Officina Praetor MMDCCLX

The moderation of the Main List (hereinafter referred to as the "Forum") has come up several times, most recently in the discussions over what exactly constitutes "free speech" &c. The Forum is the open market, the public arena in which all our citizens can speak and listen and keep their finger on the pulse of the Republic, for good or for ill. That there should arise the perceived necessity of an alternate List, such as the "New Roman" List, out of fear that our newer citizens might be frightened off by "bullies" is shameful (not the List itself, mind you, but the fact that it is regarded as necessary by some).

It is now, and has been, my very vocal opinion that freedom of speech, whether or not recognized as such by our ancient forebears, is a vital element to the growth and animation of any free people. There may be limits placed upon the freedom of expression in a public Forum such as this; not only Yahoo!'s terms of service but also terms we place upon ourselves out of consideration for the vast differences in culture, race, religious belief &c. that are a by-product of the diversity of our citizenry. But these limits cannot be arbitrary, and the power to set these limits cannot be simply assumed to exist because we think it "should be" that way. And the balance must be kept very carefully - between allowing our citizens the freedom to express themselves as they see fit or necessary and avoiding becoming the harsh censors of a "feel good" group rather than a living, breathing reflection of our individuality and energy as a Republic.

There have been some comments on the volume of leges we have in the tabularium; some think it is unwieldy and inappropriate for a community of our relatively moderate size to have "so many" laws governing our existence. I would make two remarks in answer. First, it was Roman practice simply to write a law whenever a situation arose for which their current law had no answer. They amassed an incredible, vast, and intricate network of laws, and it didn't really bother them at all. We have echoed that process precisely.

No doubt we could trim and consolidate some of the leges we have, and yet we need to also consider answering some of the questions that have arisen in the course of several recent discussions. We have given magistrates powers that they never exercized in the Republic, and this needs to be corrected; we have no authoritative definitions of terms such as "imperium", "sanctitas" &c.; our lex Constitutiva is a top-heavy, vague, and ill-fitting document, giving us more problems than answers in many cases; confusing, poorly-worded and vague leges are replaced by even more voluminous, poorly-worded, and vague "corrections". Tying our legal corporation's By-Laws to the tabularium is awkward and unnecessary. All of these problems can be fixed, and it is my pledge to do so if elected praetor.

We have seen one trial and one severely compromised attempt at a trial. It is this latter case that makes me frustrated: the case of Ap. Claudius Priscus should have been brought to an open trial, and it should have followed the processes we have in place. We could have ended it with the descent of a praetorial (or consular) gavel rather than it crumbling off in dissatisfaction, confusion, or half-hearted attempts to "do" something. If ever a trial becomes necessary under my praetorship, the List upon which it was taking place will be open to the public (trials were public affairs in ancient Rome) for comment and discussion, not sealed away as if in embarrassment. Yes, it would be an interesting logistical endeavor, but I firmly believe that nothing should happen secretly or without the full knowledge of the citizens of the Republic.

OFFICIUM C. EQUITI CATONIS PRAETORIS

Ego, Gaius Equitius Cato, hac re ipsa decus Novae Romae me defensurum, et semper pro populo senatuque Novae Romae acturum esse sollemniter IVRO.

Ego, Gaius Equitius Cato, officio praetoris Novae Romae accepto, deos deasque Romae in omnibus meae vitae publicae temporibus culturum, et virtutes Romanas publica privataque vita me persecuturum esse IVRO.

Ego, Gaius Equitius Cato, Religioni Romanae me fauturum et eam defensurum, et numquam contra eius statum publicum me acturum esse, ne quid detrimenti capiat IVRO.

Ego, Gaius Equitius Cato, praetoris officiis muneris me quam optime functurum esse praeterea IVRO.

Meo civis Novae Romae honore, coram deis deabusque populi Romani, et voluntate favoreque eorum, ego munus praetoris una cum iuribus, privilegiis, muneribus et officiis comitantibus ACCIPIO.

I, Gaius Equitius Cato, do hereby solemnly swear to uphold the honour of Nova Roma, and to act always in the best interests of the people and the Senate of Nova Roma.

As a magistrate of Nova Roma, I, Gaius Equitius Cato swear to honour the Gods and Goddesses of Rome in my public dealings, and to pursue the Roman Virtues in my public and private life.

I, Gaius Equitius Cato swear to uphold and defend the Religio Romana as the State Religion of Nova Roma and swear never to act in a way that would threaten its status as the State Religion.

I, Gaius Equitius Cato, swear to protect and defend the Constitution of Nova Roma.

I, Gaius Equitius Cato, further swear to fulfill the obligations and esponsibilities of the office of Praetor to the best of my abilities.

On my honour as a Citizen of Nova Roma, and in the presence of the Gods and Goddesses of the Roman people and by their will and favour, do I accept the position of Praetor and all the rights, privileges, obligations, and responsibilities attendant thereto.

Gaius Equitius Cato Praetor

Ex hoc, nos ambo praetores cives Cn. Equitium Marinum, Cn. Iulium Caesarem, Ti. Iulium Sabinum scribas ad moderandum Forum Praecipuum Novae Romae creamus.

Nullum ius iurandum ab eis poscetur.

Postea cives alios ut Foro Praecipuo moderentur et Tabularium curent creabimus.

Datum sub manibus nostris a.d. III Non. Ian. MMDCCLX A.V.C.

By this edict, we the praetors both appoint citizens Cn. Equitius Marinus, Cn. Iulius Caesar, and T. Iulius Sabinus scribae as moderators of the Nova Roman Main List.

No oath shall be demanded of them.

Afterward we shall appoint other scribae for the purpose of moderating the Main List and tending to the Tabularium.

Given under our hands this third day before the Nones of January 2760 from the founding of the City

C. Equitius Cato A. Tullia Scholastica Praetores

Ex hoc edicto, cives scribas meos una cum officiis privilegiisque omnibus praescriptis legibus Novae Romae designo. Gaius Vipsanius Agrippa, Lucius Fidelius Graecus, Sextus Pontius Pilatus Barbatus et Marcus Lucretius Agricola scribae creantur. Quidquam ius iurandum non poscentur.

Hoc edictum statim valet.

Datum sub manu mea ante diem III Non. Ian. MMDCCLX ab urbe condita (anno Domini 2007) Tiberio Galerio Paulino Lucio Arminio Fausto consulibus.

On the Creation of Scribae

I hereby appoint the following citizens as my scribae, together with all the obligations and privileges prescribed by the laws of Nova Roma. Gaius Vipsanius Agrippa, Lucius Fidelius Graecus, Sextus Pontius Pilatus Barbatus and Marcus Lucretius Agricola are appointed scribae. They shall not be required to make any kind of oath.

This edict is effective immediately.

Given under my hand this third day before the Nones of January 2760 a.u.c (AD 2007) in the consulship of Tiberius Galerius Paulinus and Lucius Arminus Faustus.