Questions for Delegate / Senate Candidates, 9/20

[Free Las Pinas]

It’s exciting to have a good set of Candidates, and since I have nothing better to do with my time, I’ve decided to release my own question set!  I totally didn’t shamelessly steal some of these questions from the Campaign Archives board...

I’ll start off with questions for WAD candidates!

Questions pertaining mainly to the World Assembly:

How will you choose to approve GA and SC proposals? Will you accept requests? Will you make your own judgement?

Will you vote on every proposal?

How will you vote on proposals?

Will you try your best to give input? HumanSanity , you mentioned appointing an FA secretary to handle WA decisions and coordinate with the WA secretary. Will you entrust this FA secretary with providing input? If so, through an IFV-style dispatch or a post in our discussion thread, or neither?

Will you draft a resolution? And will you encourage others to do so?

Questions about foreign policy:

What criteria will you use to appoint and fire emissaries and ambassadors? HumanSanity , you said you’ll entrust the Secretary of State, is there a certain criteria you’d have them follow?

Do you plan to seek regions to have embassies or treaties with? If so, and this one is completely optional, do you have any regions in mind?

How will you use our NSGP thread? Will you post our events and newsletters?

Questions pertaining to internal policy:

Will you choose to adhere to the transparency pledge?

Will you endo-tart and telegram those who haven’t endorsed you?

Will you regularly post updates?

Will you keep emissary reports pinned? It made more sense in my head, and it’s also not exactly a delegate duty.

How would you encourage everyone to get involved particularly in the World Assembly?

Now, questions for Senate candidates!

Will you adhere to the transparency pledge and the transparency act? What’s your position on HS’s discussion on amending the transparency act?

What do you think are the values of XKI and how will you uphold them?

Three months from now, when some council debate threads or archived publicly, can we be reassured that you’ll vote in a way that is best for the region?
 
For NRS:

A lot of debate happens on both the RMB and discord, how would you encourage XKIers, our friends, and visiting ambassadors, to debate on the forums?

Can you assure us you’ll finish your term if elected?

For BCN:

What is the purpose of the emissary report?

Would you do anything to improve the report?

Tagging declared candidates: HumanSanity , Hakketomat , Wischland , Kohnhead , Control

[HumanSanity]

Oh how they grow up!

Sept 1, 2020 22:17:21 GMT -5 Free Las Pinas said:

How will you choose to approve GA and SC proposals? Will you accept requests? Will you make your own judgement?

I'll use a combination of three methods:
1) I'll maintain a public input thread like Kuriko has done and check it for recommendations.
2) On SC resolutions that I believe reflect or impact our ability to advocate for defender values, I will take a hands-on approach to deciding.
3) I will actively encourage the WA Secretary and FA Secretary to give me names of GA or non-R/D SC resolutions they think I should approve, establishing a group PM thread for that purpose. I will also likely solicit their input privately on R/D SC resolutions.

Ultimately, I will have the final decision about all approvals.

Sept 1, 2020 22:17:21 GMT -5 Free Las Pinas said:

Will you vote on every proposal?

Yep. Outside of select weekends where I will be busy, I am also easily available to vote stack/stomp at both major and minor update in my normal schedule.

Sept 1, 2020 22:17:21 GMT -5 Free Las Pinas said:

How will you vote on proposals?

In general, I will always follow the WA voting poll. I don't think I would ever deviate from the poll on GA resolutions or non-R/D SC resolutions. I hope to never override the poll on a R/D related SC resolution, however I will reserve the right to do so. SC votes at times will have broader implications for our ability to advocate for defender values and I will take clear and decisive action as necessary to preserve our agenda and our values. If I ever override a SC vote, I will publish a statement explaining why I have done so. On sensitive SC resolutions I will also engage in private consultation with TITO Command.

Sept 1, 2020 22:17:21 GMT -5 Free Las Pinas said:

Will you try your best to give input? HumanSanity , you mentioned appointing an FA secretary to handle WA decisions and coordinate with the WA secretary. Will you entrust this FA secretary with providing input? If so, through an IFV-style dispatch or a post in our discussion thread, or neither?

The tasks I would delegate to the FA Secretary would be: 1) posting WA voting polls and 2) helping present the region's opinion on the NS forums for GA and non-sensitive SC resolutions. The tasks they would co-ordinate with the WA Secretary about would be providing voter information.

I think some kind of "IFV" is a good idea, although I would prefer it resemble a pros/cons list than a recommendation. It feels strange to issue a recommendation on behalf of the government and then have that not necessarily be how the vote works. The exception to this is resolutions where the government's stance is clear because we align with moralist defender values.

Ideally we would build this infrastructure to be published on the forum and in on-site Dispatches and alongside some kind of ping system for interested individuals.

Sept 1, 2020 22:17:21 GMT -5 Free Las Pinas said:

Will you draft a resolution? And will you encourage others to do so?

I may some day draft a resolution, but I haven't yet and I'm not explicitly planning to. I don't consider it a part of the job or the office's function. If necessary, I would be happy to draft a strategically important defensive liberation but that's not necessarily a must do item.

I would certainly encourage others to write WA resolutions however I think this falls in the responsibility of the WA Secretary.

Sept 1, 2020 22:17:21 GMT -5 Free Las Pinas said:

What criteria will you use to appoint and fire emissaries and ambassadors? HumanSanity , you said you’ll entrust the Secretary of State, is there a certain criteria you’d have them follow?

Positive activity in the region you represent us in is vital. I would dismiss Emissaries who are either negligent in establishing social ties with their communities or are ineffective or even counter-productive at doing so. As I expressed in my campaign, I believe those social ties are the core of effective crisis preparation.

The Secretary of State's job would be to take that frame and keep tabs on Emissaries and Ambassadors with that frame in mind.

Sept 1, 2020 22:17:21 GMT -5 Free Las Pinas said:

Do you plan to seek regions to have embassies or treaties with? If so, and this one is completely optional, do you have any regions in mind?

I would like to ratify a treaty with The North Pacific which is similar to our treaty with The East Pacific, conditioning non-aggression against our embassy regions on support for The North Pacific's lawful government.

I would like to evaluate the possibility of a treaty with Spiritus. We are socially interconnected regions with a shared commitment to defending. I am open to arguments the other way on this one but I think it is something to explore.

Sept 1, 2020 22:17:21 GMT -5 Free Las Pinas said:

How will you use our NSGP thread? Will you post our events and newsletters?

I will use it the same way Kuriko has used it. Monthly emissary report + special events are in the thread.

Sept 1, 2020 22:17:21 GMT -5 Free Las Pinas said:

Will you choose to adhere to the transparency pledge?

Yep.

Sept 1, 2020 22:17:21 GMT -5 Free Las Pinas said:

Will you endo-tart and telegram those who haven’t endorsed you?

Yep. Starting a few weeks ago I've been endotarting every morning using a tool that relies on the daily dumps.

Sept 1, 2020 22:17:21 GMT -5 Free Las Pinas said:

Will you regularly post updates?

Will you keep emissary reports pinned?

I'm not entirely sure what you mean by either of those questions?

Sept 1, 2020 22:17:21 GMT -5 Free Las Pinas said:

How would you encourage everyone to get involved particularly in the World Assembly?

I want to increase WA literacy in XKI through an effort at providing regular information about the pros/cons of different WA resolutions through co-operation between the Delegate and the WA Secretary's offices, as indicated earlier.

[Wischland]

Great questions FLP! Please let me know if you have any other questions or want me to expand on any of my answers.

Sept 1, 2020 22:17:21 GMT -5 Free Las Pinas said:

Will you adhere to the transparency pledge and the transparency act? What’s your position on HS’s discussion on amending the transparency act?

Yes, I will adhere to the Transparency Pledge, and, of course, the Transparency Act as well. I am in favor of HS's proposal to amend the Transparency Act. As I stated in the discussion thread, I believe increasing transparency is a part of promoting democratic values in XKI. Giving citizens the chance to provide input as bills are being developed not only increases political participation, but also allows for new, creative ideas and perspectives to be brought to the table. Transparent discussions also allow Islanders to hold Senators responsible by providing them means to immediately question what a Senator says or how they vote. My job as Senator would therefore be to sift through everyone's ideas, and find or modify the best ones in order to amend and vote upon bills in a manner that is representative of Islander's wishes, without losing the long-term vision and expertise that senatorship requires.

What do you think are the values of XKI and how will you uphold them?

XKI has many important values, but I think the most important one is community. We already have a multitude of programs and events that serve to encourage members of the region to interact and help one another, allowing for the organic growth of genuine friendships. I believe this powerful sense of community involvement is one of XKI's greatest strengths. As Senator, I will uphold this value of community not just by supporting related bills, but also through my work on the XKI Update Report. Current sections of the report already recognize many exciting XKI events. I'm also hoping to recognize some individual achievements on the report to help share them with our community and other regions. Another idea is to include upcoming inter-regional events on the report, in order to encourage increased participation in these events and to better include our friends in other regions in our wonderful community.

Three months from now, when some council debate threads or archived publicly, can we be reassured that you’ll vote in a way that is best for the region?

Of course! While I hope that you'll be able to see my opinions and votes long before then, with a reformed Transparency Act, I can assure you that I will only work and vote in service of XKI and the community that makes it so unique.

What is the purpose of the emissary report?

I already went into this in my campaign thread here, but can reiterate a few points. The XKI Update Report is an important part of our communication with allies. It gives them a useful summary of the previous month's political, social, and cultural events, creating awareness of XKI and fostering goodwill and friendships with other regions. As Deputy Senator for BCN, I already have experience in writing and formatting the report to best fulfill this purpose!

Would you do anything to improve the report?

Again, you can see more on my campaign thread and in my answer to the 2nd question. I believe the report already does an excellent job of fulfilling its purpose, and don't intend to do anything to distract or distort this. However, since WA votes are no longer included on the report, it's become quite short, so I think adding in some new sections could be very beneficial. As I mentioned before, my ideas include adding in a section to anticipate inter-regional events, and a section to recognize individual Islander's achievements, to demonstrate our region's pride in not just big events, but also the smaller, yet still remarkable, efforts by our citizens.

[Kohnhead]

Sept 1, 2020 22:17:21 GMT -5 Free Las Pinas said:

Will you adhere to the transparency pledge and the transparency act? What’s your position on HS’s discussion on amending the transparency act?

I will of course adhere to the transparency pledge and transparency act as they are an important part of having a leadership position in our region. As I mentioned in my discussion thread I am totally for HS's plan to amend the transparency act to give every member of our forum community a chance to really learn more about how the Government actually functions and to play a larger role than they normally do. Considering we in XKI are a very democratic region I think this would just be another way of showing our democratic values and increase participation in Government activities. We've seen before that the ideas of people who aren't on the council can still end up being very good.

Sept 1, 2020 22:17:21 GMT -5 Free Las Pinas said:

What do you think are the values of XKI and how will you uphold them?

Personally I believe that our values lie with Democracy and our acceptance of everyone (as long as they are nice). In terms of upholding Democracy, one way I will do this is by trying to get HS's amendments on the transparency act passed as I believe it increases the democracy in our region, and by continuing to partake in TITO missions to defend innocent regions. In terms of accepting everyone this involves being welcoming and warm as I know I can say everyone was when I joined and that's a major reason why I'm still here.

Sept 1, 2020 22:17:21 GMT -5 Free Las Pinas said:

Three months from now, when some council debate threads or archived publicly, can we be reassured that you’ll vote in a way that is best for the region?

A big part of being a Senator on the Council is that it is an elected position, and I know that if I betray the people who vote me in meaning the community I will probably not win a second term. I will always try to do what's best for the region, which will include listening to everyone's needs and opinions in the community, listening to the rest of the council, and thinking about what I feel is best for the region. If I am elected I believe that I sign an agreement with everyone in the region that I will vote in a way that I feel is best for the region.

Sept 1, 2020 22:17:21 GMT -5 Free Las Pinas said:

What is the purpose of political parties?

What I find interesting about our region is that the political parties don't really have an ideological difference and have many similarities in the final goals for the region. That being said political parties are very important for a variety of reasons. Firstly they are a good indication if you are ready to run for an office, as if your party doesn't think you are quite ready yet you probably aren't. Secondly it gives you a base and some pretty much automatic support before the election begins, your party normally fully backs you otherwise why would they send you up on the ticket. Your party will vote for you and back you up which is a good thing. Thirdly it gives you a chance to run some of your ideas for the region through a smaller group and see what they think, they will give you constructive criticism, and praise before you have to show it off to the whole region. Lastly it limits the number of people on the ticket. While we wouldn't be getting double digit runners if there were no political parties, the one for one party is nice.

Sept 1, 2020 22:17:21 GMT -5 Free Las Pinas said:

Would you do anything to improve the system?

Personally I think the way political parties work now is actually quite good due to the main reasons I mentioned above. As I mentioned in my campaign thread my first goal as NRS Senator would be to revamp the Great Debate Hall so improving the political parties is not at the top of my priority list. I believe that the current set up that we use is very good.

Sept 1, 2020 22:17:21 GMT -5 Free Las Pinas said:

Can you assure us you’ll finish your term if elected?

I plan on honoring the duty of Senator until the end of my term no matter what. While irl stuff can happen to any of the council, I will do my absolute best to finish my term if elected as I know it's my responsibility.

[Wille-Harlia]

Free Las Pinas, the NRS Senator is no longer in charge of political parties, they are now in charge of debates and straw polls.

[Hakketomat]

Questions pertaining mainly to the World Assembly:

How will you choose to approve GA and SC proposals? Will you accept requests? Will you make your own judgement?
I take song requests, yeah. And I will judge the songs based on the vibes they give me. As for choosing to approve GA/SC proposals. It will be bureaucratic. To speed it up, one can send me a few Tacos. That won't increase chances of approval. To increase chances of approval, send more Tacos. For regular authors, there will be a subscription plan for either speeding up or increasing chance or a combination.

Will you vote on every proposal?
Yes! That's the only way to make my name be mentioned more frequently in the world. Nobody is waiting for my vote unless it's an important proposal so nobody will be like "ey, yo! Where is Hakke's vote?", so my name won't be mentioned. If I do vote, then people will be like "Hakke has voted" and my name will be on people's lips.

How will you vote on proposals?
I'm guessing you're asking about whether I will stick to forum poll or not and not asking about whether I know how to log onto my nation and go into WA and proposal and choose response.
The forum poll is in place for a reason. I will not burden my "yes-men" to post poll and discussion for nothing. Therefore, I will stick to forum poll unless I deem it a special case in which XKI's reputation is at stake.

Will you try your best to give input? HumanSanity , you mentioned appointing an FA secretary to handle WA decisions and coordinate with the WA secretary. Will you entrust this FA secretary with providing input? If so, through an IFV-style dispatch or a post in our discussion thread, or neither?
I do have a Bachelor in International Law in RL so I will rely on that a bit. However, this game is filled with people with other and weird ideas so it's best to have someone experience with resolution writing for NS as well in order to best be able to tailor proposals in such a way that they will most likely pass.

Will you draft a resolution? And will you encourage others to do so?
I will be busy fending off pesky people in the NSGP forum and won't have time to write resolutions. Therefore, I will gladly have my "yes-men" do it for me so that I can submit their proposals under my own name. But of course, they can draft resolutions outside their duties as "yes-men" and so I won't be allowed to post their proposals under my own name.

Questions about foreign policy:

What criteria will you use to appoint and fire emissaries and ambassadors? HumanSanity , you said you’ll entrust the Secretary of State, is there a certain criteria you’d have them follow?
Now this is where I differ greatly from my nemesis. This is a case of "doing something yourself if you want it done correctly". Emissaries and ambassadors need to be a bit engaged in the regions they're sent to. Either on respective RMB, Forum, or Discord or a combination of them. Not just posting updates every month. The regions they are sent to need to feel XKI's presence in some way and feel appreciated. For regions of higher sensitivity, it's important that a seasoned member of our region is sent to because they are more likely to understand the dynamics of the game and how to handle hot topics.

Do you plan to seek regions to have embassies or treaties with? If so, and this one is completely optional, do you have any regions in mind?
I will refrain from answering this question. It's good to have embassies with desirable regions but I cannot divulge information of this nature.

How will you use our NSGP thread? Will you post our events and newsletters?
Absolutely! Good thing you mentioned that thread, because I've almost forgotten it I think I've only posted something about group hug in that thread. That thread needs to be the center of good attention!

Questions pertaining to internal policy:

Will you choose to adhere to the transparency pledge?
Ai ai ai... that pledge... being delegate means you do things that are very important and sometimes top secret. If I were to share anything of what I've done, it would have to take time so that I have the chance to formulate the information in such a way that it actually is informative but not giving away things that cannot be shared.

Will you endo-tart and telegram those who haven’t endorsed you?
Oh I will endo-tart alright. If they don't endo me back, I will endo, retract, endo, retract, endo until they endo me back! If they move out of the region, I will send some of my "yes-men" after them and they will do the same. Endo, retract, endo, retract, endo!

How would you encourage everyone to get involved particularly in the World Assembly?
Bribes. Hey! I don't only take bribes, I also give bribes! Corruption is a two-way street!

[Free Las Pinas]

Sept 3, 2020 11:44:53 GMT -5 Wille-Harlia said:

Free Las Pinas , the NRS Senator is no longer in charge of political parties, they are now in charge of debates and straw polls.

Oops, thought it’d be both. I’ll change some questions then.

Edit: They’re fixed now!

[Paffnia]

Questions for Delegate Candidates

- If FOR and AGAINST are tied on the forum vote, what then?
- When timing your vote, will you vote as soon as possible, with a XKI discussion thread set up even earlier in an attempt to sway the vote; or wait awhile before voting to get the full spectrum of opinion from more Islanders; or something else?
- In a close and shifting forum vote on a resolution, how often will you change your vote? As soon as FOR overtakes AGAINST, for example, or wait to see if it switches back?
- Will you restore the "delegate's prerogative" option?
- Will you provide Islanders with your own views on proposal, or merely seek their input?
- Although this won't matter much if you vote based on polls, how do you align yourself in the GA? Do you side with the International Federalists or National Sovereigntists more (or some other position entirely)?
- Would you create and regularly update a dispatch pinned to the WFE, with links to the most recent forum discussions of WA resolutions at vote, so that NS-going nations can find our WA discussions?
- How will you encourage citizens to vote in WA polls?
- How will Islanders be able to hold you accountable if you fail to post polls or vote in a timely manner?
- If the emissary corps is ever overstretched (as happened during my term), is lack of emissaries a valid reason to deny a new embassy with a borderline region? Or would you move to accept the embassy and then try to make do?
- Do you plan to restore the initiative of having Islanders visit friendly regions for a weekend?
- Do you plan on adding your own touches to the emissaries' report, or just letting the BCN senator write it?
- Will you post telegrams you receive in a thread? Will you have an office thread (either combined with the inbox thread or separate)?
- Will you mass-TG the Islands with updates? If so, what kind of updates and how often?
- Will you post the emissaries report in a pinned dispatch every month?
- Without holding you to the promise, will you consider running for a second term after this one?

[HumanSanity]

Sept 5, 2020 18:18:07 GMT -5 Paffnia said:

- If FOR and AGAINST are tied on the forum vote, what then?

I will cast the vote according to how I personally voted as a tiebreaker. If this happens, for the sake of transparency, I will clearly state in the thread how I voted and that it caused me to break the tie in a specific direction.

Sept 5, 2020 18:18:07 GMT -5 Paffnia said:

- When timing your vote, will you vote as soon as possible, with a XKI discussion thread set up even earlier in an attempt to sway the vote; or wait awhile before voting to get the full spectrum of opinion from more Islanders; or something else?

The goal will be to start discussions as early as it is clear something is likely to make queue and vote as early as I can. Votes can be un-cast or changed later as more voices are heard.

Sept 5, 2020 18:18:07 GMT -5 Paffnia said:

- In a close and shifting forum vote on a resolution, how often will you change your vote? As soon as FOR overtakes AGAINST, for example, or wait to see if it switches back?

I will change my vote as quickly as RL allows me after a poll switch. The way I see it, I should represent our forum vote as precisely as possible. In addition, to the extent that the WA vote is basically a way of flexing our political power, switching regularly when our vote is close will attract WA stakeholders to our forum and Discord to advocate for their beliefs and answer the questions of our citizens.

Sept 5, 2020 18:18:07 GMT -5 Paffnia said:

- Will you restore the "delegate's prerogative" option?

On SC votes only. On GA votes, it serves no purpose. On SC votes, a legitimate option is to believe the Delegate should get to make a decision about how the vote fits within the region's foreign policy agenda. For me, Delegate's Prerogative isn't "I'm too lazy to vote" it's "I willingly give up control over my vote to the Delegate because this issue effects interconnected issues I do not fully understand".

As an aside, I will count Delegate's Prerogative votes as being added to the side of the poll which I prefer rather than requiring Delegate's Prerogative to obtain a plurality of votes to exercise my own judgement. I think this is more democratic because it honors the preference of those who voted Delegate's Prerogative, even if Delegate's Prerogative isn't the plurality.

If there are Delegate's Prerogative votes that are decisive on a vote, I will clarify what my prerogative is.

Sept 5, 2020 18:18:07 GMT -5 Paffnia said:

- Will you provide Islanders with your own views on proposal, or merely seek their input?

Except in a case where I override the forum vote, I won't present my perspective on a proposal in a formal way as if it has the authority of the Delegate's office. I won't force myself to give an opinion on every resolution (after all, a central part of my workload management strategy is delegating out WA minutia to the FA and WA Secretaries) but I will also give my opinion from time to time in the thread, much as I do now.

Sept 5, 2020 18:18:07 GMT -5 Paffnia said:

- Although this won't matter much if you vote based on polls, how do you align yourself in the GA? Do you side with the International Federalists or National Sovereigntists more (or some other position entirely)?

Largely International Federalist. If there's a major pressing societal issue where world-wide action would create good, I'd like to do that over the objections of autocratic and illiberal governments.

Sept 5, 2020 18:18:07 GMT -5 Paffnia said:

- Would you create and regularly update a dispatch pinned to the WFE, with links to the most recent forum discussions of WA resolutions at vote, so that NS-going nations can find our WA discussions?

Yes, but upkeep will not be done by me personally, as explained in my campaign.

Sept 5, 2020 18:18:07 GMT -5 Paffnia said:

- How will you encourage citizens to vote in WA polls?

I will use the same techniques Lenlyvit uses now. Announced threads on the forum, an @islander ping on Discord, and an RMB post.

I may also create an opt-in ping list for the RMB and forum for those who want to be "notified" of new votes similar to the notification system used in the Summer Olympics.

Sept 5, 2020 18:18:07 GMT -5 Paffnia said:

- How will Islanders be able to hold you accountable if you fail to post polls or vote in a timely manner?

First of all, my intent is to make this responsibility as diffuse as possible to make the process as speedy as possible. Posting polls is not exceptionally difficult, it takes a few minutes and a knowledge of how a posting template works. Ideally, I'd like this ability to be held by everyone in my office (myself, the FA Secretary, the Secretary of State) and the WA Secretariat (the Secretary and their Deputy). This increases the odds of an early and successful poll posting.

As to how to hold me accountable, send me PMs until I respond, and if that fails harass my office! We don't have a Delegate-removal mechanism, but if I'm doing a mediocre job (or just not doing my job) you should call me out.

Sept 5, 2020 18:18:07 GMT -5 Paffnia said:

- If the emissary corps is ever overstretched (as happened during my term), is lack of emissaries a valid reason to deny a new embassy with a borderline region? Or would you move to accept the embassy and then try to make do?

I would move to accept the embassy and make do, as necessary filling in as the Emissary myself.

Sept 5, 2020 18:18:07 GMT -5 Paffnia said:

- Do you plan to restore the initiative of having Islanders visit friendly regions for a weekend?

Yes, but with an eye towards stronger event planning and likely (because the world has tradeoffs) fewer visits. I have found these visits awkward in the past - we sort of just show up on an RMB or a Discord server, say hello, make 1 mediocre joke, and move on with our lives. Additionally, since there's no event, turnout is generally low.

As a result, I'd move to do fewer but better structured regional weekend visits. Each one should have one or two small social events contained within it (nothing extravagant, but something small) to help break the ice and get people talking.

Sept 5, 2020 18:18:07 GMT -5 Paffnia said:

- Do you plan on adding your own touches to the emissaries' report, or just letting the BCN senator write it?

I'll likely check the report for accuracy and completion, but I'll leave it to the BCN Senator mostly. Depending on the level of trust between me and the Secretary of State, I may delegate this task to them entirely.

Sept 5, 2020 18:18:07 GMT -5 Paffnia said:

- Will you post telegrams you receive in a thread? Will you have an office thread (either combined with the inbox thread or separate)?

Yep.

Sept 5, 2020 18:18:07 GMT -5 Paffnia said:

- Will you mass-TG the Islands with updates? If so, what kind of updates and how often?

I would use this power much as I already do to provide updates on important events that may effect Islanders and/or they may be interested in. I don't foresee myself using it differently as Delegate.

Sept 5, 2020 18:18:07 GMT -5 Paffnia said:

- Will you post the emissaries report in a pinned dispatch every month?

Yes, I will post the report in a dispatch. I will make the decision about whether and for how long to pin the Dispatch based on other pinned Dispatches that are out when the report is published.

Sept 5, 2020 18:18:07 GMT -5 Paffnia said:

- Without holding you to the promise, will you consider running for a second term after this one?

I want to take a few steps back here and use the opportunity to speak, more broadly, to a culture of government stewardship our region is fostering but needs to further towards.

The second priority of every government official in 10000 Islands (after doing a good job while they hold the position) is emphatically to plan for your own obsolescence. When you start a job, you won't know why or how you will step down. Will it be due to real life obligations? Will you lose interest? Will you decide to retire after a lengthy and successful tenure because the job needs new eyes? will you pursue another NS opportunity instead? Will you lose an election? It could be anything.

But it is coming. I am not special or different--in fact, a critique of me (that I partially share) might be that I'm too responsive to how I feel about a job and my ability to do it at any moment and we lose out on some stability as a result. In my past positions, especially since returning in May of 2019, I have exited all but one job (NRS Senator) I've held with a clear idea of who had the skills to take on the job next.

As a result, I sincerely hope I'm a one term Delegate. If I am running for re-election, it is because I have failed to cultivate talent to the point where I believe a version of myself who is exhausted after 6 months in a busy job is a better choice than anyone else. Part of the point of the part of my platform focused on fostering middle-management in the State Department is to cultivate talent that can replace me.

In my ideal vision, there will be several capable and eager non-me candidates with competing visions for the region's foreign affairs participating in a public debate in the March 2021 Delegate election. That's probably a dream land, but I think it's a goal worth striving for.

[HumanSanity]

Sept 5, 2020 19:29:07 GMT -5 HumanSanity said:

The second priority of every government official in 10000 Islands (after doing a good job while they hold the position) is emphatically to plan for your own obsolescence. When you start a job, you won't know why or how you will step down. Will it be due to real life obligations? Will you lose interest? Will you decide to retire after a lengthy and successful tenure because the job needs new eyes? will you pursue another NS opportunity instead? Will you lose an election? It could be anything.

But it is coming.

To the end of this part of what I just said, I have a question for the Senate candidates:

How will you plan for the day you are no longer Senator?

Control Kohnhead Solarampa Wischland

[Kohnhead]

Thanks for the question HS,
As some of you may know from reading campaign thread, my main goal if I'm elected would be to revamp the Grand Debate Hall by posting more debates and making some of those be more formal just like the Summer Olympics Debates were. I would not wish to step down from the role of NRS Senator until that vision is fulfilled and I have others on board who can help it grow.

I will also hire a deputy NRS Senator to help me with all of this and someone who can be waiting if I need to step down.

If you wanted anything more in depth or something else from the question then let me know.

[Wischland]

Sept 5, 2020 19:36:34 GMT -5 HumanSanity said:

How will you plan for the day you are no longer Senator?

An important question, even if our own obsolescence isn't something fun to think about. While I don't have any plans to hire a deputy at the moment, I'm not opposed to doing so, especially if I was planning on retiring from the position. If my time as Senator comes to a more unexpected end, I have no qualms with giving tips to my successor in regards to the Update Report. I'm also considering typing up some notes on formatting and compiling the report, and would be happy to share these with future BCN Senators. As for legislative work in the Co9, my hope is that greater transparency will allow anyone to get more involved in politics and prepare themselves for senatorship. 

[Hakketomat]

Sept 5, 2020 18:18:07 GMT -5 Paffnia said:

Questions for Delegate Candidates

- If FOR and AGAINST are tied on the forum vote, what then?
I will take it as a sign that the people are indecisive and need my help. I will vote as I see fit. I may or may not post an explanation in full on legalese that nobody will understand but will give everyone the impressions that I've done something really smart and so the fictional approval rate will remain high.

- When timing your vote, will you vote as soon as possible, with a XKI discussion thread set up even earlier in an attempt to sway the vote; or wait awhile before voting to get the full spectrum of opinion from more Islanders; or something else?
Depends on the subject material of the proposal. What will be standard, is that I will have discussion and vote up when it is obvious that a proposal will reach/or already has reached quorum.

- In a close and shifting forum vote on a resolution, how often will you change your vote? As soon as FOR overtakes AGAINST, for example, or wait to see if it switches back?
If I've already voted and there is a shift, I will change vote close to the end of the voting period. This is because, most votes should already be in since I open up the forum vote in advance.

- Will you restore the "delegate's prerogative" option?
With the temptation that some people have to vote DP or intentionally tie the vote, I don't see a reason for this. If there is a high degree of sensitivity involved or other circumstances that call for the delegate's prerogative, I will exercise that prerogative regardless. I will also provide with an explanation for my reasoning.

- Will you provide Islanders with your own views on proposal, or merely seek their input?
I will state my views while asking for input. Thus, I will ask if people agree or disagree with me or if they would expand on my views.

- Although this won't matter much if you vote based on polls, how do you align yourself in the GA? Do you side with the International Federalists or National Sovereigntists more (or some other position entirely)?
Membership in the GA is quite optional so I don't see a reason to be all "but OUR national sovereignty". That being said, matters in the GA need to be for the good of the world and harmonize different cultures. One mustn't walk in there and expect other parts of the world to accept your views because it makes sense to you. This has an RL tie to it in the United Nations and Human Rights Laws. Not all parts of our very real world subscribe to the western ideals on governance and basic rights for the populace.

- Would you create and regularly update a dispatch pinned to the WFE, with links to the most recent forum discussions of WA resolutions at vote, so that NS-going nations can find our WA discussions?
I will have my "Yes-Men" do that, yes.

- How will you encourage citizens to vote in WA polls?
By telling them how little their opinions matter if they don't show them in the WA polls.

- How will Islanders be able to hold you accountable if you fail to post polls or vote in a timely manner?
For the posting of polls, they can hold my "Yes-Men" accountable. I will fire the (ir)responsible one if it is a habit. If it's the actual vote by me that isn't in on a timely manner, the people will... well... there is that fictional approval rate. I would imagine that it would sing a bit. I would fix that by expressing how sorry I am. A lot of companies do this after a mess that they've made. I believe they're very sorry so you should believe that I am very sorry if I fail to vote on time.

- If the emissary corps is ever overstretched (as happened during my term), is lack of emissaries a valid reason to deny a new embassy with a borderline region? Or would you move to accept the embassy and then try to make do?
Blatantly telling other regions that we can't have embassies due to lack of personnel is a bad statement to NS in general. I will accept new embassies if all other requirements are met and the Co9 agrees. I will ask if existing emissaries are interested in serving in an additional region while reaching out to unassigned members of our community. If all else fails then I have the good old "do it yourself if you want it done correctly" method.

- Do you plan to restore the initiative of having Islanders visit friendly regions for a weekend?
I am seeing this as a bit redundant with the Discord platform. We can also focus on the hosting of events rather than visits. There needs to be a reason for why Islanders should go over to another region for a weekend rather than it just being a "job". The lack of a reason will make it a bit hollow. Like you just pop over and post a bit on RMB/forum and then you leave?

- Do you plan on adding your own touches to the emissaries' report, or just letting the BCN senator write it?
I've got enough responsibilities and the BCN senator has that responsibility. I wouldn't deprive them of their pride. I will only serve to make sure that the report is factual and doesn't harm our relations with other regions.

- Will you post telegrams you receive in a thread? Will you have an office thread (either combined with the inbox thread or separate)?
I will absolutely have an office thread. That's the perk of being on the Co9. You get a cool office of your choosing and people can admire your taste for interior design and decoration. Posting of telegrams is a bit of a sticky issue... I believe that a sender has a reasonable expectation of privacy. That means that I will have to ask for permission before reposting the telegram into public or even Co9 view.

- Will you mass-TG the Islands with updates? If so, what kind of updates and how often?
I will update them on my eating habits as well as my hobbies. I will use the telegram as an instagram and people will get to know me personally and see that I'm a very nice person.

- Will you post the emissaries report in a pinned dispatch every month?
Yes

- Without holding you to the promise, will you consider running for a second term after this one?
Are you saying that I'm already elected?

[Control]

Sept 1, 2020 22:17:21 GMT -5 Free Las Pinas said:

It’s exciting to have a good set of Candidates, and since I have nothing better to do with my time, I’ve decided to release my own question set!  Now, questions for Senate candidates!

Will you adhere to the transparency pledge and the transparency act? What’s your position on HS’s discussion on amending the transparency act?

I have adhered to the Transparency Pledge and the Transparency Act so far and I certainly plan to continue to do so. I'm broadly in favor of amending the transparency act as I have found that following the transparency pledge is made difficult by the differing levels of transparency in the council. I'm open to the idea of public debates for all non-secured proposals but I have some security and procedural qualms that I think need to be worked through first.

What do you think are the values of XKI and how will you uphold them?

In my opinion, the main values of XKI are Friendliness and Openness, Defending, and Democracy. I'll uphold Defending by promoting better relations with defender-oriented regions and I'll continue to argue for pushing independents away from raiding. I'll uphold Democracy and Friendliness by promoting a culture of open debate where we can respectfully engage in discussion about general topics and NS and XKI politics and by promoting the development of new leaders and working to help generally promote an active and welcoming environment.

Three months from now, when some council debate threads or archived publicly, can we be reassured that you’ll vote in a way that is best for the region?

Well I think I've done a good job so far. You can check the archives now and see if you disagree.

For NRS:

A lot of debate happens on both the RMB and discord, how would you encourage XKIers, our friends, and visiting ambassadors, to debate on the forums?

First, I want to develop better debate guidelines. Next, I want to post an "official" debate at least once a month. I want to start that debate with a scheduled debate on the Discord, then summarize the positions expressed in that debate as the first post for the forum thread which I would then link in the Discord and on the RMB. This method fleshes out the debate at the beginning and then lets it continue on the forum indefinitely in a slower and more continuous way.

Can you assure us you’ll finish your term if elected?

I finished the last one, I'm sure gonna finish this one.

[Control]

Sept 5, 2020 19:36:34 GMT -5 HumanSanity said:

How will you plan for the day you are no longer Senator?

I intend to hire a Deputy and include them in the creation and moderation of debates and to at least talk to them about the election debate and straw poll processes.