The Crusader (Public Service Announcement)

[Southern Senator North Carolina Yankee]

Press F to pay respects

13 Citizens fallen after General Election,

For Bore, JCL and the other fallen citizens: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWIjohOIYNc

Grieving nation mourns kind and tolerant statesman Ben Kenobi[/b][/size][/font][/center]

And for Ben: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXIjE_gDw94

Also this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0RuylPp-uUE  because just like another cowboy, he ignored every warning along the way.

Tales from Atlasland:

Pentecost in Atlasia

Stunning miracle allows DFW and others to speak in a thousand different tongues
Polish found to be the preferred choice of language among would-be polyglots
Raving lunatic found screaming to the skies, calling for DFW ban

₁

_____________________________
^{1.) Original Image:
Pentecost, Juan Bautista Mayno, 1615-1620, Wikimedia Commons, modified for arguably unfunny Atlasia satire.}

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQOfIENN2tk

[Lumine]

Post-Election Interviews, Part II:

An interview with PSOL:

Lumine: PSOL, good to have you on The Crusader. During the last few days we saw quite a public debate taking place regarding Governor West_Midlander, one in which you took a very active role. Any final thoughts on the matter?

PSOL: I am disappointed that West_Midlander had changed parties due to problems supposedly within Labor and Peace without talking it through. It makes him seem unreasonable and a turncoat for a reason. Even so, if he ever decides to come back before his term runs out, I have no doubt that the rift between him and the Labor/Peace coalition would mend with time. What impedes that is his unproven allegations that L/P did not respect him or his differing viewpoints, exactly how the Federalists are better remains unseen.

Lumine: Your call for action – either through a parallel government or a federal intervention – was seen as a very controversial statement, particularly in light of its implications. Do you regret making that statement?

PSOL: I made those statements with the presupposition that there would be mass outrage to demand such acts, and Labor/peace must follow the will of the people in getting what they want, how they want it. Currently, the people of the South that backed West_Midlander are outraged over the perceived theft of their vote, but prefer to vote him out next term if he stays with the Federalists. I respect that decision.

Lumine: I’d like to move into the present internal elections within the Labor Party. What motivated you to run for General Secretary?

PSOL: Labor needs to be shaken up a bit for this new decade. So far, we have an unsatisfactory backbench to take hold when the old guard retires. My goal in this position is to cultivate the next generation of Labor politicians and eventual leadership, of which I think I have the ability to do so. I also am quite cordial with many in Peace, the other perennial parties, Independent voters, and even soft Federalists from my time in regional government in Lincoln and Fremont.

Lumine: How would you define the present state of the Labor Party, and that of the re-elected administration?

PSOL: The Labor party is heading in the right direction with this election, even with a few upsets. The party was unable to amass an absolute majority in the House of Representatives, and the loss of the Southern governorship has gotten many people feeling frustrated that they participated in an enlarged Federalist primary in all but name, but the future is bright. We elected one of the most hardworking and inspirational figures in Atlasian history to be our President, and so far the Pericles Administration has gone off to a great start. The Domestic and Foreign policy councils are going through their first rounds of directives for the president to enact in his executive position. Atlasia may finally have a long-lasting relationship of cooperation with China and the unified Korean government. There is also the benefit of party unity, thanks in no small part to the Atlasian Right. The loss of the South has unified the party to a frenzy, with any such claims of a divided party cast by some on the right refuted by the energy to sweep the nation come April.

Lumine: A while ago you advocated for changes to the electoral system, including the potential for secret ballots. In a general sense, do you think Atlasia needs significant game reform? If so, what would you have in mind?

PSOL: I believe in transitioning power to the people: not to weighing power to regions, the elite, or cliques. If possible, I’d prefer if Atlasia transitions to a parliamentary system that assigns proportional representation by 5% of the vote. Going by my estimates on the previous election, a Representative for this hypothetical parliament only needs 8 votes to get into office. A 5% threshold seems fair to allow for serious candidates to get through without overflowing the parliament with perennial meme parties. It would also allow for increased cooperation and standardized political environments, but allows for fluidness as well. On holding secret ballots, in theory it should work. It would operate the same way as how other countries hold elections, making the Atlasian voter be less swayed by friendship obligations and allow freer thought. In practice on how the game operates, it is now less then ideal if the votes are counted by the wrong individuals.

Lumine: We’re starting to see a heated discussion on the issue of gun control, currently focused on the proposed Assault Weapons Ban. What do you make of this bill?

PSOL: I’m not a fan of this bill. I think it is too restrictive and unnecessary. I am for the right solutions to stopping violence with guns, and that is by ensuring societal stability. Now while the current government has promised to improve the lives of Atlasians, and the previous Griffin Administration greatly allowed for Atlasians to prosper, one cannot forget that we live in an imperfect world which requires change. I am thus for the right amount of control for the collective good, but I doubt the Assault Weapon Ban ensures that.

Lumine: Thus far you’ve served both Fremont and Lincoln as a regional officeholder, but have declined to run for federal office. Why would you say that has been the case? And do you have any intentions to run for a higher office in the future?

PSOL: Real life has gotten in my way to the game. However, I expect to run for an office sometime this spring or summer, given that I feel the mood is appropriate.

Lumine: Final question. A few months ago you spoke out against Discord drama, an issue which has seemingly dominated the game for quite a while now. Do you still feel that way about Discord? If so, do you think there is a solution to be found to address that problem?

PSOL: Discord is apart of Atlasia now, and so is its mind-numbing drama. I’ve come to terms with the present situation.

Lumine: Thank you for this interview, PSOL.

[Southern Senator North Carolina Yankee]

Support for secret ballots has been prominent on the right in the past but was always opposed by the likes of Adam Griffin on the grounds that it would cripple the election weekend strategy.

[Dr. MB]

Support for secret ballots has been prominent on the right in the past but was always opposed by the likes of Adam Griffin on the grounds that it would cripple the election weekend strategy.

Well, yeah, cause it would. Public ballots make the game fun.

[Deep Dixieland Senator, Muad'dib (OSR MSR)]

Can someone explain how to make an Australian Ballot have adequate security, scrutiny and public trust for this to work in an online forum?

[Southern Senator North Carolina Yankee]

Can someone explain how to make an Australian Ballot have adequate security, scrutiny and public trust for this to work in an online forum?

And that's the other problem.

[Lumine]

Post-Election Interviews, Part III:

An interview with Weatherboy:

Lumine: Mr. President, good to have you here. What is your opinion of the present Administration? Is Atlasia on the right track?

Weatherboy: In terms of policy, yes, Atlasia is on the right track. There are some issues where I feel at odds with the current administration, but that will be the case no matter who is in the White House, to be fair. Well, unless it was me, but I have no real interest in going through that again, ha ha.

In terms of how the game is going, I don't think it is on the right track. Elections at this point are basically just a contest of whose machine works better. Votes are strategically saved until the last minute, and party loyalty is extremely prevalent. I mean, look at YE's ballot. They refused to vote for Koopa or Ishan, saying they were "defectors who risk making this game a cult". It seems crazy to me that people feel this way, and that this is the way the game's running.

Lumine: You’re currently leading the Atlasian Future Party. Where do you see the party going forward? Do you envision it as a long-term project?

Weatherboy: I've been hoping to grow the AFP into a medium sized party. Somewhere around 5 members would make me happy, even. If it's going to develop a role, it would likely be an anti-Labor left-leaning party. As in, it feels that the current status of the game is mostly both the main parties' faults, and especially Labor as of late. The political machines, shady dealings at party conventions, etc.

Of course, I still hope to get things done with the party, probably over a long term. I've become infatuated with the idea that we can extend life. I do hope that within my lifetime, these things that seem so futuristic will finally be in our grasp.

Lumine: As of now, I think you’re the only Atlasian politician who has decided to use pictures of himself as his avatar. Why have you made this decision? Do you recommend it for others?

Weatherboy: To be honest, it's because I didn't really associate with any politician. Previously it was Arik Bjorn, but he was a one-time congressional candidate. There's not exactly many pictures of him to use. So, I just started using my own pictures. And either way, I am an amateur politician now, because I'm running a write-in campaign against my Congressman, and as far as I know, I'm his only opposition.

I would recommend it, assuming that they were willing to show their face. The biggest benefit in my view is, since the pictures would be taken of themselves, by themselves, they wouldn't have to worry about copyright, which is certainly a concern of mine when making posts.

Lumine: Perhaps one of the most significant differences between players is to which degree the game should be taken seriously. This ranges, of course, from the most casual players to the most obsessive ones. Where do you place yourself in that scale?

Weatherboy: I'd say I'm mostly casual. I mainly take the game seriously due to being a Delegate now, but I still will meme around. I guess that's just part of my personality.

Lumine: And regarding that, what would your advice be to newer players regarding how to handle or enjoy the game?

Weatherboy: Go at your own pace. Don't rush yourself to the presidency like I did. I was woefully unprepared for it, and it showed. The only reason I didn't resign was because right when I was about to do it, MB told me he wanted to step down. I didn't want chaos, so I stayed.

Lumine: In a few days it will be a year since you left the Presidency. How would you describe your first post-presidential year in Atlasia?

Weatherboy: Honestly, pretty boring. Most of that year, I wasn't at all interested in Atlasia, and I nearly deregistered several times. Only recently has it been more interesting, especially with the Koopa/RC campaign.

Lumine: Thus far, what is your proudest moment in the game? And the biggest regret?

Weatherboy: I think both my proudest moment and biggest regret was running for, and becoming, President. I was the first left-leaning president in 2 years, and I ended up being probably the worst person to fill the job. I was far too ambitious. DFW actually warned Ninja about that pitfall when he ran in June of that year. I was in the same chatroom at the time. I simply failed to heed his warning.

Lumine: Having already been President, what would you say is your biggest ambition as of now?

Weatherboy: I don't think I really have any. I may run for re-election as Delegate, but I'll be starting college in a few months. I'll have even less time to do Atlasia-related things. If I win re-election, I wouldn't run again. After that, who knows? I've considered doing another semi-serious run for President against Pericles, but I think that we need someone actually serious and willing to take up that mantle.

Lumine: Thank you, Mr. President.

[GM Team Member and Senator WB]

I meant to say this in the interview, but I'm glad to have had the opportunity to talk to you as well!

[Southern Senator North Carolina Yankee]

I spent eight years watching Presidencies from the outside. Its a whole different world when you set foot on the inside, even I was overwhelmed both times.

In terms of how the game is going, I don't think it is on the right track. Elections at this point are basically just a contest of whose machine works better. Votes are strategically saved until the last minute, and party loyalty is extremely prevalent. I mean, look at YE's ballot. They refused to vote for Koopa or Ishan, saying they were "defectors who risk making this game a cult". It seems crazy to me that people feel this way, and that this is the way the game's running.

Here is the problem with this mindset expressed by Leinad and Windjammer. The problem is when you sort everything nice and neatly in to just two blocs, you in effect become the JCP, in essence that thing you are most afraid of happening ends up happening not in spite of but because of your constant quest to avoid anything other than the two major parties. It becomes about people instead of ideas and issues because at that point whether or not an idea is right or good is determined solely by who can get out the most votes.

I never bregrudged people for liking different aspects of this game. MArokai loved the policy and the game simulation. Adam loved the electioneering and so did Bgwah. The problem comes when you completely reorient the game around one thing, and everything else about it declines that is when people like Lumine and others began to feel like this game has nothing for them. That is when the game becomes exclusive again to a select few, and ironically call it horseshoe theory or what have you, but exclusivity of the game was for my view the defining aspect of the radical's end goal, a smaller game exclusive to a few players.

The big mistake anyone can make in this game is assuming there is just one path to ruin and going the opposite to the most extreme extent possible will ensure your safety. Extremism is always a vice and anything taken too far will become your achilles heel.

People are not born destructive elements and people did not join this game as destructive elements (save for a few obvious exceptions). People become destructive elements when they seek their desired state of affairs to the detriment of everyone else, depriving them of their fun in the quest for their own. Oakvale was not a radical until 2013, he was the RPP's favorite JCPer if such a thing existed. Ebowed was the establishmentarian target of the radicals in 2013, but by 2015 became a radical himself though I would say only half heartedly. Yet Atlasian radicalism dates back to the mid 2000s and ironically was if anything the rebranded 2007-2008 political elite/establishment seeking through ever desperate means to regain their dominance. The later people who joined them were people who felt they had to go to extreme lengths (Rimjob) to end the Napoleonic machine. The next wave was people who had become despondent about the games future in 2015 and picked the wrong side of Atlasian history.

The faces change, people come and go, the ideas and concepts get passed on. This was the lesson I tried to explain to Truman and Leinad about Oakvale in 2017.

For our purposes, the constant desire to squash any political non-conformity in the name of suppressing political cults has the same effect if pushed too far as the cults themselves in driving out political issues and ideological debates from the public square. The fact that this is occurring against a backdrop of discordification makes this ten times worse.

The very fact that less than 20% of Atlasia is going to read this thread, to even realize or discuss or correct these problems, illustrates just how bad this game is going where a supermajority of the game is zombies whose only connection to the game is the turnout PM/DM telling them to smash the trumpists/Libs.

[Lumine]

Post-Election Interviews, Part IV:

An interview with MB:

Lumine: Senator, thanks for joining us today.

MB: Thanks for having me.

Lumine: The result of the election for Southern Senator came as a surprise to many. Do you have any thoughts you’d like to share on it?

MB: It came as a bit of a surprise to me, but I became a little less confident in the days leading forward to the election. The January elections saw that I wasn't guaranteed to hold my seat by any means, and West Midlander's defection didn't calm my nerves at all. Ultimately it came down to defections, and LouisvilleThunder was better at getting those this time. Part of the reason I won by such a big margin in October was that I got a good amount of defections from the right while DeadPrez fell asleep at the wheel. This time I had an opponent that used my same strategy, and he ended up doing a better job of it than I did.

Lumine: What would you say was your biggest accomplishment as a Senator?

MB: Now I wouldn't call this an accomplishment in the traditional sense of the word, but I got the Senate to vote for the Finalizing Freak Power Amendment which adds explosives protections to the Constitution. I didn't expect it to pass by any means, especially with a 5-1 left majority, but it did. Sadly it failed in the House, but I've gotten it through both houses of Congress at different points. If only that counted.

Lumine: Senator, you’ve been very critical of the Assault Weapons Ban proposal currently before the Senate. What is your most important objection to it?

MB: My main problem with an Assault Weapons Ban is that it takes away people's freedom to bear arms. I detailed this a little more in the Senate thread on it but it's a pretty clear violation of the Constitution by my interpretation. It's pretty arbitrary, in my opinion, to set limits on what grade of firearm a person can own.

Lumine: If you had the power to automatically set the standards of gun policy, what would be your ideal scenario in Atlasian terms?

MB: Honestly, I'm pretty satisfied with where we're at right now (on a federal level and pre-AWB). I'm not completely against a minimal level of gun control (background checks etc.) as long as it doesn't interfere with the fundamental right to bear arms. But, to clear things up, I'd like to see a constitutional amendment banning weapon bans and gun confiscation. I'd also like to see the Finalizing Freak Power Amendment ratified.

Lumine: What is your opinion of the Pericles Administration? Is Atlasia on the right track?

MB: I'll admit that I've had my differences with Pericles in the past, but he's good to work with and pushes for the same general vision for Atlasia that I have. Our key difference is our position on the AWB, of course, but I don't have to agree with someone on every issue to get along with and like them. I'm confident he'll be a good and successful president and he's already done a solid job in the few weeks he's been in office.

Lumine: You’ve chosen Hunter S. Thompson as your avatar, as well as used the Freak Power symbol before. What would you say interests you the most about him?

MB: He's the icon of American counterculture and I share his general outlook about the world. In some ways, Hunter S. Thompson was everything I wish I could be in life: liked and respected even by the most powerful people without having to suck up to everyone.

Lumine: What’s next for you in Atlasia? Do you have any plans for running for office, or for non-electoral projects?

MB: I've already declared for the Southern Chamber of Delegates race in April. It's been a while since I've been involved in regional politics, and that was back when I was in Lincoln. Regional government is less stressful than federal government, and it'll be a bit of a refreshment after spending most of a year and a half in Congress or as VP. I think I can bring some new ideas (and badly-needed activity) to the Southern government.

Lumine: You ran for President in this cycle for about a month before dropping out. Do you see yourself running again? And what would be your most urgent priority if you ever became President?

MB: I won't commit to anything but I'll probably run again sometime in the next couple cycles. This depends on the plans of the current President. Now, if I became president, I'll focus on much of the same things I've prioritized while in Congress: strengthening civil liberties as much as possible and ensuring strong protection for workers. As for most urgent priority, I can't quite say yet. It'll obviously depend on the situation at the time I run.

Lumine: MB, thank you for this interview.

[Lumine]

Post-Election Interviews, Part V:

An interview with Yankee:

Lumine: Mr. President, good to have you here today.

Yankee: I am glad to be here, Mr. President.

Lumine: Last time I interviewed you was in January 2017, right after The Crusader started publication and during your first Presidency. Three years after, do you have any thoughts on how things have developed since then?

Yankee: In terms of the game, I am deeply concerned at this point because we have seen so much activity offshored and minimized on discord and this has had the effect of draining the most inclusive forms of interaction in favor of the most exclusive interactions. This means that people are disconnected with little investment in issues or ideology and that means we are getting more and more divergent from such a basis and eventually this is going to bleed back into the same old problem with personality cults even with the "nominal" presence of two on paper ideologically based coalitions. At this point people seem to vote just based not on ideology or issues, but on their identity as left or right and that is a very shallow basis for the game on its own. This leads to record numbers of zombie voters completely disconnected from the game, with no concern for things like activity, competence or yes even ideology, the thing most would use to justify the present party system and alignment.

In terms of my partisan view, I always knew that eventually we would return back the left dominating the White House and thus my desire to milk our advantage and run of the Presidency for as long as possible, because for as long as we went with the left dominating it and trading it off as center left, for the right to have at least some sense of fulfillment after so many, many years of being cut off at lower levels, we had to make it count. The downside of this was that many got complacent and many had never known Atlasia without Federalist dominated White House, so the loses back to back over the past year were a shock to many who are not used to that and thus were not prepared for that or the long haul that it takes to recover.

Lumine: What is your view of the election results? Encouraging or discouraging for the Atlasian right?

Yankee: I am very pleased with the progress made compared to especially October, but also to December as well. There is a long way to go and it gets back to what I said above. It takes many cycles to recover from that kind of decline and collapse.

I recently had a discussion on lokcord with Windjammer and others and since I have been working on my wiki page recently, the topic of 2014 came up and it is a good comparison. For the first six months when we kept everyone generally pointing the same direction, we held parity with the left and produced some rather good results legislatively, with the first right of center governing majority ever in the game. At the end of that six months, it was gone. When the leading figures on the right work constructively together towards mutual objectives, we have a chance at victory. When those people pursue their own ends at the expense of the broader right-left parity, or just disengage completely, is typically when you see the left dominate.

Lumine: What led you to issuing the call for candidates? Was there a particular moment that either inspired the call or led you to consider it necessary?

Yankee: Yes actually. I had known for months that Fhtagn was going to retire and had been pushing LT and RC to declare and get started for their re-election bids. What I didn't realize was that ACP didn't have a candidate lined up, and might in fact sit this election out entirely with significantly reduced turnout. I also didn't know for sure that LFromNJ was retiring until early February, though I kind of expected it after his resignation as Vice Chair, I held out hope he would run again. When that didn't happen, I PMed three individuals, all former House members, two of them ACP and one Federalist who I thought would get ACP support. When I got only one response and that was maybe for a future cycle, I realized that drastic action was necessary. I created the thread and got lucky as chance landed Cinyc and you in the election.

Likewise for Senate, when LT moved South I figured he would run for Senate and many on the left probably did as well, but then he didn't declare. When Tack and MB requested the Federalist nomination, I drew on a Truman quote "If you can't fix a problem, make it bigger". I asked Scott to request the nomination for the express purposes of motivating candidates, of any kind to jump into the three Senate races bc otherwise we were going to endorse a slate of laborite Senators.He really hoped for one in Fremont but that didn't materialize. While I cannot say for sure this is what motivated LT to jump in or if he planned all along to wait to the end, he did declare and managed to pull off an upset. My focus was on house, especially once the write-ins had started, four seats was my objective. The Senate seat was my reach goal and thankfully it ended up happening.

Getting back to House, I never considered YT one of our candidates, contrary to the talking heads on lokcord and their assumptions. He had openly talked about forming another party on discord and then he had disappeared. The Laborites had just ninja voted in an inactive Fed in Lincoln for the express purposes of seizing a seat via special election. Had YT won as a registered Indy and not sworn in, Labor would 100% have gained the seat in a special. I couldn't in good conscious leave the right one drunken stupor away from another 6 seat or god forbid a 7 seat Laborite majority. Half the right might literally walk away from the game if that happened. That is why I asked everyone who would listen to not first pref YT, until the other four were safe, lest it give an opening for Sestak or someone to get "ideas" on Sunday evening, thankfully for once the right got smart and Labor didn't get to laugh all the way to the bank this time while half the right swamps the exits.

Lumine: It’s been debated at length, but I’d still like to discuss it with you. Why is Atlasia perceived to have few new and active players, and that can be changed?

Yankee: I touched on this above, the first answer is discord. We have record numbers of population but also record numbers of machine controlled puppets. This means that the barrier for entry to the House is higher and further from reach than ever before because the quota is higher. Most people that have been recruited recently have been recruited as voters only on the basis of "smash the Trumpists/Own the Libs" and that feeds the mass of zombies. People no longer read or post on the AFE board and the offshoring to Discord has not opened doors, it has restricted the game largely to those already here. You post something and it gets buried and if you tag people, they eat you alive.

Worse still the onshoring of real life political dynamics has wrecked investment in the game centric ideologicaly forces such as the Regional Rights movement, the Left-Libertarian movement on things like guns, etc, and I think that has removed a lot of fun from the game and made it just a simulation of real life, which leaves the right in a horrendously weak position, with extreme positions and ill advised comments that ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS will get leaked.

The other factor is the decline of new people joining the site period. The right has suffered droughts before as happened in 2010 where little new recruitment happened until the end of the year via Tmth and PiT, Thus Duke compensated by recruiting back older players we had lost like PiT and Vern, and later on we had the centrist DAers like Franzl and Afleitch join us. Not sure if a similar thing is possible and that doesn't do anything to correct for the existing lopsided registration edge, it just shuffles the labels of those already here.   

Lumine: Four years after ratification, how would you characterize the Post-Reset era thus far? How does it compare to the Pre-Reset times?

Yankee: I think at this point, we are now backsliding. Slowly, through natural adherence to their comfort zone, the left is passing more and more legislation federally and this is how the regions get squeezed off in importance and relevance.

I also think the effect of Discord, which cannot be reformed away easily is right now the greatest threat long term to the survival of the game, with the slow centralization mentioned above in second place and putting us on the road to at least needing another legislative reset at some point.

Lumine: Now, the Federalist Party is currently debating its platform. Any thoughts on the proposed changes?

Yankee: I had been thinking about this for a few days and decided to get it going once I ended the leadership elections. We need to debate issues in public on the AFE board and thus I am happy to see these debates take place as they increase the level of investment and engagement.

My only advice is that the Federalist Party needs to remain a big tent center-right party. THERE IS NO OTHER WAY. The numbers will never be there for a real life Republican Party or a party based on US movement conservatism to succeed. That is not to say the answer is European style conservatism, or god forbid the kind of centralist conservatism that we have seen in some places. We need to get back to a distinct Atlasian based conservatism based around small F federalism, constitutionalism, fiscal responsibility, and foreign policy restraint, with some adaptation on trade and economic populism to account for shifts in the real life right. Most of the proposals are generally in line with or at least not hostile to this combination.

Aside from that my role is to be a neutral administrator of the proess.

Lumine: I’d like to stay with the party topic. In your opinion, what would be the ideal party system for Atlasia right now?

Yankee: Party systems come about because of natural factors and generally you end up with the party system that best represents where the people are at. You cannot superimpose a party system onto a people, it forms naturally on its own if that makes sense and I think that was demonstrated by the failure of dissolution of the JCP/RPP in 2012. The right scatered, the left lost its zombies but the Liberals were a basic continuation of the JCP machine, while the right had little to no organization such to the point that the Federalist Party was formed via merger just 10 months later.

Lumine: Mr. President, is there hope for the center-right moving ahead?

Yankee: If you want to have something or keep something in this game, you have to fight for it. At the end of the day that is what it comes down to. If the center-right wants to regain its footing, it needs people who are willing to pull together and push towards the same goal.

I am at the point of not pulling punches even openly calling out the Feds for laziness, stupidity and not listening in the convention thread, which has now become a meme of sorts. If that means more people take the lesson to heart than I am all for it. I flat out told YT last November that we couldn't repeat the mistakes of the previous year because too many people got hurt or or were left high and dry when the house of cards collapsed and that is not right and it is not fair. You can interpret his subsequent registration and other actions as you will relative to that context, but I am tired of seeing people I care about lose or get hurt because of preventable issues.

If the right continues with short termism, justifying mutual inaction on the other guy's inaction, self-serving behavior, schemes that end up falling apart and costing us dearly and continuing to promote vapid non-engagment in favor of memes and personality cults, then the right is doomed long term and so is the game.

If we can work together, define an in game ideology separate and apart from real life while getting people engaged and invested in that, and understand that it takes massive long term efforts to rebuild a solid foundation, then I think we will get back to a point of being able to govern responsibly for the people.

The harder we work at it the faster it will happen, and it will happen as long as I am here. The question people need to ask themselves is how long? How long do you want to make it take? People here can come together and help me get it done by being a part of the solution. Alternatively, they can take their toys and go home and be part of the problem, then it will take longer. But it will happen, even if it takes years!

Lumine: Yankee, a pleasure to talk to you today.

[Southern Senator North Carolina Yankee]

Been dreading this since I made these responses at 4 am after work. I also removed some extra content from the first question that originally was two full paragraphs longer.

[Continential]

After all of the post-election interviews are done, can I get an interview?

[Lumine]

After all of the post-election interviews are done, can I get an interview?

Sure! I'll let you know as soon as we're done with those.

[Lumine]

Post-Election Interviews, Part VI:

An interview with Peanut:

Lumine: Mr. Vice President, good to have you here.

Peanut: And thank you for having me, Lumine. It's always been one of my small ambitions in this game to feature on The Crusader, and I'm glad to get that chance.

Lumine: How would you interpret the results of the February Election?

Peanut: Well, there's a lot to unpack about February. Firstly, and most evidently, the Atlasian people gave a resounding, record-setting mandate to the Pericles/Peanut ticket, and you can bet we're gonna make good use of it. Our majorities in Congress have remained and we have started pursuing an aggressive agenda before even swearing in! This administration will be a very productive one, and the results last month were key to starting it in earnest.

There were some sore spots for the left as well, though. Our loss of one of the best Senators our Party has had, MB, in the South is definitely the worst part of the results, and something very regrettable for Atlasia as a whole. His presence will be missed. We won't be caught sleeping at the wheel in April and beyond though: a combination of boldness stemming from our great win and caution and activity in elections will ensure continued progressive government.

Lumine: What is your view of the current party system in Atlasia? Do you think it proves helpful for the game?

Peanut: I think that competition is vital to the game, but periods in history when one party dominates (such as what we saw in 2017-2018 or the current era) are healthy as well. I fully believe both sides will find a way to grow new talent and ensure good dynamics in the near future. While the right wing has been far from electorally successful, they have proven efficient in opposing the left agenda in Congress (which has been a headache!), and they were able to cobble together an impressive slate for the February elections rather late, one filled with people whom I respect.

Overall, I believe the current system works. Competition will come eventually. Our chance for progress is now.

Lumine: Thus far you have been Vice President, Governor, Senator and other offices. Which has been your favorite one to hold, and why?

Peanut: Well, while I have found something to like in every office I've held, this isn't really a hard one. The most fun I've had in Atlasia, I've had as Governor.

The pivotal time in Lincoln's history during which I served it as Governor was an amazing period to play the game: fun electoral dynamics, an incredibly active regional legislature, and the variety of things to do gave my stint as Governor a feeling I haven't gotten elsewhere.

Immediately after Governor, though, comes my current position as Vice President. Administering Congress has been far more fun than I expected it would be, and I've found the warnings from my predecessors haven't come to fruition. I'm very happy where I am.

Lumine: Gun control is becoming a very relevant issue on account of the recent push for an Assault Weapons Ban, a bill which has drawn passionate responses from both sides. What is your personal view of it?

Peanut: I have worked with the President in maneuvering the political reality surrounding the bill, and it is rather complicated. Personally, I support the measure.

I have never been a fan of gun control I consider too stringent, as my Lincoln record suggests. However, an Assault Weapon Ban, as worded and as passed in the House and amended in the Senate, will not harm any citizen's constitutional rights. It's a sensible, common-sense measure to ensure peace and tranquility in Atlasia.

Lumine: Given the statements made against the bill by some Labor officeholders, is it fair or unfair to argue that the Labor Party is divided on the bill?

Peanut: I wouldn't use that characterization. Some members of Labor oppose the bill. Most don't. This has been evidenced in the process of Congressional debate and other public comments on the bill, as well as in several conversations with Laborites both in and outside our legislature who are looking forward to healthy debate and a passed bill. It is one of the President's main priorities and it is supported by most members.

Lumine: As of now, the Labor Party faces an internal election for its General Secretary between Tack and PSOL. What would you say was the biggest factor leading to your endorsement of Tack?

Peanut: I've known and worked with Tack for over a year, from sending PMs in our very first election to succeeding and preceding him in the Senate. I couldn't hope for a better General Secretary than Tack, and his dedication to every office he has held leaves no doubt in my mind that he will be an excellent member of Labor leadership.

Lumine: Regarding the Vice Presidency, do you think the office is in need of any reform or does it work well for the game?

Peanut: You know, you would've gotten a different answer last month. Being inside though, and having worked with Congress and with the President I feel the office works well. A little fast-paced at times, yes, but it's a very important office. I've tried to be active in helping with administration matters and balancing that with congressional duties, and it's a balance I'm still working to strike but one I'm confident in.

Personally, I'm looking forward to our new Noticeboard and updating my office thread on Friday as part of the swearing in of our new Congress and to give a good start to our term.

Lumine: Finally, some have expressed concerned over the relative lack of new players in Atlasia. Is that a serious concern in your mind? How would you address it?

Peanut: Oh, there's no denying that is a big concern. However, I have faith in our relatively new players: Roblox and Elcaspar in particular I have hopes for. That is not to mention our older new players, people like S019 and PSOL who have been active in the Party.

Growing new talent, however, is a work in progress, and this goes for both sides of the aisle: a healthy party culture and steady recruitment, as well as having motivation to keep going, are fundamental to the survival of the game.

Lumine: Thank you for this interview, Mr. Vice President.

Peanut: Once again, Lumine, thank you very much for having me. I really appreciate the interview.

[Lumine]

The Crusader

March 9th, 2020

In the News:

Public Enemy No. 1

Affirmative Action becomes subject of heated debate in regions and Congress,
Necessary compensation, or reverse discrimination?

Fear and Loathing in April

Senate races start to draw interest,
Jimmy launches bid for Lincoln, Koopa out of the Fremont race

Fremont Über Alles?

The Commonwealth debates radical measures on health care, unions
Are free speech and private sector restrictions going too far?

The Activity Dilemma

Will the Elections board ever regain its long lost activity?
Yankee launches new Atlasian Noticeboard, citizens encouraged to contribute

Tales from Atlasland:

Disturbance at Yank's

Perturbed soul jokes about beverages,
Asks for non-alcoholic versions
Is promptly dealt with by local patrons

₁

Post-Election Interviews, Part VII:

An interview with LouisvilleThunder:

Lumine: Mr. Senator-Elect, pleased to have you here. What is your view of the February election results? How positive or negative were they for the Federalist Party?

LT: I feel generally satisfied with the election results. Even though the presidential was a blowout win for Labor, we actually did deliver in downballot races. We were able to convince you and Cinyc to declare house runs at the last minute, and we held 4 seats in the end after a pretty disciplined GOTV effort in which we got key people involved who were needed to make it work. The right wing slate got to nearly 45% of the national popular vote which is the highest since the February 2019 win, so that is pretty satisfying progress and I hope to contribute my efforts to reaching 50% next election. You have to have the hunger to win if you want to bring change to the game, and I hope the momentum from this election will take us over the edge in April and then June. Also, my stunning upset victory against the Labor Chair in the Southern Senate race is also key to restoring confidence and hope in a right that has been utterly demoralized over the past several months of Labor wins. This election was pretty great for the goals we set within the Feds and it clearly shows that we are back in business ready to start winning again very soon.

Lumine: Now that you’re about to take office as a Senator for the third time, what do you look forward to the most?

LT: In my upcoming return to the Senate for my third tenure in my third seat, I feel like this is an opportunity to actually make something meaningful out of it. Of course being in the minority means I won't get everything I want. I do wish to be an advocate for what I think is right and I'll oppose what is wrong. I'll stand for defending the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness at every turn. I plan on advocating for policies that expand opportunity for Southerners and Atlasians through measures that don't expand government power in hindering people's livelihoods. Government is supposed to respect people's rights while at the same time, we shouldn't leave people dying in the streets. That's a balancing act, and we need to take a rational approach. A half-cocked banning of assault weapons isn't a good approach to solving real problems in this country. So isn't indiscriminately putting entire industries out work with no solution to the uprooting of families and livelihoods. I'll push for more decentralization of power within the economy and in people's lives as Senator which I look forward to acting on.

Lumine: You have been among those who have offered amendments to the Federalist platform. What is the biggest motivation behind these changes?

LT: I feel like that the party needs a lot more engagement and involvement. A good way to do that is by having a discussion about the platform for the first time in two and half years. Since Atlasian politics and demographics have changed a lot since then, I feel like the platform should be re-worked to better reflect what people in our party care more about today. This is my main motive for adding planks on free speech and government regulation while amending our current positions on trade and foreign policy to better reflect the ideological desires of the party. Hopefully the negotiations on the platform and the votes on it will get the attention of more people as we desperately need more board activity if we want a strong center-right that can deliver wins in elections and in government since it all comes down to having the energy and hunger to challenge the positions and power of the other side.

Lumine: What would you say is the biggest advantage and the biggest disadvantage of the Federalist Party? And how narrow or how wide should its appeal be?

LT: I believe that the biggest advantage of the Federalist Party is the way in which we take pride in how our culture embraces diversity of our ideologies and identities and find ways to combine the best that we can offer into coherent messages that advocate for a responsible center-right governance. Another key strength is the way we desire to get new members to advance rapidly within the party and work to get them to win elections wherever we have the votes. This differs from the culture of Labor where the leadership calls the shots and lower level members are expected to fall in line or face consequences (which usually involve amusingly immature public shaming attempts such as PSOL's calls for a parallel government in the South and threats to "end his career" when West_Midlander switched to my party). The Feds are more democratic in how we seek advice from all across the party. However, a main weakness and disadvantage is that most of the Atlasian right at large simply doesn't care about what goes on in the game and I often feel like a lot of the game is spoon-feeding ballots to those who are merely willing to listen to me enough to post ballots in elections. While this is good for winning elections such as my Senate race, it's unfulfilling. I want my party members to take more initiative to voice their opinions, get engaged in debate, and actually run in elections. However, I do understand that the right is in the midst of a vicious cycle where the registration numbers mean that Labor can outvote us in every region (including the South which is far from secure for now), and that it isn't great at all for newbies to put all that time and emotional investment into losing an election when it's more fun to sh!tpost on discord where there aren't lefties to attack their views and values. I feel like winning the Southern Senate race has given some people more hope in the game itself, but this recovery for the party is far from over.

As for how wide of a tent the party should have, I am a proponent of one that is wide enough to win a majority of the game and still stand for a coherent message that is to the right of the Atlasian center. I feel like the best way to achieve this is through distancing ourselves from real life politics and develop a uniquely Atlasian alternative to the "progressivism" and socialism offered by Labor which still acknowledges and aims to solve real problems that people face in the world. I feel like that this could resonate with those left behind by the inner circles of the Politburo and that much of a lot of people's loyalty to them is undeserved and unappreciated and that those who are smart, considerate, and mindful enough of our party's culture can find themselves more welcome here and can get more of what they want from the Federalist Party than from Labor. I honestly feel like that we have what it takes to develop better and more meaningful political careers than anything Labor can give them. I wish to show this with my wonderful governor, West_Midlander who will hopefully trounce any candidate Labor puts up in April if he decides to run again for reelection.

Lumine: As you know, the right is currently divided between the Federalists and the ACP. Do you feel both parties should be one, or do you think they ought to remain separate?

LT: I have cordial relations with pretty much everyone in the ACP. This is because I largely give them what they want while I still pursue what I believe is fair and right. While I have stood by the Federalist Party and am now the Vice Chair of the Feds, and I have been somewhat saddened by some Feds jumping over to the ACP last year, I know they are here to stay. If some would like to come to the Feds and prefer our style of politics better, they'll be more welcome to change their registrations themselves. Otherwise, I'll continue working with them the way I have always done. When it comes to elections, I feel like the coordination between us has been pretty solid in February as the ACP liked Cinyc and myself while they didn't screw over the Koopa/RC ticket as I'm sure Labor hoped would happen. I feel like a lot of the groundwork for this cooperation was laid in the January Southern elections where I have managed to get Muaddib, Spark, and Bagel together on Saturday evening after very tepid turnout for the first two days of the election and it looked like Labor would try and gaslight our Chamber candidates over "the party not supporting them." After arranging a proper war room we turned out most of our voters the next day and the election only ended up as a one vote win for the then-Labor and now-Federalist Governor West_Midlander  and a two vote win for a Labor majority Chamber. This performance felt satisfying enough compared to our position before the election, and it inspired my move to the South and glorious hostile takeover of the region a few weeks later after Lincoln politics felt even more hopeless and ridiculous to me than it's already been for a long while now.

Lumine: What is your view of the present and now reelected Administration?

LT: Regarding the Pericles administration, I feel like they haven't surprised anyone in their intentions and actions. We know what to expect from Pericles and his brand of progressivism, and he's taken over the party after being a pariah in the past. I stand by my vote for Koopa in the presidential election because I don't approve of the Atlasian Labor Party's vision for the game, and that a cleaning of house is necessary to deliver real change. However I do feel like Pericles is running a better administration than Griffin because he is genuinely interested in the policy side of governance and isn't solely there to "own the cons" and be a glorified bill signer who openly admits to not caring about what goes on in congress (unless the opposition wants to wield power ofc). I also find the manner in which Pericles has hijacked the primary for himself to be quite a fascinating move and that he made off like a bandit as MB is out of the Senate and isn't going to the White House as he could have.

Lumine: One of the most prominent criticisms of the center-right appears to be the relative lack of new players. Do you feel this could change? If so, how?

LT: This is definitely a real problem that my party and the game is facing. I feel like this ultimately goes down to the long term impact that Discord has had on the game as it's simply more fun to sh!tpost in an echochamber hating on Atlas than to engage with the left which is only in power due to sheer force of registration numbers. I know that Labor enjoys goading the right over discord shenanigans while they appear to have their hands clean as we've seen during the Conservacord leaks, but I know that much of the left holds even more toxic and deplorable attitudes as well, and the chickens will come to roost at som point once Labor runs dry on strong candidates and the right gets less "stoopid and lazy" and starts listening more to the point that we win again. I feel like that we have to work on getting back to what worked in the past which is keeping a clean, responsible, and welcoming message that can command mutual respect and love for the Federalist brand. Our tactics need to change and adapt to the times, but we have to be more willing to engage maturely with those we disagree but can work with constructively. I feel like that the behavior of ASV and Suburban last year really alienated a lot of people within the party to the point that they don't want to be pestered about Atlasia as it would seem to demanding and not worth to be obsessed over. We as a party also need to show that we mutually care for one another and that is necessary to rebuild a strong community environment and culture so that we can motivated each other to fight and win on issues that matter and in elections. I feel like doing this will make recruiting easier in the medium and long term. I feel more hopeful now than in the past because for the first time I feel like there's nobody with a knife to another's throat and that the few who are actively involved and interested in party affairs actually seem to like each other which hasn't been the normal state of things within the party's history.

I feel like working on building a cohesive and positive minded culture within the party is crucial to attracting recruits who will do more than just listen to that one person who recruited him to vote half of the time if at all.

Lumine: Final question. Having become a prominent member of the Atlasian right, do you ever see yourself running for President?

LT: I'll admit that there has been plenty of desire for me to run for president over the past few cycles (especially in last October and February). I turned that down because I knew it would be too much stress at a time when I need to focus on RL matters and the odds of victory seemed impossible for me for those cycles. Looking forward to June and future cycles, I'm unsure what I'll be doing, but for the moment, I'll focus on winning for the people of the South in the Senate and on restoring greatness for the Federalist Party. That may or may not result myself being on a presidential ticket as the future is unwritten, but I understand that I can make history through my actions. That in itself is what excites me most about Atlasia, and it's why I stay in this game.

Lumine: A most interesting perspective, no doubt. Thank you for this interview.

LT: Thank you very much!

_____________________________
^{1.) Original Image:
The execution of Lady Jane Grey in the Tower of London in the year 1554, Paul Delaroche, 1833, Wikimedia Commons, modified for arguably unfunny Atlasia satire.}

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

A half-cocked banning of assault weapons

Despicable. I am placing you under arrest for aggravated assault against the English language.

[At-Large Senator LouisvilleThunder]

A half-cocked banning of assault weapons

Despicable. I am placing you under arrest for aggravated assault against the English language.

I figured this was a nice pun lol.

[Pericles]

Ok, I've got a few points to raise;
-The election results were sort of weird in that they were an improvement for the right on their October results. However, I don't think they should be too enthusiastic. I know more than most that moral victories are worth virtually nothing in Atlasia. And Labor does have broad support for our vision and leadership-62% presidentially, 56% for the House and big margins in 4/6 Senate seats (regionally the picture is pretty good too). Atlasia is unpredictable, but Labor is in a great position going forward so those who don't want that to be the case shouldn't underestimate the challenge they face.
-LT is wrong to say that Labor is undemocratic and threatens its members. I believe this is a reference to the West_Midlander stuff. West_Midlander was never going to be punished for his pro-life stance or appointing fhtagn as regional Attorney General. Yes, many members-myself included-disagreed with his decision but I've never felt that I have to agree with someone on everything to support them. Labor is a big tent and has had plenty of pro-life members throughout its history. Indeed as can be seen right now the idea that we have purity tests is utter nonsense. PSOL is of course one individual who I don't have control over-and his statements came after West_Midlander defected anyway. Labor is a big tent that represents all those who want a progressive government-a government that is for the many, not the few and works for a society and economy that works for everyone.
-I appreciate that LT didn't just engage in a bunch of attacks. I do disagree with the 'inactive Griff' talking point, I think Griff was active and did a great job. I think I'm active so far and plan to be for my entire presidency. Perhaps the right will end up preferring me to have been inactive rather than effectively pass my agenda.
-LT saying I hijacked the primary and 'made off like a bandit' gave me a bit of a laugh, though I don't really see things that way. It's hard to understand party dynamics from the outside, I don't have a full understanding of the dynamics within the Federalists and the ACP right now for instance. I think I always had a majority in Labor for my candidacy.
-The whataboutism from the right about the Conservacord leaks is again wrong. Nobody in Labor or Laborcord has such deplorable views. And the Federalists never really addressed the issues those leaks raised, they have kept on pushing thr for Council long after his views were clear. Also, so far it seems that we in Labor have the opposite problem in having too many strong candidates. One day we will probably 'run dry' on them, but right now Labor has many strong, talented candidates to offer.

[Southern Senator North Carolina Yankee]

It makes no sense on the surface either. If Pericles couldn't be defeated for Chair, what makes people think that MB could have defeated him in the Primary. While it wasn't quite as clear cut, it reminds me very much of the Blair run against Adam. Just as now, a lot of younger/inexperienced Federalists like Ted and Leinad entertained that idea that Adam might lose to Blair and there too I stated the obvious, "Adam isn't going to lose, Adam IS LABOR". I was right then and I was right this time.

But of course no one listens to me.

[Former President tack50]

It makes no sense on the surface either. If Pericles couldn't be defeated for Chair, what makes people think that MB could have defeated him in the Primary. While it wasn't quite as clear cut, it reminds me very much of the Blair run against Adam. Just as now, a lot of younger/inexperienced Federalists like Ted and Leinad entertained that idea that Adam might lose to Blair and there too I stated the obvious, "Adam isn't going to lose, Adam IS LABOR". I was right then and I was right this time.

But of course no one listens to me.

To be fair I can say that had it gone to a primary MB vs Pericles would have been a lot closer than Griffin vs Blair.

Blair literally got 4 votes after all and Griffin didn't even turn out all his voters on purpose. MB vs Pericles would have been a 65-35 result or so; with MB getting around 20 votes

[windjammer]

Btw, I will say it again.Changing the Labor rules was my decision, not a decision from Pericles. Did he benefit from my action? Of course. But he didn't have any involvement regarding that.

[Southern Senator North Carolina Yankee]

It makes no sense on the surface either. If Pericles couldn't be defeated for Chair, what makes people think that MB could have defeated him in the Primary. While it wasn't quite as clear cut, it reminds me very much of the Blair run against Adam. Just as now, a lot of younger/inexperienced Federalists like Ted and Leinad entertained that idea that Adam might lose to Blair and there too I stated the obvious, "Adam isn't going to lose, Adam IS LABOR". I was right then and I was right this time.

But of course no one listens to me.

To be fair I can say that had it gone to a primary MB vs Pericles would have been a lot closer than Griffin vs Blair.

Blair literally got 4 votes after all and Griffin didn't even turn out all his voters on purpose. MB vs Pericles would have been a 65-35 result or so; with MB getting around 20 votes

I noted as such with the bolded reference above.

[Lumine]

Post-Election Interviews, Part VIII:

An interview with Ninja:

Lumine: Mr. GM, pleased to have you here.

Ninja: And I'm very happy to be talking with you, and I'm very glad to have you back both in government and the media.

Lumine: Let’s start with your present role. How would you rate your first few weeks as Game Moderator?

Ninja: Well, at first things seemed to be going alright until I got hit with a brick wall of real life. I was intending to keep to a schedule of stories being released at least once a week and at first managed it but I just got so bogged down. It really came out of nowhere and I had no idea I'd get so behind. But you know, things like that can happen, and they do happen to all of us sometimes. I tried to keep in touch with the government still during that time and I at least checked in, but I know stories are what people are looking for me to do. I started feeling kind of ashamed, even though it was because of school. About a year ago things seemed to be similar when I was Speaker of the House, and I really didn't want a repeat of it. So overall I'd say it wasn't great, but it won't be the norm.

Lumine: The last issue of The Citizens’ Daily introduced some new storylines and brought back unfinished ones, but it was published a month ago. When can a new issue be expected?

Ninja:  I think you'll be pleased to find that new stories have been released! I decided to prioritize the new issue over this interview. I hope that doesn't offend you, as I'm very happy to be doing this interview today, but I did feel like I needed to do my duties to Atlasia first. The last few weeks were rough, but I'm more free now and you can expect stories at least once a week from here.

Lumine: Having now had the opportunity to run the recently reformed Game Engine, what are your thoughts as to its current functioning? Is the separation of the GM from the Comptroller enough to make it more efficient?

Ninja: It's really difficult to say at this point because we still haven't filled the position of Comptroller General. That is concerning to me because at the moment, economic and budgetary needs aren't able to be filled as my role is purely in domestic and world affairs. I was somewhat concerned that it may be difficult to fill the position, but I'm still supportive of the reforms. For now I remain optimistic, as we have had people in the past who took up roles similar to the Comptroller General such as Encke and I believe someone will turn up. It appears that Spark has expressed interest in the position which is certainly good news to hear. Believe me, I would not have taken up this position under the old system. It would have been too much. We've seen how GMs have ended up recently. Truman, one of our finest, eventually succumbed to burnout and a lack of time to dedicate to the role, and I believe that Mr. Reactionary probably suffered a similar fate. Once we fill both positions, I believe it will be easier to retain people and have consistency by splitting the roles, which is of course a good thing.

Lumine: In a general sense, do you feel the GM has too many powers or too few?

Ninja:  I'm mostly satisfied with the scope of my position right now. Having fewer powers would diminish the usefulness of the position, while having more powers would mean having more responsibilities, making the job very difficult as we have seen before. Perhaps it would have been good to allow the GM to cover the roles of the CG temporarily and vice versa, but overall I like the setup.

Lumine: What are your current thoughts on the current party system and the recent Labor victory? Do you feel there is a risk of single-party domination?

Ninja: I'm sure you were surprised to hear that I joined the Labor Party, after my time in the right and center of Atlasian politics and voicing my concerns over the dominance of the party. However I've come to realise that a lot of that was anger over what happened between PUP and Labor over a year and a half ago now and not true commitment. I don't mean to say that I dislike the people I worked with such as you, I still hold high opinions of the Montfortians especially and enjoyed working with them, but I found that a lot of the people I was friendly with were in the left, and Labor consists of many of the same people as PUP. And I like several of the new additions such as Tack and Peanut as well. My role in the left is admittedly rather niche as the "leftist centrist" but I always felt most comfortable there, and I've been happy to be back on the left.

Now, it is true that there has been a lot of dominance. I believe that it isn’t the best thing for one party to always win, but also that it won’t last. We saw how two years ago the left were the ones in trouble. Much like the right, it seemed that organization was falling apart and the right won some landslides and races they logically shouldn’t have, as the left has lately. But from that period of disarray we gained so many new leaders, many more than we are currently. When the left of the past failed, a lot of young players took it upon themselves to bring back the left. I believe that someone at least from the right who is either new or uninvolved previously will rise and lead the right back to a competitive state. Atlasia has always returned to balance.

Lumine: There’s been some debate about the merits and drawbacks of “hyperpartisanship”, a concept which has brought some equally passionate criticism and support. What do you make of it?

Ninja:  I believe that this highlights that there are several different types of players in Atlasia. I presume this is in reference to voters who simply vote for their party’s candidates every time with great loyalty, especially in Labor. It would seem that some people are just happy to be a part of a team and help it. I don’t fully understand the mindset of a zombie voter or why exactly a lot of people just stick around to vote ever two months, but some people just are that way. And those people get as much out of the game as they put in, and that satisfies them. There are also active players that could be considered “hyperpartisan”, but that is arguably most of them. I would say that extremely partisan behavior is more dangerous in office than in the voting booth. Elections are of course a huge part of Atlasia culture and everybody wants to win, but after each election comes the governance phase, my personal favorite by the way, and we need to take a bit of a different mindset. Everyone in government is going to have their leanings and that’s fine, but it would not be good if every decision you made in office was based on your party affiliation. Legislators should be able to accept that sometimes a bill from their side is bad and sometimes a bill from the other is good, otherwise the government will be failing to uphold their duty to the citizens. And could you imagine how awful it would be if I was an ardently pro-Labor GM? There is a time and place to express partisanship if you fancy that, and there are times to put it aside and actually think.

Lumine: Out of the offices you’ve held in the game thus far, has there been a favorite for you? If so, why?

Ninja: I really still feel like so far I had the most fun during my initial term in the Lincoln Assembly. I wasn’t stressed by that feeling of commitment and responsibility Atlasia can give you sometimes. Yeah Discordgate happened but nobody really cared that much and it wasn’t a big issue. I was legislating a lot and was able to work with two other great assemblymen to boot in a productive session. It was fun. Now, I took on my current position because I believed I would enjoy it. Ever since I moved up after that assembly session and ran for president, cementing myself as a prominent player, I became involved in all sorts of drama and headaches for quite some time. After the failure of the Liberal Party, I took a step back and looked at what my career in Atlasia had become. I decided from that point that I was just going to have fun with it. It is a game after all. Like I said earlier I had a rough period but I believe it will get better, and maybe something will finally feel better to me than the assembly did.

Lumine: Finally, Mr. GM, what do you think is the biggest problem that the game faces? If you could, how would you fix it?

Ninja: Lately I have felt like there has been a serious lack of consequence in Atlasia. By that, I mean that things that people do can feel meaningless. Nobody ever sees the results of legislation and little comes of the actions of players. What’s the point of governance then? That is an issue I felt like I could help improve in my position by providing active stories and interactive storylines. I want the world to be more player driven, and I have the ability to do that. So you can expect more events to happen as a result of player actions in the future, which I hope will make things more interesting.

Lumine: Ninja, thank you very much for this interview.

[At-Large Senator LouisvilleThunder]

I think I should address several misconceptions about what I meant in the interview.

I did not believe that MB would've defeated Pericles in a primary if it was actually held since the numbers were on Peri's side all the way through (MB bringing third party lefties into Labor did make it more competitive to the point that Peri would feel insecure and would actually have to campaign hard for a win which is probably what spurred the rules change). However, I do feel like that changing the rules and disenfranchising a lot of people in what was really a blatant and greedy power grab for Pericles de-legitimized his nomination. Of course we know this ended with Pericles clearly winning the general election with Laborite defections kept at a bare minimum (there was that HCP/Sestak protest ticket which wasn't particularly useful as a vehicle for protest since I know Sestak ensured that most of his voters preferenced Pericles over Koopa but at least it knocked Peri under 50% on the first round). And of course we can't ignore the fact that MB's little deal with Pericles orchestrated by Windjammer didn't play out so great for MB as he ended up getting his dues from myself instead of going to the White House. He didn't have to drop out of the presidential race just because he lost the primary, but this Labor mentality of loyalty and unity at all costs can't give them ownership of the game forever, but some may digress at their own loss. As for other points, I was honest in telling what I really think. It's good that Pericles creates his own opposition, and I'm largely proud of the Federalist Party and the way we do things regardless of what the haters say.