The Black Hole Bar by Dave Weaver

Author:Dave Weaver [Weaver, Dave]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: FIC028000 FICTION / Science Fiction / General, FL Science Fiction
ISBN: 9781908168597
Publisher: Elsewhen Press
Published: 2014-06-22T00:00:00+00:00

What a bizarre tale. I hadn’t expected something like that from Ben. It was certainly satirical, amusing in a cruel sort of way, and socially intriguing; comedy had become the new sex. More than just sex in fact; a perversion of human nature to be policed and outlawed in a society turned on its head. The point about deference to religious fanaticism creating a politically correct culture of non-invasion of personal space, to the extent of not even being allowed to laugh at someone else, was well made in the current climate of fundamentalist outrages. Would a world of enforced solemnity be the next step to avoiding any future wars between differing cultures?

The general opinion was that it was certainly a clever and topical piece, if a trifle far-fetched in its extreme solution.

“Shades of Brave New World I thought,” offered Bernard, rather pompously as if he thought the rest of us hadn’t read that particular masterpiece of State engineering. I had, and so had Janice.

“I don’t agree Bernard,” she told him. “It seemed much more like a rather wonky version of Nineteen Eighty-Four with its obsession with pointless government departments and their spurious mind-numbing jobs to keep the population gainfully employed. The double-think with the concepts of sex and comedy manipulated to keep a peaceful status quo was very Orwellian. Don’t you agree, Simon?”

All eyes switched to me. “I do Janice, definitely. Winston Smith would have recognised a kindred spirit in Harry Lloyd I’m sure; both unwitting rebels against establishment orthodoxy, both paying for their free thinking with their actual freedom. I think it worked very well, if a little unsure in its general tone. Rather ironically, it couldn’t make up its mind if it was comedy or tragedy.”

“Perhaps that was the point.” Danni said. “He said at the end that life was a joke. That’s both funny and tragic because life is far too precious just to be a joke, even though it must seem that way to a lot of people going through crap at the time.”

“You’re right of course.” I replied. “But then, when fate turns against us what other recourse have we left but to laugh? Otherwise we’d all go mad.”

“So comedy’s the release valve for the human psyche? Without it society becomes de-humanised?” That was Zandor.

“That was the point I was trying to make,” Ben told him. “Humour is the one emotion more than any other that shows our intelligence and therefore our humanity. It’s what separates us from the animals; not lust or anger or fear... those are primeval urges that drive us onwards but give little point to our actual existence. It’s humour that makes us human, allows us to reason. Without it we’re just cattle waiting for the end.”

Ben’s words had an unexpected eloquence to them which made us all pause for thought. I realised in that moment that they were a slowly dying man’s appreciation of the life-force he would be losing and felt a sudden surge of warmth towards him.

“I

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