[OOC] Rotten Spokes of the Unlawful Wheel

[Atrophy]

@GcoldStill interested. Slowly pecking away at a CS.

[Shienvien]

Yup, what we take for granted today, the pretrol car that you actually have to steer, is going to be crappy and old. With a lot of revolutionary tech coming, finding parts for 2017 cars in 2060 may be more challenging than 1974 parts in 2017. In fact, the average "driver" won't even be driving; a lot of cars are going to be autonomous.

I'd imagine a 20-year-old poorly-kept electric car you bought for three thousand dollars (or equivalent) in 2055 might not fare that much better (though in slightly different ways) than a 20-year-old poorly-kept gasoline car you bought for three thousand dollars in 2015.
So a regular old Joe would most likely have a self-driving car by then in this reality, too...? (We're looking for "cheapest to acquire", not "vintage" here.) I can make either work, just the details of how may vary a bit.

[Virgil]

@Gcold I'm working on a CS, but it's the hammering out of all the fine details that's taking so long. Given that I want to create an American who moved to India after some social fallout --and who also has a secondary investing for him within the Stock Market-- it's taking a bit to come up with an interesting enough personality/background to actually make "Hi, I don't work much." a viable character to play and interact with. I should be done by today or tomorrow, however, so no worries there. I'll be looking forward to seeing how it's judged on the 14th.

[ButtsnBalls]

So a regular old Joe would most likely have a self-driving car by then in this reality, too...? (We're looking for "cheapest to acquire", not "vintage" here.) I can make either work, just the details of how may vary a bit.

@Shienvien

Yes, self-driving will be standard. Though you can save a bunch of rupees by going without the self-driving, if you're desperate for funds. Electric car technology would have been matured to the point of costing the same as the oil ones. If you want something in between, a hybrid car can be viable.

One reason for not using self-driving cars is to do illegal stuff with it. Programs are created to obey traffic laws, so it's easier to drive over the speed limit on your own than hacking the car brain.

[ButtsnBalls]

Given that I want to create an American who moved to India after some social fallout --and who also has a secondary investing for him within the Stock Market-- it's taking a bit to come up with an interesting enough personality/background to actually make "Hi, I don't work much." a viable character to play and interact with. I should be done by today or tomorrow, however, so no worries there. I'll be looking forward to seeing how it's judged on the 14th.

@Virgil

Interesting idea, eager to see how it plays out.

Forgot to say this before, but @Peik and I are looking for an Indian-majority roster. We will take a max of three foreigners on the 14th, if there are more than three, only the most suitable trio will be accepted and the rest may need to be converted to Indian characters. With that said, we can make execeptions for Indian expats, dual citizenship holders (very rare) and foreigners with family/marriage connection to India. In addition, someone from the neighboring countries of Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Myanmar may be exempt, but we have to approve it on a sheet-to-sheet basis.

[BingTheWing]

@Gcold If you were Kashmiri, could you avoid the Resettlement Zone by buying a house in an ordinary neighborhood?

[ButtsnBalls]

@BingTheWing Yes, you can.

[BingTheWing]

@Gcold S H I T

I was planning on having my character to have bribed a CD corporate officer to get his family out of the Resettlement Zone

[ButtsnBalls]

@Gcold S H I T

I was planning on having my character to have bribed a CD corporate officer to get his family out of the Resettlement Zone

@BingTheWing

Well, Kashmiris undergo a lengthy application to move out of the resettlement zone. Perhaps your character bribed someone to speed up the process?

[BingTheWing]

@Gcold Are applicants ever denied?

[ButtsnBalls]

@Gcold Are applicants ever denied?

@BingTheWing

Absolutely.

[BingTheWing]

@Gcold On what grounds?

[DeadDrop]

@Gcold On what grounds?

@BingTheWing

Probably because they are moving those people away and want to keep them away

[ButtsnBalls]

@BingTheWing, what @DeadDrop said.

Official reasons may include: contagious disease carrier, harboring extreme ideologies, possessing dangerous goods, criminal background, lack of a productive job, not fluent in English/Hindi/Odia, having too many family members/relatives, faking personal information and more

There is also a quota of "released" Kashmiris and Bengalis each month. If an official manages to hate an applicant at first sight, they can come up with bogus reasons like "didn't fill out form properly".

[BingTheWing]

Rajan Solehani

5'11 155 lb	Rajan Solehani Age: 25 Gender: Male Citizenship(s): Kashmiri, Indian Date and place of birth: March 9 2035, Srinagar, Kashmir Official occupation: Biotechnologist

Profile

Residence: Harbourfront

Affiliation: HaraTech Innovations, subsidiary of CD Asia

Appearance:

Rajan is rather scrawny, yet he could have been incredibly agile or dextrous were it not for his artificial shin. It's white, plastic, and in the basic curved shape of a foot, but he can still move it around - augmented limbs are way out of Rajan's budget for the meantime. He wears shoes on both feet, and his bottoms cover all of his legs, so the leg comes a surprise to most people, its only indication being a very noticeable dragging limp, as if his leg muscles were incapable of action. He's quite handsome, with a low chin, dimples, tousled black hair, virtually no pimples, and deep dark eyes. He is fond of purple polos and red ties.

Background:

On his twelfth birthday, Rajan Solehani announced to his family that he wanted to become a poet.

His mother, like all good mothers, cried aloud in fear and anguish, and immediately set off on a rant about the importance of his education, his books, the money his father cranked out day by day to send him to school. And Rajan, like a good son, listened. But he was not content. There was awe to be found in the pores of a leaf, the flapping wings of a dragonfly, the cry of thunder. There was wonder to be found in the sheafs of grain in the farms that surrounded his home, in the glimmer of the sun on rice paddies, in the scarlet dark eyes of a mule. There was beauty in the little things in life, and what better to express it than through poetry? Rajan loved the haikus of the Japanese, the sonnets of love of the British, the odes to the pine forests of the Americans. He loved the expression of the subtle things that the world created, and for this reason he loved nature, greenery, and the environment.

His father, with a stuffing of cake in his mouth, walked over to his son and told him about the cell walls of the leaves, how the trees inhaled carbon dioxide and gave oxygen to humanity to breathe, how the soil was filled with countless minerals that nourished the crops and gave them life. The clear-cut world of Rajan's textbooks did not have to stay eternally apart from the world of words and wonder and life that he loved. It was there and then that Rajan made a compromise - he would go to school, excel in his studies, but only if he could take care of the things he cherished the most: nature. And so, over the course of his high school life, Rajan dutifully conformed to the stereotypical path that all Kashmiri teenagers took - study hard, work harder, and get the family out of this godforsaken place. Rajan felt slighted whenever he saw the Pakistani soldiers cordon off the forests he liked to wander in, or when the Indian tanks trample the rice paddies. One moment he was a Pakistani, according to his schoolteachers, and the other moment he was an Indian, according to the border guard. He wanted the wars and the tensions to be a world away, and to leave him and his family in peace.

Then, for his fifteenth birthday, Rajan received his first artificial leg.

It had all happened so fast. One moment he was at the rally, passion in his lungs, chanting with the crowd some anti-Indian phrase he couldn't remember, then he remembered the grenade launcher firing into the crowd, and gurgled screams and boneshards and the smell of blood. His lower leg felt itchy, so he instinctively reached for it.

He didn't have one.

His family sued, bringing their case before any judge and jury who would listen, but all they got was a halfhearted apology, a court-martial for the persons involved and some money to pay for a leg.

In 2052, Rajan moved to the University of New Delhi.

Ideally, he would have moved to Lahore, where family members were, but there was civil unrest there and the universities were becoming hotspots for rallies. He was then going into the heart of the enemy, and yet it seemed so far removed from the bloodshed back home. Here, his classmates did not start riots, and the police did not shoot them. His classmates' heads were buried in textbooks, and the policemen did nothing but stand guard. It was heaven. So he studied, diligently as he could, and he graduated batch valedictorian. But then his phone call home was marked with tears of both joy and loss.

It was 2056, and the Kashmir Treaty had been signed. Rajan and his family were doomed to the Resettlement Zone.

Rajan swore that he would never let his family live in that shithole. But their application to get out of it had been rejected, and god knows when their second one would get through. It was either wait for the second application and spend at least a year in the Daladal of Kashmir, or do something now. Rajan knew a few higher ups in Common Development Asia, people who had properties in the places for actual Indians. So he did it. Within a few months and with a little dirty money, they had bypassed normal application standards and owned a small apartment in Harbourfront. It was regrettable, but necessary, and he was also granted a job. To this day he is still working off his debt.

It is 2060, and Rajan has spent four years with HaraTech Innovations, Common Development Asia's biotechnology subsidiary. Instead of working in the Taray ricefields inspecting farm equipment like many of his brethren, Rajan spends his time in Sopahn greenhouses, collaborating with Lue Urbanization Consulting on how to effectively sustain eco-friendly building in urban environments.

Rajan Solehani is twenty-five years old. Will he make it to tomorrow?

Outlook and Motivations:
Rajan wants nothing else in Sopahn except the safety and security of himself and his family - whatever it takes. However, underneath his unruffled, ruthless, corporate exterior is the little boy in Kashmir who loved reading about haikus and walking amongst green forests and rice paddies. Rajan loves the little things in life, things he has had to forget in Sopahn. He wants nothing else but to go back to those days where the skies were clear and there was green all around him. He wants no part in politics - he can't remember why he attended the rally that cost him his leg in the first place - and is neutral about a lot of things. To his family, he is Pakistani. But if his family wants to survive, Rajan must remind them that they are Indian. But his heart, Rajan is Kashmiri.

Capabilities

Language(s): Kashmiri, Urdu, Hindi, English (in order of proficiency)

Skills:

• Agricultural Engineer - Rajan is one of those talented few who have combined a love of nature with technological expertise. When at work, he reads the world in temperatures, acidity rates, lead levels, soil samples, and genera.
• Drive of the Forgotten - Rajan has a rock-solid drive to succeed in life, mostly professionally, and has a list of multiple academic and professional achievements to his name.
• Poet - Rajan has a hidden love for poetry, especially that of nature.

Flaws:

• Crippled - Rajan is missing his left shin. His plastic replacement is lightweight, and he can still use his knees to bend his legs, but he walks in a permanent limp and definitely cannot sprint or climb.
• Desperate - Though obviously not a full-blown criminal, Rajan has learnt the hard way that the only way to live in Sopahn is on the edge. If it comes to abandoning his family or the law, Rajan would gladly choose the latter.
• Refugee - Hard as he may try to rise above his station, Rajan is still a Kashmiri, and is thus prone to discrimination and exclusion.
• Secret - If anyone finds out Rajan bribed a CD corporate executive to get his family out of the Resettlement Zone, his career - the only thing he has - will crumble in front of his very eyes.

Connections:

• Arunav *******, housing executive of Lue Urbanization Consulting, government ambassador to the Kashmir Resettlement Zone, Rajan Solehani's college batchmate
• Other CD Asia executives he may have come into contact with

Accomplishments:

• umma cum laude in BS Agricultural Science, University of New Delhi, 2056
• First runner-up, Indira Gandhi National Poetry Competition, 2047
• First runner-up in Biology, Swami Vivekanada Science and Technology Fair, 2050
• Employee of the Year, HaraTech Innovations, 2058

Crimes:
Bribing corporate authority, 1 charge

Inventory

Cash, saving and debts:
R6,000,000 - Khariboli Bank International
R7,500,000 - Bank of Smithfield
R30,000 in debt

Tools and weapons:

• Except the equipment he uses at work, none of particular note.

Electronic devices:
15" laptop, Samsung smartphone, headphones, smart glasses

Apparels:

• Polo, tie, brown slacks - when at work
• T-shirt, hoodie, shorts or jeans - when at home

Credentials and ID cards:
Social security ID, job clearance certificate, voting ID.

Jewelry and valuables:

Consumables: None at the moment.

Load bearing equipment: Wheelchair.

Illicit goods: Technically none, though his residential certificate was illegally obtained.

Vehicle: Commutes.

Pet and animals: None

Other: (optional)

[BingTheWing]

@Peik Gcold approved this, I just need your go-ahead.

Majabut Bharat Parishad

Majabut Bharat Parishad

Majabut Bharat Parishad (Greater India Council) (MBP) is a religious nationalist extremist group operating in India since 2050, notorious for carrying out attacks against Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, non-Hindus and ethnic minority groups. It has been officially designated a terrorist group by India and most of the international community. It aims to establish a pure Hindu state uncontaminated by other faiths and nationalities.

History

The MBP was founded in Tihar Jail, one of the biggest prison complexes in India, by ex-Indian Army sergeant Taruk Ganeshi and a small circle of fellow inmates, all harboring deep resentment towards the local Muslim community. Once the initial circle of inmates had served their sentences, operations started in New Delhi. Three goals of the society were acknowledged:

1. To consolidate a stronger Indian nation-state,
2. To expel all non-Hindus from India,
3. To establish Hinduism as the supreme religion of the Indian subcontinent.

For the first three years of its existence, the MBP was one of many Hindu nationalist groups leading hate rallies, inciting riots against Muslims and Christians, and recruiting many an angry, disillusioned youth via a nationwide internet propaganda campaign. However, that all changed on December 13, 2053, where four bombs went off in DLF Emporio, one of New Delhi's most expensive malls, killing 56 and injuring 138. It was then that the MBP gained the notoriety it has today. On March 20, 2054, three gunmen opened fire with automatic weapons in Connaught Place, one of New Delhi's largest commercial centers, killing 30 and injuring 12 before being killed by police. In July of that year, a lone gunman opened fire in Indira Gandhi International Airport, killing seventeen - including an American national. In January 2055, the MBP launched its first hacking attack and consolidated its presence in Mumbai, when the city's metro railway system was shut down for twenty-eight hours. Most of the victims of these attacks were Muslims, Christians, Buddhists, and more often than not 'traitorous' Hindus.

Since then, via an aggressive propaganda campaign and sheer anonymity from government radar, the MBP has been steadily increasing its influence and infamy all throughout India. Rumors have it that a cell was recently deployed in Sopahn.

Membership

The MBP has an extremely clandestine yet strictly structured hierarchal system. The chain of command is relatively formal, with district leaders leading metropolitan region leaders leading numerous operatives within a single city. Recruitment is usually online, with recruiters often contacting potentials via instant messaging systems. However, there can be a maximum of only thirty operatives in one district - this is due to operatives being spread out and transferred to other parts of the country to avoid detection. Meetings and reports are also mostly online, physical in-person gatherings having a nasty habit of attracting police.

Resources

No one really knows how much the MBP really has at their disposal, not even most members themselves. But what is certain is that they have an incredibly strong presence in India. Everyone knows they are there, but somehow they just stay an inch from the spotlight, operating in plain sight. They do have a large bomb arsenal and are in possession of numerous illegal high-power firearms, thanks to multiple sympathetic gun factory workers providing them with firearm schematics for 3D printing. Their online presence is undisputed, and any recruiter can be contacted if one has the willpower to. They also have a literal army of hackers all across India who sustain themselves with bitcoin cyberheists, which has proved a major headache for the government's counter-cybercrime departments. Besides tangible assets, the MBP has also left an indelible emotional presence within the Indian people, mostly of fear, but some with empassioned support, leading to many rogue groups operating under MBP ideology. Some attribute the government's ineffectivity to stop the MBP threat to corruption or genuine ideological sympathy.

Relationships

The MBP has a supreme hate for Muslims, claiming to embody the Indian resentment that has been festering in the people for millennia. Mosques are shot at and have Molotovs thrown in them, and random Muslims can be beaten up on the street. Kashmiris and Bangladeshis are often the unfortunate recipients of this behavior.

The MBP also heavily dislikes Christians, Buddhists, and Jews, claiming that they tarnish the ideal Hindu state.

The MBP is actually quite divided over the Sikh community, with some saying that they should be part of the efforts for a pure India, whereas others argue they are not truly Hindu. Nevertheless, some MBP members are known Sikhs.

The MBP dislikes foreigners, aiming to push for an ethnically pure India, but due to political reasons the MBP does not carry out anti-foreigner attacks as much to not earn the ire of other states.

The MBP is also divided on the matter of government cooperation - some say the authorities are the only ones that can officially bring change, others say the establishment is degenerate and has sold out to foreigners (which is a slightly more popular opinion). Either way, the Indian government has officially labeled the MBP a hate group.

[Peik]

@Peik Gcold approved this, I just need your go-ahead.

Majabut Bharat Parishad

Majabut Bharat Parishad

Majabut Bharat Parishad (Greater India Council) (MBP) is a religious nationalist extremist group operating in India since 2050, notorious for carrying out attacks against Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, non-Hindus and ethnic minority groups. It has been officially designated a terrorist group by India and most of the international community. It aims to establish a pure Hindu state uncontaminated by other faiths and nationalities.

History

The MBP was founded in Tihar Jail, one of the biggest prison complexes in India, by ex-Indian Army sergeant Taruk Ganeshi and a small circle of fellow inmates, all harboring deep resentment towards the local Muslim community. Once the initial circle of inmates had served their sentences, operations started in New Delhi. Three goals of the society were acknowledged:

1. To consolidate a stronger Indian nation-state,
2. To expel all non-Hindus from India,
3. To establish Hinduism as the supreme religion of the Indian subcontinent.

For the first three years of its existence, the MBP was one of many Hindu nationalist groups leading hate rallies, inciting riots against Muslims and Christians, and recruiting many an angry, disillusioned youth via a nationwide internet propaganda campaign. However, that all changed on December 13, 2053, where four bombs went off in DLF Emporio, one of New Delhi's most expensive malls, killing 56 and injuring 138. It was then that the MBP gained the notoriety it has today. On March 20, 2054, three gunmen opened fire with automatic weapons in Connaught Place, one of New Delhi's largest commercial centers, killing 30 and injuring 12 before being killed by police. In July of that year, a lone gunman opened fire in Indira Gandhi International Airport, killing seventeen - including an American national. In January 2055, the MBP launched its first hacking attack and consolidated its presence in Mumbai, when the city's metro railway system was shut down for twenty-eight hours. Most of the victims of these attacks were Muslims, Christians, Buddhists, and more often than not 'traitorous' Hindus.

Since then, via an aggressive propaganda campaign and sheer anonymity from government radar, the MBP has been steadily increasing its influence and infamy all throughout India. Rumors have it that a cell was recently deployed in Sopahn.

Membership

The MBP has an extremely clandestine yet strictly structured hierarchal system. The chain of command is relatively formal, with district leaders leading metropolitan region leaders leading numerous operatives within a single city. Recruitment is usually online, with recruiters often contacting potentials via instant messaging systems. However, there can be a maximum of only thirty operatives in one district - this is due to operatives being spread out and transferred to other parts of the country to avoid detection. Meetings and reports are also mostly online, physical in-person gatherings having a nasty habit of attracting police.

Resources

No one really knows how much the MBP really has at their disposal, not even most members themselves. But what is certain is that they have an incredibly strong presence in India. Everyone knows they are there, but somehow they just stay an inch from the spotlight, operating in plain sight. They do have a large bomb arsenal and are in possession of numerous illegal high-power firearms, thanks to multiple sympathetic gun factory workers providing them with firearm schematics for 3D printing. Their online presence is undisputed, and any recruiter can be contacted if one has the willpower to. They also have a literal army of hackers all across India who sustain themselves with bitcoin cyberheists, which has proved a major headache for the government's counter-cybercrime departments. Besides tangible assets, the MBP has also left an indelible emotional presence within the Indian people, mostly of fear, but some with empassioned support, leading to many rogue groups operating under MBP ideology. Some attribute the government's ineffectivity to stop the MBP threat to corruption or genuine ideological sympathy.

Relationships

The MBP has a supreme hate for Muslims, claiming to embody the Indian resentment that has been festering in the people for millennia. Mosques are shot at and have Molotovs thrown in them, and random Muslims can be beaten up on the street. Kashmiris and Bangladeshis are often the unfortunate recipients of this behavior.

The MBP also heavily dislikes Christians, Buddhists, and Jews, claiming that they tarnish the ideal Hindu state.

The MBP is actually quite divided over the Sikh community, with some saying that they should be part of the efforts for a pure India, whereas others argue they are not truly Hindu. Nevertheless, some MBP members are known Sikhs.

The MBP dislikes foreigners, aiming to push for an ethnically pure India, but due to political reasons the MBP does not carry out anti-foreigner attacks as much to not earn the ire of other states.

The MBP is also divided on the matter of government cooperation - some say the authorities are the only ones that can officially bring change, others say the establishment is degenerate and has sold out to foreigners (which is a slightly more popular opinion). Either way, the Indian government has officially labeled the MBP a hate group.

@BingTheWing

I approve (I like how they've got ideological questions of their own), although just so you know, they'll probably get backlash via similar Muslim organizations themselves, so I wouldn't consider them a take-all boogeyman.

I do wonder something, though, about Rajan - despite his love of poetry and living so close to the heartland of Diwan poetry, I've seen no opinion of his about them in the sheet. Does he not like it, or just simply have no opinion?

[BingTheWing]

@Peik OH MY GOD

goddamn i left out middle eastern poetry and asian poetry in general i'm such a schtick

But yeah, of course he likes that too! He likes pretty much everything. He just has a thing for Japanese haikus because they tend to describe little details of nature.

[ButtsnBalls]

Alright, @BingTheWing, you may post your faction in the characters tab.

And @Greenie, did you grace us with your presence?

[BingTheWing]

@Gcold @Peik So we'll only receive character critiques on the 14th?