Originally written 2007-06-27

Today was the day.

The excitement in the Senate chamber was palpable. Alvin Rogers about to present the nation with his recommendations for solving the poverty of the entire human race, and almost everyone knew that his recommendations were sure to knock our socks off.

You see, Rogers was no ordinary pundit; he was the first subject of an experimental intelligence enhancement procedure; one whose success had been nothing less than spectacular. Rogers had become so smart, he was solving ancient math problems, solving new puzzles in moments, and inventing whole fields of knowledge singlehandedly, as fast as he could take in the requisite background material.

And now, he was applying himself to the ancient ethical mysteries of the human condition. After much discussion and deliberation, he told the world he was ready to propose what he claimed was an ideal solution. Finally, after all these years, we may have the missing piece to alleviate all human economic suffering.

But the announcement, when it came, was anything but satisfying. It was downright anticlimactic.

Rogers said, simply "According to my calculations, we have plenty for everyone. Tax the rich, and give it to the poor."

The applause was slow to come, but it did. But when it did, it was something less than the raucous cheer that everyone present had been hoping for.

It was easy to feel more than a little swindled - didn't we already know that we could do that? Wasn't the idea of having a genius tackle this problem was so that we wouldn't HAVE to tax the rich?

Over the course of the next few hours, the sour feeling of let down only grew heavier. On the news, the next day, people began to question exactly how smart this Alvin Rogers guy really was, and, even if he was as smart as they said, why people should listen to him. After all, it wouldn't make a difference how smart a guy is, if he doesn't properly represent your interests. And raising taxes was most definitely not an interest of the wealthy people of the nation.

Thus, Alvin Rogers faded from the mediasphere in a whimper of controversy and uncertainty. His fifteen minutes of fame had been spent.

The poor would simply have to wait for someone even smarter to come along and solve their problem.

Comments –Nato