KingRich's Speech: For the Alliance!

Past, Present, & Future
Comrades, two weeks from this evening will be September 7, 2009, and will mark the year since our surrender in the Second Great Patriotic War. I thought I'd take this time to reflect on certain points and aspects that Polaris is, was, and should strive to be. This text is meant to be a personal continuation/addendum to "What It Takes," written by GEwilliam in February, 2009.

Not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more...

Polaris was, for such a long time, more than just an alliance of organized nations. It was indeed a personality cult that revolved around the Emperor. In the weeks preceding the Second Patriotic War, Electron Sponge had made diplomacy all but a lost cause. Even with the transferrals of leadership, our fate was already sealed. Polaris loved Sponge, but for the preservation of the Body Republic, tough decisions were made by the government. Polaris did what it thought it had to do FOR POLARIS. I know we all wish it could have been a different path, down a different road, in a different time. But we made that decision and went forward bravely into the face of impending doom.

Our Mission is a Man...

A few more words on the Polar culture. Since my first days here, I have always seen and continue to see the spirit by which Polaris defends itself. When one member is attacked, there are almost always 3 members lined up to counterattack the enemy. We do not fight only for spoils and glory, but for teamwork, defense, and camaraderie. We fight for each other. We build each other and our own nations for the day that we are again called to duty, to serve at the pleasure of the Emperor, to defend Polaris and its allies, and defend each other, every man, woman, and child. So when you say "I fought for Polaris," you are also saying "I fought for you" and "you fought for me."

Only the dead have seen the end of war...

This reminds us that no matter what our strength may be, and no matter the number of our allies, will will never be truly free. In that sense I define freedom as the invulnerability from attack, and the freedom to do whatever we wish at any time. That is no longer the way of this world. But we are free to choose our own path, our own destiny. We must focus not on the light at the end of the tunnel, for the tunnel does not end. It continues indefinitely, and it has twists and turns that we as an alliance must negotiate, towards the unseen goal of continuity, not the palpable goal of finality. We must remember that there is always someone who would see us fall, and those who would will never all be known to us.

'"Let us not forget that to be Polar, is to be committed to the cause, no matter the cost." ~ GEwilliam'

If there was ever a more true statement, I have not seen it. The New Polar Order has survived, through thick and thin, and everything in between for over three years. It has done so because of the sacrifice and dedication of those who came before us, and must continue long after we are gone.

Many members have been here since the beginning. Many members have sacrificed not only everything they had, over and over again, but even have been required to sacrifice the future of their nations. Some members have even been forced to resign positions and alliance membership, all for the sanctity and preservation of the alliance's future. Let us never forget their sacrifices. Let us not let their memories fall from our thoughts. Let "The Cause of Polaris" be synonymous with "The Cost of Polaris." Let that be the light that guides us, as true as the North Star, also known as Polaris.

~KingRich, to the Body Republic of Polaris August 24, 2009