Oh, but the terror of discovery that there was no hidden cabal of evil purpose! That there was no smoky chamber filled with malicious minds bent on the domination of their fellow humans; that in fact it was only the inert system itself that worked to bind them. Unfeeling, uncaring, and unknowing. Automatic. A machine that went through the motions of grinding dreams to pulp, spitting out a subservient and obedient paste with which the bricks of progress were mortared.
First draft: 140522
Published: 230127