The readerboard sign wasn't working.
As the 4:55 P.M. meeting began on Wednesday, February 6, 2008, nothing seemd to be operating properly in the 'studio' from which each daily convention was being broadcast. Cameras were malfunctioning, lights were flickering, and there appeared to be a bustle of frenzied activity as organizers tried to fix things. Someone had scribbled a hand-written poster to hold in front of the camera and announce the results of yesterday's vote on the EPA resolution.
ARTICLE XIV. RESOLUTION: EXPAND THE ROLE OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
TOTAL NUMBER OF VOTES CAST: 1,178,976
NUMBER OF "YEA" VOTES: 1,108,237
NUMBER OF "NAY" VOTES: 70,739
Clutching a hand-held microphone, a bearded, dark-eyed man wearing a tattered sports shirt stepped in front of the camera and nervously stammered some kind of elucidation about 'technical difficulties' and "an inability to broadcast due to transmission interferences". Apparently some kind of electronics technician, he used a lot of words most viewers didn't understand, but - still - the explanation seemed plausible enough. If one looked beyond the technician's broad, round face and focused on the activity in the background, there appeared to be some state of confusion - some might even perceive it as panic - among those O.U.T.R.A.G.E. members milling about the floor.
Up until now, things had progressed surprisingly well. For the most part, there had been an orderly and calm presence among all those in the O.U.T.R.A.G.E. "convention hall" - and the same kind of tranquility was being witnessed at the thousands of sites set up as 'receiving centers' for the daily broadcasts. A United States President and most of his cabinet was dead. Almost all members of Congress were dead. Selected bureaucrats, politicians, lawyers, doctors, multi-millionaires, corporate CEOs, movie stars, sports celebrities, and thousands of other prominent, influential and excessively wealthy people around the United States were all dead. Government buildings, corporate offices, military facilities, sports arenas, west coast film studios, oil refineries, multi-million-dollar private homes, and countless other structures were now reduced to grotesque piles of twisted metal, shattered glass, pulverized brick, and mountains of demolished furnishings and fixtures. What was going on?
Another hand-scrawled sign was thrust in front of the camera. Although in most locations, reception was fuzzy at best, most of the more than one million viewers across the country were able to decipher the message: WE EXPECT TO RESUME REGULAR BROADCASTING AT 4:55 P.M. EST TOMORROW, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 07, 2008. WE APOLOGIZE FOR THIS DISRUPTION AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE. FOR THE SAKE OF OUR GREAT NATION, PLEASE STAY TUNED TO THESE DAILY BROADCASTS AND URGE YOUR FRIENDS, NEIGHBORS, AND RELATIVES TO JOIN IN THIS PROCESS. In the lower right-hand corner of the sign someone had attached a bright lime-green O.U.T.R.A.G.E. sticker.
Less than 180 seconds after the 4:55 broadcast had begun, it was over. The usual two-line message confirming the next day's meeting at 4:55 P.M. EST didn't appear on the screen. Instead of a normal "fade to black" as routinely seen at the end of a televison broadcast, it appeared more like someone pulled a plug and - instantaneously - there was no image.
As the 4:55 P.M. meeting began on Wednesday, February 6, 2008, nothing seemd to be operating properly in the 'studio' from which each daily convention was being broadcast. Cameras were malfunctioning, lights were flickering, and there appeared to be a bustle of frenzied activity as organizers tried to fix things. Someone had scribbled a hand-written poster to hold in front of the camera and announce the results of yesterday's vote on the EPA resolution.
ARTICLE XIV. RESOLUTION: EXPAND THE ROLE OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
TOTAL NUMBER OF VOTES CAST: 1,178,976
NUMBER OF "YEA" VOTES: 1,108,237
NUMBER OF "NAY" VOTES: 70,739
Clutching a hand-held microphone, a bearded, dark-eyed man wearing a tattered sports shirt stepped in front of the camera and nervously stammered some kind of elucidation about 'technical difficulties' and "an inability to broadcast due to transmission interferences". Apparently some kind of electronics technician, he used a lot of words most viewers didn't understand, but - still - the explanation seemed plausible enough. If one looked beyond the technician's broad, round face and focused on the activity in the background, there appeared to be some state of confusion - some might even perceive it as panic - among those O.U.T.R.A.G.E. members milling about the floor.
Up until now, things had progressed surprisingly well. For the most part, there had been an orderly and calm presence among all those in the O.U.T.R.A.G.E. "convention hall" - and the same kind of tranquility was being witnessed at the thousands of sites set up as 'receiving centers' for the daily broadcasts. A United States President and most of his cabinet was dead. Almost all members of Congress were dead. Selected bureaucrats, politicians, lawyers, doctors, multi-millionaires, corporate CEOs, movie stars, sports celebrities, and thousands of other prominent, influential and excessively wealthy people around the United States were all dead. Government buildings, corporate offices, military facilities, sports arenas, west coast film studios, oil refineries, multi-million-dollar private homes, and countless other structures were now reduced to grotesque piles of twisted metal, shattered glass, pulverized brick, and mountains of demolished furnishings and fixtures. What was going on?
Another hand-scrawled sign was thrust in front of the camera. Although in most locations, reception was fuzzy at best, most of the more than one million viewers across the country were able to decipher the message: WE EXPECT TO RESUME REGULAR BROADCASTING AT 4:55 P.M. EST TOMORROW, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 07, 2008. WE APOLOGIZE FOR THIS DISRUPTION AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE. FOR THE SAKE OF OUR GREAT NATION, PLEASE STAY TUNED TO THESE DAILY BROADCASTS AND URGE YOUR FRIENDS, NEIGHBORS, AND RELATIVES TO JOIN IN THIS PROCESS. In the lower right-hand corner of the sign someone had attached a bright lime-green O.U.T.R.A.G.E. sticker.
Less than 180 seconds after the 4:55 broadcast had begun, it was over. The usual two-line message confirming the next day's meeting at 4:55 P.M. EST didn't appear on the screen. Instead of a normal "fade to black" as routinely seen at the end of a televison broadcast, it appeared more like someone pulled a plug and - instantaneously - there was no image.
posted by Bushwacker! at 7:23 AM
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