A Plea to the Kaiser and to the Landsraad

[Shyriath]

Glorious Kaiser, honored lords of the Landsraad of the Imperial Republic, I address this to you all, and beg your attention. What credit I have earned here I do not know, and however much it is I probably do not deserve it; but if you will suffer a proud if intermittent citizen of this nation to spend that credit in his own manner, here and now, I will do so with these words.

In the days to come, a choice will be brought before you all, and this choice will concern what is likely Shireroth’s oldest and recognizable symbol: its flag. For any proud nation, the treatment of its flag is a matter of importance, because it is that flag that is the embodiment of the nation in the eyes of both its own citizens and the rest of the world. Leaders and ambassadors may change, but a behind all of them is a flag proclaiming their allegiance.

A change to the flag itself, on the other hand, must be taken with the utmost care, precisely because of that strength of representation. Never mind which colors symbolized what, in the days it was first conceived; as has rightly been pointed out, that no longer matters. But the flag taken as a whole, the feel and the shape of the design: people recognize this, and they identify in relation to it. Those who know our flag see it, and think: SHIREROTH. What is under the flag is theirs (or what they say is theirs). To change the flag is to change the associations and the impressions of Shireroth in the minds of those who see it.

Of course, for those who argue in favor of a change, this is precisely the point. They say that a change in association is needed; that, perhaps, the flag is lacking in the sophistication that our nation now has, and that a new flag will bring that quality to the fore. It is well known by now that I am not particularly fond of the idea of choosing a new flag; but it is not because I particularly disagree that a new flag would reflect our maturity as a nation. Rather, it is because I fear what other associations may be lost as the cost of that change. For instance: Shireroth is now among the most ancient (if not THE most ancient) surviving micronations of its kind. For all that time, the present flag has been with us, and I would argue that as a result it is a symbol of that longevity. If the flag is changed, how well will that be remembered? Of course, it should always be kept in mind what we now are and where we will go, but should we not also recognize what we have been?

I will not attempt to convince anyone that the choice should not be made. For one, it is not my place: I am not a noble, and this will ultimately be a choice of nobles. But another, more important reason I will not argue that point is because it is wrong: choices, when brought up, cannot be avoided forever, and it is better that they be faced in their time rather than postponed until they cannot be avoided at all. If the subject of considering a new flag is to come up now, then consider you must; and since a true choice necessarily means that the present flag may be decided against, this is a possibility that must be accepted. I can only ask of all of you to keep these things in mind when the time comes to make your choice: know what it is you believe your choice stands for, and why it means that Shireroth is the great nation it has proven itself to be.

But in the event that, after the choice is made, the flag that has served us for so long is taken down at last, and especially if its replacement is significantly different, I make this plea: that it should not be forgotten, nor completely unused. Its design still resonates throughout our culture, especially in the arms of the Imperial Bloodlines, and most especially of all as a symbol of Raynor, first of the Kaisers; and I propose, and would emphatically encourage, its adoption as the Imperial Standard, to be the flag of the office of the Kaiser, and representative of the authority of the monarchy itself. I feel this would be a fitting and worthy place of honor for the current flag should it be retired, and I beg the consideration of the His Niftiness the Kaiser for this option, should it prove necessary.

Nobles all, choose well.

[Ari Rahikkala]

I was considering posting about this myself, but you got there first . Seriously, from what I've gathered on IRC, there are two sides to this discussion: The traditionalists wish that the old flag be kept as the imperial standard, the reformists wish that the old flag be kept as the imperial standard. I'm not sure we can develop much of an argument over that.

[Kaiser Leto III]

Those who know our flag see it, and think: SHIREROTH.

Ryan's flag is pretty the same as the old one, with some (in my eyes minor) changes.

The traditionalists wish that the old flag be kept as the imperial standard, the reformists wish that the old flag be kept as the imperial standard.

Traditionalists and reformists want the same?


Look, I don't ignore, nor disrespect, your opinion, Shyriath. I agree this is something that should be handled with care. I have seen the reaction on my previous actions (when I was a bit to quick to change the flag ), so I know that it has importance to many. I, myself, was never intending to forget our old, ancient and proud Flag. No, I was already considering to use it as an Imperial banner or something else important.

[Ryan]

I concur with Shyriath on this point. The old flag should be retained in some fashion or another; ideally as the Imperial Standard. And perhaps we can do more with it in the future.

[Ari Rahikkala]

Traditionalists and reformists want the same?

'zackly. For evil manipulative reasons I'd wanted it to be one of the more reformist-y guys to post an impassioned plea to honour the old flag by making it the Imperial Standard - since that seems to be what pretty much everyone wants - but I didn't get around to it soon enough so Shyriath did it first ):.

[Shyriath]

Y'know... I'm not sure what reaction I was expecting when I decided for a heartfelt plea, but it's a little offbalancing to find out that it's "Oh, yeah, we were kinda thinking that too."

...Not that I'm complaining, by any means.

[Gman Russell]

This is my thought on the matter.


I sincerely urge the nobles to not change the flag.