Prologue
"Professor Reynolds?" said the spunky young Korean-American™ female reporter. "I'm Connie Chunk for MSNBS. Thank you for joining us. I understand you're starting a huge research project of some sort?"
Professor Ronald Reynolds, professor emeritus of philanthropy, nodded excitedly and pushed back his glasses. He was a middle-aged man whose prematurely whitening hair stuck out in all directions. "You understand correctly, Miss Chunk," he said. "What I'm about to do could lead to a huge breakthrough in our comprehension of the governance of civilization."
"Interesting," she said. "What exactly - "
"Oh, I can't say, not yet," he said, shaking his head emphatically. "Well, all right, I'll tell you a little. You see, as I'm sure you're aware there's been a lot of talk about the direction our country is headed, figuratively speaking. In my professional opinion, which is shared by many of my colleagues and students alike, it is in the toilet and going farther down the drain every day."
"I see - "
"That's the proper academic terminology, you understand."
"Er, of course. So, with this project you're trying to address this problem?"
"Well, people have been trying to address this problem since it started forever ago, but it has only gotten worse," said Dr. Reynolds, scratching his ear. "Since the balance of power in Washington keeps shifting though, there has been a lot of debate as to which political philosophy is mostly to blame, so I decided to get an answer once and for all. With a large research grant composed of your tax dollars, I have purchased an island in the Pacific about the size of Manhattan. A team of volunteers selected for having certain political views will colonize the island and see what they can make of it."
"And then you'll repeat the experiment with other views?"
"Oh, I'll get to them at some point when this phase is over, but I'll need another research grant and funds are rather limited right now. Something about a health care reform or something, I'm not sure what."
"I see. Dr. Reynolds, there have been rumors that many of the people being sent to the island are your next-door neighbors, and some are questioning whether you just want to -"
"Coincidence. Statistical clustering and all that."
"I understand. Now, I realize this probably depends on how successful the colonists are, but within what sort of time-frame do you expect to bring them back?"
Professor Reynolds blinked. "Say what now?"
Next: One Nation Under G**
Professor Ronald Reynolds, professor emeritus of philanthropy, nodded excitedly and pushed back his glasses. He was a middle-aged man whose prematurely whitening hair stuck out in all directions. "You understand correctly, Miss Chunk," he said. "What I'm about to do could lead to a huge breakthrough in our comprehension of the governance of civilization."
"Interesting," she said. "What exactly - "
"Oh, I can't say, not yet," he said, shaking his head emphatically. "Well, all right, I'll tell you a little. You see, as I'm sure you're aware there's been a lot of talk about the direction our country is headed, figuratively speaking. In my professional opinion, which is shared by many of my colleagues and students alike, it is in the toilet and going farther down the drain every day."
"I see - "
"That's the proper academic terminology, you understand."
"Er, of course. So, with this project you're trying to address this problem?"
"Well, people have been trying to address this problem since it started forever ago, but it has only gotten worse," said Dr. Reynolds, scratching his ear. "Since the balance of power in Washington keeps shifting though, there has been a lot of debate as to which political philosophy is mostly to blame, so I decided to get an answer once and for all. With a large research grant composed of your tax dollars, I have purchased an island in the Pacific about the size of Manhattan. A team of volunteers selected for having certain political views will colonize the island and see what they can make of it."
"And then you'll repeat the experiment with other views?"
"Oh, I'll get to them at some point when this phase is over, but I'll need another research grant and funds are rather limited right now. Something about a health care reform or something, I'm not sure what."
"I see. Dr. Reynolds, there have been rumors that many of the people being sent to the island are your next-door neighbors, and some are questioning whether you just want to -"
"Coincidence. Statistical clustering and all that."
"I understand. Now, I realize this probably depends on how successful the colonists are, but within what sort of time-frame do you expect to bring them back?"
Professor Reynolds blinked. "Say what now?"
Next: One Nation Under G**