Time and the Riddle: Thirty-One Zen Stories by Howard Fast Page A

to school for ten years. It is preferable to ten years in Siberia.”
    GRINOWSKI: “Comrade Reznov speaks, I am sure, as an expert radio engineer.”
    BOLOV: “Insolence, Comrade Grinowski, is no substitute for competence. Comrade Reznov is a Marxist, which allows him to penetrate to the heart of the matter.”
    GRINOWSKI: “You are also a Marxist, Comrade Bolov, and you are also Commissar of Communications. Why haven’t you penetrated to the heart of the matter?”
    REZNOV: “Enough of this bickering. You have every resource of Soviet science at your disposal, Comrade Grinowski. This is not merely a matter of jamming our signals; it is an attack upon our basic philosophy.”
    GRINOWSKI: “We have used every resource of Soviet science.”
    REZNOV: “And what have you come up with?”
    GRINOWSKI: “Nothing. We don’t know where the signals originate.”
    REZNOV: “Then what do you suggest, Comrade Bolov—in the light of Comrade Grinowski’s statement?”
    BOLOV: “You can shoot Comrade Grinowski or you can invite in the Metropolitan or both. The Metropolitan is waiting outside.”
    REZNOV: “Who asked the Metropolitan here?”
    GRINOWSKI: (with a smile) “I did.”
    THE WHITE HOUSE
    THE PRESIDENT: “Where’s Billy? I told him we start at two o’clock.
    Where is he?”
    THE SECRETARY OF STATE: “I called him myself. We might hear from Professor Foster of MIT meanwhile.”
    THE PRESIDENT: “I want Billy to hear what Professor Foster has to say.”
    PROFESSOR FOSTER: “I have a very short statement. I have several copies. I can give a copy to Billy or I can read it again.”
    THE ATTORNEY GENERAL: “I say CBS is at the bottom of the whole matter. CIA agrees with me.”
    THE FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSIONER : “CBS is not at the bottom of it. I think we ought to hear from Professor Foster. He has been working with our people.”
    THE PRESIDENT: “Why in hell isn’t Billy here?”
    THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: “We might as well hear it from Professor Foster. If his statement is short, he can read it again for Billy.”
    THE PRESIDENT: “All right. But he reads it again for Billy.” (The door opens. Enter Billy.)
    BILLY: “Greetings, everyone. God bless you all.”
    THE ATTORNEY GENERAL: “Are you sure you speak for Him?”
    THE PRESIDENT: “Professor Foster has a statement. He has been meeting for the past week with my ad hoc committee of scientists. Would you read your statement, Professor?”
    PROFESSOR FOSTER: “Here is our statement. In spite of all our efforts, we cannot ascertain the source of the signal.”
    THE PRESIDENT: “Is that all?”
    THE ATTORNEY GENERAL: “Well, damn it to hell, sir, you must know where the signal comes from. Does it come from outer space? From the earth? From Russia?”
    PROFESSOR FOSTER: “I stand by my statement.”
    THE PRESIDENT: “Well, here we are, faced with a show cause order. Billy, I don’t expect anything from the Russians or the Chinese. Can we show cause?”
    BILLY: “I have been thinking about that.”
    THE PRESIDENT: “Yes or no?”
    [Silence]
    JERUSALEM
    THE PRIME MINISTER: “At the suggestion of Professor Goldberg, I have invited Rabbi Cohen to this meeting.”
    THE FOREIGN MINISTER: “Why? To complicate this hoax?”
    THE PRIME MINISTER: “Suppose we hear from Professor Goldberg.”
    PROFESSOR GOLDBERG: “Not only have we been working on it day and night, but we have been in touch with the Americans. As in our case, they can find no source for the signal. I think we ought to hear from Rabbi Cohen.”
    THE PRIME MINISTER: “What the Gentiles will do, Rabbi, is their problem. Ours is more personal, since when you come right down to it, our people have been faced with this problem before. We are presented with