ARCHIVED: Clippings from Den'

Jack Jones: Jingoist or Iron?

Mboto Jones, more commonly called Jack Jones, has been re-elected High Chief of Naizerre. The election is a vindication of his pugnacious rhetoric and policies. But is Jones vindictive toward his opponents, or valorous against interlopers?

Certainly nations he has called out include some where caution is entirely justified. The government of Syrixia has gone as far as to push for an end to the Democratic Union's mutual defense commitment. Nebula a warlike expansionist. It's important however to consider what country Jones has been careful not to criticize: McMasterdonia.

The Kingdom of McMasterdonia has of course unfortunately been embroiled in considerable civil conflict ever since Queen Matilda dissolved parliament and suspended elections, a conflict our own government has been shamefully silent about to date. McMasterdonia, of course, is a neighbor of Naizerre which the Jones administration is seeking a treaty with.

Jack's uncritical preference for McMasterdonia reveals once again his true priorities: accumulating and retaining power. The royal regime in McMasterdonia has no interest, of course, in keeping its partners democratic. Indeed, historically authoritarian regimes have been easier to keep on one's side: with a democracy, you ultimately have to keep most of the people happy with your support; with a dictatorship, just one.

As a political scientist, I would predict that the cooperation between Tögbätä and Intelligentsia is most likely to be centered on security cooperation including aid in the form of weapons and surveillance systems. I would expect Jones' bargaining position to be stronger, as the Queen's government stands to gain more in their current situation.

Jones is likely to crack down on the opposition: he's already labelled it as backed by foreign interests, after all. By portraying his efforts to monopolize power as a fight for independence he will likely be able to get great mileage out of sympathetic groups domestically and internationally.

In the absence of any solid incentives toward joining and remaining in the community of free states, we are likely to see more and more nations slip into the darkness of authoritarianism and nationalism. Oppression in the distant west may not be our problem directly, but in time it could grow to to turn the tide against freedom across The North Pacific. Meanwhile our government continues to do nothing.

Alexiy Mikhailovich Kropotkin is a professor of political science and economics at the Petrograd State University

Matilda Murdered in Minas Ersul

In a heavily armed ambush smashing through police barricades at 13 hours this afternoon (11 local time) the reigning Monarch of McMasterdonia, Matilda II, has been assassinated.

A heavy vehicle, firearms, and an explosive were used in the attack. Confirmed fatalities include the Queen, the Queen's husband Prince Richard, her personal bodyguard Belinda Seymour, and their entire security detail. Casualties are also reported to include McMasterdonian Ministers for Foreign Affairs, Aviation and Transport, Defence, and Security Richard Narles, Wallace Thompson, Susan Collins, and Sophie Rosenberg as well as the CEO of RMA, Jennifer Winnepeg, their journalistic entourage, and the Deputy Minister Foreign Affairs of Eumenor and his entourage. No further information is available about the attackers at this time.

Since 1881, the inefficacy of assassination as a tool for progress has been apparent. Nevertheless, it is possible that the killing was orchestrated by revolutionary forces from McMasterdonia. At this time, however, alternative hypotheses remain open for consideration. Experts tell us that the involvement of Matilda's brother, General Albert, or other powerful relatives cannot be ruled out. In the affairs of families that retain power with force, the strangest things are possible: for examples, see any of the true histories that the titillating stories about organized crime we have come to see so often on our television screens are based. With Matilda in power, Albert's position following the atrocities he is responsible for was perhaps uncertain. Now, he may gain absolute dominion over the country.

When power is tightly held by one person, for life, violence will inevitably be seen as the only means to change. The human cost is terrible. In this case, quite possibly more terrible to McMasterdonians aspiring for freedom than anyone else: Regardless of the full facts, it's easy to predict the culprit General Albert and his death squads will blame: the democratic opposition.

Traditionally, the successor to a McMasterdonian Monarch is chosen by a caucus of the extended Royal Family. Under the current circumstances of civil war, sure to escalate, it is hard to see such an event going smoothly. The whereabouts of the ordinarily obvious choice, Matilda's son Richard, remain unknown. The most popular member of the Royal Family, the late queen's mother, Meghan, has also not been seen in some time. Rumors circulate that she is long dead. Whatever decision may be taken will likely lie under a cloud.

This is a dark time for the McMasterdonian Royal family, but their collective control over the security services and the overall levers of power is such as to expect that to be visited on their subjects tenfold. This is a dark night for the people of McMasterdonia, and the red dawn will not come soon.

Nikolay Vladimirovich Vorobyev is a reporter for Den' in the World Affairs section