Campaign Office of TJ/Tmthforu for the Mideast

[TJ in Oregon]

Good Afternoon ladies and gentlemen of Atlasia,

I would like to announce my campaign for re-election to the Atlasian senate in the upcoming April Midterm election. I believe we are at an important point in the progress of Atlasia beyond the old two-party system that was in place when I was elected in December to a new era of bipartisanship and cooperation on the important issues that face this great nation and seek to usher in an era of greater prosperity for our nascient future.

However this will require hard work and reform to bring our great vision to fruition. In the near future the Senate will be debating the Corporate Governance Reform Act. I believe passage of this act is key to ensuring a competitive corporate environment that encourages success rather than failure and robbing the public.

As always, I would like to answer any questions you might have regarding my positions on the critical issues we face today in Atlasia.

[Pingvin]

Endorsed.

[CLARENCE 2015!]

Endorsed  strongly

[ZuWo]

I fully support this campaign!

[Mechaman]

Endorsed.

[Yelnoc]

Endorsed, brosky.

[TJ in Oregon]

Platform:

Domestic Issues:

-Taxes should be kept as low as reasonably possible to promote economic growth; however, they must be raised now, in addition to spending cuts, to avoid budgetary disaster. While the rich cannot be expected to carry the entire burden of our government alone, I do not support implementing a flat tax, but would rather see something along the lines of an exponential decay function used to eliminate discontinuities in the derivative of the overall tax rate. I believe that the highest Atlasian tax bracket of 60% is certainly higher than I would like but understand we cannot simply reduce it without offsetting the revenue loss elsewhere. I oppose a tax cut without a matching spending cut.
-I support free trade in most circumstances unless there is a very specific reason to oppose it for a particular product.
-I believe that the current system of laws for Atlasian corporate governance has failed. I believe we must place a limit on the percentage of company stock that can be devoted to stock options in order to end the system of perverse incentives for corporate executive we currently have in place. However, this cannot simply be done without allowing a different type of compensation to replace the stock option. I would advocate for the federal government to remove the Million Dollar Base Salary Cap. The current system has clearly failed and the cap has caused nothing but a burst of shady compensation methods designed only to circumvent the law and avoid proper scrutiny.
-I oppose efforts to artificially mandate prices unless there are extenuating circumstances and believe the basic function of a free economy will best dictate the appropriate price for a commodity, good, or service.
-I am pro-life, both regarding abortion and capital punishment. Without the right to life, no other rights can be enjoyed.
-Despite holding generally pro-free market views, I do not believe the market in and of itself is the primary goal of a nation. I believe the market should be utilized to best serve the people of the nation. The market is a means rather than an end.
-I support the right to organize in a union or trade association for the purpose of collective bargaining for wages. I also believe that individuals ought to have the freedom to join or leave such organizations. I believe many labor disputes are best resolved by the use of binding arbitration and will oppose efforts to forbid binding arbitration.
- Education is mainly a regional issue and one that no blanket nation policy can be effective on. I think that classroom size has a greater effect on quality and success than does technology or textbook quality, or the building itself. The necessary components to a good education are: parent who discipline their children, students who want to learn, and a qualified teacher who cares. I do believe standardized testing has a place in education but that place is not the central purpose.
-I support the funding of scientific research as a method of creating new technologies and driving the economy of tomorrow.

[TJ in Oregon]

Game Reform:

-Again, we find ourselves at the crossroads of the game and its format. After a wave of retirements and withdrawals from the game, it is now time to move forward again. The Caucus System, which I once supported as a method of spicing up the game, has fallen into obsolescence upon the wake of the dissolution of the two party system. It is no longer practical to expect the RG to keep track of caucus membership or list it on the ballot.
-I support the creation of binding partisan primaries if the parties so choose to instate them. While this may give the appearance of dissuading more candidates from running for office, it removes the barrier of hurting a partisan ally in a general election by launching a campaign for the same office and should encourage more participation in a primary.
-I would like to see the senate give committees a shot to provide a greater opportunity for an in-depth look at the issues facing the Atlasia of tomorrow. It brings about an exciting possibility for more discussion across the aisle and across the country as to what we can do to make our government better.

[TJ in Oregon]

Foreign Policy:
-I believe that war should be used as a last resort. Going to war is a major decision that affects and costs the lives of thousands and one that cannot be made without an immense amount of consternation. That being said, there are circumstances where our nation must act militarily to defend ourselves. This includes direct attacks and imminent threats to ourselves and our allies. Simply possessing weapons is not enough without a credible threat that a rouge state intends to use them.
-I believe that once we are engaged in a war it is irresponsible to withdraw from the field of battle without first bringing stability to the area. We cannot simply announce we are to leave by a certain date and go through with it regardless of the situation on the ground. I do not prefer public timetables for withdrawals although any nation at war ought to have a timetable for withdrawal in mind.
-I think any amendment to bar conscription must include an exception for a land invasion and must be done at the federal level. The regional government cannot hold a conscription for our federal military.
-I view Israel as an ally to the West and generally support Israel. That does not mean I will support any action undertaken by the Israeli government, nor does it mean I oppose the efforts for freedom and self-determination taken by the Palestinian people. I believe that the eventual solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict is one with two states. Yet, such a possibility cannot be realized when acts of terror are committed and borders are not respected. I am not implying the 1967 borders are to be the final borders between these two states, just that there do need to be defined borders respected by both sides.

[Yelnoc]

Congratulations on having a detailed and coherent platform.  It makes you stand out.

[TJ in Oregon]

Time to vote!!

[TJ in Oregon]

Thank you all for your support and re-electing me! (I think...?  )

[tmthforu94]

Congratulations!

[CLARENCE 2015!]

Congratulations TJ-

[Southern Senator North Carolina Yankee]

Congratuations on your reelection this past weekend and your promotion to Senate Dean, today.

[Napoleon]

Congratuations on your reelection this past weekend and your promotion to Senate Dean, today.

Nathan is dean.

[Southern Senator North Carolina Yankee]

I missed the partial term when I went back and did the calculation.


Considering my plans for the Dean, Nathan is probably going to be wishing you hadn't noticed that.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

I'll be Dean for only a matter of weeks, after which it'll be TJ.

[Southern Senator North Carolina Yankee]

I'll be Dean for only a matter of weeks, after which it'll be TJ.

You are kind of gonna have to be as active or almost active as myself in that period. MoPolitico's absence really pissed me off and limited my options. Whoever the Dean is, needs to be available.

Actually, when the new Senate starts it will be me again because the position of PPT lapses until a new election is held.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

I'll be Dean for only a matter of weeks, after which it'll be TJ.

You are kind of gonna have to be as active or almost active as myself in that period. MoPolitico's absence really pissed me off and limited my options. Whoever the Dean is, needs to be available.

I should be able to do almost. Remember I have finals going on right now. I certainly won't lapse the way MoPo did. You have my word.

You must be logged in to read this quote.

Ah, my mistake.

[TJ in Oregon]

I would like to clean the thick layer of dust off my campaign office to make an announcement of advocacy:

Ladies (well I have to pretend ) and Gentlemen of Atlasia, I would like to announce my support for The Let's Make Things Really Interesting Amendment. I believe that it will generate a new wave of excitement in Atlasia both for expanding the senate and in the prospect of drawing maps, a base of interest for this Atlas forum. Unlike many waves of interest that are rapid and exciting but die a slow death of irrelevancy, I believe this will create a more permanent wave because it is a process repeated every four months.

Atlasia has grown remarkably in recent months and it's time for us to be able to have additional senators. Some opponents of the proposal have argued that a larger senate is problematic because we've had a number of inactive senators with only 10 seats. This view is flawed for two reasons:

• First, a larger body can function better with a couple inactive members than a smaller body can. When you only have a small number of representatives only one inactive one can badly sideline the process, but with a larger number, you have more who are contributing. Even if there are more inactive ones, having a larger number in both categories allows the body to still function.
• Second, it does not follow that the marginal member of the senate who would be elected only due the increased number of seats will be more likely to be inactive than those who would be elected either way. Many of our senators who have resigned have been those elected by large margins or surpluses, not only those who barely eked out a victory. In fact, those who do resign, typically do so for reasons in their personal life that come up subsequent to their election.

There are also those who believe that doing this would just poach valuable players from regional office and destroy the regions. But the regions have more activity than ever before and removing four members won't fundamentally change that. It often grows stale holding the same office for years and years, whether it be on the regional level or national level, and not to say there aren't some people who do a great job of it because there are (look at Yankee or Inks). But most players don't choose that type of role; instead they move around to different positions and try new things. This amendment creates more opportunities to do just that and in a new way that adds a dimension of map-drawing to the game reflective of our Atlas past. That's not to say every expansion of the senate would be a good thing; for instance, I'm opposed to a 100 member body here . But having 14 members is very reasonable and doable with our current population and activity levels.

Another criticism of the amendment is that it does not define what happens should the governors fail to agree to a district map. In real life when various actions of government are tied up in the process being completed, something like this would be a fatal flaw. But in Atlasia, we are able to quickly pass amendments when necessary to sort out systematic failings. And should such an event come to pass, the excitement of it would itself be inherently good for the game in that it would make the process interesting.

I believe this amendment should be passed and would markedly improve the activity and excitement of the game and would like to encourage the citizens of Atlasia to vote Aye.

[Fmr. Pres. Duke]

I get your argument, but I can easily counter with the argument that we could simply elect more inactive senators to the 14 member senate. The proponents argue that the inactives will cancel themselves out, and perhaps they may, but there is also the chance we just stuff it with even more "bodies" who contribute little, only worsening the problem.

Of course, I think this amendment offers some changes that could spice things up, and I like that, so I am having to weigh the parts I like with the ones I do not. In my view, the senate has turned into a revolving door. We replace inactives with former senators who leave and come back, and the new members get no chance. Instead of expanding the senate, perhaps we should do a better job electing senators that actually give a damn over those who simply have name recognition? Just a thought.

I am still undecided on this amendment though. It could make people more excited, but there is also the potential we just have a larger mess in the senate than we currently have. It will depend how ballsy I am feeling over this weekend.

[TJ in Oregon]

I contend that when inactivity is a concern it's better to have a larger body. If for instance we have only 7/10 senators active and consider adding more, even if only 2/4 are active (and like I've said, there's no reason to believe the four senators who are elected only if this passes are any more likely to be inactive than the current 10), then we'd have 9/14 active, which is still two more active people than before. You can then expel the inactive ones or pressure them to resign like what's happening currently, and replace them with new people, some of whom are bound to be active. There's no surefire way to make every senator be active without instigating strict expulsion rules or some punishment toward the senators for not being active and that's probably not a good way to go about the issue. It's hard to tell during an election whether someone is going to be active or not; no one campaigns on "Vote for me and I'll disappear in a month!". These things aren't always easy to predict. The reality is we'll always have some contingent of the senate that will be battling inactivity and this would help to mitigate the effects of that problem even if the problem itself remains.

But what's even more beyond that is redistricting would add an exciting dimension to the game that doesn't exist now. I don't know how many threads we've had in recent years about combining regions and redrawing lines, so there would logically be interest in the topic (also, look at this forum ). None of those have gone anywhere since redrawing regions is unwieldy and steps on too many toes to actually happen. But this doesn't create mass confusion and throw out the past like that would. It adds a new dimension to the game without taking away from the old ones in any real way.

[Marokai Backbeat]

Of all the arguments that could be made in favor of this Amendment, "Hey, we could have 8/14 active Senators instead of 6/10!" is by far the silliest.

[Queen Mum Inks.LWC]

Yeah, I can't say I agree with the rationale here.