User:Mbenz

Hey everybody, here's my Wikipedia page. I hope that in the future I can add some depth to the articles of my interests.

For the time being this page will be a mess of code as I try to learn the basics of editing and creating articles.

My Intrests

 * Language
 * Germany
 * German
 * French
 * Russian
 * Conlangs
 * Talossa
 * Music
 * Psychology
 * Saxophone

Articles I Wish to Contribute To

 * Talossa
 * Talossan
 * German versions of the above links

Current Project
The Kingdom of Talossa is a micronation in the northern hemisphere comprising the former east side of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the Isle of Cézembre, and a chunk of Antarctica called "Pengopäts" (Penguin Land in the Talossan Language, neighboring the countries of the United States, France, and Argentina respectfully.

The Greater Talossan Area (the former east side of Milwaukee) was originally inhabited by Fox, Mascouten, Potawatomi, and Ho-Chunk (Winnebago) Native American tribes. French missionaries and traders first passed through the area in the late 17th and 18th centuries and the area then passed into French control. These lands later passed into the hands of the United States and were incorporated into the state of Wisconsin.

On 26 December 1979 Robert Ben Madison declared his bedroom to be independent from the United States of America and the Kingdom of Talossa was formed. The Kingdom eventually expanded to cover the east side of Milwaukee, the Isle of Cézembre, and the Antarctic Territory of Pengöpäts. The capital city is Abbavilla, located in Atatürk province, and currently holds 89 citizens.

Etymology
The Kingdom of Talossa (Talossan:El Regipäts Talossan) is named after the Finnish word "Talossa," meaning "inside the house." King Robert I choose this to represent the orginal boundaries of the Kingdom- his family house.

History of the Monarchy
The Kingdom of Talossa is a constitutional monarchy, in which the King or Queen has a definite role in government (power of veto, power of appointment, etc.) but is supposed to be bipartisan. Currently, the Kingdom is ruled by His Majesty John Woolley, who took the throne on 14 March 2007 after the abdication of the previous King.

The Talossan monarchy was established at 7:00pm Central Standard Time on 26 December 1979, with the acsention of King Robert I to the throne. King Robert I kept Talossa closed to his immediate family until 1981, when he admitted several other citizens into the Kingdom. With the reign of King Robert I, Talossa developed from a small childhood fantasy to a real nation. In 1981, Talossa held it's first democratic elections, while in 1985, the government's power shifted from the king to the people, with the approval of a constitutional monarchy. However, the prestige of the monarchy slowly declined, and after a brief stint of anti-monarchal sentiments, King Robert I stepped down and the throne passed to King Robert II. King Robert II served a short, 47 day reign in 1987 and was legislatively removed from office on 29 March 1989 by the majority "People United for No King" Party (PUNK). A period of interregnum ensued from 29 March 1989 to 24 August 1989, when the throne was claimed by Queen Florence I. Queen Florence's reign saw large strides in the political landscape and standardisation of the Kingdom. Queen Florence I saw the first issue of the legislative Clark, a document giving an overview of all bills and ammendments in the Ziu, the national parliment. Queen Florence I voluntarily descended on 27 Febuary 1989, when King Robert I climbed back on the Talssan throne. Talossa soon entered a golden age under the reign of King Robert I. King Robert I spearheaded a movement for a new constitution in 1989, which was drafted and passed within the same year. King Robert peacefully reigned for the next 15 years. Due to the advent of the Internet, King Robert I led the charge to draft a new consitution, and in 1997, the Organic Law was passed by public referendum. However, not all were pleased with King Robert's reign, and in 2004, a heated nation split, with a minority of citizens succeeding and declaring the state of the Republic of Talossa. King Robert I reigned until 16 August 2005, when he abdicated in favor of his stepgrandson King Louis I. King Louis, a minor, was incapable of leading the country, thus, a regency was formed, headed by Regent G. Rajala. On 29 November 2006, King Louis' abdicated the throne by the act of his legal guardian. Once again, a period of interregnum ensued. On 14 March 2007, upon election from the Ziu and public ratification, Florencian King John Woolley ascended the throne and was coronated on Talossan soil.

Today, the Kingdom of Talossa rallies under the rule of His Majesty John I, who has been said to be leading Talossa to yet another golden age.

Prime Minister and Cabinet
The Prime Minister is appointed every Cosa session by the King and suggested by the Majority Party Leader. Any Talossan except the King may take this post. It is tradition (but not required) that the Prime Minister is sworn in in the presence of that famous book The Loom of the Language. The Prime Minister may choose whether to recite the official Oath of Office:

''Eu afirm, solenâmînt, që eu, [nôminâ], cün fidálità, rompliarhéu l'ôifisch da Sieu Maxhestà së Seneschál del Regipäts Talossán, és zefençarhéu, àl miglhôr da v'aválità, la sigürità del Estat Talossán. Så viva el Regeu!''

Or, if he is not proficient enough in the Talossan language, he may just affirm by saying "üc" (yes).

The Prime Minister has state duties. He may advise the King to dissolve the Cosa and to appoint and remove members of the Cabinet. His advice to the King on these matters may not be refused. The Seneschal may issues Speeches to the Nation in writing, declare war pending the approval of the Cosa, write treaties pending the approval of the Cosa, expedite the Ziu's consideration of legislation, and issue Prime Dictates.

He also has the power to issue "prime dictates" - public declarations which affect government policy and have the force of law. These are subject only to veto by the King. However, a prime dictate may never be used to alter the Organic Law.

The Ziu
The Ziu is the National Bicameral Legislature of the Kingdom of Talossa, made up of the Cosa and the Senäts. The Ziu has the power to draft and vote on laws, grant citizenship, and dissolve itself.

The Senäts
The Senäts is the Upper House of the Ziu, the Talossan national parliment. It is similar to the US Senate in it's operations. Each province is given one senator, determined by Organic Law, and is elected through popular election by the people of the entire nation. Two senators are elected during each national general election and serves a term of between 24-32 months. The Senäts is headed by an elected leader, the Mençéi (English-President of the Senate). In the Senäts, each senator is allowed one vote on any bills on a specific month's Clark, determining the fate of bills.

The Senäts has all the powers and duties of the Cosâ except that:
 * Bills appropriating revenue or moneys shall not originate in the Senäts
 * The Government shall require the confidence of the Cosâ only, to remain in office.

A simple majority vote is needed to pass bills in the Senäts except in these instances in which a two-thirds vote is required:


 * Bills changing sections of articles regarding the Senats
 * Bills changing sections of the article "Amendments to the Organic Law"
 * Bills changing sections of the article "Territorial Subdivisions"
 * Bills creating new provinces or changing the number of provinces in any way which always require two-thirds of the Senäts.

The current memebers of the Senäts are:

The election cycle of the Senäts is:

The Cosa
The Cosa is the Lower House of the Ziu, the Talossan national parliment. It is similar to the US House of Representatives in its operations. The Cosa consists of 200 seats and any member may hold more than one seat. Cosa seats are apportioned to different parties based on what percentage of the general election's vote they get and then that percentage is applied to the Cosa. So if a party wins 20% of the vote they get 20% of the Cosa i.e. 40 seats. The Cosa is reelected approximately every six months. The Cosa is headed by an elected leader, the Túischac'h (English-Speaker of the Cosa). In the Cosa, each senator is allowed a number of votes on any bills on a specific month's Clark equal to the number of seats they hold, determining the fate of bills. In addition, each Member of the Cosa (MC) must vote either "üc" (yes) or "non" (no) on a "Vote of Confidence," which is basically a statement of whether the Cosa thinks the government should continue. If the majority says "üc" then the government continues, but if the majority says "non" then the government and Cosa are dissolved, and new elections are held.

The Current MC's are:

Provinces and Territories
The Kingdom of Talossa consists of seven provinces and one territory. The provinces are Atatürk, Cézembre, Florencia, Maricopa, Maritiimi-Maxhestic, Mussolini, and Vuode, while the sole territory is The Pengöpäts Antarctic Territory.

Each province has physical boundaries in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, but, according to Organic Law, is represented by various states and regions worldwide, in attempts to evenly distribute citizens.

Pengöpäts functions similarly to the provinces, but the territory does not have any citizens or elected leaders. Federal legislation always overrides provincial legislation, which is mainly used to develop flags, a coat of arms, and other culture-related items.

Each province has its own unicameral legislature, headed by the provincial premier, and in territories, a Royal Governor. The King is represented in each state by a Cunstaval (Constable), who is suggested to the King by the national Prime Minister.

Climate
Talossa's location in the Great Lakes Region means that it often has rapidly changing weather, and is in a four season climate. The warmest month of the year is July, when the average high temperature is 82°F (28°C), with overnight low temperatures averaging 66°F (19°C), while January is the coldest month, with high temperatures averaging 27°F (-3°C), with the overnight low temperatures around 13°F (-11°C). Talossa has the second-coldest average annual temperature, next to that of Minneapolis.

Talossa's proximity to Lake Michigan causes a convection current to form mid-afternoon, resulting in the so-called lake effect, causing the temperatures to be warmer in the winter than regions farther from the lake, and cooler in the summer. Also, more snow falls in Talossa than surrounding areas, due to the lake effect. The lake causes relative humidity in the summer that is far higher than that of comparable cities at the same latitude, meaning that it feels hotter than the actual temperature.

Talossa's all-time record high temperature is 105°F (41°C) set on July 17 1995. The coldest temperature ever experienced by the city was -26°F (-32°C) on both January 17 1982 and February 4 1996.

In Talossa, the wettest month is August, due to frequent thunderstorms. These can at times be severe and dangerous, bringing hail and high winds, however, these storms rarely result in a tornado. In spring and fall, longer events of prolonged, lighter rain bring most of the precipitation. Snow commonly falls in the city from early November until the middle of March. The city receives an average of 47.0 inches (1.19m) of snow in winter, but this number changes dramatically by year.

Currency
The national currency of the Kingdom of Talossa is the Talossan Bent (plural=Bence) and the Talossan Louis (plural=Louise). The Bent is symbolised a "¤" symbol, while the Louis has no symbol as of yet.

One Bent represents .01, similar to a US penny, while each Louis represents 60 Bence.

The Bent and Louis are currently pegged to the USD, and follow the exchange rates as such. However, there are current bills in the Ziu proposing that the Bent and Louis are pegged to the average price of a half-pint of beer, raising the value of one Louis to approximately $1.50.

Although no coins have been minted, there have been several movements in the Ziu to finally mint Bence and Louis and will be made availiable for purchase by Talossan citizens.

Language
"El Glheþ Talossan", most commonly known in the English language as "Talossan" (though called both Talossan, el Glhetg, and el Ladinitsch in Talossan) along with English, are the official languages of the Kingdom of Talossa. However, other languages, proper to its constituent communities, have been declared co-official with Talossan in the territories in which they are spoken, namely:


 * German (Deutsch), in Maritiimi-Maxhestic;
 * French (Français), in Cézembre.

There are also some other surviving minority languages such as Turkish and Spanish, in Atatürk and Maricopa respectively. Unlike German and French, these do not have any official status because of their very small number of speakers, lack of both a historic written tradition and self-awareness as a language within Talossa, which has resulted in a lack of popular demand for their recognition in the regions in which they are spoken.

Names
In The Kingdom of Talossa, many citizens choose to get a Talossan name. The Talossan name of a citizen is a direct translation of their first and middle names, and a translation of the original meaning of a citizen's last names.

Sports
The national sport of Talossa is Talossan Football, a combination of soccer,rugby, and American Football. Talossan Football is played with twenty minute periods, the number of which are choosen by the home team. Ten minute breaks seperate the periods, in which the entertainment is one act of an opera. The home team must organize but need not sing the opera. The final period of the game takes place after the last act of the opera.

In order to win Talossan football, a team must outscore their opponents, with each goal being worth different points.

Offensive goals are scored when the football, a ball approximately the size of a Volleyball is passed through one of four goals, a soccer net (worth seven points), goal post (worth three points), endzone (worth six points), or "rump post" (worth one point). Defensive players have the chance to score on a saftey (worth two points), or a "moat" (worth ten points). A "moat" is awarded when the opposite team does not have the legal number of players on the field at the end of the period. Only one goal is used during one period, and which goal is used is decided by the home team a the begining of the period.

Should the game be tied at the end of the final period, sudden death overtime ensues. Should more than one overtime period be needed, a 10 minute break seperates periods in which acts of the opera are reprised.

Each team is alotted one time out per period, but can only call the timeout after a tackle.

Talossan Football is always played on a rectangular field of natural grass, and is marked with a combination of soccer and american football markings.

Talossan Football does not have a set number of players, instead, a number is decided upon by the two teams at the start of the game. Players on the field can be no less than six and no greater than sixteen. There are six positions in the game, each with a limited number of players: -Quebec: Only one Quebec is allowed per team and scores via touchdown or field goal. -Kämpfeir: Only one Kämpfeir is allowed per team and is the defender of the soccer goal, however, they may score by kicking a goal as well. -Ritxeirs: No more than two Ritxeirs, or runners, are allowed per team and score by touchdowns. -Baqueirs: No more than two Baqueirs, or backers, are allowed per team and score by kicking a goal, making a field goal, or on the rump post. -Numadeirs: Only two numadeirs, Talossan for nomad, can only score by kicking a goal. -Prostexheirs: No more than eight prostexheirs, or procectors, are allowed per team. Prostexheirs protect their own goal, but may score by running in or catching touchdowns.