Trantor Times
The Council Arena today faced down a disgruntled populace as they led a charge in deregulation of the commerce sector. Traditional anti business sentiment fell to the way side is the Nation facing 13% unemployment and an exodus of native businesses led to the most sweeping reforms of deregulation even seen.
Arena Chairman and UFD representative Michael Jarrods of the Stone House stated, “While the wrong doings and corruption of businesses in the past cost us dearly, we cannot continue to punish them for those crimes as a Republic. The blanket belief that all business is bad and the rich are the cause of all evil has led us to a point where we cut off our nose to spite our face. This legislation, long debated, is an attempt to find a fiscally safe middle ground that allows the growth of the economy, while protected workers right and consumer safety.”
In the debate were the crushing tax load carried by business, and the abdication of control in the unions. After the fall of the economy in the early 60’s many sighted correctly the false promises of trickle down economics and the idea that a strong business sector meant a strong quality of life for the people. Workers subjugated almost to the levels of serfs, and products released without testing or safety concerns, led to the darkest time in UshraKerbal history since the Hegemony. The fallout were the near draconian commerce control and commercial citizenship acts of the early 70’s. While they achieved their aims of worker protections and product safety many argued then as now that they went to far to stifle inovation.
RS representative Irene Malcom, leader of the minority opposition, said this to reporters after the vote. “UshraKerbal learned a bitter lesson decades ago that business without restraint is a plague that can and will drag the people down as much as it paints a false scene of success. Government is for the people and the idea that business needs protection is a fiction. We of the opposition can only hope we have not gone too far in protecting the ephemeral idea of commerce.”
The office of the Hegemon supported a great portion of this legislation and pushed it forward as compromise of unprecedented scope. The Hegemon himself was in attendence when the Arena vote was taken and signed the bill into law on the floor of the Arena Council.
Tim Isgood
Writer at large, Trantor Times