Kalistan

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His Highness, Minor Prince Fredrick-Martin Ananto-Collins named Crown Prince
Gives first official interview to La Moda
Kaliburg, Grand Duchy of Ananto
December 1, 5655


Minor Crown Prince Fredrick-Martin Ananto-Collins, age 13, at home in Kaliburg

In an administrative ceremony, Her Imperial Majesty, Empress Mary I Ananto, named her first born child, His Highness Minor Prince Fredrick-Martin David Ananto-Collins as Crown Prince and her official successor. His accession to the role of Successor to the Throne relieves Her Highness Princess Margaret Ananto-DeLaurentis of the duties. Her Imperial Majesty's Office added a short statement that the Empress wanted to hold off on the nomination to allow the Minor Prince to become a teenager before assuming any official royal responsibilities.

Following the naming of the Minor Prince as the official Successor to the Throne, the Minor Prince sat down with La Moda reporter Caroline Wallace to introduce himself to the world.

(La Moda's) C(aroline) W(allace): Thank you for inviting me to your home, Your Highness.

(His Highness, The Minor Crown Prince) F(redrick-Martin) A(nanto-Collins): Well, this is my mother's home, I just live here.

CW: Very Well, Your Highness. Perhaps you would be so kind as to tell the readers a bit about yourself. Introduce yourself to the world, if you will please.

FA: Hello, I am Fred. I am Thirteen Years Young. I like Punk Rock and skating and surfing here in Kaliburg. I am in the 8th Grade at Wilson Hill Middle, and I run track. My favorite Subject is music. Besides being the Emperor, someday I'd like to learn music theory and have a band.

CW: Can you do both, Your Highness?

FA: I think so. I look at what other Emperors and Empresses can do, and I think I can do both.

CW: Does Your Highness like Government?

FA: I kind of have to, but... to be honest, it doesn't allow me to be as creative as I would like.

CW: What do you play?

FA: I play the drums. I get to practice a lot at school. I am in the band, and am on percussion. It's a lot of fun, and I'm pretty good.

CW: Do you take lessons?

FA: Of course. But its kind of hard to be a drummer if nobody wants to make a band.

CW: So Your Highness doesn't know any musicians?

FA: I mean, lots of people play the clarinet, or the trumpet. But there is a shortage of electric guitarists my age, so to practice, I kind of play along with music on my phone.

CW: Do you have a favorite band?

FA: I like The Crew. They're pretty fast. I like a lot of older stuff too: Anarchrock, Crush, Alternica, Thrasher... bands like that, that have that speed, that volume. I think if I could play that fast, I would be awesome. With time, I think, and practice... and a band...

CW: Perhaps this article will help you get a band, Your Highness.

FA: Well, either way.

CW: And you said you surf?

FA: Oh yes, competitively. I actually won a few youth competitions at Sunset.

CW: Have you surfed Luxon?

FA: Oh, ha ha, no I'm still too young. I would love to, but its just too dangerous.

CW: Do you surf with your aunt?

FA: Quite often, you know, Aunt Meg is a great surfer. I did see her surf at Luxon. That was awesome.

CW: Do you look forward to High School, Your Majesty?

FA: Yeah, Absolutely. I have a lot of friends in school here and I can't wait to like, learn more specific things. They have a better band in high school. I might try out drama, you know... just whatever I want to do..."

CW: I am sure you will make the most of it, Your Highness.

FA: I will certainly try.

CW: So, given your new role as Crown Prince, perhaps: project yourself into the future. What sort of Emperor will you be?

FA: Hopefully a good one.

CW: Well, of course a good one. I shall hope so, Your Highness. But what I mean is, what would your focus be? Would you keep the course your mother has set, or would you strike out in a new direction.

FA: I suppose that depends on some things. My mother was presented with a much different situation than I hope to inherit. She came to her Throne in a time of war. She'll leave me with peace, a balanced budget, a set of priorities that reflect the beautifucation and the improvement of our culture and our people. For all the criticism she got when she was younger, she has done a pretty good job. So I think I will pick up where she left off and carry things forward further.

CW: Do you have any specific goals you would like to tackle as Emperor?

FA: I mean, I always thought maybe we would put more money to music education. That's something I am really serious about. I don't know. There's a lot of it and I really just kind of started learning about it, so I think I better say pass on this question. I don't know...

CW: That's fine Your Highness. We'll finish up here. Do you have any parting words for the audience in this, your first interview?

FA: Just make sure to check out like your local scene. There's a lot of really cool people there doing a lot of really interesting stuff. They obviously have punk shows and stuff, but also there's like DIY zines that actually do some pretty good reporting on like different bands, and this one I read, called Crass, has some social issue in every edition, where they actually go out and interview a bunch of people on a topic, a different one each edition, and then write a whole report about it. It's usually like "How can we make a more inclusive scene?" or "How punk rock saves lives," which talks about how the whole community tries to help people in mental health situations, to know that they have friends and aren't alone. You know, stuff like that. So yeah, there's a million little clubs and venues all around Kalistan, and we just gotta support this music and this community, you know?

CW: Is that it?

FA: Yeah, and like 5 Ruble Shows are still a thing, even in Kaliburg. You don't have to pay like 400 rubles to go see whatever you know pop princess or whatever. Come to a Saturday Matinee: 5 Rubles, 7 bands. It's a lot of fun.

CW: Ha ha, well, alright. I want to thank you, Your Highness for sitting down with us and talking with us.

FA: You're welcomed. Better do more of these before we have to have the Chancellor in here too.

CW: Sure. Before we go: For our online readers, does Your Highness want to suggest a song for readers to check out that kind of describes your music tastes?

FA: Hmmmm... Let me think. I think I'll go with Anarchrock's "I can't Take it." That's rad Hardcore.

CW: Alright, we'll link it on the page.

FA: Awesome. Thank you.

The song requested by His Highness, by Hardcore Punk legends Anarchrock called "I Can't Take It" is just below.

[Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZCm5DkwnjY]

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Kalistani News in Brief: Empress Contemplates Brethrenism;
Empress says goodbye to Romulo the I; Athosian Mission fully staffed as Baltusia goes dark
Dulnerstaad, Grand Duchy of Ananto
February 20, 5656


Her Imperial Majesty joins Chancellor of the Empire at the North Point Meetinghouse in rural Dulnerstaad County for a Meeting for Discussion

Empress Contemplates Brethrenism
The Empress has been on a nationwide tour this winter, aiming to meet with various Brethrenist Meetings across the Empire. This tour of the nation is part of her deepening association with the Democracy Forum in Mainland Kalistan, which continues to offer her opportunities to meet people and speak directly with them that began a few years back and culminated in the creation of a multi-party system and the first competitive election in living memory in Kalistan. "It is important for a nation governed by Imperial Fiat for the Empress to make the attempt to hear what her people are asking for" said Chancellor of the Empire, Lady Jennifer Alvarez-Miller. "She never wanted to be cloistered, but this is also a challenge for her, because the Monarchy has been insulated from the people for generations, and so she doesn't have a lot of experience meeting with lots of different people. As she gets more used to it, she does better talking to crowds, and the people we are meeting are saying good things: they ask tough questions, but they are also patient with her and generally welcome the opportunity, even in Suldanor, to meet with her."

Each stop on her tour has begun with a silent Brethrenist Meeting for Worship, followed by the Formal Audience. But there are signs that the Empress may be looking into Brethrenism as a belief system. "Her Imperial Majesty is notoriously atheist," says Lady Alvarez. "But she asks questions, not only in meetings, but she asks me questions that do not have anything to do with government. I gave her a copy of the Kaliburg Faith and Practice and I believe she read it cover to cover in the first week she had it, and she raises questions in Meeting which surprise even me, a lifelong Brethrenist. She is curious about the Peace Testimony, and has even asked about the Simplicity testimony. I think one of the reasons she asks questions like this in Meeting is to show the Friends that she understands our Faith and Practice, to kind of overcome the barriers that are associated with that, but lately, she has been asking me how to join a meeting, and I am happy to help her."

She most recently held audience in rural northern Dulnerstaad County at the North Point Monthly Meeting House, and was treated to a genuine Brethrenist Pot Luck, a first for the Empress. "Brethrenists like Quinoa, for some reason," said Lady Alvarez. "Pickled Beet Quinoa was certainly not a new thing for me, but Her Imperial Majesty, being a vegan, seemed to rather enjoy it. She was certainly far more polite about the dish than I was able to be. I have eaten my share of food prepared by hippie Brethrenists at Potluck, but this was too much for me, while Her Imperial Majesty took seconds."

Empress says goodbye to Romulo the I Montalivet-Sildavia
While Her Imperial Majesty attended the funeral of Romulo I Rey of Egelion last summer, she made a special trip to Egelion last month to pay special tribute to the King. While in country, she visited with La Madre Reina Nicole I, who is her cousin by adoption and took an opportunity to introduce the Minor Crown Prince Fredrick-Martin David Ananto-Collins to the new King of Egelion, Artemio I Rey. "The Crown Prince is significantly younger than the new Egelian King," said Lady Marian Southern, the Empress' longtime spokeswoman. "However, their two reigns will overlap significantly at some point, and it is thought that introducing the new Crown Prince, now that he has begun assuming some family duties, will allow the King and the Emperor to develop a report. The Crown Prince has expressed interest in possibly taking a semester to study Egelian in the Northern Kingdom during High School, and his admiration and appreciation for the the nation of Egelion is clear."

While in country, the Empress was asked to address a local expat women's organization, the Daughters of Ananto, which count more than 250 members in Altea alone. The topic of her after-dinner Keynote speech is the Importance of good Kalistani-Egelian relations in the Anantonese Region. The dinner was by invite only, but according to Lady Southern, who was present, the speech covered the efforts Kalistan and Egelion have made to ensure that our region remains secure, and the direct tie of that security to our joint prosperity. She also praised the late King and the Queen Mother, and expressed hope for a deeper relation with the new King Artimeo going forward. Finally Her Imperial Majesty added a section about the importance of cultural exchange and the free movement of people between Kalistan and Egelion and said that Expat organizations like the Daughters of Ananto are one of the many key groups that help foster good relations between the two nations.

Athosian Mission fully staffed as Baltusia goes dark
Chancellor of the Empire, Lady Jennifer Alvarez-Miller reported that the Athosian Consulate has been opened in San Luis, Santiago. The consulate was intended to be both a second consular post in Baltusia, as well as serve as the working Headquarters of the Athosian Trade Liaison, which was to administer the Lucid Accords governing trade, migration and transportation over the Lucid River frontier. The Mission is now open and fully functioning, and is coordinating those areas with Baltusian counterparts, thought the Government of Baltusia in Johnston has ended communications with the outside world.

"It was luck that we completed this mission fairly quickly," said Lady Alvarez. "I assume that the Baltusian Government is still in place in the Capital, but they have not communicated instructions to us here or to their own Nationals with whom we are liaising. The Baltusians, who are very helpful and also fully understand the local situation better than we do, have been eager to continue to work with us until they hear from the National Government. But right now, we are keeping the Trans Seleyan Railway open, and keeping the freight and passengers flowing north and south through Santiago/Athosia, as well as ensuring that the port of San Luis remains active and operating efficiently to provide goods and services to the nation of Baltusia."

The Mission Consul, Hon Walt Jones, remains in contact with the Kalistani Embassy in Johnston, whom he receives instructions for the Kalistan part of the Athosian operations. "So far the word is to continue cooperating with the Baltusians in Santiago to ensure that business remains as usual, whatever the Baltusian Government is doing. We are working directly with them to keep our part of the deal, and to offer them support as they start to administer the region in accord to Baltusian's standing policies, and perhaps when Johnston decides to reactivate, they will provide new instructions." Jones noted the support of the Monarchist factions in Santiago, who have enthusiasticly greeted the Kalistani Liaison and Consular officials, and have had several meetings with Kalistani diplomatic staff to ensure that Kalistan and Baltusia continue to cooperate in the State.

"We're kinda following the lead of the Baltusians here," said Consul Jones. "It's just best policy to keep everything in place, and it is basically the same policy followed by Kalistan toward Gaduridos decades ago."

@TheRepublic

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Empress launches Book Tour in Kalistan
"History of the Anantos" sells modestly well on First Week
Sulari, Duchy of Suldanor
June 18, 5656


Her Imperial Majesty autographs books at The Literate Leaf in Sulari

As she continues her multi year campaign to make contacts with Kalistani Citizens, Her Imperial Majesty, the Empress Mary I Ananto has launched a tour to promote her recently published first book titled The History of the Anantos: Imperial Rule in Kalistan, 5140 to Present. The book has been on shelves for about two weeks and has sold modestly well. The book was authored primarily by Her Imperial Majesty, the Empress, as a sort of family history, but it was edited by Melvin Clarke, an historical novelist in Kaliburg and a personal friend of Her Imperial Majesty's socialite mother the Princess Monica Ananto-DeLaurentis.

"The consensus is in that 285 page manuscript is a very readable and very factual personal history of the Ananto family from its founding by Fredrick Guerra, the son of Gaduri Immigrants-turned Philanthropist up to the present date," read one review. "The most interesting thing about the story of the rise of the Empire is the unintentionally bad light it paints the Institutional Party in. The book unequivocally states that the Institutional Party more or less organized a legislative coup and eliminated the old Republican Constitution to establish the Empire, ignoring, and then ultimately locking the opposition out of the Congress while they passed two very controversial enabling acts to establish what we now know as the Empire. The Initial monarchs were more or less figureheads who gave cover for the Institutional Party to run the nation as a democratic dictatorship during the first few reigns, but Nicolette I knew the power that she could have, having served as the last President of the Republic, and as a condition to her accession, she insisted that the Institutional Party adopt a subservient role. As Her Imperial Majesty says, it was the price the Institutional Party was willing to pay to eliminate internecine political struggle."

The institutions of the modern absolute Monarchy can therefore be traced to Nicolette I Ananto, and according to the Empress, this is the main reason she earned the moniker "The Great". "We owe all of our political institutions, our peace, and our prosperity to the resolve, tenacity, and brilliance of Lady Nicolette. Without her, Kalistan would look like a very different country." The book explores efforts by various democrats to unravel the Imperial Power, as they did in 5299, when resurgent socialists forced William I Ananto to abdicate. "While William sought to be a man of the people, it was eventually the people who turned on him. He thought he could have popular government and retain his title. He was ultimately wrong." Though the early monarchs were very well loved, according to the Empress, they were not powerful, leading her to conclude that there is a tradeoff. "Some Emperors and Empresses will just never be popular. It all depends on how much dissent within their own government they are willing to accept."

The price of the book is on the low end for histories of this size and this degree of veracity. At The Literate Leaf, an independent book seller in Sulari, where Her Imperial Majesty was signing copies of her book for readers in a personal appearance earlier this week, hard copies were selling for ₭2.75 Imperial and paperbacks were selling for a very reasonable ₭1.87 Imperial. Compared to most books, most of which start at ₭8.50 for a hardback, the price was more or less to cover printing costs. "Her Imperial Majesty does not intend to profit from the sale of this book," said Lady Marian Southern, Her Imperial Majesty's spokeswoman who accompanied her on the first leg of her book tour in Suldanor. "Her goal is to try to illuminate the history and evolution of her family, to improve understanding about not only the institution of the Monarchy, but also to illuminate the more human side of the various monarchs throughout Kalistan's History. Profiting from telling these very personal stories would be exploiting her own family." Lady Southern also says that people may download a full, proofed copy of the book online and print their own copy freely if they like.

Despite the candidness, the factuality and the low price, sales were modest through the first week of the book's life. "Her Imperial Majesty's book sold about 100 copies here," said Wand Edwards of The Literate Leaf. "Given our normal volume for best sellers, that might feel a bit disappointing, if her goal was to sell a lot of books. We made a large order, and to help us with sales, she agreed to add our store to her tour, and say a few words about supporting independent books stores, but she was primarily here to meet people, sign autographs and pose for photos. This event itself quadrupled our total first week sales, because she was here."

"Her Imperial Majesty hopes that people will read the book and share it with their friends, or recommend that they get a copy of their own," said Lady Southern. "We can let the book speak for itself, but an Empress writing a book of solid historical research is pretty impressive, and even if people check it out, she would just prefer that people read her work. She's very proud of it, even if it does have modest sales."

The reviews of the book were generally positive, with the few flat out negative reviews coming from the liberal Press. "This book stinks of hagiography," said Liberal columnist Martha Ibanez. "Of course she tells the story of the demolition of our democratic institutions in this Nation. She can tell that story, because she is on the winning side. But I am quite surprised that Her Imperial Majesty is so willing to give most of the facts of the case. It certainly lays it on the doorstep of the Institutional Party, but the Anantos have benefitted from this for centuries, and there is almost no acknowledgement of the singular Ananto privilege that she possesses. There is no self-reflection, because if she had reflected, even a little bit, she would agree that this monarchy is toxic for Kalistan and needs to be abolished, restoring full democracy."

Others noted jarring stylistic changes that occur in a few locations that throws the reader out of the moment. "You can tell where Mr. Clarke's most significant edits are," said Morris Donnelly of the Sulari Free Press. "The Empress has a much more honest and genuine tone in her writing. It's almost conversational in a way. When the language switches up and begins to sound like a lawyer's writing, full of jargon and suddenly exhibiting three syllable words, its pretty clear that is the edition of her co-author, rather than Her Imperial Majesty. Its pretty jarring for instance."

Reviews aside, Lady Southern says Her Imperial Majesty will continue touring the Empire as she hosts book talks with various civic groups in Kalistan and Ananto and book signing events at local bookstores across the entire nation. "We'll probably stay out for about 6 weeks," said Lady Southern. "Her Imperial Majesty is just a phone call away meanwhile. And during this time, Her Imperial Majesty will have more time to directly meet with people and put her book into the hands of potentially tens of thousands of Kalistanis.

@TheRepublic

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Democracy Forum meets in Kaliburg
Noted Scholars Debate Concept of Democracy
Kaliburg, Grand Duchy of Ananto
June 24, 5656


Panelists at a rowdy Kaliburg Democracy Forum discuss concepts of Democracy during one of the forum's calmer moments

The Democracy Forum Movement has to date been primarily a Mainland trend. Starting in major coastal cities like Sulari and Gendaris, the movement has so far accomplished major changes in getting the Single Party provisions of the Anti-Fascist Bill repealed and holding a free competitive election nationwide for National Assembly. So Democracy Forum activists in the Nation's capital came into the first major Democracy Forum event in Kaliburg with a certain amount of confidence and hoped to move the needle in Ananto more toward democracy as well.

Instead, what occurred was a debate which highlighted a major tension within the pro-democracy movement in Kalistan: The question that predominated the conference early on, and remained the source of most debates and ultimately disagreement, was the question of "What kind of democracy?" The answer, such as it was, certainly disappointed those who believe Kalistan should be fighting for a strong, robust, multi-party liberal democracy and threatens to undermine the entire Democracy Forum movement, given that the disagreement is fundamental at its root, and will certainly divide those who previously found unity in the generic cause of "democracy in Kalistan."

The Forum, a three day conference that brought together various Deputies from all four main parties with scholars, Citizens and activists, was intended to talk about next steps and spreading the pro-democracy movement in the notoriously pro-Empire Grand Duchy of Ananto. Organizers were bolstered by numerous successes, including electing a non-Institutionalist Majority City Council in Sulari for the first time in over 100 years. The unstated aim was to discuss election strategy in the next regular National Assembly elections in 5659.

The conference went sideways during the first panel, which was just intended as an opening panel to discuss democratic theory. One presenter was the radical theorist Martin Grunwald, from the University of Sulari, who posited that Kalistanis can not be happy with either the pace or the scope of reform so far. "We know, for example, that in some academic circles, there are individuals who want to abolish the monarchy already, right now. And Democracy Forum is only a few years old. In its place they would like to build a direct democracy, where the people are sovereign. There are already individuals talking about it, and frankly this is something we should be looking at as well, whether something like this is possible in the current context."

The statement drew several howls from the audience while a couple individuals cautiously and anonymously clapped. One audience member shouted "That's illegal!" to which many other audience members booed, while a lot of individuals clapped. But Grunwald said from the stage "Yeah, its illegal. To even call for reform. What kind of democracy is that?" The crowd immediately broke into heated conversation, with occasionally a shout of "sedition" heard followed by a call from the other side of the auditorium of "Let the man speak!" and "Shutup!" heard soon afterward. The Moderator needed to step in to call for peace, and it took the audience several minutes to calm down.

Grunwald finished his speech relatively uninterrupted, but the speaker who followed him, Dr Alice Martel of Kaliburg Imperial, re-ignited the crowd for different reasons. She began her speech with "Dr. Grunwald asked what kind of democracy is it illegal to call for revolution? I have that same question. The collogues of Mr. Grunwald who are having secret conversations that are reported anonymously like this are more or less calling for overthrow of the regime if they actually are demanding what he says they are..." More boos from the audience, along with more claps from her position's supporters. "What kind of democracy do we have? We don't live in a democracy. We can practice democracy, but this system is not ruled by the people. As we can see here... huh... look here... as we can see here, a crowd even one as small as this can't seem to agree on anything. And that sort of disagreement brings civil disorder. How can we possibly govern ourselves as a nation when we can't even get past the first speech at Democracy Forum without fighting one another?" She received mixed applause for her statement.

The panels thus broke down like this: Over the three days that followed, several sessions were split on topics ranging from electoral strategy and strategic voting to simply defining terms. Given that the event was held in Kaliburg, there were far more people in support for a very limited and moderate reform, if any, but several more radical individuals from the mainland put up a staunch defense for a more direct sort of democracy for the nation. Many of the discussions were heated with ample audience participation. At one point one presenter, Dr. Jamal Mason, of Eveari, reminded everyone that the pro-democracy movement in Kalistan is still a specific minority: Institutional Party support within the Government is still at super majority, and the Institutional Party still holds the majority in all city councils across the Empire except Sulari, where is holds 48% of the seats while a coalition of all the other parties combined are sitting at 52%.

"What we fail to realize, is that this country is still incredibly conservative, and perhaps as many as 40% of Kalistanis in recent polls remain outright hostile toward democracy of any kind," said Mason. "We can't think of our movement like we are in the majority. The Empress tolerates some reform, but she certainly isn't helping us. As a matter of fact, part of this 'getting out to the people' campaign she is on actually is undermining what we are trying to do by presenting the monarchy as responsive to popular interests when we are trying to paint democracy as the alternative to the Monarchy to get people interested in ppushing for more self-government. The people meet the Empress, they generally like her, they don't turn to democratic elements in the society for solutions but instead put their trust back into her and her Party. And she has infinite freedom to do this, while the democracy movement remains in a box." The comment drew some applause, but even another member of Mason's Panel disagreed.

"I actually think that the Empress going out to the people shows that we are having an effect," said Dr. Dave Carter, of Vrassa Duchy University. "We've shown her that the support of the people is important, and it's something she should strive to cultivate. No more can she sit in her Jewel Encrusted Throne Pagoda and just think everything will carry on as it always has. We've got her out of the capital, we've got her to Sulari. She is doing book signings now, for god sake. She is showing herself to be an ordinary woman. And that can't be anything bad for our Democracy Movement."

The Conference was cut short on Day Three when a group of Liberal Party Members attempted to storm the stage and take the microphone. The Moderator of the panel they tried to interrupt, the Socialist Deputy Manuel Guttierez, of Yoshimi, said he would give them an opportunity to speak but then they had to sit down and let the panelists finish their presentations. The leader of the group, Jana Kenworth from Springfield Odufrary, said "You people call this Democracy? All I hear is should we have more or less freedom. When are we going to finally talk about building democracy, real democracy, liberal democracy, with expanded legislatures that truly reflect the make up of the country, common and universal elections, and strong protections for both private property and the right, and yes, I said RIGHTS of the minority?" An unidentified audience member yelled "SIT DOWN!" from the audience, and what followed was a profanity laced screed from Ms. Kenworth that led to heated emotions boiling over. The forum descended into a brawl and the Capital Police were called in to restore order.

Several audience member were arrested for assaulting members of the police force as they were attempting to break up the melee, but only minor injuries were reported and treated at Kaliburg Hospital. The forum did not resume after the brawl, as much of the furniture, including the panelists' table was destroyed. Democracy Forum issued a brief statement to the Citizens of Kaliburg apologizing for the near riot, reaffirming the good work and peaceful nature of Democracy Forum, and admitting that holding Democracy Forum in Kaliburg may have been a mistake.

"We wish to continue to engage with these ideas, and will likely continue to have to do so whether we wanted to or not, but this is a time for reflection on where we are as a movement, and even whether we can stay committed to the general idea of democracy for Kalistan, or if the divisions exposed here will be too great a hurdle to overcome. While Democracy Forum hopes there is a way forward, we clearly need to do some examination of ourselves to find that way forward," said the Statement.

Her Imperial Majesty's office issued comment from Wood Hall, where she and the Royal Family are in residence for the summer, that the Empress is pleased that nobody was seriously injured in the "unfortunate events" surrounding the end of Democracy Forum, and advising that the Justice Ministry will be looking into whether Deputies of the National Assembly were among those involved in the melee, or in the calls for the end of the Monarchy. "If so, this is a serious violation of the law, and the members of Our National Assembly should be more cognizant of the example they are setting for others, along with the standard they are held to with regard to their public conduct," said Her Imperial Majesty in her Office's Statement. "We can, to some small degree tolerate some measure of rowdy and outspoken behavior in our Citizens, but members of our Legislature should be aware that the eyes of this Empire are upon them at all times, and if there is a violation of the law at the very top, that sends a signal that it is ok to violate the law among everyone, and that is certainly intolerable." So far, no Deputies have been charged in association with the Democracy Forum or the brawl.

@TheRepublic

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AeroKal takes steps toward Hydrogen Powered aircraft
Solution could lead to longer in country flights
Sulari, Duchy of Ananto
August 8, 5656


AreoKal's Model AKV-2 offers significant step forward in goal of freeing consumer air traffic from Fossil Fuels

AeroKal has been in the process of shifting its operations more smaller aircraft and most importantly, less carbon based fuel operated vehicles designed to make shorter trips commensurate with Kalistan's intra national distances while reducing the pollution created by the operation of standard Kerosene based jet engines. Recently, a new prototype by AeroKal, the AKV-2 made several successful piloted test flights that put the goal of creating a fleet of pilot-operated electric AeroTaxis into focus.

"We have successfully run three manned tests between June and August of this year," said AeroKal Spokesman Frank Kellogg. "All three tests were successful and piloted, and allowed us to test the tilt rotor tech which allows us to move from vertical take off to powered flight, which is a feature you will see in carrier based VTOL aircraft. All three manned flights were conducted using battery operated models and flew between Dana and Spencer Suldanor, or a distance of around 167 miles as the crow flies. The test flights were all successful, reached a max operating ceiling of about two and a half miles, and a maximum speed of just under 200 miles an hour, making the trip slightly faster than the same trip would have been on RailSul given the stop in Sulari. The trip used 95% of the charge in the batteries, with one person (the pilot) so obviously there would be a lot of room for improvement there before the system is commercially feasible."

One area of improvement that the company is already focused on is hydrogen fuel cell technology that will allow an all electric motor run off of fuelcells rather than batteries. "Early prototypes with unmanned models show this to be very possible ," said Kellogg. "Our last unmanned model with hydrogen fuel cells produced almost no emissions, and flew more than 500 miles non stop. This was a full scale pre-production model of the AKV-2. While distance will be reduced with a full load (a pilot and four passengers, for example) a lot of that is offset by not requiring a bank of batteries. We could see something along the lines of models that allow trips for four passengers of about 350 to 400 miles in the near future, just with our existing technology."

The VTOLs that AeroKal is currently investing in will only supplement the the existing fleet of intercontinental jets and smaller civilian aircraft, most of which still relies on kerosene based SAF. AeroKal has ended all production lines on large body commercial airlines, opting instead to begin licensing Jets on its flights from AeroLeon in Egelion, with whom it hopes to work with to begin purchasing replacements as its currently planes begin going out of service in about 10 years. AeroKal will continue to build smaller jets for corporate accounts, but will focus on lower emissions and less expensive Civil Aviation. Part of that civil aviation branch is already a line of propeller driven aerotaxis that fly from remote areas across both Kalistan and Ananto to and from cities. "The Aero taxis are capable of taking up to 8 passengers from the most marginal airstrips into our cities where they can make connecting flights," said Kellogg. "Some of the flights are, shall we say, less than smooth, as you would expect with a small civil aircraft, and they still do create emissions, so we are going to be attempting to correct these issues with the VTOLs. But the advantage of civil aviation air taxis is that they can take off from and land on lakes, reservoirs, and barely their "air strips" as short as a city block long, they are tough as nails, and they are reliable."

AeroKal said they intend to continue testing the battery operated AKV-2 with a hope to introduce the first commercial service in Sulari in 5658. "One of the roles we see for this model is that of an actual taxi," said Kellogg. "It has the ability to function as a vertical helicopter almost, but also as a front rotor aircraft. I think use that way might be more doable on a regional basis. But in the cities, if we can get the infrastructure built, theoretically we could take off and land this thing in a spot about 10 yards by 10 yards, and most of the larger buildings in downtown Sulari have that kind of space. We'd want to work with the Free City to designate certain areas as Velodromes to allow for regular flights from the outskirts into the town and viceversa." Kellogg also said that a smaller model with a more compact footprint would likely be developed with the focus on taxi service in smaller Free Cities like Kaliburg or Vrassa City.

The exciting news encouraged a rush of investment in the KalSiE. AKC, AeroKal's stock price, saw an increase on the day of ₭3.45 Imperial, or about 3.2% on the late afternoon news. The increase was led by large institutional investors, though some mom and pop investors also got in before the end of the day.

You can watch footage of the most recent AKV-2 test flight here.

[Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2sCY67JJEFU]

@TheRepublic

[Doc]

Lady Monica Ananto-DeLaurentis Retires
Mother of the Empress to retain home in Xanadu
Xanadu, Grand Duchy of Ananto
September 15, 5656


Empress and Princess Margaret join the Princess Mother at home in Xanadu

Her Highness, Princess Monica Ananto-DeLaurentis, the Princess Mother, who was married to the late Emperor Fredrick III Ananto, and then married the late Baron Calvin Morrison of Xanadu has decided to retire from public life and leave the Board of Directors of the Kalistani Foundation for the Arts (which began as the National Orchestra Foundation, an organization she started in 5634.) The socialite and patron of the Arts in Ananto and Kalistan, she was named Dame of the Opera in Kaliburg, due to her patronage of the Imperial Opera.

"It's time I step down," said Lady Monica at a short press conference. "I've been at this for 22 years, and its time for someone else to come in and take up the work. Someone with new ideas and new directions. I helped push the Imperial Opera and the National Orchestra in a direction that I liked, and worked hard to provide it a stable foundation that it could build on. Now it is time for a new group to carry on to the next steps. It has been a real blessing to be surrounding by such artists and performers, and to have... the opportunity and the privilege of bringing such beauty to so many people. I was so fortunate to live the kind of life I was able to: yes there was sorrow, but there was also a lot of joy, and because of that, because of both my husbands' supports at their respective times in my life, and because of the support of my daughters, and my sister in law and everyone all around me, I have had so many wonderful chances to pay it forward for the beautification of my daughter's empire. And with that, I hope the incoming director of the Foundation is able to continue to receive support from House Ananto as I have, as well as our wonderful donors, and all the audiences who come to the Imperial Opera and the National Orchestra during their performances and all the wonderful singers, and just everyone. Thank you, so much for such a beautiful life you all have allowed me to live."

The Princess Mother did not name the incoming director, because the Board was in the process of selecting her replacement as she announced her retirement, but a week later, Michael Ricardo was named to take up Lady Monica's role in the Kalistani Foundation of the Arts. Ricardo was the primary Conductor of the Sulari City Orchestra for the last six years, and said he looked forward to expanding theater construction across mainland Kalistan, so theater groups and orchestras can actually tour more cities in venues that are suitable for fine arts. "I'd also like to see the Foundation patronize more composers to encourage both classical and modern music composition," said Ricardo.

House Ananto announced Lady Monica's decision to retire not only from her duties at the Foundation, but also from all royal obligations. "The Princess Mother asked the House to accept her retirement from Royal Duties for a number of reasons," said Lady Helen Ananto-Reynolds, Head of House Ananto. "She has asked us to report that she has recently been diagnosed with stage three renal failure, a terminal and ultimately fatal condition, and will need to spend more time looking to her declining health. Given the Princess Mother's age and physical condition, she is not eligible for a kidney transplant, and so will end up doing dialysis three times a week. She also wants to spend time with her grandchildren in Kaliburg, and attend what performances of the Imperial Opera she can. The Princess Mother's still has many years left provided she can take care of her health, and reducing her workload is part of that. Her Imperial Majesty has instructed us to accept Lady Monica's retirement, and thanks her mother for her many decades of service to the arts community in Ananto and Kalistan."

Lady Helen also said that Lady Monica will keep the title of Baroness of Xanadu in Luxon County, a title she had, up until Lord Calvin Morrison's death last spring, as a courtesy title. Lady Monica has opted to not take a countess title, due to her marriage to the Baron, so she will continue to exercise the rights of Baroness in Xanadu in her own right for life, after which time, the title will return to the Empress. "Lady Monica has acted as a just and fair Baroness with her late husband, Mr. Morrison, and it is Her Imperial Majesty's will that her mother continue to represent the Crown in that jurisdiction as she is able."

Lady Monica will split her time between Kaliburg, her home town, and Xanadu, her adopted home. When the Empress is in Residence in Kaliburg, Lady Monica will live in the East Wing of Cliff House, so she can spend time with the Their Highnesses Minor Prince Fredrick-Martin Ananto-Collins and the Minor Princess Nicolette-Carolina Ananto-Collins. And then when the Royal Family takes up residence at Wood House each Spring, the Princess Mother will return to Xanadu to the home she and Baron Morrison built together and shared. She noted she would like to learn more about the various movements for democracy in Kalistan, "out of curiosity," Lady Helen added.

@TheRepublic

[Doc]

Bookmakers in Kaliburg and Sulari make a Killing
"Only a few bet Under" on the line for Kundrati Collapse at Kalistan's betting dens
Sulari, Duchy of Suldanor
December 1, 5656


Sulari's "King of the Books" Tom Hawkins, reportedly just earned more than ₭4.85 Million in Vigorish

The informal Gambling cartel, the Kalistani Punters' Association, reportedly raked up more than ₭56 million Imperial in one of the most lucrative series of longshots in Kalistani History. The Bet and the Book were overseen by Sulari's professional bookie, Tom "King of the Books" Hawkins, who runs a well known betting parlor in Downtown Sulari. Hawkins himself made more than ₭4.85 million, just in his commission for insuring the bets.

The Bet in question, which has been whispered about for more a decade and a half, but never confirmed by anyone involved until now, when it was settled was between several very wealthy members of the Kalistani Business Community. The Punters' Association also joined the bet. The terms of the bet? Following the 5640 "Elections" in Kundrati, how long would it be before Kundrati collapsed, threw off the paper thin pretense of democracy and descended once more into hive mind personality cult behavior led by unreconstructed Legion Members.

Most of Kalistan's business community were themselves far more optimistic than the Kalistani Government was on the matter, and ultimately, Hawkins agreed to cover a bet of a simple over and under of 20 years. That is, The people who didn't believe that Kundrati could stay away from pointless and national suicidal posturing, fascism, and cult like behavior were willing to give it 20 years. If Kundrati made it to March 30, 5660, or about 20 years after their first election, without public backsliding to fascism and ultra nationalism, the Under bettors would forfeit their money. If it all fell apart before then, the Over bettors would lose their stake. Hawkins insured the bet and guaranteed payout with a personal deposit made in the Commercial Bank of Suldanor regardless of which side won--He agreed to do so for a Vigorish of 4 points, which is standard Vig for bookmakers in Kalistan.

The only publicly known betters were the Punters' Association, though Hawkins, as the Bookmaker of record, was recused from the Bet. In exchange he made odds, and took agreed to take side bets, such as whether, if Kundrati DID collapse, they would blame Kalistan, Luthori, Hutori, some combination, all three, or how they would collapse, or if, in the case that Kundrati succeeded, whether they would actually give Kalistan Credit for not meddling in their nation as the cause of all their success. Various elements of the betting pool joined in these side bets as well, and Hawkins treated their money the same as he did the Main pool, agreeing to keep the money safe for 4 points.

The money sat in the Bank of Suldanor for about 16 years, while it seemed that despite the hopes and prayers of the Under pool, it looked almost like Kundrati would make it 20 years. Several members of the Business Community in Kalsitan, who all publicly denied being part of the betting pool, nonetheless said that if Kundrati made it 20 years, they would begin lobbying the National Assembly to lift the restrictions on Kalistani Commerce and investment in Kundrati. It is unclear whether that would have actually happened, but the Business Community, who are at least in part aligned with the Liberal Party in Kalistan, have been strongly arguing that Kundrati could represent a way for Kalistan to get assets at firesale prices and more or less take over the markets in central Artania. The saying went--If its good enough for Hutori, its good enough for Kalistan. So many were hoping that Kundrati could keep it together.

And then, last month, it all fell completely apart. Kalistanis sat silently as Kundrati nationals, whipped up into a wild fever by their leaders spewing hatred and malice, and blaming Kalistan for everything under the sun, were easily convinced by their spiteful and malevolent cult leaders to destroy the whole country and collapse the whole economy, blaming both Kalistan and Luthori for the violence that they themselves orchestrated! "I honestly don't know what happened there," said Hawkins, "But I just watched it all go down and I was like: Yeah, we were right. They couldn't even keep their sh-- together for two decades before their demagogues were yelling at them to hate everything and everyone, and start back onto the path of darkness and state terror." But best of all for Hawkins, he knew it was time to pay out some people.

"A whole lot of people lost their shirts," said Hawkins. "It was something like 30:1 Under, which means for every 1 who bet under, 31 people voted over. That's nuts . I've honestly never seen such a lop sided bet in my life." And Hawkins also pointed out that people who made side bets were also going to get a payday. "There was this collective delusion among the business community here in Kalistan that Kundratis are rational actors. So: most of them were absolutely convinced that Kundrati had turned over a new leaf, and were on their way to actually being normal. The ones who said they would blame BOTH Kalistan and Luthori are getting the biggest chunk of cash of the entire lot of them, because you have to be part of the main pool to make the side bets, but the side bets were where the real action was."

Hawkins said, "Just on Vigorish alone, I made ₭4,857,430. Which means the various pools themselves were over $124 Million, split between not only the Punters' Association, which made several collective bets, most of which were correct, by the way, because they are professional bookmakers and live for stats, but also about 18 other individuals, who I gotta keep my mouth closed about. Whatever the eventual payout, that is a huge sum of money. And a lot of people, well, they just lost. Because they were making like 1:30 bets on over at the end, which is about as close to even money as you can get... They were betting on hope, on what they thought was a sure thing, but its Kundrati, so betting on the sure thing is probably going to be a losing bet."

The news of the Bet, which was more like a confirmation of the Bet which has been whispered about for years, is now bringing light and scrutiny onto the Punters' Association. Her Imperial Majesty's Minister for Internal Affairs, Ms. Katherine Sorenson, who oversees administration of the law in Kalistan, said of the bet, "Her Imperial Majesty, Empress Mary I Ananto, congratulates the winners of this Bet. Neither she, nor House Ananto, nor any member of the Royal Family participated in this bet, but she recognizes the 'Under''s clear vision and pessimism with regard to that nation. The Ministry reminds Kalistanis that gambling, including working with Private Bookmakers on laying money on various propositions, is completely legal and regulated in Kalistan. We are sure winners will pay taxes on their windfalls, as any good citizen may be expected to do. However, We hae requested a sit down with the leadership of this so-called Punters' Association, to ensure they are properly incorporated, and are adhering to Kalistan's Gambling regulations, primarily for the protection against exploitation of bet makers in Kalistan, but also to ensure that this association is free of any hint of racketeering or organized crime. We have scheduled time with them in Sulari this month, and will ensure that all laws and regulations are being complied with."

Mr. Hawkins assures La Moda that he has indeed paid his taxes on his earnings. "Staying on the correct side of the law is just one of many costs of my business," said Hawkins. "But paying taxes is ultimately cheaper than losing my parlor for tax evasion." He smiles and raises his glass of celebratory whiskey: "Those stupid wonderful, hateful brainwashed Kundrati bastards! Let me just say... Thank you... From the bottom of my heart," He shook his head in utter disbelief as he took a sip. "Those fools doubled my salary this year."

@LaModa

[Doc]

Her Imperial Majesty's Trade Secretary faces Questions
Boone: "We have no business in Kundrati. Period."
Kaliburg, Grand Duchy of Ananto
January 17, 5657


Trade Minister Melanie Boone answers questions in the National Assembly

Her Imperial Majesty's Minister for Trade and Industry, Ms. Melanie Boone was called to confirm that no Kalistani nationals had anything to do with the complete financial collapse in Kundrati. Ms. Boone not only confirmed it but went further.

"Well, that would be illegal, wouldn't it?" asked Ms. Boone, rhetorically. "I can assure you that no Kalistani money has been transfered on any level to Kundrati, and Kalistani Nationals had nothing to do with the utter collapse of the Kundrati economy. Directly."

Following the denial, several Liberal Deputies cried foul and demanded an explanation. "Well, to my Liberal Colleagues, what I mean is, we have all seen the papers, and we now know of this... secret bet... that many of your friends in the Business Community made, which cost them a fairly tidy sum of money. But anyone with a modicum of education in macroeconomics would not have bet Over. There are so many fundamental problems with Kundrati: They have been spending like drunken fascists since the end of the war, not building anything that would be capable of providing any sort of long term or sustainable financial health for the nation.

"Instead they have squandered tens of billions in foreign Direct Investment on mining, and rebuilding the military infrastructure. No money for health, no money for schools, no money for sustainable agriculture or sustainable power, no money for social programs of any kind. No money even for Government or Administrative reform. But lots of money for military spending, lots of money for raw uranium, and a handful of miserable jobs for a small percentage of the population, with most of the benefits going to the corrupt Government staff at the top." Boone added, "Kalistan couldn't have done anything more for them to push their economy into free fall than they did for themselves. We had no leverage in the Kundrati economy, let alone enough to affect their markets in any way. But that won't stop them from lying about it. Because that's what they do."

Asked bluntly, "Did Kalistan manipulate global Markets to negatively affect the Kundrati economy, as they insist," Ms. Boone said flatly, "No. There is no way our investors could have. Let me say this clearly. We have no business in Kundrati. Period. And if they did, I wouldn't know about it anyway because it wouldn't be legal. Kundrati is such a tiny concern in this world, not even worthy enough to dedicate an intern in our Ministry to them. But even a liberal knows how to mitigate risk, and with Kundrati, the risk always outweighs any benefit. The days where there was anything even worth taking the time to research for investment in Kundrati have been over for decades. The name 'Kundrati' is synonymous with deceit, degeneracy and aberrance world wide. Nothing they say or do can be trusted." The minister's words were greeted with nods of agreement and shouts of "Hear Hear" by other Institutional Deputies.

"Look," said Ms. Boone. "Both the Chancellor and Her Imperial Majesty have already interrogated me extensively on this topic, and they will confirm what I have said to you should you feel they are eligible for a similar interrogation. Kalistan had no direct role in Kundrati's demise, and what indirect role we played involves complying with Kalistani Trade Law of Non Association with Enemy Aliens. That and betting informally against their success here in Kalistan.

"But if our Liberal Friends here are so convinced, let them get the evidence of Kalistani meddling from the Kundratis, who they seem to be so enamored with. Please do get the Evidence. The Legion... excuse me, 'The Father Front' says they have incontrovertible evidence. Its time to put up or shut up. And nobody in this Government, not me, not the Chancellor, not the Foreign Minister, not the Empress herself thinks they can put anything up. So the Kundratis should now what they should have done 90 years ago."

Institutional Deputies raised a rousing ovation for the Trade Minister, while Liberals remained seated with sour looks on their face. After the Session was adjourned for the day, The Republic caught up with Liberal Deputy Vanessa Delgado of Lucid. "Yeah, she gave all the right answers," said Deputy Delgado. "But I have a real hard believing that a country can be that incompetent with their economy. They were a capitalist economy. The Market operates itself as anyone knows. If Ms. Boone expects us to believe that the Kundrati Economy collapsed on its own, what's the next thing she expects us to believe? That the Free Market doesn't self regulate? The Kundrati Government would have actually TRIED to mess up that bad, and worked extra hard to do it. And we all know that the Legion can't feed their people by themselves, let alone fully mitigate the fundamental philosophical principles of the free market and capitalism without help from foreign agents."

So far Kundrati has not provided any evidence of Kalistani involvement except some official State propaganda uttered by a nameless, faceless Kundrati politician. "These are just baseless accusations," said Kaliburg Institutional Deputy Marian Brenner. "Same nonsense we have come to expect from Kundrati. Besides the words of the Trade Minister, we have no further comment."

@TheRepublic

[Doc]

Chancellor announces audit of Imperial Finances Complete
"Books are generally Balanced," said Chancellor, noting areas for focus
Kaliburg, Grand Duchy of Ananto
May 18, 5658


The Empress and her Chancellor make public comment on annual Audit

Her Imperial Majesty, Empress Mary I Ananto and Chancellor of the Empire Lady Jennifer Alvarez-Miller sat down with The Republic to go over the annual audit of the Empire. "It takes a full year and a virtual army of CPAs and lawyers to go over receipts for the Empire," said the Lady Alvarez. "Several armies actually. They scrutinize each program the National Government funds, as well as our revenue system, our banking and finance system and each of the Nationalized Industries. Some ministries are easier to do than others, but some, like the National Service Program, take pretty much all year to complete. And there's no fast way to do it--even leveraging a lot of technology to reduce paper doesn't work, and creates a host of other issues. But after it all, the Audit demonstrates, without question that our Books are generally balanced, our receipts and invoices are in order, and public misappropriation is quite low, even by historic standards."

The Chancellor noted that the historic accounting firm of King, Bryan and Kohler, one of Kaliburg's biggest commercial accounting firms, has audited the National Government for more than 230 years. "Obviously the founders are not with the company any longer," said the Chancellor, "but their descendants have maintained a high level of attention to detail, and they charge what we consider a fair price for their services. Over time, auditing the National Government has become their primary function, though the remain a private, family owned firm."

The National Audit is not usually news, but recently Liberal deputies in the National Assembly have been insisting that there are irregularities in the National Audit where the Imperial Government has been siphoning money, making illegal payments to foreign actors and generally engaging in below the table financial transactions. "The Liberal Party has been insisting that there is a high degree of corruption in the operation and administration of the National Fund," said Chancellor Alvarez. "While Her Imperial Majesty knows this is not true and, having gone over budgets and ledgers of the Ministries Her Government oversees, I have no evidence that this is true either, this sort of charge, if not outright refuted tends to gain legs. Silence is the best fertilizer for base conspiracy theory. So this year, we decided to make a public matter of the National Audit, to show everyone in the Empire that Kalistan's government is well run and efficient, and is on both stable and ethical footing."

The Chancellor proceeded to provide The Republic with a copy of the Audit. "It's not a big secret," said Lady Alvarez. "The Government publishes the full text AND the executive summary online each year, and we invite people to check out that info for themselves. This year we scored a 94% passing on the audit, and while that number is significantly higher than organizations the size of our National Government, it does point to some areas where we will need some help. Most significantly, there are some notable irregularities in the National Health System, especially around payment for private sector services (things like over charges for some procedures and drug purchases from ODEN which are not well accounted for) and the KALMILINCO (the auditors noted a large amount of waste and in some cases, inaccurate or fraudulent misappropriation of Public funds by some private sector actors." The other main areas of discrepancies lied in administrative services, where the National Government contracted more of its functions to the private sector, who then used the contracts inappropriately. "There's also a bunch of little stuff in each ministry--theft of office supplies, people forgetting to clock out and then being paid for time they didn't work and that sort of stuff. Luckily it was relatively rare, but it all adds up," the Chancellor said.

"These are great challenges for our Government," said the Chancellor. "We have over half a million individuals working for the Public Sector in Kalistan. This doesn't include those in the National Service Program, our National Industries, or the Regular Military. The silver lining is that our Public Sector is generally honest, and are particularly assiduous in their local accounting best practices. At the end of the day, most of the leakage of the Public fund comes in the form of petty theft or time theft. Corruption is not much of a problem because we pay our public sector well, greatly reducing the allure of corruption. We benefit from the remnants of the old socialist system of the dual economy in this sense, which the Monarchs have largely left in place, while each Empress and Emperor have tweaked to provide more or less of a balance between public and private sectors. Additionally, we have benefitted from a very conservative fiscal attitude, holding interests rates to a small range around zero, and employing monetary policy aimed at promoting between =/- 1.5% growth annually, correcting for natural population growth. The ZPG Policies of the Government give this Empire a sound financial footing and make it easy for us to keep our financial house in order."

The audit showed an annual surplus in a similar historic range of more than ₭650 Million Imperial Ruble, which is returned annually to the General Fund, though is not permitted to be offset by tax breaks for any particular class. "Savings this year makes it easy to fund our programs next year," said the Chancellor. "We aren't just giving this money back to people after we've already collected, but we treat it as more or less a rainy day fund, incase we need to fund a dam or a Destroyer in a year that we don't usually build. What we don't use just rolls over and sits on the ledger as a rather sizeable budget surplus." The total roll over is more than ₭4.34 Trillion Imperial Rubles which the National Government treats as a slush fund for emergency projects and has been accumulating at the Imperial Bank for centuries.

The Chancellor noted that the new audit for the most recent year is already well under way already, and will be complete by May 1, 5659. "And Her Majesty's Government will publish that audit as well," said the Chancellor. "We have nothing to hide in how we do things, but hopefully this puts to rest the wild and baseless accusations of our Liberal Deputies that the National Government is rife with corruption, misappropriation, fraud, waste and abuse. I'll put Kalistan's audit up against ANY modern nation's audit. Most Corruption is confined to specifically private sector activities, The National Government maintains one of the most transparent General Funds of any organization within this country, and certainly does better on our audits than any nation one could point to."

The Chancellor met with The Republic's Miles Carruthers, and Her Imperial Majesty was present for the discussion to amplify any points the Chancellor may have missed, but instead permitted the Chancellor to speak for the Government so formal Protocol could be waived."

@TheRepublic

[Doc]

Crown Prince takes 4th in Sunset Youth Surf Contest
Princess Margaret: "The Crown Prince has a lot of Natural Talent"
Kaliburg, Grand Duchy of Ananto
August 30, 5657


Minor Crown Prince Fredrick-Martin Ananto-Collins finishes 4th in Sunset Youth Open

In his first major youth surfing competition, His Highness, Minor Crown Prince Fredrick-Martin Ananto-Collins took 4th place in the Sunset Youth Open. Considered one of the final contests on the annual Surfing Circuit, the open competition allows surfers as young as 14 to compete on the relatively gentle waters of Sunset Beach, about 45 miles south of Kaliburg. This was the first competition that the Minor Crown Prince was allowed to sign up for, and the results were fairly impressive all things considered.

"The Crown Prince has a lot of natural talent," said the Crown Prince's aunt, Her Highness Princess Margret Ananto-DeLaurentis, herself an avid surfer. "He's practiced specifically for this competition for months, and maybe was a little disappointed in how he did, but the fact is, the three competitors who did better than him have probably trained for this for several years. The Crown Prince surfs recreationally, and whenever we go out, I try to teach him some technique, but he's still pretty young, and if he keeps up his training, soon, he'll be riding the waves in Luxon."

Sunset is the perfect spot for an open Youth competition, because the characteristics of the sea floor aren't as dangerous or punishing as other places, most notable in Suldanor or in Luxon. "There's a nice sandy bottom here, and the shelf drops off pretty quickly," said Princess Margaret. "And much of the wave energy is directed further down the coast, so the waves that come in here rarely get above 6 feet, and they break pretty quickly. You'll never see a 15 foot face here like you will in Luxon. If they wipe out, they aren't going to hit hard bedrock or coral. And there aren't really weird things like rip currents and square waves here. Just a nice set of swells that roll in, break and are easy to get out of if you get in trouble."

This is not to say that Sunset is not challenging. "Most people use this beach to just casually surf" said His Majesty, the Minor Crown Prince. "And a lot of surfers, like me, learned here. But the reason why the waves can get a little taller than are a normal beach is because they come in fast and the shelf builds real quick, so by the time they get into the place where they are breaking, you still have a lot of sea coming at you. It's just not as dangerous." The Crown Prince said he regularly surfs at Sunset Beach, and knows the patterns really well, but just couldn't seem to get his tricks down or get enough points by staying in the curl long enough. "Most of it was I was nervous," said the 15 year old future monarch. "I've never actually competed before, so sometimes I would bail when I didn't need to. But I did ok."

The fourth place finish would make the Crown Prince Eligible for the Circuit next year, if he was older. But at 15 year old, most contests will bar the Crown Prince from Participating. "Let's see how we do next year," said the Crown Prince. "I want to train a lot for next year's competition as soon as the beaches open after the winter and the current comes up here. So if I train from April to August, I should be in great shape for the contest." The Crown Prince says that staying at Wood House in the summers prevents him from training and hopes to stay with his Aunt next summer so her can get in practice and attempt to win the contest.

"I think he can do it," said Princess Margaret. "And I think I've looked at how he did this year, and we can work on some improvement to get him some more confidence." But, she added, 4th place out of a field of 24 is not too shabby. "Take the placing," she said, "and go on from there." The competition was won by Nathaniel Arribe of Yoshimi, Suldanor, and he is considered a rising star in the youth surfing world.

@LaModa