Gulliver
TNPer
Good your-local-time-of-day TNP'ers and, more importantly, potential voters! In case you missed the bold text directly to the left of this message, my name is Gulliver. And in case you clicked on this topic without reading the title, I, under the influence of some dark power not understood to man, have accepted my nomination for Delegate and will be contesting this election.
What have I done before?
I believe most of you know who I am and what I've done for theregion, but just in case I'd like to start with some all-North-Pacifican reminiscing about the good old days. The "good old days" being, now that I bother to dig through the archives, nearly three years ago. Sweet agnostic god figure I kinda feel old...
Anyway, I was elected Speaker of the Regional Assembly back in the forgotten era of May of 2012. I dedicated my term, in cooperation with many members of the Assembly, to the pursuit of an aggressive program of reform to streamline and cut down our region's infamously byzantine and pedantic legal documents. The campaign was a brutal and grueling one which claimed the sanity of more good legislators than I care to remember. But in the end, the result was a triumphant and decisive victory over the forces of obfuscation and confusion. If memory serves, the Constitution itself was cut down to something on the order of a mere fifth of its original size while maintaining all the actual vital functions of the original document.
I also modernized how the the Regional Assembly's records are kept. Leveraging the tools offered by Google and the power of the NationStates API, I was able to successfully automate a large portion of tracking membership requirements for Regional Assembly participation. This same system, with additional improvements made by my successors, lives on today and continues to be a boon to our diligent and ever paperwork-weary Speakers.
Why am I running for Delegate now?
I saw my term to completion, faithfully doing my job until my final day in office. After that, however, the unfortunate obligations and rigors of real life took precedence. Without the time to participate, I was forced to allow my membership in the Regional Assembly laps. It has only been relatively recently that my schedule has resolved such that I can participate in TNP again.
In all honesty, I was expecting things to move a bit slower in getting back into the swing of things here in TNP. I certainly was not expecting that there would be a special Delegate election, or that I would have the honor of being nominated. But when an opportunity like that comes up, sometimes you've got to do the impulsive thing and take it before it goes.
Perhaps a campaign like this so soon after returning is a longshot, but I took immense pride in serving The North Pacific as Speaker and in all the good I was able to accomplish for the region during my term. I know I still have so much more to offer, and would love nothing more than being given the opportunity by my fellow TNP'ers to bring that same level of ability, commitment and innovation with which I reshaped our legislative branch to our executive branch.
What am I going to do?
Truthfully, what I have to say may not appear to be a great deal compared to some other candidates. I stand before you primarily not on inmaterial promises but on the concrete record of past accomplishments and service to our region that I detailed above. I have shown myself to be a competent administrator, capable of achieving large changes and improving upon old and outdated systems. My first and foremost promise will be to bring that same portfolio of skills to bear on the many ministries of the executive. That said, I will touch upon other points in brief:
Military: I have had opportunities to work with our armed forces in the past, and they are a fine lot, but there's always more work that could be done. I would seek to standardize and systemize its recruitment process and training regimens so that its successes today can be reliably maintained and capitalized on going forward.
Culture: The cultural aspect that interests me most is that of roleplay. I've been a roleplayer since I joined NationStates ten years ago, and I'd like to see TNP's currently roleplay nurtured and improved. There's a lot of potential there, but it needs a great deal of work which as a seasoned roleplayer I'd be no stranger to.
Education and the University: I applaud the work that these initiatives have done so far. I will see that they are continued and expanded and that they are established as valued institutions of the region.
Foreign Policy: I think that with foreign policy it is all too easy to fall into the trap of accepting the status quo as sufficient. It's obvious that we are already a widely known and respected region on the world state, but keeping that position requires continued hard work and initiative to adapt to the changing winds of interregional relations. I will actively seek new relations that may benefit the region, and work to forestall decay or damage to already established regions.
Communication: Communications has become somewhat moribund, with no publication of The North Lights for quite some time. I would like to give the ministry a swift kick and get it back in gear. The soft power we project through our regional publications, while not the end all be all, is still important to maintain.
World Assembly Affairs: I think there's room to make the process by which the Delegate decides their vote more systematic. I will also reach out to our collaborators in WALL to collective assess the program's performance to date, and decide what steps to take next with it.
Swag and such
Whether you were smart enough to just skip the preceding text or diligent enough to read it all, congratulations on either your cleverness or endurance! As your reward, here's the code to put this stunning campaign button:
Into your signature:
Made with locally rendered pixels without any inorganic filters, this button will let your friends, family and enemies know what an astute and cultured person you are for supporting me in this election. So slap it on your signature, wear it with pride and get the word out!
Some Final Words
There's not a great deal to say here that hasn't already been said, so I'll get off my soapbox now and give you all a chance to mercilessly grill me with any questions you might have.
What have I done before?
I believe most of you know who I am and what I've done for theregion, but just in case I'd like to start with some all-North-Pacifican reminiscing about the good old days. The "good old days" being, now that I bother to dig through the archives, nearly three years ago. Sweet agnostic god figure I kinda feel old...
Anyway, I was elected Speaker of the Regional Assembly back in the forgotten era of May of 2012. I dedicated my term, in cooperation with many members of the Assembly, to the pursuit of an aggressive program of reform to streamline and cut down our region's infamously byzantine and pedantic legal documents. The campaign was a brutal and grueling one which claimed the sanity of more good legislators than I care to remember. But in the end, the result was a triumphant and decisive victory over the forces of obfuscation and confusion. If memory serves, the Constitution itself was cut down to something on the order of a mere fifth of its original size while maintaining all the actual vital functions of the original document.
I also modernized how the the Regional Assembly's records are kept. Leveraging the tools offered by Google and the power of the NationStates API, I was able to successfully automate a large portion of tracking membership requirements for Regional Assembly participation. This same system, with additional improvements made by my successors, lives on today and continues to be a boon to our diligent and ever paperwork-weary Speakers.
Why am I running for Delegate now?
I saw my term to completion, faithfully doing my job until my final day in office. After that, however, the unfortunate obligations and rigors of real life took precedence. Without the time to participate, I was forced to allow my membership in the Regional Assembly laps. It has only been relatively recently that my schedule has resolved such that I can participate in TNP again.
In all honesty, I was expecting things to move a bit slower in getting back into the swing of things here in TNP. I certainly was not expecting that there would be a special Delegate election, or that I would have the honor of being nominated. But when an opportunity like that comes up, sometimes you've got to do the impulsive thing and take it before it goes.
Perhaps a campaign like this so soon after returning is a longshot, but I took immense pride in serving The North Pacific as Speaker and in all the good I was able to accomplish for the region during my term. I know I still have so much more to offer, and would love nothing more than being given the opportunity by my fellow TNP'ers to bring that same level of ability, commitment and innovation with which I reshaped our legislative branch to our executive branch.
What am I going to do?
Truthfully, what I have to say may not appear to be a great deal compared to some other candidates. I stand before you primarily not on inmaterial promises but on the concrete record of past accomplishments and service to our region that I detailed above. I have shown myself to be a competent administrator, capable of achieving large changes and improving upon old and outdated systems. My first and foremost promise will be to bring that same portfolio of skills to bear on the many ministries of the executive. That said, I will touch upon other points in brief:
Military: I have had opportunities to work with our armed forces in the past, and they are a fine lot, but there's always more work that could be done. I would seek to standardize and systemize its recruitment process and training regimens so that its successes today can be reliably maintained and capitalized on going forward.
Culture: The cultural aspect that interests me most is that of roleplay. I've been a roleplayer since I joined NationStates ten years ago, and I'd like to see TNP's currently roleplay nurtured and improved. There's a lot of potential there, but it needs a great deal of work which as a seasoned roleplayer I'd be no stranger to.
Education and the University: I applaud the work that these initiatives have done so far. I will see that they are continued and expanded and that they are established as valued institutions of the region.
Foreign Policy: I think that with foreign policy it is all too easy to fall into the trap of accepting the status quo as sufficient. It's obvious that we are already a widely known and respected region on the world state, but keeping that position requires continued hard work and initiative to adapt to the changing winds of interregional relations. I will actively seek new relations that may benefit the region, and work to forestall decay or damage to already established regions.
Communication: Communications has become somewhat moribund, with no publication of The North Lights for quite some time. I would like to give the ministry a swift kick and get it back in gear. The soft power we project through our regional publications, while not the end all be all, is still important to maintain.
World Assembly Affairs: I think there's room to make the process by which the Delegate decides their vote more systematic. I will also reach out to our collaborators in WALL to collective assess the program's performance to date, and decide what steps to take next with it.
Swag and such
Whether you were smart enough to just skip the preceding text or diligent enough to read it all, congratulations on either your cleverness or endurance! As your reward, here's the code to put this stunning campaign button:
Into your signature:
Code:
[url=http://forum.thenorthpacific.org/topic/7348309/1/][img]http://i.imgur.com/WvCYKYU.png[/img][/url]Made with locally rendered pixels without any inorganic filters, this button will let your friends, family and enemies know what an astute and cultured person you are for supporting me in this election. So slap it on your signature, wear it with pride and get the word out!
Some Final Words
There's not a great deal to say here that hasn't already been said, so I'll get off my soapbox now and give you all a chance to mercilessly grill me with any questions you might have.
