The Rejected Times

[Tim Stark]

I do wish this whole thing didn't overshadow the other articles. >_<

lol it totally did

I'm an attention-grabbing icon

The only error was retracting the article

IKR? Now only a few of us can laugh at how absurd the article was

[Your Imaginary Friend]

I liked Jack's article about using actual NS mechanics and stuff to build other cool activities etc from.. *inspired a lil* Thank you!

Also can you enbolden Constie's name on TRT's issue-writing records?

[The Aligned People]

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Issue LII | June, 1 2019

Media Officer: The Aligned People
Articles edited by The Aligned People

Index

"Ho Ho Ho! An Interview with Tubbius, Delegate of the Corporation of Lazarus" | INTERVIEW | WRITTEN BY Senior Reporter Marilyn Manson Freaks
"Elections Abroad: The North Pacific" | NEWS | WRITTEN BY Media Officer The Aligned People
"The Various Viewpoints on International Legislation: The World Assembly Symposium" | NEWS | WRITTEN BY Intern Morover
"Marsupial Hunting" | NEWS | WRITTEN BY Intern Bormiar
"A World Assembled, But The World Is The Rejected Realms" | FEATURE | WRITTEN BY Intern Flower Boy

Ho Ho Ho! An Interview with Tubbius, Delegate of the Corporation of Lazarus
INTERVIEW | WRITTEN BY Senior Reporter Marilyn Manson Freaks

Recently, Lazcorp Delegate Treadwellia, more commonly known as Tubbius, was spotted leaving a TRR-based sweet shop through the back entrance with a huge sack full of candy and other treats. After quickly rushing over to Tubbius to greet him, Senior Reporter Manson couldn't resist to do a street interview à la TMZ.

Manson: Hey! I'm here with Tubbius, the current Delegate of Lazarus. Hello Tubbs, thanks for agreeing to this interview.

Tubbius: Hello! Glad to be here.

Manson: You've been a figure in Lazarus for years before rising to prominence in the Lazanarchy Week. Tell me, what's it been like, now that you're in the limelight?

Tubbius: I don't see myself as a celebrity, if that's what you mean. Becoming Delegate of Lazarus has meant a little more recognition from others, of course, but otherwise, the differences really appear in trying to remember that I now represent the region in many ways to those outside. I try to maintain a diplomatic, personable approach through communications that go out, and I try to tailor my World Assembly votes to what the majority of Lazarus seems to want.

Manson: What has been the biggest challenge for you as a Delegate? Did it take time to adjust to your newfound position?

Tubbius: The biggest challenges are two-fold: fitting all the Lazarus stuff into my already busy schedule as an English teacher and having to learn in a crash course who all is what in terms of other regions and individuals. The former I think I have worked out; the latter is an ongoing process that changes every time someone resigns or changes posts somewhere.

Manson: Speaking of resignations, didn't Imaginary resign not so long ago? How did you handle her resignation?

Tubbius: Yes, Imaginary Friend resigned from her post recently. She wanted to refocus her efforts into other areas, allowing Ryccia to step up, after his prior time of deputy status, and take command of our foreign efforts. As for Imaginary, she was very polite about her wish to back out, and I completely understood where she was coming from. Even with her stepping down, though, she still is a wonderful part of our community, currently helping mastermind our new LazMap and LazArt movements.

Manson: That's great. Please tell us about the Lazarene LazMap and LazArt movements.

Tubbius: LazMap is our effort to put nations in Lazarus on a map! It's a fun way to give people a visual representation of where their nations fit in Lazarus. LazArt is a chance for folks to show off their artistic skills and, in doing so, build community.

Manson: How do these things affect the region as a whole?

Tubbius: Like I said with LazArt, these are fun ways to bring people together and to keep Lazarus from degenerating into a bunch of negativity. Communication is vital to maintaining relationships, and things like LazMap and LazArt get folks talking and engaging.

Manson: How do you get residents and citizens that aren't interested in LazMap or LazArt involved in the region?

Tubbius: One other thing that has found success lately is a series of daily (usually) questions to get folks talking, like about personal interests, details about nations, and the like. Another is that LazMap has directly led to an explosion in RMB role play, pulling in folks who might not dig the map idea but love the chance for some interaction. Then, there is also our Discord server, which combines chatting and chilling out. Likewise, we have the Lazarus forums, which get folks involved in everything from regional politics to special events on occasion.

Manson: Speaking of regional politics, what does your cabinet look like?

Tubbius: In terms of specific members, the list is on the entry at Lazarus' in game page. In terms of skills and abilities, we have a balanced crew who bring their own skills and experiences to work well together. No one is trying to outdo any other, and there is a great spirit of cooperation.

Manson: How's the Lazarene legal system? Any major cases yet?

Tubbius: Luckily, no one has done anything requiring a trial against him or her, yet.

Manson: Since we're on the topic of legal matters, what can you do as Delegate and what are you prohibited from doing?

Tubbius: The powers of the Delegate are laid out as such in our Mandate 12--Lazarus's constitution--in full. There's approval of amendments and the like, overseeing citizenship applications or the delegation of such, revoke citizenship and/or establish/revise endorsement limits subject to confirmation, and punish folks subject to court jurisdiction. There's also appointing folks to various posts, subject to assembly vote, like the Vice Delegate, cabinet members, and so on.

Basically, while in some regions Delegates are pretty well figureheads, in Lazarus, there's some degree of power subject to checks and balances.

Manson: That's interesting. Would you say that this system has worked? Are there any flaws?

Tubbius: I'd say it's working so far. There's a good bit of delegation (hence the name) and cooperation with the cabinet to make sure things go smoothly. Mercifully, we have a great crew in charge right now. As for flaws, any system putting power in a central leader has its flaws, depending on the benevolence or dictatorial nature of said leader. I would say that the system Lazarus has does not have obvious flaws and is actually pretty well thought out. It's "Mandate 12" for a reason; it's had time to change and modify and grow over time to what it is today.

Manson: If we may change topics really quick, what would you say one of the crowning achievements of your reign has been so far?

Tubbius: That's perfectly fine. Honestly, I don't see myself as a political type. On a personal level, I've not set any major agendas or tried to make claims of a chicken in every pot or the like. My greatest achievement, individually, thus, is keeping things running well and encouraging folks to keep open minds and open communications with each other. Simply managing the day to day affairs is achievement enough for me! In terms of overall politics, though, I've had the privilege of being able to be part of a couple of treaties that we're either working on or have worked out. It's nice to see regions coming together despite all the aggravations folks throw at each other in NationStates. While I can't lay claim entirely to the success of said treaties, I can say it's been nice being involved for a better future for the players.

I've always thought that the folks who come in demanding power, claiming they're automatically the best candidates and that they're flawless...they're hardly the ones to have control. People have to find leaders with a sense of humility, a sense of recognition of their interests and abilities, who aren't trying to take on the world alone.

Manson: Excellent point. Now, onto our next question. Here it is, a question from the staff. "How long do you plan on serving for? Don't take controversies or sudden occurrences into account. In an ideal world, how long would you stay as Delegate? Plan on beating Griffin Somerset's in-game record?"

Tubbius: First question in return...what's Griffin's record, so I know?

Manson: Griffin served for 461 days.

Tubbius: A little info to set the scene: when Imki came to the Delegacy, she admitted to me that she wasn't in it for the extreme long term. She wanted to get the region back in business, make sure Lazarus was good to go, and then pass control. She had a great reign and, despite occasional hiccups due to real life interference, did well with keeping steady and focused, making sure we didn't tear ourselves apart. I completely respect that she was so honest and direct about her plans, and I find it admirable that she backed out when she believed it was the right time to move on. She prevented it from feeling like watching a television series that's been on for a few seasons past its prime, if you get the analogy. She did what she had to do, and she moved forward. Now, how does this all relate to me?

In my non-NationStates life, I've been in a single teaching position for my entire career of over a decade and a half. I've missed three classes in that time--one due to a doctor's appointment, one due to an injury, and one due to a major illness in the family. I've stayed in that position because I believe that I still have something to offer to the college where I work. I value dependability and loyalty. I appreciate those qualities in others. I intend on being there for the long term, unless life sends me elsewhere and things change. I view my goal for being in Lazarus the same way: I intend on being in Lazarus--and in the Delegacy of Lazarus--as long as I am needed and am valued for my contributions and commitments. If that means beating Griffin Somerset's 461 days, great. We'll just have to see as things go.

Manson: Thanks for your time, Tubbius. It's been a pleasure.

Tubbius: You're quite welcome.

Elections Abroad: The North Pacific
NEWS | WRITTEN BY Media Officer The Aligned People

The North Pacific has just held its’ General Election, and citizens voted for the WA Delegate, Vice-Delegate, Speaker, and Attorney General. The candidates that TNP citizens could vote for on the Delegate ticket were El Fiji Grande and Lady Raven Wing. For Vice-Delegate, the candidates were Malphe, Kirostan, Praetor, and Sil Dorsett. For Speaker, citizens had a choice between Artemis and Dreadton. And for the Attorney General, citizens could cast a vote for Dinoium, Darcania, and Funkadelia. For each office that was up for vote, there were multiple turned down nominations during the candidacy declaration phase.

For the Delegate election, El Fiji Grande took the win by a vote of 67 to 9. For Vice-Delegate, Sil Dorsett won with 57.32% of the vote. As for the Speaker election, Artemis won by a vote of 64 to 9. The election for the Attorney General, however, was not so cut and dry as a runoff election had to be held due to none of the candidates reaching a majority vote. In the initial vote, Dinoium had 22.97% of the vote, Darcania had 47.30% of the vote, and Funkadelia had 29.73%. Since Dinoium had the least amount of votes, only Darcania and Funkadelia went on to the runoff election. In the end, Darcania was elected as the Attorney General after having received 68.63% of the vote. For all offices that were elected, the vote to re-open nominations did not pass for any of them.

El Fiji Grande Campaign

El Fiji Grande arrived in The North Pacific July of 2018 and found a home within the government by working in the Ministry of Communications. On the subject of The North Pacific’s Home Affairs Ministry for campaigning, El Fiji Grande made clear that they want to focus on revitalizing recruitment and be able to have a higher retention rate among recruited nations. Grande proposed the creation of “training resources and guides for newcomers looking to get started in each of our [TNP] ministries and in other facets of our region, such as elected offices and roleplay” (El Fiji Grande).

Grande focused on the four publications put out by TNP’s Ministry of Communications and went over the intent of each of the publications as well as the time-frame for when each of the publications would be released. Grande stated that they hope to get the Northern Broadcast Service off of the ground which will hopefully have weekly shows.

For the Ministry of Culture, Grande wants it to take a more active stance when it comes to the Roleplay Reel which is a collaboration paper between the Ministries of Culture and Communication to show off what TNP’s roleplay community has accomplished. Along with wanting the ministry to play a more definite role with the Roleplay Reel, Grande also wants it to become more involved with the Northern Broadcast Service to help promote the regional roleplay. Grande would also like the Ministries of Culture and Communications to work together on organizing an event to bring writers and speakers from all around NationStates together to form different panels. The themes for the various panels would include “how to produce interesting content, sharing techniques, and discussing how NS media sources help promote foreign affairs across NS. Additional panels would discuss important topics from across NS” (El Fiji Grande).

For the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs, Grande wants to ensure that any valuable information that may be of use to voters gets out promptly when voting on resolutions begins. Grande would also like the ministry to host a workshop for WA Resolutions for WALL and their allies.

For the Ministry of Defense, Grande aspires to continue the long-standing tradition of conducting operations with their allies abroad. Furthermore, Grande stated they do not support the notion that the “The North Pacific should conduct tag raiding operations to remove support from WA resolutions before they reach quorum” (Grande).

Grande hopes that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will be able to aid in organizing the multi-regional “Media Frenzy” to bring together speakers from all around NationStates to host various panels. As well as helping with the media event, Grande wants the ministry to help with the organization of the WA Resolution Workshop.

El Fiji Grande Campaign

Sil Dorsett Campaign

Sil Dorsett was the Vice Delegate for The North Pacific last term and threw their hat into the ring once again. As well as holding the position of Vice Delegate, Dorsett is also a current Security Councillor for TNP. Dorsett stated in their campaign that they want to ensure all Security Councillors can raise and maintain a good endorsement level. Dorsett stated that as Vice Delegate, they would continue to send out telegrams and create dispatches in order to promote the endorsing of those on the Security Council. Dorsett also stated that they wish for the TNP’s World Assembly Development Program, The North Pacific Card Lottery, to continue to grow. And on the subject of Citizenship Checks, Dorsett stated they will maintain to thoroughly check every application and be sure to raise any suspicions about said applications if there is anything to question.

Sil Dorsett Campaign

Artemis Campaign

Artemis is a member of both the Security Council and the Election Commission. Before being elected to the position of Speaker, Artemis was a Deputy Speaker which they feel has given them a great amount of experience to be able and take the torch. Artemis wants there to be plenty of active Deputy Speakers at his side and wants to “blend the makeup of the Deputy Speakers with experienced members and newer individuals to help train future speakers” (Artemis). Artemis wants to invest a lot of time so that current Deputy Speakers will be thoroughly trained and can someday run to become the acting Speaker themselves. As well as the training of current Deputy Speakers, Artemis wishes to continue the Regional Assembly Digest which is a way to “engage the public about the workings of the Regional Assembly and ways for members to get involved with the legislature” (Artemis).

Artemis Campaign

Darcania Campaign

Darcania had previously held the role of Attorney General from January to November in 2017. Before that, Darcania was a Deputy Attorney General from November 2016 to January 2017. During the campaign, Darcania stated that it would be important to get The North Pacific’s legal minds together “and attempt to coordinate a loose set of guidelines for prosecutors going forward” (Darcania). Furthermore, Darcania stated that they would be able to take a look at any case on a moments notice and be prepared to act on it.

Darcania Campaign

Election Controversy

There was some controversy with one of the candidates for Delegate, Madjack. He was charged with a total of 5 crimes; Conspiracy to commit Treason; Conspiracy to commit fraud; Gross Misconduct; Conspiracy to commit Gross Misconduct; Fraud. The “Summary of Events” portion of the indictment has been quoted below:

Madjack initiated separate contact with two senators of the New Pacific Order, Elegarth and Xoriet, claiming that there were rumors that El Fiji Grande was a spy on behalf of the NPO, and asking for the NPO to publicly confirm them in some way, and thus damage El Fiji Grande's chances of being elected delegate, leading to Madjack's own election. In return for this favor, Madjack offered to, once he became delegate, negotiate a favorable treaty with the NPO and give them influence over our WA vote and military operations. The senators declined, and each of them then provided screenshots of the conversations to our delegate, and told Madjack that they had informed the delegate of the conversations.

Madjack then contacted El Fiji Grande the next day and gave an altered story about what happened previously, stating truthfully that he had contacted Elegarth asking if El Fiji Grande was a spy, and offering a treaty to remain silent about the conversation. He omitted that he had then gone on to request that the NPO confirm the false rumors and offered them influence over our military operations and WA votes in exchange.

Madjack then pleaded guilty to the charges of Conspiracy to commit Gross Misconduct and Conspiracy to commit fraud. The Attorney General at the time, Crushing Our Enemies, then proceeded to drop all other charges which were Fraud, Gross Misconduct, and Conspiracy to Commit Treason. For sentencing recommendations, Madjack submitted that a suspension of voting rights for 2 months would be adequate. His stated mitigating factors included the following: he pleaded guilty to two of the charged crimes very early on; he has shown obvious remorse; he holds no previous criminal record; due to his good character there is little risk of him reoffending; he had multiple character references from others within the region.

The prosecution of the case recommended that a sentence of “Removal from office and suspension of voting rights in elections and the Regional Assembly for four months.” That recommendation was for Conspiracy to commit Gross Misconduct. Then, the recommendation for Conspiracy to commit Fraud was “Restriction on running for elected office until after the January 2020 general election cycle.” The aggravating factors were that if Madjack’s plan was followed through with, it could have jeopardized the free election; and the NPO would have been able to blackmail Madjack in his position of Delegate for The North Pacific.

Madjack received a sentence for the crimes that he pleaded guilty to which was a “suspension of voting rights for a period of three months,” and “Madjack will be unable to run as a candidate in any election, through February 1st, 2020.”

Madjack Indictment
Madjack Trial

The Various Viewpoints on International Legislation: The World Assembly Symposium
NEWS | WRITTEN BY Intern Morover

Spanning over two weekends, from April 26 until May 5, The North Pacific recently hosted the first-ever World Assembly Symposium. Gathering speakers from all over the NationStates globe, it attracted quite a bit of attention from both General Assembly and Security Council goers. Seventeen different topics were discussed, as well as a three-hour podcast for the Northern Broadcasting Service (NBS), a subsection of The North Pacific's communications department.

Originally being planned to occur over one weekend, it became apparent that a second weekend would be needed to cover all the topics planned for the symposium. At the end of the first weekend, following the NBS Podcast, it was officially announced that the symposium would be continued the following weekend, and they would discuss one of the most controversial topics of the symposium: WA Blocs.

Regardless of one's position on the subject, it must be admitted that the topic delivered some much-requested insight on both the creation and management of these blocs. Representatives of the World Assembly Legislative League (WALL) and the Interregional Legislative Coalition (ILC) both were active participants, as well as former members of the Strategic Interregional Exchange for Growth and Equity (SIEGE). Discussions quickly led into one question: What makes a WA Bloc successful? While not everyone agreed on the question, it inspired discussion and led to a general consensus. In order to create a successful bloc, one must have a significant reason to do so - not creating a bloc for the sake of creating a bloc. While it may seem to be a simple answer, this is an incredibly simplified version of this consensus. It is, quite frankly, impossible for me to summarize the entire discussion into one paragraph, and I strongly recommend that if you are interested you check the discussion out yourself.

However, the discussion on WA Blocs should not overshadow the other topics of the WA Symposium. From discussions on how to create a perfect commendation or condemnation to discussions on the place of roleplay in the WA, it created an atmosphere for those from all places within the World Assembly. Creating a perfect concoction of Security Council to General Assembly, the symposium was very much a success.

Perhaps most successful, however, are actions that occurred outside the symposium. The creation of an ideas thread was created in the General Assembly subforum (on the NationStates forum), having been creating "per agreement of several General Assembly regulars in a recent symposium." The purpose was to foster excitement for the World Assembly and to help newcomers find reasonable topics to write on. Despite being initially slow (and the account ceasing to exist), it is entirely possible that this may create a "Renaissance" of sorts within the General Assembly (especially with NationStates summer coming), and create many new regulars within the General Assembly. This may be the most prolonged effect of the symposium.

Of course, this is an incredibly simplified version of the symposium. I cannot stress enough how much I encourage you if interested in the World Assembly, to at least check out some of the topics of the symposium (which can be found here). The symposium was incredibly successful, and we can only hope that it becomes an annual event.

Marsupial Hunting
NEWS | WRITTEN BY Intern Bormiar

The Rejected Realms has recently become the second largest region, due to a revival of “Marsupial Hunting” by The East Pacific. This involves the mass-ejection of puppet nations which don’t contribute to the region, and the recruitment of high-influence nations to carry out such tasks. The term “marsupial” was originally coined by the movement’s founder, The West Pacific, as a play on the Aboriginal Australian flag, which is the default flag. Marsupials do not apply for citizenship, join the World Assembly, or change their flag. The movement has since been adopted by 22 other regions, of which most notable are The East Pacific, The Pacific, and the condemned region Lone Wolves United. The rest appear to be inconsequential.

As stated above, The East Pacific has restored Marsupial Hunting and has also instituted the Licensed Marsupial Hunter program. This program involves the recruitment of World Assembly nations in The East Pacific with 200 or more endorsements. After having gained these endorsements, these nations may apply to have a day in which they may eject as many marsupials as possible. Major marsupial hunters of The East Pacific include Tim Stark, Davelands, Pakitsk, and Fedele, who have ejected hundreds of nations.

Since the creation of the marsupial license program on April 10, 2019, The East Pacific has lost about 350 nations, which seems to be mostly caused by the universal nation decline, as similarly sized regions, even those not in the marsupial hunting movement, have lost similar amounts of nations. Despite the intense fervor for the movement among many high-influence nations in The East Pacific and the appearance of a strong effect due to The Rejected Realms’ nation increase, the marsupial program seems to be inconsequential other than as a fun cultural event.

A World Assembled, But The World Is The Rejected Realms
FEATURE | WRITTEN BY Intern Flower Boy

Imagine a scenario, after a fierce debate, a long drafting period, and a difficult approval campaign, a citizen of the Rejected Realms has created a General Assembly proposal that has reached the floor. This is just one of many proposals as a new culture is developing in the region with the introduction of a WA Bloc led by TRR. The majority of WALL has made it clear they will oppose the proposal, but with TRR’s votes, it can overcome that. In this world, TRR has created a major voting bloc, thus tapping into its WA potential, and fostering a culture passionate about the WA. TRR has also amassed the second most delegate endorsements, only behind The North Pacific. TRR has also partnered with many UCRs and has made a powerful coalition of regions capable of greatly influencing every proposal. This coalition has created a zeal for the WA and has generated a significant amount of new activity on the forums and in Discord. Oh, and about that GA proposal. Despite the opposition from WALL…

It passes.

This world could easily be a reality for us. But how can TRR get there?

First, Outreach must work tirelessly to increase TRR’s WA count. Despite being the 2nd most populated region in the world, the region’s Delegate endorsements are only one-fifth that of the largest region. Because TRR serves as a place where banjected nations go, it has an inflated population, but it still has a rather large and active native population that isn’t entirely tapped into. With Outreach making WA membership a priority, and with this alone, endorsements will rise. As Outreach works to grow TRR’s WA population, the need for a WA Office will arise.

Creating a WA Office is the most important part of this plan, and without it, TRR has no chance of gaining the international position it deserves. Here is what TRR needs. First, it must reallocate WA work from the Delegate to a WA Officer. This Officer could issue opinions on proposals based on public opinion, advise the Delegate on approvals and votes, and assist potential authors on drafting WA proposals. This elected official would also work with Foreign Affairs on creating relationships and campaigning internationally to get proposals passed or defeated, depending on the opinion of the region. These are hugely important recommendations and will serve TRR well in creating a strong WA culture. When TRR creates this culture and ensures that it is truly an international superpower, it can move to step three, which will cause a profound change in TRR’s influence.

Creating a WA Bloc would be the next logical step in the quest to create an elite WA culture. Focusing on finding large UCRs and recruiting them to join the coalition should absolutely be what TRR does. In order to expand this newfound influence throughout NationStates, it has to ultimately look beyond itself. It is imperative that TRR targets specific UCRs, both those that it has a relationship with and those it doesn’t. However, as a GCR, if TRR does parts one and two of the plan above, this will be a much easier step.

As has been demonstrated in WALL regions, WA membership expands exponentially upon joining a voting bloc. Communities thrive. Relationships are built. The perceived, such as the idea that it may exclude certain groups or divide the community, are fallacies. In fact, these “downsides” when compared to the upsides of a flourishing international community are far outweighed by the benefits, such as the larger amount of activity and more government involvement. Hopefully, the rest of the region sees it that way as well and TRR can look forward to building this section of the community in the near future.

NOTE: The Rejected Times does not necessarily reflect the opinions of The Rejected Realms.

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[Flower Boy]

I encourage everyone to take a look at my article on the WA.

It is imperative that the Rejected Realms take steps to compete with the rest of the world. I lay out exactly how we can do that. Worth reading that.

[Eumaeus]

I encourage everyone to take a look at my article on the WA.

It is imperative that the Rejected Realms take steps to compete with the rest of the world. I lay out exactly how we can do that. Worth reading that.

I thought you could have gone into greater depth on addressing the downsides you've mentioned (not that I agree with them, but rather because I'm not sure what they are), but overall thought it was an interesting read. Would your proposed WA Office deal with both the General Assembly and the Security Council, focus on one over the other, or perhaps split the duties between multiple officials (in my experience most people are much more familiar with one chamber than the other)?

[Unibot III]

Excellent edition! I enjoyed TNP update and the Tubb interview.

TRR actually had a WA Office headed by Christian Democrats between 2014-2015. I thought the arrangement worked well and CD did a fabulous job. I had hoped to see the WA working group take off (it didn’t at the time) and I had started organizing plans for a TSP-TRR-IDU initiative that would have been focused on climate issues and environmental advocacy.

[Sanctaria]

... I had started organizing plans for a TSP-TRR-IDU initiative that would have been focused on climate issues and environmental advocacy.

A climate conference did actually take place on the IDU forums, but I'm not quite sure what came of it. I'm sure TRR people were there also, but I can only vividly recall TSP (Glen).

[Unibot III]

... I had started organizing plans for a TSP-TRR-IDU initiative that would have been focused on climate issues and environmental advocacy.

A climate conference did actually take place on the IDU forums, but I'm not quite sure what came of it. I'm sure TRR people were there also, but I can only vividly recall TSP (Glen).

That’s exciting! I didn’t know it happened after all.

[Bhang Bhang Duc]

Nice articles all.

One note: marsupialism was the creation of TAO the Watcher and adopted by the West Pacific. Under its principles any nation of sufficiently poor behaviour can be classified a marsupial, a sniffer of roo fur and eucalyptus.

[Marilyn Manson Freaks]

"The Voice of the Voiceless, Whether You Like it or Not!"

Just a little announcement, Rejected Radio is back! Founded in 2013 by The Church of Satan and abandoned in 2015, Rejected Radio has proven itself worthy enough to make a comeback. Rejected Radio will serve as a subdivision of The Rejected Times yet will act independently from the paper. You can listen to our revival announcement by one of our new hosts, Morover, here.

[Marilyn Manson Freaks]

Rejected Radio - "A Conversation with Anabelle, the Newly Ascended Pharaoh of Osiris"

Hello, NSGP! Our first new Rejected Radio broadcast in four years has been released! We decided to start out easily and slowly transition into broadcasts by doing a simple interview. This episode is called "A Conservation with Anabelle, the Newly Ascended Pharaoh of Osiris". Disclaimer, it is nearly 30 minutes long. Please give it a listen and your honest feedback. Enjoy!

~Manson

[The Aligned People]

Sign up for The Rejected Times' Subscription Service here.

Special Release | June 28, 2019

Media Officer: The Aligned People

Is The South Pacific Ready to Embrace Defending?
NEWS | WRITTEN BY Intern Dead I Jack | EDITED BY The Aligned People

The South Pacific, long a region which has felt comfortable orienting its Foreign and Military policy (at least nominally) around values of independence, or more recently and more accurately non-alignment in the Raider/Defender spectrum of military gameplay, and has begun discussing internally whether it should adopt defending as one of its core principles as a region. The discussion began in earnest as Cabinet Elections for the region got underway on June 1st. As part of his campaign for Minister of Military Affairs, Witchcraft and Sorcery made the declaration “I am of the mind as some others are to officially go defender, and as MoMA I will work closely with the Foreign Affairs team to try and make this a reality”. Soon after, Glen Rhodes, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the previous Cabinet term and seeking re-election, delivered an End of Term Address outlining his views of the current landscape of the world, TSP’s place in it, the challenges it has faced from a foreign affairs standpoint, and what he proposes as the way forward. In Glen’s telling, TSP’s foreign policy standing has been in limbo since 2013 due to competing priorities of security of the region and engaging in values based diplomacy. He makes the case that the Defender alignment is a natural extension of the Coalition’s strong democratic tradition and that a defender alignment would open up possibilities for stronger, lasting alliances to insure the security of the South Pacific. As part of his re-election campaign, he put the concepts of the address front and center, essentially turning his run into a referendum on the South Pacific becoming a defender region.

It didn’t take long for the discussion of these ideas to spill into the Assembly from the campaign trail. A legislator of the South Pacific, Omega, released a proposal called the Alignment Act to the Assembly that if passed would lead to the South Pacific officially accepting defending as an ideology. The act received strong push back at first due to doubts about the move being in regional interests. Current and long term members of the region, such as Tsunamy and Belschaft, raised concerns about what the change would mean for the region’s relations with key non-defender allies (namely The North Pacific and The East Pacific) and what has been described as the welcoming culture for TSP for people of various gameplay alignments and ideologies. Others still made the case that the alignment of the South Pacific Special Forces should be determined at the ballot box during every election of Minister of Military Affairs. Proponents for becoming defender attempted to allay these concerns through various counterarguments. Glen Rhodes reached out to foreign counterparts in TNP and TEP to affirm that in the hypothetical situation that TSP went defender its alliances with those regions would not be in jeopardy. Others pointed to the Rejected Realms, a defender region and ally, recently electing Kyorgia, a nominal raider, to the delegacy as proof that even in defender regions there is still room for a culture of acceptance of people from all walks of gameplay.

While the debate still carries on in TSP’s Assembly, we can look to see what would change on the ground operationally for the SPSF if the switch to a defender alignment becomes reality. From June 2016 through February 2018, public reports made available by TSP’s Ministry of Military Affairs provided successful operation counts for the SPSF. Nearly 70% of these operations had typical defender objectives. Meanwhile, the majority of raiding done by the military at this time was in the form of tag raiding and anti-fascist operations. Even during the time periods where the successful operation count was balanced closer to 50/50 between raiding and defending due to the SPSF’s work with the tag-raiding-happy organization, LILY, alignment data provided by the Ministry shows that at least 70% of updates were spent with defender objectives in mind. The discrepancy between those figures can be explained by the fact that it is easier to rack up large amounts of tag raid numbers than to get that many while defending due to the element of surprise and several other factors. Furthermore, the reports show that the militaries that the SPSF worked with the most are defender ones such as the Rejected Realms Army, The Order of the Grey Wardens, and essentially any organization represented in the joint defender operation discord server known as Libcord. Taken in total, these facts show that the South Pacific already cooperates heavily with defenders militarily, more than any other alignment. Little would change militarily for the SPSF, were it to accept defending, except that it could no longer tag raid. The most current reforms being proposed by Glen Rhodes still allow for TSP’s anti-fascist activity, which has grown to be a large part of its military identity, under the clause of attacks on “hateful ideologies”.


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The biggest change that would come from a potential switch to the defender alignment for TSP is the ability to try to credibly shape the next generation of defending. While it is true that the SPSF has the trust of defenders to lead big operations and has done so many times in the past, skepticism of its ability to spearhead major big-picture initiatives of the faction has arisen in the past due to the possibility that, at any moment, TSP’s military alignment could shift unfavorably. With a clear statement of accepting defender principles, TSP could put those fears to rest and in the process gain newfound authority to lead. One of the points bubbling to the surface during the course of the alignment debate is precisely that if TSP goes defender it can put itself at the forefront of defending and have influence over game events in a way that is tantalizing. Proponents of the change like Roavin and Glen Rhodes have mentioned it and even a noted skeptic like Tsunamy has termed the potential embracing of defending as a “Once in a Gametime Opportunity”. How exactly those sentiments would translate into practice are still yet to be seen, however. One glimpse of how things might work in the ongoing discussion has been for TSP to promote democracy in founderless regions that have been liberated by the SPSF, using defending as a platform to advocate for the democratic values the region holds dear. Overall, it is still too early to say how TSP would practice defending or if it’d even do anything different.

While there has been some positive feedback to the idea, it is far from a foregone conclusion that the South Pacific will officially adopt the defender label. Both Glen Rhodes and Witchcraft and Sorcery have won election to the Cabinet as vocal supporters of a defender TSP hoping that signifies a strong mandate for the change. Nakari, who has largely been absent from publicly viewable forums of the debate and was just elected as Prime Minister, also says that she is supportive of the change. That means that 3 out of the 4 newly elected Cabinet members are in favor of this movement, with the final minister, Rebeltopia’s, position one of at least initial opposition. Despite these electoral victories, though, changes will have to be passed through the Assembly. If a vote were held today on alignment, it is unclear what the result would be but such a vote could have widespread impacts for the present and future of NationStates Gameplay. Stay tuned as the South Pacific decides.

NOTE: The Rejected Times does not necessarily reflect the opinions of The Rejected Realms.

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[RiderSyl]

NSGP's court of public opinion is on Glen-Rhodes' side.

...That felt weird to type.

[Lord Dominator]

Don't worry, I'm sure we'll get back to the regular program minutes after the alignment switch occurs, or after they do some big fenda thing

[United States of Vietnam]

Don't worry, I'm sure we'll get back to the regular program minutes after the alignment switch occurs, or after they do some big fenda thing

Expect regular program in the foreseeable future.

[Lord Dominator]

Don't worry, I'm sure we'll get back to the regular program minutes after the alignment switch occurs, or after they do some big fenda thing

Expect regular program in the foreseeable future.

That would be lovely indeed.

[Queen Yuno]

Cute article
Good luck @author/Jack!!

[Borovan entered the region as he]

Long articel did not read to many big words

[The Aligned People]

Hello y'all. I would like to introduce to you the first quiz sponsored by The Rejected Times! This is intended to see how well you read, or didn't read the article. Once you've submitted your answers, you'll be able to see just how you stack up against other players that have read the article. I hope that this can become a tradition to follow each TRT publication in the future. Good luck!

Here is the link to the quiz.

[Borovan entered the region as he]

I got A+ 10/10.

[Klaus Devestatorie]

I donkey voted tbh

[Wabbitslayah]

damn it, I got 1/10. How dare I get one right.

[Borovan entered the region as he]

turns paper upside down ...
Oh waiit it was actualy 0/10.

[RiderSyl]

8/10.

[Land Without Shrimp]

(Image)

Hello y'all. I would like to introduce to you the first quiz sponsored by The Rejected Times! This is intended to see how well you read, or didn't read the article. Once you've submitted your answers, you'll be able to see just how you stack up against other players that have read the article. I hope that this can become a tradition to follow each TRT publication in the future. Good luck!

Here is the link to the quiz.

I like this feature. 8/10 for me! Although...it was also easier because even before reading the article, I was pretty familiar with the situation.