Join the new world

Hi everyone -

Sorry for being so quiet, but RL got wild this past month or so. Husband got a new knee, followed a week later by a trip in an ambulance and two new stents in his heart. He's doing fine. I'm starting to catch up on all the sleep I didn't get for a couple weeks. Should be caught up by, say, Easter...

Now for the important stuff. Congress.

Yawn?

Yes, that's about it. The big issue this month so far has been tax rates. Basically, the eUK, or what is left of it, is close to broke. For a change, it's not because of thieving ex-CPs, it's simply because fewer and fewer people seem to be playing this game, so the burden spreads over a smaller population.

We need enough for about 14 Mutual Protection Pacts (MPPs) and another 200k for COs (those bribes we use to bring in strong fighters to help us) plus a bit for building up a cushion. So the proposal is to raise the tax rates a bit. Will some of you pay a bit more? Yes, but it's the price of having agreements with stronger countries that they won't attack us.

I will remind everyone that we have a law that allows any excess funds in the Bank of England to be transferred to "trusted members" (disclosure: I'm one of three currently so designated) who can be relied upon to hold funds for the country where they can't be stolen by someone like Big Ant or ChewChewShoe (two of the past CPs who raided the cookie jar and ran off, laughing). So in the event of a theft, which hopefully will not happen again, we won't lose the country's shirt.

Finally, as the TUP Chief Whip, ex PP, current Director of the NHS and Chancellor of eBrit University, yes, I am standing for Congress again. Call it insanity, call it a death wish, call it the siren call of insomnia, but my hat's back in the ring.