ICWW Summit: Day 2

Lucien stood from his seat, arranging his notes and skimming over them one last time before he spoke.

"First of all," he started, "I'd like to start off by thanking each of you for the insights you brought to the table yesterday, and the clear dedication all of you have shown toward creating the best possible world for all of us. I think, truly, that we all want the same thing: safety and prosperity for all of those who depend on us. We only differ on how to achieve that goal.

"You have all brought up some interesting points--perhaps especially, those of you with whom I am inclined to disagree. At the end of the day, my goal here is not to win this argument, but to make the right decision, whatever that may be. That being said, while I acknowledge and appreciate the more conservative views in this room, I have not yet heard an argument that has swayed me from my own.

"For one, in regards to those of you who have characterized muggles as a danger to be feared," he looked to Aldric Förstner in particular as he said this, "I think you do not give our fellow humans enough credit. Perhaps once, a strong fear of the unknown quickly led to violence. But in my experience, with time and technological advancements, society has progressed in leaps and bounds. The world is more connected now than ever before. More open, more accepting. Muggles are not some alien race, or some terrifying monster. In fact, they're not so very different from ourselves. My coworkers are muggles, my friends are muggles. My father is a muggle. And all of them, from what I've seen, share the same goals and the same desires that we have now: to leave the world a little better than it was when we arrived.

"As to those of you who worry about weapons of mass destruction," he turned to the Japanese minister, "I tell you we would be in no more danger than we are already. A nuclear weapon cannot be solely directed at the magical population if we live alongside our muggle neighbors. The destruction of one would require the destruction of the other, and that is a risk no muggle politician that I know of would be willing to take. Nuclear missiles are already a threat to everyone on this planet, no matter whether or not they possess magical abilities. If one were to strike right now, it would annihilate all people, indiscriminately. The Statute would not protect us from that.

"And to the rest of you who voted nay, for perfectly legitimate reasons, I ask you this: how do you plan to uphold the Statute, if such a decision is not unanimous? The Statute itself is in a fragile position, if it is even on the table for discussion. For my part, I swear to uphold whatever decision we eventually come to, but the balance is beginning to tip. All it takes is one country to dissolve the old world order. Would it not be best to come together with a plan, should such an eventuality inevitably come to pass? Would it not be safest to embrace the future, before it has the opportunity to strike us first?

"If any of you have questions concerning my decision, consider the floor open. I hope above all that we can come to an understanding, if not a unanimous agreement."

Why was there even a second day of this summit?

Debate would solve nothing.

It never did. People, in Yusuf's vast experience, were not swayed by others so easily when it came to political ideology. Plus, each delegate probably already carried a mandate from their respective country to vote in a certain way. No, the whole debate was a farce at best and a waste of time at worst. This was what bureaucracy was made of and this was what Yusuf hated with a burning passion.

"Somalia maintains its stance from the first day," the warlord stated with some difficulty—he didn't even bother to stand. "I have nothing to add to this talk, get on with it."

Shrugging to himself, Yusuf fell silent to allow the next delegate to speak. Nothing he said would matter to those gathered here. They'd all already chosen which side they were on and anyone who thought otherwise was fooling themselves.

Yusuf wasn't fooling himself.

Being the final nation to speak up had its ups and downs. Jackson was in the unique position of hearing everyone out before his own reply was formed, and therefore able to answer more questions than others. However, this also meant he had to sit through what seemed utter pointlessness at certain times. So when there was nothing of substance said for him to note down, the young wizard did what he did best. He observed the delegates.

Entitlement, Jackson had found, was prominent on all social platforms, and politics was no different. Even from the way some of these people stood or sat, he could tell which representatives came from a cushy background and generations of wealth to those who had actually worked their way up, fighting for a position no one would willingly give them. It was reflected in how each candidate viewed the proceedings. With arrogance and amusement or importance and interest.

When the British Minister implored everyone to rethink their decision before hurtling the world into an uncertain future, the words spoke to Jackson. Truth be told, he was very much of the America First mentality. He was also almost certain that no matter what happened, the US magical congress would not allow magic to go public. Their government had used force and deceit to keep the nation ignorant before, why should this be any different?

It also helped that he wasn't the only one supporting an outcome that didn't involve mass hysteria in the near future. Almost ten nations had agreed to his point of view. Some of the Arabians had even suggested stricter sanctions on countries and states that were currently violating the statute, oblivious of the dirty looks they were getting from the rest of the congregation.

Jackson rose to his feet politely, taking the podium in calm, easy strides. "It seems the British Minister has had a peek at my notes," he began, trying to inject humor at the end of the dire warning. "I have heard everyone who spoke today and while I may not agree with some of you, I do appreciate you bringing your points forth - for those who actually did bring their points forth." A pointed glance at the Somali representatives, the Clements, the German Chancellor. "I fel that discussing the establishment of an institution that has long protected our people should not be discussed without some kind of procedure for said astonishment in place. We need to talk logistics, how to realistically merge the magical world with The no mag's. And then we should debate on the merits of the process and how it can be improved."

Falling quiet, Jackson counted to three in his head, making sure he had everyone attention before he uttered the final words. "And until such time as someone proposes an actual, applicable way to do so, the United States of America stands firm in it's belief that the sanctity of the Statute should be upheld."

With that, the dark haired wizard left the podium, leaving the floor for the secretary to retake and end the day's long proceedings.