Edonia Part 1 - Political System

Your beloved Emperor apologizes for not writing for so long. Dismayed by the lapse of his Realm into socialism at the hands of the Order of the Donkeys, your Emperor decided to take a trip abroad to clear his mind. With no direction or plan in mind, your Emperor wandered into the beautiful land of Edonia. It is a land hidden away from the rest of the world and cannot be found via travel agencies or maps. One must seek it through spiritual means. It is a land populated by a content people who are strong in spirit and prosperous in their ways. Rich in resources, they are self sufficient, and live their lives in freedom and prosperity.

Arriving by chance in their mystical land, I engaged many of the citizens in discussions about the nation and their way of life. I first inquired about their political system and how they seemed to be so stable and content. I learned that their political system was similar to ours with a two party system and three branches of government. However, they had found a way to remove much of the corruption and mismanagement so endemic to our own system through the careful crafting of rules governing their political system.

First, they established a rule that prohibited anyone under the age of 45 from serving in public office. The intent was to ensure that all political leaders had lived at length as private citizens in some capacity prior to becoming politicians. This avoids much of the problems associated with politicians who take office with no practical experience in anything other than getting elected. Edonian politicians must live and prosper under the rules of society before they can serve in a capacity to that allows them to make rules themselves. This ensures they understand how well intentioned laws and regulations can adversely affect daily life before they impose them on others.

Second, candidates for public office can only take donations from individuals and the amount is capped at the equivalent of $200 per individual. All donors must be publicly identified. No organizations or businesses can donate to any political candidate. Any unused funds after the election is over must be turned over to the state.

Third, no candidate can use personal funds for their own campaign. All campaign funds must be raised from individual donors. This prevents the rich from buying an election.

Fourth, no politician or group of politicians can impose any law or regulation on anyone that they themselves are not subject to.

These four simple rules have created a very healthy political system that produces candidates who are truly representatives of the people. Most of the candidates are from the middle class and when they are finished with their political careers they return to the middle class. Your Emperor sees much wisdom in the Edonian political system. It is designed to produce elected leaders who want to help the people instead of leaders who wish to help themselves to the peoples wealth.