How the Koborg Bank became the alternative to the National Treasury

While I was gone, the following developments took place between Queen's Koborg Bank and the National Government.

Sometime in 2002 it was decided to fuse National Mail Service with the K0borg Bank, resulting in the National Mail and Bank.

Then there was the splitting of the Koborg Bank into Attland Insured Bank and an International Deposit Funds, with the minimal deposit of $100,000, and subsequently $1 million.

Then there was the reorganizing of the International Deposit Bank into Capital Fund, and developing two distinct services: Deposit Securities, and International Securities.

The Capital Fund grew and together with the National Treasury obtains unlimited trust from the US Reserve to purchase on request any amount of US currency for circulation in Attland.

The Capital Fund is given the right to print the National currency, which soon has been replaced with the US Dollar as the national fiat currency.

Kingstad royal estate territories (which are located inside the city of Miklasgard) have used the gold standard darling since King Yarl's return and reconstruction in 1973.

Snapshots of consumer prices and salaries

Ever since I moved to Attland for the second time, I have kept track of the gold price, since last year's conversion to the gold standard, and, most importantly, the disparity of gold prices in and outside Attland.

Right now the gold price is sky high, and many business profit by bringing gold into the country in lieu, or bartering for diamonds, etc.

A little while ago a spokesman for the queen was asked what contingency plans spell out in case the gold falls below that of the London fix price, or, falls to an all-time low world prices. He said that just as Queen carefully prepared for the darling-to-dollar-to-gold transition, the contingency plans also envision the possibility for the gold to dip, which is highly unlikely.

Meanwhile, here are the prices for consumer items, in Darlings, 1000 of which now equal 1 Crown (Royal pound coin), or 37.75 grams. This makes 1 D= US$0.99 (see table):

gallon of milk 2.0 D
12 oz can of flavored soda water 0.7 D
10 miles on Miklasborg train 1D
gallon of gasoline, Attland synthetic Synol 0.5D
rent on 2000 sq. ft apartment in residential, non-central area of Belgerhaven 2 Cr 600D
a sushi lunch pack - 5D
cup of coffee from a vending machine 0.7D
cup of coffee at a gourmet cafe 2D

Meanwhile the economy keeps expanding. See this post on this trend. The shortage of labor can be illustrated this way:

hourly rate for a MacDonald counter clerk 23D
street sanitation worker salary per year 24,000D
intake recycling center worker, per year 34,000D
recycling plant worker, per year 40,000D

Attland calendar and its holidays

The names of Attland months are closely related to Old Norse and Icelandic calendar, but timed with Hebrew calendar:

Haustmánuður, equivalent to Tishri, "autumn month"

Gormánuður, equivalent to Cheshvan, "slaughter month" or "Gór's month"

Ýlir, equivalent to Kislev, "Yule month"

Mörsugur, equivalent to Tevet, "fat sucking month"

Þorri, equivalent to Shevat, "frozen snow month"

Góa, equivalent to Adar, "Góa's month,

Einmánuður (mid March - mid April, "lone" or "single month")

Nissan, exactly Hebrew Nisan (Harpa, a female name, probably a forgotten goddess, first day of Harpa is celebrated by Norse as Sumardagurinn fyrsti, first day of summer. Attland custom is to avoid using and giving women names that contain the sound R)

Ijar, is exactly Hebrew Iyar, (Skerpla until 1300's, another forgotten goddess)

Sivan , exactly as the Hebrew month, or Sólmánuður "sun month"

Heyannir, equivalent to Tammuz, "hay business month"

Tvímánuður, equivalent to Av, "two" or "second month"

Another decoy as used in the Operation FLIGHT HOME

in February 2008 Chancellor Dolgrynd had ordered a final evacuation and closure of the Sorong Military Base carried out as an Operation FLIGHT HOME. Three weeks later the world was treated to footage of Attland's Naval Engineering Battalions demolishing the base infrastructure that was impossible to disassemble. The demolition turned out also to involve the target practice operations by the Air Force, Naval Aviation and Naval missile and gun firing. The use of electron cascade bombs, super heavy aerial bombs, missiles and gun projectiles shook the nearby villages and left the base a post-apocalyptic landscape. Some of the steel structures were heated by fires long enough that they caught fire that was visible from space and for 50 miles away at night. Its steel burning effects has been studied by scientists.

International community criticized the demolition as a selfish act, that aimed to leave nothing to Indonesians living nearby, who might have benefited minimally from salvaging scrap iron and construction materials, and, instead, leaving the area as an impassable, scarred land unsuitable for for farming or vegetation.

Apparently as another media attention decoy, Chancellor Dolgrynd used this operation to draw seemingly unwanted attention and criticism in order to pursue a larger operation, just as he had masterminded by using the capture of Gibraltar, albeit a very useful location, in order to really capture Cyprus.

The total naval force sailing from Sorong, having exercised, true to their military discipline, almost to the last day, has rounded the South African capes full speed, having timed their passing of Namibia around 3 am local time. At dawn, Namibia woke up to the sound of military trucks and tanks roaming their streets and a totally new order in effect throughout the country.

The beginnings of Wolf Dolgrynd, the stealth chancellor

Until the Day of Victories, which also serves as a Armed Forces Day, Attland was governed by a rotating provisional chancellors, most of whom were of little fame as they came and went.

Suddenly, following the perfect weather of the January holiday, the news had ot that a totally unknown man was pronounced to head the government.

Little was disclosed to the media about his background. What was noticeable was his precise military bearing.

He conducted press briefings in a distinctly concise and abrupt, though relaxed, almost aloof manner. Later in March 2006 he announced the Miklasgard's absorbing Maunby, Carolinga, Pyrsborg and Kayokee, and that was when public became aware that he was married to two women. When the media's probed him with questions of his marital status, and asked rhetorical questions about his feelings of being referred to as practicing bigamy, he exercised an utmost self-control and diplomatic avoidance.

Media soon found out his extremely short resume which mention his military service as a senior officer in the military's Budget Comptroller and the Accounting Command. Most pople thought nothing more of the quiet, youngish chancellor, other than a man dividing his time between running a government and spending time with his wives and at least three children.

Just after the announcement that one of his wives had given birth to a baby boy, the world woke up on April 10, to learn that Attland military carried out the Operation PRINCE PAWN, capturing Gibraltar within 6 hours, with no casualties on Attland side, with over 100 British military and citizen dead. Attland's colors hoisted, permanent military territory and martial law was proclaimed; and talks with Spain started regarding limited Spanish rule. The operation has has also been used a decoy for the operation WEST SPORTS, though Gibraltar was a major choke point on the straights, as well as a communications and electronic surveillance center.

Diplomatic relations with most countries were strained, especially after maintaining a military stance that resulted in a destruction of 19 of 20 jet fighters that British Air Force sent to counter Attland military. Britain quickly abandoned the idea, since Attland deployed an aircraft carrier, 2 battleships, 10 cruisers, over 20 destroyers, almost a hundred patrol craft, and a landing force of unknown size. The surprise loss of the British outpost has deeply weakened Tony Blair political status.

Using the PRICE PAWN as a convenient and useful decoy, the Attland military feigned the relaxation of the military tensions by sending the naval force at Gibraltar home, while a new, relief naval task force seemed to sail for Gibraltar by way of Suez Canal, and having been formed from ships already in the Mediterranean that seemed to provide support to Israel Navy.

On April 20, however, Operation WEST SPORTS entailed a surprise landing on Cyprus, capture of the island within a day, and total cessation of operations in seven days. Under 5 Attland dead; over 1,000 dead including British military, Cypriot and foreign nationals. Martial law, and limited Turkish Cypriot administration installed.

The Echelon electronic listening post on the island had been captured, the British force arrested, though not taken POW, US military personnel shortly detained and flown to a US military base in Turkey. Britain's military prowess and capability has shown its uselessness. The success and speed of operation also precluded journalists from reacting and deploying to the area.

Government stays away from Caucasus

well, with the Maarheinigt troops that once have been to Chechnya, are sure doing everything else but being useful in the Russian-Georgian war. The decision of the Attland government firmly asserted that the national interests by a stretch do not even come close to Georgia. There is no rationalized need to influence either way the price of oil, financing in either of the involved countries, or any capital investment in Russia itself.

The President is busy meeting with the IMF and major world banks to stave off the international pressure to ease interests on dollar and gold trading that sees major dealing currencies pouring into Attland.

Operation Mountain Doglfy: The president evicts YMCAs, mosques and monasteries

Early morning May 23, about 4:20 am, some northern communities of Morau and Slauttblau might have gotten woken up by a distant, but powerful roar of helicopters. There were, in fact, calls ot the local precincts of Morau police asking if there was an exercise or an invasion. Police did not know.

Using the fact that the Queen signed and confirmed the Supreme Court Council opinion that churches, mosques and similar religious institutions have no legal right to remain on Attland soil, on his way home from a long day's work, 8:20 pm on May 22, President Wolf Dolgrynd signed an executive order to evict all the institutions that did not get excluded from the authority of the Violent and Subversive Organizations Act.

Anyone in the Emerald Valley listening to the farmer's report might have heard the news anchor suddenly switched into an upbeat tone, as if delivering a joke, rare for radio, and make a very brief announcement that the Mountain Dogfly season has started. There are no such dragonflies known to Attlanders, or the resident of the north.

This was a backup call to start the operation MOUNTAIN DOGFLY.

Over 50 monasteries scattered throughout the mountains in the north, mainly overlooking the luxuriantly fertile Dale Blomma, 3 churches in the northern Slauttblau and 2 mosques already shut down and sealed, along with 5 YMCA centers in Newstad and Latalla, some over a year ago when the VSO act was signed, became a landing zone for jack-booted assault troops rappelling down the ropes from the helicopters, some of them also lowering dogs.

Witnesses say dogs were the leaders. In what must have been a well-rehearsed operation, the troops entered monasteries, literally dragging sleepy monks and nuns into the courtyards, to be guarded by the Attland's famous war hounds, while tracking bulls ran door to door, room to room sniffing for anything secreted away. The operation was over before the first reports started to reach the public media. By 9 am, when the French, Italian and Russian governments called the Chief Counsellor and the Secretary of State, he asserted that there was no military operations against any monastery going on, and he was right.

Some monasteries were also dispatched with heavy earth moving tractors, which started demolishing the structures. Some monasteries were emptied of their religious residents, and the military authorities started to investigate literally with a fine tooth comb.

This is how a Russian priest was arrested after a modern short wave set and computerized coding equipment was found in his meditation room. Many nuns, homeless, hiked down the mountains to the railroad stations from where they reached Morau, and then Marlborough, staying at former YMCAs that were ordered to shut down and open their hostels as business enterprise.

The government spokesman has reported that several monasteries were in possession of historical artifacts and items of pilfered cultural heritage belonging to Attland. Towards the evening, there were seen noisy concrete grinding machines grinding the demolished structures to gravel. The next morning a congested traffic of gravel trucks was seen snaking from the mountains to the seashores, for the ongoing landfill expansion programs, and some of the gravel were seen to be trucked to the highway repair sites in the north.

Many crosses and church attributes were found to be of solid gold, and were sent to the major museums.

Gold falls but slighly on the island

As US dollar drains from gold, lowering the gold's price, the speculators are not successful at taking advantage of this lucrative opportunity to sell that gold back here in Attland. As soon as any gold becomes available to the free market or banking, it is used to pay the real time expenses. The Government has no intention of easing the gold interest rates, or leas rates for that matter, hence the gold price according to Queen's fix is at $1215 per Royal crown, which makes a troy ounce cost $999.78, having fallen below the psychological barrier, as anticipated (see the chart)

Plane trip is a good way to gage economy

I knew that for the last year that I was gone from Attland, or Hlannska, the country was still experiencing a barely restrained growth. Despite the monetary measures and the gold standard, the economy is growing and drawing huge numbers of foreigners from most of the world that is already concerned with a possible recession.

On the flight from Memphis to Miklasgard there were mostly Americans on the way to jobs or business meetings in Attland. There were a couple of advertizing executives openly discussing the custom car industry and advertizing of Attland's revived US 70's models back in the US. There were probably a dozen of welders or rigging workers on the way to finish a super gas-oil rig off the coast of Newstad. A diamond and gold trader was discussing exporting Attland's diamonds and bringing in gold.

There was a man that actually was on the way to offer the services of his company that would recover diamonds from the coals rejects lining Attands's railroad beds and roadside shoulders.

These refreshing social customs that frown on seclusion and piercings

Some of the most commendable customs I find in Attland are these:

• No man can touch or shake hands with a woman, especially a married woman
• Women avoid being alone in a house or an empty building with men they are not related to
• Body piercings, tattoos (and garish, inciting T-shirts) are definite no-nos and most respectable restaurants will not allow this on their premises
• any anarchistic, rebellious points of view are far from being fashionable in Attland, and are definite party-poopers
  

Scandinavians sign SCANDET treaty, Finland sidelined

Scandinavian Defense Treaty has been signed yesterday in Trollheim, Norway, while Finland, apprehensive of its Finlandization, did not come for the final day of the signing.

The treaty is unique for having outlined diplomatic, economic and military contingency plans for each signatory country, and for every type of foreseeable international crisis challenging each country. Finland stayed away from negotiations, which were confidential, perceiving the general suspicion that it is being a proxy for Russia as an observer. Sweden, which practiced SCANDET -like decision in refusing Russia to build the Northern Stream pipeline through Swedish sea lanes, has surprised Attland in welcoming the summit and together with Denmark and Norway, came up with unique methods for dealing with current political contingencies of utmost concern. Iceland, Denmark and Norway discussed the Russian forays to stake out the Arctic ocean floor.

UK and Canada expressed their desire to be an observer, but the possible presence of UK gave a perfect excuse for Attland to refuse the idea, whereupon Canada decided to stay away.

Amethyste's sinking raises tensions with France

While operating in the eastern-central Atlantic, on December 23, 2004, an Attland's SSN was pinged by an active sonar from the French S605 Amethyste, the leader of the name class, and found herself being pursued while receiving signals of an aggressive postur and rigging on the French submarine.

SSN's captain terminated avoidance maneuvers, commenced counter-maneuvers, and, after exchanging active pings with the Amethyste, launched his weapon. The French sub became damaged, and, unable to surface despite frantic and well-heard damage control operations, slowly sank during agonizing 6 to 10 hours. SSN specialists have heard the French sub shutting down her nuclear reactor. Nuclear chemistry tests run by SSN determined that there was no release of radioactive material from the sub.

After 5 hours from being damaged, the French sub has launched her emergency buoy which prompted a rescue mission to arrive in the general area of the sinking, unable to located the sunken sub until January 2-nd of 2005. The government of France has ascertained that its sub was sunk by a another country's naval craft, and has demanded Attland to confirm her responsibility, which Attland did, drawing ire and condemnation of the international community for idly standing and failing to call for any rescue operation where time was of essence.

The sinking has earned the captain, the SSN and her crew the Meritorious Battle Award.

The North Korean sub's sinking questions, and ends Attland's Far East operations

While operating in the shallows of the Yellow Sea on Novemeber 10-11 2003, an Attland's SSN encountered a North Korean Chinese-model Romeo-class diesel submarine. After being pinged with active sonar and receiving signals of the North Korean's aggressive posture, the SSN launched her weapon, thereby destroying the diesel sub. Unofficial sources in Chinese Navy suggest that the sub was North Korea's native Sang O class sub.

This was the first event which earned the SSN, her crew and her captain Meritoriuos Battle Award.

The previous incident where an enemy sub was sunk (Iranian Kilo SSK) has resulted in only the captain receiving the award.

The National Government has found that there was no longer any national interest in operating any military forces int he Far East, and in the Yellow Sea specifically, thereby withdrawing all naval assets from the area. Attland still honors treaties she has signed with Japan guaranteeing Japan any assistance in defense against any foreign aggression.

Attland's SSN sinks Iranian's Russian-made sub

Operating in the straights of Hormuz during the second Gulf War, an Attland SSN detected an Iranian Kilo-class SSK rigging into an aggressive posture, having opened torpedo tubes to the sea and assuming the minimal cross-section posture. Upon receiving data of the enemy sub's imminent aggressive moves, the SSN launched her weapons, sinking the SSK.

I remember the reaction of the foreign media that seemed to side with the Iranians, tsince by then, Attland was perceived as boasting a brutal and aggressive military.

This was the frist indication in the media that the SSN was manned mostly by Maarheinigt.

Maarheinigt is an untranslatable name but a much feared military

Maarheinigt has no direct translation. In the Deitiste language maarheiniget comes close to mean the "a state in which the ranks are arrayed centrally."

King Jarl is the founder of the concept and the military formation that bears the name. When he conceived the plan for recapture of Attland, he personally supervised a selection of the most militarily fit of the volunteers for a unspecified patriotic operation. The volunteers had to commit unconditionally to train for the operation, and , be ready for failure as well as for success. The volunteers were also promised a career in the military, with all the benefits and assured promotion upon meeting the military advancement requirements.

The volunteers formed the core of the invasion force, manning trucks, helicopters, planes, and attack boats, as well as running continuous retraining programs.

Throughout the ten years following the successful recapture of the island, the Maarheinigt became to be known officially by the name, earning a marked distinction as being different then the Land, Naval or Air Forces.

The Maarheinigt had also founded a professional education programs, that had their own preparatory high schools, summer camps, colleges and command programs. By the early '80s the Maarheingt has also developed a society and culture of its own, wherein higher standards are used when accepting young men or service members into the program.

Maarheinigt personnel has lived throughout the military bases and in Morau, specifically.
The construction of the city dedicated specially for the needs of the organization has answered the needs of the organization for a self-isolated, high-security living and training environment. Initially the city was given a provisional name of Salem, in an attempt to keep a less than military profile with the relatively liberal National government at that time, and, upon the first residents moving in, the city was officially named Wafast.

The Queen approves and reiterates the Marriage Reform Act

The Act passed back in August 2006 allows a married man to marry more than one woman if his local council court has found him compoetent to marry specific woman. Drawing some criticism that found her ruling lenient if not liberal, the Queen also upheld the right of a man to marry a legal resident, and even a non-resident foreign national.

The law also requires that a man's current wives must be fully aware of their husband's intent.

The Act implicitly allows import of brides from impoverished countries, but does stress that the children of such marriages are not eligible for national citizenship registry.