ALSO

Name of the fascistesque regime of Great Bight in the North Pacific. Like most things related with Great Bight, what the acronym stood for has never been revealed and remains a mystery. Some suggest it comes from the lingo of the French Pirates, who would often talk in nonsensical sentences interjected with "also". For example,

"Hippos have butts also they are very large even though you shouldn't make fun of them for that because they have poor self esteem and it isn't easy when you're in junior high and everyone makes fun of you for being fat especially when they make fun of the windbreakers you wear because your mom dresses you. Also I have eight arms and so can have a drink and punch seven sailors in the butt at the same time."

Also hello" as spoken by Architeuthis. A member of the ALSO regime would be called an Aussi, which happens to be French for "also".

Heritage

The French link of the ALSO cannot be denied, and has been mentioned numerous times already in this article. The formal name of the North Pacific during this period, "the North Pacific State" is similar to the name of France under the Vichy France regime ("the French State"); the standard of the High Court had a French influence (see below); and the personal standard of Great Bight was a near identical copy of Marshall Petain (of Vichy France)'s.

Executive Order Number One

The ALSO government's main (and only) legal writ of operation was through its Executive Order Number One, a sort of "Civil Code" for the North Pacific.

"To combat terrorism and ensure a more secure North Pacific for its peoples and nations, the charges herein are punishable by various methods of torture, execution, or banishment.

001: Being an enemy of the North Pacific.

002: Engaging in attempts to subvert the government of the North Pacific and the North Pacific State.

003: Belonging to a subversive organization, or being a subscriber to an insurgent methodology.

004: Partaking in an activity that jeopardizes the security of the North Pacific State.

005: Waging war against the North Pacific.

006: Assisting those seeking to do harm to the North Pacific.

007: Being a party to suspicious activities.

008: Residency in the North Pacific with the specific intent of causing terror or disruption of governmental procedure.

009: Collaboration with an enemy of the North Pacific.

010: Surviving execution. Survivors are always to be shot again.

Miscelleanous

The "Number One" implies that there would be more such laws to follow. Among these were Alien and Sedition Act-type bills, and a "Final Solution for the Ninja question". However, the ALSO government was overthrown and fled to Germany before these could be carried out.

Government structure

The government of the North Pacific during this time operated under an executive head, Great Bight, a High Court, and a legislature modeled after the French National Assembly. Members of the Assembly were called deputies and this seemed to be awarded based on loyality. Compared to other dictatorial regimes it seems the National Assembly was intended to have more voice in affairs --but the fierce power of the dictator is apparent in the "Executive Order".

In the ALSO government the head of state (Great Bight) was also the leader of the Assembly, and chief of the High Court. This made Great Bight essentially judge, jury, and executioner. One can see this very clearly in the standard of the High Court, which was also the Premier's standard. It is a tricolor flag cut diagonally, modelled after the French flag, with the blue replaced by black -a symbol of the Black Flag, a common motif among the Aussi. Its seal was a circle cut from a scene of the French Revolution --a platform where one man holds the rope to a guillotine, and another holds up the severed head of (it is assumed) Louis XIV. A clue to the type of justice the High Court intended to uphold.

Ministries

There were other governmental departments under the "Public Opinion and Organization Sector", which appeared to be subordinate to the National Assembly. A public list of the three:

Ministry of External Relations

The MoER was similar to any Foreign Ministry of State Department of a region. The only thing of note was its function as the headquarters of the Foreign Diplomatic Corps, a sort of propoganda brigade to the outside world that never took off.

Ministry of Information

"The Ministry of Information is charged with collecting information for public consumption and highlighting regional guidelines." Retrospectively this would have been called the "Ministry of Propoganda".

Ministry of Internal Policy

The Ministry of Internal Policy was largely responsible for most of the administrative affairs of the region and for the drafting of many of its laws. It was also the headquarters of the Iron Guard, the ALSO's Secret Police group.

There was a fourth ministry rumored to have existed, called the Milice. One guesses it would have been its foreign intelligence and sabotage service. Its headquarters (if it existed) remained secret although various Aussi officials would allude to it in speeches or private correspondence from time to time. If so, it must have been modelled after the real Milice of Vichy France, with the motto: "As long as it carries out the will of the State, it is acting legally." Darnand is said to have managed the Milice.