Democratic Kakistocracy of Buncombe
| Democratic Kakistocracy of Buncombe |
|---|
|
| Democratic Kakistocracy |
| TL 6 |
| Small Empire |
| Player |
| None listed |
| Allies |
| Enemies |
| Notable People |
| Chief Citizen Arnold Kirkson
Minister of Defense Hiram O'Angus |
Political Structure
 |
|
 |
The planet of Buncombe, located in a middle-outer solar system of the Brikverse (although the Buncombians like to think of themselves as outer-middle), has for the past few centuries been united under the three-fold principles of Liberty, Fraternity, and Equality embodied in the Democratic Kakistocracy. Because of the incentive structure created by the democratic process, the very worst persons (although the best politicians) always rise to power. Buncombe is governed by a parliament, currently with 837 members, and a separately elected executive, the Chief Citizen.
The current Chief Citizen is Arnold Kirkson, a hard-blank-area-between-the-eyes-and-above-the-mouth politician famous for his rousing speeches and hopes of inter-galactic fame and glory.
The most important members of his cabinet: on the left, Hiram O'Angus, the Minister of Defense, and the Sullivan Buckborne, the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Lasting power however, lies with the various special-interest groups who are in the advantageous position of having the politicians curry their favor behind the scenes in exchange for campaign donations. These special-interest groups are led by a shadowy group of businessmen and union bosses. Few are aware of who they are, although their names occasionally appear on foreign spies’ reports and tax returns.
As far as foreign politics are concerned, there are two most important groups. The first is the Armament Deterrent Manufacturing Conglomerate (ADMC), headed (nominally at least, until he falls into disfavor with either the public or “the committee”) by Thyssen Krupp.
Shown here with the director of R&D at ADMC, Adolfstein VonRindindorff
The second group is the Forceful Disincentive Systems Operators Union (FDSOU) [i.e. the soldiers union] headed (also nominally, until she falls into disfavor with either the public or “the other committee” which some suspect to be the same as “the committee,” although they are mere rumors and have never been confirmed) by Helen Nestor.
Military
To distract attention from domestic issues and to increase the prestige of the government (and also to prop up the armaments industry and provide employment for the “forceful disincentive systems operators”), the DKB has recently began an aggressive program of colonization and expansion beyond their own star system, having previously established colonies on several planets within their system. To support these new colonies and enable further territorial expansion, the Buncombian military has been enlarged and has undergone several phases of reorganization. The result of these actions is the Buncombian military as it stands today.
Completely Autonomous Though not very Helpful Ordinance DElivery Systems. CATHODES
When these were originally introduced, there was immense resistance from the FDSOU who were worried that if the production of dead enemies was automated, they would become unemployed. After much political wrangling, (read: the ADMC and the FDSOU both giving loads of money to politicians) a compromise was reached where the ADMC would make the robots unintelligent and destructible enough that the soldier’s jobs would not be in danger. This had the added benefit for the ADMC that the military would need more of an easily destroyed robot than a sturdy one.
