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Power to the People - A Sardinia-Piedmont Interactive AAR

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Signor Presidente,

I thank the Rt. Hon. secretary for foreign affairs for his response to my queries, though must point out that, having since obtained a copy of and re-read the memorandum invoked by the Rt. Hon. minister, no mention is made of the Association of Italian Traditions with regard to it being administered by civil society; it is merely detailed that the foreign office was, and I quote, "proud to present the establishment of the association". If, however, the body has since exited the purview of the ministry, I have no qualms.

With regard to the Rt. Hon. minister's defence of the association, the inference one gleaned from His Majesty's admittedly, and regrettably, vague statement during the speech from the throne of his desire to see the formation of an Italian League was that it would be a body to unify the nation-states of the Italian peninsula in some political manner with Sardinia-Piedmont at its head. Whilst I do not object to the aforementioned Association of Italian Traditions, as instituted by the ministry, I must note that the cultural union it fosters, whilst a noble goal, seems somewhat removed in a practical sense from His Majesty's expressed desires, hence my query as to the association's relevance to our foreign policy. A fine start on the road to the fora tigon of such a body as promulgated by His Majesty, perhaps, but the promotion of literary works seems rather far-removed from a politically bound Italy, one can't help but feel.

Addressing now the Rt. Hon. minister's explanation of the ministry's actions in central Italy, I must note prior to my own response that I am of course glad to see closer ties forged with our peninsular brothers. Nevertheless, I find it worrying both that the Rt. Hon. minister would seek to implicate His Majesty as the sole arbiter of the Kingdom's foreign policy, seemingly renouncing all responsibility for our diplomatic presence on the part of the ministry, and that the Rt. Hon. minister seems to be under the impression that the diplomatic actions over which he presides exist within a closed system. Taking the first point in more detail, as the minister of foreign affairs, one is the person ultimately responsible for the Kingdom's diplomatic presence, whether conducted directly by the ministry, or by other agents – here I allude to the recent actions of His Majesty. Therefore, it is the minister who must accept responsibility for all actions to fall within his purview. In this spirit, it seems odd that the Rt. Hon. minister should seek to use the idea that His Majesty saw fit to dictate certain elements of our foreign policy as a means of distancing himself from ultimate responsibility, which I reiterate the Rt. Hon. minister – as the spokesperson of Sardinian and Piedmomtese diplomacy – holds. It is greatly distasteful to see also that the Rt. Hon. minister attempts to twist my words against His Majesty and His Majesty's government, though upon this matter I shall not dwell.

Rather, I wish now to elaborate upon my second point; namely, that the Rt. Hon. minister is apparently of the opinion that all diplomacy occurs in some sort of vacuum. Taking the Rt. Hon. minister's statement that I wish "to somehow impute such happenings to our foreign policy" (such happenings being the reaction of the Ballhausplatz towards French diplomats working in Italy,) I wish to assure the Rt. Hon. minister that, yes, this is exactly what I wish to do. Our Austrians friends saw fit to act thus as they perceived the various overtures of the ministry towards the fostering of a common Italian spirit to be detrimental to their own concerns. I remind the Rt. Hon. foreign secretary that we are closely aligned with the French, and so any advances upon the Austrian sphere on our part may easily be perceived as having been conducted with French interests in mind. Certainly, an Italian League spanning the peninsula and allied with the French would render Austrian influence over the region void, and so they are justifiably keen to ensure that this influence is maintained, hence their actions. The naïvité of the Rt. Hon. ministry to have entertained the notion that Sardinian encroachments upon central Italy would not be correctly perceived as an expansion of the French sphere is worrying, one must say.

Putting aside these concerns, however, I ask that the Chamber indulge me a moment longer so that I may respond to the Hon. Signor Rosa's concerns. I wish first to assure the Hon. member that I am fully acquainted with the situation as it is, and appreciate the obstacles to have been faced by the military during their occupation of the region. As he notes, however, this has been slower than may have reasonably been expected even without such obstacles, and so it is in such spirit that I move that an inquiry be conducted, encompassing of course matters of efficiency within the military's ranks. In response to the Hon. member's concerns that undue scrutiny or blame would be placed upon the various government ministers with responsibilities towards the military, I shall simply say that those whose conduct has been satisfactory, naturally, would have no need to worry. If misconduct has occurred, however, then it is the right of both the Chamber and the people of Sardinia-Piedmont to be aware of such lapses; I hardly think that this should be disrupted by the desire to avoid placing blame upon any who may have faltered in their duties. Finally, addressing the Hon. member's worries that conducting an inquiry at this juncture would be to impede the military, I must note once again that any inquiry would be parliamentary in nature, and so place no strain upon the military's bureaucracy.


The Rt. Hon. Don Carlo Agostino Uleri, M.P.​
 
((Privy Council, Cabinet, Chief of Army - Secret))

Following the question raised by the Prime Minister, I wish to state my opinion on the topic. It is clear that we must do something now, even if relatively small, to safeguard the health of the Kingdom's finances. I suppose that a small tweak is needed to the expenses we currently have with military salaries, and while they do affect the pulling power for young men of the realm to enlist, priorities are priorities. I suggest a small cut in order of 5% to those, to last only while the war is on course, and such salaries could be paid by way of indemnization after the war itself. If I may say so, investments in education have been at a good level for many terms, and a small change to those would make no difference and bolster the treasury a bit. Another way to go is raising taxes on the rich of the nation. The aristocrats could bear the burden of a small change for matters of State, as it has always been honourable to do. Most importantly, the industrialists of the Kingdom have been profitting from the economical stability and prosperity of the Kingdom under conservative government for a long time, their investments have prospered and their chests have grown bigger and heavier. The rich make money out of this nation's sweat, grind and toil - we have all the right to demand some of that back when necessity arises. The resulting profits should go towards increasing the supplying of our troops in Sinai and Palestine.

I must also come forth publicly to say the possibility of contracting a loan would be terrible for the Kingdom. If we go to foreign nations, they would hold sway over our political decisions and could deeply disturb our foreign ambitions. If we turn to private investors within the nation, which would come from the industrialist countrymen, we may face internal instability when their economical interests puts governent at odds with the common good. That is something a conservative government should be extremely aware of.

- Marchese Andrea Damiano Cignetti d'Alba, OSFS, Senatore, Ministro degli Affari Esteri

((Lower Education by 5%, lower Military Spending by 5% (preferably up it by 10% after the war is over and profits come back), raise Rich Taxes by 10%. Invest in stockpile until 80% threshold, decrease it until a profit of at least 3 pounds is achieved))
 
((Open Letter to the Chamber of Deputies))

Right Honourable Members of the Chamber of Deputies of our great Kingdom of Sardinia Piedmonte,

I was written by our honourable Prime Minister with a message, that the Deputies were questioning the stratagy of the General Staff in the first part of this so-called "Last Crusade". It is indeed true that there have been losses, but you must understand the desert is unforgiving, even if the Egyptians had a 100 000 men army ready to fight us, which they do not have and cannot even support, I would lose more men marching through the desert than destroying said army, of course if this scenario were true, the Egyptian Army would have been destroyed by the very land they are trying to defend in a matter of weeks. Right Honourable Gentlemen, we do not need inquiries and other such nonsense, we need food, water ammunition and more importantly, we need the full support of the Kingdom of Sardinia Piedmonte and are you not the repressentatives of the people of our great Kingdom, thus I ask you, I beg you, please do not bother yourself and more importantly, us, the soldiers who are fighting in the Holy Land, with inquiries and paperwork, it only waists time and resources that could have been spent on the "Last Crusade". You must understand, I am not only talking and condemning the actions of His Majesty's Loyal Opposition, no, I am also talking to you too, deputies of I Granrealisti and Tradizionalisti, we do not need enourmes amounts of funding, it would be better if we recieved a little bit more, but a bankrupt country is something which is worse than a soldier who did not recieve a cake for breakfeast because the funding is not as lavish as in his dreams, Right Honourable Gentlemen of the Coalition, we will survive, we are not dying of starvation, nor are we out of ammunition, we will manage. An old woman said this to me, it has been stuck in my mind every since, it is an Arabic proverb: "The Remedy may be worse than the disease." Raising funding is a remedy to a small desease which will kill even if we pay half the gold of the world to stop it, but said remedy is far worse than the disease, for it can lead to bankruptcy, which will lead to a lot more problems and maybe a terminal disease.

Also I wish to talk about a new stratagy, in the beginning of "the Last Crusade" we did not exactly know how large the Armed Forces of the Khedivé were, thus we landed and worked in large armies, to protect our men as best as we could. However, we are now certain the the Khedivé's Armed Forces are smaller than that of the Sardinian Royal Museum in Turin, thus we will divide our armies in smaller groups, as large as the supply limit allows it, to occcupy the lands of the Khedivé faster than before. Thus I will dispatch Maggior Generale G. d'Ambrosio to lead Corps Ib and Maggior Generale Antonio Di'Ossi to lead Corps IIb to increase the speed of occupation in Egypt. Maggior Generale d'Ambrosio and myself will travel into the Levantine and occupy it, whilst Tenente Generale d'Auria and Maggior Generale Di'Ossi will travel into Egypt and the Sudan to occupy it. When myself and Maggior Generale d'Ambrosio have finished occupying the Levantine, we will join Tenente Generale d'Auria and his adjudant and help them occupy the rest of Egypy and the Sudan.

May God be with you,

Raffaele Alighieri,
His Majesty's Chief of Staff
 
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((IPMC - Private))

Partner Suspension Motion: Aye
Allow Thiers to join IPMC: Aye - In accounts which I hope to publish in the near future ((about 12 hours time)), the current valuation for Goodwill, plant & equipment for a 1/7th share is $5,624.28, which I recommend as the purchase price of the share. If Signor Thiers has insufficient funds for that price, I propose running a deficit in the Cash column which will be paid off from future dividends. I ask that the President and Signor Thiers advise whether they agree with this manner of accounting for the acquisition.

Guiseppe Camileri
 
((Private - IPMC))

With our tremendous profits over the pass few years, I believe it is time that we pay back the loan we took out three years ago. In addition, I shall put Signor Leone's Partner Suspension Act up to a vote of the partners as well. Please vote in the following format:

Pay Back the IPMC's Loan: Aye/Nay/Abstain
Partner Suspension Act: Aye/Nay/Abstain

Voting shall end in two days or when all partners have voted.

~ Ernesto Granelli
Corporazione Presidente of Il Piedmonte Manifattura Corporazione
President of the Praetorian Party
Leader of the Opposition
 
((Private - IPMC))
Allow Raymond S. Thiers to Join the IPMC: Abstain
Pay back the IPMC's Loan: Aye
Partner Suspension Act: Aye

- Signor Nicola Isidoro Leone
Shadow Minister of Finance
 
((Meeting of Army and Cabinet - Private))​

It is my recommendation, in regards to the financial situation of Sardinia-Piedmonte, that the following changes be made to the current budget:

I. All taxes shall be raised to 80% for the remainder of this war;

II. Tariffs shall be raised an additional 5% for the remainder of this war

III. Military Stockpiles shall be increased 5% for the remainder of this war

IV. Military Spending shall be increased 5% for the remainder of this war.

Chief Justice Marzio Pedrotti, Minister of Commerce​
 
Lyonessian said:
((Privy Council, Cabinet, Chief of Army - Secret))

Following the question raised by the Prime Minister, I wish to state my opinion on the topic. It is clear that we must do something now, even if relatively small, to safeguard the health of the Kingdom's finances. I suppose that a small tweak is needed to the expenses we currently have with military salaries, and while they do affect the pulling power for young men of the realm to enlist, priorities are priorities. I suggest a small cut in order of 5% to those, to last only while the war is on course, and such salaries could be paid by way of indemnization after the war itself. If I may say so, investments in education have been at a good level for many terms, and a small change to those would make no difference and bolster the treasury a bit. Another way to go is raising taxes on the rich of the nation. The aristocrats could bear the burden of a small change for matters of State, as it has always been honourable to do. Most importantly, the industrialists of the Kingdom have been profitting from the economical stability and prosperity of the Kingdom under conservative government for a long time, their investments have prospered and their chests have grown bigger and heavier. The rich make money out of this nation's sweat, grind and toil - we have all the right to demand some of that back when necessity arises. The resulting profits should go towards increasing the supplying of our troops in Sinai and Palestine.

I must also come forth publicly to say the possibility of contracting a loan would be terrible for the Kingdom. If we go to foreign nations, they would hold sway over our political decisions and could deeply disturb our foreign ambitions. If we turn to private investors within the nation, which would come from the industrialist countrymen, we may face internal instability when their economical interests puts governent at odds with the common good. That is something a conservative government should be extremely aware of.

- Marchese Andrea Damiano Cignetti d'Alba, OSFS, Senatore, Ministro degli Affari Esteri

((Lower Education by 5%, lower Military Spending by 5% (preferably up it by 10% after the war is over and profits come back), raise Rich Taxes by 10%. Invest in stockpile until 80% threshold, decrease it until a profit of at least 3 pounds is achieved))
Click to expand...

((Privy Council - Private))

According to the opinion of the Chief of Army, we are not in need of large loans or such extraordiniary measures. It seems that our primary aim would be to have a governmental proficit and support our stockpile to decrease the attrition, which is now the only cause of us losing troops, since no battles are expected to be fought, Therefore I believe that the changes proposed by Minister di Alba can be the middle way that would help to reach budgetary stability and support our war efforts without putting a burden of large debts on our necks or sufficating the lower classes, that already pay more than the others, with extensive taxes, risking to raise national militancy.

What do the Minister of Finance (first of all), Minister of War, Minister of Commerce, other governmental figutes, incuding the Chief of the Army, think about this proposal? If they find it acceptable, I believe it can be put on the vote. I know many of the ministers have their own agenda regarding the changes - but we must find the middle way that would suit us.

- Cesare Luigi Amat, Marchese di Soleminis
 
((Antonio Bagnoli [Qwerty7] has been arrested, as per the outstanding warrant.))
 
Private – His Majesty King Victor Emmanuel II​


Signor,


I must apologise profusely should writing to you directly seem too forward an act, though having learnt of Your Majesty's recent desires to forge closer ties with our cousins in central Italy, as promulgated during your speech from the throne at the state opening of Parliament, I felt compelled to humbly establish correspondence.

Having studied, and, to a certain extent, dictated, the course pursued by the Kingdom in foreign affairs, it is my opinion that little will be achieved in terms of political unification via unilateral action by Sardinia-Piedmont, save for military intervention by our armies within the peninsula, noting the many parties holding opposing interests to our own. Further, whilst I am of course supportive of the efforts of the Association of Italian Traditions, as established three years ago by the foreign office, the association does not strike me as one by which such unification as we desire may be achieved. Italy will not be forged by poems and pilgrimages, after all. Drawing upon the inferences made by your interlocutor from the aforementioned speech from the throne, it is my understanding – and please forgive me if I am being at all presumptuous – that your opinions are similarly held, and I therefore offer that advances must be made upon the association if unity at anything other than a superficial level is to be achieved. It is vital also that such developments, if they are to be made, come after concert of action by all interested parties in the Italian peninsula, noting with regret the débâcle to have arisen relating to the ejection of French diplomatists from courts within the Austrian sphere.

I therefore humbly suggest, Signor, that all aforementioned parties be invited to a conference, to be held in a neutral location within Italy (perhaps Florence or Rome), so that the future of the Italian peninsula may be discussed amongst the powers of the region in a considered fashion. In taking the initiative and chairing such a conference, Signor, the predominance of Sardinia-Piedmont amongst the Italian states would further be displayed, whilst we would also provide a means of avoiding unfortunate diplomatic incidents that may arise owing to conflicting interests where unilateral action is taken by any one nation.

Thus, I submit the matter for your consideration.



I have the honour of being, Signor, your most humble and obedient servant,


The Rt. Hon. Don Carlo Agostino Uleri, M.P.​
 
((Privy Council, Cabinet, Chief of Army - Secret))

It has come to my knowledge that we could push for slightly bigger temporary changes for the budget while the war wages on, and my proposal would result on a quite small profit, which leaves us leeway to alter things more significantly. Therefore I am amending my past proposal with these changes:

1) Taxes on the rich shall be raised from 65% to 80%, a total of 15%
2) Tariffs on imported products shall be raised from 10% to 15%, a total of 5%

And all other measures would remain, in order to supply our troops and fix the deficit problem.

- Marchese Andrea Damiano Cignetti d'Alba, OSFS, Senatore, Ministro degli Affari Esteri
 
((Meeting of the Army and Cabinet - Private))

While I support the spirit of the Ministry of Commerce's proposals, I feel that a tarriff increase of 5% for the duration of the war might even be too low, and we should seek tarriffs pegged at 20% for the duration of the war,

The issue with this is, of course, passing it through the house. Industrialists are notoriously reluctant to accept tarriff hikes, and I do not wish to engender a constitutional crisis by sinking the 1858 Budget. Thus I am inclined to accept the Societe Hermes' offer of a 10,000 scuta loan at no interest in exchange for our support in passing the Railroads Bill.

That said, a tax and tarriff hike to account for a 5% increase in the stockpile and in spending is the MInistry of Finance's preferred option, and if it is possible to get such a budget amendment through the House then we should most definitely attempt it. The Ministry am confident that, barring a major change in circumstances, the changes should ensure we break even for the duration of the war.

Furthermore, the Ministry of Finance strongly recommends that we do not extend the war by attempting to seize more territory than the Sinai and the Holy Land. Objective creep has resulted in this state of affairs, and we should ensure that said state of affairs ends as soon as possible.

Addendum: In fact, given the complete lack of an enemy army, we can in fact reduce military spending rather than raising it, which is my recommendation.

Eugenio Maria Amadeo di Barnardi, Minister of Finance
 
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1859 Budget

Taxes:
Poor: 78%
Middle: 74%
Rich: 60%

Expenses:
Industrial Subsidies: The Office of Finance recommends that current subsidies continue to be maintained over the next five years.

Stockpile:
Land: 46%
Naval: 40%
Construction: 100%

Other Expenses:
Education: 50%
Administration: 43%
Social Spending: 0%
Military Spending: 62%

Tariffs
Tariffs: 10%

Fund allocation: None as yet, please advise

Contingency 1: Debt
Should the treasury ever fall below £1000 in circumstances of a deficit, the land stockpile shall be reduced to 30%. If this fails to reach a surplus, then the Military Spending shall be reduced to 30%. If this fails to reach a surplus, Education shall be reduced to 30%. If this fails to reach a surplus, then Administration shall be reduced to 30%.

Contingency 2: War Outside of the Specified War Below
In the event the Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont be involved in a state of war, foreign or domestic, Military spending is to be hiked to 85% and the Land Stockpile to 100%. In order to compensate for budgetary defects in this incident, taxes will be temporarily hiked across the board by 5%. Should this fail, Taxes are to be increased by 10% on each strata of society until we reach surplus or tax upon all strata of society are at 90%. On the conclusion of the state of War, civil or external, military spending and the stockpile, taxes and tariffs are to be reduced to the pre-war level and Contingency 1 applies as normal. Contingency 2 supersedes Contingency 1.

Contingency 3: Surplus
Should the treasury be greater than £1000 and receiving a daily surplus of greater than £30, then administration, land stockpile, and education, in that respective order, shall be raised until the daily surplus reaches £15. These expenditure hikes shall be carried out in increases of 3% before a subsequent 3% expenditure hike is applied to the next department.

Contingency 4: War with Egypt
Should the nation engage in a foreign war against Egypt as discussed previously, then the following contingency comes into effect. Military Spending is to be hiked up to 70%, the stockpile up to 75%, with a corresponding increase of poor taxes up to 85%, middle taxes up to 80%, rich taxes up to 80%, tarriffs up to 20% and a decrease in education to 35%. All changes are to be reversed on the conclusion of the war. Contingency 4 supersedes Contingency 1 and Contingency 2.
___________________________________________________________________________

While I am reluctant to raise tarriffs up to 20%, it is unfortunately impossible to do otherwise. There is simply no other revenue stream we can access, short of taxing the rich by 100%. If you would examine the budgetary documents, provided ((the update pics)) you will see that merely raising taxes on the rich to 80% and tarriffs to 15% would account for a 4-5 pound per day hole in income - the tax base of the wealthiest members of our society is in fact very low. As such, tarriffs must be doubled - there is no other way to break even.
 
((TJDS, can you update the commands list on page 2?))

Signor Barnardi, you say that tariffs must be raised to 20% yet your budget still lists the tariffs at 10%. Can you care to explain this difference?

-Stefano Bonaretti, Maggior Generale di Nizza e III Corps


Bonaretti hears a rumor that Pedrotti and Inacio are considered for the Senate

((Private-an NPC))

Pedrotti and Inacio? What madness has overtaken the Senate? My cat would make a better senator than that fool Pedrotti.
 
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Player Actions Needed:
Vote on the [post=18737756]Anti-Witchcraft Bill[/post], [post=18734275]Religious Protection Act[/post], [post=18734275]Defense of the Realm Act[/post], [post=18728164]Government and Economy Act[/post], [post=18707655]Taxation Reform[/post], [post=18738851]1859 Budget[/post].

Sample Ballot:

[post=18737756]Anti-Witchcraft Bill[/post]: Yes/No/Abstain
[post=18734275]Religious Protection Act[/post]: Yes/No/Abstain
[post=18734275]Defense of the Realm Act[/post]: Yes/No/Abstain
[post=18728164]Government and Economy Act[/post]: Yes/No/Abstain
[post=18707655]Taxation Reform[/post]: Yes/No/Abstain
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This vote will end in two day's time, on 1/21 at 7:00 PST. That's 3 AM GMT, 1/22.
 
Anti-Witchcraft Bill: Abstain
Religious Protection Act: Abstain
Defense of the Realm Act: Abstain
Government and Economy Act: No
Taxation Reform: Yes
1859 Budget: No

[Industrialist]
[Trading in Wine, +20% PP]
 
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Anti-Witchcraft Bill: Yes
Religious Protection Act: No
Defense of the Realm Act: No
Government and Economy Act: No
Taxation Reform: Abstain
1859 Budget: No

[Politician]

[-50% PP, in Prison]

I do hope the government sees the danger of witches in the Kingdom. I also hope that I receive a fair trial within one year of this request.

- Antonio Bagnoli
 
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