Council Minutes

Session: 1st Council of Modern Era
Date: April 28th, Heisei 16. 7:00 pm.
Members: Maeda Yumi, Nekotani Hiromi, Murimura Yorihisa, Matsushina Norishige, Arai Hinako
Others Present: Kazuko Yamagata (Secretary), King of Swords (Petitioner)

Secretary Report: The minutes from the prior meeting were approved.
Treasurer’s Report: CM. Matsushina reported that funds have dipped below ¥1,000,000 and remains on a glide slope with sufficient to cover the election, stipends for present and future councilmembers, and planned expenses. However, CM. Matsushina cautioned that any new initiatives, and sustainable long term funding, will require a dedicated source of revenue. CM. Nekotani arrived late, presenting a note from her employer explaining that she had mandatory overtime to manage a litter box emergency. CM. Nekotani inquired of CM. Murimura whether more support from Shuffle, Inc. would be forthcoming, CM. Murimura responded by noting the significant in-kind and on-going contributions of his company.

Outreach committee: CM. Murimura announced that the number registered has now more than doubled from the number who participated in the convening assembly. It his hope that total registered voters will reach 30 in time for the election. CM. Matsuhina reported that non-digital outreach was slower going. CM. Nekotani inquired whether it was time to move beyond owl-based methods. CM. Maeda suggested that mistrust, rather than methods, might be the greatest limiter and CM. Nekotani agreed and withdrew her comment.

New Business: Constitutional Proposals by the King of Swords

(Secretary note: While the King of Swords kindly reduced their material considerably from the original proposal, the content of the presentation ran considerably past the planned end time and well beyond the 1 page limit set on these minutes and. Key points and disputes have been highlighted  to the best of my ability. The full proposals were not entered into the records, as KoS believes that detailed proposals, prior to negotiation, are little better than fanfiction.)

• KoS: The Council is too wedded to archaic approaches that were ineffectual even in their heyday. The division by Suits in particular is nonsensical. This fault is compounded by the secrecy surrounding the convening of the first Council and the absence of a written constitution.

• CM. Arai explained her past research that the rites of office are tied to the suits and may not be easily pooled. CM. Norishige concurred suggesting the freedom of our institutional design is not unlimited. KoS retorted that we should not enslave ourselves to Fate or past rituals nor trust in their beneficence.

• KoS: The Council should invest in infrastructure that enables productive Arcana participation in society while maintaining our secrecy. This may involve upfront debt, but can lay the groundwork for shared prosperity.

• CM. Maeda ask whether they consider Shuffle to qualify as infrastructure. KoS calls it a worthy start, but we cannot neglect the physical world. Shuffle also lacks transparency and is entirely dependent on CM. Murimura’s goodwill. CM. Murimura dispute this characterization and describes safeguards in the system.

• KoS: The present Council is too large. Past research has suggested that the cube root of the number of citizens is an appropriate guide to the number of electors. That metric suggests no more than 5 members. Present members should resign their seats and compete.

• CM. Nekotani suggested that this would deprive the Council of what little experience was available. KoS responded that experience is too often a cudgel for the elderly and those in power maintain to keep down rising talent. If any of the Councils experience has value, let them prove it in competition.

• KoS: The Council needs a unitary executive, with key positions chosen by the Voice, once select post-election. When the Council fails to deliver, who are voters to hold accountable? Officeholders may simply point to one another.
• CM: Arai feared that absent a civil service, this would lead to cronyism. The strengths and weaknesses of the Japanese constitutional system and high school student governance were then discussed at length.
• KoS: The greatest concern is not an overweening executive, but one of faction. Groups of Arcana, even a majority, seeking their own interest at the expense of the whole. To say our enemy had been Sho is to overlook the role of the Black Cards that enabled his rise. At present, we face no new Sho, but risks of faction remain very real.

• CM. Matsushina disputed the KoS’s expertise on description of Sho’s rise. This led to heated argument.

The meeting was adjourned at 10:43 pm, without objection from voting members.