[hider=Madira Conglomerate]
[b]Nation name:[/b]
[color=1ad21f]Madira Conglomerate[/color]

[b]Flag/Banner(s):[/b]
[img]http://i393.photobucket.com/albums/pp13/Lerilaine/flag.png[/img]

[b]Political Environment and Government Type:[/b]
Technocratic dictatorship

The country is ruled by the Cruz family, currently the president Marco Cruz. His orders are carried through the Committee - a group of experts carefully selected from the best minds in the country. The president, as well as the Committee resides at the capital city Salta Plaz.

The peace and law-enforcement falls under the Steel Order - well organized and equipped police organization, which also functions as an army if need be. Part of the Steel Order is also a secret police, designed to uncover possible threats from within the country and filter out people who show open disagreement with the regime.

[b]Location On Map:[/b]
[img]http://i393.photobucket.com/albums/pp13/Lerilaine/u4wfJl4.png[/img]

[b]Demographics (Religious and Racial)[/b]
Large part of the population is comprised of original population or Argentina, Chile and also Paraguay, Uruguay and southern Brazil, from areas which were completely flooded thanks to rising sea level. There is also a lot of people whose ancestors originally came from USA and Japan before the war, to be a part of the mining and science operations in northern Argentina. There is still a fraction indigenous population of Native Argentines, mostly living out in the wild. The ones who live in the cities are usually slaves or live in huge poverty.

There are 3 casts of people within the Conglomerate
[list]
[*] elites
[*] normal population
[*] slaves
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There is mandatory basic education for every child up to the age of 12. When they become 12 years old, every child is tested (including the children of slaves or poor people). The test comprises mainly from an extended IQ test, along with a test of basics math, chemistry and physics to see if the child has a bright enough mind to continue with education. The best children are promoted to the elites and given the best education in one of the scientific fields. The rest of the children become normal citizens and can either choose to continue education in some area to support the society (nursing and caretaking, agriculture, construction, etc.) or can go to work, if their family needs additional financial support. Only few of the children become slaves after this test, all of them with some degree of mental retardation.

The elites are the smartest and brightest minds of the country, making sure that the science is always advancing and improving the lives of other citizens. They live in a beautiful district in Salta Plaz, their every need taken care of by a number of employees and slaves.

Slavery in the Conglomerate is very strictly regulated. The slaves have their rights, mainly the right for food, shelter and decent clothing, also their working hours are limited to 10 hours a day 6 days a week. This is a reason that many extremely poor people choose to rather sell themselves to be slaves than to exist in such miserable conditions. Slave work is used mainly in the lithium mines and agriculture.

While religion isn't officially banned in the Conglomerate, there are no official buildings of worship or support for them of any kind. Some families still uphold the beliefs of their ancestors, whether it is Christianity or Buddhism, but this is mostly done through small family rituals, like gathering for a Christmas Eve, or having some small sculptures of the gods or spirits in the house. Government's official view on the religion is that there is no place for any gods or supernatural in the mind of a smart person.

[b]Culture:[/b]
The people in the Conglomerate value practicality above anything. While there are a few prevailing cultural habits, especially from the latino-american ancestors, the government is working to eradicate them and replace them with the one of the main doctrines of the country - practicality and pragmatism above anything else. People are taught to always take the smart and logical paths when deciding anything.

People in the country are hard-working and content. Anyone who would want to say otherwise will soon end up as a slave mining lithium from brine pools. The main focus of the society is on technological advance - at first it was to eradicate the need for fossil fuels by electrificating everything from cars to factories, currently the research is focused on improving the biggest wonder of the Conglomerate, an actual operational fusion reactor.


[b]Important States and Cities[/b]
Salta Plaz - the capital, located in the north of the country, on a mountain plate surrounded by brine pools and salt plates

Arizaro - technological center hidden away in a small valley in the Andes

The Pampas - fertile area on the south of the country, there are many farms and ranches there, producing food for the population


Maquinchao - metropolis in the Pampas, connected with Salta Plaz by electrical high-speed train track


[b]History:[/b]
[hider=The Dark Years 2018-2143]
The Dark Years 2018-2143
The south of South America was mostly spared from the bombings, as there weren't any important military targets, but it was largely affected by the rising sea level. More than half of the Chilean surface was lost, and it was the more fertile and populated half, the only parts of lands Chile had left were the mountains. Countries on the other side of the Andes were hit even harder. Paraguay, Uruguay and southern Brazil were gone and millions of refugees fled to Argentina or north to Bolivia or Peru.

Argentina also lost some coastal areas, not even talking about the city of Buenos Aires, which generated another millions of refugees. The country submerged into chaos, people fighting for food and fresh water, hundreds of thousands of lives were lost due to famine, diseases or wars between small groups of survivors.

One of the areas that avoided total destruction during the bombings and the turmoil after that was Arizaro. Originally a small city hidden away in the Andes near Lago Salar de Arizaro, large salt flat. Fortunately the area was considered a wasteland, as fresh water was scarce and nothing could grow on the salty lands, so the refugees avoided it. However there was something valuable hidden in the ground - various minerals, and above all what the modern technologies coveted most, the lithium.

Before the war, there was a large mining operation in Arizaro, employing dozens of specialized workers. The main company operating in this area was a large multinational corporation Madira. This company invested not only in mining, but also into a large private research center that with its size could easily compete with Swiss CERN. Fortunately, its existence was kept a secret, so it was not marked as a valuable target for bombing. Around three hundred of scientists worked on the research projects in Arizaro, most of them bringing their families to live with them in Argentina. With other personnel, the population of Arizaro soon rose to two thousand.

When the world around collapsed, the people decided that they would be safer staying where they are than to try their luck in the refugee-flooded collapsing countries. The technology helped them to survive and even grow the population in time. Desalination and deep wells provided enough fresh water to large hydroponic gardens complex, people were even able to grow a few sturdy plants in the barren land.

The electricity was provided by a functional experimental cold fusion reactor, the biggest gem of the Madira Conglomerate. The company wanted to announce their success to the world, but this effort was thwarted by the war breaking out, so it remained a secret only known to citizens of Arizaro.
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[hider=The Years of Unification 2144-2280]
The Years of Unification 2144-2280
Over 120 years from the war Argentina and what was left of the surrounding countries still convulsed in utter chaos. Small groups rose and fell, fighting each other for territory. As education wasn’t viewed as very valuable at that time, every upcoming generation knew less and less, the knowledge treasured and expanded by mankind for centuries forgotten and ignored. When old technology broke or stopped working, there was no one who knew how to fix it, let alone creating something new. Thanks to this, the civilization was slowly devolving towards the new Middle ages.

Only Arizaro remained as a beacon of hope, still hidden and forgotten by most. Here education was set to the utmost level of importance, with the thought that if all people in the world were educated enough, the war would have never happened. The citizens would occasionally scout what was happening to the rest of the country and since the news were getting worse and worse, the Committee unanimously voted on trying to expand Arizaro’s influence and try to avert the civilization downfall.

They reached out to several leaders of the small groups of survivors and offered to help them, provided they agree to join the newly-found nation and obey the orders from the Committee. The diplomatic way hasn’t always been successful and brute force had to be used. No group could ever hope to match the level of Arizaro’s armed forces. While small in numbers, the army’s level of technology was something not seen in the area for generations. Radios, vehicles, superior weapons, even battery-powered helicopters made all the difference that the Conglomerate needed.

One by one the settlements and groups have been persuaded to join the rising nation, either by diplomacy or force. After securing the northern part of the former Argentina, the decision was made to construct a new capital, so that Arizaro would only remain a science center, shielded from curious eyes. The layout for Salta Plaz was carefully and efficiently planned and in a few years the city became the center of civilization in the area.

The expansion continued southward, because the growing nation needed to secure reliable food sources. Soon the Pampas were conquered and many farms and ranches constructed to provide fresh food for the citizens. Several other cities were founded and citizens from Arizaro were relocated there to spread knowledge and maintain order.

It usually took at least one or two generations for the people to adjust to the new situation, but mandatory education and new rules helped to slowly return the civilization close to its former state.
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[hider=The Years of Stability 2280-onwards]
The Years of Stability 2280-onwards
While the conquest for the new lands still continues, it is not as fast and aggressive as it was in the earlier years. The main focus of the Committee is currently on maintaining stability and slowly continuing to advance technologically. 

There are however some expansion plans, that aim to what is left of southern Brazil. The eastern coastal areas of Guay Sea (the sea where Paraguay, Uruguay and part of Brazil used to be) have already been occupied, but the Madirian navy is still weak and small in numbers, so it goes slowly.
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