Word was being received from around the country that many funerals were being planned for Monday. In some cities, mass burials for dozens or, in some cases, hundreds of citizens were scheduled to take place. Eighteen days ago America's most prominent families saw their lives of wealth and privilege shattered beyond what many could comprehend. To be sure, thousands of 'common' citizens were also numbered among the dead. It was an inadvertent consequence of what many O.U.T.R.A.G.E. members were now calling "the Rebellion of '08". The objective had been to annihilate a majority of America's 'upper crust' - those individuals, bureaucracies, organizations, and corporate entities whose wealth and power allowed them to set the rules to their liking and ignore the predicaments of the 'common' citizenry.

As Monday's meeting opened at 4:55 P.M. EST, viewers noticed a change from the usual mundane backdrop: a huge U.S. flag adorned the pale green wall, hanging above the neon glare of the readerboard sign. The sign recorded the results of yesterday's vote:

ARTICLE XII. RESOLUTION: DISMANTLE THE MILITARY-INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX
TOTAL NUMBER OF VOTES CAST: 1,012,522
NUMBER OF "YEA" VOTES: 718,875
NUMBER OF "NAY" VOTES: 293,647

There was an eerily-noticeable quiet that permeated the room. Instead of the usual crowd that milled around the floor, the cameras showed most O.U.T.R.A.G.E. members were seated on folding chairs, many with heads bowed and hands folded. A U.S. Army chaplain stood motionless in front of the main camera, in full military regalia. A muscular man, perhaps sixty years of age, he addressed those assembled in the vast room in a deep, booming voice that could be heard without aid of a microphone. The roughness of his features contrasted sharply with the gentle mannerisms of his demeanor. Still, as he started to talk, a slightly perceptible quiver in his voice seemed to threaten the deportment of his mission. "I am proud," he announced, "to be a part of this organization called O.U.T.R.A.G.E. Even though what this well-organized, well-financed band of patriots did might forever be considered unforgivable to millions of American citizens, millions may also come to believe that what we did was necessary for the preservation of our great union. Only God will be the ultimate judge. We have set aside this day to offer a resolution of profound purport." As more than a million viewers watched on big-screen TVs across the country, the chaplain unveiled a scroll from he read the next resolution.

ARTICLE XIII. RESOLUTION: UNITED STATES OF AMERICA COMMEMORATION WEEK

"Let it be known that what has happened in recent days has delivered a devastating blow to the United States of America. We have experienced the loss of many of our country's most prominent people. Much of our leadership is gone. Countless common citizens have died as a result of this terrible tragedy. Families are in turmoil, and may never be able to forgive us for the unspeakable travesty we unleashed. In human terms, the devastation is immeasureable, and we offer our heartfelt condolences to all those who have lost family members. We understand that you may never understand what we did, or why we did it. We realize that you may never realize the absolute purity of our motivations.

From this day forward, we will call upon every resource and ability we have to demonstrate how our intentions were honorable. As in the first American Revolution, many had to die. As in any battle, many innocents also die. This resolution is being introduced to establish the first annual United States Commemoration Week, wherein we will honor all those who were killed, in hopes that this event will live in infamy and remain in our collective consciousness for the rest of eternity. We propose that a national holiday be established to remember this catastrophe, so that it will never perish from our memory. We propose that this be a week-long period of mourning, contrition and patriotic observances. We further propose that this holiday NEVER become the secular celebrations that so many of our other revered holidays have become. For that week, no non-essential businesses or stores will be allowed to open. There will be no sale of fireworks, alcohol, or other celebratory accoutrements to defame this most solemn occasion. Churches, synagogues, mosques, and other places of worship or meditation will be asked to conduct commemorative services and memorials to those who fell victim, and to those whose lives were forever altered because of the events that unfolded over these past eighteen days. Unless it threatens public safety or community well-being, we respectfully request that the massive piles of rubble be allowed to remain as natural monuments for all to observe from this time forward, just as Nazi Germany's death camps were preserved to remind us that such a holocaust should never happen again. Only God and time will decide whether what we did was moral; only our own future will determine whether what we did was right and just. We have no right to ask for anyone's forgiveness or absolution. We now have a sacred duty to ensure that so many did not die in vain. United States Commemoration Week shall never be intended as a celebration wherein people take off work for the temporal or telluric; instead, it is the full intention of this resolution to recognize the need for respect and reflection, so as never to return to the impudent and shallow ways to which our nation had declined. This special week will be reserved for renewal of patriotism, love of our fellow citizens, compassion for those less fortunate, and community unity. May God have give us the courage to resume and recover. After you cast your votes around the country, we also ask that you observe eighteen minutes of silence out of respect for the dead."

The screen went blank, but - instead of the usual fade-to-black, an image of the American flag remained for eighteen minutes. Then came the routine two-line announcement, and the meeting ended for the day.