Vuode Merger

[Marcel Eðo Pairescu Tafial, UrGP]

The last merger attempt I remember was the Florenciă-Fiovă thing. Very much a "provinces figuring out mergers among themselves" situation that predictably went nowhere. What I want is to have all 4 mergers figured out in advance and entering into effect at the same time to minimise constitutional weirdness, and the best way to do that is with a Convention.

[Baron Alexandreu Davinescu]

It kind of feels like a big national thing won't happen, like the last time it was proposed with the Council of Governors (back when that existed).  I know that both Etho and V, two significant figures in Vuode, have said that they thought it would be a non-starter to try to nationalize a grassroots effort between provinces.

[Baron Alexandreu Davinescu]

The last merger attempt I remember was the Florenciă-Fiovă thing. Very much a "provinces figuring out mergers among themselves" situation that predictably went nowhere.

It went almost up to the end, with amended constitutions and provincial referenda!  But it became a partisan fight, with the perception that people with larger agendas were just using the merger as a tool to achieve a larger goal nationally.  I think that will probably tend to happen with a national-scale effort.

[Miestră Schivă, UrN]

The last merger attempt I remember was the Florenciă-Fiovă thing. Very much a "provinces figuring out mergers among themselves" situation that predictably went nowhere.

It went almost up to the end, with amended constitutions and provincial referenda!  But it became a partisan fight, with the perception that people with larger agendas were just using the merger as a tool to achieve a larger goal nationally.  I think that will probably tend to happen with a national-scale effort.

Let's not be euphemistic. What happened was that the King and the conservative majority in Florencia were convinced it was a scam by the Talossan Left to "steal" the reliably conservative Florencian Senäts seat - no matter that it would have meant giving up the impregnably leftist Fiovan Senäts seat at the same time, forming a new "swing" seat.

On the other hand, let's face it, the F-F merger was opportunist, in that Fiova was up for a merger, and the then-Governor of Florencia put his hand up to be a partner. A lot of people pointed out that merging non-contiguous provinces wasn't sensible, and in hindsight they were correct. Fiova has since then tried to offer a merger to Maricopa and got shot down flat. No-one (apart from Fiova?) wants to "properly" merge in the sense of giving up a Senäts seat, is the moral of the story - and therefore, provincial mergers won't happen outside Senäts reform.

[Baron Alexandreu Davinescu]

Yes, it became a partisan issue and that killed it.

If you actually want mergers to happen, then certainly a provincial-level merger would be a very very strong first step towards a complete merger of those provinces.

[Viteu]

It kind of feels like a big national thing won't happen, like the last time it was proposed with the Council of Governors (back when that existed).  I know that both Etho and V, two significant figures in Vuode, have said that they thought it would be a non-starter to try to nationalize a grassroots effort between provinces.

I'm not trying to be contrarian, but I'm unsure what you mean by "grassroots effort between provinces."
Speaking only for myself—I am against any formal merging of Vuode with other provinces beyond the M-M scheme; I take no position on what other provinces may wish to do if Vuode is not involved.

[Baron Alexandreu Davinescu]

I mean that people on the ground, in your province and mine, want to do the Grischun plan. And I think he and you and I would all prefer that we sort this out between our provinces along the same lines we already agreed on, rather than launching some big new national initiative.

[Miestră Schivă, UrN]

The last time there was a grassroots approach for merger from the provinces themselves, t was perceived as an attempt to effect a large-scale change for other purposes. You see the problem here?

[Baron Alexandreu Davinescu]

@Tric'hard Lenxheir , @Ian Plätschisch , should we give this a go this term?  There's still enough time, I think, for us to make any needed revisions to our respective constitutions and put this up for provincial referenda.

[Tric'hard Lenxheir]

@Tric'hard Lenxheir , @Ian Plätschisch , should we give this a go this term?  There's still enough time, I think, for us to make any needed revisions to our respective constitutions and put this up for provincial referenda.

I would support it.

[Eðo Grischun]

Checking in.