After a length of time which he made no attempt to judge, he sensed a slight subsidence in their speed and some while later became aware that they were gradually gliding to a gentle halt.
He opened his eyes again. They were still in the silver tunnel, threading and weaving their way through what appeared to be a crisscross warren of converging tunnels. When they finally stopped it was in a small chamber of curved steel. Several tunnels also had their termini here, and at the farther end of the chamber Arthur could see a large circle of dim irritating light. It was irritating because it played tricks with the eyes, it was impossible to focus on it properly or tell how near or far it was. Arthur guessed (quite wrongly) that it might be ultraviolet.
Startibartfast turned and regarded Arthur with his solemn old eyes.
"Earthman," he said, "we are now deep in the heart of Magrathea."
"How did you know I was an Earthman?" demanded Arthur.
"These things will become clear to you," said the old man gently, "at least," he added with slight doubt in his voice, "clearer than they are at the moment."
He continued: "I should warn you that the chamber we are about to pass into does not literally exist within our planet. It is a little too . . . large. We are about to pass through a gateway into a vast tract of hyperspace. It may disturb you."
Arthur made nervous noises.
Slartibartfast touched a button and added, not entirely reassuringly, "It scares the willies out of me. Hold tight."
The car shot forward straight into the circle of light, and suddenly Arthur had a fairly clear idea of what infinity looked like.
Traveling into the bowels of Magrathea, Arthur has no idea what he is about to encounter in hyperspace. Infinity could take any form. A vast, dark plane of space. A Star Wars shower of light beams. The psychedelic wormhole at the end of 2001: A Space Odyssey. Or, what I experienced this morning--a seemingly unending line of firetrucks, police cars, and marching bands.
Happy Independence Day to all of my disciples from the United States. To all of my international disciples, Independence Day is a holiday in my country which celebrates the signing of the Declaration of Independence, a document in which the people of the colonies declared their freedom from the rule of the British monarchy. (Sorry to all of my British readers, but we did give you Meghan Markle and a new prince. Probably not an even trade.)
This morning, I did attend an infinite Fourth of July parade in my home town. That is what infinity is to me. It was hot. Over 80 degrees. Humid. I was sweating just sitting in my chair. Of course, it didn't help that I was in the direct sunlight, too. By the time the last marching band oom-pahed by, I was having visions of black holes and angel choirs.
I do love the festivities and traditions of this holiday. Granted, there is a LOT wrong with the United States, including the military spectacle with tanks and troops taking place in Washing, D. C., today. (Millions of dollars spent on a parade that could have paid for the healthcare of thousands of military veterans--not to mention all of the refugee concentration camps on the border--it almost makes me want to turn the country back over to Great Britain.) However, I sit here, writing this blog post because of my freedom of speech, which is still a constitutional right for the time being. Just because I am being critical of the current President of the United States doesn't mean that I'm going to wake up to soldiers pounding on my front door to drag me off to prison. At least, not yet.
That is what I celebrate most this July 4th. My ability to think freely. Express my thoughts freely. Say that Donald Trump is Adolf Hitler with orange hair freely. Yes, white supremacy is alive and well in my country. For that, I am deeply ashamed. I am a Christian, and I can say, without a doubt, that those in positions of power currently in the United States are NOT Christians. They may profess to follow the teachings of Jesus Christ, but--unless Christ touted protecting the rights of the rich and powerful, empowering racists and anti-Semites and homophobes and Islamophobes and misogynists, and doing nothing about hunger and poverty and climate change--they are lying.
And I am free to say all of that without worry.
Some of you might be clicking on to another blog right now, thinking "fake news" or "fake Christian." That's fine. That's your right, as well. I wish you a happy Independence Day. Celebrate the fact that you can hold on to your agenda of hate as long as you want, because of the Constitution of the United States, which you are currently pissing all over. It's all about freedom.
Tonight, I will eat some barbecued hot dogs and bratwursts for dinner. Then, I will go to a community gathering and watch a fireworks display at dusk. More traditions. In a couple of years, maybe I will be able to be proud to be an American again.
For the moment, however, Saint Marty is simply grateful to be an American so that he can express his unpopular opinions without fear.
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