The New Republic

No I'm pretty sure they're in our carrots, oh and our pears, but I hate pears.

Pears are awesome. They are everywhere because they are also in our potatoes and plums.

Don;t tell Choong that otherwise we would never see our precious apples again!

next thread: "EMC Fruit Debate" lolz

Or possibly the list of government officials in the NR?

Shhhhhhhhhhhhh!
But seriously, we need a list of gov't officials. I must know who does what.

My official agenda as the new First Minister of the New Republic:

1. The ministries will be changed, and tailored to what the new republic needs. The current ministries are very functional, however with the neore no longer in use, i believe that the ministries could use some change. Below i will post the new ministries, their responsibilities, and who is currently the leader of said ministry.
   
   - Deputy First Minister: The Deputy First Minister is pretty self explanatory. Their job is to assist me with anything that the new republic needs and act in my place, should i not be available, or unable to fulfill my duties. I currently am looking for this position to be filled. Please send me a pm if you are seriously interested in this postiion.
   
   - Secretary of State: The Secretary of State's responsibilities are going to be revamped to make more sense, and better serve the new republic. This person is responsible for recruiting a team of individuals to assist them in the many branches that fall under the control of the secretary. The following branches include, the judicial branch, the law enforcement branch, and the military branch. The judicial branch will eventually end up taking over the arbitration committee and will be responsible for handling such affairs. I am suggesting that the current arbitration committee should be the same people that make up quite a bit of the judicial branch. The law enforcement branch will be responsible for notifying players if they are breaking any federal laws. They will essentially be the link between the players and the judicial branch. Their job is to mediate, and solve any small problems that occur. If the dispute is questionable, whether it be the law enforcement, or the player in a dispute, then the issue will be escalated to the judicial branch with no questions asked, in which case they will take care of the issue in a pm, and things will be resolved. This system seems to be the most efficient way for conflict resolution. The military branch will ensure the safety of the city, assist and rescue any lost or stuck players, suggest infrastructure upgrades to the infrastructure minister to maintain or improve safety conditions, and carry out other duties delegated by the secretary of state. If an improvement is suggested to the infrastructure minister, and it is approved, then they will be responsible constructing that improvement, under the supervision and guidance of the infrastructure minister, with approval from the city's mayor. I have elected supereskimo to be the secretary of state and i see he is the best fit for the job, and has the potential to manage such a broad ministry.
   
   - Infrastructure minister: The Infrastructure Minister is responsible for any new infrastructure within the new republic. They are responsible for the infrastructure in between city limits, any government buildings, keeping an updated map of boundaries and borders within the new republic, solving any land disputes by working with the secretary of state and judicial branch, and sometimes for the infrastructure within city limits. The infrastructure minister does not have authority to disperse land plots within a city, manage any inner city infrastructure that is above ground, or enact any such building codes, unless allowed by the current mayor of that city. This minister will work closely with each mayor of every city in the new republic to ensure that the ministry does not "cross the line" with the authority it has. I have selected kritacul as the infrastructure minister, as he has been the minister for some time now and i feel that he has done an excellent job with his role. Kritacul has opted to elect Netherspecter as a deputy infrastructure minister to assist him in his role.
   
   - Finance Ministry: The Finance Ministry will be responsible for federal taxes in the new republic, and the new republic's treasury. The leader of the Finance Ministry will be called the "Treasurer." The treasurer is responsible for selecting a small team of trustworthy individuals that will be approved by me to assist in fulfilling the role. The treasurer will handle all of the new republic's finances for projects, and in the future, compensation for work done in the new republic. There will be a strict system of checks and balances within the treasury, and a very detailed record will be kept of the nations finances, which will be available for the public to view, at any time, to keep corruption at a minimum. A tax system will be put in place, and federal taxes will be imposed upon property owners in order to finance the nation. More details are to come about this. I am currently looking for an individual for this role. If you are seriously interested, please send me a pm.
   
   - Communication Minister: This ministry is responsible for all communications within the new republic. The minister will be required to ensure that all citizens are kept up to date on current events in the nation, establish a media for the nation, and moderate between players when things get a little hot. This minister will come in to play more once we have our own website up and running, as they will be responsible to moderate the website. They will post on news boards all around the nation, on the website, and keep citizens informed of what is going on. They may have to work with the judicial branch on occasion, when the occasional flame war breaks out, or if someone says something that is against the website's rules, or is out of place. This position is currently open, however, i am highly suggesting that 72Volt takes this ministry, since he seems to be the most qualified person for this.
   
   This is all ive got as far as ministers are concerned for now. If anyone has any suggestions, or comments to make about this part, please snip my post and post below.
   
   
2. The Grand Democratic Assembly
   
   -Im open for suggestions on what to do for this. I know this issue has been back and forth, but i believe that all the power should not be within the first minister. There needs to be some sort of legislature within the new republic. A suggestion i have is perhaps forming a new ministry, and holding a public election for members to be part of a new "Executive Ministry" which will act as advisors to the first minister. Perhaps we can select representatives from each political party to form the gda. Like i said, this is open for discussion.
   
   
3. The Nation's Capitol
   
   - I would like to take suggestions on officially establishing Wrem as the new capitol city of the New Republic. Wrem has been very successful and i think that its time we take the step in adopting it as the capitol on the nation. Does anyone have any objections to this?
   
   
4. The Federation of the New Republic
   
   - I am also taking suggestions on the federation of states of the new republic. I want city leaders to have control over their respective cities, and we need to draw a line between federal authority, and city authority. If this seems like everyone is in favor of this, then once the legislature is in tact, we will vote on what authority the federal government has over each city, and what authority each "partially self-governing" city will have.
   
   
5. Revamping the Constitution
   
   - We all know that some things in the constitution need to be changed. I do not have the power to make such changes, however, once the legislature is formed, we will begin to make amendments to the constitution to better the nation.
   
   
6. New Republic Events
   
   - I plan to have more events in the new republic to keep citizens active, and interested in the new republic. We have many new surprises planned for the new republic. Stay tuned for upcoming drop parties, giveaways, and the occasional wither raid. Also with the new update coming out soon, you will see more things (maybe something to do with dragon eggs, hmmmmm)
   
   So thats a summary of my official agenda. I sure ill add a million more things to this as i think of them, but i think this is what the new republic needs. I have spoken to many people and i am trying to answer each and every one of your requests to make the new republic better, and strengthen our nation. Change is coming, and the new republic will be a much better place in the near future. I am proud to be a Neorepublican, because what we have created here on smp9, even on emc, is indeed remarkable.
   
   P.S. If you would like to comment on this post, please remember to snip the post so we dont have pages of text walls. Thanks

i was actually working on that while u were posting, lol

But wait!!! Stoneguard? *raises cute kitty*

I honestly think a purpose built city with the required infrastructure and an effective design should become the capital.

Also, will there be a ceremonial portion of the military? So that big national ceremonies can be carried out in a fancy manner.

I'm very sorry, I didn't see that.
You have access on the bridges as well.

Just wondering... what is the point of requiring people to agree to a contract to use public property...

It's private property cause it was privately funded. Also for people to take responsibility for using it.

Also I see it of no concern to you sir.

Since you are no longer apart of the New Republic, or "active anymore".

No problem, I figured it was something like that.

I'm always on the edge of my seat every afternoon I check this thread, I always fear a flamewar has gotten it shut down ;_;

But anyway, on a more positive note!
I would like to thank our new First Minister for his very comprehensive and far reaching agenda.
I recommend Dean for the Finance Ministry, he has a PhD in Mathematics and an IQ of 150, he is extremely capable. I will happily take the Communications Ministry, my basic agenda is as follows:

• Get the website set up.
• Get a YouTube channel get up for broadcasting.
• Begin writing a Friday News Bulletin on the thread, of all activities in the previous week.

As for the Grand Democratic Assembly, Dean has devised a system of electing the Grand Democratic Assembly, which is almost universally accepted. Here's a snippet from a conversation we were having:

Also, I support making Wrem the national capital, and maybe eventually moving it to a planned city, namely Neorepopolis.
I support federating the NR, a revamp of the Constitution, and more events.

There's a lot of overlap in our thinking, Napoleon, perhaps we should merge our political parties?

Wow Volt, very good stuff here.
On the note of Wrem being the Capital, is kinda a shock and personally it's not a bad idea.
But I think with some work and tooling, Inozino could still be the capital of the New Republic.
Also, the name change is decent, but would be somewhat confusing to some. I mean everyone knows it as Wrem and the name change would throw people off. JMO.
This whole political party thing is a good idea and would love to be added to that convo to help with the GDA. I personally know a lot of history and have been myself in political elections. So I have first hand knowledge.

The makings of a first class civil servant

I understand the appeal and benefit of political parties, but requiring potential members to have a party seems excessive. I've always considered myself an independent, and I don't plan to change that. We have fewer than 100 members; requiring each party to have 5 members means a larger number of citizens needs to be highly involved with politics. And since each party needs a leader, who is probably the best GDA candidate within that party, you're basically eliminating the best people for the job (assuming the party leader can't select him/herself).
Perhaps there is a good way to integrate parties with the election system, but requiring candidates to have a party, and assigning votes by party popularity, is definitely not the way to do it.
Besides that, I don't see how giving each party a percentage of votes would make things simpler - yes, it boils things down to one choice for the people, but it kills the democracy. People won't directly know who they're voting for; that decision lies with the party leader, who may or may not even be a good representative of the party. The current system seems simple enough - vote for multiple people so that enough different people get votes, and use a ranking system to break ties. If the ranking system is too complicated, we could get rid of it and just have one of the ministers or the existing GDA break any ties. We just need to clearly communicate what the people are voting for, unlike in the last election.
Also, considering that the roles of the GDA and first minister are so different (or at least will be once we've developed a bit), it makes sense to have separate elections for GDA and first minister. The GDA could elect the minister(s) to avoid multiple elections, or people could just vote for both at the same time.
With all due respect, I can't agree with any of the ideas in the quote, with the exception of having 5, 7, or 9 members.
Also, I'd like to be included in the convo if possible. I'm in the mood for a good, logical debate.

That aside, I look forward to working with you, Volt. I think communication will be a big part of law enforcement, and that if laws are publicly available and well organized, then most conflicts can be avoided from the get-go. Please keep us up to date on the website's progress. I think it will be key in the NR's development.

As for my job as Secretary of State, I'm still thinking on it. Before we can have law enforcement, we need laws. Organization seems like the most important thing right now, so I'll post again once I develop a system for police/court/military.

Wasn't there an planning ministry once? I think we need one. Also, if say volt were given a road it could become the Capitol. It has gorgeous and extensive infrastructure. One last thing! I proposed a constitution earlier. The current constitution isn't sufficient now, the point of amendments are to fix future problems. I suggest adoption of a new constitution.

I read through your Constitution draft, and I've tried to respond to the major changes from the existing one.

"IV. Neorepublicans have the right to freedom of contract, as long as it does not affect the constitutional rights of others or themselves, and are free trade of all things tangible or intangible, real-world or Minecraft-based, useful or useless, goods or services or information, or anything else. However a person or persons may not sell information that puts the security of the NR in danger and if they do sell such information they can be charged with the conspiracy and treason. "
The highlighted part seems unnecessary - putting the NR's security in danger is affecting the constitutional rights of others.I'm not
"VII. A person or persons may claim land they have not built on but plan to build on in a short period of time. "
I'm not sure about this one - it seems reasonable for cities to mark out land for expansion, but people should have to put in some effort to claim land. We need more details - what markers are necessary, what time frames, etc.
"X. Neorepublicans are assumed mature, sane and non criminal. However this assumption will change if given valid reason to."
I really don't see the point here - it's not giving the government authority to "do" anything; it's just stating the opinion of the government.
"XI. Neropublicans are entitled the rights of freedom of the press, petition, speech, peaceful assembly, and a fair trial by a jury of their piers among other unwritten rights."
I don't think a jury of peers is reasonable in a Minecraft setting. That would require people to go on "jury duty", which is near-impossible to schedule on an international server. It would be better to have a judicial committee of mature players decide, and let both sides present witnesses who may have something useful to say. Also, "among other unwritten rights" is too vague, considering that human, EMC, and NR rights are already outlined earlier in the constitution.
"The GDA may not pass a exo facto law(s)."
This is a good addition. I'd hope it would be implied, but it won't hurt to include. Also, I think you might mean "ex post facto".
"The GDA can vote to impeach a President if he/she has committed a significant crime. He or she may only impeach a president with a 2/3rds majority vote in the GDA."
I think this is another reasonable addition.
"The GDA is the sole body with the ability to declare war."
I really don't think war should be mentioned in the Constitution. Yes, we can have an army, but we should never use it against another EMC group or outpost. The army/military's purpose is public service, not forceful influence. Now, if we were to expand to a PvP server (which I think would be really fun), this could change. But that would require other, more drastic changes anyway.
As for specific parts about different ministries and ministers, napoleon's agenda seems like a good enough framework. Since we're still trying to figure things out, I think it's a good idea to try out his proposed ministries for a while and make any necessary changes from there.

Right now, I think we should focus on organizing the government. Yes, the constitution needs change, but it will take time to put that change into effect. Once we have a law-making/editing branch, it will be much easier to do.
I agree that we need to stop making laws up on-the-fly, but we need to get the basics down first. Just wait a bit longer, and I think everything will work out.