Shining in the Darkness

Where HAS the time gone?

Can you believe there's already just a week left in this Congressional term? It seems like the term flew by so fast! Sorry there haven't been as many updates this term -- heck, there wasn't even a Congressional Mid-Term Report this time around! On the plus side, you now have publicly-viewable Voting Records of Congress available in the name of transparency.

I'm not going to lie: Congress wasn't as nice and effective as it was last term and I expect the rudeness (mostly from non-Congressmen) and ineffectiveness (mostly from Congress) to continue next term. I'd love to be proven wrong on that, though, America, so elect me some real winners. It's just an inevitable consequence of a lack of galvanizing, uniting events (such as an invasion of North America) to pull us together.

For my own part, if re-elected, I'll do my best to pay more attention to things and be more effective. We weren't terrible this term, not by a long shot, and had our eyes on the ball for the most part, but maybe it's just the perfectionist in me that feels we could've been better. There were personal events in some of our real lives that contributed to our problems a bit, but hopefully next term we'll do better.

Anyhow, speaking of next term, I'll be running under the UIP banner in my home state of New Jersey. No word yet on what Ajay Bruno multis are doing, especially since their lord and master was permanently banned earlier today, but I should be safe from such "unexpected difficulties" as long as the other parties decide to run blockers in New Jersey. We'll see.

Here are some people I was glad to have in Congress and wuold like to see in Congress again: Bradley Reala, sydiot, Tiacha, and RIddle16. To a lesser extent, but still important: Rheinlander von Phalz, Kazeal, Killing Time, ligtreb, and seeker1. Don't take it personally if you're not on either list, as they are just my personal opinion on who's been active and effective withotu sinking into meaningless squabbles. I also don't want people to think there's something wrong that there's only nine names on my lists while there are over fourty Senators. Others have poked their heads in the door, particularly to record their votes, and have been active in other wants (the names Jude Connors and Serendipitous spring to mind!), I just have very high standards when it comes to my own little corner of the government, Congress.



So what else has been up with me? Here's what.

My party got PTOed by a little kid who gleefully rejoiced in our despair as he destroyed all that we had worked towards. After the man with the plan, my one true hope for the Green Party, timothybeasley, decided to bail on us (yes, disappointments pile onto each other in my life... that's nothing new), I decided to stick with United Independents Party, the party that will be hosting my re-election campaign in New Jersey, until we can get Jimmy Loomis out of office on Nov. 15th.

What's he done that's so terrible as to deserve my wrath, such as it is? Well, I can't get into all, mostly because I'd probably get a warning for personal attacks and public accusations of things that he's done plainly viewable in various Comments he's left on news articles and at the Green Party's official forums. Suffice it to say, he's been extremely disrespectful of his fellow Greens, particularly one prominent female one (yes, me).

Concerning Congressional matters, I don't think we'll see an increase in the Housing VAT anytime soon. Though previously discussed earlier in the term, I think the Budget Committee is more concerned with an actual, you know, budget at the moment. As for my own Committee, after placing the Q5 Defense System of Max's in California, we came to the conclusion that testing a single Q2 Hospital in a single high population state as an economic productivity stimulus was too risky. "Risky" in that we couldn't possibly justify to people that this was just a test and that they shouldn't expect to see Q2s in their own states. After all, if the main justification is to increase the productivity of the stubborn and clueless, why NOT put one in every state? This would be disastrous, particularly with regard to the fortress strategy our nation has adopted, so we couldn't really do it.

Besides, have you checked the economy lately? Overproduction and underdemand are rampant and, as a result of people not buying things, wages have been lowered. There's really no point in trying to increase the productivity of people working at our domestic companies who are either too stubborn or too clueless to move to a fortress state like California or Florida.

I've been doing a different sort of mass-PMing today, that of informing Green Party members of our party's situation. I left the Green Party today rather than show support on the Green Party page as "one Congress member" displaying there. It's been a busy past few days regarding the PTO of the Green Party, but I have done some things related to Congress today.

Mainly, besides deal with my Committee, I expressed concern over the lack of legitimate, non-trap companies in the Land industry of eUSA and suggested a way to counter it; I'm not expecting my post to be the end all and be all of the discussion, but rather for other Congressional and Non-Congressional folks to weigh in and modify my idea as needed. And I updated my Voting Records replies on the forums, dealt with Donations to the CBO today, mailed Vice President Jewitt about a couple of MPPs that needed renewing (yay, Gaius Julius just proposed one to Spain! Definitely in response to my Mail to Jewitt), and created a topic for Congress listing all MPPs so that we'd always know which ones we currently have.

My updated Voting Record shall be forthcoming in my next Congressional update. I still haven't been able to catch up in Congress, so I can't give you specifics on the other Committees, but that doesn't mean there isn't plenty to write about in this article!



So let's review what happened between my last article and this one.

T2 Day 17 - For Teh Lulz


I LOL'd.

We went through a period with few actual wars on which to report, so the lolz articles just kept coming. A couple of my favorites were Lose Weight FAST! and the report on the rise of the Grayland Empire.

T2 Day 18 - Back To School!


Class is now in session...

In an exciting development, we're not too cool for school. North American University, otherwise known as NAU, had re-opened. I signed up for everything except Business and Economics 101 and Military 101. Though I felt those were the two areas with which I needed the most help, I'd first like to see how I can do in the classes in which I'm supposed to be pretty good already!

In my own efforts to educate newbies, I've also stopped giving out Lowell Kennedy's Help for New Players and have opted instead for Nero Preto's more user-friendly Tips for New Citizens.

Also in the category of education was this article about eUSA Congress.

T2 Day 19 - Fortress California


It's like Hearst Castle in San Simeon, California... only bigger! And better! And more American!

California finally became a true fortress state with the placement of McFarland Constructions' Q5 Defense System, built with volunteer labor. Max McFarland 2 thanked his supporters. I would personally like to thank Max on his efforts towards making this nation great, infrastructure-wise.

It was a good time for it, as the population of California had reached more than 3000 people, which was when the Infrastructure Committee had decided -- barring any unusual war developments -- to place a Q5 DS in California. We also decided to go with McFarland's rather than one of the two pre-built Q5 Defense Systems sitting in storage elsewhere because Max is still not bound by any sort of a contract, to my knowledge. Better to use it if you've got it -- and I'm sure Max enjoyed the positive press he got out of it as well.

I'm just glad that the King and Queen of California finally got their castle!

T2 Day 20 - Green Party In Focus


I won something?! No way! Wait, it's a coin? Meh, still shiny! I'll take what I can get!

I'd been doing a lot for my party in the days leading up to the fateful day of Party Presidential Elections. Well, mainly one thing, but it felt like many things. I came up with some questions and asked them of our Party Presidential candidates. The interviews can be found in the official Green Party paper. Can't believe we used to think Jimmy was an okay guy!

Things were looking up for me, as I received the first (and last?) ever Party Presidential Commendation Award for my outstanding service to the Green Party. Oh, to think of all we had been and what we've been reduced to now.

We used to be built up enough as a party to the point where all we had left to do was give each other meaningless awards and await our entering into a brand new phase led by enthusiastic Party Presidential nominee timothybeasley. A newbie help center, a dedicated group of voters called Green Corps, a very nice website... Now we've got some offices on the Federalist forums (thanks, Feds!).

Anyhow, I'll be Green forever, no matter what eventually becomes of the party. Personally, I think formenting some dissent and revolution is in order.

Forever Green, America,
~ Katherine "Astra" Gallagher