Yet Another Thursday !

[Jesrad]

It's Thursday today, so the Cult of Thursday's King is meeting. All the members are Happy today, because they have Hope today, because they have Faith today. They have Faith in their King, the King of Thursday, which they will have today !

So they meet this morning, and some of them giggle a bit, because they all Hope, each of them, that they themselves or friends of theirs in the Cult will be this Thursday's King so they can have everything they want out of all the members for the whole day.

So they pool their names, they put the little papers in the hat, and they are Happy, for it is their Ritual and it is full of Promises for each of them in all of their particular ways. They know they will all be King one Thursday, eventually, and that is the very Source of their Happiness and Hope and Faith.

So they rattle the hat, and the papers all dance. Rattle, rattle, little hat. The members have all Happy faces right now. And then the youngest able-bodied member covers his eyes with one hand, and reaches into the hat with the other. He picks a paper ! All the members around are holding their breath !

So they open the paper, and read the name thereupon: here is their new King, this Thursday's King ! And it happens to be George, a middle-aged plump man with a stiff upper lip. He is the King today !

Many members are disappointed, but they still have Faith, and Hope, while George proceeds to demand sexual gratifications from all the pretty female cult members. They still Hope, because they have Faith they will eventually be King, too.

Maybe next Thursday.

[Bebek Sincap Ratatosk]

 

[Jesrad]

MY, that's warming enthusiasm, thank you

[LMNO]

Maybe this is my gallows humor, but I was thinking you could amend it to, "And it happens to be George.  Again.  Just like last week, and the week before, and the week before that. A middle-aged plump man with a stiff upper lip..."



Kind of adds a dark tinge to it, but I feel it reflects a group mentality a bit better, and can also be a metaphor for our political system.

[Jesrad]

I like the more subtle approach of the "eventually" fallacy (MLM never dies), but maybe a less subtle way to ram that point is preferable, yes.

[LMNO]

Well, ok, my edit is pretty blunt, but if you were trying to imply a rigged system, there's nothing in your piece to suggest so.

[Jesrad]

Ah, but no rigging is necessary at all, it's all neatly fucked up all by itself. Or are you suggesting it's really the rigging that makes it fucked up ?

[Bebek Sincap Ratatosk]

I like it without the rigging... its kinda like America. Every few years people get really hopeful for the New Guy and he comes in, fiddles about and their hope is never really realized. Like the far right with Bush, his rallies back in 2000 were like revivals in some areas (including here... scary). "Speak oh Man Of God" was actually shouted. They had hope. Now, some people on the other side have Hope... it doesn't need the rigging, the system seems self sustaining.

[LMNO]

The way the piece is set up is a completely randomized process where everyone has an equal chance of becoming King.

Whether or not this is even a good idea isn't really my point at this time.

In a completely randomized process, the Hope is justified, because they have an equal shot of King-ness as everyone else.

However, in a rigged system the Hope is completly bogus, and is used as a tool for the rigger to stay in power.  The masses don't question the results, because they think it's completely random, and that they will someday have King-ness.

But they won't.  The game is rigged, and they will always be exploited.


It feels weird I have to explain that.

[Jesrad]

And thus, there was no Enlightenment

[LMNO]

What are you talking about?




Look, if you don't want constructive criticism, I'll just give you mittens and not comment, ok?

[Bebek Sincap Ratatosk]

The way the piece is set up is a completely randomized process where everyone has an equal chance of becoming King.

Whether or not this is even a good idea isn't really my point at this time.

In a completely randomized process, the Hope is justified, because they have an equal shot of King-ness as everyone else.

However, in a rigged system the Hope is completly bogus, and is used as a tool for the rigger to stay in power.  The masses don't question the results, because they think it's completely random, and that they will someday have King-ness.

But they won't.  The game is rigged, and they will always be exploited.


It feels weird I have to explain that.

When I read this my train of thought saw two different possible points... no matter who got to be King, everyone else was sad that it wasn't them, because Their Ideas would be so much better than that other persons. On top of that, as I mentioned earlier, even in a non-rigged system, Hope in the bureaucracy is Fail, even if you (or your guy) gets to be king.

If the system is rigged, it implies that a non-rigged system would be better... but rigged or not rigged, the humans will still hope, they will flail when the winner isn't them and overall, they continue to hope in a process that says "One Monkey should be in charge of ALL" rather than "You are in Charge of You".

[Jesrad]

I just think it's more interesting to show that the Hope is justified and yet they are doomed anyway.

The game is rigged, and they will always be exploited.

But the rigging and the exploitation are not interdependent, which was the point all along. I want to avoid implying that there is any such interdependancy, so I judge I cannot afford to introduce any reason for the Hope to be bogus in the first place as it would undermine the whole piece. So your criticism is welcomed, but rejected.

Edit: Ratatosk was faster.

[singer]

If the system is rigged, it implies that a non-rigged system would be better... but rigged or not rigged, the humans will still hope, they will flail when the winner isn't them and overall, they continue to hope in a process that says "One Monkey should be in charge of ALL" rather than "You are in Charge of You".

This is good.

[LMNO]