Seoshackdak
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| Flag of Seoshackdak | |
| Motto: "Mula eate fisucta." (Money is for Losers) | |
| No Map Available Yet | |
| Region | Post Pigeon Era |
|---|---|
| Capital | LeMonde |
| Official Language(s) | Lemming and Shackadilian |
| Leader | Ahahahahaha ha ha haaa! Ain't one. |
| Population | Only 256 Humans, Millions of Lemmings |
| Currency | Brick of Cheese |
| NS Sunset XML | |
The nation of Seoshackadak (Located in the Post Pigeon Era) is unique in several ways, the largest being that it is built completely underground. Another interesting fact is that lemmings are seen as equal to humans, and they even have their own language. The architecture is often noted as stunning by tourists. Mostly made out of mudbrick and built into walls and arches, the plazas which make up the cityscape are a marvel to see. Vegetation such as vines often hang off of balconies. Except for a few exceptions, there are no doors (Seoshackadilians believe that doors are a capitalist conspiracy) which give a communal warmth feeling.
An important day for all Seoshackadilians is May Day, when everyone is given the day off for work, and asked to send suggestions for the nation's workers' welfare.
Culture
Nobody in Seoshackadak is rich, and nobody is poor. The population all live in similar homes, generally built above a plaza where the immediate community eats, meets, and bathes.
Clothing is simple and because of farming restrictions underground and the staggering humidity and heat, made completely out of silk or cloth. Because of the difficulty in the manufacture of silk and especially of cloth, the citizens are often encouraged to take especially good care of their clothes, and to try and reduce the wear and tear on their clothing.
Food is served in a communal dinning hall, where typically three or four families gather to eat. Meals are typically the center of the community. If the meal happens to be dinner, afterward the people will move to the plaza and balconies. When everyone has had enough talking, they head for the sauna and then retire to their residences.
Religion
There are three religions in Seoshackadak:
Neogaianism is by far the largest religion. One hundred and seventy-eight (178) people were recorded as belonging to this faith.
Buddhism, the second largest, contains forty-four (44) members.
Islam is the smallest religion in Seoshackadak, containing twenty-three (23) members.
There is also one Lutheran and two Hindus.
The numbers of the members of the previous religions are based upon census data, and are estimates.
Religion and the Government
The government could care less about religion. But since the citizens often try to make a point to cause chaos with it, there has to be a policy. Therefore, as with everything in Seoshackadak, all religions are seen as equal. Hate, it is believed by the population, is a capitalist conspiracy.
Politics and the Government
Politics in Seoshackadak generally lean slightly to the left, maybe farther to the left than usual.
You can view the Constitution of Seoshackadak, as soon as we get one written up.
Political Parties
Political parties essentially dissolved upon the adoption of Neoresseism (Anarcho-Communism), however two parties from the old Socialist Democracy still are explained here.
The National Conservative Front (NCF) is a right-winged group that fights to allow solicitation, minimize government spending, ban lemming rights, promote religion, and abolish taxes. They flag their beliefs in pro-privatization, often considered a dirty word in Seoshackadilian politics. Their minority following hails their movement to maim socialized medicine. Most NCF members believe that Neogaianism is the "devil's plot" as most are non-Neogaianists and non-Buddhists and feel that any religion without a god is not really a religion, rather a cult.
The Seoshackadilian Utopian Union (SUU) is the ruling party, and also the nation's left-wing party. They push for maximum civil rights and total social equality. Generally noted as the "voice of the lemming", they believe that lemmings deserve a place in Seoshackadak. On religion, they promote Neogaianism because they claim it has a positive and optimistic effect on followers. They are for heavy taxes, although they spend it all and more on demographic issues, such as healthcare and education. SUU has done everything they can to crush private industry and promote public control.
National Policies
Military Policy
The military was disbanded shortly after enaction of Neoresseism
A notable part of Seoshackadak is that is has no real military. Instead, they have a defense force, which is a strict militia that is incapable of attacking another nation, both politically and logistically.
Infantry is the only part of the military. Their uniform is simply a black silk sheet worn around the waist (and around the chest for women). They are specially trained in close quarters battle and must have a mental map of the entire tunnel system before being allowed into the elite ranks.
All infantry are reservists. The entire population, however, is taught guerrilla tactics and strategy, just in case an attack does happen.
Economic Policy
All private industry in Seoshackadak is banned. Nobody is allowed to make a profit since it is seen by the majority of the populace as the road to corruption. Capitalism is noted by the population as the ultimate evil. However, there really is no economy in Seoshackadak, instead it is more like a distribution system.
Citizens are encouraged to make what they need, and share it with their neighbors. In Seoshackadak, the families living together in the plaza are called compatrez (from Spanish "compadres" and Russian "comrade"). Compatrez work for the common welfare of the plaza, in which some cook, some clean, some grow food, and ect. Any excess resource made is distributed to those who have a shortage via a marketplace. This is where any scraps or food not used by the compatreces are distributed freely to those who are experiencing shortages, therefore it serves as a public safety-net.
One food source, fish, is treated as exceptionally communal. There is one stream that runs through each plaza. The citizens take what they need (1 fish per person per day), and leave the rest for their fellow citizens.
The environment is considered higher in importance than the economy. Therefore, anything that would deplete the oxygen supply, choke ventilation systems, contaminate water, produce noxious fumes, ect. ect. is not permitted. If anyone is ever caught doing such a thing to the precious environment, they are stripped of their clothes and thrown to the penguins.
Another important rule in Seoshackadak is the Lemming Resource Law which states that lemmings are equal to humans (not property), and therefore illegal to eat and would fall under cannibalism. Any harm done to lemmings would result in punishment equal as if commited against another human. If any lemming was to try to eat a human, they would be arrested and punished in the same way.
Social Policy
Everyone in Seoshackadak is equal and therefore entitled to equal rights, justice, and representation. The government and the society as well as the culture defines "everyone" to mean any race, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, political views, former nationality, age, ect. and this includes all humans and lemmings.
By the government, society, and the culture recognizing this definition of everyone, the govenment, society, and culture recognize and will work to insure that everyone in Seoshackadak is entitled to and achieves the following (In no particular order):
- A home
- Fellow compatrez
- Free speech, religion, yada yada yada.
- Justice
- Tolerance
- Peace
- Healthcare that keeps you alive as long as possible
- Burial or cremation. Body or ashes put where you want them. (When you finally do die)
- Food and Water (As laid out in Clause VIII)
- Employment
- Employment benefits
- National holidays
- International holdiays
- Regional holidays
- Any holidays
- Weekends (Either Sat. and Sun., or Sun. and Wed.)
- No longer than an eight (8) hour workshift.
- Fair and equal treatment
- Employment benefits
Government Type and Style
Seoshackadak has long valued the openness of communal property, but has now begun to engage in a new style, Neoresseism. Other than the economic side, it continues a path of society rule. The best way to put it is this: anarchy that rules over all.
Neoresseism (Anarcho-Communism)
Adopted after the book Who Needs Property? became a hit in Seoshackadak. As the philosophy spread, people began to question the current communal order. A change soon happened.
They basic idea is that government doesn't exist and property is totally communal, in Seoshackadak however, this was taken even further and property was abolished. The "economic" changes in effect made Seoshackadak much like a common market, everything is produced and distributed domestically, any surplus is given to those with a shortage.
At first many thought this would lead to laziness, but that was before they saw what the surplus looked like. It's good enough if you're starving, but you'll work really hard to get anything better. This is because nobody wants to share the cream of the crop and keep the scraps, so the scraps and damaged goods are what become surplus.
The Fall of Seoshackadak
A Deadly Plague
After many years the SeoShackadilian culture suddenly disappeared. However, it’s remains were eventually discovered. Although there was a small amount of inhabitants at the time of rediscovery, most had perished in the years before. According to this surviving minority, SeoShackadilian society was destroyed by an outbreak of a deadly and contagious disease. Because of the close proximity and air ventilation system, the disease spread so fast that most of the population was killed within only a few months. However, those that did survive found themselves in a terrible situation. As the survivors tried to reach the icy surface, the ventilation system was abandoned and stopped working. Many were asphyxiated by the poisonous gases in their rush to the surface. Once the remaining survivors had reached the surface, they still found life to be very difficult. The rich culture had essentially found a dead end.
Because of the harsh conditions associated with survival, several of the survivors grouped together and attempted to escape to a more hospitable land. However, they were never seen again and most believe that they froze to death in the icy conditions of the Antarctic.
A Changing World
After the disappearance of the SeoShackadilian civilization, events above the ground began to change. Shackadak had been conquered by the Imperial Pigeonist Republic (IPR), however in an unusual apocalyptic event, every pigeon on the face of the earth simultaneously and spontaneously combusted, causing huge fires to rage and smoke to fill the sky. Eventually the smoke caused a very short ice age, which caused the collapse of the IPR. Shackadak had again been given its sovereignty.
However a new threat to the small republic in Vanuatu had risen in the IPR’s wake. The Sandwich Kingdom was an aggressive nation under heredity rule known as the Order of the Sandwich Kingdom. Shackadak was going to need to meet the challenges of an increasingly dangerous world.
Rediscovery
Many years after the tragic end to SeoShackadak, world events had begun to change. The Imperial Pigeonist Republic had long since collapsed and been replaced by the Sandwich Kingdom. Where the old nation of Shackadak had been conquered by the Pigeonists, a new government formed from the Red Flag Authority and had taken control of the entire region and expanded to control Indonesia, Southeast Asia, and India. SeoShackadak remained thought of as a myth, although the name was given to the Shackadilian Antarctic territory. At this time, tensions between the Sandwich Kingdom and a revolutionary South Africa had created the need for Shackadilian mobilization. The government recognized Antarctica as an ideal location for several cold-storage bases and vital resource recoveries as well as training camps for the Shackadilian’s Winter Brigade, and therefore the government dispatched several teams to survey the Antarctic.
In an un-expected twist, one team of surveyors searching for iron ore detected a tunnel network beneath the snow. After several days of digging, they found the entrance. Inside they found the ruins of a forgotten civilization, along with a few sickly descendents that had survived the long wait for rescue.
SeoShackadak in the Modern Era
After its rediscovery, the government sent a team of archaeologists and historians to research the lost civilization. Inside they found a rich culture dedicated to art and health (ironically). At the height of its existence, there was an estimated eight thousand citizens. Many researchers also discovered the remains of lemmings, which may have been the cause of the plague. Interestingly, according to SeoShackadilian lore, these lemmings were seen as equals to humanity and were respected as citizens of the nation.
Although SeoShackadak’s discovery is an incredibly exciting find, the Shackadilian government has not opened it up to tourism, and instead has funded the continued research and exploration of it. The only active residents of SeoShackadak are the original inhabitants, who have been given special permission to continue their past culture in the old civilization.
And Now
The strange note was found shortly after the discovery of the subterrainean nation. Few understand the true meaning of it, and believe that it could be a message to resistance forces still fighting the Pigeonist threat.
Spr.ead th,e shir.t wit,h n,o uncert,ain re,ason
Fo,r th,e c.o,m ha,s bee,n sl.ash,ed
Ca,n y,ou sh,op. fo,r any p.osted h.el,lian p.igeons.?
Si.d, th,ere are equal.ly 1.3 pe,ople here o,ver 5.1
.3 of us are de,ad, and the,re isn't a,ny c.om.
Also, the ca.fe has be,en in the pres.s
And the c.om decid,ed to b.urn the bul.l
b,ut the do.g is pl,ural, but h,as no c.om.
