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Tomb has been one of the most active and dedicated users I've ever seen. He is always on, always helping. He will no doubt do an excellent job as a Delegate.

He was here at the festival briefly...I'm sure he'll do fine.

An Invitation to attend the NationStates World Fair 2015

The NationStates World Fair is back - with an expanded committee and great plans for 2015! The NationStates World Fair Committee would like to cordially invite all regions to participate in the festivities of the World Fair.

The NSWF provides a great opportunity for a wide variety of regions from across NationStates to come together in celebration of the year, to participate in various discussions, and to hear lectures from highly respected players on a wide variety of topics.

The NSWF is opening application for bids to host the World Fair for 2015. Applications are open right away and will close on the 11th of November 2015. Unlike previous world fairs, hosts of the fair will have a greater say in the organisation and management of the events. This will include input into the design and layout of the forum for the event, input into the lectures, including selecting some of their own lecturers for the lecture series, greater input into general entertainment aspects of the forum, and the opening and closing statements of the World Fair. It is an excellent opportunity to demonstrate what your region has to offer, and we hope to see as many applications as possible.

To find out more information, including how to apply to be the host of the NS World Fair, please see this thread -> http://forum.nationstates.net/viewtopic.php?ns=1&f=12&t=359610&p=26542832#p26542726

Applications for a regional booth should be made within that thread.

Additionally, if you are interested in lecturing as part of the World Fair Lecture Series please contact McMasterdonia.

For any further inquiries, please contact Todd McCloud, or one of the other committee members:Eluvatar, McMasterdonia, Astarial, Sopo, or Almonaster.

Thank you!

[size=14] New Super Pac helps elect Delegate SillyString[/size]

by mcmasterdonia, Political Correspondent

For the first time in the history of the North Pacific a Super Political Action Committee took on a major role within the North Pacific General election for Delegate. The September General Elections were a highly anticipated event, with Delegate Zemnaya Svoboda announcing months in advance that he did not intend to seek reelection for a second consecutive term. Political leaders around the North Pacific rallied and began to prepare for the inevitable fierce campaigning that was to come.

This led to a new political action committee emerging onto the political landscape. The P.A.C called "Sillisary for the North Pacific" was formed by former Delegates Eluvatar and McMasterdonia, and former Vice Delegate and TNP Stalwart Democratic Donkeys. The P.A.C was committed to drafting Silliary Slinton to run for the Delegacy of the North Pacific. The bio for the P.A.C stated the case for electing Silliary as Delegate off the North Pacific:

"SillyString has served as Acting-Delegate, Vice Delegate, Court Justice, Deputy Speaker of the Regional Assembly, Regional Assembly member, and Security Councillor during her time in the North Pacific region. A practicing lawyer, law reformer, and mentor, SillyString has dedicated herself to a significant number of roles since joining the North Pacific in April 2013 and has proven her strong ability and dedication to every challenge set before her."

The P.A.C pointed to Silliary's "strong leadership" and her pro-reform agenda as key talking points in favour of her election. Many members of the North Pacific quickly rallied to the cause of the political action committee - with more than 16 members joining the committee. Members included Minister of Culture Lennart, Security Council Member and one-time Delegate Romanoffia, Speaker Crushing Our Enemies, and Malvad, Former Minister of Culture and Education.

Members of the P.A.C changed their avatars in a campaign pledge to support Silliary Slinton for the Delegacy. This decision was a key factor in Silliary's decision to campaign for Delegate. She acknowledged that she was "out-numbered" by the mass showing of support and said:

"Thank you all for your support! It has been instrumental in my decision. I hope I do not let you down." - Sillisary Slinton

Ms. Slinton was joined in the election campaign by Bootsie Sanders - then Minister of Communication. Mr Sanders campaigned encouraging TNPers that together "Let's do more" to improve the forum community, recruit new members, and increase activity in the Ministry's. While the campaigning was intense, Silliary Slinton was sworn in as the new Delegate of the North Pacific. Her Worshipfulness Pauline Bonaparte was elected Vice Delegate, following Flemingovia's decision to withdraw from the runoff election. Following Madam Delegate Slinton's election she promptly appointed her new cabinet - McMasterdonia O'Malley as Minister of Defence and Education, Kialga as Minister of Communications, Pauline Bonaparte as Minister of Foreign Affairs, Tomb as Minister of Home Affairs, and Lennart as Minister of Culture & Entertainment.
[size=14]The Return of The North Pacific Army[/size]

by mcmasterdonia, Military Correspondent

The North Pacific Army has once again returned to a strong period of activity and operational success. The new Government led by Delegate SillyString was quick to make the North Pacific Army a priority for the administration. Recruitment efforts are a focus of the new Minister of Defence, McMasterdonia, and the Minister of Home Affairs & NPA Chief of Staff, the Democratic Republic of Tomb. In the last month, the North Pacific Army has been involved in multiple operations, including the defence of the West Pacific, the invasion of the Greater German Reich, and the liberation of Warzone Australia.

The West Pacific operation saw a large coalition of GCR forces & friends coming to the aide of the West Pacific, who were in open rebellion against the regime of then-Delegate United RussoAsia and forces from DEN. United RussoAsia had handed control of their nation to DEN's Knot, also known as Ivo, who later briefly gave control to Cormac Stark. The operation saw the North Pacific send in approximately 11 soldiers, who were constantly moving in and out, in a game of ping-pong with the sitting Delegate. This is the largest operation the North Pacific Army has been involved in since May. It would appear that the aggressive recruitment style of the Minister and his team is paying off, with many new recruits being the most eager participants in the operation. The RMB saw a huge amount of activity during this time, but most importantly, the operation fostered new found friendships between TNPers and West Pacificans, showing a possible greater future for cooperation and partnership between the two regions.

The training operations conducted by the NPA leadership team have extended into spotting for foreign invasions. Last month, the North Pacific Army joined with allies in the Taijitu Citizens' Militia and pre-emptively defended several regions. NPA officers could see a DEN-affiliated force of approximately 16 updaters staging in Nugut, and deployed to Middle Earth, Asia, and Belgium, in order to preemptively defend those nations from DEN. DEN then surprisingly "liberated" the region of The Eternal Realm from the forces of Auralia. (They have not, of course, actually restored the region to its pre-invasion state.)

The North Pacific Army continues to go from strength to strength, and it is fully expected to be an active and prosperous term for the North Pacific Army and the region. NPA High Command is currently working on a number of proposals that will cover both NPA membership reform, and a broader NPA communications policy. Stay tuned for future updates.
[size=14] [RP Feature] Floresque Elections [/size]

by Myroria, Role Play Correspondent

This column does not represent the views of the Government of The North Pacific.

Floregasque election: Ruling party wins reelection, shakeup in Ward 6

EDITORS' NOTE: The following article has been omitted from the Floregasque Edition of the International Gazette in order to meet the guidelines of the Undesirable Propagation Unit.


FLORESQUE, FLOREGASQUE REPUBLIC - Official results from Friday's general elections have been published, with the ruling National Unity Party (NUP), controlled largely by the Gonfaloniere Alessandro d'Avelocci and his close family, winning 14 of the 15 seats in the Signoria. The party has won every election since its formation in 1948, and the Aveloccis, the richest family in Floresque, have controlled the city-state's government in one form or another for almost 200 years.

The opposition, led by the Workers' Party (WP), held onto the one seat in the legislature that many analysts view as a concession given to them by the NUP-dominated government.

The big surprise of the night was the stunning victory of opposition candidate Catarina Tiraboschi, who won the election for ward-mayor in Ward 6. Ward 6, traditionally considered an NUP stronghold, is located near the prosperous Business District in Ward 5. Tiraboschi's victory may startle some hardline conservatives in the Signoria, who are already rumored to be skeptical of the Gonfaloniere's moves to liberalize lower-level elections in Floresque.

Tiraboschi has been dogged consistently by rumors that she supports the Tenants' Representation Front (TRF), an opposition organization suppressed by the Floregasque government for "anti-civil activities". Tiraboschi has consistently declined to comment on these rumors, an ambivalence that may be concerning to the security-minded NUP.

The Gonfaloniere, if he was shaken by the opposition's success in Ward 6, did not show it. He said he was "ecstatic to see how well our party has done", and thanked the people for "the continued mandate they have given us".

Turnout in the election was reported to be 81%; like all electoral figures from the Republic though, this should be considered suspect. International observers view elections in Floresque to be largely fraudulent, charges that the Gonfaloniere and Signoria deny.

The results of this latest election make clear that, in spite of the Gonfaloniere's apparent attempts to hold fair elections for lower-level positions, opposition parties have a long road ahead of them to reach equal footing with the Avelocci-dominated National Unity Party.
[size=14]Series: Interview with Cormac Stark (Part 1)[/size]

by Lord Ravenclaw, Gameplay Correspondent

This column does not represent the views of the Government of The North Pacific.

The North Pacific's own Lord Ravenclaw sat down with fellow citizen of The North Pacific and fellow Pharaoh-Emeritus of Osiris Cormac Stark to discuss some events in the recent past as part of a series of interviews to be exclusively posted by The Northern Light.

This is the first part of the Interview. Part two shall be about The West Pacific and Part three shall be about a controversial but important issue facing NationStates players in our world.

This interview was originally conducted at the start of October 2015 and details events before that time.


Lord Ravenclaw: Thank you for joining me Cormac Stark, Pharaoh-Emeritus of Osiris.

Cormac Stark: Thanks for having me!

Lord Ravenclaw: You've done a lot over the past three years, would you be able to remind our readers of your origins in NationStates? I understand that the feeders weren't your first home.

Cormac Stark: Well, my origin, aside from a very brief stay in 10000 Islands, was in a now mostly forgotten region called Exshaw, which was founded by Durkadurkiranistan II (aka John Ashcroft Land among older Feederites) as an imperialist region. From there I got involved with other imperialist regions like The New Inquisition and The Land of Kings and Emperors, as well as independent Europeia.

Cormac Stark: I also founded my own region, Asgard, in 2012, it was fairly short lived but much publicized. Of course all of that changed in September 2012 when I switched to defending, but we don't need my whole life story.

Lord Ravenclaw: I seem to recall something about Asgardia during that period as well, what was the story with that?

Cormac Stark: Well, after I joined the UDL in September 2012, Isidor abdicated the throne of Asgard in frustration, and Jagermeister assumed the throne. He ultimately ended up destroying the forum after being made root administrator and abandoning the founder account. I tried to relocate the community of Asgard to Asgardia after that, but unfortunately the damage had been done and it was over for that particular region and community. We're getting into some seriously obscure history here now!

Lord Ravenclaw: Not to get too far off topic, but who was Jagermeister? Forum destruction is a horrible act and people who do it shouldn't go unpunished.

Cormac Stark: He had been a newbie to Exshaw and had come with us to Asgard. He was very prominent and active in Asgard, and all the turmoil when I joined the UDL hit him pretty hard. I've also been told since then that he had some very serious stuff going on in real life, and I've forgiven him for the forum destruction. As far as I know he stopped playing after the forum destruction and hasn't been back.

Lord Ravenclaw: How unfortunate; it's troublesome when real life interferes with our virtual communities - something we know only too well. I hope he's in a better place now.

Cormac Stark: Me too. He was a nice guy, except obviously for that incident, and I wish him all the best.

Lord Ravenclaw: As I understand it, you were first brought to the Game Created Regions because of the World Assembly of all things, would you mind enlightening our readers as to why?

Cormac Stark: Well, in July 2012, Asgard invaded Christmas and after a lengthy occupation imposed an invisible password. Mahaj, then a Lieutenant in the UDL, proposed a liberation resolution and Asgard did its best to fight it. It ultimately passed, but by a narrower margin than most liberation resolutions, so I became convinced that Asgard could actually defeat defenders in the Security Council if we became more involved in more influential regions, i.e., the Feeders and Sinkers. So that was initially why I got involved in The North Pacific and Osiris, in 2012.

Lord Ravenclaw: So, the World Assembly was your passage into two very different regions. But as we both know, you have a long history in Osiris. What happened there?

Cormac Stark: Well, I got involved in Feeders and Sinkers to co-opt their influence for my own ends, but it was actually they who ended up co-opting me. I made friends in both TNP and Osiris, but particularly Osiris, and particularly the Pharaoh at the time, Earth (Lyanna Stark). So over time I became less interested in using these communities and more interested in actually participating in them, and that was especially true in Osiris.

Lord Ravenclaw: Speaking of Stark, what's the history there? You just mentioned Lyanna, so is it mere coincidence or are you two related in some way?

Cormac Stark: It actually was coincidence at first. Stark is popular from Game of Thrones, and my family in Exshaw and Asgard started using it well before I knew anything about Earth. We did later become related when Unibot adopted me as his son, and Earth became my step-mother. There have been some disownings since then. NS families are silly.

Lord Ravenclaw: Onto a different topic and back to Osiris for a little while.

Cormac Stark: Sounds good.

Lord Ravenclaw: How did you go from coming to the desert star of NationStates in order to influence the WA Voting Pool and end up where you are now?

Cormac Stark: Good question. I'm not sure I know the answer, honestly. I was in the right places at the right times or the wrong places at the wrong times, depending on your perspective. I had some legislative and minor executive jobs before I was first elected Pharaoh. I ran for Pharaoh sensing something was off, at a time when people were very discontent with the incumbent, and beat the incumbent for the first time in Osiran history. He couped, of course, and the rest is history. Since then I was until February of this year integrally involved in every major event in Osiris, especially co-founding of the Osiris Fraternal Order.

Lord Ravenclaw: What changed?

Cormac Stark: What changed is I deliberately committed treason to get a lengthy ban from Osiris, because it had become not good for me, and vice versa. I had always said I didn't want to become like a certain other Osiran power player that the OFO permanently exiled - and when I saw myself becoming him, I exiled myself.

Lord Ravenclaw: It's interesting you say that; arguably, there have been eight players over Osiris' history who have had huge impacts on the region - not always for the better either. However, all of them with the exception of two are no longer involved in Osiris. Where does the region go from here?

Cormac Stark: The region goes up, I hope. When I pleaded guilty to treason, I urged the dissolution of the OFO because I believed its institutions were flawed, but I think I was wrong about that. It is the attitudes, not the institutions, which are flawed in Osiris. To make a very long story short, what needs to change in Osiris is that Osirans need to stop seeing themselves as being in perpetual crisis and start seeing themselves as a normal Sinker community again. If they can do that, I believe they will become more cooperative as a community and less reliant on the Pharaoh -- we're always more reliant on leaders when we feel we're in crisis -- and I think it will only be up from there.

Lord Ravenclaw: What do you think Osiris needs to do in order to become less reliant? We've seen at least one Pharaoh of the OFO, including myself; get panned for "not doing enough".

Cormac Stark: What needs to change is the perception that there are problems that one person needs to solve or a crisis that one person needs to address. Regional activity is not a problem, nor a crisis, but rather an opportunity, and it's an opportunity for the entire community. Again, what needs to happen is a change in attitude. The community of Osiris needs to stop seeing so many problems and start seeing all of the opportunities that are right in front of it. At the end of the day, all "activity" means is doing stuff together. When they start wanting to do that again, activity will follow.

Lord Ravenclaw: Can you see yourself returning to Osiris when your sentences expire?

Cormac Stark: I honestly don't know. I don't think so, but I won't rule it out.

Lord Ravenclaw: There have been talks of an unofficial government shutdown, to focus the attention of the community entirely on recruitment and integration efforts. Do you think an unofficial approach like that would help or hinder the community?

Cormac Stark: I think it would hinder the community. What Osiris needs from its government is optimism and a sense of creating opportunity, instead of hearing from the government that the lack of activity is a "crisis." Activity doesn't come from obligation or a sense of duty in a game, it comes from opportunities to have fun. That's what Osiris needs from its government, and it is the government's job to govern. It has a responsibility. We have essentially seen the government of Osiris shut down during the terms of several Pharaohs, and it has not empowered the community.

Lord Ravenclaw: On another note, in an editorial published by The Raven Post, you stated "Gone are the explosive arguments between prominent regional figures, dividing the community into "us vs. them" factions. Personalities will clash in any regional community, but Osiris seems to have turned the page on the chapter of its history that was characterized by divisive and ultimately destructive personality politics"; is this not a result brought upon by the fact that these powerful figures are no longer involved in the community?

Cormac Stark: I don't think so, no. Because after the people who used to have the explosive arguments and power struggles retired, other people would just step up to take their place. It was an institutional and cultural problem in Osiris. I didn't used to be one of the power players involved in the arguments and power struggles, but before the establishment of the OFO I became one of them, and even after Empire was exiled from Osiris, power struggles continued. But those have largely stopped and I do believe it's because of the strength of the OFO's institution, which makes actually winning factional power struggles impossible.

Lord Ravenclaw: Perhaps, although I think that it's more down to the fact that overall, there has been a more unified opinion and approach to Osiris recently, there is no longer quite so much disagreement with direction. So where do -you- go from here? I noticed that you've been endotarting in The North Pacific and were recently readmitted to their Regional Assembly.

Cormac Stark: That's what I'm doing. I don't intend to join (or re-join, as the case may be) any other regions right now, if ever, I'd like to try just focusing my time and energy in one place. TNP has always been welcoming to me, even with all of my past questionable behavior, and so it seems like a community I can contribute to without constant questioning of my motives and loyalties.

Lord Ravenclaw: Is it true that you are planning to reform the Regression Party? Also, is there any truth to the rumour that you are also courting the Queen of Balder? I've also been told that you are trying to undercut the North Pacific's economy and make a profit on the exports of North Pacific Spiced Rum?

Cormac Stark: No truth to any of those rumours, though I do hear Balder is lovely this time of year and the Queen is even lovelier.

Lord Ravenclaw: I have been asked some questions for you, if you wouldn't mind.

Cormac Stark: Sure.

Lord Ravenclaw: What prompted you to return and what do you think is the allure of NationStates? Also, who are you and why do you want "my" lunch money?

Cormac Stark: I was prompted to come back because I do miss people, friendships I've made over the years, and this remains the best way to communicate with them since we don't know each other in real life. I also feel like my time away did me a lot of good and I can participate in the game without the bad feelings I had before.

Cormac Stark: The allure of the game? I think it's different for everyone. For me, it's the friendships I've made that have lasted three years now. For others it may be something else.

Cormac Stark: And I'm Cormac and I want your lunch money for something sketchy and top secret. *smirks*

Lord Ravenclaw: Thank you for joining me Cormac Stark; it's been a unique experience in the two and a half years we've worked together.

Cormac Stark: It has indeed!

Lord Ravenclaw: Okay, is there anything that you'd like to let our readers know before this interview ends?

Cormac Stark: It's nice to be back in NationStates. I feel that my month long break did me a lot of good, that I've changed and grown in my attitudes toward the game, and I look forward to others seeing that as well. And of course thank you for the interview, it's been a pleasure.
[size=14]SillyString's Silly Advice[/size]

by SillyString

This column does not represent the views of the Government of The North Pacific.

Dear SillyString: I'm redecorating my room, and I want my room color to really express my personality. How would I go about choosing the perfect shade of color so that I won't have to repaint it again for a while?
- Painterrific

This is a dilemma that afflicts so many of our viewers, so I'm glad you asked it!

The first step you must take is to bring yourself to a good psychologist. After all, before you can begin choosing a color that fits your personality, you must first determine whether you have DID (dissociative identity disorder) and if so, how many personalities you need to match for.

With a diagnosis in your hand, your next step should be to take one of the many online "What color is your personality" quizzes. Though they appear simple, or even trite, these quizzes are designed with exceeding scientificity and can definitively match you to the right color for you. If you do indeed have DID, be sure that each one of your identities takes the quiz independently.

Armed with your scientifically verifiable personalized colors, you now need to turn those colors into paint. If you have only one identity, or if the colors of your multiple identities are all relatively similar, this isn't too hard. Take their average, get yourself to a paint store, and let the smart paintmongers do their job. They'll decide where you fall on the glossy-matte stage, and they can also estimate exactly how much paint you'll need. Once they whip you up a batch, simply apply paint to walls. You're done! Enjoy your lovely new walls.

If, on the other hand, the colors your identities are diagnosed with are significantly different, the averaging method will not work. When this happens, it becomes necessary to come up with an alternate solution that allows each one to be happy. My best suggestion is to rig up some sort of filtered lighting that will alter your perception of wall color, and then test various different shades of paint under these different lights. That way, whoever you wake up as in the morning will be greeted with their own preference when they turn on the right light. Easy peasy!

Alternatively, if you enjoy certain hard substances, you may choose to doodle on your walls with markers while under their influence. This will surely show off your inner... personality... in a way that paint never can. Good luck!

Seriously silly,
SillyString

[small]The Northern Lights: Beauty in Truth
Publisher: SillyString :: Executive Editor: Kialga :: Graphic Artist: SillyString

The Northern Lights is produced by the Ministry of Communications on behalf of the Government of The North Pacific and distributed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Except where otherwise indicated, all content represents the views of the Government of The North Pacific.[/small]

Thanks for the update

THE NORTH PACIFIC
MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS

1st August 2016
Magicality City, The North Pacific

A brief update:

To our embassies,

The North Pacific Diplomatic Corps would like to send out a brief update on what the region has been up to in the past while.

In May, Lord Ravenclaw was reelected as Delegate. The election was extended as voters voted reopen nominations rather than electing the candidates unopposed. Bootsie was re-elected as Vice Delegate as was Zyvetskistaahn as Speaker. quak1234 and Mister Masses continue to serve him as Deputy Speakers. Lord Ravenclaw appointed flemingovia as Minister of Communications, Gladio as Minister of Defence, Plembobria as Minister of Home Affairs and Mousebumples as Minister of World Assembly Affairs. Lord Ravenclaw accepted applications to the remaining ministries and Kasch was appointed Minister of the newly created Gameside Affairs, IndieGirl is in charge of Culture & Entertainment and Praetor was chosen for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The Judicial Election has just finished; SillyString is the new Attorney General. Gracius Maximus, Kialga and Eluvatar were elected as justices with the last serving as Chief Justice.

The North Pacific is part of an endeavour to reduce the number of mass-telegram campaigns aimed at all WA nations for WA resolutions. The signatories agreed to collaborate to take measures to counter such campaigns, including having the Delegates of the signatories vote early against the resolutions, issuing telegram campaigns in response in their own regions or more widely, and compiling a list of those that use such campaigns regularly (presumably with the intention of tending to vote against their proposals as a deterrent measure).

Since the recent Imgur flood courtesy of Firehelm, The North Pacific has gained 42 citizens. Several of these citizens have joined us on Discord and in the Executive Staff.

Due to the influx of nations our Delegate has surpassed 1000 endorsements. His vote has been crucial in affecting the outcome of several resolutions, most recently, defeating Ivo's attempt to besmirch the TITO in Liberate California. The North Pacific has also contributed to passing Repeal Condemn the Pacific after the resolution failing twice in the recent months.

The North Pacific Army is very much active, they've completed twelve operations recently and are able to field approximately 13 troops.

The North Pacific is looking forward to continuing to bring new individuals into the community in the next while.

Sincerely,
The Diplomatic Corps of The North Pacific

Thank you for the brief update...all the best to the nations of The North Pacific.

Plembobria forms dynamic cabinet of fresh faces and seasoned officials

by Praetor

With Plembobria's election to the position of delegate for the remainder of 2016, he summarily set about appointing ministers.

Initial appointments returned Gladio to the position of defense minister and Praetor as the minister of foreign affairs. Syrixia was appointed minister of cultural affairs. Kasch retained his post as minister of gameside affairs. Applications for the remaining ministries – communications, home affairs and World Assembly affairs – were opened and filled quickly. Bootsie, Tomb and Pallaith were appointed respectively to their positions. When asked what expectations he had for the upcoming term, the delegate replied, "Ministers will get stuff done or be flagellated!" The ministers have a wide variety of experience between them which will serve the delegate well in the upcoming term.

Gladio has been the minister of defense for the last term and is a general in the North Pacific Army. He is one of the most highly regarded individuals in the north, and his commitment to the NPA is unparalleled. He initially joined The North Pacific in 2012 and has been a member of the North Pacific Army since then. During the spring in 2014 he was made the deputy minister.

r3naissanc3r promoted him to defense minister in May 2014 and he remained as such until January 2015. He lead an impressive renewal of the department, and within two terms managed to elevate the NPA from a rarely seen force to being able to field 20 endorsements in a single update. Gladio is highly decorated with 44 ribbons and over 100 operations – the most in TNP. For this term, his "ultimate goal is to break the record deployment number" of 25.

Praetor first joined TNP in February 2016 and was appointed minister of foreign affairs by Lord Ravenclaw after his unsuccessful run for the delegacy. He led an effort to replace inactive ambassadors and recruit more department staff. More than 30 individuals joined the ministry during his term. After another unsuccessful run for elected office, this time for vice delegate, Plembobria reappointed him to the cabinet.

Syrixia is a longtime member of the community, joining in October 2014. Highly active in the roleplaying community and a long time member of the cultural affairs ministry, this is his first term in the cabinet. He says he wants to “lay the groundwork for my plans for the ministry of cultural affairs” through a program dubbed A.S.S. – “Activity, Simplicity, Spirit.”

Kasch is another new member of TNP, joining in April of this year. He applied and was accepted to the position of the minister of gameside affairs for the previous term. The ministry of gameside affairs has a large role in getting new nations onto the forum. Kasch's focus was on the creation of a brand new ministry, including the appointments of regional mentors, recruitment officers and RMB moderators.

This term, he is "going to encourage a more active presence on the RMB” and “make sure that every single one of our staff members knows what they need to do to get our new players from the game and onto the forums.” He says these duties include “releasing helpful dispatches and threads, showing people the ropes of recruitment and welcoming new members."

Bootsie was impartially appointed to head the communications ministry after running for the delegacy against Plembobria. His prior two terms as vice delegate had him heavily involved in the government, with last term's appointment to chief of staff. He has also previously served as the minister of communications, as well as the deputy minister of home affairs. He has been a deputy speaker and the elected speaker of the Regional Assembly.

With the last issue of The Northern Lights being published in late April, there is a lot of pressure on him to ensure one is published. A challenge he will have to face in addressing this is "a lack of dedicated members that want to write 400 word essays. People love to contribute all day to recruiting or coming up with ideas for a festival, but there aren't many who'll sit down and write a column for a newspaper." The Northern Lights is one of the major policy tools of the communications ministry. The lack of a publication has harmed TNP's foreign affairs, so the new edition is much anticipated.

Tomb has an extensive history in The North Pacific, previously serving as minister of home affairs, foreign affairs and communications, as well a deputy minster of several departments. He most notably served as delegate from February to May 2015. Tomb is quickly seeking greater involvement in the off-site community. His team sent almost 4000 telegrams manually in the span of a few days.

Tomb claims home affairs is a vital department because "the minute that the H.A. Ministry goes inactive, the bloodline of new members into the region is directly affected. And so it is important and necessary to keep the executive staff active and interested. In the past, we've offered no incentives. This time, I plan to put in place a rewards system to serve as an incentive for people to join the H.A. executive staff, as well as a way of rewarding existing members."

With Tomb's credentials it is quite likely that he will be able to create a system to improve recruitment and retention of citizens.

Pallaith is the newest cabinet member, with no prior ministerial experience. He joined in September, just prior to the election. He applied for the position and was accepted by Plembobria. He rolled into a job with only a few hours until the contentious resolution "Commend Benevolent Thomas" went to vote and performed admirably in handling this challenge. He aims "to make TNP a haven for resolution authors and bring W.A.L.L. back to forefront, so that the ministry of WA affairs can do its part to enhance diplomacy with our neighbors and put our region's immense influence to even greater use and effect." The World Assembly Legislative League, or W.A.L.L., is an under-utilized treaty designed to enhance the signatories' power in the World Assembly. The North Pacific has the largest voting bloc in the world by a wide margin. Hopefully, Pallaith can further bolster TNP's influence.

The ministers of The North Pacific have a considerable amount of power, with that power comes a lot of responsibility. Ministers are responsible in ensuring the government runs smoothly, to advise the delegate, and most importantly, to improve the community. Each ministry is unique and should one not accomplish its tasks, it has a significant impact on the region.

The ministers are not alone in this, however. Each department has a dedicated staff usually featuring between 20 to 40 members to assist them in their role. With such a large staff, communication occurs on the forums, as well as the Discord servers for executive staff and the NPA.

The community of The North Pacific looks forward to seeing what its new cabinet can accomplish in the closing months of 2016.

The second edition of the Northern Cup swings into action

by Kasch

What started out as an idea, floating around quietly on one of our Discord channels, has slowly and steadily grown over the past few months. The Northern Cup has expanded into a tournament with 32 teams and its own qualification process.

Almost nothing like this had ever been managed before the very first edition of what I called the Northern Cup. It was a big surprise to see how quickly we acted upon what started as a simple conversation in Discord. I already knew that quite a lot of people would be interested, and so I decided to go ahead with it and get it up and running.

I have learned from this experience that doing something while you have the time is better than finding a reason not to do it. I am hoping to introduce a whole new team of people into the management of the The Northern Cup, from Adjudicators to Reporters, as there will always be people who want to help.

All of the time taken to care for each little detail and to ensure that people are seeing my best work, all of that has paid off and I can proudly say that I am looking forward to running this cup every year or so from now on. I guess you could say that it was the people around me that gave me the motivation and the inspiration to begin the tournament.

When sports role play is introduced to a forum, there are always people who do not like sports, people who love sports, and everyone in between. But no matter who they are, there should always be opportunities for them to take part in events and tournaments.

One of the aspects I have enjoyed greatly whilst running this tournament is the opportunity to design the tournament's graphics. It has been a real eye opener to see how much of a difference a graphical effort can make. Although it is not necessary, it has certainly brought life to the skeletons of text.

All role playing regions should have the same goal: if there is an idea, put it into action. If somebody suggests something, take the time to listen and understand. Without the encouragement of many people on NS, the forums and Discord, I doubt I would have even continued with TNC.

I don't know how tournaments in the future will turn out or what features may be added, but I do know one thing: starting TNC and working to build it all up has really given me a reason to keep role playing sports and to keep regularly setting up events. I hope to expand on it even more in the future, but nobody can be sure of what may truly become of the Northern Cup.

Let's just hope things get even more interesting than they already are now.

A race to remember: Region's finest on display in September elections

by Tomb

Every January, May, and September, The North Pacific holds its general elections, in which it elects the delegate, vice delegate, and speaker of the Regional Assembly. Needless to say, general elections are a time of high buzz and activity in TNP. With experienced citizens, rising stars, and new members all competing for the three highest seats of government, TNPers are often faced with hard decisions at the polls. However, no recent election has matched that of the September 2016 race in terms of the quality of the candidates, level of competition, and the overall amount of campaigning.

The race started out with outgoing Vice Delegate Bootsie and then Minister of Home Affairs Plembobria declaring their candidacies for delegate. Both candidates ran on a joint ticket system with Bootsie choosing Praetor, the minister of foreign affairs as his running mate, and Plembobria choosing former Deputy Attorney General Yeraennus. Both candidates for delegate ran on platforms promising to continue the progress made in the past eight months under outgoing Delegate Lord Ravenclaw while also incorporating their own ideas for the region for the next four months. As far as credentials go, Plembobria emphasized his strong record as a former chief justice and his executive branch experience as the minister of home affairs. Bootsie highlighted his consistency as the region’s vice delegate for the past eight months and his familiarity with the executive branch through his role as chief of staff. As no further nominees would accept a nomination for the delegacy, the race for delegate looked to be an extremely close match between Plembobria and Bootsie.

In the race for vice delegate, Praetor and Yeraennus started out as the major candidates; however, the state of the race would dramatically alter after Lord Ravenclaw, the outgoing delegate, decided to join the race. Raven’s candidacy came as a surprise to those who expected him to take a break after his eight month tenure as delegate of the region. Raven explained that his candidacy for vice delegate allowed TNPers to have another option for the position, since many voters were wary of the ticket system that was adopted and implemented by both of the candidates for delegate. Raven also expressed his desire to continue serving TNP in an official capacity. He went on to cite his experience as a veteran of the region’s executive branch, which could be put to use in either a Bootsie or Plembobria administration. Also joining the race for vice delegate were current security councilor and long time TNP citizen, Romanoffia, and former Minister of Culture Lord Lore. This put the number of candidates for vice delegate at five, with each one of them having the necessary skills and experience to fulfill the job.

The race for the speakership of the Regional Assembly was dominated by Zyvetskistaahn (Zyvet), the incumbent speaker and sole candidate for the office. Zyvet emphasized the fact that he was the region’s longest serving speaker and promised to continue performing at the same level of excellence that he had shown TNPers in his previous terms.

The elections were highly contested, and for many voters it was a really hard decision. As a result, a debate was conducted for both the delegate and vice delegate races. The debates were moderated by former delegate and long time TNP citizen, Eluvatar, and they really helped showcase the candidates’ knowledge on issues as well as clarify many of their positions and policies. Lord Lore and Romanoffia were unavailable for the vice delegate debate, and so it was to be held between Praetor, Yeranennus, and Lord Ravenclaw. It was agreed that Lord Ravenclaw won the Vice Delegate debate; however, both of the other candidates performed well and were knowledgeable on almost every topic asked. The results for the delegate debates, which were attended by both candidates, were inconclusive as both of them put forth a strong performance. And so all candidates continued to campaign until the last day of voting. The results were announced on Sept. 13 with Plembobria winning the race for delegate with 43 votes compared to Bootsie’s 34 votes. Lord Ravenclaw won the vice delegate race with 44 votes. Praetor came in second place with 18 votes, and Romanoffia, Lord Lore, and Yeraennus finished up in third, fourth, and fifth place, respectively. Last but certainly not least, Zyvet handily won the election for speaker, mustering 66 votes. The votes were all certified and the voter turnout was placed at 83 votes, an extremely high number even for a GCR.

It is elections like these that really help showcase how strong democracy is in TNP. Not only was the voter turn out high, but the citizens themselves had many viable, experienced candidates for each seat. And so it is this active electorate coupled with a dedicated list of candidates and crazy competition that make TNP the best region in all of NationStates.

The region you choose matters: First impressions from a new arrival

by Pallaith

Every single player in NationStates begins their journey in the most populous and influential regions in existence. When we arrive we are new, wide-eyed and awestruck by their size and the number of players interacting. The regional officers look imposing with all their endorsements, the RMB is bustling and we probably don’t know any other people there, and to top it all off, within minutes the recruitment telegrams have stuffed our inboxes. It can be very intimidating. While a lot of nations decide to stay in the region, most take a good look at those telegrams and make the first important choice in this game.

My first nation in this game was Ghostopolis, and I spawned in The North Pacific. A few friends in another online group got into NationStates and showed me the site. I had no clue how any of it worked, outside of a few tips those friends gave me. One of the things they mentioned was that all players start out in a GCR, and to hear them tell it, if I decided to stay put I would be swimming in an ocean where I would be one of many schools of fish, destined to be eaten or outswam by the sharks and whales that resided there. I came to believe that if I wanted to take the game to a level higher than answering issues and voting in the WA, I would have to aim for a small pond or a large lake where I could swim freely and be counted as a valued part of the region. So I left, choosing one of the regions who reached out to me.

These regions make a lot of promises: activities, a shot at political success, a friendly and welcoming community. I figured the odds of that would be better in one of the other regions, but I figured wrong. My first region was small but was an elite club of people who knew each other longer than they knew me and didn’t seem much interested in letting in anyone new unless they were carbon copies of the people in charge. We had RP but alternative viewpoints were not welcome. We had elections but the outcomes were predetermined. Following their rigid ways and playing along with all their ideas meant that innovation could not take root, and there was very little reason for anyone to do much. I left for another region within the year, completely burned out from the experience. I answered issues and voted in the WA, but that was it. My second region was a good one, and I could have had a lot of fun there, but I was so disappointed by the experience and still intimidated by the idea of incorporating myself into another group of strangers who were all friends that it took me almost two years to get invested in the game again.

The region you choose matters. You can travel around looking for a better fit, but even if you find it, you may not be ready or able to appreciate it. The people who enjoy this game the most are the people who make an effort and get involved. There can be a lot of trial and error in NationStates, and that word trial is important. You have to try, but so does the region. The North Pacific put all the tools at my feet, and I just had to decide to pick them up. I have been a citizen of TNP for less than a month and I am blown away by the experience. I have found here what I thought I could not when I was a newcomer. Where else could a new arrival have a platform like The Northern Lights, let alone be appointed a minister so quickly? Everyone I met has welcomed me with open arms, they put up with my dumb jokes and my endless questions. All I had to do on that first day was stop by the forum and start posting. I could have enjoyed this game so much more from the start.

I absolutely vouch for TNP and admit that my friends led me astray, and all my worst assumptions about them when I joined were wrong. TNP is not just another GCR, it is a fantastic, open, encouraging region. I could write another paragraph of positive words, but that isn’t enough. You have to experience it for yourself. Sign up, take a look around, visit Discord. There are no limits to what you can do or what this region can do if we all take a leap of faith together. I don’t think I will ever run out of things to do here, and I definitely don’t have any incentive to stop. I’m not presumptuous enough to claim to speak for all new nations in the region, but I wanted citizens old and new to hear from one of the new guys for a change. I for one appreciate the work the veterans and architects put into the region as it exists today. I appreciate the outreach, your friendliness, your helpfulness, your patience. It goes somewhere; it makes a difference. If you’re new like me, take advantage of your new region’s effort, and give back to them. This will make everyone’s game so much better, and you’re here to play, aren’t you? So let’s play some NS.

The Northern Lights: Beauty in Truth
Publisher: plembobria :: Executive Editor: Bootsie :: Managing Editor: Kondratev :: Graphic Artists: SillyString & Imki

The Northern Lights is produced by the Ministry of Communications on behalf of the Government of The North Pacific and distributed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Except where otherwise indicated, all content represents the views of the Government of The North Pacific.

I apologize, I could have sworn that I replied...but thank you for the update!

Judicial Elections have Concluded! The RA has elected three qualified and experienced Justices who will be serving until elections in March. All of the winners have extensive legal careers, and have prior experience on the court.

Eluvatar (known in TNP as Zemnaya Svoboda) has been reelected to the bench. He has also agreed to serve as Chief Justice for another term. Among other positions, he has served multiple terms as Delegate, he also currently sits on the Security Council.

SillyString, our previous Attorney General, is re-entering the court, like Eluvatar, she is also a member of the Security Council and has served as Delegate. She has also served as Vice Delegate.

Crushing Our Enemies (General COE) has also been elected. He has served as Speaker and as Vice Delegate, as well as multiple Ministerial posts.

Along with the Court, the Regional Assembly has elected a new Attorney-General, Ash (aka Virginian Inquisitors), who has recently returned to the game. Ash helped write our regional constitution back in the day. And has already gotten down to business in revitalizing his office.


Click to join: Regional Forum | Regional Assembly | Executive Staff | North Pacific Army | World Assembly Ministry | Democratic Union
The North Pacific Press Releases are produced by the Ministry of Gameside Affairs and distributed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Thank you for reading!

[size=14] January 2017 General Election Results[/size]

by Tomb, Vice Delegate

2017 found The North Pacific (TNP) in a time of excitement. With the General Elections season starting on January 1st, campaigning was going strong, the feeling of rivalry was felt by all, and there was an air of excitement all around the region. TNP elects its Delegate, Vice Delegate, and Speaker of the Regional Assembly (RA) every four months in what is known as the General Elections. With the three highest offices in the region up for grabs, General Elections are usually a time period of excitement and increased activity.

This General Election was no different. As the Elections started out, the Delegate's race appeared to be the most contested one. Incumbent Delegate Plembobria, former Vice Delegate Bootsie, and Deputy Attorney General Darcania all initially declared candidacy for the position. Each candidate had considerable support and a strong resume, and the race looked really packed for a minute. Soon enough, Bootsie and Darcania both withdrew from the race leaving Plembobria as the only candidate standing. The field was not vacant for long though as Deputy Minister and Assistant Attorney General Sasten declared his candidacy for the office along with citizens Yalkan, Hesskin Empire, and Lord Emmanuel. Ultimately, the race came down to Plembobria and Sasten in the end with both candidates battling it out till the last vote.

Plembobria, the incumbent Delegate, cited his strong first term in office in which he saw success in increasing activity levels across the board. He promised to continue this while also embracing and allowing his cabinet ministers to create and achieve individual policies and goals for their ministries. Sasten ran on a campaign promising to maintain the progress of the past term while also working towards new achievements as a region. Plembobria would go on to win the Delegate’s race, securing 57% of the vote.

The Vice Delegate's race was equally interesting. As far as the candidates go, former Delegate Tomb and current Attorney General Ash both declared their candidacies for the office. However, Ash, would later go on to resign his citizenship in the region, thus effectively removing himself from the race and prompting a Special Election for the position of Attorney General. As a result, Tomb ran unopposed, but still faced the possibility of having the nominations for the position re-opened should that option receive a majority of the vote.

Tomb ran on a campaign based on four key goals. Chiefly among them is strengthening the Security Council by raising the endorsement levels of its individual members. Tomb also outlined his plans to continue the World Assembly Development Program (WADP), which has been a success since its release, to frequently (and quickly) perform security checks on citizenship applicants, and to use the office of Vice Delegate to try and connect more to the in-game population. Tomb went on to win the Vice Delegate's election unopposed with 100% of the vote.

The Speaker's race was by far the most exciting, and it remained a nail biter until the last vote was cast. Standing for the position were Kondratev, Deputy Speaker of the RA, Pallaith, Minister of WA Affairs, and Argnantim, a newer citizen who has much potential. What was exciting and unique about this particular race is that each of the candidates were considered to be from a newer generation of players - a new class of rising stars.

Aragnatim ran on a campaign promising to essentially simplify the bill making process while also providing mentoring to those who need it. As a new member in the region, proposing a bill can seem like it is an intimidating process, and Argnantim promised to tackle that problem if he is elected. Pallaith's campaign was focused on continuing the progress made under Speaker Zyveskistaahn while also working to complete citizenship checks in a timely manner and turnout the weekly RA digest more frequently. Kondratev's platform was centered on reforming the citizenship application process procedurally while also introducing other reforms, such as weekly RA discord meetings, to increase the efficiency of the office and the RA in general. Pallaith went on to win the Speaker's race, winning with 60% of the vote.

Aside from the General Election races, TNP also held two Special Elections, one for Attorney General, following Ash’s resignation, and one for Court Justice, following Eluvatar's removal due to inactivity. As both races started out, only one person declared candidacy for each election (Lord Emmanuel - Attorney General and Altmoras - Justice), and so nominations were re-opened after the majority of the voters sought that option in both races. After nominations were reopened, Lord Emmanuel withdrew from the race, and Deputy Attorney General Darcania declared candidacy. Darcania ran on a campaign promising an active Attorney General's office, one that is based on experience and a strong work ethic. Darcania ran unopposed winning 100% of the vote. In the Justice race, former Justice Abbey, former Deputy Attorney General Guy, and former Temporary Hearing Officer Barborristan all declared candidacy for the position along with Altmoras, the initial candidate. With many highly experienced legal minds in the field, voters had many options, and the competition was great, but in the end, Abbey managed to pull a win securing 73% of the vote.
[size=14] Regional Assembly Highlights: New Speaker[/size]

by Pallaith, Speaker

For the first time in a long time, The North Pacific has a new Speaker of the Regional Assembly, yours truly. Our beloved Zyvetskistaahn has at long last achieved his dream of unshackling himself from the Speaker's desk, though he has traded those shackles for those of the Deputy Speaker's office. Elections are times of change and opportunity. This is the most of both the Speaker's office has had in a while, and it couldn't come at a better time. The Regional Assembly has seen some of its busiest days as of late, and the Speaker's office is working to catch up. Top on everyone's mind these days are reforms to both the citizenship process as well as judicial procedure. In addition to the regular bills altering a small handful of words in the legal code or bill of rights, the Regional Assembly has seen an increase in proposals proposing changes to approving citizens, evidentiary procedure, even judicial sentencing.

It is remarkable, then, that even with this clear desire for broad and varied change in the region, the effort is still deliberate and incremental. There is a process in place and even the most excitable or inspired member of the Regional Assembly adapts to the speed of our legislative process, even if they have to learn as they go. In the previous term the Regional Assembly grappled with the proper handling of evidence and how restrictive to be regarding incoming citizens, but they also played a part in changing the course of NationStates history by reversing course on the World Assembly Accord on campaign Spam and supporting the Coalition Against the Ideology of Nazism. Both of these were supported by delegates past and present, but it was the RA who determined their fate.

Indeed, this past term saw a rare delegate veto, which triggered an override vote (albeit an unsuccessful one). In all cases the citizens respected the outcome and were careful to conduct the votes and debates as carefully and deferentially as possible. Some of these disagreements touched on sensitive subject matter, and at times seemed to hinge on very minute or nitpicky details. And yet, the RA is still standing and the work continues, no matter how many times the same proposal finds new life in another debate thread.

In TNP, the citizens decide their own fate and the rules that bind them. The debates over citizenship and judicial procedure are not abstract principles or something that only affects the nations who come after them, they impact their own fate in future potential court cases, their place in the greater NS world. The RA is an important, if too often unsung, aspect of life in TNP, one that more nations should learn about and use to their benefit. This term may be the one where that aspiration starts to find life. Suffice to say, the Speaker’s office has a lot on its plate in the upcoming term. Facilitating the everyday process of self-governance is tough work at times but it is the lifeblood of democratic regions like TNP.
[size=14] Northern Cup 2017 comes to an end[/size]

by Kasch, Minister of Communications

32 competitors, one winner and another successful year for the Northern Cup. The tournament officially began on August the 7th, 2016. It ran for 164 days, this included the Signups, the Group Stages, Knockouts and the Finals. Last year, only 16 competitors took part, so having double the competitors this year was a massive leap forward. Now, for the results. If anyone hasn't already read my Awards Ceremony dispatch, True Sebland ended up beating my national team in the final, after months of hard work and training. The Kaschovian failure in finals continue, as last tournament, Kaschovia lost out to Northern Scovia. This year was no different, with True Sebland winning 1 - 0.

It is fair to note that this year's tournament was much more successful in terms of coverage, graphical ability, organization, and scheduling. Not only was there much more content for people to enjoy, but there was much more work to do behind-the-scenes. If anyone has ever managed a cup similar to this before, they will know that under the nice dispatches and graphics, is pages and pages of BBCode. Not just normal BBCode, more than the standard boldening, italicizing and underlining. It got to the point where I could no longer bunch together dispatches of leaderboards and tables because I had exceeded the limit for a dispatch in terms of BBCode. I can confidently say that in formatting things like this, I have learned so much more about the more complicated mechanics of NationStates and it's dispatch creation process.

General roleplay takes a massive role in the fictional aspects of The North Pacific, and in its huge reach across our community, comes the opportunity for more and more sports themed roleplay. I am a heavily sports themed roleplayer myself, so it was only natural that I would be able to work on such a large project. Admittedly, there is not much sports roleplay present in the community, as opposed to political or national roleplay. I have tried to bring the sports themed to the forefront of the roleplaying scene, and I will continue with that effort until sports roleplay

Talking of the Northern Cup I must also mention some of the things I have planned for 2017/2018. I do plan to look for more helpers with it, as I find it very draining to work on the entire thing on my own. I hope to have more spaces open for competitors, and possibly open the tournament up to 48 teams. I will be stripping back on graphical variation, as I find it is far too demanding to conjure new and interesting graphics. Most likely, I'll use more conventional and efficient methods for displaying scores and results. The standard BBcode might be used to make tables for scores and leaderboards.

Along with the Northern Cup, I also have plans to develop even more sports themed roleplaying tournaments and cups. I have ideas for a tennis series and a Formula 1 style Grand Prix North Pacific version. I will be looking to improve previous attempts/iterations of a Northern Football League, and I hope to work on improving many aspects of The Northern Cup as it is. Although most of this will be forum-side, I will try and bring some of it onto NationStates so a wider variety of nations can participate in, enjoy and help with more of my roleplay projects. I cannot promise any success with the projects mentioned, but I will definitely try to make them happen.
[size=14] The Spotlight #1: An Interview with Vice Delegate Tomb[/size]

by Kasch & Tomb, Minister of Communications & Vice Delegate

Kasch: As part of our new segment for the Northern Lights, I'd like to introduce: The Spotlight! A monthly interview with a special guest from the North Pacific! This week, we have a former Delegate and current Vice Delegate: Tomb! Welcome to the Spotlight, it's great to have you here with me for this interview.

Tomb: Hi Kasch, Thank you for having me!

Kasch: No problem! To begin, with some of the elections behind us, and the term only just starting, what was your favourite moment of last term, and why?

Tomb: Great question. As you know, I was Minister of Home Affairs for most of last term. When I received the Ministry of Home Affairs, it was in a less than desirable condition. Recruitment was being done by 1-2 people, there was no functioning executive staff, and inactivity was prevalent. Under my leadership and with Delegate Plembobria's vision for the Ministry, we were able to turn it around to become one of the most active government ministries. Today, the Ministry of Home Affairs stands strongly with a large, active Executive Staff, an active recruitment branch, a new and improved mentoring program, and all in all, I am proud and happy that we were able to turn it around.

Tomb: It is not a "moment" by any means as it took months of work, but the final product -- what the Ministry of Home Affairs has come to be -- would easily be my favorite.

Kasch: Home Affairs truly needed someone like you on board, you lifted the Ministry back onto its feet! Onto the next question: In the General Elections, you ran for VD and won. How does it feel to be VD, and are you looking forward to working with Plembobria over the next four months?

Tomb: It feels good, as you know, it is an honor to be elected as Vice Delegate of TNP. With it of course comes a heavy sense of responsibility, not only in achieving my goals for the office, but also in the fact that as Vice Delegate, you're one heat beat away from the Delegacy, and so you're always on your feet. With regards to Delegate Plembobria, I am looking forward to working with him 100%. I think he did a great job last term, and I think he'll do just as fine this term.

Kasch: And with the elections, come the cabinet appointments! So, how do you feel about the most recently selected cabinet, and what effect do you think it will have on TNP this term?

Tomb: I personally could not have assembled a more well put together cabinet than what we have right now. If you look at every cabinet position and its holder - from Scorch (Minister of Home Affairs) to Bootsie (Minister of Foreign Affairs), you will find that these Ministers not only have the experience necessary to assume their positions, but they also have a never-ending drive to serve the region. These are the sort of people who go up and beyond expectations. So I really think that with this cabinet, we're set for an excellent term.

Kasch: It must be reassuring knowing that you have such a cabinet! Now, concerning the Security Council, what are your aims and objectives for the council over this term, and how do you plan to achieve them? Feel free to refer to your campaign, I'm sure the readers would like to see a full answer.

Tomb: My primary and most important goal for the Security Council (SC) is to raise the endorsement levels of its members to match the recent increase in the Delegate's endorsement count. As you know, in our region's current context, it makes no sense for a Security Councilor to have 600 endorsements while the Delegate has 1,300. To get to the desired range of 900-1,000 endorsements, the SC will obviously have to endotart and maintain a greater presence on the RMB. I personally have multiple events planned, including theme weeks and an AMA, that are all aimed at increasing the SC's endorsement levels. This will not be a light project, and it will require an effort from everyone – not just SC members and WA nations. So there is a lot of work to do. Fortunately, we have plenty of time to do it, and TNP's security is more than worth it.

Kasch: The future of the SC looks promising! How much of an impact do you think the World Assembly Develoent Program has had on The North Pacific and its WAD/VD positions?

Tomb: The World Assembly Develoent Program (WADP) is an excellent program, and it is actually part of the reason that TNP has the high amount of endorsements that we do. While other regions restrict the amount of endorsements you may have, TNP encourages and awards endorsing other nations in the region. This keeps our community safe, making it almost impossible for one to coup, due to the distribution of endorsements and influence. It also allows for the game to be more enjoyable for nations who like to stick to the game-side aspects of NationStates as they get to endotart.

Kasch: Now, looking to the future of the North Pacific, what do you think 2017 holds for the region and why?

Tomb: I am definitely optimistic. We're starting this year with an active, large citizenry. All of our government institutions (from our Courts to the North Pacific Army) are up and running. Our RMB and forum are both bustling with activity. Our challenge is to keep this up in the months to come. And I think this is a challenge that we're up for.

Kasch: Okay, so now that we have the future out of the way, I must ask since I haven't been around for as long as you have, if you could return to any one point in your history on NationStates, what would that point be and why?

Tomb: Oooh, that's a hard question. You know, I've made some really good friends throughout my time in TNP, at the same time, I've unfortunately lost some of them to inactivity over the years. Similarly, I've had some good memories holding public office and some not so good ones. That's the beauty of life, it's a roller coaster. If I had to pick one point, it would be right here and right now. There is no time better than the present. Our actions and contributions right now impact the future of our region tomorrow.

Kasch: Nice answer! As VD now, how important do you see the next four months in terms of building TNP and maintaining our level of efficiency and success?

Tomb: It is of utmost importance that we continue building up TNP and its various institutions over the next 4 months. While the summer slumber (the time period around summertime in which activity all around NS generally plummets) is still some time away, we need to prepare for it. We can do that by actively recruiting right now, by retaining the new members we recruit through the activities, events, and opportunities we offer, and by working with a purpose in mind. As I said before, I am optimistic about the region's future in the months to come, but the region can only move forward and improve if everyone's contributing. As long as we can keep that up, I think we're in a good position moving forward.

Kasch: All sounds good! Now, for more of a different question, if you could change one thing about TNP, what would it be and why?

Tomb: There is not anything major that I really want changed right now. Perhaps, I would recommend that Ministers be more involved on the RMB. We also need to keep focusing on continuing our integration and retention programs in the weeks and months to come. A pause or hiatus in recruitment or mentoring will have a direct effect on our region's activity levels. But aside from that, as they say, if it is not broken, there is no reason to fix it.

Kasch: Okay, time for a fun question, who do you think will win the Spamwar this year?

Tomb: me I have my bets on either you or FTH.

Kasch: Me! I don't spam at all! Jokes aside, out of all the things to have happened so far this term, what has been your favourite?

Tomb: Well, aside from my election , I am very happy that the Ministry of Communications started a live broadcasting program called the Northern Broadcasting Service (NBS). I think this is an excellent program, it has a lot of potential, and I am really looking forward to it expanding in the weeks to come.

Kasch: Are you only saying that because I started the program?

Tomb: You know, I am biased towards you, but in all honestly, I really think it's a great program. It gives the Ministry of Communications a new purpose, and it opens up a whole new way of communication for our region.

Kasch: Now for the final question of the interview, if you could interview one member from our community, past or present, who would that be and why?

Tomb: It would have to be IndieGirl. IndieGirl most recently rejoined TNP during the two months I was on break from NS, and so I never got to meet her. I'm a huge fan of her, especially her spamming, and so she would be my choice.

Kasch: I've had the honor of interviewing IndieGirl when I was a few months into my time here, it was one of the best moments in my NS Career, and I still have the whole thing saved on my computer. I think that wraps everything up, it was great having you on The Spotlight for this interview, and I wish you the best of luck over next term!

Tomb: Thank you so much for taking the time to interview me today, Kasch. Being the first interviewee of The Spotlight is an honor. Thank you again for having me.
[size=14] North Pacific Army Bulletin for January[/size]

by Owenstacey (edited and co-authored by Kasch), Citizen

The North Pacific Army is a collection of nations primarily responsible for maintaining the peace of The North Pacific and defending its allies. The NPA is led by Gladio, the current Minister of Defense.

Over January, the NPA has had a hugely successful period of deployments. At the start of the month, the NPA was deployed to The East Pacific, one of our closest allies. We peacefully assisted their government in resolving an internal issue that faced them at the time. This was a hugely successful operation, it not only helped them resolve the issue, but was able to break the record for the highest number of troops on an operation, with 30 nations taking part. This broke the previous record of 28 troops in the Pacifican Union operation.

Then, after a fairly quiet Christmas period, the NPA was deployed to our ally Taijitu after their Founder ceased to exist. Action was necessary to secure the region until they could solve the problem. Once again, a successful operation, with us holding the region until the founder returned. The NPA was able to deploy 22 troops for this operation.

Shortly after the deployment in Taijitu, the NPA took part in a training operation in Warzone Australia. This operation was a success, with 7 troops taking part. This was a very good number of people for a training exercise during one of the updates.

The success of the operations during the last month show how the current Minister of Defense, Gladio, has been able to develop an effective and active army that, in a matter of hours, can be deployed in good number.

A few days ago, the NPA completed another operation in a region named 'Nations without a Region'. This operation was successful, with 23 troops deployed.

[small]The Northern Lights: Beauty in Truth

Publisher: Plembobria :: Executive Editor: Kasch :: Managing Editor: Tomb :: Assistant Managing Editor: FrozenTopHat :: Graphic Artist: Imki

The Northern Lights is produced by the Ministry of Communications on behalf of the Government of The North Pacific and distributed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Except where otherwise indicated, all content represents the views of the Government of The North Pacific.[/small]

Thank you for the update.

Foreign Ministry Introduces Diplomatic Teams

by Cerian Quilor, Citizen

The expectations and workloads of diplomats and ambassadors is always variable. If a region has many embassies, but few ambassadors, those few will be stretched thin to do too many regions each, and the expectations will, assuming a fair Foreign Minister, be comparatively low (post the update, check in once a week for inquiries, usually small things like that). When you have a lot of ambassadors, and few embassies, you can run the risk of what is essentially 'unemployment' (that is, more demand for jobs than jobs available). And while opening more embassies can solve than, opening embassies is somewhat more important than just 'job creation'. Still, an option.

And sometimes you end up with something of an embarrassment of riches - lots of ambassadors, and lots of embassies. And then too many ambassadors still. Ideally, an ambassador should be establishing a rapport with their assigned region, socializing, flying the flag of your region, and keeping up on all publicly available current events. Sometimes, a region is too active to keep up on everything and stay social and handle whatever else an ambassador has to do.

TNP, proving how robust our regional community is, has reached that 'embarrassment of riches' stage. We have more ambassadors than embassies to assign them. And thus, to that end, Foreign Minister Bootsie has launched the creation of diplomatic teams, wherein multiple ambassadors are assigned to one region, for the full purpose of bearing the flag, representing the region and all other duties. The trial regions were The West Pacific and The East Pacific.

So far, the results seem to lean positive in the long run, with one saying they felt that, over time, the program would "steadily produce competent diplomats and would further TNP's good reputation in NationStates," while another commented that they appreciated the fact that the program made it so that they didn't have to be "the only one faced with the responsibilities of a region, especially one as large as The East Pacific."

While so far, it's too early to tell just what the impact of this program will be, or if it will be extended to other regions, but the only way to find out is to keep our eyes on newly appointed Minister Guy and the rest of the Foreign Ministry.
The Spotlight #2: An Interview with the MoWAA Sil Dorsett

by Kasch & Sil, Min. Communications & Min. World Assembly Affairs

Kasch: Hello and welcome to the second interview as part of the Spotlight segment for The Northern Lights, Issue XI. Today, I am joined by our current Minister of World Assembly Affairs, Sil Dorsett.

Sil Dorsett: Thanks for having me, Kasch! It's a pleasure to be here.

Kasch: It's great to have you on the Spotlight! So, first question - how has your term as Minister of World Assembly Affairs been going so far?

Sil Dorsett: It's been a busy first month! The Security Council has been really active with resolutions of all kinds; liberations, condemnations, and even a commendation for our own r3naissanc3r! It's been keeping us active, and I'm glad to see it. We're in a bit of a slow period with nothing at vote right now, and I don't mind the break, but I'm looking forward to things picking up again.

Kasch: At the beginning of the term, what vision did you see for the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs and how did you, or do you still plan to achieve it?

Sil Dorsett: One of the visions I had for the ministry was for us to be able to generate deeper discussions on resolutions. A lot of times, when I opened a voting and discussion thread, the responses mostly just had the vote, without any explanation as to why. Providing reasoning for a vote was what I always tried to do even before joining the staff, as it generates discussion, so I've been encouraging that in the opening post of the threads. I've also been closely monitoring the proposals and seeing which proposals are likely to reach quorum and starting the discussion threads early, which gives us time to have a solid discussion, rather than rushing through, tallying votes, and just coming up with something to send out to the rest of the WA nations in the region.

Kasch: It certainly seems like you have a defined vision for the ministry! Next question, is there anything in particular you like most about being the MoWAA?

Sil Dorsett: I think the thing I like most about being the Minister is the closer interaction that I have with the rest of the Executive Council. It provides me with the ability to gain insight into the inner workings of TNP's government. When I was Deputy Minister, Pallaith trained me well on the inner workings of the WA Ministry, but now there's so much more open to me, and much more to learn, and I really enjoy that.

Kasch: Going away from the WA for a minute, what were your first impressions of TNP and how its government works?

Sil Dorsett: Hmm, there's an interesting question. To be honest, when I first joined the game I was founded in TNP and never really thought to look outside the region. TNP was the largest region and it was very active, so I was satisfied with staying. It wasn't until after being introduced to the World Assembly Develoent Program and endotarting that I joined the forums and was welcomed. I think there was one comment that said "Finally, the elusive Sil reveals himself." It was a good introductory experience. As far as the how the government works, my first impression was that it just worked, and that nothing seemed radical and out there.

Kasch: From all the people you've met so far in this community, who has had the largest effect on your NS Career and why?

Sil Dorsett: Absolutely would be Pallaith. No question there. Pallaith took notice of my efforts in a WALL thread where there was a proposal on its way to being submitted that I thought was amending other resolutions, which isn't allowed. Although I was completely wrong, it wasn't really amending, he appreciated the effort and research that went into my analysis and offered me the Deputy Minister spot. He strapped the rocket on my back.

Kasch: Pallaith was a very good WA Minister during his term, so I can fully understand that. Okay, from the time you've spent here and on NationStates, what has been the most important thing you've learned?

Sil Dorsett: The most important thing I've learned is that there's more to the game than answering issues and voting on resolutions. There's communities out there, on-site and off, that make the whole experience much more fulfilling. You just have to be willing to dive in and take a chance on it.

Kasch: I couldn't agree more. And since you are a relatively new nation, who do you look up to most in either TNP or the whole of NationStates?

Sil Dorsett: That's a tough one, because there are plenty of people who are such a positive influence. Honestly, I can't mention just one. Just can't do that. From a gameside perspective, I appreciate the commitment and dedication of both Lord Ravenclaw and r3naissanc3r, and everything they've done inspires me to work harder for the region. From a cultural and roleplay perspective, I have to give it to Goyanes for his creativity and artistic skill. Every time he posts more details about his nation or a new map it makes me think of how I can flesh out my national identity more.

Kasch: Some very well-respected names there, now, for other regions - which region, apart from TNP, is your favourite in NS?

Sil Dorsett: Oooh, an even harder question! But it actually goes the opposite way than the last question. As I said earlier, I haven't really looked at other regions. Perhaps I'm due for a stint in Foreign Affairs to make up for it! I will say that we have a solid ally in Europeia, through collaboration on the World Assembly Legislative League and CAIN, so I think I'll give them the nod.

Kasch: Okay, enough time away from the WA, back to it! What are your views on the WADP and its effects on not just our endorsement levels, but the region as a whole?

Sil Dorsett: I think the WADP is one of the strongest retention and activity generation mechanisms we have. We don't place arbitrary low limits on endorsements and threaten to ban for crossing it. Well, let me correct that, there are still limits and we can kick for getting too close to the Vice Delegate, but the number to hit is ridiculously high that it shouldn't be a problem for anyone. It also makes us the safest region to be in, because all those endorsements means more influence, which protects you. The combination of those things I think makes others want to stay here.

The awards system that the WADP has encouraged me to get started with endotarting. When I first saw the awards system, I wanted to be Click-to-Endorse champion, and within the first month of my nation's existence I did that. I spent one night doing over 1500 endorsements to get there. And then once I had the championship, I figured it was time to introduce myself to the forums. So, I also think WADP drives overall regional activity, probably in part through retention of nations. But that's based on my personal experience.

Kasch: It really sounds like you dedicated your time to the WA! But now, if you could give one piece of advice to any nation considering getting involved with endotarting and the WA, what would you say?

Sil Dorsett: "Join. Endorse. Vote." Join the World Assembly to expand your gameplay experience. Endorse everyone, especially the Delegate and Vice Delegate. We have tools available that can help, including a page on our forum that'll tell you everyone you haven't endorsed. Finally, vote on resolutions, because every vote counts. I sent a telegram to the entire region about this not too long ago.

Kasch: Going forward, what does a potential MoWAA need to know if they want your position?

Sil Dorsett: Potential ministers should know that they're responsible for the content and distribution of our recommendations, and there are tools available to the minister and deputy ministers that make it simple. They'll also need to be prepared to answer a lot of questions from the community. Also, keep a close eye on proposals, and also read what's being posted on the on-site forum, though really I encourage everyone in the staff to do that. Awareness of everything that's happening around the World Assembly subforum is crucial.

Kasch: Great advice, and leading onto the next question - if you could change one thing about this community, what would it be and why?

Sil Dorsett: I'll be honest, I can't really think of anything I would change. TNP is such an open and welcoming community with its own unique culture, and I'm not one to think about changing it while I'm still learning and adapting. So, I apologize for the non-answer there, but I think it should still speak to how great the community is.

Kasch: Totally valid answer there, it was a hard question! So, we've spoken about the WA and TNP in general, now for another topic. Other than the MoWAA, what other ministries could you see yourself managing, and why?

Sil Dorsett: Well, the first thing I need to do is be more active with Home Affairs. I've already been encouraging others to join the forums when I'm answering WA related questions, but it's about time I start ramping up activity in HA and encourage even more to come aboard. Once I have some experience there, perhaps I'll apply for a Deputy Minister spot there to gain the managerial experience.

Kasch: If everyone else was to CTE, and you could only save five nations from dying, who would you save?

Sil Dorsett: Haha, only five? Wow! I don't even think I could save myself under those conditions. Let's see. Guslantis, because who doesn't love guinea pigs? HMS Unicorn (r3naissanc3r) deserves it. I'll save BouncyAbbeyKitty too. You (Kasch) because you've had a hand in everything and can do everything if it comes down to it. And I have to let Pallaith live too. There that's five, and that's with me CTEing too.

Kasch: I feel very honoured to be on that list, but I am sure there are a lot more nations we could have mentioned. Now, if you could go back in time and tell the first few hundred nations anything, what would you say to them?

Sil Dorsett: Absolutely, that's why five was incredibly hard. Now, to the first hundred nations, I'd go back and tell them ahead of time of how much NationStates will grow, to give them some inspiration. There's been over five million nations created. That's an impressive feat, and it all started with them.

Kasch: After all, not even this interview would be happening without some of those first nations. While we're on the topic of history, what has been your favourite moment since joining NS?

Sil Dorsett: When the General Assembly stopped talking about nukes. Haha, just kidding, That'll never happen. My favorite moment in NS, in the 6 months I've been around, was when the WA nations came together and were able to flip the result of a liberation repeal when Eternal Scholars was invaded a second time in the middle of the vote. We got the job done, the region stayed liberated until the new invaders were out, and now just recently we were able to hand that region back over to its rightful owners.

Kasch: That must have been pretty memorable, and in terms of the MoWAA and its work in writing recommendations, how do you think the ministry could be improved and changed so that writing these becomes easier and more efficient?

Sil Dorsett: That will come with more input in the discussion threads and with the staff reading through the on-site forums to gather up feedback from others across all of NationStates. With more input, we'll be able to write an informative recommendation faster. We should also continue to collaborate with our World Assembly Legislative League allies, letting them know when we start a discussion thread, letting them know what our vote is, and working together on the recommendations, and try to have everything ready to send within a day of a resolution coming to vote.

Kasch: Okay, and in terms of communication with our allies over GA and SC Proposals, are there any regions which stand out in terms of legislative capability, other than TNP?

Sil Dorsett: I'd say Europeia and Balder have very solid WA programs and are heavy hitters with high endorsement counts. Together we make up a large chunk of the available vote. They are two of our WALL allies, and we have our own Discord server with them and International Democratic Union, so communication and collaboration with them is easy. IDU also has an advantage as their delegate is a member of the GA secretariat.

Kasch: Since we're nearing the end of the interview, just a few more questions. Firstly, what were your thoughts on NS before you joined? How did you see the community beforehand and what did you expect from it?

Sil Dorsett: To be honest, I went in with no thoughts or expectations at all. I started out as one of those players that was just curious about answering issues and how a nation would change as a result. It was a legitimate leap of faith that I took in joining the TNP community, and I'm glad I did.

Kasch: Penultimately, if you could move to any other region in the game, and leave TNP behind, what region would that be?

Sil Dorsett: Haha, if it really came to that, I'd at least go to one of our allies, and definitely to a large, safe region. Which one in particular? I couldn't really say. I'd want to do more research and see which regions share our values, something I haven't worked on yet. If I feel up for it, maybe I'll move a puppet around and see what's out there, but I'm personally in no rush to do so.

Kasch: Personally, I would very easily choose Europeia, that's just me, though. Now, final question - you have one day left to do anything on NS before it shuts down forever, what do you do and why?

Sil Dorsett: Last day, I'd go through all of my nation's information pages and print them. All the charts, print those too. Regional information pages, do them too. That way, I have a final report card of my nation to look back upon. I don't trust the internet's Wayback Machine site to do it right!

Kasch: Well, it's been absolutely great having you on the Spotlight with me today, and I wish you the best of the luck with the rest of the term! Folks, that does it for this month's Spotlight!

Sil Dorsett: Thanks for having me, Kasch. It's been a pleasure.
NBS Radio becomes TNPs first radio show

by Kasch (co-edited by King Leonidas), Minister of Communications & Citizen

The Northern Broadcasting service was developed under the supervision of myself, and FrozenTopHat. We both noticed the activity and the use of the Discord voice chat channels. We soon realized that not only could there be a potential advantage to the voice chats, but there could even be an entire project that can contribute to it. Inspired by a similar program run by Europeia, we knew that it was not quite an original idea. We suspected that many regions might have tried and failed at it before. Yet we were strong-willed, as leaders of the Communications Ministry, to assure the voices of the North were heard at all costs.

If you have never heard of the Northern Broadcasting Service before, it is the group of members responsible for the development, hosting, and participation of weekly broadcasts and events for the pleasure and entertainment of the community and others who wish to follow up on current events. A program contained within the Northern Broadcasting Service, NBS Radio, was founded by FrozenTopHat and myself about five weeks ago. It has continued to work well alongside the Northern Lights and other ministries within the region.

Our motivation to progress this project was the lack of goals and objectives. I had rebuff the belief that The Northern Lights would be my only working point as Minister of Communications. We understood that focusing on numerous projects at once can reduce the quality of our work, but I truly saw something within the NBS. How it could be managed by the ministry, the potential in the people and the ministry itself, and FrozenTopHat vehemently agreed. It is one thing to perusal text on a screen, but it is on an utterly new level when the voices behind that text are presented to the community.

How did the first broadcast go? Well, when planning the very first broadcast, I must say, I was incredibly anxious about it. We did not quite know what topics that should be discussed in our broadcast, neither how it should be presented, but with some poking and querying, I managed to obtain a list of several topics for the show. Everything went splendiferous that day, we have almost consistently maintained our reliable starting times, and efficiency in producing great content for all of our listeners. The number of people taking interest and listening to our broadcast is steadily on the increase, so hopefully to come at the end of the term, we attain a regular, dedicated group of listeners.

We have a variety of ideas for the Northern Broadcasting Service and hope to establish some of them in the coming months of the term. One of those conceptions being an interview show, which is already in action through The Spotlight, a monthly segment in the Northern Lights. The first session went successfully, with Tomb as our very first guest. I am thrilled to announce the next person on the show will be Sil Dorsett, current Minister of WA Affairs! As you can presume, there are almost endless possibilities when it comes to the Spotlight, with new topics, questions, and people to interview every month! Not just through text, voice interviews are very much on the table.

Another idea some of the broadcasters and I were going over, was an opportunity for broadcasters of NBS and the EBC to collaborate on some projects. To produce excellent content for both shows would be an incredible chance for us to work with them on a broadcast. If you are part of the EBC, and do regular broadcasts through Mixlr, contact me so something can be arranged! I think it would do both communities a massive favor in terms of increasing popularity, listeners, and regular air time. It would also give our broadcasters a chance to meet others from Europeia.

All of the broadcasts from then on have followed the same patterns, and have all been produced and executed excellently by all of those involved. It is a great pleasure to work with everyone on this project and watch it grow from its infancy. I would to thank numerous people for their help on this project, and I believe some credit may be overdue for all of its expansion and growth. Essentially, to FrozenTopHat, for lighting the sparks of inspiration within me. Thanks to everyone who had contributed to the broadcast so far. NBS Radio could not have been what it is today without you and I know that this is only just the beginning.
CAIN conference keyword density analysis

by Nasania, Citizen

This column does not represent the views of the Government of The North Pacific.

Nationstates is a political game and ideologies do have a place in Nationstates politics-though it may not always be acknowledged as such. My hypothesis is that political ideologies can be measured by taking a tally of the buzzwords the political actor chooses to throw around. The words you choose to use matter, and that certain biases can show themselves in the particular kind of language you use. First off we need to set goal posts that do not move based on personal feelings or such. It is logical to identify the core ideal that an ideology espouses..The ones I shall use are taken from Daniel Berk's Ideology quiz, which I have found to adequately measure 99.6% of respondents who have taken the quiz (around 500 people have taken the quiz) and are Liberty, Equality, Stability.

Buzzwords for Liberty are: Discretion, liberty, liberate, free, freedom, one, choice, enterprise, Conscience, Deregulate, reason, each, option, own, optional, Individual, opportunity, open, any, voluntary, unlimited, unrestrained, person, private, consent, self, independent, freely, Volunteer, Domination (when spoken in negative), dependence (Negative).

Equality= Redistribution, fair, equitable, social, society, expand, equalize, equality, people, fairness, universal, every, community, together, justice, common, sense, sensitive, masses, group, balance activism, all, same, access, distribute, share, shared, Discrimination (negative), differences (negative).

Stability= Experience, the region, leader, leaders, peace, order, law, stability, member, citizen, tradition, heritage, authority, decision, decisive, certain, some, protect, safe, safety, secure, security, insure, establish, fundamental, trust, permit, reliable, Chaos (negative), Activity (negative).

Using these keywords all we have to do is read the document and start tallying for all synonyms or derived words of the above. References such as 'I hate equality' will logically be tallied as negative Equality stance. We then subtract negatives from the positives to get overall score. The Ideology of Liberty is Libertarianism or Anarcho-Capitalism when radical; Equality is Democratism and Communism when radical; Stability is Conservativism and Fascism if radical. 2/3 % score is radical threshold-if one prizes a principle over the others to this extent they qualify as an extremist.

The document we shall analyze today is the CAIN treaty and see what kind of bias is hinted at in the document: First the preamble:

"We, the undersigned governments; mindful of the impact Nazism has on the community we all share, devoted to combating scientific racism, appalled by the glorification of Nazi Germany, determined to overcome gameplay differences, and committed to making the NationStates community more accessible; do hereby establish and join the Coalition Against the Ideology of Nazism, herein referred to as "CAIN", and agree to recognize and adhere to this Treaty and the commitments set forth within."

So, by the buzzwords, I have counted there are 6 Equality Keywords and 1 conservative keyword. Let's sum them up and find proportions 6+1=7 6/7=85.7% Equality bias and 14.3% Stability. So the Preamble is showing a conservative communist signature - this is likely a response to the Nazi ideology in which hierarchy is seen as the Fundamental order of nature and Society is best organized as a hierarchy of fuhrers. It's also likely appealing to the Nazi's natural enemies - the communists. Now this doesn't mean this a communist document (in fact we will soon see that the author is NOT a communist). So let's continue to the next section which seems to be pro-stability as it's setting standards of law and order.

These are the numbers I counted:

+L=1 +E=2 +S=9
-L=0 -E0= -S=1.
.L=1 E=2 S=8 1+2+8=11 so 72.7% Stability

So it scores Fascist... If this score is valid-then we have to assume there was some pandering to a fascist group-Nazis are NOT fascists-the two groups in RL actually nearly went to war with each other over Austria-the main thing about Nazism is it's virulent anti-communism while Fascists were actually an offshoot of the socialists. In Nationstates the closest equivalent to Fascism is Francoism.

For the rest of the document I am going to do some cursory tallies.

The Membership admin section scores as follows: L=8 E=3 S=22 8+3+22=33, 22/33=66.7% Fascist

Functions section
L=5 E=1 S=13 68% Fascist

General Provisions
L=4 E=1 S=8 61.5% stability Hardline Conservative

Now I add up the totals of the above and I get:

Total= L=18, E=13, S=52, sum the results 18+13+52=83, find percentage 52/83=62.6%, Hardline Conservative.

And at that a Liberal Conservative. the score of this document is similar to Imperialist and Independent Manifestoes when I scored them several years ago (to be exact Liberty =33% Equality=18% Stability=48% Moderate Liberal Conservative: Emperor Onder of LKE had a score of L=22% E=15% S=63% ), so I would have to conclude that the conservatives had a lot of power over the procedural aspects of this document. This alliance of Imperialists/Independents with Communists will probably have a lot of problems as they don't see eye to eye with each other (Radicals of one ideology will perceive even moderate members of another ideology as their radical counterparts e.g. a communist will perceive a conservative as a fascist and a Fascist will see a moderate Laborist as a communist). The KDA predicts the Communists would most like the preamble but dislike the definitions section -they would probably prefer to replace "region" with "communities" so it’s less overtly statist-and likely include a condemnation of Fascism. Communitarians might also be a little wary about this treaty as Equality is the lowest score in the document (communitarians like to balance Equality and Stability)... Brunhilde was the author so we have to ask: What was Brunhilde's score using a quiz I designed to measure ideology based on a similar system? Liberal Conservative or Right Libertarian Independent/Imperialist (54% Liberty, 46% Equality, 77% Stability).

From doing a survey of regions with 500 respondents- Lazarus, TCB, and TRR, and TSP tended to be communist or heavily left-leaning... TNP, TEP, TWP all were Communitarian or conservative. The Communist Bloc used to have communitarians but many of them have since left their region and formed regions such as Wintercrest, so TCB is largely dominated by communists at this time. Osiris and the Pacific have a lot of Francoists so Osiris was likely the CAIN member most opposed to adding Fascism to the list of target ideologies. Conservatives also likely were opposed to adding it as they themselves might get labeled as "Fascists" (even though they're not) by hardline leftists. LKE is likely satisfied with this treaty considering their scores are an almost exact match, Looking at the list of signatories only 3-4 regions are outright communist or had a communist past. Imperialist-Independent-National Sovereigntist-monarchist regions seem to make up the majority (62.5%) of signatories with at least 15 of the 24 signatories (Note I am separating Communist regions from Independent ones). "Democratic" regions made up at least 7.

If I were to predict what will happen and considering the bias of the dominant members of this coalition .some of the more left-leaning regions may de facto leave this coalition at some point in the future-especially as the Nazi's continue to lose power... many left-leaning and especially Libertarian Socialists will lobby in their home regions to leave this coalition, possibly viewing this as something that increases Imperialists' power in Nationstates or not "fair" to their own regions-however those regions will likely stay in the coalition as their own establishments will want to keep them in the coalition.
North Pacific Army Bulletin

by Owenstacey (edited and co-authored by Kasch), Citizen

February was a quiet month for the NPA, as most of the operations have been for training purposes. The NPA has deployed at least 6 troops on each operation, and considering the regular inactivity spurts that occur around this time of the year, this is an impressive level of consistency.

At the start of February, the NPA conducted three successful detagging operations, with nine participants. This was a good operation for setting up the level of activity and commitment for the rest of the month.

After this, the NPA were deployed to Taijitu for the second time, as the founder had ceased to exist again. The operation secured the region until the natives could resolve the situation. The operation was successful, with the founder being restored. In total, 18 troops were deployed.

The third operation of the month came around the 10th of February, when a joint force of 8 troops performed some more training exercises in both Warzone Australia and Warzone Asia. This operation was successful, and rounded up the end of the month nicely. We can expect to see more of the same over March, and as usual, Gladio has executed his duties with great maturity, efficiency and strong leadership.

To summarize, the NPA conducted three detagging operations, helped Taijitu recover their founder for the second time and conducted two additional training exercises nearer the end of the month. That rounds it up for February, more to come next time.

[small]The Northern Lights: Beauty in Truth

Publisher: Plembobria :: Executive Editor: Kasch :: Managing Editor: Tomb :: Assistant Managing Editor: FrozenTopHat :: Graphic Artist: Imki + SillyString

The Northern Lights is produced by the Ministry of Communications on behalf of the Government of The North Pacific and distributed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Except where otherwise indicated, all content represents the views of the Government of The North Pacific.[/small]

The North Pacific
Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Magicality City, 07/21/2017

Dear Wintermoot,

The government of The North Pacific entreats you to accept Egalotir as an ambassador between our two regions. He has been a citizen in good standing of The North Pacific for over three years and a legislator in our Regional Assembly for the same period and we believe he will meet the duties of this posting admirably. He responsibilities will include above all keeping your region informed of important affairs in The North Pacific, supporting our interregional ties by interpersonal ties through social involvement, keeping our government abreast of affairs in your region, and providing services to dual citizens should they be needed and welcome.

By accepting Egalotir as an ambassador, we hope you will continue to honour the long lasting relationship between The North Pacific and Wintreath.

Sincerely,
Sankami
Minister of Foreign Affairs.


Oh man it's been three years since I've been in Wintreath and NS! I hope you all remember me and I look forward to catching you all up to date! Apologies the embassy has fallen into inactivity, I will be fixing that.

Egalotir! I certainly do remember you!

It's good to hear again from TNP, but fuck, welcome back. It's good to hear from you specifically.