I have always been a
worrier. I have the ability to look into the future and perceive
every adverse permutation of a plan or situation. This ability is shared
by every science fiction writer worth his salt. My dad tells the
story about the time when I was thirteen years old and at the Mayo
Clinic for some very delicate surgery. He walked into my hospital
room and became gravely concerned because my bed was surrounded by a
large group of doctors who were deliberately focusing on me. But upon
stepping closer, he realized that we were involved in a chess match
and that I was soundly beating a group of the finest minds in the
nation. Being able to see an infinite number of moves ahead of my
opponents is both a blessing and a curse. It helps keep me out of
trouble, but it also leads to a paralysis of action. Sometimes you
just have to wing it.
I am very worried that
our government is poised to make a major move. I believe that the
world is about to be partitioned into spheres of influence under
American, Chinese, and Russian control. Martial law will be invoked.
We will see Federally issued identification papers, curfews, armed
checkpoints, a military presence on our streets, and DNA indexing of
all citizens. All forms of dissent, no matter how peaceful will be
ruthlessly crushed. The Bill of Rights will be suspended. Guns will
be confiscated. Mass arrests of alternative news journalists, protest
leaders and civil libertarians will take place.
Unfortunately, I feel
that this will be accomplished with the consent of the governed. The
rest of the world, including all other democratic countries, already live
with these impositions. The President of the United States will make the
case that these measures are necessary to insure the safety of all, as
well as our freedoms and liberties. He will point out that commerce
will be unaffected, that American citizens will still be able to live
their lives mainly as they have been, that if you are into snorkel
diving off the South Carolina coast, you will still be able to do
that, if you're into hiking in the National Parks, you'll still be
able to do that (just be careful not to trip over a gas pipeline), if
you're into restoring old cars, crocheting, going to a baseball game,
you'll still be able to do all of those things. You can have a pet, own a
home, raise a family. The pursuit of happiness will go on.
The government will
chuckle at the conspiracy theorists and consign us to sitting in our
corners wearing our tinfoil dunce caps. I don't know. Maybe it is a
good thing and I am fighting the wrong battle. I know full well that
the vast majority of people would go along with a “secure state”
scenario and that I am just pissing into the wind. But I am a
worrier. I believe that absolute power corrupts absolutely. So I will
remain a worrier, and a warrior.
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