NationStates Jolt Archive

Hey
i got some issues with the issues.I dont completely agree with any of the solutions but i do not want to dissmiss all of them. cant i make up my own way to solve them? I mean seriosly, isnt it my nations problems???

I understand that at 500 million population, you can write your own issues. However, bear in mind that legislature is a give-and-take, hold your nose, and pick best-otherwise, just dismiss the issue entirely.

if you are serious in adding your own issue but do not have the population to support it, i would suggest writing some up anyways and asking a more populous nation to submit them on your behalf.. god knows that NS could use some more issues, and i'm sure you could find someone to cooperate.

Let's consider the ramifications of writing your own solutions to the issues:

"JIMMYBOB was complaining about how high the taxes are in @YOURNATIONNAME@, and has submitted a petition to lower the taxes.

(1) Your Minister of Finance says you need the taxes, so boo-hoo.

(2) Your Minister of Public Relations says that if you don't drop the taxes, the people will revolt.

(3) Your Minister of Wild and Crazy Ideas says that the people will revolt anyway, so the best solution is just to abolish the government and let loose anarchy.

(4) Your Minister of Defense says that they're a bunch of commies and your country needs to stiffen its domestic laws; if people don't like it, they can kiss cold-hard cement.

(5) Your Half-Brother who also happens to be your Wife's Cousin says that you should just do away with unwieldy bureaucracy and rule the country under one fist."

Hmm, none of those options seem to be very good. So here's what I'll do instead.

(6) Free cookies for all!



===

Obviously, a dramatization. But the point is clear. If you get to write your own solutions to the problems, you can basically make your country however you would like to have it. Now before you go about saying - "That's precisely why I joined this!" - I'd like to say that ruling a country isn't as easy as saying - "I have all the right answers!". The truth is that every action has an equal and opposite reaction, so doing something that you perceive to be very good will inevitably also cause something that you also perceive to be very bad. This is the point where you play judge-maker - of the potential outcomes, which of these is the lesser evils?

Sure, you can make your country the way that you want it, but it has to work within certain frames. Otherwise, what you're creating isn't a country - it's a paradise (relatively at least...).

Shouldn't this be in the other group of topics? Anyways....

I think that every issue should have four solutions. The left-to-right political spectrum is outdated because it really doesn't offer a place for all standpoints on issues. There should be a left response, a right response, a statist response, and a libertarian/anarchist response.

The left response, the liberal response, is always going to be either in favor of personal freedoms or economical regulation in favor of the working class. Basically, the left favors government control of property but no government intervention in personal affairs.

The right response, the conservative response, is always going to be in favor of either "traditional" government stance on personal rights or complete freedom in economic/property rights. (Though to be more truthful the modern state of affairs, the conservative view should hold a pro-business stance rather than just a laissez-faire stance.) Basically, the right favors government control of personal issues but no government intervention in economic matters or property affairs.

But what happens if somebody favors a strong-handed government in both economic and personal matters? Or if they want the government to allow complete freedom in both economic and political issues? On the right-to-left political spectrum they get plotted near the middle, even though they have completely opposite viewpoints.

Statists will swing on certain issues, going from limiting immigration (right) to trade regulations (left) to drug prohibition (right) to high taxes and many social programs (left), but will always lean towards a strong government presence.

Libertarians/anarchists will swing on those same issues, going from open immigration (left) to free trade (right) to drug legalization (left) to low taxes and no social programs (right), and will always lead towards government tolerance for freedom in personal and economic issues.

Pretty much every issue has a standpoint respecting each stance on personal or economic freedom, so every issue needs those four basic responses.

Are we in character? That post came from the Jabbers front office.