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Dum Spiro Spero

We’re a week out from my little adventure into the woods. I still haven’t confirmed if it’s even going to happen (Eric knows why), but just in case I’ve sorted out how things will be managed while I’m off pretending to be a sociable, energetic little thing. Having recently read Rigour’s article on youth in old age, I’ve been trying to come up with some wise words for those who are even younger than me. Luckily I’m an immature git so I can skip that part. Update time!



A Capital Fund

This week Congress launched a series of donations to cash in on the discount offer from the Admins. The aftermath discussion included a suggestion to start up a capital fund on a more regular basis: using excess CAD in the budget to purchase and stockpile Gold in the CMF Org for future discount offers. The CMF isn’t as untouchably secure as the Treasury, but since today’s treasury serves as much purpose as the Party Treasuries of old, we might as well put that gold to good use.

Macubex, Etemenanki and I are chatting about the basic options for building capital. Ease of use, profit, and player involvement are the 3 variables, and in typical eRep fashion the 3 do not overlap whatsoever. We’ll have our recommendation to Congress shortly - in the meantime we’ll see if they have a preference of their own.


Pet Projects

During the campaign, Connor mentioned a whole series of pet projects that he would like to see started in Canada. Several of you have approached me with similar desires. Homer heads up the current form of the mentorship program, and each MU has expressed wishful thinking in front of me this term. This one’s an open question: Do you have a pet project that would be useful, profitable, or increase player involvement? If you do, let me know and we’ll see what we can do. It’s not a blanket ticket that if you want it you’ve got it, but it certainly helps more than just thinking things up and not telling anyone about them.


Slovenia Retreats, Hungary Runs Out of Room

Open up the World Map. Zoom in (an awful mechanic) on Western Europe. Slovenia, after romping around in France with little trouble, bumped up against our American buddies in their southern colonies. This gave them the chance to declare America’s first Natural Enemy since the failed Polish gambit. Slovenia, being the very brave bunch that they are, retreated from the battle using the only mechanic they have left to them - blasting the region back to the French in a heavy resistance war. This does count as a loss as far as the American are concerned, but it’s of some comfort that our enemies can’t roll across our friends all of the time.

Hungary is swiftly running out of room in their French colonies and back at home. In France, they’ve taken most of the regions they can reach, with the Slovenians and British cutting off most of their access points. Sooner or later their NE with the French will close, and it won’t necessarily come with a French wipe. Back in their home regions, Romania is taking control: distracting the Hungarians from what would otherwise be a very easy skip-and-jump into a 3rd Wiping Spree of North America. And so Canada continues to border 3 of ONE’s largest countries (Poland, Hungary, and Spain) with no extreme threat to her wellbeing. Oh goody.


Canada Returns the Favour

Last month, Canada shat the bed internationally. We lost our colonies, NE’d Britain to get them back, and were promptly slaughtered. Since then we’ve picked up 6 colonies, a +20% to our weapons bonus, and are once again back in Terra’s good graces. Now we’re returning the favour America paid us, on two separate fronts. First, we cut off the English Channel and started to put an end to the British-French war. Once the Brits stop dicking around in France proper, we’ll be a clean buffer between them.

Next, as Britain chased France across the channel, we followed suit. That’s inevitably going to create another buffer line - between France and her invaders, once again with Canada in the middle. This wasn’t the grand scheme and isn’t a long term goal, but it once again positions us as a useful ally for TEDEN while also providing Canadians with a flurry of at-home battles that can make us richer bit by bit. I also direct your attention to the Grain and Rubber that sit due south of us. We probably won’t get both, but babysitting either of them would be a nice prize for being Bobby Buffer in Europe.



The Supreme Court

Last week, I ran a survey of Canadian opinion. In that survey I asked what your thoughts were on the Supreme Court. Of the 116 people who responded, 82% did not support the current form of the Supreme Court. Right now, the Supreme Court “holds sole decision making powers in court cases” - they hold trials and convict people, basically. Our 4 Justices (Nogin the Nog, Muglack, Freakenstien, and Rylde) are the only people in eCanada who can decide who breaks the law, and what to do with them if they do.

The Court stems from a history of offsite gameplay that just isn’t reflected in Canada today. And so while the Supreme Court has the “power” to rule on what is right and wrong, it does not have the power to seriously enforce its own findings. Even those players who do use the Forums aren’t really helped by the “expert legal opinions” of the Court, because the sentences given down are focused more on punishment than progress.

There are those who staunchly support the Supreme Court as a precious relic of eCanada’s past. They look on any challenge to the Court’s authority as a coup d’etat, a crime worse than Rologate. I understand - I used to love the court. But, in its current form, it just isn’t helping anymore.

It is okay to have an evolving view on this game. Canada once had massive ministries of Health, Education, and Industries. We poured time and effort into them, and they once helped Canada. But, like so many things, they no longer exist. And this is okay.

My position on government is simple: as much as is necessary, as often as is wanted. I’m not a minimalist, but if it’s not helping (or worse - if it’s hurting), then I think we should remove it.


Here’s my suggestion:

Revise our Charter to reflect the current reality of the game. We can still “punish” without bestowing elitist power in a body that can’t enforce its own decisions. We see that with the Comptroller’s ability to halt funding, the Auditor’s ability to detect corruption, and the Speaker’s ability to police Congress. The Court does not need sentencing powers, not only because it cannot enforce them, but because other groups can control their own.

Shift the Supreme Court to act as a sort of Captain Teague - keep our laws, understand them, and act as trusted advisors in legal matters. This acknowledges that eRepublik is not real life, and that we don’t need a Surpeme Court with banhammer powers just because they’ve got that in real life. It also acknowledges that there are some players (including a few of you “Americans” reading this) who would be useful in this only-when-we-need-you role. Sometimes I have questions, and it helps to have someone to go to for an answer.

I understand that the Court is important to the 18% who support it. I also understand that there are 1,800 people in this country, and that the nostalgia of 21 people should not bind us to ineffective systems of government - especially when those systems have driven many of our most active players away. Trim the courts so that we can move away from the personal attacks and pettiness of its current form.


What Would This Court Do?

This Court would advise Congress and the President about legal matters when their input was needed. This Court would clarify laws and proposals, and keep the history of our laws in mind when doing so. This Court would not conduct trials, lay down sentences, or sanction Canadians. Instead of the pomp and circumstance of a “trial”, the Court can use its position to advise and guide Canada during disputes. This recognizes that, with no mechanical power, the Court’s position is opinion and recommendation, not retribution. Maybe then we can have some honesty and good faith.