The Three Wastepaper Baskets of the Law

This is a political satire.

         Gene, those silly cats are scratching at our door again! I don't understand, they won't take any of our cream, or

any of the tuna steaks we offer them. All they like to do is sit by the fireside, and warm their paws, while listening

to our stories of the old days. I swear they could understand what we're saying sometimes.

        "Come in my friends, and gather around. We don't get many visitors these days," Gene said as he relit the

dying embers in his hanging lantern. Electricity didn't exist anymore. He ran his fingers through his scraggly beard,

and put down his axe. His heart filled with foreboding as he sat down on his rocking chair, and saw the glowing

intensity in the eyes of the small creatures. They seemed to possess wisdom unique to animals. "Let me tell the

story of the fall of the government through idiocy, and how we ended up in the stone ages," Gene said as he took a

puff from his pipe. "I do miss indoor plumbing, though I'm lucky to have this nice log cabin in the woods. I really

don't miss technology that much. It all started when we got that new president, what's his name?"

        "Oh, you mean Adolph Grosskamph?"

        "No, Ester, it's your dementia acting up again, but he may as well have been Adolph Hitler. Do you know how

much trouble I could have been in for wearing flannel on a Wednesday?"

        "I know, I know, it's Harry Bubachink!"

        "Yes, my dear, I could hardly vote without laughing, but on a serious note, that's when the government

started to take over our lives. First they started with small things. They did a campaign to take away our

individuality. We were "assigned" a favorite color, favorite food, musical group, hobbies, what kind of pet you can

have; if any, whether you will be thin, fat, or medium sized, whether you'll be a geek, jock, or nerd, whether you'll

be smart, average, or dumb, whether you'll be sickly or healthy, what your best school subjects are, and who your

friends are. The government only allow you to watch certain TV shows, and movies, read certain books, play

certain video games, and travel to certain places. According to the government, you can only wear a certain color

on a certain day, and eat a particular food on a certain day. The government picks what religion you are; if any.

The government decides whether you're crazy or sane. Then things got worse. When you're born, you're assigned

a hair color, hairstyle, eye color, a name, a family (not necessarily the one you're born into), an occupation; if any,

whether you'll be rich or poor (There is no middle class), live in a house, apartment, or on the street, your sexual

orientation; gay, straight, or bi, who you will marry; if anybody, if you're a criminal, if you're disabled; blind, deaf,

crippled, (they can arrange it if necessary), if you're going to be a smoker, alcoholic, junkie, prostitute, if you're

going to college, etc. "

         "You know what happens if you break any of these laws?! Huh! I'm talking public executions! I told them to

bring it on. Our three braches of government, have turned into the 3 waste paper baskets of the law!"

         "That's when things got worse. The government decided they had the power to decide who lives, and who

dies. They decide who can see a doctor, or go to a hospital. When they decide it's your time to die, they will finish

you off; healthy or not. They will decide whether you will get a funeral, buried, etc.

         " A few people who grew tired of the new fascist government joined together to form a militia, but they were

greatly outnumbered. You see, the government watchdogs have eyes, and ears all over the city. There are video

cameras, all over the street corners. They listen in, on our phone calls, and even look through our mail. Do you

really think your E-mails are safe? Forget it!"

        " Not too long after that, the economy took a nosedive. In 2019, everything bottomed out, and the stock market

crashed. Oh, those were hard times. That's when the rioting began. Many people commit suicide, others became

savage.  Family members, friends, and lovers turned on each other, in an effort to survive! This began the breakdown

of society.

        "Soon after, we went to war with Russia. This is where my memories become fuzzy. We spent six years in a

bomb shelter, spending our days reading books of poetry. When we finally emerged, we noticed that the whole

nation, was off the grid. We'd gone back to the stone age. We avoided the cities, because people were hostile, and

suspicious. Most of them survived by hustling. We decided to gather what resources we could find, and build

ourselves a cabin in the woods, to await the return of our children...