The Apathian Summit/Discussions (Closed to Four Nations)

[Sierra Apathia]

When is your next election? Jim asked Philips.

As the day began to set in, they were easily stuck in the rush-hour traffic. What a Saturday, Jim thought. The Hummer moved slowly through traffic, like a hot knife through butter. Jim remembered his father's time in the military, who fought against the Spanish invaders in the 1980s as a tank commander. He remembered how he lost his leg and ended up having a prosthetic one before his family settled quietly in Greenwich.

Those were the days... He said randomly. His time in prison proved him to be a very remorse-filled man.

"How often does do your citizens get stuck in traffic?" asked Jim, changing the subject. He wondered how other nations cope with transportation problems.

[Garimidia]

"10 October, 2010." Replied Philips, awaiting the day that campaigning would begin and candidacies announced. He was surely going to run, he thought.

He listened as Stone randomly said "Those were the days." This made him think. He stared out the window, the people passing by, the sun high in the sky. He had no idea what his Apathian counterpart was talking about or what he was thinking, but at the same time he understood completely.

"Yes they were." He whispered some time later in reply as he faced the window.

He snapped out of it to reply to the Transportation query. "Our Ministry of Transportation takes care of Transportation around Garimidia has a whole, with several departments/offices working under it in each of our 21 states, like the Dastin Office of Transportation, as an example. In turn, they appoint representatives to the city council to deal with transportation issues. At the moment, we're constructing.. uh.. about 4 new highways. As of now though, some of our roads can get clogged at times, especially during rush hour."

"So, do you any of you make regular speeches to your legislatures? Like a State of the Union address?" He asked.

[Altane]

'Well we've currently put money into attending traffic problems and road damage at the moment while we increase expenditure in infrastructure.' replied Adm who then goes onto say to reply to Philips question 'My father is the Mediator in the Imperial Chancellery so he does make regular speechs relating to State Affairs and other subjects of interest'.

[Sierra Apathia]

"Not exactly.." Jim replied, as he looked out the window. they were already approaching the city center, and was going to pass through it with ease. "I often make speeches around the end of the month. I'm accustomed to see the results out of something before actually talking about it. Unless whatever it was was interrupted however... But yes, the last time i made a speech was last week, announcing the summit. An address was made a month earlier, pertaining to some problems in public transportation." Jim said, making himself uneasy. He knew that wasn't the true motive of the speech.

The Hummer eventually made its way towards downtown Greenwich, the limited number of neon boards, several small jumbotrons and a controlled number of pedestrians meant that it kept its prestige as a political capital of Sierra Apathia. Archos, on the other hand, had a large array of them in Star Junction, which seemed all too little for a city of its size. As the vehicle briefly stopped, a man stepped into the car, sweating as he was rushing. "Sorry, got caught up in traffic." said the man, who only introduced himself as an advisor to the President. Jim looked at his watch and steadily walked down the long stretch of the limo and towards the driver's compartment, and gave a whisper. The vehicle jolted out of the traffic, and into a busy highway.

"So.." said Jim, as he sat down once more, "Do any of you face a financial crisis in your nation? What are the recent developments so far on this?" he asked the trio, noting the recent recession Sierra Apathia was hit.

[Garimidia]

Philips shuffled in his seat as he thought about the financial crisis. "Well." He began then he cleared his throat. "The worst part of it is over, the major stock market recession ended about July. Nonetheless we rose about 6% unemployment, the fastest rise in 15 years, and some businesses have had to be nationalized. But they're beginning a slow transition back to private ownership." He said as the motorway traffic eased past. "It was a shock to the system when one of our largest financial companies, Orange Horizon Corporation, crashed following the world news."

Philips sat and thought. "I guess we'll have to release a joint communique at the end of this, like they do at most multilateral meetings."

[Altane]

"The Altanian economy is well, with about only 3% unemployed, a powerhouse economy, a strong currency, we are fairing very well in terms of economy"

[Almajoya]

"Almajoya is doing well, all things considered," Melisma answered. Almajoya had never had a spectacular economy, not since she had taken over anyway. The economy was probably one of her weak points-she spent on what she and Parliament believed was necessary with little understanding of the effects it would have. "The economy is reasonable, and unemployment is low for us." But the currency was pretty weak.

[Sierra Apathia]

As the limousine moved out of the busy highway, the Hummer drove into the heart of the city, and into Verney Hill. The car briefly passed Novato Road, where the national Archives are kept, and the National Museum of Apathian History. As the Hummer moved into Hutton street, Jim looked at the Estrada Palace in awe, looking at its shining features in the broad daylight.

The car stopped by the time the foursome had ended their conversation. The majestic red carpet that was rolled during Jim's state visits were no longer there, instead replaced with gold leaf carpets. One by one, starting with Jim, the leaders stepped out and made their way across the gold carpet, with dozens of reporters and photographers behind steel barriers. Jim smiled, but he wondered how other leaders would do so.

"Do you have media restrictions? How are you open to this?" asked Jim, and he wondered how other nations restrict their media scene. Hundreds of flashes filled the walkway, as the leaders tried to move in as possible.

[Altane]

"In Altane, some media groups are nationalised while others remain privatised and regulated. We allow the media to cover events like this but we make sure they don't go too far, even celebrity news isn't as intrusive as it is in other countries"

[Almajoya]

Melisma smiled at the cameras as she followed Jim down the carpet. She secretly loved the media attention. "The media is free to cover whatever they want in Almajoya, as long as they do not infringe on others' rights and privacy. And of course, there are many places in which they are not allowed." She decided not to mention that virtually all the media in Xaymaca were owned and controlled by a single conglomerate.

[Garimidia]

"No, no restrictions. There was a law passed in 1987 and 2001 about media restrictions, called the Freedom of Media and the Press Act. This prevented government intervention in the media.. though I'm sure the previous governments weren't infringing their rights anyway. But sometimes, you'd wish you could stop them." Philips said, with a smile as he waved at the reporters. The cameras flashed, the reporters screamed for an answer out of the leaders.

[Sierra Apathia]

As the leaders slowly made their way through the gold carpet, and towards the entrance into the palace grounds, the sound of shutters became slowly inaudible. Jim craved media attention, especially during high-profile meetings. The leaders stopped walking as the large gate door opened. The palace grounds, the north lawn of the palace covers about 18 acres (approximately 7.3 hectares), and was definitely a difficult task to walk through. Luckily however, another limo were provided upon their arrival on the grounds.

In the distance, just in front of the front lawn, was an arrival ceremony which was already in place just upon the group's arrival.

The five branches of the Apathian Armed Forces positioned throughout the Front Lawn, with the flags of the twenty-five states and flags of overseas Apathian territories held aloft by members of the Apathian Armed Forces. Members of the Official Foreign Delegation are assembled, along with representatives of the three branches of the Federal Government, embassy staff of the guest country being honored, and the press.

The honor guards stared blindly into the distance, but Jim could not notice how tired they looked. Standing for an hour in the sun waiting for the leaders to arrive seemed a task he wouldn't want to fulfill, even his own father himself.


"How much does one need to pay tariffs when they bring in goods?" he asked, highlighting how Sierra Apathia once imposed heavy tariffs a decade ago. As the group went inside the limo, Jim interrupted their answers to the question he asked. "Would you like review our military honor guards?" he asked, just after his other question.

[Almajoya]

"Certainly," Melisma said in response to Jim's first question, looking at the formation in the distance.

"Tariffs depend on the goods being brought in," Melisma added. "We impose the heaviest tariffs on products that could pose dangerous, including poisonous fruits, beef, and PVC products; we also impose them on items which we produce heavily, such as jewelry, to encourage buying local."

[Garimidia]

"Absolutely." Said Philips, in response to the military query.

"We pretty much instate the same system as Almajoya does. Dangerous goods have high taxes. In 2002, the administration placed tariffs on Oil, but they were taken down over massive demonstrations. Infact, it had a negative impact on our economy." Said Philips as the four walked.

[Sierra Apathia]

OOC: Sorry i'm late. Where's Altane?

IC:
"Yes, we also impose high taxes on dangerous goods too." Jim agreed. "In 2006, a Japanese restaurant in Archos.. what was it.. ah, Sochi, imported several tonnes of puffer fish, and killed several dozens of people in that week. The following month, we imposed heavy Tarrifs on such dangerous goods, and some states even made it illegal to eat puffer fish." He said seriously, but laughing towards the end.

They managed to make it on time. "You don't mind waiting a little while before we go in?" Jim asked. They had approached the front entrance of the Palace, and sat down at a small makeshift podium. In front of them was a formation of honor guards, a military band, and a small, but tall podium facing the leaders. They sat on the four chairs, made of comfortable black leather.

After sitting down briefly for five minutes, a beautiful, but strict looking lady came up to the podium. "I'd like you all to stand briefly, for our national anthems." she announced via a microphone which was held close to her chin. Jim stood up, but he didn't know if the other leaders did too, however.

[Sierra Apathia]

OOC: Your national anthem can be an instrumental, or if you have the lyrics, you can role play a singer who comes up the podium and sing.

IC:

The military band started to play the opening moments of the Red Phoenix, the Apathian National Anthem. The lady, gripped the microphone with both hands, also started to sing.

Around our flag we are united,
With one will and one desire,
A sacred oath we are now proclaiming
For our salvation to aspire.

May only those avoid the struggle,
Those who are traitors to our laws,
Undaunted is a hero through and through,
He dies a martyr to the cause.

With weapons in our hands a-brandished,
We will defend our ever-lasting sovereignty,
Our sacred rights we’ll not relinquish,
The foe has no place in our land.

As the Red Phoenix glides high;
The nations of the earth shall wane,
And yet will live, will thrive Sierra Apathia.
For her our fight won’t be in vain
and until the moon and sun, cease to spin.

As the anthem ended, it was the other nation's anthems next. He saw the how video cameras took the momentous occasion in a patriotic way.

[Garimidia]

OOC: Not sure what happened to him.

The blond woman was Sarah Pethia, who was a famous Garimidian singer who always sang the national anthem at sporting events and other high profile events. She stood proudly on the stage as she gripped the microphone, and began to sing Glorious Nation of Garmidia. Philips had liked the anthem, but had never liked the name.

God of Nations at thy feet
In the bonds of love we meet;
Hear our voices we entreat;
God defend our free land;

Guard Garimidia's triple star;
From the shafts of strife and war;
Make her praises heard afar
God defend Garimidia.

OOC: Had to use New Zealand's anthem there XD

[Altane]

OOC: Sorry wasn't keeping track.

IC:
A young man in his 20's from Altane stood from his chair. He was chosen to sing at the Summit when he won a contest to sing the Altanian Imperial Anthem at the summit. He then began to sing 'God Bless Victor XX'

Dear brothers and sisters of Altane,
standing under Lord Christian's Flag,
that has stood for Everlasting Millenias,
under the Kuritan Dynasty,

God Bless Victor XX,
who continues the tradition,
of ruling with righteousness and honor,

Together we stand,
for the Empire to expand,
in the name of our Glory

OOC: That's all I can really think of at the moment.

[Almajoya]

Finally, a young Almajoyese woman stood up. Melisma smiled as she recognized her from the national study-abroad program. The woman began to sing in a powerful contralto:

La ticya to ramiba to jenita so desi
la isada mejor sechio de saoula no mi
De le timepo no usi to ushi meda
tica de mino uchi, te brasi adeka
La ticya to ramiba to jenita kakuha
eterna de mino ama, mino Almajoya!

Melisma sang along to herself in a soft soprano. When the brief anthem concluded, Melsima whispered the translation to the others:

Justice, truth and honor will hold
the best place in this soul of mine.
Through bad times and good, I will stay
true to my home, those welcoming arms.
And justice, truth, and honor will live
forever in my love, my Almajoya!

[Sierra Apathia]

Jim heard enough of the military band. The music pounded his ears, bringing discomfort. He did not mean to insult the other leaders, but it was something he was born with anyway. He quietly took from his trouser pocket a cylindrical vial, and emptied it slowly, with its contents pouring out wildly. By this time his vision blurred, so Jim quickly poured all of it into his mouth. Then, a barrage of 21-gun salutes came. Jim momentarily closed his ears. A total of 84 shots were fired, which was for all four leaders. As the barrage ended, Jim lifted his hands off his ears.

"Shall we?" he asked the leaders, as the honor guards were already waiting for them to come down. They made their way down the white wooden steps, taking time to ensure the stage won't collapse. "What exactly are your armed forces, in numbers?" he inquired. He wondered how other nations are like Sierra Apathia's 2 million forces.

[Altane]

"Our Military is approximately 3.5% of our population equalling about 41 million soldiers. I can guess that none of you are suprised by this fact as we are often described as a continuingly expanding empire."

[Garimidia]

"Our armed forces total is about 2 percent of our total population. We have about 21,000,000 in total. This is crushing us, budget-wise, to be honest. We're downsizing the Air Force by 450,000 by 2011." Said Philips, coughing. He quickly pulled out the white tissue in his front pocket and coughed into it for a few seconds before putting it away, slightly embarrassed and blushing.

"So, uhh..." He said was thinking of a random question. "What is the deadliest criminal shooting in your nation?" He asked randomly, inspired by the sounds of the guns and the military theme. He was slightly embarrassed at the randomness of the question, but continued nevertheless.
"Garimidia's would be the Addison massacre of 1987."

[Altane]

Adam obviously entertained by the Military theme goesa onto to respond to Garimidia's question.

"Well we don't sell arms to the public and thanks to our large and efficient Police Force there is next to no criminal shootings, nearest thing to a criminal shooting would of been the terrible time of the Harnite Revolution. More of an armed uprising against the Empire but the closest we would have to what would be a criminal shooting as we give a lot of powers to the Police to ensure the peace and prevention of crime."

[Sierra Apathia]

"Unfortunately, we have a very small military force of 2 million. We try to keep it that way, diplomacy.. heck, diplomacy seems to be more useful in situations. However, we did have a sizable force back in the 1960s onwards, about 20 to 30 million? I guess it was probably due to the arms race we had." said Jim, not mentioning the name of the nation it raced with.

"Oh, criminal shootings?" he asked, who obviously gotten carried away. "We had a few in the past years, but none like it matched the massacre of 1999.. I wouldn't want to explain it - too gruesome." He insisted, while reaching the final steps. As the morning was already setting in, Jim insisted on having the review done by group, in order to speed up time.

The first set of honor guards, on Jim's opinion, was clearly one of the best he has ever seen. It wasn't as good as the one he had on his inauguration. He figured, Apathian honor guards composed of volunteers who are carefully screened for their physical ability and dexterity and only those who are highly motivated and maintain exceptionally high standards of appearance and conduct and show aptitude for ceremonial duty are likely to be considered.

He asked the rest of the group, while stopping to talk to one of the honor guards. Dressed in a black top and with red pants, he observed how well the woman was standing silently. "What do you think of this?" he asked. "And How do you recruit your armed forces?" he asked, noting how young, level of fitness, and even regarding mental capabilities as well.

[Almajoya]

"We have 200,000 active troops, with five million more on standby," Melisma replied to the first question. "And I suppose the deadliest shootout would be the coup that killed my father and brother. Several people were killed."

Once they reached the woman, Melisma remarked, "Excellent discipline, and poise. Well trained, a reflection of her superiors, her country and herself." She turned to Jim. "Our military is volunteer only- we would use a draft only in the greatest of emergencies. We Almajoyese tend to be in good physical shape, so selection is rarely a problem. And we do not discriminate based on class, sexuality, gender, anything." To the others, she asked, "Is this the same case in your militaries?"