This week's Interview was with the Grand Czar of Landingberg. As a relatively new nation, and a recent addition to the Micras Sector, it was felt that this Interview would bring an interesting perspective into view.
As I am guided through the Palace, I am overwhelmed by the sheer size of the place. The trip to th Czar's Office lasted what seemed to be an eternity. Suddenly, I was faced with two 9 foot tall solid oak doors, with golden door knobs. Upon entering through the huge doors, I was met with a beautiful burgundy red carpet, white walls with gold trim and a formidable desk sitting in the center of the room. There was a hole cut all the way up into the roof with a break proof glass dome over the hole. The desk had golden legs shaped like lions, and was made of the same wood as the doors. On the carpet around the desk is the Imperial seal embroidered into the carpet. On the wall is a big picture of the nation's greatest sovereign of all time - Grand Duchess Alexandra Marie I who reigned from 1404-1482.
I sat myself down, took a few deep breaths after calming down from the marathon trip to the office, and settled in for my interview with Grand Czar Aleksander Wilhelm III.
(HT = Haraldsborg Times, CA = Czar Aleksander)
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This first part reflects my talk with the man behind the Czar - these are "out of character" questions.
HT: Landingberg is one of the newest nations in our Sector. What has brought you to micronationalism, and how did you first come into contact with the Micras Sector?
CA: Well one day I was bored and I was just surfing the internet and I found a website by His Excelleny, President Kevin Baugh of Molossia. It talked about micronationalism and the rest is history. I founded Landingberg and built her to be what she is today.
Emperor Harald Thorstein I was really the first micras ruler that shaped my outlook on micronationalism. His influence has greatly shaped Landingberg. This would also be true for Emperor Edgard II of Alexandria.
HT: It has been well noted that you introduced yourself to the micro-world by basically ennobling anyone who had a heartbeat. What were the reasons behind this, and do you feel now, in retrospect, that you might have gone a little overboard?
CA: Yes I did go a bit over board with the title giving. But in retrospect it does make a bit of sense when you think of how Landingberg is divided into 2 Grand Dukedoms, 12 Duchies, 24 Baronies, 48 Principalities, and 96 Marquistates. So even with all of the title I gave there are many many still left to give.
HT: What period in history have you decided to model your nation after, and why?
CA: That would be simple. The Tsarist government of Imperial Russia. The grandeur of the Imperial Court; all of it really just caught my attention.
HT: Where do you realistically see Landingberg one year from now?
CA: I imagine Landingberg as being more active. A Stronger Imperial Navy (the jewel of our armed forces) and at peace. And of course much more citizens.
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This is the "in character" portion of the interview - the reporter and the Czar.
HT: Thank you for seeing me today, Your Majesty. I have to say that the Asheriana Imperial Palace is quite spectacular. Maybe you should think about installing some sort of transit system - the walk from the main parlor to your office must have been over two kilometers.
CA: You are quite welcome! I am flattered to have you here today; and as for the walk I am quite sorry about that. It is a tradition for every head of state to add atleast one room to the Imperial Palace. So it makes for a unbearbly long walk now - seeing as Landingberg has had so many sovereigns. And yes we are actually planning that now. It should be available to use within a year.
HT: I am happy to hear that, Majesty. Now - - on to the questions! Currently, your nation has very few citizens, yet you've allowed several non-natives key positions in your Senate and Military. What are the reasons behind this, and what advantages are there in having so many foreigners acting in such important positions?
CA: Well it makes for a strong hold between Landingberg and its allies. Its also a way of getting things done until more citizens become active in Landingberg.
HT: So do you plan to have these people removed from Office once Landingberg has a larger native citizen base?
CA: No, not at the moment. Most of them have become crucial and I couldnt dream of letting them go entirely.
HT: You recently ennobled Emperor Justin I as the Duke of East Barria, then stripped him of his Title - then returned the Title to him all within a couple of weeks. What's the story behind this bizarre chain of events?
CA: There was a simple misunderstanding between His Majesty and me. I took something the wrong way. It's as simple as that.
HT: What was the misunderstanding? You must know from reading the Haraldsborg Times that we don't settle for half-answers, Your Majesty. We want details!
CA: He was asking me a question, though the question I forgot, he sounded rude and insolent. So I stripped the title as I would do to anyone who would act as such.
HT: Very good. Yes, I can see where disrespect from another monarch should not be tolerated. Now - Landingberg has a booming Real Estate business. Where did the idea for selling land and homes come from, and do you see this becoming part of some larger scheme to build a national economy?
CA: Yes! I was quite surprised as to how quickly the Landish Real Estate took off. I got my idea from Archduchess Marie Valtraude of the now non-existent Archduchy of Lichtenbad. She had made a small real estate agency that seemed to of fallen through soon before the Lichtenbad crisis. And yes I do see it becoming a strong part of the Landish economy.
HT: Speaking of Lichtenbad. Your nation was in the middle of the Lichtenbad Crisis as it unfolded. Where did your loyalties lie during those events, and how did your nation react to the sudden burst of civil unrest and armed conflict?
CA: Well the whole thing was confusing. I was a good friend of Marie Valtraude, the then Archduchess. And in a treaty we both promised to protect each others nation. I had been on holiday when I got back to Lichtenbad (of which I was a citizen and a Knight). Automatically I sent the Imperial Navy to surround the capital city of Ostevik.
One of our destroyers where harmed by a bomb the Landish intelligence agency does not know the sorce of. However it didnt sink. In the end it was just a waste of Dautzens. Although I cant say i'd do it any different if it were to happen today.
HT: The Imperial Senate recently voted down a potential Treaty with the Royal Kingdom of Gotzborg. Seeing as how Gotzborg is one of the more influential nations in the Micras Sector - do you see this rejection by the Senate as causing any potential problems for Landingberg in the future? And what, as you see it, were the reasons for the Senate's rejection of the Treaty?
CA: No I dont see any problem in the future. I can only go on what the voters in the Imperial Senate said. That they were large and influential, yes, but that they didnt even register in Landingberg. I do see why they voted down the treaty. However, Landingberg and Gotzborg have remained on friendly terms.
HT: We have a couple of questions for you submitted by our readers. First we have:
Do you see Landingberg progressing down a more democratic route as the country continues its remarkable development, or do you believe that the strengthening of royal autocracy will serve to provide the Czardom with a distinctive flavour which will be key to preserving its new found vitality?
CA: Well as many know I still hold much power under the present constitution and I dont plan to change that. I want to keep the Imperial Family and the other nobles still in high regard. So, no we are as democratic as we will get.
HT: It's obvious that you have a close relationship with both Stormark and Alexandria. But why do you borrow elements such as the general theme, and even topics directly from these other nations, when you can use this opportunity to develop something new and original?
CA: Thats actually something that me and my advisors have been discussing. Although we will stay close to our friends in Stormark and Alexandria we are planning to make Landingberg more russian. And make the French half slowly deteriorate. Although some of the things like french architecture and stuff shall remain. Along with the russian architecture we've introduced just recently.
HT: Well, Your Majesty. This has been a very enlightening Interview. I am very thankful for this chance to meet with you and hold this open dialogue. Before we wrap this up, do you have any final words you'd like to add?
CA: You are most welcome! I am very happy to of had you in the Imperial Palace this evening. And yes, I just want to say for micras to keep an eye on my qauint little czardom. For it will be growing god willing. Who knows what surprises we have in store!
Commentaries and Interviews with today's Micronational Newsmakers.
(It's Nothing Personal)
(It's Nothing Personal)
VIKING EMPIRE OF STORMARK
Empire of The Alexandrians
The Grand Commonwealth
Republic of Antica
United Counties of Riponia
Czardom of Landingberg
The Zatriarchate of Matbaa
Friday, July 28, 2006
Interview With Grand Czar Aleksander Wilhelm III of Landingberg
posted by Anonymous at 8:00 AM
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Friday, July 21, 2006
Interview With Speaker Olorix of Antica
Warm greetings to all of my good friends. This week we look back on the interview I had with Speaker Olorix from The Republic of Antica.
In stark contrast to my visit with the Emperor of Alexandria just one week ago, Speaker Olorix's office was quite humble. It was a small room, with many books and papers. It seemed rather disorganized to me, but I am sure that the Speaker saw some order among the chaos. The office itself faced onto a street front, and for some reason, reminded me of how I'd always imagined 221B Baker Street to look like. As we sat next to each other for the interview, the environment certainly began to feel very intimate.
(HT = Haraldsborg Times, SO = Speaker Olorix)
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This first part reflects my talk with the man behind the Speaker - these are "out of character" questions.
HT: The split-up of the Dinarchy of Antica is one of the most interesting and, as some have said, brutal, division of a micronation in recent memory, if not ever. As for your part, why did the Dinarchy split and where did the idea for a Republic come from?
SO: I agree with you that the Dinarchy split was momentus in terms of wider micronational history, and from a personal point of view of many of the participants it was a pretty big event. To put it as simple as possible, I think the split in the Dinarchy was caused by Delphi becoming gradually more authoritarian, and indeed totalitarian, and the rest of us becoming more eager for reforms as his regime and activity in Antica gradually slid downwards.
The Republic emerged as an early alternative for those of us who wanted reform, but I was extremely wary of it personally, but nevertheless we all always did have it in the back of our minds that if the fight between us and Delphi destroyed the Dinarchy, we'd just have to move.
HT: Do you see Antica becoming the preeminent power of the sector in the near future, if not already? And how do you see your nation progressing in the near future, say the next 3-4 months?
SO: Well, I think Antica is currently the most powerful micronation in the sector in terms of activity continuously staying extremely high, us having a large citizenship base and MCS territory etc. With the breakdown of the old order of 'micronational superpowers' like the GC and Shireroth, which we had always predicted within the Non-Aligned Movement, I think Antica may be able to bring a new era of growth, peace and non-aggression to the decaying sector.
In terms of seeing our nation progressing, my dream is to turn Antica into a virtuous participant in diplomatic affairs by fostering tolerance and respect between nations, but more importantly, I want Antica internally to have 50 citizens, to have a clear and coherent political system, and to be a 'mutual knowledge society' where everyone is constantly helping each other to improve their skills (like programming and speaking languages) so that we can work and play "smarter."
HT: How did you discover micronations, and how long have you been an active participant?
SO: I guess it must've been late 2003, when via a link on a linguistics forum I used to be part of I signed up to the nation of 'Korhal' (that was subsequently merged into the Dinarchy of Antica). Delphi immediately contacted me after I signed up to the Korhal forums (which I had done a bit half-heartedly just out of interest) and managed to use some persuading powers to get me into Antica and I've been active since then!
____________________
This is the "in character" portion of the interview - the reporter and the Speaker.
HT: It's great to be here in Antica today, Mister Speaker. Thank you for agreeing to this interview.
SO: Thank you too, comrade! It's hilarious to think that I am subject even worth interviewing.
HT: Even though you might not believe you are, I have been looking forward to this. I suspect you may turn out to be more interesting than you think.
HT: Now let's begin, shall we? First question: Some of my readers have said that Antica seems very free-spirited, even to the point of excess. With the birth of this "new" Antica, have you noticed any changes in the personalities of your comrades? Of course there are the politically-minded changes, but what about the way Anticans act and behave? Have some gone "over the top", in your opinion?
SO: I don't think that's the case at all. Antica values personal freedom a lot more than it used to, but we are not radical libertarians, though we do have a highly anti-authortarian streak that is very common to see around the forums. Anticans haven't really changed their behaviour much since the fall of the DInarchy, then again I guess politically we have become a lot more involved and a lot more innovative in our ideas, ones that we knew Delphi would have rejected and thus we never would have proposed them. Over the top? Early on, when people did not fully understand why we were founding our nation, some people did panic even at the slightest mention of any form of power or authority, but that's all gone now.
HT: There are people who see Antica as a sort of "club". While there are frequent visitors and such, you really haven't gained many new citizens. Those who carried over from the Dinarchy days have remained in power in one form or another, leaving anyone else out. Was there some sort of behind the scenes decision made at the formation of the Republic to stick together and only allow each other into positions of power?
SO: We have an extremely strong internal community, and are all good friends outside of micronations (with various meetups in real life frequently occuring in the United States), but we have gained great new citizens who have been fully integrated into the government, like Maggern, Vehendi, Baldwin, Yuri Zhivago, etc. We always said early on we wanted to have a more open society than the Dinarchy was, which resembled fascist italy in many ways with an INTERNAL spying agency that made sure citizens would follow Delphi's line, and thus we've always wanted to make Antica a great place for new and old micronationalists who want to be able to speak their mind and help create a free society and a strong community. I mean in my current cabinet, Aryez (who has been a citizen for a long time but never has been given any really powerful positions) has been appointed to Finance Officer, and Maggern (a migrant to the Republic) is Foreign Relations Officer, both hugely important parts of our government.
HT: Then how do you explain the very one-sided rule of Antica being placed in the hands of those who were once ranking members of the Dinarchy? While cabinet positions are nice, has there been one Speaker so far who wasn't a cross-over from the "old" Antica?
SO: Well Ruth wasn't really a ranking member of the Dinarchy and she has just finished her Speaker term. There are huge contests for elections, unlike in the Dinarchy where we used to rig them, as you all may have seen particularly with the second to last election, where there were four competitors and some major vote splitting. The Speaker position inherently requires for people to know your leadership and political skills, and it's the choice of the Antican people to elect the Speaker. If they decided that all of us old hands from the Dinarchy were bollocks, then they could get a new comrade into the the role, something I would love to see after my term is finished.
HT: You mentioned voting. Antica has several Political Parties. Hasn't the topic of such partisanship been heavily debated by Anticans since the inception of the Republic? Are you for or against Parties, and why?
SO: I'm slightly in favour of them, as long as they don't get too angry or unnecessarily partisan. I initially used the political parties to stimulate activity in the Republic and to get people creating new ideas for the nation, getting some innovation going on policy issues, etc. I think the current situation, where they are quite inactive but still there, is perhaps preferable at this time, as there isn't really a necessity for them in the current political situation where we have a highly innovative cabinet that plans on launching major reforms.
Parties should be allowed to form, but not to turn Antica into a partisan hack hole where people fight just because of the colour of their party flag and not because of their ideas. I think this is the general position on the issue of most Anticans.
HT: Do you feel that the Antican people take their Political Parties seriously, or is this an example of some using the chance at a public platform just to get their views out to a wider audience?
SO: Hmm. I think it's the latter, in that people have tried to use parties to get their own reputation up, and often they only become active during election time where people attempt to use the political parties to use the support base around the specific party to campaign/vote for them. I don't think Anticans, being quite independent, really take political parties that seriously, especially if they attempt to force them to vote along the lines dictated by the leadership! Part of our anti-authoritarian streak yet again.
HT: Recently, Antica has had a couple of chances to enter into rec-wars with allies. Unfortunately, your nation seems to come in at the very last moment, missing all the excitement. What were the reasons for Antica's delays in entering these rec-wars, and is this indicative of some fault in the Antican system which prevents you from reacting to hostilities in a more timely manner?
SO: I think that the current disorganisation of the military is to blame. This is one area I really want to improve, despite my own lack of support of recawarring, I believe it's really important to have a well-organised military structure that allows us to enter these conflicts a lot faster (if not when they begin/as co-organisers). But yes, these delays in my opinion are due to the lacklustre and highly disorganised 'citizen army' approach that we had been using until recently as our military policy.
And now for some questions from our readers. I admit that I am somewhat disappointed that only two Anticans submitted questions for you, but that's something you can feel free to berate them for once we're finished.
HT: This first question comes from an Antican who wishes to remain anonymous - but I am sure you will guess his or her identity anyway. The question: While it is common knowledge that you are from New Zealand, it is not common knowledge that you are a sexual deviant of the most disgusting type, an erotic traveller of the food chain. How do you respond to allegations from several highly placed micronational sources, that you have on more than one occassion had dealings with sheep and possibly other wildlife, that were less than decent? Do you have anything to say at all about your head-first dive into the world of beastiality?
SO: I am disgusted by this claim by a certain Antican communist, who is nothing more than an non-revisionist Stalinist who works as a play school attendant and shows no desires for adult women.
HT: In Star Trek: The Next Generation, there was an episode which featured an alien species called the "Anticans". Is this where the name for your nation originated? If not, then where did the name come from?
SO: Hahaha! I didn't know that actually, I'll have to tell everyone about that in Antica! It actually originated, according to Chris, when he was trying to think of a name for his con-world (Don't hit me Chris if I have this wrong) and crossed out the 'arct' in Antarctica.
HT: What is the most enjoyable position you've ever held in Antica?
SO: Probably Chancellor back in the Dinarchy during the golden age during late 2004, which gave me a huge amount of scope for policy development. These days I am enjoying the Speakership more or less thes ame though, just a little less power and ego gratification haha!
HT: Do you have a best or worst memory involving micronations?
SO: Hmm, probably my worst memory was the total breakdown of the Dinarchy, particularly when Delphi called me a traitor and a threat to Antican security etc. It was ridiculous, really, and it made me realise I had basically put a load of work into what had become one man's total dictatorship.
My best memory? Perhaps during the Dinarchial 'Golden Age' when the economy first started, when citizenship was really high, when we were basically all on a high from our own success, it was great and anyone else who was around at that time will remember the triumphalist speeches I was making, and I'm sure the general happiness of the period.
HT: During the upheaval of the revolution, etc - did you ever personally feel that the attempt to create a Republic would fail?
SO: Yes, most definitely. I thought it would fail, that Delphi would backdown and we'd all live happily ever after in a unified Antica. I realised after a couple of weeks that this situation was probably not going to happen, but I remained a dual citizen of both the Dinarchy and the Republic, I think the only person to have ever held both citizenships simultaneously.
HT: If most of the Antican citizenry is predominantly lefist, how come Antica is a liberal democracy, and the laws aren't particularly socialist or communist?
SO: Well I think a lot of Antica is on the anti-authoritarian left, and none of us (apart from myself) are actually active in real life left wing politics (my own politics are perhaps more centrist than people see online). It's a very good question though, and a question I sometimes ponder myself. I think a lot of us realise that socialism and other leftist ideologies are good in situations where there exists major poverty and social exclusion (as happens in the real world), whereas in Antica, there isn't really a need for socialism as there is not really an economic ruling class and a proletariat/mass working class.
Additionally, as many people will know, I define 'American Left' very differently to 'Rest of the World' left!
HT: Not too long ago you posted an essay on Micronational economies. While it is held by most that micronational economies are impossible - how do you feel personally? Is the idea of a functioning micronational economy doomed to failure?
SO: Not at all. The idea of a functioning micronational economy is perfectly plausible, and the Republic has one right now, if one merely looks at the work I started doing in my role last term as Finance Officer. We have the Government stimulating much of the economic development, true, which I think is necessary early on, but soon, I think everyone will begin to understand the fact that our economy (that uses a PHPbank) can offer so much, like standardising the exchange of images, essays, signatures, newspapers, etc. I honestly think that those who doubt that a micronational economy can exist need to have a talk to me, and I'll show them some evidence to prove that while micornational economies cannot buy as real life cars or get us real life American dollars, they CAN even help us outside of our micronational lives.
Thank you so much for seeing me today, Mister Speaker. I've enjoyed our talk very much, and hope to return again sometime to interview your successor.
Thank you very much, Comrade! I too have enjoyed the discussion, a bit of a trip down memory lane as it were, and hopefully your readers will find interesting facts within my comments. My successor? Well, that may never happen, if you know what I mean [laughs], but seriously, thank you again, and good luck with your journalistic endeavours!
In stark contrast to my visit with the Emperor of Alexandria just one week ago, Speaker Olorix's office was quite humble. It was a small room, with many books and papers. It seemed rather disorganized to me, but I am sure that the Speaker saw some order among the chaos. The office itself faced onto a street front, and for some reason, reminded me of how I'd always imagined 221B Baker Street to look like. As we sat next to each other for the interview, the environment certainly began to feel very intimate.
(HT = Haraldsborg Times, SO = Speaker Olorix)
____________________
This first part reflects my talk with the man behind the Speaker - these are "out of character" questions.
HT: The split-up of the Dinarchy of Antica is one of the most interesting and, as some have said, brutal, division of a micronation in recent memory, if not ever. As for your part, why did the Dinarchy split and where did the idea for a Republic come from?
SO: I agree with you that the Dinarchy split was momentus in terms of wider micronational history, and from a personal point of view of many of the participants it was a pretty big event. To put it as simple as possible, I think the split in the Dinarchy was caused by Delphi becoming gradually more authoritarian, and indeed totalitarian, and the rest of us becoming more eager for reforms as his regime and activity in Antica gradually slid downwards.
The Republic emerged as an early alternative for those of us who wanted reform, but I was extremely wary of it personally, but nevertheless we all always did have it in the back of our minds that if the fight between us and Delphi destroyed the Dinarchy, we'd just have to move.
HT: Do you see Antica becoming the preeminent power of the sector in the near future, if not already? And how do you see your nation progressing in the near future, say the next 3-4 months?
SO: Well, I think Antica is currently the most powerful micronation in the sector in terms of activity continuously staying extremely high, us having a large citizenship base and MCS territory etc. With the breakdown of the old order of 'micronational superpowers' like the GC and Shireroth, which we had always predicted within the Non-Aligned Movement, I think Antica may be able to bring a new era of growth, peace and non-aggression to the decaying sector.
In terms of seeing our nation progressing, my dream is to turn Antica into a virtuous participant in diplomatic affairs by fostering tolerance and respect between nations, but more importantly, I want Antica internally to have 50 citizens, to have a clear and coherent political system, and to be a 'mutual knowledge society' where everyone is constantly helping each other to improve their skills (like programming and speaking languages) so that we can work and play "smarter."
HT: How did you discover micronations, and how long have you been an active participant?
SO: I guess it must've been late 2003, when via a link on a linguistics forum I used to be part of I signed up to the nation of 'Korhal' (that was subsequently merged into the Dinarchy of Antica). Delphi immediately contacted me after I signed up to the Korhal forums (which I had done a bit half-heartedly just out of interest) and managed to use some persuading powers to get me into Antica and I've been active since then!
____________________
This is the "in character" portion of the interview - the reporter and the Speaker.
HT: It's great to be here in Antica today, Mister Speaker. Thank you for agreeing to this interview.
SO: Thank you too, comrade! It's hilarious to think that I am subject even worth interviewing.
HT: Even though you might not believe you are, I have been looking forward to this. I suspect you may turn out to be more interesting than you think.
HT: Now let's begin, shall we? First question: Some of my readers have said that Antica seems very free-spirited, even to the point of excess. With the birth of this "new" Antica, have you noticed any changes in the personalities of your comrades? Of course there are the politically-minded changes, but what about the way Anticans act and behave? Have some gone "over the top", in your opinion?
SO: I don't think that's the case at all. Antica values personal freedom a lot more than it used to, but we are not radical libertarians, though we do have a highly anti-authortarian streak that is very common to see around the forums. Anticans haven't really changed their behaviour much since the fall of the DInarchy, then again I guess politically we have become a lot more involved and a lot more innovative in our ideas, ones that we knew Delphi would have rejected and thus we never would have proposed them. Over the top? Early on, when people did not fully understand why we were founding our nation, some people did panic even at the slightest mention of any form of power or authority, but that's all gone now.
HT: There are people who see Antica as a sort of "club". While there are frequent visitors and such, you really haven't gained many new citizens. Those who carried over from the Dinarchy days have remained in power in one form or another, leaving anyone else out. Was there some sort of behind the scenes decision made at the formation of the Republic to stick together and only allow each other into positions of power?
SO: We have an extremely strong internal community, and are all good friends outside of micronations (with various meetups in real life frequently occuring in the United States), but we have gained great new citizens who have been fully integrated into the government, like Maggern, Vehendi, Baldwin, Yuri Zhivago, etc. We always said early on we wanted to have a more open society than the Dinarchy was, which resembled fascist italy in many ways with an INTERNAL spying agency that made sure citizens would follow Delphi's line, and thus we've always wanted to make Antica a great place for new and old micronationalists who want to be able to speak their mind and help create a free society and a strong community. I mean in my current cabinet, Aryez (who has been a citizen for a long time but never has been given any really powerful positions) has been appointed to Finance Officer, and Maggern (a migrant to the Republic) is Foreign Relations Officer, both hugely important parts of our government.
HT: Then how do you explain the very one-sided rule of Antica being placed in the hands of those who were once ranking members of the Dinarchy? While cabinet positions are nice, has there been one Speaker so far who wasn't a cross-over from the "old" Antica?
SO: Well Ruth wasn't really a ranking member of the Dinarchy and she has just finished her Speaker term. There are huge contests for elections, unlike in the Dinarchy where we used to rig them, as you all may have seen particularly with the second to last election, where there were four competitors and some major vote splitting. The Speaker position inherently requires for people to know your leadership and political skills, and it's the choice of the Antican people to elect the Speaker. If they decided that all of us old hands from the Dinarchy were bollocks, then they could get a new comrade into the the role, something I would love to see after my term is finished.
HT: You mentioned voting. Antica has several Political Parties. Hasn't the topic of such partisanship been heavily debated by Anticans since the inception of the Republic? Are you for or against Parties, and why?
SO: I'm slightly in favour of them, as long as they don't get too angry or unnecessarily partisan. I initially used the political parties to stimulate activity in the Republic and to get people creating new ideas for the nation, getting some innovation going on policy issues, etc. I think the current situation, where they are quite inactive but still there, is perhaps preferable at this time, as there isn't really a necessity for them in the current political situation where we have a highly innovative cabinet that plans on launching major reforms.
Parties should be allowed to form, but not to turn Antica into a partisan hack hole where people fight just because of the colour of their party flag and not because of their ideas. I think this is the general position on the issue of most Anticans.
HT: Do you feel that the Antican people take their Political Parties seriously, or is this an example of some using the chance at a public platform just to get their views out to a wider audience?
SO: Hmm. I think it's the latter, in that people have tried to use parties to get their own reputation up, and often they only become active during election time where people attempt to use the political parties to use the support base around the specific party to campaign/vote for them. I don't think Anticans, being quite independent, really take political parties that seriously, especially if they attempt to force them to vote along the lines dictated by the leadership! Part of our anti-authoritarian streak yet again.
HT: Recently, Antica has had a couple of chances to enter into rec-wars with allies. Unfortunately, your nation seems to come in at the very last moment, missing all the excitement. What were the reasons for Antica's delays in entering these rec-wars, and is this indicative of some fault in the Antican system which prevents you from reacting to hostilities in a more timely manner?
SO: I think that the current disorganisation of the military is to blame. This is one area I really want to improve, despite my own lack of support of recawarring, I believe it's really important to have a well-organised military structure that allows us to enter these conflicts a lot faster (if not when they begin/as co-organisers). But yes, these delays in my opinion are due to the lacklustre and highly disorganised 'citizen army' approach that we had been using until recently as our military policy.
And now for some questions from our readers. I admit that I am somewhat disappointed that only two Anticans submitted questions for you, but that's something you can feel free to berate them for once we're finished.
HT: This first question comes from an Antican who wishes to remain anonymous - but I am sure you will guess his or her identity anyway. The question: While it is common knowledge that you are from New Zealand, it is not common knowledge that you are a sexual deviant of the most disgusting type, an erotic traveller of the food chain. How do you respond to allegations from several highly placed micronational sources, that you have on more than one occassion had dealings with sheep and possibly other wildlife, that were less than decent? Do you have anything to say at all about your head-first dive into the world of beastiality?
SO: I am disgusted by this claim by a certain Antican communist, who is nothing more than an non-revisionist Stalinist who works as a play school attendant and shows no desires for adult women.
HT: In Star Trek: The Next Generation, there was an episode which featured an alien species called the "Anticans". Is this where the name for your nation originated? If not, then where did the name come from?
SO: Hahaha! I didn't know that actually, I'll have to tell everyone about that in Antica! It actually originated, according to Chris, when he was trying to think of a name for his con-world (Don't hit me Chris if I have this wrong) and crossed out the 'arct' in Antarctica.
HT: What is the most enjoyable position you've ever held in Antica?
SO: Probably Chancellor back in the Dinarchy during the golden age during late 2004, which gave me a huge amount of scope for policy development. These days I am enjoying the Speakership more or less thes ame though, just a little less power and ego gratification haha!
HT: Do you have a best or worst memory involving micronations?
SO: Hmm, probably my worst memory was the total breakdown of the Dinarchy, particularly when Delphi called me a traitor and a threat to Antican security etc. It was ridiculous, really, and it made me realise I had basically put a load of work into what had become one man's total dictatorship.
My best memory? Perhaps during the Dinarchial 'Golden Age' when the economy first started, when citizenship was really high, when we were basically all on a high from our own success, it was great and anyone else who was around at that time will remember the triumphalist speeches I was making, and I'm sure the general happiness of the period.
HT: During the upheaval of the revolution, etc - did you ever personally feel that the attempt to create a Republic would fail?
SO: Yes, most definitely. I thought it would fail, that Delphi would backdown and we'd all live happily ever after in a unified Antica. I realised after a couple of weeks that this situation was probably not going to happen, but I remained a dual citizen of both the Dinarchy and the Republic, I think the only person to have ever held both citizenships simultaneously.
HT: If most of the Antican citizenry is predominantly lefist, how come Antica is a liberal democracy, and the laws aren't particularly socialist or communist?
SO: Well I think a lot of Antica is on the anti-authoritarian left, and none of us (apart from myself) are actually active in real life left wing politics (my own politics are perhaps more centrist than people see online). It's a very good question though, and a question I sometimes ponder myself. I think a lot of us realise that socialism and other leftist ideologies are good in situations where there exists major poverty and social exclusion (as happens in the real world), whereas in Antica, there isn't really a need for socialism as there is not really an economic ruling class and a proletariat/mass working class.
Additionally, as many people will know, I define 'American Left' very differently to 'Rest of the World' left!
HT: Not too long ago you posted an essay on Micronational economies. While it is held by most that micronational economies are impossible - how do you feel personally? Is the idea of a functioning micronational economy doomed to failure?
SO: Not at all. The idea of a functioning micronational economy is perfectly plausible, and the Republic has one right now, if one merely looks at the work I started doing in my role last term as Finance Officer. We have the Government stimulating much of the economic development, true, which I think is necessary early on, but soon, I think everyone will begin to understand the fact that our economy (that uses a PHPbank) can offer so much, like standardising the exchange of images, essays, signatures, newspapers, etc. I honestly think that those who doubt that a micronational economy can exist need to have a talk to me, and I'll show them some evidence to prove that while micornational economies cannot buy as real life cars or get us real life American dollars, they CAN even help us outside of our micronational lives.
Thank you so much for seeing me today, Mister Speaker. I've enjoyed our talk very much, and hope to return again sometime to interview your successor.
Thank you very much, Comrade! I too have enjoyed the discussion, a bit of a trip down memory lane as it were, and hopefully your readers will find interesting facts within my comments. My successor? Well, that may never happen, if you know what I mean [laughs], but seriously, thank you again, and good luck with your journalistic endeavours!
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Monday, July 17, 2006
Commentary: Death of a Nation pt. 1
(notice: please dont message, email me, etc about how biased this article might be. It's a commentary - it's supposed to be subjective. This is part 1 in a series to follow about nations that have fallen off for whatever reason.)
Today we explore the example of Novaya Zemlya.
Novaya Zemlya saw it's birth as a Socialist Republic of the USSR Micronation. Shortly after Zemlya gained SSR status, the USSR would dissolve due to overwhelming internal strife, leaving Zemlya out on it's own. The 4 men who began the nation would not allow their dream to die, and re-structured the SSR into it's own independent nation. Then began a flurry of activity as they created laws, instituted Foreign Policy, created a vodka distillery and economic foundation, and began a Football League - all in a matter of 8 weeks' time.
At it's peak, Zemlya saw quite a bit of activity. Posting levels hovered around 35+ per day (not bad for a nation with only 6 registered citizens), and their artistic contributions were unrivaled at the time. Nearly every Zemlyan citizen was a registered artist - putting forth original paintings, drawings, computer art, poetry, song lyrics, short stories - almost anything you can imagine. They even published two books: titled "Nuked" and "Balloons".
In addition to posting activity and art, Zemlyans were respected throughout the Sector - by monarchist and socialist alike. Instead of taking the hardline Trotsky-like communist stance against anything non-socialist, Zemlya were passive and neutral, not even raising up armed forces - just keeping a small police force to use in urban areas for civil order. There wasn't a respectable Micronation in the Sector who wasn't dealing with Zemlya, hoping to get their hands (and livers) on the renouned Zemlyan Vodka.
Speaking of the vodka, Zemlya will live on in history as the first Micronation to have a functioning economy based on bottles of vodka (no seriously). Citizens were paid with the stuff, they traded with it, and each one basically consumed it on a scale that would have killed several hundred asian elephants. Please see the image below of a banknote for 20 Bottles of Vodka (created for use outside of Zemlya).
The nation even had it's own set of vodka bottle emoticons - one for each of the 12 Zemlyan Vodkas produced. From that idea, several other nations (most notably Gotzborg) would create their own set of alcohol-inspired emoticons for use on their own fora. Here is an image of the emoticons once used in Zemlya:
Novaya Zemlya would also become a popular proponent of Micronational Radio, and "Radio Free Zemlya" went on-air in March of 2005. The station would bring regular news and updates to the Zemlyan people, as well as anyone else who wished to listen in - and kept a blog containing transcripts for those with really slow net access. Zemlya would win a FNORD in 2006 for Excellence in the Field of Journalism - much of the credit for this going to the popularity of RFZ as well as the various state-run entities.
Eventually, Zemlya was doing so well that someone came up with the clever idea of screwing it all up. So the nation made a move toward pure communism - a move that effectively killed the nation off for nearly half a year. This was helped along by the loss of 3/4ths of the founders just a few short weeks following the attempt at communism. So it came to pass that Novaya Zemlya, once the preeminent Socialist Micronation in our Sector, fell into severe inactivity. After existing for over a year, and thriving to the point where it was the most respected Socialist Micronation on the Micras map, the nation was handed over to the GC as a Proctectorate until such time as the Zemlyans decided they wanted it back.
Skip ahead those six months later. With the return of 2 founders, Zemlya saw a brief re-birth. The boards were revived, and activity began to pick back up as all 4 founders eventually came back and pitched in. There was a reversion back to the original socialist system, with only the enterprises being cooperatively owned. They re-claimed their independence from the GC, and were given back their land. Things were looking up - until one of the founders became seriously ill and passed away, causing the others to experience a period of mourning that would result in the complete death of the nation. Only one remained, the original founder himself - who tried to save Zemlya on his own. All was in vain, and the board suffered some sort of deletion no more than 10 days ago. Novaya Zemlya is truly gone - all that remains are our memories, some images, and a few publications.
Today we explore the example of Novaya Zemlya.
Novaya Zemlya saw it's birth as a Socialist Republic of the USSR Micronation. Shortly after Zemlya gained SSR status, the USSR would dissolve due to overwhelming internal strife, leaving Zemlya out on it's own. The 4 men who began the nation would not allow their dream to die, and re-structured the SSR into it's own independent nation. Then began a flurry of activity as they created laws, instituted Foreign Policy, created a vodka distillery and economic foundation, and began a Football League - all in a matter of 8 weeks' time.
At it's peak, Zemlya saw quite a bit of activity. Posting levels hovered around 35+ per day (not bad for a nation with only 6 registered citizens), and their artistic contributions were unrivaled at the time. Nearly every Zemlyan citizen was a registered artist - putting forth original paintings, drawings, computer art, poetry, song lyrics, short stories - almost anything you can imagine. They even published two books: titled "Nuked" and "Balloons".
In addition to posting activity and art, Zemlyans were respected throughout the Sector - by monarchist and socialist alike. Instead of taking the hardline Trotsky-like communist stance against anything non-socialist, Zemlya were passive and neutral, not even raising up armed forces - just keeping a small police force to use in urban areas for civil order. There wasn't a respectable Micronation in the Sector who wasn't dealing with Zemlya, hoping to get their hands (and livers) on the renouned Zemlyan Vodka.
Speaking of the vodka, Zemlya will live on in history as the first Micronation to have a functioning economy based on bottles of vodka (no seriously). Citizens were paid with the stuff, they traded with it, and each one basically consumed it on a scale that would have killed several hundred asian elephants. Please see the image below of a banknote for 20 Bottles of Vodka (created for use outside of Zemlya).
The nation even had it's own set of vodka bottle emoticons - one for each of the 12 Zemlyan Vodkas produced. From that idea, several other nations (most notably Gotzborg) would create their own set of alcohol-inspired emoticons for use on their own fora. Here is an image of the emoticons once used in Zemlya:
Novaya Zemlya would also become a popular proponent of Micronational Radio, and "Radio Free Zemlya" went on-air in March of 2005. The station would bring regular news and updates to the Zemlyan people, as well as anyone else who wished to listen in - and kept a blog containing transcripts for those with really slow net access. Zemlya would win a FNORD in 2006 for Excellence in the Field of Journalism - much of the credit for this going to the popularity of RFZ as well as the various state-run entities.
Eventually, Zemlya was doing so well that someone came up with the clever idea of screwing it all up. So the nation made a move toward pure communism - a move that effectively killed the nation off for nearly half a year. This was helped along by the loss of 3/4ths of the founders just a few short weeks following the attempt at communism. So it came to pass that Novaya Zemlya, once the preeminent Socialist Micronation in our Sector, fell into severe inactivity. After existing for over a year, and thriving to the point where it was the most respected Socialist Micronation on the Micras map, the nation was handed over to the GC as a Proctectorate until such time as the Zemlyans decided they wanted it back.
Skip ahead those six months later. With the return of 2 founders, Zemlya saw a brief re-birth. The boards were revived, and activity began to pick back up as all 4 founders eventually came back and pitched in. There was a reversion back to the original socialist system, with only the enterprises being cooperatively owned. They re-claimed their independence from the GC, and were given back their land. Things were looking up - until one of the founders became seriously ill and passed away, causing the others to experience a period of mourning that would result in the complete death of the nation. Only one remained, the original founder himself - who tried to save Zemlya on his own. All was in vain, and the board suffered some sort of deletion no more than 10 days ago. Novaya Zemlya is truly gone - all that remains are our memories, some images, and a few publications.
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Saturday, July 15, 2006
Commentary: The Lichtenbad Crisis
Some of our readers have been asking me, since the Interview with Emperor Edgard II of Alexandria, about the Lichtenbad Crisis, which was mentioned in the article. I felt it would be a good idea to present our first commentary on this most recent of Micronational enthrallments.
The Archduchy of Lichtenbad was a very short-lived micronation. I realize that's nothing new, since many projects fail rather quickly. What made Lichtenbad unique was that it's founder, Archduchess Marie-Valtraude, has been in micronations now for a few years, and has begun no less than 8 different micronational entities. That, in itself, isn't really too remarkable, but each project begun by her have faded away much sooner than they should have.
In order to help encourage participation by it's citizens, the Archduchess began elections for public office. The plan worked, as around half a dozen people began to campaign feverishly. At first, I was quite impressed and happy to see that the nation not only had a good base of interested people, but that the democratic process was going so well. There were banners, adverts, debates - everything you would expect from a healthy election period.
As the elections went on, I had a chat with the Archduchess. She mentioned to me that the elections were entirely controlled by her, with the results, etc going the way she wanted them. At first, I thought to myself - "This is a really clever idea. It brings about activity by way of 'campaigning', and gives everyone something constructive to do." What I didn't know, however, was that the people of Lichtenbad who were really real - you know - the ones who are actual people trying to build a country? Those people didn't know about the way the election was to be fixed. They were honestly trying (at least some - the ones I talked to) to get elected so they could do some good and move Lichtenbad along. When I found that out, I was bothered a bit.
Now we move on to post-election. There were some people whom the Archduchess professed not to like very much - yet she had no choice but to allow them some sort of governmental position. Even though she role-played the results, and determined the winner, those who lost still gained seats in Parliament. This was the result of few people, and many positions. In order to remove a couple of the more "agressive" political figures, the Archduchess staged a terrorist attack, which occurred during a Parade. Obviously there was no such attack, it was merely a tool for eliminating those she didn't want in government.
My biggest problem with this lies in the fact that terrorism is a very real, very frightening aspect of our macronational lives. It's a serious matter, not to be tossed about lightly in role-play. Being that the attacks were role-played, the people who were subsequently blamed were, of course, innocent of any wrongdoing. But that didn't stop the newly appointed Chancellor from pressing charges, and having people arrested. The Archduchess turned over full control of the government to the Chancellor, who wasted no time in abusing her new found powers.
The people arrested were Lichtenbader patriots in the sense that they joined the nation, and participated quite heavily. Their viewpoints and such may not have been in line with the monarchy or those in the Archduchess' inner circle, but isn't that part of what makes a micronation more fun, and truly democratic? Varying points of view and opinions are neccessary in order to properly fuel the population into participating. The enjoyment of participation, however, was removed from these people by the actions of the nation's founder.
Enter complete and utter chaos. One of the shunned government officials formed up his own army to combat the Chancellor and the martial law she'd instated. Then other nations, some at the behest of the Lichtenbad government, and some just for the sheer fun that comes along with invading another nation, joined in the fray. Before the situation could be concluded though, the Archduchess basically took her nation and wiped it off the face of the internet, on her own, in one fell swoop. Just like that, The Archduchy of Lichtenbad, and all the hard work of her people was gone. No trace remains aside from some posts in other nations: in Alexandria about the Crisis: and a few posts in Stormark from the Archduchess. There may be others, but that's about it.
So ends the saga of Lichtenbad. I have little doubt that most will have forgotten this little piece of Micronational history before too long - but it was still an interesting story that bore repeating.
The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the writer only, and are not indicative of any official position(s) held by the Emperor or Government of the Viking Empire of Stormark.
The Archduchy of Lichtenbad was a very short-lived micronation. I realize that's nothing new, since many projects fail rather quickly. What made Lichtenbad unique was that it's founder, Archduchess Marie-Valtraude, has been in micronations now for a few years, and has begun no less than 8 different micronational entities. That, in itself, isn't really too remarkable, but each project begun by her have faded away much sooner than they should have.
In order to help encourage participation by it's citizens, the Archduchess began elections for public office. The plan worked, as around half a dozen people began to campaign feverishly. At first, I was quite impressed and happy to see that the nation not only had a good base of interested people, but that the democratic process was going so well. There were banners, adverts, debates - everything you would expect from a healthy election period.
As the elections went on, I had a chat with the Archduchess. She mentioned to me that the elections were entirely controlled by her, with the results, etc going the way she wanted them. At first, I thought to myself - "This is a really clever idea. It brings about activity by way of 'campaigning', and gives everyone something constructive to do." What I didn't know, however, was that the people of Lichtenbad who were really real - you know - the ones who are actual people trying to build a country? Those people didn't know about the way the election was to be fixed. They were honestly trying (at least some - the ones I talked to) to get elected so they could do some good and move Lichtenbad along. When I found that out, I was bothered a bit.
Now we move on to post-election. There were some people whom the Archduchess professed not to like very much - yet she had no choice but to allow them some sort of governmental position. Even though she role-played the results, and determined the winner, those who lost still gained seats in Parliament. This was the result of few people, and many positions. In order to remove a couple of the more "agressive" political figures, the Archduchess staged a terrorist attack, which occurred during a Parade. Obviously there was no such attack, it was merely a tool for eliminating those she didn't want in government.
My biggest problem with this lies in the fact that terrorism is a very real, very frightening aspect of our macronational lives. It's a serious matter, not to be tossed about lightly in role-play. Being that the attacks were role-played, the people who were subsequently blamed were, of course, innocent of any wrongdoing. But that didn't stop the newly appointed Chancellor from pressing charges, and having people arrested. The Archduchess turned over full control of the government to the Chancellor, who wasted no time in abusing her new found powers.
The people arrested were Lichtenbader patriots in the sense that they joined the nation, and participated quite heavily. Their viewpoints and such may not have been in line with the monarchy or those in the Archduchess' inner circle, but isn't that part of what makes a micronation more fun, and truly democratic? Varying points of view and opinions are neccessary in order to properly fuel the population into participating. The enjoyment of participation, however, was removed from these people by the actions of the nation's founder.
Enter complete and utter chaos. One of the shunned government officials formed up his own army to combat the Chancellor and the martial law she'd instated. Then other nations, some at the behest of the Lichtenbad government, and some just for the sheer fun that comes along with invading another nation, joined in the fray. Before the situation could be concluded though, the Archduchess basically took her nation and wiped it off the face of the internet, on her own, in one fell swoop. Just like that, The Archduchy of Lichtenbad, and all the hard work of her people was gone. No trace remains aside from some posts in other nations: in Alexandria about the Crisis: and a few posts in Stormark from the Archduchess. There may be others, but that's about it.
So ends the saga of Lichtenbad. I have little doubt that most will have forgotten this little piece of Micronational history before too long - but it was still an interesting story that bore repeating.
The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the writer only, and are not indicative of any official position(s) held by the Emperor or Government of the Viking Empire of Stormark.
posted by Anonymous at 1:58 PM ¤ Permalink ¤
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Friday, July 14, 2006
Interview with Emperor Edgard II of Alexandria
Warm Greetings, my loyal and kind readers!! Today, I recount the visit I recently made to the Empire of the Alexandrians. There, I was permitted a tete-a-tete with the Emperor himself, Emperor Edgard II.
I arrived at the Palace early this morning, somewhat jet-lagged yet very excited for this chance to have a candid conversation with this rather well-known ruler. His office was well apportioned, but it was the desk that caught my eye. It is covered with intricate marquetry of a wide variety of fine woods. In an oval reserve at the center of the side facing away from the king himself (and toward me), is the marquetry Head of Silence, with forefinger to lips, a reminder of the discretion required in the Emperor's business. Gilt-bronze moldings of plaques, statuettes, miniature busts and vases, even intricate scrolling gilt-bronze candle stands, further adorn the surfaces of the desk. I admit it was somewhat intimidating!!
I was welcomed, and took a seat across from the Emperor - who, on the other side of his desk, seemed a mile away from myself. And now for the transcript of my interview with Emperor Edgard II of Alexandria.
(HT = Haraldsborg Times, EE = Emperor Edgard)
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This first part reflects my talk with the man behind the Emperor - these are "out of character" questions.
HT: Alexandria has been around for some time now. Didn't the project to build a nation originate with another, less popular micronation called... ... well, called "Kingdom of the Union of Madland", "Kingdom of the Union of Madland and its corresponding Empire", and finally "The Empire of the Madlandians"?
EE: Yes, Alexandria was formerly called Madland. In November 11th, 2004, a unanimous referendum endorsed the name change to Alexandria. After a disastrous war with Arminy, Alexandria briefly ceased to exist as the Empire's boards were taken over by the so-called "Islamic Republic of Sennar". After that, I left to create San Martin, which was wildly successful, and while in San Martin, I re-founded Alexandria, after noticing that the people from Sennar were pretty much gone.
HT: What makes Alexandria so different from what many see as the dismal failure that was Madland?
EE: There is a larger sense of seriousness, I presume. Alexandria sees itself as a serious micronation, and when I say "serious", I mainly say that we are much more serious than what Madland was. Madland was originally meant as a con-world, then it developed into a con-nation... with "con", I mean that it was a constructed thing, not meant to serve as a serious, working nation. It was the figment of my middle school/ early high school imagination... and before we even realized it, we were involved in Micras through Puritania and Northworthy. Our "con-world, con-nation" image never really left until we saw that it was time for us to move out of that phase. We are more determined to make Alexandria work and progress towards greatness.
HT: Your national forums were recently overhauled just before Flag Day. What brought about the drastic change, and how have the people of Alexandria responded?
EE: The change in the forum look for Flag Day was meant to convey Alexandrian patriotism - there is a lot of red, white and blue, which are the colors of our flag. This year, we failed to make any significant celebrations for our national anniversary due to the Circum-Raynor War and the Lovely incidents, so we picked Flag Day as a sort of "makeup" day to celebrate our nation. Our flag represents just that, our nation, so we thought it would make sense. Pretty much everyone in Alexandria so far have said that they like the new look of the forums. I quite enjoy the new look, its modern yet it reflects the tradition of the Alexandrian tri-color.
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This is the "in character" portion of the interview - the reporter and the Emperor.
HT: Your Majesty - thank you so much for seeing us today.
EE: Thank you for coming to Wesloderia. I'm happy to participate in this interview with you.
HT: Let's get down to it, shall we?
Your Majesty, quite recently, Alexandria has skewed off onto a tangent that some critics have claimed as "overly militaristic", "war mongering", etc. There was the Circum-Raynor War, then almost immediately the Lichtenbad Crisis, the creation of your own Rec-War Society along with a Civil War, and there are rumors that you planned to participate in the Nidaros-Hurmu War that's almost occurred in Stormark. Is Alexandria planning some sort of move to a more Stratocratic System?? If so, why? And if not, then why all the military actions of late?
EE: Alexandria is not moving towards a Stratocratic system at all. Until recently, Alexandria has paid almost no attention to its military - and now that we have begun to work towards establishing the Alexandrian military as a better and improved fighting force, we feel that we have to... well, use it to keep the peace in Micras and to protect our allies and friends as well as our interests. Alexandria is not a tiny Cibolan nation anymore, we have expanded into We were drawn to the Circum-Raynor War first as a peacekeeping force, but the attack on Babhkan forces drew us into full out war through certain treaty commitments we have with the Grand Commonwealth. Certain parts of the Lichtenbad Crisis were stains in our record - we never were able to fully conclude operations as we wished since the country collapsed before we could really do anything.
In regards to the new Rec-War society, we just want to be able to have a true Alexandrian organization to foster some friendly and healthy competition amongst our citizens and foreigners as well. The Civil War currently going on has no effect on the reality of Alexandria, and its meant to be completely for fun.
Regarding the Nidaros-Hurmu War, I cannot specifically state anything other than we are not necessarily ruling out an involvement. However, we have not reached a decision.
HT: Speaking of decision - Elections are coming up in Alexandria again. It seems that there are elections in your nation almost continuously. Do you feel this is healthy, or counter-productive? Some might say that it destabilizes the government to have so many changes so often. Has anyone in Alexandria considered the potential for lengthening the terms of office?
EE: A lot of people throughout Micras insist that Alexandria might not be a democracy, but the fact that we have elections continuously and that we have a fair amount of turnout in them should reflect that we are indeed a working democracy. However, the current election schedule makes things rather hectic, and it can have destabilizing consequences for the government. Prime Minister Jose Frias hopes to come up with several constitutional amendments to fix this issue. I have been in contact with him often regarding the matter, as I feel that keeping a steady and easy schedule of elections could indeed benefit the nation.
HT: Your nation certainly has been doing rather well lately. There are a few core citizens who participate rather heavily, keeping Alexandria active and thriving. What, in your opinion, are some of the main reasons for your nation's appeal to others?
EE: I think that what keeps Alexandria going is the political activity. Despite being a monarchy, Alexandria has an active Parliament elected directly by the citizens of the Empire's provinces. Also, the diversity found in Alexandria - both French and Spanish themes are proudly conveyed - does more to attract people that enjoy participating in either one or maybe even both of the cultural sectors of Alexandria. Also, despite the instability of the past, Alexandria has shown that it is here to stay - and that shows that Alexandria is worth joining and participating in.
HT: Alexandria is a member of the Novasolum Traty; a Pact of sorts among the nations occupying the continent on which your nation has some land. What do you feel are the benefits of being in this Partnership? Does Alexandria have solid relationships with all of the Members? And do you see any potential pitfalls of belonging to this group?
EE: Novasolum has been both welcomed and criticized in Alexandria. However, I can say that through Novasolum we have been able to reinforce relationships with friends such as Gotzborg and Natopia. Novasolum also has gotten Alexandria to be involved in common law enforcement efforts that have worked efficiently in preventing those who are reputed to be troublemakers from premeditatedly triggering trouble within our nations. The Pact has also opened Alexandria as a free market to all Novasolan companies, primarily those from Gotzborg. However, there is a dark side to everything - and Novasolum is no exception.
HT: Could you please elaborate on what you mean by a "dark side", Your Majesty?
EE: The critics of Novasolum in Alexandria continue to state that the Pact is merely a vehicle for Anthelia to dominate the continent, since to them it seems that Anthelia is "controlling" Novasolum. I guess one can see their point of view if one quotes the time Alexandria wished to place a rainforest in what was then Nubinar, which is East Baudrix today. They were working on a ecological simulation that obviously Alexandria wasn't even participating in, and they came over to the MCS demanding that Alexandria remove the rainforest... from its own lands! I can see how people can take the impression that Anthelia is using the Pact to extend its influence over all Novasolan nations.
The critics of Novasolum within Alexandria have also quoted the incident with Lovely - the spy scandals that so much rocked relations between Alexandria and Lovely. It was obvious that they had stepped out of bounds, the SNARL Charter specifically stated that spying was out of the question, and that recwars were meant to be friendly. When we tried to make our case before the nations of Novasolum, they even went on to support Lovely in its spying of Alexandria! I'm not so sure whether that's the behavior of an "ally". Anthelia and Paulovia practically endorsed Lovely's actions, while Gotzborg merely ignored it. Natopia was probably the only nation in the continent which whom Alexandria has a very close relationship with and can count on to support us if needed. They know that Alexandria is also willing to do the same, hell, their Prime Minister Tasneem doesn't live too far from my house in Grand Rapids, MI. I can probably even walk there if I wanted to one day.
We also wished for Novasolum to support us in the recwar against Lovely and all we got was a massive cold shoulder for the region except for again, Natopia.
It's interesting. The other day, while speaking to the Prime Minister (Jose Frias), he made it clear that he thought that Novasolum looked down upon Alexandria and constantly made it the butt of the region's jokes. The sham "peace conference" that the Anthelians set up to supposedly mediate eventually turned into an Alexandrian hate fest, even from the hosts themselves. I was deeply disappointed, since I wasn't even contacted by Anthelia about this. It just got downright nasty in there... I just had everyone withdraw from it. It had turned into a joke.
*As he spoke, I could see the Emperor beginning to anger. His face and neck had turned red, and his countenance began to twist somewhat. I felt it was best to leave this topic be, and move on.*
HT: Alexandria was planning to join the Inter-Micronational Economic Community which your Novasolum Partners are using. Why was the project abandoned by your nation, and do you see a potential re-try in the future?
EE: Alexandria values inter-micronational economic cooperation, but we abandoned the idea because of our difficulties in joining MX2, which we have never truly been able to work towards overcoming. Hopefully this will change in the future.
HT: Some time back, you re-organized the Alexandrian Nobility. What was the motivation behind the changes, and can you explain the system a little for us?
EE: The reorganization of the Alexandrian nobility was the brain child of the late Count of Poitou, Robert Davis. We had been discussing for ages the pressing need to reorganize the nobility in Alexandria, and he came up with a really cool two-tiered system. One tier is the classes of nobility and the other are the noble ranks themselves. Within the classes of nobility are four types of "noblesse" - Noblesse Ancienne, or ancient nobility; Noblesse de Chancellerie, or people ennobled as reward for long, faithful and/or meritorious service; Noblesse de Lettres, or those who are ennobled for service to a lesser degree than Chancellerie; and then there's noblesse chevalresque, for those who have been knighted but don't hold lands. It's a very interesting system.
HT: And now for questions submitted by our loyal readers. Are you ready for this, Your Majesty?
EE: Sure. Bombard me with the questions!
HT: What was the best day of your reign?
EE: I think the best day of my reign was the celebration of Alexandria's 3rd anniversary. Actually, every time we celebrate May 7th, it's a good day - Alexandria has stood for one more year, showing everyone who doubted us, wrong. It's a chance to let everyone know that it's not just me, but mainly the citizens of the Empire who serve as the heart of the Empire, pumping more life into it. Every time we celebrate our nation's birthday is definitely up there as the best - but out of all the ones we've celebrated, the 3rd anniversary is much more memorable.
HT: What was the worst day of your reign?
EE: The worst day, or days, of my reign has definitely been the days of Micro World War I, where everything in Alexandria was up in the air. The worst day of my reign definitely has to be when the Empire's forums were overtaken by the Islamic Republic of Sennar and pretty much deleted all of the work that our nation had achieved after we gained independence from Antica.
HT: Have you ever thought of abdicating?
EE: Actually, I have thought about it many times. Sometimes when things in Alexandria go wrong, I question whether I should continue on as leader. Also, macronational pressures such as school, work, relationships and family have prompted me to consider abdication. However, the thought of abandoning my work for the last four years is just too heart wrenching for me. I see Alexandria as if it were my "child" even!
HT: With which micronational monarch would you like to switch thrones with for one day?
EE: If my dearest Cousin from Stormark wouldn't mind, I'd definitely switch thrones with him for a day. I have always been fond of Stormark and its people, and out of all Micras, Alexandria and Stormark probably have one of the strongest alliances. It's such a wonderful micronation.
HT: If a country would declare war on Alexandria which three countries would you turn to for help?
EE: Most definitely, Alexandria knows it can count on the friendship of Stormark in case of need. Stormark would be definitely first in the list. Second would be the Grand Commonwealth, and third would most likely be Antica. Alexandria has a close relationship with all of them, especially with Stormark.
HT: What, in your opinion, are the main factors behind your ironclad friendship with Stormark?
EE: Besides the fact that we share a wonderful and hardworking woman as our Empress and Queen, I have developed a strong personal friendship with Harald. He is one of the few micronationalists in which I can speak with not only as a fellow head of state, but as a friend. Stormark and Alexandria also share citizens, such as my brother Enrique and the Archduke of Asuncion. That should be a testament to the enduring friendship of our nations - we share citizens, yet, we are perfectly content with it and we gladly accept each other with open arms. I know that I can count on Stormark's friendship, just like they know they can count on ours.
HT: What would be the profile of the ideal citizen for Alexandria?
EE: The ideal Alexandrian citizen is loyal to the Empire, proud to be an Alexandrian, and someone who believes strongly that there is always something to do for the progress and betterment of the nation. An ideal Alexandrian citizen is committed to Alexandria and committed to supporting its institutions of the monarchy, democracy and liberty.
HT: That wraps things up for this interview! Thank you so much for speaking with me today, Your Majesty. We at the Haraldsborg Times wish your nation a long life, and continued prosperity.
EE: Thank you, and I really enjoyed having this interview with you. Maybe we can meet again after the elections for a quick update.
I arrived at the Palace early this morning, somewhat jet-lagged yet very excited for this chance to have a candid conversation with this rather well-known ruler. His office was well apportioned, but it was the desk that caught my eye. It is covered with intricate marquetry of a wide variety of fine woods. In an oval reserve at the center of the side facing away from the king himself (and toward me), is the marquetry Head of Silence, with forefinger to lips, a reminder of the discretion required in the Emperor's business. Gilt-bronze moldings of plaques, statuettes, miniature busts and vases, even intricate scrolling gilt-bronze candle stands, further adorn the surfaces of the desk. I admit it was somewhat intimidating!!
I was welcomed, and took a seat across from the Emperor - who, on the other side of his desk, seemed a mile away from myself. And now for the transcript of my interview with Emperor Edgard II of Alexandria.
(HT = Haraldsborg Times, EE = Emperor Edgard)
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This first part reflects my talk with the man behind the Emperor - these are "out of character" questions.
HT: Alexandria has been around for some time now. Didn't the project to build a nation originate with another, less popular micronation called... ... well, called "Kingdom of the Union of Madland", "Kingdom of the Union of Madland and its corresponding Empire", and finally "The Empire of the Madlandians"?
EE: Yes, Alexandria was formerly called Madland. In November 11th, 2004, a unanimous referendum endorsed the name change to Alexandria. After a disastrous war with Arminy, Alexandria briefly ceased to exist as the Empire's boards were taken over by the so-called "Islamic Republic of Sennar". After that, I left to create San Martin, which was wildly successful, and while in San Martin, I re-founded Alexandria, after noticing that the people from Sennar were pretty much gone.
HT: What makes Alexandria so different from what many see as the dismal failure that was Madland?
EE: There is a larger sense of seriousness, I presume. Alexandria sees itself as a serious micronation, and when I say "serious", I mainly say that we are much more serious than what Madland was. Madland was originally meant as a con-world, then it developed into a con-nation... with "con", I mean that it was a constructed thing, not meant to serve as a serious, working nation. It was the figment of my middle school/ early high school imagination... and before we even realized it, we were involved in Micras through Puritania and Northworthy. Our "con-world, con-nation" image never really left until we saw that it was time for us to move out of that phase. We are more determined to make Alexandria work and progress towards greatness.
HT: Your national forums were recently overhauled just before Flag Day. What brought about the drastic change, and how have the people of Alexandria responded?
EE: The change in the forum look for Flag Day was meant to convey Alexandrian patriotism - there is a lot of red, white and blue, which are the colors of our flag. This year, we failed to make any significant celebrations for our national anniversary due to the Circum-Raynor War and the Lovely incidents, so we picked Flag Day as a sort of "makeup" day to celebrate our nation. Our flag represents just that, our nation, so we thought it would make sense. Pretty much everyone in Alexandria so far have said that they like the new look of the forums. I quite enjoy the new look, its modern yet it reflects the tradition of the Alexandrian tri-color.
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This is the "in character" portion of the interview - the reporter and the Emperor.
HT: Your Majesty - thank you so much for seeing us today.
EE: Thank you for coming to Wesloderia. I'm happy to participate in this interview with you.
HT: Let's get down to it, shall we?
Your Majesty, quite recently, Alexandria has skewed off onto a tangent that some critics have claimed as "overly militaristic", "war mongering", etc. There was the Circum-Raynor War, then almost immediately the Lichtenbad Crisis, the creation of your own Rec-War Society along with a Civil War, and there are rumors that you planned to participate in the Nidaros-Hurmu War that's almost occurred in Stormark. Is Alexandria planning some sort of move to a more Stratocratic System?? If so, why? And if not, then why all the military actions of late?
EE: Alexandria is not moving towards a Stratocratic system at all. Until recently, Alexandria has paid almost no attention to its military - and now that we have begun to work towards establishing the Alexandrian military as a better and improved fighting force, we feel that we have to... well, use it to keep the peace in Micras and to protect our allies and friends as well as our interests. Alexandria is not a tiny Cibolan nation anymore, we have expanded into We were drawn to the Circum-Raynor War first as a peacekeeping force, but the attack on Babhkan forces drew us into full out war through certain treaty commitments we have with the Grand Commonwealth. Certain parts of the Lichtenbad Crisis were stains in our record - we never were able to fully conclude operations as we wished since the country collapsed before we could really do anything.
In regards to the new Rec-War society, we just want to be able to have a true Alexandrian organization to foster some friendly and healthy competition amongst our citizens and foreigners as well. The Civil War currently going on has no effect on the reality of Alexandria, and its meant to be completely for fun.
Regarding the Nidaros-Hurmu War, I cannot specifically state anything other than we are not necessarily ruling out an involvement. However, we have not reached a decision.
HT: Speaking of decision - Elections are coming up in Alexandria again. It seems that there are elections in your nation almost continuously. Do you feel this is healthy, or counter-productive? Some might say that it destabilizes the government to have so many changes so often. Has anyone in Alexandria considered the potential for lengthening the terms of office?
EE: A lot of people throughout Micras insist that Alexandria might not be a democracy, but the fact that we have elections continuously and that we have a fair amount of turnout in them should reflect that we are indeed a working democracy. However, the current election schedule makes things rather hectic, and it can have destabilizing consequences for the government. Prime Minister Jose Frias hopes to come up with several constitutional amendments to fix this issue. I have been in contact with him often regarding the matter, as I feel that keeping a steady and easy schedule of elections could indeed benefit the nation.
HT: Your nation certainly has been doing rather well lately. There are a few core citizens who participate rather heavily, keeping Alexandria active and thriving. What, in your opinion, are some of the main reasons for your nation's appeal to others?
EE: I think that what keeps Alexandria going is the political activity. Despite being a monarchy, Alexandria has an active Parliament elected directly by the citizens of the Empire's provinces. Also, the diversity found in Alexandria - both French and Spanish themes are proudly conveyed - does more to attract people that enjoy participating in either one or maybe even both of the cultural sectors of Alexandria. Also, despite the instability of the past, Alexandria has shown that it is here to stay - and that shows that Alexandria is worth joining and participating in.
HT: Alexandria is a member of the Novasolum Traty; a Pact of sorts among the nations occupying the continent on which your nation has some land. What do you feel are the benefits of being in this Partnership? Does Alexandria have solid relationships with all of the Members? And do you see any potential pitfalls of belonging to this group?
EE: Novasolum has been both welcomed and criticized in Alexandria. However, I can say that through Novasolum we have been able to reinforce relationships with friends such as Gotzborg and Natopia. Novasolum also has gotten Alexandria to be involved in common law enforcement efforts that have worked efficiently in preventing those who are reputed to be troublemakers from premeditatedly triggering trouble within our nations. The Pact has also opened Alexandria as a free market to all Novasolan companies, primarily those from Gotzborg. However, there is a dark side to everything - and Novasolum is no exception.
HT: Could you please elaborate on what you mean by a "dark side", Your Majesty?
EE: The critics of Novasolum in Alexandria continue to state that the Pact is merely a vehicle for Anthelia to dominate the continent, since to them it seems that Anthelia is "controlling" Novasolum. I guess one can see their point of view if one quotes the time Alexandria wished to place a rainforest in what was then Nubinar, which is East Baudrix today. They were working on a ecological simulation that obviously Alexandria wasn't even participating in, and they came over to the MCS demanding that Alexandria remove the rainforest... from its own lands! I can see how people can take the impression that Anthelia is using the Pact to extend its influence over all Novasolan nations.
The critics of Novasolum within Alexandria have also quoted the incident with Lovely - the spy scandals that so much rocked relations between Alexandria and Lovely. It was obvious that they had stepped out of bounds, the SNARL Charter specifically stated that spying was out of the question, and that recwars were meant to be friendly. When we tried to make our case before the nations of Novasolum, they even went on to support Lovely in its spying of Alexandria! I'm not so sure whether that's the behavior of an "ally". Anthelia and Paulovia practically endorsed Lovely's actions, while Gotzborg merely ignored it. Natopia was probably the only nation in the continent which whom Alexandria has a very close relationship with and can count on to support us if needed. They know that Alexandria is also willing to do the same, hell, their Prime Minister Tasneem doesn't live too far from my house in Grand Rapids, MI. I can probably even walk there if I wanted to one day.
We also wished for Novasolum to support us in the recwar against Lovely and all we got was a massive cold shoulder for the region except for again, Natopia.
It's interesting. The other day, while speaking to the Prime Minister (Jose Frias), he made it clear that he thought that Novasolum looked down upon Alexandria and constantly made it the butt of the region's jokes. The sham "peace conference" that the Anthelians set up to supposedly mediate eventually turned into an Alexandrian hate fest, even from the hosts themselves. I was deeply disappointed, since I wasn't even contacted by Anthelia about this. It just got downright nasty in there... I just had everyone withdraw from it. It had turned into a joke.
*As he spoke, I could see the Emperor beginning to anger. His face and neck had turned red, and his countenance began to twist somewhat. I felt it was best to leave this topic be, and move on.*
HT: Alexandria was planning to join the Inter-Micronational Economic Community which your Novasolum Partners are using. Why was the project abandoned by your nation, and do you see a potential re-try in the future?
EE: Alexandria values inter-micronational economic cooperation, but we abandoned the idea because of our difficulties in joining MX2, which we have never truly been able to work towards overcoming. Hopefully this will change in the future.
HT: Some time back, you re-organized the Alexandrian Nobility. What was the motivation behind the changes, and can you explain the system a little for us?
EE: The reorganization of the Alexandrian nobility was the brain child of the late Count of Poitou, Robert Davis. We had been discussing for ages the pressing need to reorganize the nobility in Alexandria, and he came up with a really cool two-tiered system. One tier is the classes of nobility and the other are the noble ranks themselves. Within the classes of nobility are four types of "noblesse" - Noblesse Ancienne, or ancient nobility; Noblesse de Chancellerie, or people ennobled as reward for long, faithful and/or meritorious service; Noblesse de Lettres, or those who are ennobled for service to a lesser degree than Chancellerie; and then there's noblesse chevalresque, for those who have been knighted but don't hold lands. It's a very interesting system.
HT: And now for questions submitted by our loyal readers. Are you ready for this, Your Majesty?
EE: Sure. Bombard me with the questions!
HT: What was the best day of your reign?
EE: I think the best day of my reign was the celebration of Alexandria's 3rd anniversary. Actually, every time we celebrate May 7th, it's a good day - Alexandria has stood for one more year, showing everyone who doubted us, wrong. It's a chance to let everyone know that it's not just me, but mainly the citizens of the Empire who serve as the heart of the Empire, pumping more life into it. Every time we celebrate our nation's birthday is definitely up there as the best - but out of all the ones we've celebrated, the 3rd anniversary is much more memorable.
HT: What was the worst day of your reign?
EE: The worst day, or days, of my reign has definitely been the days of Micro World War I, where everything in Alexandria was up in the air. The worst day of my reign definitely has to be when the Empire's forums were overtaken by the Islamic Republic of Sennar and pretty much deleted all of the work that our nation had achieved after we gained independence from Antica.
HT: Have you ever thought of abdicating?
EE: Actually, I have thought about it many times. Sometimes when things in Alexandria go wrong, I question whether I should continue on as leader. Also, macronational pressures such as school, work, relationships and family have prompted me to consider abdication. However, the thought of abandoning my work for the last four years is just too heart wrenching for me. I see Alexandria as if it were my "child" even!
HT: With which micronational monarch would you like to switch thrones with for one day?
EE: If my dearest Cousin from Stormark wouldn't mind, I'd definitely switch thrones with him for a day. I have always been fond of Stormark and its people, and out of all Micras, Alexandria and Stormark probably have one of the strongest alliances. It's such a wonderful micronation.
HT: If a country would declare war on Alexandria which three countries would you turn to for help?
EE: Most definitely, Alexandria knows it can count on the friendship of Stormark in case of need. Stormark would be definitely first in the list. Second would be the Grand Commonwealth, and third would most likely be Antica. Alexandria has a close relationship with all of them, especially with Stormark.
HT: What, in your opinion, are the main factors behind your ironclad friendship with Stormark?
EE: Besides the fact that we share a wonderful and hardworking woman as our Empress and Queen, I have developed a strong personal friendship with Harald. He is one of the few micronationalists in which I can speak with not only as a fellow head of state, but as a friend. Stormark and Alexandria also share citizens, such as my brother Enrique and the Archduke of Asuncion. That should be a testament to the enduring friendship of our nations - we share citizens, yet, we are perfectly content with it and we gladly accept each other with open arms. I know that I can count on Stormark's friendship, just like they know they can count on ours.
HT: What would be the profile of the ideal citizen for Alexandria?
EE: The ideal Alexandrian citizen is loyal to the Empire, proud to be an Alexandrian, and someone who believes strongly that there is always something to do for the progress and betterment of the nation. An ideal Alexandrian citizen is committed to Alexandria and committed to supporting its institutions of the monarchy, democracy and liberty.
HT: That wraps things up for this interview! Thank you so much for speaking with me today, Your Majesty. We at the Haraldsborg Times wish your nation a long life, and continued prosperity.
EE: Thank you, and I really enjoyed having this interview with you. Maybe we can meet again after the elections for a quick update.
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Thursday, July 13, 2006
We're BACK!
It's with great pleasure that we announce the reinstatement of the Haraldsborg Times. It's been a little while, but we're back!! Here are some of the things that readers can expect to see in the near future:
In-Depth (and no holds barred) Interviews with Heads of State, and other prominent figures from various micronations.
Commentaries on current events in our micronational sector.
Special Announcements from our Emperor, as well as important notices from close allies.
As you can see, the Times is about to take a slight turn away from merely news. Instead of just reporting facts, we'll be providing commentary, and hard-hitting interviews with Heads of State; asking the hard questions and not flinching! It's our hope that this new format will be appealing to most.
Each week, we will try to feature a new prominent figure in micronationalism. There will be a post in Stormark on each Monday, asking people to submit their own questions to the interviewee of the week. You can email those questions, your name may remain anonymous if you wish - ask ANYTHING you want! We'd love to hear from some people who might not particularly like the person to be interviewed, to see what he/she has to say about the more difficult issues. At the end of the day, the Haraldsborg Times will grow to great success with YOUR participation!
In-Depth (and no holds barred) Interviews with Heads of State, and other prominent figures from various micronations.
Commentaries on current events in our micronational sector.
Special Announcements from our Emperor, as well as important notices from close allies.
As you can see, the Times is about to take a slight turn away from merely news. Instead of just reporting facts, we'll be providing commentary, and hard-hitting interviews with Heads of State; asking the hard questions and not flinching! It's our hope that this new format will be appealing to most.
Each week, we will try to feature a new prominent figure in micronationalism. There will be a post in Stormark on each Monday, asking people to submit their own questions to the interviewee of the week. You can email those questions, your name may remain anonymous if you wish - ask ANYTHING you want! We'd love to hear from some people who might not particularly like the person to be interviewed, to see what he/she has to say about the more difficult issues. At the end of the day, the Haraldsborg Times will grow to great success with YOUR participation!
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