To Ease the Passing of Time

Scottsdale, Arizona, November 6, 2068

Hi! My name is Cindy Woodward, reporting for BBC America. Today, I’m at the Alcor Life Extension Foundation head office in Scottsdale, Arizona.

As you all know, until a few years ago, the topic of cryonics — freezing one’s body to be thawed years into the future, presumably when medicine is more advanced — was a mythical discussion. However, since 2065, it has become a reality. According to the Alcor Life Extension Foundation, the largest cryonics services provider in the world, approximately 1,270 people have undergone cryopreservation procedures since the idea was first introduced in 1962, and 186 have been brought back to life since 2065. Today we are going to meet one of those unfrozen. His name is Jack Sow. Mr. Snow was frozen in November 2018. He requested to be kept frozen for a period of fifty years. Mr. Snow has been back to life for only a few hours, and he is about to meet his physician. We have the chance to witness their conversation live.

“Mr. Snow?”

“Yes.”

“Pleased to meet you, Mr. Snow! I’m Dr Huxley. I’m going to assist you through the transition to your new life…and your new world.”

“My Brave New World, Dr. Huxley."

“I see that being frozen for fifty years did not affect your mental capacities, Mr. Snow. You are still very witty. How are you doing physically?”

Great! I must say that I really enjoyed the massage that Sandra gave me to reactivate my muscles. I can guarantee that everything is working in the finest possible way.”

“I’m happy to hear that Mr. Snow. According to your blood tests and the physical exam performed by my assistant, there are no indications of any physical problems. You are in good health. You are ready for the next step.”

“What is the next step Dr. Huxley?”

“Getting acquainted with your brave new world”

“How is this going to be done?”

“First, we’ll show you a video, and then you’ll meet a private counselor.”

“Thank you Dr. Huxley!”

We wish Mr. Snow all the best in his new life. Now back to you in Washington, Sandra. That was Cindy Woodward reporting from Scottsdale, Arizona.

"Boy, that was short!"

"They have to cut it short. They don't want us to go into too many details." Since the Fake News Amendment that was added to the Constitution in 2061, if we say something against the administration, it's considered fake news, and the medias are not allowed to show it on TV or even write about it."

“Wow! I never thought that it would come to that. But now that we are off record, Dr. Huxley, may I ask you a few questions?”

“Sure! I still have a few minutes before I meet my next client, but don’t talk too loud.”

“What can I expect when I walk out of this clinic? I mean what’s different from 2018?”

“First, you’ll need an SS, a second skin.”

“A second skin?”

“It’s a thin layer of plastic to cover your face and any parts of your body exposed to the sun. You can’t go out without it. The radiation of the sun is a lot more dangerous than it was fifty years ago.”

“Holy shit!”

“Don’t say that out there Mr. Snow!”

“Why?”

“People will know right away that you're an unfrozen. Nobody says that anymore.”

“What else is different out there Dr. Huxley?

“Remember the Green Zone in Baghdad a few years before you were frozen?”

“Yes. It was the protected area of the city where Americans and a few lucky Iraqis could live peacefully while the rest of the city and the country was in total chaos.”  

“Well, that’s the way it is now in the United States. There are a dozen so-called green zones, like small countries or large gated communities, where people can live normally. They cover about 15% of the territory, and they are surrounded by walls thicker than the one Trump wanted to build between our country and Mexico. The rest of what’s left of the country is like a jungle. Life expectancy, which had started going down during the Trump administration, is now at 54, maybe lower. Gangs are everywhere. They control everything. And it's like that all over the world."

“Is that all because of Trump?”

“What could I say...? Trump started it, but things went back to normal for a few years after he died.”

“When did he die?”

“He died in 2021 of a heart attack while having sex with a 23 year student. That’s only in 2054, when his youngest son Barron was elected and took over where his father had left, that things really went downhill, and it went really fast. Barron Trump is now President for life. You must know, Mr. Snow, that people outside the green zones don’t have health insurance; they don’t have access to medical care; they are not even allowed to live where they want.  It’s a lot like North Korea used to be.”

“Used to be?”

“Yeah! Dictators came to an agreement: You take what you want and I take what I want. We invaded Canada and Mexico; Russia took back what they had lost after the collapse of the Soviet Union; China invaded Taiwan, Vietnam and North Korea. North Korea is still a very bad place to live, but people have more freedom and opportunities than with Kim Jong-un.”

“That’s awful! What do you think of the situation, Dr. Huxley?”

“I don’t like it but I keep my mouth shut. I don’t want to be sent to a camp.” At least, I can live in a green zone. It’s ironic that some of the people who were young enough to chant Build the wall at Trump’s rallies in 2016 now have to live on the wrong side of the new walls with their children and grandchildren...and with the people that they didn’t want in their country.”

"Ironic, indeed, Dr. Huxley! But what's going to happen to me now?" Am I going to be allowed to live in one the green zones?"

"It depends?"

"It depends on what?"

"It depends on whether or not your children and grandchildren left enough money in your bank account. It's very expensive to live in the green zones, Mr. Snow." Taxes are very high and health insurance even more.

"Dr. Huxley, could you refreeze me for a couple more centuries...or maybe forever?"

"Everything is possible with money, Mr. Snow, everything."