Embassy of The East Pacific: March Issue is Out Now!

[Vussul]

However, the problem with TNP Government has been accumulated differences due to NSGP actions, in which we have seen that TNP Gov does not want to rescue (and recognizes) that relations are already irreconcilable as they are now.

NSGP struggling to understand this as the reason why the treaty is being repealed is on-brand. Nothing less from a society that has the capacity of Mr. Bean.

[Dreadton]

I like TEPs spin on this as bad and fictional as it is. TEP has gone from a decent friend to a spoiled teenage whom only cares for itself, then gets mad when others wont cater to it. But they are very good at playing the victim

[Podria]

EPNS February 2024 Edition

Very well written issue! I was a particular fan of the piece on regional activity, reminded me a lot of Llorens' work with NationStates Today. Really glad to see TEP in good health and with great success!

[Angeloid Astraea]

I like TEPs spin on this as bad and fictional as it is. TEP has gone from a decent friend to a spoiled teenage whom only cares for itself, then gets mad when others wont cater to it. But they are very good at playing the victim

Responding to a treaty repeal by personifying TEP just to insult that personification is the kind of weirdness I read these forums for. Thank you Dreadton. =P

[Ever-Wandering Souls]

I like TEPs spin on this as bad and fictional as it is. TEP has gone from a decent friend to a spoiled teenage whom only cares for itself, then gets mad when others wont cater to it. But they are very good at playing the victim

"Just in case the bridge wasn't fully burned, I'm here with some napalm!"

[Rosartemis]

Great read as always! It is nice to see TEP in good health

[Merlovich]

Great read as always! It is nice to see TEP in good health

[Bhadeshistan]

Good read, gonna need it for my English class though since I have a bad grade there.

[Eastern Pacific News Service]

EPNS March 2024 Edition

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Contents:

• Delegate's Update
• Magisterium Update
• Culture Update
• Grand Vizier Address
• The Foreign Newsstand
• Secretariat Member Removed, NationStates Protests

Delegate's Update
By: Merlovich

Hello TEP! Welcome to another Delegate’s Update and another edition of the EPNS.

This last month brought about the biggest interregional event TEP has taken part in for some time, as we planned and enjoyed Rogue Rendezvous 2024, alongside our friends in The Pacific and Carcassonne. The event ran over a full weekend, from Friday the 29th of March to Monday the 1st of April. We held all manner of events, from a pirate-themed version of our monthly Hunger Games, to a Pirates of the Caribbean watch party, to a Pokémon showdown night (side note: i suck at pokémon)

The event was heaps of fun, and I thoroughly enjoyed being part of the planning team. We faced a couple struggles in getting the event off the ground, but with good work from the entire team we were able to have a well-planned and enjoyable event. Big thanks to all the Captains, as well as everyone from TEP, NPO and Carcassonne who turned up and had a swashbucklin’ time with us.

The executive has seen some strong progress this month. That EPSA questionnaire I touched on last time I addressed you was a great success, with over 110 responses. We were able to get a good idea of where people’s thoughts and opinions lied regarding the regional military, and with that info, we’re much better equipped to hit the ground running over the next month. The theming poll was a close race, with navy pulling off a narrow victory. Army, Special Forces and Space Navy didn’t finish too far behind. Given this albeit narrow result, we’ve decided that our region's military rebrand will be naval themed! We’re currently brainstorming some names, I’ve been cooking up a new emblem, and we’ll be structuring ranks and creating posters and dispatches in no time.

We’re looking forward to the revitalisation of our military, and I can’t wait to see things kick off. It’s been one of the top priorities of my Delegacy, and I’m super pleased to see it taking shape. Our FA restructure, another goal I had for this term, is also coming along smoothly. I’ve decided, after discussion with the Foreign Affairs Council, on the return of the ambassador system. We’ll be assigning FA staffers to certain regions as ambassadors in the coming weeks, to help manage workloads and ensure every regional relationship is attended to and working well. I am hopeful that the changes we’re working on will ensure every region we hold relations with will not only receive consistent updates from us, but frequent check-ins, a closer friendship and overall better ties. The program will be frequently monitored to ensure success, and we’ll make changes if necessary to ensure our friends and allies are well looked after.

Alongside these revitalisation efforts, I’ve got a new project we’ve started work on. Operation Propeller is intended to upgrade the REWARD program (our native endorsement program). While the current system works fine, and is capable, I believe it can be made better. Our current endorsement levels are well behind the figures boasted by other feeders. In regards to a % of the region’s WA members endorsing the Delegate, The East Pacific ranks lower than any other feeder.

Only 68% of TEP WA members endorse the Delegate, while that figure is 76% in TNP and the NPO, 78% in TSP, and 80% in TWP. Operation Propeller seeks to kick-start our endorsement culture in the East, encourage more users to not only join the World Assembly, but endorse the Delegate, Viziers and other members of the region. Awards will be given out for the best performers monthly, and we’ll have ‘Winged Hussars’ as a step above the Hussars of the East you’re familiar with today. We’re working on card raffles to further encourage individuals to take that step and join the WA, as well as badges and ribbons for our dedicated Hussars. I’m hoping that by the end of this term in mid-June, we can find a 3% boost in our figures, from 68% - 71%. If that goal is met, I’m hoping to build further on that result in future months.

In more game-related news, TEP also took part in the April Fools event this year. While we were a little late to the party (thanks timezones) we (i) decided upon our spectacular new wonder. After about thirty seconds of deep, serious and important thought, I figured what better wonder to represent TEP than the grape. ‘haha grape’ is a favourite saying of TEP, don’t ask why, we don’t know. I can’t even remember where it came from at this point, but in the spirit of our region never taking anything seriously, I thought why not. And thus the Statue of Graperty was born.

It was an arduous few days, we experienced ups and downs, the statue went from the peak of popularity to the depths of the dislike rankings. We battled day and night with pesky card farmers to keep our beautiful statue afloat. Despite being hilariously outgunned, we persevered and ended the event well into the green. We were downvote bombed until the very last second, but with hard work from our native population, as well as a few dedicated puppet-masters, we were able to keep the statue standing. While we didn’t end the event with a victory, we still had fun, which is all that matters. We ended the event as the second most controversial wonder (spicyyyyy), only narrowly overtaken in the final moments.

Thanks for reading, I look forward to speaking to you all again next month. Ciao!

Magisterium Update
By: Dremaur

Hello readers,

The March magisterium was productive, ending in the election for the 61st Provost (spoiler: I secured another term, so you’re all stuck with me readers for the next three months).
The Votes:

• [A-2024-14] Amendment to the Punishment Justification Act
• [R-2024-15] Repeal of the North East Security Treaty
• [P-2024-16] Admittance of Pauline Bonaparte
• [R/A-2024-17] Repeal of the Regional Message Board Regulation Act and Amendment of the Treason Act

The Election:

• [VOTE] Provost of the 61st Magisterium

Culture Update
By: Tommo

March was a busy time for the culture side of TEP! For the first time ever, along with The Pacific and Carcassone, we proudly hosted Rogue Rendezvous, a pirate-themed spectacle that involved a games night, a Pirates of the Caribbean watch party, and the March edition of the Hunger Games! I am very happy to report that the event was a tremendous success, and I am very very thankful to everybody who helped set up the event, as well as everybody who participated. You all made it worth the while!

Moving on, please keep an eye out for future events and happenings as we have many many more planned further down the line for the spring and summer. Let’s make it a memorable year for TEP, eh? With love, from Tommo <3

Sidebar Content

A Worlds to Build Update
By East Malaysia

Hopefully, someone has missed our dedicated all things Urth, Valsora, and Worldbuilding section of EPNS! Due to foreseen circumstances, I could not be the driver behind this section as usual, so there will be plans for the next edition of EPNS to have a massive Worlds to Build section to make up for the last few editions.

If you have any ideas for this section or would like to contribute please send a message my way on NS or Discord (@.emjay).
For now, let's look back at our standalone editions and Happy Worldbuilding!

Grand Vizier Address
By: Aivintis



Over the course of March, the Citizenship Office denied two faulty citizenship applications and granted citizenship to four residents of The East Pacific. The Grand Vizier encourages all residents to apply for citizenship and to keep an eye on their telegram inboxes in order to ensure that we maintain continual growth in our citizen numbers. Citizens receive the right to vote in Delegate elections and referendums to amend the Concordat.

There are no new events of note from the Praesidium, Eastern Pacific Police Service, or the Citizenship Office.

By: Altys

The Foreign Newsstand
By: Aivintis

Hello and welcome to the Foreign Newsstand.

We in The East Pacific’s FA Watch are tasked with discussing and debating news of global significance within NationStates Gameplay (NSGP). With an eye on the forums and the news reports of our allies, we see discussion on a wide range of interregional political topics, and I have used this perspective to create the Newsstand, summarizing the goings-on of NSGP.

This Newsstand is fact-checked by TEP’s Foreign Minister, but nevertheless, I am human, and make mistakes. As such, I encourage people to reach out if there are factual errors, and I invite any NSer to reply in this thread adding any events I may have missed. It can help me figure out what my blind spots are, and ensure accountable, factual reporting. Without further ado, here are the major events of March 2024:

• Atlanticana has rebranded their official government, the “Skylands,” as the “Cosmic Dreamscape.”
• Two Fascist regions have been successfully brought down by an anti-fascist coalition including raider regions such as Voidcall and Astoria, led by the Crimson Crusaders.
• Lenlyvit has taken over the office of the Chief Executive within 10000 Islands, as Markanite steps down from the position. Lenlyvit has experience as a Delegate of XKI and a New Republica South Senator. The latter office, which Lenlyvit has only just vacated, now opens itself up to a competitive election between Wazeww and The World Defense Organization, newcomers to XKI’s political scene. [1]
• The North Pacific led another successful raid on Warzone Trinidad, the newest Warzone, which maintains an embassy with The East Pacific. TNP cited WZT’s connections with regions that initiated the delegate bump in the region Europe, as cause for the invasion.
• Partially as a result of the raid on Warzone Trinidad, although citing grievances spanning well over a year, The East Pacific has withdrew from the North-East Security Treaty with The North Pacific. TEP still maintains an embassy with TNP. [2]
• The record-breaking, prolific tag raiding and Independent military organization Lily has returned to the GP scene after a months-long period of inactiviity. Alongside Lily giants like Sweeze, the organization has brought on new members, such as prominent Brotherhood of Malice member Volstrostia. [3]
• The Festival of the Perfections was hosted by the West Pacific.
• TNP Deputy Speaker MadJack brought charges of espionage and fraud against Rand, a Europeian, for allegedly using a post from a private citizens forum of The Rejected Realms to discredit a North Pacifican. These charges were dismissed, as Rand holds no citizenship within The North Pacific and the crime was not committed on TNP-owned platforms. [4]
• The Charmony Festival, a spring event, was held by Atlanticana.
• The Region That Has No Big Banks has established embassies with the South Pacific. Behind Lazarus, this is TRTHNBB’s second GCR embassy. TRTHNBB also maintains a consulate with The East Pacific.
• Europeian World Assembly Delegate and Foreign Affairs Minister UPC was elected President after a race against Minister of Culture Ellenburg, who has experience as a Prime Minister of Lazarus. UPC and his running mate, newly elected Vice President Sanjurika, ran on a strong cultural platform, with Recruitment Nights, a “Frontier Fest”, and WA education events listed among others. [5]
• Archkeeper Rosartemis of Astoria has released a ‘roadmap’ for her next term in office, focusing on the hiring of new recruiters for Astoria as well as the forum-discord merger initially promised in her previous term, further listing goals of a regional newspaper called the Word of Hermes, a ‘House’ faction system, and regional ‘Exaltations’ and ‘Damnations’ as a microcosm of WA C/Cs. [6]
• Zerphen has been elected the Forest Keeper of the region Forest, as announced by Foreign Affairs Minister Jutsa on the newly revived Forest GP embassy. Jutsa has also announced a chess event with The Region That Has No Big Banks and weekly trivia.
• The Brotherhood of Malice launched a delegate bump on the frontier Concord, a leading defender power as a constituent of the Republic of the League and Concord (TL&C). [7][8]
• In response to the delegate tipping of Concord, the Coalition of the South Pacific, represented by Prime Minister HumanSanity, released a statement applying full proscription to members of Astoria, The Black Hawks, The Brotherhood of Malice, Lair of the Dragon, Osiris, Sparkalia, and Warzone Trinidad. [9]
• The raider region Ijaka has updated their World Factbook Entry to indicate that they have indefinitely shut down.
• During the repeal of the Security Council resolution Liberate Realm of the Whispering Winds, the region in question (R2W) was raided by Lone Wolves United and the West Pacific. On passing, the resolution restored the password the region previously held, preventing further liberation. This was met with new proposals for restored liberation and an added injunction.[10] Some natives objected to these tactics by defenders, who they felt failed them militarily.[11]
• The Lair of the Dragon has signed a treaty with Atlanticana, which mandates diplomatic recognition and encourages cultural cooperation. [12]
• Warzone Spokane has been named the new CEO of Warzone Trinidad, as the sole candidate for the office.

References:
[1] https://www.nationstates.net/page=dispatch/id=2004425
[2] viewtopic.php?p=41413514#p41413514
[3] viewtopic.php?p=41399504#p41399504
[4] https://forum.thenorthpacific.org/topic ... t-10674171
[5] https://www.nationstates.net/page=dispatch/id=2008346
[6] viewtopic.php?p=41428976#p41428976
[7] viewtopic.php?p=41447654#p41447654
[8] https://forums.europeians.com/index.php ... .10065951/
[9] https://www.nationstates.net/page=dispatch/id=2012078
[10] viewtopic.php?p=41463267#p41463267
[11] viewtopic.php?p=41479326#p41479326
[12] viewtopic.php?p=41467813#p41467813

Secretariat Member Removed, NationStates Protests
By: Aivintis

The East Pacific knows Wallenburg as a former Arbiter and Viceroy, as well as the first Chief Minister of World Assembly Affairs, and the longest standing WA Minister in TEP history. The wider NS community knows Wallenburg from the fourteen World Assembly resolutions he has authored or from his 2020 commendation. Or, most likely, they know him as a member of the WA General Assembly’s Secretariat.

The General Secretariat, or GenSec, is the six member body dedicated to approving General Assembly resolution proposals. These are the GA legal experts – often prolific authors themselves – who review each proposal and declare them either legal or illegal according to the rules of the GA. The first members of GenSec were appointed by NS Moderation, but all those appointed since have been chosen by the existing members.

On March 15, only a few months after the GenSec’s appointment of Kenmoria, Demosthenes and Burke, and The Ice States, three prominent GA members, The Ice States opened a new thread in the General Assembly forum, entitled “2024 GenSec Nominations.” In the original post of the thread, Ice States announces that Wallenburg has been removed by Moderation and Administration (M/A), despite objections from the GenSec itself.


Current GenSec Members

This announcement was met with confusion by the public, especially members of the General Assembly community. Rarely is a member of the site staff team removed by the Moderators – in recent memory, only Game Moderator Jakker was removed, alongside a swift announcement indicating that OOC issues had arisen which made Jakker worthy of not just being stripped of his title, but granted DOS status. With Wallenburg, however, no such announcement was made.

Over the course of several posts from The Ice States, other GenSec members, GAers, and Wallenburg himself, it soon became clear why – Moderation did not remove him for any OOC misdeed worthy of deletion. In fact, Moderation seemingly removed him for no reason at all, other than that he strongly objected to a proposed site change which would make the quadrannually elected Secretary-General (an April Fool’s addition similar to the Wonders of the World we saw recently) more powerful in the GA.

More insight comes from a post by Sedgistan, Site Director, who said “[Wallenburg’s] conduct has failed to meet the standards we expect from staff”. In response, Wallenburg claimed that the conduct they referred to was his signature snark – something not uncommon in NS spheres – and that he was removed even after he “agreed to comply with [Sedge’s] onerous standards in the future.”

A discussion thread was made before posts about Wallenburg’s removal clogged the thread. In this thread, The Ice States acknowledged that the “internal consensus within Gensec was resolutely against Wallenburg's removal”, calling the reasons for his removal “banal.” Though other GenSec members were less vocal, it wasn’t long before the GA community came out in force to support Wallenburg.

It started with retired GenSec Bananaistan, with the three words: “I nominate Wallenburg.” This would begin a site-wide resistance. “I fail to see why it's inappropriate for him to continue in the role,” the WA author explained in his nomination. Shortly after, Utecna seconded this nomination. Legene and Idinist Imauggland indicated support for it as well, then The Chuck. Not even two hours after the first nomination, Cessarea nominated Wallenburg again. Then The Overmind. And Kranostav. Corporate States of Europe. Castille de Italia. Langburn. Ignis Ferreus. Repreteop.

What followed was a long chain of nominations from all over NationStates, but especially from The East Pacific. WA authors, RPers, GPers, and more came together. West Pacificans and Easterners, Defenders and Raiders and Independents. All of them chanted the same thing. “I nominate Wallenburg.” When TWPer Varanius reported the dozens of posters for ‘spam,’ Game Moderator Goobergunchia declined to act without the consent of GenSec. The Ice States soon replied, saying they “would strongly oppose, removing those posts. I am unconvinced that anyone else on Gensec would want them removed.”


Graph of SecGen nominations, courtesy of The Ambis

With grace, Wallenburg accepted his nominations, and the thread exploded from there. At the time of writing, eleven pages stand, with 261 posts. Well over a hundred of them nominate Wallenburg for the open GenSec position. The community has seen the actions of Moderation/Administration and rejected them in a resounding display of support for Wallenburg’s continuation as a member of GenSec.

When asked if the GenSec would consider Wallenburg for the position, given the support from all of NS, The Ice States said, “If it were up to us whether he's in Gensec then he would still have the pink jacket” – pink being the color of the GenSec role on the forums. Demosthenes and Burke was, though not less supportive, openly pessimistic about Wallenburg’s chances. Even if Wallenburg were chosen as his own replacement, the GenSec argued, it would be easy for Moderation to simply not grant him on-site permissions. If they refused to nominate anyone else, Moderation could just appoint their own member, or remove the GenSec in its entirety.

Players were shocked to discover that Wallenburg was banned from discussing the matter by Moderation and Administration, over cited concerns of security, under potential threat of DOS (delete on site) status. GenSec member Imperium Anglorum, however, publicly replied that, as a GenSec member, he could see no aspect of the interaction behind closed doors which would prove a security threat to the site or its members.

In an apparent attempt to end speculation, Technical Moderator Refuge Isle released a statement declaring that Wallenburg was removed due to “unacceptable hostility to staff” and a refusal to comply with acceptable standards of behavior “without caveat”. Some NS members expressed that the explanation was sufficient, although some bemoaned the lack of transparency from the start, which only fueled speculation and misinformation.

However, the story does not end there. Wallenburg continued to deny any unwarranted hostility on his part, challenging the factual basis of certain information shared by the statement by M/A, such as declaring Sedgistan’s plan for the Secretary General a presentation by the M/A team rather than an independent, personal idea. Imperium Anglorum further threw into question the integrity of this moderator statement by requesting to release the messages by Wallenburg which M/A found questionable to “put to bed all this calumnious speculation”.

The Moderation team refused, locking the discussion thread with a final statement from Reploid Productions. Invoking FAQ language of Max Barry’s “very own father knows best state” and claiming M/A’s hands are tied by his will, Reploid denounced “bad faith” arguments within the thread. The statement further claimed NationStates was far more transparent already than it has to be, and justified M/A’s decision by asserting “Staff positions are not up to a popular vote.”

Finally, Reploid directed all “valid concerns of moderator abuse” to the Getting Help page, describing the M/A approach to these reports. As they describe, “Site staff cannot edit, delete, or otherwise alter the contents of your GHR, and mod abuse reports are flagged for immediate admin attention.” Forum threads, the statement says, are not the appropriate place to bring complaints.


Flag of support made by Libertanny

Throughout the event, the NationStates community came out in force to show their support for Wallenburg and the General Secretariat. From all over the site, the people came together to declare their unwavering commendation of one of the most prolific WA authors, GenSec members, and discussors in the game. Whether this is an instance of the trampled community rising up against an indifferent and corrupt moderation, or of a petulent community defying basic standards of conduct, however, is up to the observer.

Nevertheless, before final statements were even out by the M/A team, many NSers had already taken their stance. In one notable example, East Pacifican former Delegate Libertanny designed and flew a pink flag with the phrase “Wallenburg – GenSec of our Hearts.” Bearing a similar protest style to other flags of solidarity made in the past, such as the “Fram Balder” flag flown by many East Pacifican officials upon the leak of the Brotherhood of Malice’s Operation Ragnarok, this flag was less widespread, but indicated a similar sense of unity.

This is not the first drama relating to Moderation and Administration, and it may not be the last. It is clear that Wallenburg’s days as a General Secretariat member are over, for good, no matter what the rest of NS or the GenSec wants. The NationStates community needs to adapt, and face the next drama with a measured understanding of where it will lead, and an evaluation of whether their solidarity is effective and just in the end, or simply disruptive, as some will undoubtedly believe.

Sources:
viewtopic.php?f=9&t=547893
viewtopic.php?f=16&t=547900
NS World Assembly Discord Server

[Rosartemis]

It is great to see that EPNS is still uploading on schedule, this new minister is doing well!

[Dreadton]

TNP Deputy Speaker MadJack brought charges of espionage and fraud against Rand, a Europeian, for allegedly using a post from a private citizens forum of The Rejected Realms to discredit a North Pacifican. These charges were dismissed, as Rand holds no citizenship within The North Pacific and the crime was not committed on TNP-owned platforms. [4]

I am going to correct this one, the charges were dismissed because Rand was not a resident or a citizen at the time of the offense and the crime was not committed on TNP owned platforms.

[Aivintis]

TNP Deputy Speaker MadJack brought charges of espionage and fraud against Rand, a Europeian, for allegedly using a post from a private citizens forum of The Rejected Realms to discredit a North Pacifican. These charges were dismissed, as Rand holds no citizenship within The North Pacific and the crime was not committed on TNP-owned platforms. [4]

I am going to correct this one, the charges were dismissed because Rand was not a resident or a citizen at the time of the offense and the crime was not committed on TNP owned platforms.

My mistake, apologies.

[Dreadton]

I am going to correct this one, the charges were dismissed because Rand was not a resident or a citizen at the time of the offense and the crime was not committed on TNP owned platforms.

My mistake, apologies.

No biggie, many people in TNP struggle with our legal code