Free The Distance Beacons by Richard Bowker

crying over what has been lost. But we see the War as a blessing, an opportunity that will not come again. Look." He gestured to the farmland that stretched out in front of him, freshly plowed and ready for planting. "Much of what you see used to be a golf course, where men would come and hit little balls while people starved and went homeless, while our air and water were being poisoned, while governments plotted to destroy each other. Now it is part of a community in which all care for each, in which we strive to find what is most important in life and to live in accordance with Nature, not with the artificial customs and duties that have been imposed upon us by our culture. We try to use nothing that comes from the old days. We do not read their books, we do not live in their buildings, we do not wear their clothes. Someday we will speak our own language. The new generation will have no memories to torment them, and nothing at all will remain of the past. We have lost our golf balls, Walter Sands, but we have gained our souls."
    I had the feeling he had said this sort of thing many times before, but still it made a powerful impression. I could see why Henry Fisher thought Dobler was the most capable opponent of the Feds. I could also see why Henry didn't like him. Here was a guy who was ignoring the past with a vengeance—who was making a religion out of it. To Dobler, Henry's book was not just a mistake; it was heresy. "You make a lot of sense," I said. "And your community looks quite impressive."
    "We have been here seven years. There were just a few when we began, but now we are many."
    Seven years, I thought. Since just after the Feds moved in and made it possible for people to do what Flynn Dobler had done. "And the government leaves you alone?"
    Dobler stood up. His robe flapped in a sudden breeze. I could imagine a cheering throng beneath the balcony, taking in his every word as if it came straight from God. If he had a military-style crew cut and wore clothes from the Salvage Market instead of a robe and sandals, would he have looked so impressive? "The government cannot defeat us," he said, "because we possess the truth, and the truth is the most powerful weapon in the universe."
    I wasn't at all sure that this was true, but I let it pass. "Does the government try to defeat you?" I persisted.
    He glanced down at me. Had the question seemed suspicious? "It makes an effort once in a while," he replied, "but we pay no attention. The government is part of the death throes of the old civilization. If the War had only been more destructive, we would not have to put up with those death throes now."
    If the War had been more destructive, I thought, none of us would be around to put up with anything. "But the government worries me," I said. "There's this referendum, you know."
    Dobler smiled. "Oh, you needn't worry about the referendum, Walter Sands."
    Oh? "Why not? If the referendum succeeds, won't the government be stronger—more capable of forcing its will on you?"
    Dobler continued to smile. Had he seen through me? Or was the idea just too absurd for him to contemplate seriously? "The government cannot succeed, Walter Sands," he said. "It cannot rule people who refuse to be ruled. It will crumble like its monuments in Washington, and we will be here to build on the ruins."
    That wasn't what I wanted to hear. "How can you be sure?" I said, pressing the issue.
    "Walter Sands, you seem more interested in the government than you are in our Church," Dobler observed. "Why is that?"
    "Maybe I'm less convinced than you are in the inevitability of your triumph," I said. "I don't want to join you and then have the Feds come and draft me into their army, or make my kids go to their schools. I think we have to do more than just ignore the government and hope that it goes away."
    Dobler nodded, and then abruptly sat down. Had he tired of the game, or finally made up his mind about me? In any case, it was clear that I had lost. "I