Suicide

Spiritual Guidance

WOODS
I looked deeper into the corruption allegations against Mayor Perk.

LINLEY
What did you find out?

WOODS
The allegation revolves around a parcel that was given to a spiritual sect. I went to the temple and looked around. I was met by Lance Patel. He is the one who talks in public about the sect. He is like a press secretary.

LINLEY
Is this a secretive sect?

WOODS
Not at all! Lance Patel told me that Guru Sharma is on vacation and so he leads the temple in his absence.

LINLEY
I didn't think that Gurus take a vacation.

WOODS
Apparently, they do. However, I asked him about the allegations against Mayor Perk. Lance Petal denied everything. He said that they didn't bribe anyone. They bought the land rightfully and lawfully.

LINLEY
Did you talk with him about the petition of the locals to ban the religious temple in their town?

WOODS
I expressed some grievances locals have and Lance responded:
- It makes me sad, of course. Prejudices run deep. The temple keeps an open door policy. We invite everyone to come and see us, get to know us, and then judge for themselves.

LINLEY
Did anyone visit the temple?

WOODS
Only a few.

LINLEY
I'm not sure why this fuss about a religious temple?

WOODS
The Catholic Church was vehemently opposed to the building of the temple.

LINLEY
Why?

WOODS
I talked to priest Darkshadow. He is the Catholic Priest in town and he told me:
- The church is against the sect because we don't know anything about their religious practices. The church is like a father to its children and worshippers. We will always protect them from harm.

LINLEY
That sounds like one of these non-essential, non-saying-at-all answers!

WOODS
It does and I didn't like the answer. So I asked around in the community, why the Catholic Church was opposed to the construction of the temple.

LINLEY
I know from other parts of the country where the Catholic Church does not oppose the construction of religious temples and houses of other faiths.

WOODS
Exactly, it struck me as odd. Why was the church so invested in banning the construction of the temple?

LINLEY
What did you find out?

WOODS
I found out that the Catholic Church and the Socialist Party were always close-knit. Whenever the socialists were in power they promoted the rise of the Catholic faith and the Catholic Church in return supported socialist candidates running for office. But in recent years many locals left the church. Partly because of the many child abuse scandals but as well as people's general disillusion with their social situation.
The socialists propagate the notion that there is no way back in the Rust Belt anymore. No way the big companies will come back. And the only way to overcome unemployment and the social crisis is to look into the future and copy the big tech giants in Silicon Valley.
This means the socialists promote a radical change and tell their supporters that they won't be able to go back to the glorious days of their grandfathers.

LINLEY
Why is that a problem? Because for a fact the big industry will not return to this area. Cheap laborers and low product costs abroad are too tempting.

WOODS
Yeah, but moving into the future is not easy for many. The Silicon Valley big tech companies are built on highly skilled personnel. No matter whether their CEOs are college dropouts. Many in the Rust Belt do not have a college degree. And the demand for a radical change and a great leap forward appears for them as unimaginable.