Is Lluisa really that naive to think anyone wants Laws simply out of lawfulness?  The nobles favored sloppy rules because it advantaged them with their better organization.  Now that the nobles are divided and the sloppy rules are about to let through proposals that would financially ruin the country they want rules.  Law is kinda fake, it really just comes down to power.

Also, if Thea remembered and explained to Dia day 1 correctly, Lluisa’s rules relied heavily on the president, who seems to be committed to nonintervention save for outright calls for death of other delegates, so her rules wouldn’t have actually helped that much.

She politely applauds at Lluisa’s speech anyway, she’s aware of where the factional lines are forming.

This is a really long line! He can at least clap at Lluisa's speech while he's in line!

He's not mad, just disappointed. 

"I'm afraid that if you keep raising votes on settled issues, we'll be here until the end of time and then some. Votes on new business only.

And as a practical matter – delegate stipends aren't, at the moment, a matter of law, but of what my wife and I are willing to spend. It is very important to me that all of you are adequately compensated for the work you do here, but my purse is not infinite." 

Oh thank the Good gods. And Good Archmages. 

The Archmage didn’t exactly define how much variation is required for it to be “new business”.  If people keep pushing variants of no taxes, she’ll bring up her idea of a compromise, but otherwise she’ll let it drop.  She doesn’t get out of line though, there might be some new line of argument to build on or counteract by the time she gets a chance to speak.

Oh no how is he next after the wizard. Not his wizard, the wizard. The one his wizard sometimes talks about the way soldiers talk about Cyprian. 

Jordi gives his wizard a look pleading for a message about what to say. But no message spell comes. He’s on his own for this maneuver. 

“On behalf of the sortitions, we all appreciate the generosity.”

If they can’t vote for no taxes or for more stipends, Jordi doesn’t see the point. But he can’t say he doesn’t want to be on the committee anymore. Not without letting down his two-person caucus. 

“I still think we should vote to make a committee for convention rules. Not everyone wants to watch all this arguing, and the other committees are waiting for their turn to present their ideas.”

Then, with a smile in the direction of the sortition quarter, “There’s lots of things that could help all of us delegates, that haven’t already been proposed before.”

"I appreciate the generosity of Archmage Cotonnet and have no wish to impose on him," he says, "but the truth is, Jordi Mont is right. We should have a committee for convention rules. But I think we should give it to someone who all of us following the convention know is a sensible man - I'm not calling for a noble! Archduke Blanxart would be a fine choice, but I'll admit we've our fair share and more of committee seats, and while I think he's eminently qualified for the post I can understand why some people wouldn't be happy giving the title to a nobleman. No, I support Delegate Reuben Oriol, a strong worshipper of Erastil and faithful countryman, and formally second his nomination." Because he's the less noble guy who might be able to make it.

"And I strongly recommend that he should have the good sense and legal knowledge of Delegate Lluisa Oriol to support him, who we all know - and as we've just seen - is a woman who knows the laws and is unafraid to stand up for them whoever she offends, and therefore nominate her to the committee, provided Delegate Reuben Oriol is willing to accept her." So there will be someone who knows the laws on the committee.

"I personally consider this committee superfluous," Xavier says, looking down on the population, "with all due respect to Count Ardiaca, since our President has now taken the work wholly in hand. But I agree that if it should be constituted, the Delegates Oriol would be fine representatives for the committee."

What a disaster. Thank the gods the archmage has some sense.

so how the fuck are they supposed to vote, then??? aaaaaa

This name collision sure is weird, though probably he was just as blonde as her in his youth. Anyway, he's a decent sort.

Does he have to? Well, arguably this is what he wanted in the first place. A chance to prevent more shenanigans.

She gets out of line. She had a good line about how voting to end taxation is like voting to cut out your own heart in order to eat it, because all the sortitions (except, ironically, Dolça) will literally starve without stipends, but apparently those aren't paid for by taxes anyway.

Hey, some of them were only skirting the edge of literally starving without stipends.

With the bigger issue of the country’s finances set aside, Thea has been trying to think what else she should speak for… she needs to figure out what will get her placed on the committee.  Will it be Oriol or a floor vote deciding this committee’s membership?  

She has only a vague idea by the time it is her turn to speak, but maybe she can leave her idea vague?

“Delegate Oriol asked practical questions in his floor speech earlier this morning in the discussion over censorship, and has raised practical concerns again in this discussion.  I think, although delegate finances are generous, there may be other forms of support useful to delegates in carrying out this convention business such as the committee transcripts now to be provided, and if I am selected for the committee with him, I will see that we consider them properly to present the floor with a proposal or recommend to the Archmage.”

"I am of course sympathetic to the talk of costs thrown around earlier - I for one have no desire to beggar Cheliax, and I am sure that most of this convention feels similarly. But as the archmage said, if as delegates we are expected to go about important work here, I think it behooves us to make a committee that will ensure the proper benefits accrue to those doing their parts - both during the convention and after. There are a number of possibilities beyond the monetary we should consider."

In other words, let's pass this committee and get lots of benefits. Also put me on the committee please, I'm saying what you're all thinking!

“Don’t vote for the proposal to give all delegates committee transcripts. It’s a trap! They just made sharing notes illegal.”

One may imagine that at this point the archmage, whose author is very busy, provides some clarification.

Relying on favorable reinterpretation of the law by the Archmage feels fraught, if he doesn’t intervene next time it could leave the delegates open to a trap.  (Was this time a trap or an honest oversight?)

This is why a Forms of the Convention committee is needed to protect the delegates.  Thea is back to wanting to propose blanket immunity for convention activity… she’s uncertain how that will interact with the Archmage’s statement that the “laws of the Cheliax are the laws of the convention” or whatever it was he said this morning.

The Convention is declared private and therefore the sharing of notes within it is fine. 

"The first thing the Forms Committee should do is vote for an end to the secret ballots! We all know they're just an excuse for the Galtan to declare the outcome of every vote to be whatever he wants. If he's going to push through all this ridiculous nonsense, it's not like we can stop him, but we shouldn't let him ascribe it to us."

The votes were much more controllable before the secret ballots. She'll vote for that one if it's brought to the floor. Secretly.

He assumes the Archmage and Queen will know the votes either way, the secret vote is to prevent cheating off other people, and he thinks he can do better fairly than by cheating.

Jilia is with Carlota on this one. She's theoretically all for democratic expression, and this is incredibly unprincipled. But one thing you get by aspiring to Elysium rather than Heaven is you can do totally unprincipled things that break your stated values if you think the results will be better. And she trusts 'follow the paladins and archdukes' to make the votes come out more her way.

(You can also do this while aspiring to Heaven if you're just kind of bad at aspiring to Heaven!)

The line is getting shorter, so Thea doesn’t have to wait as long to speak again.  It would come to a vote soon enough anyway, but she’s worried someone’s going to come up with another bribe to vote on that will actually win the floor vote.  So she’ll call for cloture.

“Specific ideas such as secret ballots can be discussed in the Forms of the Convention committee.  There are many important matters to discuss and it seems likely the floor will run late.  I call for a vote to cloture so that we may vote on the creation of such a committee and vote on the chair of the committee.”