A story exploring time travel and societal issues in the wake of 9/11. This is chapter 7. See previous posts for chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6.
Trish and Plato met T2 at the Dank Duck and got beers on him before sitting down.
"What's up?" asked Plato.
"Big news first," said T2. "I started a new thing, funding grants. Calling it The Anything Project."
"That's cool," said Trish.
"So, like, if your antiwar group wanted money for some reason, you could apply and get it," said T2. "But not to pay lobbyists. That's not what the fund is for."
"How big of a fund?" asked Plato.
"A hundred million over ten years, to start," said T2.
"No way!" said Trish. "No way you have that kind of money!"
"It's not something I advertise," said T2. "But yes, my net worth is high."
"So you won't come to our meetings but you'll give us money?" said Plato.
"I'll go to a meeting to announce it," said T2. "But I'm not trying to steal thunder from the stuff you already have going on. I wanted to talk it through with you two, first."
"I can't even picture what we'd do with money," said Plato. "Print stickers?"
"Throw parties," said Trish.
"For sure, but think bigger," said T2. "The administration is making a case for war based on the false information that Iraq has been making weapons of mass destruction. If we could do anything, what would we do to stop the coming war?"
"Sorry, but war is coming," said Trish. "It's more like how do we stop the next one."
"One thing that occurred to me is that the movement could use secure communication," said T2. "My company just built a platform for that. I'm trying to think on a national scale."
"National like gerrymandering and supreme court stacking?" asked Plato.
"Honestly, I think the politics of it are impossible," said T2. "You could have more people demonstrating against this war than have ever demonstrated before in human history and the war would still move forward."
"What about direct action?" asked Plato.
"Ahh, before we say more, I should probably warn you that environmental activists are now being called ecoterrorists," said T2. "They're probably looking at the antiwar movement in a similar way. I'm up for whatever. Just saying there's some risk here."
"Do you have something specific in mind?" asked Trish.
"Nothing specific," said T2. "Only vague ideas. Disruptive public dance parties. Sharing messages on billboards. That sort of thing."
"Billboards?" said Trish.
"War is wrong," said T2. "No war, etc.."
"Your leaders are lying to you," said Plato. "Imagine seeing that on a billboard."
"Let's do it," said T2. "Want to draw up some designs?"
"I'm sorry, can we come back to the part where you're claiming to have millions of dollars?" asked Trish.
"What can I say?" said T2. "I've had a good year in the markets."
"Right, but if we tear down the system, what happens to all of your wealth?" said Trish. "Doesn't that make you compromised?"
"Pretty sure I'd have bigger problems than wealth to worry about if the whole system went down," said T2.
"What about sky writers?" asked Plato. "Stop the war, written in the sky above our next march? That would be pretty cool."
"You think that would have better impact than billboards?" asked T2.
"I think I make eight bucks an hour and you're talking about millions," said Trish.
"So come work for me," said T2. "The Anything Project will pay you a living wage. Your first job could be to design an ethical decision making framework for the for-benefit corporation."
"Are you serious?" asked Trish.
"Totally," said T2. "You'd be perfect. You're friends with all of the anarchists in town and you're obsessed with social dynamics. I'd trust you with the work."
Trish frowned. "I'm not obsessed," she said, reddening slightly with embarrassment. "How would you even know that?"
"Just something your friend Thomas told me once," said T2. "Maybe I've got it wrong."
"Yeah, maybe you do," said Trish.
"Does that mean you don't want the job?" asked T2. "You could work from home or out of the NIS office. You could even hire someone else, if you feel there's too much for you to do."
Finishing his beer, Plato got up. "I'll draw up some billboard ideas and bring them by your office," he said. "But sitting here for this conversation ... maybe it's best that you don't come to the antiwar meetings. I mean, figure out what you're doing and then come. Because if you show up and just tell everyone that there's money, the whole meeting will turn into an argument about whether or not you're an agent of the patriarchy trying to sabotage the movement with your blood money."
T2 laughed. "You're probably right," he said.
Staying put, Trish waited until Plato was gone and gave T2 an appraising look. "If you're for real with this," she said. "Okay. I need the money. But you better not be jerking me around."
"How does a thousand bucks a week plus full medical sound?" asked T2.
"I'm not dressing like a corporate tool," said Trish, feigning grumpiness but smiling despite her reservations.
"Dress however you want," said T2.
(Feature image from Pixabay.)
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