]He moves behind his desk, sits down and then reaches across to boot up one of the towers, then stops and looks up at Damian.]
It isn't a chemical, or drugs.
[He leans back and continues to watch Damian. Analyzes, him even, but tries real hard (and largely successfully) not to see too much of himself or Talia in him.]
It isn't actually complacency, either. In some cases it's as simple as here being better than the places they were taken from. In others it is the result of the likely intended purpose of the system - forging deeply intimate social bonds - either in reluctance to break those bonds or to subject punishment on people they are close to.
Those two may well cover the majority of the 'transplanted' population, but the third is worse. People come in angry and they fight recklessly. They fail. They get more angry and fight harder and with less intention and planning and fail again. That continued reinforcement of failure eventually leads to a sense of helplessness, and surrender.
[He pauses again and tilts his head a little.]
I've been here over 6 months. I'm not complacent but I'm not going to fling myself at a brick wall, over and over again and hope I get lucky enough to find a door.
[Warning? You betcha, Damian. Not 'do nothing' but 'move more carefully'.]
But there is useful information. Including a history of ways other people have tried and failed.
no subject
It isn't a chemical, or drugs.
[He leans back and continues to watch Damian. Analyzes, him even, but tries real hard (and largely successfully) not to see too much of himself or Talia in him.]
It isn't actually complacency, either. In some cases it's as simple as here being better than the places they were taken from. In others it is the result of the likely intended purpose of the system - forging deeply intimate social bonds - either in reluctance to break those bonds or to subject punishment on people they are close to.
Those two may well cover the majority of the 'transplanted' population, but the third is worse. People come in angry and they fight recklessly. They fail. They get more angry and fight harder and with less intention and planning and fail again. That continued reinforcement of failure eventually leads to a sense of helplessness, and surrender.
[He pauses again and tilts his head a little.]
I've been here over 6 months. I'm not complacent but I'm not going to fling myself at a brick wall, over and over again and hope I get lucky enough to find a door.
[Warning? You betcha, Damian. Not 'do nothing' but 'move more carefully'.]
But there is useful information. Including a history of ways other people have tried and failed.