A new Civic Mirror country came and went in the form of a weekend-long game/workshop for teachers at the 2009 Lake Chelan Leadership Retreat (hosted by the Washington State Council for the Social Studies), and was it ever lively!
Beautiful Lake Chelan, WA ~ 2009 WSCSS Leadership Retreat
The simulated country was called “Chelan 2009” and – on the first morning of the retreat – these Washington state teachers were given political and/or economic Hidden Agendas before their country’s election (click here for more info). Below we see participants discussing tax, economic, environmental, and humanitarian issues in an effort to win votes in the upcoming elections … knowing that certain policies would score them points while others wouldn’t. Discovering what the other participants wanted their government to do proved to be a tricky challenge.
Election Campaigns and Discussions
Election campaigns and discussions
The elections found Ms. Sarah Connor, Mr. Mike Pete, and Ms. Colleen Currey winning the three congressional seats, and Ms. Marnie Parkinen winning an amazingly close presidential race … so close that two votes resulted in ties and the newly elected Congress was asked to decide – by dinner time – who should become president. They chose Parkinen. Some screamed of conspiracy.
The Hex Auction (i.e. property auction) took place in the banquet hall on the first night of the conference and President Parkinen – the richest citizen in Chelan 2009 – purchased massive amounts of property for herself and for the government. This upset several citizens. And during the trading season the next day, President Parkinen’s straight-up leadership style and business-friendly political policies angered even more.
President Accused of Embezzlement and Corruption!
Alas, Ms. Bonnie Vijarro, a hard-working citizen, had had enough of President Parkinen’s shenanigans and accused her of embezzlement and political corruption. In the final Civic Mirror event of the weekend, she was taken to National Court . Below we see Mr. David Campbell (Justice Campbell) calling court to order and asking for the charge and the plea.
Justice Campbell Announces Court
Here citizen Vijarro, leading prosecutor, makes her case, outlining how President Parkinen abused her political powers and embezzled over $22,000 into her account – 22% of the cash in the economy!!!
Citizen Vijarro Argues her Case Against President Parkinen
President Parkinen – looking rather contrite – explains that she has a right to be compensated for her services as President, siting Article 2, Section 7 of their constitution (which is a “CivicMirrorized” version of the U.S. Constitution). She denied, however, that she illegally transferred $22,000 of government money into her account.
President Parkinen Pleads her Case to Justice Campbell
This caused a ruckus in court, and President Parkinen’s attorney, Hayley Henry (a top-notch student teacher at Alderwood Middle School) pulled out a pocket-book constitution to back her client’s case, arguing that their constitution does not state minimums or maximums for Presidential compensation.
Attorney Hayley Henry
Citizens of Chelan 2009 listen to both sides of the case, waiting for Justice Campbell to make a decision.
Attendants Listen Intently to the Court Proceedings
And Justice Campbell showed that he was no constitutional fool either – siting Article 1, Section 6, Clause 1 and Section 9, Clause 7 – and concluding that Congress, keepers of the Treasury, must first determine what “appropriate compensation for services rendered” is before President Parkinen’s guilt or innocence can be determined.
Justice Campbell Calls on Congress to Make Historic Decision
STAY TUNED for Part II to find out what the Congress of Chelan 2009 decides and whether or not President Parkinen is found guilty or innocent.
