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Issue XVII
#1




LOCAL NEWS: Delegate Election: Tsunamy wins, SPN Debate
by Omega, edited by Ryccia

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Feirmont (right) talks policy to the constituency in the debate with Tsunamy (left)

The South Pacific - Incumbent, Tsunamy, wins the second round of the the July 2016 Delegate Election.

This July’s Delegate election, the first under the new two-round system, was always going to involve incumbent Delegate and long-term TSP resident, Tsunamy somehow. Thus, some might say that the campaign only really started when the High Court of the South Pacific announced that Feirmont, the permanent Justice and one of the two election commissioners for the Local Council election, would not be continuing in that role for the Delegate election. This led to speculation by some - speculation which turned out to be true - that Feirmont would run for the new Head of State Delegate role, giving Tsunamy some much needed competition.  

The new Charter, ratified in the Great Council at the end of May, states that the Assembly must first narrow the field down to two candidates, which the region at large (aka the Gameside) then gets to vote on. As only two candidates were running, this first step - a mere formality - became almost like a poll of the region, revealing how each candidate might be expected to do.  Tsunamy won this first round, 12 votes to 8.

At this point it was also announced that South Pacific News, in conjunction with the Ministry of Regional Affairs, would be holding a debate between the two candidates, something which had not occurred in the region before and which was greatly hyped by both South Pacific News and the MoRA.

The debate took place as planned on Monday July 8th, with SPN chief Omega and Professor Henn (aka Cathalea) hosting. The candidates were asked questions posed by nations from across the region and abroad, including a question from the Minister of Foreign Affairs for the North Pacific. The debate faced criticism for not being very focused on policy, though the campaign as a whole was never very policy-focussed, featuring a great deal more in the way of puns, amusingly photoshopped images and, for the first time ever in the South Pacific, a HYPE tractor.  There were one or two policy-related matters, however.  For example, Feirmont made it clear that a vote for him was a vote for change, while Tsunamy essentially stated that anyone voting for him was placing a vote for continuity.

The silliness and debate filled the Regional Message Board for the best part of a week, then for the first time in a decade of GCR history, the Gameside was given the final say on who the Delegate would be via the medium of a regional poll. Tsunamy was officially declared the winner on 18th July, having won 102 votes to 37.



FOREIGN NEWS: New President in Europeia
by Punchwood

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Motorcade for Trinnien's inauguration

Republic of Europeia - Europeia has chosen Trinnien as its next President.

He defeated former President Calvin Coolidge and fellow Assemblyman Aditya Republic with his running mate HEM and won a total of 37 ballots or 50.7% of the total vote. The former President received 28 ballots, giving him 38.4% of the total vote, and Aditya Republic received 8 ballots, giving him 8% of the total vote.

Trinnien and HEM's main pledge was to split the Ministry of the Interior, the Ministry that deals with recruiting and integrating new players to the region, into two separate Ministries. One of them will be a Ministry of Recruitment and the other will be a Ministry of Integration.

The Senate has confirmed the new Cabinet, and the new President has made his Inaugural Address, which is viewable here: https://www.nationstates.net/page=dispatch/id=658462



FOREIGN NEWS: McStooley re-elected as East Pacific Delegate
by Ryccia

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TEP press corps waits for announcement of winner in Delegate election

The East Pacific - Incumbent Delegate McStooley has been re-elected as TEP's head of state and government.

According to the East Pacific Electoral Commission, thirteen votes were counted in an election using an instant run-off system, as there were more than two candidates for the position. In the end, incumbent McStooley received the victory, with seven out of the thirteen votes going to him.

There were four candidates: two did not get more than one vote, while one candidate, Sammy23, did not receive any votes at all.  McStooley’s win was legitimized after the vote was submitted to the Conclave for validation by Arbiter Bachtendekuppen.

McStooley has only had one term so far, after promising to boost activity in his original campaign. One of his plans was to use the RMB for this goal. Speaking of this, he admitted that he "would not write it off as a failure, but not necessarily a success either".



FOREIGN NEWS: Osiris Aligns Raider
by Rinian

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Flag of the Osiris Fraternal Order

Late last week, the Osiris Fraternal Order announced its official alignment towards the Raider side of the R/D gameplay aspect. The Pharaoh of Osiris, Cormac Sethos, said this in an official statement on their NationStates forum embassy on Thursday,
“After much discussion within the Council of Viziers, the Osiris Fraternal Order reaffirms that we stand with our raider friends and allies, as well as non-aligned, independent, and imperialist friends and allies who value the exercise of their sovereign right to engage in military operations that involve invasion. This should come as no surprise.”

The leadership of the new army of Osiris has been split between the infamous raider Scardino, who has been appointed as the Lt. General of the Sekhmet Legion, and Grey Warden Tim Stark, who has been appointed Senior Guardsman of the Pharaonic Guard, a new defender-aligned branch of the OFO’s army committed to the defense of Osiris.

Support for the decision quickly poured in from such persons as General Knot, Revall Silverstorm, and We Are Not the NSA, all congratulating Osiris and Scardino on the appointments.

The assignment was bittersweet for some, however, as Festavo Vasentius, former Pharaoh, commented, “Seems like a rather redundant statement from the people in power. It isn't like Osiris was showing signs of turning defender.”

Additionally controversial was Cormac’s comments about the ‘defender political elite’, saying, “We would prefer to meet our fellow citizens who happen to be defender on the battle field in a spirit of friendly competition, reserving hostility only for the defender political elite who are and have always been hostile to a sovereign and stable Osiris.” This sparked critical comments from various defenders and neutrally aligned individuals about who these “Defender Political Elite” are, including TSP’s own Glen Rhodes, who commented, “Osiris elitists generalize and demonize unnamed defender monsters, and then expect defenders to feel welcome and comfortable in Osiris.” Debate continued among other members of the defending community, including Unibot and Guy, about what exactly this phrase meant. Some accused Cormac of being unfriendly towards defenders, while others accused him of being fearmongering about the role of defenders in rebellion against the OFO.

Others have their own positions on the changes to Osiris. Experienced GPer and moderator Eluvatar has said, “Osiris turned raider in 2013”, obviously indicating the belief that despite to seizure of power in the OFO by Cormac and the relative instability that followed, Osiris has been continually a raider state since the founding of the Order in 2013.

It is unclear what the future of Osiris as a raider organization will be, but it is clear that at least for the time being, the Osiris Fraternal Order shows no means of staying neutral or becoming a defender organization, and that it will have the overall support of raiding.



PARALLEL UNIVERSE: A Review of Pokémon Go
by Drugged Monkeys

In our new "Parallel Universe" segment, we take a look at things that happen in this alternate and weird universe called "Real Life".


Growing up in the 90’s meant we had the chance to enjoy some of the best game systems and greatest games ever made. From Mario to Mortal Kombat, Road Rash to Tony Hawk, Street Fighter to Sonic, we had the chance to enjoy some of the best gaming of all time. For me, playing multiplayer with friends and family during those days were some of the most memorable times I ever had indoors; because if it was nice out, we were out until the sun went down. Even with all this new and exciting gaming technology, we were always outside adventuring rather than  inside playing video games. Along came the handheld game systems that you could carry with you wherever you went, and the next thing you know, we were all OUTSIDE playing video games!

Along with the handheld game systems came one of my favorite games of all time, Pokémon. My brother and I fought all the way to the store on who was going to get the Blue version! Since it was his birthday, he won that battle, but little did he know he wouldn’t win many more against me after that. We spent days, weeks, and months playing this new game because it was like nothing we had ever seen! You could travel the world in search of your very own Pokémon, battle other trainers, and make your Pokémon the strongest, to prove that you were the greatest Pokémon Trainer of all time! The only sad part is that we stopped going outside and playing with our friends, no longer going for endless miles of bike rides and running around until we collapsed. Suddenly the games had taken away what we use to love the most.

After countless days of our lives being devoted to that game, one day we just gave it up. I’m sure it wasn’t as abrupt as when we started playing, but we did eventually stop playing, re-entered the real world, and resumed our childhoods outside. Those were the good old days when the majority of someone’s childhood was spent outside rather than indoors staring at  some screen, engrossed in technology. These days it’s quite the opposite, with the neighborhoods relatively silent, childhood obesity through the roof, and bicycle sales declining every year. It just seems like kids don’t play outside like they used to.

Coming full circle to the newest release of Pokémon in 2016, Pokémon Go, and suddenly the streets have been flooded with people! Unlike the game that was released when I was a kid, where all the adventure took place on the screen on front of me while I sat by the closest and brightest light source, this new version requires that you get up and move! You actually have to leave the comfort of your own home if you truly want to enjoy the game to its fullest extent.

Overnight, millions of people of all ages have downloaded Pokémon Go, and began venturing back out into the real world again. The most shocking thing to me is the amount of friendship and social interaction the game has helped bring out in people. Groups of strangers coming together and enjoying something in a time when the world is filled with so much hate is truly remarkable.

Pokémon Go is a welcome change to the gaming trend that has been ruining the lives of many children and adults alike. Now children and adults have stopped staring only at their phones and are now interacting directly with one another again. For now, the days of people sitting in the same room texting one another are at a standstill.

While this version of the game might be much more interactive and exciting, let’s hope it doesn’t fall by the wayside like its predecessors did after a few short months of nostalgia. Who knows what other games might come along and create the same type of physically oriented gameplay.
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