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I'm happy to review my record since my re-election for my constituents and to talk about these issues more. Without further ado, let me go over the newest proposals, share my vote, and discuss issues surrounding these proposals.

Peace Proposal: YES

I voted for the peace proposal with France. I believe that our strategy in France is fundamentally misguided. I voted for the war originally because I support Swiss independence, but our strategy was more about conquering the French than freeing the Swiss. Just like I support the Swiss, I support self-determination for all linguistic groups. As a result, I believe the war with France should come to an end and I voted yes.

Oil Tax Change : NO

The proposal was to increase the income tax to 20%, which was misguided and not properly discussed. Easy no vote.

New Citizen Fee : NO

This proposal was to increase the new citizen fee to 9 USD. Another proposal that was not thoroughly vetted. I also support the idea of a 1 USD new citizen fee with the welcome message telling new players to PM an account to get more money, that way the start-up money only goes to actual, active players.

Grain Tax Change : NO

I voted against this proposal, which decreased the import tax on grain to 25%. I don't like the idea of relying on foreign grain and think the US should encourage development in this abundant resource. I also don't believe this proposal will actually lower the cost of food, which leads to...

Food Tax Change : YES

I authored this proposal, which lowered the import tax on food from 45% to 25%. I think this proposal will ACTUALLY lower the cost of food. Case closed.

Moving Ticket Tax Change : YES

This proposal brings the income and VAT taxes in line with the national average while lowering the import taxes. Moving tickets are a tough industry so it's good to get some foreign competition in. I'm generally less worried about protecting finished goods than I am on raw materials.

Gift Tax Change : YES

I was a sponsor to this proposal, which cut the import tax and raised the income/VAT tax to national levels. The rationale is the same as above.

Food Tax Change : YES

This is the first of the Omnibus Tax bill, called the Comprehensive Tax Policy Act. This is a compromise measure crafted to set all of the tax levels across the board at an equilibrium point. I'm a sponsor of this multi-partisan bill because I believe we need to set this equilibrium and then actually see which American industries need specific protection.

Comprehensive Tax Policy Act

I'll let the numbers speak for themselves:

CTPA Proposed
Inc/Imp/VAT
10/ 15/ 05 Food
10/ 15/ 05 Gift
10/ 15/ 05 Weapon
10/ 15/ 05 Moving Tickets
10/ 15/ -- Grain
10/ 01/ -- Diamonds
10/ 01/ -- Iron
10/ 15/ -- Oil
10/ 15/ -- Wood
10/ 05/ 03 House
10/ 01/ 01 Hospital
10/ 01/ 01 Def. Sys.

This is a tax increase on income and VAT for the most part while it is also a tax decrease on imports. Let me say a few words about this:

While I support this proposal as a whole, I don't support these income numbers, by and large. I'm certainly worried that this might affect American businesses. However, this was a compromise measure and there's only a few import numbers I don't agree on (Wood, Grain, Housing). On the larger picture, Congress needs to come together and pass a rational tax policy.

Additionally, these higher taxes are GOOD for the American economy. We're taking money out of the stream of commerce and raising the value of our currency. The American economy has been plagued by a worthless dollar, and it's time to solve that issue.

I look forward to hearing your comments and discussion about my voting record or the CTPA!