Recently, a stone vignette was discovered in the Medici Principality and subsequently translated, providing distinct insight into the governing system of the ancient Lootians of that realm. Additionally, similar text was previously found on the walls of a building that once housed Arindal’s uni-realm parliament located in Quadrant L0042, also known as the People’s District.
Throughout the centuries, Arindal (previously called Arcadia) had suffered from corrupt governance, as recounted in these stories. However, General Drew presented a solution to this longstanding issue through his acclaimed organizational theories outlined in his Book of Governance. According to his theory, conscious beings form hierarchies through societal competition, resulting in powerful Lootians at the top and impoverished ones at the bottom, which can lead to totalitarianism. To prevent this, the first tenet emphasized the critical implementation of free speech, enabling discourse to flow between the haves and have-nots. The second principle introduced a law of weight to enforce and codify the passing of societal laws, balancing out injustices between social classes.
The Book of Governance defined the framework of societal decision-making:
[1] There were four main entities: the cabinet, the upper house, the lower house, and the council. To get a seat in any of them, a Lootian had to purchase it. This meant that the governing decisions were made by those who had the means to do so. However, the councilors’ seats were very cheap and were accessible to those who didn’t have a lot of money.
[2] The population of Arindal (then Arcadia) was divided into social classes, with the upper class having the most power and influence while the lower class had the least. Thus, to provide equality, in order to pass any motion, more than 25% of the population had to vote for it in the first round. Then, in the second round of voting, the motion needed to receive more than 50% of the cumulative voting weight to pass.
[3] Each voting member was assigned a weight to their vote in the second round, with the cabinet’s vote being the most valuable, worth 100 times, followed by the upper house’s vote, worth 30 times, and the lower house’s vote, worth 10 times. The councilors’ vote was the least valuable, worth only one.
[4] The Book of Governance included a very strict rule which stated that any individual found guilty of bribing, paying off, or influencing another Lootian’s vote would be put to death. This rule was put in place to prevent corruption and maintain justice in the realms. We will release more information we have transcribed from the surrounding stone vignettes shortly.
