Interior is, unfortunately, one of those places where only the most driven, organized individual can make any sort of headway in 70 days. Recruitment is something we've got down to a science. Integration, on the other hand, is a VERY soft science (I can feel hyanygo's death stare as I type this), and the results of integration efforts aren't something we can quantify in such a short span. It takes a few months to get acclimated to Europeia, something to which I can attest (it took me almost 2 months to join a Ministry at all), and the integration efforts we propose shift often enough that they have no real time to take root.
Mentoring new citizens is something I've really come to enjoy here, and is something I'm good at. I would never serve as the Minister of the Interior in this region. Why? Any project I create, no matter how successful it might eventually be, will be seen as a failure, because it couldn't produce results during my term. We are Europeians, after all, and having opinions is our favorite pastime. Mentoring and Integration are NOT 70-day jobs, but we keep treating them like they are... which is why they will never be better than what we have now.
So, Siol Alse, Le Libertia, Sam111 for Minister of the Interior? It doesn't matter. This region will never give them the time or care they need to 'succeed', anyway. I wish any and all of them all the luck I can spare.
Pyntuma has exactly the energy, innovation, and downright infectious mood that I LOVE to see in Culture. By her own admission, her availability keeps her from being Minister of Culture. On the other hand, she is a VERY dependable force when it comes to her specific portfolio, and that is a strength that is good for a Ministry. Pyntuma is to Culture what CptCarrot is to Radio: Someone that has a specific niche, that is dedicated and effective. If either of them were ever willing to run their respective Ministries, I'd hire them in a heartbeat. But they're not, so until then, we look elsewhere.
Since we're talking about Cabinet posts, let me share a little secret: it is fucking hard to build a Cabinet in this region. HEM would have us believe that it is easy: grab someone that is talented and hard-working, and slot them into the spot where you want them to go. Okay, fine. Nobody knows their Ministry better than the Minister, yes? When I took over for Calvin, I approached all of the currently-serving Ministers and asked them to come up with a single name for the 'If I get hit by a bus' file. Should hell rain down, who should I find to replace them. Care to know what happened? Only 3 Ministers could name someone to replace them, and 2 of those ministers named the same person. So I looked into it and found out that the Executive is held together by about 20 people (this includes the Cabinet and the Ministries, it doesn't include the ERN or the EAAC). I see the same score of people people taking initiative, asking for work, coming up with ideas, pushing for change. That includes newcomer and old hand alike. We don't have a problem in the number of newcomers who aren't getting their shot... we have a problem in the number of citizens that are (not) actively engaged in their government.
JayDee is one of the people that deserve a shot, and has been given it (although he had to turn it down). He's had some marks against him in his time here. Some were gaffes, some were missteps, some were mistakes, and there was the occasional outright fuck-up. But he keeps trying, and I respect his tenacity, and his drive to learn from his mistakes, no matter how much the mistakes frustrated me in the past. I think, like many of our older members, he has the potential to have a long and great career here. But the core of that career is that he tries, and he learns, and he keeps trying. I don't see anyone who I can say the same of. Maybe they existed in the past, but they haven't lately.
Do we punish failure too harshly? Overall, I would say no, or we'd have tossed JayDee out on his ear by now. Do some of us enjoy cutting others down (privately counts here, there is no such thing as a secret) more than building them up? Definitely. Coherbia's flame-out is proof of that. Because having an opinion is fun, and teaching someone something is work.
HEM, I agree with you, that there is trouble in the region. I disagree that there is a systemic issue of deserving citizens who are consistently shut out, though. We are supposed to be the preeminent UCR in Nationstates. But claiming and holding on to that title takes work. From where I stand, there aren't enough of us working to really back that up. That work comes in the form of leaving behind the fear of failure, of asking for more, of proving that you're ready. For those of us who have done those things, the work is in helping the others, in overseeing and guiding, and providing real constructive advice.
Building something up takes work. And it's never going to get there (and stay there) until we all get (and keep) our hands dirty.
h43r: 
