Ask anything about Hatsunia and its digital society! [Q&A]

[Hatsunia]

[OOC: Please PM me if you have just posted here, thank you]

Hatsunia is a twintail-shaped island country in East Asia, where the first sounds of the day are heard. [OOC: It exists in a parallel Earth in the place of Japan.]

According to legend, the country was founded by a singer named Hatsune Miku. The Emperor or Empress has been our country's head of state since ancient times, and music and green onions (negi) have always been important in our culture. From the 12th century, there were several centuries of de facto rule by the samurai and their feudal military dictatorship, but in the 16th century, the Imperial government under Empress Momiji fought a war to successfully restore control. It then engaged in a policy of non-interference with the rest of the world: no expansion, but no isolation either. This allowed for the flourishing of trade and cultural exchange. In the 19th century, Empress Moeji oversaw the birth of the modern Hatsunese government, a democratic constitutional monarchy. It pursued friendly relations with countries in the Western and Eastern worlds, and fought alongside the Allied forces against fascism during WWII [OOC: much unlike Imperial Japan].

Today, Hatsunia is known for being a socially progressive and technologically advanced country with an advanced information technology industry and space exploration program.

Feel free to ask any questions about our country!
[If it is an OOC question, put OOC: before said question.]

[Slavakino]

Will Miku be having a concert anytime soon?

[Nouveau Quebecois]

Why is there a celery on your flag?

[Hatsunia]

Will Miku be having a concert anytime soon?

Since Miku is a virtual character, she can have a concert every day. There are many locally organized concerts around the country, but really big concert tours (the ones that pack stadiums) happen every few months. The frequency of concerts may be limited whenever there is a live band accompanying her (humans have to rest, after all).

Why is there a celery on your flag?

It is not a celery, but a green onion (negi). Some time during the 6th century, people would swing their negi in rhythm to music, especially at dawn. So it came to symbolize music and "the first sounds of the day," and it also became a staple crop, and that's why it's on our flag.

[Hatsunia]

/bump

[White Sun]

The Ministry of Inter-dimensional Tourism posits: How digitized is your digital society?

[Luziyca]

Are there any Amish-like people (who don't use modern technology) in your nation? If so, how do they function in Hatsunia?

[Hatsunia]

The Ministry of Inter-dimensional Tourism posits: How digitized is your digital society?

Almost all government and business services are available digitally, and almost everyone knows how to use a personal computer or smartphone. For example, one can pay their taxes, access their medical records, do banking, or start a company, all using the internet. Each person has their own identity card as well as a encrypted digital signature or seal that they can use to verify documents. You do not need to do any physical paperwork. Stock trading is completely electronic. The country has one of the highest densities for public wi-fi access. Most people watch television programs, listen to music, and watch or read the news in a digital/online format instead of physical media like CDs or DVDs, and payment is done with contactless cards or smartphones with online bank accounts. People also like to make their own creative content and share it on the internet. Hatsunese offices all use cloud storage and collaboration and management software, allowing teams to communicate in real time, thus increasing productivity. You will not find a single fax machine in the country.

(OOC context)

Are there any Amish-like people (who don't use modern technology) in your nation? If so, how do they function in Hatsunia?

They are a very small minority (a few ten thousand) who live in rural areas, and there is a small division of the government designed to cater to them. But life tends to be less convenient if you're not connected.

[Hurricania Imperium]

Hatsunia is a twintail-shaped island country in East Asia, where the first sounds of the day are heard. [OOC: It exists in a parallel Earth in the place of Japan.]

According to legend, the country was founded by a singer named Hatsune Miku. The Emperor or Empress has been our country's head of state since ancient times, and music and green onions (negi) have always been important in our culture. From the 12th century, there were several centuries of de facto rule by the samurai and their feudal military dictatorship, but in the 16th century, the Imperial government under Empress Momiji fought a war to successfully restore control. It then engaged in a policy of non-interference with the rest of the world: no expansion, but no isolation either. This allowed for the flourishing of trade and cultural exchange. In the 19th century, Empress Moeji oversaw the birth of the modern Hatsunese government, a democratic constitutional monarchy. It pursued friendly relations with countries in the Western and Eastern worlds, and fought alongside the Allied forces against fascism during WWII [OOC: much unlike Imperial Japan].

Today, Hatsunia is known for being a socially progressive and technologically advanced country with an advanced information technology industry and space exploration program.

Feel free to ask any questions about our country!
[If it is an OOC question, put OOC: before said question.]

What are your gun and drug laws

[Hatsunia]

What are your gun and drug laws

Hatsunia has may-issue jurisdiction, in which a gun license might be granted to someone who fulfills various legal requirements such as a computerized background check and safety tests, but it is not guaranteed.

Drug addiction is addressed with therapy and rehabilitation; there is no "war on drugs" with harsh punitive measures. The legal drinking age is 18, and public smoking is banned. Cannabis is legal for medical and recreational purposes.

(OOC: Japan's public smoking laws are considered to be "stuck in the last century." Cannabis was only made illegal in Japan after the American occupation. Hatsunia was part of the Allies, and wasn't occupied.)

[Greenwichian Arcadia]

Tech-savvy nations tend to mine a huge amount of rare-earth metals for semiconductors. I wonder how are you going to avert the forthcoming crisis caused by possible shortage of these metals. Perhaps by making your electronic appliances and computers more recyclable?

[Hatsunia]

Tech-savvy nations tend to mine a huge amount of rare-earth metals for semiconductors. I wonder how are you going to avert the forthcoming crisis caused by possible shortage of these metals. Perhaps by making your electronic appliances and computers more recyclable?

E-waste is a serious issue, so there are recycling and right-to-repair laws. This is also why Hatsunia has heavily invested into making space travel affordable, so the resources of the Solar System can be mined.

[Slavakino]

Is Vocaloid an anime?

[Hatsunia]

Is Vocaloid an anime?

No, it is a software engine.

[Greenwichian Arcadia]

It might be a large topic to cover, but you've mentioned once that PC gaming is more popular in your nation than in Japan. So how exactly console gaming industry fares? Were there any tricks performed by your equivalent of the big N to successfully compete with PC sector?
I understand that PC platform tends to be ignored or treated unfairly by game developers due to 'piracy concerns.' How hard in general your stance on 'piracy' is and how popular and prominent the open-source and free software movements are?

Aw, that's two topics actually.

[Hatsunia]

It might be a large topic to cover, but you've mentioned once that PC gaming is more popular in your nation than in Japan. So how exactly console gaming industry fare? Were there any tricks performed by your equivalent of the big N to successfully compete with PC sector?
I understand that PC platform tends to be ignored or treated unfairly by game developers due to 'piracy concerns.' How hard in general your stance on 'piracy' is and how popular and prominent the open-source and free software movements are?

Aw, that's two topics actually.

Console games fill a different niche with unique experiences, like the Nintendo Switch and its portability. Piracy is not treated in a draconian fashion (e.g. no intrusive DRM), and open-source software is just as important as proprietary software.

[OOC: much of the American video game market is also console games. Also, Nintendo has better online services in this universe.]

[Greenwichian Arcadia]

We had already discussed that before, but how exactly did you address that c-word-19 issue? As your nation seems to be more swift in adopting the work at home years before the outbreak, I guess that would contribute to the containment not at the stark expense to the economy.

[Ikheria]

Ikheria are one from many nation whom allow human-like AI live. Are your nation allow that?

[Hatsunia]

We had already discussed that before, but how exactly did you address that c-word-19 issue? As your nation seems to be more swift in adopting the work at home years before the outbreak, I guess that would contribute to the containment not at the stark expense to the economy.

Hatsunese offices have been switching to remote work not only for pandemics, but also to decrease overcrowding in the public transit system. IT infrastructure is kept up-to-date to increase workplace efficiency, with fiber-optic high-speed internet connections that enable digital communication methods and electronic document signing, so a lot of people are ready to work from home. Hatsunese industries have been automating for the same reasons. People also followed general social distancing guidelines (2 meters apart, no large gatherings).

After the SARS outbreak of 2002, which infected hundreds of people, the government learned its lesson and was ready to respond to the crisis at an early stage. Many testing sites were set up across the country, and many people showing symptoms got tested for free with the universal health care system. A lot of people who live in Hatsunia already wear face masks to protect against allergies and the spread of diseases like the cold or flu, and production was rapidly increased.

Contact-tracing phone apps worked by detecting situations ("contact events") when other phones with the app were nearby for several minutes, with a random code being generated and exchanged. If someone was infected, other people who had been in contact with that person would be alerted. There was no location tracking or personal identification, it only involved the anonymous exchange of codes.

(OOC context)
https://apnews.com/7a18fb5740f90712195205dd461253c8

https://abcnews.go.com/Health/trust-testing-tracing-south-korea-succeeded-us-stumbled/story?id=70433504

https://www.dw.com/en/taiwan-coronavirus/a-52724523

https://theculturetrip.com/asia/japan/articles/why-do-japanese-people-wear-surgical-masks/

https://asiatimes.com/2020/06/japans-contact-tracing-method-is-old-but-gold/

https://www.wired.com/story/covid-19-contact-tracing-apps-cryptography/

Ikheria are one from many nation whom allow human-like AI live. Are your nation allow that?

Hatsunese artificial intelligence research has not exactly gotten to that point yet, but the government would probably allow that.

[Greenwichian Arcadia]

From what I could get, Hatsunese traffic has a low share of car transportation. Had it always been like that? Were there any incidents?

How comfortable it is to travel around Hatsunese cities on foot and by public transit? Are green and public areas ubiquitous?

[Hatsunia]

From what I could get, Hatsunese traffic has a low share of car transportation. Had it always been like that? Were there any incidents?

How comfortable it is to travel around Hatsunese cities on foot and by public transit? Are green and public areas ubiquitous?

It became like that by necessity. Since Hatsunia is mostly made of crowded urban areas, having lots of people owning cars would result in a lot more traffic and parking lots. Cities are generally designed for walkability and public transport. It can get crowded on a train but this has been reduced with the advent of remote work. There are more green areas in smaller cities but in larger cities there isn't much room.

[Dhdieudisoaoxkxkal]

Q

[SatoSere]

What would Hatsunia think of Satosereist Ukraine?
(Totalitarian technocratic environmentalist "utopia" in Ukraine with elements of Amourshipping sprinkled in)

[Hatsunia]

What would Hatsunia think of Satosereist Ukraine?
(Totalitarian technocratic environmentalist "utopia" in Ukraine with elements of Amourshipping sprinkled in)

Totalitarian - definitely no
Technocratic - Hatsunia has a technocratic check in the form of the House of Peers (which should really be called the House of Technologists at this point), but democracy is still more important
Environmentalist - leaning towards that, there is a carbon tax to incentivize this
"Utopia" - ends don't justify the means
Amourshipping - anime shippers are fine

(Also, Hatsunia is where The Perfect Pokémon Game exists because there is a better focus on software development)

(next time, please send me a PM notification if you are posting here)