(From New Budgie Times July 10th 2023 Edition) "POOR PRESIDENTIAL DECISIONS LEAD TO MASS CIVIL UNREST, DISSENT" Our President, Alexander Featherly was received with open wings when he took over office after the tragic death of the beloved Eric K. Austwing on August 17th of last year. He has been making a good run, and has had very high approval ratings with his improvements to the military and economy, but his changes have "gone too far," according to Gerald Wingberg, mayor of Old Wingston, a town in the Northeastern UNOP. Featherly has recently made an extremely controversial decision to lower the already low minimum wage nationwide. The minimum wage has gone from 2 SGC to only one SGC. This was done so that business owners will be more heavily taxed (as they will be giving away less money to their employees,) and will allow more money to be shoveled into the military budget. This decision, intended to raise a military budge that is already at a record high, has done much more harm than good. Wingston is one of the most poor towns in the UNOP, but it's not alone in its poverty. The living conditions are poor, and the citizens need assistance. As Mayor Wingberg puts it, "What we really need right now is government help. Featherly keeps using his money to fix things that don't need fixing. Former President Austwing was helping us, but when Featherly came into office, he shut that program down." Rumors have began to surface wondering if the real reason behind Featherly's decisions are personal prejudices. Many towns like Wingston have a very high population of Cats. These Cats have immigrated from all over the world with very little, so they're forced to move into the poorest towns. One of the places with the biggest cat populations is the Sir Archer Section of New Budgie City. This part of the city spans many square miles, and is the poorest section of the city. It is mostly Cats. Because Featherly's decisions have been affecting mainly the poor Cats of the UNOP, it has been speculated that Featherly is perhaps a bit racist. His cabinet is all Budgerigars, and he has made open statements about his views of Budgerigars compared to other people. These decisions, and Featherly's possible racial motivation, have led to multiple protests and mass dissent among the citizens of the UNOP, mainly in poorer towns and cities. The future is unknown, but it is unlikely that it will be a peaceful one. Written by Brent Arnolds, New Budgie Times
