Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Taricus]

"The enforced taxes will come in effect after this meeting, yes. Any who don't pay now will be executed along with their entire families and taking their estates into state receivership to be redistributed at my whim. Unless they pay an extra levy on top of the tax for this year we're still going to execute them, just not their entire families as well."

[Demonic Spoon]

((@DontBantheMan, iirc tankkit managed to conquer some territory? Could we get that added to the map?))

(( That territory will have to be surveyed; he marched into it without bothering to map out his conquest. The difficulty of this is that the people in these conquered lands don't really consider you their rulers yet, and the cartographers won't really know where the conquest's borders start or end. Right now, it's simply: "a small chunk of land northwest of the Belt." No major cities or other landmarkers (such as mountains or rivers) were conquered, making it very annoying to map out. ))

((This is why you just don't go to war with other nations without consulting the rest of government. Honestly considering whether we should sack Lord Warr over initiating hostilities with the Western Administration for a useless chunk of land and then apparently doing nothing to deal with our military problems the last turn.))

[Taricus]

((Well, that depends if his player posts here or not. We'll likely need a replacement one way or another. ))

[Demonic Spoon]

((Well, that depends if his player posts here or not. We'll likely need a replacement one way or another. ))

((Are we going to be waiting for him, or can we just NPC the Minister of War? Then you can order the NPC to actually do his job. Send some armies to quell the rebel general or whatever.

We have anything else to talk about in the meeting phase?))

"Take 1.5, that should shore up the loyalties of the bureaucrats."

"We thank you Lord Dictator. We would like to know whether money will be spent on buying food for the starving Estrella citizens, or whether we should prepare to deal with riots."

[Taricus]

"I can use my personal finances to allay the effects of the famine, I'm not about to let our people starve. I'd rather prevent any riots from breaking out in the first place; our police force is overstretched as it is and the riots may break their capacity to maintain order."

[Playergamer]

As the bureaucrats argue over numbers in the capital, a different scene plays out in the slums. A crowd of ragged, worn peasants are packed into a small courtyard, emaciated statues looking up at the figure above. There are no grand stages, no banners. The speaker stands at the top of a flight of stairs, dressed in a worn coat, and looks down on the huddled masses. His people. As he speaks, he relies heavily on exaggerated hand gestures.

"There have been whispers in the senate, my friends. Some of my colleagues wish to limit the powers of the dictator. They fear that he will be ruthless; that he will destroy those who stand in his way, and seize full control of the government. They expect me to join in on their side, to limit his powers in 'defense of the people.' Do I care?"

He shakes his head.

"No. It matters little to me which bandit enslaves the people. While these petty politicians squabble for power, the people are starving. I care little for constitutions: I want food for the families of Estrella."

As his speech ramps up in intensity, the hand gestures become more and more aggressive.

"Mothers, count your sons. The war that won our people independence is hardly over, and already the generals clamor for another. Our people fought for freedom, not land. Watch as these thieves take your savings, your sons, and your freedoms, all to empower and enrich themselves. No more. We will not murder for our rulers. We will not march into foreign lands. We will feed our families, we will support our neighbors, and we will dream. We will dream of a world where there is no yoke on man's neck, a world of liberty, equality, and fraternity. We will dream of a world that is better for our children than it was for us: and that dream shall become reality."

The speech is short and sweet. As time passes, the weak, tired crowd is whipped into a frenzy, hanging on to his every word. Soon, it is over, and the senator is gone. But the dream remains.

[Zanzetkuken The Great]

(Oh god, we're going to deal with a communist revolution, aren't we?)


"My Dictator, a thought has come to mind.  If we attempt to collect the full twenty percent of the taxes at one time, then there is a chance that some elements of society may be unable to afford the full bulk payment.  What if instead, we collect the taxes at the same ten percent rate, but every six months rather than once a year?  It may also be an easier sell for the propaganda, as we did not technically raise the tax rate per tax season, just increased the number of tax seasons per year."

[Taricus]

((What do you mean communist revolution? The dictator is a socialist/communist already ))

"It would only complicate the taxes, and likely increase the workload of the tax office. While it would be a harder sell to outright increase taxes the efficiency of collecting it all at once shouldn't be understated."

[Vivalas]

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Government Assets:
- Ministry of Civil Service. Balance: -0.4 wealth (Upkeep: 0.4 wealth [0.26 wages + 0.14 maintenance]).
Currently employs 437 employees, primarily bureaucrats. The Ministry manages THREE (3) Centers of Civil Service, one in each of the most populous cities. These centers are each staffed by at least one hundred employees and serve the needs of their respective cities. However, extensive expansion is highly recommended; particularly in regards to the school system (as currently the Ministry is operating NO schools). There is only one church operated; a cathedral in the Capital (employing roughly thirty clergy on your payroll). The Centers of Civil Service are acting as courthouses, with only a total of nineteen judges for the lot of them. There are thirteen clinics scattered throughout the nation, but they are all severely understaffed and underfunded, and most are falling into disrepair. There are a total of twenty qualified doctors, with roughly three times that many nurses.

Clemente Jasso nods at the Minister of Economy and says, "Alright, I will implement more stringent tax laws in my courts and begin drafting our new penal code. I ask that the Minister of the Interior begin to crack down hard on tax evasion, although the measures our Dictator suggested are far, far too severe in my mind. I plan on implementing a mandatory 5 year sentence for tax evasion with possibility of parole only after 3 years.

Additionally, the state of our civil services are abhorrent. My shipping lines is wealthy and the largest one in the nation, but it still only barely covers the upkeep of the Ministry of Civil Service. I am requesting 2-3 wealth to reform our education and legal systems and help cover expenses. As for healthcare, I will begin to integrate our healthcare system into the public sector, competition is key to providing low cost services. Education and legal matters are best handled by the state, however."

[Zanzetkuken The Great]

"A potential money-saving method has crossed my mind that could prove worth looking into.  Could we establish an agreement with a number of our workers that in exchange for reduced wages, they can get access to an apartment in a state sponsored building?  It would takes some balancing in order to have the maintenance cost increase be less than the wage cost decrease, while still keeping the places as an attractive deal, but if we manage to succeed, then we could hire more employees for the same cost.  Further, we could use it to lead to other deals, such as offering farmers a deal where they could give a portion of their crops as a partial tax replacement, which could then be distributed as a guaranteed supply of food in exchange for a slight pay cut.  Just tossing out a few ideas.  They still need to be a bit more refined if we choose to utilize them."

[Demonic Spoon]

As for healthcare, I will begin to integrate our healthcare system into the public sector, competition is key to providing low cost services. "

"I object to this. Free market healthcare would be a nightmare"

[Taricus]

"Alright, I will implement more stringent tax laws in my courts and begin drafting our new penal code. I ask that the Minister of the Interior begin to crack down hard on tax evasion, although the measures our Dictator suggested are far, far too severe in my mind. I plan on implementing a mandatory 5 year sentence for tax evasion with possibility of parole only after 3 years.

Additionally, the state of our civil services are abhorrent. My shipping lines is wealthy and the largest one in the nation, but it still only barely covers the upkeep of the Ministry of Civil Service. I am requesting 2-3 wealth to reform our education and legal systems and help cover expenses. As for healthcare, I will begin to integrate our healthcare system into the public sector, competition is key to providing low cost services. Education and legal matters are best handled by the state, however."

"There is no need to implant a sentencing for the tax evasion, such a thing is already covered by the constitution and the use of force in enforcing the punishment is both within the legal framework and justified. I don't take kindly to those that'd think themselves better than the people or the state.

As for healthcare, it will be kept under state control. I believe the saying 'you get what you pay for' applies doubly here. That being said three and a half wealth will be dispensed so that the education and legal reforms can take place; it should be a simple task given that most most of the royal academies are still functioning and would most likely welcome a steady source of funding with open arms.

And Albertus, I will admit that providing free accommodation sounds reasonable and sensible; while we would be a little tied up in ensuring that the maintenance costs aren't overrunning what we've planned for it, we could make that a part of the tenancy agreement, at least for the minor things. The alternate tax sounds like it'd be more of a headache to deal with, especially dependant on agricultural yields and the prices for their produce."

[micelus]

"I would like to agree with revoking Lord Warr's ministership. In all honesty, his actions have brought far more trouble than good for this nation, especially when it comes to executing plans, as we can see with his dear subordinate. Had he followed my advice, the general would likely be in the dungeon and those he held captive still amongst the living."

"Moving on, I must once again advise you, your Excellency, that perhaps total control is not the best route to ensuring that this government remains stable. My agents tell me that while we generally have the support to rule, we currently have a negative opinion amongst both the elite and religious groups in this nation. This excludes those who desire more education and war, however. If I may advise your Excellency, the elite can be sidelined completely by encouraging support amongst the poorer citizens. As is often stated, religion is the opium of the masses and with a few concessions to popular beliefs we can surely accrue further influence there....after we fix the food shortage."

"To add to this, if we do indeed execute everyone who is unable to pay taxes, well, we might as well cut our own heads. Trust me when I say the people will not stand for this, especially with the lack of food."

"I would also like to say that the state of the police force is not as good as I could hope. I require 4 wealth to completely outfit the force as well as as a stipend of 1 Wealth each year to continue operations. Should this be unavailable, we can continue with using a subpar police force or permit me to collect public donations."

"Finally, I must ask, is the government willing to allow the black market to smuggle in food and other consumables? Surely it is already happening but with a few prods here and there, more could be brought into the nation."

[Taricus]

"Then it is decided; Lord Warr shall be hereby stripped of his ministry. See which of the other generals would best fit for the position; I want to ensure whomever takes up the mantle next is competent on military matters.

Total control is a temporary measure to ensure that the government will be stable in the long term, and while the elite will be on the receiving end of a purge due to their actions, there will not be an equivalent action against the clergy barring such an action from them as well. The state is secular and thus there will be no accommodation of religion into governance whatsoever. The support of the lower classes is a necessity however, and we can easily spin the tax evaders into being enemies of the state with them not paying their fair share.

For the police force, while the state coffers are looking fairly thin with all the current expenses I can spare the funds from my personal finances to outfit them. As for smuggling... In a limited amount; I don't need the black market getting a significant boost but getting supplies through that blockade will be helpful."

[Zanzetkuken The Great]

"Might it be possible to informally hire a number of smugglers to act for us as blockade runners for the goods we need to import?  While the actual language of a contract would cover more, we could essentially offer them amnesty towards all prior crimes, if they primarily focus upon bringing in supplies for us.  It would both net us supplies, and temporarily disrupt the black market's suppliers."

"And Minister Camila, unless things somehow managed to change rapidly, the recent economic report the Ministry of the Economy ran shows we are actually exporting food.  We need to merely redirect it.  While it would be a headache, a double 10% tax season per year, combined with taking a portion for tax replacement from the farmers, to be redistributed in exchange for governmental work, is still an option."