Ave, Sandum Citizens!
In Novembro MMXI (November 2011), this Office planned for our first economic production to be created by MMXV (2015). In the introduction of this goal, the effort was placed on Sandus following the path of history by beginning with agriculture, as the Neolithic Revolution had done. We have done our alpha research, now we must conduct our beta research. Having recently been recommended it by Kuri of the Gishabruni SAR in our close ally of Renasia, we have received a book on this specific purpose of agricultural and horticultural revolution. Fresh Food from Small Spaces by R.J. Ruppenthal is a book that pioneers the concept of producing foods with few resources, especially space. These techniques allow year-round gardening and include instructions for items such as bee-keeping, mushroom growing, and fermenting.
The beginning of the attainment of our goal should be noted that we do not expect to earn a profit. Rather, this economic goal is to begin the introduction of basic economic structures into our State and to actively use them for a set goal or purpose. Though this goal is focused towards horticulture, we live in a many faceted world and society: we too must seek to achieve this economic goal through industrious means; culture will be a by-product or side-effect of this goal, affirming the Sandum spirit for socialist work ethic and for reverence for agriculture and industry. Therefore, the other side of our horticultural goal (incorrectly called ‘agricultural’ goal in the past) is cultural advancement, as we see now with the Philia Policy. Therefore, with the cultural benefit addressed, how will we seek economic production?
We are not as prepared for production as our capitalist counter-parts, who can do so with will and whim. No, rather, we are in the process of building economic Socialism from the ground, up. We have laid the foundation for this: we have cooperatives in our State, whose importance is defined by the Founding Law. In these cooperatives, worker democracy is expressed through democratic centralism (the only exception is the Collegio Sacerdae, in which a collegial society is found). We are, however, primitive in our overall economic preparations. How, then, are cooperatives meant to produce? The answer is simple and exact: work units.
Work units were used in Soviet sovkhozy and kolkhozy and Chinese communes to fulfill a specific task. In the modern post-Deng China, these units or danwei are now tied to a specific place of work, whereby they are connected to the overall Party structure — reaffirming the belief of democratic centralism. Why should Sandus not be the same? At the moment, with so few citizens, this is difficult to implement: each person would be their own work unit. However, as we grow and as cooperatives begin to become more complex, these work units will be dedicated to specific areas of location and expertise. Citizens may even have multiple work units but these units will be run through democracy at their small scale and will encourage citizens to become more and more involved, even potentially increasing the amount of citizens by tying in workers to the State.
In the future, each cooperative will be made of many work units, each dedicated to a specific task. For now, we can only utilise this to describe the role of a specific region in producing something in the future or present. Perhaps in the future, Kremlum Sandus will consist of several work units tasked with the cultivation of food and so on; perhaps another for its sale; another for equal distribution based on work; et cetera.
Returning to the present Sandus, we are a State looking to the future, observing the past and the present for inspiration, and working to secure Socialism and its Advance in the future. Today we walk down a two-wheeled path: one for economic development and the other for cultural development. As we become a nation and as we become a small economy unto ourselves, we will further advance the State and the Flag. Thereby, this Office will study the text provided above and, in the very near future, establish the State of Sandus’s second economic cooperative, geared towards horticultural production.
Let’s affirm national prosperity in economy and in culture!
— Sôgmô Sörgel.
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