A philosopher king.

He signaled the waiter for two more with his fingers. The bar was loud and packed that night.

“Dude, what are you even talking about?”

“Listen, man. The whole thing is broken. We’ve been using the same system for hundreds of years, and even Churchill said, ‘Democracy is the worst form of government—except for all the others.’”

“Dude, you make no sense.”

“No, dude—democracy is just the illusion of choice. When was the last time you actually felt represented by a leader who won? And even worse, the people who could make a real change get crushed by the system—or worse, in this country, killed.”

“Yeah, man, but that’s just how things are.”

“Fuck that saying. That’s exactly the problem. Why are we stagnating? There’s no real change as a society. I’m telling you, when people look back on this era, these will be the dark ages of the modern world.”

“The system is broken. We’re always choosing between getting shot in the leg or stabbed in the shoulder. Why can’t we choose not to get hurt?”

“You’re either not making sense, or I’m gonna need a lot more beers.”

“I still remember that one time I actually thought power was in the hands of the people. It was here—this city. Eight years ago, when we were choosing mayors. Both candidates were trash. Career politicians looking for money to steal.”

“So what did we do? We voted blank. More than fifty percent of the city gave them a big middle finger. We chose not to play the game.”

“And how good can a system really be if you can get a bus full of people to vote for a candidate with the promise of lunch?”

“How good is it when congressmen keep raising their own salaries while kids starve all over the country?”

“So what’s the option, dude? Overthrow the government? And then what? What replaces it? What happens after the people win—like in V for Vendetta?”

“You know I don’t have answers,” he said. “Just angry questions.”

“What’s the point of the questions, dude? This is just what we’ve got.”

“Nah, man. I want something more. There has to be.”

A pause.

“You watching the game tonight?”

“No, dude. Who’s playing?”

“Reds vs. Greens. Classic.”

“Which one’s your team again?”

“Always Red, baby. You know it.”

“Cool. I’m betting Green tonight.”

“You motherfu—”