- overheard conversation in a smoke-filled room in a private social club in Nürnberg.
"No-one's quite sure what to make of it, Gottfried. The Nürnberg Times are saying it's a new age in inter-party cooperation; the Preukischen Traditionelen are saying it's a confused mess and no good will come of it.
The Allianzzeitung are saying Von Schwaben is secretly a Conservative, and this new government is the, erm, "end of the Liberal ideal as we know it". Grundpfeiler are saying Von Schwaben is secretly a Conservative, but they're thrilled with the concept, and eagerly await the reopening of the State Planning Commission any day now. Die Freiburger Zeitung are saying he's secretly a Socialist, and it's the end of civilisiation as we know it. The Vox Electores are saying he's secretly a National Liberal, and just doing a very bad job of being secretive about it...
Vox Liberatus say the National Liberals have lost all credibility and the country's in a shambles. The Nationsstimme say well if the UAI hadn't imploded at the first taste of power then the Liberal Coalition would have made it more than six months anyway, and Von Schwaben's doing a good job with what he's been dealt.
Erste Arbeiterszeitung - hang on, I'm sure I've got that one here somewhere - ah, they're outraged that the Socialists have been given this "Social Affairs" thing, and say it's just another way of keeping the Working Man out of power. Der Eiscreme-Karton say basically the same thing, but they think it's a brilliant scheme and the fewer Working Men we have in Conclave the better. Der Eine Vahre Arbeiterszeitung maintain that they were into Socialism before it was cool, that these SP types should have pushed for more, that they're Propping Up the Corrupt Bureaucracy and that True Communism can only come about through Violent Revolution, Workers Of The World Unite, blah blah blah.
Vox Imperator say the Socialists are bascially just Meierist Conservatives plus a few zany schemes, and once the people see what a Socialist government looks like they'll abandon the Party and find someone else to protest-vote for. The Platist-Arbeiterszeitung say the same, except that it's just Von Gogh who's the Meierist Conservative and that the whole thing's been orchestrated by the Hohenzollerns in another attempt to crush down the working class. Der Zeit say it's just another election and they can't see what all the fuss is about.
I dread to think what the newspapers will be saying once the new government start actually *doing* things..."
- Wernher von Kermann