elimination

Bump Nose clears his throat, his Adam’s apple bobbing up and down. What exactly is the purpose of the Adam’s apple? I probably knew once. I’ve hit my head too many times now to remember. “The 21st century was the turning point in which human weakness reached its epitome. At last human nature imploded on itself causing the destruction of the planet and 97% of all life on Earth.”

Bump Nose looks frail and tired. Every time he stops talking it seems as though he is trying to pass a kidney stone. “The first date of note came in 2080 when government data collection determined that 94% of the United States water supply was being imported from abroad. This was a result of the incessant failure of the government to pass legislation limiting the practice of hydraulic fracturing, which had contaminated almost all water supplies in the country.”

“Hydraulic fracturing wasn’t the only contributor, but it was the one with the most significant influence. This was a major hit to the economy, Americans were being forced to spend billions more per year on bottled water for all purposes. As you know, by 2085 the US corn crop failed in the central states. The crop failure was caused by a combination of water and air pollution. The corn was also unable to adapt effectively through natural selection because in 2058 a new policy ensured that all future corn was to be genetically modified to have homologous genomes for optimal crop production. This further damaged the economy, raising food prices astronomically.”

“Then in 2089 the US stock market finally crashed due to age old corrupt business practices, and the excessively rich having too much influence over government. Taxes were increasingly lowered on the richest of the population while said individuals used their money to ensure their company’s interests were put over public interests—especially when the environment was concerned. The US and other first world countries moved their operations to 3rd world countries to avoid paying income tax and evade labor protections, costing the developed nations billions in lost revenue. CEOs and other corporate strong men took billions of dollars from their companies in interest of satisfying their own greed. When their companies floundered the government protected them over and over again. With an environmental crisis already damaging the economy, a slew of banks went bankrupt. This time the government found they didn’t have sufficient funds to bail them out. This resulted in the worst worldwide economic depression in history.”

“Unemployment hit 56% in 2091, this is 12% higher than the unemployment rate that facilitated Hitler’s rise in Germany in the 1930s. The situation was further exacerbated by the fact that millions of human jobs were being replaced by technology. Between this and the rise of neoliberal free trade policies there were few job opportunities for unskilled workers in developed countries. Much of the government corruption, monetary nepotism and failure to redistribute wealth was caused by a slew of leaders who themselves were grossly wealthy, corrupt businessmen—oftentimes not sufficiently qualified to hold their positions.”

“On Sunday May, 16th, 2093 over three-million protesters gathered outside the United State’s capital, demanding that the government do something about the economic depression. The protestors had not first acquired government approval for the demonstration—the entire thing had been orchestrated at the spur of the moment only hours before via social media. When the police were sent in to quell the chaos multiple members of law enforcement were stampeded to death by the sheer numbers. The next day military personnel were sent in, and they were given orders to open fire on the protestors to protect themselves. 256 were killed and another 765 were injured.”

“Media coverage of the incident sent the country into outrage. Several other protests and a nationwide strike occurred. The result was a month long government shutdown. The president was impeached. When the vice president came to power he was under incredible pressure to make a statement about the massacre. When addressing the American people on national television he claimed that the deaths of the protestors were the result of attacks by radical Islamic terrorists. He continued to claim that anything the media said contrary to his statement was false journalism. Yet Americans had watched the massacre play out on national television. Angry chaos ensued throughout the country.”

“Finally a CIA agent who was part of an insurgency within the government shot the president during a public address. The military took control of the government, establishing quasi martial law in a desperate attempt to restore order. No longer able to ignore the existence of environmental pollution in America, the government attempted to take the blame away from themselves by claiming the pollution in America was due to China’s incessant burning of fossil fuels.”

“Though China had in all reality created very little of America’s air pollution, many of the people still welcomed the notion that their own government wasn’t responsible for their many grievances. A great deal of anti-Chinese government propaganda was issued by the military and a wave of anger and anti-Chinese sentiment rose up among the American people. Finally the government was forced to issue China an impossible ultimatum: they had to stop burning fossil fuels within the next year or the US would declare war. There is much speculation as to why the leader of the government chose to so deliberately antagonize China. It makes sense on some level that a military government would pursue warfare as a means to all ends. However, the most widely accepted theory is that the intention of the war was to distract the people from the problems caused by their own government and bring about domestic unity.”

“In addition, after the failure to revive the economy via Keynesian economics, the government was desperate. The way out of America’s first Great Depression had been WWII. It is widely believed that the government hoped to accomplish the same thing through WWIII. When China failed to meet the ultimatum in 2095 the United States destroyed three Chinese aircraft carriers and dropped a nuclear bomb on Beijing. China’s response was swift and fierce. Upon declaring war, China dropped two nuclear bombs in close succession on Mount Rainier in Washington state and four more on additional locations all along the San Andreas Fault. The result was catastrophic: a volcanic eruption and the worst set of earthquakes California had ever seen. Almost the entire state washed away into the Pacific ocean or was reduced to rubble.”

“Members of NATO pledged to help the U.S. in their endeavors. In response, the former members of the Warsaw Pact and others, (particularly Russia, China and North Korea) formed the League of Free Energy (LFE). Russia immediately cut off Europe’s supply of oil. In response the NATO countries bombed Mount Klyuchevskaya, which brought about a catastrophic volcanic eruption spewing vast quantities of ash and dust into the air. Volcanic warfare was used as a means to cause as much damage as possible and to avoid wasting costly nuclear weapons. It was believed that this practice would lead the war to end quickly due to all the destruction and civilian death.”

“This was not the case. Russia proceeded to bomb Mt.Vesuvius in Italy causing an eruption that made Pompeii pale in comparison. Russia also nuked Hawaii, causing volcanic eruptions so severe that the entire state’s population was wiped out. The United States responded by bombing all the volcanoes in China, notably Changbaishan. The fires that resulted from the bombing turned into forest fires raging for miles and burning for months. The volcanic eruptions and fires spewed so much ash and dust into the air so quickly that the sun was blocked out. Note the similarities to one of the Dinosaur Extinction Theories.”

“The temperature of the entire Earth dropped rapidly. Scientists warned that the war was bringing about irreversible environmental damage, yet the government ignored these warnings. They claimed instead—based on temperature readings—that the negative effects of global warming were being reversed. Much of the uneducated public believed them. The war continued. Russia sent 10 nuclear bombs down on the Ring of Fire in the Pacific thinking that the resulting tsunamis would cause significant enough damage to the Americas & Oceania that the war would finally end. The war did finally end, however there was no victor. The immense quantities of ash and dust that spewed into the air pushed the entire planet into a nuclear winter. Within a year, 95% of the world population was wiped out.”

The class is solemn and quiet. My nails have stopped tapping. This feels important, like not to listen would be some grave insult, I know not to whom or what. After a brief pause he continues, we hang on his every word.

“So why, you may ask are we sitting here today? In 2050 NASA took on an ambitious new project—an elaborate self sufficient biome was to be constructed on the moon. After the Ring of Fire bombing—with the exception of a few crippled survivors on Earth—the 110 researchers inhabiting this biome and the international space station were all that was left of the human race. In 2095 at the start of the nuclear war, an elite team of biological scientists based in Holland began a project to transport their research equipment to the moon biome. With them they brought millions of DNA samples in addition to a vast and diverse array of human samples.”

“This DNA could be cloned and spliced into new combinations. For the next 300 years the researchers on the biome worked to develop a race of people capable of withstanding the incredibly harsh conditions of the Earth. They also wished to fulfill a greater purpose: to create a truly superior human and a superior society that would never repeat the mistakes of its ancestors. This new society would never wallow in the weaknesses of human nature. In the year 2400 they began the construction of this institution on the upper continent in what was once Siberia. As you know, the present Earth has only two continents: the upper and the lower. This was a result of the rapid continental drift caused by all of the earthquakes.”

“The Southern continent is inhabited by what is left of the original human race. They are an inferior species capable of eradicating the greater purpose. It is necessary for the salvation of humanity that they are eliminated.” Eliminated. I faintly remember reading that term in a biology textbook back when I was quite young—small enough to take the blanket on the bed of my station and fold it over myself twice to be extra warm, no frozen little toes sticking out. We first learned elimination as a synonym for excreting wastes. My finger nails tap the table. Were they always that long and filthy? When did I stop caring? I examine them closely to find the faintest hint of red scrunched up underneath.

Bump Nose told me this was the last generation of Titles, that the suffering would end if only I kept my mouth shut and did my work. But do I really believe him? Do I really care? One’s rotting red blood cells pressed up against my nail bed seem seem to spell out the word no. What I do does not matter. There really isn’t anything I can do about anything at all. It’s all just a process of elimination. This society will never stop eliminating those they deem weak or unworthy. How do I know? Well I’m truly a genius. I know because all living organisms must excrete waste to survive. An organism that has been excreting wastes regularly for years and suddenly abandons this practice is going to die. And a society is a living breathing organism, it’s just bigger, with sharper teeth and smellier breath. Therefore there will never be an end to the killing. Or at least now I have scientific justification for no longer caring about anything.