Intergalactic Summit

In the interests of allowing you to enjoy the feel of an actual campaign run:

"I sling mud at thee sir and denounce your campaign with horrid facts dredged up from GalNet and applied in whatever manner best suits my counter-arguments...regardless of context or factual base."

On a more serious note:

Your proposals would exacerbate an already delicate situation and work to destabilize the Federation and its surrounding territories, which is rather the opposite of what the President (or even a senator) is supposed to do.

For starters, you are pledging to commit the Federal Navy and military forces against not one, not two, not even three...but no less than five enemies at once with "renewed vigor." If such an effort were even remotely possible, it would have been tried already. However, simple math would reveal that we not only do not have the numbers for such a broad stroking campaign, but the number of fronts on which such a campaign would be conducted would spread our already existing forces so thin that we'd have trouble just maintaining border security. Assuming you'd counter this with, "we'll target them one at a time," an understanding of intergalactic politics and powers would show you that the moment you turn your ire toward one, the others will have a knife at your throat.

Second, one of the peoples you're suggesting we combat with renewed vigor is the Caldari. The very same group of people that we are slowly beginning to see strides toward peace with. Why would you seek to endanger this and further deteriorate our already tenuous relationship with our neighbors? I assure you that both sides have seen quite enough of this conflict and have no desire to see it continue.

Third, you mention seeking an end to CONCORD? CONCORD was formed under cooperation from all five empires and operates as an arbiter for international disputes and policies. It has, on more than one occasion, been a major factor in preventing all-out war between empires. The policing aspect you are referring to is the jurisdiction of the DED (a branch of CONCORD) and is actually responsible for high-profile criminal tracking and prosecution and assisting in security. Your attempt to disassemble CONCORD would require the Federation breaching several contracts and treaties as well as withdrawing from the SCC. This would isolate the Federation in terms of intergalactic politics and economy...

Lastly, it is somewhat ironic that you seem to have so much hostility toward the Serpentis and yet you wish to reduce the regulation on drugs. Serpentis is primarily an R&D corporation with known ties to neural boosters and other similar drugs which is why it is largely persecuted in "legitimate" business circles and considered a "pirate" organization. Any president or senator seeking to relax the regulations on drugs would benefit from improving relations with the Serpentis...

...not that you would ever consider such an arrangement, right?

Not entirely, Mademoiselle Ikiryo.

The problem with tackling a monopoly is that they already have control over the market. Even if the boosters that are currently illegal were legalized, Serpentis already has a controlling share of the research, materials and partners interested in the market. Not to mention a sizable financial foundation which would allow them to undercut and corner any up-and-coming competitor should the market be opened.

What would more likely happen if boosters were legalized would be Serpentis expanding its already sizable market operations into Federal space through its no doubt already existing connections within Federal space, provide incentives to partnering as a distributor or manufacturer and throwing its considerable financial backing behind politicians and lobbyists that would help shape Federal law and procedure to its benefit as well as isolate and undercut any company that refused to partner with them.

If nothing else, Salvador Sarpati has proven to be a cunning businessman and I have difficulty believing that legalizing one area of his operation would topple his empire.

Comrades please,

Lets not let a poor candidate cloud us to the potential of good policy. Firstly I'll make the point that booster legalisation should never be a matter of simply turning a tap from off to on, that won't work. In fact as I've stated previously in this place, the capsuleer population should be allowed to trial relaxed regulation first so as to take advantage of the medical and psychological benefits that their station and infomorphic nature allows them.

Secondly, I disagree wholeheartedly with M. Antolliere's attack on the strength and complexity of the free market. We know that new companies are founded everyday, challenging established players and building consumer bases all across not only our Federation, but the greater cluster as well. Through an appropriate approach to deregulation, market investment will operate in the same manner here as it does in every other industry in Gallente space. Further I dare say the Serpentis Corporation will have significant roadblocks to market participation based on their criminal history both related to current drug laws and other offences committed by their employees, associates, and leadership.

I believe in the market which has built the most economically prosperous nation in the cluster. Our values have been proven correct by our financial success above all others, and it is our values that will allow a robust and competitive industry to emerge should legislative change take place.

Too much talk of booster legalisation in this thread.
It's a silly idea, no point in discussing it.

Talk about Quafe instead.

Monsieur Meester,

I appreciate your response.

Unfortunately, it has only reinforced my original concerns. It is not a matter of how many enemies we have it is a matter of how we are engaging those enemies. Your suggestions involve diverting already allocated military assets toward an offensive campaign without freeing those assets up from their current allocation.

Allow me to explain in more detail:

• The Federation (like any national entity) has a limited number of military assets
• Those assets are already deployed in active duty against already existing threats

In order to begin an offensive campaign, you will have to do one of two things:

• Divert existing military assets to your campaign, thus withdrawing them from their current deployment
• Obtain additional military assets

To the former, you cannot simply take currently deployed assets and divert them elsewhere without creating a vulnerability where there was none before. It's like removing a plug from a leak in order to plug another leak, it accomplishes nothing.

To the latter, military service in the Federation is voluntary. Unless you wish to conscript individuals into military service to power your campaign. I would suggest you carefully consider the difficulties of such a suggestion if that's your intention.

To your talk of allies:

The Republic is waging its own war and one that it is in no better position to abandon or divert resources away from than the Federation is. It is either incredibly dismissive of their own situation or willfully ignorant of the reality of the situation to expect any assistance from them if we start metaphorically kicking in the doors of our enemies.

We could eventually consider the State an ally in the war against terrorism and piracy except that your original campaign suggestion involved reinforcing that conflict as well. So rather than making another potential ally, you're wanting to reinforce already existing conflicts.

As for the Intaki Syndicate, have you discussed your desire to increase cooperation with them? Let us not forget why it exists to begin with. Furthermore, the Syndicate is home to the operations of the very same pirate groups you're talking about eliminating and it benefits from their business and their presence. You're essentially asking a group of people who exist because we cast them out for differing opinions to put their trust in the Federation and forsake their current bedfellows in place of us.

On to CONCORD:

Let me reiterate that CONCORD was written into existence by the five empires, including the Federation. Withdrawing from CONCORD would be a breach of contract and a violation of international treaty. Renegotiating with CONCORD would require the approval of the other sitting members of the CONCORD assembly, namely the other empires - two of which you are suggesting we renew our conflicts with. If you cannot understand why either of these is a horridly bad idea then you shouldn't be campaigning to begin with.

And the current "war?" The capsuleer war put into place by CEWPA (another treaty the Federation signed, by the way) was established to prevent a full break out of war between the empires by limiting it to a proxy war of attrition fought by immortals and only in regulated war zones rather than national space.

In summary:

You will not have my vote.

Hey look, an idiot!

Who would have thought you'd find one of those running for Federation President?

Are you on crash or have you been doing hard time?

The Senate took one look at the losses suffered during Operation Highlander and the failure of their ground campaign to take the planet and they signed an armistice. You don't have Caldari Prime. You have the space around Caldari Prime - outside the ring patrolled by Mordus Legion.

As for pushing to New Caldari... "We have reserves" indeed! If you have 'em, that'd be the fastest way to use 'em up! The Caldari Navy would hand you the kind of whipping that'd make the Elders feel better about themselves.

Meester, what you are proposing is the downfall of your Federation. You believe that the Federation's reserves and military might can swiftly defeat the Caldari State, and in turn you open your Federation to other threats like our allies in the Empire. I apologize for my bluntness, but I will have to disagree with Oniseki-haani, you are not an idiot, rather you are quite insane and very naive.

So, this is humour? A deliberate attempt to cause amusement? I feel silly, now.

How did you come to that conclusion? Without CONCORD, war declarations are literally just words. Meaningless ones at that. With no organisation to mete out punishment, besides that of other capsuleers, attacks would happen within minutes.