Athiesism
06-09-2005, 18:48
Welcome to our nation. The Republic of Athiesism (OOC: I had to mispel it because someone else already took the name. Still sounds kind of cool, though.) is an island democracy in the East Pacific composed of three islands, Bigtoan, Marche Noir, and Liliputia. We are a UN member and devoted to democracy and freedom, but not afraid to use force.
If you would wish to exchange embassies, simply say so and we will allot you a block in our capital city to construct one. Also, we are intrested in forming a naval air arm of aircraft and a cheap carrier. In addition, if you are willing to give us a UN Endorsement, we are willing to negotiate.
Information
Republic of Athiesism
The Republic of Athesism is a group of three large East Pacific islands. Formerly a British colony, it gained independence in 1953, and although English is the official language indigenous tongues are also used often. In 1956 it converted its currency to the American dollar. On August 31st, 2005, Mark C. Ingraham (Democractic Union of Athiesism party) was elected President, and he began a program to strengthen the military and make the nation internationally significant. He lost office in a 2008 referendum, but regained it in 2011. Sky-high birthrates have led to a 15% population growth rate per year.
Employing a unique system of government, the federal tax rate is only 3%, most services being provided by companies under national regulation. Its hands thus untied, fourteen percent of government spending goes into the military, with the remainder being used mostly for make-work programs and paying off debt.
The country's legal system is fairly unique. Laws and treaties are deliberately kept simple. They are not perfectly clear, but if they were more specific then the court system would become unnecessarily complex, like it is in most nations. Lawyers are illegal, as the government believes that they only complicate things without serving a productive purpose. Juries decide the verdict and the punishment, the judge serving only to direct the debate in the courtroom.
The population is known for its strong work ethic, but at the same time they are generous and fairly open-minded. Almost every child in the nation is homeschooled, lessons being supplied to them by government education companies and the children made to teach themselves and learn responsibility. So far, this unique system has paid off, aided no doubt by the special culture of the country.
Although it is a small state, Athiesism boasts a powerful technological industry, Information Technology being its main business. Research and development is given a high priority, as are high quality products.
One of the main issues confronting the nation is high crime rates, specifically the high incidence of delinquent behavior amoung youth. This is a product of both low government spending on police forces and a general "soft on crime" attitude. Unfortunately, there seems to be little chance of the situation improving.
The entire country is led by twenty-five representatives. Once every ten years, a national election is held, and the leading twenty-five vote-getters are made part of this group. Political parties can split their votes among the candidates if they wish to do so. This ensures that small parties can still gain office by concentrating all their votes on one candidate, while the larger parties must split the votes they recieve for fear of being marginalized. Therefore, national thinking is not polarized between two or three main parties, while the remainder are virtually ignored. The long time between elections is meant to ensure continuity of policy and to ensure that leaders act in the long-term interest of the nation and not on the short-term whims of the public. If, at any time, an opposing candidate is able to collect enough signatures to equal 25% of the eligible voting population, a recall election is held. The 25 men leading the nation are called the Parliament; 24 are regular members and the one that recieved the most votes is the President. The President's powers include the authority to make executive agreements and he or she assumes control of the nation in times of national emergency. In most other situations, a majority vote by the Parliament is needed to pass legislation, including accepting the President's nominations for the 6-member Federal Court, which interprets laws.
Compulsory military service is required for all adult males that are not physically disabled or can prove legitimate religious exemption. Once an eligible citizen turns 18, he has a 25% chance of being drafted during each recruitment cycle, one of which occurs every two years of his life. Eventually, he will be drafted by the time he turns 26. Conscription lasts two years, and once their training is over they enter the reserve until their 45th birthday. Reservists are called up one month out of every year for refresher training. This unusual system is necessary because the country cannot afford to support its entire 18-year old population being conscripted every year. Women and homosexuals are allowed to join the army freely, and they are allowed to take up combat positions. Most volunteers become officers. 2/3 of the country's 200,000-strong military is made of conscripts, the rest being officers. The older draftees and better volunteers tend to end up in the Navy.
If you would wish to exchange embassies, simply say so and we will allot you a block in our capital city to construct one. Also, we are intrested in forming a naval air arm of aircraft and a cheap carrier. In addition, if you are willing to give us a UN Endorsement, we are willing to negotiate.
Information
Republic of Athiesism
The Republic of Athesism is a group of three large East Pacific islands. Formerly a British colony, it gained independence in 1953, and although English is the official language indigenous tongues are also used often. In 1956 it converted its currency to the American dollar. On August 31st, 2005, Mark C. Ingraham (Democractic Union of Athiesism party) was elected President, and he began a program to strengthen the military and make the nation internationally significant. He lost office in a 2008 referendum, but regained it in 2011. Sky-high birthrates have led to a 15% population growth rate per year.
Employing a unique system of government, the federal tax rate is only 3%, most services being provided by companies under national regulation. Its hands thus untied, fourteen percent of government spending goes into the military, with the remainder being used mostly for make-work programs and paying off debt.
The country's legal system is fairly unique. Laws and treaties are deliberately kept simple. They are not perfectly clear, but if they were more specific then the court system would become unnecessarily complex, like it is in most nations. Lawyers are illegal, as the government believes that they only complicate things without serving a productive purpose. Juries decide the verdict and the punishment, the judge serving only to direct the debate in the courtroom.
The population is known for its strong work ethic, but at the same time they are generous and fairly open-minded. Almost every child in the nation is homeschooled, lessons being supplied to them by government education companies and the children made to teach themselves and learn responsibility. So far, this unique system has paid off, aided no doubt by the special culture of the country.
Although it is a small state, Athiesism boasts a powerful technological industry, Information Technology being its main business. Research and development is given a high priority, as are high quality products.
One of the main issues confronting the nation is high crime rates, specifically the high incidence of delinquent behavior amoung youth. This is a product of both low government spending on police forces and a general "soft on crime" attitude. Unfortunately, there seems to be little chance of the situation improving.
The entire country is led by twenty-five representatives. Once every ten years, a national election is held, and the leading twenty-five vote-getters are made part of this group. Political parties can split their votes among the candidates if they wish to do so. This ensures that small parties can still gain office by concentrating all their votes on one candidate, while the larger parties must split the votes they recieve for fear of being marginalized. Therefore, national thinking is not polarized between two or three main parties, while the remainder are virtually ignored. The long time between elections is meant to ensure continuity of policy and to ensure that leaders act in the long-term interest of the nation and not on the short-term whims of the public. If, at any time, an opposing candidate is able to collect enough signatures to equal 25% of the eligible voting population, a recall election is held. The 25 men leading the nation are called the Parliament; 24 are regular members and the one that recieved the most votes is the President. The President's powers include the authority to make executive agreements and he or she assumes control of the nation in times of national emergency. In most other situations, a majority vote by the Parliament is needed to pass legislation, including accepting the President's nominations for the 6-member Federal Court, which interprets laws.
Compulsory military service is required for all adult males that are not physically disabled or can prove legitimate religious exemption. Once an eligible citizen turns 18, he has a 25% chance of being drafted during each recruitment cycle, one of which occurs every two years of his life. Eventually, he will be drafted by the time he turns 26. Conscription lasts two years, and once their training is over they enter the reserve until their 45th birthday. Reservists are called up one month out of every year for refresher training. This unusual system is necessary because the country cannot afford to support its entire 18-year old population being conscripted every year. Women and homosexuals are allowed to join the army freely, and they are allowed to take up combat positions. Most volunteers become officers. 2/3 of the country's 200,000-strong military is made of conscripts, the rest being officers. The older draftees and better volunteers tend to end up in the Navy.