Re: [GZG] UNSC Workings

   I would expect that the UN has a generally good relationship with
private military contractors.  So long as they retain good legal
standing, the UN would occasionally contract out such groups to serve as
additional UN ground forces in places where the UN can not easily
maintain their own forces.  In addition, the UNSC would serve as a
deterrent to such forces taking over a planet on their own *and* as an
enforcement structure so that the mercenaries' contracts are properly
enacted by both sides.

-----Original Message-----
From: gzg-l-bounces@vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu
[mailto:gzg-l-bounces@vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu] On Behalf Of Eli Arndt
Sent: Friday, December 12, 2008 12:32 PM
To: gzg-l@vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu
Subject: Re: [GZG] UNSC Workings

That's a pretty cool background. It seems like a pretty reasonable setup
and 
seems to paint a pretty good way to manage the UNSC in the GZG universe.

PMCs could then be regulated by the UNSC, though it would also be 
interesting to borrow Gundam's idea of a PMC Trust as the mercenaries'
own 
governing body used "internally" and seperate from the UNSC.

Perhaps the PMC Trust is the central organization for mercenary
contracts 
and contacts and provides a single point of contact between mercenary 
"industry" concerns and policies and the UNSC. This way the UNSC doesn't

have to try and track down and make direct contact with every merc' unit

that is out there. They can put that task in the hands of the PMC Trust
and 
thus not have to commit their own resources. The UNSC might even have a
seet 
on the PMC Trust.

-Eli

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Ladue, Grant" <ladue@buffalo.edu>
To: <gzg-l@vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu>
Sent: Friday, December 12, 2008 8:30 AM
Subject: Re: [GZG] UNSC Workings

>
>  UNSC was what got me into FT.  I came on board just as the UNSC
"rules" 
> were posted, so that's where I went.	I always pictured the UN thusly:
>
>  The UN was generally marginalized as many smaller countries were
absorbed 
> into the larger "powers".  Still, the UN persisted as a diplomatic
entity 
> to facilitate discussion and mediate disputes.  Indeed, any number of 
> countries that wished to remain outside the major powers chose to ally

> themselves more closely to the UN as a means of remaining independent.
 As 
> humanity spread, the core worlds systems were colonized
multi-nationally. 
> Soon it became obvious that a "neutral" force was needed to police
these 
> systems as conflict and disagreement between the powers led to spotty 
> policing at best.  This would prove to be the foundation of an
independent 
> UN and UNSC.	Early on, UNSC forces used castoff older ships, crewed
by 
> whomever the member nations would lend out.  These forces proved
woefully 
> inadequate to prevent combat within the Core systems during several 
> smaller conflicts which led to a call from a truly independent UNSC. 
This 
> call was answered after the considerable damage done throughout the
Core 
> systems in the First Solar War.
> Even the largest powers were forced to go along with an enlarged UNSC
in 
> order to protect their home countries and important colonies from
assault 
> from their nearest neighbors.
>   The increased role of the UN allowed several things to occur. 
First, 
> the independent countries were allowed to declare themselves as
formally 
> under UN protection and to provide money to facilitate that
protection. 
> Secondly, the UN was authorized to raise money by taxing the core
worlds 
> and any independent colonies.  Finally, a "UN citizenship" was created

> which allowed anyone to renounce their own citizenship and coming a 
> citizen of the UN.  This had an unexpected result, as there were a
vast 
> number on private space habitats (corporate, splinter groups, or 
> multinationals), which had not enjoyed the uncomfortable position of
being 
> unprotected during wartime.  Within a few years, most of these
habitats 
> were UN protectorates, and their populations were largely formal UN 
> citizens.  Indeed, large swaths of the moon, the Langrage point
habitats, 
> and the Mars Orbital habitats were now under direct UN control. 
> Similarly, disaffected populations within the major powers provided
large 
> numbers of UN citizens, and the independent countries on Earth grew 
> increasingly close to the UN.
>   With the newfound income streams, and a growing population base, the
UN 
> began to build the UNSC to enforce its mandate.  Initially relying on 
> borrowed designs and crews, the UNSC (and its associated ground
forces) 
> slowly began to move to being made up entirely of UN citizens.  This 
> movement was hastened by several incidents of lent crews "borrowing"
UN 
> technology for their natural countries.  The UNSC recognized that they
did 
> not have the population base for a combat force as large as the great 
> powers.  Fortunately, any numbers of the protectorates were advanced 
> research labs and the space habitats contained many citizens that were

> used to dealing with high tech in their everyday lives.  This led to
the 
> decision to concentrate the UNSC and UNGF (United Nations Ground
Forces) 
> on smaller numbers of the most advanced technological weapons
available. 
> By the point of the Second Solar war, the UNSC had advanced
sufficiently 
> to largely prevent any fighting in the Core systems.	The UN used this

> success to successfully promote an expansion of the UN mandate to
include 
> any system not directly claimed by a major power, deep space
exploration, 
> and with the first fleeting contacts with non-human races the
coordination 
> of human defenses in times of outright war.  The growing power of the
UN, 
> coupled with the fact that most of the largest powers had led to the 
> unusual position where most of the Core Worlds assets of the major
powers 
> were as much under UN control as their own.  Indeed, there was a
growing 
> push amongst the UN to put *all* of the Core Worlds exclusively under
UN 
> control.  More than a few suspect that the UN is slowly maneuvering to

> become the single human government.  Increasing levels of suspicion
about 
> UN motives may have led to a slower response to the earliest Kravak 
> incursions.
>   The growth of the UN mandate outside the Core Worlds has led to
several 
> of the "minor" powers becoming more closely allied with the UN as
well. 
> Perhaps most significant is the strong military and technological
alliance 
> between the UN and New Israel.  This has served to give considerable 
> increase to the already impressive technological base of both sides,
and 
> despite denials by both powers, it is clear that major advances have
been 
> passed between the two.  Rumors persist that UN Black Ops forces are
fully 
> in possession of New Israeli stealth equipment.  The UN has also been
able 
> to draw still more population from the few truly independent systems
and 
> deep space habitats, and has generally been supportive of breakaway 
> republics once they have been proven viable.
>   How the UN will be transformed by the Kravak wars remains to be
seen. 
> The major powers are undoubtedly concerned by the drain on their 
> populations that UN citizenship has proven to be, and are unlikely to 
> support any further growth of the UN mandate.  Still joining the UN as
a 
> protectorate has proven itself as an excellent way to avoid human 
> conflicts, and the UNSC has grown to a size sufficient to prevent
direct 
> military action by any one of the large powers.
>
>
>   One guy's take.
>
> Grant
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: gzg-l-bounces@vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu 
> [mailto:gzg-l-bounces@vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu] On Behalf Of Robert 
> Mayberry
> Sent: Thursday, December 11, 2008 6:01 PM
> To: gzg-l@vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu
> Subject: Re: [GZG] UNSC Workings
>
> I've never found the UNSC in the tuffleyverse to be terribly
> realistic. The only explanation I can think of is if they have some
> kind of longstanding intrasolar hegemony that they're capitalizing off
> of (see the great post on tax and population bases). After a major war
> and with the major powers based on colonies like Albion, presumably
> this makes it possible, with their pretense being that they protect
> the homeworld from WMD armageddon. But if the UN exists as an
> institution at all in the future, it has to be radically transformed
> from what it is today. The UNSC as described reminds me of Comstar in
> battletech, something I also have trouble figuring out.
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Gzg-l mailing list
> Gzg-l@vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu
> http://vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu:1337/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/gzg-l 

_______________________________________________
Gzg-l mailing list
Gzg-l@vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu
http://vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu:1337/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/gzg-l

_______________________________________________
Gzg-l mailing list
Gzg-l@vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu
http://vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu:1337/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/gzg-l