13 JUN 3301
The Savage Side of Imperial Slavery
On the edges of Imperial space, the line between savagery and civilisation blurs on an almost daily basis. Never has this been more apparent than this weekend, during which hundreds of supposedly honourable Imperial commanders crossed the border to smuggle massive quantities of Imperial Slaves to sell in black markets controlled by the Kumo Crew.
Exactly what the Kumo Crew plans to do with the Imperial Slaves is unknown, although given how much the Kumo Crew were paying for them it’s almost certainly not going to be pleasant.
Under Imperial law, citizens are not permitted to sell their Imperial Slaves for service to non-Imperial citizens, nor are they allowed to sell Imperial Slaves on worlds outside of Imperial space. Those found breaking the law run the risk of being forced into service themselves, although in reality Imperial frontier security services tend to turn a blind eye to the practice.
GalNet reached out to the Imperial Slavers Association and received the following statement:
“The sale of Imperial Slaves outside of the borders of Imperial space is strictly prohibited by order of the Senate. Any members of the ISA found engaging in such activity will be removed from the guild and reported to the appropriate authorities.”
13 JUN 3301
Federal President Hudson Looks to the Future
In a speech to business leaders today at the Banqueting Hall in Quenisset on Mars, President Hudson hinted at a raft of new policies to motivate the Federation’s youth.
“As I said when I was the Shadow President, we are entering dangerous times. The Empire have been expanding recently more than they have for centuries. We have failed our own frontier worlds for decades and it is hardly surprising they are leaving the Federation as they are. We need a stronger military, a military that gets respect from our youth. We need better soldiers, better fighters, better pilots. We need to be more outward-looking.”
“Our youth has become flabby. Lying inanimate, plugged in to their sims hour after hour, day after day, living in dream worlds that never have existed and never will exist. They need to take part in the real world, and so we will be creating programs to allow them to do just that. Programmes that will excite them, engage them, train them. We will fund these programmes in full, the first of which will be announced to Congress on Tuesday 16th.”
“The Empire needs to know the Federation is strong. We were strong, and now we will be strong again!”
Commentators have already been speculating about the introduction of conscription, but this was denied by Hudson himself “I believe in carrot, not stick”. Congress has already agreed to a substantial rise in military spending, and naval shipyards throughout the Federation are at maximum capacity. Cynics have also noted that the Core Dynamics share price is at an all-time high - Core Dynamics has been a backer of Hudson for a long time, and many say this is his payback.