The Island (Election and Governing Game)

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

This looks rather interesting. I just want to observe it a little before deciding whether or not to play.

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

What the hell, I'll play.

I take the stage.

"Hi, my name is John. I think all of Paul's ideas are flawed in some way, but I would like to propose an idea of my own."

I take a pencil and a sheet of paper, and write down the following:

"IDEA FOUR"
The group will get together and elect a number of their own, starting with 9, to serve as representatives of the entire group, in a body known as the "Executive Panel." The group will also elect a single person to be our leader, who will be known as the "President." The President makes all of the important decisions for all of us, but his or her decisions can be vetoed by a simple majority vote of the Executive Panel. The President can be deposed by a two-thirds majority of the Executive Panel. The Executive Panel can expel one of its members by unanimous consent of the other members, or by the consent of half of the other members as well as the President. Elections for President and for members of the Executive Panel occur once every two weeks.

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

As an afterthought, I write down:

"Voting in elections is done by secret ballot."

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

"I agree, Jenny. Perhaps we should stipulate exactly what responsibilities our "government" will have."

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

"Jenny, Paul, Tyler, what are your opinions on each of the plans submitted so far?"

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

"Could you maybe give me a bit more input? Do you think anything's missing or should be changed? Is there anything about my plan that you don't like?

And if anybody else wants to chime in, feel free."

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

OOC: It seems that you have proceeded while I was writing my post. Before balloting had begun, I wanted to agree with Ralph's proposal for a cabinet, and propose these as the cabinet positions (one for each member of the council).

Secretary of Food and Water: Responsible for hunting, fishing, collecting berries, collecting water, and ensuring that there is enough food and water for everyone.
Secretary of Shelter: Responsible for building shelters and other structures, and for maintaining them.
Secretary of Resources: Responsible for collecting resources not related to food and water, for use as tools, clothing, etc.
Secretary of Defense: Responsible for protecting our community against potential threats, and maintaining the peace within the community.
Secretary of Exploration: Responsible for exploring and mapping the island, and identifying places of interest.
Secretary of Labor: Responsible for evaluating the various talents possessed by each member of the community, and assigning each member to work where their talents are required.
Secretary of Health: Responsible for treating injuries and sicknesses, and promoting the general health of the community.
Secretary of Constituent Services: Responsible for maintaining communication between the community and the government, and addressing the concerns of the people.
Liaison Secretary: Responsible for maintaining communication and cooperation within the government, and serves as Chairperson during meetings of the panel.

It seems you have also misinterpreted part of my plan. My intent was that the people vote for the President, not the council. Also, with the addition of the cabinet, I would have suggested that each cabinet position is an elected office, and that during elections, candidates would specifically indicate their intention to run for whichever cabinet position they preferred.

Assuming that Plan Four is still adopted with these changes, I respectfully decline to run for the Presidency (citing lack of experience), and would run instead for the position of Liaison Secretary.

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

If no one else declares candidacy, I vote for Tyler for President.

In my official capacity as Liaison Secretary, I step in to mediate the conflict between DoFaW, Shelter, and Exploration. I ask Ralph, Ricky, and Jenny about their specific grievances, and I also consult Paul, since I am assuming that the major problem is the demand for labo(u)r.

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

I state my view that prioritization of jobs should be a Presidential decision, and that Paul is responsible for the actual allocation. I offer my opinion (and I stress that is only an opinion) that exploration should take precedence, at least until we find food, water, and resources. After the Presidential election, I recommend this course of action to the President.

I also encourage Ralph and Ricky to follow Chris' example and work with Jenny in order to find food, water, and shelter.

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

I can be counted among those who despise the name "The Tribe." I prefer to think of us as a "community."

"Tyler, if the robots are willing to talk to you, I suggest you ask them a few questions, such as where we are and why we are here. They might also know something about where food, water, and other resources might be found."

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

*awaits the President's return*

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

I'm gonna have to get this timing thing down. Most of my interactions will be with the President, so I'll have to sync up my online time with his.

From what I gather, his online time is synced up with your sleep time.

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

*awaits the President's return*

In the mean time, I'll take this opportunity to get to know my constituents a little better.

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

Prior to the President entering the box, I would second Platypus's suggestion that water would be the most important thing to ask the robots about.

No bugs at all? What kind of climate does this "island" seem to have?

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

I will ask the robots about all those issues

The robots have mandated that you can only ask one thing per day. Your Health and Liaison Secretaries have suggested that you ask where a source of water may be found first.

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

"Mr. President, I recommend that exploration be a top priority until we have found adequate sources of food, water, and other resources."

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

Def proposes sending one defender with each of 3 groups and keeping one behind to protest the Box

What does the Defense Minister have against the box?

"I agree with the Exploration Minister that they should split up. I propose that the majority of the workers in the Food and Water Department head in the direction of the water source, but I propose that some go with the other groups. I propose that workers in the Resources Department be spread out evenly amongst the groups, with the extra accompanying the group that heads north. I also agree with the Defense Minister in that a defender should accompany each group, with one remaining behind to guard the box."

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

Protect sorry Then again, Harry is a bit eccentric.

Yeah, he seems like the kind of person who'd think outside the box. Or protest against it.

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

Can we have an approximate scale for the map? About how far is it from the stage to the lake? How about from the coast to the "other island?" From the point farthest west that we've explored to the point farthest east that we've explored? It looks as though so far we have a beach, a coastal plain, a forest, and a large area of rocky hills. Is that accurate?

"I would like to propose that our settlement be built on the coastal plain along the river. I agree that the Department of Exploration should be slimmed down to provide more employees for DoFaW, Shelter, and Resources. I also agree with Exploration's proposal to explore the mountain."

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

I ask the defender who guarded the box about the circumstances surrounding the sinking of the stage.

"Mr. President, I recommend for your Box request to be one that would help the Shelter Department make some progress toward building shelters. I believe that that is currently our most pressing need."

I also announce that I will be convening a meeting of the Cabinet at sunset the day after tomorrow, in the area of the stage (if it still exists by then). I request that all Cabinet Ministers attend. The purpose of the meeting will be to keep each other abreast of the progress made in each department, and to draft a set of recommendations which I will then present to the President on the Cabinet's behalf.

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

Not good. Before weighing in with my opinion, I ask for an estimate as to how long it would take to move ourselves, the resources we have collected so far, and the Box to each of the proposed locations.

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

I think that Shelter's proposal is the best.  It is a central location that is not too far from various resources. At the same time, however, it is quite far away from our current location. The people are probably quite tired and may be unwilling to move a long distance, especially considering that we would want to bring our current supplies (not to mention the Box) along as well. It may be in our best interests to grit our teeth and find a suitable (if not ideal) location that is relatively close by.

How long would our current supplies of food and water last?

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

I ask again for an estimate of how long it would take (if we take everything, including the Box) to move to the proposed sites (I'm most interested in the site proposed by Shelter).

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

I'd say we should come up with a schedule for moving once we find the site

I agree with that course of action, Mr. President.

[Vazdul (Formerly Chairman of the Communist Party of Ontario)]

"I think that we are up to the task, and I officially recommend that we move to the site suggested by the Department of Shelter."