The Place of Ethics in Politics
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by Firo Prochainezo
Yo.
I would like to ask each and every person a question that, I feel, is a rather straightforward one:
What do you expect of the congressmen and congresswomen you elect?
Selflessness? Honesty? Activity? Perhaps a dedication to the greater good of the community? Ideas worth sharing with the rest of the country?
At the very least I would hope you would respond with something like "a sense of ethical responsibility".
Something like this
Now, if you were informed that one of your Congress members was -- instead of using his powers to further the good of the county -- using his position to earn money by selling citizenships to whomever will pay the high price?
I'm sorry to say that this has happened this term. ZaaxD, a congressman who has already been censured for selling citizenships earlier this term, has been systematically charging new citizens for approvals, without regard for which country they come from. In addition to the obvious mockery that he makes of the position he holds, this poses a huge risk to the country as a whole; nothing prevents our enemies from getting citizenship via congress members like this.
I would hope that this last image has outraged you, or at least has you muttering, "I hope someone is doing something about that." I come with this message: You can do something about this.
- Do not vote for ZaaxD or other known players that pose security risks and violate the very clear ethical standards that we expect from our Congress.
- Go a step further perhaps and actively vote against these people when they run.
This pisses me off, and if you are an upstanding citizen, I hope it does you as well.
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So we can't sell citizenships but we can sell votes? Something is wrong.
We need a public list of those who sell citizenship and others that are are on the blacklist
Both piss me off.
Though selling votes is frowned upon (and I don't like it personally), you must look at to whom it's being sold to. When a person sells votes, it's towards the US citizens.
When a Congressman sells citizenships, it's towards the highest bidder, regardless of nationality.
Jon Malcom: You mean purchase votes? I consider that ethically grey. Selling citizenship is worse, in the sense that when you pay for votes you trample on your respect for yourself; when you sell citizenship without regard for the needs of the immigration committees and without regard for who is an enemy, you trample on a much more basic moral code. One that is, or at least should be, implicitly understood.
Selling citizenship passes has been illegal for a while now, there was a law forbidding it. Incoming immigrants should be aware of this, however, the penalties only go as far as censure. What Firo is saying is its just poor gaming and it reflects bad on Congress and the Nations Administration.
Buying a Congress medal has the same equivalence, it is basically a corrupting influence.
Citizenship used to be a defining aspect of eRep back in the days of V1... though at this point it is sadly becoming moot through global mobility and the favoritism / favorism that exists among the international 'Elite'
Over the recent weeks the active eUS community has seen the effects in their own National Rank statistic, dropping back suddenly only to begin slowly climbing back, one has to wonder who is letting in whom, and why?
Tiamati.Magick: As a member of the immigration committee, I would not call it favoritism. Because of our full bonuses, we are swamped with applications for citizenship. Because we do not have enough passes for everyone, it is common sense to prioritize those that are known to be upstanding players, or those who are well-known. The understanding is that if you are well-known, so are your deeds and conduct.
For the average and new players, we do the best we can to background check them and get them in the country if possible.
with regard to buying votes, being a congressman does not require any knowledge or even experience in the game. just by following the daily pm you can successfully complete your term. there is no qualification for being a congressman in erep, just click yes-no and you're good, in fact you may choose not to do anything at all and it would hardly be noticed. so if I'm elected by buying votes it wont make any difference as opposed to someone who did not.
with regard to cs approvals, well you cant stop it. people get elected either through buying votes or actually getting elected by friend votes. I bought votes, I didnt sell cs. someone else would be fairly elected and would sell cs. you cant determine if a congressman is rouge or not by the way he got into congress.
an option is to publish people who sold cs before and not to elect them. how successful that would be in stopping people from selling cs? I dont think it would make any difference.
So the u-s-marijuana-party is in league with the Serbs, who would have known.
where did this assumption that there is ethics in politics come from? ethical politician ... sounds like an oxymoron to me.
Eli Crownover - There is ethics in politics and there always has been. Its just that, like anything in life, it is easier to get ahead if you have no ethics and are willing to screw everyone else over for your own gain.
Oh... my... god... WHY??????
I'll be voting for whoever runs against that guy.
I'm shocked that an eUS Congressman can be bought. If I were a Congressman, I would never be for sale.
For rent, sure...but for sale? NEVER I SAY!
1. It is illegal to to sell citizenship (metagame not mechanics). Selling citizenship means receiving the money and then granting citizenship. I believe if all congressmen took the money and then did not grant citizenship, then fewer enemies would be asking to buy it. They would eventually learn that they would be getting screwed over. Political Parties need to be the responsible entities for this issue and they should both screen as well as educate their candidates to keep our e-nation safe.
2. It is not illegal to buy votes but it is frowned upon (metagame). In my experience the concensus is that it is ok to pay moving costs and reimburse any lost health with food, but nothing more. That said I have noticed that each election there seem to be more and more shouts offering to buy votes each election. I would rather candidates win over voters with well constructed platforms (with nice pictures), but the reality is that most vote strictly along party lines or for freinds and the remaining voters usually do not know enough to make an educated decision, so some extra guns or gold means more to them that a coin flip amongst people they do not know.
I think this falls back on the parties as well. From a game mechanics standpoint, parties can't really do too much, but their potential for setting standards via their influence is largely untapped. I believe each party should develop their own policy on vote buying and enforce it with through education and vetting their candidates.
>ethics
>erepublik
huehue
V
Vote adil2000 in Kansas!
nice photoshop
>ethics
>erepublik
huehue
x2
He did not approve the FYROMian. If you look at the approved page, you can see that it was UGX xControlx that approved, and I AM NOT INTENDING to say that he was bribed.
If you ever had the chance to look at congressman forums, selling is illegal, taking the bribe and not approving is NOT. Thought it is not the best way to earn money, as long as that person isn't granted citizenship, it is just a regular cash transaction.
And addition.
Zaaxd did not purchase votes.
I dont see anything wrong with selling citizenships as long as only friendly/allied players are being taken into account.
@nui04: The person trying to get US citizenship was well aware that it is against our laws to buy citizenship. He contacted Zaaxd because Zaaxd is technically a congressman. Zaaxd said that the person needed to send money first.
Moral of the story: the congressman said that there was a price. The person wanting citizenship did not offer --> not moral.
You're wrong, he didn't sell this guy the cs, he just scammed him. Know the difference.
nui04, the Congress man in question has a history of selling approvals - this is not an isolated incident.
I know, I am not trying to protect him. I just want to make sure people know the difference between scams and selling cs.
Chance Harrison does neither. \o/
I am fascinated by the point that nul04 makes. Given the widespread desire for immigration to the eUSA, perhaps such an innovation, legitimized somehow, could be used on a much larger scale for the benefit of the Nation? Just set up a central fund and announce far and wide that all those applying for citizenship must contribute to it in order to be considered. And then deny or accept based on regular, standard practices, but let the ones who don't make it know that, sorry, your contribution just wasn't sufficient. Just sayin...
voted
A very well thought out article that every American should take to heart. As a former Congressman and a candidate again this month, it is upsetting to think that people who have held the position of eUS Congressman have used it for personal gain like this, and at the same time, leaving some serious national security concerns open.
Agreed, voted.
I'm running for Congress in Massachusetts. I will not grant citizenships PERIOD if elected. I will leave it to more qualified people who can spot ONE members and traitors. I'll definitely need your vote.
ethics in politics?
even never heard!
Regardless of the rules the citizens create or the WIGS rules, we all know right from wrong.
A very easy test is this:
If you need to rationalize an action it is probably breaking some ethical code of conduct.
If you would rather that people do not know what you have done, you are probably breaking a moral code of conduct.
If you lack ethics or morality then you do not know or care when you violate it.
Since some of you are busy rationalizing buying and selling votes and/or CS I would say that that pretty much falls into the first category. It's not rocket science.
Money money money money! MONEY!
Animis I love your comment. Right and wrong. What a wonderful concept.
So there is a right and wrong for everyone?
Drugs?
Abortion?
Marriage?
Or if you prefer. In game actions.
Selling votes for gold?
Trading tanks for votes?
Paying for moving expenses?
Trolling a player you do not like?
Bringing in RL info into the game?
I am sure there are varied opinions on all of this. And bunching it into a simple right or wrong. What a wonderful concept.