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Right to Life and the Allied States recently ratified a treaty aimed at strengthening their friendship. The treaty requires each region to remain in contact with the other via ambassadors on a monthly basis. It also arranges for an official state visit to each region at least once every six months. Visiting officials may address the other region's legislature on the issues of the day and any developments in their own region.

The treaty was the result of roughly two weeks of negotiation. The Senate of Right to Life passed the treaty on June 21 with all five senators voting in favor. The Senate of the Allied States, on June 22, ratified the treaty on a 3-2 vote with one senator abstaining and three not present. A month later, there was a formal signing ceremony in which the Allied States' Chancellor and Secretary of State and Right to Life's Founder, President, and Minister of Foreign Affairs participated.

TVP: Texasa vs. Predator (By The RCS)

Predator, or the Update Tool, was a script used by military gameplayers to calculate regions' update times. Earlier this year, the NationStates moderators determined that it was illegal and deleted the raider region DEN for its use. On May 31, Texasa, a Right to Life citizen and former DEN member, became involved in the Predator scandal when he confessed to having the script on his computer. As a consequence, he was temporarily banned from the World Assembly and had his main nation deleted.

Afterwards, Texasa attempted to withdraw his confession, pleading innocence as well as ignorance of the details of Predator. Many prominent military gameplayers, including several other former DEN members, immediately rushed to Texasa's defense. Gest II, for example, called the punishment of Texasa "a miscarriage of justice" and commented that "there is no way this guy is guilty."

Following an extended inquiry by the Right to Life government, Texasa, with the assistance of fellow regional citizens, filed an appeal. Considering the merits of the appeal and in light of numerous comments refuting Texasa's earlier confession, the NationStates moderators lifted their punishment on July 1. Moderator Sedgistan wrote, "Texasa finally managed to submit a coherent appeal a few days ago; this has been granted - his WA ban has been removed, and his main nation can be restored."

U.S. Young Adults Reject Abortion (By Culture of Life)

A new survey conducted by the University of Chicago and the Associated Press finds that most young adults (ages 18-30) in the United States reject the so-called "right to abortion." Only 45% of American young adults hold the opinion that abortion is "a matter of personal choice." On the other hand, 49% affirm the principle that the law should protect children by limiting abortion to rare circumstances.

Pro-life young people, however, disagree about the particulars of an abortion ban. The average respondent to the survey said that abortions should be permitted "only after the need for the abortion has been clearly established," especially referring to cases when maternal life is endangered or after the crime of rape or incest. In the United States, such extreme cases account for less than one-tenth of abortion procedures.

The survey also shows that Hispanic and African-American young adults are stronger supporters of the right to life than their peers. Whites (non-Hispanic) slightly favor greater legal protections for unborn children, and Asian Americans are the only racial/ethnic group who fail to recognize prenatal rights.

Residents of Right to Life greeted news of the survey with enthusiasm. A large majority of region members are adolescents or young adults themselves, and most live in the United States. (Players from six countries on four continents voted in the region's June election.) Since its establishment, Right to Life has embraced a "big tent" model. Regional law defines the pro-life position as opposition to induced abortion while allowing individual citizens to tolerate exceptions for maternal health, rape, incest, and severe fetal defects.

The University of Chicago and Associated Press's survey can be viewed here (see Question 30):

http://genforwardsurvey.com/assets/uploads/2016/07/GenForward-June-2016-Toplines-1.pdf