From:	The Deb Decker <RJR96326@****.UTULSA.EDU>
Subject:	Re: Politics - but not what you think.
Date:	Fri, 22 Oct 1993 18:03:39 GMT

>What would happen to Seattle if it became a free state. Japan would want it.
>Tir would want it. UCAS would want it. NAN would want it. Could they become a
>true FREE CITY? would they be able to tax the megacorps?

IMHO they would only be a true Free City as long as it was not in the best
interests of any of those nations to control it directly, or if the attempt to
do so would result in harmful counterattacks by enemies.

Another factor is that Seattle as it is right now is a GREAT place for shadowy
activities; the whole city was set up, quite deliberately, to be like a latter-
day Casablanca, nominally controlled by a big government but removed far enough
from the center of power to effectively be a frontier town, as well as located
in a place where a number of factions can fight over it without taking control.

Controlling Seattle would be bad for business; the group in charge would be held
accountable for security there. If any of the bordering nations controlled it,
it would either become a lot more secure (as in, police state), making shadowy
activities unviable, or the controlling nation would be blamed for ineffective
security of its own people. The UCAS escapes this because it is so far removed
from Seattle, sorta like West Berlin and W Germany.

> How would the plethora of Shadowrunners be effected.
They would be negatively affected.

J Roberson