|
Redeye Flight posted:So, rather than just kind of staple this on to one of my other proposals where it wouldn't really fit, I'd like to propose we rename the EXCALIBUR weapons systems to "Blue Bolt" weapons systems. You want to arm our spacecraft with BB guns?
|
#
?
Jul 3, 2022 09:55
|
|
|
|
| # ? Jun 1, 2024 05:46 |
|
|
State of the Worlds, Part 4 Addendum The Indigenous Restitution and Protection Act or IRPA established the Decolonization Bureau and the Bureau of Indigenous Affairs in 1982, and they have spent the four years since at work. The main challenge faced by the two agencies has been the sheer scale of their purview - it isn't just that we're talking about thousands of different ethnic groups, cultures, and nationalities, tens of millions of people, across six continents, it's that every single one is unique and vastly different from every other. IRPA's area of responsibility ranges from North American tribal communities with fewer than a hundred people to places like Bolivia, Zimbabwe, and South Africa, with populations of millions, the majority of whom are indigenous. Some of these communities have no written language, some of them are deeply distrustful of outsiders with good reason, some of them are physically isolated from the world and difficult to communicate with. Trying to assemble a global network out of so many disparate parts is a big ask. Four years is a long time, though, and a lot can be done if you're committed to it. The DB - popularly pronounced as 'deeb', much to their annoyance - have focused their efforts primarily on communication, outreach, and advocacy, both among indigenous groups and between them and the other states and polities of the Comintern. The DB provides previously-underrepresented - or actively suppressed - communities with an avenue through which they can make their voices heard, airing out grievances, making demands, and advocating for their interests. The organization has quietly grown to wield considerable political power, and receives active backing from several major indigenous polities who view it as a means to exercise influence on the wider Comintern. Bringing in a DB advocate more or less gives you official state sanction to be a thorn in the government's side - or, if you are an independent state yourself, it gives your side of the argument the added legitimacy of a Comintern bureau backing it. The organization is not even close to achieving the goal stated in its name, but it's a start, anyway. While the DB works on the problem of political representation, the Bureau of Indigenous Affairs focuses on the hard, practical side of decolonization. Settler-colonialism is about far more than mere political or legal status, and no piece of paper, admission of wrongdoing, apology, or even repayment can completely undo the damage done by centuries of oppression. The ironically-named BIA identifies needs, finds the resources necessary to meet those needs, and does what is necessary to get them allocated. Hard-nosed BIA reps are the bane of half the industrial planners and economic ministers in the Comintern, urgent BIA resource requisitions through Cybersyn routinely disrupt weeks worth of production, and every new building project that even gets close to one of their areas of responsibility will have a big scary person from the BIA watching them like a hawk the whole time. The BIA has liaised with other departments of the Comintern bureaucracy to support language preservation and education, and also actively supports indigenous art and culture through grants, fellowships, artist-in-residency programs, affirmative action initiatives, and the like. The organization's most prominent cultural impact has been Lucasfilm Cooperative's Indian Jones film series, funded partially through a BIA grant. Starring Wes Studi as the title character, a two-fisted pulp Cherokee archaeologist fighting Nazis, Brits, and American business tycoons to keep sacred ancient artifacts in the hands of their original owners, the two films released so far are fun adventure romps that have reached a wide audience. The character's famous catchphrase, 'they don't belong in a museum!', has become both a rallying cry and an unofficial motto of the bureau. Part 6- A Report on the State of the Global Economy   The overall state of the Comintern's economy is good, although that is a criminal oversimplification. The actual on the ground reality is much more complex and varied. Socialist Aid Program development, and the mandated industrial modernization and TNE conversion programs, have touched virtually every Comintern member and aligned polity in one way or another. Approximately 180 million people in the Comintern are now directly employed in some sort of Trans-Newtonian industry, and they are able to produce more, in less time, than a billion workers could have in 1968. It's not just making things out of TNEs, either - TNE-enhanced advancements in computing, industrial robotics, energy generation and storage, electronics, and mechanical engineering have proven useful even in industries that use only conventional materials, and production has soared even as average work hours have gradually gone down. After many years of hardship, prosperity is gradually, unevenly returning to the world. The 'Cybersyn' economic planning and management network has taken a central role in the Comintern's economy, and there are now entire industries that could not function day-to-day without it. The system is imperfect and problems occur frequently - ranging from simple data-entry errors to computer crashes, power or network outages, and most infamously a node once getting knocked offline by a rat infestation. That having been said, it works more often than it does not, and when it does work, it's like magic. Factories receive the parts they'll need for the month's production quota before they even realize they need them, local shortages result in surpluses elsewhere being smoothly reallocated to address them, and goods and services flow across the world in a mesmerizing, intricately-choreographed dance, every step of it tracked and logged and fed into the system as data, to be used to generate the next step and the next and the next. To the average person on the street in the USSR or France or Chile, most of this is invisible, of course; they just notice that they have the things they need, and increasingly the things they want, too, when they need and want them. The impact of SAP cannot be overstated; the program has all by itself consumed a significant percentage of the entire industrial output of the Comintern for nearly a decade now. Every day, new SAP housing blocks are raised. Every day, new plazas and community centers, new shops and markets, new schools and hospitals, all made of the simple, utilitarian, gleaming white SAP standard prefab components, take form under the hands and machines of the builders. It is the largest construction project in human history by an enormous margin; nothing else ever attempted has even come close. It is a reminder of what humanity is capable of when they work together, it is an enormous boon to the global economy, and it's really, really good propaganda, too. It, too, is not without problems - there is simply too much of it for perfect quality control, and not all of these new units are particularly well-built, and not all of the components they are built of are free of mistakes or flaws. Some of the new construction has to be almost completely redone within months of initial construction. No matter. The factories churning out the prefabs never sleep, and the system allocating them is always ready with a replacement. There is always more. It's a little terrifying. The enormous surplus in housing that SAP has helped create have been coupled with substantial improvements in food production, both from technological advances and environmental remediation efforts, as well as improved climate following the nuclear autumn of the 1970s. These factors, among others, have combined to form a baby boom unprecedented in human history. This creates its own issues - in particular, the Earth's population is still growing at a faster rate than global food production is increasing, and although the problem is currently at least 10+ years away, steps will eventually have to be taken to keep those two lines from intersecting. TN fission power has massively reduced energy costs, as well, which has played a major role in the postwar economic recovery. Electricity isn't just more widely available than it was in the immediate aftermath, it's available in much higher quantities for much smaller expenditures of resources. More energy with fewer costs means more things you can do with that energy, and TN power - which has yet to entirely supplant old forms of power generation, even in the Comintern, but inevitably will at this rate - gives its users enough of an energy budget to do some big things. The new utopia remains a distant promise to some, though, with the primary hurdle being logistics. The planet is very, very big, and remains heavily fragmented. COMRAIL is making great progress on the work of bringing humanity together into one unified network, but it's not there yet, and no amount of high-tech space age industry will matter if the stuff it makes can't physically get to you. No fancy Internetwork-based economic management system will help allocate goods to a factory that's on the wrong side of a bridge that hasn't been rebuilt yet, or send a barge down a canal that's been completely blocked off with mud since 1974. Even in places fully integrated into the Comintern's logistical network, inequality, inefficiency, and resource shortfalls often remain issues. You have put much effort into standardization and uniformity, but this is still not truly a world government. You stand at the head of a coalition of hundreds of different systems, all of them with their own ways of allocating resources, their own local problems to deal with, and their own needs. Not all of them play well together, even with the work you have already put in, and even with multiple departments of the growing Comintern bureaucracy working the problem. Ensuring the common prosperity of the world's people must remain an ongoing project. Outside of the Comintern, the situation is even more uneven. The Trans-Newtonian cat is now thoroughly out of the bag, and every industrialized nation in the world has at least some limited Trans-Newtonian capability now, but the scale and sophistication of these efforts, and the impact they actually have on the day-to-day lives of the population, varies widely. In some places, where the economy was heavily dependent on extraction of primary resources that are now largely obsolete in the new economy, the Trans-Newtonian revolution has actually made things worse, without SAP to soften the blow. Some people requested this info for legislation they wanted to write, so deliberations will be extended by 24 hours. Mister Bates fucked around with this message at 10:17 on Jul 3, 2022 |
|
#
?
Jul 3, 2022 10:03
|
|
|
I hereby propose the SAP extension act The results of the SAP across the socialist sectors of earth is truly marvellous. But the contrast to the remainder of the capitalist block grows even starker with each passing day. While citizens of the Comintern live in healthy, spacious and cheap housing, the dwellings across the ideological divide are mostly pre-war, often damaged, almost uniformly poorly maintained. To subject our fellow human beings to such conditions, even by omission, is plainly unethical and a disgrace to the very principles of socialism. I hereby motion to expand the SAP, making pre-fab buildings as well as the associated materials, manuals and training for assembly available for sale in the Capitalist world. These materials will be made available at cost, without any further conditions attached. In special cases we will made these products available even below cost for humanitarian reasons, according to the principle: 'To each according to his needs, from each according to his abilities.'
|
|
#
?
Jul 3, 2022 12:58
|
|
|
The DRMN would like to propose the Sustainable Family Planning and Education Initiative. Baby booms are good when recovering from a catastrophe, it's a sign of contentment and hope among the populace. However, it clearly isn't sustainable, and will rapidly outstrip the carrying capacity of the Earth itself, let alone the Comintern's resources. Therefore we would formalize a program within the Ministry of Health to widely and cheaply provide sex education, birth control and family planning services wherever possible, to hopefully allow people to curtail accidental pregnancies and voluntarily reduce population growth to a long-term sustainable level.
|
|
#
?
Jul 3, 2022 13:28
|
|
|
Kodos666 posted:I hereby propose the SAP extension act Asterite34 posted:The DRMN would like to propose the Sustainable Family Planning and Education Initiative. Seconded
|
|
#
?
Jul 3, 2022 17:08
|
|
|
Contingent upon the new Appalachian Defense Bill being seconded, Appalachia withdraws the previous nuclear arms bill and proposes the following:quote:The Appalachian Defense Act of 1986 quote:[IN PLAIN ENGLISH]
|
|
#
?
Jul 3, 2022 17:24
|
|
|
Loel posted:Contingent upon the new Appalachian Defense Bill being seconded, Appalachia withdraws the previous nuclear arms bill and proposes the following: Seconded, with the note that since they're no longer directly opposed if both nuclear-related bills pass the Kalmar one will be modified to adjust for the new maximum time before nuclear weapons and related facilities must be surrendered to the Nuclear Authorities.
|
|
#
?
Jul 3, 2022 17:38
|
|
|
The Lone Badger posted:You want to arm our spacecraft with BB guns? Hey, if they'll shoot your eye out... Loel posted:Contingent upon the new Appalachian Defense Bill being seconded, Appalachia withdraws the previous nuclear arms bill and proposes the following: I could see a group of paranoid military strongmen willing to reduce the quantity of their weapons if they're able to improve the quality, but getting anywhere near disarmament feels like a non starter unless they're given another way to ensure both protection, and prominence. Having a rail gun station there wouldn't hurt, but I don't think it's enough, and deploying an external armed force seems like it might hurt things overall. Maybe we could add a few of them as gunners to the crews of our patrol boats?
|
|
#
?
Jul 3, 2022 19:19
|
|
|
Volmarias posted:Hey, if they'll shoot your eye out... This is, ostensibly, what the Ground Forces Training Facility is for. Placing that facility there might actually be most crucial, because that's both a major prominence element and an ironclad, concrete symbol of the Comintern's commitment to defending Appalachia.
|
|
#
?
Jul 3, 2022 20:04
|
|
|
Deliberations are closed! Thank you to everyone who submitted a resolution or participated in debate this session. I will take a bit of time to put a ballot together and then we will commence voting.
|
|
#
?
Jul 4, 2022 07:53
|
|
|
Harry Caray, then-broadcaster for the St. Louis Cardinals, from the famous Chicago Revolution Broadcast, 1972 posted:"...We're on the roof now, and I can see the city laid out in front of me. You can hear sirens, air raid sirens, police sirens, all around, all of them... and there is gunfire, off in the distance. The crowd at Wrigley is pouring out into the streets, I can see them heading for downtown Chicago... and there are fires, off to the west, getting closer, here and there. Who is starting them, what is burning, I can't say. But I can say why, ladies and gentlemen. We have heard nothing from Mayor Daley yet, we have heard nothing from the Chief of Police, but Chicago has finally had enough. I cannot see the future, but I can look out on this city and tell you that there will be no martial law in Chicago, tonight, tomorrow, and maybe never. They're angry, and they're tired, and you can hear it from here.
|
|
#
?
Jul 7, 2022 10:32
|
|
|
I thought the twist was going to be that the Cubs won the series
|
|
#
?
Jul 8, 2022 09:18
|
|
|
Volmarias posted:I thought the twist was going to be that the Cubs won the series Wrong end of the year for it, sadly. While I don't have the full thing written up yet, according to Bates the final trigger for the US going to pieces was the Federal-GiE split, which happened after a major series of protests, riots, and outright attacks in probably the Pittsburgh area typically referred to in bulk as the Allegheny Riots. The Joint Chiefs in response tried to get martial law declared without Agnew's approval, splitting the civilian and military sides of the USA. This gave carte blanche to basically everything to fall apart, and in Chicago's case as I see it, as soon as the news reached the city its fed-up population, which had been getting kicked around basically nonstop since the 1968 Convention, declared that neither side was legitimate, they would handle their own poo poo. Thus, the Free City of Chicago. The Allegheny Riots happened in 1972, and in my mind they had to happen very early in the year, because the US at that point surviving for any longer chunk of 1972 seems implausible. It might actually have been on Opening Day, even, which is still April 15. Redeye Flight fucked around with this message at 10:38 on Jul 9, 2022 |
|
#
?
Jul 9, 2022 10:17
|
|
|
VOTING IS NOW OPEN Vote using the following ballot: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdohdDdSv1eZgGc9gsnC3Wa189X1UlCAarErAmM-aIR5C1Thg/viewform?usp=sf_link Voting will remain open until Wednesday, July 13, give or take a bit.
|
|
#
?
Jul 9, 2022 20:58
|
|
|
There is one more thing to discuss -- THIS IS A FORMALLY SANCTIONED LP VOTE, and must be voted on in-thread as our voting software cannot handle ranked-choice right now due to... programming oversights. = = = = = = = COMINTERPLAN ADMINISTRATIVE DRAFTING COMMITTEE CENTRAL ADMINISTRATION ARCOLOGY INITIAL ASSESSMENT REPORT FOR 1985 PRIMARY AUTHOR: V.A. RICCI, COMMITTEE CHAIR To the esteemed Cominterplan Congress: Per Directive I-44-1981, "Administrative Overhaul Directive of 1981", the Admin Drafting Committee has been cooperating with the Cominterplan Science Bureau for purposes of developing a modern design and operations structure for governing an interplanetary organization. This included the construction of a central operations facility for administration, specifically a Soleri-style "arcology", though with the caveat that its self-sufficiency should not be taken as complete isolation. With these criteria in mind, a CADC surveying and analysis team has spent the prior fourteen months evaluating sites in Cominterplan signatory countries across the globe, for the sake of finding an ideal position for a central office. As of this report's issuing, we have narrowed it down to four sites which we believe would be the optimal candidates, and having exhausted the means to further reduce the number of sites through purely mechanical criteria, we are turning the question of final selection to the people, via you. The total criteria list can be found in the attached process document: [ERROR: attachment corrupted]. In short, however, it was quickly determined that while the arcology is not intended to replace any existing cities, it would need to be built near to one regardless. The materials and personnel requirements demand a scale of transport infrastructure that can only currently be satisfied by a major port city, or one on major transportation lines (such as Comrail) connected to such. Political reliability, geopolitical situations, future expansion, and restorative justice were also strongly considered. As such, here are the four options. ASIA OPTION: HO CHI MINH CITY, SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM While Singapore was the initial Asian candidate, a lack of easily accessible build space caused it to be ruled out and focus shifted to Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon) in nearby Vietnam. While damaged less than northern cities such as Hanoi and Da Nang, Ho Chi Minh City did suffer a significant degree of damage in the final days of the American War and has yet to fully reoccupy its former footprint. Ho Chi Minh City is a major port in the region and has a considerable population, while also having relatively easy expansion potential. Politically, Vietnam is an extremely devoted Cominterplan member, and reconstruction and support of the country has been considered a high priority of the Cominterplan since the American War. There is also the consideration that Vietnam is located close to both Japan and India, high-population non-Cominterplan countries, which could provide advantages or disadvantages diplomatically, as well as major Cominterplan member China. AFRICA OPTION: DAR ES-SALAAM, UNITED REPUBLIC OF TANZANIA Africa has been long disadvantaged at the hands of the rest of the world, and placing facilities there has been a significant priority from a restorative justice viewpoint since the start of the 80's. Unfortunately, the still-contentious state of the continent has made this difficult at times. As such, the best option has been determined to be Dar es-Salaam, the largest city of the Republic of Tanzania. Founded shortly before the Great Revolutionary War to then-Comintern recognition and a steady friend of communism ever since, Tanzania could be described as the least dedicated ("pinkest") socialist country on the shortlist; this statement is, however, relative and somewhat uncharitable. Dar es-Salaam is a port city and the site there would have the most potential for expansion, while also being the most equatorial of the sites, which could be an outer space-related consideration either now or in the future. Future access to the considerable populations of nearby countries and cities is also plausible, though not currently in place. EUROPE OPTION: STRASBOURG, FRENCH SOCIALIST REPUBLIC Located in Alsace-Lorraine, the Strasbourg option does rank fairly low on the restorative justice consideration, as France and Germany have long been prosperous and/or colonial countries and have received significant reconstructive help already. It does, however, come with some major advantages. France is, of course, an extremely devoted member of the Cominterplan, as are all surrounding countries save Switzerland. Strasbourg is not coastal, but is the only candidate located on an existing and fully operational Comrail line, providing immediate transportation advantages. It has the largest potential population access, with the many proximate European urban centers, and while not as generous as other options, there is entirely adequate expansion space. Placing a major international facility in a traditional friction-point region is also considered a positive by some members, as a possible stabilizing and unifying element for Western Europe. Strasbourg is thus considered the most "present-ready" option of the four from an administrative standpoint. AMERICA OPTION: GUANTANAMO, REPUBLIC OF CUBA The city of Guantanamo sits on the southeastern end of the island of Cuba, the opposite end to Havana, with a significant population and an exceptional port. The site in particular is the former Guantanamo Bay Naval Base concession, now a Cuban military base, which the Cubans have offered should this option be selected. While the most limited option by directly available population (the nearby major city of Santiago de Cuba being larger than Strasbourg but lacking the access to other large cities), and posing the highest potential difficulty to hook up to the Comrail network, the Guantanamo facility would be able to benefit directly from existing heavy infrastructure in place for the naval base, easing construction and bypassing the need to build a port and/or airfield specifically for the arcology (due to the city of Guantanamo already having its own port and airfield thanks to the prior political situation). It would also be a recognition of the considerable contributions of Cuba to the cause of world socialism to date, and another stick in the eye of the dying capitalist world order, by placing an administrative core in a former colonial possession. The Committee awaits your decision. = = = = Members are requested to please rank the four options: AFRICA AMERICA ASIA EUROPE from most to least preferable. The CADC would also like to note that options not picked for this vote will remain as priority choices for other major facilities designed for Earth in the future, provided they don't come with specific siting requirements. We have plenty of ideas in this regard. = = = = For our part, the Deutsche Volksrepublik advocates for the order EUROPE ASIA AMERICA AFRICA While regional bias cannot be counted out, the fact of the matter is that much of our administrative expansion is already hung up on selecting the final site for our arcology. Strasbourg as the most present-ready option is considered the optimal choice in this regard, as it would allow us to move forward most quickly. The HCMC site is second, due to otherwise present access, and the Cuba and Tanzania sites are approximately tied at third due to the difficulty of accessibility, Cuba being an island and Tanzania not currently connected to Comrail. The Guantanamo Bay base's existing heavy infrastructure slightly edges it out in this regard. The DVR, and myself, however, would not be disappointed at any of these sites being chosen. Redeye Flight fucked around with this message at 10:52 on Jul 10, 2022 |
|
#
?
Jul 9, 2022 22:57
|
|
|
California votes as following: AMERICA ASIA EUROPE Votes changed below idhrendur fucked around with this message at 16:39 on Jul 10, 2022 |
|
#
?
Jul 9, 2022 22:59
|
|
|
Kalmar Union votes as follows: AFRICA AMERICA ASIA EUROPE
|
|
#
?
Jul 9, 2022 23:04
|
|
|
The CWC votes as follows: ASIA AFRICA AMERICA EUROPE
|
|
#
?
Jul 9, 2022 23:06
|
|
|
The Western Desert People's Republic of Reno-Carson votes as follows AMERICA ASIA AFRICA EUROPE
|
|
#
?
Jul 9, 2022 23:07
|
|
|
The Peoples Autonomous Soviet of Rakiura and Southland vote ASIA AFRICA AMERICA EUROPE
|
|
#
?
Jul 9, 2022 23:10
|
|
|
USSR votes as follows: ASIA AFRICA EUROPE AMERICA Asia is, to be frank, where most of the people are, and it makes the most sense for a complex dedicated to administering all our lives be centered there. However, we would like it noted that this decision was not an easy one, as each candidate has a great deal to recommend it. We should endeavor in future to prioritize the candidates not selected as sites for future major projects.
|
|
#
?
Jul 9, 2022 23:11
|
|
|
AMERICA AFRICA ASIA EUROPE
|
|
#
?
Jul 10, 2022 00:05
|
|
|
We are certainly busy now, no? It does feel like we are becoming more of a global polity, for better or worse. The Deutsche Volksrepublik's votes on the provided legislation slate are as follows: RF-150, Operation END OF THE LINE: YES RF-157, The Information and Signals Intelligence Oversight Act: YES RF-158, The General Information and Privacy Protection Enforcement Regulation or GIPPER: YES L-163, The Appalachian Defense Act of 1986: YES We, of course, fully sanction our own proposals. The German people have no love for further war, but we have obligations to fulfill to justice and the freedom of the American proletariat. The Joint Chiefs will answer for their crimes against humankind. We also fully endorse oversight of our intelligence services and guarantees of data privacy, though the Utopia Collective has proposed an interesting idea for a “data time capsule” to be sealed in an offworld environment, which we intend to explore at the first opportunity in next year's session. We also, of course, fully endorse the Appalachian Defense Act, which was the subject of considerable negotiation. It represents a significant investment from ourselves and our comrades across Western Europe, but to improve world stability and salve the wounds of the past is why such riches exist in the first place. We also have high hopes for the Commission on Interstellar Armaments. S-160, Addendum to END OF THE LINE: YES As such, we also thoroughly approve of this addendum. MH-130, The Appalachian Relief Act:: YES NM-140, the NBC Defence and Cleanup Task Force : YES The DVR approves wholeheartedly further efforts towards global hazard cleanup, and will readily contribute to them. I-131, the East-West Transportation Act: YES L-133, Build Ground Force Training Facilities and a Ground Military Academy in Appalachia: YES A-136, the LIMIT Act: YES F-137, the Main and Trojan Mining Act: YES MH-142, the Bering Strait Proposal: YES A-146, Additional Maintenance Facilities: YES T-147, MOSA Maintenance Bureau Bill: YES These all seem to be sensible infrastructure-related legislation, and we have no complaints with any of them. P-155, The Ports and Waterways Modernization Act: YES As does this. The DVR would like to immediately submit the Kiel Canal and the ports of Hamburg, Lubeck, Kiel, and Bremen as German candidates. However, the new COMPORT is strongly requested to begin immediate investigation into and work on the port of Rotterdam, in the Netherlands. This is the largest port in Europe and was extensively damaged by NATO years ago as they made their final stand there, along with opening the Dutch water lines and other associated European port-scuttling. While repairs have been made, the port has never been fully restored, and efforts on the continent as a whole have suffered as a result. NM-132, the Ministerial Integration Act: YES The DVR wholeheartedly endorses this bill – federalism has been a success in Germany for hundreds of years, and we would be more than happy to advise on such measures. L-134, Expand Z-82 in Regards to Children and People With Disabilities, and Provide Funding as Needed: YES P-154, The Directive on Scientific Diversification and Expansion: YES P-156, The Universal Scholarship Act: YES JR-159, the Genetics Research Act: YES These seem to be solid cultural and academic proposals – P-154 is, in our opinion, grossly overdue. H-138, the Solar Fortification Omnibus Bill: NO The DVR would like to be clear to our comrades in the Utopia Collective – we do not disapprove of any of these ideas in particular, with the possible exception of the Io proposal as it is very ambitious and long-scope. However, we think that the long-scope items in the Outer Planets would be better separated into their own bill, and as such will vote no on this at this time. Should H-138 fail, we would be very interested in seeing its ideas return, possibly immediately next year. H-139, the Artistic and Scientific Freedom Omnibus Bill: NO By comparison, we think this one needs more consideration and development. This has the potential in our eyes to produce follower-syndrome in our cultural spheres, and that element of capitalist trend-chasing we think we can do without. Also, I don't like the name “Patreon.” NM-141, the Sustainability and Industrial-Agricultural Efficiency Initiative: YES This is a good idea in general. However, the DVR's deputies for Essen and Dortmund along with the Metalworkers' Union want to express some concern about renewables language that has been coming up in discussion and legislation, as the full availability of TNEs is currently unknown. A-143, Antarctic Custodians: YES This makes complete sense. The DVR has no contributions to make, however, having never had Antarctic claims or territory in the vicinity. AM-144, Interstellar Investigation and Development Program: YES This is a very sound idea, as any travel beyond the Solar System would currently be a lifetime commitment. We are already using TNEs to bend the laws of reality – let us see if we cannot add light to that list. T-148, Conscription for the Defense of the Revolution Bill: YES SD-145, The Second Universal Bill Of Rights Amendment: YES These votes are conditional – T-148 should not be passed without the conscientious objector clause in SD-145. Conscription has been a defense staple of every German state, and we would consider it a crucial element of national service – to get rid of it would return us to a purely professional military, and risk the rise of a new Prussian officers' culture. However, conscription without appropriate considerations for moral or personal objections to military service – ones which are adequately respected – is slave soldiery. T-152, Permanent Human Rights Oversight Commission Bill: YES As such, an oversight organization such as this is critical. A-151, Planetside Nuclear Weapons Ban and Operational Nuclear Weaponry Doctrine: YES We could hardly support this more enthusiastically. This is an excellent solution to the problem of nuclear weapons on Earth. D-149, the Defense of Earth Bill: YES PR-153, 1986 Interplanetary Defense Bill: YES The DVR endorses these options with two caveats – one, that if both bills are passed, the areas where they overlap such as shipyard expansion should not be additive. For instance, if we are laying down a third shipyard, then it would make more sense to design that one to meet 5,100 tons from the start, rather than building a 4,000 ton yard and also expanding the Salyut Yards. Second, we would like to ensure both of these bills are not locked-in to the point where they cannot be modified, based on findings from the Committee for Interstellar Armaments or other developments in the upcoming year. If not excessively prohibitive, production of new craft should be delayed to 1987 for this purpose. However, as this is not part of the language of the bill, we can only hope that it is taken under advisement. S-161, the Xenoecological Preservation Act: NO We do not disagree with the spirit or intention of S-161, but it strikes us as too absolute in its current wording. Would this prohibit us from landing on Minerva-7 and contacting the Minervans face-to-face due to the risk of contamination? Would any kind of development on worlds with alien biospheres be considered damaging? The establishment of the Bureau itself we think is a very sound idea, but Articles 2 and 3 feel as though they would cut any attempts at exploration off at the knees before they begin. K-164, the SAP Extension Act: YES We approve of this conditionally, on the condition that such sales will never take precedence over aid within the Cominterplan. While we do wholeheartedly agree with the thought of improving the world situation, at the end of the day we cannot subsidize capitalists at cost to ourselves. A-165, Sustainable Family Planning and Education Initiative: YES We have no complaints about the actionable content of this bill – sex education, birth control and family planning services are excellent foundational elements of public health and social freedom. However, we do hold some objections to the overall concept of “overpopulation”, which strikes us as a boogeyman which could result in draconian measures against it. [There is some loud shouting outside Fletcher's window -- protest chants of some kind with thoroughly Bavarian accents. The DVR's "no complaints" situation on A-165 is, ultimately, not true -- the complaints just wound up in the minority in the Volksrat. Not that it stops the protestors.] Redeye Flight fucked around with this message at 01:10 on Jul 10, 2022 |
|
#
?
Jul 10, 2022 00:38
|
|
|
California votes yes on most proposals, with a few no votes and a few comments: H-138, the Solar Fortification Omnibus Bill We also agree that this seems too much, and it would be better to split this into multiple bills. H-139, the Artistic and Scientific Freedom Omnibus Bill The technological solutions proposed here seem more of a solution in need of a problem. There are simpler ways of tracking popularity of media, and we are not convinced that popularity is really the best way to allocate resources regardless. P-155, The Ports and Waterways Modernization Act An emphatic yes, and California submits the ports of Los Angeles, Long Beach, Oakland, Tacoma, and Seattle. With the caveat that Tacoma and Seattle are CWC controlled and the CWC has ultimate authority to select significant ports in their jurisdiction. S-161, the Xenoecological Preservation Act While California respects the spirit of this proposal, we also agree that it is too extreme in its measures. K-164, the SAP Extension Act California greatly desires that all people of the world be provided with safety, security, and prosperity, but remember that it was the capitalist powers that brought the world to its state. This bill would strengthen the remaining powers to continue their oppression. Instead, we should provide more targeted aid until such time as the various states join us instead of subsidizing these powers.
|
|
#
?
Jul 10, 2022 01:15
|
|
|
The Haitian Federation of Communes votes: Africa Asia America Europe
|
|
#
?
Jul 10, 2022 02:39
|
|
|
AMERICA ASIA AFRICA EUROPE
|
|
#
?
Jul 10, 2022 02:46
|
|
|
Communist Zombie posted:The Haitian Federation of Communes votes: Interesting you didn't go for a Caribbean site, but I get it For my part, the DRMN votes as such: Africa Asia America Europe With Japan economically entangled in the Comintern by VENUSPLAN, India wrapped up in trade deals, and Brazil facing an inevitable financial collapse in the forseeable future, Nigeria and other central African nations are the last major redoubts of capitalist thought on Earth. Africa is where the action is going to be for our future diplomatic overtures, you can count on it, and it would be to our advantage to have a heavy presence on the continent.
|
|
#
?
Jul 10, 2022 02:46
|
|
|
America Africa Asia Europe
|
|
#
?
Jul 10, 2022 02:52
|
|
|
Asia Europe Africa America I feel like this should really, really go where the people are and Vietnam is a good choice.
|
|
#
?
Jul 10, 2022 04:04
|
|
|
Africa Asia America Europe
|
|
#
?
Jul 10, 2022 05:31
|
|
|
Africa Asia Europe America
|
|
#
?
Jul 10, 2022 05:49
|
|
|
Africa Asia America Europe
|
|
#
?
Jul 10, 2022 06:57
|
|
|
The DPRWA votes as follows: ASIA AFRICA AMERICA EUROPE
|
|
#
?
Jul 10, 2022 08:48
|
|
|
ASIA AFRICA EUROPE AMERICA
|
|
#
?
Jul 10, 2022 10:28
|
|
|
idhrendur posted:California votes as following: After some conversations with other delegates, California changes it's votes to ASIA AFRICA AMERICA EUROPE
|
|
#
?
Jul 10, 2022 16:39
|
|
|
New Afrika votes as follows: AFRICA AMERICA ASIA EUROPE
|
|
#
?
Jul 10, 2022 18:15
|
|
|
AFRICA ASIA AMERICA EUROPE
|
|
#
?
Jul 10, 2022 19:03
|
|
|
PRAVDA December 1st, 1985 NEW CONSTITUTION FINALIZED, ALL POWER TO THE SOVIETS Celebrations sweep the USSR as the worker's paradise takes its next step in socialist evolution. Declaring the current arrangement of powers and responsibilities an "inefficient relic of the past", the Party Congress rearranged matters so that local assemblies of party members will once again be fully responsible for choosing their membership and their representatives in the Central Committee. Seats in the Central Committee will now be solely held by said representatives, and the rules to determine party membership or expulsion cannot be devolved from it to any office or committee. Broad rights and protections for the peasant and worker have been reaffirmed, and the role of the People's Congress of the Cominterplan as a superior organization more clearly defined. The Vanguard is no more, the fulfillment of socialism is now your responsibility comrade. Onward! DECREE ON DISSENT AND FACTIONS ISSUED, CONSTRUCTION ON THE PALACE OF THE SOVIETS TO BEGIN New guidelines issued by the party Congress now permit a heretofore disallowed amount of dissent was issued. While the Party reemphasized the necessity of all Party members to adhere to Party rulings and decrees, it has been recognized that some issues may have difficulty rising to the attention of party leadership without dedicated voices to raise them. Thusly, while patriotic dissent and disagreement are not condoned, they may again be permitted in the new era of worker responsibility. As such, vocal and public disagreement with Party policy may be permitted from Party membership, so long as said members can properly demonstrate their reasoning in socialist theory. It is again re-emphasized that disobedience of Party policy is in no way permitted, and violations of such should be reported to the relevant official. The final act of the Congress was to approve construction of the long dreamt of but frequently delayed Palace of the Soviets, a truly revolutionary architectural marvel that has been selected to house the next and all future Congresses of the Party and meetings of the Supreme Soviet. "SOVIET LEND-LEASE" TO BEGIN TO AIDE NORTH AMERICAN SOCIALISTS An unprecedented level of military support has been officially agreed to be provided to North American Cominterplan members actively engaged in revolutionary soldiers. An Embassy for the USSR arrived in the DPRA, which began allowing in foreign representatives some months ago in preparation of their becoming the newest full members of the glorious international socialist society. After paying their respects at the grave of Comrade Boyle, the military attache to the Embassy met with Comrade Davis and the DPRA central committee to come to an understanding of what was needed. Advisors, industrial support, and a large amount of war supplies, ammunition, and modern weapon systems were promised for delivery, and eager Soviet hands even now rush to fulfill that promise. Soon the incredible might of Soviet industry and ingenuity will join the American proletariat in their long revolutionary struggle. And that's not all! Many other American states have declared that they have no need of outright aide, but have concluded just trade deals in exchange for similar arms, including the Cascadian Worker's Collective, the Red Cities of Detroit and Chicago [list continues for several more states] paragon1 fucked around with this message at 01:18 on Jul 12, 2022 |
|
#
?
Jul 12, 2022 01:10
|
|
|
 City Hall, Boyleston He was always uneasy coming back here. Being a hostage negotiator had always been interesting work. Figuring out how the gears turned in their mind, what their motives to violence were. How to get the hostage out safe, how to keep everyone alive. Sometimes it had required risk, getting face to face. After the Revolution, the dangerous part had become the afterwards. ALA troops at the entrance ways, ALA snipers on the roof. They wore the light green fatigues someone had He stopped quite short of them, waited patiently. He came here every few weeks or months, so he wasn’t a total unknown, but it was never wise to distress someone with a gun. After a moment, they gestured him forward. Some of them tightened their grips, and he pretended not to notice. “Papers.” “Samuel McRae. Senior Diplomat for the Central Committee.”  They looked at the faded images carefully, looked at his face, his eyes. “We’ll need to search you.” “Materials liberated from the capitalist states, comrades.” Tourist kitsch I bought with the expense fund, comrades. “We’ll see.” He unshouldered his bag carefully, handed it over. They didn’t return it, and he hadn’t expected them to. The body search was quick and professional. They let him keep his wallet, and bundles of papers and photos. Even they wouldn’t stop him from presenting it to the Committee. Keeping it afterwards, or indeed getting out at all … that was always the dicey bit. As they finished searching him, he idly noticed they had the odd look of gaunt men, recently gorged. The Socialist Aid had been getting distributed then, at least to palace guards anyway. He wondered if the Germans looked at him the same way, on their tour. Appalachia had .. not had a lot of food, as of late. “Proceed.” “Thank you comrade.” Doors opened, more guards, more checkpoints. Everything in here had a strange muffled sound, thick walls and thick carpets and muted voices. The distant noise of a hundred typewriters, managing the affairs of state. Supposedly some places in the COMINTERPLAN had gone paperless, but that seemed as unlikely as … he couldn’t even think of something that unlikely. He gripped his folder briefly, grimaced on the inside. He needed to be sharp, here. Dangerous place, to be letting your mind wander. Another set of guards, and thicker more ornate doors. He bit the inside of his cheek, an old habit. A small pain to wake up and get the body alert, when the threat was at hand. The doors closed behind him, and he started to look around. POP. McRae blinked, his mind still. Had they done it? He didn’t feel any pain, touched his chest, his face. No blood, no holes. His voice was dry, calm on the outside. “When you have me shot, tell them I did it for the Chicago deep dish pizza.” A snort from one of the people in the room; his eyes were still adjusting from the bright outside. “When we have you shot, it will be because of the Chicago deep dish pizza. Have some dignity, man.” He shrugged, still trying to make out the figures. “All dignity is lost when pizza is involved, comrade.” Debra Sinclair, Revolutionary Atomic Brigade, stared at him stony-faced for a moment longer, then cracked into a smile. “Now that I’ll admit. Hot drat, Sammy, you could sell sand to the Egyptians.” Courtney Buckner, General of the ALA, snorted, shoved a newly opened bottle of wine in his hands. “Less talking, more celebrating. What a job, though. What are they like? When we gave you our wishlist I didn’t think we’d get a tenth of it.” He hefted the wine uncertainly, reached for a glass. Poured, drank. That must have been the noise then. And the Committee was pleased. He’d get to live another day. “They are … very different. Not Boyelists at all, you understand.” Donna Morris, Secretary of Internal Affairs, grimaced. “That’s going to be hitting us for a decade at least. You all know it, I’ve talked about it enough. After Boyle maintained such thought orthodoxy, it’s hard to get an outside picture. It’s hard to even have a conversation sometimes.” She shook her head. “Any people we send out will be spotted in hours, and as abrasive tourists at that.” McRae paused inwardly. Even that amount of criticism was … questionable, even if it was the head of the IA doing it. Not like he could report her to anyone, she’d be that person’s boss anyway. He tried to puzzle it out, were they baiting him for something? Secretary Davis spoke finally. “You did good, Sammy.”  “Thank you comrade.” “I mean it.” He had a quiet voice, small frame, ideal for the Tunnel Rat his histories claimed for him. They might even be true, Davis had never deviated from that in all the time he’d known him. Even when they had been negotiating on opposite sites, a dozen or more years ago. McRae had no idea how he’d made such an impression on the younger man, but instead of being executed like so many other police officers, he’d been made a high level diplomat, entered into many of the secret councils. He wasn’t a fanatical socialist like everyone else at this table was, but he was good at talking, and better at listening. Davis tapped his fingers on the table. “We weren’t sure which approach would work better with the other COMINTERPLAN nations. You or me.” He smiled faintly. “I even read up on our anarchist theorists, since our initial briefs said they leaned that way. Imagine my surprise at their response when I started talking about our own experiences with Propaganda of the Deed.” McRae chuckled quietly. “I can’t imagine they liked that.” “They did not. I was telling one of our old stories - how we used to find a landlord or banker, pull him out of his house, and shoot him in the face in front of his neighbors.” Everyone else at the table chuckled at that. “It was fantastic for keeping the rents down in that area for years afterwards.” He shrugged, bemused. “The diplomats I was talking to acted like I killed their parents.” Davis paused. “Think their parents were landlords?” McRae shook his head. “You studied the wrong theorists, I think. You went with Galleani?” He had studied far too much theory when Davis was getting his start, trying to figure out how the insurgents ticked. “Of course.” “There’s your problem. Most of the other COMINTERPLAN people, they didn’t go for insurrectionary anarchism. Bakunin. Tolstoy.” Davis blinked. “... War and Peace?” “Christian socialism.” “We’ve got a bundle of that here. Liberation theology. I even tried engaging on those points, no dice.” “Pacifist socialism, then.” He grimaced. “I have nothing in common with that.” “Nor do most of us here. Completely different theorists, completely different experience.” Davis sat back thoughtfully, sipped his wine. Spoke finally. “So we did call you back for something.” McRae’s heart skipped a beat, he kept it off his face. “I live to serve.” “See, here’s the deal. All of us here,” he gestured to the room. “Dyed in the wool communists. Spent a decade in Boyelism. You did too, but it never got your brain in the same way.” Was it hot in here? It felt hot. “Comrade, I assure you…” “And that’s what we want.” What? “What?” “You got the results. I didn’t. We went in with a plan to keep our weapons and get food, and failed. You got us the food, simply for the promise of weapons later. You got results. We want you to do it again. We want to show us how you did it.” Davis gestured angrily. “It’s all well and good to know we have ideological blindspots, but they prevent us from even seeing what the blindspots even are. You, somehow, don’t have them.” Davis leaned forward. ”Tell me how they think.”
|
|
#
?
Jul 12, 2022 01:21
|
|
|
|
| # ? Jun 1, 2024 05:46 |
|
|
City Hall, Boyleston Sammy was the best negotiator Davis had ever known. They had fought a dozen times over, Davis having taken MANY hostages on the way up. But Sammy was the best, able to persuade him he was getting the best deal possible and make him believe it. Other hostage negotiators ended in bloodshed half the time, but with Sammy? You knew, you knew no one would have to die today. During the initial trials, Davis had been his patron, kept him from the excesses of the Revolution. Sammy wasn’t a socialist, or an ideologue, or a believer of any sort that Davis or the IA could tell. He was a humanitarian and a pragmatist, some relic of the old world that had proven his use time and time again. And he had somehow talked the Germans into supporting Appalachia. The Germans! When they had spent hours declaiming from the rooftops Davis, Boyleism, and Appalachia as the last holdout of a genocidal ideology! For that, Davis would give him nearly anything, but he needed to know how he did it. “Talk to me Sammy.” McRae was cool as a cucumber, as always. Even in the middle of the Revolution, guns aimed at him and blood in the air, he negotiated his way out of it and into the Communist camp. It was an impressive trait, half the comrades in Davis’ group could never have held it together so well. “Long and short of it is, they think they’ve won.” Confused expressions all around. He continued. “The COMINTERPLAN has achieved total victory with only a few holdouts. 90% of the world’s populace has embraced socialism, expansion into space has entered levels beyond any Star Trek episode, and the primary projects are dedicated to repairing and rebuilding. The class war is effectively over, and Japan is halfway in our camp already.” Major General Sinclair frowned. “They just got nuked. GLADIO is on a rampage. The Joint Chiefs are missing, half of North America is still hostile, and Japan is expanding to other worlds. The war isn’t over.” McRae spread his hands. “Nevertheless.” Davis tapped the table thoughtfully. “So … we’re their victory lap. Help out the ones that were missed, but focus on the future.” “Essentially, yes.” “What about the individual parties?” “The Soviets have gone over the Mcnamara’s Whiz Kids.” Davis blinked. “He got out? And … the Soviets had long term sleepers?” Sammy gestured apologetically. “I misspoke. It’s as if they’ve been taken over by Mcnamara. Very big on technocracy and intelligentsia and charts and spreadsheets. Very good at building trains and we should get some, but not ideological in any sense of the word. They’ve opened up their vanguard to all comers, trying to engage in a new socialist democracy.” Donna Morris winced. “That will fall apart in a generation. It opens up too many fractures, too many faulty opinions.” He continued. “People’s Republic of China is looking inward. They haven’t sorted out their internal power struggle, and Mao isn’t around anymore to tell them what’s what. I would describe it as fragile, with no way of landing how they land.” Davis nodded musingly. “Explains why their rep didn’t have much to say.” “Finally, Europe has embraced a very European-style socialism, very big on rights and welfare and not so much on protecting the ideology. Probably 80% of the socialist aid programs we’re receiving now come from there, both ideologically and materially, but they may decide to find a new puppy to rescue soon. Africa is drawing a lot of eyes.” “What’s going on with Albania? I tried to find their ambassador, but no one knew where was.” McRae smiled humourlessly. “Given our parallel ideology, they were one of the first ones I looked for.” He chuckled. “Since we joined the COMINTERPLAN, Hoxha is dismissing us as revisionists.” Davis blinked. “Didn’t see that one coming.” The door opened, everyone looked up. “Sorry I’m late everyone, had a last minute thing with the Party leadership.” Vice President Connie Amos, an older woman in an engineer’s uniform. “Sammy! Speak of the devil. You are the man of the hour, you know.” McRae shrugged. “Little bit weird getting all of this attention, diplomats usually have the boring job.” “Well, expect more of it. Davis proposed it and the Party agrees, we need a dedicated diplomatic service. You’re now the Secretary of State of Appalachia.” McRae blinked. “Seems above my paygrade.” “Now it is your paygrade. We need you to write a training program for our new diplomats, train their trainers, crosstrain us. Continue negotiations with the COMINTERPLAN.” “I appreciate your enthusiasm, Vice President, but I’m one man.” “And now you are our face to the other nations. Morris will work you to vet your staff, but diplomacy is going to be one of our primary budget packages for the foreseeable future.” He hesitated. “Comrades, my techniques and methodologies, they aren’t … very teachable.” Morris chuckled. “You mean they are unorthodox, revisionist, and at times goddamn liberal.” “I wouldn’t say all of that, comrade.” The Secretary of Internal Affairs stared at him, flint-eyed. “I would.” The room quieted. Morris waited a moment, making her point, then continued on. “But that’s what we need. We need people who aren’t ultra-Boyelists, and people who can make a connection with the eurocommunists. Your department will get dispensation, from me and from Davis. You keep getting results, and all is forgiven.” No results and remain unforgiven was unspoken. Connie Amos nodded. “We’re making you part of the inner circle, Sammy. This is where the magic happens. Boyle is dead and we aren’t what the papers we write say we are. We want Appalachia to survive, succeed and thrive, and you are the missing piece we needed to make it happen.”
|
|
#
?
Jul 12, 2022 01:21
|
|