Cao/OSR October 2021: A Place for All in Atlasia (Thank You — Till We Meet Again)

[Never Made it to Graceland]

Your "both-sides" approach to LT's actions and your blatant carpetbagging of the Lincoln election should leave many people very hesitant to support you. I say this as someone who has given you a high pref in the past and would have considered doing so again.

[Never Made it to Graceland]

your blatant carpetbagging of the Lincoln election should leave many people very hesitant to support you.

He has spent literally his entire career registered in Lincoln and he is GOTVing zombies who have always been registered in Lincoln.

I am more referring to his M.I.A. status on this and any other recent Lincoln issue until he realized he could use this to inflate his perceived political capital for the presidential run. But the opportunism, along with the LT appeasement, has scuppered much of the goodwill he once held across the aisle.

[Never Made it to Graceland]

Actually I think I will say something about this. I wanted to keep my thoughts private because I am simply so done with this situation but as you all are reading this I have obviously decided otherwise. This block of text won't take my more classic polished block of text style so bear with me.

I respect Cao quite a lot, in part because we are close politically and in part because I very much appreciate effort in this game and he clearly goes the extra mile. I say this so it is clear I am not coming from some place of harbored discontent -- in fact of those who supported the DA's LT resolution, I was probably the most conservative member and the most on the fence, and even after the resolution's passage, I still want (ed?) to see the opposition's relations repaired.

That being said, Cao's most recent speech makes it clear to me that the Federalists want to project an image of moderation while not rousing LT too much either. Exactly why the Feds want to have it both ways isn't clear to me, perhaps there are worries of a caucus split if the line is taken too hard on LT or maybe LT holds too much weight in the party. However, it is clear nonetheless that the Feds' strategy for the LT situation is to address it from a point of "would you look at that, that guy did something I or the party would never condone and is clearly acting alone...next question." LT received no punishment for his egregious actions (not even a censure?) and the Feds are hoping it no longer becomes an issue as time progresses.

Perhaps they are right, and perhaps the DA might have removed ourselves from the veepstakes for the foreseeable future (let's be honest, Labor would never have a joint DA candidacy either because ooooh scary DA), but seeing that the Feds are taking this approach leads me to think we made the right call. LT's actions weren't just Discord drama, he literally tried to dispute the election and has ""barred"" a presidential candidate from coming to his region. Memes or not, those actions carry weight.

This narrative came to a head for me when reading the last part of Cao's speech. Particularly this line:

Forgiveness is a two-way street: if LT fully acknowledges and apologizes for what he did it also falls to the people he's wronged to accept the apology. Unfortunately neither side seems inclined to do what they need to do.

Forgiveness isn't a two-way street if the street hasn't been paved in the first place. LT has not showed an inkling of moving towards an apology. Equating the justified disgust people like Scott have had to LT to LT's lack of an apology is frankly appaling. He made highly insensitive comments and while I am of the belief that one should always forgive when wronged, that does not mean one has to become buddy buddy and make up, ESPECIALLY when it is not being offered in ANY way by the other side. Scott/Weatherboy/etc don't "need" to do anything publicly to "make up" with LT. It's LT's job to come to the table first, he was the one who wronged. Plain and simple.

Also, "forgiveness is a two way street" seems to suggest to me that Scott/Weatherboy/etc wronged LT somehow. Hopefully I'm just reading that wrong. But if I'm reading that right...what?

This speech combined with the greater sentiment from non-LT Fed leadership with this hands-up "oh what can we do, it's just LT!" mentality that shows disgust on one hand and does nothing to punish it on the other is going to make the Federalists increasingly farther from the few swing voters like me who pay attention that they are trying to keep to their side with both ways mentality in the first place.

What I say may not matter in the end anyway though, to be honest. Such few swing voters are outvoted by the zombies. The Feds may win this election, without the DA and without actually doing anything about LT, and if they do I have a feeling nothing will change. But if the Feds keep losing perhaps there's now another reason than just "Labor's so dominant we're discouraged." Maybe the Feds are right that this becomes a non-issue very soon. But you lost some good friends in the DA loyal to the opposition cause through this debacle, and if the LT issue does somehow find a way to stay salient, you will probably lose some more.

I should be clear about the wording here. In no way am I suggesting that people should make up with LT without him apologizing first, the first part of my response made that pretty clear: he needs to take action to start mending the bridge, not anyone else. It’s because those actions carry weight that there is an imperative for him to do so.

Apologies do need to be accepted though, if they are to actually do any good in mending relations; that’s the two-way part. And it’s clear Scott would not accept an apology (with good reason) if it were not sincere, and moreover that – as the President and others have said – a mere apology from him isn’t likely to cut it with the people that it needs to reach. What I am getting at is a genuine apology needs to come from LT himself; it will not come from us pushing him to the table because that would only yield a half-hearted apology that everyone would be at least justified in dismissing out of hand. My disappointment with all this lies mostly with the fact that that seems unlikely to ever come no matter what any of us do.

I think that answers Sev’s question too, because I have not said at any point that LT has apologized, and while he really needs to do that I really doubt in the current atmosphere that anyone would accept it even if it was a sincere one.

As far as moderation goes, I’ve always taken that tone – that’s nothing new. If I am appearing to have it both ways it’s because, on a personal level and entirely removed from whatever the parties are doing, I want the game to get out of this urination contest between LT and everyone else.

your blatant carpetbagging of the Lincoln election should leave many people very hesitant to support you.

He has spent literally his entire career registered in Lincoln and he is GOTVing zombies who have always been registered in Lincoln.

I am more referring to his M.I.A. status on this and any other recent Lincoln issue until he realized he could use this to inflate his perceived political capital for the presidential run. But the opportunism, along with the LT appeasement, has scuppered much of the goodwill he once held across the aisle.

Oh, believe me, I have had plenty to say about Lincoln's issues in the past. My office is proof of that. And I'd happily say them all again.

This still sounds like you are making out LT to be a victim in some way, or at least that the people he wronged are themselves in the wrong. To say you think they wouldn't accept an apology, "even a sincere one" places the victims in an accusatory position.

Moreover, an apology isn't enough. It's clear the governor needs to go to trial and let the justice system decide what consequences if any he should face. After another prosecutor was unable to complete it, I have been granted the responsibility to make the People's case and will be bringing it this week after the elections are over.

[Never Made it to Graceland]

So that was a threat

The Cao campaign must condemn his associate's open calls for violence, or else this election will descend into anarchy.