August 12, 2029
Questions from our forum:
Who really released the identities of the Dissidents to the public?
How was the most secure private computer server in the country hacked without any legal repercussions?
If you are so sure of the goodwill of your followers, why haven’t you revealed your own identity?
Are you really ugly or something?
Are you even real, or merely a propaganda monster hiding under my bed?
If you’re so powerful, why don’t you answer any of these questions?
You can submit your own questions in the comments below, and maybe we will post them.
Never stop asking questions.
24.
After four months of the Rehabilitation Program, no Dissidents have made a full recovery, and others have joined them, as a measure for public safety. With our civilian numbers growing, I was able to pull the experienced Delivery & Pickup ministers and wardens from their units and assign them permanently to Delivery & Pickup, or DP, which the media nicknamed Dissident Police. They meant it in a good way. I checked.
In the midst of the DP fame, some people thought that the Dissidents would grow quiet. On the contrary, they are still very active and vocal, publicly rebranding themselves not as Dissidents, but Inquirers. They claim to be focused on finding out the true fates and conditions at the Lithuanian rehabilitation site. There is no communication into or out of the camp, as that would compromise the rehabilitation. These groups are only technically different from the Dissidents; they are not disparaging Peace by Piece or myself, but they don’t trust what they’re being told. It’s been reported again and again that the Dissidents, though harmful to society, are being treated with the utmost humanity and care, which is more than one could say about their behavior when they were at liberty to say or do anything Unpeaceful. The Inquirers, in theory, are harmless, at least until they begin to suggest that the liberty to say or do anything Unpeaceful is the whole point, and that any group, religious, political, or otherwise, who enforces censorship should be challenged.
Sounds like Unpeace to me.
Fortunately I don’t have to be the person to point out this embarrassing oversight. There are many high-ranking politicians, including the President, the Vice President, and most of the federal Senators and Representatives, who are in accord with the Inquirers. Despite the forward momentum of the Peace movement with their country, they are denying the wishes of their constituents under the banner of idealism. The President makes a statement urging the country to consider all the facts before signing on to Peace by Piece.
Then, the Houston base is bombed. The public has just enough time to be outraged before a similar bomb destroys the second floor of the base in Kansas City. The Wardens self-organize their Ministers into a neighborhood watch, and the next bombers are caught while planting explosives at the base in Atlanta. Unfortunately they are taken down by police while resisting arrest, but their IDs confirm that they are members of an online community of Dissidents masquerading as Inquirers. The Inquirers have deep pockets. Someone, or many someones, is funding them.
The President joins the Vice President and other members of the government to address a group of Peaceful protestors on the steps of the Capitol building. He is beginning his condemnation of the recent violence when several small homemade bombs explode behind him, lacerating his torso and killing him instantly. The Vice President receives shrapnel to his skull, turning him into a vegetable. (Some of the more tongue-in-cheek op-ed pieces suggest that they can’t tell the difference. Ha ha.) The Inquirers take credit for the attack, though some of the “non-extremist” Inquirers, who have been outspoken but non-violent, discredit the attacks and doubt that they were actually perpetrated by Inquirers, since the President and Vice President have been supportive of their movement.
The Speaker of the House accepts the position as acting President. He is not prepared for the role. He quickly sides with Peace by Piece, recognizing the “true work” that is being done in the country. He applauds my ambition; he is gracious for the bullheadedness of one person despite dangerous opposition. He mourns the deaths of the President and VP, promising to carry on their best policies and to avoid their mistakes.
I wonder if the Inquirers think I am imaginary now.
March 3, 2023
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Re: Cellars
Attached you will find some plans for the cellars of each camp building. The height is correct; I require that the ceilings remain low. The floors must be dirt and the walls concrete, to support the building above without ruining too much of the natural land. I would like wildlife to propagate in these spaces. We will encourage the fungi, insects, and rodents that prefer dark, dank places to dispose of the organic materials that we place there. Any leftover food or other organic materials deemed waste will be placed in this basement fertilization center to be converted into the soil by natural means. Therefore there should be a solid door made of materials that animal claws cannot dig through. Metal is preferred, or at the very least, wood that is wrapped in metal sheeting. Or whatever you deem best. You will have to forgive my ignorance of the best material for an impenetrable door! Ha ha. The key is that anything put into the basement should not be able to get out.
25.
I am slicing onions late one night when there’s a knock at my front door. It’s the darkest day of the year, and I must sate my appetite for homemade tomato sauce. I always give in to my appetites.
I don’t get many visitors. I keep my onion-slicing knife in my right hand as I open the door with my left.
It’s Zero-Zero-One. “Trick or treat.”
I gesture her into the house with my knife hand.
I lead her into the living room, turn the back burner on low, and let the tomatoes soften. She’s never visited my house before, though she bought the place for me years ago. We have not spoken since she tried to fire everyone at Final Solutions and they refused to leave. She told them her sob story and a few fools followed her. She’s been off the radar since then.
Zero-Zero-One is an infamous teetotaler. She tells people that she doesn’t like anything to cloud her mind, but the real reason is that she’s a recovering alcoholic. I offer her a drink. Fortunately I have a ready supply of seltzer in the bar fridge, just in case she visited one day. I suspected she would.
“I went to Lithuania last weekend,” Zero-Zero-One tells me.
Not exactly an ideal spot for the holidays.
“That’s what your ‘Dissidents’ think too,” she says drily.
Did she gain admission to the camps?
“No, but I spoke to the few who were still allowed to leave. Their rehabilitation doesn’t seem to be working.”
Of course it isn’t working. That’s why they haven’t been released yet. I’m disappointed in her. We went over this last time we spoke, in my office. After so many years with Final Solutions and Labor Placements, she should know, better than anyone, that there are some people who are unemployable and unrehabilitatable. It should be no surprise to her that to achieve world peace, those people have to be far removed from society.
“Far removed or removed completely?” Zero-Zero-One sucks her club soda deeply. She hasn’t given in to any of the vanities many aging women indulge in, but she’s aged gracefully. Her wealth makes up for a lot.
In practice there isn’t much of a difference between far removed and removed completely. Anyway, the removal seems to be having the desired effect.
“It won’t work,” she insists, finishing her drink with a slurp. “There will always be Dissidents.”
Of course, but thanks to her ridiculous actions with the Inquirers, the Dissidents will be way more unpopular.
“You knew it was me.”
Of course I did. I was surprised, though, when she resorted to bombing buildings.
Her face darkens. “You know I would never do anythin
g like that. I’m trying to save lives, not –“ she stops and turns horror-stricken eyes to mine.
I shrug.
“That’s why you let me leave your office.”
No reason to remove you when you still served a purpose.
“You needed me to create more opposition to give you a tighter grip on the public. By hurting your own employees.”
I don’t like the phrase “grip.” It makes me sound like a boa constrictor or a baseball player.
“I was trying to slow you down and I just sped you up.”
She could have killed me.
She shakes her head. “The accomplished wife, jealous of the attention her spouse is getting, driven crazy by her unnatural choice to be a businesswoman instead of staying at home with children… no. That was not an option. The public would have turned against me immediately.”
I harbor no ill will towards Zero-Zero-One. I’m still very fond of her. She’s just doing what she thinks is best. And she’s right – she was never part of The Plan.
“You’re not going to shoot me then? You don’t have a gun hidden in your bag that you’ll put my fingerprints on and tell the cops was mine the whole time?”
Of course I have a gun hidden in my bag. But I’m not going to shoot her.
Her eyes slouch as the muscle relaxer in her club soda takes effect. “You’re not the only one who can make a plan. People know I’m here. When I don’t come back, they’ll ask more questions.”
And I will have answers.
Lifelibertythepursuitofeverything.com
January 4, 2030
I’m going to take our Mysterious Benefactor up on 3er* offer. For those of you who have been following me for a while, you remember why I started this blog in the first place: to reveal all the things I found wrong in our society, and to share my ideas for how they should be fixed. I don’t care what any authorities think about how “dangerous” or “subversive” or “communist” my ideas are. All we have to do is look around and see that we can’t go on like we have been. Mankind can only last so long.
That’s why I’m going to turn myself over to our Mysterious Benefactor, and investigate how 3er* intentions are being carried out. You know where a road built with good intentions leads, and if that’s true, then I may descend into Hell. But like the heroes of mythology before me, I will return from the underworld with the head of the Beast and the promise of spring.
See you in six weeks.
*This blogger and activist uses the gender-inclusive pronoun 3e for those whose gender is unclassified, as suggested by sci-fi visionary Melissa Scott. Nominative: 3e; Accusative: 3im; Possessive: 3er; Predicate Possessive: 3ers; Reflexive: 3imself.
February 17, 2030
The only thing more beautiful than the natural splendor of Haiti is the true Peace that is being cultivated there. I feel a fool for ranting and raving for so long, believing I was contributing to making this world somewhere we can actually live, but in my self-righteous actions I was creating Unpeace. I understand that now.
I have spent years proselytizing the actions necessary to change the world, but it wasn’t until I took myself away from my life that I realized how short-sided I was. Here is my final advice: don’t do anything. Don’t say anything. Live in peace. The Ambassadors will do the rest.
26.
Zero-Zero-One’s personal secretary, whose number escapes me now, recently announced that Zero-Zero-One will be the first person under my employ to take advantage of my Early Retirement Program. She has been working so hard for so long, despite the little hiccups at Final Solutions that were just nasty rumors, that with world peace around the corner, she decided a permanent vacation was exactly what she needed. She will be opening the first tropic campsite in Haiti, where anyone who no longer wishes to suffer a “traditional 9-to-5 life” can live together in harmony. Zero-Zero-One has even convinced a large cut of the Inquirer population to join her, where they will find answers to all their questions firsthand.
Haiti is a beautiful country that’s been torn apart by corruption, violence, and earthquakes. I’ve had a presence there for years, providing farmers with start-up funds and land to feed their communities. I also provide studio space for textile artists to create pieces to be exported for profit. There is plenty of work for the Inquirers to do at these farms and studios, with easy hours and all living arrangements fixed. They do not want for anything, and in finding that they can live with so little, they are achieving true happiness and Peace.
Journalists and bloggers have been after me for years, but when Zero-Zero-One made her announcement, they really pounced. Anyone, even now, is absolutely welcome to give up a lifestyle of misery to pursue paradise at our Peace camp in Haiti. I accept all of them, under the condition that they wait to write anything until they have completed the minimum six-week program. They are all so happy they have decided to stay. Those who are unhappy are transferred to Lithuania, where they will receive a more rigorous education in Peace.
As the practice of dissent becomes more and more unpopular, institutes are encouraging a Peace Only policy, which essentially says that if one is partaking in an Unpeaceful practice, like political debate, theological discussion, or talking about the best and worst in pop culture, then one will receive a warning which, if left unheeded, will put that person on a local watchlist for thirty days. If that person is found sowing dissent in that thirty-day period, then they are reported to the DP. I did not organize this system, but the Ambassadors did. It’s another example of how interdependent responsibility is the most effective instrument of peace.
Colleges follow suit. Unfortunately, college students are known for their diverse opinions on any topic, so to prevent further Pickups, colleges have to eliminate any debatable topics. Tests focus on the regurgitation of facts, and even those facts are closely monitored.
As these new measures to ensure Peace and Brotherhood spring up, civilians who once signed the Petition are reneging on their pledges. They claim that it’s going too far, though obviously it has not gone far enough since Peace has not yet been achieved. Just look abroad, particularly in those places where war and poverty have been so prevalent in the past decades. Those grateful supplicants are willing to give up a few unnecessary liberties to bring Peace. But this country? “I want to be able to say what I want when I want without anyone getting mad!” Talk about a first world problem.
Many of these Breakers decide to “leave society” and live “off the grid” in areas where they assume the Ambassadors will leave them alone. They are ditching cell phones and computers and learning how to hunt and gather their own food. (These types tend to have learned this long ago, in preparation for a day in which it might be necessary to know. Paranoid much?) Zero-Zero-One would have respected such individuals and left them alone. A9 has no such weakness. She views with them the greatest suspicion, and she is collaborating with A3 to track them down.
She is addressing the nation tonight from the steps of the newly-renovated Capitol building.
“If they are so harmless, why are they doing so much harm? If they have nothing to hide, why are they hiding? If these Breakers are not dealt with in the surest, most Peaceful fashion, then they will return united and destroy our perfecting society with Unpeace.”
I predict that she will receive two hundred honorary degrees. In the old days she would have gotten a book deal, but books have been more or less discarded. They require too much thinking to get through one, and thinking often leads to Unpeaceful opinions. Best not to risk it.
The Breakers are being sent to neither Haiti nor Lithuania, but a different location which is being kept confidential for their own protection. I will say, however, that the routine and layout will be appealing to their militaristic minds. They will be working at a wind energy farm, with lots of open space around them, which is what they wanted in the first place.
February 14, 2030
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
&n
bsp; Re: Meeting
We need to discuss what to do with a new type of Dissident, one who objects to our actions on religious grounds. There are a lot of them. I am concerned that they will never be convinced.
Let me know what time will work for you, and I’ll make it work.
Thank you,
A9
February 18, 2030
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Re: Space problem
Need a solution
26.
“It’s the Jews,” A9 explains with an angry sigh. “And the Christians, Catholics, and Muslims. It’s infuriating. It doesn’t make any sense.” A9 pulls at her tastefully wound dreads. “They don’t understand that there’s nothing left to argue about. None of it matters. PEACE IS THE ONLY THING THAT MATTERS NOW.” She grinds her teeth.
“The camps are getting full.” A3 pulls a drag from his joint. So I’ve heard: many of the campers have stopped volunteering for work detail. They claim to be sick or exhausted and lie around using up resources. Fewer people show up for work detail every day.
It really is a shame. I have done so much for these unemployable, Unpeaceful individuals, and still they resist, still they are unwilling to contribute to the common good of humanity. If they had been employees of a client, they would have been the first ones eliminated. I had hoped my plan would work well enough to negate this step, but, as usual, I am prepared for it.
I instruct A3 to supervise the relocation of the Unusable parties into the Recycling Cellars. There, their wastefulness will not go to waste. As for the religious groups, there will soon be quite a few vacancies at the different campsites, and they are more than welcome to take those spots. A3 signs off without an unnecessary word. A9 calms down from her righteous anger enough to thank me before promising the swift fulfillment of my wishes. I see her dialing the DP squad on her other phone as she hangs up.
Mr. Cartwright and the Final Solution Page 8