The Bridge | Bots 'R Us

Chapter 4 | Oops

I always get a kick when I think that my parents were born in the twenty-first century, nineteen centuries before me... I was born in 105, soon after the worldwide revolution of 2048 and the Great Reorg that followed. Among the fundamental changes this upheaval brought was the adoption of the new calendar.

The Great Reorg, with the creation of the Council System's global network of communities, was a radical enough break from the past to deserve a new timeline. We left behind the divisive calendars based on religions for one starting in 1945 A.D. with the atomic age. That year marked the beginning of a new geological epoch, the Anthropocene (A.E.), ending the 11,600-year old Holocene. Based on science, the new epoch recognized Humans' significant impact on Earth's geology and ecosystems.

After a culmination of religious strife before the revolution, secularism felt like a relief. Various churches and sects had remained active in the private sphere, but none was supposed to have a direct influence on the life of the citizenry as a whole. That morning of 134 A.E. would have otherwise risen in 2079.

And this April of 134 was clearly showing our impact on the environment. We should have been in the midst of the first cherry season, but as I was gliding through the rows of cherry trees, I could not see one single fruit on any limbs. It didn't help that the trees had been pummeled by one storm after the other. But once the blooms had wilted, the fruits didn't grow. The charts, graphs, and models I reviewed before leaving home were all coming back as I could verify first hand the consequences of yet another major bee colony collapse. And this one couldn't be blamed on chemicals—there isn't much use for those in agriculture nowadays. All around the globe, the last vital pillars of our ecology are failing, one by one. Frogs, bees, plankton, all barely saved decades ago, were now pretty much on the way out. The data was clear. The Great Reorg had only offered us a respite, a little more time to develop new options.

Before then, the climate had changed around the world in the most chaotic ways. Inland, rivers had dried up in some of the most populated regions, transforming grain belts into deserts. Along the coasts, major cities threatened by sea-level rise had to be rethought, rebuilt, and relocated, adjusting their infrastructure to the unrelenting challenges. But thanks to technology, creativity, and the advent of a fair and enlightened system, civilization had flourished anew. Our renewed efforts halted the warming trend, and hope was reborn in the process. By 134, though, it was becoming evident that our revolutionary achievements were falling short. Most citizens recognized that we had overcome the worst, but confidence in the future was fraying at the seams.

The traditional crazies and doomsday-sayers had their platform. They still agitated a culture of apocalypse, built on conspiracy theories, obscure writings, and plain old superstitions. But their following remained limited. If someone could make sense of the situation, it was my friend Jonah. A serendipitous buzz in my helmet followed by "Call from Jonah" interrupted my musings.

I couldn't wait to give him my impression of his performance. "Well, if this is not the Troublemaker-in-Chief! I was just thinking about you."

The experience of Arteena and Nassif in the Morning had left him perplexed. Stunned by his book's instant success, on the one hand, and shocked by his gaffe on the other. "Please, David, don't pounce on me. You are the only person I can count on to pardon my having let the cat out of the bag."

"'We're living in a time of transparency,' Jonah. It's the motto of our times, isn't it? I sure live by that rule, so, in principle, we shouldn't mind your 'indiscretion,''' I told him. We both knew that the Councilors wouldn't be so kind. They couldn't withhold information, but they preferred disclosing bad news in an orderly manner. By law, they had a few hours to a few days before GINI could offer that information directly. Citizens would be asking questions, and the Councilors had no ready answers, yet. "Think of it this way, Jonah: You're only adding a little spice to what is going to be a very interesting meeting, anyway. Where are you? You'll be there on time, won't you?"