The Imperial Dominion of the South's Legislature

[Zanas]

Hi my fellow lawmakers ! This is my first time holding office, and might be for a short time ! So I'll take the shot to at least participate once in a parliamentary debate.

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Agreed. This can be ruled by collective bargaining, doesn't need an act.

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No problem here. Where I come from, summer break is already only 8-9 weeks.

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That's an original way of putting it. But as it has been noted : either the credit has to be donated to education, and then why not give it ourselves as we collect it ? or the credit is the taxpayer to dispose of, encouraged to give it to education, and then we could be screwed. Nevertheless, it could be a good try, so I'll go for it.

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Yeah, why not.

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I'm clearly not buying that. There can be any contests, rallyes, honors, for the most gifted students, but I fail to see why every student shouldn't have the same schools. It's basically institutionalizing a two-geared education that I'm thinking we should be fighting. You'll have to convince me hard on this one. And maybe explain it to me a bit more, it may be less evil that what I'm getting for now.

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Aye.

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35:1 is already a hell of a class to teach in front of ! Do our finances allow these thresholds to be decreased to 24:1 for core subjects and 30:1 for others ? And is threshold likely to be seldom, often, or nearly always reached ?

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I'd fire the parents also, can't see what they could bring here.
As for the teacher's formation, I think it is widely underestimated, but I guess for now we'll have to take it that way. Is there any period at all dedicated to learning pedagogy ?
Finally, this might surprise you, or not, but I am one who thinks that public servants, as they have certain advantages, should be exemplary workers, and I would review their activity once a year with an academic inspector of some kind, don't know if that function exists here.

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I'll go for that.

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Seems legit.

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I think the Fire department should have a look at the buildings every other year to check fire safeties. But I don't know if that should enter this bill.

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I'm a bit split on that one. Is there a possibility for this board to emit an advice on several textbooks in each subject rather than only one ?

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I really don't like the phrasing "useful foreign language", I think our Legislature and Region would be made fun of by "useless-language-speaking" countries and peoples. We should just not say it that way. No problem to have a list of languages though, as we cannot recruit teachers in virtually every language on Earth...
As to make this a requirement to graduate, I don't know, two years or even three years is not enough to really learn and master the language anyway if you didn't take it before that. I think we should stress on Spanish learning, this could merit even more than three years, and maybe just two years to discover another one of choice.

[Zanas]

I'm willing to vote nearly all this bill. I still have a bit of a reluctance for article 5 on Magnet schools. You'll have to answer a simple question : are these schools only open to certain students that are chosen for their abilities, or are they just normal schools that happen to have a strong reputation of teaching in one particular domain of knowledge that could attract students that want to specialize in this domain ? If the former, it will be ixnay on the illbay for me, I cannot create a two-tiered education system. If the latter or some kind of mix, I could pass this and vote the bill entirely.

[Zanas]

Exactly this.

I don't know exactly how much teachers are presently paid in Atlasia, I'd have to look into it, but I think we could align their payroll on that of a certain level in government employees, ones that do have a certain qualification to their job, some kind of responsibility over a small team, like low ranking executives. I just read that average teacher salaries have improved rapidly in the recent years : is that true ?

Payroll should also be higher the higher the education taught is. But I think it already is.

Also, we must be careful as there seems to be a discrepancy between the salaries of teachers in poor school sectors and wealthy ones. The job is certainly not easier, to say the least, in a poorer school sector, so the payroll should not be different.

[Zanas]

I'm willing to vote the bill as it is, but isn't 35,000 $ a bit low ? We saw that the mean income was somewhere between 40,000 and 50,000, so shouldn't we at least place the minimum at around 45,000 and then let it be settled at a local level ?

[Zanas]

Just realised that after all you're right Duke. We could place the floor at 37,500 $, and let the seniority, type of class, and maybe other factors raise that amount at a school district level.

I'm quite willing to vote the bill like this now.

What are the rival suggestions we're left with now ? I kind of lost track of these.

[Zanas]

I actually think New Orleans could be a good choice. It's quite central in the South. With all the rebuilding taking place there, they wouldn't mind building a university on top, that would attract bright young people from all over the South to the city, and some of them would settle there and start flourishing businesses that the city can recover with.

Plus, if the students get too out of hand at some point, we'd just need to wait for another Katrina to wash them to the sea...

[Zanas]

Either I'm deeply mistaken, or education is an Atlasian-wide stake, and we have no interest in wanting to compete between regions to see which has the best university and can produce the best students. That is why, if I can think this correctly, there has been created a federal university system, in order to ensure equality amongst regions, and that no inner competition is led, at a time when global competition is already threatening our jobs.

We, Atlasia, are a nation. Each region has powers, indeed, and particularities, but that's the future of our jobs, our kids, our nation that's at stake here ! We won't have an IDS left to defend if Atlasia falls apart, or at least we won't stand a chance in the grand scheme of things. Education may be the most crucial issue there is in order to get out the threats of today's economic situation upwards and not down the drain. Having a federal university doesn't however in my opinion threatens any of the powers the region has as of now, but I think we should be more than happy to welcome there students from all over Atlasia. We need to keep on building an Atlasian feeling, an Atlasian sense of belonging, and what could do that better than having students study all over the country during their years ?

I will renew my proposal of New Orleans as a compromise, as no one can say it's not a location in economic distress, no one can say it's not centrally located in our region, and no one can say it would not make a great place for a university with all the cultures that have been mixed there to make what it is.

And by the way, if you're afraid of federal meddling in your thoughts, lock them up better...

[Zanas]

Another argument that could be made : building and maintaining a $1-bn university will mean giving plenty of our businesses in the construction sector money to build it ! That can create jobs as construction workers for the duration of the building, and then jobs in maintenance, restauration, cleaning, and of course education just to keep it working. We're talking big here. We need those jobs, and Washington DC isn't gonna send their people to fill them !

I would advocate for our region to be able to choose which businesses will get to build the university though, in order to ensure that our locales will benefit from every penny of this. Could our Emperor see if this is workable with the federal government, not as an amendment to the bill of course, but more as a working condition ?

[Zanas]

I'm in favor of this bill obviously. I think we could maybe add a note on article 16, explaining why this 3-day delay. There could even be a typical form or flyer that should be given to any pet acquirer and explaining why it's not like buying a stuffed animal. The model of the flyer will be our administration's to establish, but the obligation to hand it out must be in the law.

[Zanas]

If we have a consensus trending in on Charleston, I guess I am withdrawing my proposal of New Orleans and backing Charleston. It was just a proposal to float the boat in any case.

Also where is the Capitol City now ?

[Zanas]

I would like to ask a question of procedure.

Whenever I come on the Regional government forum to come here in the Assembly, I see multiple NE, MA, Midwest threads regarding pieces of legislation they are discussing. And only this one thread for the IDS. I understand it has been chosen by our region and its representatives at some point in time to work this way, and I don't want to revolutionize something that must have its reasons, but can these reasons be explained to me ?

Sometimes it just seems to me we are lagging on the same bill over and over, whereas we could be working fast on some other more consensual bill in another thread at the same time. Also, where can the roll of all bills to be discussed here can be found ? And where should I introduce one if I want to ?

I'm starting to like this game, I just want to start to get a step further into how it works.

[Zanas]

Ok so it was just the Education Bill that took forever and that's when I got into the Assembly so I get it. When shall we have the election for Speaker ?

[Zanas]

[X] Adam Griffin
[ ] SJoyceFla

[Zanas]

[X] Yes

I vote Yes to the aforementioned proposal of making both candidates co-Speakers. I think it is a first time in Atlasia, even though I really only say that because it feels a bit newish.

I would like to apologize to my fellow Legislators for my absence these few last days, as I didn't have access to a proper computer the whole time. I have yet another week of holiday to go IRL so I will be active here as it should be !

Really this idea of a co-Speakership pleases me more and more. It is a truly wonderful way of representing the diversity that our Region is displaying nowadays, being at the same time the stronghold of the most liberal and the most conservative party of Atlasia. I'm sure our co-Speakers will work their way into good functioning of their office.

I'm guessing the Emperor should retain the power to organize a new vote on the office if any difficulty should appear, or if one of the co-Speakers should misbehave and cross a line.

[Zanas]

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Mrs Speakers, Fellow Legislators, I'll take the occasion to state my objections towards the Act presented onto us.

I don't think making unilateral claims for our region only is an attitude of good loyalty towards our glorious nation as a whole. Whereas I could see the potential interest of having a sub-board entitled to our regional matters, I don't think this should be viewed or asked as a privilege directly to our local divinity.

It could be, however, proposed as an organizational measure but should benefit every other region as well. I think it is somewhat showing that this Act wants to get a privilege within Atlasia without checking it in front of the whole Atlasian people before. The title of the act "IDS Independence Act" may be misleading. If it is what it says on the tin, then it would mean we leave Atlasia for good ?

I don't think the last times the South tried to leave the Union it turned out very well for us...

[Zanas]

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As I said earlier, I don't think the name of the bill reflects what it's really about, but then again the name of the bill isn't what is being enforced afterwards. I am in favor of the Act as amended by the other Legislator form Georgia, Mr Co-Speaker. (I am enlisted in Georgia too )

I think we could ask the Emperor to transmit a copy of our bill to his other regions' counterparts as they may want to pass similar acts in their respective legislatures.

[Zanas]

Mr. Speaker, I'd like to address the senior member from the great state of Georgia:

Would you (zanas), please consider changing your avatar to the state you represent?

No, sorry I will not, as my time on the Atlas Forum is actually spent in majority outside of Atlasia, and mainly on the International elections board where I want to keep being identified for what I am. I could however include something in my sig or nickname.

[Zanas]

I vote yes.

[Zanas]

I have no objection on the Aliya Mustafina Act or how it was amended.

[Zanas]

Yes.

[Zanas]

As we had already started that discussion previously, I will state my observations again :

I'm in favor of this bill obviously. I think we could maybe add a note on article 16, explaining why this 3-day delay. There could even be a typical form or flyer that should be given to any pet acquirer and explaining why it's not like buying a stuffed animal. The model of the flyer will be our administration's to establish, but the obligation to hand it out must be in the law.

[Zanas]

It may be true that this seems a bit of a lot of legislation for a subject that is not a top priority of the times, but Gandhi is often quoted as saying : "The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated." (even if the actual quote has not been recorded)

If we don't pass this legislation, the situation will stay at a status quo on this. It is only by passing this bill, and granting it with full publicity for the public of future pet buyers that we will be able to make things move. This is why I advocate my idea of a form handed out to buyers.

If we do not pass this bill, who will legislate on the subject ? Do our counties or towns have the legal possibility to pass such acts ? Can we in any way encourage them to do so, and in that case we could pass a much more general bill that would only be an enticement for our lower levels of legislation to act about it.

This subject is particularly sensitive to me as I am an almost vegetarian who believes we really need to start to ask ourselves a number of questions regarding our relation towards animals, how we use them as our own, whereas nothing has entitled us the power to do so.

[Zanas]

Actually I think that waiting has a valuable purpose. It ensures people take consciousness that they are not buying a stuffed animal. I think it should stay.

[Zanas]

Could you explain that a bit ? I don't get it. Why would you want to kill dogs ?

[Zanas]

I don't think we should consider any law by thinking "what about those that won't abide this ?"
The law's the law, and those who shall not abide shall be prosecuted. As for private sales, I don't think our government has the power to interfere in how they are concluded. And that is from me, a constructivist. But I know that a number of our fellow citizens will rather have a pet from a licensed pet store than from a private sale they know nothing about.
I think we are all working in the same direction here. I think that for once (well, it's not that exceptional in fact), we can bipartisanly pass this bill.
I'll stick with the waiting period, as I' m convinced it should be the way to go to prevent our nation's pets to be left abandoned on the side of the road.

I'll vote this bill with the previous scraping, but keeping the waiting period.