Thanks for the plug. Alas, the falling out with the author of MMV happened earlier in that timeline. :-)
Sent from my iPhone > On Apr 1, 2019, at 13:12, Chris Hahn <[email protected]> wrote: > > Brilliant! > > > > One omission was at the end of the Reinventing Democracy section… > > > > “Finally, he invited one hundred of the most brilliant, passionate, and > well-connected delegates to spend the rest of the month working with him and > the Twelve on a strategy for redeeming American society. A cornerstone > change was the restoration of the democratic system through the adoption of > the maximum majority voting system. The result was the election of highly > effective radical centrist legislators and the breakdown of the dysfunctional > two-party political system. > > > > From: [email protected] <[email protected]> On > Behalf Of Billy Rojas > Sent: Monday, April 1, 2019 10:25 AM > To: Centroids Discussions <[email protected]> > Cc: Billy Rojas <[email protected]> > Subject: [RC] Re: [ RC ] St. William of Oregon - Wikipedia > > Haven't had a chance to read it all carefully, but I did review several parts > of it. > > > > Hmmm. > > > > You know, if you keep working at it, there's a good chance you could become > > a pretty decent writer. > > > > > > Billy :-) > > > > > > > > > > From: [email protected] <[email protected]> on > behalf of Centroids <[email protected]> > Sent: Monday, April 1, 2019 9:10 AM > To: Centroids Discussions > Cc: Ernest Prabhakar > Subject: [RC] St. William of Oregon - Wikipedia > > Happy April Fools Day, Billy. Hope you find this exercise in speculative > fiction more amusing. :-) > > Edits and suggestions welcome. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or > dead, is entirely up to you. > > Love, > Ernie > > > https://en.m.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=User:Drernie/St_William_of_Oregon# > > St William of Oregon > Saint William of Oregon is a world-famous historian, book author, and > controversialist considered the Father of the Neo-Reformation and the patron > saint of New Christianity. He is known for his in-depth scholarship, fiery > denunciation of sin and hypocrisy, and Christ-like love for his fellow human > beings. He was canonized on February 18, 2046 at the first Universal Council > of Religion, which is recognized by most Christians, Buddhists, Hindus, and > Zoroastrians, as well as many atheists and Reformed Muslims (still considered > heretics by traditional Muslims). His symbol is the swastika, a now > universally-recognized emblem of peace he is widely credited with > rehabilitating. While the author of many widely-read textbooks on history, > religion, and politics, he is best-known and loved for his richly-textured > philosophical novels, which earned him the title 'The American Dostoevsky.' > > Neo-Reformation > > The Neo-Reformation began on Easter Sunday, April 21, 2019, when William was > awakened in the middle of the night by a visitation from Jesus. Nobody knows > exactly what transpired between them, but whatever it was filled William with > a holy boldness and magnetic personality few could resist. He cashed out his > life savings to travel to Portland, where he interrupted the Easter Chapel > service at Western Seminary. Through sheer force of personality, William took > over and preached a sermon (broadcast live on the Internet) now known as the > Five Difficult Truths. He castigated evangelicals for their rejection of > science, empty pietism, religious narrowness, and idolatry of the Bible. He > called them to follow Jesus by embracing people of all traditions who share > their values, and devote their lives to improving society by the reform of > morals. > > Several professors attempted to denounce him, but were overwhelmed by his > righteous zeal and encyclopedic knowledge of biblical and other middle > eastern texts. Many students rose up en masse to follow him, and he led them > across town to Portland State University, where he spent the day debating and > converting atheists, homosexuals, Muslims, and both liberal and conservative > Christians. The students then commandeered the largest lecture hall on > campus, where he spent the week expounding on the Five Difficult Truths and > mobilizing teams to spread his message to universities across America and > around the world. These followers were called Williamites and became the > first community of what we now call New Christianity. > > The Destruction of Islam > > William's success at converting Muslims, especially the way he publicized and > denounced the negative impact of Islam on society, quickly led to several > imams calling publicly for his death. This immediately made him a hero to the > religious right, many of whom flocked to him firearms in tow to become the > bodyguards known as William's Warriors. After they repulsed several > highly-publicized ambushes from jihadists, Portland become the first city in > America to require imams to sign a loyalty oath renouncing honor killings, > glorification of violence, support of terrorists, and subjugation of women. > When liberal justices struck down the law as discriminatory against Muslims, > Portland simply made it a non-binding resolution that applied to all > religious organizations, which everyone but the Muslims gleefully endorsed. > This become known as the Portland Declaration, and rapidly spread to cities > across America and eventually around the world. > > The political pressure was so strong that breakaway imams started endorsing > the Portland Declaration to ensure the survival of their congregations. This > become a movement known as Reformed Islam, which emphasized the Mecca Quran > and effectively disavowed the Medina Quran. > > At Mecca during Ramadan, a small group of Reformed Muslims and Williamites > attempted to peacefully hand out newly-published versions of the Mecca Quran. > They were quickly hauled before the religious authorities, who had them > brutally beaten and summarily beheaded while Saudi soldiers and police jeered > at them from the sidelines. The videos of this event quickly went viral, and > pressure mounted on the Saudi government to condemn the killings and host an > international tribunal, or risk losing all Western aid and arms. > > The Muslim Civil War > > When the King refused, the military engineered a coup and declared Reformed > Islam the official religion of Saudi Arabia. This led to a series of jihads > and counter-jihads that eventually became known as the Muslim Civil War, > which engulfed the entire region and toppled a whole series of governments. > It only ended when a group of Medina terrorists detonated an atomic bomb at > Odessa, leading to a United Nations resolution condemning Medina Islam as > contrary to basic human rights and refusing to recognize any government which > supported it. When the dust settled, the Middle East was largely run by > secular governments committed to human rights and international transparency. > The only remaining state religions were Reformed Islam in Saudi Arabia, and > surprisingly Zoroastrianism in the newly-renamed Persia. > > The War on Homosexuality > > One of William's first moves was to launch a weekly TV show on YouTube called > Homosexuality Today, where he interviewed psychologists, sociologists, and > scholars in order to expose how homosexuality had perverted science, culture, > religion, and basic human biology. His intelligence, humor, and passion > attracted millions of viewers -- and not a few enemies. > > Elizabeth Martin > > When homosexual organizations labeled his show "homophobic disinformation", > he responded by inviting them to send a representative to set the record > straight. Because of his scrupulous adherence to published facts, they knew > they could not actually defeat him in an honest debate. Instead, they decided > to play to the crowd. They sent Elizabeth Martin, a beautiful, > provocatively-dressed 29-year old lesbian with dual Ph.Ds in psychology and > philosophy -- who was also the captain of her college's championship debate > team. Their intent was to goad William into publicly attacking a sympathetic > victim, creating a martyr that would rally public opinion against him in > order to distract from the intellectual issues at stake. > > Unfortunately for them, their strategy backfired. In a live broadcast from > Carnegie hall -- which many have since compared to Jesus' conversation with > the woman at the well -- William gently deflected Martin's attacks and drew > her into vulnerably sharing the abuse and propaganda that had let her to > choose a homosexual identity. The debate ended with Martin in tears, and > William praying with her to forgive those who had wounded and deceived her. > > They continued to meet privately after the debate, and six months later they > were married. Many commentators noted a distinct change William's rhetoric > after the wedding. While he continued his strident denunciations of what he > dubbed 'the homosexual elite,' he was always careful to stress that this was > an intellectual attack, and that individual homosexuals should always be > treated with respect and dignity. > > The San Jose Incident > > This shift was most evident in the wake of the "San Jose Incident", when a > rogue group of William's Warriors clashed with homosexual activists in a > violent confrontation that led to a teenage lesbian being hospitalized and > the Billy Frank LGBTQ Center being burned down. William immediately flew down > and gave a moving speech on the value of human dignity. While he endorsed > just war theory, the 2nd Amendment, and self-defense, he called on his > followers to practice non-violence in public demonstrations and avoid > inflammatory speech and actions. Even though video footage clearly showed > that it was a gay activist who had instigated violence and accidentally > sparked the fire, he ordered the rogue Warriors to submit to the > court-mandated community service as penance for their folly in putting > themselves in that situation. As he put it, "The right to self-defense > implies a responsibility to avoid fights with idiots." > > Sexuality Crisis Centers > > Rumors continue to swirl that the anonymous donation to rebuild the Billy > Frank center came from William's wife Elizabeth, despite violent denials from > both sides. Elizabeth herself said nothing, which was not unusual since she > largely avoided the public eye. Her energy instead went into organizing a > chain of 'sexuality crisis centers' -- modeled after crisis pregnancy centers > -- the first of which was literally next door to the rebuilt Billy Frank > center. These provided a safe, non-judgmental place where youth and others > confused about sexuality could experience healthy relationships while > learning the psychological truth about the dysfunctional and cures of > same-sex attraction and gender confusion. > > Homosexual activists frequently picketed these centers (which in an ironic > twist they labeled "gay abortion clinics"), and occasionally tried to bomb > them. Several states passed laws forbidding distribution of such materials > and ideas, which eventually led to a landmark Supreme Court ruling hailed as > the modern equivalent of the 'Scopes Monkey Trial.' In a 5-4 vote that > infuriated both sides, the Supreme Court maintained that the question of > whether homosexuality is pathological was a scientific issue that should be > resolved by free and open debate, not a political issue to be decided by laws > and judges. > > Though William initially complained that the ruling did not go far enough, it > marked a turning point in the sexuality culture wars. Forced to compete on > the basis of facts rather than sentimentalism and intimidation, gay activism > went from being a "cause celebre" of the left to an embarrassing relic of > their past (much like communism became after the fall of the Berlin Wall). > William continues to push for state-mandated education on the science of > sexuality, but many observers argue that the grass roots testimonials and > research coming out of sexuality crisis centers are themselves likely to lead > to the de-normalization of homosexuality within a generation > > The Radical Centrist Revolution > > Saint-Simon University > > By May of 2019, Western Seminary had lost most of its students (and much of > its credibility). A group of rich Williamites purchased the Portland campus > and -- at William's insistence -- renamed it Saint-Simon University. Williams > was named Activist-in-Residence, moved into the former President's mansion, > and provided with an annual salary of $250,000 a year. > > Reinventing Democracy > > On August 3, 2019, Saint-Simon was host to a week-long symposium called > "Reinventing Democracy." Thousands of devotees attended from around the > world. The most notable aspect of William's role was his silence. After a > rabble-rousing opening sermon on Sunday morning introducing the political > philosophy of Radical Centrism, William literally didn't say a single word > until the closing outdoor chapel service the following Sunday. At that point > he explained that his greatest concern was building a movement that would > outlive him but stay true to his ideals, so he wanted to observe how > Williamites acted without his explicit guidance. > > He then proceeded to give what has been dubbed The Sermon on the Quad, where > he layed out the core principles Williamites follow to this day. He also > appointed a Council of Twelve to act as stewards of the movement, which > included diverse experts in history, economics, politics, education, > technology, and communication. Finally, he invited one hundred of the most > brilliant, passionate, and well-connected delegates to spend the rest of the > month working with him and the Twelve on a strategy for redeeming American > society. > > The Story of America > > On the first Monday of September (now celebrated as Democracy Day), William > and the Twelve held a public press conference where they unveiled and read > "The Story of America," a brief novella brilliantly integrating a historical > narrative (of how and why the country ended up divided between a Stupid Party > and an Evil Party) with a fictional narrative of the future (where a Radical > Centrist politician from Virginia brings us back together to usher in > America's first Golden Age of culture and morality). This served as the > prelude to newly-converted Williamite Senator Mark Warner from Virginia > announcing he would run for the Presidency of the United States as part of > the newly (re)formed Bull Moose Party. > > As is now obvious in hindsight, Warner's combination of working-class values, > Christian morality, and rational approach to public policy was exactly what > the country was desperate for. By January 2020, Warner had a 52% favorable > rating and was projected to win a plurality of voters. Several governors, a > dozen senators, and scores of representatives endorsed Warner and switched to > the Bull Moose Party -- and those who didn't watched nervously as Williamites > and their sympathizers mounted insurgencies both inside and outside the two > "legacy" parties. > > The Gingrich Conspiracy > > Of course the power brokers in those parties didn't takes this lying down. > They used every dirty trick in their playbooks in an attempt to besmirch and > discredit Warner and William, but to no avail. Their personal humility, > financial transparency, and authentic sincerity ensured they emerged from > each attack with their reputation intact and their popularity increased. In > desperation, the New York Times and Wall Street Journal jointly called for a > Democratic-Republican unity ticket to combat William's "Neo-pagan > technocracy" that would undermine the two-party system that had provided > political stability for over 200 years and usher in a new, repressive Dark > Age. > > Crisis at the Convention > > On July 4th, 2020 William was preparing to give the opening address at the > Bull Moose Convention in Charleston, West Virginia when he was interrupted by > an aide. A mysterious stranger claiming simply to be a "a friend of > democracy" had given a USB stick to a security guard, then disappeared into > the crowd. When the IT team carefully examined the contents, they turned out > to be series of emails and documents outlining a devious plan to discredit > William. The two main conspirators used fake email addresses and code names, > but it was clear from the context that they were high-level operatives within > the Republican and Democratic National Committees, working at the behest of > their superiors. The central figure was someone they jokingly referred to as > "The Lizard," which very much sounded like William's long-time nemesis Newt > Gingrich. > > Their plan was breathtaking in its scope and audacity. The objective was > nothing less than convincing the American public that William was a repressed > homosexual incapable of normal relationships with women, who was secretly > trying to convert America from a liberal democracy to a totalitarian > theocratic state modeled after the Abbasid Caliphate, with himself ruling in > sybaritic Mohammed-style decadence as The Prophet. To prove this falsehood, > they had painstakingly compiled a comprehensive alternative history of data > supporting their claim, using out-of-context quotes from William himself and > perjured testimonies from people who had known him; they even created a > "shadow web" of government documents regarding actual homosexuals and > right-wing extremists they could plausibly imply were linked to William. As a > final stroke of brilliance, the conspirators identified sympathetic reporters > and editors throughout America's major news organizations who had agreed to > independently "uncover" the information in a carefully orchestrated schedule > -- starting in they very middle of the speech William was scheduled to give > in a few minutes. > > The head of security was quickly alerted, who postponed the speech and > immediately summoned William, Warner, and Elizabeth to an emergency meeting. > Warner and Elizabeth were shocked senseless, but William was livid. Filled > with righteous indignation, he headed towards the podium to disclose the > conspiracy on live television and give both political parties and the media > the roasting they so richly deserved. > > The Mysterious Abigail > > On his way to the stage, William was stopped by Abigail, a young intern who > said she had just received an urgent and timely message from a friend who had > been spying on Newt Gingrich. In the fire of his fury, William was tempted to > shove past her, on the assumption that he already knew what she was going to > reveal. However, his innate courtliness won out, and he paused to listen to > what she had to say. And as he listened, the blood slowly drained from his > face. > > Because the conspiracy was apparently far more subtle and closer to home than > he could have imagined. According to Abigail, the USB stick was a > sophisticated hoax carefully designed to prey on William's fears to provoke > him into publicly fighting an enemy that didn't exist. None of the > individuals named were actually involved, and the emails and government > documents included were all sophisticated forgeries. If Williams had reacted > to them, he would at best have looked ridiculous, and a worst utterly wrecked > Warner's campaign by continually attempting to (falsely) prove that the whole > world was conspiring against him. > > Most devastating of all was her claim that the real mastermind behind all > this was a former Radical Centrist colleague named Ernesto. A brilliant yet > eccentric technologist, he had always been jealous of William. Though > professing friendship, he avoided ever providing concrete help or > introductions during the years William lived in poverty, and contrived to > subtly sabotage every project they attempted to work on together. William had > always attempted to be magnanimous, and even offered Ernesto a position at > Saint-Simon University. Ernesto had soundly rejected the job, accusing > William of living in a fantasy world and pursuing impossible plans rather > than dealing with the real world. William had never heard from him since, > despite repeated attempts to reach out and share his good fortune. > > According to Abigail, Ernesto had since become obsessed with revenge against > William for various imagined slights, and began prowling the dark corners of > the Internet seeking evidence to support his increasingly paranoid delusions. > After Warner become the 2020 front-runner, Ernesto saw his chance. He > secretly contacted Gingrich, and negotiated $30 million in untraceable > Bitcoin from him and his allies to "take down Williams." All interactions > were conducted entirely in person, to avoid any electronic or paper trail > that might provide evidence of the true conspiracy. Even if William had found > out the truth after the fact, there was no way he could have convinced anyone > to believe him. > > Upon hearing all this, William sank into a chair with his head in his hands. > When he looked up, Abigail was gone. Nobody else had seen her; nor did they > ever find anyone with her name or likeness in their records. > > The Confession > > The crowd screamed wildly when William ascended the stage to give his > long-delayed speech -- then slowly quieted as they saw the bleak expression > on his face. In a flat monotone that contrasted strongly with his usual > soaring rhetoric, he described the events of the past hour. The crowed gasped > in horrorwhen they heard the contents of the USB stick, cheered at his > intention to lambast his enemies, then sat in stunned silence when they heard > Abigail's revelations. They collectively held their breath when he finished, > wondering what he would say next. > > "Like many of you, I must confess I'm not sure what to believe. Did Abigail > tell the truth? Or was the first conspiracy real, and Abigail a last-minute > attempt to stop me from revealing it? Some of my friends probably think I > made the whole thing up as an elaborate parable on the dangers of anger." He > paused, while the crowd chuckled, then sobered up as he added "My enemies > would instead claim I made it up to discredit true revelations about my > character and intentions." > > He paused again, and in the silence you could have heard a pin drop. But when > he resumed, there was a trace of the old fire in his voice. > > "You can believe what you want. Because at the end of the day, this isn't > about me. It never was. I nearly lost sight of that, and in a moment of anger > I might easily have destroyed everything I have spent my life building." > > William bowed his head, obviously in the grip of a powerful emotion, as the > crowd murmured encouragement. He lifted his face, and the audience sighed in > relief as they saw the familiar glint in his eyes. "This is not about me!" he > roared, and the crowd went wild. "This was never about me! It was never about > anger, or hate, or even about power. It was always, always about love!" > > William stopped to wipe tears from his eyes, or maybe just because he > couldn't even hear himself over the joyous screams of the crowd. He waited > until they had softened to a rolling thunder. > > “Don’t ever lose sight of love. Because that is the only advantage we have > over our enemies. Make no mistake: our enemies will stop at nothing to > destroy us. They have money. They have power. They have had centuries to hone > their craft. They have institutions devoted to propagating their ungodly > ideals. And they won’t hesitate a microsecond to use everything at their > disposal to stop us from taking back our country. > > ”But the one thing they don’t have is love! They don’t love our country, they > just want to use it to further their infernal agenda, to scratch some dark > itch in their souls. They don’t care about people; people to them are just > abstract ideas to be manipulated in the service of ideology. They don’t even > love their friends; friends are just tools to be used then discarded when > they become more trouble than they are worth. Just like their so-called > ‘principles.’” > > He paused, and crowd erupted in thunderous applause. He let it continue for a > minute, then held up his hands. Everyone slowly quieted, then waited > expectantly for him to speak. > > He took a deep breath “But never let us make the mistake of assuming we are > better than them, or immune to the temptations of power, corruption, and > self-protection. Because the moment we do, our enemies will smell our > weakness and use it to bring us down. As almost just happened to me.” > > He lowered his gaze. The packed auditorium was as silent as church. > > Then he looked up, and smiled. The crowd responded with enthusiastic hoots > and hollers. “By the grace of God, our enemies failed. They are the ones who > will be destroyed by their own fear, insecurity, and hubris. Today marks a > new beginning for our country, and for democracy. Ladies and gentlemen, I > both proud and humbled to introduce to you Mark Warner, the next President of > the United States of America!” > > > > Sent from my iPhone > -- > -- > Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community > <[email protected]> > Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism > Radical Centrism website and blog: http://RadicalCentrism.org > > --- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > -- > -- > Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community > <[email protected]> > Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism > Radical Centrism website and blog: http://RadicalCentrism.org > > --- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > -- > -- > Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community > <[email protected]> > Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism > Radical Centrism website and blog: http://RadicalCentrism.org > > --- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. -- -- Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community <[email protected]> Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism Radical Centrism website and blog: http://RadicalCentrism.org --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community" group. 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