It seems as if the politicians of the galaxy can turn anything into a war.

Think back, for a moment, to the struggle over bacta distribution, wherein Cryonics Industries managed to stir up enough of a to-do over the political controlling of bacta trade that it instilled chronic bedwetting syndrome in even the most steadfast of galactic leaders, and managed to get the whole galaxy kow-towing to it. Even the Republic, who, as always, prove they will stop at nothing to mock their own cause and laugh at their own stupidity, signed a deal with the formerly-Imperial group.

Fast forward a few years, and history replays itself like Gash Jiren's speaches on his government-funded networks. The Rogue Empire decided to release a list of those recieving tibanna gas, conveniently blacklisting anyone who hasn't taken our good friend Mr. Fearsons out for an icecream cone. Most notably, most unsuprisingly, and perhaps most devastatingly, the New Order is featured on this list of factions who will no longer recieve their reccomended daily intake of tibanna.

Of course, this was quickly jumped on by various political giants, all with one goal; make this economically crippling event into something that can be celebrated as a civic holiday. Anyone not recieving maximum amounts of tibanna declared the Rogue Empire a biased group of economic rapists intent on domination through means fair or foul. It's a good thing that politicians are above name calling, or there might have been a fight over it.

But, really, the fault can't lie with them. After all, no one could have anticipated that earning the enmity of the largest distributor of bacta while choosing not to negotiate any deals regarding the precious, as the ever-eloquent Gash Jiren put it, "laser fuel". No, the fault lies with Chadd Fearsons, who has once again turned a seemingly-benign entity into an instrument of his conquest.

Nevermind the fact that tibanna drives the galaxy's economy, or that even Palpatine did not regulate tibanna flow in such a way. The mere idea that Fearsons -- who is known for attempting to buy the faithfulness of Imperial loyalists while also attempting to do the same with Republicans and rebels by supporting the rebellions morals -- would dare restrict such a thing to buy himself yet more leverage in his constant quest for power. Once again, he has taken the high moral ground, and is defending it with all the stoicism and fortitide with which Emperor Palpatine resisted the Dark Side.

And, as always, the unrepentantly capitalist Cryonics Industries has stepped in to use this to their advantage, like Admiral Aevan Drakiss uses propaganda. Rumors suggest their offering of bacta to those Fearsons chooses not to abound. And the rest of the galaxy's factions have torn into this issue like a pack of rabid mongrels, figuring it the perfect time to use the lifeblood of the galaxy's economy as saliva to fling into the face of whomever they choose to spite.

The only faction currently publicly abstaining from this carnival sideshow are the New Republic -- and Gash Jiren is only choosing to stay sidelined in this conflict to buy free prestige points. Instead of actually supporting a side, he's just decided to accept bacta from everyone -- in Gash's book, everyone's equal. So long as they're giving him things.

I'm not naiive enough not to understand free market economics, but I'd wager that Chadd Fearsons doesn't. This isn't free market economics -- it's politics and war, played out on the stage made of tibanna gas. And this isn't a comedy.

Because the only ones who take a hit, in all this bickering and spiting and gnashing of teeth, are the people. The actual economy, and not the people looking to exploit it to expand their territory wider than the stretch of the imagination it takes to see a Death Star as a negotiations room.

And once again, we are trod upon for fun and profit.

-Viryn Quell
Freelance Author

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AIM: VirynQ