SATURNIAN MOON FILES FOR BANKRUPTCY
by Hazed
Mimas, one of the moons of Saturn, has become the first independent body in the Solar System to file for bankruptcy, with debts of many millions of gigagroats.
The moon, known as Motor Moon, was once a thriving industrial powerhouse, famous for building spaceships which were then sold through Jarrow Shipbuilders on Earth, but as more and more out-of-Sol planets are selling ships Mimas has been unable to compete and has been in a slow decline for centuries.
Mimas has never had a trading exchange and is not linked to the Imperial Navy’s recognized spaceways. The resulting isolation has made it hard for the moon to diversify and find alternative revenue streams. It has struggled with a steep population loss as the younger generation leave for other planets where they have more chance to make a living.
Declining investment in infrastructure has made the moon’s air plants unreliable, and its artificial gravity is also prone to unexpected failures, making life difficult for the residents who remain.
There have also been reports of corruption scandals over the years which have damaged the moon’s reputation. Recently the Galactic Administration has been investigating allegations of racketeering, extortion and bribery and charges have been levied against some of the moon’s bureaucrats. But the corruption problems are not new: not long after Mimas was colonised there was a corruption probe which became known as the “Ron McDonald affair” which involved officials extorting payoffs from brothels, gamblers and other underworld figures. That resulted in criminal convictions against many people, including an ex-mayor, one of the moon’s prosecutors, members of the moon’s council and scores of police officers.
The Mayor of Mimas, Sirus P Hackenbacker, who has managed to escape charges in the current corruption probes, said that he is seeking protection from creditors. He explained that this would be “The first step towards restoring the moon.” If the bankruptcy goes through it will allow him to liquidate the moon’s assets in order to pay creditors. Meanwhile, he vowed that public services will keep running and wages for public workers will be paid.
Mimas residents were very worried about the prospects for their home. In particular, the word “liquidation” seemed to strike fear into their hearts (or equivalent) because the moon is mostly made up of water ice; they expressed concern that Mimas could be literally liquidated and the resulting water sold to other, more prosperous moons.
Following news of the impending bankruptcy, other bodies in the Solar System expressed an interest in becoming involved in Mimas. The most credible of these approaches was from Triton, the largest of Neptune’s moons, which like Mimas has remained unaffiliated with the Galactic trading but which has a thriving economy thanks to the export of its abundant gas, nitrogen.
The Triton city council issued an offer for Mimas to join with it in forming a new, two-body political entity. It is not clear if they are simply talking about an economic partnership or whether they are suggesting the moon should actually move from Saturn’s orbit to Neptune’s. The Fed2 Star has heard rumours that they are not known to take no for an answer and this take-over bid could become very hostile indeed!
Meanwhile, a spokesthing for Jarrow Shipbuilders said it does not expect the bankruptcy to have any impact on its operations, and that it hoped the move would mark a clean start for the destitute moon.
