America the Beautiful: An American Political RP (OOC)

[Alozia]

Would this character be okay, then? (I'd say it's completely new BTW)

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Character Application and Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: Rhim Flavezztowland
Character Name: Sidney Larsen-Cheng
Character Gender: Female
Character Age: 25
Character Height: 151 cm
Character Weight: 44 kg
Character Position/Role/Job: Representative of New York's 14th Congressional District
Character Country/State of Birth: New York
Character State of Residence: New York
Character Party Affiliation: Democrat
Main Strengths: She's brave enough to speak up against all forms of hate groups.
Main Weaknesses: She has a mild case of ADHD and also sometimes comes late to House hearings.
Biography: A natural-born American citizen, Sidney Larsen-Cheng was born on December 29, 1995 in the Bronx borough of New York City to a naturalized Chinese-born restaurant-owning father who migrated with his own parents to the States at the age of 9 in the early 1970s due to China's Cultural Revolution and a natural-born American chef mother. When she was 11, her father was murdered in a hit-and-run car accident; her mother inherited her husband's estate (including his Chinese restaurant in the City Island neighborhood of the Bronx) upon his death and went on to transform the Chinese restaurant into a local diner.

When Sidney was in high school, she started working part-time as a chef at her mother's local diner; she'd later enroll herself at Lehman College at the age of 18, where she'd study for a Bachelor's degree in Political Science for the next three years because of her interest in politics while still being a part-time diner chef. At the age of 21, she graduated with the aforementioned Bachelor's degree and decided to become a state politician for New York's Democrats; it'd take her a few years until she got elected to the House of Representatives as the representative of New York's 14th congressional district in the 2020 elections.
Other Info:
>Political stances - social democrat, pro-LGBT, pro-environmentalism, supportive of tax raises for the wealthy, neutral on abortion, anti-Wolf, anti-KKK, anti-misogynist, opposes hate groups in general, undecided on refugees

I have read and accept the rules of the roleplay: Rhim Flavezztowland

Do Not Remove: DRAFT87421

It's highly unlikely for a 25 year old with no generational wealth to win a seat in the House, or anywhere for that matter.

[Cybernetic Socialist Republics]

Would this character be okay, then? (I'd say it's completely new BTW)

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Character Application and Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: Rhim Flavezztowland
Character Name: Sidney Larsen-Cheng
Character Gender: Female
Character Age: 25
Character Height: 151 cm
Character Weight: 44 kg
Character Position/Role/Job: Representative of New York's 14th Congressional District
Character Country/State of Birth: New York
Character State of Residence: New York
Character Party Affiliation: Democrat
Main Strengths: She's brave enough to speak up against all forms of hate groups.
Main Weaknesses: She has a mild case of ADHD and also sometimes comes late to House hearings.
Biography: A natural-born American citizen, Sidney Larsen-Cheng was born on December 29, 1995 in the Bronx borough of New York City to a naturalized Chinese-born restaurant-owning father who migrated with his own parents to the States at the age of 9 in the early 1970s due to China's Cultural Revolution and a natural-born American chef mother. When she was 11, her father was murdered in a hit-and-run car accident; her mother inherited her husband's estate (including his Chinese restaurant in the City Island neighborhood of the Bronx) upon his death and went on to transform the Chinese restaurant into a local diner.

When Sidney was in high school, she started working part-time as a chef at her mother's local diner; she'd later enroll herself at Lehman College at the age of 18, where she'd study for a Bachelor's degree in Political Science for the next three years because of her interest in politics while still being a part-time diner chef. At the age of 21, she graduated with the aforementioned Bachelor's degree and decided to become a state politician for New York's Democrats; it'd take her a few years until she got elected to the House of Representatives as the representative of New York's 14th congressional district in the 2020 elections.
Other Info:
>Political stances - social democrat, pro-LGBT, pro-environmentalism, supportive of tax raises for the wealthy, neutral on abortion, anti-Wolf, anti-KKK, anti-misogynist, opposes hate groups in general, undecided on refugees

I have read and accept the rules of the roleplay: Rhim Flavezztowland

Do Not Remove: DRAFT87421

It's highly unlikely for a 25 year old with no generational wealth to win a seat in the House, or anywhere for that matter.

Madison Cawthorne did it as a wheelchair bound republican, I think that's honestly a bigger leap than a female Dem doing it. I don't think that Cawthrone came from a particular rich family either. This character's father is a small business owner at least.

[Alozia]

It's highly unlikely for a 25 year old with no generational wealth to win a seat in the House, or anywhere for that matter.

Madison Cawthorne did it as a wheelchair bound republican, I think that's honestly a bigger leap than a female Dem doing it. I don't think that Cawthrone came from a particular rich family either. This character's father is a small business owner at least.

Cawthorne owns a real estate investment company (albeit with no reported income lol) and has had ties to actual members of Congress long before becoming a US Rep. Being in a wheelchair is not really an obstacle in a political career anymore, see our other favorite Republican Greg Abbott.

Also, not gonna deny the fact that all of Rhim Flavezztowland's character applications being very young looking Asian women is concerning to me.

[Hanovereich]

Also, not gonna deny the fact that all of Rhim Flavezztowland's character applications being very young looking Asian women is concerning to me.

What... okay.

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Reposting my app again for mod review.

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Character Application and Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: Hanovereich
Character Name: Easton Pearce
Character Gender: M
Character Age: 43
Character Height: 5’5”
Character Weight: 150lbs
Character Position/Role/Job: Representative for North Dakota's at large district (2015-); 32nd Infantry Regiment, 10th Mountain Division (2000-2013)
Character Country/State of Birth: North Dakota
Character State of Residence: North Dakota
Character Party Affiliation: Republican
Main Strengths: Has popular support in the state, good speechwriter
Main Weaknesses: Inexperienced orator; can sometimes say some inappropriate remarks at inappropriate times; as a conviction politician, he sometimes votes away from the party line
Biography: (Minimum 2-3 paragraphs) Easton Pearce was born in Fargo, North Dakota. At school, he was found to be a keen learner with a talent to remember facts- possibly from his mother, Whitney Pearce, who worked as a political editor for the Grand Forks Herald. Easton was found to be interested in journalism and military history- he said that he wanted to work as a military reporter.

In 1995 Easton was accepted into the North Dakota State University He gained a Bachelor of Science cum laude in History, with a dissertation on the American Civil War and the two sides' strategies.

After he graduated he applied for CNN, but after a brief spell as an intern his request to be a military reporter was rejected. Instead his father encouraged him to join the military, since the Pearces found the military an ideal location for their child- and it would fulfil Easton's ambition of military reporting, kind of... He applied for West Point and received a nomination from his local Senator. He was accepted.

After exceling at the academics side (and not doing so well at physical training), he graduated into the Class of 2000. He then joined the 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment as a second lieutenant. After a tour of duty in the Kosovo Force, he was deployed, along with the 1st Brigade of the 10th Mountain Division, into Iraq. He was involved in building FOB Chosin, as well as, whilst at FOB Manhattan, in the occupation of Ramadi. In 2006 he once again saw combat, this time in Afghanistan. He patrolled Kunar Province, and was involved in a skirmish against local fighters. He shot a Taliban fighter whilst directing soldiers to radio to FOB Joyce, and commanding an assault by a squad of his platoon. For his efforts that day, he was awarded the Bronze Star.

He was also involved in patrolling Khost Province with the 25th Field Artillery Regiment. When he returned to the United States, he took a one-week leave and started to get involved in politics. His policies were mainly Republican, and thinking of himself as a conviction politician, he decided that, when he left the military, he would join the Republican Party. He was deployed back to Kunar Province one more time, in 2009. In 2010 the entire regiment returned to the United States, and Easton, after serving his needed time, became a Major. (He had been promoted through the ranks after his needed times of service). He became CO of Bravo Company.

After more deployments to Afghanistan in 2011 and 2013, and being considered for commander of the regiment twice (the 32nd Reg. CO was a Lieutenant Colonel, and Easton had performed all his necessary periods of time), he returned to his headquarters at Fort Drum and took leave. Throughout his military service he had, through his friends and family, kept abreast of the political situation, and had slowly garnered support in his local community.

In 2013 he resigned his commission. It has been said that, had he stayed in the military for a few more months, he would have been made the CO of the 32nd Infantry Regiment. Easton decided to go into politics. He won the Republican primaries- albeit by a slim margin of just 9%. His community in the at-large district supported him, and since the state supported the Republicans generally, his seat was seen as a safe one. In the 2014 election, he won with 58.6% of the vote.

In 2016 he was re-elected with 67.4% of the vote, on a platform of improving development standards in his state. Many of his supporters, including his old military friends, encouraged him to go for the gubernations, and it was believed that Easton would have won both the primaries and the election. However, Easton declined, saying that 'Washington DC is better than Bismarck'. In 2018 he was re-elected with 64.17%. In 2020 he had his largest majority yet- 69.04%, with all but three counties voting for him.

During his time in Congress, he has criticised Roe v. Wade, and calling for its overrule. He reluctantly voted against the USA Freedom Act, in line with the party, but expressed his reservations in private. He did not vote for the Commercial Space Launch Competitiveness Act, saying that 'If we want to send companies into space, we can simply colonise space'. He vigorously supported the 21st Century Cures Act, and went around Congress to canvass for its support. Overall, his Congressional career was uneventful, save for a few votes against the party. His biggest highlight is in his state. He visited small businesses across North Dakota, and pledged to create a new fund in North Dakota, with the aim to meet some of the running costs for smaller businesses. He also endorsed bills in the North Dakota Legislative Assembly to reduce costs for public buildings (including the state library, the school for the deaf, and the school for the blind), and called on the Governor of North Dakota to build more schools.
He has since decided that he will run in the Senate in 2022.

He opposes abortion and has spoken out against it, both in Congress and in his state. Whilst he calls himself a conviction politician, he is also a politician, and can sometimes vote against his wishes if he believes it is good for the party. Generally, he votes in line with the party whip. The instances where he votes contrary to the whip will probably be with LGBT issues.
Other Info:

I have read and accept the rules of the roleplay: Hanovereich

Do Not Remove: DRAFT87421

[Cybernetic Socialist Republics]

Serah is probably going to mention a truck driver shortage in her town hall answer. for the record, this isn't metagaming, you can find articles dating back to at least 2012 about the united states having a chronic trucker shortage.

[Dentali]

Serah is probably going to mention a truck driver shortage in her town hall answer. for the record, this isn't metagaming, you can find articles dating back to at least 2012 about the united states having a chronic trucker shortage.

its not meta

[Zohiania]

We in this RP have a much stricter code of realism than some other RPs, characters are rarely rejected outright, but I am prepared to say that both refugee journalist man and Asian-American Liberal Republican from Wyoming are both outright rejectable, there is no workaround I can offer for either recourse. Those looking to apply with a character who has a refugee background should age them well into their forties and fifties if they arrived as a child and sixties and seventies if older; those aiming for Liberal Republicanism should hold off for the immediate future and wait until such time as they can apply to be a Governor of a state like Massachusetts or Vermont where their views are actually considered normal.

I mean my character is not a refugee, he is an immigrant who gained American citizenship through the military's accelerated application process. I have served and continue to serve alongside many people who have done that IRL, so that aspect of it is not unrealistic. And my character is 40 years old and isn't a politician. Nor does the character in question plan on running for political office, so I am unsure as to why someone can't move to Wyoming? I mean I would love to move to Wyoming if my employment didn't prevent me and my wife from doing so.

[Zohiania]

I mean my character is not a refugee, he is an immigrant who gained American citizenship through the military's accelerated application process. I have served and continue to serve alongside many people who have done that IRL, so that aspect of it is not unrealistic. And my character is 40 years old and isn't a politician. Nor does the character in question plan on running for political office, so I am unsure as to why someone can't move to Wyoming? I mean I would love to move to Wyoming if my employment didn't prevent me and my wife from doing so.

Also its not like my character hasn't resided and lived in other states |Texas (2000-2004), Florida (2004-2007), New York (2007-2010), Wyoming (2010-Present) | and has only lived in Wyoming this whole time since becoming a US citizen. I would appreciate it if before criticizing the app, you actually read it first.

[Cybernetic Socialist Republics]

Serah is probably going to mention a truck driver shortage in her town hall answer. for the record, this isn't metagaming, you can find articles dating back to at least 2012 about the united states having a chronic trucker shortage.

its not meta

by the way, in 2020, Ron Johnson proposed the Temporary Federal ESOP Grant Program Act, a bill to give companies that created or expanded employee stock ownership plans 20k for every employee in an ESOP and 50k for starting an ESOP.

It'd be fair to assume Jon Ronson was similarly supportive of Employee stock ownership plans, right?

[Alozia]

Also, not gonna deny the fact that all of Rhim Flavezztowland's character applications being very young looking Asian women is concerning to me.

What... okay.

...Do I need to elaborate on that?

[Alozia]

Would this character be okay, then? (I'd say it's completely new BTW)

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Character Application and Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: Rhim Flavezztowland
Character Name: Sidney Larsen-Cheng
Character Gender: Female
Character Age: 25
Character Height: 151 cm
Character Weight: 44 kg
Character Position/Role/Job: Representative of New York's 14th Congressional District
Character Country/State of Birth: New York
Character State of Residence: New York
Character Party Affiliation: Democrat
Main Strengths: She's brave enough to speak up against all forms of hate groups.
Main Weaknesses: She has a mild case of ADHD and also sometimes comes late to House hearings.
Biography: A natural-born American citizen, Sidney Larsen-Cheng was born on December 29, 1995 in the Bronx borough of New York City to a naturalized Chinese-born restaurant-owning father who migrated with his own parents to the States at the age of 9 in the early 1970s due to China's Cultural Revolution and a natural-born American chef mother. When she was 11, her father was murdered in a hit-and-run car accident; her mother inherited her husband's estate (including his Chinese restaurant in the City Island neighborhood of the Bronx) upon his death and went on to transform the Chinese restaurant into a local diner.

When Sidney was in high school, she started working part-time as a chef at her mother's local diner; she'd later enroll herself at Lehman College at the age of 18, where she'd study for a Bachelor's degree in Political Science for the next three years because of her interest in politics while still being a part-time diner chef. At the age of 21, she graduated with the aforementioned Bachelor's degree and decided to become a state politician for New York's Democrats; it'd take her a few years until she got elected to the House of Representatives as the representative of New York's 14th congressional district in the 2020 elections.
Other Info:
>Political stances - social democrat, pro-LGBT, pro-environmentalism, supportive of tax raises for the wealthy, neutral on abortion, anti-Wolf, anti-KKK, anti-misogynist, opposes hate groups in general, undecided on refugees

I have read and accept the rules of the roleplay: Rhim Flavezztowland

Do Not Remove: DRAFT87421

I will give you the benefit of the doubt and seriously review your application despite my reservation.

First things first, this character obviously needs to be aged up, quite so even, both on paper and visually. The other issue is that the application is rather poor in detail, not surprising considering the character is 25 - changing that should give you lots of room to fix that problem as well.

The character representing the 14th District is interesting, although considering it's a district largely dominated both demographically and historically by a different minority, I recommend moving the character to the plurality-Asian 6th District.

Your character's political career should be fleshed out, given more detail and they should probably hold an elected office or two before entering Congress.

[Hanovereich]

Would this character be okay, then? (I'd say it's completely new BTW)

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Character Application and Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: Rhim Flavezztowland
Character Name: Sidney Larsen-Cheng
Character Gender: Female
Character Age: 25
Character Height: 151 cm
Character Weight: 44 kg
Character Position/Role/Job: Representative of New York's 14th Congressional District
Character Country/State of Birth: New York
Character State of Residence: New York
Character Party Affiliation: Democrat
Main Strengths: She's brave enough to speak up against all forms of hate groups.
Main Weaknesses: She has a mild case of ADHD and also sometimes comes late to House hearings.
Biography: A natural-born American citizen, Sidney Larsen-Cheng was born on December 29, 1995 in the Bronx borough of New York City to a naturalized Chinese-born restaurant-owning father who migrated with his own parents to the States at the age of 9 in the early 1970s due to China's Cultural Revolution and a natural-born American chef mother. When she was 11, her father was murdered in a hit-and-run car accident; her mother inherited her husband's estate (including his Chinese restaurant in the City Island neighborhood of the Bronx) upon his death and went on to transform the Chinese restaurant into a local diner.

When Sidney was in high school, she started working part-time as a chef at her mother's local diner; she'd later enroll herself at Lehman College at the age of 18, where she'd study for a Bachelor's degree in Political Science for the next three years because of her interest in politics while still being a part-time diner chef. At the age of 21, she graduated with the aforementioned Bachelor's degree and decided to become a state politician for New York's Democrats; it'd take her a few years until she got elected to the House of Representatives as the representative of New York's 14th congressional district in the 2020 elections.
Other Info:
>Political stances - social democrat, pro-LGBT, pro-environmentalism, supportive of tax raises for the wealthy, neutral on abortion, anti-Wolf, anti-KKK, anti-misogynist, opposes hate groups in general, undecided on refugees

I have read and accept the rules of the roleplay: Rhim Flavezztowland

Do Not Remove: DRAFT87421

I will give you the benefit of the doubt and seriously review your application despite my reservation.

First things first, this character obviously needs to be aged up, quite so even, both on paper and visually. The other issue is that the application is rather poor in detail, not surprising considering the character is 25 - changing that should give you lots of room to fix that problem as well.

The character representing the 14th District is interesting, although considering it's a district largely dominated both demographically and historically by a different minority, I recommend moving the character to the plurality-Asian 6th District.

Your character's political career should be fleshed out, given more detail and they should probably hold an elected office or two before entering Congress.

Not a mod or admin, but I'd suggest that her strengths and weaknesses be expanded on.

[Helliniki Katastasis]

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Character Application and Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: Helliniki Katastasis
Character Name: Steven "Steve" MacGregor
Character Gender: male
Character Age: 66
Character Height: 6'4
Character Weight: 210lbs
Character Position/Role/Job:
Candidate for Virginia Governor (2021)
CEO of MacGregor Technologies (1986-)
Owner of the Washington Post (2013-2021)
Co-Founder of the MacGregor-Howe Corporation (1975-1986)
Student at the University of Maryland (1973-1977)

Character Country/State of Birth: McLean, Virginia
Character State of Residence: Fairfax Station, Virginia
Character Party Affiliation: Republican

Main Strengths: Outsider reputation, name recognition, personal wealth, connections in Washington, bilateral appeal (Wolfists v. Moderates)
Main Weaknesses: Seen as out-of-touch, personal wealth, lack of political instinct, untested in politics, born into wealth, personal life

Biography: (Minimum 2-3 paragraphs)

The MacGregor family has a storied past in Virginia. Steve's grandfather, Lyle MacGregor was the patriarch of the family, immigrating from Ireland in 1914. Settling in Northern Virginia, he spent most of the immediate postwar period hopping between jobs, before finding his calling; When Prohibition was enacted, he quickly jumped into the moonshining business, becoming a titan of illegal smuggling network in and out of Washington. A jailbird throughout the following decade, he made connections with various congressmen and lobbyists on Capitol Hill. Marrying a young woman in 1928, their son Henry was born in 1930. A studious child, he used his father's connections in DC to aquire an academic scholarship from Princeton, graduating not long before Steven was born. Moving the the prestigious suburb of McLean, Henry ran for and became a longtime congressman from Virginia until 1971. A leading pro-civil rights voice in Virginia and at odds with the more southern-minded colleaguesof his, he passed the ideals of liberty and justice for all unto his son.

Steven, an academic like his father, maintained steady averages throughout grade school and graduated from a private high school with a 3.96 GPA, and became the valedictorian of his graduating class. Attending Princeton like his father, he became a star student. Along with a few of his friends,

Other Info:
Net Worth: ~$850 million
I have read and accept the rules of the roleplay: (Helliniki Katastasis)

Do Not Remove: DRAFT87421

Thoughts so far?

[Rhim Flavezztowland]

Is this application better, then? (aged my character up by 13 years, fleshed her bio + political career + strengths and weaknesses out to some extent, moved her to NY-06 per Alozia's recommendations, etc.)

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Character Application and Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: Rhim Flavezztowland
Character Name: Sidney Larsen-Cheng
Character Gender: Female
Character Age: 38
Character Height: 151 cm
Character Weight: 44 kg
Character Position/Role/Job: Representative of New York's 6th Congressional District
Character Country/State of Birth: New York
Character State of Residence: New York
Character Party Affiliation: Democrat
Main Strengths: She's brave enough to speak up against all forms of hate groups as well as Wolfists, be it online or in person - for example, she publicly ranted about the people who stormed the Capitol as well as those who align with the far-right in general online after the events of January 6.
Main Weaknesses: She has a moderate case of ADHD (which she developed when she was a high school student, but at least she's been managing it well since then) and also sometimes oversleeps and therefore comes late to House hearings.
Biography: A natural-born American citizen, Sidney Larsen-Cheng was born on December 29, 1982 in the Bronx borough of New York City to a naturalized Chinese-born restaurant-owning father who migrated with his own parents to the States at the age of 9 in the early 1970s due to China's Cultural Revolution and a natural-born American chef mother. When she was 11, her father was murdered in a hit-and-run car accident; her mother inherited her husband's estate (including his Chinese restaurant in the City Island neighborhood of the Bronx) upon his death and went on to transform the Chinese restaurant into a local diner.

When Sidney was in high school, she started working part-time as a chef at her mother's local diner and would sometimes come out of her comfort zone to protest for social justice during the weekends; she'd later enroll herself at Lehman College at the age of 18, where she'd study for a Bachelor's degree in Political Science for the next three years because of her interest in politics while still being a part-time diner chef. At the age of 21, she graduated with the aforementioned Bachelor's degree as part of Lehman College's Class of 2004 and moved to the borough of Queens (specifically, the Flushing neighborhood) to open a restaurant specializing in Chinese beef noodles. From that point on, she'd often write messages of support for the minorities living in her neighborhood on her restaurant window and sometimes even go out to protest against anti-minority discrimination whenever she heard about it. Slowly but surely, she'd built a sizeable support base in her own neighborhood and even joined the Queens Community Board 7 in 2012.

After becoming a community board member, she became more involved in community causes while continuing to operate her own restaurant and even began forming relationships with Queens borough politicians. With that, over the next few years, she slowly gained a borough-wide support base to build up from her already-sizeable one in her own neighborhood to the point that her candidacy to represent a city council district of NYC was publicized in 2017; her candidacy turned out to be successful, as she was elected as the Representative of New York City's 20th City Council district in the council's elections that year.

In 2018 - while she was still a New York City Council member - she publicly came out as asexual, while in 2019, she publicly declared her plans to be a candidate to represent New York's 6th congressional district in the 2020 house elections; this candidacy was also a successful one for her, as she was elected into that position in those elections - with that, she resigned from her position in the New York City Council effective January 20, 2021, and also permanently closed her restaurant down to focus on entering Congress.
Other Info:
>Preferred pronouns - she/her
>Political stances - social democrat, pro-LGBT pro-environmentalism, publicly supportive of tax raises for the wealthy, publicly supportive of the #StopAsianHate movement, neutral on abortion, anti-Wolf, anti-KKK, anti-misogynist, publicly opposes hate groups in general, undecided on refugees

I have read and accept the rules of the roleplay: Rhim Flavezztowland

Do Not Remove: DRAFT87421

[New Cobastheia]

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Character Application and Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: Zohiania
Character Name: Zahir Muhammad Huriya
Character Gender: Male
Character Age: 40
Character Height: 6’4”
Character Weight: 210 lbs.

Character Position/Role/Job: (1)
Physician’s Assistant (11-14)
Lebanese Red Cross Volunteer (15-19)
Active Duty | U.S. Army (19-30)
Reserve Duty | U.S. Army (30-36)
Arabic Language Teacher (30-32)
(Independent) Conflict Zone Journalist/Reporter (32-40)
Podcast Host (32-40)
Defense Attorney (32-40)
Director of the Foreign Policy Center for Democracy and Freedom [FPCDF] (38-40)

Education: (2)
BA in Modern Middle Eastern Studies from University of Pennsylvania
JD/AM in Islamic Studies from University of Pennsylvania
PhD in International Relations from University of Pennsylvania
PhD in Law from University of Columbia

Character Country/State of Birth:
Born in Beirut, Lebanon, in 1981, immigrated to United States in 2000 though the "Accelerated" Process to Citizenship program by joining the U.S. military at the age of 19. (3)
Character State of Residence:
Texas (2000-2004), Florida (2004-2007), New York (2007-2010), Wyoming (2010-Present) (4)
Character Party Affiliation: National Liberal Party (Lebanon, 1997-1999), Independent (USA, 1999-Present)
Main Strengths: Independent (5), Multi-Lingual (Arabic, English, French, Kurdish, and Spanish) (6), Popular Journalist/Reporter, Large Online Following, Viewed as a Reformer
Main Weaknesses: Despised by Anti-Semites (7), Despised by Far-right and Far-left radicals, Despised by Islamophobes, White Women Hate Him, Some Controversial Views

Biography: (Minimum 2-3 paragraphs)
Zahir Muhammad Huriya was born in 1981 in Beirut, Lebanon, in 1981 as the oldest of three children. He has a younger brother and sister. His father was an Arab physician with a small clinic in Beirut, and his mother was an Assyrian full-time mother raising him and his siblings in addition to being a prominent local women’s rights activist. They were both Sunni Muslims and prominent local supporters of the National Liberal Party. He would begin to assist his father in the clinic at the age of 11 as the Lebanese Civil War ensured there was plenty of people in need. His father would help people even if they were incapable of paying, and this would continue till his father and mother were both killed in a bombing in 1995 (8). Young Zahir would go on to volunteer and work with the Lebanese Red Cross until he would join the U.S. military and immigrate to the United States in 1999.

Zahir would serve in the U.S. military as an Army Interpreter/Translator (09L) throughout his military career until he left the service in 2017. He participated on six deployments throughout his military career. Zahir was always interested in conflict and politics growing up during the Lebanese Civil War, and he would become a conflict zone journalist reporting in conflict zones to show the world what so many civilians across the globe are experiencing every day. Quickly many of his articles, photos and videos would begin appearing in major newspapers across the globe. He would also begin a podcast and website covering global news and providing forums for communication directed mainly towards political dissidents and people who live under regimes that are restrictive of media. His media platform has been likened to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (9). He has written as a syndicated columnist for the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Economist. He is also often on various radio and tv news stations as a political commentator. He is the host of the podcast, “Spreading Freedom with Zahir.”

Zahir is well known for some of his unorthodox beliefs including but not limited to his advocacy for world federalism/global government, sortition as a replacement for voting, many drastic amendments to the U.S. Constitution to further limit the powers of government, his support for the Afghanistan Conflict, Iraq War, and American interventions in general as well as his constant 'anti-white women' rhetoric (10). Zahir has written multiple books on these topics including, Global Federal Governance: A Time For Global Commitment, Sortition: A New Old Way, A New Constitutional Convention: Changes for Better Governance, and America’s Wars: Justifications & Mistakes.

Political Stances:
Anti-Government Surveillance, Anti-Political Parties, Free Speech Radical, Pro-Constitutional Reform, Pro-Criminal Justice Reform, Pro-Disability Rights, Pro-Entitlements Reform, Pro-Foreign Aid, Pro-Globalism, Pro-Immigration, Pro-Interventionism, Pro-Legalization of Drugs, Pro-Life, Pro-Lifetime Ban of Lobbying on Former Government Officials, Pro-Nation Building, Pro-Paid Parental Leave, Pro-Press Freedom, Pro-Religious Freedom, Pro-Refugee, Pro-Right to Bear Arms, Pro-Sortition, Pro-Tax Reform, Pro-Term Limits

Other Info:
Is an Immigrant to United States
Is a Muslim
Is Married with five kids

I have read and accept the rules of the roleplay: (Zohiania)
Do Not Remove: DRAFT87421

Is my Character good and approved?

(1) I'd suggest moving the bulk of this information to the biography for a few reasons: to give us a better idea why he took these career paths, to fill in what feels like a blank hole in the bio from 1999 to 2017, and to mark out these points in his life seeing as right now there is literally no mention in his biography of his Arabic language teacher and law careers. And another note, doing Conflict Zone Journalism independently sounds like a ridiculously dangerous job and an easy way to become a hostage.

(2) A few notes on this section, I'd once again suggest that you write this information out in the biography: right now I have no clue at all when he got these degrees let alone how he found the time to get all of them while he was doing everything else he was doing. Secondary note, as far as I can tell UPenn doesn't offer a PhD in International Relations program and Columbia doesn't offer a PhD in Law program. And third note here is that people very, very, very rarely ever get more than one PhD for a number of reasons, so he'd need a very, very, very good reason to explain why he'd want two PhDs in subjects that don't have a lot of stuff in common in order for it to become acceptable. Adding on to that, as far as I can tell, after the BA it isn't all that likely that the military would approve of an enlisted soldier going and getting more degrees instead of spending their time doing military stuff full time.

(3) Throughout this app you make this program seem like any foreign citizen can just become a member of the US Military and get citizen, but as far as I can tell the Military only lets non-citizens join if they're already permanent residents in the US.

(4) Generally we only put the current state of residence in this area while past moves can be further mentioned in the biography sections of the app, plus if he was a student at UPenn presumably he would've lived in PA or NJ for a few years.

(5) I have absolutely no idea what you mean by "Independent".

(6) I can understand Arabic, English, and French very easily, but I'm a bit confused about why he knows Spanish and Kurdish.

(7) I assume you mean something like Anti-Arabists or Arabphobes here instead of Anti-Semetics given that that term is only used to describe Anti-Jewish stuff.

(8) What happened to his family life after he and his siblings became orphans? I'm also curious about whatever happened to his siblings given that they're only mentioned once in passing and then never again.

(9) A few notes on everything in this paragraph post him leaving the military to where I put the 9. First off I'd suggest he gets hired as a conflict zone journalist by one of the big media companies given that you really can't do that job independently. Adding on to that, if he were to do it as an independent journalist I'd doubt he'd become an instant success at it to the point where his content would be showing up in major newspapers around the world given that those newspapers already hire people to do that reporting for them instead of outsourcing it to some independent creator. If you do it via the working with a big media company path I can also see the podcast work better for a few reasons, his platform as a media journalist would help his podcast get off the ground in the first place and then he could go independent after a few years like a lot of journalists who want more freedom in what they can report do. I also have a hard time believing his program would be directly compared to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty given that that is a US-funded organization and Zahir would just be an independent journalist at this point.

10) Care to go into further detail about what you mean by "anti-white woman rhetoric" cause that could mean a lot of different things if you don't get more specific.

[Hanovereich]

(Image)

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([url=http://i.imgur.com/VBBQrMR.jpg]Image)[/url]

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Character Application and Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: Zohiania
Character Name: Zahir Muhammad Huriya
Character Gender: Male
Character Age: 40
Character Height: 6’4”
Character Weight: 210 lbs.

Character Position/Role/Job: (1)
Physician’s Assistant (11-14)
Lebanese Red Cross Volunteer (15-19)
Active Duty | U.S. Army (19-30)
Reserve Duty | U.S. Army (30-36)
Arabic Language Teacher (30-32)
(Independent) Conflict Zone Journalist/Reporter (32-40)
Podcast Host (32-40)
Defense Attorney (32-40)
Director of the Foreign Policy Center for Democracy and Freedom [FPCDF] (38-40)

Education: (2)
BA in Modern Middle Eastern Studies from University of Pennsylvania
JD/AM in Islamic Studies from University of Pennsylvania
PhD in International Relations from University of Pennsylvania
PhD in Law from University of Columbia

Character Country/State of Birth:
Born in Beirut, Lebanon, in 1981, immigrated to United States in 2000 though the "Accelerated" Process to Citizenship program by joining the U.S. military at the age of 19. (3)
Character State of Residence:
Texas (2000-2004), Florida (2004-2007), New York (2007-2010), Wyoming (2010-Present) (4)
Character Party Affiliation: National Liberal Party (Lebanon, 1997-1999), Independent (USA, 1999-Present)
Main Strengths: Independent (5), Multi-Lingual (Arabic, English, French, Kurdish, and Spanish) (6), Popular Journalist/Reporter, Large Online Following, Viewed as a Reformer
Main Weaknesses: Despised by Anti-Semites (7), Despised by Far-right and Far-left radicals, Despised by Islamophobes, White Women Hate Him, Some Controversial Views

Biography: (Minimum 2-3 paragraphs)
Zahir Muhammad Huriya was born in 1981 in Beirut, Lebanon, in 1981 as the oldest of three children. He has a younger brother and sister. His father was an Arab physician with a small clinic in Beirut, and his mother was an Assyrian full-time mother raising him and his siblings in addition to being a prominent local women’s rights activist. They were both Sunni Muslims and prominent local supporters of the National Liberal Party. He would begin to assist his father in the clinic at the age of 11 as the Lebanese Civil War ensured there was plenty of people in need. His father would help people even if they were incapable of paying, and this would continue till his father and mother were both killed in a bombing in 1995 (8). Young Zahir would go on to volunteer and work with the Lebanese Red Cross until he would join the U.S. military and immigrate to the United States in 1999.

Zahir would serve in the U.S. military as an Army Interpreter/Translator (09L) throughout his military career until he left the service in 2017. He participated on six deployments throughout his military career. Zahir was always interested in conflict and politics growing up during the Lebanese Civil War, and he would become a conflict zone journalist reporting in conflict zones to show the world what so many civilians across the globe are experiencing every day. Quickly many of his articles, photos and videos would begin appearing in major newspapers across the globe. He would also begin a podcast and website covering global news and providing forums for communication directed mainly towards political dissidents and people who live under regimes that are restrictive of media. His media platform has been likened to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (9). He has written as a syndicated columnist for the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Economist. He is also often on various radio and tv news stations as a political commentator. He is the host of the podcast, “Spreading Freedom with Zahir.”

Zahir is well known for some of his unorthodox beliefs including but not limited to his advocacy for world federalism/global government, sortition as a replacement for voting, many drastic amendments to the U.S. Constitution to further limit the powers of government, his support for the Afghanistan Conflict, Iraq War, and American interventions in general as well as his constant 'anti-white women' rhetoric (10). Zahir has written multiple books on these topics including, Global Federal Governance: A Time For Global Commitment, Sortition: A New Old Way, A New Constitutional Convention: Changes for Better Governance, and America’s Wars: Justifications & Mistakes.

Political Stances:
Anti-Government Surveillance, Anti-Political Parties, Free Speech Radical, Pro-Constitutional Reform, Pro-Criminal Justice Reform, Pro-Disability Rights, Pro-Entitlements Reform, Pro-Foreign Aid, Pro-Globalism, Pro-Immigration, Pro-Interventionism, Pro-Legalization of Drugs, Pro-Life, Pro-Lifetime Ban of Lobbying on Former Government Officials, Pro-Nation Building, Pro-Paid Parental Leave, Pro-Press Freedom, Pro-Religious Freedom, Pro-Refugee, Pro-Right to Bear Arms, Pro-Sortition, Pro-Tax Reform, Pro-Term Limits

Other Info:
Is an Immigrant to United States
Is a Muslim
Is Married with five kids

I have read and accept the rules of the roleplay: (Zohiania)
Do Not Remove: DRAFT87421

Is my Character good and approved?

(1) I'd suggest moving the bulk of this information to the biography for a few reasons: to give us a better idea why he took these career paths, to fill in what feels like a blank hole in the bio from 1999 to 2017, and to mark out these points in his life seeing as right now there is literally no mention in his biography of his Arabic language teacher and law careers. And another note, doing Conflict Zone Journalism independently sounds like a ridiculously dangerous job and an easy way to become a hostage.

(2) A few notes on this section, I'd once again suggest that you write this information out in the biography: right now I have no clue at all when he got these degrees let alone how he found the time to get all of them while he was doing everything else he was doing. Secondary note, as far as I can tell UPenn doesn't offer a JD/MA in Islamic Studies program or an PhD in International Relations program and Columbia doesn't offer a PhD in Law program. And third note here is that people very, very, very rarely ever get more than one PhD for a number of reasons, so he'd need a very, very, very good reason to explain why he'd want two PhDs in subjects that don't have a lot of stuff in common in order for it to become acceptable. Adding on to that, as far as I can tell, after the BA it isn't all that likely that the military would approve of an enlisted soldier going and getting more degrees instead of spending their time doing military stuff full time.

(3) Throughout this app you make this program seem like any foreign citizen can just become a member of the US Military and get citizen, but as far as I can tell the Military only lets non-citizens join if they're already permanent residents in the US.

(4) Generally we only put the current state of residence in this area while past moves can be further mentioned in the biography sections of the app, plus if he was a student at UPenn presumably he would've lived in PA or NJ for a few years.

(5) I have absolutely no idea what you mean by "Independent".

(6) I can understand Arabic, English, and French very easily, but I'm a bit confused about why he knows Spanish and Kurdish.

(7) I assume you mean something like Anti-Arabists or Arabphobes here instead of Anti-Semetics given that that term is only used to describe Anti-Jewish stuff.

(8) What happened to his family life after he and his siblings became orphans? I'm also curious about whatever happened to his siblings given that they're only mentioned once in passing and then never again.

(9) A few notes on everything in this paragraph post him leaving the military to where I put the 9. First off I'd suggest he gets hired as a conflict zone journalist by one of the big media companies given that you really can't do that job independently. Adding on to that, if he were to do it as an independent journalist I'd doubt he'd become an instant success at it to the point where his content would be showing up in major newspapers around the world given that those newspapers already hire people to do that reporting for them instead of outsourcing it to some independent creator. If you do it via the working with a big media company path I can also see the podcast work better for a few reasons, his platform as a media journalist would help his podcast get off the ground in the first place and then he could go independent after a few years like a lot of journalists who want more freedom in what they can report do. I also have a hard time believing his program would be directly compared to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty given that that is a US-funded organization and Zahir would just be an independent journalist at this point.

10) Care to go into further detail about what you mean by "anti-white woman rhetoric" cause that could mean a lot of different things if you don't get more specific.

UPenn does offer a PhD in Political Science, which includes international relations. And Columbia has JSDs in Law which are equivalent to PhDs.

[Alozia]

(1) I'd suggest moving the bulk of this information to the biography for a few reasons: to give us a better idea why he took these career paths, to fill in what feels like a blank hole in the bio from 1999 to 2017, and to mark out these points in his life seeing as right now there is literally no mention in his biography of his Arabic language teacher and law careers. And another note, doing Conflict Zone Journalism independently sounds like a ridiculously dangerous job and an easy way to become a hostage.

(2) A few notes on this section, I'd once again suggest that you write this information out in the biography: right now I have no clue at all when he got these degrees let alone how he found the time to get all of them while he was doing everything else he was doing. Secondary note, as far as I can tell UPenn doesn't offer a JD/MA in Islamic Studies program or an PhD in International Relations program and Columbia doesn't offer a PhD in Law program. And third note here is that people very, very, very rarely ever get more than one PhD for a number of reasons, so he'd need a very, very, very good reason to explain why he'd want two PhDs in subjects that don't have a lot of stuff in common in order for it to become acceptable. Adding on to that, as far as I can tell, after the BA it isn't all that likely that the military would approve of an enlisted soldier going and getting more degrees instead of spending their time doing military stuff full time.

(3) Throughout this app you make this program seem like any foreign citizen can just become a member of the US Military and get citizen, but as far as I can tell the Military only lets non-citizens join if they're already permanent residents in the US.

(4) Generally we only put the current state of residence in this area while past moves can be further mentioned in the biography sections of the app, plus if he was a student at UPenn presumably he would've lived in PA or NJ for a few years.

(5) I have absolutely no idea what you mean by "Independent".

(6) I can understand Arabic, English, and French very easily, but I'm a bit confused about why he knows Spanish and Kurdish.

(7) I assume you mean something like Anti-Arabists or Arabphobes here instead of Anti-Semetics given that that term is only used to describe Anti-Jewish stuff.

(8) What happened to his family life after he and his siblings became orphans? I'm also curious about whatever happened to his siblings given that they're only mentioned once in passing and then never again.

(9) A few notes on everything in this paragraph post him leaving the military to where I put the 9. First off I'd suggest he gets hired as a conflict zone journalist by one of the big media companies given that you really can't do that job independently. Adding on to that, if he were to do it as an independent journalist I'd doubt he'd become an instant success at it to the point where his content would be showing up in major newspapers around the world given that those newspapers already hire people to do that reporting for them instead of outsourcing it to some independent creator. If you do it via the working with a big media company path I can also see the podcast work better for a few reasons, his platform as a media journalist would help his podcast get off the ground in the first place and then he could go independent after a few years like a lot of journalists who want more freedom in what they can report do. I also have a hard time believing his program would be directly compared to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty given that that is a US-funded organization and Zahir would just be an independent journalist at this point.

10) Care to go into further detail about what you mean by "anti-white woman rhetoric" cause that could mean a lot of different things if you don't get more specific.

UPenn does offer a PhD in Political Science, which includes international relations. And Columbia has JSDs in Law which are equivalent to PhDs.

I doubt the character in question would be able to get the degree due to their age, family economic status and the fact that they come from a distant country with a much lower standard of living than the United States as well as other issues raised by New Cobastheia. And no, JSDs are not really equivalent to PhDs for reasons listed below.

The J.S.D., or S.J.D. is a research doctorate, and as such it is equivalent to the more commonly awarded research doctorate, the Ph.D. According to Indiana University it is the "terminal degree in law designed for individuals interested in academia." The National Association of Legal Professionals states that the J.S.D./S.J.D. is "the most advanced (or terminal) law degree that would follow the earning of the J.D. and LL.M. degrees".

Applicants for the program must have outstanding academic credentials. A first degree in law (such as a J.D. or LL.B.) is required, as well as an LL.M. Exceptions as to the latter condition (i.e. holding an LL.M.) are seldom—if ever—granted.

The J.S.D./S.J.D. typically requires three to five years to complete.

[...]

Despite its terminal status, the J.S.D./S.J.D. is rarely earned by American scholars. The American Bar Association considers the first-level JD (or LLB) a sufficient academic credential for the instruction of the law. This has been adopted by virtually all American law schools, though outstanding academic performance and an extensive record of legal publications are usually required for tenure-track employment at most universities. Most scholars who complete the J.S.D./S.J.D. at American universities are either international students seeking academic employment in their home countries (where a research doctorate may be required) or American scholars already employed, and who wish to further their legal education at the highest level.

Source: Wikipedia

[Zohiania]

(1) I'd suggest moving the bulk of this information to the biography for a few reasons: to give us a better idea why he took these career paths, to fill in what feels like a blank hole in the bio from 1999 to 2017, and to mark out these points in his life seeing as right now there is literally no mention in his biography of his Arabic language teacher and law careers. And another note, doing Conflict Zone Journalism independently sounds like a ridiculously dangerous job and an easy way to become a hostage.

(2) A few notes on this section, I'd once again suggest that you write this information out in the biography: right now I have no clue at all when he got these degrees let alone how he found the time to get all of them while he was doing everything else he was doing. Secondary note, as far as I can tell UPenn doesn't offer a PhD in International Relations program and Columbia doesn't offer a PhD in Law program. And third note here is that people very, very, very rarely ever get more than one PhD for a number of reasons, so he'd need a very, very, very good reason to explain why he'd want two PhDs in subjects that don't have a lot of stuff in common in order for it to become acceptable. Adding on to that, as far as I can tell, after the BA it isn't all that likely that the military would approve of an enlisted soldier going and getting more degrees instead of spending their time doing military stuff full time.

(3) Throughout this app you make this program seem like any foreign citizen can just become a member of the US Military and get citizen, but as far as I can tell the Military only lets non-citizens join if they're already permanent residents in the US.

(4) Generally we only put the current state of residence in this area while past moves can be further mentioned in the biography sections of the app, plus if he was a student at UPenn presumably he would've lived in PA or NJ for a few years.

(5) I have absolutely no idea what you mean by "Independent".

(6) I can understand Arabic, English, and French very easily, but I'm a bit confused about why he knows Spanish and Kurdish.

(7) I assume you mean something like Anti-Arabists or Arabphobes here instead of Anti-Semetics given that that term is only used to describe Anti-Jewish stuff.

(8) What happened to his family life after he and his siblings became orphans? I'm also curious about whatever happened to his siblings given that they're only mentioned once in passing and then never again.

(9) A few notes on everything in this paragraph post him leaving the military to where I put the 9. First off I'd suggest he gets hired as a conflict zone journalist by one of the big media companies given that you really can't do that job independently. Adding on to that, if he were to do it as an independent journalist I'd doubt he'd become an instant success at it to the point where his content would be showing up in major newspapers around the world given that those newspapers already hire people to do that reporting for them instead of outsourcing it to some independent creator. If you do it via the working with a big media company path I can also see the podcast work better for a few reasons, his platform as a media journalist would help his podcast get off the ground in the first place and then he could go independent after a few years like a lot of journalists who want more freedom in what they can report do. I also have a hard time believing his program would be directly compared to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty given that that is a US-funded organization and Zahir would just be an independent journalist at this point.

10) Care to go into further detail about what you mean by "anti-white woman rhetoric" cause that could mean a lot of different things if you don't get more specific.

I appreciate that you actually read it and then gave some sufficient reasons for recommending changes, although I disagree with some of your comments.

1) I agree with all of these things minus the last part. I mean yeah it is a dangerous thing to partake in, but people do it, and there are independent journalists who do conflict journalism.

2) I don't disagree with the fact he would be quite busy and pursuing two degrees in a short time would certainly not be easy. However, law and international relations are very heavily related to one another in relation to International Law which usually requires at least an undergraduate degree in law. I am currently pursuing such currently so I am not unfamiliar with such connections. But I am open to changing his educational information, such as the school of choice because I didn't go to Columbia so I know less about the specifics of Columbia's programs, although I did attend UPenn. And lastly pursuing education while in the military whether active or reserve duty, is really normal. I pursued my early education while active, and finished by the time I switched to the reserves. It really wasn't interfering with my duties.

3) Yes foreign citizens do have the ability to join the United States military, and it used to be the case that residency wasn't necessarily required, it may be required today, but I immigrated prior to joining so I am not as well informed about the entirety of the process. But I have served along with many individuals who were foreign citizens when they first joined, and I am pretty a few of them were not permanent residents. I know there were changes under the Trump administration, but I do not know the extent to which these changes occurred.

4) I can make changes in that area.

5) In the United States, independent generally implies one that does not affiliate themselves with a political party.

6) Armenian and Kurdish minorities living in Lebanon still speak their languages to this day, so growing up in such an diverse environment gave him ample opportunities. And Spanish is the second most common language you'll hear in the US military and in the United States at large, especially since my character lived in both Texas and Florida I don't think it is strange.

7) Anti-Semitic is a general category of discrimination which includes any Semitic peoples which includes Arabs as well as Jews. Anti-Semities tend to also be Islamophobic or hateful towards even more groups of people. But I would grant that anti-Semitism is most generally applied to discrimination and hateful attitudes towards Jewish people.

I can add more about that in bio.

9) I am willing to consider it, I didn't necessarily completely remove him from mainstream media platforms as provided for somewhat in the bio. And the main reason for the comparison to Radio Liberty has more to do with the "providing forums for communication directed mainly towards political dissidents and people who live under regimes that are restrictive of media." Which is something that independent journalist and other non-mainstream organizations do provide especially through the dark web.

10) Sure, honestly I just wanted another thing that could be used against his character and that could help to temper his strengths.

[Dentali]

Request

With the ARA passed the Richardson administration is working on its next major item, an infrastructure package. If you/your characters have suggestions or would like to assist please tg me and we can set something up. I will definitely need help with something this size.

[Gordano and Lysandus]

Request

With the ARA passed the Richardson administration is working on its next major item, an infrastructure package. If you/your characters have suggestions or would like to assist please tg me and we can set something up. I will definitely need help with something this size.

Not sure I want to leap in at this stage but I'm sure as things unfold and develop, there'll be areas of discussion.

[Dentali]

Request

With the ARA passed the Richardson administration is working on its next major item, an infrastructure package. If you/your characters have suggestions or would like to assist please tg me and we can set something up. I will definitely need help with something this size.

Not sure I want to leap in at this stage but I'm sure as things unfold and develop, there'll be areas of discussion.

yea while i do consider you among the most talented bill writers in the RP I also need to acknowledge you have a prominent position among the opposition to the richardson administration. We can certainly talk a bit ooc

[Jovuistan]

Is there anyone who needs to meet with Phillip Crawford or Arnold Wolf Jr.?

[The Sarangtus Lands]

Is there anyone who needs to meet with Phillip Crawford or Arnold Wolf Jr.?

I've been waiting for a meeting RE: the Endless Frontier Act for a bit with Crawford, so if you have time for that we can arrange it.

[Helliniki Katastasis]

Finally finished VA app.

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Character Application and Information Sheet

NS Nation Name: Helliniki Katastasis
Character Name: Steven "Steve" MacGregor
Character Gender: male
Character Age: 66
Character Height: 6'4
Character Weight: 210lbs
Character Position/Role/Job:
Candidate for Virginia Governor (2021)
CEO of MacGregor Technologies (1986-)
Owner of the Washington Post (2013-2021)
Co-Founder of the MacGregor-Howe Corporation (1975-1986)
Student at the University of Maryland (1973-1977)

Character Country/State of Birth: McLean, Virginia
Character State of Residence: Fairfax Station, Virginia
Character Party Affiliation: Republican

Main Strengths: Outsider reputation, name recognition, personal wealth, connections in Washington, bilateral appeal (Wolfists v. Moderates)
Main Weaknesses: Seen as out-of-touch, personal wealth, lack of political instinct, untested in politics, born into wealth, personal life

Biography: (Minimum 2-3 paragraphs)

The MacGregor family has a storied past in Virginia. Steve's grandfather, Lyle MacGregor was the patriarch of the family, immigrating from Ireland in 1914. Settling in Northern Virginia, he spent most of the immediate postwar period hopping between jobs, before finding his calling; When Prohibition was enacted, he quickly jumped into the moonshining business, becoming a titan of illegal smuggling network in and out of Washington. A jailbird throughout the following decade, he made connections with various congressmen and lobbyists on Capitol Hill. Marrying a young woman in 1928, their son Henry was born in 1930. A studious child, he used his father's connections in DC to aquire an academic scholarship from Princeton, graduating not long before Steven was born. Moving the the prestigious suburb of McLean, Henry ran for and became a longtime congressman from Virginia until 1971. A leading pro-civil rights voice in Virginia and at odds with the more southern-minded colleaguesof his, he passed the ideals of liberty and justice for all unto his son.

Steven, an academic like his father, maintained steady averages throughout grade school and graduated from a private high school with a 3.96 GPA, and became the valedictorian of his graduating class. Attending Princeton like his father, he became a star student. However, behind the scenes,, it was much different. Frequenting bars and undesirable institutions in downtown Princeton, he wasted away most of his income made working at McDonalds by gambling, drinking, and smoking various hard drugs, including LTD and heroin. A supporter of Eugene McCarthy and John Anderson, he became a staunch progressive in politics and very outspoken while in school, much to the anger of his family in Virginia. Adopting the now-aging lifestyle of a hippie, he made plans to move to San Francisco after graduated and wrote once in a letter home that he was going to "live the rad life in heaven". On the bright side, along with a few of his friends, including childhood friend George Howe, he took a number of classes in computer science and technology, and in 1975 launched a company from their dorm room, originally dubbed "Princeton Computers". Aiming to revolutionize the computer industry into something that could be used at the workplace - inspired by what Howe and MacGregor had seen in class at Princeton. The first few years of the company went slowly, as they came up with thousands of designs for computers and only ever producing one prototype (that now sits in a display case at MacGregor's house), which included a large monitor, and a large platform that was connected by wire to the main computer. Using a steel stylus with a cloth tip, you could write letters and draw diagrams on the platform, which would then project onto the monitor. When an attempt to patent the device failed, both Howe and MacGregor lost interest in the company, until they graduated in 1977. Marrying one of his friends involved in the company, Jeanne, he moved back to McLean and decided to quit the drugs and habits he had developed at Princeton.

Operating the company now completely with Howe, who lived in Annapolis, they began a switch to manufacturing computer parts, in a attempt to grow the company. Purchasing a warehouse in Baltimore, they quickly hired employees as the economy suffered in 1983. Acquiring a contract with California-based startup Apple, Steve used his father's ties in DC to aquire a contract with the Department of the Interior, and later with the Defense Department to manufacture computer parts to be used in both federal and domestic markets. Their company exploding, they soon expanded operations to nearly two dozen storage centers across Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania, and nearly twenty manufacturing sites from Norfolk to Hartford. A titan of the east coast market, between 1983 and 1985 their profits and both Howe and MacGregor's net worth skyrocketed by 278% a 360% respectively. In 1986, a blow to the company occurred when a disagreement over the direction of the company sent George Howe packing in 1986, after the board of directors sided with MacGregor, who pushed for expansion into more markets. However, still relatively unknown by the general public, they launched a series of home computers, hard drives, PCs, and even a video game console, Neuron, in 1988. Dropping the console and hard drives in 1991, they focused on new innovations throughout the nineties, such as pioneering the first digital watch in 1996, with a small touch-pad that flipped open from a cover to reveal a watch, step tracker, and phonecall system. Dropping their contract with Apple to compete with them, they became a smash hit throughout the 90s and 2000s in the technology industry, going public in 1999 and going international in summer 2001. However, trouble brew as MacGregor's personal life collapsed that winter, when it was revealed he had been cheating on his wife for nearly a decade with a company intern, whom he promptly married after his divorce was settled in 2002.

When the War on Terror began in 2002, the defense contract was renewed between MacGregor Technologies and the feds, as new technology developed over the course of the war, with MacGregor-made parts being used in GPS, laptops, and monitoring systems, as well as cameras and displays for the Army, as well as by the White House. Becoming the third-most prominent company in technology behind Microsoft and Apple, a short attempt was made in 2006 to launch a search browser, however this didn't go far as Google stomped out all competition. The largest employer in the technology and manufacturing sector across the Eastern Seaboard, the company was hit extremely hard by the 2008 financial crash. Thousands of employees were laid off, and salaries were cut across the board, including for MacGregor. Feeling sympathy for the laid-off workers, he donated nearly 25% of his wealth to charity to help the unemployed by the financial crash, earning him widespread praise in the media.

In 2010, he made a pledge that the recovering company would attempt to re-hire as many of its laid off workers as possible. Throughout the company's lifespan, MacGregor made a commitment not to outsource jobs away from the United States. He became more involved politically in the 2010s, as he became a critic of many of (Barack Obama)'s economic policies, and founded the America Forward Organization in 2012 to fund conservative and evangelical candidates across the country. Endorsing Mitt Romney in 2012, he became a Romney surrogate and stumped for him throughout Virginia, however the state still went to (Obama) by a decent margin. Searching for a way to become more active outside of the company, he purchased the Washington Post in 2013 and oversaw a shift by the paper in a more conservative direction, encouraging executives to sack liberal editors and replace them with conservative ones. Back at MacGregor Technologies, he oversaw another shift further away from manufacturing and into consumer sales, acquiring contracts with Home Depot, Walmart, Tractor Supply, and countless small businesses across the country for exclusive rights to sell MT products at the stores, and to provide discounted parts, laptops, computers, and printers to small businesses. Partnering with Verizon to spread internet connection across rural America, he saw the company rebound in popularity and profit in the late 2010s, with a large portion of the technology sector under his control.

An initia skeptic of Wolf and his more protectionist and anti-monopoly policies, he stayed somewhat distant from the President throughout his term.

In 2017, MacGregor and wife Ann ambically split after 15 years of marriage. In 2019, MacGregor married May Hoover, a staffer at the Energy Department.

Escalating his involvement in politics, he became a harsh critic of national Democrats and Governor (Northam), and worked with President Wolf on several initiatives involving technology companies. Expanding involvement in AFO and launching a weekly podcast entitled "MacGregor One-on-One" in 2018, he became a frequent guest and contributor to Fox News and Newsmax TV. In an attempt to be more transparent, 2019 saw a release of 30 years worth of tax returns, internal investigations into corruption and privacy by an independent commission, and released a feature on the MT website which let users see their data as shown in code at MT and how it was being used. Labeled one of the cleanest and most transparent companies, MacGregor lambasted Apple, Facebook, and other companies for their privacy concerns.

In December of 2020, MacGregor announced that he would be lessening his involvement at MT and run for Governor of Virginia as a Republican. To avoid a potential conflict of interest, he announced he would sell the Washington Post, and it was then purchased in January by (Elon Musk).

Other Info:
Net Worth: ~$850 million
Has one child with first wife Jeanne
Has three children with second wife, Ann
Has one stepchild with current wife, May

Company name:
Princeton Computers (1975-1977)
MacGregor-Howe Corporation (1977-1986)
MacGregor Technologies (1986-2018*)
(*Shortened officially to MT in 2018, however both are still used)

I have read and accept the rules of the roleplay: (Helliniki Katastasis)

Do Not Remove: DRAFT87421

[Jovuistan]

Is there anyone who needs to meet with Phillip Crawford or Arnold Wolf Jr.?

I've been waiting for a meeting RE: the Endless Frontier Act for a bit with Crawford, so if you have time for that we can arrange it.

Yeah, just make a post of him coming to Crawford's office.