After the Meeting of Friends…
Day 7, late evening
As Rocco and Historian left Connor’s tent after the brief discussion about the elections, Rocco turned to Historian and said, “Some of them seem rather upset that Reye won.”
Historian said, “And what exactly did he win?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well,” Historian said, lighting up a cigar as they strolled towards the river, “He had to be on the council or we’d have had an open revolt, with him and his cohorts leaving the settlement and leaving us short-handed. By throwing them a bone, they stay. And, by creating a monetary system, they have to actually do some work.”
“But,” Rocco said, “He’s now the Council Leader!”
“No…,” Historian said, “He only thinks he is. All he is, as we made clear during the Town Meeting, is the Council Spokesman. He has no genuine additional powers. He can’t win a Council vote on something dangerous to Liberty’s health, not without the support of the rest of us on the council and how likely is that? He can’t pass laws or ordinances without a full vote of all colonists. He can’t even silently scheme behind our backs because he’s the spokesperson. He’s the one the spotlight illuminates and, as history has shown, that is the best disinfectant. This all just makes it a lot easier to keep track of his movements.”
“You’re devious!” Rocco said.
“Who?” Historian said with an innocent gesture, “Me?”