View from Benacia/Issue 77: An End to the Ombudsman
This imported article was originally posted at http://viewfrombenacia.blogspot.com/2005/04/issue-77-end-to-ombudsman.html at 04/05/05.
And as Kaiser Ari i (that's the letter "i", representing a methematical concept, rather than a roman numeral) ascend the Throne, discussions begin on the changes to come. Among the first to arise was the possibility of the abolishment of the office of Ombudsman, stemming from the resignation of current officer Harvey.
Although the Kaiser has managed to collect three candidates to be the next Ombudsman, the need to hold another election has been called into question, as has the office of Ombudsman itself. Duke Scott of Hyperborea summed up his assessment of the office thus:
'I would support an elected position with power or responsibility, but this "wait for a complaint and then relay it to the Kaiser" message makes him basically a glorified version of EZBoard's Private Message service.'
In response, the Duke of Kildare argued that there was nothing against having the Ombudsman take on additional, more meaningful duties. This notion seems likely to sit uneasily with the more stridently anti-democratic citizens of Shireroth.
Tragedy on the Runway
Kaiser Ari also attempted to tackle the ancient and not-entirely-dead debates over the (now-reversed) naming of Shirekeep International Airport after past Kaiseress, current Novaya Zemlyan, and known head-turner Aurefiction Auraumbre.
The reign of Kaiseress Aure is remembered with mixed feelings in Shireroth; some view her as a well-intentioned reformer, others as inexperienced and insensitive to tradition. An attempt by former citizen and Duke of Hyperborea Philip Locke to rename the University, and then the airport, after her, generated severe argument.
Kaiser Ari i is attempting to bring the old arguments to some sort of closure by offering several avenues of resolution. At the current time, the option of simply leaving the name as it is seems most popular, although there have been proposals to name each part of the airport complex after a different person.
I Demand That I Am Vroomfondel!
Ten points if you get the reference.
At any rate, a new group called BLURB (Big Landgrabbing Underground Resistance of Benacia) has emerged to annex the dormant Goldshire before the YAC gets a chance: read a list of their demands here (look in the posts dated 4/4/05).
