Introduction

Hello, fellow Asgardians! I am Vedang N Agrawal, 23 years old and currently a resident of India. I am a recently graduated Chemical Engineer and I am currently part of a company which is working to make the future more carbon efficient and sustainable.

I see a future, where we, the People of Asgardia, fly together, setting an example for every institution by highlighting the greatest strengths of our people: A strong belief in the solidarity of Science, Compassion, Empathy, and Equality.

I see a future, where we inspire the world, and someday more, simply by example, to always strive for improvement and betterment.

In making this proposal, I would like to put forward my core beliefs and my vision for a bright, prosperous and united Asgardia and make a promise to the people of Asgardia that I will work urgently and diligently to make that vision a reality.

My Vision

Science has always been misunderstood. Science is keeping the child in us alive, it is the will to question what we do not understand and pursue it relentlessly, never stopping till we have found the answer to our question. This is what I wish for Asgardia, a nation where we always strive to find the answer to the most elusive question in the world today – how do we build a fair and just society?

My vision for Asgardia is simple, I wish to be part of a nation which focuses on the most important aspect of scientific development – improvement, innovation, and progress.

For a nation which is just beginning in this age of technological wonder and advancement, a society where the Government can keep the citizens well-informed every step of the way, taking their inputs and improving accordingly, is very much attainable.

What I can do to Serve

I will make sure that transparency, and responsible information sharing be the primary focus of the Government, as most of today’s problems arise from the lack of these.

What we need today is a government that follows the people rather than the other way around. I will also constantly push for a strong unified scientific basis for every action that the government takes. This is to make sure that any decision that the government makes, is first of all in line with what the people want, and will also ensure that no decision is taken rashly or without considering all the variables. History teaches us, that consensus or majority should not be the only criteria for passing a decision.

Although my personal experience in life is limited by my age, I have always believed in the ability to absorb the years of experience and knowledge of science, literature and history can provide. This is the reason I believe that I can serve the people of Asgardia relentlessly.

What You Can Do

I firmly believe that any process can be perfected if we apply enough brainpower and never give up on learning more and more. Therefore, I would request each and everyone of you to help me build the nation we all dream of. If you wish to support me and my vision, please visit my profile, where you can add me as a friend, contact me with your views and ideas, know more about me and find out how to vote for me.

Thank you for your time!

The condemned man stood upon the hill,

Gazing down and back into the past,

The sight of carrions upon the kill,

Weeping for what his greed had wrought.

The land, broken by conflict,

Hungry and dry, harsh and cruel,

Now gorged upon flesh and blood of men,

No longer sated by simple gruel.

Selene, goddess of serenity,

Pure and calm, a beacon through floods,

Now raged and screamed,

Torn and stained red by the call of blood.

Gaia, cradling in her arms her creation,

Who once revelled in the laboured breath of toiling men,

Now shrieked and cried,

As their breaths turned to groans of death and cries of pain.

The heavens rumbled, thundering sky,

The gates of hell, opening its maw wide in strife,

The Gods themselves, shaking and trembling,

Horrified at this travesty of life.

The condemned man wept, falling to his knees,

"My life is forfeit, my mind ripped whole

The sight of the divine destruction wrought,

The memory of my wrath burned in my soul.

I sought to own the world,

To take what I thought to be mine,

To rule the skies above and the land below,

To tame the thunderous seas, this creation of thine.

To unite the lands under one banner,

To bind them to my will,

My words, the commandments of God,

Endless glory hailed upon me till time itself becomes still."

The condemned man covered his face,

Weeping tears into his bloodstained hands,

"I own the red lands now, the seas of dead,

The valleys of carrions, and the plains of dread.

The glory I sought, has silenced the world,

My will, made into shackles of iron,

Yes, the commandments of God are my words now,

But, there is no one left to follow."

The condemned man sobbed, his eyes fogged with tears,

The world become a blur of destruction, black as coal,

The cries of the dead ringing in his ears,

The construct of his greed, burning his very soul.

Through various examples in history and in modern times, I have come to observe and infer that almost all of humanity's ills comes from uncontrollable greed. Greed of a degree that would consume you and obliterate any in your path. This is my first blog post containing my original work, a poem titled The Construct of Greed. It began with an image in my mind, of a man standing on the edge, looking at the destroyed landscape. That image inspired this poem and I would like to think that even though it was a bleak picture, it isn't complete, and hopefully here we can make people look up to the skies, and build a new hope, one that will prevent any such travesty from ever occuring again.

Thank you for reading and I would appreciate any comments on the work.

Cover Photo Credits to Grzegorz Rutkowski