Under the Rising Sun, a Japan Interactive AAR

[Fingon888]

Regarding the Recent Proposals by National-Liberal MP's
​

The proposed bills from the Lord Tanabe Shinzou are unneeded bills that seek to establish in full law the Dateist dictatorship of NLP Prime Ministers and their henchmen. The Farmer-Labor Party will oppose the Restoration of the Sacred Duties and Traditions of His Imperial Majesty Act, the Constitutional Principles Act, the State of Emergency Act, and the Representation Act. Any party members that support these bills will be ejected from the party due to our values of promoting peace, democracy, and progress. Furthermore, the Farmer-Labor Party will support the Reform of Old Age Welfare Act. All other bills at this time will be the subject of each member's own conscience.

Also, fellow members of the Imperial Diet I propose these bills:

The Expansion of Suffrage Act
1. All Japanese men over the age of 22 will have the right to vote in any and all elections occurring in the address of their residency.
2. All restrictions (monetary, literacy, etc.) on voting for Japanese men older than 22 with a valid residency are banned by law.
3. Japanese men over the age of 22 without a valid residency must apply to the Ministry of the Interior to be granted a temporary voting license that must be renewed every 3 years.
4. All Japanese men serving in the armed forces over the age of 22 outside of Japan will be given the absentee ballot for every election taking place in their residency.

The Legalization of Association Act
1. The ban on trade unions will be overturned in its entirety.
2. Trade unions will be required to undergo a check to ensure there is no affiliation with a political party at the time of founding and again after every 5 years.

The Agricultural Independence Act
1. All farmers who primarily grow and sell food products and products needed by Japanese industry will receive subsidies to cover losses by natural circumstances.
2. All farmers may receive a loan from the office of the Ministry of the Interior with an interest rate not exceeding 1% or less than 0.1%.
3. Food products that are imported into Japan will have a tariff of 5% levied upon them unless they are of luxury status.

 

[LordTempest]

Any party members that support these bills will be ejected from the party due to our values of promoting peace, democracy, and progress.

I applaud the honourable member for his brilliant demonstration of the democratic principles of individual conscience and free speech.

-- Count Hosokawa

 

[Fingon888]

I applaud the honourable member for his brilliant demonstration of the democratic principles of individual conscience and free speech.

-- Count Hosokawa

I must say the honorable member has never heard of a party whip before. Our party is a champion of free speech, but as we are necessarily a political organization aimed at supporting a certain platform and achieving electoral success there is only a certain range of opinion that can be tolerated in the party. We welcome all opinions in the Diet to join in debate, but we say these pieces of legislation as such anathema to the political process of Japan and a great step backward into darkness and ignorance. We therefore cannot support these bills in any means.

- Murayama Kuri, Leader of the Farmer-Labor Party

 

[LordTempest]

I must say the honorable member has never heard of a party whip before.

As a matter of fact he has, but party leaders do not function as whips.

Our party is a champion of free speech, but as we are necessarily a political organization aimed at supporting a certain platform and achieving electoral success there is only a certain range of opinion that can be tolerated in the party. We welcome all opinions in the Diet to join in debate, but we say these pieces of legislation as such anathema to the political process of Japan and a great step backward into darkness and ignorance. We therefore cannot support these bills in any means.

If one's cause is honourable and just, then one does not need fear and threats of deselection to keep one's troops in line. The rightness of your opposition to these bills would be clear for all your fellow party members to see, and they will oppose these bills not out of obedience but out of conscience; not because they were told to, but on their own initiative. By publicly ordering your MPs to vote against these bills, (which they undoubtedly would have done anyway had you not ordered them) you provide the Diet with evidence of the dictatorial tendencies alleged to exist in your movement by the NLP members opposite.

Sir, you have committed the gravest of tactical errors by illustrating with which such dictatorial tendencies your movement operates with behind the scenes, and given Lord Tanabe and his cohorts a massive stick with which to beat your movement senseless.

-- Count Hosokawa.

 

[Fingon888]

As a matter of fact he has, but party leaders do not function as whips.



If one's cause is honourable and just, then one does not need fear and threats of deselection to keep one's troops in line. The rightness of your opposition to these bills would be clear for all your fellow party members to see, and they will oppose these bills not out of obedience but out of conscience; not because they were told to, but on their own initiative. By publicly ordering your MPs to vote against these bills, (which they undoubtedly would have done anyway had you not ordered them) you provide the Diet with evidence of the dictatorial tendencies alleged to exist in your movement by the NLP members opposite.

Sir, you have committed the gravest of tactical errors by illustrating with which such dictatorial tendencies your movement operates with behind the scenes, and given Lord Tanabe and his cohorts a massive stick with which to beat your movement senseless.

-- Count Hosokawa.

My dear sir, these attacks, while I appreciate the critical nature of them, are baseless. This is clearly no sign of "dictatorial tendencies" to simply announce the official opposition of the party to a certain bill. If there was some mad Republican in this esteemed house who proposed a bill to abolish the holy office of our most sacred Emperor would not the very same National-Liberal Party eject any members that supported it? It is quite novel to hear from the ruling party of 40 years and the masters of our entire military of a tiny opposition party's dictatorial tendencies. In fact, it is quite insulting to hear this from the very party who will likely prevent the very spread of democracy to all of our citizenry, which is at its greatest level a dictatorial tendency. I tell you sir, that while a mistake may have been made, this is by no means a show of ill intent or motive as you seem to suggest.

- Murayama Kuri, Leader of the Farmer-Labor Party

 

[unwealdy]

Name:
Kitasato Yataro (b.1853)
Specialty:
Economy
Background:
Yataro Kitasato (in the Western style) made his fortune in the Great Asian War, transforming his family's chain of lower end shops (ramen shops, pawnbrokers, and cabarets of questionable legality) into a powerful media outlet based around the Sapporo Shinbun. Despite comparative good treatment of his property by the British occupying authorities between 1891 and 1893, the temporary separation from the rest of the Empire and life under foreign rule shook Yataro out of his complacency, causing him to financialize his assets and prepare to enter the highly competitive realm of Home Islands industry.

At a Sapporo cafe, a fat man enjoys his tea at an outdoor table, relishing the cold air and noting the absence of loudly speaking English voices and badly smelling Darjeeling tea. His moustaches twitch with satisfaction.

((private))
Shakushain Industries
1893
If the 1893 pricing guide is still in effect, Shakushain Industries will construct a Lumber Mill and a Furniture Factory in Hokkaido.

Previous Balance: 20k yen
Cost of Orders: 6.61k for Lumber Mill and 9.15k for Furniture Factory.
Balance After Construction: 4.24k yen
Debt: None

Expected Completion of Factories: 1894 (both have 365 day construction lengths)​

 

[Scrapknight]

Kyoto, 1893

"...and so, the intentions of the Government are hereby made manifest with the so-called 'Representation Act,' namely to enshrine in law the tyrannies that the Oligarchy has already imposed upon our Nation at gunpoint. Pity the poor, underrepresented military! Pity the tyrants who besmirch the Emperor's good name by forcing his innocent subjects to march to war at the barrel of a gun! Oh yes, it is they who are underrepresented in our nation, not the common man or the patriotic businessman. I can sum up the Government's program as articulated by Lord Tanabe in one word: Hogwash. For a party slavishly devoted to the late Shogun Date, they have surprisingly little respect for his constitution. His Imperial Majesty's Most Loyal Opposition will oppose these barbaric acts with every fiber of our being."

Such was one of the first speeches to the Diet by the Viscount Okayama, newly-minted Leader of the Opposition. Not that the title 'Leader of the Opposition' really meant anything these days; it was rather like being the richest man in the poorhouse. But here he was, and if he was going to continue his opposition to Date anyway, he might as well make use of a platform when it was presented to him.

((EDIT: Also, banning Freemasonry? In Japan? In 1893? Seriously?))

 

[LatinKaiser]

((The Hydra must be slain, wherever it resides.))

 

[Luftwafer]

The Service To The Beautiful Nation Of Nippon and all of its inhabitants by mandatory military service bill.

1. Every man over the age of 18 years old and under the age of 35 must do 2 years mandatory military service.

2. There are exceptions, if a man is the only male child in a family he is exempt, if he has a medical condition certified by two doctors to limit his physical ability, he is exempt.
Men in important positions such as Doctors are also exempt.

3. To dodge the Draft is to attack Nippon itself, any man caught can be punished with at least 10 years in prison, but if the judge rules it was pre meditated, then the only punishment is Death by Beheadinng.

 

[zenphoenix]

The Service To The Beautiful Nation Of Nippon and all of its inhabitants by mandatory military service bill.

1. Every man over the age of 18 years old and under the age of 35 must do 2 years mandatory military service.

2. There are exceptions, if a man is the only male child in a family he is exempt, if he has a medical condition certified by two doctors to limit his physical ability, he is exempt.
Men in important positions such as Doctors are also exempt.

3. To dodge the Draft is to attack Nippon itself, any man caught can be punished with at least 10 years in prison, but if the judge rules it was pre meditated, then the only punishment is Death by Beheadinng.

I believe that clause 1 is already covered under my father's Reform of Education Act.

 

[Luftwafer]

I would like to see your fathers bill.

((Page number pls))

 

[Firehound15]

Members of the Imperial Diet,

The Bill proposed by the Hon. Prince Sakamoto is one the New Moderates cannot support. This bill will chain the government of Japan to enourmes expenses it can only pay with harsh taxes, which threathen the economic freedom and incentive of our markets and our people, an unfaltering constant in our policy, no matter the threats and acts of the Imperialists. Thus I ask the Diet to vote against this bill, to protect the incentive and economic freedom of our people and to save future governments from crippeling debts that this bill will undoubtedly force upon them.

The Rt. Hon. Lord Tanabe MP PC, Second Count of Wayakama
His Imperial Majesty's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs,
Leader of the New Moderates

I rise to speak in opposition to Lord Tanabe, as I must urge this Diet, as well as the Reform Association, to join together in support for Lord Sakamoto's proposal. This is an issue which hurts many of our nation's poorest citizens, and their suffering should be assuaged- I for one fail to see how it may ever be neglected, as I have been a doctor for several years in Kyoto, and I believe I can speak with absolute certainty when I say that these men, women, and children are much more valuable alive and taken care of than starving and dead in the streets! Many of these people were born poor, raised poor, and continue to live their lives on the edge of life and death. Surely you do not disagree with the late Marshal Date's belief that it is the duty of the Japanese Empire to take care of its people at any and all cost, or do you, such a devotee, dare deny his legacy and beliefs in the name of mere financial accountability?

Dr. Satake Hiroshi, MP

 

[zenphoenix]

I would like to see your fathers bill.

((Page number pls))

Here it is.

((page 95 I think))

Edit 1: This is the original version of the Reform of Heathcare Act, for your information.

Edit 2: In light of what happened to our previous Prime Minister, I would like to suggest the following bill for discussion by the Diet:

Safety and Preservation of Important Persons Act​

The Prime Minister and his Cabinet, should they have a military rank, must not engage in military-related activities while in office. Military-related activities here are defined as engaging in field operations such as leading troops on the battlefield, commanding fleets, and other activities that require the person to place himself in a place of danger or outside of Japanese borders. This measure is intended to protect the lives of such important persons and prevent unexpected deaths of said important persons. The Prime Minister and his Cabinet may choose to temporarily resign from their military ranks while in office, regaining their ranks once they leave office. This measure does not apply to Privy Councillors or Diet representatives. All candidates for the Prime Minister-ship or a Cabinet position must agree to this measure, should it be passed and implemented, before being appointed to office.

 

[Marschalk]

Here it is.

((page 95 I think))

Edit 1: This is the original version of the Reform of Heathcare Act, for your information.

Edit 2: In light of what happened to our previous Prime Minister, I would like to suggest the following bill for discussion by the Diet:

Safety and Preservation of Important Persons Act​

The Prime Minister and his Cabinet, should they have a military rank, must not engage in military-related activities while in office. Military-related activities here are defined as engaging in field operations such as leading troops on the battlefield, commanding fleets, and other activities that require the person to place himself in a place of danger or outside of Japanese borders. This measure is intended to protect the lives of such important persons and prevent unexpected deaths of said important persons. The Prime Minister and his Cabinet may choose to temporarily resign from their military ranks while in office, regaining their ranks once they leave office. This measure does not apply to Privy Councillors or Diet representatives. All candidates for the Prime Minister-ship or a Cabinet position must agree to this measure, should it be passed and implemented, before being elected to office.

I must remind that neither the Prime Minister nor cabinet members are elected to office, but are appointed by the Emperor. This bill also limites the discretion of His Majesty on how to use the members of His governing councils, for here may be times when a minister is to be more useful to His Majesty in his capacity as a general. This also an attempt to walk away from the legacy of Prince Date that is fundamental for our party - for was not good Prince both a great statesmen and a great warlord?

I also thank the Monarch and the Prime Minister fo my appointment as the Ambassador to Germany and would travel there to assist to develop the relationships between two great countries. And, as a member of the Diet, must applaud the initiative of the leader of the New Moderates a number of whose proposals would, without doubt, help to guarantee the safety and security of the Throne.

- Asano Yoshinaga, second Marquess of Hiroshima

 

[LordTempest]

My dear sir, these attacks, while I appreciate the critical nature of them, are baseless. This is clearly no sign of "dictatorial tendencies" to simply announce the official opposition of the party to a certain bill.

On the contrary sir, it is hardly baseless to argue that a party leader who tells his fellow members exactly how to vote on any given issue and threatens to expel them from the party should they not comply is behaving in a dictatorial manner.

If there was some mad Republican in this esteemed house who proposed a bill to abolish the holy office of our most sacred Emperor would not the very same National-Liberal Party eject any members that supported it? It is quite novel to hear from the ruling party of 40 years and the masters of our entire military of a tiny opposition party's dictatorial tendencies. In fact, it is quite insulting to hear this from the very party who will likely prevent the very spread of democracy to all of our citizenry, which is at its greatest level a dictatorial tendency. I tell you sir, that while a mistake may have been made, this is by no means a show of ill intent or motive as you seem to suggest.

Indeed a mistake has been made by the honourable member, he appears to have forgotten that he is currently addressing a member sitting on the Opposition benches! If the honourable member cannot even remember which member sits for which party in the Diet, then surely one is quite right to question his political judgement.

-- Count Hosokawa

 

[Marschalk]

Asano Yoshinaga laughs as he listens to the debate over the FLP affair

Honestly, when you watch how imperiously this man orders around his smallish party, you just imagine what he would do if ever puts his hands on the Prime Ministry. And yet he speaks of their "democracy" and our "dictatorial tendencies". By Ancestors, he reminds me of the scoundrel Mori who tried held same talks while trying to fabricate the results of elections, betraying both the Emperor and the populace! Honesly, this opposition is so full of corruption and ineffectiveness that it is not even worth mentioning.

 

[Firehound15]

((Private - NLP/KAP))

Seeing as no other have put themselves forward, we would do well to hold the vote at this time. ((It will end in 24 hours))

President: Satake/Kishiwada

 

[zenphoenix]

((Private - NLP/KAP))

President: Satake

 

[Michaelangelo]

((Private - NLP/KAP))

President: Kishiwada

- Count Ito Masaki of Miyazaki, Minister of Justice

 

[TJDS]

((Private - NLP/KAP))

President: Kishiwada