"Dear Elza,
   
I am presently involved with a warrior, and have been for the past three standard years. He’s wonderful and devoted. He left me alone about two months back to go work a job in the Outer Rim Territories. He holos daily or leaves me messages, never wavering. He professes how much he misses me, and I stare blankly at the images.
   
I came across a human sith, standing alone at the cantina on the fleet. Oh, this was quite a while ago. We chatted over drinks, found common interests, and on several occasions enjoyed each others company. Recently though, we have been spending more time together, since I now have the time. I’ve found that the few common interests we shared once have allowed us to blossom together. Words aren’t spoken between us in a lover’s way; it’s more of a "knowing.” The way he looks at me, I see it, and I know my eyes shine brightly when I look at him.
   
My relationship is content. There is nothing wrong. The warrior and I do not argue, or bicker, yet the relationship, at least for me, has grown…stale. He works, yet never progresses. As well, I work, but don’t bother to want to progress. This new Sith has created for me, a bubble in which only he and I exist. Our conversations last long into the night, and begin again with the morning, never failing. The feeling is intense, a bright fire burning, and an incessant need to add more fuel. 

This is an Imperial News Network travel ban update.

Last week's article on the current status of Balmorra drew a lot of ire from those outside the Galactic Republic. Imperial lackeys and Sith mind slaves alike expressed their displeasure and outrage at our 'propaganda' which was nothing more than individual citizen opinion and facts put forward by us.

Like it or not, Empire, Sobrik is going to be free and run by a democratically elected leader soon. After all, we have BlasTech's very own Amaare Margolis, Treasure Hunter Extraordinaire supporting the people of Balmorra. Not a government, but the people and their ideals!

This week's topic was one which needed attention. Throughout the history of galactic politics and colonization, the planet Tatooine has always been brought up for one reason oe another. Sometimes it was repopulated for swoop racing, other times by a group of criminals who wanted a safe haven from law and a good place to gamble; or big game hunters who wanted to hunt the elusive desert Krayt Dragon or the brutal Hulak Wraid.

But why in the name of the Republic would our government—or the Sith Empire—want to invest in this dustbowl? Why would Sith Lords, spies, Republic soldiers, and Jedi all run off to some backwater planet with two major settlements which have always been run down little dumps?

That's what Voices of the Republic asked earlier this weekend. Let's see what the galaxy has to say!

This is an Imperial News Network travel ban update.

Sobrik has been liberated. Balmorra and their formerly exiled government has finally moved in to attempt to re-gain control and return the quality of life to their people. Formerly naive, the Balmorran hierarchy has been bloodied enough to finally become a mature, strong force which will only accept safety to the world which has seen a rough occupation, resistance, and final liberation since Republic military forces pulled out after the signing of the Treaty of Coruscant.

Always a strategic asset because of the manufacturing plants and the proximity to the Core Worlds. Galactic Republic support dropped over the years and then the Empire found themselves squelching a staunch resistance which never quite seemed to die, even with the deaths of leaders and brilliant tacticians. While the politics of each Balmorran citizen differed, the majority of them wished to simply get on with their lives. The resistance—and, later, the Galactic Republic's outright liberation of the planet—made many tired. It made many of them resent the Republic more for what they percieved as abandonment.

The Empire, however, proved a bad thing for Balmorran industry. Production was stifled under strict Imperial trade laws, companies began to pull out due to them and the general attitude which the Empire holds to worlds which disobey the local Governors who have free reign to administrate how they wish.

So it began to hurt. And it began to bleed. Citizens feel the most of the pain from both the resistance, oppression, and the economy's nosedive. Let's see what the people of the galaxy have to say about the state of things on Balmorra during the Imperial occupation.