State of the Confederation - 2150
Date - 30 Dec 2149
"Since the first steps to leave our home world fifty years ago took place, the Confederation has grown. Grown from one billion people on earth recovering after the devastation that brought about our great Confederation. Earth has nearly doubled in population, sitting at 1.9 billion citizens. Our colony on Mars, which was fully terraformed earlier this year has a population of 138 million. Novaterra, in the Kruger 60 system, which by popular usage has been officially renamed to the Nova Terra system; has almost 72 million citizens. Neue Berlin, in the New Berlin system has 18 million citizens. The Precursor colony on Gateway has 6 million brave souls putting the fruits of the Precursor's civilization to good use. Even as elements of the 6th Engineers and 5th Light Infantry resist the occasional robotic defenders left by the Precursors.
"As you know, this expansion has not been without loss. Loss of troops in the 6th Engineers and 5th Light Infantry. Losses among our brave survey ship crews. Losses on the fighting ships sent to destroy the spaceborn threat posed by relic Precursor ships. Our first encounter with the Precursors was not pleasant, resulting in the loss of the 2nd Grav Survey squadron. The fleet sent to deal with the Precursors was not as well prepared as we would have liked, losing over half their ships. The second time our fleets encountered the Precursors we had advanced. But they still fought us to a draw. The third time, though my fellow citizens, was a resounding triumph for the men and women of the Terran Confederation Navy. This victory resulted in our gain of our fifth extraterrestrial colony on Gateway.
"The Precursors are not the only ones we must face in the deep black of space. Two other races have been encountered. The self-styled Amethyst Alliance and the Dover Oligarchy. A mere two months ago, the Amethyst Alliance attacked our colony on Neue Berlin without provocation after many years of peaceful non-interference. The ground bases, along with space elements defeated the aggressors. When a survey crew in the Kuiper 75 system encountered a ground force from the Amethyst Alliance, the military authorized a retaliatory strike against it and wiped it from the planet it was on.
"On the other hand, the Dover Oligarchy in the Altair system have become staunch allies; sharing survey data with us and opening trade routes. We look forward to more cooperation as our two civilizations grow closer.
"Going forward from today, terraforming operations on Novaterra, Neue Berlin and Gateway will continue until they are as Earthlike as we can make them. In addition, some of you may have heard rumors of a nearly Earthlike planet in the Sigma Draconis system. I can confirm these rumors and promise you that these two worlds. Yes, my fellow citizens, TWO worlds of the newly christened Draconis system will be home to many of your fellow citizens. Draco Major and Draco Minor will be the sector capital of the planned Draconis Sector.
"All this good news must be tempered by some bad news. As the newscasts have no doubt mentioned more than once, the Confederation is currently running in a deficit. However, cash reserves are more than enough to balance this deficit. As more colonies grow, the deficit will decrease and once again become a surplus.
"With this news, I bid you good night and Happy New Year! Prime Minister Carole Wiacek, signing off."
FADE TO CONFEDERATION LOGO AND THEME. FADE TO NEWS.
"As Prime Minister Wiacek noted in her State of the Confederation address, the economy is stronger than it has been in recent years, with deficit spending decreasing. For complete coverage and technical details click the metalink to the ConfedNet, keyword Economy."