Post Archive
Region: Libertatem
We can vote on PUPPET-GROWTH now, I guess.
I cast my vote FOR.
FOR.
For, obviously.
bump on the RMB, if that's even possible.
What does everyone think about Workers' Self Managment?
Operation: Purple Hammer was a success!
The Libertatem-Ucr invasion of The New German Reich was a great success! We put aside our views on private property and the definition of liberty and joined together to crush an outpost of statism, an ideology we both abhor. After ten days of joint occupation, the last of the Nazis were cast out and the region fell into the annals of history. Here, I'd like to honour the brave soldiers who brought Purple Hammer to success:
-Private [nation=short]Wolfdon[/nation], Bronze Star.
-Private [nation=short]Islands[/nation], Bronze Star.
-[nation=short]The United Slavic Tsardom[/nation], Honorary Bronze Star.
Through careful planning and cooperation, Fireteam Eisenhower and Tsardom brought our two regions to victory. I once again thank all who participated, and hope that our relations will continue to advance into the future.
-[nation=short]Pevvania[/nation],
Manager of Military Affairs for Libertatem.
*cheers*
I vote aye for the growth act.
Yay for both pieces of legislation
I think I put the bill on the floor too early. We've been a bit inactive in the past couple days, it seems.
That seems pretty accurate
Hello guys. I am Timmy, I have been in this region before and it is nice to be back.
This is just like New Year's Eve, except better
Check this out
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3t44gkHWHQA
Come on, guys! Where the hell has everyone gone?
Congrats on Snabagag's one-year anniversary of becoming Delegate.
Guys, I'm writing an article for the Gameplay News section, a part of NationStates++. (Which is a pretty brilliant add-on in itself. Download it here: http://forum.nationstates.net/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=243404&sid=b7250e9ae02242875e556f2c168e6260) The subject is going to be the Libertatem-UCR alliance, so I'd like to put some quotes in the article from important players in shaping the alliance. I'd like to get a quote from Conservative Idealism, Liberosia, Tsardom and Aeragolem. If anyone else wants to be in the article, let me know.
Thanks,
Pev.
Wow! I hadn't even noticed!!! Thank you, Pev!!!
I'll send a quote sometime, Pevvania. I've been exceptionally busy lately.
Liberosia, your factbook on the parties needs amending. The Christian Libertarian Party merged with the Minarchist Party to form the Reaganist Libertarian Party, which is led by myself. Also, the Right Party was disbanded with the passage of DERP a month or so ago.
Hello.
There aren't even enough active members for that many parties
Yeah
I'm so sorry for my inactivity. I could only be on 3 days on NationStates per week
Hmm
Hmmm indeed
Hmm
Uh-huh
Hmm... huh?
This is nice. Islands the most political free in Libertatem.
hmm
Just finished a 1,300 word history essay on Truman and Eisenhower's involvement in stepping up American involvement in Vietnam. That was frickin' exhausting.
Hmm
Dang it wolfdon, do you have something to say?
No, nothing
Oh...
You?
Do you find it odd that we're really the only ones on the RMB
So what's the deal with the chat room? I apparently need a password, and don't have one.
Ask Pev for it.
I don't think we've ever been this calm, this long.
It's been nearly two weeks since the last real activity! o_0
we are rather quiet... hmm
Happy Leif Erikson Day everyone!
Can we rename 'the War on Totalitarianism' 'the War on Tyranny'? It rolls off the tongue better.
If we did that we'd be fighting the commies again. Communism is effectively tyranny by the majority.
You should be able to call anything whatever you like.
Actually I think "the War on Totalitarianism" sounds more specific and tells more of the political view in this specific region but we all want liberty so I guess everyone should be able to call it whatever they like as long as everyone knows what they're talking about.
Also greetings to all of you
Hello!
Post self-deleted by The Cheese Generals.
So as I'm new to this region, is there anything specific I should think of while I'm here?
I'm not really sure, all I know is this is a haven for freedom-loving nations
Well thank you for your answer!
I will make sure to make the best out of my stay here for all of us
Wonderful!
more like stagnationstates
lol
Hooray, we're the Featured Region!
Welcome all new and coming arrivals! We've hit a bit of a patch of inactivity, but I'm sure that with you're help we'll get back on top of things!
Hip, Hip, Hooray!!!!
Hey! That's great!
Celebrate!!!!
FEATURED REGION GUYS! What have I missed?
Nothing. Nothing at all.
I'm gonna send a telegram to all government members to ask if they will support PUPPET-GROWTH. Once I have their guaranteed support, I'll officially put it on the floor.
It wasn't nothing, we got three new nations!!
Didn't we already hold a vote on that legislation
Not officially.
Hmmmm
Libertatem! Please accept my embassy request! Thanks! :)
Lack there of, it was never officially put on the floor.
C I is now me. I bought it from CI.
How do you bought a nation?
Hello! This puppet of mine will stay here unless withdrawn.
And to answer your question, just telegram someone who has a puppet and ask them if you can have their puppet for let's say, 50 million NS dollars. If they agree, they will give the password to you and the nation is yours.
The "NS dollars" part is purely RP, but the annexation part is OOC and you'll actually control the puppet you bought.
Welcome, Seafield.
Can we just cut ties with Apartheid South Africa? All the problems of our maintaining embassies with them can be found in their name.
^seconded
Thanks for the welcome! :)
So guys, if you were President of the United States, what would your fiscal game plan be? Here's mine:
-Slash taxes to create a three-bracket tax code. 0% up to $20,000 annual income, and a 10% rate for income between that and $200,000. Anything over that gets taxed at 25%.
-Balance the budget through military spending cuts, privatisation of Social Security, abolishment of the Department of Education, and slashing agricultural subsidies.
First and foremost abolish the federal income tax.
Budget:
* Completely gut defense spending, keep it to a minimal bare bones operating budget.
*Remove a large chunk of federal bureaucracy including, but not limited to; EPA, FCC,NSA, TSA,SEC, and FAA
*Abolish all forms of production and monetary subsidies(both agrarian and commerce)
*Begin the gradual end of the welfare state by reducing the benefits provided by programs such as WICK and the assorted food stamps programs.
*begin the gradual absolution to social security.
And most importantly END THE FED
Bracket-tax systems are the grossest tax codes of all. They violate high-income people more than others. That is not justifiable.
I mostly agree with [nation=short]lack there of[/nation].
Post self-deleted by Pevvania.
I'm not suggesting we shut off support for western policies around the world. Sorry, bare bones was a pretty flexible term. My main concern with the military is the inflated costs at which they conduct business. Ie. a friend of mine worked as a construction contracter in Afghanistan a number of years ago. He came back with stories of $100+ door handles and other such wasteful inflated prices. The military is given an effectively blank check every year allowing them to spend money on the ridiculous prices that contracts set knowing they can get the money. The 2012 official estimate is total spending $1.030$1.415 trillion for all "defense" expenditures. There is no sane justification for those types of numbers
In addition many recent military involvements have been misguided or poorly executed endeavors. Historically speaking the US armed forces have been a tool of stability around the world, however in the last few decades many active US engaemts have resulted in destabilization in many nations, ie lybia, Iraq, Syria. The intentions of such operations are most likely good, but the end results have been horrific to the native populations, civil war in Iraq, tribal fueled chaos in Libya, and sheer mass murder in Syria.
A global defense force is nessecary to maintain the system we currently have in place, but the current system is as bloated as it is ineffective.
Privatizing social programs ran by the federal government would be both a nightmare and ineffective. Continuing such programs dosent solve the underling social issues that cause individuals to become dependent on them in the first place. Local groups/charities would be much more effective in handling such matters.
About social security. It is a complete pozi scheme. If a grown adult cannot plan for a retirement then they deserve the consequences of their inaction.
On the bracket tax. Any form of income tax amounts to slavery. The inability to retain 100% the fruit of your labor is tantamount to robbery at the end of a gun.
I definitely agree on the military thing. High defence expenditures were necessary to end the Cold War (as they were in World War II), but in a time of relative peace and economic crisis, America's gotta definitely rein in its spending on the military. I mean, they've got military bases in Norway, for Christ's sake! Norway! Foreign aid is also soaking up a lot of funds, since they're going to rich nations like Israel and Japan that can defend themselves without American cash. People also claim that foreign aid 'buys influence' abroad. If this were true, then Egypt would have never got an anti-Western President and would have been able to avert the crisis the country is facing right now.
I believe that defence expenditures need to be reduced significantly and military tactics re-evaluated.
Concerning general welfare programs, I agree that they are a very negative influence on the poor, but I don't see anything wrong with their existence in the private sector. You're not forcing anyone else to pay for you, so why not?
I'm all for personal responsibility and all, but we can't just pull the rug from underneath our elders. I hate to defend that dreaded program, but poverty amongst the elderly goes down as Social Security spending goes up. Chile once faced a problem with its bloated expenditures on a similar program. It was privatised, and the results have been great. Costs have fallen sharply, and the majority of Chilean workers are covered for retirement. It's worked there, and it can work in America too.
Unfortunately, an income tax is necessary for the necessary functions of the federal government to operate. It's the sad truth.
The general idea of subsidized living disturbs me wether that be government funded, or privately. I'm not saying they should be illegal, but the current system in place is horribly innefective and corrupt. An attempt to privatize the existing system would be an utter train wreck and lead people to believe it couldn't be done. After the mess currently in place is abolished I don't see any real problem with a privately ram welfare system being created, but the idea still creeps me out on a personal level.
On social security, I'm sorry, but I'm not familiar with the Chilean system, I'll have to look it up. I am no way saying that the program should just be turned off and those who rely on it currently should be left out in the cold, but at some point it has to end. The system is simply unsustainable. It might take few decades to wean the population of of it, but it would be better then the system imploding (as it eventually will) and leaving those relying on it on the outs.
An income tax is a sign of an unhealthy state. Before the sixteenth amendment the US had only one working income tax during the civil war, which was quite possibly the most unhealthy moment in American history. Before and after the war the federal government functioned fine and maintained a reasonable level of services.
The current leviathan we see today does need an income tax to exist its true, however it also provides much more than reasonable services. Bureaucratic nonsense that clogs the efficacy of government is funded through this excess taxation. There are many ways to furnish sustainable income through taxation that are much more legitimate than any form of income tax.
It's my impression that we're slowly dieting as a region. It seems like everyday another nation "ceases to exist" if this trend continues then the region will cease to exist.
you're right
Sorry for the late reply.
One man's trash is another man's treasure, There Of. I say: why destroy something, when you can give it away and not worry about it anymore?
Read this article: http://www.cato.org/publications/commentary/chiles-social-security-lesson-us Chile operates a master class pensions system. The majority of working people are covered under a privatised system.
I don't know if the US government could go on without an income tax, but I'd certainly like to see some evidence for it.
Here's a subject for y'all: 2016. Who would you support for President?
I think Rand Paul's the man for the job. He's not as libertarian as his father, although I believe that he'll radicalise once he gets into office.
Can you balance the budget?
http://www.kowaldesign.com/budget/
I balanced it and left a 835 billion surplus. How? I cut the Social Security Administration by 100% along with the department of Homeland Security. I cut agriculture by 40%, defense by 90%, Health and Human services by 80%, housing and urban development by 90%, labor by 70%, state by 10% and veteran's affairs by 30%. Then I cut income taxes by 40% and social insurance taxes too, excise taxes by 46% and estate taxes by 30%.
@Pevvania
Thanks for the link, Cato always had the best info on everything it seems. The Chilean system, from my limited understanding, appears to be an effective market alternative to the current US system and I see no reason it could not be effectively established in the US (aside from the gargantuan political strife of the topic)
On income tax Ron Paul, as usual, has a well articulated and factually based argument available on his website here; http://www.ronpaul.com/on-the-issues/taxes/
*has
Excise taxes are horrible regressive, so I can't support them in any form. But apart from that what he's saying makes astonishing sense.
Snab: I got a $1 trillion surplus from cutting Agriculture by 2/3, Defense by 1/6, Energy by 50%, Health and Human Services by a fifth, Energy to $9.2 billion, the Treasury in half, Veteran Affairs to $100 billion and I too erased the Social Security Administration.
I did raise spending for NASA, however, to $100 billion.
I also eliminated the Department of Education.
That would be a task for next year's budget. Small steps.
Congrats on the Year of service as WA Snab, I was wondering If we could have temporary volunteers for an International Republican Union Recruitment Program?
Question to the Confederate peoples:
Does the IRU take the term "republican" from the ideals and form of government originally associated with that word, or from the current U.S. political faction?
Sorry I didn't realize he left until after I posted that.
Thank you, CPUS.
I mean in no way to undermine Confederate, but I urge all of you to plough your time into Libertatem. In the past few weeks it's seemed that we're going off a point of no return. We must keep this region alive. We must keep activity thriving, we must keep the chatter vibrant, we must return to the War on Tyranny.
If I can get a 4-nation squad, then I'll organise for a new raid of a statist region. We gotta get back on top, people.
Count me in on the raid Pev, I take no offense. We will just need 10 puppets from separate main nation to help us set up IRU, give it the populace eye-candy for searching nations.
I will be back by February probably and switch regions weekly between here and IRU.
Post self-deleted by Normandiana.
Hey everyone. So now that I'm here, what can I do?
For the record, I'm socially moderate (I support legalizing marijuana and same-sex marriage, for example, but I'm also pro-life and opposed to affirmative action). I'm also economically moderate in that I support an expansive welfare system, free education, etc., but I think that the government should pretty much stay out of business. Which party seems like the best fit for me?
Assembled with Dot's Region Saver.
Written by Refuge Isle.