Friday Fictioneers is hosted by the wonderful Rochelle, the undisputed master of what I call Sound Bite Fiction.
She sets the weekly challenge, the standard, and the prompt photo.
The idea, as always, is to write a story of around 100 words based on this picture, below.
© J Hardy Carroll
Click here to hear the writer read his words:
For Better or Worse
I nod in agreement.
The others round the table are complaining bitterly about the state of the planet.
The words they use to describe our elected leaders are vitriolic, condemnatory.
I cannot argue with anything they say.
But…
I am a Time Traveller.
I come from the future.
We spotlight critical moments in the past, and interfere if necessary.
We have changed things, small things, to create the current situation.
Please understand, I have nothing but contempt for Trump, Johnson, Macron et al.
Now this may seem incredible.
But, long term, they are the best options at the present time.
Sound Bite Fiction 
If only this were not fiction…
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Shh, Dawn, it’s actually all true…
Tell no one
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I certainly hope that’s true, C.E. I’d be afraid to travel forward these days. There’s also trouble in the past as I’ve been there. I’m concerned for my children, not myself as I won’t be there. Well done. —- Suzanne
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Thanks, Suzanne, darkest before the dawn and all that, maybe?
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Ah! Now that is reassuring. Who know what the larger picture is. Maybe a better biopic.
This despite man contempt for the Orange man.
Interesting take on the prompt. Glad to have swung by. 🙂
https://natashamusing.com/2019/09/cathys-kitchenette-fridayfictioneers-natasha-musing-friday-foto-fiction/
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Glad you enjoyed, Natasha
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Long term it may be better to burn now so it can be rebuilt on the ashes… or?
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A very valid take, Bjorn, thank you
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It seems to me that the question is, the best for whom? The time travel could be furthering the cause of humanity, or furthering his own. A false advocate, Dickensian-style, like the lawyers in Jarndyce vs Jarndyce in Bleak House, perhaps? Working so assiduously for the young wards, to win them an inheritance, which is meanwhile being consumed in toto by legal fees.
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All fair comment, Andy!
Thanks for visiting.
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I’ve wondered whose vision of “utopia” we would be going by if we were able to travel back in time and change things.
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I make no claims of Utopia, Kelley, but I do like your rather delicious slant on this.
And who makes the rules, hmm?
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I am not sure that you have got humanity right, time traveller
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Laughing.
I’m not sure anyone ever has!
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Christ help us! If this is the best we can get, somehow I doubt it, or at least I hope so.
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This is what we have all elected, democratically, is it not?
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It is indeed, but they tend to change their minds when in the driving seat
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Rather bleak. Brings to mind the old saying, “You get what you pay for.”
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Indeed, Linda, or in our case what the money guys pay for
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I’m afraid that’s true way too often.
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Well, I know you like murder and mayhem – but I never thought you’d go this far to the dark side! 😉
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That’s how you read this, Penny?
Interesting…
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We always think if only we could go back in time… and yet sometimes things happened the way they had to. Very imaginative piece.
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Thank you, Fatima, sometimes it helps to change our focus
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You are going to get a lot of beating for liking Trump.
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I think, sir, you might have missed my line ‘I have nothing but contempt…’
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…the best options because there are none better. What does that say about the times we live in?
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Pretty much everything, Keith!
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That makes me feel a bit better about everything, anyway 🙂 Nice one!
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I am surprised but pleased, sir!
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Good idea for a movie. I’d like to see what could be worse…
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Thanks.
Or what will be better, perhaps?
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I like this take. It reminds me of the theory that going back in time to stop something horrendous, like killing Hitler before he took power, could make our present worse. We never know what an alternate timeline holds. I said when Trump was elected that it was going to be so horrible that it would swing everything back the opposite way the next election. I hope that proves to be true. That is assuming humanity survives that long. We still have a year to go and a lot of arrogant, destructive world leaders.
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Thank you, I think you have grasped my point exactlly.
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Interesting take. I wonder if your time traveler would say that Hitler was, too, the best choice for his time. … (re-writing history is a tough job)
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Impossible to tell unless you see parallel paths, Na’ama
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Perhaps. Or perhaps not impossible as much as … difficult or jarring or potentially painful. Then again, who knows.
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Even the long tern prospects are not rosy. Good story Ceayr.
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I think bleak and bleaker springs to mind, Neel!
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Interesting take on the prompt and the times, C.E.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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I try, m’lady, I try
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I agree. At least for my country, it seems to be the best but you can’t get 100% support ever even if you are doing good. Some will oppose/ criticise every move.
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I am happy that someone somewhere thinks they have the best, dear Indira.
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For the time being, yes. Till the wolves attack.
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May the gods help us all if this is the best the universe can provide.
Enjoyed the read. Offers some hope.
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I don’t think, Tannille, that we can blame the universe.
We live in democracies, these are our choices.
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This is reassuring. I’m glad someone has a grand plan and everything will work out okay…or will it?
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We thought Cameron was the pits, then we got May.
We knew she was worse and now…
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Now this is an interesting take.
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Thanks, Colline, just my way of saying ‘Cheer up, things could be worse’!
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I can see abstractly there might be a long view in which this is all for the best in the best of all ;possible worlds. But I want a peek at the long view before I could be convinced of the time traveller’s gnomic case
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Laughing.
At least I gave you pause for thought, Neil
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