An Eighty Percent Solution (CorpGov) (3 page)

Almost as one they turned on the recording mechanisms nearly transparent on their left sleeves
.
Even by meeting in this loose association, these people of power defied every antitrust law in every country or merchant association in the system, but
this transgression
would come
as
no surprise to anyone, anywhere.

“Old business?”

“
France
hasn’t been forthcoming with the devaluation of the franc as our lobbyists decreed.”

“So
you’re
pushing for punitive measures?”

“Yes
.
I believe
we’ve
been too easy on the statutory authorities of late.”

“I second that.”

“Any objections
?”

No one spoke
.

“So do we have options for these punitive measures?”

“I suggest a
four
-
week transit strike.”

“In
France
it’d
be a miracle if there wasn’t a transit strike
.”

No one laughed.
“
Percomm Systems
is out of order.”

“Energy embargo
.
No energy in or out of the country
.
Our projections show they have enough for a
three
-
month reserve
.
I suggest we withhold energy from the Palpon Station for a minimum of four months
,
but in any case until compliance.”

“This will be a good visible lesson.”

“Good
,
and we can piggyback that with some
profit
-
taking against our energy reserves in the country.”

“Objections?
No?
It is carried
.
BirskTek
, would you please implement this action immediately
.
Any new business?”

“I
’d
like to propose a solution to the Green Action Militia’s recent depredations on each of our organizations,”
Nanogate
announced
.

“A solution?
”
spouted
Percomm Systems
,
as he shifted to try to get more than sixty percent of his personal bulk
into his
chair.
“
Preposterous
!
”

“
The member from
Percomm Systems
is out of order again
.
Proceed with your proposal,
Nanogate
.”

“As you all know
,
we’ve seen
an alarming increase in the actions of the group known as the Green Action Militia.” Several of the executives nodded in agreement
.
“Each of our corporations has suffered the attentions of these terrorists
.
I’d
like to propose a course of action to bring these losses to our gross profits and personnel back in line.”

“How?
” the pudgy man interrupted again
.
“
We’ve all tried
.
They
’re
like wily feral animal
s
.
Oh, occasionally we get one or two, but never enough to even cut into their recruiting
.
”

The chairman raised his walnut gavel to control the
Percomm Systems
’
executive officer, but
Nanogate
caught his eye and waved him off.

“Too true
.
Our actions have not only been ineffective
,
but going even further
,
they
’ve
added to our own troubles.”

“That sounds a bit farfetched,” commented the chairman, breaking his own rule.

“May I have the indulgence of the panel for a few moments to prove this
?”
Nanogate
, the newest addition of the group
with
only six months of tenure, didn’t have the clout of the others
.
His peers often outvoted his pet projects
.
A
solidographic
projection
atop the table
tabulated the results.

“The member will proceed,” announced the chairman.

“One of
our conglomerates’
major products is arms
.
We sell to any group that can pay the price
.
As a result
,
we have good modeling systems for the interactions that take place below the pu
rview of the system government
. I’m speaking, of course, of
the black market
.
We
’
ve applied that modeling to our current crisis
.
In short
,
the data I’m projecting over the table shows that our actions have only removed the less successful members of thei
r
movement
.
Worse, their failures
—
our
successes
—
only bring them more sympathy and
attract
recruits to their cause.

“The models project a range of outcomes that
at
best case show within sixty months, even with our chokehold on the media, fifty-eight percent of the public will be behind the GAM
.
This would lead inexorably to
a requirement for
major and costly concessions
,
cutting profits nearly eighty-
three
percent
.”

While no sound uttered from any member, eyeballs clicked in
Nanogate’s
direction
.
A
ttentions that
had
wandered to thoughts of
sexual conquest
s, hobbies
,
and other business
immediately refocused
themselves directly upon him
.

“Remember,
I’m talking
best case
here,
”
Nanogate added for emphasis
.
Two members actually turned in their seat to face the
most junior member of their august company
.
“Worst case
,
our projections show their support growing exponentially
.
If not checked
, this
would result in the breakup of this committee and the destruction of business as we know it
.”

No one said a word for nearly a minute.

“How is that possible?”
P
udgy
demanded,
the first to break the shocked silence that permeated the room
.
He stood, a
bre
a
ch
of unwritten etiquette, to emphasize his next question
.
“How do we know your simulations are accurate?”

“I
’ll
be more than happy to have my experts talk to yours
.
Our databanks on this matter are open to all.” The significance of that gesture, in an age where
knowledge
equates to
wealth and power, wasn’t lost on the other members
.
Not one of them would have the information checked.

“So is there a solution?” asked
CNI
, one of four female members
.

“We need to eliminate the GAM as a significant force
.”

Even the chairman couldn’t let this inconsistency pass unchallenged.
“But didn’t you say that attacking them would
only
make them
stronger
?
”

“No
.
I said our
current
methods were less than ineffective.”

“Then what more than trained troops and police
could possibly
suffice? We all spend a small fortune keeping forces trained, informants paid
,
and an army of field operatives trying to sniff them out, not to mention bounties offered for key members
.”

“If I might digress for a moment to basics taught to us by the late
zaibatsu
of
Japan
:
eighty
percent of
any
problem can be solved with twenty
percent of
the
resources
needed to solve the entire problem
.
I
’m
suggesting only solving that which is
cost
-
effective
.
I only ask the required effort from each of you as you have the ability.

“This is the eighty percent solution I offer.” A small stack of bound wood-pulp papers slid around the table
,
with each
representative
pulling off the top copy
.
Nanogate
waited as they each scanned the four widely spaced pages
.
When each of them looked up
,
he continued
.

“I call for a vote.”

“
Before the vote
,
” remarked the chairman,
quickly scanning the pages before him,
“I’d like to point out
that
there’ll
be an initial increase in losses on the order of twenty-three percent over the first quarter.”

“
What’s
the schedule for reduction?”

“My team’s simulations show that by the end of the second quarter
,
our losses will be down by forty-five percent and eighty-two percent by the end of the third quarter.

“As a whole
,
the GAM is probably
a
necessary evil
.
They provide an outlet to the populace that will, at the end of our campaign, be relatively harmless.”

“Please place your vote
.”
The computer tallied ten “Aye” votes.

“The next item on the agenda is planning the reduction of the food supply next year…”

* * *
 

Smoke wandered liberally but leisurely up from a tiny clay pot in the center of the almost barren room, filling the top of the
chamber
like a ghostly inverted bathtub, even to the dirty rings of previous gritty fills
.
In a perfect lotus position, a young
Latina
blended into the serenity room near the smudge
,
only the barely
audible
sounds of an ocean surf interrupting the silent tranquility
.
Even the most open-minded physician would be concerned about the slowness of her breathing and heart rate, if anyone so lofty would
deign to
enter her world
.

The
twenty-something
chica
’
s
long,
crude
-
oil
-
colored hair hung down over her right shoulder in direct contrast to the bare skin on the left side of her head
.
Buttoned only in one place, her white lab coat, bearing numerous
random
stains, fell loosely over her legs
,
partially hiding the glyphs
tattooed
directly into her caramel-colored skin.

From the outside of the room
’
s only door came the tiniest of scratches
.
Her breathing increased and her body languidly unwound from itself as she stood, showing even more of the ebon symbols against her evenly tanned skin
.
Her knees locked
,
and with legs
clamped
together she bent in half at the waist
, placing
her palms flat on the floor
.
Without moving from this position, her long aristocratic fingers lifted a lid and placed it over the smoldering pot
.
A quick exhalation doused the tiny flame beneath.