Empire of Sirine

Proletarian Emperor

  The Proletarian Emperor is the head of the government. This position is different than a standard emperor in that it is an elected position, chosen by the populace (the proletariat). The Emperor has limited authority, with most of that authority lying within the area of foreign affairs, although they do have significant emergency powers.

Economic Inquisitor

  The Economic Inquisitor is argued to be more powerful than the Emperor. This person's job is to identify and reduce the wealth gap between the Bourgeoisie. This is to maintain the equal status of all people and prevent the oppression of the proletariat. Another fundamental part of the Inquisitor's job is to hand out stewardships. The wealth gap doesn't crop up too often because people take only what they need and give the surplus to the government to be distributed to those that have insufficient for their needs. The way it works is this. Instead of paying taxes, people in Sirine work to produce the goods of their trades. The people are then able to buy and sell goods between each other. However, any money earned or any goods leftover beyond what is necessary for the person and their family to survive must be given into the Surplus. Those who are struggling to make ends meet either financially or through basic necessities may apply to the Economic Inquisitor for relief. The Economic Inquisitor may make distributions of the Surplus to the poor as they see fit. They may also give back all the people a portion of the Surplus as a stewardship. In fact, what often happens is that the a person presents their property to the Economic Inquisitor, and then the Economic Inquisitor gives it back to them as a stewardship. When a stewardship is given, they are free to use it as they like with the understanding that they will help those in need and that the Economic Inquisitor may call upon the person to use their stewardship to help the poor and those in need. In essence, stewardships allow people to have the benefit of private ownership of property, but imposes on them a duty to help those in need.   The other job of the Economic Inquisitor is to regulate businesses. In Sirine, businesses are not permitted to accumulate profits at the top. When this happens, the Economic Inquisitor is empowered to seize control of the business and turn the business over to the Communist Party.

Chairman of the Communist Party

The Communist Party of Sirine is not really a political party the way we think of them. It is more like a workers' union than anything else. The Communist Party controls most of the businesses in Sirine, at least those that have been seized by the Economic Inquisitor. When the Economic Inquisitor turns over the business to the Communist Party, the Chairman appoints a Party Secretary to run that business in the interests of the workers. Part of the Party Secretary's duties is to make sure that all the workers have a voice in the business and that all workers receive an equal share of the profits of the business. The Party Secretaries are responsible to the Chairman of the Communist Party. If a Party Secretary fails in their responsibilities, the workers may register a complaint with the Chairman, who can remove the Party Secretary and appoint a new one.

Being a communist society, the Empire is influenced by the idea of equality and removing the wealth gap inherent in capitalism. This country is founded on a pure commensal communism.

The Empire of Sirine was originally the Kingdom of Sirine and was ruled by a king. The land was divided among several great families, called the Bourgeoisie or the gentry. The rest of the civilian population of Sirine were tenants of these landowners. The landowners had their own trades, and the tenants worked for the landowner in that trade. Some landowners held many acres of land, while others maintained only a few acres. However, all landowners had at least a few tenants. The king passed laws by "monarchical decrees." Eventually, the business of the landowners became known as "the corporations." The Corporations controlled the aspects of everyday life in Sirine. Eventually, the Corporations became so powerful that they convinced the king to pass a monarchical decree that said

The rights of the individual shall be laid out by the business or profession to which the individual belongs. The State shall do nothing to dictate or interfere with the practitioners’ ability to set rules for its practice.

from Monarchical Decree #427, Issued by King Siegdrund

The monarchical decree did not sit right with the people of Sirine. In particular, Albert Shenkner, a Professor of Law at the University of Thoth was affronted by this decree. He had undertaken a review of the laws of the Kingdom of Sirine, with the goal of creating a comprehensive road map of sorts that laid out the different areas covered by the laws of the Kingdom. The further along he got, the more he wondered if he had made a mistake. He realized that the decrees told a story of the monarchical acquiescence to the true ruling class of Sirine. The monarchy was essentially a puppet controlled by the Corporations in Sirine. Decree #427 effectively spelled the end of monarchical control, as it sold the people to be used as a commodity by the businesses.   Professor Schenkner decided to abandon his project of chronicling the law. It was a useless venture anyway, when compared to what he could be doing. He started scribbling down a few of his thoughts. Over the course of the next few weeks, he would draft a manifesto, calling for reform within Sirine. His finished product wasn’t strictly socialism, as it went farther than socialism. His idea was to remove the class divide entirely and create a single, cohesive community of equals. Community was his main point, so he called his system Commun… -ism.   Once the Manifesto on Communism was published, Professor Shenkner noticed the popularity of his ideas. Among the working class, which he collectively called the Proletariat (the name does not have a specific meaning or origin), his Manifesto was being quoted as scripture. Among the Bourgeoisie, the Manifesto was treated as a personal attack. The king, in response, issued another monarchical decree.

(a) Any person caught with a copy of the Manifesto on Communism shall be decried as a traitor and either confined or put to death, as determined by that person's Corporation.   (b) It is declared that Albert Shenkner is henceforth Public Enemy #1 and a traitor to Sirine. Anyone caught harboring him shall instantly be put to death. -Monarchical Decree #1467, issued by King Marlock

It was obvious to most people that King Marlock issued this decree at the behest of the Corporations. Unfortunately, the decree did nothing to stop the spread of the ideas of Communism. In fact, the Proletariat organized themselves into a party and called themselves the Communist Party. Albert Shenkner was named as the Chairman-in-Exile of the Communist Party. He had returned to the main campus of the University of Thoth. He was safe at the University, as the University was on the Isle of the Gods and was international territory. He sent secret letters to the Communist Party in Sirine and wanted to petition the Bourgeoisie for better treatment.   Eventually, the Communist Party overthrew the puppet king and installed their own ruler: the first Proletarian Emperor. People wanted Shenkner to be the Emporer, but he turned down the position. He only desired to return to Sirine and serve as the Chairman of the Communist Party (no longer the Chairman-in-Exile). The Proletarian Emporer ordered that the Corporations be seized by the government. He turned over control of the Corporations to the Communist Party and Shenkner set up Party Secretaries to administer the Corporations. The Bourgeoisie were permitted to retain their land, but could not control their trades in a manner that resulted in profit accumulation at the top. They received the same wage as everybody else. The Party Secretaries were to ensure of that.   The Proletarian Emperor then set up the Office of the Economic Inquisitor, who was tasked with the management of the Surplus. Every citizen of Sirine is required to contribute to the Surplus, ideally by giving everything that is not needful for their own survival to benefit those who don't have enough on their own. The Economic Inquisitor manages the Surplus and is given authority to make distributions from the Surplus to help those in need. Distributions from the Surplus are called Stewardships. Most people give all that they have to the Surplus and the Economic Inquisitor returns a Stewardship of their property, or as much of their property as the Economic Inquistor believes will meet their needs. The Proletarian Emperor receives a modest Stewardship from the Surplus, as do the Party Secretaries. Party Secretaries are not allowed to pay themselves out of the profits of the trades. The Economic Inquisitor also receives from the Surplus, although the Proletarian Emperor must approve the Stewardship of the Economic Inquisitor.   Eventually, the Party Secretaries gave back control of the old Corporations to the Bourgeoisie. The Economic Inquisitor retained the power to conduct audits on the Corporations. If the Bourgeoisie begin accumulating profits to themselves, the Economic Inquisitor can seize the Corporation at issue and again turn it over to the Communist Party for administration. The Chairman appoints a new Party Secretary, usually a member of the Proletariat who lives on the land of another Corporation.   The Proletarian Emperor ceded authority to the people. Laws are now passed democratically by "popular decree." The Emperor maintains authority to issue monarchical decrees in limited circumstances. The Emperor may also propose popular decrees and call for a vote of the people on the proposed decree. One area in which the Emperor retains power is dealing with foreign affairs, including the power to lay duties. Because of the Surplus, Sirine does not need a system of taxation. Another area the Proletarian Emporer retains authority is over the military, though Sirine does not have a standing army. Anybody considered "active duty" works in their respective trades and must report every six weeks for training exercises, during which time they are excused from trade work. The Emperor can issue a monarchical degree called an "Order of Calling Forth" which, as the name suggests, calls for the Army into full service. The Army is then fully standing until an "Order of Dismissal" is issued. The Navy of Sirine is a standing navy. Active duty navy personnel serve for three month "tours" and then return home until their next tour (which cannot be for at least six months).

Like most of Draconia, The Empire believes in the free exercise of religion. However, the Empire does not grant any religious institution the sovereignty that other nations of Draconia do. Any religion that operates in an organized form within the borders of the Empire must register with the government and may not pay its clergy anything more than a living wage. The Inquisitor is permitted to make inspections into the economic state of any religious organization as it relates to their activities within the Empire and order that funds or other assets be turned over to the government for redistribution. Because of these restrictions, most religions avoid organizing a temple within the borders of the Empire; several of them, including the Coalition of the Sovereign Institutes of Horus, operate an organized temple just outside of the countries borders. The Church of Thoth operates within the Empire, including a campus of the University. Also, the Order of Healers owns a temple hospital within the Empire.

The Empire of Sirine is a founding member of the Draconic Confederacy and serves as a permanent member of the Security Council. It was also the first nation to sign a treaty with the Supreme Republic of Talle that went beyond a trade agreement. The Empire was the first nation to sign an agreement of peace and an agreement of aid with the Supreme Republic.

The Empire of Sirine has mandated education for all children. This education is required to the age of 16 or the racial equivalent and must be done by a state-approved school. There is no option for parents to homeschool children. Parents may send their children to be educated abroad but only with the permission of the Emperor.   Though University of Thoth operates a campus within the Empire, it is highly regulated by the Government. The campus is required to be open-enrollment and admit everybody who wishes to attend so that no person seeking that education feels disadvantaged; in this is a provision that the University may send students from the Empire to another Campus to reduce class size. Also, this does not obligate the University to accept those who are not citizens of the Empire. All curriculum must be submitted to the Emperor for review. Also, magic is not allowed to be taught at the Sirine Campus as magic creates the biggest equality problems. While magic itself is not banned from the Empire, educational institutions are not allowed to teach anything which cannot be reasonably done by all people.