13 aWhich means that there's nothing we can or should try to do about it,
14 bWhich means that we're not responsible for anything at all,
15 Even if we could prove that anyone or anything else exists in the first place,
16 cWhich we can't,
17 Which means that we're all alone on the very brink of extinction,
18 But have the great good fortune to be living in the richest nation in the world,
19 Which is too bad for everyone else,
20 Including all the dOthers,
21 eBut great for us.
CHAPTER 261 And why is it so great?
2 Because in a very rich nation like this one, things will run pretty much by themselves for a long long time,
3 And while they will fall apart eventually,
4 fIt will take a long long time for that to happen,
5 And by then, the nuclear holocaust will probably have destroyed everything anyway.
6 gFor us, the ones who have figured it all out, this means that we are living in a time of unparalleled freedom,
7 When we can do what we've always wanted to do,
8 hWhich is whatever we want to do,
9 iWhenever we want to do it,
10 Without feeling any guilt or fear about hell and damnation.
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11 In short,
12 You don't have to bother with all your so-called jideals anymore.
13 It's perfectly okay to climb the branches of the great American ktree,
14 And take all the lfruit you want,
15 When you want it,
16 As long as you don't make the wrong people angry.
17 You don't ever have to feel mresponsible,
18 Or nwork hard,
19 oOr care about anything other than yourself,
20 Because it absolutely, positively does not matter,
21 pAt all.
CHAPTER 271 Now, of course, I understand that there will be complications.
2 It's not easy to live with the certain knowledge of annihilation,
3 But I warn you not to try to refute the qlessons of history,
4 rBecause all the evidence is in and all of it points in the same direction,
5 Namely, extinction in the not too distant future.
6 Moreover, you will encounter other people out there,
7 People who still believe in good and evil,
8 People you will have to deal with and compete with for possessions and sex and so forth,
9 sAlthough they're not so numerous as you might think,
10 tAnd there will be fewer of them all the time,
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