An unexpected package arrives in the mail or on your door step. And then it sometimes seems to disappear. Did it grow legs and walk away as one person guesses? For at least one person, the unexpected package contains a miracle. For several other people, the unexpected package has unpleasant results, at least according to them.
A peek inside:
The President looks around the room, . . . and says, “Okay, the next item on the agenda is to discuss how we’re going to get our troops out of the Middle East. We’ve been there for way too many years and it’s costing us a fortune as well as causing too many of our young people to be killed or maimed. Are there any suggestions?”
The Secretary of State asks, “What about our intention to provide freedom for those who are oppressed by tyrants and religious bigots?”
The Secretary of Commerce responds, “Freedom? For a bunch of peasants? Where’s your brains? Hell, their own leaders know they’re expendable and their only value is to be cannon fodder or suicide bombers while the leaders rake in the dough contributed by religious zealots and live like kings.”
. . . the Secretary of Defense speaks up, “While the proclaimed reason for being there is to ensure freedom, we’re not having much success and the morale of both the troops and the citizens continues to spiral downward because this type of conflict is not easily dealt with by a large military presence. Not only that, but when the enemy combatants are indistinguishable from the local citizens, there are bound to be unintended casualties and each one diminishes our credibility. While our continued presence there has provided a good opportunity to sharpen the training and skills of the troops, I have trouble justifying that value compared to the cost in lives.”
The Secretary of Education pipes up, “Not only that, but how do we teach our youth to respect diversity and to love peace when they’re also being told to honor our veterans and to volunteer for the military?”
. . .
“Ladies and gentlemen, let’s be honest,” the Secretary of Commerce looks around the table to make sure he has their attention, “the real reason we have a military presence in the Middle East is to keep the oil flowing. And if a lot of oil doesn’t flow in order to keep the price down below the cost of alternate forms of energy, most of us will be out of our jobs because we rely on the contributions of the oil companies to the party.
“Not only that, but we need to stay in the Middle East, or start another war somewhere else so the defense contractors, another huge contributor to the party, have someplace to realistically test new products as well as to sell what they make. If we don’t buy their products, they’ll be inclined to sell them to every tin pot dictator so they can keep their factories operating.”
An unidentified person mutters just loud enough to be heard, “And to keep lining their pockets with huge profits.”
The Secretary of Commerce grins, “That’s the American way and has been throughout our history going all the way back to the very first settlers. Even our first President helped push the indigenous people off of their lands so he could have more crops planted and then he used cheap slave labor to do his work for him while he sat back and reaped the financial rewards.”
The Secretary of the Treasury speaks up, “I don’t like the idea of suggesting that we raise taxes, reduce salaries, or slash department budgets, but we’re running out of options to borrow money to keep the government operating. It was bad enough before but when there’s no return on our investment from our military presence in the Middle East, there’s no financial reason for being there in spite of the contributions of the oil and defense companies to the political parties which provide no benefit to the government’s budget.”
Suddenly, the door to the meeting room bursts open and somebody rushes in and shouts, “Stop! Stop the meeting. It’s being broadcast.”
An unexpected package arrives in the mail or on your door step. And then it sometimes seems to disappear. Did it grow legs and walk away as one person guesses? For at least one person, the unexpected package contains a miracle. For several other people, the unexpected package has unpleasant results, at least according to them.
A peek inside:
The President looks around the room, . . . and says, “Okay, the next item on the agenda is to discuss how we’re going to get our troops out of the Middle East. We’ve been there for way too many years and it’s costing us a fortune as well as causing too many of our young people to be killed or maimed. Are there any suggestions?”
The Secretary of State asks, “What about our intention to provide freedom for those who are oppressed by tyrants and religious bigots?”
The Secretary of Commerce responds, “Freedom? For a bunch of peasants? Where’s your brains? Hell, their own leaders know they’re expendable and their only value is to be cannon fodder or suicide bombers while the leaders rake in the dough contributed by religious zealots and live like kings.”
. . . the Secretary of Defense speaks up, “While the proclaimed reason for being there is to ensure freedom, we’re not having much success and the morale of both the troops and the citizens continues to spiral downward because this type of conflict is not easily dealt with by a large military presence. Not only that, but when the enemy combatants are indistinguishable from the local citizens, there are bound to be unintended casualties and each one diminishes our credibility. While our continued presence there has provided a good opportunity to sharpen the training and skills of the troops, I have trouble justifying that value compared to the cost in lives.”
The Secretary of Education pipes up, “Not only that, but how do we teach our youth to respect diversity and to love peace when they’re also being told to honor our veterans and to volunteer for the military?”
. . .
“Ladies and gentlemen, let’s be honest,” the Secretary of Commerce looks around the table to make sure he has their attention, “the real reason we have a military presence in the Middle East is to keep the oil flowing. And if a lot of oil doesn’t flow in order to keep the price down below the cost of alternate forms of energy, most of us will be out of our jobs because we rely on the contributions of the oil companies to the party.
“Not only that, but we need to stay in the Middle East, or start another war somewhere else so the defense contractors, another huge contributor to the party, have someplace to realistically test new products as well as to sell what they make. If we don’t buy their products, they’ll be inclined to sell them to every tin pot dictator so they can keep their factories operating.”
An unidentified person mutters just loud enough to be heard, “And to keep lining their pockets with huge profits.”
The Secretary of Commerce grins, “That’s the American way and has been throughout our history going all the way back to the very first settlers. Even our first President helped push the indigenous people off of their lands so he could have more crops planted and then he used cheap slave labor to do his work for him while he sat back and reaped the financial rewards.”
The Secretary of the Treasury speaks up, “I don’t like the idea of suggesting that we raise taxes, reduce salaries, or slash department budgets, but we’re running out of options to borrow money to keep the government operating. It was bad enough before but when there’s no return on our investment from our military presence in the Middle East, there’s no financial reason for being there in spite of the contributions of the oil and defense companies to the political parties which provide no benefit to the government’s budget.”
Suddenly, the door to the meeting room bursts open and somebody rushes in and shouts, “Stop! Stop the meeting. It’s being broadcast.”
An Unexpected Package
An Unexpected Package
Product Details
| BN ID: | 2940165756696 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Geoff Schultz |
| Publication date: | 01/14/2022 |
| Sold by: | Smashwords |
| Format: | eBook |
| Sales rank: | 219,172 |
| File size: | 112 KB |