Thesian Republic

## Stellar Cartography

### Systems Held

Aeschines, Augsburg, Cleisthenes, Danzig, Demosthenes, Ephialtes, Hyperborea, Lysias, Monaco, Novgorod, Petronas Sophia. Pittalacus, Rachetov, Solon, Strov, Thebes

### Planets Held

Amun, Anthemius, Carbonari, Concord, Donner, Ecclesia, Grimaldi, Isidore, La Conciergerie, Osceola, Pelli, Rahman Khan, Rechtstadt, Serenity, Sicarii, Staraya, Tomasetti, Torzhok, Tranquility. Utopia, Vindelicorum, Ypres, Liberty

## Overview

The **Thesian Republic** is a fiercely pro-individual, pro-democratic political entity that declared its joint declaration of independence in conjunction with the Systems Council of Manufactured Planets from the Terran Confederacy in the aftermath of the Venkath Onslaught. Centralized in the Cleisthenes system, the Thesian Republic today maintains control over the Terran Confederacy, Systems Council of Manufactured Planets, Strov-Rachetov Coalition and the Realm of Hyperborea. Making it one of the three power contenders among the other two polite, in total the Republic maintains control over sixteen systems and twenty-five planets.

Borrowing its name from the Greek mythological hero *Theseus* who was responsible for empowering the Athenian city state of ancient Greece and breathing life into the direct democracy, the Founding Fathers of Thesia would pay respect to this hero of the past, and to offer a glimpse to the future philosophy of this bloc.

Viewing themselves as the rightful heir of humanity, legitimized by the Terran Confederacy's submission to the Republic, the Republic and Aurelian Dominion found themselves at odds. With the Markus-Lindholm Entropy Detonation Device detonation that vaporized over a quarter of the primary Republic fleet, relations have since failed to develop into anything meaningful.

The Thesian Republic can be addressed correctly in different manners: Thesia, the Republic and the Thesian Republic. Thesia is the preferred rhetoric, dropping "the Republic" entirely as a strategy of social discourse to suggest Thesia is a single political entity that has old roots.

## History

### 6116: The Gadfly Society is Born

Earth's Resource Wars has no end in sight. Smaller national entities lose their independence as they are conquered, succumb to internal pressures or fold to seek protection. Civil liberties continued to be systematically suspended across Earth. Many businesses survive through rent seeking, while the ones that do not engage in political entrepreneurship find themselves nationalized or file for bankruptcy. Freedom of assembly and press become commodities. Afraid for the spirit of humanity and individualism, professors at the liberal university Greater Chicago University and leading students create the Gadfly Society.

### 6822: Rediscover Democracy

The Gadfly Society has since grown to include philanthropists, captains of industry and world leaders. Attempting to "rediscover democracy", the institute co-announces with an artificial development company of a new way of carrying out proper governance, through a system of delegative democracy managed by a computer network. While the system they announced could only handle enough information from twenty five million individuals, it illustrated a new possibility. It was a system that would categorize individual's according to their preferences and history of information collected through the cyber-verse, or explicitly stated by the individual. The artificial intelligence, by learning political preferences and priorities would then place the vote on the individual's behalf on each political issue, running a tally and publishing the statistics. The Delegative Democracy model, named aptly under the project name *Rediscover Democracy* fails to gain support.

### 6886: Civic Party Enters the Fray

The Gadfly Society creates the *Civic Party,* a political movement to contend for office. It promotes civil liberties, non-interventionism and a free market economy.

### 6900: Civic Party Picks up Steam

The Civic Party fails to become a viable alternative to the older, well-connected parties of Earth. Instead, it begins to see massive gains in the colonies that are following a path of self-determination and are looking to escape the Confederacy's perceived oppression and to forge their own identity. Two planetary governors are elected within the same year to represent the Civic Party. One is on a planet later to be renamed to Ecclesia. The other is Utopia.

### 7121: Standing With the Golden Dawn

Elliot Novak, candidate for the Golden Dawn party is assassinated. Both the Gadfly Society and Civic Party entertain the possibility of a Confederacy assassination against their candidate. The Civic Party in collaboration with the Terra Civil Liberties Union demand that the Confederacy release all documents related to the Golden Party, and that a formal investigation be opened.

### 7123: Denouncing the Golden Dawn

Golden Party retaliates through systematic killings. Civic Party denounces the party, calling it irrational and barbaric, and demands that its recognition as a political party is suspended, and that those involved are brought to justice. The investigation for the murder of Elliot Novak remains opened but unresolved.

### 7126: Horrors of the Venkath

Venkath Onslaught begins. Gadfly Society founding chapter house is destroyed, along with all other institutes. Civic Party headquarters is destroyed. Off-planet chapter houses of the Gadfly Society breaks down. On other worlds, the Civic Party begins to lose support as fear pushes people toward a more war-focused government that tolerated suspension of civil liberties and economic centralization.

### 7135: Picking Up the Scraps

Gadfly Society chapter houses elect among themselves new leaders and build their Society Headquarters on Ecclesia. Members of new leadership include survivors of the original Society Headquarters on Earth that were away at the time, Ecclesian chapter members, Demosthenes philosophers and Vindelicorum financiers.

### 7141: The Systems Alliance

With Earth fallen and the Terran Confederacy in total chaos, a distinctive alliance of territories organized into the Systems Alliance. While still adhering to Terran Confederacy law and directives, it organizes in this manner to help redistribute resources among member states and to put together a fleet to battle with the venkath. The Systems Alliance fleet swells to epic proportions as civilian ships are re-purposed, mercenary groups paid for the value of their ships and given wealth to survive till the end of their days as well as forgiveness of their crimes and remnants of other fleets, in addition to fresh ships built.

This "apocalypse fleet" becomes a staple in Systems Alliance advertisements and is used to show that the Systems Alliance has the fleet to protect its citizens and to destroy the venkath. Against Confederacy orders though, the fleet returns to Earth in an undisclosed operation and is destroyed by the venkath fleet around Pluto. News of the fleet's defeat is classified. Information campaigns continue to suggest the fleet is in deep space, fighting venkath outposts and searching for its home world.

### 7149: The First Poenari Congress

Poenari is destroyed. First Poenari Congress convenes to decide reconstruction era of the Terran Confederacy. Fronting the Systems Alliance interests are a party of seven that argued for decentralizing the colonies, reducing the influence of the military and reducing the size of government. Isaac Wolfe disagreed with the party of seven, later to be known as the Founding Fathers of Thesia. Wolfe promptly leaves the conference and is made Imperator of an independent territory: the Aurelian Dominion.

The Markus Detonation Device is employed by the Dominion to destroy a quarter of the Alliance fleet. The Alliance responds in kind by destroying the museum sector of Monolith. Meanwhile, the Dominion and Alliance battle over planets, stations and caches.

The Terran Confederacy splinters over the Dominion's creations as planets use it as an opportunity to forge their own narrative. Grover Norman, Minister of Education and Elizabeth Warrick, Minister of Colonization abandon the Terran Confederacy and find asylum with the Systems Alliance. With a flood of admirals and lesser cabinet members of the Terran Confederacy defecting to the Systems Alliance, and the pressing Dominion enemy, the Systems Alliance would reorganize into the Thesian Republic, declaring independence. They are joined by the Systems Council of Manufactured Planets.

The Second Poenari Congress ends the war.

### 7151: Strov-Rachetov Coalition Folds

The Strov-Rachetov Coalition, battered by venkath and humans alike, swears fealty to the Republic.

### 7152: Terran Confederacy Folds

The Terran Confederacy, unable to maintain order over it planets and begin sufficient reconstruction, declares for the Republic.

### 7154: Military Brain Drain

Not confident in the Republic, a military brain drain occurs. High value military cabinet members flee for the Dominion, believing that the Republic would be unable to stop a second venkath incursion. A number of Republic fleets are mothballed without experienced leadership.

The Republic legalizes several paramilitary groups to help regain control over pirate infested zones. During this time, the *apocalypse fleet* is advertised to be on a long journey, and that if the fleet had been there, this would not have been required.

### 7158: Realm of Hyperborea Folds

The Realm of Hyperborea joins the Republic. In exchange for Hyperborea veteran troops and fresh production abilities, the Republic agrees to grant the Realm leverage in the Agora, and agree to share knowledge with the Realm.

### 7159 to 7174: Reconstruction Era

Reconstruction era officially begins. The Republic and Dominion continue to have escalations and deescalation's just as quickly. Proxy land battles, small fleet engagements and espionage define the relationship. Planet side, the Systems Council of Manufactured Planets struggles to rebuild. The Realm of Hyperborea grows arrogant and demanding. The Strov-Rachetov Coalition experiences a culture flip, becoming fearful of humans and as a consequence, seeks approval from the Republic. The Terran Confederacy is without direction and is unable to recover its pride.

 The Republic experiences its own culture boon. Antiwar protests begin to become more prevalent.

## Government

### Fluid Democracy

Thesia is a Delegative Democracy. The Benefactor is the acting head of state, exercising mostly a ceremonial role. True matters of governance is held with the Agassembly that is represented by two Archons from each colonized, life-sustaining planets that maintain a minimum population of five-hundred million. Archons is terminology in place of Senator. Ecclesia maintains four Archons as a token of centralization. The Agora  meets in the *Pnyx* (pronounced Nix) that is located on Ecclesia for approximately three weeks of each month. Exceptions are made for holidays or an interstellar tragedy.

During regular policy votes or elections, an individual may visit their local virtual polling station for participation. By plugging themselves into small pods, they are able to experience a wide array of sensations. These polling stations are connected directly to the Agora, or to any other site activated for government function. There they are able to see, hear, smell and walk around the Agora with impunity. And while they cannot interact with the physical world seeing that they are remotely connected only, they are able to truly believe they are actively involved in the election.

Each citizen is entitled to one vote. A majority of vote wins. An individual that chooses not to directly vote on a policy or during an election, may choose to delegate his vote to a Archon. That Archon does not need to be from the individual's planet. Once an individual has delegated his vote away, he may not to do again until election season. If an individual chooses not to vote or not to choose a Archon, then his vote is placed into a virtual bucket where it is then sorted by a virtual intelligence that matches any political preferences tests or online data from that individual, to a delegate that most closely represents their values. The delegate is then assigned that individual's vote for the remainder of the cycle.

The Thesian Election Commission prohibits the selling of votes for compensation. While managing these illegal activities on the small level is all but impossible, the impact of small exchanges are considered to have no impact on policy or election outcomes. Instead, this is designed to restrict outcomes where wealthy individuals or large companies can "purchase" the outcome of an election or policy debate. Companies found in conflict with this rule are subject to stiff penalties, additional regulatory oversight or will be forced to liquidate.

Governors are expected to maintain a voter participation rating of 80% or higher. This information is collected through an audience measurement tool of Nielsen ratings. Governors that fail to encourage voter participation can be punished in many manners. Everything from the Election Board humiliating the Governor, to losing planetary funding, to the Governor being summoned to the Agora to answers on the failure.

### Terran Confederacy Lingerers

Between 7141 an 7149, Terran Confederacy admiralty and members of governance flood into the Republic. Modern day, these individuals are known as the *lingerers*. Members of old Earth government who are Archons today, are defined by anti-alien beliefs. Referred also as the Old Guard, these individuals have earned a reputation for wanting to limit alien travel and to view them with suspicion.

### Commission on Dominion Aggression

Existing to observe Dominion activity and to make policy suggestions, the Commission on Dominion Aggression are considered war hawks by some, a necessary evil by others. They maintain pressure on planetary governors to sign Oaths of Perseverance to show that they will do what it takes to protect the Republic against the forces of the Dominion, no matter how those forces may manifest themselves.

### Alien Policy

Alien policy is a touche' subject, something of a black sheep among the Republic at large. The *lingerers* pursue a policy of containment, viewing all aliens as if they were a guilty party for the Venkath Onslaught. But younger citizens now support policies of affirmative action to help place aliens into fulfilling jobs, and to prohibit discrimation based on species.

## Economy

### Desecration of the Body

Consistent with the belief of limited government and maximum individual rights, the Republic maintains only a token of regulatory oversight over human enhancements, modifications or survival. Practices of replacing limbs with bionic and more durable limbs is common practice. As is the practice of *splicing*, which is the realm of the precarious science of merging human DNA, with animal DNA to allow that individual to demonstrate the physical traits of that specie.

With citizens trying to escape the memories of the Venkath Onslaught and trying to maximize their lives, many have turned to decadent lifestyles. Drug use, alcoholism and obese fetishes are tolerated. This has lead to the growth of a large market: the organ market. Those with fewer opportunities are encouraged to sell any number of organs, both the essential and non-essential. Those selling essential organs are often motivated by reasons of family, often surrendering their life as to pay the medical bills, college or other bills of a loved one.

### Obsession with the Arts

Production industry is a dirty, monotonous task. Such a role is often left to the dull citizens of Monolith. In the Republic, there is an ongoing crises to attract citizens to manufacturing, leaving it where most production is automated or imported from the Legacy Federation. Instead, the service industry has exploded. While the barons of industry have since bowed their heads in irrelevancy, artists have flourished. Modelling, canvas art, music or fashion have effectively conquered the Republic market.

## Demographics

### Religion

Religion is considered a matter of the individual. State institutions are prohibited from supporting any particular faith. On suggestion of the Committee on Dominion Aggression, anyone who explicitly or implicity shows favor toward Garudanism are placed on a registry and are monitored if they have a certain minimum of flags reached. These flags include: gun ownership, political activity, involved in media, criminal history or remarks against the Republic.

### Culture

Cutthroat competitive fashion, social gatherings and a strong commitment to democratic practices are all cornerstones of the conscious of the Commonwealth. Availability of technology has encouraged a lack of personal responsibility, since the consequences can often be dealt with through readily available medical technology. Things like alcoholism are considered less physically impactful, given the ability to regrow livers.

Nationalism is considered a dirty word in politics. People have no interest in duty or committment. Warlike behavior is also considered distasteful.

A huge phenomena is voluntarism. With the widespread destruction of the venkath, individuals will make tours to other worlds to help rebuild local communities. Taking advantage of this behave, the Republic has created the Republic Good Neighbor Program. It allows individuals to post pictures or stories of their tours to a Republic-wide leadership board that awards points to the person. Small benefits like reduced taxes or quickly navigating Coeus Processing Center. The main benefit of this movement are socially bragging rights among circles.

## Common Use

The Thesian Republic has a **Conditional** Common Use policy. Although the content is owned by Randian, members are free to create characters and organizations within the Republic.

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## Credits

Gallery images is property of *Hunger Games* and hosted through Fashion Gone Rogue. It may be found here.