The political issues
A growing City-State always leads to the emergence of new public concerns. Thus, every 5 minutes or so a new issue will emerge from the crowds. There is no deadline to face it, although the accumulation of unanswered issues heads towards a loss of stability.
To every issue there are 4 options. The first will usually be based on the libertarian ideology while the fourth will be very close to the communist philosophy. The second and third options are typically the closest to today’s democracies: the second option comes with little government intervention (like the USA or Australia) while the third is usually more egalitarian (like the Nordic countries).
Given that there are a total of 40 issues to answer, each coming with 4 options then there are literally 160 shades between Anarchy and Dictatorship to choose from.
Estimating and understanding the consequences of a choice
Each of the 160 choices comes with a unique set of consequences on the economy and the demographics. And just like in the real world the leader cannot precisely assess the exact outcomes in all sectors of society.
Some estimations are nonetheless indicated but only after the choice has already been made.
What does these results mean and how to anticipate them to take better decisions?
A bit of common sense and a good knowledge of economics can surely help. Also a few questions can be asked to understand the background logic:
– Will this legislation reduce prices? More competitors allowed to enter a market will lower prices which in the end drives mainly to a bigger middle class.
– Will this legislation create a monopoly? More regulations make it harder for new businesses to appear, thus just a few companies earn it all – roughly speaking, the rich get richer and there are less opportunities for smaller investors.
– Will they be new business opportunities? Opening a public sector to private investors for instance, can give new business opportunities – some will fail, some will win.
– Will this legislation provide a way out to those without wealth? Providing allowances and social welfare can help the citizens to recover faster after a failure. Providing an extensive social policy will push a lot of citizens out of poverty.
– Will this legislation foster upward mobility? For instance, giving equal chances to everyone to access a high quality education will undoubtedly give opportunities to the poor to get a better life – in a healthy economy.
– Is the public money invested with this legislation the best investment for everyone? Every government intervention has a cost, are we sure that the same amount of money won’t have greater effects if invested elsewhere?