NationStates

Introduction:
Ora Amaris is a vast land approximately 4.5 million square kilometres blessed with incredible natural beauty. "Ora Amaris" means "the land of dreams" in ancient Amarisian.

Flag:
The flag of Ora Amaris is inspired by the astrological symbol for Earth, as well as the Pagan elements. The red represents fire, blue represents water, green represents earth and yellow represents air. The white surrounding it represents spirit which holds all aspects together.

Geography:
The land is endowed with rolling hills, endless strawberry fields, snow-capped mountains, mushroom forests, and the famous psychedelic springs. The psychedelic springs are protected as national treasures and are a frequent pilgrim destination. The springs are have a rare micro-organism that feeds on the roots of the nearby mushroom forest surrounding the springs. The waste of these microorganisms is chemically similar to psilocybin, which causes the psychoactive effects. The mushroom forests surrounding these springs are inhabited by bioluminescent butterflies of varying colours, which migrate all over Ora Amaris during the year, coming back to the giant fungal forest during the season of Autumn.


(A mushroom in the Eudaimonia region. Mount Crystal and downtown Eudaimonia can be seen in the background)

Demographics:
The population of Ora Amaris is approximately 150 million people. The people of Ora Amaris are renowned for their intelligence, worldliness, compassion, pacifism, spirituality and liberal drug use. The predominant religion of Ora Amaris is Paganism. Although there is no official religion, the government of Ora Amaris recognizes the Pagan wheel of the year.

45% of Amarisians are rural dwellers, living in small communes dotting the vast land. 55% of Amarisians live in the capital city of Eudaimonia, settled at the foot of the tallest mountain in the land, named The Shining Mound. The mountain is known for its diverse precious gem deposits. The city of Eudaimonia is a large decentralized urban area. In the nature of the extremely eco-friendly government, the city utilizes an impressive arrays of biotechnologies. Mushroom trees endemic to the psychedelic springs are bred specifically as habitations to the Eudaimonians.

History:
The history of Ora Amaris is, as the First Member remarked, 'pretty chill'. Because of the violent pacifism of the populace, the country has never been in any major or minor conflict. Ora Amaris does have armed forces, though they're are not armed with traditional machineries of war, and are simply ceremonial. The "tanks" are a fleet of twenty Volkswagen Type 2 vans with 6 people in each van, armed with various drug paraphernalia and psychoactive substances. Rather than being used for war, the vans circle the nation, visiting the various settlements and communes around the nation, offering their vast array of supplies for food, gems, books or other valuable items. The arrival of these trucks are marked with great fanfare, and are often nicknamed 'the ice-cream truck for adults'.

Politics and Government:
Ora Amaris utilizes has a representative democracy comprised of a single house of government, called the House of the People. Representatives are called simply members. The electoral system is pure proportional representation. The entire country is a single district, and there are 150 members in the house. 3% of the vote is the minimum needed to get a seat. Voting is mandatory and scheduled every 5 years. Governments cannot be defeated by a vote of non-confidence like in Westminster style of government. The fleet is scheduled to go to every settlement and commune and collect votes. The voting process usually takes many months, due to the fact that the drivers of the fleet are usually under the influence of various substances.

The leader of the nation is called the First Member. This position is called that from the way the government is set up. The party with the most votes is counted first in allotted seating. Because proportional representation is counted from a list, the party leader of the victorious party and thus the leader of the nation is the first member of the house.

There are five major political parties that make up the house. The first party, with a majority of the seats, is the Green Party of Ora Amaris. It has 67 seats in the house, followed by the Progressive Future Party of Ora Amaris with 22 seats and the Stoner/Psychedelic Alliance Party with 20 seats. These three parties make up the government. In opposition is the Liberty Party of Ora Amaris with 23 seats and the Pagan Heritage Party of Ora Amaris with 18 seats. Here is a visual break-down of the House of the People:



Culture:
Pagan traditions are widely practised. The most important holiday is Samhain, which takes place in Autumn on October 31st. The people of Ora Amaris have a long tradition of psychoactive drug use and wilderness pilgrimages. However, these pilgrimages are extremely dangerous. It is estimated that over half of the nation's total death rates come from these pilgrimages in the vast wilderness. Those that do make it back alive usually become spiritual leaders within their communes.