Barnes/Winston: Results statement

[Barnes]

Greetings fellow Atlasians!  Having already announced I was running, I'm using this jump right into the race.  First off, I would like to announce my choice of Winston Disraeli as my running mate.  If any one wants to talk about unity, just look at our ticket: Winston and I ran against each other for Senate two years ago, and I lost to him!

Our campaign will be built upon one principle: Our future begins today.  That applies to all issues in this election.  If we want to rise the downtrodden worker, we must start now; if we want to reverse climate change and conserve our pristine natural environment, we must start today; if we want to pursue a policy of peace, not war, love not hate, we must start today.

All these things I will make my mission to see done, if elected.  The future of Atlasia is one of promise, hope, and  prosperity if we want it to be.  Winston and I want it to be, and if we're elected, it will be!
Platform planks:
Labor
Reducing Unemployment

Campaign speeches:

Press releases/Q&A:
Conscription
Why I am running now
Political history press release
Preferences

[CLARENCE 2015!]

Do you also believe conscription is slavery?

[Barnes]

Do you also believe conscription is slavery?

We are strongly opposed to the draft as a mean of defense.  We are opposed to war in general, except when the safety of Atlasia is truly in danger. 

[Barnes]

Labor Platform

The cornerstone of the Labor party is the worker.  The plight of the worker is the plight of everyday life, and it is the duty of government to treat working people with the dignity and respect that their position deserves.  The enemy of the worker is the enemy of the Labor party and it is the enemy of the overflowing pure hearts of the people; this is namely: immeasurable greed.  Greed is the basis of unregulated capitalism and the pursuit of profit over the advancement of liberty, health, and equality, is its battle cry.  Thus, it is the mission of the Labor party to fight back the monstrous blitzkrieg of robber barons, and champion the cause of the worker.

--excerpt from the Labor party's mission statement.

When I authored the above text, I did through a great emotion: compassion.  I felt compassion for the downtrodden, the ones who can never speak for themselves but have big businesses "speak in their interests." 

First, we must recognize the working masses for who they are: the people.  These citizens are the ones who go to work every day and do things many of us don't even realize need to be done.  For example, do we ever think about the road workers who paint new lines in the middle of traffic down the highway.  No.  But, they do it anyway.  Now, that doesn't mean that Atlasia is ungrateful for their services, quite the opposite, we've made much progress in our society. 

But we must do more.  We must let every man and every woman who are trapped by poverty, and by a low-wage job, to know that their government will help them.  We will help them get a good paying job so they can send their children to preschool and start nourishing their minds for education.  We will give them a trustworthy retirement plan, worthy of the years of work they've put in to advance our nation.  We will keep them healthy so they can work better and more efficiently.  And finally, we will make sure every worker in Atlasia can have a job!

These ideas have always been used throughout political rhetoric before, but we are promising to deliver on what we say.  On my first day as President I will do the following things:

• Order the SoIA to undertake a comprehensive study of working and living conditions for the lower income bracket throughout the country.
• Order the SoIA to research the effectiveness employment and unemployment centers throughout the country (especially those in regions with high unemployment rates), and give his recommendation to both me and the Senate.
  
• Introduce to the Senate a bill to link the rural parts of this nation with high-speed broadband and cell towers, thus creating IT and construction jobs.
• Order the Attorney General to research labor and union practices with large corporations across the country, and to prosecute against hose in violation of union, wage, and work laws.

This is only the cusp of what will come from our Administration; together, I know it can be achieved, and that is why I am signing the following pledge:

I will veto any bill that will do any of the following:

• Reduce the minimum wage;
• Ship Atlasian jobs overseas;
• Reduce the rights of the worker;
• Raises the salaries of the executive branch until national unemployment falls below 7%

Together, as a united Atlaisa, I know we can accomplish these things and more - they will be accomplished in a Barnes/Winston Administration.

Thank you!

[Antonio the Sixth]

You have my endorsement !

[Napoleon]

Really hate to crash the party but what's the deal with running out on your previous job and now trying to run for President?!

[Barnes]

Really hate to crash the party but what's the deal with running out on your previous job and now trying to run for President?!

You're not party crashing, it's a serious question that must be addressed.

When I was serving as SoIA, I was very excited about what could happen with Atlasia, I thought that it really was a period of change.  My old office i available here, it you'd like to look.

However, call it what you will, but I became a victim of the old system, and the game just wasn't fun to me any more - this is the single greatest threat that faces Atlasia now.  I just didn't see myself having a good time playing this game, so I left it.  I will admit, I left in a very bad fashion, but I have apologized previously for that, and I sincerely mean it.

When I came back to Atlasia I seriously did not want to run for President, if I had why would I have gone through all that mess in the Labor Party convention thread?  Then, I remembered that I wanted this game to be fun again, and I thought, well, we should run someone for President.  I then spent the next three hours trying to find a candidate to no avail - I finally stepped in because I firmly believe competitive elections are healthy for this game. 

I give everyone my word that I will stay active, and, if for some reason I can't, I will transfer my authority immediately, to my VP.

Hope that answers the question.

[Fuzzybigfoot]

You have my endorsement !

[Barnes]

Political history press release

I joined Atlasia way back in June of 2009.  Back then, I was a resident of the Northeast, and I had come in right at a gubernatorial election.  Half seriously, I wrote my name in for Lieutenant Governor, seeing as no one was running in the the race.  To my surprise, I had tied in a write-in campaign with RowanBrandon.  Since the election was going to a runoff, I decided it was time to actually have some policies. 

I examined the Northeast Constitution and I noticed a rather glaring fault (well, to me at least): the Northeast had no real legislative assembly.  I then made it the promise of my campaign to create an assembly.  Well, I won that election, and after three months and lots of help from many residents (including my good friend, former Governor Andrew), we had an Assembly.  I am still very proud of the work I did in the Northeast, and I think it goes to prove that change like game reform really can happen. 

I continued to serve as Lt. Governor, working very closely with Andrew in guiding the development of the Assembly.  In December of 2009, I was offered a position on the High Authority in Ethics in Voting (HAEV).  Well, if you're not exactly sure what that was, look it up on the wiki, but it was quite a divisive time in Atlasia.  By February, I resigned from the HAEV and ran for the Northeast Senate seat.

I lost that election.  To none other than my running mate!  But that just goes to prove that unity is so very possible in Atlasia.

After the election, I was appointed Attorney General by President afleitch, which I served as form March to June 2010.  During my time I was very proud in the cases I won for the Atlasian government, and I still look back at that with good memories.  I resigned as AG because I felt it would be unethical to continue to serve in afleitch's Cabinet when I had endorsed his opponent, Purple State. 

By this point I had moved to the Mideast and was elected, in July 2010, to the Assembly.  There, I was the one member actively pushing for alternative energy and a carbon tax, and while it was political impossible to get those measures through at that time, I am still a strong supporter of them.

In October 2010, I was elected to the Senate in an At-Large special election.  I again marked my time there by pushing for green legislation, including the Green Homes Act. 

Now, this is the part I am not very proud of.  Through lapsed activity, I was removed from the Senate, I can only restate what I said earlier, I had simply become bored with the game, and like all things at one point or another, decided to stop playing.

I then returned in February 2011, and eventually moved to the Midwest.  There, I became enamored with the form of government that had just been established: universal assembly.  Noticing that the constitution at that time was very much outdated by successive amendments, I authored the Third Midwest Constitution to consolidate the system of government.  I still regularly introduce legislation in the Alþing to make the government more effective.

My last position was as Secretary of Internal Affairs in July 2011.  During my time as SoIA I tried to radically reform the position; my ideas for the office are available here.  I still believe in many of them.

I have previously stated that I left the game at that time again because of inactivity, and it is the truth.  That is why this election is so important.  It has already been stated many times that this is a toss up, and that is good for Atlasia, it makes the game enjoyable to play. 

I hope my record has been convincing because it is something I am proud of, and hey, we all make a few screw-ups every no and then.

Thank you all.

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

Best of luck and welcome to the race.

[Barnes]

Best of luck and welcome to the race.

I thank you very much and I wish you the same.

[Dr. Cynic]

Good luck to you, Barnes.

[Yelnoc]

Our future does indeed begin today.  Thanks for that astute observation

[Barnes]

Our future does indeed begin today.  Thanks for that astute observation

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

Won't you split the left-wing vote with Washburn?

[Barnes]

Won't you split the left-wing vote with Hashburn?

There are three left wing candidates in this race, and all will be given preferences by me in this election; such is our system of IRV.  I am running to accomplish the ideas I have stated, I hope the people will vote on my based on those ideas. 

However, I will be making a statement in due time about preferences. 

[Barnes]

Press Release Concerning Preferences

Good evening, everyone.  It's become clear that this will be quite a tight race for the White House, and the election will almost certainly be decided after several ballots - that is why it is so important for every voter to examine the preferences they want to give for each candidate. 

While I may not be getting your first preference, a second or third is just as crucial.  I firmly believe in absolute freedom when it comes to marking one's ballot, but I will please ask you to remember Left Wing unity when doing so.

Thank you.

[Barnes]

Reducing Unemployment

The current jobless rate in this country stands at 9.2%.  This is unacceptable, and will not be accepted in my Administration.  It seems to me that creating jobs is always looked with one-dimension: what can be done to create jobs, and that's it.  My plan for creating jobs will not only do just that, it will also reduce greenhouse emissions, provide tax relief for small businesses, and take an aggressive stance on tax evasion - thus allowing the government to invest more of its funds in job creation. 

The specifics of what I listed are as follows:

• A massive overhaul of our nation's infrastructure system, as well as larger investments in alternative forms of energy and transport.
• Propose an effective network of employment research bureaus to actively look for a job for an individual - in their local community.  Thus, reducing transportation costs and stimulating local job growth.
• A temporary tax cut for business falling into the first 35th percentile (between 0 - 75K in annual income).
• An intensive investigation to be conducted jointly by the Attorney General and the SoIA into tax fraud and loopholes and their recommendations for corrections.

According to our most recent Federal Budget (which was a fantastic job by shua, BTW), we are investing $6.88 Billion in "Training and employment" while we invest $37 Billion for military operations in Afghanistan.  Something just doesn't add up there. 

As President, I would recommend a $5 Billion reduction in military operations in Afghanistan and the transfer of those funds to training and employment.

The truth is, these proposals only begin to list what can be done to create jobs in Atlasia, and I am ready to listen to any idea that I believe would respect this campaign's core principles:
1) Protecting the worker;
2) Protecting the environment;
3) And protecting those who cannot protect themselves.

Job creation is an issue that should be above partisan politics.  Why does it matter if I'm in the Labor party?  We should try to do this for all Atlasians.  Because our future, all of ours, begins today.

[Barnes]

High everyone!

I've been rather busy lately so I haven't been as active as I've wanted to been over here - but real world stuff always takes preference over Atlasia. 

As we approach this election weekend, I would like to reiterate my call for a fun and fair election.  As I've said before, this game should be fun, so the more interesting this election is, the better. 

[Barnes]

Hi all!

Unfortunately, I haven't been free from school work until now, so I wasn't able to really run the campaign the way I wanted, but that's all in the past. 

The election is here, and I ask all of my supporters to please turn out and vote, I echo every other candidate in saying that every vote counts! 

The campaign's dream of a new Atlasia with the rights of all held sacrosanct can only prevail if we all vote!

Thank you!

[Barnes]

Seeing as it's become the trend around these parts, I'd like to remark on the election.

This election is a long way from being over, ad I am in no way calling it now, but I would just like to thank my opponents in this race for very gallantly defending me on a few matters.  To me, that honestly shows how Atlasia has changed.

Whether or not I win this election, our beliefs and our mission would have won. We've shown that the promise of a better tomorrow can truly win an election.  So, over the next four months I will champion what I've stood for, no matter if I'm in the White House or not.

Thank you.

[Barnes]

Statement:

The results seem to show that I will not progress to the final round; barring some unforeseen scandal, I formally concede the election to whomever won.  A longer statement will follow once the results are official.

[bgwah]

Thanks for giving us Anti-Frists a choice, Barnes.

[Marokai Backbeat]

I'm happy that our pure ticket gave the 'balanced' tickets a run for their money.

[tmthforu94]

Thanks for giving us Anti-Frists a choice, Barnes.

It took you a while to start using that. I would have expected it sooner.

Congratulations on a well-fought race, Barnes. I hope to see you continue to be active in Atlasia.