TEST DRAFT 3 With LLaregub footnotes The Boy Who Shot Flimzy Bubbletrumpett- macbook 2

factories that make guns, bombs, missiles, tanks – all that stuff. I am going to do it. And I
want all guns and weapons destroyed. That is what I called you here to tell you.
Your Majesty is trying to do something truly marvellous and truly good. But as your advisor,
your Psychopomp, I have to point out some problems. Otherwise I would not be doing the job
I was appointed to do.
What problems?
Well, firstly think about all the people you will be putting out of work. The arms industry
employs millions of people around the world. Then there are all those who supply the arms
industry, the steel works, the uniform makers, the computer companies, shipyards. There are
actually tens of millions of people involved. If you just stop making arms you are going to hit
all those people, and their families too. If they don’t have work what will they do?
But guns kill people! They kill millions of people a year.
You are absolutely right. But please let me go on.
As well as putting people out of work, if you stop manufacturing weapons so people will try
to make them secretly and that will put them in a very powerful position in an unarmed world.
You want to destroy all weapons. Does that include those used by the police to defend us
against dangerous criminals? And farmers whose have to destroy the vermin that attack their
crops? What happens if there is an uprising against you? How would you defend yourself?
It is a very complicated issue. You should think very carefully before making any
announcement. Before you became Empress these things would have to be approved by
parliament and the law, the legal system, and that usually stopped some of the damaging
aspects of legislation.
If you push this through it will also affect the stock market, prices will fall, people may go
bankrupt or lose their saving. It could cause an enormous amount to misery.
So, what do you advise? That I do nothing?
James heard the irritation in the Empress’s voice and the stubbornness that lay behind it, and
thought, she is not going to as be easy to deal with as Artemesia thinks. But he was used to
handling and winning over difficult people. That was his great skill, his opus. He foresaw no
difficulties he could not overcome.
Oh no! What you want to do is absolutely right. Right and good. But I would advise you to do
it gradually.
Gradually?
Yes, little by little so any damage to the economy or people’s lives is spread out over the
years. For example, you could start by outlawing certain chemical weapons. The other thing
to remember is that disease kills far more people than any wars. Perhaps you should start with
something health related.
The Empress was clearly annoyed by this advice.
Diseases are terrible but they don’t destroy cities, schools, hospitals and they don’t litter the
land with unexploded bombs and mines that take forever to remove. People want an end to
these stupid wars. And they want it now. Isn’t that why they put me here? They don’t want
‘little by little’. Neither do I!
Time to back off a step, thought James.
But remember people do not always understand the consequences of what they ask for. I will
leave you to think about this for a while and come back later. We are expected to make some
kind of announcement this afternoon. So you only have an hour or two. I’ve given you my
advice, which is do things gradually. Please give it some thought before you make any
decisions.
He gave a small formal bow to The Empress and left her to think.
As soon as James had left the room The Empress said,
! 85