The running race. By David Cormack

The running race | Patreon

Read time: 3 minutes

17 Oct 2022

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Imagine 200 years ago some folks just showed up and told your ancestors they were taking part in a running race. They weren't super keen but these folks would not take no for an answer. So your ancestor thought fuck it, ok then. How bad could it be. 

Everyone lined up at the starting line. And bang! Everyone was off.

Out of nowhere, at lap 2 they changed the rules. Everyone was allowed to keep running as before except for your ancestor; a sandbag was tied to their ankle. Your ancestor struggled on with the race but very quickly started falling behind the others.

And then to make it worse, every time your ancestor got lapped they had another sandbag tied to them. Each lap getting further and further behind as the leaders kept tying more sand.

Fast forward to today and that race has been ongoing, with each new generation picking up from where the last left off. You're about to join the race. Your family is way way way behind.

So you say "hey, this seems a bit shit. Could I lose the sandbags and skip a few laps so I'm closer to everyone else?"

The race marshall says it has been a bit unfair, so you are allowed to skip a few laps. And then everyone else in the race starts complaining that you're getting an unfair advantage over them. And they're sick of your family bludging advantages like this. It was fucking years ago! Get over it mate! 

One of the race leaders even says "You being so far back isn't my fault. That was the decisions made by my ancestors. Look! We've stopped tying extra bags of sand to your family's ankles. You're fine."

You try to run the race and take the sandbags off at the same time. But then another person in the race says they're going to try and become race marshall, and if they succeed you'll have to keep some sandbags on your ankles and you won't be able to skip any more laps to bring you closer to everyone else. 

That's tough shit. It's got to be equal rules for everyone. One race for all they say.

That person starts rarking up everyone else in the race, saying "look at the advantages they're getting! They can't be allowed to skip laps. Nobody else got to skip laps! How on earth would it be fair for them to skip laps?" and you notice that more people are nodding along with them, and it seems like despite the fact it's really obvious to you and a handful of others how unfair the whole system has been for so long, that the majority of people now think you'd be getting an advantage to skip a few laps just to bring you more even with everyone else. And everyone seems to want you to keep the sandbags on because they've gotten used to you and your family having sandbags tied to them.

"Look", they say, "we'll make this fair, and we'll put it to a vote. Surely you can't deny democracy? That's the fairest system of all". And you're just not sure about that because it seems that the majority of people are going to want to keep you held back and they'll be voting on something that doesn't actually impact them but it really fucks you. You don't know what to do.

The best thing anyone could do is not vote ACT.