Overview
The LittleBigPlanet Union is an alliance of clans and organizations dedicated to making the LittleBigPlanet community a better place and bringing peace and cooperation between groups. It is best known for bringing nearly the entire clanning community together in the name of peace after the Shadow Epoch.
History
The Old Union
Origins
The LBPU was proposed by Godman2k7 for the newly aligned Anti H4H Bounty Hunters and the Agents. in June 2009. The goal of the Union was to create an alliance of Anti-H4H groups (Namely three H4H Bounty Hunter groups that were around at the time) with the joint capability to reduce Heart for Heart to a level where where they believed it could not harm the LBP servers. In that respect, it was a huge success, with H4H never being a serious problem from Fall of 2009 onward. Gradually the ideologies of the LBPU had evolved over the course of time, but it always kept a zero tolerance approach to H4H and other anti-LBP practices. As construction of the Union HQ began, some of the first groups began to join the H4H Bounty Hunters' project, including the Agents, Cheating Resistance Organization, the Hawks, the AHG and other familiar faces. War was not a major issue in formation of the Union, members were loyal to their groups and united in the conflict with H4H, and the member states were all part of the original friend circle. Aside from a pocket rebellion and civil conflicts between member states, the Union remained very united until the First Union Civil War in November 2009, dictated by Scorpitom355 and creating the common rift between the (by this point) two primary groups of the LBPU, the Agents and the BHers.
First Union Civil War
The first Union Civil War mainly involved a rift between the H4H Bounty Hunters and the Agents leaders over the recent insurrection led by BarneyTremwoc in 2009. The leader of the Agents had taken the side of Tremwoc and argued in his favor. However, this rift was mainly backseated by Scorpitom335, who drove a wedge between the Agents and the H4H Bounty Hunters for his own personal gain. Eventually, after several days, the bickering and flaming calmed down and peace was restored. The Union was united again, but the scars left from the conflict remained.
The Red Skull Republic / Union War
The Red Skull Republic was soon brought to the Union's attention in the late Winter of 2009. The idea that RSR may have been a malicious organization that harassed and bullied others was a concern to the Union, and Godman2k7 agreed to back the Agents in an espionage effort to find out more about the RSR from the inside. The Agents soon were fooled by false information provided by the Elite Force, which were being attacked by the RSR. The Elite Force lied and said that the RSR had started the fighting unprovoked, but it in reality was a member of Elite Force that had started the fighting. The Union would not find this out until later, however, and it began to prepare for a conflict. The RSR was onto the Union's movements, and after several attacks on Union levels, fighting broke out between the two superpowers. The war eventually ended with a truce, and the Red Skull Republic and the Union became good friends, but the RSR refused to join the Union as a member state.
The Great Schism
In early 2011, President Godman2k7 resigned from office and left MRLane1 as a provisionary President. Godman2k7 instructed the other Protectors to decide who to make President and what to do with the Union. Shadow-Man100 from the Bounty Hunters argued that there should not be a President, while M88youngling from the Agents argued that there needed to be a President to maintain stability. Without Godman2k7 to quell their fighting, the arguing soon spiraled out of control and split the Union in half, creating the New Union led by elected President M88youngling and the Loyalist Union, led by Godman2k7 who was incredibly disappointed over the situation. The New Union and the Loyalist Union clashed for a few months or so before they both collapsed.
Refoundation
Prelude
The Union remained disbanded for three years or so, and the Shadow Epoch raged on during this time. As the fighting died down due to the many clans involved in this era collapsed from the constant state of war, M88youngling saw opportunity to rebuild and correct his mistakes during the schism. With some encouragement from friends and others, M88youngling reached out to some other clans and wrote a new constitution for the Union, resulting in the Union's refoundation on December 14th, 2013. The new 'refounding fathers' were
- M88youngling - Unaffiliated, President of the Union
- Cold_Wolf102 - Leader of Treynota Wolfpack
- Soldier-Boy_714 - Leader of the Soldier Wolves
- I_Keel_You_2001 - Lone Wolf Dynasty
- Lgmpm - President of the New California Republic
- Kazmord - CEO of the Sunrise Corporation
President M88youngling and his cabinet worked together to rebuild the infrastructure of the Union and to make it better than the original Union. They also worked to eliminate the weaknesses of the Old Union to prevent an event like the schism from occurring again. Youngling's administration established the Union census, which would play a major role in the organization of the Union for years to come. It's only major internal problems stemmed from the unstable relationship between the Soldier Wolves and the Brotherhood of Steel, which resulted in the Soldier Wolves being threatened with Union Peacekeeper action after an argument between SW leader Soldier-Boy_714 and the BoS leader ProtectmyBanana, who also happened to be the Union Vice President at the time. Soldier-Boy_714 admitted to the acts but remained bitter and hostile for some time after. The LBP Union would decide how to handle the situation sometime later.
Early Foreign Affairs
Conflict Begins with the Remnants Union
Following refoundation, President M88youngling sought out other clans who would be willing to join the Union. One of these clans they found happened to be the Autobots, who agreed to join the LBP Union as a member state. However, the Autobots failed to inform the Union that they were already a member state of the Remnants Union, a strict federation of states headed by President XFinal_IsaacX. Isaac demanded that the Autobots not align themselves with the LBP Union and threatened the LBPU with hostile action if they did not comply or provide another clan as a trade to replace the Autobots. The Union refused to offer up another clan and insisted that it would be the Autobots' choice of whether or not to leave the RU to join the LBPU. The LBPU and the RU agreed on a verbal non-aggression pact after this circumstance, but the tensions continued.
United Clans Federation and the Axis Alliance
Around a similar time to the Autobots fiasco, the LBP Union was made aware of the United Clans Federation and their bickering with the Axis Alliance. The LBP Union attempted to resolve this problem to little avail, however the Axis appeared to have disappeared soon after the fighting. The United Clans Federation saw a shift in leadership to ProtectmyBanana, making the UCF a topic of discussion for possibly uniting it with the Union. However, ProtectmyBanana saw the UCF as an opportunity to lead his own superpower of allied clans.
While the Axis seemed to have dropped in activity, Lord President PolarisPhaedra soon questioned President M88youngling on the state of the Union's affairs with the Axis. The two met and during this meeting, Polar treated the Union as if it were simply another clan rather than as a full fledged alliance of multiple organizations. President M88youngling saw this as slightly threatening, as Polar was suggesting that the Union join the Axis as a member state, effectively putting the Axis above the Union in hierarchy. This was not the LBP Union's vision, as the LBP Union was intended to be a broad alliance of many clans on LBP much like the United Nations. Put off by this, Polar requested an alliance instead. M88youngling refused, citing that it would still reduce the Union to the same level as the Axis when in reality the Union was not meant to be a single power, but rather a voice for a collective community of clans. Polar, upset with this result, informed M88youngling that Nick-C11 would be returning with the Silentium Contra to oppose the Union. This never occurred.
Dissent in the Remnants Union, February Summit of 2014
LBP Union interest in the Jedi Order soon rose. The Jedi Order was an old clan that President XFinal_IsaacX claimed to be part of the Remnants Union. However, the leader of the Jedi Order, Grandmaster Rebeller93, had been missing for nearly a year. A member of his, RenegadeRhythm, had influence in the clan and believed that the LBP Union had better intentions than the Remnants Union and started participating in Union meetings.
On February 15th, 2014, a summit was held in the LBP Union to discuss how to handle the incident between Soldier-Boy_714 and ProtectmyBanana. After some discussion, Lgmpm, Ferbfan01, RenegadeRhythm and M88youngling decided it was best to allow Soldier-Boy_714 to defend himself in the Union Supreme Court for his trial, however Soldier-Boy remained incredibly bitter and left the Union on his own whim, bringing the Soldier Wolves with him. Treynota Wolfpack and the Brotherhood of Steel also left shortly thereafter, citing the instability of the incident. Treynota Wolfpack left to join the Axis Alliance, while the Brotherhood of Steel left to pursue its interests with the United Clans Federation. However, the BoS cited 'anarchist beliefs,' despite the federalist nature of the UCF. All in all, the startling secession of the three clans showed that the Union had lost over 80 members, but over a 100 remained.
War With the Remnants Union
Sa'Reth Rebellion and Denouncement
The Remnants Union in March denounced the LBP Union to new clans such as the Yautja Predators and the Masquerade Society, warning them not to join the LBP Union and instead join the Remnants Union. President XFinal_IsaacX also accused the Union of being responsible for a troll who claimed to run an organization called the Sa'Reth Rebellion. The Sa'Reth Rebellion posted levels depicting the capture of Union leaders and Middle Eastern racial stereotypes regarding terrorism, though this was never directly referenced by name in the Sa'Reth levels. The Union had never authorized the activities, though they were being carried out independently by a Union endorsed artist named Huntsman007, who was ordered to shut down the Sa'Reth immediately. The Remnants Union continued to blame the Union and began a series of flamewars and operations that became known as the Remnants Union / LBP Union War.
Overview of the War
The war started out as mainly flamewars between the Remnants Union and the LBP Union, but later the stalemate resulted in the Remnants Union trying to ruin the LBPU's reputation with propaganda. During this time, remaining active members of the Jedi Order split from the group to form the Knights of the Force under Grandmaster RenegadeRhythm, which assisted the LBP Union in the defense against the Remnants Union. The Remnant's Union's last stand at the end of March was to attempt to sway several key Union leaders to their side. XFinal_IsaacX contacted CCSocalGamer, Lgmpm, Spleentastik, Hoeflers4 and Halkoonen. No immediate success arose from this due to the swift response of the Protectors. The LBP Union however had rebuilt the Union Task Force and scored several victories through tactical reporting strikes in April as retaliation. As the LBP Union continued to grow and the Remnants Union poured more energy into discrediting the LBPU, the RU began to weaken. Isaac saw no immediate success and the Remnants Union continued to plummet into inactivity, leaving the Union standing as the dominant power and it continued to grow. Some arguing with Isaac continued after this, but the Remnants Union was effectively crippled.
Axis Conflict
After the collapse of the Remnants Union, Lord President PolarisPhaedra took note of the state of the Remnants Union and the ongoing rise of the LBP Union. Threatened by the defeat of one of his best friends, Polar prepared to take on the LBP Union alongside what was left of the United Clans Federation and the Remnants Union. However, this was initially quelled by LBPU/Axis peace talks. Polar actually seeked to work alongside the LBPU to take on the Red Skull Republic, as HomocidalChicken had been trolling Polar and tricking him into thinking the RSR was going to make a comeback to destroy the Axis.
Later however, the Axis declared war and Polar personally challenged M88youngling to a create war duel. Citing opposition to create war, M88youngling refused. The Axis soon collapsed within a month after a power struggle and multiple administration changes stemming from a failed election.
Operation Lunar Storm
After some time of development after the Remnants Union and Axis conflicts, the Union mainly faced threats from small troll organizations. However, in the Fall, The LBP Union found itself aware of an organization named Judgement which was formed by former leaders of the Fallen Republic. Forced to form a secret coalition with the Remnants Union, Silentium Contra and the Axis to contain Judgement, the LBP Union spearheaded the campaign and built up the Union Task Force. This massive campaign was known as Operation Lunar Storm. The LBP Union's participation in the operation outweighed that of the other participants, and after the others in the coalition began bullying members of Judgement, the LBPU withdrew from the coalition, effectively bringing the alliance to an end as the LBP Union operated against Judgement by itself. The LBPU's campaign lasted from October 19th, 2014 to March 7th, 2015, officially.
The Novus Carta
Failures observed in the original refounded Union constitution led to the passage of the Novus Carta on April 20th, 2015. The Novus Carta rid the Union of a direct democracy in favor of a representative one, as well as patched many holes in the original constitution regarding membership and definitions for various government programs such as the Independent States Allied Forces and more.
The Visarian Mandate and Großdeutsches Reich
The former leaders of Judgement banded together later in the Summer of 2015 to form the Visarian Mandate, which seemed to exist for the purpose of disrupting the LBP Union. The Visarian Mandate took advantage of the Großdeutsches Reich, a small clan led by MeanieKiller5481 which was once part of the Union. By creating a fake account of the NCR representative VitoCoreleon001 (fix) and using it as false evidence of espionage from the Union, the Visarian Mandate managed to turn the Reich against the Union and the Mandate turned the Reich into a puppet state for several months. The Mandate and the Reich's relationship ended after conflict between the Reich and the Union. The Reich never returned to the LBP Union and both the Visarian Mandate and the German Reich's activities declined significantly.
The Dark Akatsuki
Around August 8th, 2015, the Union took note of a conflict between the two clans of the Dark Akatsuki and Dogs Clan. The Union and its foreign ministry attempted to resolve the situation by setting up peace talks but this had little avail. The Dark Akatsuki's leader, Bzrew45, refused to be part of the Union and insisted on furthering the conflict with Dogs Clan. Dogs Clan agreed to step down its aggression as well, but soon it elevated its actions to trolling, which eventually led to Dogs Clan being discredited by the Union as a troll organization.
A section of the Dark Akatsuki led by Bzrew45's second in command, Harrysboo427, seceded and joined the Union to reform the Dark Akatsuki while Bzrew45 rebuilt the original TDA into the Senkei Dark Akatuski. While this led to some tensions between the two groups due to Harrysboo's youthful immaturity and failure to utilize Union counter-troll policy, the SDA eventually fell into inactivity and no longer was a threat.
Resignation of M88youngling
On July 16th, 2016, President M88youngling and all of the Protectors resigned from their positions at the monthly summit. M88youngling agreed to help author an amendment that would establish Presidential elections for the Union as well as eliminate the ailing Parliament established by the Novus Carta. The amendment was ratified and the Union Commission was established, essentially a council of Union clan leaders and their co-leaders.
Taurian Concordat Fiasco
Tensions were already high between Taurian Concordat and several other Union states such as the Dark Akatsuki and the Pride of the Fallen. This was due to Taurian Concordat's use of reckless espionage by one of its members against the ailing Senkei Dark Akatsuki and the League of Excellence. Despite calls for legislation to regulate espionage and hinder Taurian Concordat's reckless actions, Primevaliam and the leaders of the two clans strongly against Taurian Concordat's actions formed a meeting to vote the offending member of Taurian Concordat out of the Union. However, Primevaliam and the others did not reach a majority. Despite their invalid vote, Taurian Concordat seceded from the Union by choice, feeling betrayed by their allies. This resulted in M88youngling's outrage at the situation, describing the actions of Primevaliam and his followers as bullying and harassment. M88youngling withheld his clan's (the New Lunar Republic) nomination for Primevaliam until Primevaliam could amend his mistakes.
Primevaliam and Visarian Relations
Primevaliam and the others around this time had begun to speak to leaders of the mostly inactive Visarian Mandate, who were now mostly working behind the scenes by puppeting organizations like the League of Excellence. After M88youngling asked Primevaliam to cease relations with these individuals out of concern for Prime's safety, Prime refused. M88youngling immediately banned all who claimed to be communicating with the Visarian leaders, locked the Union website, hid the Novus Carta from public view and locked Union levels on LittleBigPlanet 2 and 3. This was done, as M88youngling explained, to prevent the Visarians from being able to continue the Union and use its status as a basis for trolling.
The Union Today
The LBP Union's status today is not clear, though there are a few clans who identify with the LBP Union, but do not meet.
Demographics
Population
Briefly describe the trends of the population of the alliance. Also, if possible, describe what regions members are from in the real world. Please do not be any more specific than countries.
Language
Describe what language(s) the population uses and any efforts the alliance makes to be multilingual.
Government
Briefly describe the government of the alliance here, and if necessary organize any branches or divisions of the government into subheadings to go into further detail.
Foreign Relations and Military
If applicable, describe how the alliance handles its combined foreign affairs and defense forces.
Culture and Style
Describe the creative style of the organization. If possible, explain the history of the development of the style.
Infrastructure
Describe how the organization holds events, meetings, and communicate
Introduction
The LittleBigPlanet Union is an alliance of clans dedicated to making the LBP community a better place. The only alliance of its kind, it was founded in late 2008 by groups of Anti-Heart for Heart groups and neutral organizations, mainly to promote peace, order and integrity to the clanning community. It later collapsed in 2011 due to a political schism which split the alliance in two. On December 14th of 2013, the Union was refounded and stands to this day representing the same ideals it did originally.
Early Days
Union Government
The LBPU Government originally was not run from a constitution. Leaders simply agreed that Godman2k7 would be the President and manage the Union's affairs. Godman chose several people to serve as "Protectors," essentially his cabinet. Some Protectors were Leejk30 as the Vice President, and M88youngling as the Union Diplomat.
After refoundation, a constitution was drafted and ratified by the refounding member states. After about a year of legislative failure under this constitution, the Union adopted a document known as the Novus Carta. This new constitution established a far more capable governmental system. The LBPU's government is primarily anti-federalist, with the aim of allowing member clans to have their own governments and manage themselves as they wish. However, the core Union government is able to rise member states' militaries for the common defense and helps manage programs such as the Union Task Force, the Census Bureau and others.
Executive
The Union Executive branch is composed of the Union Protectors and their subordinating ministries. The Protectors are led by the President, which has no power over member states unless granted to him by a resolution or amendment. The President however is able to organize ISAF in the common defense or in accordance with a Security Council police action.
Alongside the President are the Ministers, which run their respective ministries. These ministries have positions for assisting their ministers in their affairs. These ministries are,
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs
- Ministry of Domestic Affairs
- Ministry of Security
- Ministry of Defense
- Ministry of Intelligence
Currently, there are no Presidential elections or clear method of passing the presidency down the line. This has led to some debate lit by anti-Union activists.
Legislative
The Legislative Branch is composed of the Union Parliament, which is divided into the General Assembly and the Security Council. Union Representatives make up these. Union representatives are officials appointed by member state governments. They have the power to propose new legislation, endorse other legislation and vote on proposals at vote. Passed proposals become resolutions, passed Union laws. Clans may appoint up to three representatives, and representatives must meet monthly activity quotas to keep their positions.
Judicial
As of April 9th, General Assembly [R.001] established protocol for the Union legal system. Unfortunately, it is plagued by a lack of manpower, and there are no attorneys or judges in the Union, meaning that criminals cannot be tried. To work around this, Union Protectors are forced to make deals with member state clan leaders to kick out troublemakers. If clan leaders fail to comply, the entire clan may need to be removed from the Union, depending on the circumstance. Generally, it has been seen that many criminals are trolls, that if given trial, would take advantage of the situation and use it to gain leverage and attention. This has led to some debate as to the merits of the system.
Member States
Here is a list off all groups and clans that were in the LBPU before it initially fell in 2011 (Note: List is still missing a few groups):
- The H4H Bounty Hunters
- The Agents
- Cheating Resistance Organization (Later the Commando Recon Operations)
- The Hawks
- Knights of Valor
- Anti H4H Group (Joshyking90)
- Death Grip
- Solar Ice
- CoCo Creators Clan
- Fury Fang
- Union Protection Squad
- The Balance
- TechnoRevolution
- Ninja03036's Clan (Establishment was never completed.)
- ISR
A current, up to date list of Union member states can be found on the census.
Membership and Observers Status
Though rather unofficial, the Union differentiates membership status based on political representation. If a clan has a representative to give them a say in the parliament, they are considered a full member state and are given full benefits such as full event participation and keycard access, among other benefits. Clans that do not have representatives, but can have them if they wish, are known as Union observer states. These clans do not have any say in Union legislature and cannot vote on proposals.
There is no official document which establishes the existence of observer states. The term was coined by the Protectors for use in the census, and as such observer states are essentially member states without representatives. This may be the topic of proposals in the future for the General Assembly.
Union Defense Policy
During the Godman Administration from 2008 to 2011, the Union was in general pro peace. However it would fight wars should it be necessary to ensure a better future. The Union would only fight a war if it was justified and and would help LBP. Anti H4H in all its forms was entirely permitted in the Union but the LBPU encouraged peaceful methods to be tried before all else. It was strongly against "Peace for Peace" as it believed that it had become not only an illogical and counter productive practice but also a weapon of choice for H4Hers and trolls that seek to damage LBP and/or the LBPU. They would take advantage of this by utilizing the aruging between P4Pers and Anti-H4Hers.
As of the refoundation, the Union is completely against war and is incapable of declaring it. No office has the power to declare war in the LBPU. The Novus Carta also restricts Union clans from declaring war and fighting with other states without provocation. The Union Security Council can however pass Police Actions to use ISAF to take action against entities that have not provoked the Union. ISAF may also be used to defend Union states.
The Great Schism
Sometime in the late fall of 2011, President Godman2k7 decided to resign from his office and left only a temporary successor. The current superpowers of the Union argued over who should be President. Agents and CRO leader, M88youngling argued that there should be a President to keep the order. H4H Bounty Hunter leader and Union Vice President Shadow-Man100 argued that there should not be a President, as the Union did not need one. This led to a rather heated argument, and triggers were pulled. The Union quickly broke into two halves, the Loyalist Union, led by returning self appointed President Godman2k7, and the New Union, led by elected President M88youngling. Both alliances contested for about a month before collapsing. This was known as the Great Schism, and results of it can still be seen on the original Union wiki front page, which was owned by Godman2k7 and used the homepage as propaganda for the Loyalist Union.
This marked the end of the Union, and the dawn of the dark age of clanning known as the Shadow Epoch, which was ruled by powers such as the Shadow Paradigm, Axis, Chaos Clan, Armageddon Empire, Red Skull Republic and Red Eagle Army. These powers and more fought well into 2012 and early 2013 before the community quieted down.
Reformation
On December 14th, 2013, the Union was refounded by several organizations to pursue the goals of the now so called 'old Union,' which is regarded as the same alliance. Clans agreed to allow M88youngling be their President by ratifying the constitution. December 14th is now recognized as Union Refoundation Day across the LBPU to celebrate the new anniversary.
In the modern day and with new technology and efforts to keep constant record of members and statistics, the Union is much more precise in its census count, and this has resulted in its population fluctuating dramatically across various spans of time. At the start, before activity quotas were enforced, the Union's population was regarded to be well over 260 members total, a good 31% of these members belonging to the Brotherhood of Steel. However, skepticism over the activity or even the existence of these members led to the the now rather strict activity quotas which remain today. Clans are usually given the benefit of the doubt about their member counts, but if they fail to remain active by attending monthly summit meetings, then they are removed from the Union. An excuse for these summits is accepted typically.