Mr. van der Wyngaert, I do hope that your father enjoys his retirement, he has certainly earned it. Let's hope that you are as capable and honorable a man as him.
-Anthony M. Dewitt
-Anthony M. Dewitt
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((If you are in the military please post OOC your rank and your command if you have one. I am making changes and I need all the information.))
((Lieutenant-General Marcus van Laere, Burke's former command was given to me after the war.))
"I congratulate Prime Minister de Graaf and his allies in this great victory. One can only hope that this glorious Coalition can only continue to further the rights of Man and of the Belgian citizen."
~ Deputy & Baron Clément van Eetvelde
~ Deputy & Baron Clément van Eetvelde
((No update tonight, partially because it looks like the government needs a little more time to get its stuff together, and partially because I completely forgot that you have to choose and vote on a reform.
The Minister of Justice or Prime Minister should nominate a reform and it will be voted on by the chamber. There is a popular movement supporting non-secret ballots. Possible reforms are Two Per State/Based on Population; Jefferson Method/Proportional Representation; State Controlled Trade Unions; Non-Secret Ballots or, of course, none of the above.))
The Minister of Justice or Prime Minister should nominate a reform and it will be voted on by the chamber. There is a popular movement supporting non-secret ballots. Possible reforms are Two Per State/Based on Population; Jefferson Method/Proportional Representation; State Controlled Trade Unions; Non-Secret Ballots or, of course, none of the above.))
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((To clarify, can I only choose one, or can I choose as many as I please?))
((Only one, and it will go to a vote. If it fails, you'll have to wait until the next update to propose another.))
((Pieter Blauvelt is a Corporal, with no proper command as far as I can tell.))
Allow me to congratulate my fellow liberals, and members of the CUP, for our victory in this election. It was a tight race till the very end, but we fought hard and well and in the end we won.
I thank de Graaf for my appointment as Minister of Justice. While it is my first ministerial position, I hope that my inexperience is seen as an opportunity rather than a hindrance, and am glad for the opportunity to serve this nation. As minister I am currently in the process of heading a committee to investigate which direction we should lead political reforms.
Peeters, Minister of Justice
I thank de Graaf for my appointment as Minister of Justice. While it is my first ministerial position, I hope that my inexperience is seen as an opportunity rather than a hindrance, and am glad for the opportunity to serve this nation. As minister I am currently in the process of heading a committee to investigate which direction we should lead political reforms.
Peeters, Minister of Justice
((No matter how hard I try to dodge Densley his characters follow me every time 
))
))
((No matter how hard I try to dodge Densley his characters follow me every time
((I can't be blamed for our bad timing. Or various backroom machinations that ended up with me losing the Foreign Ministry...
))
((That's mostly to appease both of the ethnic groups, considering that only the PM has to be bilingual))
A Statement from the Ministry of War
After consultation with the Treasury and the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of War finds that there is a strong financial argument preventing military expansion. We will of course be looking into ways of increasing our strength without impacting on spending and creating a strong system of defensive alliances to safeguard this nation in the event of attack, but the Ministry fully accepts that military expansion of any great size is not possible at this time and, with this in mind, we urge restraint and diplomacy, since it is clear that Belgian Military force cannot be projected throughout Europe until the fiscal situation improves.
Signed,
Captain Luc Poisson
Minister of War
I am saddened by the lack of interest in our military, however, if the colonial expansion can take place without it, so be it.
Ah, monsieur, it is not for lack of interest, but for lack of funds - to do anything else would be grossly irresponsible.
Memorandum from Georges Savarin to the National Democratic Party secretariat
My recent illness has prevented me from writing much of a congratulatory speech. Monsieur Peeters is more than capable of it. Regardless, I am very proud of you all and am excited that we will finally truly be able to shape the Belgian liberal movement. This is truly our time.
--
Excerpt from a report to the Ministry of Commerce
Gentlemen, my main economic concerns are twofold: that interventionist policies, even if minimally pursued by Monsieur de Graaf, have damaged confidence in our economy and that a possible glut of workers in Flanders could trigger an unemployment spike similar to previous incidents. My strategy for combating these problems is as follows. Firstly, in cooperation with the Interior Ministry, I would recommend starting a campaign in Wallonia similar to that in Flanders of encouraging capitalists to invest in industry nationwide. We already have a sizable core of capitalists in Flanders, but those in Wallonia have fallen behind, and restoring investor confidence will go a long way towards an economic boost. We should work to rectify this situation. Secondly, to avoid an oversupply of manual labor in Flanders, we should avoid an industrial worker recruiting campaign there for the time being. I know that we risk over-learning the lessons of the last cycle, but I believe that we ought to allow industry to develop more first. I have been discussing with Monsieur Pothiquet and Van Dyke on what we might best do in this situation, and will be open to their recommendations.
Finally, ensuring the stability of our industry has become a matter of national security, especially in Flanders given the ever-present Flemish Nationalist Organization. Thus, I recommend purchasing a small stockpile, as our funds permit without going into debt, of fabric and wood, and allowing purchases from our strategic reserve in case of a business cycle downturn. The policy has worked before as a "safety valve" without damaging the forces of the free market, and I see no reason to discontinue it at the present time. It is not necessarily to my taste, but as it is fully optional and conducted at marked prices, and avoids picking winners, I can stomach it for the sake of security.
Of course, I believe it goes without saying that we shall remove all tariffs currently in place and shall enact no new ones.
The debt problem should be solved with spending cuts first and tax increases second. As long our credit remains sound, there is no immediate threat, but we must deal with it now so we can fund colonial expansion and so the problem does not balloon out in the future.
- Savarin
--
Excerpt from a letter to Jean-Francois van der Wyngaert
Dear Monsieur van der Wyngaert,
I am saddened to hear of your retirement. You have truly been an unsung hero of Belgium for your work, from securing French intervention in the Second Revolution to preventing the Tsar's armies from marching through Germany to get to us. I hope your retirement brings you stability and happiness, and hope your son finds success for himself as well. I would also be honored to attend the Foreign Correspondent's Luncheon, if that would be possible... I do hope that you will carry on at BEAC as well, as now that colonial expansion is seriously on the table, your expertise would be invaluable. I shall see you at the next board meeting, then!
Sincerely,
Georges Savarin
My recent illness has prevented me from writing much of a congratulatory speech. Monsieur Peeters is more than capable of it. Regardless, I am very proud of you all and am excited that we will finally truly be able to shape the Belgian liberal movement. This is truly our time.
--
Excerpt from a report to the Ministry of Commerce
Gentlemen, my main economic concerns are twofold: that interventionist policies, even if minimally pursued by Monsieur de Graaf, have damaged confidence in our economy and that a possible glut of workers in Flanders could trigger an unemployment spike similar to previous incidents. My strategy for combating these problems is as follows. Firstly, in cooperation with the Interior Ministry, I would recommend starting a campaign in Wallonia similar to that in Flanders of encouraging capitalists to invest in industry nationwide. We already have a sizable core of capitalists in Flanders, but those in Wallonia have fallen behind, and restoring investor confidence will go a long way towards an economic boost. We should work to rectify this situation. Secondly, to avoid an oversupply of manual labor in Flanders, we should avoid an industrial worker recruiting campaign there for the time being. I know that we risk over-learning the lessons of the last cycle, but I believe that we ought to allow industry to develop more first. I have been discussing with Monsieur Pothiquet and Van Dyke on what we might best do in this situation, and will be open to their recommendations.
Finally, ensuring the stability of our industry has become a matter of national security, especially in Flanders given the ever-present Flemish Nationalist Organization. Thus, I recommend purchasing a small stockpile, as our funds permit without going into debt, of fabric and wood, and allowing purchases from our strategic reserve in case of a business cycle downturn. The policy has worked before as a "safety valve" without damaging the forces of the free market, and I see no reason to discontinue it at the present time. It is not necessarily to my taste, but as it is fully optional and conducted at marked prices, and avoids picking winners, I can stomach it for the sake of security.
Of course, I believe it goes without saying that we shall remove all tariffs currently in place and shall enact no new ones.
The debt problem should be solved with spending cuts first and tax increases second. As long our credit remains sound, there is no immediate threat, but we must deal with it now so we can fund colonial expansion and so the problem does not balloon out in the future.
- Savarin
--
Excerpt from a letter to Jean-Francois van der Wyngaert
Dear Monsieur van der Wyngaert,
I am saddened to hear of your retirement. You have truly been an unsung hero of Belgium for your work, from securing French intervention in the Second Revolution to preventing the Tsar's armies from marching through Germany to get to us. I hope your retirement brings you stability and happiness, and hope your son finds success for himself as well. I would also be honored to attend the Foreign Correspondent's Luncheon, if that would be possible... I do hope that you will carry on at BEAC as well, as now that colonial expansion is seriously on the table, your expertise would be invaluable. I shall see you at the next board meeting, then!
Sincerely,
Georges Savarin
"Though I believe the military is key to the survivability of our nation, I think it is for the best that we do not expend all of our national resources on expanding it. Peace is a must for our Nation and our People, but it should not be enforced upon the region through a military that has bankrupted us. You do not achieve peace through fear and oppression; you achieve peace through cooperation, harmony, and goodwill between nations."
~ Deputy & Baron Clément van Eetvelde
~ Deputy & Baron Clément van Eetvelde
Even though abolishing tariffs resembles the foolish Berber emptying his bottle of water for fear of having the oasis dry out, expanding the military would mean nothing less than selling the entire oasis for a musket, hoping to find someone to rob of a water bottle like the one he just emptied. Even the foolish Berber would not do that.
- Josef P. de Ruyter, CUP member
- Josef P. de Ruyter, CUP member
Following an internal investigation within the Justice Ministry, I have decided to propose to parliament that we reform our laws so that we can ensure we abandon the corruption of gerrymandering and adopt "Non-Secret Ballots".
While several other reforms were tabled by my committee, it was quickly apparent that the Belgian people are greatly in favour of non-secret ballots in comparison to other possibilities. Moreover, it is absurd that in a modern, civilised nation we still permit political parties to adjust the electoral districts to their own advantage - let me make it clear that I am making no accusations, I simply believe that this is the right course of action, and we should make sure that in the future no party can take advantage of such a loophole.
While several other reforms were tabled by my committee, it was quickly apparent that the Belgian people are greatly in favour of non-secret ballots in comparison to other possibilities. Moreover, it is absurd that in a modern, civilised nation we still permit political parties to adjust the electoral districts to their own advantage - let me make it clear that I am making no accusations, I simply believe that this is the right course of action, and we should make sure that in the future no party can take advantage of such a loophole.
Player Actions Needed:
Vote on the new reform, Non-Secret Ballots.
Sample Ballot:
Non-Secret Ballots: Yes/No/Abstain
The vote on the reform will be shorter than usual, and this voting period will end tomorrow, at 8:00 PM PST 9/9, or 3 AM 9/10 GMT.
Non-Secret Ballots: Yes
Gerrymandering isnt a practise a civilised modern country should condon.
- Olivier van Dyke, Minister of Education
Gerrymandering isnt a practise a civilised modern country should condon.
- Olivier van Dyke, Minister of Education
Non-Secret Ballots-Aye The idea of Gerrymandering stands as a corrupt attempt by politicians to bend the electorate to their best benefit. I care not if Liberal, Reactionary, Conservative commits it, for in any case it is wrong simply by nature.
Minister of Finance
Minister of Finance