SENATE STANDING COMMITTEE: Gov't Oversight and Reform (Game Reform/PC)

[Хahar 🤔]

Abolishing regional Senate seats is not possible only because obstructionists make it so.

[Хahar 🤔]

I am greatly enjoying the existence of this kangaroo court.

Atlasia has always gone through cycles of boom and bust in terms of participation and activity. At this point it is clear that Atlasia is at a low ebb in those terms. However, the last time Atlasia was at a peak, people took it upon themselves to create myriad extra offices (all regional offices, it should be noted), and now that the game has entered this rut, those positions are unfillable. The most obvious example was in the Pacific, which is why it was chosen for this operation (the seven officeholders in the region prior to the commencement of the operation were NVGonzalez, IBDD, Superique, solopop, wan, Marnetmar, and freefair, and of those only Superique and solopop were remotely active), but it has never been merely confined to that region: for an example, you need only look at the current elections in the Northeast, where there are four candidates for five positions. It goes without saying that this is a problem.

No matter what happens in the Pacific in the future, Operation Pacific Rimjob will have been successful, because it has clearly demonstrated the fundamental failings of the regional system in existence today. Nobody now would argue that the regional setup that exists now is healthy; while some of our opponents might wish to revert the regional situation to the status quo ante, doing that would do nothing to fix the fundamental problem of there being nowhere near the level of participation in the game that would be necessary to support the amount of regional government that presently exists. Reasonable people will recognize this now that it has been forcibly brought to their attention.

The response of some people will then be to say that the process of addressing the problem of the regions should have been done the normal way, through constitutional amendment. That is an admirable attitude, but it is entirely naïve. I have been a citizen of Atlasia for most of the game's history, and in that tie I have seen countless attempts at reform, including reform of the regions. These attempts invariably fail because Atlasia has a sizable population of reactionaries who will never agree to any change, no matter how distasteful the status quo might be. The last time that reform was a politically viable option was during the Wixted administration in 2007. It should come as no surprise that there have been no substantial changes to the governmental structure of Atlasia in the time since then.

I know that I have spent enough time futilely trying to attempt to bring about change to fix Atlasia within the context of the system, and I am sure that others feel the same way; this is why we plotters have opted instead to take direct action. There has been enough idle sloganeering on the part of those who wish to do something to fix the game; it is high time for propaganda of the deed, and that is what has happened here. Disagree with the actions in the Pacific if you will, but know that they were not aimless terrorism; the purpose of our endeavors has always been to improve the game.

[Хahar 🤔]

Yes, DemPGH, that is exactly what happened. Congratulations on reading in correct order the words that I posted in public in order to ascertain their correct meaning. Do you want a gold star of Atlasia for that?

[Хahar 🤔]

This is just a general question to the members of the National Movement, but would you describe what has gone on in the wake of your actions in the Pacific as a political witchhunt, a sort of nonsensical, faux outrage on the part of those in government, who had up until the Operation, completely ignored the decaying situation in the Pacific?

Absolutely, and I think this is demonstrative of the issues in Atlasia about which I have spoken at length in the past. Actual problems in the game go entirely ignored, but any attempt to fix them is met with the harshest retribution.

[Хahar 🤔]

This is just a general question to the members of the National Movement, but would you describe what has gone on in the wake of your actions in the Pacific as a political witchhunt, a sort of nonsensical, faux outrage on the part of those in government, who had up until the Operation, completely ignored the decaying situation in the Pacific?

Absolutely, and I think this is demonstrative of the issues in Atlasia about which I have spoken at length in the past. Actual problems in the game go entirely ignored, but any attempt to fix them is met with the harshest retribution.

Oh, is that why you ignored the one question pertaining to that issue and the first one asked in this phase of the hearing?

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You were saying something about ignoring the actual problems in this game...

It goes without saying that there is such a point, but it is also obvious that that point will never be reached until every office in Atlasia is active and heavily contested and there are still a multitude of people who lack office who would be interested in holding office and active if they were elected.

[Хahar 🤔]

Actually, I have articulated my views on this matter at length, and the President has agreed with said views, but I know that the Vice President has an unconventional method of reading comprehension.

[Хahar 🤔]

The Vice President will receive the respect due to him by his positions when he acts in a manner becoming of said positions.

[Хahar 🤔]

I'd just like to point this quote out, since it seems like our dear Vice President has some sort of messianic complex wherein he sees himself blowing his horn and scattering evildoers. I think this provides welcome insight into the motivations of the foremost ideologue of this witch hunt.

I mean, I fought and won that battle decisively while any number of folks headed for the hills, but it seems I'm the aggressor, the rude one, etc. So, we'll see. Maybe I was wrong. Maybe they want it back.

[Хahar 🤔]

Post all the questions I am apparently yet to answer and I will answer the ones I like in the way that I like.

[Хahar 🤔]

I've elaborated my plan in several different places, but I can do it again.

Two months ago, Atlasia was in an advanced state of decay; if it is not now, it is only because our efforts motivated people to care about the game again. The prime evidence for this decay is in the level of inactivity in the regions; if anyone doubts this, look at the way that we took a whole region literally without anyone noticing. In general, there are a whole host of offices that are unoccupied, and that is not good for the game. I have spoken at length on this matter in the past, so I will quote myself here:

The problem is that there isn't all that much to do between elections much of the time, unless you're an officeholder. There is a place in Atlasia for non-officeholders to be active participants in the game (particularly by starting a newspaper and becoming a journalist), but newcomers don't necessarily realize it because they don't see many people doing those things; rather, it feels like everyone who is participating in the game holds an office.

One way to help address this problem is to make it so that a much smaller portion of the active population of Atlasia consists of officeholders, so that there are more non-officeholders to fill other roles in the game. One way to do this would be to shrink the number of offices in the game; I am in favor of this, but such a solution would not necessarily be politically popular. The other way to accomplish this goal is to increase the population of Atlasia without increasing the number of offices accordingly. In general, when the population of Atlasia has increased, new offices have been created. The impulse is understandable, since people want to welcome new people into the game and help them engage with the game, but it leads to the problems that I have described above.

It is absolutely possible to be involved in Atlasia without holding an office, whether during election season or outside of it. I am evidence of this; aside from two brief stints in the federal cabinet and a one-month term as Governor of the Southeast, I have never held an office higher than regional legislator in the nearly six years that I have been a citizen of Atlasia, and yet I have been very involved in the game in that span. If the example of myself seems distasteful, just look at Politics Junkie, who recently joined the game and jumped right in and is doing great work now despite never having held any office. Atlasia could use more active non-officeholders like him to show that participation isn't limited to the group that holds office; anyone can make a difference.

Obviously, one positive effect that might result from this would be the flowering of newspapers. Newspapers can perform a great public service in fostering a national dialogue (the best example being The Examiner, a model that I hope will be emulated in years to come), but there are fewer now than there were half a decade ago, despite Atlasia being much more populous now than it was then. Perhaps the massive growth in offices over that time has something to do with it.

Aside from a growth in journalism, there are also other potential benefits. Right now, the same groups of people generally hold party leadership positions and elective offices; the effect is to concentrate power in a small group. If there were more people not holding office who were able to take party leadership positions, the two could be split, spreading power across a larger base and thereby democratizing Atlasia. I am sure that there are many more potential benefits that I have failed to mention; the fact of the matter is that the possibilities are endless, if only people are willing to give it a try.

It is specifically worth noting here that (with the possible exception of a cabinet position), every single dead office is at the regional level. Because what happens in each region is irrelevant to residents of the other four regions, the five-region setup is highly conducive to the creation of dead offices; after all, when the Pacific was dead, nobody outside the Pacific cared.

What this suggests is that the regional system is itself the problem; however, any attempts to change the system are invariably met with massive resistance from intellectually sterile bureaucrats like our own beloved Vice President. (Lest I besmirch the honor of these intellectually sterile bureaucrats, it should be noted that I would not dare ascribe to most of them the hero complex or poor literacy of our Vice President; those are his alone.) Because of the impossibility of change within the context of the system, we found it necessary to take direct action in the hopes that people might look beyond their hidebound allegiance to the regions above all else. At first it seemed that that might happen; it is to my great regret that it ultimately did not.

The abolition of the regions is not an end in itself; it is the means to an end. That end is a genuine dialogue regarding what would be best for Atlasia that is not immediately stopped in its tracks as a result of mindless appeals to tradition.