The latest legislation have you in shock? Things could be worse, as it they are in this excerpt from the short story “Wishbone.”
Originally published by Third Flatiron Press, “Wishbone” appears in my new collection Patti 209: Fifteen Tales of the Very Near Future, available now:
“But don’t you have grandparents, Representative Podestra?” the talk show host leaned forward in an eager posture of faux concern. “How will you explain your proposed Age Equity Act to them?”
My grandson, Tory Podestra, decked out in a blue suit, crisp white shirt, and camera-friendly burgundy tie, didn’t even blink. He’d had media training.
“As a leader of the Third Parties Coalition, I’m committed to ensuring that everyone in the United States gets a fair share of our remaining resources,” he said. “There’s no question that the Olds have consumed far more than their share. The Age Equity Act actually benefits them, by ensuring that those of them who reach their 72nd year will enjoy discounted access to adequate housing, healthcare and other resources all the way through their 79th year. I think the AEA is extremely generous, when you consider how all the short-sighted Baby Boomers voted for the Trump administration in 2016 and 2024. They’re the ones responsible for everything that’s gone wrong. This great nation of ours can still recover—the Coalition is here to see to that—but not if young people like us have to pay endlessly to keep a bunch of old right wingers with dementia on life support. Frankly, I think the Olds should be grateful that they can at least contribute something to society by getting out of the way.”
I’d watched the clip of that interview over and over, first stunned, then regretting that I’d helped send that little prick to law school. Tory had been a pushy, grabby, unpleasant child and now he’d grown up to be a political nutcase. A few weeks later, at the dentist’s office, I’d actually denied that I was related to him.
“Podestra is a very common name,” I told the receptionist.