Intergalactic Summit

So let me get this straight. You dropped a starbase down in the years-old stomping ground of the Intaki Prosperity Initiative, and you find yourself surprised there is a siphon sitting on it? I assume you had tried to negotiate with IPI before this, right? I seriously doubt you're incompetent enough to simply ignore the obvious and think you and your civilians are immune to the realities of capsuleer interaction.

It seems like negotiating with some of the dominant system occupants before placing these oh-so-vulnerable civilians out there in capsule-visible structures would be a more prudent decision. Otherwise, when you decide to build your sandcastle in somebody else's yard, you should not cry so hard when it gets poked and prodded harmlessly. You should, in fact, be thankful it was not simply kicked over.

Make no mistake about this, Laurentis. If siphons are involved, a starbase is involved. If a starbase is involved, you're not playing a game of "national sovereign rights" or "eminent domain" anymore. You're not playing a political game of who really owns that space (Note: It's not you). The moment you drop that starbase, you're playing a dangerous territorial game with and against other capsuleers.

If YOU put up a capsule-targetable structure out there, you better be willing to accept the consequences of failing due process in negotiating either peacefully or forcefully with existing capsuleer groups. That was and remains your responsibility. Not the Federation, not the civilians, not the IPI. It is incumbent upon you to check your new plot of space to see if dropping a structure down will attract the attention of others.

I suspect if you had followed a respectful line of inquiry with IPI on what it would take, they might have allowed or possibly encouraged and assisted with you setting up structures for the purposes of enriching the Intaki people. They worked closely with us for years, so that says something significant about their patient and cooperative manner.

All of this assumes your goal here is actually to peacefully enrich the lives of the Intaki people there, rather than... say... rabblerousing on the IGS because you found a siphon on your personal enrichment starbase. Or even worse, place bait for the IPI to bite so you can launch a political campaign against them.

Now that I think about it, you are a Federal politician, aren't you? Hmm. I suppose that answers that.

Firstly, lets clear up some of the wild accusations that we have seen in response to this post.

I spoke quite clearly on the fact that the Institute's projects are dedicated to employing Intaki citizens and giving them an opportunity to work within the Federation and build better lives for themselves and their families. Even more clearly, I mentioned that such programmes were not only helping people, but were also allowing those people to help their community, their democracy, and their Union. In fact, the Institute is receiving and will receive no profit from the planetary facility that we are operating within the Intaki system - its goal is much more important, and we'd hope that that is not interfered with as well.

Secondly, I have to wonder when the IPI took sovereignty of Placid? If them 'being there' is a suitable metric, then the Serpentis, the FDU, and even the State Protectorate must have equal and competing claims. Am I expected to negotiate with all of them?

Rather, I'd suggest that a group that claims to be 'anti-pirate' lives up to their own values and refrains from pirate like activities in a system where they allegedly fight against such things. The Institute Station exists within capsuleer regulations, its products are entirely lawful within the Federation, and it does not pose an active threat to anything other then the IPI's attempted political hegemony over the area.

Now, as any democrat or economist will tell you, competition is not a bad thing.

I had expected the IPI to follow their own values. They've been calling for market development in Placid for years. A passive invitation to employ Intaki/Federation citizens and develop the area. Yet, when someone other than themselves decides to participate - they feel that one of their rallying calls is dissolving and seek to destabilize progress.

That is unfortunate.

As to Ms. Priano's suggestion that I pay into some kind of 'protection racket' through faux-taxes... well, no thanks. We prefer that our hard work gets reinvested into Intaki interests, not the IPI.

Finally - to the odd claim that I spent hundreds of millions of ISK just to make an IGS post, just let me say that when you review the conversation logs here, you were the first to mention the IPI. While, as any reasonable person would do, we provided evidence to our claims in the initial topic - we steered clear from mentioning any group or individual in the text of our statement. That was not to be the focus, only an example of why we're hard at work building a better Intaki for the Federation citizens living there.

You're the one that took it to that level, Ms. Oniseki-Charantes. I can bring you along to the next Progressor branch meeting if you like?

Intaki this, Intaki that. While you are trying and failing to accomplish your goals, there are two other habitable plants only a jump away that I'm (assuming that they're colonised as well) sure have seen nearly just as much anguish and suffering brought on by the constant power struggles in the area as Intaki, which receives adequate aid from the IPI. Perhaps you should refocus your goals to an area that might actually require your assistance, rather than one that clearly doesn't want it?

Oh, no doubt. It's more the moral inconsistency that I'm calling out.
Just because it does happen doesn't mean it should get a free pass in the public eye.

It was too much to expect them to follow their own values I guess.

As to your clone... that sounds painful and I apologize profusely if you do in fact split in two. That is a bad thing and I hope it does not happen.

Whining like a true Gallentean. If you anchor a star base full of civilians the siphon units are the least of your problems. The blooders are known for actively seeking out easy targets. If you cannot respond in force I suggest you start evacuation immediately, blooders lurk in IGS as well and your whining just made it clear you are an easy target.
Again, if you cannot protect your starbase, get everyone out of there.

This is pretty much what I was trying to say.

A starbase is a wartime structure designed for hostile environments. Hence the permanent shield that you can't even disable without bleeding the entire tower dry of fuel. You can't hide them very well, you can't protect it on your own, and making IGS posts isn't going to protect it either. An IPI siphon is the least of your concerns now that you've made this post.

So yes, if you plan to shove civilians in it as part of some back-to-work programme and don't want it molested, YES, you need to be negotiating with everybody in the area. IPI, FDU, STPRO. It's too late now though. I suggest you simply remove the tower and put those civilians to work on planetary structures.

Oh, and, linking to kill reports is actually banned by the SCC here on the IGS. Don't worry, I have not reported you. You might want to edit your original posting though and remove it.

Has any attempt been made to talk this action through with the IPI, before engaging in shameful public mud slinging? I mean AFTER the event, not the prior discussions mentioned in your posts, Laurentis.

Unless you have official blue with said organisation, I'd consider this fair game. Personally I abide by NRDS under the instruction of my friends in Providence, but I completely understand that in the unclaimed tracts of low security space such profiling may be a luxury. IPI is well within it's rights to protect what they see as their territory, unless you are sufficiently equipped to dissuade such claims.

Fact.

Oh, Maker, please let's not get into the interminable subject of 'who started it' on the war.