, imaginative and recognizable. Your theme is your brand, and it’s what creates a feeling of being part of something that can’t be replicated elsewhere.


However, themes should also be adaptable and what we often see in NS is stagnant regional themes. Often regions have accumulated the debris of older players' decisions and choices clogging up the arteries of the region. One of the best ways to incorporate new players and give them a sense of being part of the fabric of the region is to run a theme/flag redesign/color scheme competition. You might articulate some things that remain the same (symbol of a lion, or a lotus, or a lyre or the colors red, white, and blue) but allow players to envision new designs and to move forward. If something hasn’t been active in a while and attempts to restart it failed, put it in a fancy mausoleum or museum section of the forums.


A bonus to doing the work of world building is that when you potentially decide to develop your roleplaying community, there will be a whole set of guidelines for roleplayers to already work with and expand upon.


First and foremost, really develop a full and engaging world (themes, symbols, customs, laws, colors, Discord bot names and commands) that players will want to live in. Words AND visuals are important. Your best bet is to co-create this with players who share your interests and imagination. This is your team or the group of people who you have enchanted (or at least inspired) with your vision and who will help you accomplish important tasks. If you can’t assemble a team at this initial stage, you need to rethink something. The reasons might be benign for why players don’t want to support you (too busy in real life, etc) or might highlight that you need more experience or planning. In addition, if you can’t put together a team now, how will you recruit players later on? Assemble a team of wonderful people you actually like to hang out with.


I’m also not advocating writing a 300 page guide on the theme (although that can be a future goal). A theme that operates on Norse mythology for example could use the nine worlds as nine houses or representatives or operate as one of the worlds (let’s say Asgard and frame their allies\enemies as the other worlds). Small details like referencing the Bifrost as the Foreign Affairs conduit would help make the theme a cohesive experience. Or political\government groups\ministries could be separated by the god or goddess they choose to revere the most (and therefore embody the values of). Does your region celebrate Loki as their esprit de corpus or does it revere Odin or Freya? Each choice gives a slightly different flavor to the region and helps provide different goals (to cause or engage in chaos\mischief vs. to lead by example through wit and wisdom, etc).


The tie-ins don’t have to simply be classic, they could be to the old deep mythology or a mixture of the classical and the modern (via the MC universe). World building is a form of play and attracts creative people which should always be encouraged. Someone might argue that a theme limits the region but taking the example of Norse mythology, there’s nothing to stop you from visiting or adopting the customs of “another realm” for a week or a month if your region wants to run a particular themed event that is inspired by let’s say Aztec myth, Spongebob or Death Note.


Any time a new region comes into existence and the creator/leader cannot explain why the region exists or what its goal or theme is, the death knell sounds. A game, like most forms of entertainment, offers an experience that cannot be easily replicated elsewhere, so offer an immersive world.


Know Your Players

When I was actively running the event planning server (instead of Gameplay magazine), many players came and continue to come to me with an idea for an event or activity and want to know how to run it or want help with how to run it.


What makes a successful event/activity? This generally depends on the goals of the event. For some, a successful event is 5-10 players active and enjoying the activities while for others it’s a much larger number, post count, time spent, or attracting players to the region to stay. There’s also the aspect of events being about regions mingling and getting to know one another. Think about your (realistic) end goals first and then work towards them. The goal may simply be, “Find you what level of activity and engagement I can get on a weekend over the summer.” Then, you track what worked, what could work better and some things you might want to change next time.


Whether you’re trying to attract new players or engage your current ones, at the end of the day you have to get to know your players to a degree. Community building requires some level of socializing and social skills. It helps to naturally find people interesting and it also means you should talk to players in public and private and get to know their interests. Then you build events or activities or festivals around their interests or the cross point between your interests and theirs.


I received a DM from someone who wanted to know how I ran Gameplay magazine interviews, but they were really asking why I used the questions I did and how they could replicate what I was doing. What I do won’t necessarily work for them because, for example, GP Magazine focuses on the personalities over the politics and they seemed far more keen on the political and historical aspects and couldn’t care less about what someone’s favorite book or music was. Emulating other people is a great way to learn but you also should figure out what speaks to you or what role you enjoy and adapt to that. While people all over the world fake it all the time, something about genuine enthusiasm and interest is infectious (whereas faked feels heavy).


For example, I am terrible at trivia and don’t enjoy partaking in trivia games. However, most NSers enjoy trivia and it can actually be quite fun to organize and host trivia games. My favorite is Harry Potter themed trivia games because it also happens to be a personal fandom (although I’ve run far more on things I don’t know as well). Using any of the planning docs that are shared on the GP magazine server is just a start; you have to adapt things to you community and yourself.


There are a whole host of things that can go wrong with trivia or activities. The questions may be too hard or esoteric, the organizer/host or the players may become fatigued, or the scheduling may not work out for all of the participants to run the event at the same time. However, activities are more likely to be successful if the organizer or host’s level of enthusiasm is high, they utilize hype (pings, all caps, advertising, suspense, competition) appropriately to boost attendance, and they provide adequate and interesting individual and group prizes/awards/recognition.


Does this mean you can never ever run an event where you share that one thing you love but no one else knows about? Nope, but think of it this way: part of running events/activities is building a reputation as someone who can help people enjoy their time in a game over the million other things they might be doing with their time instead. Build that reputation first, and then run a festival or event around 15th century bread making techniques, the secret language of flowers (hai I want in on this) or other esoteric things.


Activities/events/festivals should be:

1. Clearly branded/have a theme
2. Give players enough time to enjoy and partake in the event
3. Be accessible (on one or more platforms that players are already on such as Discord, the RMB, and sometimes forums)
4. Be advertised in the venues from which you want to attract players
5. Allow multiple ways to enjoy the event (something to engage the cerebral, artistic, competitive, strategic, etc types of players)
6. Be enjoyable for you as a host\organizer

Part 3 - Region Building, Burn Out and NS

“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results.”


Burn out. It is a very real thing in NationStates. Often, a player will mention how they are ready to give up because all their effort yielded very little or nothing in terms of results, or sadly tell me about how they did so much but no one appreciates it. (*Huggles*). Here are some hard truths about NS and community building:


1. NS very much is a character driven game. When a player leaves or is pushed out or whatever the circumstance, often the things they built vanish or break down. You may call this the Ozymandias effect. Every major region has some sort of “revive x, y, or z” project going on that has varying levels of success or failure.


2. If you’re playing the game for accolades or recognition or appreciation (whether in your region or with commends/condemns or otherwise) it will never be enough (if you even get any in the first place). Just look at the list of condemns/commends before you started playing. How many of those players do you know? How many are still active? How many new players will know the current “heavy-hitters” in five years? Think about the region you’re in and how many players are still remembered from 5-10 years ago. For me personally, at least, building culture or community is about people, creativity, and getting energy (positive) from things like doing interviews. I’m fascinated by the players I interview for example, and I also enjoy festivals and parties. If you don’t like people (or struggle socially) then think of other ways you can build community (world building, creating lore, creating laws, teaching players how to do your particular skills such as legal writing or etc).


3. Those six hours you spent making badges for a contest no one entered? It’s okay. You learned how to make badges (maybe?) and also engaged in the creative process. If you don’t feel good/happy/productive doing something, don’t keep doing it. Did the $200 you spent on stamps that yielded 0 recruits bring you joy? Did it teach you a valuable life lesson? A lot of us spend money on games or other forms of entertainment, or something like Starbucks that has a temporary value. If you’re naturally a pessimist then this is an optimist telling you, hope is the answer. Put another way, think less, worry less, do more (at least for yourself). This game (NS) is a somewhat masochistic game. Perhaps you enjoy it a little? Again, if not, then don’t repeat the same thing over and over again. That way leads to insanity.


4. You can think of region and community building in multiple ways. Sometimes you might want to choose quality over quantity. Having 10 active engaged players is better than 25 inactive or barely there players. Spend more time on developing the close relationships you already have in the game. This is probably the biggest thing that irks me. A community can sometimes become so focused on new players that they forget to engage the players who are already active and start losing them.


5. Share what you learn with others. One thing I appreciate about players like Yuno is how willing they are to share their skills or things they learned with others. That’s a form of community building in itself. Even with all the dark sides of this game, there are so many things I have learned and continue to learn from just being a semi-active player. Fedele, for a recent example, helped me work on being more concise. It’s a work in progress (as you can see here), but still valuable.


Note: This article was originally commissioned for Issue XXIX of The North Pacific’s regional newspaper, The Northern Lights (TNL). The full article will be posted in TNL and it will be cross-posted in three parts for Gameplay Magazine.

Will There Be An NS Belt and Road Project?

by McMasterdonia and Owenstacey, TNP Minister of Foreign Affairs and TNP Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs

Regions including many of the game-created regions and prominent user-created regions such as Europeia and 10000 Islands that have been around for a long time have established a robust infrastructure that underpins almost everything that the region does. This infrastructure survives the test of time. It adapts to the shifting sands of the politics of the game, changes to NS rules, and even severe regional calamities and political crises can be overcome with relative ease.


Naturally, this is not the case for younger regions. For those emerging regions, there exists no one-stop database of scripts, supporting infrastructure, or ‘free’ consultants to provide them with the support that they need to ensure the sustainability and longevity of their region. One severe political catastrophe can be enough for the region to come to an end. A sudden resignation of a trusted leader or the departure of a region mate can spell the end of a region's recruitment, cultural activities, or other key aspects of regional life, where they remain dependent upon one person who is often, but not always, the regional founder.


In The North Pacific, Europeia, 10000 Islands, and many game created regions - our infrastructure stands the test of time. Despite this success at home, there has been limited success in attempts to facilitate regional development. The sharing of technology, ideas, and expertise more broadly has occurred on many occasions on an informal level. So far, this has proven to be the most successful example of regional development occurring through that exchange of knowledge. Nevertheless, there is no formal belt and road project on the part of the major regions to proactively expand our infrastructure and knowledge beyond our shores.


However, the concept of taking the development of regional infrastructure as a foreign policy concept is certainly not a new one. In this article, we will examine a number of examples of this type of initiative - the formal and the informal, in an attempt to answer the question of what a NationStates equivalent of a belt and road project, one that extended beyond the borders of our home regions, would look like.


The NS Republic


The Nationstates Republic (NSR) , and the later revived form in the Nationstates Republic Alliance (NRA) was an alliance of nations led by The West Pacific. Active between 2011 and 2013, the NSR was established with the desire to build a republic of regions, to work with TWP to harness the power of all involved to create an unrivaled power bloc. By choosing to assist each other, the regions involved believed that this mutual cooperation would allow the progress of smaller regions, whose survival would be unlikely without the support of established regions. NSR was a large alliance, containing 19 member regions, who moved away from exclusively a defence alliance and more towards a diplomatic alliance by helping members build strong relationships.


However, whilst there were some strengths to the NSR, it was limited by some fundamental flaws. The main two of these flaws was its size and TWP’s dominance. Being such a large alliance meant that for decisions to be made, there would undoubtedly be a wide range of views and so a consensus between members would have been hard to achieve. In addition, its large size meant that some regions wanted to feel included but were instead isolated or left out. To avoid this situation, some of the smaller regions would have to ‘piggyback’ on larger regions to gain their favour for later assistance. This ultimately weakens the alliance because it results in the larger regions being dominant over the smaller regions who will just go along with whatever is proposed.


NSR gave way to some opportunities, especially for smaller member regions, in the assistance that would have been offered to them from larger regions. By being part of the Alliance, they would have gained knowledge and insight into ways to develop their region and allow them to flourish and grow. This offered opportunities for the smaller regions to grow as well as offering opportunities to the larger regions in that they would have gained the support of smaller regions when it is needed (whether militarily or in the World Assembly). However, these opportunities were weathered by the leadership of TWP over how the alliance was run. This is because the region's dominance meant that the alliance became exposed to the changes in goals of TWP's delegate. When a delegate was elected that did not have plans for NSR, it ultimately ended due to a lack of continuous support. Therefore, for an alliance such as this to be a success it must be underpinned by the longstanding support of the region, and have supporting infrastructure that can survive shifts in political priorities of regional leaders.


The Grand Architecture Program (GAP)


The Grand Architecture Program was an initiative championed by former Europeian President Anumia in his election campaign of October 2013, as a means of utilising Europeian knowledge and infrastructure to facilitate regional development in upcoming regions of a similar interest. The program was underpinned by the Foreign Cultivation Act 2013. While the program was initiated by President Anumia, the loose concept had been proposed much earlier by the founder of Europeia HEM who opened a discussion on a “good neighbour policy”. The GAP emerged as a fusion of HEM’s policy and Anumia’s own ambitions for Europeia and NationStates.


The GAP involved the appointment of an Architect who would oversee the development of the region under the guidance of the Minister for Cultivation. In addition, a Council of Cultivation was formed with the intention of providing reports to the region on progress made - it would include a number of Europeian officials and a representative of each partner region.


By May of 2014, Europeia had enacted two ‘Construction Partnership Agreements’ under the leadership of Minister Lethen. Nevertheless, soon after a handover within the Ministry to Minister Ogastein spelled a stalling of progress for the initiative. Minister Ogastein stated that he believed the program was a failure, saying that “We entered into construction partnership agreements with three separate regions and I can tell you with confidence that none of those regions is in a better place as a result of our work.”


In spite of this, Europeia persisted and the initiative was carried forward by President Kraketopia who appointed Malashaan as the new Minister for Cultivation. For a time, this proved to be a success with architect assignments being distributed on a timely basis, 6 construction agreements signed (Commonwealth of Kings, The Infinite Alliance, Natan Region, The Union Republic, The Bungle Brigade and Aura Hyperia) and several more in negotiation.


However, the size of the project, a lack of communication about its successes, and the perception that the program was a burden upon successive administrations, led to the initiative being dropped. The political will to support such an initiative had come to an end. While some including HEM believed that the program required more time and support to be a success, others believed that for all the good intentions of Europeia, it was not possible to guarantee a core group of dedicated players who would sustain the region for the years ahead.


Despite the initial successes and the support of a significant number of Europeian leaders, the Grand Architecture Program came to an end. It was an incredibly bold initiative - one that required taking risks politically and institutionally - but it was considered a failure by many within Europeia all the same. It’s important to remember that for any major project, there are often unrealistic expectations. We can easily dismiss a failed term as Delegate or Minister as par for the course, but when an ambitious foreign policy agenda is pursued, our expectations are heightened and senses are attuned to even a whiff of failure or stalling. This can be enough to end the plans of the boldest of political leaders before they even begin.


Status of Forces Agreements


A more recent initiative also undertaken by Europeia as a means of building new partnerships, training valuable allies, and establishing military forces took place through the ‘Status of Forces Agreements’. This was certainly not as bold an initiative as the GAP, but nonetheless was an attempt to utilise the knowledge of Europeian military leaders to foster positive relations with emerging regions that were interested in forming their own military but lacked the infrastructure and knowledge to do so on their own. Europeia signed two such agreements - one with Merridel and one with Olympia. There is currently no agreement still on the books.


The difficulties with this kind of agreement are similar to the GAP. Despite the best intentions of political and military leaders, the success is largely dependent on that core group of dedicated players in the partner regions. In Merridel’s case this was certainly an issue, and it seems very likely that Olympia also suffered the same personnel deficiency. Olympia states in their WFE that they ceased operations after 500 days and the region is currently founderless. Merridel is still around with 72 nations - but lacks a regional forum and for all intents and purposes appears to have simply stopped recruiting.


The initiative should still be accepted as a reasonable foreign policy initiative. The intent behind building capacity to run and operate a regional military in order to build meaningful diplomatic relationships is a good one. The difficulty as always lies in the ongoing sustainability of the project - and the dedication of the partner region itself to also work to see the project through to completion.


The World Assembly Development Program


The World Assembly Development Program (WADP), an initiative pioneered by r3naissanc3r, remains a central component of everyday life in The North Pacific. Furthermore, the initiative has been championed by the Security Council, successive Vice Delegates, Ministers of World Assembly Affairs, and of course, WA Delegates. The time invested into this initiative has meant that it has continued uninterrupted by political change, resignations, or even the increasingly time poor nature of the creator.


The World Assembly Development Program has been expanded in some form to Balder as the ‘WA Expedition’, and as the ‘World Assembly Advancement Program’ in Europeia. This was made possible by the hard work of r3naissanc3r as the creator of the programs and the close partnerships that continue to this day between The North Pacific, Balder and Europeia.


The initiative has also encouraged innovation in other allied regions, such as in the The South Pacific through their own ‘SWAN’ (the Southern World Assembly Initiative), which operates in a similar fashion to the other programs, but was developed by South Pacifican United States of Vietnam. McMasterdonia (one of the authors of this article) and SillyString (also known as Asta) are both acknowledged for their contributions to getting the SWAN initiative up and running.


These programs do not constitute a typical network of foreign policy alliances. However, it’s clear that the strength of these initiatives and the cooperation involved in operating them, have led to a positive flow of ideas between close partners.


Telegram Initiatives


Another matter that is closely linked to regional development is the use of telegrams to maximise efficiency in efforts of internal recruitment and integration. The use of telegram infrastructure that is widely accessible to members of the executive staff as well as the executive council, was first introduced in Europeia before expanding out into other regions including The North Pacific. At various times, this infrastructure has been utilised by Balder, The East Pacific, The Black Hawks, The Land of Kings and Emperors, Albion and The New Inquisition. This kind of infrastructure helps to sustain regions through challenging times, allowing the dedicated public servants to use their time efficiently and maximise the utility of integration efforts within the region. This is another example of a common basis of infrastructure that closely links regions together.


What’s next?


While this article does not examine all possible scenarios where regional infrastructure has been used to assist in regional development or for the purposes of foreign policy, it is clear that there regions continue to work hard in this space.It is the duty of leading regions to assist in the further development of the game. The strength of the community of NationStates as a whole relies upon the strength of the communities that lie within it. A point of friction is the need to both freely share knowledge and ideas for the objective benefit of the game balanced against the political need to ensure such initiatives satisfy the foreign policy of your home region.


It is clear that many of us who play the game would not consider ourselves to be believers of optimistic diplomacy. However, bold successes of diplomacy that benefit all partners require a high degree of optimism and commitment. We must balance the needs of our communities for the constant validation of the success of such bold initiatives against the measurable and communicable long term benefits of quiet, conscientious and tireless work in the field of diplomacy.


Even smaller steps, such as the sharing of knowledge through the WADP can be an important step in assisting developing regions to get through the difficult periods of growth where many falter. Game created regions have the obvious benefit of a steady flow of nations spawning each day - but without our initiatives and proactive engagement with them, this means little.


Regional development as a product of foreign policy would require a boldness on the part of our leaders and the political will to see through the projects through the difficult stages, in the hope of forming a sustainable and meaningful development process that facilitates growth for developing regions in a manner that works with their culture and aspirations. While it is not possible for any leading region to simply guarantee a dedicated group of core players to sustain a region over many years, it is certainly possible for us to assist in giving these newer communities the best possible hope of success.

A Personal Connection

by Bobberino, TNP Minister of Defense and former TRR Deputy Speaker

Throughout the game of NationStates, there is a very diverse crowd of talent, characters, backgrounds and people. Recruitment, Outreach and Home Affairs all touch upon this same core concept of drawing in this talent. For those unaware, Outreach is the Office in The Rejected Realms that focuses on this concept, scripted telegrams, and The Rejected Runekeeper’s upkeep; and Home Affairs in The North Pacific is similar with its scripted TGs, recruitment lists, Gameside Advocate program, and other similar campaigns.


My experience in this department has led to a more nuanced approach to outreach than many others in the game, even in the GCRs. As much of an undertaking as this might be, a more effective approach would be a personal way to approach newer folks to the region, gauging their interest, skill and area of expertise through a privatized campaign based on reaching out to specific individuals. TNP has done this in part through its Mentorship program, overseen by myself for around a year as Deputy Minister of Home Affairs. During my time, I trained TNP’s mentors to watch for applications on our forum thread and actively welcome them (there was a pingable role in our government server dedicated to this as well), and continue that connection in private. The one-on-one interaction is where the key work of outreach is done. for example, Robespierre, a new face to TNP but not GP, reached out through the mentorship program, and I picked him up. Through my mentorship and his own ambition, he quickly rose through the ranks to become a Minister in TNP within two months of joining the region. This is an unprecedented rise.


In TRR, the same prioritization is key. The RRA is currently teeming with newer members, eager to join in the proud tradition of defenderism that TRR holds dear. To reach out to these individuals is something I prioritized and was able to do quite well during my term as Outreach Officer, effectively the same as Minister of Home Affairs in TNP, through my means of contacting folks over Discord. Discord is the keystone that unlocks this methodology. It is how people can communicate information the most directly and with the most integration and notification. This is how we activate our recruitment abilities the best: where a casual conversation, not a forced or abbreviated or abrupt conversation, works to help the newcomer personally with the ins and outs of gameplay, the people behind the game rather than simply its mechanics, and a more adaptable way of training.


Automating this process is difficult and would take a Herculean effort, and it still wouldn't do as good a job as two people connecting and communicating directly with each other. The personal touch has reaped great rewards. It is a smaller scale and takes longer, but is time well spent.

Keys to Success

by Alchera, TWP Minister of Recruitment and Citizenship

Attracting members is a region's key to success. After all, a region can’t grow and be successful if it doesn’t have anyone to participate in its community. As one of the feeder regions, The West Pacific (TWP) has an advantage in this regard, yet this does not mean we don’t try to attract players. If players don’t see any growth or activity they’ll move on to other more lively regions. There is a multitude of ways TWP attracts members and maintains its population, most notably our weekly regional message board (RMB) activities, various fairs and festivals (including some involving other regions), and a general atmosphere designed to encourage members to become active in TWP.


The World Factbook Entry (WFE) and RMB are the most important things for a region attempting to attract players, as they act as a window into the region, and a slow, inactive RMB isn’t as attractive as an active one. That being said, TWP has a strict RMB policy. TWP has many weekly RMB activities such as Punday Monday, where nations compete for the best pun; Thank You Haikusday, where members post haikus; and finally Karaoke Friday, when nations post their favorite song lyrics and the weekly playlist is featured. The goal of these RMB exercises is to act as a sort of ice breaker for new nations, a simple way for them to get involved and get integrated with the community, and they’re also fun for players of all ages.


TWP also hosts and joins fairs, the most recent example being the TWP-Osiris prom. This was a way for the two regions to enhance their relationship, but it also provided an opportunity for people to mingle with those outside just our regions. Events such as these also break up the monotony of day to day life in Nation States. They’re a fun event for all to attend and make the region more appealing in general. Other events that celebrate a region’s change or marks an anniversary of some sort are also a good way to set a region apart. A good example of this in TWP was the Three Perfections festival, which was held to showcase the implementation of TWP's regional theme.


Finally, one of the most important ways a region can improve activity is to help others get involved. My job as Recruitment and Citizenship (R&C) Minister is to help guide new players to the appropriate person to get involved, be it the head of the military or diplomatic minister. It’s also my job to organize outreach programs for those just answering issues, or who aren't otherwise involved, and get them involved in other aspects of the region. One of the ways TWP achieves this is by establishing our own Gameside Advocate (GA) program. Much like TNP’s GA program, one of the GAs' jobs is to inform those on the forum and RMB of recent changes and events that are going on. They are also required to be active on the RMB to help new players and answer questions. As a result, they often need a massive amount of patience. Their efforts play a key role in the overall effort to entice players who only answer issues to look beyond their own nation to the community at large. TWP has also been sending out a weekly telegram with two purposes: one, to keep the residents informed on regional happening, and two, to entice them to become more active and to come and enjoy the events.

Playing With A Full Deck:How NS Cards Enhance Regional Activity

by Pallaith (Ghost), TNP Minister of Communications and former Delegate

The introduction of NS trading cards did more than just add a new permanent mini-game to the mix. It has given regions a valuable tool to encourage activity and interest from their player base. While it is true that collecting the trading cards isn’t for everyone, there are enough players interested in them to make harnessing this part of the game worth the effort for regions old and new alike. In The North Pacific, cards serve as an effective endorsement boosting tool and a means to create additional immigration to the region, both gameside and on the forums.


TNP utilizes what it calls the World Assembly Development Program (WADP). Every month players receive badges and recognition for the amount of endorsements they give out, and recognize players they call Keepers of the North, players who endorse the Delegate, Vice Delegate, and all members of TNP’s Security Council. NS cards have allowed us to offer something other than badges as rewards, something that entices a greater number of players to increase their endorsement activity. We accomplish this by utilizing the most valuable kind of card, Legendary, and awarding one to each of the top three players in individual reward categories, and by making all Keepers eligible for a daily lottery, one that gives out a random legendary card to a random Keeper every day. Additionally, Keepers have their names added to the lottery additional times for every vote they cast in the WA in the past 30 days.


There is simply no arguing with the results. Since adopting the program, we have estimated an increase of 30,000 endorsements, driven in large part by nations who migrated to TNP to take advantage of the card program. At a time when there has been a precipitous drop in WA endorsements across the game, TNP’s delegate has maintained a high number of endorsements that has somewhat resisted the drop. This was also evident during the last delegate transition, which was extended due to players being less willing to lose Keeper status, and therefore less willing to withdraw endorsements from myself, as I was a member of the SC. Without delving too deeply into the topic, obviously the greater incentive to exchange endorsements and keep them on the SC, Delegate, and Vice Delegate further strengthens the region’s security as well.


Legendary cards a finite resource, so to harness those cards in a sufficient number to be utilized for these specific awards, an extensive network of puppets is necessary. In the process of gathering cards using this network, many of the cards are needed to fund the transfer of the legendary cards to our main regional nation. But these cards can also serve as rewards for any number of regional activities or competitions, and some of the recent contests have utilized them as prizes. Before, we could only offer the badges and inclusion in factbook records, bragging rights, or sometimes cosmetic changes, such as custom flags flown by key players in the region or other customization of national details. Cards offer us a tangible reward, something that a lot of players actually want and can literally show off in a collection. In the case of Legendary card rewards, the prize comes with significant objective (market) value and bragging rights of its own.


Additionally, TNP runs a cards request program, where participants can name a specific card and if that card is found during the collection of cards, it will be gifted to the requestor. All requests have to be made on the offsite forum, which drives activity there as well. As with the lotteries, Keeper of the North status is a prerequisite for making a request. However, in this case members of the NPA are also eligible. Since NPA members typically cannot maintain Keeper status, this gives them a chance to gather card, but also eliminates a potential choice that players have to make which could lead them to decide against membership in NPA.


Cards activity makes for a frequent topic of conversation, but that conversation is also spurred by these programs. As with other region-wide awards, our regional nation regularly sends out alerts on the RMB whenever a card is awarded in a competition or a lottery. The cards request program also involves a spreadsheet which maintains a list of pending and completed requests, allowing everyone a chance to see the scope of the program and how often and completely it is fulfilled. Time and again the results of these initiatives being posted reminds people of their existence and tends to increase demand. It can also spur competition in itself. In the case of WADP wards, we have already seen the same few people at the top of the charts month after month. Lottery recipients and individual award winners get a card whether they have an interest in cards or not. Nothing is gained if the player does not venture out and makes the effort needed.


TNP managed all of this with a few scripts and a spreadsheet enhancing infrastructure we already had in place, as well as the large puppet network needed to gather the prizes. This project allows us to focus more competitions and activities in the game itself, something that can be hard to do, especially in an age when offsite communications continue to dominate most daily activity. A new type of player, perhaps unreachable previously, can now be encouraged to get more involved and explore other areas of the community they may not have been inclined to otherwise because of having a specific, identifiable incentive. Considering the game provides the means and the material, a region need only tap into this aspect of the game to start producing results and enhancing its own regional activity. The barrier to entry is low and the cost is minimal, so I highly encourage the adoption of some sort of program or effort to utilize NS cards as part of the arsenal of regional activity and engagement.


An Idiot’s Guide to Regionbuilding

by Yuno, former Delegate of TEP

When I was first elected delegate of The East Pacific, I set out to do a few very specific things, and I hope that what I did can be a model for regions everywhere. These things were done in TEP, but I have The North Pacific to thank for being the inspiration behind these ideas. While I’m no longer active, I'm comfortable staying close to the source(s) of my admiration and inspiration. I wrote these from the perspective of a region's delegate, but the principles should be the same no matter how the region is set up.


First steps


1) Ask everyone in the region something to the effect of: "WHO WANTS A JOB?!!!!" Post this question everywhere you can, wherever people might see. Places can include the RMB, the Forums, Discord, Skype, or a mass telegram to the whole region.


2) Wait for the large number of replies you'll be getting, and grab the contact info of everyone who replied. Ask them how active they are, and what days are they available.


With that done, you should have grabbed a massive number of followers! But wait, you don't even have any jobs for them yet. Well, time to fix that!


How to invent jobs


1) Ask people what they're good at.


If they say Roleplay, create a RP department. If one already exists (as the majority of Regions already have a RP branch that exists separately from the regional government), direct them there. Make sure you know what's going on there - then you can suggest changes to whoever runs that department. If RP doesn't exist yet, then you can go ahead and create a new RP department, and hire that Roleplayer to be a staff member.


If people say coding, invent a programming department, and have them code many projects that may be useful for your player base.


If people say writing, create a Newspaper Department and hire him to be a Journalist (or Lead Editor/Chief Publisher.) I recommend you being the Lead Editor Chief/Publisher yourself, at least for the beginning stages of the newspaper, unless that person you hired is a dedicated and expert organizer.


A great example of that in TEP would be Libertanny, who was a random dude I hired from the RMB and plopped into the position of Lead Journalist. He created his own Journalist Department and hired dozens of Graphic Designers and Writers for the newspaper department I just founded. He did 99% of the work, while I did the 1% work of hiring him. That was a first for me, as I was so used to doing all the organization work and telling people what to do, but it was an exciting and welcome change to find a person who knew how to run something. And this kid isn't even a veteran player; before I hired him, all he ever did was RMB RP and he had only played NationStates for one month. Yet when I hired him, he managed to run the Newspaper Department like a professional Delegate, and hire droves of hard workers! I was shocked and pleasantly surprised, and we managed to publish over ten visually appealing and fresh content-filled articles, some of which hit top dispatches and were read by all the RMBers, government officials and regular citizens alike.


If people say "I don't know, whatever you tell me to do" (which makes up the MAJORITY of responses you'll get), give them a boring job that needs to be done. Trust me, there are MANY of them. These "boring jobs" can include telegramming people to join the region's discord/forum, writing and posting "endorse the Delegate" dispatches, approving citizenship applications, doing the region's statistics (like checking every citizen's nation, counting them, making sure they haven't CTEd), or writing telegram drafts for you to mass-telegram to the entire region to encourage members to join the WA/forums/any Department. This could form a Recruitment/Outreach Department.


The so-called "boring jobs" do require creativity. For example, when a worker is drafting a telegram, he/she has to think "what items should I include in the telegram to integrate the reader closer to our platforms and retain him/her? How do I make the draft persuasive?" Nonetheless, they are easy to teach to people who just want to follow instructions without much thinking.


I’ve already gone ahead and explained Creative Jobs, which is the hardest part. You might be low on Creative Departments, or still have zero of them. Don't worry, you can revisit that later. But now...


2) Create the boring jobs/departments. These are PRE-SET departments, for players who want to do the “Boring Jobs.”


The standard template consists of these listed departments:

• Ministry of Home Affairs
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs
• Ministry of Communications
• Ministry of Culture
• Ministry of World Assembly Affairs

You will have to write the descriptions for each department, detailing exactly what each one does. If someone has to choose which department to join, he/she will want to know what he’s expected to do once he’s hired for that department.


I have to give full credit to the retired NationStates player/former TNP Delegate/Guardian, R3naissanc3r, who is the first person to create these departments and write descriptions for them. He is a real innovator who I emulated to a large extent, without him knowing. Sometimes he helped without knowing, because strategic players look at his old threads; but sometimes he helped by openly providing TEMPLATES to people who asked/telegrammed him for them. But I’ll explain that later. Again, since he’s retired, I don’t think that’s a possible route anymore. Anyway, much of my previous leadership success is due to reading his “Executive Applications” thread here, despite never joining his Executive Staff: forum.thenorthpacific.org/topic/7198621/ (I have used this thread as a template and for inspiration, but it is important that you design one suited for your own region when developing your own staff).


Here's what to do:

1. Have a clear idea what the specific tasks of the ministry will be (e.g. recruitment and mentoring for Home Affairs)
2. Create positions that fit the tasks you want
3. Write a description based on the tasks and positions
4. Repeat for all ministries

After that, you want to create an application form, with basic personal information such as nation name and Discord tag, as well as relevant information such as reasons for joining or previous experience.


ALL DONE! Now, your thread (for Executive job applications) is ready to post! Add a short summary of the purpose of the thread (i.e. “you’re supposed to apply for jobs here if you’re bored on NationStates,”) at the top of the thread.


So you posted it, now what? You link the thread to all the people you hired, and have them fill out the form. This way, they become “official” AND you look active - like you’re an amazing Delegate who simply writes a thread and instantly 20 people apply within minutes. The reality of course is that you “hired” them beforehand, then invented some jobs after the fact, then forced them to apply for real.


3) Make a Discord Server. Hopefully, you already have a normal Discord server, for everyone in the region to hang out. If you don’t, make one.


Now, there should be an additional Discord Server, apart from the main server. That discord server will be your Government server. Invite your newly hired government workers there. Within that server, you should create a separate channel for each government department, and give each government member access to their respective departments. You should also create a Cabinet chat for the top brass to discuss more intricate stuff like department-creation and foreign policy, but have a lower-cabinet chat for people who want to get involved in those discussions too. Finally, add a general Executive staff channel, for all government members to be able to see.


These are just my suggestions for the Government server setup, based on the setup in TNP’s own government server. With a proper government (workers’) discord server, filled up with members you’ve hired, it’s going to become really easy to put everyone to efficient work.


4) Constantly advertise the Regional Server to the Gameside Region. Then, hire people from the Regional server to the Government server (and have them fill out the app you made). Then give them jobs, and set deadlines for results if that’s viable.


Congrats, you’ve created and established the foundation of a region!


A few more things to note:


The Foreign Department is sensitive department that you can’t just hire anybody for. You have to hire diplomatic players who know how to act respectful, and not embarrass you. Those players will be ambassadors representing you to other regions, so you don’t want to hire immature trolls. There are also some optional steps if you want to expand your region further:


5) Establish the Regional Military (considered a Department). You should create a separate Military Application thread. Still describe the military as a department, like Ministry of Defense, (as pre-set/“boring jobs”) in your Executive Application thread, but link to the military application. Anyone who applies and gets accepted to the military automatically becomes a “soldier” of your region, or at least a “recruit.”


You can always use them to "pile," or teach them to “update.” If you don’t know how to "update," or how to lead updates, there are plenty of guides out there. This article is not the place to learn that stuff. You can learn by joining the North Pacific Army, asking NPA officials, or tracking down good people who know how, or asking me.


6) Talk to show presence. Post things in the RMB, Discord, and forums; link your posts if they’re relevant to people. If the leader is active, people will naturally be active too.


7) Set goals/milestones. For example, if you want to attain many endorsements, set an endorsement goal you want to reach. Then devise strategies to reach those goals. This endorsement-related duty belongs to a Department, most likely Home Affairs.


8) Thank your workers, and reward them. Give them medals of appreciation, or honorary mentions, but whatever you do, CREDIT THEM. Always credit people who submit ANYTHING, whether writing or ART, especially art. People hate when they put in the work, but get their credit stolen (or don’t get credited.) It’s also the ethical thing to do.


9) Always be on the lookout for new ideas/activities. You're running a community when you're a delegate, and people (including yourself) get bored fast if you don't try new things. Don't be afraid to think outside the box. But most importantly, have fun! As with all games, you can burn out if you don't take breaks, so be sure to take a break now and then so the game always remains fun.


Speaking of giving credit where credit is due, I want to thank Ghost for coming up with this concept and pushing me to write it. I believe these ideas work (and they must be good because TEP still uses the systems I set up) and can really help regions engage with their players and keep the players invested.

The Northern Lights: Beauty in Truth

Publisher: El Fiji Grande :: Executive Editor: Pallaith (Ghost) :: Managing Editor: Robespierre

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

Index of issues

[Kuriko]

Thank you for the latest update

[Dar es Saalam]

Hello,

As the Newest Ambassador from TNP, it is my distinct pleasure to bring you the (hopefully) correctly formatted Monthly Newspaper, The Northern Lights!

The North Star, Issue XI, (The Latest issue I have proboards formatting for!)

Spotlight #21 Interview With McMasterdonia

by Owenstacey, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs

This month's spotlight interview is with McMasterdonia, currently the Minister of Foreign Affairs and since joining The North Pacific in 2011 has held most jobs in the executive, including both Delegate and Vice Delegate. Having held many positions throughout their time in The North Pacific, I used this interview as a way to learn more about McMasterdonia’s time in Nationstates and reflect on the good and bad during the last 8 years. When asked before the interview, McMasterdonia said that the mentorship with Eluvatar in the early days was very helpful and that they both still communicate regularly. With the experience McMasterdonia has, this interview was interesting to see the views and pick on the experiences that can undoubtedly teach many people something new.

Owenstacey: Good evening, I am joined by Minister of Foreign Affairs McMasterdonia. Welcome to the Spotlight, how are you?

McMasterdonia: I am good thanks Owen, thank you for reaching out to me for this interview.

Owenstacey: No problem, it’s amazing to have the chance to interview you. First up, it might be a while ago but what made you join The North Pacific in the first place?

McMasterdonia: I was encouraged to join NationStates by a friend of mine at university who had described to me how the issues worked in general details. I was intrigued by the idea of a nation simulator, so I decided to join. I was first spawned in The North Pacific and relatively quickly got involved in the community on the regional message board.

In terms of my wider involvement on the forum, I tried to join when Delegate Grosseschnauzer announced that they would be retiring as Delegate and that elections would be held. I was initially denied entry for failing an admin security check. From memory, I was using one of those usb internet devices and Eluvatar flagged me due to how often my IP had been changing.

In The North Pacific at that time it was a great period of change and tumultuous challenges. Blue Wolf II had won the Delegate election and had defeated, I suppose, the establishment candidate in an upset win. Romanoffia had been very active on the regional message board at that time and essentially reminded us that decisions were made by those who show up. If we wanted to improve the game and region, we had to make our voices heard. So I answered that call.

Owenstacey: That must have been an interesting time to be a part of TNP, you've been in Nationstates for a while now, how much do you think NS has changed with regards to regions and how they work together?

McMasterdonia: Well I certainly think it has become more challenging and rigid than it once was. When I was first getting started in NationStates there were a lot less formal relations between the different regions. From what I recall, The North Pacific was not the party to a single formal treaty when I first became a member.

It is often said that the days of old were more polarised, with more ideological and in-character battles and of course, more coups. That may be the case for some, but in my experience as someone who joined in 2011, things seemed a lot more flexible and chilled out back then. Now, we have so many established relations that go back the better part of a decade. That either limits your options, or you end up in a situation where you have a heap of allies and treaties sitting around, and nobody seems to like that much either.

Secondly, I think the way our regions operate now is a lot more sophisticated. Most major regions have extremely well established security networks supported by major infrastructure. We are less exposed now than we’ve ever been. That can change the way we engage with our neighbours.

Owenstacey: So things are quite different and a lot more complex than it was back when you first started. You were delegate of TNP for a while, so what would you say was the biggest impact you made as Delegate?

McMasterdonia: I think my first few terms of government as Delegate of The North Pacific were transformative. It needs to be said that when I first came to power, The North Pacific had only had a full cabinet for possibly two terms, and even then, it was not functional most of the time. The Government was for a large part in disarray and prone to inactivity at crucial junctures.

One of my first tasks was to restore faith in elected officials and to get the wheels of government working again. I worked extremely hard to establish a well oiled government machine, one that delivered for all aspects of our community. I think it was truly a transformative time. The North Pacific made a significant shift into a highly efficient and transparent operation, one that really focused on the development of our internal culture, the cultivation of external allies and supporters, and took meaningful steps to take our place in the world.

I think that my efforts in that regard assisted our community at that time and since then, to continue to have very high expectations of our elected officials; as well as an expectation of accessibility and transparency on the part of government.

Owenstacey: I definitely think that we have come to have a very high expectation of elected officials, finally, have you got any advice to people starting out in NS on how to be successful and have a long career like yours has been?

McMasterdonia: I would say that it is important to find your home. Find a community that makes you happy and that is filled with people you trust and enjoy spending time with. It’s the community that makes the game so long lasting in so many lives. Then find an area you can contribute. Work hard, earn your place at the table and ensure your voice is heard. Don’t equate stubbornness with strength - sometimes you will need to compromise to find the best outcomes. Seek advice from others when you need it. Keep their confidence and they will keep yours. Most importantly... Have fun!

Owenstacey: I think that is some very good advice that all members both new and old can learn from, and that is it for this interview, thank you for taking some time to do this interview. It's been good to learn something from someone with your experience

McMasterdonia: Thank you for having me.

NPA Bulletin

by Robespierre, Minister of Home Affairs

Leadership Minister of Defense (MoD): General Koopa Deputy Ministers of Defense (DMoDs): VACANT

NPA soldiers arrive on the shores of the South Pacific in eager fashion, ready to answer the call of their ally and assist in their neighbour's Delegacy transition

SPOILER: Click to show

Private Federalania was promoted to Private First Class Private Gorundu was promoted to Private First Class Private Inven was promoted to Private First Class Private Somniaureus was promoted to Private First Class Private TheEmiritus was promoted to Private First Class Sergeant Trondstorm was promoted to Warrant Officer DMoD Koopa was appointed as MoD (General)

Koopa couped! Koopa couped! Bob has fallen! Victory is ours! ... Wait, no. That's not how any of this works, is it? Right, well, the September 2019 General Election cycle is upon us and the last month of the North Pacific Army's activity has had a lot to do with refining our piling prowess. If you'll recall (and you probably don't!) last time we ended off this segment of the North Star's monthly news we reported on General Darcania and co.'s hold on the Coalition of White Supremacists (COWS). But, that operation got us thinking: You know what's better than bashing fascists once or twice? Bashing them again and again of course! Thus, in the month of August, our troops were proud to take part in an inter-regional operation that saw the capture of yet another Nazi stronghold. In total, twenty-two of the North's finest joined up with their fellow hate-hunters on a campaign that spanned several updates. From the seventeenth of August's major update until the twenty-ninth of August's minor update, personnel from the Ministry of Defense were engaged in gridlock as some the most talented updaters in attendance warded off incoming undesirables.

Not to be outdone, it seems as though our friends over in the Kingdom of Great Britain had a trick up their sleeve as well this month! On the ninth of August's major update, it was announced by the High Command that our next operation would be a joint tag run with His Majesty's Royal Marine Corps. In a crafty yet ambitious effort, our combined teams scoured the NationStates world in search of letters that would spell out 'Rule Britannia'. Unfortunately, we weren't able to pick up all of the letters needed in order to do so - but on the bright side, we did collect a respectable eight hits with seven of our troops in attendance. This would be the second of two tag runs completed in the final month of this term, with the first one being undertaken on the fourth of August's minor update. It was on that day for which the NPA experienced a solid turnout for noon updates at eleven soldiers standing, not bad... but the deal was sweetened with an extra five hits added to the mix.

Lastly, it is with a heavy heart that the Executive Council of the North Pacific must inform everyone of the recent resignation of Bobberino as the Minister of Defense. At this point in time, with less than forty-eight hours until a new Delegate is scheduled to take their oath of office, a new Minister of Defense has been appointed in accordance with the forty-first clause of the Legal Code, chapter seven entitled 'Executive Government'. Nonetheless, deployment to the South Pacific still persists and is ongoing. Since this past Wednesday, orders have been posted in the mess hall to endorse Aumeltopia upon entering the region and since then twenty soldiers have acted swiftly to respond to our leadership's call. In conclusion, despite the more sporadic nature of our tag raiding efforts do to more time-consuming holds, the North Pacific Army remains as committed to excellence as ever! Thanks again to the regions that hosted us this term, and thank you to Bobberino for his many months of service! Ciao! Regional Assembly Highlights

by Artemis, Speaker of the Regional Assembly

Regional Assembly August 2019

Speaker of The Regional Assembly: Artemis Deputy Speakers of The Regional Assembly: BrendogVote Vice Delegate Check Efficiency Bill put forward by Sil Dorsett Status: Passed

Summary: The Vice Delegate Check Efficiency Bill changed the time allotted to the Vice Delegate to process security checks for citizenship applications. The original time was set to 3 days. This bill allowed the vice delegate an additional 4 days bringing the total time to 7 days to process a citizenship application. Results: 26 Ayes, 0 Nays and 1 Abstention

The Vexillum Billum put forward by Darcania Status: At Vote

Summary: The Vexillum Billum is a bill currently at a vote in the Regional Assembly aimed at changing the regional flag of the North Pacific. The proposed change removes the Coat of Arms of the North Pacific and changes a number of the elements. The proposed flag can be viewed here.

Current Business

Lessening Repeating Work (LRW) Bill, put forward by Praetor Status: In Discussion

Summary: An amendment to the way that elections are run in the North Pacific. This bill introduces some grammatical fixes to the election laws, changes the method of election for Court Justices to a preferential voting system instead of first past the post, and includes methods for dealing with candidates that either become ineligible or withdraw during the voting period. This bill additionally deals with instances of ties at the end of the voting period.

Flag Usage Act

[/a] Status: In Discussion

Summary: The Flag Usage Act is a proposal that would make the use of the Official Flag of the North Pacific illegal to use by nations in
written statements and dispatches. This is aimed to prevent dispatches and statements produced from being seen as legitimate statements endorsed by the government of the North Pacific.

The Better Banner Bill[/a] put forward by Bootsie. Status: In Discussion

Summary: The Better Banner Bill stikes Section 10.1.5 from the Legal Code and allows for the Coat of Arms to be used by any citizen or nation of the North Pacific. As the law currently stands it is illegal to use the Coat of Arms except to represent the North Pacific or an official regional entity. [

Peace Terms Acceptance Amendment put forward by [a href=”https://forum.thenorthpacific.org/profile/5061298/[/a]. Status: In Discussion

Summary: This amendment seeks to amend Section 6.4.18 of the Legal Code to stipulate that a Peace Treaty would require a simple majority vote of the Regional Assembly to be ratified. The Constitution currently stipulates that all treaties need a 2/3rds majority vote to pass.[/div]

World Assembly Digest

by Gorundu, World Assembly Correspondent

General Assembly Improving the world one resolution at a time

Preventing Unjust Warfare Status: Defeated Delegate's vote: Against Final vote (World): For - 2917; Against - 10106 Final vote (TNP): For - 84; Against - 411; Percentage of WA nations voting: 38.73%

Recommendation: The proposal, while well meaning, is hampered by various holes and unachievable standards. Namely, Clause 2.1.1 relies on 'undeniable and concrete evidence' which is not easily obtainable if possible at all, especially in situations where bad faith and third party actors are excepted to be involved but proof is not totally present. Additionally, clause 2.1.3 appears to be miswritten as it never fully clarifies that nondomestic forces engaging the local nonstate actor would be required to satisfy this however domestic forces engaging on a local nonstate actor would not need to satisfy this requirement as it would not be transnational. Furthermore, clause 2.3 becomes problematic as a nation's predictions may not reflect reality and the results of a transnational conflict can vary greatly between predicted result and actual result, especially in scenarios where a multitude of factors for this decision are unknown or only generally specified. In accordance with the above, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote Against this proposal.

Treatment of the Deceased Status: Defeated Delegate's vote: Against Final vote (World): For - 1280; Against - 11426 Final vote (TNP): For - 47; Against - 449

[/COLOR][/B]; Percentage of WA nations voting: 38.72% [/I][/div] Recommendation: Treatment of the Deceased, while well meaning, falls victim to its own poorly worded and vague clauses. This proposal requires the previous consent of the deceased to perform various actions in order to exempt them from 'grave molestation'. This becomes problematic if the death is sudden or the record of now deceased granting and denying these permissions is lost. The proposal also requires member nations to protect graves until the point of decay 'to the fullest possible extent from molestation' that could span well over a decade (at the very least), and would impose unreasonable requirements on member nations in order to comply. Finally, the proposal attempts to accommodate for religious and cultural beliefs but then requires the now deceased to have requested it and then prevents anything that violates Clause 1 and 4, thus defeating the whole point of this clause to begin with. In accordance with the reasoning presented above, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote Against this proposal.

Reducing Food Waste Status: Passed Delegate's vote: For Final vote (World): For - 11161; Against - 1902 Final vote (TNP): For - 466; Against - 42; Percentage of WA nations voting: 39.24%

Recommendation: This proposal attempts to address the wasting of food and how citizens of WA member nations can better handle their leftovers. The proposal addresses various aspect of this in requiring food producers to minimize waste, recycling compost into agriculture, and expanding the duties and abilities of the International Food Wellfare Orgaization. A few concerns involved with this resolution include the lack of specific language that leaves a lot of the proposal up to interpretation and provides vague mandates. Furthermore, the proposal ignores the fact that food safety and standards do contribute to a large portion of food waste despite it being a net positive. In conclusion, this proposal generally promotes the sensible use of food and prevention of food waste that leaves openings to be expanded upon by more specific resoluitions. In accordance with the reasoning presented above, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote For this proposal.

Security Council Spreading interregional peace and goodwill, via force if necessary

Condemn Kyrusia Status: Defeated Delegate's vote: Against Final vote (World): For - 1516; Against - 10818 Final vote (TNP): For - 45; Against - 421; Percentage of WA nations voting: 36.46%

Recommendation: The proposed condemnation of Kyrusia is fundamentally lacking. This is primarily due to the rushed drafting process which did not allow for the following issues to be properly dealt with. Primarily, this proposal seems to brush over and totally exclude a very large amount of relevant content to this condemnation. When asked, the author claimed that they wanted this proposal to be light-hearted, which is perfectly fine in theory, but ultimately harms the execution of this proposal for such a deserving target. Due to the reasoning above, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote Against this proposal.

Condemn The New Inquisition Status: Passed Delegate's vote: For Final vote (World): For - 8440; Against - 4736 Final vote (TNP): For - 282; Against - 208; Percentage of WA nations voting: 37.63%

Recommendation: TNP has a demonstrated history of opposing the condemnation of The New Inquisition, specifically during the most recent previous attempt at condemning TNI occurred in 2015 where effectively the same reasoning and text was used to justify the condemnation. While the proposal is fundamentally well drafted, TNP and TNI have developed strong relations and worked productively on many military operations since the acts of TNI mentioned in this proposal. This includes the 2015 defense of Stargate (historically a very close ally of TNP which TNI had no stake in), the invasion and refounding of Nazi Europe in which TNI and TNP are amoung those who jointly maintain the founder nation to this day, as well as the joint occupation of Scotland in 2014. Finally, the proposal appears to fail to mention various acts of the Founderless Regions Alliance committed that contributed to and eventually led to war between the two, and at the very least, placing sole blame on TNI is disingenuous. Generally addressing the recent dispatch that was released regarding the history of the events referred to in this proposal, it is disappointing that TNI did not lament the actions it took against TNP in the past, however it must also be acknowledged that it was not justifying them. In accordance with the reasoning presented above, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote Against this proposal.

Condemn North East Somerset Status: Passed Delegate's vote: For Final vote (World): For - 10615; Against - 2202 Final vote (TNP): For - 439; Against - 42; Percentage of WA nations voting: 36.52%

Recommendation: North East Somerset, herein referred to as NES, is deserving of their condemnation for the various actions they have committed during their career and outlined by the proposed condemnation. These include directly assisting in the coups of The North Pacific, Lazarus, The Rejected Realms, and The East Pacific as well as their undermining of the Founderless Regions Alliance. Further condemnable acts include their involvement in regions which perpetuated unprovoked violence against various regions and their natives, namely Belgium. NES has built a career out of raiding, espionage, and destruction of governments specifically within the GCRs; as such they are very deserving of this condemnation. In accordance with the reasoning provided above, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote For this proposal.

The North Star: Lighting The Way To The Truth Publisher: El Fiji Grande :: Executive Editor: Pallaith :: Managing Editor: Marcus Antonius The North Star is produced by the Ministry of Communications on behalf of the Government of The North Pacific and is distributed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs externally and the Ministry of Home Affairs internally. Except where otherwise indicated, all content represents the views of the Government of The North Pacific. Index of Issues

​

[Dar es Saalam]

General Election Report

by Kaschovia, Election Correspondent

With four months since May now behind us, the North Pacific, over the last few weeks, has undergone its general elections for the Delegate, Vice Delegate, Speaker, and Attorney General positions.



The Candidates


For Delegate: McMasterdonia, Bobberino, Nessuno, and Bormiar.

For Vice Delegate: Artemis.

For Speaker: Gorundu and Dreadton.

For Attorney General: Goyanes, Canton, and Lady Raven Wing.



The Election for Delegate


Following the decision of former Delegate El Fiji Grande not to seek reelection, the position was open to new candidates with new ideas.


Our first candidate, McMasterdonia, an honourable former Delegate and regional veteran, praised the region as one with “tremendous opportunity and success, built through determination, pragmatic decision making, and a belief in the call to serve.” McMasterdonia explained the new level of accountability his cabinet would face regarding their monthly reports, through the creation of external and internal committees, to “to ask questions, seek further clarification, and engage with the content of [the] reports.” McMasterdonia also said he’d appoint a Press Secretary, responsible for “collating information about the day to day activities of the cabinet and the Delegate for public release”, in an effort to encourage transparency of cabinet work and openness of his government to the public. McMasterdonia further detailed his plans for the improvement of the individual ministries, notably: a World Factbook created within the Foreign Affairs ministry to explain and teach prospective junior diplomats about the North Pacific’s regional alliances, interregional events, the return of the Lennarts for the Ministry of Culture, and the improvement of general understanding of W.A.L.L, the World Assembly Legislative League.


McMasterdonia received 71.26% of the vote, therefore elected as our new Delegate.


Next up, Bobberino, our second candidate, the Minister of Defense for El Fiji’s term, sought to bring an energizing shock to the region, and pitched himself as a cutting edge innovator capable of providing said energy effectively. Bobberino outlined his plans and expectations of each ministry, hoping to improve outreach to new members through the Home Affairs ministry, continue to push out quality TNS, TNL, and oversee the revitalization of the Northern Broadcasting Service. Bobberino also outlined his plans to bring fruition to plans of the previous term laid out by Prydania, Minister of Culture, in addition to a defense themed festival known as the “Bobulous Bonanza”. Bobberino, lastly, explains his plans to increase understanding of W.A.L.L, similar to McMasterdonia’s plans for the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs.


Bobberino received 16.09% of the vote, therefore not elected.


Nessuno, our third candidate, TNP’s most famous mythical and appreciated creature, had one simple reason for voters to support him: Because he said so. His ideas for ministries were unorthodox, to say the least, but did provide great amusement in the context of a somewhat straightforward election. His bold, pioneering ideas included: replacing the Ministry of Communications with phone, email, and a new lake, simply just giving him a Lennart, introducing an armoured brigade, a navy, and an air force for use by the North Pacific Army, shutting down the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs, spying on regions that we’d otherwise have good relations with, and steering our Gameside efforts towards a more counterintelligence focused approach.


Nessuno received 11.49% of the vote, therefore not elected.


Our last candidate for Delegate, Bormiar, author of the Security Council resolution to condemn serial trading card hoarder Koem Kab, did not opt to post a campaign, and so it seems their motives to seek election as Delegate, and their plans for the position, will remain a mystery forever more.


Bormiar received 1.15% of the vote, therefore not elected.



The Election for Vice Delegate


With only a single candidate, the election for Vice Delegate was as straightforward as it could have possibly been, with Artemis, our former Speaker and a current member of the Security Council, the only one to run for and be elected to the position of Vice Delegate with 100% of the vote.


Artemis believes in “promising the fundamentals” of the positions he runs for, citing his experience as our former Speaker, Minister of Culture, and current Security Council member. Artemis hopes to continue the weekly updates of the SC activity previously done by Pallaith and Sil Dorsett (former VD), and dedicate a part of those reports to a spotlight feature of a council member in need of an endorsement boost. Artemis finishes his campaign: “I hope to have shown you that I am prepared to take on the office of the Vice Delegate and that I have the ability to do it to the level expected here in the North Pacific.”


The Election for Speaker


Gorundu, our first candidate for Speaker, author of the Instant Runoff Election Bill, and former Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs and World Assembly Affairs, campaigned three key elements: reliability, improvements, and innovation. Reliability in the efficient completion of the bureaucratic tasks a Speaker must perform, improvements to the RA Highlights articles and splitting of Deputy Speakers between experienced and less experienced members, and innovation through a “Know Your Laws” program aimed to members of the region unfamiliar with regional law, yet interested.


Gorundu was elected with 52.24% of the vote.


Dreadton, our second candidate for Speaker, current Justice and former Deputy Speaker, promised to continue to ensure the “speedy resolution” of citizen checks, continue to run the RA efficiently and legally, and improve how the statuses of current bills in the RA were monitored and listed. Dreadton also suggested the creation of a program where the Speaker’s Office assists people who are new to the bill writing process, and guides them to writing successful bills.


Dreadton received 47.76% of the vote and was not elected.


The Speaker election was the closest of them all, with just 3 votes separating the candidates.


It is important to note, as well, that Darcania also intended to run for the position, but later withdrew their campaign. Out of respect for a valid and capable candidate and their campaign, let's see what a Darcania Speakership would have looked like.


Darcania ran for Speaker in January of 2018 and won with a landslide 98% of the vote. Whether or not a result like that would have been replicated or not is for an alternate universe to bear witness, but in ours, we will never know - although it is likely that this result would not have been replicated, given the two other very respectable candidates that were in the running. Darcania hoped to build upon the successes of the previous Speaker, Artemis, were he to be elected. Darcania's campaign emphasized his great experience with administrative, task-based roles in our region, such as former Speaker, and as an Administrator. It is clear that Darcania had the experience, but for reasons, his campaign was withdrawn.


The Election for Attorney General


Goyanes, the now elected Attorney General, received 58.44% of the vote. He ran a concise campaign, not fluffing or wasting words, but simply saying it how it is, and asking for trust. Goyanes pitched himself as proven, effective, and reliable, which seemed to resonate strongly with voters looking for someone with experience, a steady demeanor, and a willingness to serve to their full ability.


Lady Raven Wing, our second candidate for Attorney General, received 36.36% of the vote and was not elected. LRW pledged to actively pursue “the duties of the Attorney General should the need arise,” "to seek justice in the event of a trial", and "pose any legal questions to the court", should they be thought of. Another concise and to-the-point campaign, just not enough to win over the voters.


Our final candidate for Attorney General, Canton, received 5.19% of the vote and was not elected. Canton did not post a campaign.

The Spotlight #22: An Interview with Robespierre

by Krevt, Interviewer

Krevt: Good Evening, Ladies and Gentlemen! Today I am joined by General Robespierre of the North Pacific Army, who has been recently sworn in as the Minister of Defense here in the North Pacific. How are you doing, Robes?


Robespierre: I’ve been doing decently I’d say, although the past week has been exceedingly busy in comparison to most any other week for me. Nonetheless, I’m very happy that I was able to set aside some time for today’s interview as I’m sure it’ll be a good one!


Krevt: Indeed, I’m sure it will be and the Spotlight is great to have you on for this month’s issue. So… We've seen you serve in a lot of positions around the region lately such as Minister of Home Affairs, Deputy Minister of Home Affairs, Deputy Minister of Communications, Deputy Minister of World Assembly Affairs, Election Commissioner, etc. Mind you, this has all been done in such little time, How has the journey been thus far for you over the last four or so months?


Robespierre: It’s been nothing short of phenomenal and I’m happy to have embarked on it. Lots of great people here to help apply pressure in the right places for what I should be doing and overall a very good regional aura here. I’m very proud to call myself a TNP guy.


Krevt: I’m glad to hear that the North Pacific has been good to you in these times, but when you first Joined TNP did you expect yourself to become the most rapidly growing trend amongst the citizens? I ask this because of how quickly you've attained the above-mentioned positions or were you curious about what the region's government and forums had in store for you once you got here?


Robespierre: This may sound a bit arrogant, cocky, or whathaveyou, but please do bear with me as I make an attempt at answering this question. In some ways? Yes, absolutely I expected myself to become one of (if not the) most rapidly growing upstart(s) amongst the citizenry and I’ll tell you why: In my opinion, it’s a mindset thing. You have to go into a given environment truly believing that you’re going to get your name out there and that you’re going to make things better. If you don’t legitimately feel as though you’re the best around then you won’t be - it’s as simple as that. Think of it a lot like you would the quote I have on my main nation’s page that reads “The Secret of Freedom Lies in Educating People.”


If you desire that freedom and you’re looking for a way to unlock that type of potential then a great first step would be to educate yourself about your surroundings. By that, I mean getting a feel for the region, becoming involved early on, seeking out opportunities instead of waiting for those opportunities to pass you by. Who are some of the more well-established individuals in your region? I’ve been fortunate enough to see my profile skyrocket in recent months but I couldn’t have gotten there if I hadn’t put the work in myself and given people the results they were hoping for.


There’s nothing underhanded about being strategic and playing the game smart. If you know where you want to then be upfront about it and actively pursue your goal. This is becoming more and more like a motivational speech so I’ll cut it short here, but what I’m basically saying here is that if you want to be the next Todd McCloud then go ahead and strive for that. I’m no Todd McCloud, obviously, but the point still stands that I’m proof of someone getting to where they’d like to be.


Krevt: Very inspirational! Hopefully, some of our newer faces will be following in your footsteps in due time. I’m sure after reading this they’ll have something to gauge off of, but since you claim to be ‘extremely active’ and ‘exceptionally proactive’ how do you keep yourself motivated for NS? A good example is how some people tend to resign their posts because of work, external pressure, real-life commitments, and a wide variety of other factors.


Robespierre: I don’t think I’ve ever had to resign a government position in the past five years, but I could always be wrong. Usually my memory holds up, so it’s unlikely that I would have, but in either case, I’ve always found that in such scenarios it’s best to concentrate on what you actually enjoy doing. That way, when you come online, you’ll be greeted by something that’ll fulfill you. If you’re busy then just say so, I think people are fairly understanding of that. As the saying goes it’s RL > NS and that rings true always, so don’t get your head in to deep or be up a creek without a paddle. I stay the way I am because I dedicate myself to things I actually enjoy. That’s why I pride myself on being versatile and doing so many things: because I love the community here and I’m happy with my place within it.


Krevt: I’m sure people appreciate your versatility and in many ways, I think that makes you a regional asset. Now, since you’re the incumbent Minister of Defense, I'll ask some major issues which I think should be addressed.


Robespierre: Go ahead.


Krevt: First off, what are some reforms that you’d consider to make NPA a more efficient organization? Regional security is already top-notch, obviously, but there is always room for improvement wouldn’t you say?


Robespierre: Definitely, and that’s always the objective I have in mind when making decisions for my Ministry. I want to make the North Pacific Army a more efficient entity, but at the same time, I also want to make membership to it a more engaging experience. There are a great many ways that the High Command can go about doing just that, but I’ve chosen to have the server undergo a lot of internal renovations that’ll take our updating to the next level regardless of what kind of operation we’re scheduled to be on. That, combined with minor policy changes, is what’ll enrich the experience for soldiers and keep them interested in our affairs.


You can already see this being done with the new NationStates cards incentives that I announced informally at last night’s Executive Staff meeting, as well as with the creation of new ribbons for officers who meet certain requirements tied to mission leadership. All and all, it’s about leveraging positive reinforcement and making ‘work’ not work.


Krevt: As a Sergeant of the North Pacific Army I must confess that I’m excited to see how these new rewards programs will be implemented and what effect that’ll have on participation. Secondly, I’ve noticed the operations that occur nowadays have less NPA participation than they did when I was here before. A look back at military sign up thread will tell you that there are far more soldiers recruited than those who are participating, without much matter be it at major or minor updates. That being said, how do you think you can rectify this issue of less participation?


Robespierre: I don’t think that you can just look at the sheer numbers of our organization and deduce that conclusion as a result of observation. As any Minister of Defense of the past will tell you: you have to look at how your soldiers are participating and not how many of them are participating. Not everyone will agree with me and that’s okay, in fact, that’s the beauty of it. But I would much rather have a multi-faceted update force capable of being jumping at a second’s notice and a piling force with the awareness and attentiveness to reinforce in under twenty-four hours then an overcrowded barrack full of soldiers who are only tag raiding once or twice a week.


It’s about sustaining constant improvement with the people who are showing up and making sure your active soldiers are consistently developing. That’ll ensure the health of the organization long term; if I can get multiple moving parts firing on all cylinders when I need them to do so. Being in a game-created region means that I’ll never have a shortage of personnel and in turn, I have a lot to work with. So instead I’m focused on managing the development of those who do show up.


Krevt: A very nice answer to an interesting dilemma, and one that I hadn’t yet considered to be of relevance to the topic. Do you think the promotion mechanism of the NPA requires some overhaul and to be more linear? Linear in the sense that there can be an activity tracking system by which a soldier can be tracked of his/her achievements and participation and given points. and on the basis of those points, a soldier should be given a promotion. That’s my opinion anyway, so I’d like to get your thoughts.


Robespierre: You may or may not know this, but there is something that tracks that. It tracks various statistics actually, like operation participation, rank, operations lead, alias notes, etc, I don’t think that it need be a linear progression system though, because I’m the Minister of Defense and who gets promoted is entirely subjective and at my discretion. There’s more to look at then just numbers, especially for evaluating leadership potential. So no, I wouldn’t say I agree.


Krevt: Is there something other than NationStates that keeps you nearly as energetic and proactive as you are here? How did you first find yourself coming onto the site?


Robespierre: It’s a funny story really, albeit a boring and underwhelming one, but a funny story all the same. I would imagine that most players are referred here either by their friends/family who already play the game or by Reddit postings. For me, it was different, as I actually sought out the game before the game could be advertised to me. I’ve always had a passion for politics and my desire to discuss and debate the opinions that I hold seems to be undying. Elsewhere, people really aren’t always willing to have those sorts of conversations either because they don’t have the time to do so or because they simply don’t have the patience to do so.


At the end of the day, us talking about all these different ideologies, government types and whatnot doesn’t really matter, right? Well… if you’re me then it does matter and you’d be wrong for thinking otherwise. I think that’s what connects players worldwide and joins them all here on this political simulator game straight out of a web browser: It’s the prospect of being whoever it is that you’d like to be and advocating for whatever viewpoint you’d like to convey unto others. It’s a very powerful thing, I must say, but aside from that my love of business, learning, and music does keep me fairly occupied.


Krevt: What can the people of TNP expect from you and your governance in the coming future i.e what are your future plans within TNP?


Robespierre: My future plans are heavily dependent upon what people would like from me. “Who am I? Well… who do you want me to be?” - the question is: Who do North Pacificans want me to be? If you answer that question I can better answer your question, but for now, I don’t have much to say aside from I’ll do my very best in my current capacity and I’ll continue towards no limit.


Krevt: Ah, I see. That’ll definitely be something to look out for in the near future and I’m almost certain that you’ve got players from around the region who are really counting on you to make an impact in the coming stages of your career just as you have when you first began your time here. Finally, do you have any advice that you would like to give your fellow North Pacificans and soldiers of the North Pacific Army?


Robespierre: You know, as a matter of fact, there is a little bit of something that I’d like to share with everyone reading this. For what it is worth, my piece of advice to you all is this: Don’t ever allow your time on NationStates to become more like a job then it is a source of recreation. If you enjoy completing government work then by all means - please continue to be as productive as some of you guys are being right now. If you enjoy RolePlaying and creating various storyarchs with your friends and foes, then hold onto that because there’s always time for a bit of fun in one’s life. If you enjoy participating in gameplay, raiding and defending, the continue to update regularly and sharpen your skills. Show everyone that you’re the best out there on the battlefield! … While you’re at it, come join one of the oldest, well-organized, most powerful armies that NationStates has ever known.


^^^ I’m totally not bias in saying that, but the point I’m trying to illustrate here is that the game is meant to be enjoyed and that goes for everyone who plays it. If you’re logging in every day and you’re not having fun talking with your region-mates, RolePlaying, tag raiding, spamming, answering issues, podcasting, plotting, or whatever else it is that you do then why even log in at all? I think that the North Pacific especially has something for everyone and I truly do hope that by continuing to play and enjoy myself I’m inadvertently improving someone’s experience of this game. My advice? Always aim for that! Try to enjoy yourself whenever possible and subscribe to positive energy - it’ll serve you better in the long run.


Krevt: Wise words if I’ve ever heard them! Thank you, Robespierre, for taking the time to sit down with the Spotlight this month.


Robespierre: No problem! It’s both a pleasure and an honour to be featured by the North Star and hopefully my long-winded answers didn’t bore all of our readers to death


Krevt: I think it did anything but that, in truth. Anyhow, this has been yet another edition of the Spotlight on the North Star publication! Today it was with Robespierre, but next month it could even be you - find out in coming issues! Good day, and thank you for reading!

NPA Bulletin

by Robespierre, Military Correspondent

Leadership


Minister of Defense (MoD): General [URL=https://forum.thenorthpacific.org/profile/5061368/Robespierre

[/URL]

Deputy Ministers of Defense (DMoDs):

Colonel Koopa and Colonel Trondstorm[/font][/div]

The North Pacific Army's finest line up alongside their friends from the South Pacific Special Forces, the Rejected Realms Army, and the Europeian Republican Navy; excited for a productive day of joint operations

[/font][/I][/div]

SPOILER: Click to show

Private Ocelot was promoted to Private First Class

Major Bobberino was promoted to Colonel

Some of you may have noticed a bit of irregularity as of late, almost as if an uprising is imminent or the air around you has seemed... sweeter than usual. Well, today, as your newest General and supreme commander (that's not a rank), I am tasked with the responsibility to deliver this most unexpected news. What is this news you ask? Is it good? Is it bad? Ehh, I'll let you be the judge of that, but the fact of the matter is this: The waifus have taken over the North Pacific Army and they're not stopping yet!


... I know, I know - don't panic. It'll all be okay as long as we stay calm and greet them openly. Refrain from making any sudden moves and let them do their thing vive la révolution! This'll all blow over soon...


Anyway, onto more pressing affairs! We've hit the ground running these past couple weeks and there's a lot to be proud of! A mere two days after taking my oath, nine soldiers lead by General Gladio took on the target of the thirteenth (13th) of September's featured region. Shortly thereafter, newly-instated Colonel Trondstorm took up the helm at the seventeenth (17) of September's major update and lead another nine troops on a short tag run through six regions. To cap off the week, another hit on a featured region was needed. Little did we know that it would become the featured region until after six soldiers had already stormed the premises, but two regions were hit that update and one of them got to serve as an advertisement for our beloved Floof's update force.


Carrying on, then-Major Bobberino got in on some of the action as well! On the twenty-seventh (27th) of September's minor update, four soldiers embarked out on a one-hitter of the region Devious Tyrant. Thankfully they didn't encounter any tyrant (ret.)'s on the battlefield that day, but a nice hit all the same. Didn't have any time to waste though, as Colonel Koopa got back into the thick of things that major with four hits and a solid backing of ten soldiers. What's better than one team running? Two teams sprinting! ... I think at least. On the twenty-ninth of September's major update, I lead a team and General Darcania lead a team. Four and four, eight soldiers participated, and we racked up another six hits in the process.


We needed a way to end of the month right and so we did that with a stealth operation that saw all of Western Civilization conquered. It was nothing too big on our part, but you can thank us later. Since then, Captain Dinoium has already lead the first raid of spooky season! On the first (1st) of October's minor update, four regions fell at the hands of seven soldiers. Remember when these updates used to be shorter reads? Yeah, I don't either... at least not since I started writing the bulletin. But wait! There's more!


In addition to this, it was announced informally by Minister of Defense Robespierre earlier this week that henceforth the North Pacific Army will now be offering its soldiers a plethora of new bonuses and incentives for outstanding service. These rewards programs, approved by the Office of the Delegate and coordinated with the Northern Light regional nation, will allow members of the Officer Corps increased accessibility to coveted NationStates cards of the legendary rarity and will seek to institute a sort of 'signing bonus' for newly-enlisted personnel.


Since then, the High Command has stated that it will be rewarding officers in increments of every five operations successfully lead and that newer soldiers will be awarded their signing bonus after five training missions are completed. More information about this initiative will be available within the next week via dispatch, but if one thing's for sure then it's that this is a great time to become involved with everything Ministry of Defense!


Lastly, we bring you more exciting news! Over the course of the past three weeks, members of the Generals' Staff have been working tirelessly to ensure that the new term gets off to a strong start. Even in the midst of a transition from one Minister of Defense to the next, progress did not seem to halt for the organization nor did it phase the barrack's men and women. In fact, things seem to be firing on all cylinders as of late, and there is no better example of this than the exemplary work that has been put in by General Darcania to make our Army's server a more secure, serviceable place for our allies from abroad.


With his unique set of skills, our Divine Floof has gone above and beyond the call of duty to transform our internal infrastructure from that of old-fashioned text channels to a fully-functional automated system capable of dividing troops into teams, enabling concurrent missions to be undertaken by two or more triggers, properly citing participants on each time out, and even introducing a new join system that eases soldiers into a mission at the connection of a specified voice channel. With these new innovations comes a more efficient and effective updating force - one that the North is proud to boast. For all of our allies, friends, foes, Floofs, and natives out there: we say thank you!


Regional Assembly Highlights September 2019

by Dinoium, Legislative Correspondent

The North Pacific asking what happened to its flag in the Legal Code.


Speaker: Gorundu^NS

Deputy Speakers: Darcania^NS

Yukkira^NS


VOTING TABLE


EMERGENCY FLAG BILL


Summary of the bill

Due to Tinypic™ shutting down, our flag and coat of arms ended up becoming this image. Deputy Speaker Darcania immediately proposed reverting the images back to their previous conditions.


Goals of the bill

Amending the Flag code to revert the Flag and CoA back to its previous status.


Criticism of the bill

The bill surprisingly has little criticism other than jokes about opposing and the question of allowing the Speaker to update the flag in the future in case of file deletion.


Voting Breakdown

SPOILER: Click to show

]Aye

Xentherida

QuietDad

Great Bights Mum

Zaz

Pallaith

Sil Dorsett

Brendog

Siwale

Malphe

mcmasterdonia

BluieGamer

Dinoium

Syrixia

Artemis

Sanjurika

Drusselstein

Eluvatar

El Fiji Grande

Praetor

St George

Dreadton

Darcania

Scottie

Scorch

Gorundu

Trondstorm

Fregerson

Ali nakhjavani

The Federalist

Wonderess

Kaschovia

Krevt

r3naissanc3r

Yukkira


Nay

Yalkan

Vapia

Lady Raven Wing


Abstain

Lord Lore

THE VEXILLUM BILLUM


Summary of the bill

After years of the same year and due to people begging the question of using the coat of arms on a flag is illegal, Deputy Speaker Darcania and Culture Minister Prydania proposed a new flag.


Goals of the bill

Amending the flag to this.


Criticism of the bill

Many people resisted the change simply because of stubbornness and preferring the current flag over the new proposed one.


Voting Breakdown

SPOILER: Click to show

]Aye

Xentherida

Great Bights Mum

Goyanes

Prydania

Lotion

BluieGamer

Dinoium

Syrixia

Bobberino

St George

Islands of Tonga

Yalkan

Dreadton

Darcania

Scottie

Trondstorm

Lady Raven WIng

Ali nakhjavani

Wonderess


Nay

QuietDad

Zaz

Owenstacey

Pallaith

Sil Dorsett

Crushing Our Enemies

Brendog

abc

Siwale

Aerilia

Malphe

mcmasterdonia

Sanjurika

Bootsie

Eluvatar

El Fiji Grande

Praetor

Haor Chall

Pasargad

Wilkshire

Vapia

plembobria

Robespierre

Gorundu

Illderia

mikim

Inven

Kaschovia


Abstain

Artemis

ACR of Deerfenland

Fregerson

DISCUSSION TABLE


PEACE TERMS ACCEPTANCE AMENDMENT


Summary of the bill

A newcomer Citizen named IkeaRike saw that there was a loophole in our current laws about accepting peace, so he proposed an amendment to fix this.


Goal of the bill

Amends Clause 6.4, Clause 18 of the Legal Code to state that a state of war exists until formal peace treaty, surrender terms, or similar is 2/3rd approved by the Regional Assembly.


Criticism of the bill

Many people see the term "or similar" as too vague, and many people complain about making it 2/3rd instead of the simple 50%+1.


THE BETTER BANNER BILL


Summary of the bill

Due to confusion of when the CoA is authorized to be used, former Vice Delegate Bootsie proposed fixing the issue.


Goal of the bill

Repealing Section 10.1.5 of the Legal Code because of issues when CoA can be used.


Criticism of the bill

People think the CoA should remain a Government-only thing, and even Bootsie has had some difficulty arguing when for the bill due to the many loopholes that exist.


FOI REFORM ACT


Summary of the bill

Former Speaker ABC proposed a bill to amend the current Freedom of Information system.


Goal of the bill

All governmental archives, both from the Executive staff and Speaker office and on both Discord and the Forums, must be released within 30 days after a year it has been posted or made.


Criticism of the bill

Tons of people are against it because of ABC's intentions and the complications of doing it.


DISCARDED BILLS


REGIONAL ASSEMBLY MODERATION


Summary of the bill

A newcomer Citizen named Adom Jersey proposed a bill which in the end due to spam and unnecessary, was locked.


Goal of the bill

Increase the number of members in all of The North Pacific's "departments", whether it be executive, security, home affairs, etc..


Criticism of the bill

It was honestly silly. There was no way to increase the population of our Ministries and there is no "Security Department". In the end, Deputy Attorney General Dinoium requested for it to be locked and was locked by the Speaker.

World Assembly Digest

by Gorundu, World Assembly Correspondent

]General Assembly

Improving the world one resolution at a time

Ban on Forced Sterilisation



Status: Defeated

Delegate's vote: Against

Final vote (World): For - 6374; Against - 7537

Final vote (TNP): For - 180; Against - 343; Percentage of WA nations voting: 39.44%

Recommendation: Despite the good intentions of this resolution, it falls victim to several discrepancies that undermine its own effectiveness. Firstly, Clause 2.1 allows guardians of minors to legally consent to sterilisation on behalf of a minor, undermining the integrity and the spirit of the bill. In addition, several clauses are plagued by ambiguity that again undermines effectiveness. Clause 3.2 requires a state to "reasonably punish people who carry out illegal sterilisation" which does not specify what might count as reasonable punishment. Clause 4 "urges member states to provide reparations for victims of forced sterilisation." Again, this is too vague to be of any effective benefit and ultimately, no reparation is adequate to any sort of degree as there are no proven ways to give back to an individual the biological means to reproduce once sterilized. While this proposal is well-intentioned, it should in essence, be considered a draft for a much larger and more comprehensive bill on the topic of limiting forced sterilization.


In accordance with the reasoning presented above and in hopes of a redraft, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote Against this proposal.

Repeal "Prohibit Private Prisons"


Status: ]Passed

Delegate's vote: ]For

Final vote (World): For - ]10599; Against - 3354

Final vote (TNP): For - ]466; Against - 84; Percentage of WA nations voting: 42.11%

Recommendation: The target resolution is well-intentioned, but possesses many flaws that undermines its effectiveness, as outlined by this repeal. Firstly, the target's definition of "prison" was too narrow in scope, excluding facilities holding prisoners before their conviction and any non-permanent facilities, thus creating loopholes for private prisons to exist, and even incentives for private prison operators to delay trials, encourage arrests, and frustrate the justice process. Furthermore, the target resolution also created several loopholes in its definition of a "private prison", including allowing governments to lease prisons to private operators, and minority ownership and operation of prisons by private entities.


In hopes of a replacement that will better protect inmate rights and regulate private prisons, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote For this repeal. resolution

Security Council

Spreading interregional peace and goodwill, via force if necessary

Condemn Koem Kab



Status: ]Passed

Delegate's vote: ]For

Final vote (World): For - 9628; Against - 2648

Final vote (TNP): For - 423; Against - 69; Percentage of WA nations voting: 37.50%

Recommendation: Koem Kab, as described is worthy of condemnation for their assorted actions in pursuit of their goals in playing the trading cards mini-game. Many of these actions are in direct opposition or strongly disapproved by the majority of the trading cards community. Among these actions is the deliberate hoarding of the cards of certain legendary nations in attempts to ensure that no one else can get any of them, and Legendary cards in general. Additionally, Koem Kab has deliberately inflated the price of many cards in order to artificially raise the value of their own collections and stealing the bank transfers of other card farmers. For future reference, it should be noted that gameplay within this card community is something to behold and acknowledged both in this and future proposals.


For these reasons, and others listed in the Condemnation, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote For this proposal.

Commend Mikeswill


Status: Defeated

Delegate's vote: Against

Final vote (World): For - 2924; Against - 10905

Final vote (TNP): For - 76; Against - 444; Percentage of WA nations voting: 39.82%

Recommendation: The SC proposal at hand is written first and foremost by an author universally disliked by the decent regions and nations of the world for both their various self-aggradizaition and fascist nature. Furthermore, the nominee is being commended almost entirely for holding a regional delegacy for a long period of time, with little to no other notable features noted to their delegacy. Additionally, the proposal has received only the minimum of drafting needed in order to secure legality (with a previous version being illegal as submitted). Finally, the proposal asserts that "this Security Council has honoured nations for far lesser feats," a exceedingly false claim and slander against the names of those so commended by the Security Council.


For these reasons the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs strongly and unconditionally recommends a vote AGAINST the proposal.

The North Star: Lighting The Way To The Truth


Publisher: McMasterdonia :: Executive Editor: Kaschovia :: Managing Editors: Dinoium, Marcus Antonius


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


Index of Issues

[Kuriko]

Thank you for the update, and welcome to XKI!!

[Dar es Saalam]

Thanks for having me! If there is additional content beyond what is published in The Northern Lights, shall I also post it here? We have a pretty great Roleplay Update that comes out less regularly but is full of reports on RP.

[Kuriko]

Oct 9, 2019 12:12:11 GMT -5 Dar es Saalam said:

Thanks for having me! If there is additional content beyond what is published in The Northern Lights, shall I also post it here? We have a pretty great Roleplay Update that comes out less regularly but is full of reports on RP.

Please feel free to do so!! I'd love to read it!

[Dar es Saalam]

Unfortunately this one I cannot seem to get the formatting correct Plain text then.

Announcement: The Epic Gamer Party
The North Pacfic and The Rejected Realms are pleased to announce that we will be co-hosting “The Epic Gamer Party” a fun event open to all. The event will run for one week (October 16 2019 - October 23 2019).

The Epic Gamer Party will be hosted on the Games Server and will include favourite bot games of Rejects and TNPers including Werewolf, Adventure, and Trivia, and other games such as Codenames, Spyfall, and card games - just to name a few.

We will publish a schedule of activities for particular games so that interested players can plan ahead to make sure they are available for their favourite game.

You can join in on the festivities Linkhere

We look forward to your participation and assistance in making this event truly epic.

Kind regards,

McMasterdonia
Delegate of The North Pacific

Kyorgia
Delegate of The Rejected Realms

[Dar es Saalam]

Greetings and Salutations,

Here is this months edition, hope you all enjoy reading it! Also Happy Thanksgiving (soon) for all those in Canada and the United States!

NPA Bulletin

by Robespierre, Minister of Defense

Leadership


Minister of Defense (MoD): General Robespierre

Deputy Ministers of Defense (DMoDs):

Colonel Koopa and Colonel Trondstorm

Troops from the Legio Pacifica of the New Pacific Order arrive at the North Pacific Army's military base stationed on the outskirts of Magicality City in preparation for the East Pacific's liberation effort

SPOILER: Click to show

{Promotions}

Lieutenant Agadir was promoted to Captain

Private First Class Gorundu was promoted to Corporal

Private Greater Saint-Paul was promoted to Private First Class

Corporal Rom was promoted to Sergeant

Warrant Officer (DMoD) Trondstorm was promoted to Lieutenant

Phew! Finally, the waifu uprising has been laid to rest! … If you’ll remember back to the North Star’s last installment of the NPA Bulletin (TNS Issue XII) then you might recall how we had a bit of an epidemic going on for a while there. I have no shame in admitting that at one point they even managed to corrupt yours truly with cuteness, but luckily I’ve since come to my senses and so have most of the other soldiers for the most part. Nonetheless, you still have menaces like Gorundu and Koopa lurking in the shadows; not to mention that mega-nerd Bobberino. They’re always preying on potato peelers in the hopes that they’ll lure them to the animator’s lab >_>


Anyhow, so goes another month of fun in the North Pacific Army! The flavour of this month’s activities? Righteous liberations and coup fighting! (Plus supporting our allies from abroad, that too!) On the fifteenth (15th) of October’s major update troops from the Legio Pacifica of the New Pacific Order, the Ten Thousand Islands Treaty Organization, the South Pacific Special Forces, the Rejected Realms Army, the Europeian Republican Navy, and the East Pacific Sovereign Army all participated in a large-scale joint operation that would later see the East Pacific liberated from the clutches of the tyrannical Fedelegate. The operation was lead by moi with backup triggering assistance from General Zazumo and Colonel Bobberino. All and all, this endeavour was a huge success on the part of our organization and on the part of our allies.


Next up, we have … more defending?! On the twenty-first (21st) of October's minor update, the North Pacific Army, along with the Rejected Realms Army and the South Pacific Special Forces, conducted a set detag operations in which eight regions were hit with two teams. A total of eighteen soldiers participated with twelve of them being from the North’s barracks. We made up for it though, because on the twenty-fourth (24th) of October's major update we embarked on a raiding excursion that saw our soldiers accompanied by the Sekhmet Legion of Osiris. I promise I'm not turning the NPA fenda


With the Ministry of Defense being at its midterm, one can only await what slew of incoming announcements may be coming in the next week. At present, the newly-seated Delegate of the East Pacific, Marrabuk, has distanced himself from transitional Delegate/Vizier Aelitia by a margin of twenty endorsements. In a short address given before the Officer Corps late last night, the Minister of Defense promised to begin withdrawing transitional troops from the East Pacific in the coming days. The High Command is currently monitoring the differential in endorsements for the two East Pacificans so as to ensure that the removal of NPA intervention from the region is sustainable, as forum records currently reflect that approximately thirty-five members deployed to aid TEP sovereignty.


Lastly, as I’m sure many have already noticed: McMasterdonia was seated as Delegate of the North Pacific twenty days ago! In spectacular fashion, the North Pacific Army was able to make their jump on the East Pacific in the same twenty-four-hour time span as they propelled the Delegate-Elect of the North Pacific over the threshold to overtake outgoing Delegate El Fiji Grande. Both Delegacy transitions were strongly aided by the North Pacific’s finest, but we can’t take all the credit in these endeavours because hadn’t it been for fantastic native populations none of this would have been possible. As always, thank you to our natives.


Whether it was upholding treaty obligations, hosting joint operations, liberating GCRs, conducting training missions, teaching upcoming officers how to trigger, or raiding all the livelong day - one thing remains as true a statement as ever: The North Pacific Army is versatile, agile, and hopefully here in the next few days mobile as well Cheers!




Regional Assembly Highlights September 2019

by Kaschovia, Legislative Correspondent

Regional Assembly Highlights, October 2019


Speaker: Gorundu

Deputy Speakers: Yukkira, Darcania


Passed


The proposals that passed through the Regional Assembly in the month of October were the 'Emergency Flag Bill', and the 'Peace Terms Acceptance Amendment'.


Emergency Flag Bill by Darcania


Summary: Due to Tinypic™ shutting down, our flag and coat of arms ended up becoming this image. Deputy Speaker Darcania immediately proposed reverting the images back to their previous conditions.


Results: 34 ayes, 3 nays, and 1 abstention.


Status: Passed


Peace Terms Acceptance Amendment by IkeaRike


Summary: An amendment to Section 6.4, Clause 18 of the Legal Code, this bill clarifies conditions around the recognition of all terms, formal or otherwise, rather than just treaties, that can end a war, and establishing a voting requirement for ending wars through a simple majority vote in the Regional Assembly.


Results: 22 ayes, 9 nays, and 4 abstention.


Status: Passed


Current Business


The proposals discussed for the month of October were the 'Lessening Repeating Work (L.R.W.) Bill', and 'Criminalising Espionage in Our Partner Regions'.


The Lessening Repeating Work (L.R.W.) Bill by Praetor


Summary: An amendment to the way that elections are run in the North Pacific. This bill introduces some grammatical fixes to the election laws, changes the method of election for Court Justices to a preferential voting system instead of first past the post, and includes methods for dealing with candidates that either become ineligible or withdraw during the voting period. This bill additionally deals with instances of ties at the end of the voting period.


Status: In Discussion


Criminalising Espionage in Our Partner Regions by St George


Summary: An amendment to Section 1.2 of the Legal Code, criminalises espionage in all of our partner regions through the rewording of several clauses, so that alliances ratified by the Regional Assembly, and non-aggression pacts, are included.


Status: In Discussion


Clarifying Vagueness in Peace Terms Amendment by Dinoium


Summary: As the title suggests, this proposal aims to amend both a grammatical error, and a vagueness in wording of the Peace Terms Amendment bill passed by the Regional Assembly.


Status: In Discussion

World Assembly Digest

by Brendog, World Assembly Correspondent

General Assembly

[/font][/B]

Improving the world one resolution at a time[/div]

Repeal "Preventing Desertification"


Status: Passed | Delegate's Vote: For

Final Vote (World): For - 11,639 (86.6%); Against - 1,797 (13.4%)

Final Vote (TNP): For - 465 (90.0%); Against - 51 (10.0%)

Percentage of TNP WA nations voting: 39.5%

Recommendation: The target resolution was an attempt to address the damaging consequences of desertification with a call to action on member states to confront the phenomenon within their nation and a grant of authority to the WA Environmental Council to oversee such efforts. Based on the proposed repeal and our previous arguments found during the voting period of the original proposal, we find the measures urged by this proposal both weak and fair ineffective. Various aspects of desertification and the contributing factors therein are generally ignored and vaguely defined when addressed. The duties granted to the WAEC are fundamentally insufficient to address the alleged magnitude of the issue. This has unfortunately created a resolution that is fiscally unproductive and blocks stronger potential legislation on the subject.


Seeing that this proposed repeal is an ends of means for paving the way for new and improved legislation on this topic, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote For this repeal resolution.

Ban on Sterilisation of Minors Etc


Status: Passed | Delegate's Vote: For

Final Vote (World): For - 10,312 (76.7%); Against - 3,139 (23.3%)

Final Vote (TNP): For - 440 (84.5%); Against - 81 (15.5%)

Percentage of TNP WA nations voting: 41.3%

Recommendation: This proposal is intended to fill a gap that was highlighted in previous legislation attempts at addressing the rights those who are seeking surgery to alter their sexual identity. This issue boils down to legal guardians having full authority on the sterilisation of their minors they are legally responsible for. This surgery, by nature, is totally irreversible and therefore requires a high level of scrutiny when making this very sensitive medical decision. As such, this proposal will aim to prevent dangerous and/or coerced surgery that the minor does not want or need. This will reduce possible abuse and give rights to those minors who would otherwise be helpless in this situation should it involve parental/guardian bad actors.


In conclusion, it is great to be able to work with and support Imperium Anglorum as a WALL ally in assisting this proposal in passing. Therefore, in accordance with the reasoning displayed above, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote For this proposal.

Responsible Land Mangement


Status: Passed | Delegate's Vote: For

Final Vote (World): For - 11,351 (76.9%); Against - 3,409 (23.1%)

Final Vote (TNP): For - 481 (91.5%); Against - 61 (8.5%)

Percentage of TNP WA nations voting: 42.8%

Recommendation: This proposal aims to minimize environmentally harmful practices and effects that may lead to desertification. This is achieved through the establishment of a committee that tasks with testing, reporting, and educating member nations so as to how to most effectively deal with the various environmental hazards present in their local region(s). The proposal further targets a few specific scenarios that narrow the scope of the resolution somewhat. While not ideal, this proposal is harmless in application and will work to provide a net gain in environmental awareness and quality to WA member nations.


In accordance with this reasoning, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote For this proposal.

Financial and Economic Education


Status: Passed | Delegate's Vote: For

Final Vote (World): For - 11,435 (84.0%); Against - 2,185 (16.0%)

Final Vote (TNP): For - 482 (91.5%); Against - 45 (8.5%)

Percentage of TNP WA nations voting: 42.0%

Recommendation: The GA proposal "Financial and Economic Education" aims to increase general awareness of important topics such as financial mathematics, currency, and economics, all of which are pivotal concepts that are greatly beneficial to learn. This goal of increasing knowledge among the populace is to be achieved by mandating WA member nations to educate its citizens on these important financial and economic concepts. This acquired knowledge of said concepts can make it significantly easier for those transitioning into adulthood to manage their life and get adjusted to adult living.


Seeing how this proposal is completely beneficial to the greater WA community, the Ministry of WA Affairs recommends a vote For this proposal.

Promoting Natural Sciences in Schools


Status: Passed | Delegate's Vote: For

Final Vote (World): For - 13,316 (91.4%); Against - 1,246 (8.6%)

Final Vote (TNP): For - 483 (85.5%); Against - 82 (14.5%)

Percentage of TNP WA nations voting: 44.9%

Recommendation: The GA Proposal “Promoting Natural Sciences in Schools” aims to promote and provide for the furthering of the teaching of the natural sciences. While this goal is admirable, the proposal falls victim to vague language, incorrect definitions, and troublesome clauses that leave open the possibility of abuse. The definition of 'natural science' becomes an issue because the sciences that are listed refer to various physical and natural sciences instead of exclusively natural sciences as the definition would suggest. This defined science also has zero requirements to be peer-reviewed or validated so as to maintain scientific uniformity across WA member nations. The proposal goes on to refer to the term 'Natural Science' only once before abandoning it after clause 2 for the more general term of 'science' for the remainder of the proposal. Furthermore, Clause 6 allows for religious influence over the aforementioned sciences which further undermines the purpose of this proposal by allowing flawed religious historical beliefs to influence the teaching and understand of natural science which is crucial for a functional, modern society.


In hoping of a redraft or another proposal to cover this important topic, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote Against this proposal.

Security Council

[/font][/B]

Spreading interregional peace and goodwill, via force if necessary[/div]

Repeal "Condemn The Black Hawks"


Status: Failed | Delegate's Vote: Against

Final Vote (World): For - 2,206 (17.6%); Against - 10,271 (82.4%)

Final Vote (TNP): For - 50 (9.7%); Against - 463 (90.3%)

Percentage of TNP WA nations voting: 40.1%

Recommendation: This is the third time that the Security Council has voted upon a repeal of the original condemn The Black Hawks resolution. Raider groups consider condemnations such as this to be a badge of honour, a recognition of the role they play as the villains within the context of military-based gameplay. The original resolution (SC #52) is both of historical significance and is a snapshot in time of The Black Hawk’s early contribution to NationStates. It would be very difficult and unlikely that this resolution, if it were to be repealed, would be replaced by a more detailed resolution that covered that early history of The Black Hawks and their influence on the multiverse.


The Ministry of World Assembly Affairs believes that little has changed since the last repeal attempt of this resolution. The Black Hawks are deserving of both of their condemnations and continue to be a real threat to founderless regions. Therefore the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote Against this proposal.

The North Star: Lighting The Way To The Truth

Publisher: McMasterdonia :: Executive Editor: Kaschovia :: Managing Editor: Darcania :: Coordinator: Marcus Antonius


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


Index of Issues

[Dar es Saalam]

We are aware that not everyone is equally appreciative of image-based NS newspapers. As such, we've included links in the spoiler below to our offsite forum, where each article is provided in full. We hope you enjoy reading this month's issue! If you have any questions, comments, concerns, or suggestions, feel free to telegram the current TNP Minister of Communications Kaschovia or Minister of Culture Prydania.
Click to hide...

Editors' Note: The NS RP Symposium
In this Issue of The Roleplay Reel, we're trying something a bit different. Instead of hosting articles specific to Strangereal and Eras, this Issue is a special edition that focuses on the recent events of the NS RP Symposium. An annual event, the Symposium was hosted by Greater Dienstad and The North Pacific, and featured a wide variety of discussions, lectures, and meetings on a diverse set of topics and ideas relating to roleplay. In case you didn't get the chance to attend the Symposium, we'd like to give you the opportunity to read each of the lectures presented.
The Editors of the Roleplay Reel
Prydania, Syrixia, Kaschovia, and El Fiji Grande

Vexillology in Roleplay
with Highton, TNP Deputy Minister of Culture
Link to article: forum.thenorthpacific.org/topic/9191031/

On IC/OOC Separation
by Ghant, NS RP Symposium Chair
Link to article: forum.thenorthpacific.org/topic/9191039/

Roleplaying Non-Western Cultures
by Syrixia, TNP Deputy Minister of Culture
Link to article: forum.thenorthpacific.org/topic/9191050/

Death of a Region
by Luziyca, Grim Reaper of Esquarium
Link to article: forum.thenorthpacific.org/topic/9191030/

On IIWiki Writing and Roleplaying
by Latin, Founder of Ajax
Link to article: forum.thenorthpacific.org/topic/9191053/

Theologia: Religion, Mythology, and the Essence of Belief in World Creation
by Kylarnatia, National and International Roleplay Mentor
Link to article: forum.thenorthpacific.org/topic/9191063/

Roleplaying on a Regional Message Board
by Friently, Lead TNP RMB RP Moderator
Link to article: forum.thenorthpacific.org/topic/9191062/

On Roleplaying Fascism
by Prydania, TNP Minister of Culture
Link to article: forum.thenorthpacific.org/topic/9191065/

The Art of Worldbuilding
by Goyanes, TNP Forum RP Moderator and Attorney General
Link to article: forum.thenorthpacific.org/topic/9191066/

Losing is Fun: The Art of Losing in NS Roleplay
by Vetalia
Link to article: forum.thenorthpacific.org/topic/9191064/

The Roleplay Reel: Showing the Beauty of Storytelling
Publisher: McMasterdonia :: Executive Editors: Prydania, Syrixia, Kaschovia, and El Fiji Grande
The Roleplay Reel is produced by the Ministries of Communications and Culture on behalf of the RP Community of The North Pacific.

[Dar es Saalam]

Sorry I did not have the proboards code for the roleplay reel post, it is great looking with the photos!

Here is the December Edition of The Northern Lights, Hot off the press!

NPA Report

by Bobberino, War Correspondent

Leadership


Minister of Defense: Trondstorm

Deputy Ministers of Defense: Lieutenant Rom

In a bit of a pivot since the last NPA Bulletin, the North Pacific Army took place in largely raiding operations in the month of November. The waifu takeover of the NPA is still progressing, unlike what Robes will like to tell you… *audibly muffled screams in the back*


Beginning on the 30th of October, we joined our friends in Lazarus in getting them the delegacy of Warzone Australia and briefly holding. We then followed up, in true independent style, by liberating a close ally in Stargate, then pivoting the next update and raiding the region affiliated with Stargate’s raiders in The Anti World Assembly. The next minor update, Deropia put on his best Gladio impression in leading a featured region tag, after which in the major, Agadir led a two-detag run.


After all that, you’d expect the NPA to stop somewhere and fuel up, but we’re too good for that. We then invaded New Western Atlantic for a few days with our friends in Europeia and The West Pacific. After getting bored of sitting there, we decided to tag 5 regions, then 7 more the next day. Then we decided on invading Xedas with The Black Hawks, the Europeian Republican Navy and The West Pacific Armed Forces.


Another day, another tag run. 4 regions were hit on 11/17 and another 4 on 11/19. The next day, the ERN, TBH, NPA and TWPAF got together and did another tag. The next major, we got together with Osiris and amassed 17 tags. Rounding out the month was an invasion of North Ustaynga beginning on 11/23’s major, with the ERN, TBH and LWU all showing up alongside us, which we held for a week.


Whether we were defending treatied allies, raiding with friends or spreading the good news of anime across NS, one can be sure that we are not idle at the NPA. We are as agile, adaptable and coordinated as always. Happy holidays, all!


Spotlight #23 - Interview with Koopa

by Angshire, Interviewer

Angshire: So, first things first, are you new to NationStates? Also, what encouraged you to come to the North Pacific?


Koopa: Im probably around a year old or so, maybe a little more. My nation initially formed in TNP, and after moving around for a while, I eventually found myself back here and ended up staying.


Angshire: Well that's definitely interesting!


Angshire: Did anything in particular bring you back?


Koopa: I guess I always associated it with home, since it was where I started. I was also intrigued by it being a democracy, so I felt like it was a fitting place for what was my relatively small nation to grow.


Angshire: TNP does have a very stable democratic system, that is true.


Angshire: Have you gotten involved in the government, whether in the executive branch or otherwise?


Koopa: I am currently the Deputy Minister of Defense, this being my second term.


Angshire: So you are both a Deputy and an NPA colonel?


Angshire: Quite an impressive resume!


Angshire: So do you have any other goals that you want to accomplish within TNP government?


Koopa: I do hope to become Minister of Defense at some point, and maybe even become a full fledged General down the line.


Angshire: What about the delegacy or anything of that branch of government? Do you see yourself ever ending up there?


Koopa: The delegacy seems like a bit of a stretch, never really had goals in that sector. That being said, I do have a lot of respect for the people who can pull it off.


Angshire: What about the RP section of TNP?


Angshire: Are you active in that area?


Koopa: No, I have yet to engage in the RP sector. I'm not even active on the RMB. Nothing against roleplayers, it's just not my cup of tea.


Angshire: Ah yes, I totally get that.


Angshire: You definitely seem to be very skilled in the defense part of TNP, and I noticed how you have risen through the ranks.


Angshire: Before we wrap this up, do you have any questions you'd like to ask of me, or anything else you'd like to answer?


Koopa: Nothing from me, aside from saying that you have been an excellent host.


Angshire: Why thank you very much!


Angshire: I had a splendid time interviewing you


Regional Assembly Highlights

by Kaschovia, Minister of Communications

Regional Assembly Highlights, November 2019


Speaker: Deropia


Current Business


The current business for the RA for the month of November is the act for Committee Codification by Wonderess (in discussion), and the repeal of the Unicorn Star Accord and the adoption of the Unicorn Star Treaty between the North Pacific and the Rejected Realms.


An Act for Committee Codification by Wonderess


Summary: This proposal aims to grant the Speaker the right to create committees made up of citizens to serve the purposes of the Regional Assembly, the structure and scope of which would be determined by law.


Status: In Discussion


The Unicorn Star Treaty


Summary: A proposal which aims to repeal the Unicorn Star Treaty currently legally in effect, and adopt the new Unicorn Star Treaty in its place, between the North Pacific and the Rejected Realms.


Status: At Vote


Passed


The proposals that passed through the Regional Assembly in the month of November were the repeal of the North Pacific and Albion Security Treaty, confirmations of Siwale and Crushing Our Enemies to the Election Commission, confirmations of Marcus Antonius to the Security Council and 'Criminilising Espionage in Our Partner Regions'.


Repeal of the North Pacific and Albion Security Treaty


Summary: Due to an inactivity that does not seem to be ending on Albion's part, the Regional Assembly of the North Pacific, by majority, has decided to repeal the security treaty shared by the two regions.


Results: 24 ayes, 1 nay, and 3 abstentions.


Confirmation of Marcus Antonius to the Security Council


Summary: Marcus Antonius' confirmation of membership on the Security Council was supported overwhelmingly, despite concern over Marcus' lack of experience in major leadership roles, due to his enthusiasm


Results: 25 ayes, 3 nays, and 5 abstentions.


Status: Passed


Confirmations of Siwale and Crushing Our Enemies to the Election Commission


Summary: The Delegate appointed Siwale and Crushing Our Enemies to the Election Commission, and so the RA discussed and eventually voted to confirm the appointees' membership on the Commission.


Crushing Our Enemies: 26 ayes, 0 nays, and 2 abstentions.

Siwale: 28 ayes, 0 nays, and 2 abstentions.


Status: Passed


Criminalising Espionage in Our Partner Regions by St George


Summary: An amendment to Section 1.2 of the Legal Code, this proposal criminalises espionage in all of our partner regions through the rewording of several clauses, so that alliances ratified by the Regional Assembly, as well as non-aggression pacts, are included.


Results: 34 ayes, 3 nays, and 1 abstention.


Status: Passed

World Assembly Digest

By Deerfenland, World Assembly Correspondent

General Assembly

Improving the world one resolution at a time

Protecting Borrower Rights


Status: Passed

Delegate's Vote: For

Final Vote (World): For: 11,637 Against: 3,020

Final Vote (TNP): For: 464 Against: 78 Percentage of WA nations voting: 39.81%


Recommendation: This proposal aims to alter the way we deal with debt and the ability to repay for those who fall into debt. It achieves this by eliminating the harmful practices that deliberately target those who are in debt, such as criminalising the act of having debt so far as to punishing it via forced labor. While not infringing on member nation's ability to enforce the law, this proposal allows citizens the ability to repay their debts by keeping them out of jail and in the workforce or whatever method they may have to procure the required funds to repay their debts. This proposal also protects citizens ability to make investments with higher risk that would otherwise land someone in jail for making an investment that went negatively. This allows greater investment into small business and otherwise risky ventures that could ultimately benefit the greater community via their success.


In accordance with this reasoning, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote For this proposal.

The Amelioration of Maritime Conditions


Status: Defeated

Delegate's Vote: Against

Final Vote (World): For: 3,286 Against: 11,679

Final Vote (TNP): For: 132 Against: 426 Percentage of WA nations voting: 43.83%


Recommendation: The Amelioration Of Maritime Conditions has the laudable intent of monitoring and reducing the number of pollutants released by member nations into the hydrosphere, however, it fails in properly executing that goal. The Ministry has reviewed the proposal and has found that its scope is too narrow to have any meaningful effect, as it only requires the governments of member nations to record the pollutants they release into water supplies. The Ministry also believes that the pollutant reduction target is poorly set, as the "recorded international average" is a poor metric to use when setting international targets. The mandate of reducing the pollutants by this arbitrary value is also very difficult to enforce given that exactly recording 'any and all' pollutants is an unreasonable task. Further, a committee is perhaps a better option here, by handling the collection and distribution of the data and working specifically with member nations to reduce their pollution where possible.

For these reasons, and in hopes that a redraft will occur, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote against the proposal.




Convention On Animal Testing


Status: Passed

Delegate's Vote: Against

Final Vote (World): For: 7,621 Against: 7,310

Final Vote (TNP): For: 190 Against: 356 Percentage of WA nations voting: 42.62%

Recommendation: Convention on Animal Testing is well-meaning in its attempt to place ethical restrictions on the use of animal test subjects, however, the Ministry is unable to recommend support at this time. Upon close inspection, the proposal would seem to allow for undue pain and suffering caused by negligence. It should also be noted that the proposal requires that "all procedures" be documented and reported to the World Assembly Bioethics Board. Without a proper definition, the Ministry believes this to be an overreach and would include something as simple as shaving fur for future placement of testing devices. Further, it is concerning that the World Assembly Bioethics Board appears to acts as a judicial entity; while this is something that extant legislation has done in the past, we must question the necessity of the practice in regards to a subject such as animal testing.


For these reasons, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote against the proposal.

Security Council


Spreading interregional peace and goodwill, via force if necessary

Commend Grays Harbor

Status: Passed

Delegate's Vote: For

Final Vote (World): For: 11,013 Against: 2,464

Final Vote (TNP): For: 459 Against: 45 Percentage of WA nations voting: 39.56%

Recommendation: Gray's Harbor has been a long time member of the NS community who has shown extensive activity in a notable UCR, contributed multiple proposals and GA illegal proposal shenanigans, and is a seasoned RnDer. GH possesses the longest tenure of any other delegate in the new defunct The Heartland in which they helped saved them in 2003 by brokering a deal with Texas and Wysteria to protect The Heartland from invading forces. GH has also passed three General Assembly proposals and established the "Illegal Proposals" thread in the WA forums which became a quickly growing repository of humorous and silly proposal attempts in the GA. Finally, GH has a history as a defender who participated in various notable events as well as designing and a world map for the regions he was involved in.


In line with the reasoning above, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote For this proposal.

Condemn Atlantic

Status: Passed

Delegate's Vote: For

Final Vote (World): For: 10,050 Against: 3,223

Final Vote (TNP): For: 469 Against: 42 Percentage of WA nations voting: 39.82%

Recommendation: The Atlantic is a region with a demonstrated history of unbridled imperialism in the NS R&D sphere. Throughout their history they have threatened and invaded close allies and friends of TNP including Europe, The South Pacific, The West Pacific, and The Rejected Realms. Numerous UCRs were also harmed by repeat invasions so much that they were reduced to bits and pieces of their former selves. This behavior in this context is unacceptable, especially so when done to allies of TNP.


In accordance with the reasoning above, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote For this proposal.

Liberate Aurelia

Status: Passed

Delegate's Vote: For

Final Vote (World): For: 12,414 Against: 2,236

Final Vote (TNP): For: 486 Against: 52 Percentage of WA nations voting: 41.83%

Recommendation: For sake of clarity in this IFV, Aurelia is the region that was invaded and is being liberated, and Auralia is the invading force that is the aggressor.


The region known as Aurelia has been under the tyrannical control of the similarly-named Auralia for nearly a year. In this time, the invaders have been banjecting the natives, clearing World Factbook entries, suppressing RMB posts, and password-protecting the region to prevent the original inhabitants from reclaiming it. The primary cause for this liberation stems from the fact that the region of Auralia has expressed its desire to refound Aurelia, wiping out all of the region's history and culture permanently. Additionally, Auralia is founded by the individual known as Nephmir, who is known for various acts of attempted raiding and threats against a number of GCRs and UCRs, including 'war' with TWP. They, and their childish creations, should not be allowed victories.


Given the reasons above, the Ministry of the World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote For this proposal.

The North Star: Lighting The Way To The Truth

Publisher: McMasterdonia :: Executive Editor: Kaschovia :: Managing Editor: Marcus Antonius


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


Index of Issues

[Dar es Saalam]

Due to the Actions of the CCD, the following statement and actions have been taken:

Statement on the Confederation of Corrupt Dictators operations against The North Pacific

The North Pacific has uncovered an undercover espionage operation (dubbed “Operation 84”) which was orchestrated by the Confederation of Corrupt Dictators against The North Pacific starting in December 2018. At the order of regional founder [nation]Jocospor[/nation], two agents from the Confederation of Corrupt Dictators, Castelia (a Supreme Council member of the Confederation of Corrupt Dictators) and The Inquisitor, joined The North Pacific under the assumed names Artemizistan and Ikea Rike with the ultimate goal of securing The North Pacific’s delegacy. [nation]United Massachusetts[/nation] was also recruited by Jocospor to serve as a mentor/handler of Castelia’s operation.


Ikea Rike’s cover was blown immediately upon joining The North Pacific when they applied for an embassy between The North Pacific and the Confederation. Nevertheless, Ikea Rike continued with the operation for almost a year and made regular reports to Jocospor. Artemizistan’s operation appeared to have been underway for approximately six months and was not immediately known to us. Neither operation was a success with both agents not rising beyond the ranks of junior members of the executive staff.


The Chuck, a former administrator of the discord server of COCD has provided us with damning supporting evidence, including screenshots. This evidence is extensively detailed in The North Pacific’s official report on this incident which can be read here. You will also see many of these screenshots be presented in proceedings against the foreign agents in the Court of The North Pacific. We were also given testimony from United Massachusetts, which will assist us in prosecuting the agents involved.


The motive appears to be Jocospor’s desire to turn The North Pacific into a puppet state of the Confederation and to end his region’s presence on the Civil Defence Siren, a warning system utilized by the feeders to discourage players from joining fascist regions.


While this effort was poorly executed and ultimately came to nothing, it was an outrageous violation of The North Pacific’s sovereignty and will not be tolerated. To that end, I have ordered military strikes on six regions affiliated with the Confederation of Corrupt Dictators, and have filed indictments against the individuals involved. We will continue to target the Confederation of Corrupt Dictators itself with our retaliatory recruitment and will strike against any region that maintains any ties with the Confederation of Corrupt Dictators.


It is clear from this plot that the Confederation of Corrupt Dictators, with Jocospor at the helm, has delusions of grandeur and empire. Its rhetoric regarding the common nation and opposition to elites rings hollow. It is not a region led by a pretend fascist, but an actual fascist, one who consorts with neo-nazi groups in secret, beyond the knowledge of even his Supreme Council.


We continue to oppose this direction and will continue to stand up against fascist forces in NationStates. We will not stand for this inexcusable behavior, whether it is directed at us, our allies, or our neighbors in this game. And we call on all regions to take the same stand.


Yours sincerely,


[nation]McMasterdonia[/nation]

Delegate of [region]The North Pacific[/region]

[Kuriko]

Jan 20, 2020 9:42:40 GMT -5 Dar es Saalam said:

Due to the Actions of the CCD, the following statement and actions have been taken:

Statement on the Confederation of Corrupt Dictators operations against The North Pacific

The North Pacific has uncovered an undercover espionage operation (dubbed “Operation 84”) which was orchestrated by the Confederation of Corrupt Dictators against The North Pacific starting in December 2018. At the order of regional founder [nation]Jocospor[/nation], two agents from the Confederation of Corrupt Dictators, Castelia (a Supreme Council member of the Confederation of Corrupt Dictators) and The Inquisitor, joined The North Pacific under the assumed names Artemizistan and Ikea Rike with the ultimate goal of securing The North Pacific’s delegacy. [nation]United Massachusetts[/nation] was also recruited by Jocospor to serve as a mentor/handler of Castelia’s operation.


Ikea Rike’s cover was blown immediately upon joining The North Pacific when they applied for an embassy between The North Pacific and the Confederation. Nevertheless, Ikea Rike continued with the operation for almost a year and made regular reports to Jocospor. Artemizistan’s operation appeared to have been underway for approximately six months and was not immediately known to us. Neither operation was a success with both agents not rising beyond the ranks of junior members of the executive staff.


The Chuck, a former administrator of the discord server of COCD has provided us with damning supporting evidence, including screenshots. This evidence is extensively detailed in The North Pacific’s official report on this incident which can be read here. You will also see many of these screenshots be presented in proceedings against the foreign agents in the Court of The North Pacific. We were also given testimony from United Massachusetts, which will assist us in prosecuting the agents involved.


The motive appears to be Jocospor’s desire to turn The North Pacific into a puppet state of the Confederation and to end his region’s presence on the Civil Defence Siren, a warning system utilized by the feeders to discourage players from joining fascist regions.


While this effort was poorly executed and ultimately came to nothing, it was an outrageous violation of The North Pacific’s sovereignty and will not be tolerated. To that end, I have ordered military strikes on six regions affiliated with the Confederation of Corrupt Dictators, and have filed indictments against the individuals involved. We will continue to target the Confederation of Corrupt Dictators itself with our retaliatory recruitment and will strike against any region that maintains any ties with the Confederation of Corrupt Dictators.


It is clear from this plot that the Confederation of Corrupt Dictators, with Jocospor at the helm, has delusions of grandeur and empire. Its rhetoric regarding the common nation and opposition to elites rings hollow. It is not a region led by a pretend fascist, but an actual fascist, one who consorts with neo-nazi groups in secret, beyond the knowledge of even his Supreme Council.


We continue to oppose this direction and will continue to stand up against fascist forces in NationStates. We will not stand for this inexcusable behavior, whether it is directed at us, our allies, or our neighbors in this game. And we call on all regions to take the same stand.


Yours sincerely,


[nation]McMasterdonia[/nation]

Delegate of [region]The North Pacific[/region]

Sad to hear that this happened to TNP, and we're glad you were able to figure this out before they got too far. If TNP needs anything please don't hesitate to ask and we'll try to help .

[Dar es Saalam]

Thanks for your support! Due to.... recent internal events in CCD, I hope they will focus on themselves going forward!

Here is January's Issue:

Code:

NPA Report

by Rom, War Correspondent

Leadership





Minister of Defense: Trondstorm



Deputy Minister of Defense: Colonel Rom

During the month of December, the NPA participated in a variety of operations. Whether it was going on tag runs, doing some detags, raiding regions with our allies, or partaking in a liberation or two, we definitely had plenty of operations to do in December.







Having just wrapped up our hold in Cretanja Queendom with our allies, we decided to go on a joint tag run with TBH on the 7th of December. In this joint tag run, there were three teams of tag raiders that consisted of both TBH and NPA soldiers, and we were able to tag well over 40 regions between the three teams. We also participated in another raid with TBH, and other allies including the ERN, LWU, LKE, and Balder. With NPA soldiers and soldiers from those allied militaries, we partook in a raid of Cretenja Kingdom during the 22 of December. The NPA would also proceed to stay in the region, and help our friends hold the region until the conclusion of that operation.







The NPA also did several solo operations during the month of December as well, including several tag runs, a detag run, some liberations, and a successful defense as well. During the month of December, we did five tag runs, and tagged a total of 16 regions. Besides the tag runs, we also did a detag run, where we detagged 5 regions. We also liberated our close ally Stargate on the 23rd of December. Other operations the NPA did over December was a Liberation of the region The Tyrannian Empire, where we thwarted a refound attempt that was made by The Vedigothic Imperium during the December 16 Major. During that same update, the NPA also successfully defended a region, World Alliance of Kingdoms and Empires, from a TVI invasion, that one with the help of TITO.







The NPA concluded 2019 with a tag run on the 27th of December, where we tagged a total of 4 regions. We had a very great 2019, where we continued to partake in a wide variety of operations, and we kept ourselves very busy over the last year.





The Spotlight #24 - Angshire

by El Fiji Grande and Angshire

El Fiji Grande[/font]: What made you decide to join TNP?





Angshire: Well, my nation Angshire was founded here. I decided to start getting involved in the community, first with roleplay, and then with government.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: When joining NS, nations are bombarded by recruitment telegrams. What about our community made you decide to stay?





Angshire: One of the telegrams that I received told me to block out all recruitment telegrams, which I did.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: It took you nearly three weeks to gain citizenship due to a duplicate account issue. What was that all about?





Angshire: Well, it was my older brother who introduced me to NationStates, and we shared a computer. He was involved in TNP as well, but not to the extent I am.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: Right, that sucks. Did you have to kick him off? XD





Angshire: He went off to college starting this September. Which was when I started actively playing and when I founded my main nation.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: You appeared on the RMB posters for the executive staff Home Affairs telegram list. Did this reach you/influence your decision to apply for the executive staff?





Angshire: Quite frankly, I don't remember the TG I recieved from Home Affairs. What made my decision to join executive staff was someone recommending it to me on the TNP RP server.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: I expected as much, but I figured I'd ask. Who recommended you join the RP server?





Angshire: I believe I found it after I joined the TNP main server, linked to the NS factbook.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: Right. Which roleplays have you taken part in since joining?





Angshire: Mainly RMB based ones. Strangereal, Hestis, Tempest Alpha, and Facet, all of which are RMB-based.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: For those who don't know, can you explain the major themes behind each of those RPs?





Angshire: Well, Strangereal is based on the modern world, similar to Eras. Hestis was based on the classical world, but I have no idea if Hestis is still running, or if it got discontinued. The rest, I presume, are also based on the modern world.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: Between October 9 and October 21, you became a member of all executive staff ministries. Is there a reason you didn’t apply to all of them all at once?





Angshire: Originally, I joined the Ministry of Culture. After being there for a couple of days, someone else recommended I joined Comms and WA Staff, which I did. Eventually, like a week or so later, someone else recommended that I join all of the ministries, so I could see which ones I liked and disliked. I ended up joining them all, and have decided to stay in them all.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: That's good news for TNP



You applied for TNP University Senatus on October 28. While the Senatus is now obsolete, do you have any plans to expand your thread on the Basics of Statistics into a full course?





Angshire: I don't know what I plan to do with that.



TNP University is obsolete now, you say?





El Fiji Grande[/font]: No. Just the Senatus plan that was pre University re-integration with TNP government.



You showed strong support for Marcus Antonius’ SC vote on Oct 28, 2019. What do you look for in a Security Councillor?





Angshire: My biggest concern for a Security Councillor, or for any governmental position for that matter, is activity. While Marcus might have been new to TNP relative to other members of the council, he has consistently shown that he is active and eager to engage in the TNP community.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: McM appointed you to the External Affairs Oversight Committee. Can you describe your role as a member of this committee?





Angshire: In all honesty, the External Affairs Committee has been relatively inactive. The chair, St George, recently resigned, so we are currently electing a new chair as of now.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: Ideally, what do you think its role should be?





Angshire: I think it's best role is to ensure that the management and administration of WA Affairs, Foreign Affairs, and Defense are being conducted with integrity, honesty, and in the best interests of the region and the citizens.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: What is your opinion of the oversight committee process - back when it was more active, that is?





Angshire: I believe that it had potential, and I still believe it does, but it seems to have taken a back seat to the ministries, both then and now.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: In your opinion, are Ministry reports useful for government transparency?





Angshire: Most definitely. I believe the citizenry is entitled to know what goes on the region and the decisions that TNP is making.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: Let's move on. On Oct 30, you started the Count to 10 until Angshire posts thread. Do you enjoy spam games?



You’ve lost 25 times (so far) in that thread. How much does losing there irritate you?





Angshire: I did for a little while, like 2 weeks. Then I ended up getting busier with other governmental things.



Speaking of, I need to check that thread, I haven't checked it in days.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: On Nov 2, you decided to run for Justice. What did running a campaign to teach you about TNP’s elections?





Angshire: Well, me running for Justice definitely gave me a firsthand experience of what the election process is like, how votes are counted, how declarations of candidacy are made, etc. I believe that my experience running directly contributed to and was essential to my appointment as Election Commissioner.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: As I’m sure you’re aware, Marcus Antonius once ran a campaign for Justice as a newcomer as well. Did his campaign influence yours in any way?





Angshire: Bold of you to assume I was aware of that. Jokes aside, I think what I really focused on with my platform was trying to answer all questions as honestly and to the best of my ability as possible.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: I had thought he may have encouraged you to stick with it and un-withdraw from the race. Could you discuss your thinking on what made you decide to run again then?





Angshire: I forget who it was, I think it was Bob, but someone told me that, even if I didn't expect to win, the learning experience would be worth it in the long run.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: You ran on a platform of Activity, Fairness, and Loyalty. In your mind, why are those important qualities for a justice to possess?





Angshire: Activity is, in my opinion, the most essential, as a judge who rarely shows up is hardly a judge at all. You have to be actively engaged in this situation to deliver the best verdict. As for fairness and loyalty, I believe that both of those are linked to integrity and transparency, acting in the best interests of the region, regardless of personal preferences, being fair and just to both parties.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: You stated in your campaign that you “think it is important to increase the role the citizens play in the government’s operation.” What do mean by that, and how can future administrations improve?





Angshire: My biggest concern, and probably my first priority if I were ever to be elected to a higher governmental office, would be to increase citizen participation in the Regional Assembly, most likely through telegrams via Home Affairs. Additionally, I believe that the power the Regional Assembly plays in government operation should definitely be increased, whether that be through referendums or increased checks and balances.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: Interesting.



You obtained roughly ⅓ of the vote, putting you second to last, above Bobberino’s campaign. What do you think was the biggest reason that made voters vote for you?





Angshire: Most likely, I think voters voted for me for one of two reasons: either they wanted to see a fresh face in government, or they knew me through my heavy involvement in RP. A lot of the votes I received were from other RMB RPers.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: On Nov 5, 2019, you nominated yourself for Newcomer of the Year. You later also nominated yourself for Best Tourist Destination and for having the Best Flag. - You nominated yourself for the Judicial race and again for the Lennarts. You’re definitely not the only one to have done it, but why do you keep nominating yourself for things?



(TNP has a tradition of getting others to nominate you first)





Angshire: Putting myself out there is something I have been doing. I nominated myself for Newcomer as I believed I had a chance of winning. As for Tourist Destination, I had a high in-game tourism stat, and for best flag, one of the other RMB RPers nominated themselves, so I did too. And as for the Judicial race, nominating myself was the only way I would've gotten it: I was a fresh, relatively unknown player in TNP at the time, so it would have been unlikely that someone else would have nominated me.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: For what it's worth, I nominated myself for Best Flag too, so you're not alone



Also on Nov 5, 2019, you applied for the University, and you were accepted the same day. I know I already asked you about the University Senatus - What makes you interested in TNP’s University?





Angshire: At the time, the TNP University was the only major TNP institution I wasn't actively involved in yet. Additionally, at the time, a lot of the TNP University things were new, and I believed that with my experience in other ministries I could help out and gain some experience as well.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: On Nov 14, 2019, you applied to join the NPA and you were accepted the same day. What influenced your decision to join?





Angshire: Someone on the discord encouraged me to join, and I did.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: Since you didn’t have any experience with R/D when you joined, what is your opinion of the training program?





Angshire: I believe it to be beneficial.



I think, based on my own experience, the best way to learn with the NPA is learning through experience.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: Have you found someone to mentor you there?





Angshire: Not really, whenever I joined I immediately took part in an operation. It was more like everyone was my mentor.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: On Nov 16, 2019, you were promoted to Private First Class after your first raid with the NPA, which hit nine targets. What’s your rank now?





Angshire: I am still a Private First Class.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: I noticed that you've got several hundred endorsements. It suggests you may not be as active in the NPA going forward. What are your thoughts on your future in the NPA?





Angshire: Well, here's the thing: I believe I told you before because I'm in radio, but I don't have regular access to a computer currently. I have a chromebook but eh...and doing ops through mobile is practically impossible.



I don't know whether I'll ultimately choose to stick with NPA or endotarting, it all depends on government positions that I take and my schedule.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: On the topic of NS Cards, you obtained your own NS card through the TNP Great Card Giveaway due to your Keeper status. What is your opinion of the program?





Angshire: I personally believe that this program not only has a lot of potential but has also raised involvement in the community. It has gotten players who spend more time on the actual game to get involved in TNP politics, and I think that it is great. Definitely the best thing that McM has done during their term.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: What makes you interested in cards?





Angshire: Idk to be honest, I just find it to be a sort of fun minigame in NS. It's something to do when there are no issues to answer.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: Do you think NS Cards are a suitable reward for participating in regional programs?





Angshire: It totally depends on whether the person receiving the cards is into it or not. But I think as of now it is the best available reward.



The amount of activity in the Cards Guild is amazing, and it really shows the nations of TNP have some real dedication to cards.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: Are they enough to motivate you to do tasks?





Angshire: Sure, kinda. They're not the primary motivator.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: What is?





Angshire: My biggest motivator is the possibility of getting noticed by the higher government ranks so I can be nominated for other things. I love trying to make TNP a great experience for all, and I love trying everything I possibly can.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: Fantastic! And you've been doing a great job of that



On Nov 19, 2019, you applied to join the NS Cards Guild. You were accepted two days later, on Nov 21. Shortly thereafter, you were appointed to become Deputy Guildsmaster by Praetor. What do you believe led him to select you for the role?





Angshire: I think the main thing was my activity. While I certainly don't have the experience, the knowledge, or the skill of the other Deputies, I think what I bring to the table is an undying dedication to be an active participant.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: You certainly are active. What are your responsibilities as Deputy Guildmaster?





Angshire: Deputy Guildmaster is slightly different in terms of responsibilities than other Deputy executives in that, for the most part, the Deputy Guildmasters don't have so much to actually do, like make forum posts. The main thing we do is discuss ways to better reach out to the community, discuss events with cards, reward programs, etc.



We are kinda similar to the Ministry of Culture, but with a hyperfocus on Cards and a tie to reward programs.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: How does one become a Deputy Guildsmaster?





Angshire: Prae simply messaged me asking if I wanted to be a Deputy, and I said yes. My assumption is that Deputies are tied to the Guildmaster, like other ministry Deputies being tied to the Minister.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: For those who don’t know, can you explain what the Card Lottery, the Card Giveaway, the Market Watch, and the Card Queries page are?





Angshire: The Card Giveaway is for Guild members only - basically, you can request any non-legendary card you want, and when our farmers get it, then it is delivered.





The Card Lottery, on the other hand, is for Keepers of the North, rewards for exchanging endorsements and voting on WA resolutions.





The Market Watch, as the name suggests, gives statistics about the current card market in the form of plots and graphs. It includes card values, trades, deck values, and historical records for all of the above.





The Card Queries page can be found on the actual NS forum and basically helps you narrow down your search and find specific cards. For example, if I wanted to find the cards of commended WA nations, I could use the queries page to find it.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: How can someone who is new to the game start building a deck? How can they optimize their likelihood of winning a card here in TNP?





Angshire: I'd say the first step is to join the Card Guild. The people in the Card Guild are very experienced and could easily help guide a new player through the experience.



To optimize their winnings, just becoming a Keeper of the North helps tremendously.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: On Dec 2, 2019, you won a legendary on Day 2 of the 31 Days of Legendaries program. Your total deck value is now 99.66. Are you relying on a team of puppets, or can the majority of the growth be attributed to TNP’s card programs?





Angshire: My DV is almost entirely attributed to TNP card programs. All of the legendaries I have were obtained through TNP.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: On the subject of Foreign Affairs, you serve as ambassador to Forest. Forest is a relatively calm, quiet region as compared to some. Do you think such a region is best as the first assignment for someone new to the ministry, or would you have preferred a more engaging assignment?





Angshire: I definitely think that Forest is a suitable region for a first assignment. It isn't too much to handle and it helps an ambassador adjust.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: On Nov 5, you claimed the Spotlight interview #23 for TNS XIV. By the 29th, you completed your draft, having interviewed Koopa. How would you rate the experience?





Angshire: Not gonna lie, I didn't prepare enough for it. A lot of the questions I winged it, and I think that contributed to the relative lackluster quality of my interview.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: You shouldn't put yourself down like that - I thought your interview with Koopa was alright.



On Dec 4, 2019, you swore an Oath of Office to become Deputy Minister of WA Affairs, revitalizing the ministry with fresh blood. It’s been nearly a month since you became a deputy minister in WA Affairs - how is it going so far?





Angshire: Quite honestly I believe that, even though I have done some work, I haven't done as much as I'd wanted to. Personally, I also believe that two people in particular have shown dedication and activity exceeding my own: Deropia and Concrete Slab.



But, overall, it has been nice.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: Is WA Affairs the Ministry you're most interested in given your position there as Deputy Minister?





Angshire: As of now, yes. However, that could change, depending on if I get appointed in other ministries.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: nods I'll keep you in mind for Radio



On Dec 8, 2019, you were appointed to be an Election Commissioner by McMasterdonia. By Dec 14th, you were confirmed by the Regional Assembly. What makes you excited to take on the role?





Angshire: As always, I was excited to try out something new.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: In your mind, why is the election commission important?





Angshire: The Election Commission is not just important, it's necessary - having a group of trusted individuals who are able to cross-check each other ensures transparency, which is of the utmost importance.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: Of course. I'm glad to hear it from you.



Recently, on Dec 19, 2019, you approached McM and Prydania about having a Christmas-themed flag for TNP. What sparked the idea?





Angshire: I noticed other feeder regions with Christmas flags, and I thought, "Hey, TNP should have one too!" And one thing led to another.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: It's really cool the way it turned out. Thanks for the suggestion.





Angshire: My pleasure!





El Fiji Grande[/font]: That more or less brings us to the present. In the last three months, you’ve made an incredible mark on TNP as a newcomer. You’ve posted more than 400 times on both the RMB and the forum. You’ve really become a member of our community. Do you have any advice for other newcomers looking to get more involved?





Angshire: My biggest suggestion is to get involved in as much as you can. If that means trying out all the ministries until you find something that calls to you, then so be it.



And the biggest thing is to stay active. If I wasn't as active as I was my first couple of months, I likely wouldn't be anywhere close to where I am now.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: What can we look forward to from you in the future? Do you have any interest in running for elected office?





Angshire: I do eventually want to run for Delegate. However, that would be in the distant future, like in 2022. Hopefully I can be appointed as a Minister of some of the ministries, and maybe even become a VD before going for the Delegacy.



As for the near future my biggest goal is to be a Minister.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: I look forward to it!



And as a three-time former (and I suppose current) Minister and former delegate, I'd be happy to mentor you as you continue to advance in TNP.



I want your take: is the color of your forum name red or orange?





Angshire: I...I have no idea!





El Fiji Grande[/font]: Alas, it shall fore'er remain unresolved.





Angshire: Indeed.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: Your forum motto is that "Saying things in French makes you sound more cultured."



Why do you think that's true?





Angshire: My nation's motto in RP is "Longue vie au roi", which means "Long live the King" in French



And let's face it, "Longue vie au roi" just sounds fancier





El Fiji Grande[/font]: It does, it does.



What’s one question you’d like to be asked that I’ve overlooked?





Angshire: Maybe one question would be about me being one of the supervisors for the current election.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: Can you answer your own question?



For instance: What is it like to be a supervisor of the January elections?



Do you expect to encounter any challenges in performing the role?





Angshire: Well, me and Sil are the supervisors of the elections, and it'll be both of our first times. So far, it seems interesting and Siwale has guided us both through the steps.



Since McM is very likely to be re-elected, I expect no real challenges from the delegacy part of the election.





El Fiji Grande[/font]: Well, that's all I have. Thanks so much for taking the time to conduct this interview with me. Do you have any final thoughts?





Angshire: No, I think everything has been covered! Thanks for the opportunity for an interview!





El Fiji Grande[/font]: You're welcome!





Regional Assembly Highlights

by Gorundu, Legislative Correspondent

Regional Assembly Highlights, December 2019





Speaker: Deropia



Deputy Speakers: Bobberino, Kaschovia







Current Business





Total Term Limits Act by abc





Summary: This proposal aims to impose a total term limit of two terms for Delegates instead of the current consecutive limit of two terms. Although the author indicated he would be willing to increase the proposed total term limit, the bill was faced with widespread opposition, with the primary reasons given being that it would reduce competition and increase the chance of an incompetent Delegate. Just a few hours later, the author indicated he would like to withdraw the bill from consideration, which resulted in discussions on the Speaker's ability to table (withdraw) bills as rules were unclear. No subsequent action has been taken yet.





Status: In Discussion





Passed





Confirmation of Angshire, Sil Dorsett, Scottie, Dreadton and Darcania to the Election Commission





Summary: Due to the rapidly decreasing number of Election Commissioners due to inactivity and term expiry, Delegate McMasterdonia appointed five new Election Commissioners in a short timeframe to ensure the number of Election Commissioners will not fall below the minimum requirement of five for some time. All five appointees were confirmed, though some felt the process was rushed and the appointees have not sufficiently answered all questions, leading to an objection to vote in the case of Scottie.





Results



Angshire: 16 ayes, 3 nays, 6 abstentions



Sil Dorsett: 24 ayes, 0 nays, 3 abstentions



Scottie: 16 ayes, 4 nays, 7 abstentions



Dreadton: 21 ayes, 0 nays, 6 abstentions



Darcania: 26 ayes, 0 nays, 1 abstention





[URL=https://forum.thenorthpacific.org/topic/9191479/[URL=Revision of the Criminal Code to include Perjury

[/URL] by Deropia





Summary: Following a trial in which the defendant presented likely falsified evidence, Deropia proposed to make perjury a criminal offense, separate from the existing crime of fraud, with more specific punishments designated. It is currently at vote where it is expected to pass.





Results: 40 ayes, 0 nays, 2 abstentions[/div]





World Assembly Digest

by Rocketdog, Deputy Minister

General Assembly



Improving the world one resolution at a time

Repeal "Ban on Secret Treaties"



Status: Failed | Delegate's Vote: Against



Final Vote (World): For - 5,507 (37.0%); Against - 9,385 (63.0%)



Final Vote (TNP): For - 106 (20.1%); Against - 421 (79.9%)



Percentage of TNP WA nations voting: 40.7%

Currently at vote in the Festering Snakepit...er...General Assembly is the repeal of "Ban on Secret Treaties" and to be frank, the argument isn't that compelling. We are being asked to repeal a perfectly functional piece of legislation because of a "joke" within the text of the target resolution. Upon realizing that this was the only argument the repeal made, the staff of the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs spent the night reviewing previously passed resolutions and found that a number of them include these jokes. One proposal calls the assembled ambassadors "drunks, stoners and weirdos" while another repeal includes a recipe for an Orange Julius. Including jokes in proposals has been a part of the institution since its inception.





The Ministry of World Assembly Affairs, having given all due consideration to the repeal in question (which, let's be honest, wasn't very much.) recommends a vote Against the proposal.

Repeal "Promoting Natural Sciences in School"



Status: Failed | Delegate's Vote: For



Final Vote (World): For - 5,663 (38.4%); Against - 9,087 (61.6%)



Final Vote (TNP): For - 346 (64.7%); Against - 189 (35.3%)



Percentage of TNP WA nations voting: 41.0%

Currently under consideration by the General Assembly is the repeal of GA#475 Promoting Natural Sciences in Schools. Focusing on the possibility for intentional misinterpretation of the text of the resolution due to vague language, the lack of a requirement for the scientific information taught to students to have been verified by through peer review and requiring member states to fund the science programmes of private schools. The author makes a convincing argument. Though the Ministry believes that legislation supporting the advancement of the sciences is necessary, we believe that it should be written in such a way that doesn't mandate public funds be used to fund private schools and encourages the use of a peer review system. The Ministry hopes that with the repeal of GA#475 the General Assembly will pass a sufficient replacement that corrects these problems.





For these reasons, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote For the proposal.

Repeal "Ban on Secret Treaties"



Status: Failed | Delegate's Vote: Against



Final Vote (World): For - 7,015 (48.4%); Against - 7,456 (51.6%)



Final Vote (TNP): For - 170 (31.4%); Against - 371 (68.6%)



Percentage of TNP WA nations voting: 41.3%

Currently at vote in the Festering Snakepit...er...General Assembly is the repeal of "Ban on Secret Treaties" and to be frank, the argument isn't that compelling. We are being asked to repeal a perfectly functional piece of legislation because of a "joke" within the text of the target resolution. Upon realizing that this was the only argument the repeal made, the staff of the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs spent the night reviewing previously passed resolutions and found that a number of them include these jokes. One proposal calls the assembled ambassadors "drunks, stoners and weirdos" while another repeal includes a recipe for an Orange Julius. Including jokes in proposals has been a part of the institution since its inception.





The Ministry of World Assembly Affairs, having given all due consideration to the repeal in question (which, let's be honest, wasn't very much.) recommends a vote Against the proposal.

Repeal "Civilian Aircraft Accord"



Status: Failed | Delegate's Vote: Against



Final Vote (World): For - 1,672 (13.4%); Against - 10,810 (86.6%)



Final Vote (TNP): For - 74 (12.7%); Against - 507 (87.3%)



Percentage of TNP WA nations voting: 44.1%

"Civilian Aircraft Accord" is an important resolution safeguarding protections for civilian aircraft. The interpretation of this resolution provided by the repeal proposal is unreasonable and made in bad faith. The arguments of the repeal are based on a single sub-clause of the resolution requiring member nations to provide "Assistance to any civilian aircraft that declares itself to be in distress within the communication range of that nation". The repeal ignores the fact that the same resolution ensures pilots are properly trained and would not make false distress calls, as well as the provisions of GA#334 that forbid military combatants from falsely utilising protected status as civilians. Furthermore, the repeal presumes nations would send aircraft to intercept a distressed aircraft, when that is entirely unreasonable as the most effective form of assistance is through air traffic control. The last clause of the repeals poses a more implausible scenario - that nations would send aircraft to hostile territory for this purpose, even though the nation that the aircraft is actually in would be more suitable to handle the distress call.





In accordance with the reasoning presented above, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote Against this repeal.

Ensuring Commercial Vessel Navigation



Status: Passed Delegate's Vote: For



Final Vote (World): For - 11,876 (85.2%); Against - 2,056 (14.8%)



Final Vote (TNP): For - 469 (94.4%); Against - 28 (5.6%)



Percentage of TNP WA nations voting: 38.1%

This is a clearly-written resolution with reasonable definitions and mandates that improves the safety of commercial maritime transport. It distributes responsibility to governments, by requiring them to provide and update nautical charts, and commercial vessels, by requiring them to carry nautical charts and instrumentation, and to submit pre-planned routes to governments for approval. Overall, by ensuring governments and commercial vessels are equipped with the necessary tools and information for navigation, the proposal contributes to safer sea travel.





For the reasons above, the Ministry recommends a vote For this proposal

Don't Shoot Strangers Act



Status: Failed| Delegate's Vote: Against

[/font]



Final Vote (World): For - 2,779 (21.3%); Against - 10,285 (78.7%)



Final Vote (TNP): For - 78 (17.2%); Against - 376 (82.8%)



Percentage of TNP WA nations voting: 34.9%[/div]





Don't Shoot Strangers Act is a well-intentioned proposal to promote world peace, though its definition of acts of hostility would hinder its effectiveness. Of concern is the listing of violating national borders as an act of hostility, without regard for intention and failing to account for nations that may not have exact knowledge of a previously unencountered nation's borders. Its listing of four specific acts of hostility also failed to take into account non-physical hostile actions towards a nation or a nation's citizens committed outside that nation's borders, such as some forms of espionage, or harming a nation's interests internationally.





The Ministry, in hopes of a more effective redrafted proposal, recommends a vote Against this proposal.

Repeal "Convention on Animal Testing"



Status: Passed Delegate's Vote: For



Final Vote (World): For - 11,532 (90.6%); Against - 1,193 (9.4%)



Final Vote (TNP): For - 397 (88.8%); Against - 50 (11.2%)



Percentage of TNP WA nations voting: 34.2%

The target resolution was an attempt to place ethical restrictions on the use of animal test subjects. Based on the proposed repeal and our previous arguments during the voting period of the resolution, we find that the targeted resolution allows for the suffering of test animals through the exploitation of various loopholes. These loopholes include allowing testing facilities to "humanely" kill animals rather than putting them up for adoption and testing facilities setting their own definitions of "ethical testing."





In hopes of a future loophole-free resolution that guarantees the rights of test animals to the greatest extent possible, the Ministry recommends a vote For this proposal.

Wartime Healthcare Protections



Status: Passed | Delegate's Vote: For



Final Vote (World): For - 9,966 (74.9%); Against - 3,340 (25.1%)



Final Vote (TNP): For - 434 (87.3%); Against - 63 (12.7%)



Percentage of TNP WA nations voting: 38.3%

The proposal aims to protect medical facilities and the rights of injured combatants during wartime. The GA has previously passed resolution protecting civilians, and this would be another step in ensuring that the rights of people in general are protecting even in the chaotic times of war. The passing of this proposal would help to further strengthen the protection of personal rights during a wartime scenario, by protecting the access to medical care and preventing medical facilities from being targeted, thus ensuring the least possible casualties in armed conflicts.



In light of the above reasons, the Ministry recommends a For vote for this proposal.

Subject State Enforcement Act



Status: Failed| Delegate's Vote: For



Final Vote (World): For - 1,942 (15.2%); Against - 10,819 (84.8%)



Final Vote (TNP): For - 199 (38.6%); Against - 317 (61.4%)



Percentage of TNP WA nations voting: 39.8%

This is a much-needed resolution that would prevent some World Assembly members from circumventing the enforcement of resolutions in parts of their territories. In doing so, it would ensure General Assembly resolutions are applied more fairly across all member states. Thus, all member states would have General Assembly resolution apply to all parts of its territory, closing any loopholes in this area that may have previously existed.





For the above reasons, the ministry recommends a vote For this resolution.

Data Protection Accord



Status: Passed Delegate's Vote: For

[/font]



Final Vote (World): For - 11,297 (79.7%); Against - 2,875 (20.3%)



Final Vote (TNP): For - 450 (87.5%); Against - 64 (12.5%)



Percentage of TNP WA nations voting: 40.0%[/div]





Data Protection Accord is a sensible and well-written proposal that would protect the privacy of the individual from data-collecting organisations by requiring explicit consent from individual users for data collection (notwithstanding crime prevention) and ensuring users are informed on how their data is used and/or shared. Additionally, individual privacy is protected against governments as they are prohibited from viewing the data unless given consent by the individual and the data-collecting organisation (notwithstanding crime prevention and judicial orders). Furthermore, the proposal protects minors by ensuring consent for data collection is required from their guardians.





For the above reasons, the ministry recommends a vote For this resolution.

Security Council



Spreading interregional peace and goodwill, via force if necessary

Commend Duxburian Union



Status: Passed | Delegate's Vote: For



Final Vote (World): For - 10,731 (83.6%); Against - 2,111 (16.4%)



Final Vote (TNP): For - 492 (90.1%); Against - 54 (9.9%)



Percentage of TNP WA nations voting: 41.8%

The matter before the World Assembly Security Council is the commendation of the Duxburian Union, better known to the international community as Vincent Drake. Throughout their career in NationStates, they have participated in over 6,000 defender operations. Counted among these are the liberations of The Monarchist Entente, St Abbadon, Japan, and Anontia. They also participated in the refounding of both their home region and Greece. The latter which had been under the oppressive rule of Yauna for almost a decade. The Duxburian Union is also credited with the development of Breeze++, a tool used by military organizations the world over. Despite the high quality of writing, potential issues arise in addressing their accolades and accomplishments in a consistent manner given the rest of the proposal.





However the Ministry does note concern with these aforementioned insufficiencies in proving warrant and reputable subject material, we do ultimately recommend a vote For the proposal given the vast contributions made by the target nation to the greater NS community.

Repeal "Liberate Aurelia"



Status: Passed | Delegate's Vote: For



Final Vote (World): For - 13,497 (93.7%); Against - 2,111 (6.3%)



Final Vote (TNP): For - 498 (93.1%); Against - 37 (6.9%)



Percentage of TNP WA nations voting: 40.1%

Shortly after passing of 'Liberate Aurelia', the region was liberated by military forces and power was restored to natives. During a time of rebuilding, a password is very useful in ensuring there is no attempt to retake the region by hostile forces. As such, the liberation has served its purpose and now can be safely removed to allow the natives to restore appropriate control over the region.





In accordance with the reasoning above, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote For this repeal.

Commend Markanite



Status: Passed Delegate's Vote: For

[/font]



Final Vote (World): For - 10,192 (82.2%); Against - 2,208 (17.8%)



Final Vote (TNP): For - 419 (90.1%); Against - 46 (9.9%)



Percentage of TNP WA nations voting: 35.6%[/div]





Markanite is a long-serving member of 10000 Islands, a commended region in itself. Currently the Chief Executive, and notably having been the longest-serving World Assembly Delegate of the region, Markanite has contributed significantly to the development of 10000 Islands and its place in the world. For an equally long time, Markanite has been a member of TITO, overseeing and participating in missions to restore lawful Delegates in large regions and protect founderless regions from external threats through refounding.





For the reasons above, the Ministry recommends a vote For this proposal.

Commend Ramaeus



Status: Passed | Delegate's Vote: For



Final Vote (World): For - 10,393 (79.7%); Against - 2,654 (20.3%)



Final Vote (TNP): For - 445 (90.5%); Against - 47 (9.5%)



Percentage of TNP WA nations voting: 37.9%

Ramaeus is a faithful and long-time citizen of The East Pacific, serving in many notable government positions, most notably three times as Delegate. In these positions, they have contributed to the development of the region internally and externally in a meaningful manner. Although their contributions are mostly concentrated in one region, they have been instrumental in enhancing the region's international image and fostering interaction between the region and the international community through the World Assembly, the East Pacific Sovereign Army, and alliances with other prominent regions. In addition, Ramaeus has been a prolific Security Council author, recognizing other nations for their achievements, and most recently played a significant part in organizing the liberation of their home region from a rogue Delegate.





For the reasons above, the Ministry recommends a vote For this commendation.

[small]The North Star: Lighting The Way To The Truth



Publisher: McMasterdonia :: Executive Editor: Marcus Antonius :



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





Index of Issues

[Dar es Saalam]

Good Morning! Its that time of the month again!

Code:

General Election Report[/SIZE]

by Angshire, Deputy Minister of Communications and ACR of Deerfenland

The Candidates

[*]Delegate: McMasterdonia, Nessuno, & Felis.

[*]Vice Delegate: Artemis & Robespierre.

[*]Speaker: Deropia & Dreadton.

[*]Attorney General: Vivanco & Hopps

The Election for Delegate


Following a very successful term, incumbent Delegate McMasterdonia announced his plans to re-run for Delegate, on a campaign of increasing citizen participation, strengthening the executive government and the ministries, and furthering opportunities for newcomers and returners to get more involved in TNP government. Providing detailed reports about each of the ministries, and goals for the next term, the plans that McMasterdonia had made for Delegate were laid out from the beginning. His campaign received immense support from the general populace, praising his efforts and accomplishments in his previous term.


The second candidate, Nessuno, represented the Animal Party, one of the few political parties of the North Pacific. Having served as the Lead Gameside Advocate for the previous term, and advocated for a “Revolution” in the North Pacific. His campaign included plans for radical changes, including a merge and reform of all the current ministries into five brand new ministries, and incorporating the Gameside Advocates into them. His call for the widespread adoption of socialism and purge of counter-revolutionaries created outcry against his campaign, with many voters simply denouncing it as a “joke campaign.” Nevertheless, he did garner support among some of his fellow GAs, as well as other citizens who are primarily on the RMB.


Finally, the third candidate was Felis, an unexpected candidate who had nominated themselves close to the end of the nomination process. Having spent all of his time-constrained to Eras roleplay, Felis was notable as the only candidate for Delegate who lacked previous experience in the North Pacific government. While he did indeed run and managed to gain votes, Felis never made an official campaign thread and, therefore, never officially ran on any campaign promises. Nevertheless, Felis did manage to win votes in the election, although his support came mostly from his fellow Eras roleplayers.


In the end, Delegate McMasterdonia won 89.00% of the vote, the highest out of any candidate across all four races of the January 2020 Election. Nessuno and Felis racked in at 8.00% and 3.00% respectively, coming in 2nd and 3rd. With only five voters choosing to abstain, the Delegate election also had the highest amount of voter participation among the four elections. 8.57% of voters wanted to re-open nominations.


The Election for Vice Delegate


Unlike the race for Delegate, the Vice Delegate race was highly competitive from the start. The first candidate, incumbent Vice Delegate Artemis (Sundred), had previously faced no competition in the September 2019 elections. He campaigned on the success and growth that TNP experienced. At the same time, he was Vice Delegate under McMasterdonia, while also promising to increase cooperation with the Cards Guild and host a region-wide endorsement event with the Ministry of Culture. Most of the questions were regarding his membership within the Security Council, with some condemning it as an unelected group of “elites.” Artemis, however, argued against that notion, and his campaign received mostly positive reviews from the general public.


The other candidate, Robespierre, served as Minister of Defense before his election campaign. Although a re

[Dar es Saalam]

The Long Anticipated, much appreciated, and super duper March Issue of The Northern Lights!

Regional Assembly Highlights

by Bobberino, Minister of Communications

Speaker: Deropia
Deputy Speakers: Koopa, Rom, MadJack, Owenstacey


Current Business

Delegate's Report Bill by Brendog

Summary: This bill writes into law the recent common practice of Ministers providing reports as per their administration's requests, following the precedent established by El Fiji Grande in his Delegacy.

Status: In Discussion

Lessening Repeating Work Bill by Praetor

Summary: An election law based bill, this addresses the addition of preferential voting into our judicial elections, eliminates restarting elections, which also permits candidates withdrawing during voting. In addition, it provides yet more power to the oligarchy by stating that after backwards tie-breaking a tie remains, the longest-standing citizen is declared the winner, in a clear bone thrown to the oligarchy to get this passed.

Status: In Discussion

Court Rule Amendments Consulation by Zyvetskistaahn

Summary: A bill that makes some common sense changes regarding the court rules and presents them to the RA. These include the court seeking out government officials for R4Rs relevant to them, a statement re: how to submit and withdraw R4Rs, an extension for opinion drafting and submission from 7 to 14 days, and introducing rules re: Freedom of Information and an insurance plan for vexatious appeals and/or relevant reviews are vexatious.

Status: In Discussion

NPA Bulletin

by Pierce, Communications Staffer, NPA Soldier

Leadership

Minister of Defense: Trondstorm
Deputy Minister of Defense: Colonel Rom

The North Pacific Army (NPA) participated in a few operations, consisting mainly of refounds.

From the 29th of February to the 9th of March, a strong force of 20 NPA soldiers participated in a joint operation with The Black Hawks (TBH) on the region of Opstan to prevent a refound by removing the Delegate and all Regional Officers. The operation ended by the Minor update on the 9th of March, by which the region was passworded.

On the 7th of March, Colonel BluieGamer of the NPA refounded Itaque Sanctus Defensus after it had ceased to exist. The region was previously protected by Chapter 7.6 Section 32 and 33, which protects regions and its natives from permanent harm and excessive force through altering the embassy list, password protecting the region, forcibly removing natives, and refounding the region. The section states that exceptions can be made upon authorization of the Delegate and majority approval of the Regional Assembly. Since the region had formerly been an embassy partner with the Confederation of Corrupt Dictators, Delegate McMasterdonia proposed the exception for ISD alongside other regions to the RA on the 15th of February and the exception was approved with a 30-3 vote. The region had ceased to exist during the vote, and it was refounded following the passage of the exception and passworded.

On the 24th of March, the NPA took note during a training operation that the Hitlers Alliance had been abandoned by its natives, and was refounded by Corporal Nimarya and Colonel BluieGamer to prevent the region from being a site for fascists.

Finally, the NPA captured and refounded the region Nessuno (named after Lead Gameside Advocate Territorio Di Nessuno) to prevent its use from outside individuals.
[h][/h]
March 2020 Judicial Election

by Haven

With four months since November now behind us, it's time for another judicial election. March's vote comes as the Court in recent months has faced criticisms over a series of seemingly over-punitive decisions, including in cases featuring guilty pleas and requests for commutation. It also follows the abolition of the office of the Attorney General with the passing of the AGORA Act, leading to questions of the Court's standing to decide on legal ambiguities in a trial format, among other issues. The field was exceptionally large this month, with six candidates eventually making it to the final ballot. This including respected veterans and a few fresh faces looking to make a name for themselves on the bench.

The Candidates:

Vivanco
Zyvetskistaahn
Wonderess
Lady Raven Wing
Eluvatar
Alamei
MintChocoIC13 (Disqualified)

Vivanco

Vivanco's campaign emphasised his experience as Attorney General, and his record of upholding the independence of the judiciary. Vivanco responded to the issue of harsh sentencing by implying punishments may seem "more harsh [sic]" due to their final nature. Though they seemed to support the idea that the Court should always be open to rehabilitation, they indicated that past good deeds should not negate a bad act in the eyes of the law.

Notably, they supported establishing a civil procedure for the Court, as a forum outside of moderation for the resolution of conflicts among individuals. They stated that the administration would assume the duty of enforcing these decisions, though they did not indicate what penal actions may be incurred upon violation.

Vivanco received 18.31% of the vote and was not elected.

Zyvetskistaahn

Having served as the previous Chief Justice, Zyvetskistaahn's reelection campaign had an air of inevitability surrounding it, heightened by a highly thorough, issue-based campaign. On procedures, Zyvetskistaahn laid out a plan for much-needed reforms following the AGORA Act, including alteration of the requests for review form, the introduction of a form for indictments, and rule amendments to reflect the inevitable delay that will come from appointing a prosecutor after charges are accepted. Other amendments he endorsed included clarifying of indictments and requests for approval for bans, the introduction of requirements that changes to indictments be approved by the Court, and changes to the guilty plea process.

Zyvetskistaahn received 49.30% of the vote and was elected.

Lady Raven Wing

Lady Raven Wing, running a concise but thoughtful campaign, was a clear favourite for reelection as Justice, having received several high-profile endorsements early on. Her time as Justice launched them from a relative unknown in TNP politics to a highly respected and experienced member of the bench.

In the wake of the AGORA Act, she indicated that the Court should, going forward, not be resolving ambiguities of law in the criminal trial process, if at all. She qualified that this pertains only to ambiguities that do not result in "Constitutional conflict". Speaking on penal restrain, she stated that she did not feel any particular cases in recent years were decided improperly or that the Court handed down any unreasonable punishments.

Lady Raven Wing received 50.70% of the vote and was elected.

Wonderess

This was Wonderess' second campaign for Justice, having run unsuccessfully last July in a comparatively bare-bones effort. This time around, he emphasised his conservative approach to interpreting and applying the statute, declaring that it was not the Court's role to innovate on the law but instead to act as a "respectful referee" of the trial process.

On the issue of retribution, Wonderess pointed to The North Pacific v Bobberino as a case in which the Court could have pursued more leniency. He made it clear, however, that he did not see it as his place to criticise the Court for its previous decisions, especially considering we the public may not have all the "pieces of the puzzle". He offered a reasonable position on heavy-handed rulings, emphasising that punishment should be, first and foremost, about the rehabilitation of the defendant and that the Court should use only such legal force as necessary to affect this outcome. He indicated that, especially with as sparse a body of case law as the North Pacific has, precedent should not be the final word, and that each case encompasses unique circumstances that require a unique approach to resolution, even if the charges are the same.

Wonderess received 50.70% of the vote and was elected.

Eluvatar

Eluvatar, the renowned former Delegate and elder statesman who has previously served in the now-defunct position of Attorney General, only tentatively accepted his nomination for Justice. He failed to post a campaign thread, and seemed to have relied on name recognition and a robust record.

Eluvatar received 32.39% of the vote and was not elected.

Alamei

Though a TNP native for some time, Alamei has only recently begun to actively engage in regional government. An experienced legal official for the Versutian Federation, Alamei hopes to bring their philosophy of transparency and impartiality to the North Pacific. They supported the recent reforms under the AGORA Act, stating that it made the Court more accessible to the "common citizen". They also proposed a rule change that would allow Justices other than the Moderating Justice to ask questions of trial participants, suggesting this would allow Justices an opportunity to make a more 'fully informed' decision.

Alamei received 35.21% of the vote and was not elected.

MintChocoIC13

MintChocoIC13 did not post a campaign, and they lost their citizenship during the initial vote. They were struck from the ballot, and a new vote was triggered automatically.

World Assembly Digest

by El Fiji Grande

General Assembly
Improving the world one resolution at a time.

Oceanic Waste Disposal Ban
Status: Discarded

[/font][/B]
Delegate's Vote: No vote[/font][/B]
Final Vote (World): For: 13,550 Against: 2,693
Final Vote (TNP): For: 533 Against: 50 Percentage of WA nations voting: 40.3%

No Recommendation

Repeal: "Promotion of Recycling"
Status: Failed
Delegate's Vote: Against
Final Vote (World): For: 3,028 Against: 12,850
Final Vote (TNP): For: 46 Against: 547 Percentage of WA nations voting: 40.8%[/div]

Recommendation:
This repeal ironically uses rather ambiguous reasoning to argue that clause 3 of GAR #483 is ambiguous, stating that it creates for possible loopholes and abusive regulations for member nations and large corporations, without providing prove or examples as to how the by the author predicted negative consequences might come to pass. It is also rather contradictory, in claiming firstly that clause 3 was ambiguous, but then stating that clause 3 specifically creates abusive regulations while in fact the resolution itself does not create those regulations, but requires member nations to create regulations or subsidizations and tailor them according to their needs and requirements. Although it is possible for environmental regulations such as those on recycling to impact small businesses more than big businesses, it is up to national governments to craft regulations that do not disadvantage small businesses unfairly.

Considering further that the author of the target resolution is currently working together with other members of the World Assembly to properly repeal GAR #483 and replace it in order to correct actual deficiencies, of which none where mentioned in this repeal, the Ministry advises to vote Against this proposal.

Disease Naming Compact
Status: Passed
Delegate's Vote: Against
Final Vote (World): For: 8,490 Against: 7,203
Final Vote (TNP): For: 210 Against: 379 Percentage of WA nations voting: 40.5%

Recommendation:
This proposal appears to be written opportunistically based on current real-life events. Unfortunately its provisions appear unnecessary as a common name for a novel disease would be adopted by most nations through communications between government authorities, and medical professionals would be aware of different names if they exist. In addition, the large variation in the languages of WA nations will make the task of creating a name suitable for all languages functionally impossible, and nations need flexibility to adopt a name that suits their language.

For the above reasons, the Ministry recommends a vote Against this proposal.

Interference Causing Equipment Act
Status: Failed
Delegate's Vote: Against
Final Vote (World): For: 3,511 Against: 11,040
Final Vote (TNP): For: 51 Against: 500 Percentage of WA nations voting: 38.4%

Recommendation:
While a well-intentioned proposal, it unfortunately falls victim to wording problems, which are at times overly complex while also creating loopholes. For example, clause 2i includes technical vocabulary that is not properly defined. Clause 3 prohibits distribution of non-compliant devices between member states while allowing member states to import and export from non-member states. Clauses 3 and 4 together ensure only member states capable of developing non-compliant devices are able to use them for government purposes such as security and defence, while those not as technologically advanced cannot purchase them, and are left without a vital line of defence.

For these reasons, the Ministry recommends a vote Against this proposal, in hopes of a better resolution in the future.

On the Health and Financial Well-Being of Workers
Status: Failed
Delegate's Vote: For
Final Vote (World): For: 6,815 Against: 8,326
Final Vote (TNP): For: 463 Against: 101 Percentage of WA nations voting: 39.4%

Recommendation:
This proposal aims to establish leave for workers in the event they become sick, have a family medical emergency, or if they have children. These types of events in a person's life are important for them to attend to, regardless of work obligations. On top of that, in the event they are sick, it would be wise to provide some sort of program that allows them to stay home and prevent the spread of the disease. Further, workers will receive identical compensation as they would have had they been at work, easing financial stress undertaken by not attending work. Creating an umbrella program for each of these, allowing greater flexibility for workers, is the best course of action.

For these reasons, the Ministry recommends a vote For this proposal.

Security Council
Spreading interregional peace and goodwill, via force if necessary.

Liberate The East Pacific
Status: Failed
Delegate's Vote: Against

Final Vote (World): For: 6,708 Against: 8,799
Final Vote (TNP): For: 211 Against: 365 Percentage of WA nations voting: 39.7%

Recommendation:
In an event that can only be described as confusing, the Delegate of the East Pacific themselves has called for an end of their tyranny and wishes for a liberation of their region. While The North Pacific is always glad to help the weak and oppressed, we believe in this case it is sufficient to point out all the wonderfull options available to end ones own tyranny and political career, like self-impeachement or a good old donation affair.

While we advise a vote Against this proposal, we sincerely wish The East Pacific all the best in ending its Delegate's reign of tyranny.

Commend Kindjal
Status: Passed
Delegate's Vote: For

Final Vote (World): For: 10,818 Against: 4,208
Final Vote (TNP): For: 519 Against: 72 Percentage of WA nations voting: 40.6%

Recommendation:
While we have our reservations, Kindjal has demonstrated a determination in a popular field of the game that is not usually discussed in the Security Council. Although they intended to dedicate to roleplay, they struggled with writing as English is not their first language. Instead, they chose a path that led to them becoming the best in their field of NS issues. Kindjal, in adjudicating right from wrong, has topped every other nation in 10 different censuses in the game, all of which are highly competitive. We hope that this well-written commendation demonstrates that nations in all fields of the game can be commended, and serve as an inspiration to dedicated issue answerers.

For the above reasons, the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs recommends a vote For this commendation.

Commend Cormactopia Prime
Status: Failed
Delegate's Vote: Against

Final Vote (World): For: 4,255 Against: 8,936
Final Vote (TNP): For: 63 Against: 459 Percentage of WA nations voting: 36.4%

Recommendation:
Cormactopia Prime, commonly known as Cormac, despite being a potentially deserving nominee, is the subject of a rather stale proposal that doesn't paint an accurate picture. Cormac is known for being capricious but still dedicated and charismatic in any role (defender, invader, imperialist, journalist, etc) they decide to take. The proposal doesn't argue that, rather that Cormac has great recognition among their peers for a collection of accomplishments. The proposal is jumpy and doesn't flow well throughout the clauses, each of which is shakily written and barely supports the the initial argument. Several of the clauses, such as the "Affirming" clause on developing stability in Osiris, contradict further evidence on Cormac's history with Osiris.

For these reasons, the Ministry recommends a vote of Against "Commend Cormactopia Prime", hoping for a better proposal down the line.

Spotlight - with 9003

by McMasterdonia, Delegate

McMasterdonia: Today I am joined by 9003, a relatively new member of The North Pacific who is already a prominent member of our community and in the Cards Guild specifically. Welcome and thank you for joining me!

9003: Thanks for having me!

McMasterdonia: Firstly, can you tell me a little about your background in NationStates? When did you join and which region did you first call home?

9003: I've played for 7 years now. Pretty much after founding my nation I got a lovely simple telegram from Sauron recruiting for Mordor. It said “one does not simply walk into Mordor” so I did the only logical thing and simply walked in. I helped develop the then fledgling region into a hotspot of a player region after out posting the RMB bot, I joined the force of Mordor and held a warzone for a couple of months.

McMasterdonia: What did you enjoy most about your time in Mordor? During your time of supporting regional development in that region, what did you learn?

9003: I learned a lot about developing the region including that the founder and in turn dark lord can be put on trial and serve as the sitting judge on said trial. In a mess of legal debate. My favorite activity in Mordor was spamming on the forum I played every one of the games to a crazy level reaching several thousand posts a week. Raising in the ranks in the forces of Mordor was also fun and fits well with me joining the NPA now.

McMasterdonia: Excellent! We will get to your NPA service in a moment, but before that What made you decide to join The North Pacific?

9003: What made me join tnp was the card lotto after seeing all the legendaries going about I knew I had to get in on the action for some of those!

McMasterdonia: How did you hear about the card lottery? Always interested to know how our outreach is going!

9003: I heard about the lottery from the marketplace discord after The Northern Lights posted some winners. The chance to win a soops or mindless contempt while collecting Ex flags was a huge draw. They are the peak ex flag card, after that I knew I couldn’t sit it out any longer.

McMasterdonia: Did this create any conflict for you? In terms of deciding to leave Mordor for The North Pacific?

9003: Well all in all I still haven't "left" Mordor my main has due to a small snafoo with NS breeze. Blowing my 7 years of residency. So I switched a puppet in but for the most part the Mordor government has fallen aside and is quite and a shadow of its former glory

McMasterdonia: And ever since, you have been very involved in The Cards Guild! What is it about Cards that you find enjoyable within the context of NationStates?

9003: I love cards because they give nationstates more of an active game rather than logging on once in a while to answer issues.

McMasterdonia: Regarding the NPA, it has been great seeing you get involved there. What made you decide to participate in our Army and how have you found it to be?

9003: After serving in the forces of Mordor and reaching the rank of general there I partook in the UDL for a while before hanging my hat up on r/d for a good while. However, once I saw the NPA was an active army I knew I had to join and give it another shot.

McMasterdonia: Would you say that before joining the NPA you would have identified as a defender?

9003: I would say I identified mostly defender. After some espionage missions among den (pre-predator days) I jumped for a mission or two of tags and always enjoyed it but until now didn't have an army that supported the view. I very much like the NPAs method to preserve the wfe and flag. As the big part of raiding I didn't like was destroying random regions when they didn't do anything warranting destruction.

McMasterdonia: Wow! So you were involved in espionage ops against DEN?

9003: I was mostly just there to muck things up and see if they were up to any large scale raids. The level of opsec was next to zero during that time.

McMasterdonia: So joining the NPA could be another espionage operation?

9003: For who! The now defunct forces of Mordor lol. And nah I wouldn't move my main nation into the region if I was, I would have far too much to lose.

McMasterdonia: Naturally I am just teasing! How has your experience differed to your prior military experience?

9003: The npa has a larger occupational force and a larger active force. Most operations of Mordor’s forces were missions with 5 nations. Therefore seeing the NPA show up to a joint op or even just a regular op with 7+ jumpers is impressive and having the Generals here to help out new folks is awesome.

McMasterdonia: You also mentioned earlier that you like that the NPA does not (as a general rule) do destructive raids. Are there any circumstances where you think a destructive raid is desirable and necessary?

9003: Well in the case of anyone The North Pacific is at war with would be a very justified cause or any region that is causing distress to the greater nationstates community.

McMasterdonia: Do you see yourself getting involved in other areas of The North Pacific? Are you interested in pursuing higher office?

9003: I'm trying to. Truth be told when I first moved here it was during the delegate election and I tried to run to only be shot down by just a few days short on the residency requirement. Now, I have learned that it would be far better to learn more about the position before I try and run for it. But I would love to run for more at some point. For now, I am enjoying serving as a Deputy Guildmaster. It is great fun!

McMasterdonia: What about the executive staff? Have you considered getting involved in other Ministries?

9003: I have been considering joining the culture Ministry. It fits quite well with Cards and I would be interested to get involved in their other activities.

McMasterdonia: That concludes our interview! Thank you once more for your time 9003. We look forward to seeing your future contributions to The North Pacific.

9003: My pleasure, thank you for having me![h][/h]

The North Star: Lighting The Way To The Truth
Publisher: McMasterdonia :: Executive Editor: Bobberino :: Managing Editor: Robespierre and Cosmosplosion

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

Index of Issues