8.m.
“I assume, from
your statement,” said Corporate Man, glaring at the man in the white suit and
black tie, “that you’re the one who put me in that hospital and kept me an
invalid for a decade.”
“Guilty,” said
John Q Public. “It’s too bad we don’t
have time to go over the particulars of the Florida
campaign. I think you’d appreciate the
genius of it. But we have an agenda and
I’d like to remain focused on that.”
“The future of
the economy,” said Corporate Man. “So you said.”
“Yes. Well it’s a bit about that, but mostly it’s
about your future. Your immediate
future. And the limitations thereof.”
“Are you
threatening us, John?” Corporate Man said and stood up. His lapel seams casting a harsh glow on his
face. “I knew this was going to turn
into a fight. What? Is this office some
sort of death trap?”
John Q Public
held up a gloved hand and said, “Please.
Sit down. You misunderstand
me. I am not threatening you. When an economic forecaster predicts a price
drop in a certain commodity is he or she threatening that commodity? No.
Merely reading the signs. And I’m
not referring to the whole Union . I’m confident that these three,” he gestured
to Business Woman, Senior Executive, and Franklin Buck, “will survive this
meeting and make it into that future in one capacity or another. It’s just you, Corporate
Man.
I fear for you.”
“I’m
sorry. That still sounds like a threat
to me,” said Business Woman.
“The sands in the
hourglass are almost spent,” said John Q Public. “Am I at fault for noticing the impending
fall of the final grain?”
“Get on with it
then,” said Corporate Man. “Say what you have to say.”
John Q Public
too a deep breath and said, “You’re a fairytale, Corporate
Man.
A figment of a naïve imagination.
There is no place in the world economy where you fit. By the end of this meeting you will concede
that point. And you will cease to be.”
“That’s
bullshit,” said Senior Executive. “It’s
bad out there, but the Union is back and we’re changing
things.”
“No. You aren’t.
You’re simply a colorful distraction.
Nothing more. At most you’re
something to give a small amount of hope to an ignorant populace so they’ll
take comfort knowing that someone else is fixing their problems and will turn a
blind eye and let us resume our financial pillaging.”
“You don’t
believe that, John,” said Corporate Man.
“Don’t I?”
“No. I know you.
This isn’t you. It’s that
asshole. He’s influencing you,”
Corporate Man said, pointing at General Apathy.
“Throw his ass out of here and lets all work together to fix this mess.”
“Fix it? It is what it is. You can no more fix the ocean from being wet
than you can make our financial system into anything that benefits anyone
except a select few.”
“I don’t buy
that,” said Senior Executive.
“Really? Everyone else seems to,” said John Q Public.
“I doubt it,”
said Business Woman.
“Let me
illustrate. Everyone has deep seeded
dreams of becoming one of the elite.
It’s not only inborn, but we foster this through various media
channels. Deep down, subconsciously,
they are aware that if they fight to create or support a system which equalizes
everyone then they effectively kill any chance for that dream of possible
future success to ever materialize. They
cannot become rich and powerful if everyone is the same.”
“That’s
irrational,” said Franklin Buck.
“It sure is,”
John Q Public said. “Let’s review a
recent political conflict over a proposal to raise income tax for those earning
over two hundred and fifty thousand dollars.
How many people in this country exist at an income level well below that
mark? How many of those people’s yearly
income would have to more than quadruple to gain that plateau? If your response was ‘the bulk of the work
force’ then you’d be correct. Now, in a
logical world, those people would realize that if their income somehow
quadrupled, taking home the higher taxed, quadruple amount would leave them far
better off than hanging on to that lower taxed, meager pittance of what they
currently earn. But, oh no, in their
minds, they will be rich some day and no way is the government going to take a
bigger chunk of their money. The public
only considers themselves, and its not even themselves as they currently exist,
but an idealized fantasy version of what they hope to become.”
For a long
while, no one said anything.
“We’ve been
dumbing down the populace for years,” said John Q Public. “In an age of information you’d expect an
increase in intelligence, but we flood the culture with mindless
entertainments, blind them with shiny celebrities and easy to follow
programming. Children are trained to be
consumers, practically from infancy.
Aggressive advertisements bombard them between television shows and
those shows feature spoiled, self entitled kids whose only function is outsmart
dumb adults. The messages are
clear. Buy stuff. The world revolves around you. Adults are stupid and have nothing to teach
you. And, most importantly, you will be
stupid when you grow up.”
“That’s
ridiculous,” said Franklin Buck.
“I agree,” said
John Q Public. “But that’s what we
peddle and that’s what Americans buy. We
can sell them anything. Just recently we
convinced them that the word ‘retarded’ is a bad word. And do you know why they bought it? Not because of any serious offense that the
word incites. Any word that separates
out one group of people from another will inevitably be seen as offensive
simply because of its implications of difference and the unavoidable debasement
involved at labeling one group normal while forcing the other to accept the
inference of abnormality. Retarded is
offensive because Americans are sensing how stupid they have become and they
subconsciously fear that they, in fact, are retarded. Instead of exerting energy toward increasing
their mental faculties they choose to erase a word that they perceive as a
disparaging to their ignorance when it has no relation whatsoever.”
“People are not
so blind,” said Senior Executive.
“Some. I’ll give you that. But on a whole they are willing to accept the
state of cultivated ignorance,” said John Q Public. When his statement was met with a round of
head shakes he continued. “If you’d like
further proof, let’s talk immigration.”
“What is this?”
said Corporate Man. “Is this economics or politics?”
“Isn’t it all
one in the same?”
“Let’s talk about
us. Let’s get to the part where we hold
you accountable for the things you’ve done.”
“Oh, yes. Let us,” said John Q Public.
“You don’t
think we can?” said Corporate Man.
“Old
friend. Please. Until we clearly define the canvas upon which
I have been painting, the brushes and pigments at my disposal, I don’t think
that we can judge method or technique.”
“I think we can
judge effect of action. Death of
colleagues.”
“If you think
you must,” said John Q Public. “But who
is to be the judge? Who is to sit on my jury if I am on trial? I merely wish to define the pool from which
we would draw. The public. I cite immigration as an example of the
ineptitude of that public. It’s an argument
continually cropping up amongst our fellow Americans and we generally see two
camps form about the issue. Those who
wish to accept border jumpers with open arms and those who fear that
foreigners, Mexicans in particular, are scaling a big fence and coming up here
to steal jobs from us hard working Americans.”
“That’s not
exactly the–” Senior Executive started.
“Yes it
is. Because that’s the line of thinking
that we’ve sold them. The reactionaries
want all the illegal Mexicans deported to protect good honest Americans yet
they fail to realize the irony of the situation. America
was founded by foreign immigrants who invaded the country and stole land from
the populace already living here.”
“Yeah… I guess if you really think about it, the most
American people today are the Mexicans,” said Franklin Buck.
“Precisely,”
John Q Public said, “Now, if Americans are so intelligent and not the
manufactured retards I claim them to be, then how come the outcry in regards to
the immigration issue isn’t about the shady businesses hiring, or more
accurately, actively recruiting illegal workers? Jobs aren’t being stolen by illegals. The good ole American entrepreneur is
offering them up willingly and the dumb American public is blaming the guy
who’s just grateful to have the opportunity for a decent wage. Comparatively anyway. We don’t stop to think or ask ‘why are all
these people coming here?’ We’ve already
been sold the ‘stealing our jobs’ line.
And some of the most anti-immigrant morons out there are the same
dirt-bag business owners that hire illegals to pad their bottom line.”