Hmmm... MTU, which is usually just pre-shatter, is basically a LN organization... the Imperiumm cares only about perpetuating the imperium, and keeping it's constitutent nobles in power. Norris, Dulinor, and Strephon all had dreams of making it into a LG organization, but the bureaucrats and nobles, as a rule, didn't want that. Keep the masses busy and well fed, and rebellions are few and far between... (a russion proverb, translated inelegantly, from a derision of the Tsar by some socialist member of the Duma, during the reign of Nicholas II) that is the nature of the nobility IMTU...
Yes, MTU is a callous place. Yes, the 3I meddels in policy. Yes, the 3I actively discourages long-range trade... to discourage fast dissemination. Yes, the Imperium IMTU taxes the buisinesses... by making liscensure require issuance of unreimbursed stock to the licensing nobleman's feif, held in trust for the emperor by the noble, and of which, a tithe is passed to one's sector duke, who passes a similar tithe to the sector duke, who tithes to the Archduke, who tithes to the emperor. Since the requirement is that any noble may require 1% ownership for a company chartered in his see, and operating between two or more constituent parts of his see. (So, on a balkanized world, multi-nationals; in most systems, interworld companies. In a subsector, multi-system entities pay the cluster count and/or subsector duke. Sectorwides pay the Duke. Domain wides pay the Archduke. Multi-domain's pay the Emperor and EACH archduke.)
Plus, IMTU, feifs also include the starports. So, Terra's Phoneix downs is home of the Baron Phoenix, a vassal-by-imperial-will of the Viscount of Sol, who also is Baron Aeco. (Invasion Earth puts these as the two main starports of Terra.)
Net effect: the nobles compete for lots of short-range bits; it's not in there interests for people to make waves, nor to travel too far.
