Where I Vent My Spleen: cartoon

Oliver was not well equipped for this...

What was wrong with these people?

How could they live like this?

Why didn't they care?

It was Oliver's work too.

The bullshit was unbelievable.

The MD sat up there in his ivory tower all day and was never seen.

Not until after six. Then he'd come out and walk about the offices.

Those who were seen to be there moved on. It was that simple.

So many tended to do pretty much nothing during the day and only

really start after 5:30. The work was never checked or judged.

You just had to be there.

When his company had been bought out Matt thought it was a good thing.

More security in a larger company.

But 18 months later they shut it down and laid everyone off.

Matt couldn't under stand it. That's not how you grow a company is it?

But they didn't want to grow the company. They wanted to shut down

the competition then keep doing exactly what they were doing with

the same staff, but charge a lot more.

End

Click here to read "I'm a Designer." another story set in the same reality. (Loads better drawn too!)

Click here for "Shard" also set in this world.

Click here for "Moving North"

It was said that the change in orientation of patient A came from errors made in his treatment.

Naturally the American far right heralded this event as being sent by God.

Saying that the hands of doctors had been guided.

Nothing more is known of patient A.

Save from the fact that he changed the world...

The “cure” took pill form with what many saw as indecent haste.

Many republican senators called for a bill to make the “cure” compulsory for those “needing it”. This was, of course, deeply offensive to the gay community and celebrations followed the defeat of the bill.

It was a different story in Russia, many middle eastern countries and several African states where the “cure” was administered to anyone suspected of being homosexual. It was a difficult to be gay and it was about to get more so.

The “cure” wrecked attempts for gay equality.

It became a reason to say no to any and all equal rights. One TV pundit said succinctly “If they want to get married, they can take the cure and marry a woman like everyone else.”

A lot had happened at the demo. There had been a lot of shouting some throwing of things and Alfred had been squirted by something. Someone in the crowd had sprayed him with what looked like mace, but there’d been no effect.

It had felt like water.

The “cure” had been weaponised.

It had originated in Russia but quickly spread. This new variant of “cure” could be absorbed though the skin and was adapted into aerosol spray.

Paulo and Alfred continued to live together and even sleep in the same bed. The physical side of their relationship was gone but it seems while you could now force a sexuality on someone there was still nothing to be done about love.

The ease with which the “cure” could be synthesised and produced meant that the next step was inevitable.

The “cure” itself was synthesised from a straight donor. Once the hard work and money had been spent to test and streamline it’s production a 1^st year biology student could make it in his bedroom.

It was easy enough to make a cure for the “cure” by using a gay donor and Alfred took the cure for the cure 18 months after he’d being hetroized.

Three weeks later a smoke bomb was thrown through the window of an East end pub known for right wing drinkers turning everyone inside gay and then turning the police who arrived moments later gay too.

No one was gay for very long.

Within a couple of days everyone involved was straightened out, but they felt violated to have such a change forced upon them and shortly after revenge attacks were perpetrated.

A hair dressers was straight bombed and an interior designer was straight sprayed outside his office.

Jacob was in fact straight to begin with. He was married with twin daughters, but his hair was lovely and his shoes went with his tie so you can see how the mistake might have been made.

These tit for tat incidents escalated until the gender riot broke out in Soho a month later.

By the end of the day the Royal London Hospital found it’s A & E department over run.

It was standing room only.

Most of the people there had had their sexuality changed numerous times that day.

Arguments, fights, and same sex love affairs breaking out everywhere. In the middle of this Doctor Carol Greenberg stood on a chair and blew her whistle. “Shut up! The lot of you!This is A and E!”

Silence fell over the room. “It doesn’t matter what you were this morning! Everyone who’s the sexuality they want to be fuck off! Anyone wishing to be straight move over to the right side of the room and anyone wishing to be gay over on the left side of the room.”

The room parted. Dr Carol smiled “Look at me! I’m moses!”

She looked down at the guy left standing in the middle. “What?”