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This writing was accepted for publication in the 108 page perfect-bound ISSN# / ISBN# issue/book “At the Zoo” Down in the Dirt v210 (8/23)  Order the paperback book: 
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World of Bureaucracy
Tom Ball
I had a problem with the authorities! They were all powerful and controlled our every move as if we were robots. They said it was for safety’s sake and we were all in the same boat. The bureaucracy was huge, employing 70% of the populace and so everyone had a job. We had to get government approval for every action we did. What we planned to do at work, who we planned to love, what drugs we would take and so on. I asked my local boss, “Why must we account for all our actions?” She said, “We care about the people. And do you have anything to hide?”
I myself was a businesswoman who dealt in gems for the rich. And I felt the rich had more freedom than most of the people. My boss said, “If you can grow rich, you will get more freedoms, too.”
So, I concentrated on getting rich and produced more gems in the lab including huge ones which sold for big sums. But many others were doing the same, so I only got a modicum of riches. But it was enough to get my boss to refer me to a higher bureaucratic power. My new boss encouraged me to be greedy. And she told me, “If you wanted to be richer, you should invest in undersea colonies.” So, I did, and it paid big dividends. My boss was pleased, but said, “To get to the next stage, you need to become far richer.” So, I invested in cloning technology and offered to clone my boss. She was ecstatic and promoted me to serve an all-new boss. This boss said, “You have exceeded all expectations and now are one in a million!” And I was now elected mayor of my city of 15,000 on Luna. Luna #4. As mayor, I told my citizens, to join me in an all-new undersea colony on Europa (We had melted the ice of Europa), and 10,000 of them followed me. My boss put up the cash for construction of the colony. Many ordinary people wanted to visit our colony as it was reputed to be a place of true cleverness. And they thought they could improve their lot in life by hanging out with us. I said, “Imagination is the highest quality and promoted the most imaginative people in the colony to be city councillors. Some of them told me the endless cycles of cleverness and promotion were a true way for the elite to graduate to the leadership.
But I was only concerned about my own promotion. And so went to Europa. We were just the second colony on this ocean moon. New immigrants had to pay me a stiff fee to go which gave me a large profit. And so, the colony happened, and I went with them. The new colony was full of dreamers and was a place to be for intellectuals who were imaginative. And we had some great minds. So, I was promoted still higher to one in 100 million and they told me I couldn’t go any further. But I was determined to rise to the top, so I got myself elected President of the UW (United Worlds). I had leapfrogged to the top of all humanity, and I promoted imaginative people everywhere! And I ceased the watching of everyone’s every move. Henceforth people were vetted with new Mind Reading Technology once every decade and allowed pretty much freedom, provided they didn’t engage in destructive anti-UW activities.
And I kept the bureaucratic system, as it gave everyone employment, even though it was highly inefficient.
And because of me, Space exploration boomed, and we sent our first mission to the Centauri System. And five years after I had assumed control of the UW, the population of the Solar System outside of Earth boomed to 80 million. And many of those in Space got rich from real estate and things like android love dolls, air cars and other high technology.
