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Dispatch → Bulletin → News
The Northern Lights - Issue XIII, July 4th
[center][img]http://i.imgbox.com/IeZiY2Rb.png[/img][/center] [img]http://z2.ifrm.com/10711/28/0/p1090378/tnl_legb.png[/img][size=150] Regional Assembly Highlights[/size] [align=right][i]by Owenstacey, Deputy Speaker[/i][/align] The Regional Assembly has been very active over the last month, with three votes going to the floor and another three currently under discussion. The first vote on the floor was the Election Reform Bill which was briefly mentioned in last month's edition. The main premise of the bill was to create a group of election commissioner, that is confirmed by the RA, to take control of all elections in a six month period. As well as this, the Attorney General election would move to the General Election cycle. The bill proved to be very popular and passed convincingly with 16 voting for, 6 voting nay and 10 abstaining from the vote. The second bill to go to vote was the Delegates’ Day Bill. This was a much simpler bill than the last and was proposed to change the to not only spread out the holidays but move it to a date that had a little more meaning to the day. The proposed date, 9th September, is important to Delegates in The North Pacific because it was the date of the first transfer of power under the first ratified constitution. When reaching the floor the bill was hugely successful with The North Pacific Citizens, of whom 29 voted aye, 4 abstaining and no one voting nay. The final vote was the Election Commissioner confirmations brought to the RA as a result of the Election Reform Bill. These confirmations were brought to the RA for discussion after Pallaith, The North Pacific’s Delegate, announced Crushing Our Enemies, SillyString, Darcania, Eluvatar, Syrixia, and Siwale as his choices for the positions. After a short discussion, the vote was brought to the floor and all of his choices were passed with a large majority with each only getting one nay vote. There are currently three bills under discussion: the Mandatory Ministers Bill, the Regional Officers Clarification Bill and the Copyediting the Constibillocode. Overall, this month has been a busy one for the Regional Assembly with multiple bills being introduced and voted on with some major changes being made to TNP law. [hr][img]http://z2.ifrm.com/10711/28/0/p1090379/tnl_mil.png[/img][size=150] North Pacific Army Bulletin[/size] [align=right][i]by Iraelia, Citizen[/i][/align] Since the last issue of The Northern Lights, the North Pacific Army was notably less busy, with only three operations have occurred compared to the seven that occurred last month. This has been the first full month that the newly appointed Minister of Defence, Sasten, has led the NPA. The first NPA operation was a raid on Warzone Asia. The raid was attempted at the major update and failed due to mistiming. A second attempt was made at the minor update, but soldiers from the Grey Wardens got in before us. The next attempted NPA operation was a raid on Novis Vandium intended to liberate the region, which was a success. Six NPA soldiers took part in this operation. The final NPA operation was a raid on Anterra. We once again raided the region with a West Pacific-North Pacific coalition, but some defense forces had beat us into the region and our forces suffered a six second mistime. Five NPA soldiers took part in this operation. [hr][img]http://z2.ifrm.com/10711/28/0/p1090376/tnl_game2.png[/img][size=150] Communications over the Years[/size] [align=right][i]by Kasch, Vice Delegate[/i][/align] The Ministry of Communications is certainly not a stalwart of the government in comparison with ministries such as Defense and Foreign Affairs - both legally required along with Home Affairs. It has, however, earned a well-deserved vein in the strong, beating heart of the North Pacific, has faced and overcome a barrage of immense challenges in the past, from the cogency and literary acme of The North Pacific Wire to the inconsistency and inadequacy of previous ministers. But the important question is: where did it all begin? One of the primary associations made with Communications is the publishment and production of regional news. Before any recognizable elections took place for the minister position, writers and editors were already keen to make an impact. The first step in establishing a regional news platform appeared towards the end of July in 2004. Forum user Multaan opened a thread announcing the creation of 'TNP News Central, A new source of news.' A forum area where users could post news and articles independently. The second step towards and official news publishment for the region was taken on September the 8th, 2005, when Tresville announced the North Pacific Wire, an off-site blog where Tresville and other contributors wrote articles and posts for the whole region (and other communities) to see. TNP Wire saw unprecedented success, spearheading the publication of news in the North Pacific for a majority of 2005 and saw a re-opening in May 2007. Overall, over 60 items were published by TNP Wire - a feat which has not yet been matched. A Communications Ministry was a requirement in the constitution of the North Pacific Confederation back in 2005. Elections for the position took place much longer before this was an established legal document, however. The first of these elections was in August 2004. The accepted candidates for the election of the Minister of Communications were Sydia, Hiooland and Cathyy. The results of the election are shown below. [table][tr][td][b]Candidate[/b][/td][td][b]Votes[/b][/td][td][b]Percentage[/b][/td][/tr] [tr][td]Sydia[/td][td]29[/td][td]64.44[/td][/tr] [tr][td]Cathyy[/td][td]13[/td][td]28.89[/td][/tr] [tr][td]Hiooland[/td][td]3[/td][td]6.67[/td][/tr][/table] Sydia won the first election for Minister of Communications over 12 years ago. It is unclear what Sydia did during their term as the minister because I was unable to locate any sources of information on the Old Blue forum in relation to it. The doyens of the ministry can be unequivocally identified through independent research conducted on Old Blue. Tresville, Hersfold, Erastide, Sydia, WishyWashyWonder and Ator People were stanchions of the ministry who kept it upright and strong for so many years. There were others who have been lost in the floods of countless archives, but who most probably had similar influence. Over the next year or so, more of these elections took place and more ministers were elected. To round off 2005, the Regional Assembly approved a forum move from S2 (Old Blue) to S13 (our current forum). TNP Wire vacillated between various states of success and failure over the next decade or so. It was managed by countless different ministers all tasked with similar jobs. There was a structure to news publication, but to form an organized, chronological report would take hours upon hours sifting through pages of archives trying to find some sort of timeline. Even then, it would go from a news item to a fully-fledged novella - something for another day, I suppose. In 2014, under the Delegacy of HMS Unicorn, a new publication emerged named 'The Northern Lights'. This effectively ended the fitful reign of TNP Wire and begun the era of cleaner and more organized newspaper publishment. Below is the index of all the issues published by TNL. [box][table][tr] [/tr][tr][td][url=https://www.nationstates.net/page=dispatch/id=833889]Issue XII, June 2nd[/url][/td][/tr][tr][td][url=https://www.nationstates.net/page=dispatch/id=779640]Issue XI, March 1st[/url][/td][/tr][tr][td][url=https://www.nationstates.net/page=dispatch/id=763586]Issue X, February 1st[/url][/td][/tr][tr][td][url=https://www.nationstates.net/page=dispatch/id=701451]Issue IX, October 5th[/url][/td][/tr][tr][td][url=https://www.nationstates.net/page=dispatch/id=646820]Issue VIII, April 27th[/url][/td][/tr][tr][td][url=https://www.nationstates.net/page=dispatch/id=568154]Issue VII, November 6th[/url][/td][/tr][tr][td][url=https://www.nationstates.net/page=dispatch/id=379561]Issue VI, February 26th[/url][/td][/tr][tr][td][url=https://www.nationstates.net/page=dispatch/id=352114]Issue V, January 10th[/url][/td][/tr][tr][td][url=https://www.nationstates.net/page=dispatch/id=320102]Issue IV, October 27th[/url][/td][/tr][tr][td][url=https://www.nationstates.net/page=dispatch/id=286773]Issue III, August 2nd[/url][/td][/tr][tr][td][url=https://www.nationstates.net/page=dispatch/id=274436]Issue II, June 29th[/url][/td][/tr][tr][td][url=https://www.nationstates.net/page=dispatch/id=260973]Issue I, May 25th[/url][/td][/tr][/table][/box] Here is a summary of all the issues posted by The Northern Lights. [table][tr][td][b]Issue[/b][/td][td][b]Total Words[/b][/td][td][b]Total Items[/b][/td][td][b]Unique Writers[/b][/td][td][b]Executive Editor[/b][/td][/tr] [tr][td][b]I[/b][/td][td]1428[/td][td]4[/td][td]3[/td][td]Crushing Our Enemies[/td][/tr] [tr][td][b]II[/b][/td][td]2583[/td][td]6[/td][td]5[/td][td]Crushing Our Enemies[/td][/tr] [tr][td][b]III[/b][/td][td]3484[/td][td]4[/td][td]4[/td][td]Crushing Our Enemies[/td][/tr] [tr][td][b]IV[/b][/td][td]3072[/td][td]4[/td][td]3[/td][td]punk d[/td][/tr] [tr][td][b]V[/b][/td][td]4272[/td][td]5[/td][td]3[/td][td]n/a[/td][/tr] [tr][td][b]VI[/b][/td][td]1773[/td][td]4[/td][td]4[/td][td]Crushing Our Enemies[/td][/tr] [tr][td][b]VII[/b][/td][td]3865[/td][td]5[/td][td]4[/td][td]Kialga[/td][/tr] [tr][td][b]VIII[/b][/td][td]1973[/td][td]4[/td][td]3[/td][td]Antarticeuropa[/td][/tr] [tr][td][b]IX[/b][/td][td]3341[/td][td]4[/td][td]4[/td][td]Bootsie[/td][/tr] [tr][td][b]X[/b][/td][td]3926[/td][td]5[/td][td]4[/td][td]Kasch[/td][/tr] [tr][td][b]XI[/b][/td][td]5058[/td][td]5[/td][td]6[/td][td]Kasch[/td][/tr] [tr][td][b]XII[/b][/td][td]4007[/td][td]6[/td][td]5[/td][td]Scorch[/td][/tr] [tr][td][b]Total Words[/b][/td][td]38782[/td][td][/td][td][/td][td][/td][/tr] [tr][td][b]Average Words[/b][/td][td]3231.833333[/td][td][/td][td][/td][td][/td][/tr] [tr][td][b]Total Issues[/b][/td][td]12[/td][td][/td][td][/td][td][/td][/tr] [tr][td][b]Total Items[/b][/td][td]56[/td][td][/td][td][/td][td][/td][/tr] [tr][td][b]Total Writers[/b][/td][td]45 (accounting for multiple item writers)[/td][/tr][/table] [table][tr][td][img]https://i.imgur.com/AgVIGBW.png[/img][/td] [td][img]https://i.imgur.com/Zwy3CDl.png[/img][/td] [td][img]https://i.imgur.com/YY6iL26.png[/img][/td][/tr][/table] Projects and ideas such as the Northern Broadcasting Service, founded by myself during my term as Minister of Communications, have had the chance to develop and make an impact on the ministry, but so far have not prevailed. With time, great things will come. Communications has a lot more to offer, and a lot more quality to bring to the table. With strong and guided leadership, this ministry has the potential to reach heights never reached before. [hr] [img]http://z2.ifrm.com/10711/28/0/p1090375/tnl_for3.png[/img][size=150] Monthly Memoirs[/size] [align=right][i]by Kasch, Vice Delegate[/i][/align] To try and get a larger perspective on the collective experiences of members from all over the North Pacific, the Monthly Memoirs segment of the Northern Lights asks a set of questions every month and gathers the responses. I hope that this segment can serve as a reference point for times in the future when we want to look back and identify what exactly makes us North Pacificans and the experiences that we all share. This month, we asked the following questions:[i][list=1][*]What is your earliest memory of the North Pacific? [*]Summarize your thoughts/opinions on the North Pacific in one word. Why did you choose that word? [*]How did you come to be a member of the region? [*]Who has had a lasting impression on you from early on? Or, who has had the biggest impression on you so far?[/list][/i]These were the responses: [i]Brendog (Deputy Minister)[/i] [box]A1: My earliest memory was actually this year, when the I was appointed to The East Pacific as ambassador. It was my first time in another region as well as my first contribution to the Ministry as executive staff. Over that month I would go on and apply to more and more ministries. A2: Unique. There are many facets to TNP, both in game and on the forums. We are unique, being active in all parts of NS, from the World Assembly, to role play and we care for all nations. This is seen in the various ministries that help players on game and also through the different platforms, form discord, to the forums and even the RMB which facilitates the many sides of TNP A3: Firstly I was founded in the region, I looked at it and it seemed a bit too much. I moved around regions for a few days and didn't find any other region which suited my interest. Eventually i came back to TNP and have stayed here since mainly. With opportunities that it presented, I am happy to be part of TNP A4: Praetor has had the biggest influence on me. I met him through the Forum Mentoring Program and he introduced to me the forums. The forums are another totally whole life to NS. It has provided me many opportunities that otherwise may have taken me longer to realise. He has lead me to the place I am in the TNP today.[/box][i]Kasch (Vice Delegate)[/i] [box]A1: My earliest memory of the North Pacific has to be moving to the region after I was found in the East Pacific. I considered getting involved there but decided to give myself more of a challenge by joining the largest region in the game. I remember clicking that join button so clearly, it almost feels like yesterday. A2: Phenomenal. Everything about this region, from corner to corner, offers unique and enjoyable ways to get yourself involved and help the community. The view is great wherever you stand, and I haven't seen that with any other regions. A3: I wanted to stay in the feeders permanently with my nation because I didn't think I was going to spend as much time as I have on the game. The North Pacific pulled me in straight away. It was, from the very beginning, a place where I could really play the game and see it for what it is. A4: Lord Ravenclaw, as he appointed me as Minister of Gameside Affairs. This was my very first involvement with the government, so if this had not happened, I most likely wouldn't be close to where I am now. I've remained a part of the government for over a year and I have loved every second of it. Not only did LR introduce me to the government, but he put up with me as I pestered him with questions and suggestions as a beginner.[/box][i]Scorch (Minister of Communications)[/i] [box]1. My first memory of The North Pacific was getting a PM notifying me that I was allowed to vote in the September 2016 General Election. Shortly after, I would vote even though I had no idea who the candidates were or what they were talking about. :P 2. Extraordinary. We have so much activity in The North Pacific and there is always something going on. People are always accepting of new members and often encourage them to get involved in the region. New faces are constantly appearing and The North Pacific has many appealing aspects that don't always appear in NationStates regions. 3. My nation was founded in The North Pacific and for a day or two I just wandered around on the NationStates website trying to figure out what to do. Eventually I joined Discord and the forum and I began to figure things out. 4. This is a very difficult question as many people have made an impact on me so far. There have always been multiple people willing to answer my questions and help me. There have also been many people who have helped me with different aspects of NationStates so I don't think I am able to just pick one person.[/box][i]Mystery Player (Citizen)[/i] [box]1. I think it was the occupation of The United Reddit Nations that the NPA did in early September. There wasn't anything special about it, it's just the first thing I remember. 2. Impressive. The fact that we have the activity to manage everything we have here is impressive, as well as what the activity achieves. 3. Read the dispatch on why I should be in TNP, it had pretty good reasons, so I joined. 4. This is a hard question. Nobody has left an impression on me more than anybody else. If I had to answer, I would say the whole community, as it is pretty impressive what it has managed to achieve here.[/box][i]Atlae (Ambassador)[/i][box]A1. A while ago, sometime in May, I joined TNP's Discord. I had long wanted to get involved in other GCRs, but that plan got stalled, so I muted TNP for a while. Then I joined officially. A2. Overwhelming. To be honest, coming from the relatively small feeder TEP had given me different expectations, and TNP was different in many ways. TNP had many more nations, had a different government, etc. It took quite some adjusting to. A3. My big project was to join all the GCRs to see what they were like. I fully implemented it a while ago, starting with joining the Discord servers, and I later became a citizen to be more engaged. No regrets. A4. That's a hard question. Pretty much nobody had an influence on me, since I functionally already knew how GCRs worked, so I was practically independent. But at the same time, the whole community acted on me, and was an influence.[/box]Hopefully, with the continuation of this segment, more and more members of our community will answer each months set of new questions as I continue to collect and share the experiences of people in the community. To be a part of the Monthly Memoirs segment for July, the first thing you need to do is contact me either through forum PM or telegram through NS expressing your interest, then I will add you to the list of people who recieve monthly questions, so that you too can be a part of TNL. [hr][align=center][size=80][u][b]The Northern Lights[/b][/u][b]:[/b] [i]Beauty in Truth[/i][/size] Publisher: Palliaith :: Executive Editor: Scorch :: Managing Editor: Brend0g :: Assistant Managing Editor: Nasania :: Graphic Artist: Imki + SillyString [i]The Northern Lights is produced by the Ministry of Communications on behalf of the Government of The North Pacific and distributed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Except where otherwise indicated, all content represents the views of the Government of The North Pacific.[/i][/align] [b][align=center][url=https://www.nationstates.net/page=dispatch/id=352113]Index of issues[/url][/align][/b]