Kevin's Watch

Plissken wrote:...and its currency is the wgd.

High Lord Tolkien wrote:There's no threat of war?
And you get to run the country?
Sounds like a liberal's wet dream!

Nathan wrote:New Bactra's national animal is the dragon, which teeters on the brink of extinction due to widespread deforestation...

Acknowledging that the recognition of the rights of sapients under international law remains a contentious issue within these halls;

Applauding the efforts of nations to extend essential rights and freedoms to non-human sapients in their own territories, and to lobby on behalf of non-human sapients on the global stage;

Affirming that all sapient creatures deserve the same rights and freedoms extended to humans, and that all sentient beings are deserving of protection under international law;

Noting that this legislation applies only to natural biological sapient species:

Defines "sapience" as independent capacity for wisdom, judgment, the formation of rational, abstract or logical thoughts, and the ability to communicate these thoughts with others;

Defines "sentience" as the ability to perceive consciousness or self-awareness, an intelligence that does not necessarily rise to the level of sapience;

Declares that member nations shall determine which biological species residing in their own borders possess sentient or sapient qualities, provided that the process involved is fair and even-handed and excludes potential conflicts of interest, that all available valid and confirmed scientific evidence is taken into account, and that denials of sentient or sapient status can be appealed to a higher, disinterested official or body within the government;

Requires member states to extend rights, freedoms, privileges and entitlements, on a par with those guaranteed to humans under international law, to all sapient species under their jurisdiction;

Obligates member states to take all prudent and necessary measures to protect all sentient creatures under their jurisdiction from deliberate, unprovoked harm, violence, killings, or extermination.

Votes For: 2,241

Votes Against: 1,913

The Community of The Olywa
"Oly! Oly! Oly!"

Category: Liberal Democratic Socialists
Civil Rights: Excellent
Economy: Struggling
Political Freedoms: Excessive
Location: The North Pacific

Regional Influence: Minnow

The Community of The Olywa is a tiny, socially progressive nation, remarkable for its absence of drug laws. Its intelligent population of 5 million love a good election, and the government gives them plenty of them. Universities tend to be full of students debating the merits of various civil and political rights, while businesses are tightly regulated and the wealthy viewed with suspicion.

The government -- a sprawling, bureaucracy-choked, corrupt, socially-minded morass -- juggles the competing demands of Education, Social Welfare, and Healthcare. The average income tax rate is 42%, but much higher for the wealthy. Private enterprise is illegal, but for those in the know there is a slick and highly efficient black market in Basket Weaving.

Crime is relatively low. The Olywa's national animal is the geoduck, which frolics freely in the nation's many lush forests, and its currency is the dollar.