Augustin Alliance

[Frattastan IV]

iv. Offensive military action against the sanctioned region, its allies, and protectorates, and its own military operations.

Please clarify what regions would fall under "allies" in the AA's view.

[DiRito-Opolis]

Please clarify what regions would fall under "allies" in the AA's view.

An ally of the Augustin Alliance can be defined in a number of ways. If a region holds embassies and/or treaties with us, that is surely one way to describe them. Additionally, if we are militarily involved or just friendly all around, then we consider that region to be an ally.

[Frattastan IV]

My question referred to your definition of allies of the NPO, since you authorised "offensive military action against [the Pacific], its allies, its protectorates...".

[Old Hope]

Please clarify what regions would fall under "allies" in the AA's view.

An ally of the Augustin Alliance can be defined in a number of ways. If a region holds embassies and/or treaties with us, that is surely one way to describe them. Additionally, if we are militarily involved or just friendly all around, then we consider that region to be an ally.

If you use that definition for "allies"(mainly "holds embassies") for the sanctions related to The Pacific you just de facto declared war(military action) against not only The Pacific, but also The South Pacific, The East Pacific, Nation States, and Europe, amongst others.

[Galiantus III]

An ally of the Augustin Alliance can be defined in a number of ways. If a region holds embassies and/or treaties with us, that is surely one way to describe them. Additionally, if we are militarily involved or just friendly all around, then we consider that region to be an ally.

If you use that definition for "allies"(mainly "holds embassies") for the sanctions related to The Pacific you just de facto declared war(military action) against not only The Pacific, but also The South Pacific, The East Pacific, Nation States, and Europe, amongst others.

He was clearly talking about how AA defines their relations, not how they view the relations of the NPO. And you seem awful desperate to create conflict to distract from any directed at the NPO, now don't you?

[August]

My question referred to your definition of allies of the NPO, since you authorised "offensive military action against [the Pacific], its allies, its protectorates...".

Apologies for the earlier confusion. For these particular sanctions, we are primarily concerned with The Pacific itself (and its territories, such as St Abbaddon). Should other regions begin to declare material support for The Pacific, we may revise that stance. The sanction policy only defines the maximum extent of each measure, not the exact plan of attack.

Short version: We do not need to define "allies" in this case because we do not plan to pursue The Pacific's allies at this time.

An ally of the Augustin Alliance can be defined in a number of ways. If a region holds embassies and/or treaties with us, that is surely one way to describe them. Additionally, if we are militarily involved or just friendly all around, then we consider that region to be an ally.

If you use that definition for "allies"(mainly "holds embassies") for the sanctions related to The Pacific you just de facto declared war(military action) against not only The Pacific, but also The South Pacific, The East Pacific, Nation States, and Europe, amongst others.

Exactly, and that was not the intention here. I hope this clarifies things.

[Old Hope]

If you use that definition for "allies"(mainly "holds embassies") for the sanctions related to The Pacific you just de facto declared war(military action) against not only The Pacific, but also The South Pacific, The East Pacific, Nation States, and Europe, amongst others.

He was clearly talking about how AA defines their relations, not how they view the relations of the NPO. And you seem awful desperate to create conflict to distract from any directed at the NPO, now don't you?

You see that "if", do you?

[DiRito-Opolis]

Right... I misunderstood earlier. Apologies for any trouble I have caused. Carry on.

[United Bunbuns]

As an ally to just about every member region of the Augustin Alliance, you have full support in your endeavor to combat NPO from Carolingia. We will help in any way we can.

Let's show these Francoists what us UCRs got.

[Galiantus III]

As an ally to just about every member region of the Augustin Alliance, you have full support in your endeavor to combat NPO from Carolingia. We will help in any way we can.

Let's show these Francoists what us UCRs got.

*And GCRs. They were caught trying to overthrow GCRs too. It's more like, let's show them the combined might of all NS besides them.

[King Bradley]

I’m not envious of The NPO’s position right now. Not at all.

[United Bunbuns]

As an ally to just about every member region of the Augustin Alliance, you have full support in your endeavor to combat NPO from Carolingia. We will help in any way we can.

Let's show these Francoists what us UCRs got.

*And GCRs. They were caught trying to overthrow GCRs too. It's more like, let's show them the combined might of all NS besides them.

I'm not ignoring that they stabbed their fellow GCRs in the back, but you can't deny that they use demeaning language specifically targeted towards UCRs in an attempt to make us feel inferior (i.e. "userite"). And Francoism is pretty much founded on that idea, so I feel like my statement didn't need dissection and correction.

[DiRito-Opolis]

This is the Alliance monthly report for November. Alliance reports are released at monthly intervals with brief statistics, stories, and updates about happenings in the six regions that constitute the Augustin Alliance.

Statistic	Combined	CK	DN	GH	LE	NA	RF
Population	473 3%	155 0%	17 29%	67 3%	150 20%	28 100%	56 23%
WA Nations	234 4%	86 3%	7 22%	27 7%	57 24%	5 67%	52 22%
Delegate Endos	179 7%	71 4%	3 0%	19 0%	40 8%	1 0%	35 22%
Influence	2479708 6%	1596965 7%	11373 .4%	233428 4%	371550 13%	851211%	257880 4%

Discord Posts: 329577 11%
User Count: 404 17%

Central Strategic Committee

---

1. Defense Officer Tulov and the Media Officer have drafted the first proposal recommendation on “Condemn The Pacific” and is pending publication.
2. Cultural Officer Betmet has officially published the Games Library dispatch. Check it out here!
3. The Media Office has successfully conducted its first NS Census. After reading the feedback, it has been decided that there will be a second. The results for the first are below!

Polls

---

CK: “Should the Government Officially Recognize Transgender People?”, “Should Local Governments be Allowed to Gerrymander?”, “Should Currency be Backed by a Gold Standard?”, “Should Animal Testing be Allowed?”, “Should cigarettes be banned?”, “Should Large Fishing Nets be Outlawed?”, “How Should Illegal Drug Use be Treated?”

DN: N/A

GH: N/A

LE: “What did you think about the midterm elections?”, “Favorite Type of Food to Eat”, “What search engine do you use most often?”

NA: N/A

RF: “Augustin Amendment [Amendment Referendum]?”

News

---

The Alliance Joins the Cause
The Augustin Alliance has joined the movement against the New Pacific Order menace and their terrible acts of espionage and subversion. The Pacific has been swiftly placed on the External Sanctions list and policies i, iv and v will be enacted.

The official statement was set out recently. In this effort, the Alliance stands dedicated to bringing down those that promote a GCR supremacist ideology in such a manner. Rest assured, the AA is doing everything in its power to aid the cause.

NationStates Census I
The first NS Census conducted by the Augustin Alliance Media Office has gone over well. In total, 232 responses were gained. The theme for the month of November was politics. These are purely just to see where the average NSer lies and what people generally prefer.
By popular demand, this NS-wide survey will continue on a monthly basis with various topics.

Which quadrant on the political compass do you most align with?

Authoritarian-Right: 12.1%
Libertarian-Right: 29.7%
Authoritarian-Left: 12.1%
Libertarian-Left: 46.1%

What is the greatest issue facing the world today?

Climate change: 46.6%
Monetary issues (ex: debt, currency): 16.4%
War: 9.9%
Immigration: 10.3%
Other: 16.8%

As aiding the poor goes, you mostly believe that...

the government or a central authority should do more to help the needy.: 63.4%
private charity is a much better alternative to government care.: 23.7%
Other: 12.9%

The government is generally…

inefficient and wasteful, consuming more than they produce.: 29%
a source for good that should provide necessary resources and services to its citizens.: 58.4
Other: 12.6%

What is your general stance on the profit made by large companies?

Large companies make a fair amount of profit in all or most regards.: 34.9%
Corporations make far too much money at the expense of the workers and the poor.: 54.7%
Other: 10.4%

Should the government provide services and goods universally to create a social safety net? (ex: education, roads, medicine, law enforcement)

Yes: 81.5%
No: 5%
Other: 13.5%

Is giving up freedom for security generally a decision you would agree with?

Yes: 25%
No: 62.1%
Other: 12.9%

Should businesses be regulated in the name of consumer and environmental protection?

Yes: 80.6%
No: 8.6%
Other: 10.8%

In your estimation, upward mobility is...

possible with hard work and determination.: 53.4%
not a guarantee for those that work tirelessly.: 38.8%
Other: 7.8%

What is your stance on abortion?

Pro-life: 26.3%
Pro-choice: 56.5%
Other: 17.3%

How do you feel about affirmative action?

In favor: 43.1%
Opposed: 37.5%
Other: 19.4%

Should the LGBTQ+ community be allowed to marry?

Yes: 75.9%
No: 15.5%
Other: 8.6%

Taxation is…

theft/extortion.: 72%
a fair trade-off between citizens and the government.: 12.1%
Other: 15.9%

Marijuana and/or other drugs should be legalized.

Agree: 56.5%
Disagree: 25%
Other: 18.5%

Firearms should be...

banned outright.: 12.9%
regulated to a higher degree.: 47%
deregulated, though not entirely.: 26.3%
unregulated.: 8.2%
Other: 5.6%

November Interview

---

I spoke with Prybourne of Anteria, which is a region that holds very close diplomatic ties with the Augustin Alliance. Below is a small Q&A.

It is no secret that Anteria and the AA have one the best interregional relationships. What would you say has been the best part of working with us so closely?

Honestly the best part of working with the AA is knowing there is always support we can draw on. I think it's wonderful to see that we both have thriving communities that can interact with each other, share events, help each other formulate new ones, and even provide joint assets like entertainment, graphical art, and document templates. I'd say personally my favorite benefit is, with Anteria being a relatively young region in the eyes of NationStates and I could be considered a relatively "young" founder in the same respect with Anteria being my first, it's amazing that I can draw upon the respect, ideas, examples, and wisdom of August and I can also look to the regions of the AA as not only a working foundation but living example of what a region takes to strive and I am very thankful to August and the AA for allowing us to draw upon that knowledge and experience.

Is there any project in particular that you would consider undertaking with the AA to improve relations?

Personally I think Anteria needs to put itself more out on the line with the AA. Declaration of Friendship, for example, is a good start but lot of the times I feel like with my region's members being such isolationist and reluctant to get involved interregional, it leaves us on the short end of the deal. I suppose I don't have anything in too particular at the moment but I would like to see Anteria stick out its neck more for the AA and to be able to forge that closer involvement so that our relationship with the AA is both known and apparent.

What has been your best experience overseeing Anteria’s growth? The hardest?

The best part I have seen with Anteria's growth has to be the steady increase and dedication of the members who make it up as well as their respect for the community and one another. Back when Anteria was founded we got stuck between 13-26 nations. It was very stressful to me, I made everything in the region; the map, the wikis, the factbooks, the events, the chats, etc with not much help and would always be online 16-19 hours a day nonstop no matter what I was doing just to make sure the region had something to do. I was almost overwhelmed with the constant feeling we wouldn't make it. But slowly but surely we had members not only willing to stay, but to put their best foot forward and volunteer their time, resources, and money to the region. Slowly all aspects of the region were taken over by these members and we had new and better assets because of it. Lots of members have been here for a long time and honestly, the fact that even now people can come to me and go "Man, I love Anteria's community because there is no toxic behavior here" and that means a lot to me. To know that our community harbors that respect for one another that people don't feel offended or uncomfortable is amazing to me. The hardest, however definitely has to be some of our members reluctance for change and to get more involved outside the region. Ever since the early days, change has had to fight tooth and claw to pass. One of Anteria's key ideals is "sovereignty" so Anterian's hold onto our own sovereignty and independence very fiercely. Which is a wonderful thing, but many like to resist branching out because "We have a good thing going here, why change that" and complacency become the status quo; something I have warned of from the start. I cannot fault Anterians for fighting to keep Anteria in it's special place, I admire it greatly, but it just means change in Anteria comes slowly but surely every time.

As far as Anteria goes, how do you see it progressing in the near future?

As far as Anteria goes, we aren't the same region we were in 2015, 2016, and 2017, and we won't be 2019 on onward. What I see for Anteria is more well-roundedness of the universe we created. Anteria, as it currently is, is it's own planet, has its own elements, ecosystem, solar system, galaxy, universe. With each day we more refine that down to the very physics itself. I also see us being more involved on the world stage onsite. Anteria has a great RP community, but has yet to make a full debut outside it's own community. With our involvement with regions like the AA, Carolingia, and beyond it is inevitable for the ambitions of the region to stay still as it is. Anteria will continue to get bigger and spread its influence not because of me, but because of those who call it home.

Do you have an personal plans in NS going forward?

Personally, I would like to be able to explore my options independently perhaps even open up new regions in the future. Anteria is a fun project for me, but a shared project nonetheless, and I would like to be able to experiment without screwing up Anteria. However, currently as I see it Anteria has my full, undivided attention. I jokingly call myself it's "overprotective mother" for a reason and I just can't ever come to terms to part with it. I have been online everyday, without fail, since our founding 3 years ago and I have no intention of stopping. Maybe someday I could see Anteria or myself receiving commendation for what we do here and my personal goal is to see if we can continue to search for that reason and make Anteria a region for the ages.

[Saint Block]

Always good to see my friends in the AA doing well! Keep it up.

[Lord Dominator]

That's quite the disparity in number of polls run

[Soviet Monaco]

When the JTF doesn't log into the founder accounts....
I've refounded a JTF-held region.

[Lord Dominator]

When the JTF doesn't log into the founder accounts....
I've refounded a JTF-held region.

The horror! /s

Edit: Which of course, you seemed to have missed the memo that the JTF deliberately let the region CTE, which one can easily find out by searching up the WFE index.

[Saint Block]

Good to see that the vast majority of AA are libertarians!

[August]

Edit: Which of course, you seemed to have missed the memo that the JTF deliberately let the region CTE, which one can easily find out by searching up the WFE index.

Exactly, sixteen months ago. It looks like we were not even the last people in there.

For a little background on this, Alliance colonies are former enemies that we have captured (usually by infiltrating and flash-refounding active regions with founders, like Power Alliance of Strength). This is why we only have a few of them at any given time. AA colonial policy dictates that we release colonies exactly one year after capture--by that time, we have thoroughly established that it is ours, and there is not much point in hanging onto a worthless name for all eternity.

So no, we do not really mind if someone else wants to take up residence there. The original owners would probably be honored that someone thought their name worth keeping.

[Saint Block]

That’s quite an interesting and healthy policy regarding colonies.

[DiRito-Opolis]

This is the Alliance monthly report for December. Alliance reports are released at monthly intervals with brief statistics, stories, and updates about happenings in the six regions that constitute the Augustin Alliance.

Statistic	Combined	CK	DN	GH	LE	NA	RF
Population	545 15%	187 21%	13 24%	68 1%	168 12%	17 39%	92 64%
WA Nations	240 3%	86 0%	5 29%	26 4%	59 4%	3 40%	61 17%
Delegate Endos	172 4%	65 8%	2 33%	20 5%	43 8%	1 0%	41 17%
Influence	2602334 5%	1657942 4%	12038 6%	241604 4%	376320 1%	8806 3%	305624 19%

Discord Posts: 391967 19%
User Count: 439 9%

Central Strategic Committee

---

1. Defense Officer Tulov, the Media Officer, and a few others have helped to create new recommendations as needed for each resolution that has come about in December.
2. Cultural Officer Betmet and the Media Officer have begun planning a festival for our allies. Additionally, Betmet is set to add “The Great Incursion” to the Games Library.
3. The Media Office has tested out its podcast method and will likely see the first upload in the coming weeks. Furthermore, the second NS Census has been completed.

Polls

---

CK: “Will you be having a Merry Christmas or a Happy Holiday?”, “Should Abortion be Legal?”, “Should Energy be Free?”, “Should Companies be Allowed to Deny Service on the Basis of Religion?”, “Should Robots be Given Rights?”, “Should the Government Control How Many Children Families Have?”, “Which Economic System is Superior?”, “Should there be a Separation of Church and State?”

DN: N/A

GH: N/A

LE: “Have you seen NCIS?”, “Best Star Wars movie/show”, “What is the best type of energy source?”, “Do you ever expect the Spanish Inquisition?”, “Have you seen History of the World Part 1?”, “What part of the military would you join?”

NA: N/A

RF: N/A

News

---

AugustinAndroid 2
On behalf of the Augustin Alliance, we would like to thank August for slaving away over sleepless nights of coding in developing our very own Discord bot in an enhanced version. The original version will eventually be phased out in our own server for this much more sophisticated bot that is tailored to meet the needs of the moderation team, the Central Strategic Committee and the Joint Task Force.

There are very intricate commands and features that have taken many weeks to compile. The AA was first introduced to “Moose v2” on Christmas day and soon the bot will have completed its beta-testing phase, making it available for public use for all to enjoy!

NationStates Census II
The second NS Census was conducted by the Augustin Alliance Media Office. In total, 141 responses were gained over a shorter time period than the first. The theme for the month of December was personal favorites. These are purely just to see where the average NSer lies and what people generally prefer.

What is/was your favorite school subject?

Science: 20.6%
Mathematics: 12.1%
Foreign Language: 5.7%
Social Studies/History: 46.1%
English/Literature: 7.1%
Other: 8.4%

Do you prefer cats or dogs?

Woof! Dogs all the way!: 30.5%
You've got to be kitten me, cats are the best!: 31.2%
Both are nice!: 30.5%
I don't like either.: 2.8%
Other: 5%

What kind of food is your favorite?

Italian food: 29.8%
Chinese food: 15.6%
Japanese food: 12.1%
Mexican food: 4.3%
Indian food: 7.1%
American food: 1.4
German food: 1.4%
Vietnamese food: 1.4%
French food: 1.4%
Other:

What is your favorite color?

Green: 15.6%
Red: 17%
Blue: 24.8%
Orange: 6.4%
Purple: 7.1%
Yellow: 6.4%
Black: 9.2%
White: .07%
Pink: 2.8%
Grey: 1.4%
Other: 9.23%

What is your favorite season?

Autumn: 30.5%
Spring: 19.9%
Summer: 20.6%
Winter: 29.1%

What is your favorite book genre?

Science Fiction: 36.2%
Fantasy: 29.1%
Action/Thriller: 5%
Crime: 5.7%
Horror: 2.8%
Non-fiction: 12.1%
Other: 9.1%

What is the best gaming platform?

XBox: 9.9%
PlayStation: 7.8%
Nintendo: 9.2%
Mobile: 2.1%
PC: 68.8%
Other: .21%

Do you prefer night or daytime?

Carpe Diem, I’m all about the day!: 19.1%
I prefer the quiet darkness of the night.: 48.9%
I’m not any kind of time person. I hate both night and day equally.: 23.4%
Other: 8.6%

Which is the superior phone brand?

Samsung: 44.7%
Apple: 20.6%
Google: 9.2%
Other: 25.5%

What is your favorite part of the holiday season?

PRESENTS!!!: 20.6%
Giving to others: 5%
Connecting with family: 31.9
Food nomnomnom: 20.6%
Traveling: 4.3%
Movies: 1.4%
Other:16.2

December Interview

---

I spoke with Helaw who currently runs Tempest, a former Delegate of Ridgefield and a current Issues Editor. Below is a small Q&A.

What would you say has been your most memorable/rewarding moment as an AA member or in general?

It's always difficult to recall any one moment when a question like this is asked. I'd say that each day as a part of the AA community has been quite nice, and NS as a whole has kept me interested. I believe my most memorable moment would be the first N-Day, which was a big community effort that paid off.

During your time in Ridgefield, what has been your best experience?

When I'm not telling people that the truth behind the Statutory Code is locked in a safe I keep somewhere in the ocean, I sit around peacefully and watch the region tick by, occasionally taking sips of tea from my fancy cup. It's easy to conflate 'Ridgefield' experiences with 'Augustin Alliance' experiences, but one thing that sticks out to me was the tedious and amusing first court case. I wouldn't repeat it, but it was entertaining.

As an IE, what was the best thing you had the chance to work on or take part in?

I have been taking a hiatus from issues just as I have been taking one from NS as a whole, but I intend on getting back into the swing of things soon. That being said, the writing and editing processes, in general, are fun and easy to enjoy, offering an excellent creative outlet. I'd say all of the collaboration both backstage and in Got Issues stands as one of the best parts of my NS experience, if not the best. Getting one issue into the game is what many players hold as an ambition, so to contribute to that is both important and exciting.

Where do you envision your region, Tempest, will be in the coming months?

It will be on NationStates, at the URL http://www.nationstates.net/region=tempest
Hopefully I will have the consistent time to build the region into what I see it becoming, that being an active and friendly place.

Do you have anything particular in the works that you could share with us?

I have a new Christmas album coming out. Other than that, everything is in my secrets drawer. Does the drawer even exist? That's a secret.

[Saint Block]

Great report as always Dirito. I had fun taking the survey.

[Grater Tovakia]

Look at those numbers! Great job Dirito, I always love to see these (especially when LE is doing well).

[Helgafjall]

Always enjoy reading these

Hi from Carolingia! <3

[DiRito-Opolis]

This is the Alliance monthly report for January. Alliance reports are released at monthly intervals with brief statistics, stories, and updates about happenings in the six regions that constitute the Augustin Alliance.

Statistic	Combined	CK	DN	GH	LE	NA	RF
Population	525 4%	148 21%	10 23%	66 3%	172 2%	15 12%	114 24%
WA Nations	240 3%	76 12%	3 40%	24 8%	68 15%	3 0%	73 20%
Delegate Endos	180 5%	66 2%	1 50%	19 5%	47 9%	1 0%	46 12%
Influence	2717805 4%	1715024 3%	9200 24%	253770 5%	416756 11%	8985 2%	314070 3%

Discord Posts: 32870 47%
User Count: 428 3%

Central Strategic Committee

---

1. Personnel Officer Kurczak Mielony oversaw a recruitment competition, in which Peacockastan took the gold with 1732 sent telegrams and 30 recruits.
2. Cultural Officer Betmet and his editors have written the first chapter of an Augustin Alliance novel, which you can read here.

Polls

---

CK: “Should Illegal Immigrants Have Access to Government-Subsidized Healthcare?”, “Should Minors be Eligible for the Death Penalty?”, “Should Solitary Confinement be Legal?”, “How Should the Government Help the Homeless?”

DN: N/A

GH: What do you do on New Years Day?

LE: “Is the United Nations effective?”, “Best Sci-Fi TV/Movie Franchise”, “Which is better, DC or Marvel? (includes comics, films, and tv shows)”, “Who would win in a war, China or Russia?”, “Stormtrooper vs Red Shirt”

NA: N/A

RF: Do you support the Palpatine Amendments proposed changes to the Statutory Code?, Is globalism or nationalism more beneficial to nations?, Do you support raising taxes on the rich to increase the standard of living for the poor?

News

---

Notable Regional News
Conch Kingdom
1. Embassy events are in progress.
Lands End
1. An embassy was opened in LE with Barbaria.
2. After a large amount of recruiting, LE is the biggest region in the AA.
Ridgefield
1. The Statutory Code has been amended.
2. Nueva Rico has become the Cultural Curator.

NationStates Census III
The third NS Census was conducted by the Augustin Alliance Media Office. In total, upwards of 40 responses were gained over the course of an hour, and it was to see where a majority of people lie in regards to the victor of the event. Showing the wisdom of crowds, the majority accurately predicted the outcome. Next month will be politically themed.

Who will win the Super Bowl?

Patriots: 67.4%
Rams: 32.6%

January Interview

---

I spoke with Peacockastan, a current member of the Lands End Board of Directors. Below is a small Q&A.

As a member of LE’s government, what has been your greatest accomplishment?

My greatest achievement would have to be making LE the largest region in the AA (as of now). I obviously can't take all of the credit because other LE officials recruited too, but I do believe that I played a genuinely important role in the recent growth that we have experienced lately.

What has been your most notable AA experience?

My most notable AA experience was most likely when myself and several others were testing out the bot and the new recruitment process in the late v2 development stages. I remember how all of us were stunned at how much work August had done with that thing and trust me, it showed.

Do you have any personal projects in NS coming up?

Projects? Not necessarily. I do, however, have some goals that I have set for myself and hope to accomplish in the future. Those goals being to not let up on recruitment and hopefully get LE above 200 nations. That may take a while, but I'm willing to do what it takes.

As someone who consistently recruits for his region, what advice would you give others wondering what to do to keep their region afloat?

Never give up. Never just take a week off of recruiting because you feel like it. If you truly want growth then work hard for it and don't let up. After doing this, you'll hopefully see that growth that you've been looking for, but your work isn't done yet. Make all of the new nations in your region feel welcome by saying "Hi" in the RMB or by sending them a telegram, and try to introduce them to the region and the region's opportunities. And if they leave, an exit telegram can go a long way.