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Apparently, our elected delegate needs to get a couple of endorsements. I have been at about 20 ever since I got semi-active again, and doing anything might muddy things even more.
(Good thing I’ve been the elected Delegate four times in our region’s collective history. At least I know what not to do!)
Wasn't it almost time for the next election, anyway? If so, then I suggest that -- unless either 
Xiomera or Grosseschnauzer objects -- we leave any major attempt at re-balancing endorsements until after the vote.
Does anybody second this?
EDIT: I suppose that 
Democratic Republic of Eiria, as the Vice-Delegate and thus as the person who would normally take over if something went wrong with Xiomera's tenure of office, would also have a reasonable right to object to this.
We have a newly-formed national team just arriving in the nation of 
Zwangzug, to compete in the 'Quidditch World Cup #11'. ( 
viewtopic.php?f=7&t=506309&p=38746907#p38746907 )
Trive 38, keep in mind that the current Vice Delegate only has five endorsements. As 
Bears Armed Missionhas noted the region is due for elections any day now, and perhaps your attention should be focused on that. You’re doing the sort of thing that just muddies the situation. And I’ve checked, our elected delegate lost two endorsements in the past week due to CTE nations. Did you even bother to read my TG to every member of the elected government? You certainly didn’t bother to respond.
WA Delegate Schedule II nominations are open.
All IDUSA members are eligible for nomination.
https://idugov.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=2153
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Grosseschnauzer, I'd appreciate it if any objections you have towards my response be taken to telegrams. Discussing concerns on the Regional Board is not going to help.
Trive 38, you ignored my previous TG on the topic completely without responding. I am well within my rights because of that. You should know better.
We have voted against the GA proposal 'End Conversion Therapy' because of apparent internal inconsistency between clauses that seem to rely on everybody interpreting certain terms in the same way that the authoring nation -- which did not adequately explain them in the text -- does. Also, we do not regard this as justifiably an 'international' issue.
Fair point on the faults in the text, but you don't think persecution of LGBT+ people isn't an international issue?
Ok.
Lauchenoiria and Sunemia
Given the faults in the text, the fact that the active clauses -- rather than just the preamble -- are about "persecution of LBGT+ people" is not automatically obvious: Activists in the relevant field might know what the author means by some of their terminology, but I am not such an activist, and to me those clauses could as easily be about the right of people in "LBGT+"-dominated nations (of which NS, unlike RL, does have some...) to become non-"LBGT+" instead...
And isn't existing GA legislation really enough to bar [legal] persecution, anyway?
Now comes a waiting game. Let’s see how long it takes for someone to figure out which GA regular I am :P
“The 24th day of June, hereafter referred to as Democracy Day, shall be celebrated as a regional holiday, in celebration of the founding of the region.” - §3 of the Cultural Declaration Act
17 years ago yesterday, the IDU was founded as a region. While much has changed over the years, we remain a close community and we look forward to the years to come. We wish everyone a happy Democracy Day and many more to come.
Sanctaria, Bears Armed, Jagera, Osirisa, and 4 othersSlokais Islands, Lauchenoiria, Sunemia, and Tearvan
Latest medal count in the IDU Olympics:
Xiomera: 7 Gold | 7 Silver | 12 Bronze | 26 Medals | 47 Points
Gardavasque: 10 Gold | 6 Silver | 3 Bronze | 19 Medals | 45 Points
Laeral: 9 Gold | 6 Silver | 6 Bronze | 21 Medals | 45 Points
Eiria: 8 Gold | 6 Silver | 7 Bronze | 21 Medals | 43 Points
High Fells: 8 Gold | 7 Silver | 3 Bronze | 18 Medals | 41 Points
Lauchenoiria: 7 Gold | 5 Silver | 6 Bronze | 18 Medals | 37 Points
Astoria: 4 Gold | 6 Silver | 9 Bronze | 19 Medals | 33 Points
LOM: 2 Gold | 7 Silver | 6 Bronze | 15 Medals | 26 Points
Zongongia: 3 Gold | 5 Silver | 2 Bronze | 10 Medals | 21 Points
Kerlile: 3 Gold | 3 Silver | 3 Bronze | 9 Medals | 18 Points
Auria: 3 Gold | 3 Silver | 2 Bronze | 8 Medals | 17 Points
Huenya 3 Gold | 1 Silver | 3 Bronze | 7 Medals | 14 Points
Slokais: 3 Gold | 1 Silver | 2 Bronze | 6 Medals | 13 Points
Serriel: 3 Silver | 4 Bronze | 7 Medals | 10 Points
Milintica: 4 Silver | 1 Bronze | 5 Medals | 9 Points
Mallacaland: 1 Bronze | 1 Medal | 1 Point
Sanctaria, Bears Armed, Libertas Omnium Maximus, Lauchenoiria, and 1 otherTearvan
We have voted against the proposed resolution currently at vote in the GA, 'Convention on Guest Workers', because several of its clauses would effectively require nations to grant rights to people working illegally within their territories... even in cases where the actual nature of the work was itself criminal in nature.
Our region has been pretty reactionary against the recent resolutions, no? Pretty disappointing
For the representatives of Jagera, to some degree it comes down to how legalistic one gets about the resolutions, i.e. how much one allows the specific wording of the proposal to override the sentiment. For this resolution, the representatives of Jagera believe the potential issues with this resolution do not override the importance of the issue.
With the previous resolution, while we supported the intended goals, we were against because the wording would have restricted any form of advertising (or even mentioning) of pro-LGBT+ options by only affirming the right to use it, but not the ability to advise it was possible (by our interpretation).
I can't speak for others, but for Jagera it comes down to how much the wording defeats the goal of the resolution or creates large additional problems.
Bears Armed and Trive 38
We now have a consolidated media site for the IDU nations: the IDU Media Co. site! This is a place where IDU nations can post news updates in a single place, making it easy and convenient to keep up with the news taking place in the region.
https://media.idugov.com/
Please contact Sanctaria via Discord if you would like access to the site to post articles
Sanctaria, Bears Armed, and Lauchenoiria
I've posted a draft for a proposal in the [probably] forthcoming 'Declarations' category in the Security Council... although, depending on how it's received there & whether there's a Modly consensus on the point, it might get transferred into the GA [probably as 'Moral Decency: Mild] instead: viewtopic.php?f=24&t=506824 .
Xiomera and Tearvan
Earlier today I was gifted with a copy of this nation's '2nd edition' card, which I formerly had lacked, by 
Lhazafeizlhe which apparently is among the puppets of a nation called 
Fauzjhia: I am mentioning this here, as well as sending them a TG of thanks, because I would like to reciprocate that favour if the opportunity arises and hope that some of you might be willing to help me with this in some way. (Details to be sorted out by TG, if you have a relevant card -- one that their 'farming' has not yet provided them with, anyway -- that you are willing either to sell to me for this purpose or to gift directly to them in my name...)
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Yesterday, I submitted my Issues Contest entry, 'Cuy Bono?' (viewtopic.php?f=13&t=461429&hilit=Cuy)
Today, I have posted a third draft for a propsective issue titled "The Bells! The Bells!" (viewtopic.php?f=13&t=471377)
I have another issue idea at the 'rough note' stage, needing to be typed up as a first draft (which I hope to manage very soon), and one for working on after that as well although the latter is still only at the [title + basic concept] stage.
:)
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In the Quidditch World Cup, however, things are going a bit less well: Although our wizards won the first three out of their six 'group stage' matches they have subsequently lost both of the following two so that progress on into this tournament's 'knockout' stages now depends entirely on the result of just their next game.
________________________________________________________________
EDIT (after both Tearvan and Jagera had already "liked" the rest of this post): I have posted suggestions for improving an Issue draft that Fauzjhia -- through another puppet -- already had under work in the 'Got Issues?' forum (@ viewtopic.php?p=38782442#p38782442 ).
The nomination period for the Schedule II Delegate Election will be extended until 11:59 PM (GMT -3) on Thursday, July 1st, 2021.
Nations interested in running for delegate should state their intentions in the following link:
https://idugov.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=2153
Hi folks!
I'm pleased to announce the first annual Forest Interregional Writing Contest, an opportunity for writers from Forest and our embassy regions to share their creativity and battle it out for one of our region's most prestigious honours. That's right, there are some brand new interregional accolades up for grabs - the writers of the best entries submitted to the contest will be awarded the Forestian Literary Prize!
No more spoilers from me - I've created an extraordinarily useful guide that sums up everything you need to know about the contest and you can read the details there for yourself, including important dates, this year's theme, the rules and the members of the judging panel. Any unanswered questions can be telegrammed to me or posted on the Forest RMB. Please share this dispatch on any offsite forums or chats if they're active so as many people as possible are able to join in!
Forest Interregional Writing Contest 2021
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Forest's Ministry of Culture is proud to present the first annual Forest Interregional Writing Contest, an opportunity for writers from Forest and its embassy regions to share their creativity and compete for one of our region's highest accolades.
This handy guide should cover everything you need to know about how the contest will play out. There's lots of important information, including the lowdown on this year's theme, the rules, the members of the judging panel and (perhaps most importantly) the prestigious prizes available. Please take the time to have a read, then maybe read it again - and then read it one more time, just to be sure - before putting your thinking cap on and letting your creative side run wild!
The Categories
Entries can be submitted under one of three categories:
Poetry | Drama | Prose |
Fiction in verse, poetry has been used for millennia to convey deep emotion and contentious ideas. | The immediate nature of works for the stage gives drama the profound ability to change hearts and minds. | Nothing allows readers to escape into another world (or re-examine their own) quite like reading a story. |
Writers will be able to submit a maximum of one entry per category, so submitting a poem, a one-act play and a short story is allowed, but submitting two poems or two short stories is not allowed. There is no expectation that writers will submit multiple entries, and doing so won't improve your chances of winning as all entries are anonymised before being assessed by the judges. Writers should be sure to submit only their best work.
This Year's Theme Is...
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For better or for worse, we're living in an epoch defined by human impact on the world around us. With vast improvements in quality of life comes microplastics and greenhouse gases. With social media connecting us to friends across the globe comes online abuse and privacy concerns. With more people fighting for social justice than ever before comes culture wars and far-right extremism. With the longest era of peace in human history comes the threat of nuclear annihilation.
While all entries must address this theme, we expect each writer will interpret the theme in a different way. Other themes may be examined within each entry so long as the above theme is central to the work.
The Rules
With great writing comes a bunch of rules:
There's no formal word limit. Use your intuition - if it's too long, the judges won't have the time or patience to read it.
Stick to the submission limit. Your first submission under each category will be accepted, the rest will be discarded.
Don't plagiarise the work of others. People who break this rule will be immediately disqualified and may be barred from future writing contests.
Keep your writing PG-13. All entries must remain in accordance with NationStates' policy on offensive material.
Don't share your writing or identify your writing in any way until the contest is over. This is so the judges can assess your work without the risk of bias.
Submitting An Entry
The submission period will open on Thursday the 15th of July (00:00 UTC) and will close on Sunday the 15th of August (23:59 UTC) - late entries will be discarded. Submissions must be sent to me, Terrabod, by telegram. If you choose to submit multiple entries, you can send them all at once (as long as each is clearly delimited) or in separate telegrams. Be sure to include a title for each entry!
Each entry will be anonymised by me and passed on to the judges who will work together to select the best entry in each category. This process is expected to take roughly two weeks, so I hope to be able to announce the winners on Wednesday the 1st of September. The winning entries will be published in the announcement dispatch for all to enjoy. While I wish I could publish all of the entries, this isn't possible - I encourage entrants to instead publish their own entry (or entries) within a dispatch after the contest is over.
The Judges
This year's judging panel consists of not one, but three Forest Keepers who have each played an esteemed role in Forest's history.
This ex-Forest Keeper and current Foreign Minister is an experienced issue author and the creator of an incredibly well-developed national lore. | Forest Keeper by day, necromantic dark lord by night; the pirate currently occupying Forest's most senior position has dozens of published issues under his belt. | An influential figure in the General Assembly forums and a resolution writer to boot, this ex-Forest Keeper is one of our region's most respected voices. |
The Winners
The writer of the single best entry in each category will be awarded one of the following:
The Forestian Literary Prize for Poetry, awarded to the writer of the best work of poetry submitted to the contest.
The Forestian Literary Prize for Drama, awarded to the writer of the best work of drama submitted to the contest.
The Forestian Literary Prize for Prose, awarded to the writer of the best work of prose submitted to the contest.
While these prizes are awarded to an OOC player, I don't mind if winners want to also RP/worldbuild it as an IC interregional prize received by one of their citizens.
If you have any unanswered questions, feel free to telegram me or tag me in a post on the Forest RMB.
Best of luck to all entrants, and have fun writing!
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Terrabod
Culture Minister of Forest
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Good luck to everyone who wants to get involved, and happy writing!
Best wishes,
Terrabod
Culture Minister of Forest
Bears Armed, Ponoxien, Laeral, Lauchenoiria, and 3 othersXiomera, Sunemia, and Tearvan
Acting on scientific advice, our Board of Directors has just recognised the Chromatic Crow -- our "national animal", which is also found widely across the region (on the older map, at least, although on the newer one its range might cover only parts of Hesperidea) -- as intelligent enough to deserve at least "basic" rights as people.
Xiomera, United New England, and Tearvan
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