Right Now is the Right Time

Day 826, 13:02 Published in USA USA by Chris Stanwick
Disclaimer: This is a long article. For a short summary, scroll to the bottom.

A Little About Myself


Chris Stanwick: Leader, Visionary, Veteran

On 5 May 2009, I entered the New World with excitement and curiosity for this game I had discovered via a chat room. My first day of eBirth was a presidential election day, and scrabman was seeking a full term in office in the US. I quickly found the US forum, where I began to slowly increase my activity level. eRepublik had captured my full attention and became my obsession.

By June 2009, I had established myself in the political community of eRep. I was a member of the UIP and had ran unsuccessfully for Congress in Alaska in May. Striking up a conversation with Secretary of State Harrison Richardson, I became one of the first UnderSecretaries of State in June. Working with the economics of diplomacy, I gained an understanding of both the diplomatic and economic modules of the game. I used this experience and a strong campaign to win election to Congress from Alaska in late June.

I served on the Foreign Relations Action Committee and became one of the most active members of the 19th Congress. Shortly after Harrison’s election as President of the US in July, I became the Deputy Secretary of State, creating the Office of Developing Regions to study the economic conditions of various smaller nations in the world. I also became the US Ambassador to Ireland, where I befriended many of our allies on the Emerald Isle. A Guardsman in the US Home Guard, I was promoted to command a platoon shortly before the mid-July election.


Then the warclouds began to form on the horizon as the UK, our longtime ally, gave up Scotland to the Huns, allowing the PEACE invasion of Canada and World War III to begin. I immediately founded the National Emergency Evacuation Program to provide moving tickets for all citizens to move to our fortress states to maximize their damage. When the US was invaded, I shifted NEEP’s focus to moving Americans out of occupied territory and back into the US. By the time NEEP was disbanded in favor of the Flying Unicorn Squadron, I had donated moving tickets to over 2000 citizens, at the time nearly one-fifth of our population.

During our darkest hours, I was re-elected to Congress from Vermont, as Alaska had been occupied by Russia. Shortly after the election, I was chosen to be the Deputy Speaker of the House due to my extremely high activity level. However, an error in my judgment coupled with great misunderstanding by many high-ranking government officials caused me to leave the United States for Ireland, then Australia.

In Australia, I restarted my political career, serving in the Australian Senate for Tasmania and as the Minister of Foreign Affairs in the patti11 administration. Sadly, RL health problems caused my complete retirement from eRep in November 2009. It was not until the beginning of February that I was able to return to my addiction. You cannot imagine how happy I am to have returned to eRep and all the friends I made through the game.

Why Congress, Why Now?


I have returned to a political quagmire that has resulted in a massive debate about our national tax policy, future war strategy, and the changes that V2 will bring to the game. This is my arena, where I shine the brightest. Economic research, foreign/military affairs, and speculation are three of my favorite activities in eRepublic and served me well during my four previous terms in Congress.

The United States Workers Party has accepted me as an active member and Congressional candidate, for which I am truly grateful for. I am running in the great state of Texas, which happens to be the state I was originally born into. The United Independents Party has also graciously endorsed my candidacy and thrown their support behind me.

So What Do You Plan on Doing?


First and foremost, we need to make some tough decisions and finalize a solid tax policy. Everyone knows that the economy has faltered lately, there are tons of articles about it and it dominates the economic board on the forum. There have been a ton of different suggestions made, but no one can agree with anyone else that one policy is the way it should be. I have read the discussions, the articles, and done a bit of economic research into the problem. There is no best of all possible worlds solution – someone is always going to be unhappy with the results. I suggest that we follow PigInZen’s plan to raise import taxes on raw materials to 99%; we produce them all, so don’t need any more from abroad. As for VAT and income taxes, leave them alone. They are set at great rates right now and need no altering. Basically, import taxes are the only in need of change. I used to be a staunch supporter of free trade, but in eRep it doesn’t work because we have never been able to convince even our allies to lower their protectionist tariffs.

Second, we need to focus on V2. Even though we only have bits and pieces of the whole picture as to what V2 will look like, we can already make presumptions to plan for its implementation. Right now, V2 is just a frightening monster on the horizon that no one knows if it will be friendly or try to eat us. I will work with other members of Congress, the President and his Cabinet, and the military to ensure that we do everything we can to make sure we are ready in any scenario.


Third, we need to work on citizen retention and education. Right now, we are seeing a decrease in active players after months of baby booms and high activity. What can we do to renew their interest in the game? How about more war. As Americans, we feel that we have a moral obligation to ensure peace and justice throughout the world. We protect our allies and ourselves when attacked, but rarely take the war to our foe unless they strike first. eRep is a game with a war module; let’s use it to the fullest and go on the offensive. Not only will this keep us active and interested, but it will help the economy by driving demand up. A win-win situation for all, except our enemies, of course.

These are the big issues at the moment. I’m sure other issues will arise during the session, but I will address these on a case by case basis when needed. My activity level in Congress will remain extremely high throughout the entire term and I will update my voting record everyday as I did in the past. To learn more about me, check out the following links to my wiki articles that include my biography in detail, my military service record, my Congressional voting record, and links to every newspaper article I have ever written.

My Main Wiki Page
My Military Service Record
My Congressional Voting Record
My Newspaper Articles

tl;dr Version

I have been around a long time and have gained a lot of political, military, and economic experience in eRepublik. I served in Congress four times, and was a member of the Cabinet during WWIII. Now, I am running in Texas under the USWP.

Party Endorsements: USWP, UIP, Umbrella Research Party, US Capitalist Party.

In office, I will work to increase import taxes on raw materials, will push for the continuation of war to help with citizen retention, and will work to develop a plan for V2 implementation.

Our country has problems, I have solutions.

When you hit the polls on Thursday, remember to vote for Chris Stanwick in Texas. Thanks for your support.