← see the minutes from our previous Council meeting

Thanks to everyone who attended the 11th Dunes Council meeting!

Attendance

• Dunes Council
  • Present: AnvilFrost, CadrienK, nmjk , vK_InFaMy, Zarishendu
  • Absent (IRL): luiqid_salad, MJFurman_16
• Guest speaker
  • DrLolzworth, Desert Task Force Officer

Agenda

1. Meeting introduction, guidelines
2. Quick note about Banners contest
3. Slight increase in crime, how it's being addressed
4. Council discussions about a judicial/court system
5. Review of laws
6. Desert Task Force roster update
   • Discussion regarding code of conduct/ethics for Desert Task Force
7. Addressing "speciesism"
8. Information about coming week's elections
   • how to declare yourself as a candidate
   • how voting will work
9. Sand Dunes health care — how to finance?
10. Entrepreneur of the Week (Info / Business Catalogue)
11. Welcoming new residents
12. Q&A

1. Meeting introduction, guidelines

Business as usual, for the most part. Quick mention that, even though the proposed amendment to the Constitution hasn't yet been passed, this meeting still meets the required minimums of 50 % of Council and 7 non-Council, non-Council-employed, non-alt residents.

2. Quick note about Banners contest

Basically, an apology. At last week's meeting it was promised (by me T_T) that the post for voting on a Dunes banner would be up and active, and it still isn't. We hope it'll be up soon, but with the elections this coming week, it might be better for after the elections. In short, stay tuned. >_<

3. Slight increase in crime, how it's being addressed

An increase in crime in the Dunes has been observed, which none of us like to see. Our best hope and desire for this district is for it to be a chill, awesome place to hang out and have friends.

((Obsidious_D raised a good point about roleplay. It requires that everyone is on board with the direction of the roleplay. If you're not, say so. If they persist, "/ignore" is always an option.))

The Desert Task Force is well-equipped to handle the situation, and the Dunes Branch has four excellent officers. If anything comes up, please contact them for assistance or to file a report.

4. Council discussions about a judicial/court system

Council has been hearing that some people would like to see a court system in the Dunes: trial, judge, jury, all of that. Assuming that qualified, interested people are available to fill the necessary roles, feedback in the meeting confirmed that this is something Dunians would like to see. Council will be working on a proposal to present at an upcoming Council meeting.

5. Review of laws

Again, given the recent increase in crime, we thought it would be a good idea to review the laws of the Dunes. In particular, it was noted that in the past week, the following were all issues that came up in the Dunes:

• Murder
• Kidnapping
• Assault
• Theft
• Harrassment

Not a great track record, Dunians! Let's work on making this district the welcoming, chill, cheerful place we all want to live in. ^{_^}

DrLolzworth raised the question of whether magic usage should be made illegal in the Dunes. At the December 6 Council Meeting a law about magic usage was proposed, but was not approved. Therefore it remains a "Lords Law" (still illegal) but the Dunes branch of the Desert Task Force does not need to enforce it. DrLolzworth identified a good nuance: "DTF members are not to arrest folks for healing with magic but killing we should."

6. Desert Task Force roster update

There are now four officers of the Dunes branch of the Desert Task Force: Malvar_The_Great (head of the Dunes branch), MJFurman_16, DrLolzworth, and Obsidious_D. If an incident occurs, please contact one of these officers for assistance, or to file a report. They will take care of any further investigation or casefile work that is needed. And if any of them approach you for an official statement, please help them out!

6b. Upcoming discussions about officer code of conduct, DrLolzworth explaining why

"There have been some issues in Dong Dank recently, of authority figures stepping beyond their limits. I propose the idea of creating a DTF creed, a code of ethics all DTF members would need to know and follow.

• I believe a Desert Task Force officer's job is to serve dwarf-kind.
• A DTF officer must stay calm in the face of danger and safeguard lives and property.
• We must protect the innocent against deception and the weak against the oppression or intimidation.
• Respect and uphold the laws and constitutional rights of all dwarves to liberty, equality and justice"

There was a lot of vocal support for this initiative. DrLolzworth has already sent a message to K54, DTF Chief of Police, to see about moving this forward. The Dunes Council is happy to support.

7. Addressing "speciesism"

Similar matters have been addressed before, when ghosts first came on the scene and later when beavers became more common. More species or races have been arriving in the Dunes, and tensions seem to have risen recently. While the Lords (particular Lord Willakers) have declared/decreed that we are all dwarves, there may be a continuum of "dwarf", and in the Dunes we respect and affirm your identity. The laws apply to and protect all residents and visitors, regardless of race or species. All residents and visitors are expected to treat each other with respect. This is part of the core of our community.

8. Information about coming week's elections

#DunesVotes! Next weekend, January 3-4, is the next round of Council elections! As soon as it's ready, the reddit post for candidates will be linked from here. The general process will be this:

• Sunday (Dec 28) through Friday
  • People who want to run for Council comment in the Council Candidates post
  • Residents of the Dunes read all the comments and, ideally, try to meet the candidates in-game to get to know them or ask questions
  • Election officials are chosen from outside the district to ensure that everything is handled fairly
• Friday
  • The ballot is created on Google forms: for Council elections and for the proposed amendment to the Dunes constitution (item 3 from the Dec 20 meeting)
• Friday night or Saturday morning
  • The official "go vote now!" post will be made on this subreddit with the link and instructions
• Saturday and Sunday (Jan 3-4)
  • Everyone votes!
• Monday
  • Election officials collect and confirm the voting results
  • Results are posted on this subreddit (hopefully Monday, but depends on election officials' schedules!)

9. Sand Dunes health care — how to finance?

GesWutt, the owner and administrator of the new Saint Stanley Hospital (Southeast Purple 2), has inquired of the Dunes whether health care services should be provided free of charge or for a fee. Currently, he is charging 32 gold coins per visit. A full discussion couldn't be included because the Council meeting was running long, but please contact GesWutt this week and let him know what you think would be the best way to handle Dunian health services!

10. Entrepreneur of the Week

This week's Entrepreneur of the Week is DrLolzworth, owner of Magic Eye Scans in West Orange 6, at x:410, z:565. He also wins a 7 gold bar award! Make sure to stop by and give him some business this week!

Want to know how you can be eligible for Entrepreneur of the Week?

• Information about Entrepreneur of the Week
• Dunes Business Catalogue

11. Welcoming new residents

As part of an initiative proposed by AnvilFrost, Council has decided to start welcoming new residents each week! We'll do our very best to include every new Dunian resident at each meeting. Since this is the first week, we've collected roughly the last couple of weeks of new residents, hopefully not missing anyone. If you see these folks around, make sure to welcome them!

• bobski187 (North Orange 2)
• butterflylover65, D4rkN3ss322, duckface22, Vinny543, Unicornfarts22, Mayze6, kris8813 (North Orange 3)
• Caesar_Bartlett (North Orange 5)
• cocacolaman7690 (North Yellow 4)
• veniums (East Red 2)
• Setho_ (East Yellow 1)
• GesWutt (Southeast Purple 2)
• Corey400 (Southeast Orange 1)
• tobyony (Southeast Yellow 3)
• SarahJayne (Southeast Yellow 4)
• JosephDG11, Pear_at_me (Southwest Red 3)
• gary4lunch, Jason7888 (Southwest Red 4)
• lisa18037 (West Red 4)
• esp1222 (West Yellow 1)
• BADDD (West Yellow 3)

12. Q&A

Q: Is Council still collecting weekly dues from each council member?
A: Yes! We're pretty sure it was done last week, but memories differ. Whatever the case, this is still something that we do and consider important. All the funds go into the Council coffers which can be used to support Council and district activities. Donations are welcome, of course, but are not expected. This is something that Council does of its own accord.

Q: Brickton is poisoned. What should we do about it?
A: nmjk has contacted madiso, one of the Brickton Elders, to offer support, and letting them know they can call on us for assistance if needed. So far they seem to be doing okay, but we're sure that they would appreciate friends while the poison cloud remains and in the aftermath, so if you know any Bricktonites, please offer hospitality and a listening ear!

Q: Could a task force be formed to help Brickton? A: Sure, go ahead — but make sure to check with the Brickton authorities! They already have a well-equipped task force, and anything that Dunians offer should be done in cooperation and with permission, without getting in their way. :)

Questions? Corrections?

Please let me know! And watch for the meeting/agenda post for next week's meeting, coming soon.