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    President:Kathy Grey
    Vice President:Ryanotia
    Secretary of Culture:Henry Von Hoffman
    Secretary of War:Peter Grey
    Secretary of Defense:James
    Secretary of Finance:TBA
    Secretary of Interior:Sintas
    Secretary of Eduaction:Jeny

    Chief of Staff : A'isha Mehay
    Chief Justice: John G. Robert
    Government Status

    ( 0 ) Proposals Currently in the Senate
    Year: 2041 / 033 ATD


    The Senate
    Current Senators

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    NationStates
    Topic Started: Dec 11 2010, 03:48 AM (174 Views)
    Kathy Grey
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    General
    >So what is this?

    Jennifer Government: NationStates is a nation simulation game. You create your own country, fashioned after your own ideals, and care for its people. Either that or you deliberately torture them. It's really up to you.
    >Is it really free?

    Yes, it really is.
    >Is it a serious political thing, or just for fun?

    Well, you can play it either way. NationStates does have humorous bent, but that's just because international politics is so inherently funny.
    >Who's Jennifer Government?

    Jennifer Government is a novel by Max Barry, on which NationStates is based. The book is set in an ultra-privatized world, of the sort you can create in NationStates, if you're mean enough. For more information check out www.maxbarry.com.
    >Why did you make this?

    Because it seemed like a fun idea, and a way to let people know about my novel Jennifer Government. With luck, some of the people who play NationStates will buy the book. Then my publisher will think I am a left-field marketing genius, instead of a chump who blew four months on a web game when he should have been working on his next novel.

    Gameplay
    >How do I play?

    Click on the Create a Nation link and follow it from there. You'll be asked to choose a name for your nation, a motto, a national animal, and a currency. Then you answer a short questionnaire about your politics. This will determine what sort of nation you end up with: authoritarian or permissive... left-wing or right-wing... compassionate or psychotic... you get the idea.

    Once a day, you'll be faced with an issue, and need to make a decision as to what to do about it. This determines how your nation evolves.
    >Do I need to provide my e-mail address?

    No, although it's recommended. If you don't supply your e-mail address and you forget your password, there's no way to get it back. This means your nation would be consigned to limbo for all eternity. Think of your poor people.
    >What will you use my e-mail address for?

    Nothing devious. Originally it was to mail you updates about your nation. Then two thousand people signed up to the game in the first two weeks and this became impossible. Now it's only used for World Assembly purposes (see below). It's possible that I will use it in the future to announce news relevant to NationStates and my novels, but if so, I promise that it will be very infrequent and I'll allow you to unsubscribe. You won't get spammed.
    >How do I win?

    Ah, but what is "winning," grasshopper? There is no way to win as such. Which is better, a left-wing civil rights paradise with no money, or a right-wing economic powerhouse where the poor are left to fend for themselves? (That's a rhetorical question.)

    One way to succeed, at least in a sense, is to make it onto the top rungs of a World Assembly report. These are compiled once per day, one for each Region and one for the entire world. Nations are ranked on anything from economic strength to the most liberal public nudity laws (the WA has a lot of time to fill in). There's a certain glory in making it onto one of those.
    >Which region should my nation be in?

    It's up to you. New nations begin in the Pacific, but you can move out. You can even start your own region. This is a good idea if you're playing with a few friends: create a region and all move there. To do this, visit your current region's page and click the link that says, "Tired of life in (your region)? Then move to a new region!"

    Unless your nation is a member of the World Assembly, its region only determines which daily rankings list it appears in. For WA members, however, region is more important (see the "World Assembly" section of this FAQ).
    >I don't agree with any of the options on this issue!

    Dismiss it, then. This is the equivalent of ignoring an issue until people stop talking about it and there's not so much pressure to do something. If you were a real government, you'd do this all the time, of course, but in NationStates it's more interesting if you respond to issues by actually making decisions.
    >How do I go to war against another nation? Or trade?

    In one sense, you can't. NationStates doesn't include these things -- because it's a simple game, and because they would bias things in favor of militaristic and capitalist nations. One of the nice things about NationStates is that you can craft a nation into your idea of Utopia without having to worry about such pragmatic concerns as national defence.

    Into the breach, however, steps the NationStates community, which has independently devised an entire system covering war, trade, and just about anything else you can think of. This takes place entirely on the forums (mostly in "International Incidents"), and is role-played.

    Many people have asked about the possibility of a more sophisticated version of NationStates, with trade, military conflicts, and more. This does sound cool, but I haven't decided yet if I want to do that. It would be a lot of work, and I'd have to charge people to play it. But it's possible.
    >Who wrote all these issues?

    I wrote the first thirty, back in the days when I thought nobody much would be interested in playing a political simulation game. I imagined NationStates as the kind of game you might stumble across, have fun with for a week or two, then move on. Then this entire community just popped into existence, as vibrant and dedicated as any on the internet, and it became clear that 30 issues just weren't enough. Rather than devote the rest of my life to writing them, I decided to ask players to submit their own issues, and let the moderators edit them into a form suitable for use in the game. That's the current system: new issues are constantly entering the game.

    If an issue has been written by a player and/or edited by a moderator, it says so whenever you view that issue. If it doesn't credit an author, it's by me.
    >How do I submit a daily issue?

    When your nation's population reaches 500 million, a link will appear in your 'issues' page. This will allow you to submit an issue for consideration by our game moderators. Remember to pay attention to the guidelines! (They're linked to from the submission page.)
    >How do I manage my region?

    The person who created a region is known as its "Founder," and can access a page called "Regional Control." This allows him or her to set the World Factbook Entry, password-protect the region (to make it invitation-only), and eject troublemakers. Regional Control is also available to WA Delegates, although the Founder can disable this.

    If your nation can access Regional Control, a link to it will appear on your region's main page, just above the daily WA Report.
    >What is "regional influence"?

    It's a measure of how well-respected a nation is in its region. Nations earn influence in a region the longer they remain there, and the more WA endorsements they have. When a nation leaves, though, its influence in that region will begin to decline.

    The more influence a nation has, the harder it is for a Delegate to eject it from the region. For more details, see All About Influence.
    >My region's WA Delegate is an evil dictator who abuses her power! Make her stop!

    Delegates are elected: if you don't like yours, it's up to you to get her unelected. While in power, Delegates can use or abuse their power as they see fit.
    >Why can't I set my nation's Capital City, Leader, or Religion?

    You can customize a few things about your nation in the Settings page. Three fields are initially greyed-out: Capital City, Leader, and Religion. You can edit these once your nation grows beyond a certain size and has passed relevant legislation, i.e. answered a particular daily Issue in a certain way.

    Your nation might receive the relevant Issue as soon as it is large enough, or may have to wait. During this time the field displays "Unlockable: Awaiting legislation" in your Settings.

    If you dismiss the Issue or select a choice that does not unlock the field, you may receive the Issue again in the future.
    >I'm a teacher; can I use NationStates in my class?

    Yes, some schools are doing very neat things with NationStates. Of course, others are banning it. Each to their own. If you're interested in using this site in an educational environment, see the NationStates for Educators page.
    >Where can I find out more about the rules?

    While this FAQ (and the Terms & Conditions of Use) cover all of the rules at a high level, you can find more detail than you probably ever want to know in the One-Stop Rules Shop on the forums.
    NationStatesPolitics
    >Isn't this "simulation" biased towards your politics?

    Very possibly. Not intentionally, though. And since there's no ultimate measure of success or failure in NationStates, any bias shouldn't affect much. For example, you don't win the game by having the strongest economy. It just means your nation has a strong economy.

    >Why is my nation so weird?

    Everything is exaggerated a little. Well, okay, a lot. Your decisions affect your nation very strongly, so your country might seem like a more extreme version of what you were aiming for. Unless you have radical politics. In which case you probably think nothing's wrong.
    >My decision had unintended consequences!

    Yep, that'll happen. For one thing, see "Why is my nation so weird?" above. For another, pretty much every decision you make will involve a trade-off of some kind. It's kind of an exercise in choosing the best of a bunch of bad options. You might find this frustrating, especially if you're the kind of person who thinks the solutions to all the world's problems are obvious.
    >Is my nation liberal or conservative?

    The left/right scale isn't used in NationStates. Because it's one-dimensional, it's not a very accurate way of measuring your politics. NationStates has three main scales: personal, economic, and political. In each case, you can be authoritarian (moral, or restrictive) or libertarian (liberal, or laissez-faire). For example, someone with left-wing politics might want high levels of personal freedom (e.g. no drug laws, gay rights), low levels of economic freedom (e.g. taxes, welfare), and average levels of political freedom (e.g. compulsory voting at elections). A libertarian might prefer high levels of freedom on all scales. An authoritarian might want the opposite.

    These three scales determine your nation's WA Category (see below).
    >Are those three scales the same as Civil Rights, Economy, and Political Freedoms?

    Not exactly. "Economy" in particular can be strongly affected by other factors. But they're pretty close.
    >How is my nation's WA Category determined?

    On each of the three main scales (personal, economic, and political), your nation is ranked as having high, average, or low amounts of freedom (or permissiveness, if you want to look at it that way). From this it is assigned one of 27 possible labels.
    >My nation is "the Free Republic of Bruteland," but the WA says I'm a dictatorship!

    You can call your nation whatever you like, but it doesn't make it true. The WA categorizes nations based on their laws, not their names. Changing your name from "Dictatorship" to "Republic" (or anything else) has cosmetic value only.
    NationStatesTechnical
    >Something's not working--what should I do?

    First, scan this FAQ to see if the problem is addressed there. If it's not, see the Known Problems page.

    If you have a non-technical problem, visit Getting Help.
    >My decisions on issues aren't being processed!

    Decisions aren't processed immediately: it takes time for them to become law. How quickly your decisions are implemented depends on how many you choose to receive per week. If you receive one issue per weekday, your decisions are only processed five times per week, too.

    You can change this in your nation's "Settings".
    >I'm not receiving new issues!

    If your nation already has five unaddressed issues, it won't get any more. You need to dismiss some first. Once you do that, you'll start to receive one new issue per weekday (or whatever time period you've set in your nation's "Settings").

    If that's not it, make sure you don't have "Vacation Mode" enabled in your nation's "Settings".
    >I didn't receive my WA e-mail from NationStates!

    First, check your nation settings and make sure that you have entered an e-mail address, and that the address is correct. If it is, your e-mail is probably being blocked by an anti-spam filter. This might be something in your e-mail client, but more likely is a program running on your ISP's server. Anti-spam filters aren't perfect, and so sometimes block e-mail from NationStates. Unfortunately there's not much you or I can do about this.
    >I'm going on vacation--what should I do?

    In your nation's Settings, check the box marked "Vacation Mode" and click "Update Settings". This will stop your nation from receiving new issues and grant it a longer grace period before it gets deleted for inactivity: 60 days.
    >How do I delete my nation?

    You can't. I decided it's better to have people upset because they can't start over with the same nation name than people upset because their nations got accidentally deleted.

    If you don't log your nation in, it will be deleted automatically in 28 days.
    >My nation has vanished!

    First, make sure you're using the right name: "mynation" and not "the republic of mynation", for example. If it's really gone, there are two possible reasons why. If you haven't logged in for 28 days, it will have been automatically purged. Otherwise, a moderator may have removed it for breaching the site's rules.

    Deleted nations can be restored: just try to log it in, and you'll be presented with an option to bring it back.
    >How do I use formatting in my telegrams and posts?

    You can use some BBCode-style tags to improve the look of your telegrams, Regional Message Board posts, and (if you control a region) your regional World Factbook Entry. These are:

    * Bold: Hello becomes: Hello
    * Italic: Hello becomes: Hello
    * Underline: Hello becomes: Hello
    * Regions: [region]The Pacific[/region] becomes: The Pacific
    * Nations: [nation]Testlandia[/nation] becomes: FlagThe Borderlands of Testlandia
    You may optionally specify "short", "long", "flag" and "noflag" formats. If you omit these, the default is "long+flag".
    o [nation=short]Testlandia[/nation] becomes: FlagTestlandia
    o [nation=noflag]Testlandia[/nation] becomes: The Borderlands of Testlandia
    o [nation=short+noflag]Testlandia[/nation] becomes: Testlandia

    The following tags work in Regional World Factbook Entries, but not telegrams or Regional Message Board posts:

    * Links: Hello becomes: Hello
    * Colors: Hello becomes: Hello
    * Horizontal lines:
    becomes a line

    >Do I need to have Javascript and Cookies enabled?

    Yes. Web browsers generally have these enabled by default, but some people prefer to turn them off. NationStates uses both JavaScript and Cookies extensively, and the site won't function properly without them.
    >Someone has taken control of my nation!

    It is against the rules to hijack someone else's nation, and if we see someone do it, we'll ban them. If we don't see it happen, though, and someone changes your password and e-mail address, I'm afraid you're on your own. As far as the game is concerned, your government has been overthrown in a coup.

    To prevent people accessing your nation, turn off auto-login if you use a public computer. You should also choose a password that is not easily guessable.

    Historical note: before version 1.5, posting a hyperlink with a PIN code in it could allow someone to log in as your nation. This is no longer the case.
    >How does auto-login work?

    Auto-login stores a cookie on your computer so that when you return to NationStates, you are logged straight in as your nation. This is handy if you're the only person using your computer. But if you're not, you should turn auto-login off (via your "Settings"). This means you'll need to log in manually each time you visit the site.

    Note: clicking "Logout" does not turn off auto-login. Next time you visit the site, you'll be auto-logged in again. The only way to turn off auto-login is to change your Settings.
    >How do I get a custom nation type?

    Nations with populations over 500 million can write their own pretitle. Others, however, must choose from the drop-down menu.
    NationStatesThe World Assembly
    >What's the World Assembly?

    The World Assembly is the world's governing body. It's your chance to mold the world to your vision, by voting for resolutions you like and scuttling the rest. However, it's a double-edged sword, because your nation will be affected by any resolutions that pass. (Unfortunately you can't obey the resolutions you like and ignore the rest, like real nations.) In other words, it's a hot-bed of political intrigue and double-dealing.

    Your nation can join the WA, but it's not compulsory. If you remain outside, you're unaffected by its decisions. If you're ready to mix it up in international politics, though, the WA is for you.

    There are two main benefits to WA membership: you can vote on resolutions, and you can endorse other nations in your region, thereby electing a Regional Delegate.
    >You mean like the United Nations?

    Ha ha! Funny you should say!
    >What's a Regional Delegate?

    The nation with the most endorsements in each region at the time of the daily tally is automatically elected Regional Delegate.

    Usually, a Delegate is the region's administrator. She can access Regional Control to alter the region's World Factbook Entry, set a password, and eject other nations. (In regions with a Founder, though, the Founder may override Delegate decisions and even deny the Delegate access to administrative powers.)

    A Delegate also represents the region before the World Assembly. She can review upcoming proposals for legislation and promote those she approves. When legislation reaches the resolution voting floor, she wields additional voting power over regular WA members: 1 extra vote for each endorsement. Delegates of large regions therefore have considerable influence over whether resolutions pass or fail.

    A nation must have at least one endorsement to be elected Regional Delegate.
    >I'm a WA member! What should I do?

    The first thing you may wish to do is endorse some other WA members in your region, as a way to signal that you like their policies, or their pro-business stance, or their cool flag, or whatever. The nation with the most endorsements in your region is elected Regional Delegate: you can support the incumbent or push for change.

    (Note that some Delegates are much more democratic than others. Some will happily allow a fair ballot; others will ruthlessly eject anyone they consider a political threat. Dictatorial Delegates must be overthrown by building opposition in stealth.)

    You can also contribute to international law. The World Assembly has two Councils, each of which propose and pass resolutions. You may vote for or against any resolution at vote. Depending on how ardent you feel, you can also debate the issue in the WA forums, and discuss which stance your Delegate should take on your region's Civil Headquarters message board.

    Once you have at least two endorsements, you can also propose your own resolutions.
    >How do I endorse another nation?

    You can only endorse another nation if:

    * You are both members of the World Assembly
    * You are both in the same region

    If this is true, the nation you want to endorse will have an "[Add Your Endorsement]" link in its World Assembly Activity section. Click that!
    >I have more than one nation. Can they all join the WA?

    No. While you can have as many nations as you like, only one may be a World Assembly member at any one time.
    >What if I sneak them in?

    First, please don't. This is against the rules, and considered cheating. The game uses four different methods to detect WA cheats (also known as "multies") and when it finds them, expels them from the WA and prevent them from re-joining. Repeat or large-scale offenders are deleted.
    >I only have one WA nation but my brother has one and he sometimes uses this computer.

    Unfortunately that's asking for trouble. We try to identify WA cheats accurately, but we have no way of telling exactly whose fingers are touching the keyboard at any given time. So unfortunately if you don't want to run the risk of being ejected from the WA (or worse), you shouldn't let anyone else operate WA nations from your computer, either.

    Sharing a network or IP address is usually fine. The game does not rely on any single method of identifying WA cheats, but combines data from four methods to calculate the likelihood that multiple WA nations are operated by the same person.
    >What are the General Assembly and Security Council?

    The World Assembly comprises two Councils: the General Assembly and the Security Council. The General Assembly is concerned with passing international law: resolutions to improve human rights, environmental standards, and the like. They have an immediate and material effect on all WA member nations, and can change your laws and category. For example, if you are a protectionist nation, and the WA passes a resolution promoting free trade, you may find your nation becoming abruptly more capitalist.

    Broadly speaking, the General Assembly does not concern itself with individual nations or regions, but humanity as a whole. It has a vibrant role-playing community in the General Assembly forum, which debates and drafts legislation.

    The Security Council, on the other hand, is very much about specifics. It passes resolutions that Condemn or Commend particular nations or regions, and authorizes Liberations, by removing a Delegate's authority to set a regional password (usually to restore order following its capture by invaders). Compared to the General Assembly, it is more concerned with gameplay (regional politics, invasions) than role-playing.

    Both Councils function similarly in that they accept proposals, which enter the voting floor to be voted on as resolutions. Each Council may have a resolution at vote at the same time.
    >Can I propose a World Assembly resolution?

    Yes, once you have at least two endorsements, you can also propose resolutions. If approved by enough Delegates, your proposal will be voted on by the entire World Assembly, and if passed, will become international law.

    Over time, the WA has developed a significant body of protocol governing proposals. To maximize your chance of success, you should familiarize yourself with it. You can find out more in the WA forums.

    Whether a proposal reaches the voting floor is determined by the Delegates. If at least 6% of all Delegates approve it, it is said to have attained quorum, and will enter the resolution voting floor at the next opportunity. If it fails to gather enough approvals, it will be dropped.

    Getting a resolution up is no easy business, and usually requires support from many key players (especially Delegates of large regions who are active in the WA).
    >Why don't my proposals ever make it to resolutions?

    The WA takes itself seriously and will not approve proposals it sees as inappropriate. There are two common mistakes inexperienced contributors make:

    * Not reading the relevant rules for General Assembly Proposals or Security Council Proposals.
    * Proposing something beyond the scope of the WA's authority. For example, proposals cannot change the rules or mechanics of the game itself, nor ask for new features. They should not reference events, people, or things in the "real world" that do not exist in NationStates.

    The best path to success is to get involved in the forums: the General Assembly forum or the the Security Council forum. There you can meet key players, propose your idea as a draft, gather feedback, and build support even before your proposal hits the queue.
    >How do I approve a proposal?

    You must be a Regional Delegate. If you are, then you will have an option to approve proposals when you view the list. By allowing unapproved proposals to fall by the wayside, Regional Delegates make sure that the WA only votes on worthy issues.
    >Can I make a resolution to add war to the game?

    No. Well, you can, but I'm still not going to add war. The WA is not there to request new game features. I admit this would be nice: propose a change, vote it through, and BAM! The game gets better. But then, I would have to make the BAM! part happen. It would require me to spend so much time rewriting game code that I wouldn't be able to pursue my real passion, which is earning enough money to buy food, and staying sane.

    WA resolutions are a way to bring all member nations into line on a particular issue; be that environmental, democratic, free trade, or whatever. Don't suggest game improvements there. They just clutter up the place. And they make people think, "Hey, yeah, that would be cool! Why doesn't that bum Max Barry get off his ass and do that?" I get e-mails.
    NationStatesEtiquette
    >It's free speech, so I can post whatever I like here, right?

    Ahahahaha! Hahaha! Free speech! No, it's not. I run this web site, see, so you have to play by my rules. It's like my own Father Knows Best state.
    >What can I post?

    You can discuss and argue about almost anything, so long as it's vaguely relevant to politics or NationStates and doesn't fall into any of the categories below. You don't have to be politically correct, but you must maintain a minimum standard of behavior.
    >What can't I post?

    Any content that is:

    * obscene
    * illegal
    * threatening
    * malicious
    * defamatory
    * spam

    This applies to your nation's name, motto, and other customizable fields, any messages you write, images you post, or any other content you upload or link to NationStates. If you do, your nation will be deleted. See the site's Terms & Conditions for details.

    Also prohibited is the practice of "griefing." Griefing is playing with the primary aim of annoying or upsetting other people. If you do this, the game moderators may take action against you.
    >Does that apply to my nation's flag?

    You betcha. In fact, we're much stricter on nation flags than we are on forum posts, because they're not open for challenge and debate. If you want to make a political point, don't use your flag -- use the forum, where other people have a right of reply.
    >I got into an argument with this idiot in the forums, and I got deleted and he didn't! How come you allow pro-Catholic argument, but when someone tries to tell the TRUE story of the coming of Christ--

    Okay, let me stop you there. It might look as if you are being persecuted for your political views, but what most likely happened is you made a personal attack and your opponent didn't. No matter what the subject matter, if you don't conduct yourself in accordance with the rules of etiquette, you will get into trouble with the moderators. The best way to get your points across in the forums is to remain calm and respect other people's right to disagree with you.
    >Another player posted something offensive!

    People get offended at different things, so first make sure it falls into one of the above categories. If it does, please report it to the game moderators using the "Getting Help" page.

    Because our moderators are players who have volunteered to help out of the goodness of their hearts, please deal with lesser disputes without involving them. For example, if someone spams your regional message board, your region's Founder or WA Delegate can eject them.
    >Can I steal another player's nation?

    No. This is fraudulent behavior and breaches the site's terms & conditions. The same applies to any attempt to impersonate another player, including attempting to hack nation or region passwords.
    >Can I invade other people's regions?

    Yes. The practice of "region crashing," where a group of nations all move to a region with the aim of seizing the WA Delegate position, is part of the game. Certain groups within NationStates are particularly adroit at this, and can attack very quickly.
    >Once I've taken over a region, can I eject everyone else?

    You can try. Invader Delegates tend to have very little Regional Influence, which makes ejecting long-time residents difficult. But Delegates can be as kind, generous, evil, or despotic as they wish. It's up to regional residents to elect good Delegates.
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