Newmanistan
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| Flag of Newmanistan | |
| Motto: "Play hard or don't play at all!" | |
| [ ] | |
| Region | One Big Island |
|---|---|
| Capital | Pocono City |
| Official Language(s) | English |
| Leader | Empress Jessica |
| Population | 5.95 Billion |
| Currency | gold coin |
| NS NSTracker Sunset XML | |
Contents |
History: The Birth of an Empire
On February 17, 1836, the land you know today as Newmanistan declared its independence from the Brighton Empire, a powerful entity in South Terra of a region known as One Big Island. The forces were led by one Justin Newman, a 37-year old visionary, who wanted the the Southern part of the Brighton Empire to become an independent country. The Brighton forces knew they would be in for a long drawn out fight with the rebels if they wished to squash to attempt, so they then arrange for a peaceful handover of the land. Newman immediately declared the name of the nation to be "Newmanistan", or the land of Newman.
What those fighting with Newman may not have understood right away, was that Justin was really just in it for himself. While there were many who wanted to set up a democratic form of government. So even though the country was free of the Brighton influence, there would still be a war to fight, between a group of democratic fighters, who set up a home base in the northeast city of Loudon, and those remaining loyal to Newman. Justin would set up his base as far as away as he possibly could, in the Southeast corner of the nation in along the shores of both the Gulf of South Thumbria and the Penthoria River, in a city that he would refer to as "Pocono City". Newman's forces were had the greater funds available to them, as well as some support from the Brighton Empire. With that, a massive castle was created in Pocono City, which to do this day still serves as the Royal Palace. Obviously, with much renovation. The war was fought, until on October 21st, 1839, the democratic forces waved the white flag of surrender. On that day it became official. Newmanistan would be an imperial nation. Justin Newman was now Emperor Justin I, and Pocono City was declared the Capital of the Empire.
Timeline of leaders
1836-1868: Emperor Justin I (died of natural causes)
1869-1877: Emperor Jerome I (son of Justin, assassinated)
1878-1889: Emperor Justin II (son of Justin I, died of natural causes)
1890-1922: Emperor Michael I (son of Justin II, resigned from throne at 85)
1923-1945: Emperor Michael II (son of Michael I, died of natural causes)
1946-1948: Emperor Justin III (son on Michael II, assassinated)
1949-1951: Emperor Russell I (son of Michael II, died of natural causes)
1952-1957: Empress Megan I (daughter of Michael II, died of natural causes)
1958-1959: Emperor Jerome II (son of Russell I, shot by Emperor Justin IV, a son of Megan I in dispute over rightful heir)
1960-1961: Emperor Justin IV (son of Megan I, forced to resign due to above)
1962-1983: Emperor Andrew I (son of Russell I, died of natural causes
1984-2004: Emperor Michael III (son of Andrew I, died of natural causes)
2005-present: Empress Jessica I (daughter of Michael III)
Economic Growth
Even though Emperor Justin I had a lust for power, he did seem to have a genuine interest in his people. In fact, Justin I seemed to take motivation to the criticism of others who looked at the Imperial system of leadership in a negative light. He found it important to establish trade relations not only with the Brighton Empire and nations within One Big Island, but also around the world. It did not take long for Newmanistan to become recognized as the leader within the region at establishing these out of the region relations. The Empire was blessed with several resources, but most importantly, oil in the Southport region. Also rubber was a big deal but its potential not quite reached yet.
A) Location, location, location- This truly was of benefit to Newmanistan for several different reasons, but the primary factor is the Gulf of South Thumbria which serves as the Southern Border of the Empire and separates two of the regions other superior powers: Larryia and the Brighton Empire/Kiermark area of One Big Island. Additionally, for those nations to have had any trade with one another, they would have to also pass through the Penthoria River, a body of water to Newmanistan's east that serves as the border between Newmanistan and Secristan.
B) Relationship with Secristan- Although there are several differences that exist now between the two nations, Emperor Justin I realized that a friendly relationship with Secristan could be very beneficial to the economic success of both nations due to their ability to control the Penthoria River, which as mentioned, is a critical waterway in the region. Due to this, the nations set up a taxation system for use of the waterway that would see a 50-50 split. The effect was that both Newmanistan and Secristan brought in huge amounts of money from the, at the time, more powerful nations in the region which was used to benefit the infrastructure of their respective lands. This was done without even needing to trade oil.
C) Automobile Industry- The Automobile industry was the clincher to establishing the Empire as a regional powerhouse. The combination of its own bountiful resources of oil and rubber led the Empire to become one of the world's top tire exporters. Furthermore, factories were established all over the country for Automobile production, and the ease of having all the important resources already in its possession, Newmanistan was the undisputed leader in the region. The demand for cars were increasing, and this created the opening of more factories, more distribution centers, and ultimately more jobs, and more wealth into the Newmanistanian economy. Emperor Michael I was an avid lover of the automobile and wanted the Empire to produce the fastest moving cars of anyone. So the research for this began. Emperor Michael I saw to it that facilities for racing the automobiles were created all throughout the Empire for the lust of speed. Many fast vehicles became tested and soon enough our automobiles were referred to as "Rockets" due to their amazing speed. Emperor Michael I saw this as a tremendous compliment, and the "Rocket" moniker began to find itself in just about every aspect of Newmanistanian life. It should be as no surprise then, that the current national team in all sports is referred to by this nickname as it played a big role in the growth of the Empire.
War
Newmanistan keeps out of other people's business. The philosophy of the Empire has been "if they don't bother us, we won't bother them', and likewise respects that nations involved in combat with one another respect the neutrality of the country. It has not been uncommon for other nations within the region to be at conflict while the daily lives of the common Newmanistanian citizen were completely unaffected. So why does the Empire decide to remain neutral unless provoked? National security is the obvious reason, but also because the Empire wishes to maintain strong relations with all countries, and that taking sides in a war will make that not happen.
That said, do not look at Newmanistan is being a pushover with a weak military. The frequent WA rankings that come out that order the military power of nations within the region consistently rank Newmanistan within the top 20 in the region that generally averages 75-80 nations. Therefore nations involved in a war realize that they should not "pick a fight" with Newmanistan and respect their neutrality. Also, they know that Newmanistan has a strong relationship with Brightonburg, the #1 military power in the region as well as many others that exist in the top ten. The military is used to guard the borders, and to assist police within the country for the most part to maintain law and order in the streets whenever necessary.
Unfortunately, it is not possible for the nation to remain neutral in every conflict, and there have been times in which Newmanistan has had to enter a state of war. The most recent conflict was one that lasted about two months with a Tristars land, that at the time existed to the Northwest of the Empire. The Tristars people often found themselves in the Olympia region and caused disturbances there, but when they were found sending spies into the Empire, tensions built. They were unable to negotiate and decided they would attack. This was a mistake. Their small country was in no way able to seriously threaten the Newmanistanian Empire, and after about 45 days of bombing their country off the map (they no longer exist), they stubbornly decided to surrender. More recently, Newmanistan had a significant diplomatic dispute with another regional power, Larryia, concerning the rightful ownership of a large oil field off the islands to the southwest of Southport. It was the kind of dispute that on many occasions could have led to a nasty conflict. Empress Jessica and the Larryian leadership understood though that war should be an absolute last resort, with some other regional nations beginning to wonder which side they should take if a conflict were to break out, Newmanistan and Larryia resolved the dispute diplomatically. After realizing that both had a case for the ownership of the oil field, they agreed to operate it on a mutual basis, dividing it into two equal sections.
A recent conflict broke out to the northwest of Newmanistan in a nation known as Mordavia at the time. Brian Nicholls, a once respected member of the Newmanistanian army led a group of rebel forces and took over the nation and declared it to be West Newmanistan. The ironic part of all this is that it was done in the name of democracy. Because of this, Nicholls was very careful to appear as though he was not hurting anyone. The former Mordavia land was an unorganized nation that needed leadership, and Nicholls simply said that he wanted to help these people. The Mordavian citizens, for the most part, knew their country needed leadership and there was little objection to Nicholls. Those who did tended to "disappear". Nicholls was hoping to provoke Empress Jessica and Newmanistan into a long drawn out war, and ordered acts of terrorism within his country in which he would claim was ordered by the Empress. The Empress was finally provoked into action when Nicholls took it to the borders of the Empire, blowing up a federal building in the city of Hastings. It wasn't an intense war, but there was fighting and eventually a cease-fire. Despite his efforts to portray Empress Jessica as a ruthless leader, her composure in the situation was impressive. The nations have agreed now to be peaceful with one another although there had been rumors that the Empress was planning to annex West Newmanistan. This has not happened, and it not happening played a significant part of the eventual peace agreement. West Newmanistan was allowed to be an independent country under the condition that Nicholls held an election for the Presidency with six months.
Modern Day Newmanistan
Today, Newmanistan is an economically powerful nation. In fact, the World Assembly considers the economy to be so good, it’s “frightening”. Taking credit for this is the belief that Newmanistan can never stop growing, never stop finding new world trade partners, and doing whatever it takes to get the name of the nation to be well known throughout the World. Empress Jessica gets credit for keeping the Empire up to speed with current trends. The Empire continues to be well known for it’s Automobile Industry. While the economy is great, here is how the Empire stacks up in other areas.
A) Law & Order- The Empire maintains a very strong police force, and the police get support from the military when needed. Therefore, citizens are best advised to be law abiding citizens, and for the most part they are. The World Assembly gives a lot of credit to Newmanistanian law enforcement with their statement that crime in the Empire is “totally unknown”. That’s a nice compliment, and while we can’t claim that every single person is a law abiding citizen, our people are confident that those who elected to commit crime will be quickly apprehended. Once apprehended, the courts are very strict and punishments that are issued here are likely seen as extreme in many other places in the world, especially democratic nations or one’s that value rights of criminals.
B) Religion- Newmanistan is tolerant of all religions, and people have the right to worship (or not to) in whatever manner they choose. However, a tax was recently approved on those who declare themselves as having no religion under the belief that they are more likely to commit crime. Proceeds from that tax go directly to law enforcement agencies. The majority of Newmanistanians are Roman Catholics, and they are very devout. The World Assembly consistently ranks Newmanistan as a top three nation in “Most Devout” categories.
C) Ethnicity- The majority of Newmanistanians are Caucasian. However, the Empire is tolerant openly welcomes people of all races and ethnic background, and it is illegal for there to be any kind of racial discrimination in Newmanistan. The most recent census figures had 66% of the population listing themselves as Caucasian, with “African” second at 14%, “Hispanic” at 10%, “Oriental/Han” at 8%, and the other 2% categorizing themselves as “other”.
D) Education- Public Education is free and available to all citizens. Kids generally enter the system at age 5, when they are placed in 1st Grade (there is no “kindergarten”). There are four school systems: Elementary School (1st-3rd Grade), Primary School (4th & 5th Grade), Middle School (6th- 8th Grade) and High School (9th-12th Grade). The School Year is a year-round affair, ending on December 31st and the next one beginning on January 1st, though there is an allotment for holidays, with each school allowed to have four additional “weeks off” that they can place in their school calendar wherever they like. Parents can also enroll their kids in private schools, but they also operate under the same above criteria. Schooldays are seven hours long, beginning at 9:30 am and ending at 4:30 pm. Teachers are also tested for competence at the end of every year and held to strict performance standards. There is no such thing as “tenure” for teachers in Newmanistan. Parents can opt to home school, but they must pass the same competency tests as teachers in order to do so.
E) Higher Education- The Empire values the importance of getting a Higher Education, and as such there are many Empire-funded institutions throughout the country. These are typically the most affordable for the common citizen. There are also Private Colleges, which outnumber Empire-funded schools by about a 2:1 margin. These schools cost much more, though there are scholarships out there that can be awarded. The Empire does not issue grants for students to attend a Private College, but will for a Public University. There are no Junior Colleges in the customary sense of the word, but those not ready for College, or unable to afford it can attend what it is referred to as “After High School”, essentially called 13th-16th grade. This is funded, entirely, by the Empire, and costs nothing to the students. They will get a further education, but one that is not as good as going to College. Still, students are much better off going through After High then not bothering at all. One must maintain a minimum grade point average to remain in After High, and there are also strict codes of conduct. After High is, after all, a privilege, and not a right.
F) Healthcare- Empire funded healthcare is available to all. No exceptions, no strings attached.
G) Sports- Sports are big in Newmanistan. Auto Racing and Lacrosse are the most popular sports in the Empire, but the sporting passions of the people are in no way limited to them. Also very popular are Baseball, Hockey, Both Footballs (“American” and “Soccer”), and Basketball. Also, the Empire seems to have a strong love for Horse Racing. If it’s a known sport, chances are that there is a strong niche following for it somewhere in Newmanistan. Hockey is the sport of choice in terms of collegiate sports, with basketball a close second. In high school, the sports that give one the biggest “popularity status” are lacrosse and both footballs; and of course, Cheerleading if your female. At the high school level, cheerleaders do their thing in Lacrosse, American Football, and Hockey. At the professional level, Lacrosse, American Football, Hockey, and Basketball have them. Newmanistan Sports
H) Culture- Newmanistan is a modern-day Empire which often is a follower to trends in terms of clothing style or other aspects of life. It is a high-tech nation, though most of its main technological companies are actually foreign.
I) National Holidays: The following is a list of national holidays in which the Empire “shuts down”, so to speak.
January 1- New Year’s Day
January 30- Emperor Justin I Birthday
February 17- Independence Day
Late March/Early April- Easter
April 14- Labor Day: No is allowed to work, with the exception of Police, Firefighters, and Hospital Staff. And they are to receive 10-times their normal pay for the day. Any other business found open faces a fine of anywhere between one million and one billion gold coins. Observed on a Monday if it falls on a weekend.
May (1st Sunday)- Mother’s Day
May (2nd Sunday)- Father’s Day
May (3rd Sunday)- Senior Citizen Day (60 and up)
June (2nd Sunday)- Pocono City Day; Schools off Monday
August (1st Sunday)- Racing Day; Schools off Monday
August 8- Ocho de Ocho (Party day: Think Mardi Gras)
August 21- Lover’s Day (Like Valentine’s Day)
September 11- Memorial Day
October 21- “Victory” Day (day of surrender of Democratic forces in 1839)
November (last Thursday)- Thanksgiving
December 14- Empress Jessica Birthday
December 25- Christmas
Cities
According to the recent census, Newmanistan has a population of 6.077 Billion. Here is a breakdown of the top 20 most populous cities (includes the entire Metro areas of these cities) within the Empire:
1) Pocono City 277.3 Million
2) Loudon 155.2 Million
3) Dover City 76.0 Million
4) Olympia 72.5 Million
5) Tundra Falls 71.7 Million
6) Southport 66.0 Million
7) Springfield 58.1 Million
8) Centralia 53.9 Million
9) Hastings 46.7 Million
10) Hampton 44.2 Million
11) Putnam Lake 37.5 Million
12) South Tier 37.4 Million
13) Fairfield City 30.8 Million
14) Seminole Bay 30.5 Million
15) Rushville 28.7 Million
16) Riverside 28.2 Million
17) Daytopia 28.0 Million
18) South Charlotte 26.9 Million
19) Pittstown 23.6 Million
20) West Penthoria 21.4 Million
