An Orange Clockwork

An Orange Clockwork

Postby Wayne23 » Sun Oct 18, 2020 3:55 pm

DDSCB 2020: An Orange Clockwork

Year 33: My name is Michael (Win) Winters. Before I get to hoops let's talk about the world I live in.

Before the Year 1 there was a civil war. It was long and bloody. The population was just about 330 million going in. When the war ended it was a little less than half of that.

A would-be fascist dictator lost an election, badly, and his millions of supporters took to the streets with their high powered weapons. Since significant numbers of police officers supported them it got ugly quickly, and it looked like there would be no "would-be" about it. It looked like they would win, and the man would be installed as dictator.

Then the military intervened. The heads of all branches of the military were slow to act, but when they saw that the country was very near to leaving its constitutional base, they activated, and joined the fight, despite the fact that their involvement went counter to U. S. laws.

Their late entry into the fray meant that they were at a disadvantage. The fascista had control of the streets in most cities, and even stronger control in many rural areas.

The people on the side of freedom and democracy were in serious difficulty. The vocal members of this group had been placed in detention centers (concentration camps), as had many members of such minority groups as people of color, Latinos, many foreigners, members of the LGBTQ community, people identified as radical, people with physical and/or mental disabilities, and late in the game, Jews.

Guerilla warfare is always difficult for an organized military and this war defined guerilla. The fascist side, early in the war, was not centrally organized, and never got involved in a staged battle. They attacked seemingly at random, with quick hits and quick departures. Once they gained a foothold in an area they came out of hiding, installed a brutal dictatorial government in the area, and ruled by terror. Opposition was killed or incarcerated viciously and immediately. If there was any doubt about whether someone was guilty, they were guilty.

When the U. S. military entered the fray things changed, but it took a while. There was great confusion regarding who was in charge. The winner of the election held legal power, but not de facto power. Still, he ordered almost all troops stationed abroad to return home and join the fight, which the domestic troops were waging with very limited success.

The tide began to turn but the troops needed to liberate area by area.
In the 4th year of the conflict both the President, and the man he had defeated, died.

The new President turned out to be a strong leader, and she seemed to unite the forces on her side even more than her predecessor had.

On the other side there was no clear leader to replace the fallen would-be dictator, and a battle for leadership of the movement weakened that side considerably.

Finally, by the end of Year 7 of the conflict, the legitimate government was firmly in control of most areas of the country and working rapidly to regain control of the rest of the country.

By the end of Year 8 there were only pockets of resistance remaining.

So it was time to rebuild. An election was held, and a new POTUS, Adrianna Coronado, was elected. She was young, vibrant, energetic, and forward looking.

But she was not in complete control of the population of 162 million. Guerilla attacks, crime of all kinds, and general lawlessness and vigilante-ism were rampant, in the old Confederacy, in parts of the Midwest, in the Plains states, and in the Northwest. Only the West Coast, the Northeast, and parts of the Midwest, were relatively free of all of that.

"Addie," as the 39 year old POTUS was called, declared "Year One."
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Re: An Orange Clockwork

Postby Wayne23 » Sun Oct 18, 2020 6:20 pm

I think I should get to basketball before I relate the events of the past 33 years.

4/25/33: I was just hired as head coach of the Central Michigan Raiders. We're a relatively weak team in a relatively strong conference so my work is cut out for me.

I'm known in the central Michigan area as a coaching prodigy. I graduated from right here at CMU and immediately became an assistant under "Fog" Fogerty, who coached here for 57 years. He had some great seasons and some mediocre ones but never really had a bad season. When he dropped dead a month and a half ago a search was started. I seemed to have the inside track but i know that several other guys were interviewed. Any, I got the job, and with my 25th birthday coming up on May 1, I'm it.

My assistants are Recruiter Ryan Will, who has been around the game for a long time and has a good eye, Scout Russ Ames, who is very analytical, and Bench Coach Joe Lynn, who is a terrific motivator. I'm happy with all three.

We'll run Motion and Princeton against man to man, a little more of the former. On D we'll go man to man about 3/4 of the time, and 3-2 the rest. We'll press, but not very often.

Only one senior on the team, SF Don Jack. He and frosh PF Nate Hill look like my best players. I'm hoping my guards will develop because they sure look weak right now.
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Re: An Orange Clockwork

Postby Wayne23 » Sun Oct 18, 2020 6:51 pm

5/1: I "officially" start the job today.

More about the country and the world. So Addie was in charge but she wasn't. Her hold on power was tenuous at best. The fascist movement was defeated and really, it was contained, but the world was changing in other ways, specifically, and most importantly, in two other ways:

First, coronaviruses became an almost annual thing and they were devastating. They became the #1 killer throughout the world. While they didn't decimate the population, they kept it steady, not necessarily a terrible thing. There has been no population growth, since Year 1. The world population that year had fallen to 6.1 billion and it is still estimated to be about at that level.

Second, work became obsolete. Technology made a few gigantic leaps and bounds and it became unnecessary for most people to work at all. A few, about 12%, were needed as overseers, tech repair, replacement, and renovation workers, and a few other things, mostly supervisory. But almost everything could now be done by computers and computerized robots and other machines.

So how did people spend all that time that they used to spend working? Well, therein lay the problem.

Some used the time well, improving their minds, learning new skills and talents, playing complex, challenging games...

Some just vegged out, watching videos and such.

And some formed and/or joined gangs. These gangs were vicious. They existed in all major cities and in many small cities and even in the countryside, And they lived for violence, what they called "ultra-violence." They planned and executed violent attacks seemingly randomly, invading people's homes and viciously beating and sometimes killing the residents.

Their heroes were Charles Manson, and Rudy Voyne, who, five years before Year 1, had been captured; he claimed to have tortured, killed, and eaten 127 women, and it seemed to be accurate. The third hero was Alex DeLarge, the main character in the book/movie "A Clockwork Orange," which, although it had been made many decades before this time, had enjoyed a huge revival. Alex was an inspiration to the gangs.

These gangs usually wore as a sort of uniform, the clothing that Alex and his boys wore in the film. The sight of them walking toward a person was enough to terrify. People would often literally run away, if they were physically able. The police? Many of the police were members, secretly or openly, of these gangs. Others received bribes from them, and the honest cops were often victims of their beatings and killings.

The streets belonged to the gangs, and in large measure still do.
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Re: An Orange Clockwork

Postby Wayne23 » Mon Oct 19, 2020 4:09 am

6/5: We buy the Midwest Gold Report.

6/25: We're going to the Chicago Camp.

6/26: 4 scholarships. We need 2 and 2 or 3 guards.

Life on most U. S. campuses is relatively safe. In almost every case the campus is surrounded by walls and there are guards posted at all entrances. It's not foolproof. First, some manage to get in anyway, and second, naturally some college age kids are members of the gangs. But it's safer on most campuses than it is in most other places.

8/7: We have several recruits showing interest.

8/21: We offer to a PG, an SG, and 2 Cs. All are showing some interest but it will take some selling.

The situation in most first world countries is very much like it is here, almost amazingly so. The street gang phenomenon is occurring to a greater or lesser extent in all first world countries. Psychologists say that without work it is difficult for many people to find meaning in life or to feel useful. The gangs are a way to belong and to feel powerful.
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Re: An Orange Clockwork

Postby Wayne23 » Mon Oct 19, 2020 11:36 am

9/18: We get a PG, #102, lose a C.

We're putting together a pretty weak pre-conf. schedule. I want wins. They help with recruiting.

9/25: Got a C, #74. Lost an SG and a C.

Recruiting Coach Ryan Will: Coach Winters and I agree that getting two really good recruits is great. We'll keep chasing, hoping to get another guard and another inside player. We really need the 2nd guard and the 2nd big guy would help, too.

10/2: We lose another guard.

First day of practice. We're picked to win the Mid-American Conference. We'll need our guards to really step up and we'll need to get more at C than I think we will if that is to happen.

Riots in lots of cities this week, and reports of many home invasions by gangs. The police are overwhelmed- those who are actually trying to do the job.
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Re: An Orange Clockwork

Postby Wayne23 » Sat Oct 24, 2020 3:35 pm

10/9: We lose a C I really thought we had a shot at.

People talk about living during a "zombie apocolypse." It isn't that, of course, but there are often many very sick people walking around, seemingly in a daze. The newer coronaviruses seem to add delirium to the other symptoms. Instead of seeking treatment people wander the streets, staggering around with eyes unfocused, often for days. They become filthy, and frankly, they're more than a little scary to look at although they're too weak to actually cause any harm other than the contagion factor, which is harm enough!

11/6: Here's the lineup:

Soph El Maxx is at Pg.

Frosh Jam Watts, a natural SF, is at SG.

Frosh Jon Herr is our back up guard. We are really thin outside,. And not very strong.

Senior Don Jack is at SF.

Frosh Nate Hill is at PF. He and Jack are easily our best players.

Soph Jay Saul is at C.

Jr. Clif Chap and Soph Joe Latt sub inside.

We're picked to win the Mid-American but I don't see it. I'll be happy to finish above .500.

Brutal attack on a UCM professor and her husband last night. They're both elderly. She's in critical condition and he's seriously injured. Obviously an "ultra-violent" gang attack. So sad and needless.
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Re: An Orange Clockwork

Postby Wayne23 » Sun Oct 25, 2020 3:39 pm

11/14: We start tomorrow.

11/15: 83-78 over Merrimack there. 16 lead changes, 9 ties. We won it in the last two minutes with three threes. 20, 9 for SF Don Jack, 15, 3, 7 for PG El Maxx.

Good bench play and 11 TOs.

So people, or at least most of them, don't work. Not because they don't want to, because computers, robots... can do the work more efficiently, more quickly, and more economically.

So what to do with people? How to provide for their needs, wants...

Great question, and it took some time to even come close to dealing with these complex issues and it also took a total revamp of the economic system.

Humans seem to be much better at solving technological problems than social problems and this transition was no exception.

I'll speak of what happened in this country but it was much the same in too many other places. Some countries were more enlightened but most were not.

At first the Draconian right was in power. People lost their jobs and were left on their own. Many starved to death or died of exposure when they lost their homes.

This turned out to have a side that was not so great for the powerful and the well fed. People do not simply lie down and starve or freeze. They do all that they can do to stay alive and to keep those they love alive, including stealing, mugging, invading homes and places where food supplies are kept, and resorting to acts of extreme violence when it came to that.

Eventually good sense prevailed. The economic reality was that even though the numbers were vast they could be cared for.

Housing was easy. There were any number of vacant buildings. Many people, once the government woke up to reality, simply returned to the places where they had been living. Others were housed, in one way or another. Homes were heated during the cold weather.

Clothing was provided. Cheap entertainment was provided via television and computer.

Food was a bit more of a problem but the robots were growing it in quantities sufficient to feed everyone and eventually a rationing card system was put in place. This didn't work at all well at first. After any number of tweaks it is still far from perfect but people are being adequately fed.

Health care was provided.

So we have people housed, clothed, fed, entertained, and kept in reasonable health. Problems solved right? ... Not really.
More on all of this later.
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Re: An Orange Clockwork

Postby Wayne23 » Sun Oct 25, 2020 3:52 pm

11/18: 80-77 over Tennessee Tech in our home opener. Another close game. We trailed by as many as 15, 9 at the half, and we didn't take our first lead until there were just under two minutes to play. They had the ball last, put up a well guarded three, and it front rimmed.

19, 1, 8 for Maxx, 14, 7, 2 for PF Don Jack, 17, 1, 5 for SG Jam Wats, 11, 13 for C Jay Saul. 9 TOs.

Bench Coach Joe Lynn: This was a real war. Coach is young and inexperienced but he handled this game like a seasoned pro. He had a good sense of when to sub out, what D to play in a given situation, and when to call a play and when to let the guys on the floor find a way to score without a set play. There was a little luck involved, as most of those decisions worked, but it was more than luck, it was good planning.

Don Jack, Senior PF: As the only senior on the team I feel a little pressure. I feel like I need to lead by example, cheer the guys on, and do a whole lot of other things when I'd really rather just play my game. But Coach Winters and the rest of the staff really give me a lot of praise and thanks for taking on the leadership role. PG El Maxx is only a soph. But the PG is the leader on the floor, and he has not shied away from that role.
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Re: An Orange Clockwork

Postby Wayne23 » Mon Oct 26, 2020 11:07 am

11/20: Both of our committed recruits sign, but we're still chasing two others.

11/22: 80-92 at Alcorn ST. You can't give up 92 and win. They led most of the way, and by as many as 20. 23, 6 for Jack, 22 for Wats. 20 TOs, our first bad ball handling game.

11/25: 92-70 over Louisiana-Monroe here. This is the best we've looked so far, especially in the 2nd half (49-31). 21, 5, 4 for sub guard Jon Herr, 18, 10, 4 for Jay Saul, 18, 4 for Wats, 11, 4, 8 for Maxx. We shot 62.7%. Herr would play more but he's a poor defender.

Jon Herr, freshman PG: I think I showed the coaches what I could do in this game. Hoping for more playing time but all I hear is, "Work on your D." Hell, if I score 21 points in 23 minutes how much freakin' D do I need to play!
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Re: An Orange Clockwork

Postby Wayne23 » Mon Oct 26, 2020 11:37 am

11/27: 69-88 at Nicholls ST. I guess inconsistency is to be expected but we went from playing a really good game to being pretty awful, especially in the 2nd half (31-46). We took 9 more shots and made 5 fewer baskets. 18 TOs. 18, 7 for Jack, and our guards, including Herr, played well.

Work is all but a necessity for people. First, they need to feel useful, and second, too many, as we've found out, have no idea how to make good use of all that free time if they aren't working.

And it has caused no end of problems. Depression rates and suicide attempts, successful and otherwise, are at an all time high. Crime is at an all time high. Drug and alcohol abuse is at an all time high. Divorce and separation of families due to failed relationships- yep, all time high.

So it's not working. Even aside from the brutal gangs, it's not working.

Sure, some people are living wonderful lives, fully absorbed in scholarly pursuits or in complex, long term games, involved with hobbies that fulfill them, taking on new interests and new projects and loving it. But more, many more, are simply vegging. They're sleeping way more than is healthy and parking themselves in front of their wall sized TVs and simply gazing at the screen in a stupor.

The people in charge have not been able to come up with any meaningful solutions. All kinds of things, including forced "busy work" jobs have been tried. People simply didn't show up to those jobs after awhile.

The sad reality is that computers and robots are all but making humans obsolete.
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