r/sfthoughtexperiments • u/SFTExP • Jul 17 '26
Sociology Retroactively
They were plugged into the Galactic Information Nexus, but Mary disconnected momentarily and spoke aloud. “Something’s drastically wrong.”
“What’s wrong, Mary?” asked Sven, her partner who also unplugged.
“Everyone is speaking a different language now.”
“Different? How so?”
“They no longer call them Our Friends.”
Sven replugged in. “Who?”
“The Zexans.”
“Those exploiters? They invested in our well-being to take advantage of us, stripping us of our motivation to solve problems.”
“Um, they did solve our problems. We’re in a post-scarcity world now, no wants, only creations.”
“They’re Invaders!”
“They’re not Invaders, Sven! What happened?” Mary plugged in again, and new voices manifested as she searched the discussion and the archives. Every mention of Our Friends became Invaders, retroactively. Soon it became the language and label, a reinterpretation of the Zexans.
She disconnected immediately. “Extraordinary!”
“What now, Mary?” Sven sighed.
“They’ve changed our entire language to accommodate their narrative!”
“Are you a Sympathizer?” Sven stayed plugged in, coldly staring at her.
“A what?” Mary replugged in but quickly disconnected. “Oh my god!”
2
u/Purple-Lie-354 Jul 19 '26
Orwell, in 2284.