Principalities

[Michael Tucker]

Greetings all, from Michael Silverhands:

I've been following the discussions to date, and I must agree with those 
who have commented that, at the very least, the Principality issue has 
sparked a lot of debate - some quite emotional, but most reasoned and 
thought out. I think this is a good thing, regardless of the outcome.

The Barony of the Stargate discussed the issue at last night's 
regularly-scheduled meeting of the populace. Between all the speakers, I 
think a balanced view was heard. There were those that spoke strongly 
and eloquently, both for and against the idea. And there were many more 
who simply had questions that needed to be answered before they would 
feel comfortable in taking a stand.

As an aside, many thanks to my noble cousin Baron Sir Kief av Kiersted, 
who drove down from Ravensfort to attend our meeting and share his 
thoughts with our populace; to Lord Alexis La Bouche, who made a similar 
journey up from Loch Soilleir; and to all the "fossils" [;)] who made 
perhaps a longer journey out of the woodwork to attend the meeting. As 
Kief pointed out, whatever we decide affects us *all*; it's critically 
important that we speak our thoughts to our neighbors, and that we 
listen.

I am writing today mostly in response to a concern expressed by both 
Viscount Sir Galen of Bristol and Sir Kief. They have asked the 
question, "Where did this idea come from? It seems to be an idea forced 
on the populace by our leaders." Sir William of Weir and Duke Hector, 
among others, spoke last night of the many times this idea was raised 
before *by the populace* of various regions of Ansteorra (at least once 
in Oklahoma, and several times in the Stargate area). Each time before, 
"the door was closed" by the rest of the kingdom and its leaders because 
the issue was being raised "for the wrong reasons", or because they felt 
it was "the wrong time". NOW, we have a Crown and a Kingdom Seneschal 
who have said, in effect: "We think this might be the right time, and we 
have heard some good reasons [over the years, or lately] from our 
populace. If you are still interested in creating Principalities in 
Ansteorra, the door is open." They have proposed a way to draw the 
borders, but they have made it clear that nothing is "written in stone" 
at this time, and in fact the last version of the borders I heard (here 
on the net) is very close to a version Sir Kief discussed with me last 
night, and is quite different from the original proposal.

Forgive me, Galen and Kief, but this does not seem to me to be an idea 
being forced down our throats from above. If anything, it seems to be a 
new spin on some old ideas that have been kicking around the kingdom 
almost since we had a kingdom. Whether the proposal has merit, let alone 
the support of the populace, remains to be seen. Each of us will have to 
decide that for ourselves, I think. It may be that, like the times 
before, this proposal will be taken "back to the forge" for some more 
hammering, to be brought out again at some later time. It may be that 
this time the populace will be ready for the idea, and will get behind 
it. Either way, I believe that *nothing* will happen unless *we, the 
people*, make it so. Maybe I'm naive, but I'd rather spend my energy 
considering the proposal on its merits *regardless* of how it came to be 
brought before us at this time, than looking for a conspiracy to explain 
that question.

So, fellow "listeners at the post", I charge you: *listen* to the 
proposal and its pros and cons; *think* about your take on the issues; 
*share* your thoughts with the rest of us (and, especially, the Crown); 
and, when the time comes, *act* on your beliefs, be they for or against. 
By my way of thinking, that is how our society (little 's') was founded, 
and how our Society (big 's') grows.

Thank you for your time, and for considering my words.

I remain yours, in service and in faith,
Michael Tucker / Michael Silverhands, Baron of Stargate, Ansteorra