RP thread

[Red Dot]

Internal Memo:

To: President Rosso

From: Dr. Powers

Sales of Technology

Mr President,

A quick note to inform that our sale of the NP technology is proceeding pace.  One sale to a major player has been made while several smaller players have been enquiring about entry costs.

More to follow in the next few days.

Respectfully,

Dr. Powers
Director
STO

[Bughunter]

To:
Office of Science and Technology of the NAU
Dr. Douglas Powers

From:
Aleksis Klimov, Russian Confederation

Dr. Powers, the Russian Confederation appreciates that the NAU are now taking a more cooperative approach to the world security situation. We would like to send a team of scientific and political representatives to discuss making an offer for your nuclear pulse technology. Unfortunately Switzerland is no longer willing to host a meeting between us after the unfortunate incident last time. Instead we have arranged for a meeting on neutral ground in Stockholm, Sweden.

[Sheb]

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[Red Dot]

Dear Dr Klimov,

I have received your message and can indeed attend a meeting in Stockholm. Perhaps later this week would be at your convenience.

As far as the NAU being more cooperative, I am afraid it is much more a question of ensuring wider distribution of the technology to prevent being sanctioned by its perceived breakage of the OST. Nonetheless, I am sure we can reach a win-win agreement for our two supranations.

Best regards,

Dr Douglas Powers
DSTO

[Bughunter]

Stockholm, January 2102

Sweden always eager to attempt punching above their weight in international politics jumped on the chance to host a NAU-RC meeting after the Swiss had refused this time. Both delegations were greeted by the prime minister and Queen Estelle I (89 years but still healthy).

Not everyone was as eager as the swedish politicians to offer their country up as playground for the world powers. The swedish left keeping to their tradition of anti-americanism arranged a number of protests with people holding up placards saying things like "No to meson attacks on lake Mälaren, No to NAU!". On the other hand the NAU colonial leader Al-Shebi with roots in Syria has a strong personal following among the many descendants of syrian migrants to Sweden. A sizable group in Sweden today retaining strong hatred for Russia after russian support to the syrian Assad government last century. There has been violent clashes between the two groups in the days before the meeting.

The russian delegation is led by Romanova Vorontsov as government represenative and Vera Bulgakov as the technical expert. They both seem young for holding such important positions and Vera especially cannot help sometimes getting that deer-in-headlights look, this being her first time outside Russia. She will remain silent for now letting Romanova start the business talks.

After the hopefully successful negotiations the swedish hosts will offer refreshments at the Stockholm Concert Hall (where the Nobel reception is held). There will be free Absolut vodka (and possibly some interesting RP opportunities).

[Sheb]

((Really nice  post, I like it. But just to make things clear, Al-Shebi isn't the NAU president. After Peacekeeper, Red Dot resigned his character, but kept the Presidency under a new persona (Punto Rosso). Since I was the brain behind DARK LETTER, I resigned all my posts (the vice-presidency now belong to kks) as a signal that we wouldn't do it again.

Al-Shebi has no official position. Fluff-wise he is the leader of the Mars Settlement (although his exact status is kept purposefully vague to avoid claims that the NAU is claiming Martian soil as sovereign territory), Congressman for Mars and leader of the ET Caucus of Congressmen from the eight solar colonies. As such he is kind of the elder statesman of the Colonies, even though most of his days are spent actually fixing water extractor and hydrolysis plants on the Martian surface, since the colony is still that small.))

[Bughunter]

Sorry, edited it, but let's say the swedish-syrians still see him as a personification of american support for their cause just for the RP fluff.

[Red Dot]

Stockholm, January 2102

Dr. Powers' NAU Air Force hyperjet lands in Stockholm after a quick 120 minutes flight.  Dr Powers is only accompanied by a single aide although if he needs it, he knows he can count on virtual support from Washington if he needs it. 

Efficiently transported by a large Swedish police convoy to the site of the talks, Dr. Powers is much amused by the demonstrations against both the NAU and the RC. "I guess we also have enemies everywhere."

Once at the negotiating table, Dr. Powers greets the RC negotiating team and the hosts of the talks.  Once the pleasantries are dealt with, he sits down and proceeds with his opening remarks.

" Ladies and gentlemen, I am glad to meet you here in Stockholm for what I hope will be fruitful negotiations.  As was already mentioned by President Rosso, the NAU is offering the Nuclear Pulse Technology that we recently developed. An engine for which still is being developed but we are confident that it is valuable technology for the future of mankind in the Solar System.  Our main interest is of course to obtain some other TN research in exchange for this research.  With this opening remark complete, I would like to hear the RC's offer."

[Bughunter]

Vera is nervously shuffling her papers hoping for Romanova to start the talking.

[AL]

(OOC: oops sorry, thought we were actually doing this in a separate thread)

After a brief moment of awkward silence from the Confederation's delegation, one of their members stood up - Romanova Vorontsov, from the government arm.
"Dr Powers, apologies for the changes in our staff, but due to some internal issues the people from the Confederation that you may be more familiar with are... otherwise occupied at this time."

Romanova paused for a moment before continuing.

"As I am sure you are well aware, your revolutionary engine technology will herald a new era of space travel for the nations of Earth. Our technological innovations are all relatively minor in comparison, but I am sure you will find them to be just as valuable in working towards our shared vision of making the Solar System our home. To begin with, I am to offer three separate applications of the Transnewtonian elements that we have been investigating."

With a quick nod towards one of the technicians seated off to the side, what appeared to be a holographic projector set atop the negotiating table came to life.
"An interesting use of Corbomite to be sure," commented Romanova with a gesture toward the projector, "However the true object of our interest is what is being depicted."

The hologram itself seemed to show two rectangular sections of armour plating. The thicker of the two was labelled "control" while the other was labelled "dur_27".
Romanova began her commentary while slowly pacing around the table. "In our experimentation with Duranium alloys, we discovered a particular composition that was highly resistant to most conventional weapons while still being less dense than standard steel plate."

The hologram changed to show a test-firing range where two soldiers with rocket launchers were aiming at the armour plates from before. From an offscreen command, the soldiers fired their rockets simultaneously. After the resulting explosions had cleared, it could be seen that the "control" plate had a gaping hole in the centre while the other only had some superficial damage near the impact point.
"This technology would have obvious uses in the military, however a more peaceful application may be in protecting our astronauts from the various dangers of space."
To accentuate her point, the hologram briefly showed a CG animation of a meteor shower striking an old probe, which was inevitably crushed into dust.

"Our second offered technology is a fully automated cargo handling system."
The hologram switched to showing a hangar bay with dozens of robotic arms refuelling and loading cargo into an old cargo plane.
"Advances into Mercassium-based computing have allowed us to develop highly sophisticated quasi-AI's which significantly reduce the time needed to service and load cargo from any type of transport vehicle, including space borne freighters." She said that last part with a meaningful glance towards Dr Powers.

"Finally, we have been investigating a Boronide-based method of producing infra-red laser pulses."
The hologram flicked to showing a large laser unit aimed toward a chunk of blue-tinted stone.
"While the range is somewhat limited without any supporting optical foci, we believe this could still have useful applications in the extraction of transnewtonian elements from their ores."
From some unseen input, the laser in the hologram pulsed with power and the target stone seemed to instantly liquidate. The laser beam itself was of course invisible being of a wavelength below the visible spectrum, however small specks of the blue substance from the stone seemed to remain fixed in place where the laser intersected the stone, giving the otherwise invisible beam a ghostly outline.

With the showcase complete, the holographic projector powered down with a low whine.
"This should serve as a good starting place for our negotiations," concluded Romanova, "We will of course allow you to discuss what you've seen and heard with your colleagues before continuing the negotiations if you wish."
Returning to her chair, Romanova finally noticed a meaningful look from Vera beside her.
"Oh, and Ms Bulgakov will be available to verify any of the scientific aspects if needed."

[Red Dot]

Stockholm, January 2102

"Thank you Mrs Vorontsov. I have no doubt that Mrs Bulgakov can further explain the science behind these developments but that will not be necessary. It was for my own scientific background that I made it to the DSTO, so I am quite familiar with the developments you are proposing."

Powers reviews a file on his datapad.  "As you said earlier, Mrs Vorontsov, this is indeed a good starting position.  At least, it would have been a good position two years ago when the previous NAU Administration approached you with this offer of a technology exchange.  The problem is that two years have elapsed and our scientists and engineers have also been busy in many of those same fields of research."

Powers pulls its own holoprojector from its vest pocket. Yes, it's a much smaller version that the Russian one.  "For example, our Kombi-class Cargoliner already has a cargo handling system as you propose." Powers shows the cargoliner being offloaded on Europa. "We have also developed an armor system based on Duranium." Powers shows a similar test as the Russian but the test weapon system is an old naval railgun from the 21st Century and the results are similar as the Russians.

"That being said, it is not all negative. Your proposal of the Infrared Laser tech could indeed be of interest to the NAU. I have always dreamed of such a laser myself but by itself, it would definitely be insufficient."  Powers mulls his next words quite carefully.

"Let me be a bit more straightforward so that we can perhaps make quicker progress.  That NAU would prefer technologies which apply the new Trans-Newtonian elements in the area of Construction and Industrial Productivity.  A secondary area would be in the fields of Logistics and the application of the new minerals to Ground Combat.  Finally, our third area of interest would in missiles and kinetic weapons. Of course, we fully realise that you may not have devoted resources in those specific areas, so other are proposals would also be welcome."

Powers closes his holoprojector and puts it back in his vest pocket. "So Mrs Vorontsov, I suspect you may need more time to assess these proposals. I remain at your convenience."



 

[Panopticon]

Where is he now? The banished Congressman.

Panopticon's election to the senate seat vacated by Congressman Romero after his scandal shocked the nation, but was in retrospect not too surprising given the mans strange charisma and ability to focus the rage of his massive number of listeners to his popular broadcast "The Eye", additionally, his district had been gerrymandered in such a way as to be nearly ideal, the residents of which where later found to be no less than 90% "Eye-diots" (their own name for themselves) the district was approximately five kilometers wide on average and stretched from the north end of the old USA state of Florida all the way to Maine.

Of minor interest is his name, Panopticon's birth name is unknown, and according to the documents he presented when running for Congress the mononym he is known by is his legal name. Originally coined to describe a design of prison where a single guard can watch over the entire wing of inmates.

Today we on Earth hear little of Panopticon, as during the colonization program of 2101 his entire district was "randomly" selected to form the NAU colony on Mercury, necessitating he move as well. His show is still on the air as no way has yet been found to block the blanket broadcasts radiating from his fortified compound on Mercury's capitol of Gehenna, however he has changed the name to "The Corona" offering "The hottest takes from the hottest planet" and "News as unstoppable as a solar flare". To date, his claims to have focused the solar energy of our star into some form solar broadcasting laser remain unproven, if worrying.

Mercury remains an unsafe place to live for the majority of colonists, however no seats have been empty on the intermittent colonization runs made to the planet.

[AL]

Meanwhile, back in Stockholm...
After a brief discussion among the Confederation delegates, Romanova addressed Dr Powers again.
"It would seem then that our areas of scientific interest are either highly parallel or completely at odds with one another, as the remainder of our research either lie outside your primary fields of interest or are still in the pipeline so to speak. The one other technology we believe you may not yet have developed yourself would be a set of engine modifications to improve the fuel economy of baseline star-faring engines..."

Romanova pauses briefly to try and gauge the doctor's reaction to this tidbit, "... but of course we doubt this would be sufficient to have you part ways with your own groundbreaking technology. As we appear to be completely out of bargaining chips for the time being, perhaps it would be best to conclude these negotiations so that we do not waste any more of your time. That being said however, I do encourage you and your assistant to join us at the reception afterwards, Dr Powers. It would certainly be a step towards fostering better relations between our two nations - I'm sure noone wants more of the old Cold War tensions."

[Red Dot]

Stockholm - January 2102

Interrupted from his current daydreaming scheme, Powers replies: "I am afraid you are quick to dismiss these negotiations Mrs Vorontsov."

Standing to face the Russian delegation, Powers continues: "We were quite aware of the possibility that our research accomplishments could have been very much aligned. We would like to propose that if we cannot exchange current technological achievements, perhaps we could exchange our Nuclear Pulse Technology for future Russian research and development successes. Let me give you an example.  Both your IR Laser and the Fuel Economy tech are of interest to us. That's already 1500 RP of the 5000 RP we are asking for our own tech. We agree to a further 3500 RP in researches that you wish to conduct in the next 4-12 months and when your part of the deal is complete, we swap the information." 

Walking around the conference room, Powers adds: "For those 3500 RP, it could be Construction Rate 12 BP and Magazine Ejection System - 70% or any combination in other areas where our interests converge. The advantage of this method of exchange is that it allows a coordinated use of our respective research budgets.  The RC does not need to invest in Nuclear Pulse and we do not need to invest in the areas where you will be working. Surely you must see the win-win scenario this contingency provides even as a Confidence-Building Measure."

[Drgong (OP)]

As the Free State Alliance carries out local elections, here is a primer.

Free State Alliance - Political Primer

Political Parties of Note: (Largest to smallest)


National Front (NF) lead by Adele Van Rensberg. 
The Current ruling party of the FSA.

Foreign relations: A balance between the FSA, NAU, and Russia
Space: Heavy exploration focus with colony development
Officer training: Afrikaners and English, small number of Iranians and arabs
Private business: Pro private business, with government subsidies
Industry: Focus on domestic production with exploration and colony development.
Military:  Speak softly and carry a big stick, with a traditional view of "A book in one hand, a rifle in another."


Volksparty (VP) lead by David Terre'Blanche
Official opposition, Far right

Foreign relations: Mistrust of the socialist russians and the decadent NAU
Space: Immedate withdraw from the OST and claiming of Mars, Jupiter, and soon Saturn and their moons for the FSA.
Officer training: Afrikaner only
Private business: Pro private business.
Industry: Focus on developing military tech
Military:  conscription and building a powerful military

Communists Party - Free State Alliance (CP-FSA).   Lead by Jamal Amora
Communist party, largest leftest party, formed with the merger of Peace Now! and the ANC.

Foreign relations: The FSA is really a non-aligned power, and should act that way
Space: colony development should be used to find more land for the poor
Officer training: Open to all
Private business: Cargo and colonies should be state run
industry: if transnewtonian tech does not reach the people, why should it be used?
Military: A people Navy and Army

Amal -Lead by Zayna Al-walid
 Lebanese/Iranian party Middle of the road. 

Foreign relations: A balance between the FSA, NAU, and Russia
Space: Heavy colony development focus with exploration as well
Officer training: Afrikaners, Arab, Iranian, and English
Private business: Pro private business, with government subsidies
Industry: Focus on domestic production with exploration and colony development.
Military:  Speak loudly and carry a big stick

Labour party -  lead by Carlos Bex
Party that shifted to a Center-left after losing Center right support to other parties

Foreign relations: To open free trade between all parties
Space: Heavy colony development to produce new markets
Officer training: Open to all with a proper education
Private business: Pro unions
Industry: Focus on increasing wealth
Military:  a focus on protecting trade routes and key resources.

Christian-Islamic Democratic Union- Lead by Marion Del Rey
New party, polling 4% of the vote.  Seeks greater intergration among the FSA

Foreign relations: A balance between the FSA, NAU, and Russia
Space: Heavy colony development to produce new markets
Officer training: Open to all with a proper education
Private business: Pro private business, with government subsidies
Industry: focus on increasing the military industrial complex
Military:  a focus on protecting trade routes and key resources.   

five parties (Green, Social Credit, Christian Democrat, Fascist, and Rent is too ##$# high) do not poll over 1%.
Peace Now! has one senator who still sits as a Peace Now! member, even if the party no longer exists. 

The FSA lower house
Elected by popular vote (limited suffrage).   Elections are held every 4 years or sooner if a snap election is called. 

(From left to right)

Communists Party - Free State Alliance (CP-FSA) 29 seats/14.5%
Labour Party (LP) 13 seats/6.5%
Amal (AM) 24 seats/12%
National Front (NF) 98 seats/49%
Volksparty (VP) 36 seats/18%

(Goodwill code (AM - 16, VP - 14, CP-FSA - 12.5, NF - 10, Labour - 6.5)

The Senate
Members are appointed for life.   

Current Senators

Non-partisan 20 (62%)
National Front - 8 (25%)
Peace Now - 1 (3.125%)
Volksparty - 1 (3.125%)
Communists Party - Free State Alliance - 1 (3.125%)
Labour Party - 1 (3.125%)


Senate members

Non-partisan

Nwanneka Afolayan
Manfred Alberink
Hana Amjad
Sauda Arendse
David Bex
Vaishavi Brar
Lieve Bullens
Robert Cornelius
Beverly Dolan
Leola Egan
Shane England
Filibert Houben
Anna Jensen
Sun Lee
Kathleen Lowe
Rahim Muhammad
Lamya Saqqaf
Raghupati Sharma
Jin Teng
Janet Zimmerman


Communists Party - Free State Alliance (CP-FSA)

Mbuyiseni Shivambu

Labour Party (Lab)

Kelli Van Camp

National Front (NF)

John Swart,
Emily Smith,
Tom Malherbe
Marion Maréchal
Roger Del la Rey

Peace Now (PN)

Nelson Bophela

Volksparty (VP)

Janet De Wet