Grosseschnauzer
TNPer
Mr. Speaker and my fellow citizens of The North Pacific:
First, I want to thank Great Bights Mum for her two consecutive terms of service as the elected Delegate of The North Pacific, and to Emperior Matthuis for his term of service as Vice Delegate.
I want to thank Flemingovia for his service as Minister of External Affairs during my first term as your Prime Minister, and Romanoffia, who has also completed two consecutive terms as Minister of Defense. The North Pacific is indebted to each of you for your faithful service to our region, and I am sure your service will continue in the time to come.
I also want to acknowledge Hersfold, Southwest Asia, Nem, and Unterwasserseestaat, who have completed their term of service on the Security Council.
This is only the second time in our history as a region that an incumbent Prime Minister has been re-elected. As a result, this presents a rare opportunity to look at where TNP is as a region, and look at where we can go.
The situation we face is not ideal – when is it ever -- but it could be far, far worse than it is. And we can make it far better that it has been.
As much as the Delegacy of Magicality is held in reverence by those who were here during that time, we cannot go forward by going backwards. Likewise, we learned much as a Region in the era of the troubles that were marked by Great Bight and Pixxiedance. And without a doubt, we do not want to go back to that, either. We can however, draw lessons from both the eras of the good times and the bad times, and apply them to our present and our future.
What are those lessons? The bottom line is this: The North Pacific is a unique feeder region with its own values of liberty, democracy, justice, and security. What works for us comes from our shared experience as a region and the lessons we have learned and applied from that shared experience. In sum, it is The North Pacific Way.
The North Pacific Way is not that of any other region or any other philosophy or culture. Experience teaches us that simply because certain things work elsewhere, that does not mean it should be part of the way of The North Pacific. No one should assume that the attitudes, values, philosophy, of other Regions, or even the solutions, methods, or the institutions used in other Regions would, or should, necessarily work here.
I am not against proposals for Constitutional changes, but I am concerned that such proposals be throughly discussed, that the need and consequences of the change be clearly established, and that such changes reflects our collective neede as a region, and not a partisan political agenda of any group.
However, since the close of the Constitutional Convention, some have sought to change the structure of our region to fit the preconceptions learned in other Regions. These proposals have, for example, sought a massive consolidation of power, shifting governmental power to the Delegate, eliminating our system of jury trial, and elimination of the Security Council. In each instance, the Regional Assembly has rejected such proposals. If one thinks it through, it is clear that The North Pacific does not want the systems of government others use elsewhere. We like the one we have. It suits us, and reflects our values.
With that realization, the message is clear – we are a democratic society where we entrust ourselves, as participants in government, to best direct and serve this region we share. That is clearly part of The North Pacific Way. When I first announced my candidacy for Prime Minister four months ago, I pointed out that our democracy, in order to work, required participation from all of us.
The time has come to end the political divisions that have simmered under the surface since the fall of the Pixiedance dictatorship, that are based upon the conflicts of our past. The time has come for all of us to accept the diversity of viewpoints and outlooks as part of our democratic institutions, and recognize that those who are truly attached to The North Pacific will place their primary loyalty and trust in The North Pacific, and not in any other region.
In order for us to work together, the different factions that are visible in The North Pacific must accept each other’s outlook as part of the process by which we protect and cherish our institutions and we all must work together to blend those views into a whole greater than its parts. That, too, is part of The North Pacific Way.
Some may have wondered why I put forth so many proposals at the beginning of my prior term. In my view, all of these issues were among the issues that needed to be settled so we could finish laying the foundation of The North Pacific’s future. Too many concerns had been left unaddressed for so long, that the very presence of those concerns without resolution made longer-term progress difficult, if not impossible.
A few of those issues could not be addressed in the time I had to work with during my first term. To address those remaining issues, I will bring forth focused legislation that I believe will force the pace of criminal trials to move at a much faster pace than we have experienced.
I will propose an alternative form of impeachment, known elsewhere as a recall procedure, which will use a referendum in the Regional Assembly to remove an elected or appointed official for cause; especially where the issue is whether there has been misfeasance, malfeasance, or nonfeasance in office.
I will present legislation to clarify certain parts of the Law on Criminal Procedure so as to better assure the pace of trials will not be unnecessarily delayed, and I call upon the Court Justices to follow and enforce that law in any future criminal proceedings in the Court of The North Pacific. I am personally dissatisfied to see any trial go on for six months and counting. After looking at the course of that trial, and the current law, I am at a loss to see how a six month trial was even possible.
I will also ask the Regional Assembly to consider whether, with an assurance that trials can be conducted in a expeditious manner, jury service should be a stated obligation of Regional Assembly membership unless there is a conflict, such as by being a witness or a party or its counsel in a trial.
The time has come however, to move to far more important things than the legitimate concern over the length of trials. The time has come for all of us to pull together the various threads that we all represent to weave together the future of The North Pacific.
During my first term, we addressed the responsibilities of the different Ministries, and laid the foundation for The North Pacific University. At this moment, the University Board of Regents is engaged in the process of organizing the University, and I am grateful to the Regional Assembly for their strong support of the University and the role it will play in the future of The North Pacific.
We now need to look at where we can all join together, having set aside the arguments of the past. If each of the Ministries act as if they are a three-month fiefdom that belongs to its incumbent, we will not move forward as a Region, and we will not make The North Pacific the sort of region it ought to be.
There must be a sense of continuity and community. That must be part of The North Pacific Way.
The way forward calls for a different view of how the Cabinet should be working from day to day.
To say that each of the Ministries has its own independent sphere of control is simply wrong. There are many tasks that should be met from day-to-day that require cooperation between Ministers for our collective benefit. There needs to be a sense of collaboration, not only between Ministers and their deputies, but with the entire Cabinet, the entire government, and the entire Region.
With things as they have been, we have unmet needs. This leads us to the following:
I believe there is a better way to address these needs. I believe we need to experiment with crafting solutions for these needs in a flexible way that crosses the lines of jurisdiction between Ministries. I believe that by using such an approach we should be able to find ways to fulfill these needs of the Ministries, the Security Council, and the Court.
I plan to ask the Cabinet to endorse the creation of a multi-jurisdictional task force to experiment and develop solutions to address these needs of the Cabinet, the Security Council and the Court. I will appoint a director for the task force who will be charged with whatever authority is required to devise and test ways of supplying the resources that are needed to properly meet those needs. The Task Force, while it is in the process of developing means and resources for the various parts of the government, it will also identify what laws or Constitutional changes may need to be enacted by the Regional Assembly as permanent law. At the current time, this task force would have no less than sixty to seventy-five days for its work, but we, as a region, could choose to extend the task force if it appears that such an extension would be fruitful. The work of the Task Force will be open, accountable and transparent. It will not be a military or intelligence force, but it should alleviate the pressure on both of those entities where there are regional security concerns.
In the interim, if a waiver of current law is necessary, I will ask the Cabinet, the Regional Assembly, the Security Council and the Court, as appropriate to promptly grant such waivers for the Task Force. I want to make clear that the Task Force and its work will be open to volunteers to participate whether they are oldtimers and newcomers; I would rather that we spend our collective energies in building our region in small, concrete, measurable ways, than by huge clashes over philosophical differences rooted in our past history.
This will also help lead the way to the growth of a new generation of leadership for the Region. We need to help develop new leaders, who are trusted by all in the region and who have demonstrated their committment to The North Pacific. This task force will allow all of us to participate in both the growth of that next generation of leaders, and the future of The North Pacific.
That, my fellow citizens, is also The North Pacific Way.
Thank you.
First, I want to thank Great Bights Mum for her two consecutive terms of service as the elected Delegate of The North Pacific, and to Emperior Matthuis for his term of service as Vice Delegate.
I want to thank Flemingovia for his service as Minister of External Affairs during my first term as your Prime Minister, and Romanoffia, who has also completed two consecutive terms as Minister of Defense. The North Pacific is indebted to each of you for your faithful service to our region, and I am sure your service will continue in the time to come.
I also want to acknowledge Hersfold, Southwest Asia, Nem, and Unterwasserseestaat, who have completed their term of service on the Security Council.
This is only the second time in our history as a region that an incumbent Prime Minister has been re-elected. As a result, this presents a rare opportunity to look at where TNP is as a region, and look at where we can go.
The situation we face is not ideal – when is it ever -- but it could be far, far worse than it is. And we can make it far better that it has been.
As much as the Delegacy of Magicality is held in reverence by those who were here during that time, we cannot go forward by going backwards. Likewise, we learned much as a Region in the era of the troubles that were marked by Great Bight and Pixxiedance. And without a doubt, we do not want to go back to that, either. We can however, draw lessons from both the eras of the good times and the bad times, and apply them to our present and our future.
What are those lessons? The bottom line is this: The North Pacific is a unique feeder region with its own values of liberty, democracy, justice, and security. What works for us comes from our shared experience as a region and the lessons we have learned and applied from that shared experience. In sum, it is The North Pacific Way.
The North Pacific Way is not that of any other region or any other philosophy or culture. Experience teaches us that simply because certain things work elsewhere, that does not mean it should be part of the way of The North Pacific. No one should assume that the attitudes, values, philosophy, of other Regions, or even the solutions, methods, or the institutions used in other Regions would, or should, necessarily work here.
I am not against proposals for Constitutional changes, but I am concerned that such proposals be throughly discussed, that the need and consequences of the change be clearly established, and that such changes reflects our collective neede as a region, and not a partisan political agenda of any group.
However, since the close of the Constitutional Convention, some have sought to change the structure of our region to fit the preconceptions learned in other Regions. These proposals have, for example, sought a massive consolidation of power, shifting governmental power to the Delegate, eliminating our system of jury trial, and elimination of the Security Council. In each instance, the Regional Assembly has rejected such proposals. If one thinks it through, it is clear that The North Pacific does not want the systems of government others use elsewhere. We like the one we have. It suits us, and reflects our values.
With that realization, the message is clear – we are a democratic society where we entrust ourselves, as participants in government, to best direct and serve this region we share. That is clearly part of The North Pacific Way. When I first announced my candidacy for Prime Minister four months ago, I pointed out that our democracy, in order to work, required participation from all of us.
The time has come to end the political divisions that have simmered under the surface since the fall of the Pixiedance dictatorship, that are based upon the conflicts of our past. The time has come for all of us to accept the diversity of viewpoints and outlooks as part of our democratic institutions, and recognize that those who are truly attached to The North Pacific will place their primary loyalty and trust in The North Pacific, and not in any other region.
In order for us to work together, the different factions that are visible in The North Pacific must accept each other’s outlook as part of the process by which we protect and cherish our institutions and we all must work together to blend those views into a whole greater than its parts. That, too, is part of The North Pacific Way.
Some may have wondered why I put forth so many proposals at the beginning of my prior term. In my view, all of these issues were among the issues that needed to be settled so we could finish laying the foundation of The North Pacific’s future. Too many concerns had been left unaddressed for so long, that the very presence of those concerns without resolution made longer-term progress difficult, if not impossible.
A few of those issues could not be addressed in the time I had to work with during my first term. To address those remaining issues, I will bring forth focused legislation that I believe will force the pace of criminal trials to move at a much faster pace than we have experienced.
I will propose an alternative form of impeachment, known elsewhere as a recall procedure, which will use a referendum in the Regional Assembly to remove an elected or appointed official for cause; especially where the issue is whether there has been misfeasance, malfeasance, or nonfeasance in office.
I will present legislation to clarify certain parts of the Law on Criminal Procedure so as to better assure the pace of trials will not be unnecessarily delayed, and I call upon the Court Justices to follow and enforce that law in any future criminal proceedings in the Court of The North Pacific. I am personally dissatisfied to see any trial go on for six months and counting. After looking at the course of that trial, and the current law, I am at a loss to see how a six month trial was even possible.
I will also ask the Regional Assembly to consider whether, with an assurance that trials can be conducted in a expeditious manner, jury service should be a stated obligation of Regional Assembly membership unless there is a conflict, such as by being a witness or a party or its counsel in a trial.
The time has come however, to move to far more important things than the legitimate concern over the length of trials. The time has come for all of us to pull together the various threads that we all represent to weave together the future of The North Pacific.
During my first term, we addressed the responsibilities of the different Ministries, and laid the foundation for The North Pacific University. At this moment, the University Board of Regents is engaged in the process of organizing the University, and I am grateful to the Regional Assembly for their strong support of the University and the role it will play in the future of The North Pacific.
We now need to look at where we can all join together, having set aside the arguments of the past. If each of the Ministries act as if they are a three-month fiefdom that belongs to its incumbent, we will not move forward as a Region, and we will not make The North Pacific the sort of region it ought to be.
There must be a sense of continuity and community. That must be part of The North Pacific Way.
The way forward calls for a different view of how the Cabinet should be working from day to day.
To say that each of the Ministries has its own independent sphere of control is simply wrong. There are many tasks that should be met from day-to-day that require cooperation between Ministers for our collective benefit. There needs to be a sense of collaboration, not only between Ministers and their deputies, but with the entire Cabinet, the entire government, and the entire Region.
With things as they have been, we have unmet needs. This leads us to the following:
- If you go look at the Ministry of External Affairs, you will find that we have a shortage of diplomats. Only when we have more diplomats, then we can use them to build stronger relationships with both our old allies and our new friends, and learn what can be offered both ways in each relationship. Likewise, except for two minor military agreements, and agreements for embassies and consulates, we have not made a single treaty since the Constitutional Convention. We have waited long enough.
- If you go look at the Ministry of Immigration and Internal Affairs, you will find that it lacks the manpower to verify the continous eligibility of Regional Assembly members, as called for in the Constitution. It also lacks the manpower to maintain recruitment teams, as directed in the Legal Code. We need to assure that both of these needs are met so we can attact new residents to TNP and increase overall participation in Regional affairs.
- If you go look at the Ministry of Communications, you will find that virtually no one has been able and willing to help the Ministry produce The North Pacific Wire, or to prepare reports on regional activities. Not only do we need these reports to provide news and information for those who reside in other regions, through our diplomatic outposts, we need some form of such reports for those who are already here, but who have not become part of the fabric of our Regional institutions.
- If you go look at the Ministry of Defense, you will find that the numbers who are enlisted in our military is not what many of us believe is an appropriate level in the long term. The lack of recruiting for the region, an inactive diplomatic corps, and distributing regional information can all be said to be contributing factors in the slow pace of growth. As is the case with the Diplomatic Corps, we need to enlarge the ranks of the North Pacific Army so it can better serve in the defense of this Region, and to aid in the defense of other Regions who may call upon us for assistance.
- Various government officials, including the Delegate, the Vice Delegate, the Security Council, and the Cabinet need to have better and more timely data about endorsement activity and levels within the Region than we have now. The North Pacific’s approach to these issues requires that such information be collected and maintained, and there is no reason why the Region cannot collectively work together to do so.
I believe there is a better way to address these needs. I believe we need to experiment with crafting solutions for these needs in a flexible way that crosses the lines of jurisdiction between Ministries. I believe that by using such an approach we should be able to find ways to fulfill these needs of the Ministries, the Security Council, and the Court.
I plan to ask the Cabinet to endorse the creation of a multi-jurisdictional task force to experiment and develop solutions to address these needs of the Cabinet, the Security Council and the Court. I will appoint a director for the task force who will be charged with whatever authority is required to devise and test ways of supplying the resources that are needed to properly meet those needs. The Task Force, while it is in the process of developing means and resources for the various parts of the government, it will also identify what laws or Constitutional changes may need to be enacted by the Regional Assembly as permanent law. At the current time, this task force would have no less than sixty to seventy-five days for its work, but we, as a region, could choose to extend the task force if it appears that such an extension would be fruitful. The work of the Task Force will be open, accountable and transparent. It will not be a military or intelligence force, but it should alleviate the pressure on both of those entities where there are regional security concerns.
In the interim, if a waiver of current law is necessary, I will ask the Cabinet, the Regional Assembly, the Security Council and the Court, as appropriate to promptly grant such waivers for the Task Force. I want to make clear that the Task Force and its work will be open to volunteers to participate whether they are oldtimers and newcomers; I would rather that we spend our collective energies in building our region in small, concrete, measurable ways, than by huge clashes over philosophical differences rooted in our past history.
This will also help lead the way to the growth of a new generation of leadership for the Region. We need to help develop new leaders, who are trusted by all in the region and who have demonstrated their committment to The North Pacific. This task force will allow all of us to participate in both the growth of that next generation of leaders, and the future of The North Pacific.
That, my fellow citizens, is also The North Pacific Way.
Thank you.
I like the sound of a "North Pacific Way" 