Capt. Sir Mick Preston
Capitán of the Zouaves
Posts: 6,511
Talossan Since: 9-21-2006
Knight Since: 10-12-2010
Motto: Cuimhnichibh air na daoine bho'n d'thainig sibh
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Post by Capt. Sir Mick Preston on Jan 15, 2010 17:28:55 GMT -6
I feel that we have two strong candidates for Senate, but we need to know how they stand on issues.
So, what I am going to do is post a question*. I will ask each candidate to post a preliminary response, and then a follow up response after their opponent replies.
We will do this in alternate order. I decided to go alpahbetically for the first question, then reverse for the second , etc, etc. Since Alexander Davis comes first in both names over Breneir Tzaracomprada, AD will go first on the first question.
Please limit your first response to no more than 250 words, and your follow up to 100 words.
*Modified: I will post a series of questions, in that we have 6 weeks to have this debate. I encourage the citizens of M-M to email me questions they would like to ask our two candidates.
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Capt. Sir Mick Preston
Capitán of the Zouaves
Posts: 6,511
Talossan Since: 9-21-2006
Knight Since: 10-12-2010
Motto: Cuimhnichibh air na daoine bho'n d'thainig sibh
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Post by Capt. Sir Mick Preston on Jan 15, 2010 17:33:01 GMT -6
The first question is :
How and Why should your current Senator vote on "The Right to Equal Education Amendment"?
S:reu Davis will answer first, to be followed by S:reu Tzaracomprada.
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Post by Sir Alexandreu Davinescu on Jan 15, 2010 19:32:03 GMT -6
I am happy to oblige, Senator. The following response is 238 words. Thank you for taking the time to organize this - and I appreciate that it also means you're getting input from your constituents on matters in front of you. --- I would vote "Non" to this bill, for several reasons. - It was originally Hoppered as an amendment of drastically different character, and its language is still very rough. Several provisions of language have been made at my request, but the results are difficult to understand and could not easily be interpreted by a Cort or the government, a fatal legislative flaw. Does "education" mean academia or can it mean vocational? Does "until the age of 18" include preschool or similar programs? Are other forms of care, such as free food, mandated as might be implied here?
- If Talossa believes this to be a right that must not be infringed, as suggested by the bill, then this act would be insufficient. No act can safeguard a fundamental right like a "right to equal educational opportunity;" any subsequent act of the Ziu would undo it.
I am not convinced that this right exists, but if it does, then its safety will not be ensured by this cluttered bill. A law that can be interpreted many ways is no law at all, just an invitation for abuse of power. As Senator, I've seen a lot of bills. I have been active in Talossa for many years, with my "breaks" being few and far between. And I can tell you that a good law is clear, concise, and necessary. This bill is none of the three, and I would vote against it.
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Capt. Sir Mick Preston
Capitán of the Zouaves
Posts: 6,511
Talossan Since: 9-21-2006
Knight Since: 10-12-2010
Motto: Cuimhnichibh air na daoine bho'n d'thainig sibh
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Post by Capt. Sir Mick Preston on Jan 15, 2010 19:52:49 GMT -6
Thanks you , S:reu Davis. S:reu Tzaracomprada, the question is yours to answer.
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Post by Breneir Itravilatx on Jan 16, 2010 0:55:12 GMT -6
Thank you S:reu Davis for that precise answer and thanks to Senator Preston for allowing this forum to occur.
Is there a right to equal access to educational opportunities? I believe there is. Is this bill perfect? No, it is not. Is it a meaningful step forward in allowing the unfettered appreciation of the right to equal access to educational opportunities? I believe it is.
Senator Preston, I would advise you to vote "PER" on this bill as its spirit of enlarging the Talossan enterprise of equality is one worth supporting and any perceived "rough" language could/would be, even with interminable revisions, be open to judicial interpretation.
The refinement of Flip's initial proposal through the review of many members of the Ziu over the course of nearly five months and no less than three revisions has led not only to a bill that clearly defines a sacrosanct right but to a helpful debate over the very existence of such a right in addition to demonstrating the effectiveness of our legislative review process. I commend MC Molinar for his work, S:reu Davis for help in refining it despite the withholding of his support, and as it stands currently those in the Ziu that have already supported this Act.
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Capt. Sir Mick Preston
Capitán of the Zouaves
Posts: 6,511
Talossan Since: 9-21-2006
Knight Since: 10-12-2010
Motto: Cuimhnichibh air na daoine bho'n d'thainig sibh
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Post by Capt. Sir Mick Preston on Jan 16, 2010 1:01:00 GMT -6
Thank you , S:reu Tzaracomprada.
S:reu Davis, you have the floor for your follow up response.
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Post by Sir Alexandreu Davinescu on Jan 16, 2010 3:15:27 GMT -6
Thank you. My 100 word response is below. --- I absolutely agree that this bill will be open to judicial interpretation. That's not good.
Ambiguous law is almost always lousy law. This act might include preschool, because schooling will be "until the age of 18." This act might not include preschool, because primary schooling will be provided. I don't know the answer. No one does. If it is implemented, people may disagree on the answer. It will be open to judicial interpretation. I guess in my mind, the goal is not to have to bring a law to Cort to discover its meaning. And that's just one unanswered issue!
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Capt. Sir Mick Preston
Capitán of the Zouaves
Posts: 6,511
Talossan Since: 9-21-2006
Knight Since: 10-12-2010
Motto: Cuimhnichibh air na daoine bho'n d'thainig sibh
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Post by Capt. Sir Mick Preston on Jan 16, 2010 9:55:52 GMT -6
Thank you , S:reu Davis.
S:reu Tzaracomprada, you have the floor for your follow up response.
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Post by Breneir Itravilatx on Jan 16, 2010 13:06:19 GMT -6
Thank you.
Well, I take it to heart that we agree on something, S:reu Davis. But I do not agree that ambiguity always necessarily makes bad law. Many legislative acts passed in the Ziu are open to interpretation no matter how incessantly we attempt to iron out an exact end result. Further, I see no original intent by the bill's author nor its supports to rely exclusively on interpretation rather this disagreement on the existence of the right itself is a product of ideological differences...which MC Molinar has made great attempts to address.
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Capt. Sir Mick Preston
Capitán of the Zouaves
Posts: 6,511
Talossan Since: 9-21-2006
Knight Since: 10-12-2010
Motto: Cuimhnichibh air na daoine bho'n d'thainig sibh
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Post by Capt. Sir Mick Preston on Jan 16, 2010 15:00:44 GMT -6
Thank you gentlemen.
For the next question, Please address how you would vote on " The Talossan Charity Act".
S:reu Tzaracomprada, you have the floor.
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Post by Breneir Itravilatx on Jan 16, 2010 16:09:51 GMT -6
Thanks, Senator Preston. Cutting it close with 245 words.
As a current Executive Board member of Talossa AID and a cosponsor of the Talossan Charity Act, I presume, it should be no surprise that I voted "PER" in the Cosa. I support the aims of the Charity Act to ensure the transparency of accountable and efficiently-ran charitable operations via publicly available financial return statements and the regulation of charitable organizations to deter fraud and negligence by the Ministry of Finance or another designated governmental authority.
Further, while I think that the Act does not go far enough, it is indeed an important compromise between those that would want a government-sponsored humanitarian organization such as myself and those fine with private humanitarian initiatives. Many thanks to those that helped refine this Act in the Hopper and I must once more commend the Right Honorable Eovart Grischun and MC Molinar in addition to the remarkable work of Istefan Lorentzescu in making the Act and Talossa AID a reality after so much debate in the past.
I would end by imploring those that have yet to donate to either Talossa AID or another charitable organization to please do so soon as feasible. Haiti is suffering in the midst of its worst natural disaster in two centuries with a potential death toll of more than 100,000. As long as we are able we must rise to support those that suffer and are in need and I ask that you join me in doing so.
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Capt. Sir Mick Preston
Capitán of the Zouaves
Posts: 6,511
Talossan Since: 9-21-2006
Knight Since: 10-12-2010
Motto: Cuimhnichibh air na daoine bho'n d'thainig sibh
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Post by Capt. Sir Mick Preston on Jan 16, 2010 17:14:15 GMT -6
Thank you , S:reu Tzaracomprada.
S:reu Davis, you have the floor.
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Post by Sir Alexandreu Davinescu on Jan 17, 2010 19:07:56 GMT -6
Thank you. 250 words. --- As a general matter of principle, I oppose creation of new government agencies and positions unless there is a distinct and current need for them. In a nation as small as ours, they will otherwise suck up the time of our active citizens. When I look at a piece of legislation that proposes to institute a new agency or position, there are all kinds of questions. Is it Organic? Is it redundant? Is it procedurally sound? But the most important question: is this necessary?
Most of our great contributions and works come from people who are outside of official positions, working on things that they just think are fun or interesting. This is not to say that our official positions are useless (although some of them could easily go unfilled and be unnoticed), but that Talossa is a country that is powered by enthusiasm first and regulation second. Voters are forgiving and the Corts are glaciers, so violations of regulations are seldom punished. It is the smiling face of a quiet citizen who writes a new Talossan song or proposes a grand bit of nonsensical fun that makes Talossa run. Anything that saps away that smile and leaves him less time for his song - or for his charity - is to be viewed with suspicion.
So when I look at the fine work of Talossa AID (thank you, MC Tzaracomprada), I ask if a new agency in their way is necessary. It is not. I would vote "Contra."
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Capt. Sir Mick Preston
Capitán of the Zouaves
Posts: 6,511
Talossan Since: 9-21-2006
Knight Since: 10-12-2010
Motto: Cuimhnichibh air na daoine bho'n d'thainig sibh
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Post by Capt. Sir Mick Preston on Jan 17, 2010 20:49:33 GMT -6
Thank you , S:reu Davis.
S:reu Tzaracomprada, you have the floor for your follow up response.
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Post by Breneir Itravilatx on Jan 17, 2010 20:53:35 GMT -6
Thanks.
That the smiling faces of we Talossans have generated a culture unlike any other and that such wit, zaniness and ability to enjoy that "joie de vivre", as our French members of the human family call it, must be preserved, we agree.
Regrettably, we disagree on two points. I do believe in the necessity of well-regulated charities and that our government should play a role in such an effort. Further, I do believe that governments (as is currently shown in the response of multiple nations to Haiti) can and should play a role in answering natural and man-made emergencies.
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