something so genuine and affectionate about this man. The effect she had on him was surprising to her. Most of the time, he appeared guarded and somber, but beyond that invisible wall there seemed to be a great vulnerability. For a few moments, his discomfort allowed Morgan to relax and set aside her own inner gremlins.
Morgan moved her eyes away from his, to reduce some of the intensity of the interaction. There was a copy of the New York Times on the stone bench and she read the main headline: 22nd of November 2014, Water Zanus announces possible candidacy for President of the United States .
"I don't know if I should laugh or cry," she said, picking up the newspaper.
"It's no laughing matter. Zanus has gathered an impressive number of supporters amongst the working class and social elite."
"But the man is a complete buffoon!"
"A very dangerous buffoon."
"There's no way he'll be successful. I've met him a couple of times. He's an offensive sorta fellow. He'll rub people in the wrong way. He's sexist, bigoted and racist. No one in their right mind will vote for Walter, especially the minorities."
"Don't underestimate him, Morgan. Many, especially men, see the rise of minorities as a threat to their cultural and economic dominance. White men are losing their jobs to women, minorities and people at the other end of the supply chain in third world countries. Beleaguered voters will support him in the hope that he will restore their vanished status."
"People won't take him seriously. This is the man that said on national TV that a woman's place is in the kitchen."
"That may indeed be his biggest strength."
"Are you serious? I can't believe you are legitimising Walter Zanus."
Morgan placed her glass down on the bench. Her irritated look proclaimed that she was ready for a heated debate.
"I'm not," he said, swiftly raising both hands, palms towards her, "his campaign dares to shatter taboos. Those who think privately what he speaks publicly perceive him as speaking truth to power. And, the journalists struggling with a broken business model are happy to use his sensationalist statements as clickbait. They are selling out in exchange for eyeballs that bring them advertising dollars. It's working in his favour."
"Sure, but progress is everywhere. You have an African American President in office, women and minorities are slowly gaining consumer power, and there are many good, progressive Caucasian men supporting them."
"Some, not all."
"Yeah, I know. But, I don't see how Zanus would ever get a serious shot at the White House. Plus, the jobless working class can't blame the minorities, it's the one percent who're stealing their economic power. And the software, the robots, the artificial intelligence and the value extraction economics."
"That's not what the clickbait headlines are selling to the masses in the US."
"Do you really think that Walter has a chance of becoming president in two years?"
"Yes, I do. I believe that, in the next few years, we are likely to experience a war between a large population of disenfranchised, jobless, Western Caucasian men and everyone else. The status quo is being disrupted, and they don't like it. Don't expect them to give up power willingly. The forces you challenge are dangerous and don't play fair or clean."
They sat there for a while in silence. Morgan was too shaken by the possibility of a future where Zanus was President of the United States. Gabriel broke the silence by talking about art and history. He explained that the Ange'el Foundation spent a lot of its resources on the preservation of artefacts from all over the world. He said that it was very sad how much great knowledge from ancient civilisations had been lost. They discussed her favourite sculpture, The Rape of the Sabine Women by Giambologna. She talked about the three-dimensional nature of that sculpture and how Giambologna was a master of turning marble into flesh. Gabriel continued to impress her with his
Morgan moved her eyes away from his, to reduce some of the intensity of the interaction. There was a copy of the New York Times on the stone bench and she read the main headline: 22nd of November 2014, Water Zanus announces possible candidacy for President of the United States .
"I don't know if I should laugh or cry," she said, picking up the newspaper.
"It's no laughing matter. Zanus has gathered an impressive number of supporters amongst the working class and social elite."
"But the man is a complete buffoon!"
"A very dangerous buffoon."
"There's no way he'll be successful. I've met him a couple of times. He's an offensive sorta fellow. He'll rub people in the wrong way. He's sexist, bigoted and racist. No one in their right mind will vote for Walter, especially the minorities."
"Don't underestimate him, Morgan. Many, especially men, see the rise of minorities as a threat to their cultural and economic dominance. White men are losing their jobs to women, minorities and people at the other end of the supply chain in third world countries. Beleaguered voters will support him in the hope that he will restore their vanished status."
"People won't take him seriously. This is the man that said on national TV that a woman's place is in the kitchen."
"That may indeed be his biggest strength."
"Are you serious? I can't believe you are legitimising Walter Zanus."
Morgan placed her glass down on the bench. Her irritated look proclaimed that she was ready for a heated debate.
"I'm not," he said, swiftly raising both hands, palms towards her, "his campaign dares to shatter taboos. Those who think privately what he speaks publicly perceive him as speaking truth to power. And, the journalists struggling with a broken business model are happy to use his sensationalist statements as clickbait. They are selling out in exchange for eyeballs that bring them advertising dollars. It's working in his favour."
"Sure, but progress is everywhere. You have an African American President in office, women and minorities are slowly gaining consumer power, and there are many good, progressive Caucasian men supporting them."
"Some, not all."
"Yeah, I know. But, I don't see how Zanus would ever get a serious shot at the White House. Plus, the jobless working class can't blame the minorities, it's the one percent who're stealing their economic power. And the software, the robots, the artificial intelligence and the value extraction economics."
"That's not what the clickbait headlines are selling to the masses in the US."
"Do you really think that Walter has a chance of becoming president in two years?"
"Yes, I do. I believe that, in the next few years, we are likely to experience a war between a large population of disenfranchised, jobless, Western Caucasian men and everyone else. The status quo is being disrupted, and they don't like it. Don't expect them to give up power willingly. The forces you challenge are dangerous and don't play fair or clean."
They sat there for a while in silence. Morgan was too shaken by the possibility of a future where Zanus was President of the United States. Gabriel broke the silence by talking about art and history. He explained that the Ange'el Foundation spent a lot of its resources on the preservation of artefacts from all over the world. He said that it was very sad how much great knowledge from ancient civilisations had been lost. They discussed her favourite sculpture, The Rape of the Sabine Women by Giambologna. She talked about the three-dimensional nature of that sculpture and how Giambologna was a master of turning marble into flesh. Gabriel continued to impress her with his
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