[PASSED] The Central Library Compact

[Luna Amore]

World Assembly Central Library Compact
Category: Education| Area: Cultural Heritage

The World Assembly,

Recognizing the work of the Universal Library Coalition (ULC), its Executive Committee (ULCEC), and their Universal Literary Exchange Network (ULEN), in promoting literacy;

Concerned, however, by a lack of protections for preserving physical written works, and thus, that the mission of digitizing and distributing literary works may be hindered by not having a central repository from which to conduct this import work;

Therefore, Hereby:

Establishes & builds a World Assembly Central Library Complex (WACLC), with the purpose of:
-Restoring & Replicating older written works, which may have become damaged with age,
-Collecting new & informative written works for archival purposes,
-Displaying rare, unique, or important works from nations,
-Providing scholastic access to such works, and maintaining the circulation of important written works among nations;

Mandates that WA Nations seek to preserve and, wherever possible, restore the historic & cultural written works of their nation, which may have become damaged through age;

Further, Requires all WA nations adopt standards governing the preservation, restoration, and security of historical, cultural, or important written works;

Encourages that all WA Nations unable to provide for the preservation and security of historic & cultural written works, seek wherever permissible to donate such works to the WACLC;

Mandates, that in order to achieve these goals, that the ULC be tasked with:
- Collecting & Preserving written texts as donated by entities to the WACLC, and when applicable returning original texts to their donor,
- Providing for the storage & security of written works;
- Creating replicated copies of works which may not be stable enough for public handling,
- Comparing digital copies of works to original written works to prevent tampering,
- Restoring & Repairing, at fair cost, written texts, at the request of donor entities;

Mandates that ULCEC oversee & consult with donors on:
- Ongoing funding efforts for WACLC operations,
- The importance, or literary value of a written work donated to the WACLC,
- The restoration or replication of written works provided, to ensure authenticity and validity,
- The security of written works donated to the WACLC,
- New standards of preservation, restoration, and protection of written works against loss or damage,
- Transfers of written works from donors to the WACLC;

Mandates that the Office of Building Management (OBM) locate suitable land(s) and/or a planet, in international territory on which to build the WACLC, which shall:
- Have adequate access to transportation to & from the WACLC & WA Nations,
- Be sufficiently large enough to include for future expansion(s) of the WACLC,
- Ensure necessary protection against fire, natural elements, or other natural phenomena;

Encourages all WA Nations seek wherever possible to donate new, informative written works to the WACLC and the ULEN for circulation amongst nations and/or archival purposes;

Affirms that all donors retain cultural ownership of all written works donated to the WACLC, and may elect to remove their work from circulation by providing written notice to the ULCEC;

Clarifies that nothing herein shall be read as to remove written works from member states, and that all contributions to the WACLC must be voluntary;

Affirms the rights of all WA Nations in promoting, as they see fit, the written works and literary traditions of their nation.

J. Everett: We have submitted this proposal here with the express purpose of building an international library, in order to promote cross cultural heritage and exchange.

A. Wilde: ~interjects~ books. It's about books and building a massive library for books. If I am getting lost anywhere in this crazy institution it will be in the library and not some creepy sentient office space

J. Everett: ~rolls his eyes and returns back to preparing his floor speech~ yes there is that, but honestly not every delegate will vote for building you a library. But they may vote to share cultural heritage.

[The United Royal Islands of Euramathania]

~reserved for drafts~

World Assembly Central Library Compact
Category: Education| Area: Cultural Heritage

The World Assembly,

Recognizing the work of the Universal Library Coalition (ULC), its Executive Committee (ULCEC), and their Universal Literary Exchange Network (ULEN), in promoting literacy;

Concerned, however, by a lack of protections for preserving physical written works, and thus, that the mission of digitizing and distributing literary works may be hindered by not having a central repository from which to conduct this import work;

Therefore, Hereby:

Establishes & builds a World Assembly Central Library Complex (WACLC), with the purpose of:
-Restoring & Replicating older written works, which may have become damaged with age,
-Collecting new & informative written works for archival purposes,
-Displaying rare, unique, or important works from nations,
-Providing scholastic access to such works, and maintaining the circulation of important written works among nations;

Mandates that WA Nations seek to preserve &, wherever possible, restore the historic & cultural written works of their nation, which may have become damaged through age;

Further, Requires all WA nations adopt standards governing the preservation, restoration, and security of historical, cultural, or important written works;

Encourages that all WA Nations unable to provide for the preservation and security of historic & cultural written works, seek wherever permissible to donate such works to the WACLC;

Mandates, that in order to achieve these goals, that the ULC be tasked with:
- Collecting & Preserving written texts as donated by entities to the WACLC, and when applicable returning original texts to their donor,
- Providing for the storage & security of written works;
- Creating replicated copies of works which may not be stable enough for public handling,
- Comparing digital copies of works to original written works to prevent tampering,
- Restoring & Repairing, at fair cost, written texts, at the request of donor entities;

Mandates that ULCEC oversee & consult with donors on:
- Ongoing funding efforts for WACLC operations,
- The importance, or literary value of a written work donated to the WACLC,
- The restoration or replication of written works provided, to ensure authenticity and validity,
- The security of written works donated to the WACLC,
- New standards of preservation, restoration, and protection of written works against loss or damage,
- Transfers of written works from donors to the WACLC;

Mandates that the Office of Building Management (OBM) locate suitable land(s) and/or a planet, in international territory on which to build the WACLC, which shall:
- Have adequate access to transportation to & from the WACLC & WA Nations,
- Be sufficiently large enough to include for future expansion(s) of the WACLC,
- Ensure necessary protection against fire, natural elements, or other natural phenomena;

Encourages all WA Nations seek wherever possible to donate new, informative written works to the WACLC and the ULEN for circulation amongst nations and/or archival purposes;

Affirms that all donors retain cultural ownership of all written works donated to the WACLC, and may elect to remove their work from circulation by providing written notice to the ULCEC;

Clarifies that nothing herein shall be read as to remove written works from member states, and that all contributions to the WACLC must be voluntary;

Affirms the rights of all WA Nations in promoting, as they see fit, the written works and literary traditions of their nation.

: Cleaned up some redundant language and added that the ULCEC should consult with donors on ongoing funding for the WACLC

World Assembly Central Library Compact
Category: Education| Area: Cultural Heritage

The World Assembly,

Recognizing the work of the Universal Library Coalition (ULC), its Executive Committee (ULCEC), and their Universal Literary Exchange Network (ULEN), in promoting literacy and cross cultural understanding;

Concerned, however, by a lack of protections for preserving physical written works, and thus, that mission of digitizing and distributing literary works may be hindered by not having a central repository from which to conduct this import work;

Therefore, Hereby:

Establishes & builds a World Assembly Central Library Complex (WACLC), with the purpose of:
-Restoring & Replicating older written works, which may have become damaged with age,
-Collecting new & informative written works for archival purposes,
-Displaying rare, unique, or important works from nations,
-Providing scholastic access to such works, and maintaining the circulation of important written works among nations;

Mandates that WA Nations seek to preserve &, wherever possible, restore the historic & cultural written works of their nation, which may have become damaged through age;

Further, Requires all WA nations adopt standards governing the preservation, restoration, and security of historical, cultural, or important written works;

Encourages that all WA Nations unable to provide for the preservation and security of historic & cultural written works, seek wherever permissible to donate such works to the WACLC;

Mandates, that in order to achieve these goals, that the ULC be tasked with:
- Collecting & preserving written texts as donated by entities to the WACLC, and when applicable returning original texts to their donor,
- Providing for the storage & security of written works;
- Creating replicated copies of works within the WACLC which may not be stable enough for public handling,
- Comparing digital copies of works to original written works to prevent tampering;
- Restoring & repairing, at fair cost, written texts, at the request of donor entities

Mandates that ULCEC oversee & consult with donors on
- the importance, or literary value of a written work donated to the WACLC,
- the restoration or replication of written works provided to ensure authenticity and validity,
- the security of written works donated to the WACLC,
- new standards of preservation, restoration, and protection of written works against loss or damage,
- transfers of written works from donors to the WACLC;

Mandates that the Office of Building Management (OBM) locate suitable land(s) and/or a planet, in international territory on which to build the WACLC, which shall:
- Have adequate access to transportation to & from the WACLC & WA Nations,
- Be sufficiently large enough to include for future expansion(s) of the WACLC,
- Ensure necessary protection against fire, natural elements, or other natural phenomena;

Encourages all WA Nations seek wherever possible to donate new, informative written works to the WACLC and the ULEN for circulation amongst nations and/or archival purposes,

Affirms that all donors retain cultural ownership of all written works donated to the WACLC, and may elect to remove their work from circulation by providing written notice of such intent to the ULCEC;

Clarifies that nothing herein shall be read as to remove written works from member states, and that all contributions to the WACLC must be voluntary;

Affirms the rights of all WA Nations in promoting, as they see fit, the written works and literary traditions of their nation;

:reduced length to fit submissionguidelines, removed ULEN requirement, adjusted language

World Assembly Central Library Compact
Category: Education| Area: Cultural Heritage

The World Assembly,

Cognizant of the diversity of nations, cultures and literary traditions among member-states;

Recognizing the work of the Universal Library Coalition (ULC), its Executive Committee (ULCEC), and their Universal Literary Exchange Network (ULEN), in promoting literacy and cross cultural understanding;

Concerned, however, by a lack of protections for preserving physical written works, and thus, that mission of digitizing and distributing literary works may be hindered by not having a central repository from which to conduct this import work;

Therefore, Hereby:

Establishes and builds a World Assembly Central Library Complex (WACLC), with the purpose of:
-Restoring and Replicating older written works, which may have become damaged with age,
-Collecting new & informative written works for archival purposes,
-Displaying rare, unique, or important works from member states,
-Providing scholastic access to such works, and maintaining the circulation of important written works among member states;

Mandates that member-states seek to preserve and, wherever possible, restore the historic and cultural written works of their nation, which may have become damaged through age;

Further, Requires all member-states adopt standards governing the preservation, restoration, and security of historical, cultural, or important written works;

Encourages that all member-states unable to provide themselves for the preservation and security of historic and cultural written works, seek wherever permissible to donate such works to the WACLC;

Mandates, that in order to achieve these goals, that the ULC be tasked with:
- Collecting and preserving written texts as donated by member states to the WACLC, and when applicable returning original texts to their member-state donor,
- Providing for the storage and security of written works by member-states whom may be unable to provide for such storage;
- Creating replicated copies of works within the WACLC which may not be stable enough for public handling,
- Comparing digital copies of works to original written works to prevent tampering;
- Restoring and repairing, at fair cost, written texts, at the request of member-states, institutions, or donors;

Mandates that ULCEC oversee and consult with member states on
- the importance, or literary value of a written work donated to the WACLC,
- the restoration or replication of written works provided to ensure authenticity and validity,
- the security of written works donated to the WACLC,
- the protection of written works and replicas against loss or damage,
- new standards of preservation, restoration, and protection of written works,
- transfers of written works from member states to the WACLC;

Requires that for any written work provided through the ULEN, that a replicated copy of the work must be donated to WACLC,

Mandates that the Office of Building Management (OBM) locate suitable land(s) and/or a planet, in international territory on which to build the WACLC, which shall:
- Have adequate access to transportation to and from the WACLC and member-states,
- Be sufficiently large enough to include for future expansion(s) of the WACLC as deemed necessary to accommodate donations of written works,
- Ensure necessary protection against fire, natural elements, and weather, or other natural phenomena;

Encourages all member-state to seek wherever possible to donate new, informative written works to the WACLC and the ULEN, for circulation, and archival;

Affirms that all donors retain cultural ownership of all written works donated to the WACLC and may elect to remove their work from circulation by providing written notice of such intent to the ULCEC;

Clarifies that nothing herein shall be read as to remove written works from member states, and that all contributions to the WACLC must be voluntary;

Affirms the rights of all member-states in promoting and encouraging, as they see fit, the written works and literary traditions of their nation;

And in doing so;

Agrees to and codifies "The World Assembly Central Library Compact"

:Added clause regarding member state preservation of written works, and standards to protect books. Updated some of the pre-clausual arguments

World Assembly Central Library Compact
Category: Education| Area: Cultural Heritage

The World Assembly,

Recognizing the work of the Universal Library Coalition (ULC), its Executive Committee (ULCEC), and their Universal Literary Exchange Network (ULEN), in promoting literacy and cross cultural understanding;

Concerned, however, that their mission, to preserve and distribute works of cultural importance by scanning and digitizing them, is hindered by lacking a central library within which to store physical copies of such works, and within which to have space and equipment to conduct this work;

Hereby:

Establishes and builds a World Assembly Central Library Complex (WACLC), with the purpose of:
-Restoring and Replicating older written works, which may have become damaged with age,
-Collecting new and informative written works for archival purposes,
-Displaying rare, unique, or important works from member states,
-Providing access to scholars, and maintaining the circulation of written works among member states;

Mandates, that in order to achieve these goals, that the ULC be tasked with:
-Collecting and preserving written texts as donated by member states to the WACLC, and returning orginal copies to their donor,
-Providing for the display of and public access to written texts donated by member states at the WACLC,
- Creating replicated copies of works within the WACLC which may not be stable enough for public handling, in order to display said replicas,
-Restoring and repairing written texts which may have become damaged through age;

Mandates that ULCEC oversee and consult with member states on the restoration or replication of written works provided to ensure authenticity and validity, the security of written works donated to the WACLC, the protection of written works and replicas against loss or damage, and transfers of written works from member states to the WACLC;

Requires that for any written work provided through the ULEN, a replicated copy of the work must be donated to WACLC;

Mandates that the Office of Building Management (OBM) locate suitable land(s) and/or a planet, in international territory on which to build the WACLC, which shall:
-Have adequate access to transportation to and from the WACLC,
-Be sufficiently large enough to include for future expansion(s) of the WACLC as deemed necessary to accommodate donations of written works,
-Ensure necessary protection against fire, natural elements, and weather, or other natural phenomena;

Encourages member states, organizations, and authors to donate written works to the WACLC;

Affirms that all donors retain cultural ownership of all written works donated to the WACLC and may elect to remove their work from circulation by proving written notice of such intent to the ULCEC;

Clarifies that nothing herein shall be read as to remove written works from member states, and that all contributions to the WACLC must be voluntary;

And in doing so;

Agrees to and codifies "The World Assembly Central Library Compact"

: Added purpose language to the WACLC and clarifies some pre-clausal arguements. Clarifies language in the draft.

World Assembly Central Library Compact
Category: Education| Area: Cultural Heritage

The World Assembly,

Recognizing the work of the Universal Library Coalition (ULC), its Executive Committee (ULCEC), and their Universal Literary Exchange Network (ULEN), in promoting literacy and cross cultural understanding;

Concerned, however, that their mission is hindered by lacking a central library within which to store physical copies of books;

Hereby:

Establishes a World Assembly Central Library Complex (WACLC), to collect, restore, display, and circulate physical written works for public consumption;

Mandates that the ULC be tasked with:
-Collecting and preserving written texts as donated by member states to the WACLC,
-Providing for the display of and public access to written texts donated by member states at the WACLC,
- Creating replicated copies of works within the WACLC which may not be stable enough for public handling, in order to display said replicas
-Restoring and repairing written texts which may have become damaged through age;

Mandates that ULCEC oversee and consult with member states on the restoration or replication of written works provided, the security of written works donated to the WACLC, and transfers of written works from member states to the WACLC;

Requires that for any written work provided through the ULEN, a copy must be donated to WACLC;

Mandates that the Office of Building Management (OBM) locate suitable land(s) in international territory on which to build the WACLC, which shall:
-Have adequate access to transportation to and from the WACLC,
-Be sufficiently large enough to include for future expansion(s) of the WACLC as deemed necessary to accommodate donations of written works,
-Insure necessary protection against fire, natural elements, and weather;

Encourages member states, organizations, and authors to donate written works to the WACLC;

Affirms that all donators retain cultural ownership of all written works donated to the WACLC and may elect to remove their work from circulation by proving notice of such intent to the ULCEC;

Clarifies that nothing herein shall be read as to remove written works from member states, and that all contributions to the WACLC must be voluntary;

And in doing so;

Agrees to and codifies "The World Assembly Central Library Compact"

[Shazakhra]

"Not sure if they conflict but check out GA #78 Universal Library Coalition. It does something very similar."

[The United Royal Islands of Euramathania]

Yes, We consulted that resolution before drafting this. It is in our reading GA 78 is solely an internet portal to books with a rotating book collection, and not a physical archive that we wish to establish. We used the committees established by that resolution to oversee this new expansion of the WA.

[Separatist Peoples]

"This is an incomprehensible collection of interconnected committees. I love it."

[Calladan]

Why are we building a single place to store books? Why are will still using WRITTEN works for books? Didn't the fire at the Great Library teach you people anything?

You take a book. You scan it in to a computer. You can then make it available in almost any medium you wish - print (by reprinting it), audio (for the blind, for those who wish to listen to it on long journeys and so forth), via tablet/phone/computer screen (for people who like taking a lot of books on holiday with them), interactive holograms......

While there is something about a good book, Calladan is not going to waste time and effort on building a big library to store a redundant art form from the last century that is going to become obsolete pretty soon. Sorry.

[The Atlae Isles]

Why are we building a single place to store books? Why are will still using WRITTEN works for books? Didn't the fire at the Great Library teach you people anything?

You take a book. You scan it in to a computer. You can then make it available in almost any medium you wish - print (by reprinting it), audio (for the blind, for those who wish to listen to it on long journeys and so forth), via tablet/phone/computer screen (for people who like taking a lot of books on holiday with them), interactive holograms......

While there is something about a good book, Calladan is not going to waste time and effort on building a big library to store a redundant art form from the last century that is going to become obsolete pretty soon. Sorry.

I understand your concern, Ambassador, and I would like to address them. First, it appears to be a place like an archive, not just a regular library. Also, the library will be protected from fire. It could contain texts too sensitive to be placed on the Internet. Some WA nations might not be able to provide or afford the services that you gave, mediums for which literacy can spread. For some texts to be placed on the Internet, it has to be carefully preserved, and scanned with possibly expensive equipment. I believe that a central library is essential for that. Also, the Internet does not restore old and damaged text. For such things to go on the globalized communications network, it must proceed through a central library system. Thank you.

OOC: The Great Fire was caused by Julius Caesar. It wasn't the librarians' fault.

[Separatist Peoples]

Why are we building a single place to store books? Why are will still using WRITTEN works for books? Didn't the fire at the Great Library teach you people anything?

You take a book. You scan it in to a computer. You can then make it available in almost any medium you wish - print (by reprinting it), audio (for the blind, for those who wish to listen to it on long journeys and so forth), via tablet/phone/computer screen (for people who like taking a lot of books on holiday with them), interactive holograms......

While there is something about a good book, Calladan is not going to waste time and effort on building a big library to store a redundant art form from the last century that is going to become obsolete pretty soon. Sorry.

"Ambassador, books will never become obsolete, especially as a primary storage method. Hard copies cannot be corrupted or easily edited, and won't be destroyed if properly cared for. The same cannot be said for digital copies. Hard copies are always important. FULL SUPPORT."

[Canton Empire]

Full support for this.

[Calladan]

Why are we building a single place to store books? Why are will still using WRITTEN works for books? Didn't the fire at the Great Library teach you people anything?

You take a book. You scan it in to a computer. You can then make it available in almost any medium you wish - print (by reprinting it), audio (for the blind, for those who wish to listen to it on long journeys and so forth), via tablet/phone/computer screen (for people who like taking a lot of books on holiday with them), interactive holograms......

While there is something about a good book, Calladan is not going to waste time and effort on building a big library to store a redundant art form from the last century that is going to become obsolete pretty soon. Sorry.

I understand your concern, Ambassador, and I would like to address them. First, it appears to be a place like an archive, not just a regular library. Also, the library will be protected from fire. It could contain texts too sensitive to be placed on the Internet. Some WA nations might not be able to provide or afford the services that you gave, mediums for which literacy can spread. For some texts to be placed on the Internet, it has to be carefully preserved, and scanned with possibly expensive equipment. I believe that a central library is essential for that. Also, the Internet does not restore old and damaged text. For such things to go on the globalized communications network, it must proceed through a central library system. Thank you.

OOC: The Great Fire was caused by Julius Caesar. It wasn't the librarians' fault.

There will ALWAYS be another Julius Caesar - if you gather enough copies of the written word in one place, someone will look at it and think "Aha - kindling!!!"

Plus - not to point out either a REALLY obvious flaw, or something I have missed - The World Assembly covers a HUGE area of three dimensional space. Literally BILLIONS of light years across.

If a nation can't afford to scan a book and provide a copy via tablet/the internet, what are the odds that a nation from that citizen can afford to travel half a billion light years to check a book out from the library, travel half a billion light years back to their home, read it, then make another billion light year round trip to return it?

Unless you are going to somehow magically transport books across the half a billion light years to a local branch - which suggests fairly advanced technology. Technology far more in advance of a screen and an ethernet cable.

[Calladan]

Why are we building a single place to store books? Why are will still using WRITTEN works for books? Didn't the fire at the Great Library teach you people anything?

You take a book. You scan it in to a computer. You can then make it available in almost any medium you wish - print (by reprinting it), audio (for the blind, for those who wish to listen to it on long journeys and so forth), via tablet/phone/computer screen (for people who like taking a lot of books on holiday with them), interactive holograms......

While there is something about a good book, Calladan is not going to waste time and effort on building a big library to store a redundant art form from the last century that is going to become obsolete pretty soon. Sorry.

"Ambassador, books will never become obsolete, especially as a primary storage method. Hard copies cannot be corrupted or easily edited, and won't be destroyed if properly cared for. The same cannot be said for digital copies. Hard copies are always important. FULL SUPPORT."

I am starting to think that if we ever find something our two nations agree on, the entire universe will implode and be forced to start again from scratch

I am not saying books do not serve a purpose, but for me they are already started to become obsolete and an anachronism - aside from official documents (not books, but documents) I can't remember the last time I read something that wasn't electronic. Even shopping for my various children's presents is now mostly done on line or directly in shops..... *shrug* Times change and we change with them.

[Frustrated Franciscans]

Books are wonderful things. You can "thump" a Bible. You just can't "thump" an Ipad. You can't place one on the coffee table and have people stare at it and admire how wonderful you are.

On the other hand, it seems a pity to collect all these books into a single place, which seems more like a museum than a library. The later is designed to be used, by the people, and frequently. It would be better to create an entire international network of lending libraries with depositories in each nation, allowing such treasures to be stored locally and when requested be sent to nations interested in such works. Such libraries could also hold copies of other nations works as well, forming a "cloud" of libraries that would prevent the accidental destruction of one to destroy any precious works of fiction and non fiction.

[Excidium Planetis]

"If you are concerned about fires, make fireproof books. Or better yet, do what the Reckoner archives do and keep important records engraved onto aluminium sheets. The more copies, the better.

"As for the draft, I have not scanned it in its entirety, but we may support an endeavor to create an infinite labyrinth of knowledge."

[Unibot III]

"This is an incomprehensible collection of interconnected committees. I love it."

Stars of love, burning galaxies of infinite beauty ignite in Eduard's pupils, who is left dazed and confused in pure, unadulterated infatuation at the resolution's bureaucracy.

[Bears Armed]

OOC: I think that the GA Secretariat needs to decide definitively about how the 'Committee Only' rule works. As that rule has been interpreted by the Mods for quite a few years, this proposal -- as currently worded -- would be illegal because if you removed the committee then there would be no effect on the member nations thing left to justify the stat changes.

[Whovian Tardisia]

"With all due respect to Ambassador McGill, and agreeing that digital storage is far more convenient, we find it pertinent to point out that many member nations have not yet advanced to the stage where they have access to this medium. And in regards to transport... didn't the gnomes build portals for all of you to get here? I presume that the library would become part of the WAHQ campus, given the OBM is in charge of building it, so whatever got you here could easily get a bloke with all the books here too. We also agree with Ambassador Bell as to the importance of hard copies. One always needs a backup if there's a power outage or a DDOS attack."

[Excidium Planetis]

OOC: I think that the GA Secretariat needs to decide definitively about how the 'Committee Only' rule works. As that rule has been interpreted by the Mods for quite a few years, this proposal -- as currently worded -- would be illegal because if you removed the committee then there would be no effect on the member nations thing left to justify the stat changes.

OOC
That rule needed to go. Shame mods didn't ditch it when they threw out the WA Army rule.

[Calladan]

"With all due respect to Ambassador McGill, and agreeing that digital storage is far more convenient, we find it pertinent to point out that many member nations have not yet advanced to the stage where they have access to this medium. And in regards to transport... didn't the gnomes build portals for all of you to get here? I presume that the library would become part of the WAHQ campus, given the OBM is in charge of building it, so whatever got you here could easily get a bloke with all the books here too. We also agree with Ambassador Bell as to the importance of hard copies. One always needs a backup if there's a power outage or a DDOS attack."

This is the part that baffles me about the technology barriers and the gnomes. A given member nation doesn't have the technology to connect to the internet, but the gnomes can build what is the technical equivalent of a transporter (one that is far more powerful than any that currently exist in fiction or reality) to that same member nation.

Just seems odd.

However - setting that aside, does this proposal actually do anything? Other than creating a bunch of committees, does it require member nations to do anything? It "encourages nations to donate books" but that is not a mandatory thing (which is good, because we have no intention of donating anything anyway) so what does this do?

[Bananaistan]

However - setting that aside, does this proposal actually do anything? Other than creating a bunch of committees, does it require member nations to do anything? It "encourages nations to donate books" but that is not a mandatory thing (which is good, because we have no intention of donating anything anyway) so what does this do?

OOC: In WA speak an encouragement clause is an action on member states as they cannot avoid being encouraged.

In the past, the committee rule test would be to strip out the committee(s) and see what's left. In this case, as the WACLC is a building rather than a committee, I think that clause is sufficient to get this proposal past the committee rule.

[Excidium Planetis]

It "encourages nations to donate books" but that is not a mandatory thing (which is good, because we have no intention of donating anything anyway)

"Excellent. That's one less nation's propaganda that won't be disseminated to the World Assembly. We won't need to donate as many pro-gun rights articles as I expected we would need to."

[Raven Landing]

"As a technologically advanced country I believe that hard copies can't be hacked but I also believe digital medium allows replication and reproduction as well as widespread availability. To put it bluntly we support this resolution but as for the implementation of this we believe that copies sent by each country should be restored and then copied into a new more suitable hard text. The original should either be permitted to be returned to the donating country or the copy. This wouldn't allow another Library of Alexandria to happen again as every country still retains a copy of their donated works. The copy stored in the central could than be uploaded to a cloud based site so everyone is allowed to download via the Internet and read such works. For countries lacking such technology to download and distribute digital work such as books allow the ability for a copy of the hard text to be made onsite and sent to the requesting country for reading and distribution within their own boarders. Open Sourcing Books as we say. Of course I believe you should periodically compare the hosted digital copy of the book to the hard copy of the book to ensure tampering of the digital medium has not occurred. Since the only way tampering of the hard copy would occur would be if someone physically edited the copy which is hard to do if the copy of the books are printed on tamper proof paper similar to pharmacy prescriptions"


~Raven

[Araraukar]

OOC: In WA speak an encouragement clause is an action on member states as they cannot avoid being encouraged.

In the past, the committee rule test would be to strip out the committee(s) and see what's left. In this case, as the WACLC is a building rather than a committee, I think that clause is sufficient to get this proposal past the committee rule.

OOC: Can anyone remember what the ruling was for the court (international criminal?) thing? And how has General Fund been recently treated? Because the main issue here is "what counts as a committee"? Technically, if the WACLC isn't committee-related, then it would count as "not-a-committee", but I really can't see how it isn't committee-related.

[Calladan]

After reviewing the proposal in more detail, I am getting more and more appalled by this proposal with every passing minute.

Given that I have always held to the belief that education is the silver bullet - that it can be the solution to almost every problem out there, and that every person deserves the best education they can have and the best education they want - it is a wonder that a proposal such as this, one that appears to have a sole purpose of increasing education across The WA, can make me despair so much and just make me recommend leaving The WA to My Tri-Arch and her executive council.

We are both very supportive of The ULC - spreading information by the most expedient means available, is something that both I and My Tri-Arch can be supportive of. And while we do occasionally take part in the ULEN part of the resolution, we do it so rarely and only for books that we consider to be of great importance.

However having a single, central library for the whole of The WA is just insane. And crazy. And insane. As I have said previously - shipping books off to some central location - potentially thousands of miles, maybe billions of miles, from Calladan - doesn't seem to serve the people of my nation all that well.

First - it removes those books from our country, depriving our citizens of the chance to read them, and places them somewhere completely out of our control. So we are most likely to donate crappy books of which we have thousands of copies ("Trixie Goes To The Big City" - a riveting read about a sheep that goes to a big city to pursue an acting career) and never donate important, one of a kind books (one of the hand written records of the leader of The Blessed Order) because we don't want to risk them being destroyed or damaged.

Second - no matter what insurance you have against fire, flood and other damage, there is always the danger of it. And while you can compensate us for the loss of the books, IT DOESN'T BRING BACK THE BOOKS. Now I accept that the same thing can happen when the books are in Calladan, but we accept that, and we have faith in our own systems. We are not sending them off to be managed by people we don't know in a place we might never visit.

Third - we would be obligated to withdraw from our participation in the ULEN if this proposal goes through.

Fourth - it's a backwards step. Information and the distribution of it is the single most powerful force for good in the known universe. You don't centralise it in one place - you distribute it and disseminate it as WIDELY as you can using the most expedient and best means possible. This is not it, and neither I nor my government will be a party to it.

[States of Glory WA Office]

Mandates that the Office of Building Management (OBM) locate suitable land(s) in international territory on which to build the WACLC, which shall:
-Insure necessary protection against fire, natural elements, and weather;

Barbera: A building cannot insure, Ambassador, and I fear that involvement with a private insurance company may compromise the neutrality of the World Assembly.

Affirms that all donators retain cultural ownership of all written works donated to the WACLC and may elect to remove their work from circulation by proving notice of such intent to the ULCEC;

Harold: "Donators"? I'll donate a word: Donors! Speaking of which, I'll be happy to act as a brain donor. (honks nose)

Barbera: Is there a procedure for how a donor may prove a notice of intent to the Universal Library Coalition Executive Committee?

OOC: I think that the GA Secretariat needs to decide definitively about how the 'Committee Only' rule works. As that rule has been interpreted by the Mods for quite a few years, this proposal -- as currently worded -- would be illegal because if you removed the committee then there would be no effect on the member nations thing left to justify the stat changes.

OOC
That rule needed to go. Shame mods didn't ditch it when they threw out the WA Army rule.

Until a Bookkeeping category is introduced, I am firmly opposed to ditching the 'Committee Only' rule.

[Araraukar]

Until a Bookkeeping category is introduced, I am firmly opposed to ditching the 'Committee Only' rule.

OOC: Same. But I also think we totally should get the Bookkeeping category. I know I suggested the stat effects for it on some other thread...