Spread the Love.

[Yvain Wintersong]

Duke Benkern, I beg you to change your mind.

We finally have agreement between me, Baron Jess, and Count Mike, one that will solve a major Brookshire problem while hurting nobody. We have something that makes all of us happy, which is rare and unexpected. Erik objects, but I believe he understands that I am his Duke and will go along with it if he cannot convince me otherwise. I am discussing the issue candidly with him here only because his view is important to me, not because this is some crisis that threatens to tear Brookshire apart.

You have already assented to this proposal, and you would be greatly inconveniencing myself. Count Mike. and Baron Jess if you were to suddenly go back on that assent. I admire your concern with the harmony of your lands and of Shireroth as a whole, but I believe the argument is already over, and that all your decision will do is threaten to re-open the problem as we search for some other deal.

In summary, I thank you for your kind attempt to solve the problem but beg you to reconsider lest you destroy an very good agreement that a lot of work went into.

[b3n|<3r|\|]

I presume this is a mutual lease by the way?

[Malliki]

Brookshire leases Musica, Yardistan leases Nee.

[b3n|<3r|\|]

Your grace, I'm suddenly going back on my assent because I was under the impression that you as Duke weren't gonna do anything to the detriment of your, it should be noted, very limited number of residents. I give you Musica and two active, interesting Yardistanis - and at the same time you're putting your hand on the forehead of one of your residents and saying "Nah nah, I'm your Duke, can't do nuffin"? What assurance have I that my Yardistanis will be treated any differently? If anything your treatment of Erik, given his status as founder and general oldie, would hardly even be representative of your treatment of residents because you treat him too well. But you're doing quite the opposite.

[Yvain Wintersong]

Your Grace, the worst I have done with Baron Erik is to disagree with him. I do this as a sign of my respect for him. If I did not respect him, I would have simply said "Who cares what you think? OVERRULED!" and then decreed Brookshire's assent to the treaty.

Instead, I am trying as hard as I can to convince Baron Erik to give his assent as well, through my long and frankly exhausting series of discussions with him here. I have already agreed to modify the terms from a cession to a lease, and to leave Alexandretta untouched, in order to placate him. I have also, I invite you to note, defended him against Jess, offered to fight a duel against anyone who insults his honor, and offered to abdicate as Duke in his favour, all within the past hour. I don't believe those are the actions of a man who does not care about one of his citizens.

Yes, I challenged his record on getting new citizens. I apologized for doing so before I did it, and then I apologized again afterwards, once he misinterpreted the intent of my comments and took offense at them. I think it was necessary to challenge his policies there, because if I hadn't we might have continued them, to the detriment of Brookshire. But I hope it was always clear in my posts that I was attacking the policies and not the man.

I re-iterate, for the fourth time in three days, that I am prepared to step aside as Duke if Erik wants to re-take the position. And I re-iterate, for the third time today, that I am doing this only because I believe it is good for Brookshire, a land I have sworn to protect. I admire your concern for your citizens and nobles (and especially your recent decision to allow Baron Jess to make his own choice) but in this case I hope that concern is misplaced.

[b3n|<3r|\|]

I don't think Erik wants to be Duke, I just think he wants you to respect his opinion. I'm not sure backing away from your position to placate someone counts as respecting their opinion. Like if someone points a gun at your head and says "I like Star Wars Episode 1 most out of the whole series" knowing that anyone with half a brain prefers all the others and know that the Empire Strikes back is the best, and you say "yeah yeah cool beans", that's not because you respect their opinion.

But... this isn't really my place... oh, and I hope you're not taking any of this at all personally, I tried to convey that through my offers to help Brookshire out. I like you, I like Brookshire, I want you both to do well. I feel great sympathy for your situation.

Anyway, whatever your treatment of Erik, outside of feudal obligation, are you prepared to swear an oath before the gods Hypotomoose and Lumina, together presumably the gods of Mistakes Made Obvious, that you will treat both Mike Fors and Bill Bek... Bek... B. with the respect that they deserve as Yardistanis, people under my personal protection? I've got one other concern before I agree to this deal, but I'll certainly need that assurance.

[Yvain Wintersong]

Your Grace, I am always willing to learn from others, so please tell what, exactly, would be involved in my respecting Erik more. Do you want me to accede to his opinion on all issues, even when I believe it is wrong and don't even understand it, without trying to discuss the matter with him first? From the old posts I have read of Erik's, this is exactly what Erik is sick and tired of people always doing. I even think I read somewhere that he left Shireroth once because people were doing that too much.

Because Erik chose to give me his seat as Duke, I believe he wanted "new blood" in Brookshire, someone with a different way of doing things. I certainly believe he wanted me to listen to his opinions and try my hardest to understand them; which, you notice, is what I have been doing this entire night. But if, at the end of a fair attempt to understand his opinions I still vehemently disagree with them, I don't think he wants me to always accede to his wishes anyway. So I have tried to respect Erik and solicit his opinion but eventually make my own decisions, just as I would do with Krasniy's opinion and just as I am sure you do with your own subjects.

I would welcome your opinion on this subject, and (especially) Baron Erik's. But aside from this one issue of being willing to honestly disagree with him, I hope you will be unable to find anywhere, either recently or from before my computer broke down, even the slightest example of me treating Baron Erik with anything less than the respect he deserves.

Moving to other matters, I swear by the gods Hypotomoose and Lumina, to treat Count Michael Fors of Musica and Master Bill Bekkenhuis of Musica with the respect they deserve as Yardistanis and subjects of Duke Benkern of Yardistan, and furthermore I swear by the shade of Kaiser Raynor I to treat them with the respect they will deserve as Brookshireans under my personal protection, and furthermore I swear to treat all other members of Shireroth with similar respect so help me gods.

[b3n|<3r|\|]

Thank you very much. It makes me very happy that you're willing to do that. I'm sure if this deal goes through Mike and Bill will be very happy under your rule.

I don't want you to give up on every point he contests you on - that's what I was trying to tell you with the whole Star Wars gun-to-the-head analogy. And I don't have an example of you disrespecting Erik outside of this thread, so I guess you "win", but you haven't been back long, and I don't think it will be long before an issue arises that you two will conflict upon. It's cool, there are so many issues these days. ^_^ I just don't want to see posts like this in Shireroth:

Well, fuck you too...

I hope you understand.

I may as well disclose my final concern. I want to make sure Jess knows he is giving up most of his active citizenry. In the Holy Lands, there are 7 residents: Jess, Jacobus, Nick, Gman, Mike and Bill. Jacobus is in self-imposed exile, Nick the Yardistani is not a citizen really, Greg is away. I want the HLoS to be a productive Barony and as asset to Shireroth that warrants Barony status. This may be hard to do with only one resident. Maybe the good Baron hasn't considered these facts yet. If Jess still believes he'll be fine by himself for a while after this deal has happened, then it shall happen.

[Malliki]

7 people, active or not, are plenty more than some other baronies.

[b3n|<3r|\|]

Most Baronies exist as Yardistan used to: groupings of territories, nothing more. I want Yardistan as a whole to do stuff, and I want the Holy Lands, as one of two Baronies, to do that with Absentia.

I believe the recent dissolution of all Baronies in Elwynn is part of some scheme to do the same thing - make Baronies that work. If other Dukes like to have lots of empty Baronies, it's cool by me, not my Duchy, but in Yardistan I like to keep things sensible. Err, within an anarchic context.

[Jess]

yes, my active citizenry is gone, though, it is for the good of another duchy, im that nice of person!

...and maybe I could bribe some of those absentians to come over to the HLoS...

[b3n|<3r|\|]

Good philosophy as any.

And so I approve this whole thing. I leave it, again, to Yvain and Jess to work out the details. If you ever need me to present this to the Landsraad or Kaiser, or affix my seal or whatever, gimme a bell in Yardistan.

[Erik Mortis]

*goes back to Monty Crisco*

[Scott of Hyperborea]

I'm sorry my suggestion caused all this trouble, although I'm secretly happy to see real history imitating fictional history so closely.

There is a pretty good precedent for this, though. I'm thinking back to when Jadie and Eriana had their big fight, so Goldshire gave Lunaris to Kildare in exchange for the Kitanus Fields or somewhere like that. As far as I can remember, that worked really well and the new borders stayed in effect until the New Feudalism days.

[Erik Mortis]

And made the maps ugly...

[Pandora]

Well, now that I have reclaimed Alexandretta can we consider this business with her settled? I hearby accept no other than my Baron Erik. ( Though I will miss Ha773r he was a good baron) Alexandretta has a long, rich history and it is indeed a great honor for Erik to bestow his blessings for me to rule there. Blessings that I did not have in my previous rein of her, but Erik had not been around when she was given to me and I had not known of her history at that time. None-the-less, Erik has allowed Alexandretta to be mine, nudist county and all. Most possibly the first and only county in a Micronation that is under a nudist rule.

That said, on with this business with Musica, I petition my Baron Erik and my Duke Yvain to grant me permission to invite the County of Musica to merge with Alexandretta or at least as an official part of Brookshire. (La Fiesta De La Bo0000oom would be rather interesting if its attendents were required to be nude!:D)

What do you say?

[Malliki]

The County of Musica will not be merging with Alexandretta. We are a part of Brookshire though, but in the Barony of Solescism. Thanks for the offer though. A vast amount of stationary telescopes will be put up all along the border with Alexandretta to, eh, watch the scenery.

[Pandora]

I'm sorry to hear that. The clothing barrier comes into play often. The invitation is open if you ever decide to be nudists.

Alexandretta is a beautiful land, I can see why you would put up telescopes. But why not just come visit instead, though I must advise you before you visit, that clothing in Alexandretta is of corse illegal. (There are lockers to rent at the county's gates for your convience.) For some reason, some people just have culture shock first time they visit. I don't understand why...

[hypatias mom]

Imagine that!! Things have sure come a looonnnnggg way since ladies put pantaloons on their piano legs for modesty's sake,.

[Hesam Jayatar]

Pfft..immoral harlots showing off their ankles...

[Malliki]

HOT!