[ WP ] Our government has reached a point where they can control everything , and everything costs money including the air that we breathe .

WE CONTROL EVERYTHING. EVEN YOUR THOUGHTS. OBEY AND LIVE. DISOBEY AND DIE. 
 
 The mandatory signs, each with red letters five feet high, are posted on each wall of every building. 
 
 I do n't run anymore. Ca n't afford to take the deep breaths that it would take. Ca n't walk, either. Takes too much time. Instead I've adopted this quick shuffling walk that I'm sure makes me look ridiculous, but I ca n't afford to think about that. 
 
 Literally. 
 
 I have n't had dreams in years. They were the first to go- meaningless diversions with no economic value. I sold them for pizza and a few minutes of sunlight. Each day is a gray- the sun only comes out for those with the funds. 
 
 I decidedly ignore the giant stack of red letters having been shoved in my mail slot, knowing that I ca n't pay any of my bills. Due to the tenuous nature of living in our `` wonderful'' city, I've been robbed at least ten times this past week. Even my boss's bribe cost has gone up, and I sometimes wonder why I'm still working at a job that is basically forcing me to pay them to have it. Someone tried to take my kidney the last time, so I really had to draw the line, though it earned me a long scar down my side. I stapled it closed and hoped for the best, since the thought of medical care is even more laughable than dreaming. 
 
 The only thing that makes my life worth living is that I get a couple minutes to scarf down some nutrient dense, greasy food from the Fooderizer, which is pretty much the only bright spot in my apartment. No one dares to steal it, since there's one in every living space ( mandatorily installed by order of our Council of Fearless Leaders ) and it emits deadly radiation if you try to remove it from its housing. 
 
 I look into the camera and make the obligatory silly motions for the video, which is how I afford my morning meal. 
 
 `` Look at my gross and disgusting body! OINK OINK I LOVE MY BURGERS! DEMS GOOD!'' I shout, dancing around with my fingers pressing my nose up like a pig's. I hear that the Rich pay good money to see people like me humiliating ourselves for their amusement. I finish slapping my ass and squatting down on my aching knees like I'm taking a huge dump and the little chiming noise that signals that enough Rich have paid to watch me to give me my favorite meal- a messy cheeseburger with fries. The bun's a bit stale, but the cheese explodes into my mouth and I chew with exaggerated pleasure, my eyes rolling back in my head. 
 
 My burger is still only half-eaten and I am in the middle of grabbing a stray fry from the floor when a loud knock sounds at the door. I do n't even bat an eye. Gangs of thieves love knocking on the door so they can break in when you look through the peep hole and then plow through the door and knock you down. I should know. Fool me once, shame on me. Fool me twice, shame on me again, because time is money and I'm running out of both. 
 
 The knock grows insistent until it sounds almost like a battering ram against my door. 
 
 `` I DO N'T HAVE ANYTHING!'' I shout through my full mouth, nearly choking on a sesame seed. `` IT'S MORE TROUBLE THAN IT'S WORTH!'' 
 
 I'm just about to swallow my allotted calories for the day when the door splinters inward and wooden shards fly through the air, blasting me in the back of the head. 
 
 Then there is only darkness, which makes sense. I'm not sure I could afford to see my life flash before my eyes. 
 
 I open my eyes to the sight of a black jackboot stepping on the mostly-chewed remains of my breakfast. 
 
 `` Get Citizen 45211550 up!'' A woman with short hair and a scowl is looking down her pointed nose. She pulls out a pad and flips to a page before reciting the words upon the paper. `` You are thirty days late on your air rent, your defecation rent and your water rent. You are, oddly enough, paid up on your food allocation. Huh. Did n't expect that.'' 
 
 `` What-'' A pair of large hands that looks like they belong to a lowland silverback gorilla grab me and another pair of hands pulls a giant silver swatch of tape over my mouth. 
 
 Within moments, I'm trussed up like a Thanksgiving turkey, which is a thought that makes my belly growl angrily. I silently tell it to shut up. I'm already in enough trouble as it is, after all. 
 
 `` Your word allocation was up ten minutes ago,'' the woman said rolling her eyes and holding up a weird implement that looks like a branding iron. `` Do n't try to speak. I'll have to take them out of you with this.'' 
 
 Within moments, I've been thrown into an unmarked van and am being slammed back and forth against the metal interior as the damn thing drives on and on. Finally, the door opens and I open one bruised eyelid slowly. 
 
 `` For nonpayment of your bills you are hereby banished from our fair and wonderful community. Enjoy the poisonous, non-regulated air and the UV-ridden, cancer-causing sunlight. Parasites such as yourself are not wanted in our grand vision of society.'' 
 
 I am unceremoniously shoved through the airlock and out of the domes that have been my life for the past few decades. 
 
 I squint and look up at the sun, regretting it immediately. I wonder if this is what eye cancer feels like. I try not to breathe for as long as I can, but finally my body gives in and I collapse to my knees, sucking in rapid breaths. Though the air is probably going to kill me, I'm still amazed when I realize that it does n't smell all that bad. I turn to look into the glass dome and see the short-haired government official staring at me unamusedly. 
 
 `` Well, I guess out here, there is n't a defecation bill, is there?'' I say snidely, dropping my pants and doing my business in full view of her horrified face. 
 
 Though I know I do n't have long to live, at least according my government, the sun is shining and the air is strangely sweet in my lungs. I savor breathing deeply, knowing that it's a sinful and decadent activity that I will likely regret later. I wipe my ass on the glass of the dome and pull my pants up, taking a moment to savor the sound of a whistle on my lips as I walk off into the unknown. 

