FreeDemsCon: Speech by Gödafrïeu Válcadác’h

Today, at the Second Annual Convention of Free Democrats, Fiôvân Senator Gödafrïeu Válcadác’h has delivered the first official speech of the event:

Azul, all!

The continued existence of the Kingdom of Talossa is a miracle. How many times it should have died, but was saved from the brink by sheer tenacity - a trait in Ben Madison's very fibre and being which rubbed off on enough people around him to have kept things going in the eleven years (has it been that long?) since he and Amy absconded. 

As for where the FreeDems should 'go' or how they should 'be', I think one direction we can mostly agree on is the supplanting of the 1997 Organic Law in favor of a new constitution. Almost all of the pre-2004 legal rulings on same are gone, and the document itself has been amended so many times as to make it (save for the Rights and Covenants plus a few other things) so unrecognizable from what it was when first enacted almost twenty years ago.

To put it another way, the OrgLaw tries too hard to be a book of by-laws as well as a document establishing a playing field for legality, as I think the constitution of Texas tries to do. Certainly there are laws the changing of which should be treated with kid-gloves, but a novel approach to resolving this issue presents itself.

Have a Constitution. Make it bare-bones. Make it as bare-bones as possible. Then have a set of what I would call 'Great Laws' apart from the Constitution that would be changed/amended in the same way the Constitution itself would be. I would even put into the Great Laws the way we handle our Head of State. In this way, we don't need to tinker with the Constitution when/if the monarchy is dissolved.

The one thing I would have the constitution itself do in very specific terms is the enumeration of rights. I would take time to run through the current Rights and Covenants and figure out what rights are codified and think of anything else that might have been left out. I would look to the constitution of the Republic of Talossa for help, here (as much as Woolley would loathe that, I know).

I would put into the Great Laws the way in which we do the Ziu, Head of State, and the courts. Minor immigration things and other matters can be put into regular statue law. 

With this, we have three categories of Talossan law: the supreme law of the land (Constitution); those laws that will be changed often, but should be done so in the same way the Constitution itself is changed (Great Laws); and all other laws (regular statute law, provincial law, etc.).

A new constitution and the dissolution of the monarchy can and should be seen as two separate questions, and I encourage this Convention and the post-Convention FreeDems to look into all this further.

I should think a Constitutional Convention would take one to two years with the goal of having a document that could last for at least two decades. Talossa has with seismic historical happenings accompanied same with new constitutions. In the light of the Split, Ben-going-bye-bye, and Reunision, let's continue this tradition.

One other thing: on 26 December, the Royal Archives will release the first installment of the Archivist Quarterly. Watch for it!

It was also revealed that other orators at the Convention will include FreeDem member Viteu Marcianüs, editor of ETT Inxheneu Crova and Lüc da Schir, O.Be. of ModRads.

This is a Talossan version of the article translated by Marcel Eðo Pairescu Tafial.
 ConDemLiv: Discuors par Gödafrïeu Válcadác'h

Oxhi, àl Secund Congreßeu Aresc dels Democrätsen Livereschti, el Senator Fiovan Gödafrïeu Válcadác'h tent deliverat el prüm discuors uficial del evint:

"¡Azul à thoct!

L’existençù continuadă del Regipäts Talossan c’e’n miraclă. Çaobén temps ça scuda móartarh, mas füt salvescu del bord par persißapuntità apüc - ün trastour in Ben Donatüs sè fibreu es esteir steçéux qi esrafleva àð aßei xhints circüm o sa qe las cosăs restevent estarh in els ündesch ars (¿tent-ça estescu sa lung?) zespäts q’o es Amadă stenec'hevent. 

Quant à aduve els DemLiv fostadrent 'irh' eda come fossent 'estarh', éu penséu qe viensă zireziun à qet noi povent agreént pümint isch el sufectarh del Legeu Orgänic dallas XVIII cün vfavour à’iensă nouă constituziun. Presta toct i zeciziuns lexhitais avant dallas XXV amistevent, es el documenteu steçéu tent estescu amendat cudiéns sa qe ça isch (franc dels Drepts es las Pactăs plüs aliquinds altrăs cosăs) sa unreconeiçal da qet c’esteva quand qe ça füt enactescu ja presca vaintsch ars.

En refraçind, el Legeu Orgänic atenta tro mült àð estarh ün glhibreu da statuteux es non solămint ün documenteu qe seþa ün xheis·chisat per legalità, come, penséu, la constituziun da Texas en atenta. Certanmint j’ont dals legeux qissen chinxh neceßa ün fineu sentimint, mas ună aproschă níef per resolvarh acest ißü se presenta.

Tent ünă constituziun. En fäts minimalistà. En fäts la phü minimalistà qe c’e pouçival. Aglhorc, tent ünă partidă da legeux q’éu nominadra 'Grülts Legeux' seperats dal Constituziun qe estadrent cambiats/amendats adaiqua la Constituziun steçéă. Éu setadréu misma la façiun in qet noi manipulent noastra Cäps d’Estat in els Grülts Legeux. Com’acest, noi non fossent cufabricarh cün la Constituziun quand/schi la monarc'hà isch zißolvadă.

L’iensă cosă q’éu veladréu qe la Constituziun steçéă en fäts in temens trei specifici isch l’adnumeraziun dels drepts. Él preindadréu el temp per irh trans els Drepts es Pactăs corents es staxarh quáisevois drepts sint codificats es pensarh dað ingenc'hosă d’alter qe fortaßis tent estescu excluçescu. Éu risguardadréu àl constituziun dal Republica Talossan per aßistançéu, aicì (tondavon qe Lupul sa’starh en oda, éu säp).

Éu setadréu la façiun in qet noi façent el Ziu, Cäps d’Estat es els corts in els Grülts Legeux. Dels ribs minors d’inmigraziun es altrăs facendăs povent estarh seteschti in dels statuteux regulaes.  

Cün acest, noi tiennent tres laínăs dels legeux Talossaes: el legeu süprem del päts (Constituziun); acestilor legeux-là qi serent cambiats sovint, mas preferavalmint in la mismă façiun cün qet la Constituziun steçéă isch cambiadă (Grülts Legeux); es toct i altreux legeux (statuteux regulaes, legeux provinciais, etc. etc.).

Üna nouă constituziun es la zißolvaziun dal monarc'hà povent es fostadrent estarh videschti come două fragăs seperadăs, es éu encoraxhéu qe acest Congreßeu es els DemLiv osprei el Congreßeu rescherschent acest piusutra.

Éu fostadréu pensarh qe ün Congreßeu Constituziunal preinda fortaßis viens eda doua ars cün el goal da tirh ün documenteu qe povadra lastarh à mhíus per doua décadis. Talossa tent acompagnhat dels evints þistorici teramoziunais cün nouăs constituziuns. In la vistă dal Ziviçaziun, Ben sè quarfarh es la Reuniziun, qe noi continuadrent acestă tradiziun.

Viensă altră cosă: à li 26. Zecemvar, els Müstairs Rexhitaes relascharhent el prüm instalmint del Müstairistà Quartal. ¡Miretz per acest!"

Ocsà c’esteva revelat qe altreux orateirs includarhent els DemLiv sè membreu Viteu Marcianüs, el editeir de ETT Inxheneu Crova es Lüc da Schir, O.Be. dels Laits Radicais.