fandomhigh | Nation Building and the Origin of Government, Period 5, Class 1, Thursday, 1-6

"Welcome to class," she said, flipping her files shut and glancing around the room. "My name is Assistant District Attorney Alexandra Cabot. You can call me Alex, or if you'd rather, Miss Cabot is fine. This class is called Nation Building and the Origin of Government."

"I had a whole detailed explanation for what I'd like to do with this class, what the topic means to me, and how we should think about government. I was going to start today by reading that off to all of you, but I've just changed my mind." She straightened up, walking briskly over to the chalkboard and drawing a squarish shape on it. "Instead, today we're going to dive in with a thought experiment. We'll deal with technicalities later on."

She turned around and tapped her knuckles on the board, in the center of the shape. "Congratulations," she said. "This is a country, and it has just been entrusted -- in its entirety -- to you. It's a decent size, and it even comes with its own population. However, there is absolutely no civic infrastructure. There are businesses, but all of those are privately run. What I'm trying to say is that there is no government whatsoever. No publicly funded services, no mayors or governors, and no organization. Except, of course, for you.

"In other words, you're running the show. You can declare yourself Grand High Emperor for Life, or El Jefe, or whatever strikes your fancy. You can rename the capital city after yourself. You can blow the whole of the country's limited funds on hiring harem girls or cabana boys to dance for you. You can even paint yourself naked and run down the street.

"Before you get carried away, I'd like to point out that doing the above won't leave you much time until someone more sensible assassinates you and does all of the things you were supposed to be doing. So let's take it as a given that you decide to be a responsible leader who gives a damn about your constituents. Which is good, because they're going to need a lot from you." She dusted her hands off. "So. What's first? I'd like you to tell me what your number one priority is, and why."

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

It seemed to be a popular answer, but it would be Karla's first step nonetheless. "I'd have to set up at least the First Circle of my Court," she said. "I can't be everywhere at once, so being able to delegate responsibilities to trusted people will make ruling that much easier and more efficient. If there's a kind of chaos everywhere, I need to be able to send my people to the four corners of the country and get reports of what's needed throughout my Territory."

"So, you'd set up a ruling council," Alex said, "and then, as a next step, use that to gather information on the state of your country? Will you be traveling to assess the situation yourself?"

Karla winced a little at the phrase 'ruling council,' but nodded anyway. "Exactly. There's far too much for me to do by myself and trying to do so would just slow everything down."

As for her second question, Karla thought about it for a few seconds. "If this is a Territory like my home, then yes I would," she said. "The Winds I can travel on would get me places much faster than most people could. And my Court could still contact me on psychic threads. But if it is a" landen "normal country, then I would probably stay put. The need to find me would outweigh my desire to be hands on. Though if there was somewhere that needed me personally--like if there's land that needs Healing--I'd go, of course."

"Perhaps once the immediacy dies down," Alex suggested, "it'd be safer for you to make excursions out. It never hurts to see something for yourself, but you're right, while everything is new, there might be urgent matters that need your attention."

"It would be frustrating," Karla admitted. "I'm not particularly patient. But being a Queen means that my responsibility to my people come first."

Alex smiled. "Remembering that is a good first step."

"That's another reason for setting up my Court," Karla said wryly. "They can remind me of that if I start to forget. And point out that when my desires and the needs of the Territory don't align as closely as I think. That's the point of a good First Circle. They're people I can trust--even if it's just trusting them to tell me when I'm acting like an ass."

Nation Building and the Origin of Government, Period 5, Class 1, Thursday, 1-6

Re: Discussion: Your First Priority - NAT01

Re: Discussion: Your First Priority - NAT01

Re: Discussion: Your First Priority - NAT01

Re: Discussion: Your First Priority - NAT01

Re: Discussion: Your First Priority - NAT01

Re: Discussion: Your First Priority - NAT01

Re: Discussion: Your First Priority - NAT01