TRT - Oh the Places You'll Go, TWP!

[Pestarzt]

Oh, The Places You’ll Go!
Three Possibilities for a Future TWP
EDITORIAL | UNIBOT, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF



Unibot considers the future of The West Pacific...

Introduction

“It's opener, out there, in the wide, open air,” writes Dr. Seuss and, well, every sweaty Valedictorian that I’ve had the pleasure of enduring, but those words have never rung truer for The West Pacific – Administration Island, The West Pacific’s timely capital, is more open and “up in the air” in terms of its political future than perhaps it ever has been in its entire history as a region. It was not more than a few weeks ago when policy insiders in various feeders and sinkers were whispering to me about the situation in The West Pacific – one called it “imminent hell,” another, “approaching the abyss,” or the more colorful, “a powder keg of diarrhea about to blow.” Why the urgency? The West Pacific’s elite, the guardians, in particular, Darkesia was rumoured to be expressing frustrations at the region’s slow growth and even, considering “packing it in” abruptly which would leave The West Pacific in a difficult position – open for the taking, as it were, between imperialists, defenders and independentists alike, who would rather secure a new Game-Created Region than see the power vacuum be filled with a new summer cottage for their political rivals. With the old order out of the way, little, it seems, would deter a number of major powers from vivifying for control over the failed state.

The West Pacific is no stranger to being a warzone – no stranger to occupations or interregnums. “The Original Osiris,” as some would have it, was the plaything of the Atlantic Alliance at one time, but like many long-term occupations, The West Pacific saw its imperialists naturalise as the occupation matured and when Atlantic Alliance faltered, power over the region would transfer to Norion, a local native who helped cultivate an emerging liberal democracy. It might strike readers as bizarre or unfathomable to think of The West Pacific as “prosperous, democratic, on the move, and playing for both teams,” as Sir Paul described The West Pacific in 2005, or even more unfathomably as “extroverted unilateral defenders,” who were charter members of the Alliance Defense Network (ADN) or the Treaty of the United Democratic Pacifics (an ill-fated super-organisation between The North, South and West Pacific – the democratic feeders of the time). Indeed, The West Pacific was at one time, a very different region. The West Pacific had developed a very active media sector and a constitutional democracy with a bicameral parliament split between the Grand Assembly and the Council, the latter of which was more powerful and more exclusive. 

As enthusiasm for democracy and the democratic process waned, however, a “core” group of elites (nowadays associated with The Empire) continued to lead failed movements to reconstruct The West Pacific under a more authoritarian government – The West Pacific Dominion and later, The Triumvirate … governments which would collapse as quickly as they were established. Seeking to bring stability and security to The West Pacific, Eli, a prominent member of The West Pacific would secure the delegateship a number of times over the following decade, leaving the actual political infrastructure of the region in doubt with each leadership transition to the point with which The West Pacific has cultivated an identifiable group of “guardians” – players associated with the leadership of The West Pacific, like Westwind, Darkesia and Eli – but very little beyond that basic night-watchman state to which they lay their claims to sovereign authority. 

The legislature, the judiciary, the military and the media sectors of The West Pacific have been notoriously undeveloped and underused for the past decade – a messy patchwork of institutions that have been created with each new guardianship as a failed attempt at a revival, left scattered and largely unused. While other Game-Created Regions live, breath and act as functioning, healthy beings, The West Pacific that is familiar to many of us has existed on the periphery of gameplay life – like Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein, its limbs sewn together from the cadavers of failed revivals, but never catching that “spark of life,” never reaching that quintessential “it’s ALIVE!” moment which saw Lazarus launch itself from political irrelevance to cultural hegemony in 2013 or, similarly (although less dramatically), The Rejected Realms and The South Pacific in 2011. 

However, I do wonder if the caretakers of The West Pacific have received too much criticism and blame in outsider literature for the persistent shortcomings of their region-? Critics of the regime and its legacy would argue the guardians have had little interest in creating institutions which could rival their influence over The West Pacific and their constant series of leadership coups serve as an obstruction to political change which forces the region to remain under a stagnating political arrangement. Some of that may be true and may be more true for some of the guardians, but the recent expressions of frustration from Darkesia, among others with the lack of growth or regional participation in The West Pacific, suggests that region’s status quo of inactivity and underdevelopment may not be for lack of trying on the part of the guardians, but the effect of some other political factors. I would argue, controversially, for example, that The West Pacific’s problem is not a problem with activity per se, but relevancy – its opinions on gameplay, democracy and sovereignty are so far “out there” on the fringes of the political spectrum in NationStates that the region has not been able to play a significant role in interregional affairs – it wades into debates reluctantly on isolated events and fails to attract enough support from any potential allies beyond some diehards in Gatesville or Equilism, both declining great powers with shared views, history and notable figures.

Each of these ‘recent’ revivals of feeders and sinkers have required reinvention and acclimatisation to the new political order: Lazarus and The South Pacific, skeptical ADN hold-outs, had to relearn who and what they were now and what they stood for, The Rejected Realms, old ADN true bloods flirted with independentism before siding reassuringly with its old legacy in new terms; even The Pacific, bitter ADN enemies, woke up one morning in June 2013 to find that the world around it had changed dramatically and it needed to reconsider who were its friends and who were its enemies now. It might surprise newer readers to know that when I joined The South Pacific and The North Pacific, much earlier in my career, around 2010-11, it was still very common for citizens to debate policy, immigration, and treaty developments with the ADN in mind as a “policy legacy” of political interference, proxy wars, and coercive super-organisations – but we don’t talk about the ADN now; for the most part, we debate international issues with new points of reference and a new understanding of the interregional political order. The West Pacific does not. The West Pacific is the last critic of the ADN standing and the ADN is dead, gone and memorialised, so where does that leave The West Pacific? A belated identity crisis, I would argue – it’s lived through a near decade long activity crisis and treated said crisis as “just” an activity crisis, now, however, it’s an obvious identity crisis – it’s the difficult process of deciding what The West Pacific should ‘be’ in this new world and who are its friends and allies. 

Along the way, as I will show, opportunists have come out of the woodwork; politicians flock to identity crises in Game-Created Regions carrying their bibles and their crosses in tow with the hopes of spreading their ideology before the battle for The West Pacific’s soul is lost to their bitter political revivals. I do hope, however, that no matter who is successful… no matter what The West Pacific becomes, that this reinvention of itself is genuine – it could go the other way, as I will argue – a sabre-rattling imperialist monarchy could be forged, or a banal independentist democradura or a feigned communist funhouse, among other things, opened up in The West Pacific like those brand-name big-box superstore chains which are pitched in small urban centers like pop-up tents. Nobody wants to become the next Imperialist-Mart or Independent-Depot, McCommunists or Dunkin' Defenders – realigning and recreating yourself to remain relevant doesn’t, I would argue, require that you surrender your identity to someone else. The West Pacific, being a fringe region among the feeders, has for the past few years cultivated a niche for folksy, alternative ideas from freethinkers like People United Together, Fratellnoir and Warzone Codger (Laderhig). I would hope while The West Pacific was thrust into the mainstream that it did not cease to be a home to creative, alternative idea-makers, but find a way to balance its innovation at home with its immersion abroad. 

As it stands, The West Pacific sits on the verge of an identity crisis where it’s anyone’s guess as to where it will go and who it’ll be when the crisis is over and the new region emerges from the confusion but that won’t stop me from speculating over the various possibilities! I’d personally like to consider three distinct possibilities for you now to speculate on their likelihood. 

Possibility #1: An Imperialist TWP

It was the fall of 2013 when I broached the subject of The West Pacific to ex-Senator Karpathos of The Pacific – prior to his removal from the Order. With my research in hand, I waved a number of facts, figures and analysis at Karpathos which suggested The West Pacific was slowly drifting ideologically towards imperialism and into the imperialist sphere of influence. This would have been a major point of concern for The Pacific, given their longest and closest allies, The West Pacific would be drifting towards The Pacific’s latest enemies, UIAF or what A Mean Old Man disparagingly called “The Ondersphere.” The signs of an imperialisation of The West Pacific were clear at the time; while others were looking at The East Pacific and Lazarus’s sudden shift towards defenderism, or Osiris’s shift to invaderism, the real gains, I argued, were being made by imperialists in The West Pacific on the periphery – far outside of the dramatic theater of Osiran civil war….

Under Westwind, The West Pacific was slowly re-aligning its diplomatic and political leanings with imperialists abroad. First, they would sign a treaty with Albion (30/10/2013), then The New Inquisition (31/05/2014) and shortly thereafter, The Land of Kings and Emperors (09/06/2014) – completing the imperialist diplomatic trifecta. The West Pacific’s government would also shift to a new imperialist theme in February: The West Pacific Imperium – to be led, of course, by Westwind, Imperator of The Imperium. These changes were subtle and cosmetic, but changing one’s allies can have a remarkable effect in the long run on a region’s interregional perspective. Imperialists, after all, made for natural allies to The West Pacific – the old guard, bitter enemies of the fallen ADN, were far less likely to find common ground with defenders than imperialists like North-East Somerset or Onderkelkia – chums of the old guards from their days as regular coupers when Westwind’s Crimson Order in The North Pacific and The Empire in The East Pacific relied on military support from imperialists.

Over time, however, The West Pacific’s realignment towards imperialism has visibly stalled. Perhaps because Westwind’s administration was replaced with Darkesia’s leadership. Or perhaps because one of the personal linkages between the imperialist world and The West Pacific was lost. Cassius Cerebella, after all, played a prominent role in The West Pacific as Archsium, Commander of The West Pacific’s Armed Forces – a position where he was well placed to organise missions that brought The West Pacific and imperialists closer together with a more cooperative/collaborative partnership. Cassius Cerebella, however, suffered through a career battered with political mistakes – his loose tongue would cost imperialists when he leaked that North-East Somerset had reportedly “played both sides” in the most recent coup of The South Pacific; plus Cassius would be publicly reprimanded for botching a UIAF mission when he failed to be online for update, and later, his controversial leadership of ISRA would force Cassius to publicly resign to quell frustration with ISRA in Osiris. In some senses, Cassius Cerebella is a cautionary tale: if you’re relying on someone as a local front for closer relations with a region, as imperialists were, make sure you can trust them. 

Possibility #2: A Revolutionary TWP

When we speak of individuals driving political change, however, Milograd serves as a premier example in The West Pacific of what one individual can do to change the tone of the local politics and, in doing so, pull a region towards a brave new direction. Milograd is no stranger to revolutionary politics – while the Feux and Harmonia Administrations led to the initial creation of the People’s Republic of Lazarus, it was Chairman Milograd’s leadership which actively propelled Lazarus forward, culturally and politically. However, as of late, Milograd’s focus in NationStates has been on The West Pacific where Milograd has been an “up-and-coming” player and a commander of their armed forces for some time under the name, “Pestarzt”. More importantly: Milograd, acting as The West Pacific’s very own Medico della Peste, has recently launched a political party in The West Pacific, The Revolutionary Party of The West Pacific, whose goal is to secure the delegacy civilly and create a new future for the region that is more active and innovative. Milograd, in his opening party statement, decries the region’s “cultural tendency towards complacency,” and calls for the “nurishment of a new regional vanguard.” 

The nature of the revolution, however, has been questioned. Namely: what is the revolution’s political leanings? It’s core principles of activity and cultural contribution appear to be apolitical – Milograd writes, for example, that “proactivity is central to the health of the region”. On one hand, some readers, noting the use of red imagery, the raised fist, and “revolution,” in addition to Milograd’s work in Lazarus, have suggested that the Revolutionary Party of The West Pacific is communist. On the other hand, the party literature is far removed from the Marxist prose that Milograd used as Chairman – no, “proletariats,” and “imperialist traitors,” simply the occasional use of the phrase, “the people”. 

Arguably then, the Revolutionary Party is populist, but not communist – a political party that cloaks itself in the rhetoric of resistance and uprising as a “vanguard” but removed from the politics of class. Alternatively, the Revolutionary Party could be counter-revolutionary in some respects. Maroon has a long history in politics as the politician’s bread and butter – red with passion, but brown with maturity. Throughout its party literature, Milograd suggests a more mature revolution, one that’s friendly with, and respectful toward its old guard, while working towards the future – mixing the passion of revolutionaries with the maturity of the establishment. Some shrewder critics might opine that the Revolutionary Party is “Labour right” to Chairman Milograd’s “Labour left,” given Pestarzt’s emphasis on bootstrap politics and commitment – but both movements shared a common emphasis on revisionism – aiming to improve their regions position among the other feeders and sinkers. Another point of consideration is whether the Revolutionary Party is really an alternative to an imperialist West Pacific? The Revolutionary Party would raise eyebrows when it would lead an invasion of Cascadia with the Association of Imperialism, only a day after the party’s creation – with Pestarzt calling for the creation of a “West Pacific Order” and Onderkelkia praising the mission, the message was clear: “this revolution ain’t no defender fest” that’s for sure, despite the assumptions of those who may have thought Milograd, ex- Chairman of Lazarus, would have lead a revolution that was sympathetic to the concerns of native communities.

The most cynical among us, however, would argue the Revolutionary Party is neither communist, nor imperialist, nor populist, nor anything particularly political at all, but simply an advancement of a “Milogracy” – a government by Milograd. A way for Milograd to advance a revolution that would favour him as leader, while its pro-activity virtues elevates Milograd to the status of god through a cultural apotheosis – making the region dependent on him for his activity and his contributions that few can match. A Milogracy could prove disastrous for The West Pacific -- Lazarus soon found that Milograd was prone to unexpected departures and disappearances; relying on Milograd’s activity as the Revolutionary Party does and Lazarus did, can be a very unwise investment. Even now, Milograd has only just returned from a recent absence, saying, "[he believes he] will be able to be regularly active [in The West Pacific] again.” During his absence, Llamas, his replacement as General-Secretary of the Party, would make some waves too, however…

Possibility #3: An Independent TWP

Llamas would rise to the position of General-Secretary of the Revolutionary Party; a surprising appointment even for Llamas himself. Llamas has a history in NationStates as an innocently idealist liberal – the kind that one wouldn’t associate with The West Pacific – and would leave Lazarus, disappointed at the lack of enthusiasm for electoral reform. Although his taste for Alternative Vote (AV) has not be shared by others in The West Pacific, Llamas has positioned himself as, potentially, the unlikely new leader of The West Pacific, at least in its legislative sphere. Llamas’ vision for The West Pacific would be a remarkably different path for the region – proposed reforms, such as, “The Executive Council Act” and “The General Election Establishment Act,” have failed to pass in The West Pacific’s assembly yet, but Llamas has continue reforms that would seek to establish a forum-side Prime Minister and an executive Cabinet which would work with the delegate. Darkesia has been supportive of this system: advocating for cabinet and PM elections through executive order. This system, however, puts Milograd and Llamas at odds, with Milograd supporting cabinet elections under his argument that democratically-elected ministers go inactive and appointments are more meritocratic, whereas Llamas has argued cabinet appointments in the past have been less active and less dedicated.

I can only speculate as to what a Llamas administration would look like in The West Pacific, but my guess is based on rumors abroad, that Llamas would aim to see The West Pacific branch out to stable democratic powers, like The North Pacific and The South Pacific, while reshaping The West Pacific’s government into something more conventional and mainstream – a constitutional democracy, not unlike The West Pacific that Sir Paul described in 2005. Would Llamas, a former Lazarene defender, make The West Pacific friendlier to defenders? That remains to be seen. Certainly, the West Pacific’s participation in the liberation of Scotland (against independents no less) was a remarkable change of tune. However, to what extent Llamas’ vision for The West Pacific involves independentism will likely play a deciding role in its relationship with defenderdom – given independentist regions prove, time and time again, to be allies of invaders more so than defenders. 

Such a change would not be easy to establish, however. There are two major roadblocks which a Llamas administration would have to overcome: (1) lack of support, (2) lack of reach. Who would support such a version of The West Pacific? It seems, in many regards, the opposite of what The West Pacific’s old guard would want for The West Pacific… liberal, democratic, forum-based… the kind of things that have worked for virtually every other Game-Created Region, but that wouldn’t stop some members of The West Pacific’s guardian staff from believing that The West Pacific would be better off continuing on its path as a messy, underdeveloped oligarchy. Depending on how much a Llamas administration flirts with independentism, it might be able to attract support from imperialists, but support from imperialists would naturally isolate a Llamas administration from The West Pacific’s oldest allies, The Pacific, in addition to any and all potential defender allies. In addition to problems of support, however, Llama also faces a major challenge in building relations with mainstream powers – for the past few years, The West Pacific has spent its time threatening to coup most of them – and many regions would be uncomfortable with signing a diplomatic agreement with a region which still refuses to recognise the legitimacy of their governments. The guardians still to this day express a lot of inflexibility with regards to this principle, but a lack of flexibility here could continue to push The West Pacific into the periphery if it isn’t able to tolerate one of the more fundamental principles of its potential allies: the principle of self-government based on forums, not endorsements. 

Final Remarks: Keeping the Status Quo?

If none of these possibilities can follow through, there is always a fourth possibility: the status quo. The thing about the status quo in NationStates is it bears a remarkable resemblance to casinos: you can play the slots and jump from tables all you like, but the house always win and there’s always the possibility that this table, as its players watch each other shiftily, may be ‘cold’ – the opportunity for a shift of power may have already passed them by once more. But before you deal yourself out of this hand, remember the stakes and keep in mind that there are still events in motion: a Prime Minister elections on the horizon, in addition to the return of Milograd to The West Pacific. 

Another distinct possibility is that Llamas or others might try to bridge the discrepancy between the old guard’s values of endorsement-run executives and the mainstream’s acceptance of forum-based democracies with a grassroots democracy – a system where resident voters elect the government, similar to proposals being considered in The South Pacific and The Rejected Realms, among others. Such a compromise might be able to allay the concerns of various interested parties in The West Pacific, while allowing The West Pacific to strike a new geopolitical position in NationStates. Whatever the case, however, I hope, as The West Pacific contemplates its future, that it remembers the insightful words of Dr. Seuss: “you have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You're on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the one who'll decide where to go!”

 

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while its pro-activity virtues elevates Milograd to the status of god through a cultural apotheosis

 

 

To be clear, I prefer to think of myself as both a disciple of ADMIN and a fish-mong-er of men.

[Unibot]

Thanks for posting this here.  I was meaning to get to that.

[Darkesia]

If anyone is interested in a more realistic view of TWP history without the false political embellishments, ask questions, and we will do our best to answer them.

[Little Sealand]

When was the prime of TWPAF?

[Darkesia]

There was a time when TWP was staunchly defender and intel based.  This was probably the most active time for the TWPAF. (It was a very active time for all militaries.  We counted WAs in the 10's and 100's when planning missions.)

Following that there was a time when TWP was extremely active in the political and intel sphere.  While the military wasn't as active, it was more selectively applied and had a much bigger impact on inter regional affairs.  More influential rather than active.

 

NS was a very different landscape in those days.  Defending & spying was where the technically proficient crowd invested their time.  TWP was home to some very volatile personalities with insomnia (there was only one update, no influence and very few trackers and scripts.  everything was done manually)

 

When exactly was that...?  2008   Does anyone remember the actual year(s)?

[Pestarzt]

That would be 2005-2006, and maybe a bit of '07. Influence was introduced in '06.

[Consular]

I posted my thoughts on this in the NSGP thread. They weren't exactly positive.

[Bhang Bhang Duc]

I don't think any of us were positive regarding Uni's article.

'Scuse me, I think I hear my cat depositing the next issue of TRT in his litter tray.

[Fratellnoir]

Blimey, I actually got a name check - thought I'd managed to stay well under the radar!

 

However riddled with  holes this article may be it does pose a very real question - Whither now TWP?

 

I have made no secret of my own vision of a truly independent TWP, strong enough to follow a path that benefits the region rather than playing to the crowd, or allowing its direction to be swayed disproportionately by the vested interests of those who do not cherish the region, but see it only as a vehicle to further their own ambition.

 

Unibot implies in his article that TWP is on currently on the peripheries of NS activity, and that is something we should relish and cultivate - being different offers us the potential to be innovative.

 

Darkesia has hinted at the opening up of our constitutional structure, and I like to think that, in my small way, I am encouraging diversity and initiative in the Military sphere.

 

We do not need anyone outside the region to decide our destiny, we are capable of determining our own fate

[Unibot]

I don't disagree with you, Fratellnoir - which is why I wrote:
 

The West Pacific, being a fringe region among the feeders, has for the past few years cultivated a niche for folksy, alternative ideas from freethinkers like People United Together, Fratellnoir and Warzone Codger (Laderhig). I would hope while The West Pacific was thrust into the mainstream that it did not cease to be a home to creative, alternative idea-makers, but find a way to balance its innovation at home with its immersion abroad.

 

But I think if native residents of The West Pacific are frustrated with regional activity and with its position in the global sphere, there will have to be changes -- if being "wholly independent" (in the 'cools kids in the side of smoking pit of the school' sense not the military ideology sense) isn't working then you may need to reconsider the value of having friends and allies abroad.

 

Like, in RL, I could be a miserable twat to everyone around me and I think I might find that liberating in some senses - but it doesn't mean I wouldn't get depressed over time that I didn't have friends and I was excluded from things - eventually I would want to change my behavior to some extent to ensure I was a fixture, not erm, a social gadfly at home. What I am decrying here is when those changes to yourself aren't good; when they quell and extinguish your innovation, creativity and self-expression. 

[Fratellnoir]

You misunderstand me Uni

 

Friends ans allies will come in due course, but such connections will be made on our terms once TWP decides the direction it wishes to follow.

 

"Friends" who seek to divert us from that course for their own interests will not last long - my vision of TWP is one where friendship does not come with strings attached but out of mutual respect and trust. 

[Darkesia]

This is a political game.  There are always strings.  Even when alliances are formed with mutual respect and trust.

 

I would hope that TWP does not set to work turning itself into another boring cookie cutter feeder region. 

 

But it MUST turn itself into something other than completely reliant on the Guardians.  This much I promise. 

So, if they set up a silly copy of some other region's system, at least they will have a starting place.  Then let them battle as the flaws in that system are revealed.  The important thing is that it will be THEIR battles.  The internal community of TWP will decide. That's bound to cause some rough arguments and hurt feelings.  But in the end, if the community remembers that it is TWP they are working for,things will come together.

 

Uni...  it really hurts that you equate TWP's position as the miserable twat region.  And I think you are wrong on so many levels that there are no longer any pieces of common ground between TWP and your perceptions of NS.  We might as well live on different planets.

[Fratellnoir]

This is a political game.  There are always strings.  Even when alliances are formed with mutual respect and trust.

 

Oh I get that, I would just prefer it if we are the ones pulling the strings!