Brian's comments on naming - my (sort of) rebuttal

Some of your comments I'm totally in line with, only you with your
Colonial
Sympathies (heh) are accusing me of Terra centric thinking. Assume for a
moment the UN current hopeful mode population models for earth are
right.
Assume that we use the little canon data on population to model the
growth
of the colonies. Even assume I throw in all the wee non canon-affecting
powers in. The sum total of the population in space will still be
SIGNIFICANTLY less than the population on Earth. 

The Colonies are important for political reasons, for future
development,
for strategic reasons, and for resources. But EARTH is hugely important
(obviously, its typed in capitals!). It is the cradle of humanity, it
has a
huge (even if the hopeful figures are used - if pop reduction did not
happen, it has a really really huge population), contains most of the
established institutions (with hundreds of years of history) in
politics,
economics, academics, engineering, etc. and it is HQ to most of the
largest
corporate interests in the Human Sphere. This is just based off of
simple
population and history realities. 

Now, do the Colonies matter? Yes. Was establishing a symbolic UK
presence
and a Palace at Albion politically savvy and expedient? Yes. Does it
mean
the Government doesn't still rule from England? Think again. 

Not saying I believe the NAC a likely beast in the first place, but
assuming
we live with that distortion of probability, we can postulate some
things. 

1) Nobles can exist anywhere. They aren't like Feudal Nobles - they
don't
hold absolute power. They probably do exist in the US. Postulate a US
hard
up enough to get the UK to help put them back together - so shaken to
the
core that they can't get their act together themselves and they'd submit
to
the King. In that kind of setting, people (esp maybe those from the
South?)
might well welcome the return of the symbolic (and thats mostly what it
is)
monarch and his peerage. Return of civilization, constancy of the crown
through the millenia, etc. Sure some folk wouldn't like it - but that
would
be like current day UK! I think it quite possible that a peerage could
be
established in the States and Canada. Heck, Conrad Black is fighting for
it!
<in joke for Canadians>

2) The Colonies would be a brilliant place for the peerage - especially
people who gain knighthoods and small estates and title from work
civilizing
the new worlds. Great idea. Increased gene pool for the nobles of the RH
and
NAC to marry too - fewer inbreedings. Though they'll still end up
hearing
German in the court every so often...

3) Between the Royal Colonial Mounted Police (brilliant!) and a peerage,
the
flavour of the Colonies would be very much "new world with old world
backing". This would probably lead to the Colonies being mostly quite
nice
spots - especially the developed worlds like Albion. 

4) As for Latin America, figure it as somewhat similar to Ireland. Sure
there would be some places NAC troops would need riot gear, but if the
elected government included Latinos, and some were given minor peerages,
then you would find the government would probably not have a huge issue
with
being foreign controlled - not because of a lack of national pride, but
because the NAC could very much help bring peace and prosperity to some
troubled areas. Stability and prosperity sell very well in places that
do
not have it. If you can provide it (deliver on your promises - in this
case
backed up by a huge military, economy, and structure of law and
institutions
of same), then you'll win over the people. Sure there will be terrorists
and
independence minded rebels. Welcome to 2183... seems like 1883... 

Off earth, the LLAR may well adopt a new name except we think they keep
the
old one for nostalgia and to allow them to continue their official
policy of
recapturing their lands. If they actually changed names, it would mean
admitting they'd finally lost. 

I really really like Karl-Heinz suggestions about NSL being so named due
to
the city where the League founding negotiations were conducted.
Brilliant.
Makes the regional name less problematic...

Plus, when we talk about the New Yorkshire Confederation, did I miss
something? Isn't East Anglia (or some such) what NAC draws its A from?
Isn't
it already a regionally named entity? And isn't Needham somewhere near
there?

As for the PAU and IF, RH and IC, I think they are well named. The OU
is...
well, the OU. It probably does try to claim any water bearing (ergo life
supporting) rock no one else has... (seems to be OU doctrine). They must
have recruited explorers/claimstakers from the US Patent Office.

The FSE? Well, as the Etats Federal Europa, that's not bad. Don't tell
me
that the French and Italians (and anyone else - Portugese?) in that
association don't consider themselves quintessential Europeans. Probably
the
name, like many such things in our world, hangs on as a vestige of the
past
where the French weren't separating from Europe when the Germans formed
their own league - the Germans were separating from Europe. The French
were
preserving it. Hence the retention of European. Or at least that is one
sort
of passable reasoning. 

Unrelated:

<HUMOR MODE>

Oh, and if you read this Jer, don't bring your katana to GZGECC. 
1) Canadian customs would hassle you coming home. We don't like people
with
weapons that can hurt people in Canada. That's why we cork all of our
forks.

2) I know how good your eyes are... and unless you swing just by sound
you're likely to take down some innocents. I'd have to get Carlos to
sneak
up behind you and bop you on the noggin so we could take it away from
you.
Although, he did tell me about a neat strobing laser he'd played with
that
induced nasea - that would probably do the trick. 

</HUMOR MODE>