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Hello, everyone, just thought I would get the ball rolling on what will probably be our first order of business, the Chanku Commendation Act.

Title
1) This act shall be cited as the Chanku Commendation Act.

Recognitions
2) The Storting recognizes that Chanku was the first Citizen to make Wintreath his original home, and that he has since been a prominent member of Wintreath's forum and IRC/Discord community, where he has contributed to Wintreath's special and freewheeling culture.

3) The Storting recognizes that Chanku has been an instrumental driver of Wintrean parliamentary and legal culture, particularly through his unparalleled belief in and devotion to the Underhusen as an institution, through such accomplishments as:
a) Having ran as a candidate for Underhusen in every election since the Storting was established, currently a span lasting over five years and growing.
b) Having been elected to 11 Underhusen sessions, where the Underhusen placed its faith in him by selecting him as its Speaker for 6 of those sessions and its Speaker Pro Tempore for another 2 of those sessions.
c) Having represented the Monarchy in parliamentary matters for an additional session as Chairman of the Overhusen.
d) Having authored, co-authored, or influenced a number of acts that have passed into law, including the Citizenship and Demonym Act, the Code of Criminal Laws, the Default Seats of the Underhusen Act, and the Procedural Rules Speaker and Officers Amendment.
e) Having tested the region's legal system by bringing its first and currently only lawsuit.

4) The Storting recognizes that Chanku has also served in many other government roles, including Jarl of Foreign Affairs and Regional Gameplay Advisor. Additionally, he was involved in our regional military, the Hvitt Riddiral, through most of its entire existance, from being a trainee in its first operations to serving as Jarl of Defense for over a year.

5) The Storting recognizes Chanku as a stalwart defender of the region, its community, its principles, and its Monarch in cases where it has been the target of untruths and slander, particularly during:
a) The events of July 2015, when several prominent Citizens announced their intent to overthrow the Monarchy. His defense led him to being inappropriately banned by one of the Citizens involved who was also a chat op.
b) The events of March 2018, when The Versutian Federation closed relations with Wintreath for reasons based on incorrect facts collected through poor research on their part. His actions, along with those of others, resulted in a restoration of relations.
c) The events of May-July 2018 during the Lazarus Constitutional Convention, where he often sacrificed his own personal standing among the powers that be in that region in fighting untruths leveled against the region and its Monarch. His actions in part inspired a renewed regional focus on foreign affairs, which included his own appointment as Regional Gameplay Advisor.

Commendation
6) Recognizing these feats as fact, the Storting hereby awards Chanku the Commendation of Wintreath.

7) Recognizing the lengths Chanku has gone to in order to defend the region and its honour, the Storting additionally  grants him the honor title of "Champion of the Just".

Now, this is the act Wintermoot put forth. What are the opinions of everyone? I would have no issue with passing this in its current form. @Laurentus, @Katie, @Syraj

And @Chanku, given that this act is literally a Commendation for you I think it might be best if you recuse yourself from this issue. Perceptions and what not.

I am in full agreement with everything, except the nature of the title. As I have said, he has always shown a disregard for others' opinion of him, right or wrong. His loyalty to the region is also not in question.

However, the claim that he is a champion of the "just" is contentious, as he has done many things in his stay here that were decidedly unjust and unwise. While it is true that he was appropriately penalised by the ops teams, the monarchy and the citizenry in the form of IRC bans, removal from the Royal Family and many election losses, and has since turned over a new leaf, I cannot agree with this title, because of the aforementioned acts.

That he is deserving of a title is also not in contention, however. I would propose it be changed to something along the lines of "Champion of the Stalwart," as this term reflects the loyalty to the region and hard work he has consistently put into it, whether his attempts were appreciated or not. It also shows his steadfast nature in the face of exactly those circumstances in 2015 and 2018 as outlined in the bill.

Well, it was a long time ago. He is a different man now. Why should we judge him based on who he was?

There is something else I think we should consider. Previous Commendation winners may feel...left out considering they did not get a title with their commendations. Perhaps we should go back and amend their commendations with appropriate titles?

And I feel that we should make clear that this is not the standard that we will expect for all future UH sessions and Commendations.

Hmm, did you want to say you hope it's clear this is the standard we expect from all future commendations? Because if so, I agree. Wintermoot has outdone himself with it.

I don't see it as one more layer of punishment not to grant him this title, I simply see it as an inaccuracy, and inaccuracies should not be tolerated. It is, however, not inaccurate to say that he is defined by a different virtue, one that is often overlooked and unappreciated.

I also agree that we should take a look at the previous commendations and update them with titles where appropriate.

No, I meant to say that we should not hold this as the standard for future Commendations. I do not think it would be a good idea to expect that all future Commendations need to look this spectacular.

As for the inaccuracy, Chanku is one of the single most legalese knowledgeable people in Wintreath. He is very certainly focused on rules and procedure which could count as Just.

According to the dictionary:

just
dʒʌst/
adjective
1.
based on or behaving according to what is morally right and fair.
"a just and democratic society"
synonyms:   fair, fair-minded, equitable, even-handed, impartial, unbiased, objective, neutral, disinterested, unprejudiced, open-minded, non-partisan, non-discriminatory, anti-discrimination;

To begin with, he has not always followed the law, hence the temp bans. He also has not behaved in a morally virtuous manner all throughout his time here, which is more what the word "just" refers to.

This will be my closing statement on the matter. I believe that my point has been made. Whether others are in agreement with me is up to them. I sense that continuing this debate will only result in unnecessary conflict, given that none of us are likely to change our minds.

Hmm. Fair point. I'm not fully on board with 'Champion of the Stalwart' though, its a bit cumbersome to use in my opinion.

How about 'Champion of Wintreath' or something along those lines? Oh, how about 'Champion Of The Righteous' or 'Champion Of The Law' ? Both would be very accurate for Chanku.

I can definitely get behind Champion of Wintreath. He definitely is that.

I'd argue with 'Champion of Wintreath'. It seems to exlude others who have done equal amounts for the region. Definitly like 'Champion of the Law', though.

It wouldn't necessarily exclude people. What prevents us from granting such a title to more than one person?

I've been racking my brain and working with others trying to find a compromise and I think we have managed to hit on something.

Laurentus's main concern is the title, my main concern is with regards to previous Commendation Acts. So, a potential compromise we could try is this: pass the Commendation Act we have now as is but remove the part about a title, making more like all previous Commendation Acts. Then, we could pass an Act giving the Monarch the authority to grant Ceremonial Honorific Titles to people who have benefited the Region and the Monarch.

This seems to me to be a workable compromise between the main concerns of everyone evolved. What does everyone else think?

I like the sound of that.

At that point, the act would look like this.

Title
1) This act shall be cited as the Chanku Commendation Act.

Recognitions
2) The Storting recognizes that Chanku was the first Citizen to make Wintreath his original home, and that he has since been a prominent member of Wintreath's forum and IRC/Discord community, where he has contributed to Wintreath's special and freewheeling culture.

3) The Storting recognizes that Chanku has been an instrumental driver of Wintrean parliamentary and legal culture, particularly through his unparalleled belief in and devotion to the Underhusen as an institution, through such accomplishments as:
a) Having ran as a candidate for Underhusen in every election since the Storting was established, currently a span lasting over five years and growing.
b) Having been elected to 11 Underhusen sessions, where the Underhusen placed its faith in him by selecting him as its Speaker for 6 of those sessions and its Speaker Pro Tempore for another 2 of those sessions.
c) Having represented the Monarchy in parliamentary matters for an additional session as Chairman of the Overhusen.
d) Having authored, co-authored, or influenced a number of acts that have passed into law, including the Citizenship and Demonym Act, the Code of Criminal Laws, the Default Seats of the Underhusen Act, and the Procedural Rules Speaker and Officers Amendment.
e) Having tested the region's legal system by bringing its first and currently only lawsuit.

4) The Storting recognizes that Chanku has also served in many other government roles, including Jarl of Foreign Affairs and Regional Gameplay Advisor. Additionally, he was involved in our regional military, the Hvitt Riddiral, through most of its entire existance, from being a trainee in its first operations to serving as Jarl of Defense for over a year.

5) The Storting recognizes Chanku as a stalwart defender of the region, its community, its principles, and its Monarch in cases where it has been the target of untruths and slander, particularly during:
a) The events of July 2015, when several prominent Citizens announced their intent to overthrow the Monarchy. His defense led him to being inappropriately banned by one of the Citizens involved who was also a chat op.
b) The events of March 2018, when The Versutian Federation closed relations with Wintreath for reasons based on incorrect facts collected through poor research on their part. His actions, along with those of others, resulted in a restoration of relations.
c) The events of May-July 2018 during the Lazarus Constitutional Convention, where he often sacrificed his own personal standing among the powers that be in that region in fighting untruths leveled against the region and its Monarch. His actions in part inspired a renewed regional focus on foreign affairs, which included his own appointment as Regional Gameplay Advisor.

Commendation
6) Recognizing these feats as fact, the Storting hereby awards Chanku the Commendation of Wintreath.

What about a noble title?

Well, that is a question for Wintermoot. He hands out noble titles, after all.