Caramblogage

For about five minutes, everyone knew his name. Then they did not remember. Louk DeSalam, branded a dissident by the state, had, one day questioned the widely accepted wisdom that socks had to be burgundy on Wednesday and be labelled with the day of the week. He had been able to continue his subversive charade unnoticed for years, so the legend goes, by hiding his socks underneath his trousers. The day he finally snapped, fifty guardians had pursued him through the back alleys of the city, the chase ending on Square 83. After a brief, but impassioned speech, they piled on him, pulled the offensive sockware off his feet and led the barefoot anticitizen to Redefinition Context 12a. People posted the arrest on Media, but quickly desisted when they realised Media would not amplify the story- it was unimportant. And so it became unimportant to them. Though he was forgotten, socks were now puce on Wednesdays. And Wednesday was now called Medwekken, which took some getting used to. A...

"We used to have this concept called "future". It implied that, at some point in time beyond now, there would be change. I reject this concept- look at where we are! We are cared for, educated, fed and entertained. I never hear of anyone dying of disease or violence. Things work, people work, the state cares for us absolutely. We can live and die in peace. What more could we want? What change could we want? Even if we could fly to the stars, what would we find there to make it worthwhile? I'm sure that in their wisdom, they have taken steps to ensure that things never change… The idea of future fills me with dread. Better to live in the Moment" From the notes of the dissident Louk DeSalam, ca 235 STE After writing this, my fascination with the Arabic word for future "Al-Mostaqbal / المستقبل" grew under the shower. It derives from the root "Q-B-L"- which my Hans Wehr gives far too many translations for. Assuming Mostaqbal ...