The Imperial Dominion of the South's Legislature

[JerryArkansas]

aye

[Zanas]

Yes on the amendment.

EMPEROR : We finally pass something again, I hope you are proud ! And now it's your turn to bring this to a proper voting booth.

[Associate Justice PiT]

      It's great to pass something, and perfect attendence is a bonus. The booth will be up momentarily.

[Zanas]

The Legislative docket now : (texts can be seen here)

-Clean Power Act : latest version :

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-Abolition of Income Tax Act Veto Overrule Vote : needs sponsoring

-Clean Government Act

-The Official Snack of the IDS Act

-The Creating Job Opportunities Act of 2013

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-Annexation of the states of Coahuila and Tamaulipas : kept in the back of the queue for potential federal leverage

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Can we agree that no one will sponsor the overruling vote on the veto on abolition of the income tax ? So we can drop it from the docket.

Next in line would be the so-called Clean Power Act. It has met a quite divisive Legislature, and I feel a bit uncomfortable bringing to a vote now that the composition of the Legislature has changed, because it could appear as a manoeuver when it is not. Could we still be making compromises, limit nuclear power to what is existing now, even develop R&D on it if needed, and rather concentrate our endeavor on really renewable energy and energy economies ? I recommend to Hash the reading of pages 152 and 153 of the present thread to see what has already been discussed.

[Associate Justice PiT]

     I am wondering if we are searching for a solution to a nonexistant problem. How much does the region actually need more energy production?

[Dereich]

Well, the IDS is the fastest growing region and preparing for the future is important.

[Bacon King]

If nothing else, the new energy production could be used to replace what's currently generated at the single largest producer of carbon emissions in the Western Hemisphere.

[Donerail]

I'd suggest this amendment:

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It doubles the number of reactors and changes it so that we cover 50% of startup costs (the feds would also cover 20%); it also changes the locations to places where there are currently plans for the construction of new reactors.

[Dereich]

Can we proceed with anything while this court case about the election is up?

[Velasco]

Can we proceed with anything while this court case about the election is up?

The election outcome was correct according to the laws that are in force down here. That lawsuit might continue its course, but in the meanwhile we should continue debating and presenting amendments, aprove or reject them. I ignore the reasons behind this obstructionist maneuver.

I believe that comrade Bacon King has some reason: this game needs a revolution. If some sociopath's heads roll...

In all seriousness, this case and the reactions to it resembles me the very different reactions from the goody-goody Southerner establishment when the Bacon King vs IDS and vs Ben Kenobi lawsuits were triggered. Oh double standards...

Oh I would reject SJoyce's amendment. Security and waste processing questions again.

[Hash]

I will resist all attempts to remove me from office, especially in favour of some guy who couldn't even bother to vote for himself.

[Associate Justice PiT]

Can we proceed with anything while this court case about the election is up?

     If the court agrees to the Attorney General's request to suspend certification of the election results, we'll find ourselves with only two duly-elected Legislators until the lawsuit finishes. I'll see what I can do.

[Donerail]

Oh I would reject SJoyce's amendment. Security and waste processing questions again.

Security? Our reactors are surrounded by electronically-monitored fences that are patrolled by armed guards. The reactor containment buildings are designed to be impervious to impact by aircraft. The by-products are not enriched enough to create any kind of nuclear weapon. As for waste processing, we've already gone over that.

[Zanas]

Is our vote on the fixer-upper amendment valid ?

Is the subsequent referendum currently opened in the Voting Booth valid ?

Who is presently Legislator ? Can we really proceed with anything if we have a Legislator who is one but not one ?

Who are we ? Where are we going ?

I feel the only solution is to cancel the whole thing and have it again. I also feel we need to maintain in effect the effects the election had until the moment this trial was introduced, ie : our vote on BaconKing's amendment, and the referendum on it.

For now, I don't think we should be voting on anything, but we can debate.

[Associate Justice PiT]

     I just realized, has a justice even acknowledged the case yet? I don't think we can really know what the effects are until they decide on the Attorney General's request to enjoin the election results.

[Velasco]

I will resist all attempts to remove me from office, especially in favour of some guy who couldn't even bother to vote for himself.

All the incumbent legislators in this chamber were elected under the 50 posts rule. If you were irregularly elected, Zanas, Dereich, jerryarkansas and myself were elected too under a rule that apparently 'violates' the Atlasian Constitution, so we must be removed. The application of retroactivity to the last election, as the attorney pretends, might drive to a complete absurdity.

I must remember to this Chamber that I failed to be elected in the December election due to another flaw of our electoral legislation, though absolutely in accordance with the federal laws. I accepted that outcome because I believe in the Empire of Law. Do you believe as well, fellow Legislators? Do you accept that the principle of retroactivity is incompatible with a Constitutional State? In that case the lawsuit must be withdraw or at least modified in the final points. The outcome of an election cannot be changed applying legislative modifiations with retroactivity.

Is our vote on the fixer-upper amendment valid ?

Is the subsequent referendum currently opened in the Voting Booth valid ?

Who is presently Legislator ? Can we really proceed with anything if we have a Legislator who is one but not one ?

Who are we ? Where are we going ?

I feel the only solution is to cancel the whole thing and have it again. I also feel we need to maintain in effect the effects the election had until the moment this trial was introduced, ie : our vote on BaconKing's amendment, and the referendum on it.

For now, I don't think we should be voting on anything, but we can debate.

Under my point of view the members of this Legislature are legally elected, unless a High Court says the opposite. We must continue with the work for the one people has voted us. Voting included.

Oh I would reject SJoyce's amendment. Security and waste processing questions again.

Security? Our reactors are surrounded by electronically-monitored fences that are patrolled by armed guards. The reactor containment buildings are designed to be impervious to impact by aircraft. The by-products are not enriched enough to create any kind of nuclear weapon. As for waste processing, we've already gone over that.

Electronically-monitored fences and armed guards are not immune to natural catastrophes or human mistakes. Did you read our objections about the storage due to the extremely long life of the uranium or plutonium isotopes?

[Donerail]

Oh I would reject SJoyce's amendment. Security and waste processing questions again.

Security? Our reactors are surrounded by electronically-monitored fences that are patrolled by armed guards. The reactor containment buildings are designed to be impervious to impact by aircraft. The by-products are not enriched enough to create any kind of nuclear weapon. As for waste processing, we've already gone over that.

Electronically-monitored fences and armed guards are not immune to natural catastrophes or human mistakes. Did you read our objections about the storage due to the extremely long life of the uranium or plutonium isotopes?

Neither is anything else - it remains that nuclear power is by far one of our safest options.

As for storage, utilizing a fast breeder reactor or as much reprocessing as we can should alleviate much of those concerns - for the rest, having them packed in casks and placed in a repository far below the surface made of ducrete, synroc, or saltstone should alleviate those concerns. We presently have the technology to entomb the waste up to five kilometers belowground, where it would not be disturbed by human activity and would not pose a threat to the biosphere. We could even bury it beneath the ocean floor, where it would not be disturbed by geological activity (how okay that would be with the London Convention, however, is unclear).

[Zanas]

In response to the current constitutional and electoral crisis we are suffering in the South, I am asking my fellow Legislators, validly elected until proven and ruled otherwise by the judicial branch, to shake the legislative docket up a bit and allow me to introduce this :

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There is no provision of a quorum or qualified majority in the Constitution, at least that I have found, to pass an amendment in the Legislature, whereas there needs to be 2/3 majority of the citizens voting for it. So I'll kindly ask as a favor our three Class A Legislators, just recently elected, namely Dereich, Hashemite and myself, to Abstain in this vote, and only our two Class A ones to vote in favor, if they wish so, in order to prevent any dispute over the passing of this amendment thanks to the votes of eventually nullified Legislators.

So, voting shall begin now and end in exactly 48 hours, but I will be sending you PM to vote asap so we can go through with this quickly, so the next election can be fought under proper regional rules.

Please vote :
[ ] Yes
[ ] No
[ ] Abstain

[JerryArkansas]

[ x ] Yes
[ ] No
[ ] Abstain

[Velasco]

Yes, of course.

It's important the additional "or how many are provided by the Federal Constitution at the time of the voting booth's opening".

[Hash]

Abstain

[Zanas]

Abstain.

[Dereich]

Abstain

[Zanas]

By a vote of 2 in favor, 3 abstentions, and none against, I'm pleased to say The Zanas Sensible Anti-Retroactivity Federal Electoral Rules Abidance Amendment has passed the Legislature !

If the Emperor could open another booth on this one, we can move along with things quite quickly. Plus, we're starting to get used to amending our constitution... We should do this on a weekly basis !

[Dereich]

My Internet is going to be spotty to nonexistent over the next few days, so I apologize if I'm slow to respond until Monday.