A Contentious Society

All four races are intensely proud of their heritage, perhaps overly so, and they seem to be naturally contentious, arguing constantly between themselves. In fact, Chaladonian society seems to involve a great deal of shouting and yelling at one another.

• Brownish people consider themselves physically and culturally superior to the others and don't very much like loud, "fat" reddies, clumsy, "short-legged" greenies, or skinny blue faces with "pointy" ears.
   
• Blue people think that reddies are rude and extremely crude, that greenies are totally immoral and probably dishonest, and that brownies are stuck-up snots who “just do not understand.”
   
• Reddish-faced people think blue faces are prissy prudes and scardy cats, "brownies" are phony snobs, and they are convinced that "greenies" will cheat them every chance they get.
   
• Green people are more tolerant and diplomatic, but privately they tell naughty jokes about "smarty-pants" brownies, "scardy-cat" blues, and "not-very-bright" reddies that sweat too much.

Thus, the paradox. Despite the seemingly inevitable conflict between these four very different groups of people, it is perfectly clear they have learned to live together peaceably, and despite the constant bickering between them, Chaladonians seem to live very satisfying lives. Crime and violence seem almost non-existant. There are very few policemen and we found no prisons at all. We found no evidence of real poverty. There are rich and poor and everything in between, but the differences in wealth are not great. Amazingly, it appears that the wealthiest people seem most determined to share with those not so well blessed.

People tend to live in neighborhoods with people of the same skin color, but there is no legal segregation, and in fact, considerable mixing. If anything, people seem to live in neighborhoods based more on social class and economic status more than skin color. Or as one of our sociologists explains it, "kids grow up in neighborhoods that are just as quarrelsome as the general society."

Chaladonian government at every level can only be described as "noisy democracy" where every meeting is interrupted by loud and vigorous argument. Frequently, speakers are rewarded with jeers and shouted insults. Taxes are levied, budgets finally agreed, and laws enacted without anyone being very satisfied, but perhaps more importantly, without anyone being completely unhappy with the final result. Every few years reformers try to enact new rules that would streamline the process and reduce the partisanship, but these efforts never get anywhere.

The economy is based on private ownership with freely competing markets, and it works well, providing a reasonable standard of living for everyone. There is a minimum of governmental regulation, but like everything else in Chaladon, this is a source of unending arguement at every level of government.

Well behaved children grow up within very tight-knit, loving families. (Many marriages between young people end in divorce, but when children are involved, it is almost impossible to obtain a divorce. Realizing the serious consequences, most couples do not have children until their thirties, after they are sure they want to stay married.)

It appears that both law enforcement and "counceling" have become almost obsolete, being replaced by neighborhood associations that intervene whenever necessary to solve problems. Education is rigorous, exciting, and effective. The environment is pristine and there is overwhelming social pressure to keep it that way. Underlying all of this is an overwhelming cultural sense of fairness, honesty, and an obligation to "do the right thing" as Chaladonians would put it.

As scientists, we were very interested to learn how all of this is possible. Perhaps, we can learn something from Chaladonians. Here on earth, racial and cultural differences between people are much fewer than in Chaladon, and yet on earth, society is filled to overflowing with racial, cultural, and social hatreds. We employ millions of people in courts and the prison system, and millions more as therapists, all dealing with problems that seem not to exist in Chaladon. Putting it another way, why did we on earth "get it so wrong" while Chaladon seems to have "got it so irght?"

We believe the following studies about Chaladonian society and culture explain at least some of the reasons.

A note should be made here about the illustrations that accompany the text. Since we have been unable to "transport" photographic equipment on the exploratory missions, our researchers made detailed sketches and we then contracted with a brilliant, young Russia artist to produce the necessary illustrations. His name is Alexander Vorozhbet and he lives in Murmansk, Russia with his wife, Ludmilla, and their curious cat, Reeky. They have a daughter and son, both artists as well.