Überstadt to drop Roy’s birthday, add new holidays

ROSEWOOD – Überstadt’s culture minister recommended Saturday that the kingdom make several changes to its official holiday roster. They will later be confirmed by a parliamentary vote.

One pending change is removing a day celebrating Prince Roy of Sealand’s birthday. King Adam first made it a holiday to honor the man who inspired him to found Überstadt, but he and Minister for Culture the Baroness Rosewood agreed that such an observation was no longer suitable. “We are driven by ourselves, not some outside inspiration,” the king said.

The existing observation called the Day of Fire is to be moved from the end of July to the beginning of August. It originally marked the day when Edmount Island, Überstadt’s first territory, suffered a major wildfire in 2009. The new date will be anniversary of the fire’s defeat, and will become the only holiday in August.

New holidays include some already celebrated culturally by most or all citizens, including Christmas and Easter. One major new addition to the summer calendar will be Navy Day in late June, honoring His Majesty’s Überstadti Navy.

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King Adam chairs first GUM Quorum, faces shock rejection of VC nominee

BELLINGHAM, Washington – On Monday, King Adam of Überstadt presided over his first GUM Quorum as Chair in a marathon session that passed 12 motions. The meeting lasted nearly two-and-a-half hours, extended in part by votes on several of Adam’s officer nominations.

After giving remarks on the start of his tenure as chair, Adam formally nominated Emperor Adam of Adammia as GUM Vice Chair. In a shock to the king and several other delegates, the vote quickly failed, posing the first challenge to the new chair’s leadership. A somewhat confused discussion of why the nomination was rejected followed. No delegation that opposed the motion or abstained from voting provided an explanation for their decision.

After a delay, King Adam nominated Emperor Thomas of Zenrax instead. Thomas, who ran against Adam for chairmanship, was confirmed vice chair with only one vote against.

Other appointments made included Emperor Jonathan of Austenasia as GUM Archivist and Bradley of Dullahan, delegate from Wyvern, as Supreme Justice.

Eight votes on membership were taken, resulting in the admission of four new observers and one new candidate for full membership. The Quorum also voted to sponsor a project to chart the diplomatic relations of members of the MicroWiki community.

New year celebrated in Rosewood

BELLINGHAM, Washington – The Überstadti royal family rang in the new year at Rosewood last Saturday in the barony’s traditional fashion.

Custom in Rosewood is to eat assorted appetizers throughout the evening while viewing musical performances and fireworks displays on television. Überstadt’s residents did the same to welcome 2017, watching broadcasts from New York City and Seattle. The celebratory food included spinach dip, dumplings, sausages, chocolates, and baked brie.

As is typical for New Year’s Eve as well as American Independence Day, the navy was on high alert to keep watch for fires sparked by pyrotechnic devices. Fireworks are illegal in the American town that surrounds Rosewood, but are often deployed by unruly neighbors of the royals. No fires or injuries were reported in Überstadt or nearby.