by Bob Blanton
“We harvest the meat every few months, then close the vat back up and let it grow some more. We have to restart the vat every year to keep it all fresh.”
“Well, that doesn’t sound natural,” Vince said.
“I’m sure domesticating animals didn’t sound natural to the early hunters, but someone persisted.”
“You got me there,” Vince said with a chuckle. “I guess nothing new sounds natural. So what do you need me for?”
“We need someone to manage the vat farm,” Catie said. “And we need someone to improve the process.”
“Improve it how?”
“Right now, we can only grow muscle tissue and fat,” Catie said. “We can electrically stimulate the muscle and vary how dense the meat is. But we can’t grow anything with a bone.”
“Now, no T-bone steaks, that’s really not natural,” Vince said. “And a man’s gotta have some ribs every once in a while.”
“Yeah, and a drumstick without the stick is kinda weird,” Catie said.
“So, why me?”
“You have a chemistry degree and are familiar with farming. You need to understand the animal to decide which ones you should take samples from, and the growing process is all about chemistry.”
“What kind of meat do you grow now?” Vince asked.
“We grow filet mignon, pork tenderloin, veal cutlets, ham, rump roast, chicken breast, and a couple of types warm-blooded fish,” Catie said. “Of course, all of them are just the meat, no bones.”
“You’re telling me you’d like to add T-bones, ribs, pork chops, and drumsticks,” Vince said.
“Yes, and some people like to use bones for certain recipes.”
“Yeah, you need the odd soup bone now and again.”
“Will you take the job?” Catie asked.
“Wait just one minute now,” Vince said. “I’m not sure I’m cut out for this kind of work. I’m a pilot, not an office manager.”
“You can keep flying,” Catie said. “You might need to switch to every other rotation. And you actually have a lot of time on your hands when you fly, all that travel time as well as while the miners load your plane.”
“But I was looking at switching to the Foxes now that you’re making them.”
“That’s even better. Hopefully, you’re just doing training,” Catie said. “You’ll have lots of time to do other things. You can hire someone to do most of the management chores, you just have to set the direction and goals.”
“Who’s doing all this now?” Vince asked.
“Me.”
“If it’s all that easy, why are you trying to pitch it off to me?”
“Because I have this, school, flying, a programming job, and all the stuff my dad gives to me. That’s why we’re not growing meat with bones. I don’t have time to study the issue, so I keep putting it off. And we just started making fish. I was going to try and figure out how to grow cold-blooded fish,” Catie added, “but I’ve been slow.”
“Okay, okay. You’re making me feel lazy ‘cause all I do is fly,” Vince said. “I’ll give it a try. Can you help me find an administrator type?”
“We can send you a list of names. ADI will help you schedule the interviews, but you need to decide who you can work with.”
“Okay, let’s do it,” Vince said. “I sure hope my pa doesn’t hear about this; he might just disown me.”
“Why?”
“This gets out, it’ll put farmers out of business.”
“Big corporations are already doing that. This would shift the focus to growing grains and vegetables for people to eat, as well as breeding the best animals for seeding the vats.”
“That might work,” Vince said. “I still hope Pa doesn’t find out.”
“Oh, and if you can figure out how to grow eggs, you’ll be a hero,” Catie added as she showed Vince out.
“You forgot to mention park manager,” Natalia said as she joined Catie after Vince left.
“I forgot about that one,” Catie said.
Chapter 18
Delphi Constitution
Article 1. Legislature of the Delphi Confederation
Section 1. Powers of the Legislature
The legislative power of the Confederation shall be vested in a Parliament, which shall consist of a Confederation Assembly and a Senate.
The Legislature shall have the power to enact all laws that affect the general populace.
No person shall serve in the Legislature who has not been a resident of their state for at least three years and who has not attained the age of majority as defined in this Constitution.
Any vacancies created in the Legislature may be filled by the executive of the State the position is from, but only until such time that an election may be held to fill it by vote of the people.
No member of the Legislature shall be exempted from any law which governs the people of the Confederation.
Each house of Parliament shall elect its own leaders based on a majority vote.
Section 2. The Confederation Assembly
The Confederation Assembly shall have members chosen every three years by the people of the Confederation States who are eligible to vote.
No person shall serve in the Assembly who has already served eight of the last ten years in the Assembly.
The Assembly seats shall be apportioned among the various States based on their population. There shall be no more than one Assembly Person for every one hundred persons residing in the State and no less than one Assembly Person per ten thousand persons residing in the State. The States shall apportion the Assembly districts based solely on the population and set the district boundaries based on a shortest perimeter algorithm.
Section 3. The Confederation Senate
The Confederation Senators from each State will be divided into two classes. Its members shall serve for a term of six years except for the first class whose first term shall be three years.
No person shall serve in the Senate who has been a member of the Senate for twelve of the last fifteen years.
Each State shall have not less than one Senator and no more than one Senator per one hundred thousand people. Senators shall be elected by the population of their State at large.
Section 4. Passage of new laws
All legislation except the budget must be a cohesive set of objectives to address issues of the Confederation. No amendments are to be added that are not directly related to the purpose of the legislation.
All bills which pass both houses are to be sent to the executive for signature. The executive must respond to the bill within ten days, or it shall become law as if signed by the executive.
If the law is vetoed by the executive, the Legislature by a vote of two-thirds majority may repass the legislation. The legislation shall then become law unless it is vetoed by the Monarch. There is no redress to a veto by the Monarch.
Changes to the tax established by the Monarch at the time this Constitution is enacted shall require two-thirds of the majority of both houses of Parliament and the approval of the executive.
The Parliament shall have the power to lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts, and excises, to pay the debts and provide for the common defense and general welfare of the Confederation. But all duties, imposts, and excises shall be uniform throughout the Confederation.
To borrow money on the credit of the Confederation;
To regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several States;
To establish a uniform rule of naturalization;
To coin money, regulate the value thereof, and fix the standard of weights and measures;
To promote the progress of science and useful arts, by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries;
To constitute tribunals inferior to the Supreme Court;
To declare war;
To make rules for the government and regulation of military forces;
To make all la
ws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execution the preceding powers, and all other powers vested by this Constitution in the government of the Confederation, or in any department or officer thereof.
Section 5. Impeachment and Censure
The Senate has the right to censure the Monarch or impeach the president and other executives in the government. By a two-fifths vote, the senate may demand a trial before the supreme court to determine if the president or the Monarch has broken their oath to the people. The Assembly will then appoint a prosecutor. The Chief Justice will act as judge and the other justices will act as jurors.
If convicted, the president or executive shall be removed from office. If the Monarch should be found guilty, they shall stand before the Assembly with video streaming to the people as the charges and verdict are read out.
Article 2. The President of the Delphi Confederation
Section 1. The Executive
The Monarch is the president of the Confederation. Succession of the Monarch shall be the sole purview of the Monarch. Should the Monarch abdicate, the president of the Confederation shall be decided by popular vote of the population of the Confederation by all persons eligible to vote. Presidents shall serve for one six-year term and may not stand for election while currently serving as president.
Section 2. Powers of the Executive
The president shall be commander-in-chief of the Militaries of the Confederation;
The president shall have executive authority over each of the executive departments;
The president shall have the power to make treaties with the approval of two-thirds of the Senate, excepting that the Monarch will require no such approval;
The president shall nominate, and by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, shall appoint ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, judges of the Supreme Court, and all other officers of the Confederation, whose appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by law; but the Parliament may by law vest the appointment of such inferior officers, as they think proper, in the president alone, in the courts of law, or in the heads of departments.
Article 3. Judiciary
Section 1. Judicial offices
The judicial power of the Confederation shall be vested in one Supreme Court, and in such inferior courts as the Parliament may from time-to-time establish. The judges, both of the supreme and inferior courts, shall hold their offices for ten years during good behavior and be appointed by the president with confirmation by the senate.
Section 2. Powers of the Judiciary
The judicial power shall extend to all cases, in law and equity, arising under this Constitution, the laws of the Confederation, and treaties made, or which shall be made, under their authority. To controversies between two or more States, between a State and citizens of another State, between citizens of different States and between a State, or the citizens thereof and the Confederation government, foreign States, citizens or subjects.
Article 4. Amendments to the Constitution
This Constitution may be amended by an act of the Monarch, a two-thirds majority of both houses of Parliament, or by petition submitted by the people with signatures of ten percent of the population and approval by a popular vote of the people, the amendment must then be approved by the voters.
Article 5. Rights of the people
For the purposes of this Constitution:
A person is any sentient being that is capable of independent thought and independent action including children and youth as defined below.
Children are any sentient being that has drawn its first breath, or otherwise established that it can survive in the world without being part of another being or contained within that being. They shall continue to be classified as children until they have completed 80 percent of their transition through puberty which is defined as age sixteen for human children.
Youth are defined as sentient beings that are beyond puberty but have not yet reached 95 percent of brain maturity, which is defined as age twenty-five for humans. Children or their parents may petition the courts to have them declared Youth.
The government may not pass any law which affects people based on their affiliation, human traits, or beliefs, with the exception made herein for Children and Youth. Nor may any person be subject to discrimination based on such traits except those as might affect their ability to do a job in a substantive way.
No person shall exercise any right in a way that constitutes a danger to private property or to the health or safety of any person.
All persons except children shall have the right to vote.
All persons shall have the right to free expression.
All persons shall have the right to control decisions that affect their welfare except for children who are to rely on their legal guardians or the government should their legal guardians be unable or unwilling to.
The government may not pass any law which impinges on the right of the people to be informed.
The government may not pass any law which impinges on the freedom of persons to practice a religion of their own choosing. Nor may the government pass any laws which favor one religion over another.
All persons shall be protected from Unreasonable Searches and Seizures.
No person shall be subject to prosecution for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against themselves, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law.
All persons shall have the right to a trial by a jury of their peers.
Private property shall not be taken for public use without just compensation.
In all criminal proceedings, each person has the right to a speedy trial and an attorney to represent them.
No person shall be subjected to excessive bail, nor excessive fines, nor cruel and unusual punishments.
All persons shall have the right to petition the Monarch.
Article 6. Laws governing actions of the people
No Person shall cause harm to another person, either physically or mentally.
No person shall deprive another person of their property, freedom, or rights through coercion or deceit.
No person shall help another in the commission of a crime, or in avoiding capture or prosecution after the commission of a crime.
No person shall take or destroy the property of any person or entity without due process.
No person shall violate the privacy of another person without due process.
No person shall violate the personal space or body of another person without due process.
No person may lie in a court of law.
No person may conspire with another person to commit a crime.
No person shall bribe a public official for any consideration from that official, nor may any public official accept such bribes in exchange for preferential treatment.
No person shall disobey the order of the judge during a trial, nor may they disobey any lawful order of the court.
No person may possess, import, or distribute any illegal goods, nor provide any aid to persons doing the same.
Children, being a protected class, no person shall in any way harm, mentally or physically a child.
No person shall endanger the public safety.
No person shall create or distribute facsimiles of anything of value without identifying it as a facsimile.
No person shall disrupt the public order or peace.
Article 7: Tax Law
Delphi taxes shall be based solely on income and property values. No tax on the sale of goods is allowed as they disproportionally tax the poor.
At the time of this Constitution enactment, the tax on real property shall be two percent of its appraised value. The tax may only increase at one half the rate of inflation until the property changes hands, at which time it will be appraised at its full value.
The taxes on income shall be the foll
owing:
1: Social Security, which shall be ten percent of annual income over fifty percent of the established minimum living wage. This tax shall be used to finance the medical care of all residents of the Delphi Confederation and to provide a supplemental income for retired persons. The supplemental income shall be based on the needs of the individual based on their current assets and other sources of income, with the goal of maintaining all retired persons above the minimum living wage level.
2: Income Tax, which shall be twenty percent of all income over the minimum living wage. This tax shall be used to finance any government expenditures.
3: Corporate tax, which shall be fifteen percent of gross sales and revenue generated from sales and activities outside of the Delphi Confederation. All corporations must be composed of entities that have at least five unrelated stockholders each with a minimum of five percent value of the corporation, and must employ a minimum of one hundred Delphi residents, plus one additional resident per minimum living wage over two hundred times the minimum living wage. Any corporation that does not meet this definition will be taxed based on the personal income tax rate.
Chapter 19
Independence
“Good Morning, to our guests, members of the press,” Marc said. “Please be seated, and we’ll begin. I appreciate all of you showing up on such short notice and without any explanation of our announcement.” He looked over at the New Zealand Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Australian Ambassador to the Cook Islands, as well as the Prime Minister of the Cook Islands.
There was a lot of murmuring and jostling about as the press corps settled in. After a few minutes, it quieted down.
“On this date, the Eighteenth of October, Two Thousand Nineteen, the City of Delphi formally announces its independence from the Cook Islands and New Zealand,” Marc announced.
The press exploded with reporters jumping up to ask questions. Marc signaled for them to wait, and after a few minutes, they settled back down.
