Human Nation

Everyone should have a home. The Dwarves have their Underground Kingdom and their halls of stone; the Moogles their motherland of Kuvalla; and the Esperians speak of building their proud dimensional Union. What, then, of us, of our people, spread as they are across the Web? What, then, of the Human Nation?

-Richter Thoon, Saving Homo Sapiens

The Human Nation is an interdimensional, human supremacist organization. Despite its stated mission of "Building a Home For Humanity," the HN has often been associated with violence against non-human sapients, and a political agenda that some say advocates human dominance in all spheres of life in the Web. As one crowd chant puts it, "Human Nation, Inhuman Obliteration! Human Domination, Inhuman Eradication!"

Ideology

You may think you are Tasnican, but that is a lie. You may think you are Scandian, but that is a lie. All so-called 'cultures' and 'national identities' are lies. Such things are social constructs. They are fabrications meant to keep you in line, and to divide you from your fellow Men. You are Human. That is biology. That is the Truth.

-Richter Thoon, The Truth of Our Hearts

Although some might say the Human Nation as a rabble with nothing more to offer but blind, dumb hatred, the HN also dabbles in faux-sophisticate, self-justifying, aggrandizing hatred.

In the early Web, human supremacy tended to take on a mystical, almost religious justification. The Web was a wonder -- a whole series of interconnected worlds. The presence of humans on each of these worlds was surely a sign that humanity was a chosen people, afforded a special place in creation by the Gods themselves. Some even searched for evidence of a great, lost human civilization that spanned the whole Web in ancient antiquity.

During the Great War this explanation somewhat fell out of favor, replaced by a kind of racial militarism. A heroic hagiography of the Great War painted a noble Grand Army waging a war against evil monsters, the Dark Wrath. In the end, the human spirit, guided by a a man who was nothing more than a human who was really good at leading armies. This narrative of course ignores the fact that the Dark Wrath had many human soldiers, and various non-humans made invaluable contributions to winning the war, but the Human Nation aren't the types to let some historical facts get in the way of their theories of racial superiority.

This eventually gave way to a kind of a kind of pseudo-scientific justification couched in the language of evolutionary biology. Humans are a species, and as such are in competition with every other species for land, food, and other resources. This view has become increasingly popular in the HN, as it serves many useful roles. First, the fact humans evolved separately in virtually every dimension is taken as scientific proof that humans are an ideal evolutionary end, the "final form" of evolution. (Evolution never ends, of course, but the Human Nation aren't the types to let some scientific facts get in the ways of their theories of racial superiority.) This also serves as a call to action, as the very survival of the species is at stake.

An important element of the Human Nation's appeal is that it is pan-national, and in some respects, even anti-national. All Humans, everywhere, are part of one family, a family that transcends nation, class, religion, and ethnicity. This became an increasingly popular part of HN propaganda after the Leviathan War. The Great Power's constant cycle of war and destruction -- "playing chess with men's lives" -- led to some to being increasingly disenchanted with nationalism and patriotism, who then sought a new identity in the "fundamental fact of their biology."

The status of robots is a oft-debated topic at Human Nation meetings. Although of course no card-carrying HN member believes robots deserve status as people, opinions are divided over what to do with them. One camp believes that robots are like any other technology -- useful tools, so long as a human is in charge. Others believe that eventually a supercomputer or a robot uprising is inevitable, and it's better to destroy them all now. A third faction is similarly pro-robot-destruction, but more on the grounds that robots promote "soft living" that "sap the virile spirit of humanity." And, of course, anyone who disfigures their perfect human flesh to become a cyborg does not deserve to be called a "human."

The HN has increasingly also trended towards arcanophobia, ie, fear of magic and the mystical. This is a mix of a fanatical focus on purity and an unfounded association of the mystic arts with non-human races. The obvious counter-argument (that many humans are also magic users) is solved through recourse to pseudo-biology, arguing that magic users are in fact a different species from "pureblood" humans. ("They have different DNA. That's a scientific fact.") Additionally, there is (totally unsupported) belief that magic using humans probably have at least one non-human somewhere in their family tree, and therefore couldn't possibly be truly human.

Of course, there's a conspiracy wing, who believe that "species traitors" like Rhodes Palmerston and Travin Rumanski are purposely "managing" the decline and replacement of the human race with other races, or that a Celpo bioweapon exists that will out all humans (and only humans.)

There is more than a whiff of sexism to this newest HN incarnation, as "females" are regarded "essential breeding stock." Some local chapters even offer cash rewards for mothers of healthy human babies, provided they are "certified 100 percent pure." Mothers of six or more babies get help raising kids get scholarships, and a live-in nanny paid for; mothers of ten or more are granted the "Demographic Hero" title.

Although there's a whole cottage industry producing books expounding the various reasons why humans are naturally superior, at the end of the day, much of the ideology is just propaganda and window dressing intended to give it the veneer of a legitimate political movement like Tasnican Populism or Esperian nationalism. The HN aren't sticklers for othodoxy like various Communist parties; the only really important belief is in human supremacy.

Operations

There are Human Nation chapters almost everywhere there are humans -- which is to say, practically everywhere. Although most people like to believe that the HN is a small, radical fringe group, the reality is that they are probably bigger than people realize.

For many rank-and-file members, the HN is a social group, and day-to-day activities involve chatting around table in a private hotel or rec room. ("It's so good to get out of the prying eyes of those people and be with my own kind!"). The HN's most potent recruitment tool is that it gives people an identity, a place to belong, in fast-moving Web torn apart by war and dislocated by rapid technological advance.

The HN also has a paramilitary arm. These are the kind of people who spend every weekend training for the eventual race war and have stocked up on guns and ammunition in the event of total societal collapse. Although for some members, paramilitary training is just a glorified camping trip and a chance to shoot off that expensive Kuat phallus, many members are combat veterans of one of the Web's many wars and take it quite seriously.

The Executive Board, however, can direct the membership to engage in various activities, such as protests or riots. Some of these activities are surprisingly petty, such as giving bad OmniNet reviews to the latest Jacoby Armstrong movie because Jacoby Armstrong ("the pinnacle of human potential and performance") has an Elven love interest. Some are much more nefarious, although incitements to violence are usually carefully masked ("Senator Kuvan should learn his history so he properly respects humanity's power and contributions to Web culture. Perhaps someday, we will have the pleasure to teach him.") Sometimes, they're not, though the HN insists they're "only joking" or "being ironic" ("Look, I just said Queen Zelda should be shot in the head by a sniper because she's a Hylian bitch who squeezes out more Hylian bitches. Can't you people take a joke? Don't you understand humor?")

Although certain HN members have been linked with racial violence in the past, the organization as a whole usually manages to avoid punishment -- perhaps evidence that they have friends in high places. (Hey, quite a few humans ruling countries, leading major corporations, commanding armies, and running spy agencies. One wonders what kind of friends in high places the Human Nation has.)

Notable Figures

• Richter Thoon is considered by many to be the organization's "true founder", although the organization existed before him. Getting on in years, he is rarely active in Executive Board politics these days.
• Jefferson Chusetts. Chusetts is representative of the organization's more political wing, attempting to put a good face on the group's activities, arguing merely that it is advocating for the interests of humanity
• Bryant William Pabbert. "Billy" Pabbert is considered more activist member of the organization, the side that believes a race war is imminent and it's time to train everyone in paramilitary camps less humans fall victim to genocide. Some have said he's just all talk these days, though.

Legal Status

The Human Nation is outlawed in several countries for various reasons. In the Scandian League, this is because the orthodoxy of the All-Union Communist Party (of the Dragon Dimension) holds that the Scandian people is one people, holding political views contrary to those of the Party (like, say, "one race is better") is a crime. In Guardia the Human Nation once had some association with the Xenos, which has led to the Human Nation being branded terrorists. The HN has officially repudiated the Xenos ("We're totally not going to start using evil magics and a crazy robot leader! That's just not our style!"). In more than a few countries the Human Nation's has been outlawed on the basis of violent activities. The Human Nation is, however, legal in the Tasnica Republic; despite Tasnica's relatively good record of inter-species harmony, HN lawyers have repeatedly and successfully argued in court that their activities are protected political free speech under the Code of Belgememnon. (even though, ideologically, the organization calls for the destruction of the Republic and its replacement by a Human ethnonationalist state. But, free speech!)