A real fairy tale

Once upon a time, in a kingdom so fanciful it could only be imaginary, a leader came into power and surrounded himself with fellow lordlings as “advisers.”

Most of the citizens of the land were humble, honest folk whose lineage could not claim the “titles” of the entitlement the lordlings reveled in.

Parents worked hard and expected no special favors, but soon came to realize that their leaders, in all their dealings over the years, had created a land whose every law was rigged in the lordlings’ favor. The rule of law, when not applied to all, came to mean nothing.

This, gentle reader, is how we know that this story is a fairy tale, because a fair-minded ruler could never allow that to happen, nor would any self-respecting citizenry approve of such a state of affairs.

A previous enemy of the realm was found to have meddled in the current leader’s rise to power, tilting the process clearly in their chosen candidate’s favor.

Sadly, it never occurred to the hapless leader (until it was too late) that the rival country could easily shift its manipulation to favor a different leader in the next elections, thus destabilizing the realm while exposing it to a degree of danger to its autonomy none could have imagined.

Cynthia Farrington

Spokane