Just a suggestion, and it's a long hill to climb, but maybe we should consider revoking the citizenship of anyone who doesn't vote in the TMT? 😁 Or speed up the process of prospectives who are willing to vote. It's been a while (say, 25 years or something) since I was involved with the IM business, and I'm not up on current laws.

Oh, never mind. Just something that encourages voting. I'm obviously out of clues for things that are legal 😂

Quote from: Baron Alexandreu Davinescu on Yesterday at 11:35:33 AMThe Progressive Alliance will steal money from His Majesty and then distribute it among the people.

El Regeu non en volt!

-Txec R

Mr. Speaker,

This enquiry is for the Foreign Affairs minister. @Antaglha Xhenerös Somelieir

We still have a couple weeks left in October and, of course, it could happen in a later term. But I am disappointed to see no activities from the Foreign Affairs ministry concerning celebrating the BHAID's tenth anniversary. This makes me more relieved that the Green Party led on the matter and more thankful for the cross-party support of the related Sense of the Ziu.

As we near the end of the term, what would the Minister say are the Foreign Affairs ministry's notable achievements over the course of the term?

I will no doubt attempt to either present a proposal myself or chip in with my thoughts on an existing one, for sure. I think Baroness Litz has already made some very sound points in this comment on the related Hopper thread.

I split off the discussion on privacy and the electorate database (Lex.D.8.5) for clarity.

Original closing message: The Chancery has now [Oct 9 @ 9 AM ish UTC] finished processing all changes resulting from answers to the mandatory questions (eg. changed email addresses and/or contact or privacy preferences).

Quote from: Sir Lüc on Yesterday at 09:13:27 AMMy main takeway is this - while Lex.D.8.5 needs reform, agreeing to simply not use it poses no harm or disadvantage. The purpose of D.8.5 is to ensure a free and fair election by providing all registered parties with the opportunity to contact all (opted-in) citizens, equally and uniformly. That is also the same purpose of the privacy-preserving election-time forwarding service. The D.8.5 list has not been divulged yet, so no party has gained an unfair advantage over the others.

What I propose is the following:

• Party leaders amicably and collectively agree not to request the D.8.5 list, as it would be tantamount to asking the Chancery to break macronational law;
• The Chancery retains its traditional forwarding service, and agrees to expand it so that it is available immediately, under the same restrictions as during election time;
• The incoming Cosă seriously looks at amending the existing D.8.5, so that it is no longer in breach of GDPR protections.

Agreed. I would suggest the amending of D.8.5 be led by the Chancery as the SOS has the power to propose legislation and has already proposed actions represented by the list itself.

David Crosby - Tamalpais high (at about 3)

Below:

• Gratitude
• We Reject the URL "Good" and "Bad" View
• Let's Work Together Instead
• Here's Some Plans

We didn't count carefully, but after a cursory check it appears that I have been elected party leader by a vote of 234,783 to zero.  Therefore, tradition calls for a speech.  I have some people to thank, and then we'll talk about what Progressives stand for and what we want to do.

First of all, I would like to thank @þerxh Sant-Enogat .  He founded the party, he recruited most of the members, he wrote our constitution, and he led us to smashing success in the last election.  After starting with only six votes for 7.5% of the vote, his leadership brought most of the former TNC under the new Progressive umbrella.  One term later, we rocketed up to a third of the total vote.  At a time when we were adrift thanks to fate and betrayal, he set us back on solid footing.

þerxh, when you asked me to take a turn as leader, I was hesitant.  I still think that your kindness and quiet leadership is what the country needs.  But you have certainly done more than your fair share, and I guess I'm already out in front, here.  Thank you for what you have done for the Progressives and for Talossa.

Thank you also to party stalwarts @xpb  and @Tric'hard Lenxheir .  You guys are the rock on which the ocean breaks, and thank you for standing firm.

---

Now then.

Our country's Seneschal made a speech recently where she said that her party, the URL, was the "Good" and that the Progressive Alliance was the "Bad."  At some length, she outlined this metaphor and made it the foundation of her annual speech.  The Progressives are a club of friends without politics, she argued.  It's not a real party, it represents bad things, and it should go away.

It's hard for me to contradict the Most Honourable Dama @Miestră Schivă, UrN-GC  on politics.  She is one of the most successful politicians that Talossa's ever seen!  She's on her fifth official term as Seneschal, and she's held power for a total of more than 1,330 days.  That's 3.6 years of power!  To put it another way, you could have watched Moana more than 18,600 times during her time in the top seat.  And honestly, I have three little girls, so I might have done that.

So it feels pretty bold for me to say that she's wrong.  But I have to speak my truth.  And my truth is this: I don't think they're Bad.  I think the URL is Good, even if I think they're not the best choice in the upcoming election. 

What is a political party?  A political party is ideals, culture, and policies.  And I think the Progressive Alliance has all three to offer.

Our ideals are well-known at this point.  But for the uninitiated, we stand for responsible progress, moving forward into the future without destroying the past.

I know a thing or two about forward progress.  I've helped move Talossa into the future time and time again, like when we replaced our scattered old laws with an accessible legal code: el Lexhatx.  Or when we built the bones of the wiki, making it into a people-powered national website that we use every day.  Or when we created the informational database of Infotecă, so that Talossan citizens could keep tabs on their government.  Or when we brokered a deal to preserve the monarchy but reform the succession, saving the institution for the future so that we could move forward with a new king for a new age.

But we also have culture to offer.  Because -- and this is important -- we just love this country.  We're here because it's fun and interesting.  I mean, come on... where else am I going to get a grant to develop a language-learning website like Let's Learn Talossan!?  Or run a party that's vying to lead a nation?  This is just so dang neat, people!  This is something we just get to do, and we get to have a great time doing it!

That's also why I'm not going to be able to say that we're the "Good" or that the URL is the "Bad."  That's not our way.  And maybe that's not going to get us the kind of power that leads to 18,600 Moanas, but that's not who we are.

Because the URL isn't bad.  They're also the Good.  Anyone in Talossa who loves doing this stuff and is having a good time and loves this country... well, they're the Good, too.

The URL leader is the Honourable @Mic'haglh Autófil, O.Be , and he's great.  He's an amazing graphic artist and leader, he's a kind and thoughtful legislator and minister in the government, and he's helpful to so many folks.  He's Good.

The current Seneschal, the Most Honourable @Miestră Schivă, UrN-GC , is one of the most passionate Talossans you'll ever meet.  She loves the language and so much of the history of Talossa.  She's Good.

And that attitude is part of Progressive culture, and it's why we might seem like a club of friends and not the professional organization you see across the aisle.  That's why you see us volunteering to do stuff to help -- þerxh running Talossa's social media accounts, or XPB serving as the Burgermeister of Inland Finance, or Tric'hard creating a hockey league for everyone.  We think Talossa -- and Talossans -- are the Good.

We reject this URL idea where one party is "Good" and the other is "Bad."  What counts is that we all want to do Talossa, and that's Good.

So enough of that.  Let's focus on the change that the Progressive Alliance wants to see in Talossa.  Let's focus on our plans.

The Progressive Alliance has a lot of ideas to help move Talossa forward.  We have specific plans that are realistic, measurable, and work with everyone.  Not all of them will work out, and some of them will take time.  But we're also not afraid to set public goals and speak with them.  There won't be any need to drag answers out of the Government, since we'll actually be open to communicating with the public without the subpoena-like threat of terpelaziuns.  No one's going to have to force us to talk about possible solutions to our problems... we'll be out there talking about them and inviting input.

In other words, we want all of the Good to join in and have a great time.

For more specifics, please see the list below.  There's probably something on there that interests you, whether it's our plans for our websites or our plans for armed robbery.  We have something for you.  Please don't hesitate to ask if you have any questions!

---

Immigration
The people deserve a Government that cares

The Progressive Alliance will prioritize immigration, the lifeblood of our country, by working to publicize the issue, trying lots of new ideas, and setting reasonable goals.

Infotecă
The people deserve to know what's happening in their country.

The Progressive Alliance will update and support Infotecă.  We believe in transparency: the people have a right to know.

Initiative
The people deserve less red tape and more efficient government

The Progressive Alliance will cut administrative red tape and reduce bureaucracy, so no one's time is wasted and everyone's enthusiasm is valued.

Innovation
The people deserve new solutions for a new day

The Progressive Alliance will provide a fresh look at our web presence, making sure our online tools are being used in the best way possible.

Inspiration
The people deserve a new kind of politics

The Progressive Alliance will work to ensure that there is space for joy to thrive, so that our culture will not just survive -- it will grow.

Illegality
The people deserve some of the money we're going to steal

The Progressive Alliance will steal money from His Majesty and then distribute it among the people.

Infrastructure
The people deserve support for their ideas

The Progressive Alliance will make access to government infrastructure easier, promote a repository of useful files and images, and create starter kits for everyone to use.

Illumination
The people deserve transparency from their government

The Progressive Alliance will promise never to secretly block potential immigrants, and we will pass legislation to eliminate this government power.  No bureaucrat should secretly control immigration.

There's been an awful lot of talk in Talossa over the past few years about civil behavior. We've seen prominent members of other parties suggest things would be better if the then-Seneschal just left the country, harrass the Mençei to the point they renounce, harrass their own Seneschal to the point they renounce (and take their friend with them, sadly), sexually harrass the now-Secretary of State, and bully the Tuischac'h into silence -- he hasn't even been on Witt in the last three months now, which has made maintaining order in an already chaotic legislature even more difficult.

So what can you do to help turn down the heat? You can support the URL plan for a better-behaved, less toxic environment on Witt:

• Support empowering the Chancery to enforce Wittequette more strongly (done!)
• Support reforms to allow the Mençei and Tuischac'h to keep order more effectively in their respective chambers of the Ziu
• Impose a social cost on people who make Talossa an unappealing place to be
• Don't vote for the party that's led by someone who sexually harrasses his fellow Talossans
• Don't vote for the party that's now officially led by someone who harrasses his fellow Talossans
• Vote for the party and Seneschal candidate that know how to keep things civil -- the Union of Free Reformists!

The voting is concluded.  I am gratified to announce that I have been chosen as the next leader of the Progressive Alliance.  I am grateful for @þerxh Sant-Enogat 's support, as well as for his willingness to keep on helping.

A speech will follow, later today.