RIGHT TO LIFE NEWSLETTER
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Published March 31, 2016
http://www.nationstates.net/region=right_to_life | http://w11.zetaboards.com/NS_Right_to_Life/index/
February Senatorial Election (By http://www.nationstates.net/nation=united_massachusetts)
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From February 1-4, Right to Life held an election for two seats in the regional Senate, in which 22 citizens voted. The election was very close, and Founder http://www.nationstates.net/nation=culture_of_life (http://www.nationstates.net/nation=christian_democrats) had to break a tie for second place between http://www.nationstates.net/nation=imperii_ecclesia and http://www.nationstates.net/nation=united_massachusetts.
http://www.nationstates.net/nation=horatius_cocles (Life Party) – 36.36%
http://www.nationstates.net/nation=imperii_ecclesia (Conservative Federalist) – 27.27%
http://www.nationstates.net/nation=united_massachusetts (Liberals for Life) – 27.27%
http://www.nationstates.net/nation=ardaxia (Independent) – 4.55%
http://www.nationstates.net/nation=phydios (Conservative Federalist) – 4.55%
http://www.nationstates.net/nation=stellonia (Life Party) – 0.00%
http://www.nationstates.net/nation=texoma (Libertarian) – 0.00%
Culture of Life broke the tie in favor of Imperii Ecclesia after consulting President http://www.nationstates.net/nation=pan-celtic_nation, who said that he thought he could work better with IE.
The election was notable for a number of reasons. It was competitive all throughout, and there were more votes cast in this election than in October’s midterm election. The open forum for the candidates sparked intense debate about the issues, which allowed the general public to be informed. It was one of the most publicized and closest elections in modern regional history.
Region Reacts to Scalia’s Sudden Death (By http://www.nationstates.net/nation=culture_of_life)
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U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia died unexpectedly on February 13 of natural causes at the age of 79. Right to Life residents, most of whom are Americans, expressed mixed but mostly favorable feelings toward the late Justice. “I didn’t particularly like him,” opined one region member, “but he was an intelligent man. RIP.” Other region members lauded him as “the best justice on the Court” and “truly a zealous defender of constitutional government.” “While I disagree with many of Justice Scalia’s ideas,” said another, “he is an honorable man, and my condolences go out to his family.”
Some Right to Life residents were quick to make posts, which received numerous likes, praising Justice Scalia’s constitutional stances on marriage, firearms, and property rights. During his 30-year tenure, Scalia notably authored decisions affirming an individual right to bear arms against unreasonable restrictions and the right to property against regulatory seizure. He also, in recent years, dissented from the federal judiciary’s resolve to uproot the conjugal understanding of marriage that the federal government and two-thirds of states had elected to retain.
The late Justice, most importantly, was a staunch defender of the right of voters to adopt legislation protective of an unborn child’s right to life. To find in the U.S. Constitution a “right to destroy human fetuses,” Scalia famously wrote, “is to rattle off a collection of adjectives that simply decorate a value judgment and conceal a political choice.” By declaring abortion a fundamental right, he added, American judges “created a vast new class of abortion consumers and abortion proponents by eliminating the moral opprobrium that had attached to the act.” In the United States, hundreds of thousands of unborn children continue to be terminated every year, primarily for social or economic reasons in more than 90% of cases.
Rise, Election, and Fall of Saint Peter (By http://www.nationstates.net/nation=ovybia)
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Right to Life has had all kinds, from staunch conservatives to strong liberals, all united under the common pro-life cause. But there is one that makes the RTL history books, a nation by the name of the Patrimony of Saint Peter, a friendly and likable fellow who quickly captured the interests of Right to Life through his straightforward and frank manner. After residing in RTL for only a few months, he won the regional presidency. Peter was a strong believer in the free market and worked hard to deregulate the RTL economy. Many in the region took a liking to him, even those who had fundamental disagreements with his ideas. Unfortunately shortly, after the 2015 Christmas holiday, it became evident that Peter’s nation would cease to exist. After waiting many days past the official deadline for removing inactive government officials, the Founder remorsefully decided that he could wait no longer and needed to remove Peter as president. Soon thereafter, the Patrimony of Saint Peter ceased to exist.
After Peter went inactive as president, the RTL constitution placed the Founder in charge of choosing a replacement. It has been common tradition to allow the senior senator the option of taking the presidency, in this case Senator http://www.nationstates.net/nation=the_rouge_christmas_state. However, RCS declined. As he explained, “I was offered the Presidential position by http://www.nationstates.net/nation=culture of life, but I declined the offer due to being too busy to fulfill the position’s duties.” After a long deliberation, the Founder decided to appoint the second-place finisher of the previous presidential election, NationStates | Not Found. PCN accepted the position and is now currently serving as RTL president.
Stipend Reinstatement (By http://www.nationstates.net/nation=united_massachusetts)
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The Senate of Right to Life recently reinstated the stipend for citizens repealed by the fourteenth Senate. There had been much discussion about the stipend, with many agreeing that the applicant should apply rather than receive it automatically, with the reasoning being that the Bank of Right to Life might lose money by providing citizens with a stipend about which they didn’t care or even know they had. Some responded that the Bank Director should telegram them should they show any interest in greater forum participation. Ultimately, however, the new Senate quickly approved the reinstatement, with new regulations regarding its reception. The text of the bill, passed 3-0, is as follows:
Any citizen may apply for and, afterwards, shall receive a one-time payment from the Bank of ₤100 as long as both of the following conditions are satisfied:
- Membership on the regional forums for at least seven days; and
- At least five forum posts, excluding prohibited content as defined by ZetaBoards.
Nobody who has received a citizen’s payment in the past shall receive one again upon returning to the region.
Pro-Life Parliament Talk (By NationStates | Not Found)
In a poll in October 2015, the vast majority of Right to Life citizens said they were supportive of a roleplay legislature for the region’s shared nation, NationStates | Not Found. However, not much had been done after this except determining that it would be called a “Parliament.” Recently, however, when several nations stepped up potentially to lead the Parliament, the majority of citizens said that the Parliament should be opened, once and for all. Three candidates emerged: Enoch M. Rahn (NationStates | Not Found), Jeffery Pearce (http://www.nationstates.net/nation=united_massachusetts), and Dennis Rupert (http://www.nationstates.net/nation=stellonia); and the former two, in a short election, won speaker and deputy speaker respectively.
Pay Raises Coming? (By http://www.nationstates.net/nation=united_massachusetts)
http://www.nationstates.net/nation=aawia, our regional Bank Director, has recently opened a topic in the Lifemarket forum to discuss a possible increase in the region’s pay for government workers. This attention comes after the regional founder, NationStates | The Christian Socialist Republic of Culture of Life (http://www.nationstates.net/nation=christian_democrats), made the following post on the regional message board:
“I just paid out monthly governmental salaries in accordance with the region’s economic rules: ₤55 for seven offices, or less than ₤8 per office per month. Again, I just want to express my opinion that these salaries are absurdly low. One official receives ₤0 per month; and, on the current pay scale, a governmental minister would have to work for almost five and a half years just to start his own business with a private subforum.”
Several questions were raised in the discussion, among which included whether lower-level officials should be paid, how to cover the costs of a potential increase in pay, and to whom payment priority should be given.
The current government pay scale is:
Founder – ₤10 per month
President – ₤15 per month
Senator (x2) – ₤10 per month
Foreign Minister – ₤5 per month
Interior Minister – ₤5 per month
Bank Director – ₤0 per month
News Director – ₤10 for each newsletter published
Justice of the Peace – ₤10 for each case
Army member – ₤10 for each successful mission
The discussion topic is located here:
http://w11.zetaboards.com/NS_Right_to_Life/topic/11533129/1/
Controversial Case in the Justice Court (By http://www.nationstates.net/nation=united_massachusetts)
The trial recently concluded in the well-publicized Stellonia v. Texasa case. http://www.nationstates.net/nation=texasa, represented by NationStates | Not Found, was accused of spam and generally disruptive content-posting on the regional message board and the offsite forums. The defense and a private prosecution, led by http://www.nationstates.net/nation=stellonia, argued over whether Texasa’s posts fell under “free speech” or “spam.” Another question was the relevance of the precedent of RTL v. Catholic34, which established that nations in violation of NationStates’ rules are in violation of Right to Life law. The Justice of the Peace ruled in favor of Stellonia, determining that Texasa spammed the regional message board and forums and also violated court procedures by making threats and attacking Stellonia based on an earlier, irrelevant case, Phydios v. Stellonia.
The final judgment may be read here:
http://w11.zetaboards.com/NS_Right_to_Life/single/?p=8573799&t=11522812
Senate Interviews (By NationStates | Not Found)
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Interview with http://www.nationstates.net/nation=imperii_ecclesia:
Q. What ideas are you planning to implement in the coming months?
A. I cannot answer that question. Just know me and the other Senate members are working together currently to find solutions to several issues.
Q. Would you support a reform in wages? If so, would you lower or raise them? Would you support wages for lower level employees?
A. Yes. I have already voiced my opinion in increasing the wages. I think your idea for wages is excellent and only needs one change: you should get paid because your position is important.
See the full discussion at http://w11.zetaboards.com/NS_Right_to_Life/topic/11533129/1/.
Q. Would you support any types of reforms in anti-discrimination policy?
A. Yes. The anti-discrimination should follow ZetaBoards’ terms of service, no more no less.
Q. Do you believe the Senate should be expanded?
A. It is fine the way it is. Maybe having more members would make it more active. However I think it is unnecessary and currently am opposed to it. I believe it is fine the way it is.
Q. Any other comments?
A. None at the moment. Thank you for the interview, and God Bless! Thank you!
Interview with http://www.nationstates.net/nation=pan-celtic_nation:
Q. What ideas are you planning to implement in the coming months?
A. I am hoping to restart the regional economy through encouragement. I also wish to create a sort of “Education Army”, headed by the Foreign Minister, tasked with going out into NationStates and educating people on the value of life and our cause.
Q. Would you support a reform in wages? If so, would you lower or raise them? Would you support wages for lower level employees?
A. I would support a wage increase because the employees are not being paid wages in which they can create businesses and buy goods in the regional economy.
Q. Would you support any types of reforms in anti-discrimination policy?
A. No. The change for race/ethnicity was right.
Q. Do you believe the Senate should be expanded?
A. I would support it being expanded, yes. I think we have enough active members to expand it.
Q. Any other comments?
A. Tiocfaidh ár lá
Interview with http://www.nationstates.net/nation=horatius_cocles:
Q. Would you support a reform in wages? If so, would you lower or raise them? Would you support wages for lower level employees?
A. Yes, the wages should be increased. It makes no sense for a person to work two jobs and only receive pay for one of them. I would support wages for lower level employees.
Q. Do you believe the Senate should be expanded?
A. That is a tricky question. When I first came to RTL, I said no. Now, I’m thinking that it might not be a bad idea. When I first campaigned for the Senate, the election prior to the recent one we just had, I wanted the Senate to be expanded. While I am all for more representation, there is a lingering doubt that we just don’t have the number of active nations needed for this change to occur. RTL has over 100 nations, and only a dozen are active on the rmb. They are the same people who are active on the Forums. We need more activity before the expansion can occur and actually be worthwhile.
