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Hello, my name is Blake Chrysostom, and I’m announcing my candidacy for the party presidency of the United Independents Party.

You may not know me. I’ve played eRepublik for seven months now, but I haven’t been the most well known citizen in the eUSA. However, I’ve always tried to be an active and loyal participant in the life of our country. I’ve been in the UIP Cabinet, done two terms in Congress, served in the Army, run businesses, and helped to found the Sons of Liberty. My eLife has been eventful, but it is time for me to up the ante. I’m running for Party President.

Political Parties: Why Bother?
Political parties are a key part of the gameplay of eRepublik. Parties function as ways for players to meet each other and get involved in the game on a deeper level beyond two-clicking; they foster ideas for organization and growth that can be utilized on the national level; they help filter candidates for Congress; and finally, they promote healthy competition in politics, which frankly, is a lot of fun.

Why the UIP?
Of all the political parties, I think the idea of the UIP is the best. In the world of eRepublik, in which parties perform the functions which I mentioned above, a political party of independents can be possible and even thrive. This is because politics in eRepublik is not about ideology, but pragmatism, hard work, and social connections. The UIP welcomes independents of all stripes, and it works because we’re all ideally more interested in getting the best people for the job into positions than promoting a narrow ideological vision of government that doesn’t fit the mechanics of the game. We’re a community of eAmericans loyal to the country and to one another.

However, this is not to say that UIP hasn’t lost sight of its vision in the past. On the contrary, I’ve seen the UIP get so caught up in the rush for congressional seats and the thrill of political competition that we behaved like any real life political party, badmouthing opponents, supporting sub-par candidates for the sake of numbers.

The State of the Party
It was no surprise that when the war began, much of the American public cast the blame for our disunity as a country on the political parties and the divisions in the political system. As a result of these bad feelings and the realities of the war, all the parties suffered a serious drop in participation and activity. We have come out of those fearful days as a far better country than when the war began. However, the UIP has suffered a major blow.

I believe, like the current Party President, Stygian Steel, that the UIP is something worth saving. The eUS political system would be missing a truly unique party if the UIP dropped from the top five. But reversing the effects of the war on the party will take some serious work. Stygian has already begun this process, and under his committed, organized leadership we’ve seen a return of more active participation in our forums.

My (Broad) Agenda
I’m willing to put in a month of hard work for this party, to act with a sense of urgency in rejuvenating the party without a thought of running for re-election. I intend to work this month as if it will be my only month as Party President. And it very well may be.

Holy Crap?! VPP Kazeal!?!
I’ve already begun the process of planning for next month. I’ve asked Kazeal, a dedicated UIPer and great eAmerican, to serve as my VP. Kazeal has an organizational skill that constantly amazes me, as well as a friendly, welcoming personality which embodies what the UIP is about. Kazeal and I have already mapped out potential Cabinet choices, trying to get as many people as involved as possible, while avoiding redundancy and unnecessary positions.

Cabinet Reform
To try and increase activity in the Cabinet, Kazeal and I plan on streamlining the Cabinet positions. The Chiefs will be raised to equal status with the Secretaries, and each Secretary will be given a specific area on which to focus their efforts. In running the party, Kazeal and I promise to communicate more between ourselves than any PP and VPP have in living memory. We plan to have regular IRC discussions on party administration at least 3 times a week. As a result, we hope to have a more tightly-knit Cabinet, and an administration jointly attuned to the concerns of our party members.

Other initiatives which Kazeal and I have been plotting include a Cabinet position for inter-party dialogue, because the last thing we want is to return to the polarization between the parties which was so characteristic of the eUSA before the war.

IRC
To keep myself open to your comments and suggestions, and just to put a new spirit in the UIP’s IRC, I plan to host a “Party President’s Questions Hour” on #UIP every week. During this time, you can ask me serious questions, find out more about the party, or just chitchat with other UIPers who might be around.

Recruitment and Participation
Another focus which will be a serious priority for Kazeal and myself will be to try and increase the party’s recruitment. There are a lot of new players joining eRepublik these days who have no idea what the UIP is about, and what distinguishes us from the other parties. If I could form a stable, active Recruiting Team, I would consider my term a success by that alone.

New players and current UIP members alike will be encouraged to get involved on our forums by our increasingly vibrant communications team, because what good are numbers if people aren’t getting involved in the world of eRep in a deeper and more exciting way?

Thank you, and remember to vote on October 15!

Chrysostom/Kazeal October ‘09
“Putting the ‘win’ back in UIP”