Bureaucracy in the IERA
In any organization as large as the IERA, factions and differences in
enforcement across the organization have inevitably formed. In the United
States these divisions are mostly regional ones based on the electrical grid
revisions that occurred in the 2050's.
"The South"
Region 1 and 2 cover most of the area that used to be colloquially known as
The South and parts of the Southwest. This area tends to cater to older people
who like stability but also think that they are too old, independent, young or
stubborn to kowtow to a 'non-American' organization without causing some
troubles.
Generally this trouble comes in the form of passive obstructions, such as
having neighborhood groups that keep each other notified of visits by IERA
or sightings of their vehicles and the like. They look the other way when
restless teens take out stop light or other public space energy monitors and
when asked about it they say the kids are just having 'harmless fun'.
The casual or relaxed attitude has extended somewhat even to the regional IERA
staff, who seem to miss the KPI's for punctual investigation and on time repair
SLA's nearly every quarter. They chalk this up to being understaffed and not
paid fairly for the work in a hotter climate with more obstacles than the
'white glove' New Yorkers who always seem to be on their case.
Region 3
The North East coast of the US was hit hard by the LFER attack on New York and
other similar actions aimed at the IERA Headquarters, which are in New York
City. The people here are much more likely to be at least cordial to an IERA
agent and somewhat understanding of the occasional delays that investigations
create due to the memory of the attack on New York.
This attitude is not shared in the Kentucky and West Virginia areas, which are
much more independent and likely to have off grid sources of energy for heat
or other (distilling) operations. No one knows why, but they refer to IERA
operatives as "Revenuers" and have been knows to shoot at them if they think
there is a good chance they can get away with it.
Region 3 operatives are generally considered to be the most desirable posts
and because of that coveted status there is a lot of political maneuvering and
jockeying to skip ahead and secure a post in NY. Sometimes this makes these
agents a little over zealous and can lead to grudges and resentment both inside
and outside the IERA for those individuals.
Region 4
Surrounding the Great Lakes and what used to be called the midwest, Region 4 is
generally the least eventful and quietest of the IERA regions. With much of
the areas power provided by lake tidal action, wind farms and other low impact
power sources the largest power disturbances come in the form of weather, with
tornadoes being the largest and most damaging.
Agents stationed to this region largely fall into 2 categories. Either they are
veterans who got tired of the hustle and bustle in one of the busier regions or
they are too new to IERA to have earned a place in one of the "high action"
regions. The younger agents can be quiet excitable and are often paired with
the veterans to provide a more measured and reasoned response unless or until
something is proven to be a real problem.
The people of Region 4 largely keep to themselves outside the cities. Even the
larger cities have become less populated over the last decade as people opt to
live more in the more relaxed country environment. Farming and other
agriculture are common past times as are cottage industries such as assembly
work that can be done at home or other work that is compatible with a more
remote work force. Their attitude toward IERA is the same as with other
police or government agencies, largely they just do what it takes to be left
alone or fly under the radar.
Region 5
The Western region is known for it's variety and multiculturalism. People from
a variety of other countries have setted into this region and brought with them
many foods and customs from their home countries making this area a melting pot
seen few other places in the world. This can lead to clashes when cultures or
ideals have opposing goals or when one groups practices violate the tenets of
another's.
This region is generally left to experienced agents or new prospects with large
amounts of talent who are expected to go far in the agency. A given day can
vary from routine energy spike investigations to entire neighborhoods set fire
over perceived cultural slights, real or imagined violations of energy
regulations / tampering with or disabling of monitoring devices to allow
culturally important rituals and many other types of technical violations that
could result in severe punishment if not handled with delicacy. Some of the
reporting that comes out of the region gets very creative in how they spin an
incident to prevent "darkening" events from becoming more common than they
already are.
Most Westerners see their local IERA agents as good people but don't have a lot
of respect for the larger organization that they see as out of touch with the
situations that real people are in. They will always publically cooperate with
IERA agents but if they are perceived as "main office" employees the
cooperation will be a facade with as few details as they feel they can get away
with and they will give more details to the local agents with they see them
next.
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