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Old 09-15-2018, 11:28 AM   #471
whswhs
 
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Default Re: Exotic Governmental/Legal Systems

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That would mean either A) it cannot expand beyond a certain point, B)everyone in the places it expands to remains a helot or C) expansion is limited to clientage and/or influence. Or D) it evolves into an Imperium. All of these have actual historical precedent, enough to make a plausible game.
Consider, for example, that the formal legal definition of a "cardinal" is a priest of a church in the Holy See, that is, the diocese whose bishop is the Pope. In practice cardinals mostly hold senior posts in churches elsewhere in the world, but that doesn't entitle them to vote for the Pope. It's as if Congress (a) acted as the city council of Washington, DC and (b) in that role, elected the president.
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Old 09-16-2018, 01:02 AM   #472
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A democracy, but one with a state religion which is in charge of administering the criminal justice and penal system.
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Old 09-21-2018, 11:30 AM   #473
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A combined dynastic/electitive monarchy where each royal family gets three generations before passing the baton. To gain the crown it is required to charter family possessions (ships, estates, castles, whatever) to the state which in turn uses them or rents them out. They are allowed a privy purse of course, and when their possessions revert back to them on leaving the throne they get interest on any profits made with their possessions as if it had been a commercial loan.
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Old 09-21-2018, 01:11 PM   #474
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Default Re: Exotic Governmental/Legal Systems

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A combined dynastic/electitive monarchy where each royal family gets three generations before passing the baton.
Problems I can see straight away:

It should be three reigns, not three generations. If someone has no children, and a sibling inherits, that should not let the family get an extra reign because they're the same generation.

What if no family wants to take up the role? A ruling monarch can do a lot to discourage any other family from wanting it?

It seems likely, in the end, to settle into a duopoly, where two "families" that are closely interconnected alternate being royal.
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Old 09-21-2018, 02:38 PM   #475
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Problems I can see straight away:

It should be three reigns, not three generations. If someone has no children, and a sibling inherits, that should not let the family get an extra reign because they're the same generation.

What if no family wants to take up the role? A ruling monarch can do a lot to discourage any other family from wanting it?

It seems likely, in the end, to settle into a duopoly, where two "families" that are closely interconnected alternate being royal.
Actually three reigns is a good idea.

Possibly though a family can be drafted. It is likely that the crown in this society is not the chief passport to power, and comes with so many difficulties that it is in some ways a way to keep dangerous families quiet for a while. The requirement to loan the family assets to the state is part of that.
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Old 09-21-2018, 03:46 PM   #476
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It seems likely, in the end, to settle into a duopoly, where two "families" that are closely interconnected alternate being royal.
Actually I expect goes the way of most schemes like this - when the time comes for power to be handed over the king changes the rules. Exactly how many presidents have we seen have their national constitutions rewritten when this sort of thing comes up.

The trick to making these things work is to make sure that power is divided up enough that at the moment any given figure is being forced to step down, there are others who aren't being asked to quit. This gives them a vested interest in not having a revolution right now. Sure abolishing the term limits rules might keep me in office forever too, but if we let the king starts changing the rules, what stops him from changing them so my office is totally powerless?
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Old 09-21-2018, 04:34 PM   #477
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Default Re: Exotic Governmental/Legal Systems

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The trick to making these things work is to make sure that power is divided up enough that at the moment any given figure is being forced to step down, there are others who aren't being asked to quit.
It also helps if terms are shorter. Three generations is plenty of time to conclude "This is mine by right", most systems for turnover of government operate on a time frame of single digit years.
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Old 09-22-2018, 10:56 PM   #478
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A democratic republic, but one with a state religion, which is in charge of the criminal justice system. The highest religious official is appointed for life but can be impeached for malfeasance by the legislature.
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Old 09-23-2018, 07:32 AM   #479
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A democratic republic, but one with a state religion, which is in charge of the criminal justice system. The highest religious official is appointed for life but can be impeached for malfeasance by the legislature.
How is that exotic? Seems fairly standard these days, other than formally labeling a political para-religion (usually something like "National Patriotism" or in this case sometimes "Rule of Law") as a state religion.
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Old 10-09-2018, 11:59 AM   #480
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How is that exotic? Seems fairly standard these days, other than formally labeling a political para-religion (usually something like "National Patriotism" or in this case sometimes "Rule of Law") as a state religion.
I think he had in mind something more like a better organized Ummah, or a republican Khalistan. Or some Hasidic neighborhoods writ large. Or like Amish on a large scale.
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