[Distribution] TNS Issue XXIV

The Spotlight 32 – Interview with Owen



Comfed: When did you join The North Pacific?



Owen: I joined The North Pacific around 4 and a half years ago, in August 2016 I think. It was the region my first nation was founded in, so I just stuck around.



Comfed: And once you joined, what did you do?



Owen: For the first couple of days, I just got to grips with the region and became a citizen straight away. From there I started looking into the TNP government and joined the Foreign Affairs ministry, which was being led by Praetor I think, who really helped me get settled in the ministry and the region as a whole and was probably what got me really interested in FA, and that interest still remains today.



Comfed: What was the first thing you noticed about the TNP community?



Owen: I think the first thing I noticed about the TNP community was how involved and how active it was. I obviously joined right before a general election, so I saw what elections were like an it just surprised me how much is going on and how active it was all the time, and I think that is what has been something that I have always loved TNP for.



Comfed: Have any people in particular been important to you as mentors?



Owen: So this is a question that people have asked me a few times, and I think that his has changed the longer I have been around but I would definitely say that there are a couple of people that I would see as mentors. The first of these would be Pallaith. Pallaith was Speaker that saw something in me and gave me the chance to join the Speakers office and become more involved in the region. Since then, we have worked really closely on numerous occasions and I have never bee afraid to message and ask any questions that I have. The second of these is McMasterdonia. Since I first interacted with him when he became MoFA before going on to be Delegate, and we have developed a good relationship and have worked really closely on some really big projects and he is someone that I speak to a lot and bounce a lot of ideas off, so he is a really important mentor for me.



Comfed: So, what's your favorite ministry and why?



Owen: See this is something that is conflicting for me a little bit. Being the Home Affairs Minister, I should really be saying that it is the HA ministry, but then everyone would know that I am lying. For me, there isn't really much doubt, it has to be the FA ministry. It is the ministry that I have been a part of since the start and have done so much work for, so it cannot be anything else.



Comfed: Interesting! What was your first position in the government and who gave it to you?



Owen: So, the first position I had in government was actually a ministry that I am not really involved with now and that is the Ministry of World Assembly Affairs. Back when I was a deputy speaker, I was doing a bit in the ministry and Sil Dorsett approached me about becoming a deputy and I said yes.



Comfed: And finally, the most important question: cake or pie?



Owen: Now that depends, are we talking a sweet pie, like an apple pie, or a savoury pie?



Comfed: Whichever you prefer.



Owen: I would probably have to say a savoury pie, like a steak and gravy pie. I don't really have a sweet tooth and I usually prefer savoury to sweet, so I would have to go for that. News - January Elections



In January, TNP held a General Election. During this election, citizens voted on who should become the next Delegate, Vice Delegate, and Speaker of the Regional Assembly. In the Delegate election, McMasterdonia ran on a platform of government accountability and communication with the citizenry, while incumbent Tlomz ran on continuing his successes from the previous term. McMasterdonia won the delegacy, winning 78% of the total vote.



The race for Vice Delegate was uncontested, with only Cretox State running. He secured 79% of the total vote, with a notable 37% voting to re-open nominations. Robespierre and Bobberino, both former Deputy Speakers with similar backgrounds in TNP, were the primary challengers to the Speakership. Robespierre ultimately secured 43.9% of the vote, while Bobberino got 37% of the vote.



The transition into the new government was quick, with McMasterdonia taking the in-game delegacy within a couple weeks of the election. This was due to McMasterdonia having a high number of endorsements coming into the transition, and a rapid response from Home Affairs and the Gameside Advocates in publicizing the transition.

NPA Bulletin







Welcome back from the holidays, folks! Well, what can I say? The term started off quick as former Minister of Defense 9003 took the NPA flying with the Black Hawks in a joint op that hit several hundred regions! We bid 9003 a fond farewell and hope to see them joining us for ops again soon.



Cue the music: our next Minister of Defense, appointed by Delegate McMasterdonia, comes from the wondrous land of rows and recruitment telegrams - that’s right, Nimarya is taking the helm for this term! In her opening statement, Nimarya laid out a clear plan for the rest of the term. The first and foremost priority was leading and hosting more operations, with a greater focus on increased training ops and teaching chasing. Additionally, NIm also noted that much more time will be spent updating training manuals and guides. With the increased focus on versatility and training new soldiers, the NPA is looking at a term of great growth and renewed energy.



Nim took to the Minister role right away, giving regional jump points Lunarpunk and Birb a brand new coat of paint - pink paint, to be exact. She also managed to appease 9003’s newfound hunger for power with a promotion to Captain. The NPA focused on the delegacy transition for the first half of the month, helping to complete an incredibly fast transition for incoming Delegate McMasterdonia and Vice Delegate Cretox State.



But of course, who wants to wait for a stinky delegacy transition before going off on an op? Not the NPA! Some NPA soldiers snuck out to party with a whole bunch of regions in Operation Boom Beach, hitting Alnobia as part of the largest updater force ever! The NPA returned back to the delegacy transition before doing a one-eighty and turning back to delegate tip the Confederation of Corrupt Dictators - but in a surprising twist, the region refused to update! It appeared that the combined power of the NPA and its allies was too much for even the game to handle.



True to the goals outlined in her opening statement, Nim alongside officers ROM and BMWSurfer led the NPA on several training operations, whipping the new privates into shape and tagging regions along the way! Switching is going to become super easy, barely an inconvenience in no time for the new recruits. Additionally, Nim led the NPA in a special operation on the 22nd, splitting the participating members into two groups - one tagging group and one chasing. While the chasers had a bit of trouble catching the taggers, with a bit of experience and some determination there is no doubt the NPA will get the hang of things quickly.



To cap off the month, the NPA once again joined TGW, Europeia, Lily, the AA, and our fellow Pacifics in paying the CCD another visit. Energy was high as the force hit several openly fascist regions, toppling their delegates in an outstanding operation. Fun was had, but in the end the force accomplished a great feat. If there’s one thing we’ve learned in the last month, it’s that fascists have no place on NationStates, and the North Pacific Army is glad to have participated in an operation that cast shame on those who so openly supported a vile ideology.



That’s all for now! We hope to see you next time for some more action and some more ops. And hey, if you ever want to join in on the fun, the NPA’s doors are always open. World Assembly Digest



Repeal: “Commend The Western Isles”

This incredibly savage resolution, penned by our former Deputy Minister of WA Affairs Bormiar, was the latest in a series of badge hunting ripping commendation badges without replacing them due to poor writing and inaccuracies. Commend The Western Isles was authored by former resident Greater Cesnica, which commended them for their roleplaying. Bormiar argued that the lack of international impact and gross exaggerations meant that the resolution should be InstaRepealed!, but also controversially stated that Greater Cesnica’s inability to listen to feedback or to not rush a resolution to vote was a reason the resolution should be repealed. The resolution was supported by The North Pacific, but was opposed by regions such as 10000 Islands who did not want to remove a commendation of an allied region. The proposal passed on January 6th.



Commend Northrop-Grumman

A sneaky sneaky resolution! This proposal included the many roleplaying accomplishments and contributions of the “most dark nation” of Northrop-Grumman, including maintaining indexes and creating databases. However, due to a certain unmentionable, the resolution also included numerous references to the unmentionable, in a slightly clever but somewhat-poorly executed attempt at sidestepping the well established decorum of the Security Council! The proposal was defeated by a tight margin, despite support from The North Pacific, owing to the lack of commendable content in the proposal. A discussion on the application on the legality of directly mentioning the unmentionable was generated, but in the end the established rules prevailed.



Commend Singapore no2

A very well written resolution, Commend Singapore no2 commended its nominee for their prolific issues authorship (28!), or as described in the resolution text, for their ability to resolve the conflicts that plague the nations of the world, as well as protecting their home region of Singapore in an issues-based commendation that broke the mold of past resolutions. Revised, rewritten and redrafted to excellent quality, the resolution passed comfortably and with the support of the North Pacific.



Regulating Remote Election Administration

Think you were out of the election woods when we exited 2020? Think again! The first General Assembly proposal to hit the floor in the New Year was in style, touching on mail voting (a RL hot button topic) and expatriate voters. The proposal was soundly (and perhaps surprisingly) defeated, garnering just over 10% of votes, due to multiple issues such as the narrow scope and the unpopularity of elections-related resolutions.



Repeal: “International Criminal Protocol”

Hot on the heels of the election proposal was yet another controversial proposal - Repeal International Criminal Protocol. Very similar to another passed resolution, Repeal: “Crime and Punishment”, this proposal denounced the target’s mandate that the World Assembly shall reserve the legality of the death penalty as a whole to member nations themselves. This proposal reignited the perennial debate on the death penalty but ended up passing overwhelmingly, despite concerns over the underdeveloped replacement to the other mandates in the target.



Fair Treatment of Prisoners

The WA should pass a ‘Fair Treatment of WA Ambassadors’ after subjecting us to the ensuing death penalty debate! This resolution aimed to protect the rights of prisoners regarding solitary confinement and prison labour. The proposal was fairly simple, passing easily and with the support of the North Pacific. It would hardly be the most exciting of proposals to come.



Death Penalty Ban

Now we have the resolution everyone was waiting for! Authored by longtime death penalty abolition advocate Imperium Anglorum, this resolution was cut and dry: abolish death penalty except for war criminals and the like, and commute all death sentences. Despite massive outcry from smaller nations, this resolution passed with minimal resistance, almost 100 resolutions after the original Repeal “Crime and Punishment” passed.



Protecting Sapient Life

Death Penalty Ban II: Electric Boogaloo, basically. This proposal enforced a full ban on the death penalty, in addition to preventing the extradition or deportation of people to countries where they could be executed. The resolution was surprisingly defeated on the voting floor likely due to its extremely vague text, leaving room for several loopholes. Following this defeat, another proposal has been drafted to enforce this ban (yes, this saga isn’t over yet), so stay tuned. Security Council Review





With a new Delegate, new Vice Delegate, new applicants, and new and ongoing projects, January was sure to be a hectic month for the Vice Delegate and the Security Council as a whole.



The Transition to a New Government

As of January 11, 2021, McMasterdonia and Cretox State took the positions of Delegate and Vice Delegate, respectively. Despite beginning the transition period with fairly high enforcement counts, both nations had some distance to climb before assuming the first and second regional positions in endorsements.



In total, the Delegate transition took slightly under two weeks. The Vice Delegate transition was completed shortly thereafter. This transition was significantly faster than the previous two largely due to the Delegate’s and Vice Delegate’s starting positions, active endotarting, frequent endorsement alerts, personal telegrams, a responsive Security Council and executive staff, and involvement from the Ministry of Home Affairs and Gameside Advocates. No special card rewards were employed for this transition. A complete timeline of the transition is available in this thread.



2020 WADP Survey

Started during the previous term, the 2020 World Assembly Development Program survey invited interested nations to offer feedback on TNP’s World Assembly Development Program, with some questions also tackling the region’s Security Council. The survey is released yearly, with 2020’s results made public in January 2021. Responses were positive and constructive, with a full breakdown available in this thread.



New SC Applicants and Resignation

Two nations applied to the Security Council in January: Kranostav and Dreadton. Additionally, Regional Assembly discussion and voting on Xagill’s Security Council application largely occurred in January, with Xagill joining the SC in early February. Despite being narrowly denied nomination by the SC, Xagill acquired the 2/3rds Regional Assembly majority necessary to be appointed to the SC. A former Delegate and career public servant, Kranostav was nominated to the SC by majority vote. RA discussion on their application is currently ongoing. Dreadton, a former Vice Delegate and Minister, applied shortly after Kranostav, with the Security Council currently voting on their application.



In late January, Sundred resigned from the Security Council, bringing total membership down to ten nations. However, the SC is poised to expand to as many as thirteen members in the near future.



Other Projects

In addition to the ongoing declassification effort and weekly reports, there have been a few new developments over the past month:

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