Recently I've received several requests from citizens wishing to be named to Guild membership. I've spoken to each to explain briefly my feeling that before taking any such step, we need to determine, as a community, what the Guild is.
Everyone knows that the Artisanal Collective (AC, or, "the Guild") is the third branch of government, established at the original foundation of what was then Neualtenburg. While its purpose and function are briefly described in the Constitution, such purpose and function has been much discussed with little resulting clarity. Section 1 suggests that the purpose of the Guild is to provide revenue, goods and infrastructure for the City. As a Guild, it has hardly done this. While members of the Guild have indeed built the City, they have done so with no functional relationship to Guild purposes.
Here is the complete text:
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[u:2z1njvet][b:2z1njvet]Article II - The Artisanal Branch [/b:2z1njvet][/u:2z1njvet]
[b:2z1njvet]Section 1 - Artisanal Collective [/b:2z1njvet]
The Artisanal Collective (AC) is group of productive citizens
who provide revenue through sales and infrastructure support.
Its governmental role is to act as treasury and its service role
is to provide goods and infrastructure.
[b:2z1njvet]Section 2 - Artisanal Collective Body [/b:2z1njvet]
The AC is open to all participant citizens provided they create goods
and/or services for the city. The collective is a four-tier system of
apprentices, journeymen, masters, and a guild master. Site specific
names may be substituted provided roles remain the same.
[b:2z1njvet]Section 3 - Artisanal Collective Leader [/b:2z1njvet]
Every election cycle the AC leader or guild master is chosen from
the pool of masters. Votes of the masters are weighted by the
size of their workshop. A vote using scores generated
by Borda-count ranked votes are employed.
[b:2z1njvet]Section 4 - Powers of the AC [/b:2z1njvet]
In regards to the Representative branch:
The leader of the AC may veto a revenue bill or resubmit a modified revenue bill for vote.
The leader of the AC can call an emergency session of the Representative branch.
The AC can seek impeachment of members of the Representative branch for failing to act with fiscal responsibility.
The leader of the AC sits as the leader of the Representative branch if the Representative branch seeks to impeach a member of the Philosophic branch.
In regards to Philosophic branch:
The Leader of the AC provides a vote of confidence on candidates to the Philosophic branch. This vote is in regards to their perceived likelihood to uphold the constitution.
The Leader of the AC can seek impeachment of members of the Philosophic branch for failing to uphold the constitution.
The leader of the AC sits as the leader of the Philosophic branch if the Philosophic branch seeks to impeach a member of the Representative branch.
Section 5 - Limitations of the AC
All goods produced by members of the AC remain property of the
citizens and must remain with them if a member departs.
Removal of an artisan of any rank can be achieved with a 2/3 vote
of all members of the AC for any actions which endangers the goods
or infrastructure of the organization.
--------------------- End of Constitutional Text ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The original Guild master was Kendra Bancroft, who held that office even before the Constitution was approved. About a year ago Kendra, wishing to run for a seat in the RA, resigned the Guild master position, because of rules prohibiting simultaneous voting priviledges in two branches of government. Since at this time there were *no* other voting Guild members (they all held positions in other branches of government), Kendra "elected" me as Guild master.
I was a Guild member solely by virtue of my being the Treasurer, which at that time was an entirely undefined and unappointed post. "Its governmental role is to act as treasury"" was the justifying phrase. Indeed, when I had, a year before, proposed that as Treasurer I be accountable to the RA, the measure was passed, and then promptly vetoed by Ulrika (who was, like Kendra, the only voting member of her branch, the Scientific Council).
This utter vagueness regarding the practical function of the Guild caused me to: (1) begin preparation of a proposal that might define a consistent role for it, and (2) suspend any new member appointments until what it was they're being appointed to is defined.
I prepared a proposal which I think I provided a clear function for the Guild in its combined role of "trade union" and governmental authority. It was posted perhaps six months ago. Because it basically recast the Guild as a entity of business owners, it was perceived as altering the original intent of the Guild, and it met little favor.
More recently, considerable alteration has been done to the basic structure of government authority in the Democratic Sims (the CDS). In particular, a new position has been created, the Chancellor. The defined role and function of the Chancellor has clarified responsibilities which were previously assumed to be those of the Guild master, not by specific assignment in the founding documents, but by default. I have enthusiastically welcomed this development. In addition, adoption of the "Treasurer" bill, defining this role as an appointment of the Chancellor, has been a positive step.
The result of these changes has been to leave the governmental function of the Guild, indeed, even the identity of the "Branch" itself, even more murky. In particular, since the Guild has little or no clear function, Section 4 "Powers of the Guild" is especially inappropriate.
Rather than mindlessly appointing citizens to a entity of government which has no logical function, I prefer to offer this matter to the community at large for their discussion and determination regarding its future.
Sudane.....
