The Office of Senator LumineVonReuental (A Farewell to the Senate)

[Lumine]

Announcement Speech:

December 31st, 2013:
Midwest Governor LumineVonReuental announces Senate bid against incumbent Senator TNF.

Good day, my fellow Midwesterners.

I think that my life in Atlasia proves the point that things can change very quickly within a single year. I joined this nation back in December, and several months had to pass until I finally chose to run for office. It has been a long road. From Assemblyman to Archduke, from Governor to Presidential Candidate, I have fought elections across the Mideast, the Midwest and the federal stage, and I had my share of victories and defeats, some of them landslides, others crushing failures. I am a man (a very young man, though) who loves this game, and I enjoy almost every aspect of it, in light of the endless possibilities it offers. Right now I stand close to my Governor’s desk, and I can see that this has been a successful trip. I have executive experience, legislative experience and I have been involved in caucuses and newspapers. It’s a considerable amount of experience that, while not perfect, is much needed for my next move.

I thought about it since the end of November. What should I do? Should I run for reelection? Should I go for the White House again? Should I take a chance for At-Large or Regional Senate? I chose not to run for reelection for I believe in renovation. My predecessor served for about six months, and so will I. We now have several candidates who would be great Governors. I also decided to end my term instead of jumping to another office; since I am committed to the people of this region for the opportunities it has given me, which is why At-Large Senator was a non-started. Another Presidential campaign was considered, but I’ll make this very clear: I am not running for President in February, under no circumstances. That left me with a single option, and it convinced me right away. I want to go to the next step, ladies and gentlemen, so yes. I am challenging Senator TNF for the Midwest Regional Senate seat! LumineVonReuental goes to Nyman!

I spoke before about experience and record, and those are things that are crucial when facing my opponent. Senator TNF, for better or worse, it’s one of the most known figures in the political stage, an active voice for the Labor Party and a man who embodies clearly defined ideals. And here goes Lumine, the supposedly moderate hero-Governor wimp who only signs bills and writes articles. But I strongly believe that said view is false. I speak too fast and I make mistakes, perhaps, but just like any other Atlasian. During my term the Midwest has fought unemployment back, we (the full regional government) have increased activity levels, we fought for a better environment, we tried our best to be responsible with our budget, and we improved the lives of all Midwesterners. How? By working together. Ilikeverin, Thomas D, Windjammer, GAworth, Maxwell, Cris, Arturo Belano and I chose to work and compromise instead of creating chaos via bitter partisan fights. We did what every government should do: we represented our citizens and constituents. We did something for everybody; we fought for Laborites, Progressives, Federalists, Liberals, Independents and yes, even members of the NM-AM (soon to be Cultural Marxist Party).

Senator TNF has my respect for being an active officeholder who maintains a good level of debate and responsibility on the Senate, but I believe he has a fatal flaw. He does not represent the interests of the region in a truly accurate way. This would be impossible to say if he was an At-Large Senator, but the reason we have Regional Senators is to actually keep regional voices on the Senate. Either via calling his opponents fascists, via attacking the other parties for the mistake of the week, via criticizing Federalists for any bills that are not centrist or leftist, or via supporting Xahar’s antics on the Senate and calling measures to expel him an “assault on democracy”, he has not been able to truly address the concerns of this region in ways that, for example, Maxwell did or Tmthforu is doing right now as At-Large Senator. Some of you might say that there is not such a big contrast as there actually was between Rooney and TNF during the last election, but I’m here to prove people wrong, just as I tried to do as Governor and Presidential candidate. I want to be a Senator, an active Senator that fights for the beliefs of his region’s citizens while being able to work with other parties. I have a record of activity and compromise, and I intend to show and prove just that. This is the greatest challenge I have ever taken in Atlasia, and I will act accordingly. I created a thread for that very same reason, for here you are going to see a lot of movement. Speeches, videos, pictures, platforms, proposals, discussions, I am going to make a real commitment to this race. Debates are something I want as well, and I want lots of them!  

I expect to have a very active race against our current Senator, and I hope that we will able to discuss our points of view and give this region a race to remember. There’s no better way to prove how active the Midwest is than with a good old fashioned political race to the death! I call for all citizens to join this effort and help me get to Nyman, where I expect to make a difference and improve our system in any possible way. I ask the people of all parties to take a stand for compromise, not because we are “moderate heroes” or “wimps”, but because we believe in the need for teamwork.

Ladies and gentlemen, with less than two months left all I can say is…

Let the campaign begin!

LumineVonReuental, Candidate for the Senate of Atlasia.

[Lumine]

Endorsements:

-Progressive Union of Atlasia
-Federalist Party of Atlasia
-Democratic-Republican Party
-Radical Gay Party
-Former President and Senator Tmthforu94 (Fed-KS)
-Former President and Registar General Fritz (Lab-MN)
-Secretary of Exterior Affairs Superique (Pro-NV)
-Secretary of Interior Affairs GAworth (Pro-SD)
-Mideast Governor Elect Spiral (DR-MO)
-At-Large Senator Goldwater (Fed-DE)
-Former Northeast Senator and Governor and IDS Representative Scott (Pro-AR)
-Former At-Large Senator and Vice-Presidential candidate Maxwell (Fed-OK)
-Former Pacific Governor and Presidential candidate Spamage (Fed-MN)
-Pacific Governor PJ (Pro-AZ)
-Mideast Governor Zuwo (Fed-KY)
-Midwest Representative and Pollster Cris (Fed-CO)
-Pacific Councilor and Senate Candidate Flo (Pro-AK)
-Mideast Assemblyman DC al Fine (Fed-MD)
-Mideast Assemblyman JCL (Fed-IN)
-IDS Representative Small L (DR-TX)
-IDS Representative Jack Enderman (Fed-FL)
-Former IDS Representative JerryArkansas (Fed-WV)
-Former Midwest Senate Candidate Rooney (Fed-IA)
-Pacific Council Candidate Devin (Fed-WA)
-Citizen TheRileyKeaton (Fed-WV)

The Candidate:

Political History:

-One-term Mideast Assemblyman (March-May 2013)
-One-term Midwest Archduke (June-September 2013)
-Chairman of the Institutional Caucus (June-July 2013)
-Vice-Chair of the Union of National Democrats (July 2013)
-One and a half-term Midwest Governor (September 2013 – February 2014?)
-Spamage’s Vice Presidential running mate (September 2013)
-Presidential nominee of the Progressive Union (October 2013)
-Writer for the Record-Courier (December 2013 - ¿?)
-Shadow President of the Progressive Union (December 2013 - ¿?)

Political Parties:

-Independent (December 2012 – June 2013)
-Union of National Democrats (June-July 2013)
-Civic Union (July-August 2013)
-Progressive Union (August 2013 - ¿?)

Most Significant Accomplishments:

-Getting elected to the Mideast Assembly as an independent (Note: Failed to secure reelection though).
-Reforming the legislative system of the Midwest.
-24% of the vote in the October Presidential Election along with SoIA Superique.
-Was involved in the Midwest Economic Renaissance and the surge in activity.

Further References:

-YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGCNq-1gKTYbuWzcO6pv_9A
-Office: https://uselectionatlas.org/FORUM/index.php?topic=174704.0

[Lumine]

Endorsed. You've been a very solid Governor, and you could be useful in the Senate.

You have been a great Governor and mentor. Endorsed.

Endorsed!

Thank you very much!

[Lumine]

Across the aisle endorsement!

Endorsed.

You have my full endorsement.

Thanks to all of you! Glad to see DR and Federalist support!

ENDORSED!!!!

Endorsed!!!  The Midwest needs a real leader.

Thanks, PJ and Scott!

Endorsed, you've got my vote. 

Mr. RG, you have no idea how thankfull I am!

You've been a great Governor, and I know you could make some positive contributions in the Senate. You have my endorsement!

Thanks for all your help, Senator!

[Lumine]

We obviously differ on the issue of regional consolidation but I am convinced that you will do a fine job representing the people of the Midwest if elected. You will bring a high level of activity coupled with civility and respect towards your political opponents to the Senate. Therefore, you have my cross-regional endorsement.

Thank you Governor, it means a lot!

ENDORSED!

I have no doubts that you will be a great Senator! Strongly Endorsed!

Thanks, Cris and Superique!

[Lumine]

The Race is On!:

December 31st, 2013:
At the Campaign HQ volunteers are already working half time (before tonight's New Years Eve Party), and the race has begun:

Woah, I have to say I feel pretty good about my chances! Less than twelve hours after my announcement I have the support of thirteen Atlasians, all of them great officeholders and some of them colleagues of the Senator. This is not as partisan as you might believe, though, I enjoy the endorsements of Laborites, Federalists, Progressives, Democratic-Republicans and Independents alike. I believe this proves my point about the need for further compromise, and I think my opponent should begin to worry, for I plan on delivering a race to remember!

Speaking of Senator TNF, it looks like I managed to make him mad again... How did he called me? "A centrist do-nothing?", "Someone who has written many articles but contributed little, if anything, to debates in the Althing and has sponsored almost nothing in way of real legislation?" Or my favourite: "A sell out to the Federalist Party". Senator, please, I know you have an urge to attack political opponents, but if you are going to do so at least make attacks based on reality. The only accusation of which I'm guilty is of being a centrist, ladies and gentlemen. I am a proud centrist and a moderate in most issues, but being a centrist does not mean that I do not take stands on the issues. I am for using stimulus instead of austerity to save our economy, I stand for regional reform, I want changes in foreign policy and I have strong social views. I'm sorry for not being an extremist, Senator!

He also thinks I'm a do nothing person. He even pointed out that my only accomplishment has been the Speed Limits Act on the Mideast (which I also sponsored in the Midwest). Senator, I recently introduced a bill that corrects many problems with the claims of our region, with the purpose of solving our dilemmas with the Pacific. I sponsored reform of our Constitution, including six amendments that would close loopholes and send our region towards a better state. As Governor I try to be involved in debate, but debate for me is to freely discuss our ideas while still behaving like gentlemen, not calling the other side fascists if you disagree with them.

I'd like to think that you have a choice between styles of governance which is crucial to Atlasia. You have a choice between both equally active candidates, yes, but think about this. Senator TNF got his bills passed after fighting with the entire Senate (with the exception of former Senator Xahar) and after probably causing more gridlock. Don't you think that a Senator with the ability to actually listen and compromise is more likely to get things done?

Well, of course I'd like to keep talking about this for hours and hours, but I'll leave that to the debates. Stay tuned, folks, for I plan on releasing campaign ads on Youtube very soon!

[Lumine]

Governor you have my vote and my endorsement. Good luck to you!

I'm honored to have your support, Rooney, thanks!

Endorsed. Will be the easiest choice I've ever made in an election.

ENDORSED!

Thank you, Jerry and Spamage, to the victory I go!

What's this? An endorsement from Jack Enderman! Like what Spamage said...

Will be the easiest choice I've ever made in an election.

Thank you very much, Jack!

Senator TNF seems to think people who don't support him or approve of the job he's doing (Only 1 in 6 Midwesterners approve in the latest poll) because they are out to get him or just think he's too liberal, and that's not it. I've given favorable marks to very liberal folks in the past, as well as to people I don't necessarily care for. In fact, I've voted "approve" several times of the Senator. The reason folks are primarily disapproving of him is because of his style and how he conducts himself - the only people who seem to enjoy working with him are those who agree with him on just about everything.

Indeed. It is my belief that being a good Senator does not only involve introducing bills, it also involves the ability to get things done, the will to compromise and the honesty to acknowledge that there are other ways to see the issues, and that your answer may not be the only correct answer. The voters seem to agree, since despite his statements on being the man of the people and his many initiatives, his approval ratings are horrible. I support people from both sides of the aisle as well, and it annoys me when that is viewed as negative "moderate heroism with a touch of supposed fascism".

[Lumine]

Speech on the Rational Education Act:

January 3rd, 2013:
Midwest Governor LumineVonReuental started his Midwest Tour today, and the first stop was a former city in which he resided: Cheyenne, WY. There he blasted Senator TNF for his latest Education bill.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I'll be honest with you, I'm quite frustrated today. I decided to check the bills the Senate was discussing, and I found one of our esteemed Senator's pet projects: his education bill. You'll imagine how surprised I was at finding out that the Senator was trying to ban homeschooling. Yes, you heard me, banning homeschooling. He finds it normal to blast me for speed limits, but apparently the Rational Education Act is a freedom bill who no one would oppose. Naturally, most of the Senate called out the Senator on this frivolous project, and you know what he replied? He said that his opponents were determined to allow the abuse of children by religious and erstwhile fanatics. In what world, Senator, is homeschooling child abuse? What is the purpose of having freedom in Education if you want to establish something more authoritarian than the supposed crimes that you accuse your rivals of?

My opponent likes to brag about being a man of the people, and there he is, restricting a right that makes no harm with an unconstitutional piece of legislation, while saying such unfortunate comments and making the Senate a more bitter place. If he believes that the rest of the Senate is wrong on this issue, fine, then make actual arguments about it. But to keep attacking out of nowhere with comments that make no sense at all is something unbecoming of a Senator. From now on, I'll be shadowing our Senator's bills and projects to give my own version or response, just as a public exercise to show the real differences behind our styles and beliefs.

The way I see it, you can't be doing a good job when less than 15% of the citizens of the region approve of you, and this is no conspiracy from a pollster, since we live in a center-left region. Homeschooling can prove successful and it can fail as well, but nobody has the right to take that decision away from the parents and force them to accept a determined system without a reason. This bill is frivolous, and I don't see how this is a bright spot on the legislative record of Senator TNF."

[Lumine]

First Campaign Ads Released!

January 3rd, 2013:

Today, the Lumine Team released the first two of the series of campaign ads that are to be run across the Midwest for the entire campaign. Although the editing skills of the team are at a pretty low level (honestly, they are very simple and easy to make), they hope that the message will be more important. As such, here are the links and descriptions:

Ad N°1: Who is LumineVonReuental?

Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5DWy8RBSWQ
Description: A brief look at the record of the candidate as Mideast Assemblyman, Midwest Archduke, Midwest Governor and Presidential Candidate.

Ad N°2: A History of TNF Quotes

Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6BNjspzQ34
Description: With the race underway, it is always good to get to know your opponent. When you look behind to the past, it's easy to be amazed at how things change...

[Lumine]

Nice to see some ads!

GREAT!

Those ads were beautiful.

Thank you! I'm still struggling with the basics of Sony Vegas, but hopefully as the campaign goes on I'll be able to release more detailed ads.

Your speech blasting the anti-choice, anti-intellectual freedom, anti-educational freedom "Rational" Education Act brought a tear to my eye. You are awesome, governor!

Thank you very much, Rooney! While I acknowledge the advantages of our public education system, I feel we must always preserve the right to choose for the parents. The worst thing we can do in Education is to keep a closed mind and restrict freedom on it to such a degree.

[Lumine]

Cross regional endorsement good luck Governor!

Thank you Devin, good luck to you as well!

[Lumine]

Endorsed for Senate.

Thank you very much, JCL!

[Lumine]

I just want to say this:

Four months ago, Rooney made it close and competitive, with you Limune, it will be a landslide, no matter how TNF spins it.

I really hope so Jack, TNF is a very tough opponent!

[Lumine]

Speech on the End to Imperialism Act and the Bill of Rights Amendment:

January 7th, 2013:
Midwest Governor LumineVonReuental continues his tour after participating in the Althing debates, going to Helena, Montana. There he briefly spoke about Senator TNF's new bills. He is expected to speak on the Pacific Stimulus and economic policy later today, and his new Super PAC is also expected to be launched tonight.

"Good day, Helena! How are we feeling today? I have to say I'm quite optimistic, this race started a mere week ago and we are already gaining ground! With ads being aired and a mostly positive reaction to my campaign, I already have the endorsements of nineteen Atlasians. But regardless of the number, I want to stress the fact that these Atlasians come from most if not all sides of the political system. You have Federalists, Progressives, Independents, Laborites and Democratic Republicans supporting this candidacy, this attempt to bring more statesmanship and moderation to the Senate. In the meantime, Senator TNF's Education bill is getting killed by the Senate and it's passage looks increasingly unlikely, so yes, this is a great day!

Now, going into subject, I said before that I was shadowing my opponent's moves on the Senate so I could provide a better contrast to his bills and show some of the differences between our styles and beliefs. And Senator TNF has sent an act and an amendment to the Constitution to the Senate during the past days, so this is the perfect occasion to do so! The first bill is called "An Actual End to Imperialism Act", and a toned down version passed the Senate a few weeks ago,   closing military bases abroad (that trained foreign military). However, this version call to forgive the debt of developing nations, making sure that the CIA does not intervene with the governments of foreign nations (including surveillance), closing all military facilities, withdrawing from NATO, dismantling nuclear, biological and chemical weapons, cutting military funding and CIA funding in half (and increasing military retirement funds), embargoing Israel and banning drones inside Atlasia. Boy, where do I start...

I believe that we need to rething our approach towards foreign affairs, since sometimes our minds seem to be in the Cold War and not in 2014. I believe we need some serious reform of the way the conduct foreign relationship, and that includes the way NSA and CIA act. But you cannot make lasting and successful changes in foreign policy with radical changes, that only allows further instability and sends the wrong message to the rest of the world. Allow me to counter a few points here: I would support reducing the interest rates for developing nations, but to entirely forgive debt would only encourage irresponsibility from most of these government to not pay their debts, and history certainly proves that, with many cases during the 1980's and 1990's. I agree with the CIA overreach, and I would certainly like to see their activities restricted, but some of these proposals would only tie their hands around their back, depriving them of an actual purpose. I agree, it's not a good idea to spy on your allies, but what about your enemies? Same goes for military facilities and military funding, we have reduced those levels of funding by a lot during the last years. I would like input from our Generals (the GM in this case, I guess) on how would such drastic changes affect our military. I don't want a bloated military, but I want it well funded and ready to strike when necessary.

I do commend the Senator on increasing funds for military retirement, those men gave their health (often their lives) to defend this nation, and the least we can do for them is actually taking care of their needs, psychological or financial. I am a little bit conflicted in the Israel issue, I certainly despite what they are doing to the Palestinian, but an embargo is a radical answer that will make things worse. We have to force Israel to stop the apartheid style policies, but that has to come, as I stated in my presidential campaign, in a gradual process of negociationg and assertive pressure. I would also like to state that I detest chemical, nuclear and biological weapons, I hate the idea of seeing those things used in a battlefield, and I would even be willing to destroy chemical and biological arsenal. But to strip ourselves of our nuclear arsenal is ridiculous. If we want to disarm the world's nuclear arsenal, that means we will have to disarm all nations at the same time. My last comment goes for NATO: We have to reform NATO and make it an alliance with different goals and new nations included, yes, but abandoning it is not the answer.

That for one side, and the Amendment the term "Bill of Rights". I'd like to point out that the Senator made a mistake, for his changes concern Article VI of the Constitution, not Article IV. But in short, the Amendment calls for abolishing involuntary servitude as punishment, abolishing life imprisonment, allowing the right to vote despite socioeconomic status, service in the armed forces, imprisonment, previous conviction of a crime, disability, or gender identity and a bunch of other statements. When it comes to voting right, I approve of letting people vote regardless of gender, disability, armed forces and socioeconomic status, for I believe denying those people the right to vote is fundamentally wrong. I do, however, have a problem with allowing felons to vote. One of the purposes of putting people in jail is depriving them of a series of rights that serve as a punishment for crimes, and it kinda loses it's meaning when we just let them vote. Same goes for the life imprisonment. I understand when people say it's cruel, I do, but the crimes you have to commit to earn a life imprisonment sentence have to be a lot more cruel. Sometimes, regardless of therapy, some criminals will still be dangerous after decades of imprisonment, and I don't wish to see them running free.

The final changes go too far, though. Some of them are harmless, like allowing for basic rights for all Atlasians, which I'm fine with. Some of them a little bit Utopian, and I honestly want to see how the Senator wishes to make them a reality or actually enforce those rights. And there are two parts that concern me very much: Abortion and Civil Unions. My concern towards Civil Unions goes to this part: "The Republic of Atlasia shall not legislate a limit on the number of persons able to join a civil union". Now, forgive me if I am mistaken, but wouldn't this mean a right to polygamy? And the abortion part also goes too far. I am personally pro-life, but I'm willing to maintain a certain "truce" or "balance" in order to prevent what we saw in the Mideast, but to openly state a right to abort on demand... Not only shows a lack of respect for pro-life positions, it also shows a complete disregard for the life of those future human beings. Call me a conservative or a reactionary on this one, but there's just no way I can support that.

Forgive me for such a lengthy response, and forgive for not really presenting my concrete proposals for these matters, but those will come very soon.

[Lumine]

Well, well, well, looks like our esteemed Senator did not like my opinions on his bills... He even decided to give me a lot of nicknames! ModerateVonHero (love that one), ImperialistLumine, IsraelFirstLumine, Bombs Away Lumine, Lock 'Em Up Lumine,  tl;dr Lumine, Traditional Marriage Lumine and the eloquent Advocate of Compulsory Pregnancy Lumine. I'd say that a politician who has to use such names to talk about political rivals is desperate and vicious, but we're talking about TNF, so... Well, I'll just call him "Esteemed Senator", or Big Brother TNF if he's too annoying.

I want to take the time to reply to his statements, but before I do that, I want to present my third Ad! It was done very quickly, so I could address some of the things that happened today. Mainly, the bizarre notion that our esteemed Senator is a consistent fighter for freedom.

Ad N°3: Fear, Loathing and Cynicism in Atlasia

Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12KWwpJp8GQ
Description: Senator TNF claims to be a consistent fighter for freedom, but is he?

[Lumine]

Endorsed!

Thank you very much, Senator!

[Lumine]

Your new name makes me smile!

I take this nickname as a badge of honor!

[Lumine]

TNF, the Freedom Fighter, just like Fidel and his friends!

TNF as Castro? That's quite a fascinating idea, xD, but wouldn't that make Xahar Che Guevara?

[Lumine]

TNF, the Freedom Fighter, just like Fidel and his friends!

TNF as Castro? That's quite a fascinating idea, xD, but wouldn't that make Xahar Che Guevara?

Not true. Considering how many left wing policies Xahar has thwarted, he has more in common with Batista

Well, all I can say is that I feel very sorry for Cuba...

[Lumine]

I have to say that I've been reading this and comrade TNF's threads and I found them highly entertaining. Are you going to engage in a campaign debate? Will you smoke Havana cigars during the interludes? Is there a trade embargo on them in Atlasia? Questions are extensive to comrade TNF. ModerateVonHero is a great nickname.

Smoking Havana cigars? In the words of Francis Urquhart: you might very well think that, but I couldn't possibly comment...

Now, in all fairness, this is by far the most amusing and entertaining political campaign of my political life! TNF can be quite harsh, but I do enjoy this, ModerateVonHero is pretty much the best nickname he could have given me (although I do like Bombs Away Lumine). Not only I wish to have a debate, I want to have several of them on all kinds of issues; foreign policy, the economy, political philosophies, etc. I have a distinct problem finding a moderator that would be a 100% neutral, though, but as soon as I find one acceptable for both Senator TNF and me I will proceed to challenge him to debate the issues.

[Lumine]

I would love to debate Lumine as I debated Rooney last go around. The voters have a right to know where we stand on the issues.

Excellent! Do you have anyone in mind for moderator, Senator? I believe Maxwell would have been ideal, but sadly he is gone for the next two months...

[Lumine]

Perhaps a Federalist moderator would be best, as there doesn't seem to be a Federalist running?

I would be happy with that, how about Tmthforu or (as DC suggested) TJ?

[Lumine]

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Mr Governor,
This bill has passed the Althing
Best regards,
Windjammer

Excellent! Still, Windjammer, this is my campaign thread, not my office, xD

[Lumine]

Perhaps a Federalist moderator would be best, as there doesn't seem to be a Federalist running?

I would be happy with that, how about Tmthforu or (as DC suggested) TJ?

I would be fine with either.

Tmthforu accepted the offer to be moderator, so we just have to decide the day and we're ready to go.

Do you support the President's health care reform bill?

You mean the Healthcare Modernization Act or the Reforming Atlasian Public Health Act? I stand in support of both them, despite the belief that they need a few small changes. The Modernization act requires some changes to increase privacy, but Senator Tyrion's amendments were quite successful addressing that. While Senators Shua and Spiral raised the point of Doctors forced to quit for a lack of "technological" knowledge, I agree with the President: we are bound to do this at some point, and it's better to do it now. The Reforming Atlasian Public Health Act has not been discussed yet, but I would vote for it. It serves the purpose of increasing federal help (like covering 50% of experimental treatments) while at the same time creating a better balance in Health Care, and it also introduces a very innovative free market element, which has many of the advantages of the Chilean Health Care system while laking most (if not all) of the disadvantages.

[Lumine]

Thanks for the questions!

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Even being pro-life I try to be pragmatic on this and acknowledge that sometimes, an abortion is certainly much preferable to the alternative. Of course, I'm talking about incest, rape and danger to the mother's life. Is it a moral crime to kill that baby? Perhaps, but I'm not going to force a woman to have that child on those circumstances, that would be wrong. I decided not to set an specific point of balance, but I could accept something between abortions only in the cases mentioned before and abortions in the first weeks of the pregnancy, up to seven/ten weeks. In this case, pro life people are a minority in Atlasia, and it's up to us to compromise on the matter. That said, abortion on demand goes a little bit to far for me, specially considering that at six months we're talking about a human being. (Why does that make compulsory pregnancy Lumine? I don't know)

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That was precisely what I wanted to do to force Israel, and I said so back in my Presidential bid in October. There's no reason as to why we should literally dump billions of dollars on military aid on Israel, and whoever thinks this is stabbing an ally on the back is clearly unfamiliar with the current state of their armed forced. I believe in a massive cut in military aid as some sort of warning shot to signal that, for once, we plan to go all the way with negotiations, and that goes for Palestine to. If the Palestinians resume terrorist attacks and if Israel continues to build settlements, well, then they'll have to face some consequences. If Israel is willing to take things seriously after cutting military aid, then great, we can begin a new negotiating process.

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I'd like to speak from experience here: I have Asperger syndrome (thankfully it wasn't extreme, so I eventually managed to overcome some of the challenges with therapy and other methods), which means that for me, engaging in social relationships involves a lot of trouble, and that is now that I have more skills. As a children, I did not enjoyed school (and I wasn't diagnosed yet, making things even more impossible). When I think of children with similar conditions (and specially those who have high levels of autism), I can fully understand why homeschooling is a good choice, as many of them are simply not ready to face normal education (some of them might never be ready). That said, this is also an issue of freedom in Education, for I don't believe we can deny that choice to the parents. Our public education system works, but that doesn't mean that we can force everybody to join.