The amount of information reaching your ears has graduated from a trickle to a fire hose.
In some ways, this is a good thing.
Sara Goldblum: "I don't know, getting hit in the ear with a firehose doesn't sound too fun..."
CFLP Rallies!
Representative Maggie O'Shay, leader of the Commonwealth Farmer-Laborer Party, has managed to restore order in her party, following the turmoil resulting from the party's hardline opposition to Operation Foil. Despite serious backlash in the wake of the operation's success, O'Shay has managed to keep her party intact, even in the face of wing elements threatening to split off. While polling suggests that there has been some loss in public support, the party remains intact, and thus, the left-wing opposition remains united.
Note from Sara: Maggie's a clever girl, gotta admit. I don't think I could've kept a party together through that, not when it's already such a big tent.
Sara Johnson: "That's because
your idea of a 'party' is basically just your Facebook friends."
Sara Goldblum: "You do know Facebook's been, what's the word,
defunct ever since the Great Myspace Renaissance in the '60s, right?"
Sara Johnson: "You take that back!"
Foreign Ships In Chicago
Following the clarification of trade policies in the Midwestern Conference, and the proper opening of the Welland Canal, enterprising traders from abroad have already started coming into the City of Chicago to unload goods. Surprisingly, after the initial rush, many traders have come hawking food-- food bought by government officials, overwhelmingly, which then tends to leave swiftly...
Note from SecDev Aguilar: The irony is not lost on me, but I will admit that selling food to a desperate government pays. The funding is welcome, given the work ahead of us.
@PoptartProdigy
Uh... waitaminute. It's a bit confusing, reading this, which way the food is flowing. Just to be clear, are
they selling food to
us? Because I really really hope we're not doing that dumbass "export food when there is a danger of near-term famine" thing that quite a few governments have historically done, and you told us there was a food shortage crisis impending if we don't get Round 2 of the agricultural improvements sorted by Turn 6.
Assuming the food sales are us
importing food then that's not so bad. Not so bad at all.
Victorian Civil War Intensifies!
Many commentators, for months, have been predicting that the Crusaders would be crushed if ever caught out. These prediction have halted, however, after the news of the recent months, carried by refugees fleeing to any safe port that would take them. Crusader forces have come down out of the Appalachians, finally making contact again with Loyalist forces in Maine itself. With Loyalist militias largely disbanded to try and recover some of their harvest, Crusader troops managed to push all the way to Augusta, routing the reconstituted 1st Army Division and sacking the city before departing. FCNY observers report heavy smoke clouds visible from the sea. Gideon Blackwell's government and high command were able to evacuate in advance of the city's fall, but they have yet to return, suggesting that Augusta may now be unfit for use as a center of government. Crusader forces have since withdrawn again, evading the closing trap of militia forces and reputedly wrecking rail lines and other infrastructure as they pass over it to hamper pursuit.
Note from SecSec Ralson: Buffalo isn't good for much anymore, but it can service refugees, and with us shipping grain over at a steady clip, there is shipping space available. Having Victorians coming out is a godsend for intelligence gathering -- and the contacts don't hurt, either.
Hm. Crusaders sack Augusta, the Vick capital. Unclear how much the Inquisition side of the war managed to get out in terms of government archives and such, versus how much was destroyed. Note that if the Crusaders managed to burn down Inquisition headquarters with much of their archives inside that'd be a
huge victory; a secret police force is most effective when it has vast amounts of information on its citizenry to leverage.
Obviously this is a huge prestige loss for Blackwell, too.
Miami In Federation Talks
For what is presently disputed as either the seventh or twentieth time, Miami has hosted a summit of the various communities making up the strange state to discuss the possibility of a closer and more binding federation. This time, there seems to be success, as the talks have lasted between two and thirty times longer than the next contender, depending on how one defines duration. The condition of federation has been set as a supermajority of 64% of attendees voting in approval, and somewhere between 49% and 83% of attendees have voted in approval.
Ambassador Kuhn has also lodged seventeen requests to be reassigned. We have thus far declined, as we are having trouble sourcing volunteers to replace him.
I'm honestly wondering how they managed to be confused about the vote count to that degree. They'd probably benefit from some old-fashioned Athenian "just put a rock in one of these two barrels" voting systems.
Also I strongly suspect that the DC for the "Get the
Established national spirit" action for Miami is, like, in the '80s.
Revivalist Spring
With Victoria's defeat in the Erie War, Revivalist movements across the Old Country have received a potent shot in the arm. Governments all over the Country are experiencing increasing unrest as Revivalist agitators begin advocating for their agenda. Among states with formally Revivalist governments, meanwhile, there have been talks of organizing a conference to discuss the future of the movement. Many have called for the talks to be held in Chicago, on the Fourth of July. Given the Commonwealth of Free Cities's present preeminence in the Midwest and significance to the Revivalist movement, they will certainly be able to host the event, if they choose to.
Note from SecState Harris: Oh, God, I don't even know. That puts a target on us the size of Moscow. Can we even beg off?
The implications of this are VERY in flux now with the other news.
Brazil And Chile To Discuss American Investment
Brazil and Chile have reportedly scheduled a summit to discuss strategies for investment in the Americas, citing unspecified recent paradigm shifts that have changed the calculus on the continents. While sources have not confirmed that the summit's purpose is to discuss how to acquire interests while Victoria is incapable of interfering, one didconfirm that the cities of New Orleans and Baton Rouge were likely to be topics of conversation. The conference is scheduled to go ahead in September of 2076. The government of Argentina has protested not being included in this summit; negotiations are reportedly ongoing.
SecDev Aguilar: From what I've heard, I expect Argentina to get a seat just fine. This will have implications for our plan for the Mississippi...
Hm. We're not the only ones who can read a map. The Brazilians, Chileans, and Argentines are all in a good position to see that while we've got a temporary access corridor out through the St. Lawrence, our next grand-strategic priority is very likely to be the Mississippi corridor. They stand to profit most from that if they've got investment and influence in the port cities along the way- no matter what they intend to try, they're better positioned to deal with us on whatever terms they have in mind that way. And they have a limited timeframe in which to do so while those port cities are still weak city-states with minimal dealings with the Commonwealth, so they need to act fast if they're trying to get in there ahead of us.
@PoptartProdigy , you canonized the shift of the bulk of Mississippi water from the current Mississippi channel past New Orleans into the Atchafalaya, right? I forget what if any city would be established there- might have to
rebuild a port given the damage that having the river suddenly get a lot wider would do. Dunno.
