Bitisururu, The Electrocuted
27.12.104

Greetings.

There's been a lot of talk recently, about why the different rings keep arguing so much, plotting against each other, hampering each other's efforst, and weakening the entire colony as a result. Most agree that this state is regrettable, and would like the tower to unite in a common effort for the survival of everyone. I've been thinking about it and I believe I know the reason.

Whether it's science vs engineering, freedom vs direction, or short-term vs long-term gain, the basic thought behind the arguments is always the same: "Your plan won't work!" "Don't you see the flaws of your thinking?" "If we do it your way, the tower will be doomed..." In other words, when looking at the plans and goals of others, we see the obvious truth: none of these plans have any chance of success whatsoever.

Looking at our own plans, however, we're blinded by hope. We refuse to accept that just like any other plan, our plan will also, inevitably, lead to failure. As we keep telling ourselves that lie we grow accustomed to the comforting illusion. When our plans are critizised, we feel threatened in a very real way, since after all, our plan is our only hope of survival. Some are able to hide and rationalize this better than others. Nevertheless, this leads to the kinds of conflicts discussed every day on these boards.

In my opinion, the first steps towards a unified tower is that we strip away any unfounded optimism, accepting that we'll all lie dead in the not-so-distant future. This way, we can focus on our duty, which is to keep trying until the end, and doing so, be the colony we were meant to be. So when the end comes we'll die as a family, instead of taking joy in each other's demise.

(Please ignore my handle. My real name is "Awiti".)