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Lumine
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« Reply #75 on: January 14, 2021, 04:06:42 PM »

On the sixteenth year since the founding of the REPUBLIC,
under the Presidency of MB and the Vice Presidency of Ted Bessell

NEWS UPDATE / NATIONAL

Atlasia battles the Coronavirus (VII)
Alarming rise in cases, death toll approaching 90,000 and rising,
Experts confirm second wave, 3 "danger zones" see hospital capabilities outstretched,
Atlasia faces urgent decisions surrounding vaccine approval and deployment

NYMAN, Atlasia - After a number of weeks featuring a number of positive national trends, Atlasia has fallen to what health experts are identifying as a much feared "second wave" of COVID cases, a process already experienced with harsh results by much of Europe, China and much of South America. With an increase in cases already noted in the aftermath of Thanksgiving, the December holidays once again featured increase movement and travel across the nation, as well as a relaxation surrounding personal behavior. As January goes through and with the pandemic close to its one year anniversary within Atlasia, the three danger zones identified by professionals (California, Texas and New York/New Jersey) have seen increasing and now almost exponential growth in cases and in deaths, dragging neighboring states into negative trends as the death toll fast approaches 90,000.

A equally concerning development has been the increasingly reduced capacity of local hospitals - particularly in states with a large population -, despite the health care system's best attempts to contain the renewed spread of the pandemic. Previous measures from past months - including regional restrictions and the government's app - are credited with having aided to prevent an even harsher situation, although there's been significant public debate on whether local, regional and federal authorities should update, expand or reduce some of the decisions taken during 2020. There are also reports of decreased morale within health care workers and medical professionals, many of which have expressed both frustration with the behavior of some parts of the population as well as exhaustion over their ongoing efforts to battle this new wave of the pandemic.

Crucially, Atlasia and its elected representatives will face important choices to make in the realm of vaccination due to a series of developments across the last six weeks. With a number of promising vaccines (Novavax, Sanofi, and Janssen, the latter of which is the only vaccine of a single dose) still in development and months away from finished testing, five vaccines are already being approved and deployed by a number of nations following successful but rushed testing. The five potential vaccines - the origin of which has resulted in political debates regarding their reliability - are:

  • Pfizer–BioNTech: A joint Atlasian-German mRNA vaccine, effective up to 95%, requiring extremely cold storage.
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  • Moderna: An Atlasia-made mRNA vaccine, effective up to 95%, requiring very cold storage.
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  • AstraZeneca: A UK-made viral vector vaccine, effective up to 70-90%, requiring moderately cold storage.
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  • Sputnik V: A Russian-made protein subunit vaccine, said to be effective up to 92%, requiring moderately cold storage.
-
  • Sinovac:A Chinese-made whole virus vaccine, said to be effective between 50 to 80%, requiring moderately cold storage.

Once a vaccine - or several - has been approved by the federal government via the Food and Drug Administration (or FDA, itself dependant of the Attorney General), the issue of deployment of the vaccine will pose important questions to federal, regional and state authorities regarding the vaccine schedule, prioritization for doses, whether it should - or even could - be made mandatory, and so on. Polling suggests between 60 to 70% of Atlasians seem willing to be vaccinated, but the rise of anti-vaccine arguments (and/or conspiracy theories) within the public debate and discourse could also pose additional complications. With the vaccines providing a potential way out of the pandemic, and a second wave wreaking havoc in all three regions, the decisions taken in the next few weeks might well prove decisive in how Atlasia battles the pandemic during the first half of 2021.

VISUAL REPORT / PANDEMIC

Coronavirus by State - January 2021

1. Overall trends
(Clean, Favorable, Contained and Negative)

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Sirius_
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« Reply #76 on: February 17, 2021, 11:46:49 AM »

How has the winter weather situation compare to the real world? Is the weather as severe? Are the power issues happening?
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Lumine
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« Reply #77 on: February 18, 2021, 12:51:46 AM »

How has the winter weather situation compare to the real world? Is the weather as severe? Are the power issues happening?

The weather conditions are exactly the same, with the corresponding effects of it being that severe. I'll try to get into detail if I can get an update done - though I was hoping to wait until after the election -, but to provide some general guidance the situation in Texas is bad and much of the power grid has failed, but not to the extent as in OTL.

Part of this is due the fact that the state - and Atlasia in general - relies far more in renewable energies as opposed to coal/oil, but this only goes so far in light of A. how renewable energy has also failed in OTL (only less so than non-renewable sources), and B. how the implementation of such energy sources has been so rushed and based on very demanding legislation, with the corresponding extra strain on the power grid.
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Lumine
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« Reply #78 on: March 03, 2021, 06:07:34 PM »
« Edited: March 06, 2021, 11:10:28 PM by Lumine »

On the seventeenth year since the founding of the REPUBLIC,
under the Presidency of Ted Bessell and the Vice Presidency of Scott

NEWS UPDATE / ELECTORAL

Atlasia Elects: February 2021
Democratic Alliance and Liberals score successful offensives,
Labor maintains Fremont supremacy, surprise pact with Peace proves significant,
Federalists hold onto New York City after charm offensive, hurt by RCV,
Smaller parties face imminent disappearance

February 2021 - National Results

Executives:

Party   Governors
Labor Party27 (-1)
Federalist Party12 (-1)
Democratic Alliance11 (+1)
Peace Party3 (=)
Liberal Party3 (+1)

Party   Mayors
Federalist Party3 (=)
Labor Party2 (=)
Democratic Alliance1 (=)

State Legislators:

Party/Alliance   Seats
Labor Party/Allies3228 (-214)
Federalist Party2085 (-49)
Democratic Alliance/Allies1611 (+40)
Liberal Party918 (+132)
Peace Party387 (+146)
Dixieland Patriots Party20 (-2)
Green Party12 (-8)
Law and Justice Party0 (-1)

NYMAN, Atlasia – A surprising amount of Atlasians braved cold temperatures on election day, with turnout across nine states - and one city - to vote on this month's set of local and state elections, coinciding with the aftermath of the dramatic February 2021 Presidential Election and, in many cases, delivering a verdict on incumbent governments elected on July 2020 (their six month term having been extended to seven as an exception).

Although the bitter, contentious nature of the December campaign was not quite repeated, the relatively short February campaign still featured a significant degree of controversy and negative campaigning, with somewhat different effects depending on the race. All in all, political scientists agree a combination of factors - including demographic changes in the involved states, the consolidation of RCV as a system, the effects of the presidential race and incumbent popularity, and even the choices made by the specific parties - all made for an engaging contest with interesting contrast to the previous July cycle.

The Labor Party surprised in the later stages of the campaign with the sudden adoption of a joint electoral pact with the Peace Party, formalizing an already positive relationship which had already featured local alliances. The pact itself was generally seen as a net positive in terms of consolidating the more left-wing - or pro administration - vote in a number of states, although experts disagree on whether the combined ticket is on by itself a guarantee of voter efficiency. Due to the rather specific nature of the July 2020 results - in which the Peace Party performance was more a result of residual support from the Presidential election than actual campaigning -, Peace was generally felt to have gained the most this month, almost doubling its representation at the expense of a few Labor officeholders (an effect magnified by the large size of the New Hampshire house), featuring a curious dynamic that should become more balanced (or to Labor's advantage) as future states vote.

Rather than matching the intensity of previous elections - including the famed conquest of Texas -, the Labor efforts were broadly seen as a successful attempt to defend their July 2020 results under a still favorable map, featuring a particular level of intensity and animosity against the Democratic Alliance across Frémont which drastically expanded Labor power in Arizona and, arguably, prevented the unpopularity of the Colorado state government from dragging down the ticket. Conversely, both the Liberal Party and the Democratic Alliance were perceived to have launched both a national push and offensives into specific states, their relative advantage under RCV providing an extra push for surprising gains in New Hampshire (featuring a Labor Party hurt by unpopularity and demographic change) and Alabama (repeating a dynamic previously seen in Georgia) in spite of a perceived cannibalization of their momentum.

Despite a disappointing loss in Alabama, the Federalist Party held onto what may have been the most symbolic contest of the evening: the New York City mayoralty. Having narrowly won it in July due to the daunting climb the Liberals were facing, a strong push by the party - including efforts which were seen as "softening" the Federalist image - led to a dramatic momentum wave to support incumbent Mayor Lewis Silver, who nonetheless only survived by the most narrow of margins against his eventual Liberal challenger. Whether the Federalist Party will be able to replicate this success to also hold onto Houston and Chicago remains to be seen.

A final and interesting note to the contest was offered by the disappearance of a number of parties which contested the elections back in July or their decision to run with a larger ticket instead of on their own. The loss of the single Law and Justice Party representative coincides with the disappearance of the party at the national level, and the eight surviving Green incumbents from July - whose party also lost national representation - were also dispatched. Barring an unexpected revival, it is expected the Green remnants will be swept away in March, and the DPP may be gone in April.

Next month voters will go to the polls in Alaska, California, South Dakota, Oklahoma, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, the District of Columbia, Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana, and the city of Miami.

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Lumine
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« Reply #79 on: March 03, 2021, 08:06:44 PM »

CLARIFICATION / INTERNATIONAL

ISO 3166-1

Upon a player contribution - many thanks to Koopa -, after having taken into account context, and for clarification, it is ruled that:

  • -The Republic of Atlasia's alpha-2 code is AS; its alpha-3 code is ATL; its numeric code is 840
  • -The Republic of Paflagonia's alpha-2 code is PO; its alpha-3 code is PFL; its numeric code is 593
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S019
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« Reply #80 on: March 03, 2021, 09:29:05 PM »

Minor note that all of the old (pre June 2020) bills were consolidated into the Lincoln omnibus, so it might be better to look at that Tongue
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Lumine
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« Reply #81 on: March 03, 2021, 09:32:05 PM »

Minor note that all of the old (pre June 2020) bills were consolidated into the Lincoln omnibus, so it might be better to look at that Tongue

Sigh. Report will be pulled while I look into that.
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Lumine
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« Reply #82 on: March 03, 2021, 09:45:24 PM »

Right, here we go.

On the seventeenth year since the founding of the REPUBLIC,
under the Presidency of Ted Bessell and the Vice Presidency of Scott

REPORT / POLICY

High Speed Rail in Atlasia
A report on current regional efforts to build HSR (2021),
Directed to the House of Representatives and the Senate

1.- INTRODUCTION:

With only ACELA and the partly built - amidst great difficulties - California High Speed Rail in any meaningful state of operation/planning in 2016, the development of High Speed Rail in the Republic of Atlasia was fairly limited in comparison to a number of developed countries, with high profile efforts such as the Japanese Shinkansen, the massive expansion of Chinese railways, and the controversial HS2 in the United Kingdom - recently given a major push by Prime Minister Owen Smith - relatively dwarfing the scale of Atlasian efforts post Reset. Although to this date both the Federal Government and the South have declined to pursue HSR legislation - with the only federal attempt vetoed in 2018 -, extensive efforts have been planned, ordered and put in motion in both Lincoln and the Commonwealth of Fremont,   with an ambitious scope behind them.

2.- LEGISLATIVE INITIATIVES:

Planning for the first HSR systems in Fremont and Lincoln started between June and September 2017 with the creation of FremontRail and LincolnRail, public companies owned by the regional governments with an initial task of - respectively - two and four main lines respectively, with an initial allocation of 4-5 billion dollars. The main legislative milestones are the following:

  • FREMONT - Railway Transport Act (June 2017): The start of HSR development in Fremont, this bill signaled the creation of FremontRail, and allocated 4bn for the construction of a Commonwealth-wide HSR with two main routes: San Francisco-Boulder and Las Vegas-Los Angeles. It allowed for a transregional connection between Santa Fe and El Paso if the South developed a HSR, which has not taken place as of 2021.
-
  • LINCOLN - LincolnRail Act (September 2017, repealed): The start of HSR development in Lincoln, this bill created LincolnRail - with an initial 5,000 workers -, and allocated 5bn for the construction of a region wide HSR with four main routes: Portland-Philadelphia, NYC-Chicago, Fort Wayne-NYC, Detroit to Indianapolis. It allowed for a transregional connection between Philadelphia and Annapolis-Baltimore if the South developed a HSR, which has not taken place as of 2021. Bill was repealed and replaced in April 2020.
-
  • FREMONT - The Pacific Railway Act (October 2017): The first Fremont expansion of HSR, it allocated 10bn for the construction of three interior lines of FremontRail: Northern Pacific (San Francisco-Seattle), Central Line (Sacramento-Omaha), Transdakotan (Salt Lake City-Minneapolis).
-
  • LINCOLN - Lincoln Rail Expansion Act (Tabled, March 2018): The first attempt at an expansion of Lincoln Rail, aiming to expand Line Two and create Lines Five and Six. It was estimated by the GM office at the time that the total cost would reach around 3bn, leading to the bill being tabled.
-
  • FREMONT - Fremont Railway and Pan-Regional Transport Act (May 2018): The second Fremont expansion of HSR, allocating c. 1bn for two new lines: San Diego-LA and an extension of the LA-Las Vegas line to Reno.
-
  • ATLASIA - High-Speed Rail Act of 2018 (Vetoed, June 2018): Thus far the main attempt at a nation wide HSR, seeking to establish a High-Speed Rail Commission among other efforts. Citing issues such as profitability, eminent domain and a lack of repairs for existing lines, the bill was vetoed by President Fhtagn.
-
  • FREMONT - Pacific Railway Reauthorization Act (March 2019): Acknowledging recent issues cited by a GM story, the Fremont regional government allocated an additional 10bn for the three interior lines ordered in 2018 (Northern Pacific, Central Line, Transdakotan).
-
  • LINCOLN - The Rail Investment Act (March 2019, repealed): Seeking a diagnosis, a six member commission was ordered to be formed to assess rail conditions in Lincoln, with the task of submitting a report before July 2020. The bill was later repealed in April 2020.
-
  • FREMONT - Public Transportation Expansions/Connections Act (April 2020): Among other various dispositions surrounding public transportation, the bill allocated 500 million for new local stops in smaller cities. It purported to establish express lines as a firm percentage of rail traffic, but the bill as written only established "TBD %". It also ordered the completion of the Front Range Commuter Rail in Colorado. The original bill - later heavily amended - sought a major expansion of FremontRail, estimated by CG Clyde to cost around $5 trillion.
-
  • LINCOLN - L. C. 6.21 - Lincoln Roads and Infrastructure Act (April 2020): Part of a major overhaul of Lincoln regional legislation, previous dispositions on LincolnRail were replaced by a new “Lincoln Roads and Infrastructure Act”. This meant the re-establishment of LincolnRail under the Lincoln Department of Transportation and Infrastructure, ordering the construction of four routes: Portland-Philadelphia, New York City to Chicago, Fort Wayne to New York City, Detroit to Indanapolis.
-
  • LINCOLN - Amendment to L. C. 6.21 (December 2020): The previous omnibus bill was amended to order an expansion of the new LincolnRail, ordering four new routes with mandated stops at several small cities. It does not provide allocated funds for this project.
-
  • FREMONT - Amendment to PTECA (January 2021): Among other things, it gives priority for a high speed commuter rail from Albuquerque to Las Cruces.

3.- BACKGROUND:

Both LincolnRail and FremontRail have experienced their own share of problems as their development and construction has started, particularly in 2018 and 2019. In Lincoln, a general strike was threatened in September 2018 by the United Transportation Union and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, citing a "persistent failure" of LincolnRail to comply with minimum wage legislation amidst a debate surrounding the effects of separate regional legislation. In Fremont, a number of issues were unveiled on March 2019, revealing cost overruns, issues with building the Transdakotan line across the Rocky Mountains, and problems with state and local governments in terms of planned modifications to existing stations in key cities of the Commonwealth.

4.- CHALLENGES:

In spite of the major advantages offered by HSR in terms of public transportation, a number of experts have questioned the ambitious scope of both FremontRail and LincolnRail, particularly from a point of view of its eventual cost. With the comparative experience in other developed nations suggesting substantial costs for projects already smaller and more focused on urban zones than either Atlasian projects, there are reasons to believe earlier estimates and funding allocated in previous legislation has been insufficient in regards to the actual scope of the challenge, with the resulting problems in planning, development, construction, and the eventual use of the extensive lines.

Although most of LincolnRail and FremontRail's successive funding projects have allocated sums no greater than 10bn, such investments - while seemingly reasonable at the time of planning -, a number of critics noted that actual construction costs would be several times higher. With the two most successful examples of relatively low cost High Speed Rail - Japan and China - requiring anywhere between $10 to 20 million dollars per mile - in Japan due to starting decades ago, in China due to low labor costs -, the ultimate goal of several HSR lines stretching for several hundred miles (1.200 in the shortest possible San Francisco to Boulder route) appears to far outweigh allocated funding even at an Asian-like comparatively low cost, and particularly after both California's difficult experience with its own project - by now being integrated into FremontRail - and registered setbacks such as the logistical challenge of building across the Rocky Mountains.

5.- STATUS:

With preparatory works taking place in 2017-2018, early construction of FremontRail has started on their main lines and taken place during the last two years, resulting in a few dozen miles - mostly connecting close cities with high urban density - being successfully constructed. Some challenges have proven more difficult than others for both regional government agencies, including gaining access to suitable land for construction, modification of local stations (in which Fremont has achieved significant success), increasingly high costs compared to allocated funding, and protests by a number of communities regarding environmental concerns, leading - in the latter case - to careful local planning and subsequent delays to prevent further issues. Whereas LincolnRail had also made similarly limited progress, existing efforts were shifted in 2020 with the restructuring of Lincoln legislation and transport issues.

In general, it is believed FremontRail is faring better in the short term than the newer version of LincolnRail due to having received far more substantial funding, although it is believed the drastically larger distances that are to be covered will eventually result in an exceedingly long period of construction barring new - and drastic - sources of funding and vigorous government action. Conversely, although LincolnRail will possess the long term advantage of shorter distances between cities with higher population, as well as the existence of ACELA, the comparative lack of funding with the Commonwealth and its modification of planned lines have substantially delayed the project and led to only a handful of miles built, with its more recent expansion of lines coming under criticism by members of the agency on account of the lack of funding as the region is yet to approve a budget.

6.- GAMEPLAY CONSIDERATIONS:

Due to the separation of duties surrounding the Game Moderator and the Comptroller General, it is not within the purview of power of this office to assign a specific cost to all the previous legislation - and regardless of who is legally entitled to, it would be a monstrously difficult endeavor -, but it is ruled that the general funding allocated to such projects is insufficient in light of similar international and domestic projects, conversations with the Comptroller General, previous rulings by CG Clyde, and reading on High Speed Rail matters. This, alongside a number of issues detected by consulting existing Atlasian legislation and/or following up on claims during legislative debate have led the Pontifex Maximus to the previous conclusions and subsequent rulings.
[/quote]
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Unconditional Surrender Truman
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« Reply #83 on: March 03, 2021, 10:49:52 PM »

Excellent analysis! Obviously as you say this is not the jurisdiction of the pontifex maximus, but I hope the next comptroller general will not renege on estimates provided by previous GMs. Frémont's circa. 2017 appropriations with respect to HSR were specifically calculated to meet the cost estimate provided by then-GM AZ; it would set a very bad precedent IMO if a future CG were to retcon those estimates four years after the fact.
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Lumine
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« Reply #84 on: March 06, 2021, 06:44:21 PM »

On the seventeenth year since the founding of the REPUBLIC,
under the Presidency of Sestak and the Vice Presidency of [VACANT]

NEWS UPDATE / INTERNATIONAL

Paflagonian Revolution (Part II)
Von Kummerspeck captured after pro-regime militias are crushed,
Gerta Baer found dead, Paflagonian Unity unable to take over the administration,
General Narriman assumes powers, promises new elections on September 2021

WÜRSTBURG, Paflagonia - The complex and intense series of events which have taken place across the Central European nation of Paflagonia have reached a dramatic climax in the past few days, as the general collapse of the Kummerspeck regime started in the aftermath of the bloody "Retribution" against opposition leaders consolidated itself. After escaping a tank regiment storming the Presidential Palace, Von Kummerspeck fled to the countryside via helicopter, where he attempted a short lived resistance over the past few weeks. Allegedly supplied with weapons from an international source - which intelligence sources identify as either Russia or Hungary -, Kummerspeck and his militias held on as the military purged and reorganized itself behind the leadership of former loyalist General Narriman, and were subsequently crushed in a series of skirmishes and raids. On March 4th, Von Kummerspeck himself was captured by a team of Paflagonian commandos, and taken to a secure location in Würstburg.

As the countryside experienced the violence of civil war and the cities continued to experience the consequences of the bloody protests and state repression, General Narriman has emerged as the country's leading political figure, assuming control over a collective group of Generals and, as of the last few days, the title of "Acting President". With the state apparatus formerly belonging to Kummerspeck broadly closing ranks behind the General, the remnants of the large opposition organization Paflagonian Unity - itself drastically hurt by Kummerspeck's "Retribution" - has found it impossible to make headway in being recognized as the legal government within the Republic of Paflagonia, even after the designation of former minister Heide Gruber (SPP) as the new PU leader. Although Paflagonian Unity had been bolstered with the international recognition granted to "Acting President" Gerta Baer, PU's hopes were dashed with Narriman's announcement that Baer had been found dead in the dungeons of Kummerspeck's state security, apparently tortured and killed before she could be rescued by the military coup.

Now Acting President Narriman is not a well known figure in Paflagonia, but has raised to prominence and shown some skill at consolidating power at the moment. Having been greatly bolstered by the recent recognition of his status by the Republic of Atlasia - a symbolic gesture other nations that had recognized Baer seem likely to follow -, Narriman delivered a televised address to the nation on March 6th, hailing Kummerspeck's capture and signing a decree which schedules new Presidential and Legislative elections - to complete Kummerspeck's original 2018-2024 term - for September 7th, 2021. Right after the speech, Narriman presented his new cabinet, mostly comprised of independents, technocrats and military figures such as Colonel Wolfgang Zeller - formerly a member of the PU leadership -, with a number of Paflagonian Unity's secondary figures in junior roles. Protests have given way to celebrations over the Field Marshal's capture, although the question of whether the new government will signify an end to the opposition's general strike is as of yet unknown.

Indeed, all eyes are now on General Narriman, as analysts, the international community, and even the Paflagonian public itself wonder about his intentions. Is Narriman the long awaited bringer of democracy? A second Kummerspeck in the making? Only time will tell.
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The world will shine with light in our nightmare
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« Reply #85 on: March 06, 2021, 07:07:34 PM »
« Edited: March 06, 2021, 08:34:58 PM by Scott🦋 »

March 2021 map:


+ Puerto Rico (Federalist) and Miami (Democratic Alliance)
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Lumine
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« Reply #86 on: March 06, 2021, 07:40:31 PM »

On the seventeenth year since the founding of the REPUBLIC,
under the Presidency of Sestak and the Vice Presidency of [VACANT]

REPORT / INTERNATIONAL

Status of International Governments
A brief report on a number of relevant international situations,
at the end of the current GM's tenure

ARMENIA - AZERBAIJAN
  • The conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan continues to rage, despite attempts by President Putin to force Azerbaijan - currently on the losing side - into a settlement favorable to Armenia.

CHINA
  • Having experienced severe COVID outbreaks - with a death toll in the tens of thousands -, the Chinese government has struggled with an economy still recovering from the war in Korea and the harsh measures taken to control the pandemic. On the upside for Beijing, their COVID vaccine is highly sought by third-world countries, and the pro-democracy camp in Hong Kong has been all but destroyed through harsh repression.

ERITREA - DJIBOUTI
  • Eritrea has been undergoing a violent civil war over the past two months after the assassination of  authoritarian President Isaias Afwerki, judged by Eritrea to be the act of Djibouti operatives. Following the purge of Abraham Afwerki, the duo of politician Yemane Gebreab and general Filipos Woldeyohannes hold the capital in an uneasy alliance against general turned warlord Tekle Kiflay. As hundreds die, the war with Djibouti has turned into a standstill.

ISRAEL
  • After several months in a coalition government, PM Benny Gantz has been wounded by the lack of international support to annex parts of the West Bank, turning his relationship with coalition partner Likud (led by Yuli Edelstein) into a nightmare. It is widely predicted the B&W + Likud government could collapse at any moment, paving the way for new elections.

ITALY
  • Following the 2018 General Election, a coalition government between M5S and Lega has governed Italy for almost three years despite significant internal tension. Although the life of the coalition was preserved by the replacement of Luigi di Maio as PM in late 2019 - with popular technocrat Giuseppe Conte - and by the rise of the Brothers of Italy (which has deterred Salvini from calling an election), it is expected the government will fall or alter its composition fairly soon.

KOREA (NORTH AND SOUTH)
  • With the trial of Kim Jong Nam at the ICC finally allowing North Korean politics to lower the state of political tension, the reunification talks with South Korea have intensified and reached a substantial degree of progress. It is not known when, but a deal - assuming one can be found - may be announced at some point.

PERU
  • Having been restored to office by the Constitutional Court after a botched impeachment, the once popular government of President Vizcarra - due to leave office in July - has seen its popular support collapse after it was revealed the President and several of his ministers took the COVID vaccine in secret before they were meant to, resulting in mass protests across Peru.
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Unconditional Surrender Truman
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« Reply #87 on: March 06, 2021, 08:13:40 PM »

A brutal end for Baer, but stylistically appropriate considering the original inspiration for this story.
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Lumine
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« Reply #88 on: March 07, 2021, 12:14:23 AM »

On the seventeenth year since the founding of the REPUBLIC,
under the Presidency of Sestak and the Vice Presidency of [VACANT]

NEWS UPDATE / NATIONAL

Atlasia battles the Coronavirus (VIII)
Vaccine production and distribution ramps up,
Death toll above 100,000 as second wave is not yet contained,
Open questions about reopening, masks, anti vax movement

NYMAN, Atlasia - The combination of the start of the feared "second wave" in January and the rise of different vaccine alternatives has opened up a new phase in Atlasia's ongoing struggle against the COVID pandemic, which is now entering its second year as an utterly prominent issue both in politics and in everyday life. This has also coincided with relatively energetic action both from the federal and regional government about a number of issues, with varied - if broadly positive - results. Perhaps the largest success story in Atlasia has been the efforts to drastically ramp up production and distribution of vaccines, with Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca all approved by the federal government in late January alongside a priority scheme and a decision to make the vaccine mandatory for all Atlasians.

This was later followed by congressional authorization of a 7 billion dollars appropriation for production in early February, and greatly expanded - as of the last two weeks - by a series of ambitious executive orders by former President Ted Bessell, which mobilized several government resources (including the size of an entire army division from the DOD) to support the federal vaccination effort and the production of resources from the public and private sector. All three regional governments pursued their own individual efforts and set their own criteria for vaccination, the Commonwealth of Fremont winning the race with an early effort followed by the South and, most recently, Lincoln. All three have pursued public advertising, funding appropriations for production, and somewhat varied priority schemes, which have drawn a combination of praise from a majority public experts in regards to their criteria, and harsh criticism from social activists - and a minority of experts - over a perceived lack of a criteria for various minorities.

All in all, this has had the effect of allowing the nation to administer c. 2,500,000 to 3,000,000 shots a day, ensuring about 30% of Atlasians have received at least one dose - with about 14% having received both doses -, placing Atlasia in the top five in terms of vaccination rate. However, the high rate of vaccination is coupled with a continue increase in cases and in the death toll - which has now surpassed 100,000 - even as the state contagion dynamics appear to shift. Specifically, the California and Texas "danger zones" appear to have combined into one, despite being contained in their growth towards the North, while the New York one gives no signs of fatigue and expands into an increasingly overwhelmed Pennsylvania. This has sparked a renewed debate about the degree of restrictions necessary to contain the second wave, with one camp arguing against renewed restrictions due to their social effects to favor a near complete reliance on the vaccination efforts, and another camp arguing the vaccine alone will not resolve the wave quick enough to prevent a significant amount of deaths.

Amidst substantial federal efforts to expand different types of aid, the South appears to have taken the lead in a more formalized reopening scheme in terms of businesses and schools, the effects of which - in terms of the pandemic - remain to be seen amidst relative social support, and with a legal deadline of March 31st. Although a number of issues and/or problems requiring solutions remain the same, new ones   take greater importance as we enter year two of the pandemic. On one front, despite an apparent consensus in favor of masks, a number of communities and/or state and local authorities have started to question their continued use, and/or suggest easing out mandates for wearing them. On the other, although the rate of Atlasians willing to vaccinate themselves has risen to an unprecedented 72%, the so-called "anti vax movement" has furiously denounced the federal government's intent to make vaccination mandatory, and vowed to oppose the practice.

With the start of March pointing towards a decisive point in the fight against the pandemic, the international fight over access to vaccines has grown to concerning degrees, including a very public struggle involving the EU - which faces a concerning shortage of vaccines - and the UK, in which PM Smith has presided over a notoriously successful vaccination effort. As the EU, India and much of the third world continue to be hit by vaccine shortages, current leading nations include Israel, Bahrain and the UAE, the UK, Atlasia, Chile and Serbia.

VISUAL REPORT / PANDEMIC

Coronavirus by State - March 2021

1. Overall trends
(Clean, Favorable, Contained and Negative)

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Lumine
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« Reply #89 on: March 07, 2021, 01:26:24 AM »

Well, I think that's all of the backlog I can get done at this point. It's been fun!

Now that I leave office after eleven months, and having had a lot of time to reflect about Atlasia, I feel like quoting a - personal and very loose - translation of one of my favorite songs, one that makes persistent (and positive) sense even to this day:

“With sun and rain, you once dreamt,
That everything would be better,
Wanted to be the big hero,
Everything you once wanted to be

I know a secret, you’re scared,
Now thinking of turning back,
No longer thinking of being the hero,
Everything you should have been, with no fear

You no longer talk to me,
You no longer let me talk of anything,
Everything you could be, even now

Ah, there’s sun and rain at last,
But it does not matter, it’s not all bad,
You can still think, and it’s better than nothing,
Everything you managed to be, or nothing..."
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GM Team Member and Senator WB
weatherboy1102
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« Reply #90 on: March 07, 2021, 04:43:48 AM »

I had thought there was a user request in the backlog? Will these be handled by the next GM?
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Lumine
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« Reply #91 on: October 16, 2021, 05:57:48 PM »

Not formally GM yet, but I thought I'd get started with the formalities.

Bringing this thread back as opposed to creating a new one, I'll be preparing a summary of the past two tenures (Peanut and my first one) as well as to update the list of world leaders.

It's going to take me some time to ascertain the extent of the backlog, so I would encourage citizens with outstanding or new questions/requests to post them here to get a better grasp on what has to be done and establish priorities. If you recieved private clarification or relevant info from the past GM I should be aware of (so as to respect previous determinations), please let me know as well.
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Lumine
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« Reply #92 on: October 19, 2021, 08:00:45 PM »

Now that it is official, I'll be dealing with unfulfilled requests from the Secretary of State first, then our first update tomorrow night. Please let me know if there are other questions/requests/backlog matters.
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wxtransit
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« Reply #93 on: October 19, 2021, 08:35:37 PM »

Now that it is official, I'll be dealing with unfulfilled requests from the Secretary of State first, then our first update tomorrow night. Please let me know if there are other questions/requests/backlog matters.

Congratulations Lumine!
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Lumine
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« Reply #94 on: October 20, 2021, 06:28:02 PM »

CLARIFICATION / GAME MECHANICS

Natural Disasters

For the duration of the current Pontifex Maximus' tenure - and thus non-binding to a successor - it is temporarily ruled that, barring a formal clarification, natural disasters are assumed to take place on schedule like in RL, including hurricanes, major forest fires, earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, cold waves and/or storms. Effects and consequences associated with NPC actions (example: pre-emptive measures that would have lowered the death toll) may be clarified by the Pontifex Maximus if necessary or if asked.
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Lumine
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« Reply #95 on: October 20, 2021, 09:09:37 PM »
« Edited: January 16, 2022, 03:44:36 PM by Lumine »

On the seventeenth year since the founding of the REPUBLIC,
under the Presidency of SevenEleven and the Vice Presidency of Blair


NEWS UPDATE / INTERNATIONAL

Chinese blockade of Taiwan continues!
ROC facing an increasingly grim outlook,
PRC and ROC ships fight several skirmishes around the Taiwan Strait,
Will Beijing attempt a land invasion? Could the ROC resist it?

TAIPEI - Republic of China - The rapidly evolving crisis in the Far East is believed to be hurtling towards a potentially disastrous war less than three years after the end of the North Korean Civil War and the signing of the Treaty of Panmunjom. Following months of heated and aggressive rhetoric, the People's Republic of China undertook a major gamble back in August, when the combined remnants of its Navy and a large fleet of private, low cost vessels (several of which are specifically designed to ram or disrupt other vessels) started a limited blockade of the island of Taiwan, home to the Republic of China. Although no large scale battles have taken place thus far, there are widespread reports of nightly incidents and skirmishes between the PRC vessels and the ROC navy, which is attempting to maintain supply lines open.

In Taipei, the popular incumbent President Tsai Ing-wen - a staunch, if measured supporter of Taiwanese independence - has mobilized the Taiwanese government and society in an unprecedented campaign which government spokepersons have likened to the British national effort in 1940, stockpiling supplies, mobilizing reservists and seeking to repair the constant damage to the Taiwanese power grid caused by cyber-attacks, which take place on an almost daily basis. Although the ROC did not take part in the North Korean Civil War, President Tsai has made an open appeal to Atlasia and the other Allied Powers who fought together to support Taiwan and assist in ending the blockade by any means necessary, warning a land invasion would otherwise become inevitable.

Meanwhile, across the strait, the Chinese government has mobilized state media to continue denouncing both Taiwan and a recent stream of Atlasian legislation which has been portrayed as "an affront to the people of China", including both sanctions concerning the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and, most decisively, the Atlasian diplomatic recognition of the ROC. Although President Xi has guarded himself of making any official statements that could be construed as a declaration of war against the ROC, he has accused Western nations from breaking the spirit of the Treaty of Panmunjom, and asserted China's right to reunify itself. In the meantime, analysis are divided on the potential outcome of an armed conflict, with one camp arguing that the sinking of the bulk of the People's Liberation Army Navy back in 2018 would make a successful invasion of Taiwan difficult, and others arguing that the substantial Chinese missile and air power could make up for said disadvantage.

NEWS UPDATE / INTERNATIONAL

Paflagonian Transition to Democracy
Acting President Narriman prevails in presidential election,
Lack of a parliamentary majority will force administration to seek partners,
Presidential rivals Baer and Schmidt complain about an unfair contest

WÜRSTBURG, Paflagonia - Today, and after seven months as the de facto ruler of the Republic of Paflagonia, the Central European nation still reeling from a brief revolution and civil war, General Kurt Narriman (49) has formally taken the oath of office as the nation's constitutional head of state and government. After fierce competition in the September presidential and legislative elections, Narriman's relentless efforts to put together a governing coalition were rewarded with a narrow victory over Anna Baer, the official Paflagonian Unity candidate and daughter of the late Gerta Baer, and Jakub Schmidt, the would-be heir to the late Field Marshal von Kummerspeck. Although Ms. Baer gave the General quite a scare, observers credit the  incumbent's campaign with an ability to appeal to the electorate by promising an orderly transition to democracy, thus winning over just enough moderate anti-Kummerspeck voters to prevail.

Now set to complete the 2018-2024 term, President Narriman's first political challenge will be to form a presidential majority in the newly elected legislature, the results of which proved inconclusive. Narriman's newly formed party, the Civic Coalition, won the elections by securing 19 seats, 7 short of an overall majority in Paflagonia's 50 seat legislature. Paflagonian Unity, comprised of the SPP, CDP and FDP parties, fought the election separately, and won a collective 23 seats. The remaining eight were secured by the far-right New Dawn, a fringe party which, seized by Mr. Schmidt and the pro-Kummerspeck camp, managed to receive most of the residual (and overestimated by the polls) Kummerspeckite vote. Other minor parties and the large host of independent legislators were swept out of parliament.

Although international observers have asserted the election itself to be fair and the results accurate, both Ms. Baer and Mr. Schmidt have complained against the government on different grounds: Baer has described the campaign as "unfair" due to the administration's extensive use of resources to secure votes, and Mr. Schmidt has claimed to be the victim of "political persecution". Thus, and depending on whether President Narriman intends to retain Prime Minister Zeller - a possibility seen as likely given his efficiency as a political operator -, many wonder in which direction the government will go to form a majority. Will it seek a unity government with Paflagonian Unity? Will it seek a rapprochement with New Dawn? Or will it try to break the PU by appealing to one of its members?

September 2021 Paflagonian General Elections:

PRESIDENT
Kurt Narriman (CC) 39,7%
Anna Baer (SPP-PU) 37,2%
Jakub Schmidt (ND) 23,1%

PARLIAMENT
Civic Coalition (CC)   19 seats (+19)
Social Democratic Party (SPP-PU)   13 seats (+6)
New Dawn (ND)   8 seats (+8)
Christian Democratic Party (CDP-PU)   7 seats (+2)
Free Democratic Party (FDP-PU)   3 seats (+2)

NEWS UPDATE / INTERNATIONAL

Former Chancellor Kurz shot in Vienna!
Following his resignation after being targeted by a corruption probe,
Former Chancellor Sebastian Kurz narrowly survives assassination attempt,
Culprit said to be mentally deranged, kept screaming "let me in!"

VIENNA - Austria - It has not been a good couple of weeks for Sebastian Kurz (35), the remarkably young conservative politician who served two non-consecutive terms as Chancellor of Austria. Having returned to office after being ousted before, his government - which has combined profound reforms with a constant stream of scandals - became the target of an anti-corruption probe a few months ago, a matter which soon grew into unexpected dimensions. Earlier this month, both Mr. Kurz's party HQ and the Federal Chancellery were raided by the police, and news surfaced of previous and successful plots to undermine and force out Kurz's predecessor as party leader. Condemned from all political sides, Mr. Kurz resigned after what many believe is a private deal with part of the opposition, being replaced by Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg.

Still shaken by the experience, the former Chancellor was delivering a lecture before the University of Vienna when a woman stormed past the door, took out a revolver and, while shouting "let me in!" fired five shots before being tackled to the ground. Mr. Kurz was shot twice in the left arm, and is expected to make a full recovery. Initially identified as Mrs. Pamela Joy, the would-be assassin was then found out to be a male in disguise (name unknown), triggered into homicidal rage after being left out of the lecture. For reasons yet unknown to Vienna Police, the culprit was seemingly traumatized by a previous experience of exclusion, which is undetermined at this point. Although most have accepted the official explanation of the attacker being simply deranged, others wonder if the attempt is related to the corruption investigation.
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Unconditional Surrender Truman
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« Reply #96 on: October 21, 2021, 10:16:10 PM »

Fascinating stuff —particularly interesting that Narriman has chosen to complete Kummerspeck's term rather than reset to a full six years as Kummerspeck himself did, suggesting perhaps that he will uphold the legal legitimacy of the former regime.
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Lumine
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« Reply #97 on: October 25, 2021, 07:16:23 PM »
« Edited: October 25, 2021, 08:40:09 PM by Lumine »

On the seventeenth year since the founding of the REPUBLIC,
under the Presidency of SevenEleven and the Vice Presidency of Blair

NEWS UPDATE / ELECTORAL

Atlasia Elects: October 2021 (Presidential)
Scott elected, Labor wins 8th consecutive term,
Political experts and officeholders debate meaning of the election,
Congratulations for the President-Elect and/or his challengers arrive from the world

NYMAN - Atlasia - Following a relatively quiet electoral weekend, which only turned towards political infighting once the polls were closed, Atlasians have once again elected a President and Vice President, with the ticket of Senator Scott (Lab - Frémont) and Fremont MP Battista Minola (Ind - Frémont) prevailing against five other competing teams. This marks the eight consecutive victory for the incumbent Labor Party, which has now held the White House for well over two years, the longest streak ever recorded in Atlasian history. As a result, citizens, officeholders and electoral experts alike continue to debate the merits of this streak and the potential meaning of Mr. Scott's election to the Presidency. For example, former Green MP and now political pundit Arianne Wyzgowski stated on Twitter that this would mark a year of single or partial term presidents, no incumbent running for re-election since Pericles in 2020.

"I think it's a well deserved triumph", said Joanne Carpenter (Lab - ND), a highly opinionated backbencher in the North Dakotan House of Commons. According to Ms. Carpenter, the achievements of the past seven terms in office and what she described as a "mediocre" opposition well justify such a victory. On a different side of the aisle, André Bowman (Fed - KY), the Federalist House Speaker of Kentucky, called the result "a display of our depressing one party state", decrying the defeat of Senator Cao (whom Mr. Bowman praised in an effusive manner) and warning that, in his opinion, continued Labor rule threatened to "constrain our individual freedoms". For her part, former Miami Mayor María Díaz (DA - FL) cited Scott's experience and life history as a key factor on his victory, stating "we were blessed with two fundamentally decent main candidates, but Senator Scott deserved to win". Far more critical of the whole outcome was Revolutionary Communist activist Holden Caulfield (RC - NY), who said "they're all a bunch of phonies anyway. The only way out for this country is Revolutionary Communism."

Across the world, Atlasia's allies, partners and such other countries were quick to deliver public or private statements congratulating the President-Elect and/or the associated electoral process, expressing their keen interest to work with the incoming administration. Among those are such leaders as Chancellor Merkel (about to left office to the incoming SPD-led coalition), Prime Minister Smith, President Philippe, President Tsai of Taiwan, Prime Minister Gantz, and several others. Thus far, a number of nations - including China, Russia, Turkey and Iran - have not made official statements, with diplomats explaining this as a formality due to the current lack of a certification. Still, some analysts wonder aloud whether there isn't a calculated snub, particularly from Beijing and Ankara. Other political leaders, while congratulating the President-Elect, also expressed their commiseration for Mr. Cao, the Federalist nominee. Chief among them were Rory Stewart MP, Leader of the Conservative and Unionist Party; and Erin O'Toole MP, Leader of Conservative Party of Canada, both of which were complimentary towards his efforts.
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Unconditional Surrender Truman
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« Reply #98 on: October 31, 2021, 09:57:38 PM »

Sounds like Holden's stay in the loony bin hasn't helped him much, if he is delivering up takes like that!
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The world will shine with light in our nightmare
Just Passion Through
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« Reply #99 on: November 03, 2021, 03:08:15 PM »

Mr. GM, has the FDA approved COVID vaccines for children ages 5-11 as they recently did OTL?
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