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by Lama glama publishing group. . 333 reads.

LGPG | Coconut Press Magazine

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WHEN discussing history, it is often women who are left out of the story. Prominent female figures like Catherine the Great of Russia, Hatshepsut of Egypt, and Empress Wu Zetian of China dot the historical records at points, but they are seen as anomalies of the strong patriarchal traditions of the prominent cultures of the past. What is perhaps worse is that their memories are often tarnished, their womanhood making them the victims of hearsay and blatantly false rumours, or having themselves seen in overly negative lights while their accomplishments are often overlooked. Hatshepsut had a relatively peaceful reign, starting many grand building projects across Egypt and forging a profitable trading route with a southern kingdom, and yet she is often derided as a cross-dresser, unfavourably compared to the more feminine Cleopatra, despite the latter being the one to see the end of native rule in the Egyptian royal families. Catherine the Great was a political mastermind, credited with the expansion of her country's borders into the first Russian warm water ports in the Caspian Sea, as well as organising many administrative and cultural attempts to westernise Russia, continuing her father's work. Her lasting legacy, and what many know about her, is that she died while having sexual relations with a horse, which in itself is false. Empress Wu Zetian is depicted most often as a power-hungry consort, killing whoever got in the way of her rise to power, with nary a mention of her successful campaigns to reduce Korea to a vassal state, creating widespread education reforms, creating competency tests for bureaucrats and military officers, and establishing massive public works projects, from canals to irrigation, increasing the agricultural productivity of China to record highs.
This lack of positive representation can simply create a mental block, causing generations of girls to be unable to imagine that they too could revolutionise the world. Thankfully in modern years, this has changed somewhat, with women like Virginia Woolf, Margaret Thatcher, Efua Dorkenoo, Indira Gandhi, and others pioneering the involvement of women in fields such as literature, politics, and activism, making their voices heard. This is why women are active in literature, politics, and advocacy work more than ever before. Several countries, like the UK, New Zealand, and Germany, have had women as some of their most prominent leaders in recent years, proving that change is possible.
However, one seemingly insurmountable field that has very little representation of women is those of science and mathematics. There are so few positive role models for girls to look up to, so few women to lead the way. The likes of Einstein, Newton, and Galileo can only do so much to a girl, the subtle effect of this male homogeneity being just that: subtle. The easier path, where the battles have already been waged, is far more enticing to follow than that which is unknown. There is a sense of trepidation at being a trailblazer, vulnerable to attack and criticism from others. This has created a funnel of women into the "soft" sciences and the arts, established fields where women are often more welcome. In places where women are allowed and even encouraged to get an education, this is often a problem, creating a surplus of female nurses and teachers and writers, with too few chemists and mathematicians. Perhaps with a greater spotlight women in the fields of science and mathematics, this imbalance can be remedied. To help pursue this goal, the list below will highlight some of the unsung female heroes of modern times, pioneering research and discovery in STEM fields.
Chien-Shiung Wu (1912 - 1997)
Chien-Shiung Wu born in 1912 in Liuho, China, at a time when China denied girls the right to receive an education. In her twenties, she travelled to San Francisco to work in the lab of Ernest O. Lawrence at the University of California, Berkeley. As a grad student there, she made her first forays into science.
After receiving her PhD at Berkeley, she became the first female instructor in the Physics Department at Princeton. She would later help work on the famed Manhattan Project, the project that would be the first in the world to create a functional atomic bomb. On the Project, she was instrumental in helping develop the process for separating uranium metal into the U-235 and U-238 isotopes by gaseous diffusion for the development of the atomic bomb. Despite her important contributions, she was overlooked for promotion for nearly a decade at Columbia University, only becoming an official faculty member after 8 years of work.
While at Columbia, she continued to advance the field of physics. One of her landmark achievements was disproving the "Law of Conservation of Parity", a basic principle of science that had been taught as common knowledge. However, she was overlooked for the Nobel Prize in favour of her colleagues Tsung Dao Lee and Chen Ning Yang, who won the Prize in 1957.
Despite this oversight, Dr Wu went on to become an influential figure in science. She became the first Chinese-American to be elected into the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, the first woman with an honorary doctorate from Princeton University, the first female President of the American Physical Society, one of the first Chinese-American educators to travel to Red China for visits in the 1970s, and the first living scientist to have an asteroid (2752 Wu Chien-Shiung) named after her.
Carol Greider (1961 - Present)
Carol Greider shared the 2009 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with Elizabeth Blackburn, discovering that telomeres are protected from progressive shortening by the enzyme telomerase.
An organism's genes are stored within DNA molecules, found in chromosomes inside the nuclei of cells. When cells divide, it's crucial their chromosomes be copied in full, not damaged or altered. At each end of a chromosome lies a cap of genetic material that protects it called a telomere. Telomeres have specific DNA that prevents chromosomal degradation, with telomerase being the enzyme that facilitates the production of the telomeres' DNA.
Maryam Mirzakhani (1977 - 2017)
On August 13, 2014, Marayam became both the first woman and the first Iranian honoured with the Fields Medal, the most prestigious award in mathematics, which was established nearly 80 years ago. She was an Iranian-American mathematician and a professor of mathematics at Stanford University. Her research contributions include the Teichmüller theory, hyperbolic geometry, ergodic theory, and symplectic geometry. In her life, she focused on understanding the symmetry of curved surfaces, such as spheres, the surfaces of doughnuts, and of hyperbolic objects. Her work could potentially influence many areas of study, including engineering, quantum field theory, and even theoretical physics as it applies to the origin of the Universe.
Barbara McClintock (1902 - 1992)
An American scientist and cytogeneticist, Barbara earned her PhD in botany from Cornell University in 1927, becoming a leader in the development of maize cytogenetics. She studied chromosomes and how they change during maize reproduction. She developed the technique for visualising maize chromosomes, using microscopic analysis to demonstrate numerous fundamental genetic ideas. One of those ideas was the notion of jumping genes - genetic recombination by crossing-over during meiosis that allowed chromosomes to exchange information. She produced the first genetic map for maize, linking regions of the chromosome to physical traits. She demonstrated the role of the telomere and centromere, regions of the chromosome that are important in the conservation of genetic information. She was recognised among the best in the field, awarded prestigious fellowships, and elected a member of the National Academy of Sciences in 1944.
Rita Levi-Montalcini (1909 - 2012)
Rita Levi-Montalcini was an Italian Nobel Laureate honoured for her work in neurobiology, winning the Nobel Prize in 1986 for her discovery of nerve growth factor. Born in 1909 in Turin into a Sephardi Jewish family, her father discouraged her aspirations of becoming a doctor because he feared it would disrupt her life as a wife and mother. Against his wishes, she became a doctor and began a career in neurology research.
However, her academic career was cut short as a result of Mussolini's 1938 ban barring Jewish people from academic and professional careers. In defiance, she set up a laboratory in her bedroom and studied the growth of nerve fibres in chicken embryos, which laid the groundwork for her later research. In 1946, she was granted a fellowship at Washington University in St. Louis. She replicated her previous work done in her makeshift bedroom lab and was offered a research position at the university, which she held for 30 years. In 1952 she did her most important work, isolating the nerve growth factor from observations of certain cancerous tissues that cause extremely rapid growth of nerve cells. She went on to become the first Nobel Laureate ever to reach the age of 100, dying 103 years after her birth.
Kalpana Chawla (1961 - 2003)
Earning a PhD in aerospace engineering from the University of Colorado in 1988, Chawla became the first Indian-born woman and the second person of Indian descent to travel into space, as a crew member on the STS-87 Columbia shuttle launch in 1997. On January 16, 2003, Chawla and six other astronauts entered space aboard the STS-107 Columbia for a 16-day science and research mission. On February 1, the spaceship broke apart as it reentered Earth’s atmosphere, killing everyone aboard 16 minutes prior to landing. At the time of her death, Chawla had logged 30 days, 14 hours, and 54 minutes in space.
These women, from a variety of cultures and through incredible odds, managed to forge careers in the maths and sciences, many putting their own safety at risk or overcoming incredible obstacles to make their mark on scientific history. In their day they may have been overlooked for things their male colleagues would have been (and often were) lauded for, but with the increased awareness of their contributions to science, they too may share the same breath as Salk, Darwin, and Copernicus.

By LinkThe Queen of Auphelia (Auphelia)


AS well as being the founder of the Church of the South Pacific, I’m currently a member of the Church of England in real life, a Protestant denomination which embraces aspects of both the Catholic tradition and that of the Reformed churches, varying considerably from congregation to congregation and, sometimes, holding them in tension. I recently had the pleasure of visiting some of the different CofE churches in my town and went from one Anglo-Catholic church with processions, plainsong and a smoking censer to another that took place entirely in the church hall and had about as informal a service as I’ve ever experienced. One element which is both had in common, however, and which is almost universal in the Church of England, is the use of liturgy.
Liturgy, if you’re unfamiliar is defined as ‘a form or formulary according to which public religious worship, especially Christian worship, is conducted.’ Basically, it’s a set of words through which the vicar leads the congregation, covering all sorts of things like prayer, confession, a profession of faith and Holy Communion. It is an essential part of both Roman Catholic and Orthodox worship, but in the Reformed tradition, it is much more rare, with many denominations eschewing it entirely and others merely paddling in the pool of potential forms.
For myself, I grew up largely unchurched, coming from a nominally Protestant family*. I say largely because Christian stories and teaching were still kinda a part of my primary education, but I didn't treat them as more than just stories. Once I became a Christian (aged 11 - a story for another article, perhaps?), I still didn't go to church because there was no one to go with me, but as an older teen I became involved in a Christian youth group at a Presbyterian church, where liturgy was all but unheard of. All my prior church experiences were Presbyterian, too and once I moved away to Scotland to go to uni, apart from a brief dalliance in a Baptist church (another non-liturgical denomination) I ended up at a Presbyterian church there also.
Presbyterian churches can vary a fair bit, but they usually have a fairly stripped-down style of worship with no liturgy and a strong focus on prayer and teaching (often in the form of lengthy sermons), especially amongst Evangelicals. Despite having been baptised in the Church of England as a baby, my first conscious experience of it, then, was when I visited my now-wife's hometown (where I now live) and experienced Sunday worship in her home church. For many reasons I was absolutely terrified, but the liturgy was a major part of that.
I wrote a haiku about my feelings about liturgy during one of these visits. Here it is in all its unrefined glory:
God is found, I think,
Not in fixed words or refrains
But in the silence.
As you can see, I was sceptical about both the intent of liturgy and its effectiveness. At the time, for me, an authentic experience of God was all about finding your own words and talking to Him naturally. The fixed patterns of liturgy seemed both too restrictive and too forced, turning worshippers into robots and eradicating the Spirit of God from proceedings. Though we made many visits south during our courtship and marriage over the next decade and a bit, I don't think my opinion of liturgy changed all that much.
But then, in the last couple of years before we moved, I found my ideas on Christianity evolving. I still considered myself to be a kind of Evangelical (a general term for Christians who hold that the Bible is, in its entirety, the inspired word of God), but I was also increasingly liberal in how I approached that and in my outlook on life in general. One of the side effects of this was being more open to other ways of doing church. I was certainly never the kind of Christian who dismissed other views outright, but, equally, I was very protective of the kind of experiences that would affect me personally. But now, suddenly, I found myself opening up to different Christian experiences with greater ease than ever before.
Once we moved, we settled into a Church of England church which was as we had expected, given my wife's past and the fact that both her parents were now CofE vicars. What we didn't expect, however, was that, rather than going to the bit, clearly Evangelical town centre church which had been my wife's home church when she was younger, we settled at a small village church at the edge of town which, despite having an Evangelical vicar, was a church filled with a broad range of views on and knowledge of the faith. And boy did it feel liberating!
Don't get me wrong; I loved my church in Scotland and still do, but there was something about this different kind of church that I found freeing and it is one of the reasons why, after years of saying I could never go into full-time church ministry, I'm now looking to see if I can get ordained in the Church of England, but, of course, that would require a very different approach to the liturgy which is so common in CofE worship, wouldn't it?
Lucky, then, that I have come to appreciate liturgy for exactly the same reasons my wife has always loved it. The form of words serves as a way of focussing the mind on the aspects of God being spoken of or appealed to. At worst, it is indeed a fairly mindless experience, but one which still means you are engaging with the divine, even if you don't feel it. It is habit-forming and habits can be an important part of spiritual discipline. At best, liturgy is a well-trodden path, sometimes comfortable, sometimes disturbing to somewhere you long to reach and from which you can snatch vistas of incredible grandeur.
I haven't just adapted to liturgy as part of regular Sunday worship, however, but have moved to include it in all aspects of my spiritual life, even going so far as to use the ancient offices of Morning and Night Prayer, in whole or in part, as a regular part of my prayer time with God. Here, liturgy reminds me of the majesty of God, the holiness of His presence, the privilege of spending time with Him. It forms a habit it is harder to break than any more informal prayer structure and, for once who struggles with anxiety like I do, it can also help one to reach the kind of meditative calm that is so important to enduring the rest of life.
Liturgy has gone from being something alien and restrictive to something close to my heart which leaves me feeling freer to worship God in the ways that come most naturally to me. It is a paradox that is hard to explain and, whilst I would argue that there is no substitute for experience, yet I would urge anyone reading this to explore lots of different forms and styles of worship, for we have all been made differently and I don't believe any one tradition is the perfect, one-size-fits-all solution to the world's quest to find and know God. As I continue on my own journey of faith, I look forward to learning more ways to reach out to God and to learn from him.
I'm going to round this off with the liturgical call and response which finishes many a CofE service. The part in bold is said by the congregation.
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.
In the name of Christ, amen.

* It was Northern Ireland, so that mattered even if you weren't religious. I once heard an anecdote about an Atheist who, when visiting Northern Ireland, was asked: “Are you Protestant or Catholic?”. When the Atheist explained that they didn't believe in God they received the reply, “Ah, but is it the Protestant God or the Catholic God that you don't believe in?”

The LinkChurch of the South Pacific is a safe space to discuss spirituality of all kinds and is open to people of all faiths and none.

By LinkSeraph (Erinor)


AWE and Rebeltopia were both nominated for the position of Associate Justice. After some questioning, the Assembly approved both candidates. Unfortunately, Awe has been unwell of late. So this month, we introduce the newly-minted Associate Justice Rebeltopia:
What do you like most about TSP?
I love the people in the South Pacific. We really are a tight-knit group. I’ve taken my fair share of breaks from NationStates, but it’s the bonds that I’ve made with people here that keep me coming back (and staying, too!).
What is your favourite memory over your years in the region?
This is a tough one… There have been so many things I’ve enjoyed in my almost eight years in the South Pacific. If I had to choose one, it’d be the time that LadyRebels and I took over the forums, I think it was when we moved to TSP’s second ZetaBoards account. Once the new forums were up and running, LR and I had something like 500 posts between us in the first few hours – mostly in the spam threads, but some relevant posts too. I’m pretty sure Glen and Tsu were saying we were going to “break the forums” that day!
What are you most looking forward to about being a judge?
I’m looking forward to helping the region. Between giving Belschaft and Kringle a much needed mental break to determinations made in Legal Questions, helping the region is why I serve.
What do you think is the biggest challenge that the High Court faces today?
Right now, I’d say our biggest challenge is Awe and I getting up to speed and moving on the current caseload. Belschaft and Kris both took Leave of Absences right after the confirmation, so it’s been a little rough getting up to speed.
The Docket
With the new judges just coming in and the more experience judges taking a well-deserved break, there has not been much movement on cases at the High Court recently. Below is a summary of what has changed this month; a more comprehensive summary of each case is available in the April edition of this magazine:
The High Court ruled that it was not able to hear 1912 (Tsunamy’s question on whether campaigning under a fake identity would meet the definition of identity fraud). Some were annoyed at this ruling.
While there were additional submissions to 1908 (Awe’s question on whether immediately banjecting players for breaking NationStates rules violates the Charter), they still all focused on whether or not the use of NationStates moderators constitutes due process. The High Court has yet to rule on this case.
Cases still yet to be accepted: New Haudenosaunee Confederacy’s complaint against their temporary banishment by the Local Council; Beepee’s appeal of the plea deal in Nakari v North Prarie & Concrete Slab (1902); Nakari’s question on whether amendments which are not listed in the MATT-DUCK Law Archive still have the force of law.
Cases still yet to be decided: 1902 (Nakari v North Prarie & Concrete Slab on bribery and contempt of court); 1908 (Awe’s question on the legality of immediately banjecting people for breaking NationStates rules); and 1913 (Beepee’s question on the legality of the High Court entering into plea bargains).

Conflict of interest declaration:
The author of the article (Nat) has made submissions to the High Court regarding cases 1908 and 1913; these submissions are publicly available on the High Court forum.

By LinkNat (The National Corporation)


New initiatives to pave the way for a possible future intellectual movement.
AS more and more organisations start to pop up all over the South Pacific, the future for educational initiatives is clearer than ever. From research centres to religious organisations, it will be an everlasting proof that ordinary citizens can help bring change to this region for the better. With the spirit of sapere aude (“dare to know” in Latin) instilled in every single initiative being created this year, they take courage in separating from the status quo and explore, develop and bring new knowledge back home.
I have been travelling to other regions with a large and active community, both as Ambassador of the South Pacific and a normal NationStates player, and I have come to a firm conclusion that no other region has more potential than the South Pacific to be able to establish a permanent sector of non-governmental organisations and initiatives. For such a sector to be always active, it requires the constant creation of new, creative ideas. That is where the South Pacific differs from other regions.
This region has always been on the move and we see a consistent rate of new players into our region over the years. In December alone, the Assembly welcomed 10 new Legislators. What is beneficial about having new players is that they are enthusiastic people who are ready to bring freshness and share their ideas to the regional community. Those new ideas will then turn into new innovations and developments, helping to form a more perfect region.
However, non-governmental organisations like think tanks and research centres have always been underrated not just in the South Pacific, but in other regions as well. The closest things to it are universities such as the North Pacific University and the South Pacific University, serving as a place for discussion of real life and regional topics, although they are not quite very active.
Now, you may say “Bzerneleg, think tanks are useless.” Think tanks can be useful … if they are being managed the right way. People in those institutions spend weeks, if not months, to conduct their research in order to form works that can be used by policymakers to make informed decisions and shape the course of our future as well as normal citizens to keep themselves updated of the events going on in a fast-changing world. Different think tanks may have different views and that should be encouraged, for they will contribute greatly to the regional discourse and help us consider ideas from both sides of the aisle.

By LinkBzerneleg (Bzerneleg)

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Dear Readers,

I am delighted to present this edition of the Coconut Press. This is the first edition under my tenure as Minister for Regional Affairs, and I hope it is the first of many. Since taking over the reins, this Ministry has taken its first tentative steps towards reaching the goals of being an entertaining and informative South Pacific Ministry.
Your Ministry, together with much help, celebrated Max Barry Day with an all-day event across forums, discord and gameside. Our Ask Beepee event on the RMB allowed nations to ask questions and learn more about both me and the Ministry. We have received a number of options as part of the South Pacific Design Competition and we will be finalising the choice winner shortly.
The Ministry has now published four Citizen's Spotlight interviews with interesting and fun nations across the South Pacific. This is part of my pledge to bring the Ministry to everyone and to help promote integration across platforms. We have had a great deal of interest in Citizen's Spotlight and, at the Ministry, we're working hard to bring you these regularly. Our Journalism Team has also produced two Coco Weekly's. This news publication has helped inform readers of goings on in the Coalition.
We've also brought the Coco Awards. This excellent programme allows us to say a thank you to South Pacificans who make the region what it is. I'm also delighted to announce the winners of the first inaugural Coco Regional Awards. Our winners are LinkNat (The National Corporation) for Best Legislator and By LinkThe Solar System Scope (The Solar System Scope) for Friendliest RMBer. Congratulations to both Nat and The Solar System Scope, your contributions are what makes TSP great!
Looking forward over the coming months, we have a number of upcoming events which are spread over our collective TSP home. In May we will have our first South Pacific-vision Song Contest. This is a fantastic opportunity for you to get your creative song/lyric writing juices flowing. Keep an eye out for announcements across TSP in the coming weeks. In June/July, the second annual Copa South Pacifica will be held. This soccer tournament was hosted last year by North Prarie, who did a sterling job and was unfortunate to lose to Stetzra in the final. I hope you'll be dusting off those soccer boots for another attempt to lift the silverware this year.
We will also be having more “Ask” events, and I ask you to send me your questions for the Cabinet and Delegate. You can find out more information as to exactly what's going on across the South Pacific in this edition of the Coconut Press and in the MoRA Events Calendar Dispatch. If you'd like to take part in MoRA or help with any aspect please join us on TSP Forums, Discord or telegram me.
I truly hope you'll enjoy reading this Coconut Press. There are wonderful articles by a variety of authors, including reflections on International Women’s Day by Auphelia, opinion pieces by Kris Kringle, Seraph, and Bzerneleg. These, together with reporting by Nat and a general interest piece by Nakari, make this edition compulsive reading. Naturally, all of us in MoRA love to get your feedback and if you have opinions or want to write for the next edition, please don't hesitate to contact me.

Yours always,
LinkBeepee (Beepee)


IF you notice much of the westernised world, activities and clothes that are associated with men are seen in higher regard. Consider trousers. Men and women can wear them with no problems. Consider a dress. A woman can wear it, but a man wearing it is an abomination and unnatural.
Why?
Because women are inferior, and therefore things associated with us are inferior.
I also find it interesting how there is no way for a woman to just be, we're always a type. Meanwhile, men can luxuriate in their anonymity, not having to define themselves in every decision they make. Women can never be ourselves, but rather the sum total of the opinions people have of us based on our choices. Nothing a woman does can be unmarked, because male is the baseline upon which everything is judged. Of course, this all is not to say that men cannot be marked, but rather that they constantly have the option to be unmarked, comfortable in anonymity, someone who can define themselves as them rather than having assumptions made about them.
Mr conveys nothing except that someone is male. Miss or Mrs defines a woman by her marital status, and about the level of conservative values she may harbour. A Ms declines to answer the question (though a Mr declines nothing, as nothing was asked of him), marking a woman as rebellious or liberated, depending on how someone interpreting her preferred title views the world.
A woman can do nothing with her hair without being judged. Even to do nothing marks us as unkempt, untidy. To have short hair we are seen as unfeminine and “butch”, probably lesbians. To have long hair holds a whole host of other ways to be marked, with the various styles and colours that are expected of us. A man can simply have short hair and be fine, with little attention called to it and thus is unmarked.
A woman with makeup on is defined by that. A bold red lipstick, heavy eyeliner and lots of eye shadow may be seen as garish and overtly sexual (as anything feminine is), conveying a lack of class and intelligence. A hint of blush and a tinted lip gloss is subtle but conveys class, good for a place of business where appearance might be important. Having no makeup at all for a woman is a sign of not caring about her appearance. On the other hand, a man with no makeup is a man unmarked. Men can wear makeup, and therefore be marked, but he has the choice not to be. He is able to choose.
I've often been called “_____ for a woman”, typically belligerent, loud, or fun. On the other hand, I have never heard the same said about men. Men are given more freedom to express themselves in their behaviours, and thus have more ability to express their personalities while remaining unmarked. They are not “that” kind of man; they are simply who they are. A problem of this is also that women are often minorities in fields of power. When that happens, we become representatives of our gender as a whole, which does not serve to make us an unmarked hegemony, but rather make every woman to be who you now are. If you fail, you fail for every woman in the eyes of those around you. If you succeed, you succeed for yourself. This also puts more pressure on women to perform, which leads to more markers, like “driven” and “career oriented”, which can be seen as “too aggressive”, something relatively unmarked when applied to a man.
What is interesting is that this conveys itself into even places where one would think these physical traits and external features wouldn't matter, like the internet. The very language we use, aside from marking marital status, even reinforces the idea of a woman being lesser or extra to the baseline that is manhood. Markers like ess and ette make a word feminine, and therefore lesser. An actor is someone serious about their role and dedicated to their craft. An actress is a ditsy starlet who obsesses over her looks. Serious professions, like doctors or lawyers, do not use these markers to denote women, because the professions are serious, and therefore have no place for the lesser denotation of womanhood. A doctorette or a lawyeress has no place safeguarding your health or ensuring the law is maintained.
When we make women the other and mark the other as inferior, while men can choose to remain unmarked, we do no favours to either gender. Why is masculinity fine, but femininity something to be afraid of? Why are serious, more masculine (though not too masculine) women considered serious, while a bright, cheery woman in a dress considered less so? It baffles me, and is something society as a whole should consider every time they make assumptions based on external factors. What is driving this train of thought? Why do I consider this person this way? Should I penalise someone because of how they appear to me, or realise my own internal biases and experiences have shaped what I consider good or appropriate?
Asking these questions won't solve the problem, but it might just help each of us make things a little bit better.

By LinkThe Queen of Auphelia (Auphelia)


A while back, Roavin jokingly suggested that I would analyse the letter distribution of Game-Created-Regions delegate pretitles. So I did. Then I realised I could create an average GCR delegate pretitle through this. And then I realised I could make averages of anything. It’s relatively easy if anyone wants to try it — you just need to find the letter distribution, divide the amount of each letter by the total amount of letters, find the average length of each name, multiply each letter’s divided amount by the average length of the name to find how many of each letter should be in the name (you will need to round a bit), then plug your final letters into an anagram generator.
It might seem that these average names would simply follow English letter distribution. It’s true that common letters in English were also very common in the averaged names, but there were differences in how common they were among the different positions, and some of the most common letters only appeared rarely. For reference, the most common 10 letters in English are E T A O I N S R H L.
Firstly, the ultimate GCR delegate, the one who started it all. Since for this one, I could access more data, this ultimate delegate even gets a pretitle! Their name is … The Outface Swineherd of Earthlions!
Next, I moved on to the South Pacific. Our largest category is that of the legislators. At the time of the calculations, we had 68 legislators, the average length of their name was 10 letters, and the most common letters were, in order, A E R I O N S T L C. The ultimate legislator is … St Cornelia!
But who would be around to let in St Cornelia? We’ve had 8 members of the Legislator Committee, with an average name length of 8 letters, and letters E N R A O I T S. Our ultimate LegComm roster is:
Senorita, Asterion, and Notarise!

And who will preside over St Cornelia and her fellow Assembly members? We have had 19 Chairs of the Assembly, with average name length of 8 letters, and letters A E O I R M L N. And yes, I promise I didn’t just enter Amerion 19 times. The ultimate CoA is, totally unsuspiciously:
Almerion!

Our next largest body is the Council of Regional Security — I only used the current members because I don’t have records of past members. We have six CRS members, the average length of their name was 9 letters, and the most common letters were, in order, A N E R I O S G L. The ultimate CRS roster is:
Sol Regina, Roselinga, Ogre Snail, Lions Rage, and Groin Sale!

Next, the Local Council. I wish I could have worked out the average over all time, but there aren’t enough records of LC members! I used our current three. The average name length was 10 letters, and the most common letters were: A A E L O C N R B D. The ultimate LC roster is:
Carbondale, Boar Candle, and Cabal Drone!

The final position held by multiple people is the position of Justice. This is one of the only two positions that had exactly the same letters (though in a different order)… evidently, the judicial firewall can be broken by the power of averages. There were 30 Justices, with an average name length of 9 letters and the letters A O E R S I N T L. The ultimate court of three justices is:
Stolen Air, Iron Tesla, and Lit Reason!

Now, let’s start on the Cabinet. Firstly, the ultimate Prime Minister, with an average length of 13 letters, and the letters E E R R G N O S A D I T U:
Treasure Dingo!

The ultimate Minister of Foreign Affairs, with an average length of 9 letters, and the letters E A S T I R N O L:
Relations!

The ultimate Minister of Military Affairs, with an average length of 9 letters, and the letters E I N A O R S T D:
IRoastDEN!

The ultimate Minister of Regional Affairs, with an average length of 8 letters, and the letters E R A N O I S P:
No Praise!

The ultimate delegate, with an average length of 10 letters, and the letters E A L R N D S T I O:
Nostrilade!

However, since delegates are so important and we’ve had so many, I thought it might be interesting to weight the delegates by the number of days they had spent in the delegacy. The average length was still 10 letters, but the most common letters in order were now E A I L T S U R O N. U appears in the new list, reflecting Fudgetopia and Tsunamy’s long terms, and T also gains popularity. The ultimate delegate, time-weighted, is: Sailor Tune!
And so we can present the ultimate South Pacifican World Factbook Entry:

By LinkNakari (Nakarisaune)


WHEN Prime Minister Roavin unveiled the Linksurvey that would help the Court and the Cabinet select the seat left vacant by Sandaoguo’s resignation, more than one was probably surprised by the number of questions it contained, and the amount of time that it took to fill. Some probably wondered whether there was a point to the survey, or if it simply served to make the selection process more professional than it truly is.
The truth is that the survey serves a key function in the Court’s decision on who to recommend for a nomination, because it allows us to know what you think about the job and its implications, how your write rulings, and what thought process you follow when deciding cases.
I could say more about the purpose of each question in the survey, and what goal they meet, but instead I will try to simplify things, and provide a set of 5 tips on how to significantly improve your chances at being a good applicant for Associate Justice:
I. Be experienced
You stand a better chance at being nominated if you have prior judicial and legal experience. Maybe you have participated in moot courts at your university, or maybe you have served as a judge in other regional judiciaries. If anything, you could have significant experience filing amicus briefs. My point here is that, if you show that you know how the judiciary works and how to adequately interpret laws, your application would stand out, and make us take a closer look at what you could bring to the table.
II. Have a good reason
If you try to fill out the survey, you’ll see that one of the questions asks why you want to be an Associate Justice. You should obviously want to serve the region and apply the laws fairly and without distinction, but this is also a question where you can make yourself stand out. You can serve the region in many different ways, so why exactly do you seek this particular position? What is it about being an Associate Justice that motivates you?
III. Understand the job
This is a lifetime appointment, and with it comes the great responsibility of being the final voice on what the law means. If you think the Court is here to improve laws, punish the guilty or influence public opinion, you will be in for a rude awakening. We are here to interpret the law based on what it says, not what we wish it said. There will be times when your rulings will be unpopular or you’ll be pressured to rule a certain way. It’s the nature of the job, and you’ll need to be ready for that if you want to apply.
IV. Be thorough
Gone are the days when opinions would be simple and delivered the same day in which a case was submitted. These days Justices are expected to be inquisitive, eager to find all the information they can about a case, and make a serious effort at explaining, through their opinions, how they reached any given conclusion. You don’t have to write every other word in Latin, but you do need to have it in you to write more than just a few paragraphs.
V. Make sense
Your decisions need to make sense. You can’t admit every single case that you receive: some are just not legal questions, even if you think you can provide an answer to them. You can’t invent legal interpretations that make no sense: if a simple reading of the law makes sense and does not cause unnecessary harm, chances are that it is the correct interpretation. Being thorough should not be a substitute for being logical and practical.
If there ever is another judicial vacancy, or if there ever is a call for additional appointments, be sure that your answers to the survey serve a purpose, and the way you answer tells us a lot about how suitable you might be for the Court. If you answer all the questions honestly and following the above tips, you might have a good chance at being recommended for nomination.

By LinkKris Kringle (Kringalia)


THIS year, fifteen cases have already been submitted to the High Court. This has made the justices quite busy, especially since Justice Sandaoguo resigned to become Foreign Minister. Below is a summary of each case as of the end of March.
1901 (ruling delivered)
New Haudenosaunee Confederacy (NHC) is suing Concrete Slab for corruption. During the trial, NHC contested that Concrete Slab has been inconsistent in suppressing the word “damn” while Concrete Slab contested that he has been consistent in doing so. When asked by the High Court, the two other local councillors stated that, in their opinion, “damn” was not a suppressible word. The High Court found Concrete Slab guilty of corruption and has banned him from holding office for eight months. This is Concrete Slab’s second conviction for corruption.
1902 (awaiting ruling)
Nakari is suing North Prarie and Concrete Slab for bribery and contempt of court. The evidence itself was undisputed: North Prarie told Concrete Slab he did not think he was corrupt and Concrete Slab voted for North Prarie as Foreign Minister. Nakari contested that this evidence shows the two made a deal. On the other side, Concrete Slab contested that he changed his vote for other reasons. North Prarie originally contested the charge but later entered into a plea deal. The High Court is yet to deliver a verdict on this case.
1903 (withdrawn)
Volaworand initially asked the High Court if his satirical campaign for Local Council broke the law. Chief Justice Kris Kringle convinced him that it was not necessary to ask this. The case was withdrawn.
1904 (ruling delivered)
Amerion asked the High Court whether the was a legal difference between deputy ministers and cabinet interns. The distinction is important because deputy ministers cannot hold another high-level regional position. Some submissions suggested the positions are not the same while others suggested they should be treated the same. However, all submissions highlighted that the current status of non-ministers in the cabinet was difficult to decide. The High Court found that there is a legal difference between deputy ministers and advisers, such as interns, which has also been upheld by the difference in the usages of the roles.
1905 & 1906 (both dismissed)
Islands of Unity tried to sue Roavin for contempt of court, alleging that Roavin had delayed giving evidence to the High Court in the case of Nakari v North Prarie & Concrete Slab (1902 above). Islands of Unity also asked some legal questions about disclosing evidence and contempt of court. The High Court ruled that there was not enough evidence to charge Roavin with contempt of court and that the other questions were not able to be answered by the court. The cases were dismissed.
1907 (dismissed)
Concrete Slab tried to sue New Haudenosaunee Confederacy (NHC) for identity fraud, alleging that NHC had used another nation to campaign in the Local Council elections. The submissions that were presented did not contest facts, but rather discussed whether using another nation for campaigning meets the definition of the crime of identity fraud. The High Court ruled that there was not enough evidence to charge NHC with identity fraud, so the case was dismissed.
1908 (awaiting ruling)
Awe asked the High Court whether a section in the Criminal Code for immediately banjecting players who violate NationStates site rules conflicts with a section in the Charter requiring that players are only banjected if proper legal processes have been followed. One camp has argued that this immediate banjection violates due process, whereas the other camp has argued that the involvement of NationStates moderation solves the issue. The High Court is yet to deliver a ruling on this case.
1909 (dismissed)
New Haudenosaunee Confederacy asked the High Court whether there was a conflict between giving individual local councillors discretion in enforcing the double posting rule for the regional message board and a section in the Charter about the Local Council requiring to have a standard moderation policy. After asking for a list of Local Council laws, the High Court decided that the initial question was not able to be answered by the court. The case was dismissed.
1910 (withdrawn)
New Haudenosaunee Confederacy (NHC) tried to sue Concrete Slab for extortion, alleging that Concrete Slab’s threats to use his local council powers against NHC were not about enforcing the rules but were about silencing him. After a lot of back and forth between people about the behaviour of NHC and Concrete Slab, NHC decided to withdraw the case.
1911 (dismissed)
Volaworand tried to sue New Haudenosaunee Confederacy (NHC) for defamation, alleging NHC had defamed him by saying he was spamming him with telegrams. There was a lot of discussion about whether NHC had a correct definition of spam, especially given Volaworand was sending telegrams in his role with the Local Council. The High Court decided that there was not enough evidence to charge NHC with defamation, so the case was dismissed.
1912 (ongoing)
Tsunamy asked the High Court whether campaigning under a fake identity would meet the definition of the crime of identity fraud. This question relates to the broader implications of what was argued over in the case Concrete Slab v New Haudenosaunee Confederacy (1907 above). The High Court has yet to decide whether it will hear the case.
1913 (ongoing)
Beepee asked the High Court whether the High Court could enter into a plea agreement with someone who has been charged with a crime. This was in response to North Prarie’s plea deal made in Nakari v North Prarie & Concrete Slab (1902 above). All submissions so far have been against the High Court being able to offer plea bargains. The High Court is yet to deliver a ruling on this case.
1914 (presumed number, ongoing)
Beepee filed an appeal against Nakari v North Prarie & Concrete Slab (1902 above). Beepee argued that the plea deal with North Prarie meant the case should be overturned on the grounds of misconduct by the judges and violation of proper legal process. The High Court is yet to decide whether it will hear this case.
1915 (presumed number, ongoing)
New Haudenosaunee Confederacy (NHC) filed a complaint against his temporary banishment from the region. NHC alleges that their 5-day ban by the Local Council for spamming was not made through a proper legal process and, as such, violates a protection within the Charter. The High Court is yet to decide whether it will hear this case.

Conflict of interest declaration
At the time of publication, the author of the article (Nat) has made submissions to the High Court regarding cases 1904, 1907, 1908, 1910, 1911, and 1913; these are publicly available on the High Court forum.

By LinkNat (The National Corporation)


I'M almost always disappointed by Lent.
That might sound like a strange thing to say, especially if you’re familiar with the period of the Christian calendar known as Lent, a six-week period running up to and including Holy Week and ending on Easter Sunday. Inspired by the story of Jesus being tempted for forty days in the wilderness near the start of gospel narratives, Lent is a period of fasting — of giving stuff up — with the intent to focus instead on more spiritual things.
For many in the western world, in particular, Lent isn’t really a spiritual time at all, however, but, rather like a spring version of New Year, it’s an opportunity to try giving up a bad habit or to challenge yourself with something new. There’s nothing wrong with that, of course, but for Christians Lent is supposed to be an opportunity for something deeper than mere lifestyle change — it’s an opportunity to draw closer to Christ.
And this is why Lent so often disappoints me. Not because I try really hard and find that I’m no closer to God at all, but because I so often don’t try hard enough or, to put it in a way that has less to do with my own personal effort, I don’t submit enough.
My first problem is always choosing something to give up (or, indeed, take up) that has sufficient meaning to me to be a real sacrifice. The issue here is that I inherently don’t want to make too big a sacrifice. The last thing I want is to feel like I’ve really lost something, to feel the pain of absence that comes when you no longer have something you love or are just addicted to. No — it mustn’t be too great a sacrifice — that’s clear!
But then, of course, it mustn’t be too little. It’s got to be meaningful, after all! And it can’t just be something I want to give up anyway because, surely, that’s not the point.
I tend to circle around these arguments for quite a while, often even a week or two into Lent, during which period I’ll find myself refining what it is I’ve actually given up, setting conditions, get-out clauses, ways to make the sacrifice just a little less sacrificial. And in the midst of all this, I find myself losing sight of the purpose of the sacrifice and, if I’m lucky, I catch myself and make a token effort to refocus. It maybe lasts a couple of days.
I repeat this pattern most years, or, sometimes, I don’t bother at all, but occasionally, just occasionally, I actually manage to reach into the heart of what Lent is supposed to be and, for once, I find myself really and truly blessed.
The best example of this would be back in 2014, when I gave up fiction for Lent, choosing to read theology instead and then blogged my way through the process and my thinking about Lent at the time. It was a really helpful experience and I found that, with the theology and listening to more sermons, etc, I was genuinely finding my relationship with God improving all the time. Though I returned to my old habits once Lent was over, I didn’t forget what I had learned and, I think, I grew a little as a Christian.
This year, I have fallen into many of the same traps as usual — I’ve whittled away at my sacrifice until it is relatively easy to bear, I’ve lost focus, I’ve strayed — but I’ve also been reminded of my own human weakness and Christ’s strength. He who has lived and died for me has also undergone all manner of sacrifice for me so that I don’t have to and when I find myself wandering off, I hear Him calling me back and my focus returns.
There’s a lot going on in my life spiritually at the moment, with a possible call to ordination working itself out. This Lent, no matter how disappointing I am, Christ is leading me on towards the bright resurrection light of Easter, and that is never disappointing, for it fulfils all my need.
The LinkChurch of the South Pacific is a safe space to discuss spirituality of all kinds and is open to people of all faiths and none.

By LinkSeraph (Erinor)


HOW I got my hand on the gavel of the Assembly is a very interesting story. It is one that serves as a reflection of my eye-opening journey in the South Pacific and, I hope, a valuable lesson for our region’s prospective leaders that progress requires patience and commitment and that leadership requires the ability to lead with courage and conviction.
It’s a Marathon, Not a Sprint
One year ago, I became a Legislator again after coming back from a break from NationStates. I rediscovered my interest in the game and decided to return to where I started, the South Pacific. If there was one word to describe myself at that time, it would be 'excitement'. When I first entered the Assembly’s chambers, I was determined that I wanted to accomplish something big for myself.
The first big action that I ever took was to run in the Chair election in April 2018 against the incumbent Nakari. As much as I loved to serve in the South Pacific at a higher level of government, the election exposed me to experiences and challenges I never thought would happen to me. Since I was a brand new Legislator, I faced many disadvantages. I had no past history of public service, I had little to no knowledge of TSP’s history and politics. My platform was largely influenced by past ones made by candidates from previous elections.
If you were in the South Pacific at that time, did you expect me to win? Because I didn’t, not really. That is the moment when I met Islands of Unity, who was also a new Legislator and a supporter of my platform, which was focused on bridging the gap between the younger and older generations of TSP. He played an important role in shaping my political success as well as my ideas and beliefs.
Since we had common political positions, it was easy for us to work with each other. Our ambitions were different, but our goals were similar. We wanted to achieve great things for ourselves and contribute something of worth to the region. Right away, we began getting involved in lawmaking and any other part of the Assembly I could think of. I remembered introducing a bill, which happened a long time ago, called the ‘Office of the Parliamentarian Act.’ I tried my best to form, from my knowledge and experience in the South Pacific and NationStates, which were, of course, limited, a bill which I believed was in line with my values and beliefs.
As soon as I posted the debate thread, statements against the bill started to pile up. It was a crazy, but fun time for me. As I found my way through all the questions that the Legislators posed, I quite enjoyed the work and dedication that I have put into defending my bill. Although I eventually withdrew it from the floor, it was a valuable lesson after all. What was the lesson? Don’t come here thinking that you’re going to change the region and be a hero overnight. Everything takes time, patience and effort, so use it wisely.
So, to all my younger friends who just joined the wonderful group of dedicated Legislators, take your time. No one will expect you to explain the history of our relationship with the North Pacific in full detail. I won’t! Dare to try! What’s worse than not doing anything? If you fail, you will at least be able to learn a lesson and improve from it. If you succeed, then good for you! Keep going! But never hide and stay still, because that will not get you anywhere. As you began to assimilate into the region, give yourself loads of time to learn and build up your résumé.

By LinkBzerneleg (Bzerneleg)

Lama glama publishing group

Edited:

RawReport