The Babbage Counter-Revolution Begins

What allows people to cast off the yoke of tyranny and choose their destinies? Historians have grappled with this question for centuries, looking at various examples of successful and failed revolutions, seeking answers in examples and idiosyncratic occasions; I cannot compete with these scholars. I will speculate, however, that among the necessary conditions are: widespread desire; courage; leadership; and superior firepower.

I returned to Occupied Babbage - Obolenskidonia, as the good doctor has styled it - to find it still in the grip of Doctor Obolensky and his army of Smashingtons. Yet subtle signals indicate that the iron fist may be showing signs of rust. (Other depictions of actions in and around Babbage, by people closer to the action, may be found on the Primgraph blog, the New Babbage NING, Commodore O'Toole's Journal, and Lady Eva's Journal.)

A full-sized Smashington stands guard over Town Hall. Is this a sign of strength - or weakness? Surely it is not a sign of confidence.


This smaller Smashington still stands guard, but the graffiti in the background suggests it has been ineffective in keeping the disenchanted element from expressing their displeasure.


Other Smashingtons have met a different fate. In one lane, I discovered four that had been rendered inoperable. Note the wall graffitus.

These fellows prove that three heads are not necessarily better than one - particularly if those heads are no longer attached to bodies. The attack must have occurred fairly shortly before my arrival, as the machines were still smoking.

Inferring that any attack from forces aiming to liberate Babbage and restore Mr. Tenk would likely be from the sea, I set out in my small steam launch to investigate what defenses might be in place. The most obvious one was this monster ironclad, at full strength and ready to take on an invading fleet.

((The big melee is Thursday night (7/2) at 7 p.m. SLT. Too late for me, I'm afraid, so I will have to keep abreast of the action on the sites referenced above.))

Should Doctor Obolensky fall, my big regret is not finding out how his plans to use the local urchins in a scone factory would turn out. I love scones, but I've never had a child scone. I'm a tad concerned they might be gristly.