Alliance & University Economic Meeting

[iamthey]

*Private Communique sent to the leadership of the University*

Considering the proximity of our territories we propose a meeting to discuss economic cooperation, and future intrests. We can hold it in New Lausanne, our General Administrator and Provincial Governor for Province IV will be in attendance should you choose to accept.

*Internal*

Pending acceptance of the missive, Devereaux boarded his private jet and began making his way to the province.

[WrathRaptor]

*Private Communique sent in reply to the leadership of the Alliance*

The Academician graciously accepts your proffered opportunity to open economic relations with The University, and will gladly travel to New Lausanne to meet with the General Administrator. The Academician will be accompanied by a small entourage of our most notable economic specialists.

*Internal*

The Academician and his entourage leave presently for New Lausanne from Santa Cruz de Tenerife. During the flight he reads a dossier prepared by an advisor on the General Administrator and Provincial Governor for Province IV, as well as an intelligence brief on the Alliance.

[iamthey]

The Academician and his entourage arrived at the airport and were taken via private maglev car to the Administrative Center of New Lausanne. The group was brought up to one of several general meeting rooms. As were most things in the Administrative Center this room was built to impress and to intimidate. It had almost a classic European look the ceilings were vaulted, the walls paneled in a dark wood, and the floors carpeted in a rich red material. There was an open fire in the back radiating heat throughout the room, and in the center of the room was a long rectangular meeting table. As the entourage entered the servants seated the six man group Placing the Academician at the head of one end of the table. Once they were settled another group entered the room from the other side. At the vanguard of the mirroring six person group was the young Thomas Devereaux. As they entered the Academician stood to meet the General Administrator and the two men shook hands. "Welcome to the Alliance, I am Thomas Devereaux, the General Administrator. And you are?"

"Isak Ødegård, Academician of the University."

"Its a pleasure to meeting you." Thomas said as the two of them took their seats. "I suppose before we discuss our futures we should explain what we are as nations. The Alliance is basically the successor state of the Imperium, and Whigton both of which were consumed in the destruction of one of the worlds most devastating wars. We are what most people would describe as Authoritarian in that the state more or less commands and controls the major aspects of the society. Of course I wouldn't say we are fascist, we are far from it in fact. I would describe our government as a Manager State. There are many ideological reasons for this but basically we identify with the Macintyrian social archetype of the manager. We do not lead the nation we administer it, we do not decide the agenda we receive it. Simply put we are a morally neutral entity which carries out the wishes of others who bear the responsibility. We operate under a simple governing ideology known as Neutral Pragmatism and basically run the nation as a business might, seeking to protect those we are responsible and maximize their material well being.

Economically we are an exporting nation, with primarily a secondary economy. Province one, the Greater Alliance (Kerguelens) is our manufacturing center, the outer provinces serve as sources of primary resources, as well as a domestic markets for goods we don't export. We export to Africa, the Untied States, Europe, parts of asia and part of the middle east. The economy itself is centrally planned, and we provide a plethora of public works. Basically to us freedom is also the freedom to exploit, we eliminate that, and sacrifice the excesses of a few for the prosperity of the whole. If you look at any of our policies this sort of "greater good" mentality is underlying most of them. Anyway we are very much interested in the University, while I could read any number of descriptions by one of my intelligence officers I'd rather hear it from you." He looked at his counterpart.

Edited June 11, 2009 by iamthey

[WrathRaptor]

"I am most pleased and honored to be here in your great domed city of New Lausanne. The technology evident throughout your society is refreshing to me, as well as to my colleagues here. I suppose an introduction to our nascent nation-state is in order." replied Academician Ødegård, who then casually sipped from a cup of Kava that was generously supplied by the servants of the Administrator for this meeting. The Academician noted that Administrator Devereaux was well informed given that it was not well known that his beverage of choice during such types of gatherings was Kava. And from the taste, it appeared that the Kava had been prepared freshly, which showed some fore thought on the part of the Administrator, as Kava is a product of the polynesian islands and not of any naturally occurring Atlantic locality.

"Well, I can tell you that we are not all that different from you in our guiding ideology of government. As a result of our recent independence we have settled on a Techno-autocratic state. Technology is the driving force behind the resolution of issues we face. And therefore the acquisition and development of technology is of paramount concern to us. Thus, we place an exceptionally high premium on the education of our citizens, and to providing an environment where our citizens can pursue research and technology in as unfettered a setting as possible. Because of this drive, we already have one of the highest education quotients per capita in the entire world, and it continues to grow as scientists flock to our shores." The Academician paused, sipping from his Kava, and nodded to one of his economic advisors that had accompanied him to the meeting. The advisor had been quietly working at a portable computer terminal, not unlike a laptop computer, but smaller and far more powerful than what was commercially available.

A projection screen that had previously been dormant stored away in its carriage, now descended to fully extend the screen, and at the opposite end of the conference room the digital projector came alive. Presently, an image came into focus on the screen displaying some statistics of The University.

The slightest trace of concern darkened Administrator Devereaux's face at what had just happened, but to his credit he recovered remarkably fast. Academician Ødegård continued, "Don't worry yourself too much with the ability displayed at manipulating technology. My advisor here has quite the knack for manipulating such media devices through information technology using wireless networks. It is a simple matter, and I assure you that your security has in no way been compromised. But I'd like to point out a few things about our little nation. As you can see from the diagram on the screen, our nation has a significantly high population of recent immigrants from a myriad assortment of other nations. Their primary professions include numerous scientific disciplines and fields of engineering. Notably among these immigrant groups, are of course Canadians fleeing the recent dissolution of the Canadian Territories in favor of a more stable environment given the choice in the interim. Also we have a significantly large population from Europa Magna having fled the recent nuclear holocaust. We also have some from the former Imperium, and the UFE as well. And also many from the Omniscient Empire. All of them having fled for various reasons, or just leaving in search of greener pastures. In fact, once the the re-organization of the government has been finalized, we intend to put out a call for more scientists, engineers and similarly qualified individuals to immigrate to The University. We promote an artmosphere free of the more typical moral and ethical restraints that other nations practice, within reason of course. But we seek to use our developing techno-economy to supply our citizens with all their needs and wants and to turn us into a powerhouse of our own right. Presently we are operating our economy on an energy basis, where all things have an assigned value in energy credits which is directly related to the energy consumed and produced by the products and services available in our economy. And being an island nation which, at the moment at least, has no mainland territories to support it, we are in need of an influx of materials and services to keep our burgeoning country going." All throughout this introduction by Isak, images appeared on the projection screen to emphasize his points in exact timing.

"Of course, in the future, we will be seeking some mainland territorial holdings to expand into, and it is possible that the Alliance may be of some assistance there as well." he said ending his statement with another casual sip of the Kava.

"Now, shall we get on to the matter of discussing what it is the Alliance has to offer The University, and what we may have that possibly interests you in exchange." as he set the cup of Kava down, and placed his hands in his lap as he reclined in the chair at his position at the head of one of the table's ends.

[iamthey]

"Quite interesting, we admire your... progressive spirit in regards to scientific exploration. We regard and encourage our own scientific core in much the same way. Anyway, on to the matter of our two nations." He paused, "The canaries were more or less a dependency of the Canadians. They received all their finished goods, primary resources, and perhaps even all their basic services from the Canadians. However, now that Canada is gone you are left with little more than the infrastructure that was established there. As such there seems to be an opportunity for mutual gain. You're nation and people need secondary and primary goods as much as any other nation and we'd be happy to fill the vacuum that Canada left in its wake at least until you all can establish yourselves. Of course im not really sure if your people would ever form much of a secondary or primary economy, the after all the highly educated don't make very good miners." He laughed, "And we could use your tertiary services that your technicians and scientists provide or will provide at some point. In that regard I would be interested in exchanging the research and work our scientific community's do. Of course critical military research would stay to our own nation's but as for general knowledge there isn't much harm in exchange we could be a source of capital investment in your infrastructure. That being said I think it would be appropriate to drop trade barriers between our nations, perhaps set up some sort of transit system between the islands and the mainland, and begin developing the islands into a more sustainable society. As for the matter of land... yes we would be willing to discuss this, but that is for another day. Anyway, thoughts?"

Edited June 11, 2009 by iamthey

[WrathRaptor]

Excellent! You are most correct in that we were dependent on Canadian resources to keep our island communities going. But we hope that in a short time, that that issue will be resolved through trade and land acquisitions. We also look forward to a trade in technology with your fellow scientists. I wouldn't worry too much over our 'need' for miners. Being small island communities which are little more than volcanic sea mounts, there is little mining we can do. And what mining that is being conducted is being carried out through fully automated processes which are monitored by our engineers." responded Academician Ødegård as he finished the last of his Kava.

He smiled knowingly across the table at Administrator Devereaux and thought to himself that this partnership may indeed prove lucrative not only for The University, but also for the Alliance. He was always quite amused by negotiations, and the subtle displays of power and intellect that were employed by both sides to achieve the bet possible deal out of self-interest.

"As for transportation services, this is of course a primary concern to us since we are but a nascent nation with very little in the way of export/import infrastructure of our own since the dissolution of the Canadian Territories. As we speak, we have managed to acquire several modestly sized merchant freight vessels for our needs. You can imagine that they are but a stop-gap measure in keeping the flow of goods and services going, and that we will need to expand on this infrastructure in the near future to meet our expanding needs." the Academician paused to accept the glass of ice water brought to him by one of the Administrator's servants.

"With that said, however, I am extremely interested in your maglev freight rail technology. Especially, given that we have just instituted our own internal maglev commuter line. It is a small affair really, but necessary to reduce the impact we have on an already taxed ecosystem. It is the thought of myself and my advisors that the construction of an undersea maglev line utilizing your technology would greatly benefit both our nations where commerce is concerned."

"Once the requisite transportation issues have been resolved, I imagine the next issues to discuss is that of resources we'll be needing and the methods to pay for them, as well as the transportation issue. We'll certainly be needing an amount of mineral and other natural resources to maintain growth of our society. My advisors have the pertinent figures concerning what we'll be needing and in what quantities. So, I would like to focus primarily on payment for these goods and services."

"As I mentioned earlier we are operating an energy economy, where all goods and services have an 'energy credit' amount associated to them based upon the energy required to generate the product or service and the energy produced/consumed as a result of its consumption. The balance between these two values and the supply and demand of the product or service determines its intrinsic economic value. Luckily, because of the geothermal power sources we utilize, our energy credit economy is booming, and a financial sector has risen to deal with the inherent exchange issues. I would like to suggest that we will of course pay the agreed upon cost of the materials and services we purchase from your nation in your preferred currency, but I suggest that you may be interested in reinvesting a portion of that as energy credit back into our own economy to help it grow. Given the present interest rates within our economic system, the profitability of such a choice will become readily apparent to you. Though the choice is obviously yours. What do you think of such an agreement?"

[iamthey]

Economically speaking we are open minded, risk is a part of any successful business. Payment in the form of a diversified combination of our own currency, your own would be suitable to us. We would also be intrested in investing in your economy and would be intresting in purchasing portions of your currency as an investment. That being said I think this discuss has boiled down to the following elements.

1. Free trade and flow of goods.

2. Exchange of Intellectual Material and Research.

3. Infrastructure Investment and Development.

4. Repayment for Alliance Services.

5. Economic investment in the University.

We propose the following treaty.

The Ivory Tower Pact

Article I: Sovereignty

Both nations agree to respect the sovereignty of one another, and will not take action which would compromise the sovereignty of the other.

Article II: Non-Aggression

Both nations will abstain from taking action which is detrimental to either party. This may be an overt act of war, or a subtle act which compromises the well being of the other.

Article III: Economic Cooperation & Investment

Both Parties will remove trade restrictions and tariffs in order to encourage mutual trade between the two nations. The Alliance is encouraged to invest in the University's economy. The Alliance will further construct a Hexlev system to promote the transfer and free flow of goods between the canaries and mainland Africa, the University will repay for this particular service with a diversified combination of domestic and alliance currencies to be determined at a later date. Both parties are encouraged to engage in mutual development projects, and investment.

Article IV: Mutual Scientific Exchange

Civilian and general scientific knowledge and the research shall be exchanged between the scientific communities of the two nations. Scientific secrets pertaining to national security as defined by each alliance shall of course be exempt from exchange.

Article V: Withdrawal

Either party may dissolve this pact at any point however all contracts must be given adequate time to be completed.

Signed for the Alliance

Thomas Devereaux:

General Administrator of the Alliance

Signed for the University

Isak Ødegård: Isak Ødegård

Academician of The University

What do you think of this?

Edited June 15, 2009 by iamthey

[WrathRaptor]

"I believe we are agreeable to the terms of this treaty. Is there anything else you'd like to discuss? Or shall we sign it and begin the celebrating?"

[iamthey]

I believe that's everything. Removing his pen He signed for his nation.

Thomas Devereaux:

General Administrator of the Alliance

[WrathRaptor]

"So let it be written. So let it be done."

Isak Ødegård: Isak Ødegård

Academician of The University