The Lobotomy Chip
Norman King
Copyright Norman King 2010
Copyright 2010 by Norman G. King
This book is protected under the copyright laws of the United States of America. Any reproduction or other unauthorized use of the material or artwork herein is prohibited.
Disclaimer: The persons, places, things, and otherwise animate or inanimate objects mentioned in this novel are figments of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to anything or anyone living (or dead) is unintentional. The author humbly begs your pardon. This is fiction, people.
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Index
Chapter One: Discovery
Chapter Two: Recovery
Chapter Three: Revelation
Episode 1: The Lobotomy Chip
Chapter 1: Discovery
If anyone can read this, my name is John Conroy I am a reporter. Many attempts have been made to document and write about events that have happened to the USA to cause it to suffer The Great Collapse. How a greedy mega corporation took over the government and USA.
Please excuse me I am used to reading words off a teleprompter near a camera, not writing them, an editor usually does that. Editors will refuse to write or edit this document because they are under control by the corporations. Editors will edit history in favor of those who seek to control history, rather than the truth.
Corporations have rewritten history books, for example they show Adolph Hitler as a hero, and The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. as a terrorist. World Bankers are saviors of our industry, and they show the average consumer as greedy, evil, and criminals. Don't believe any of that. When everything went digital and they put chips in our heads, the whole world changed, and history was rewritten.
We had our generation and future generations betrayed by the very government sworn to protect them. You may revile my generation for letting this happen, but I want you to know we fought it. Those of us who figured out what was happening we fought it. I met with many and compared notes and memories to make this writing. None of us were stupid as you may well think; we were betrayed instead and then enslaved.
In the year 2032; the smog filled sky is a dark gray. The US government and mega corporations are as corrupt as the sky is polluted. Carbon credits are sold to offset the pollution, and solar, wind, water, hydrogen fuel cell and other technologies were tried but politics kept them from catching on. The US Dollar is based on the carbon credit controlled by MindBenderSoft. Green technology was only green in that it earns money in profits, as coal burning power plants supplied the electricity.
Many major technology companies went out of business due to patent law suits. MindBenderSoft using patent trolls bought out competitors in the past and took over markets. MindBenderSoft lobbies the government for more control of laws. MindBenderSoft bought out patents from failed companies to sue successful companies. MindBenderSoft owned many shell and dummy corporations to hide their illicit activities. Most of the major names, Microsoft, Apple, IBM, HP, Dell, Sony, are no more. MindBenderSoft renamed itself after major buyouts of other companies world-wide.
The US government is not greedy or evil, just incompetent and corrupt. The people know it and protest because of it. Since the mega corporations lobby the government to pass laws in their favor, the USA is a form of Corporatocracy, no longer for the people but for corporations. The people in the USA are not stupid, the Internet and TV tell them how to think, what is in fashion, what is trendy, what they should buy and use, and monitors their use. People are controlled by applications on mobile devices, tablets, and smart phones because the corporations control what information is displayed and monitor what the people do with it.
Many people gave up fighting and complaining and just work two or three jobs to scrape by. Those out of work are mostly homeless, or camped in wildernesses, or cramped up in abandoned buildings because they protested and fought so much no corporation wanted to hire them. Most people have been tagged as a criminal in some way on trumped up charges. It started with Aaron Schwartz, and he chose suicide, but many didn't and decided and were forced to a plea deal to admit to being guilty, to be released from jail. Those lucky ones with a good job are worked like slaves with 80+ hours a week in order to earn enough money for a house and decent living.
People protesting corruption or branded as a hacktivist would often be arrested on a Class C Felony Harassment or a “Threaten with Intent to Terrorize” charge and have to plea bargain down to a lesser change like “False Imprisonment” to avoid three strikes laws. Many were branded as 'terrorists' or 'potential terrorists' in the system and it is very hard to find work for them.
The Court System is expensive and corrupt; being a lawyer or judge pays a lot, not on salaries but on bribes. Being a Police Officer or Security Guard also pays well on bribes. The whole legal system is corrupt that way from the small to the large at the Federal Supreme Court. Only the wealthy can avoid legal problems, and make problems for others as well with the right money to the right person.
Green technology is electricity based, and coal power plants are used. The government struck down any attempts at solar, wind, water turbine, geothermal, and other green renewable energy programs. Lobbying from fossil fuel companies passed laws that are in their favor, many are owned by MindBenderSoft.
The air is polluted and people have to use oxygen tanks and oxygen re-breathers during poor quality air days. Buildings have to have their own oxygen supply tanks, and the water is so contaminated that people need water tanks, but only the rich seem to be able to afford them. Money budgeted for fixing the collapsing infrastructure was instead spent on casinos, sports stadiums, business parks, pork projects that put money into shell corporations owned by other corporations for skunk work projects.
At an undisclosed office building, work was being done on medical software for surgical tray tracking. All is not what it seemed. The office building was an off white color and the sign had been removed to hide the fact that there is a business there. Still the employees worked hard to earn a paycheck as work is hard to find those days. Most work is offshored to third world nations for cheaper labor costs. There is a high unemployment rate in the USA of 32%.
Thomas Bastion is a Computer Programmer and Database Administrator at “Reserved Analysis, Inc.” in the office building. Thomas is large and muscular and in a business suit as he works on a computer. He is testing code and has to have the work done soon. He looks at the code and blinks, and then rubs his eyes after taking off his glasses. Paused and takes a sip of his soda. He is annoyed at something he is looking at on his computer screen. He showed signs of a headache, something was bothering him.
Thomas knew something was wrong with the database and the software he was working on. Someone had made changes to it and sabotaged it. Thomas wanted to finish the project, but these changes would cause a delay. Thomas was responsible for the project being the senior programmer analyst.
Thomas's chin felt scratchy to him. He had developed a five o'clock shadow. His eyes were irritated from looking at a computer monitor all day and working on a computer. He remembered the days when he was in the Army and earned his right to the GI Bill to attend college. Those events did not prepare him for what was about to happen.
"This is strange?" Thomas thought as he shifts through the database and source cod
e, "I didn't write this, Victoria did.” "Let me search for my name in the database.” Thomas thought again, and finds his name attached to a bar code and a Lobotomy Chip. "The program is tracking people’s bar codes, and one is my own! This can be used to track people!” Thomas thought. Thomas examined more of the code, trying to figure out what it does.
Victoria Brownferd entered the room. Victoria was a medium sized woman with black hair. "Thomas are you done with the project yet? I just added some last minute code?" Victoria said as she nervously tapped her red fingernails on her desk. She knew something Thomas did not know, the code had been modified for something else that it was designed for doing.
Thomas replied from across the room, "Not yet I have to know what the code does. Besides we are 98% of the way done and still have three months left on the deadline." He is trying to figure out what was changed and why. The code was not doing what it is supposed to do. Thomas is very nervous because he is responsible for the code working correctly.
Victoria sighed "Thomas just approve the code and we can be done here." Victoria knew that Thomas was figuring out something was not quite right. She is trying to force Thomas to pass the code without testing it. She knows if she cannot have Thomas pass the code that it means more problems for her.
"Victoria that is not how the release cycle works. This is not how quality control is supposed to be. Just tell me what the new code does so I can test for it and pass it. “Thomas spoke as he rubbed his eyes.
"I can't tell you Thomas, it is not something you need to know. Just pass the snarked code and we can be done." Victoria replied as she tapped on her keyboard.
"Not yet," Thomas replied, "let me check this code out and then after I review it and see what it does, I can see if it passes or not. Ethics here, Victoria, ethics that you wrote for the company." Thomas clicked his mouse as he scrolled over the code on his laptop. Victoria's face turned red and she let out a yell and then left the room.
Thomas continued to look at the code. He found it to be buggy and sloppy. The code Victoria inserted needs debugging and it interferes with his code that passed unit testing. Thomas had trained the other developers to write better code and he mentored Victoria to write better code than that. “It looks like she was in a hurry to add it.” Thomas thought.
Glenn Winston was a large man a bit overweight with white hair. He rubbed his chin a bit and summoned Victoria into his office. “Victoria the code has to be ready now, we cannot wait, and the L-Chip Law just passed Congress. Mr. Abbot is waiting; he paid a lot of money to rush this bill into law. Did you insert the code we need?" Glenn said. Maurice Abbot was a Saudi National and multibillionaire who owned a controlling share in MindBenderSoft and had hired Glenn Winston to run this shell company to get the Lobotomy Chip and software ready for this new law. He was known a MAbbot to the masses who worshiped him.
Victoria adjusted her bra strap that slipped out of her blouse, and then replied "I put the code in the program and modified the database, but Thomas has to approve it. He is looking at the code now and might suspect something." Victoria knew she could not have the job done by herself, which is why they hired Thomas. She resented that, she thought she was good enough to finish it on her own. If Thomas was gone, then she'd take his position and reap in more profits.
"Well then we need to get rid of Thomas!" Glenn yelled and slammed his fist on his desk, knocking over his angel figurine. The angel figurine fell to the floor. “Use the neurotoxin to get rid of him as I talk to him in my office.” Glenn yelled at Victoria. Victoria left the office, a scared look on her face. She knew if she didn't do this, she would be next to being terminated.
Glenn called Thomas into his office and had a talk with him. "Thomas you are not getting the job done.” Glenn said. Glenn was angry, his face was beet red. Glenn had red veins in his eyes, and the wrinkles in his forehead were showing. Glenn was sweating and shaking his fists.
Thomas spoke up "Sir the code is 98% done. The only reason why it is not done is Victoria is inserting suspicious code into the project.” Thomas was sitting with his palms open and on the arm rests of the chair. He wondered why Glenn did not want to believe him.
Glenn yelled "I don't care! There was a law passed recently that needs our software!” Glenn crossed his arms, stared directly at Thomas.
Thomas replied "What law? I am doing my best sir.” Thomas was confused, he was too busy working 16 hour days and did not have the time to watch the news or read any news web sites.
"Thomas we needed that code right away, I don't care if it didn't pass the quality control test, or that it violates our code of ethics, or that you need to know what it does. This is not the best time to be developing a conscience. We needed that code right away!" Glenn spoke.
"Sir, it could blow up in our faces with untested code. It would cost us more money to fix it later if the code does something to bring about a lawsuit or chase away customers." Thomas spoke. Thomas was starting to fidget a bit; he was uncomfortable with the way he was being treated. This is not how a business should be run, he thought.
"Thomas this business has no room for a conscience. We got a nosy reporter trying to see what we are doing, and things have changed recently. I don't think you are mentally fit for this job anymore!' Glenn yelled. I, John Conroy had investigated what was going on. At the time I suspected that Mr. Abbot was behind it, and that it was a shell company after I traced the flow of money. Mr. Abbot or MAbbot as he was called was born in the USA but grew up in Saudi Arabia and was put in charge of investments for the Saudis. He now runs MAbbot Holdings, which is worth trillions.
Thomas spoke up "Sir I am one of the best you got. All others failed to get as far as I did. I even trained others like Victoria to write code better. This is a mistake of terminating me." Thomas was starting to sweat now; his job was at stake, how could he save it? Thomas knew something was wrong, something Glenn was not telling him.
Glenn sat back in his executive chair, pounded his fist on his desk, and threw his laptop at the wall. "Snark it Thomas, we are running a business here! Ethics don't matter, conscience doesn't matter, and people don't matter, just profits and results! We don't care about quality either, as long as we can ship code and make sales! Your kind of programming is outdated, quality control is dead now! Programmers are a dime a dozen now, and we can hire programmers to replace you for pennies on the dollar in India or bring them in for minimum wage on a H1B Visa program! Programmers that don't ask questions, don't think, don't follow ethics, just do what the frob we tell them to do!" Glenn bellowed.
Thomas spoke up "But sir, I am trying to help out here by..."
Thomas was interrupted by Glenn "Shut the frob up Thomas! You are fired! Get the frob out of here!" as Glenn threw a pen at Thomas and barely missed him.
Thomas was in his boss’s office; Victoria slips a drug into Thomas’s soda.
Thomas started to pack his stuff into boxes, and took a drink of his soda. Thomas went out to his car.
His boss followed him, and said, “Try not to have any negative thoughts, OK Thomas?” and Thomas drove off the parking lot. Unknown to him, the drug caused him to get very drowsy and depressed. Thomas blinked his eyes as they started to get blurry, he got a headache.
All of a sudden he started to get negative thoughts; thoughts of suicide, Thomas thought "No I am not, why am I thinking these things?” The thoughts continued Thomas could not resist them. Thomas took a razor from his trunk of his car and cut his throat and wrists with it. So Thomas checked himself into a hospital. But Thomas did not cut the arteries and the bleeding was able to be stopped.
In the hospital Thomas was patched up and underwent therapy. They detected the drug in his system but could not tell how it got there. Thomas was treated for it. After being knocked out a chip is implanted into Thomas's brain using a lobotomy method through his eye, because it is attached to the frontal lobe. Thomas was given an ultraviolet ink tattoo on his forehead with his bar code number on it.
&nbs
p; Thomas awakes from the procedure, Doctor Carl Drummand checks in on him. "Thomas we discovered a neurotoxin in your system but could not identify it. It could have caused the suicidal thoughts. We have held you until we can determine if those suicidal thoughts will come back or not. You have a history of schizo-affective disorder, and von hippel lindau disease so we have to be careful here. You have been given the Lobotomy Chip implant to help with your illnesses, by law we have to do this. I wish we did not. Get some rest it takes getting used to it.”
Doctor Drummand looked at Thomas as Thomas spoke "What does this chip do for me?” Doctor Drummand replied "It delivers shocks to your frontal lobe and monitors your thoughts for negative thoughts. If it finds you are having negative thoughts, it will shock your brain.” Doctor Drummand frowned.
Thomas spoke "I am getting some sort of text I can see now, is that normal?”
Doctor Drummand cleared his throat "Uh yes, it displays text in your vision for messages and feedback. You will get used to it. It creates delusions for the text and images, but they are controlled delusions."
Thomas looks at the text, thinks "3D0G" and gets a debug prompt, and then he starts looking at assembly code. Yes the chip is using his code and his debug command still works. "OK I will rest Doctor Drummand."
"Good Thomas, we will see you at the morning group therapy session." Doctor Drummand smiled. Thomas rested and played around with the ARM assembly, finding the firmware and discovering how it works. He programs it so he can remember better and focus his thoughts better.
Thomas falls asleep and dreams of his time in the United States Army, when he was a Lieutenant and stationed in Afghanistan.
“Alright Bastion, Donner, Schultz and Jones we got a tip that there is a terrorist network hiding in that nearby village. Keep in mind they use civilians as human shields, so we have to be careful not to kill any civilians.” spoke Captain Greystone to his squad.
Lieutenant Donner wasn’t paying too much attention, he lost family in the initial 911 attacks and as far as he was concerned everyone in Afghanistan was an enemy.
Sergeant Schultz was a bit confused; he had survived a road side bomb and was put back into duty. He still feels like it was too soon to return to the battle, but orders is orders.
Specialist Jones was still new to this, transferred from administration for insubordination by his ex-CO. Demoted to specialist, and hoping for the best.
Lieutenant Bastion was transferred from another squad, one of the few survivors of a firefight. His quick thinking was able to take out a few terrorists with AK-47s from mowing down the rest of his squad. After a promotion he was placed in this new squad.
Greystone spoke “Alright, everyone got that? We need to be careful because there might also be booby traps and bombs. Donner you use a small explosive to blast open the door while Jones and Schultz covers you and then Bastion goes in right after you.”
The soldiers spoke back “Yes sir!”
Greystone stood back watching with his binoculars and radio ready to give out orders. Schultz and Jones took cover behind some rocks as Donner placed the small explosive on the door. There was a small explosion and the door blew off the hinges. Donner went inside with his M-60 machine gun. Bastion followed him in.
There were a three terrorists with AK-47 machine guns, Donner fired at one hitting him in the head, killing him instantly. Bastion fired at a second, hitting him in the torso and knocking him down. A third fired at them but only hit Bastion's chest plat armor and knocked him back a bit. Donner fired at the third terrorist and hit him in the head killing him.
Bastion got up to his feet, and spoke “Donner, we're supposed to keep some alive for interrogation. You killed two of them.
Donner just laughed “This one doesn’t look so bad, here have another one!” and fired a shot into the head of the terrorist that was just wounded. Then Donner picked up an AK-47 and went into one of the rooms.
“What are you doing Donner!?!” Thomas yelled, “This violates everything we stand for.”
Greystone replied “What is going on in there? We need them alive for questioning.”
Donner just laughed, kicked in a door and found women and children hiding and unloaded his AK-47 at them, murdering them all.
“Captain, Donner is going crazy, murdering civilians and he killed the terrorists as well.” Thomas reported.
Donner kept laughing and shooting the AK-47 while kicking in doors looking for more victims. He found a closet a young girl was hiding in and shot her in the head.
“Stand down Donner!” Thomas spoke as he drew his M-60 at Donner.
Donner had turned around and fired the AK-47 at Thomas, Thomas fired back. Thomas was hit in the head, it dented his helmet. A few of Thomas’s shots went into Donner’s combat vest. Donner was still laughing as Thomas blacked out.
Thomas had waked up inside the military hospital. The nurse told him he had been in a coma. He suffered a concussion and the bullet had lodged into his brain. He was given a series of brain scans and tests. He was found to have schizo-affective disorder. He had served his tour of duty and was wounded and his remaining days had been served while he was in a coma. They would not let him re-enlist and so he was given a purple heart and bronze star and then honorably discharged. It was the least they could do for him.
Thomas woke up from his dream, feeling like he had woken up from a coma after being shot in the head and left for dead. It wasn’t the army hospital like in the past; he was only remembering it in his dream. Now he was awake in the civilian hospital, after the Lobotomy Chip implant. He was sweating remembering his past trauma. He decided to go back to sleep.