The Atlasia Dispatch-Herald News Unit

[Purple State]

Can someone (other than the Sentinel, thanks Vepres) actually pay attention and comment about what's going on? I mean, does no one care?

[Purple State]

After today, there will be occasional top-secret intelligence briefings for the President, VP, SoEA and PPT.

[Purple State]

After today, there will be occasional top-secret intelligence briefings for the President, VP, SoEA and PPT.

Why the PPT?

Checks and balances. I also think it could be important when filling the legislation slot for PPT's discretion.

[Purple State]

The car rebate bill would have a couple additional votes if the Senate didn't lose it's mind and completely ruin it with outrageous requirements.

Just chalk it up as a victim of the Senate's constant need to compromise.

I wouldn't say that was a compromise. That was a pretty one-sided move by the Senate to increase the environmental impact of the bill at the expense of the economic impact.

*shrug* If it doesn't pass as a result, you can bet the market won't be happy.

On another note: Chalking up some release info on the stimulus. If anyone has something they really want to see in there, post here or PM me with what it is and, if available, a link to the raw info or an analysis of the info. Remember, this is just the initial release, not months down the road.

[Purple State]

Thank you all for the kind words.

Busy day today IRL. I will have a report up in a few minutes and financials a little later (after I get homework done).

[Purple State]

Purple State, do we have anti-trust laws? I know we carried over some US laws, but I'd like to know some specifics of the laws for future reference. I'll probably introduce some in the Midwest either way though.

Antri-trust laws can be considered to be the current US anti-trust laws.

[Purple State]

Just as a note, the Office of the GM will be officially closed on a number of Sundays (and one Monday), in addition to every saturday in the coming weeks. These are due to the holidays of Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Sukkot.

I thank you for baring with me. The first such occurrence will be this Sunday, so no news (or posting from me at all) from this Friday night to Sunday night.

[Purple State]

Just as a note, the Office of the GM will be officially closed on a number of Sundays (and one Monday), in addition to every saturday in the coming weeks. These are due to the holidays of Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Sukkot.

I thank you for baring with me. The first such occurrence will be this Sunday, so no news (or posting from me at all) from this Friday night to Sunday night.

A unrelated question. What are those holidays? We don't have any Jews where I live, I only know Hannukah.

Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish new year, which is both celebratory, but also the beginning of judgement for the next year.

Yom Kippur, which is ten days later, is literally the Day of Atonement (we don't eat or drink all day and pray to God for forgiveness) and the final day before God closes the books that determine the next year (who will live or die, be wealth or poor, etc.).

Sukkot is a harvest festival. We eat (and some sleep and spend much of their days) in a constructed hut with bamboo roofing. It is partly to remind us of the way the Jews lived while traveling in the desert for 40 years after leaving Egypt.

Those are basic sketches and each holiday has a lot of intricacies, rules, traditions, etc. If you are ever interested in additional information you can PM me any question.

[Purple State]

Economic News

Durable Goods, Factory Orders Data Released
New orders for manufactured durable goods in August decreased $12.7 billion or 6.2 percent to $193.0 billion, the Atlasian Census Bureau announced today. This was the largest percent decrease in new orders since October 2006 and followed two consecutive monthly decreases including a 0.2 percent July decrease. Excluding transportation, new orders decreased 4.4 percent. Excluding defense, new orders decreased 4.6 percent.

Transportation equipment, up twenty-one of the last twenty-two months, had the largest increase, $1.3 billion or 1.5 percent to $89.9 billion.

Meanwhile, total factory orders, calculated as the sum of all durable and non-durable goods orders, declined 6 percent, indicating that new orders of non-durable goods had decreased at a slightly slower pace than durable goods. Nevertheless, this fall represents a major shift in demand for products.

Hopefully the stimulus will help boost these numbers in the future. We need to get Business investment back up for sure.

Good job, PS. Any chance I could get you to supply these on a monthly basis? Along with the Construction/Housing and Consumer Demand/Retail data.

I'll need you to remind me, but I will do my best to update the economic reports on a monthly basis. I may try to set up some sort of schedule where they are each released in separate weeks. Let me go through and see what I've done and try to get some dates for everything.

[Purple State]

Tentative Schedule for Recurring Reports:

Topic: Schedule; Next expected release

Federal Revenue/Expenditures: The second Wednesday of every other month; October 14
Regional Budgets: The second week biannually; February 7-12
LIBOR/Prime, Bonds: The last Thursday of every other month; October 29
Employment/Unionization: The first day of every other month, with regional numbers the following day; October 1, 2
Population: The first day of every year; January 1
Retail Sales: The first Tuesday of every other month; November 3
Consumer Spending: The first Monday of every other month; October 5
Consumer Confidence: The fourth Thursday of every other month; November 26
Housing Data: The second Friday of every other month; November 13
Durable Goods/Factory Orders: The last Monday of every other month; November 30

[Purple State]

So when are you going to start issuing news reports regarding energy, climate change, and what effect our policies are having with regard to these issues?

I will put it on the queue. If you have any specific information you would like on those topics, please let me know (I like specifics). Also, if you know of any reputable sources to find related information, that would be great as well.

[Purple State]

I'm back from my holiday and rearing for a fun week. A look ahead includes more news from South America, worries brewing about bank failures, the beginnings of regional reports and other fun stuff. I will also begin working on refreshed economic numbers (just for NCY).

[Purple State]

I wonder how the stock market will react to the possible abolition of all regional taxes in one fifth of the country.

Getting to it right now.

[Purple State]

The Dirty South just created an assembly and people throw to recall our govenor.  What is the reaction dearest GM?

Don't forget about the Northeast!

Working on reports for each region. Rest assured I will get to both.

I would also like to first see if anyone brings a follow-up on my case to revoke devilman88's pardon. I have urged BK to do so as he would be considered to have proper standing.

[Purple State]

Well, the markets will not open until Tuesday this week, so you do have some time.

As for the actual state of the banks Marokai, it is difficult for me to take into account differences between Atlasia and the US on certain things. I can't predict how a different tax rate will have affected the banking sector over the last five years. However, given the assumption that we were the US until 2004, it is pretty likely something like this would be relatively similar.

[Purple State]

Apparently it is irrelevant that Lief just had the Treasury prevent a bank's collapse with $30 billion.

Anyone there?!

[Purple State]

Forgive me but I'm having a hard time taking all this seriously given that it seems wildly unrealistic for Atlasia to be directly compared to America.

I asked for you to show how we would have avoided the current crisis with Atlasian policy.

Look, Atlasia cannot exactly mirror the US because we don't pass enough, or detailed enough, legislation, nor is all the legislation the same. However, much of the underlying currents are the same and trends are relatively the same. Not to mention, I clearly don't have the knowledge or time to start inventing economic models and doing complex calculations to determine what ambiguous Atlasian legislation, since the beginning of the game, has done to change us from the US. Sometimes it can be done, but when it comes to major economic matters, it's just not possible.

Also, I fail to see how it is fun if matters deviate so far from the US. It would create a world that is far too difficult for new members to become familiar with while also increasing the likelihood that I will make a mistake. If you want detailed and accurate data, I can't stray very far from sources of actual information.

Finally, just because you dislike what the GM says, so long as the data makes reasonable sense it is your job, as a senator, to care. That is the point of the position. If it is just a joke for people to ignore I will gladly resign and let the position return to irrelevance.

[Purple State]

I think you're doing a fine job with national stuff, but I think your regional news needs work.  You tend to focus almost exclusively on the Mideast and the Midwest.  Have you done anything on the Northeast ever?  Isn't it still our most populous region?

Myself and Mideast assemblymen have requested info, so yeah.

I have too, and even went so far as to provide a draft. 

There has been an article for the Northeast if I recall correctly. I am also working on the NE's regional report for tomorrow hopefully. And I am in the process of reviewing your draft, but much of it seems to rely on what you want to happen, which is not necessarily what I think would happen.

Also, not one of the regions have yet acted on my budget recommendations from a month ago. Things could better build on themselves and grow if people reacted to what the GM posts so that the GM can react to their actions. It's a self-sustaining cycle.

[Purple State]

I think you're doing a fine job with national stuff, but I think your regional news needs work.  You tend to focus almost exclusively on the Mideast and the Midwest.  Have you done anything on the Northeast ever?  Isn't it still our most populous region?

Myself and Mideast assemblymen have requested info, so yeah.

I have too, and even went so far as to provide a draft. 

There has been an article for the Northeast if I recall correctly. I am also working on the NE's regional report for tomorrow hopefully. And I am in the process of reviewing your draft, but much of it seems to rely on what you want to happen, which is not necessarily what I think would happen.

Also, not one of the regions have yet acted on my budget recommendations from a month ago. Things could better build on themselves and grow if people reacted to what the GM posts so that the GM can react to their actions. It's a self-sustaining cycle.

It just seems like no one understands the economy enough to comment.

Hell, I don't understand everything. But I did give some pretty simple lines for the regions, along the lines of "cut taxes X%" and "put money here." No legislation to that effect though. Oh well.

Side note, Sunday is another Jewish holiday (don't ask me why we have so many in one month, it's just the way it goes) so I won't be able to comment for another two-day period.

[Purple State]

Is there any coherent reason for why Northeastern unemployment dropped .4% and Pacific unemployment spiked .3% in basically a month? Because that seems rather nonsensical to me.

Bear in mind the economic recovery is not fully in effect. First, Northeast region is doing better because their industries are different, which is pretty huge, and so their economy is healthier. In addition, Northeast businesses and investors are more confident than those in the Pacific.

[Purple State]

Perhaps someone could help me here.  I've been doing some research into the stimulus package passed by the Senate, and can't quite get a handle on how much money the Northeast (or any other region) gets from it.

Essentially, each region should assume that they have received exactly one-fifth of the region-specific funding from the stimulus package (I believe this amounts to $20 billion each).

[Purple State]

I will do you one better Vepres (and I know HW wants this too). I will release a comprehensive foreign policy review in the next week or so.

[Purple State]

You made an error. You said the Pacific is the home of the largest party in Atlasia. The largest party in Atlasia only has like 3 members in the Pacific. You might want to look into correcting that.

I can only go by what the SoFA page has.

I didn't realize it was also the GM's job to make social commentary as well as analysis, but I learn something new every day.

I must not have noticed you complaining when I issued my report on the Southeast. You didn't comment on the "social commentary" in any other region either. And the Pacific doesn't pass (or even consider) enough legislation for me to comment on much besides you, well, lack of the consideration of legislation.

Whether its most prominent residents, whose political leanings tend to favor abolition of the regions, view this as a positive or negative aspect cannot be determined by this office; however, it is clear that despite a wave of reform initiatives through the other regions, Pacificers are content with the system they have.

Since when?

Since its members, including the region's current senator (if I am mistaken here, I apologize to Max), came out for removal of regional Senate seats...

[Purple State]

To be fair, abolishing regional senate seats is not the same as abolishing regions. And I also find it a little suspect that the GM is trying to change the type of governments that individual regions want to set up. If some want elected legislatures, that's awesome. If some want to do the every citizen is part of the legislature deal, that should be fine too. I'm pretty sure that's what regional rights are all about, no?

I think the GM's main request is that you just increase activity. I think everyone can agree that the Pacific region is the most inactive and boring region in Atlasia.

You hit it right on the head. No where did I recommend that the Pacific institute an elected legislature. I said: a) act on my previous economic recommendations and b) ensure that the region's existing dictates are actually being abided by.

I highly advise Purple State stop politicizing the GM position. Highly advise.

I highly advise that you know what is going on before you choose to comment. No where in that post did I politicize this office or push a personal agenda (besides the agenda of following the law, but I guess that's hard for some).

[Purple State]

Most curious about the region is the seeming lack of adherence to its own constitutional dictates. Seeing the document as more like guidelines than rules, very little proposed legislation in the region is actually voted on and even fewer votes are tallied for results.

Technically, legislation can only be brought to a vote if it has the signature of three residents and/or the Governor.

Voting on the Bill Frist bill has been open for about two and a half weeks, when the proper legal limit is one week.

Really, I am more concerned with general inactivity. The Pacific was the first region to bring legislation to address its regional budget report, yet has been unable to move forward on it since.  It has neither an active legislative system (as every other region arguably has), nor does it have an active governor. Most of the time it serves as a dead region.