2 B R 0 2 B & The Big Trip Up Yonder

These two stories by Kurt Vonnegut were written over a decade apart but they are definitely connected. The Big Trip Up Yonder, published in Galaxy Science Fiction January 1954 is a comical yet scary description of what over population was going to do to society after aging was conquered and a simple daily dose of "anti-gerosone" would keep you forever the same age. Would Gramps EVER take 'That Big Trip Up Yonder', or would his hordes of descendants be stuck with him forever in a tiny apartment!? 2 B R 0 2 B, published in Worlds of If, January 1962 takes this basic situation many years into the future and a solution has been found. The population of the US has dropped from 80 billion to 40 million. Not what everyone would call a pretty solution, or the best solution, but nevertheless a solution to the population problem. I believe this is the type of story it is best to listen to, not describe, so enjoy.

By : Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. (1922 - 2007)

01 - 2 B R 0 2 B 02 - The Big Trip Up Yonder

The setting is a society in which aging has been cured, individuals have indefinite lifespans, and population control is used to limit the population of the United States to forty million. This is maintained through a combination of infanticide and government-assisted suicide - in short, in order for someone to be born, someone must first volunteer to die. As a result, births are few and far between, and deaths occur primarily by accident.

The scene is a waiting room at the Chicago Lying-In Hospital, where Edward K. Wehling, Jr. is faced with the situation that his wife is about to give birth to triplets, but he has found only one person - his maternal grandfather - who will volunteer to die. A painter on a stepladder is redecorating the room with a mural depicting famous doctors and nurses - in particular, Dr. Benjamin Hitz, the hospital's Chief Obstetrician. Leora Duncan, from the Service Division of the Federal Bureau of Termination, arrives to pose for the mural. The mural is a picture of a garden that's well taken care of. It is a metaphor for the United States at that time. Later, Dr. Hitz enters the scene, conversing with everyone but the painter of the mural.

It becomes apparent to all that Wehling is in a state of despair, wanting not to send his grandfather and two of his children to death. Dr. Hitz questions Wehling's belief in the system, and tries to make Wehling feel better by explaining how the surviving child will "live on a happy, roomy, clean, rich planet." Suddenly, Wehling draws a revolver and kills Dr. Hitz, Leora Duncan, and himself - "making room for all three children."

The painter, who is about two hundred years old, is left to reflect on the scene, and thinks about life, war, plague, and starvation. Descending the stepladder, he initially takes the revolver, intending to kill himself with it, but he can't do it. Instead he calls the Bureau of Termination to make an appointment. The last line is from the receptionist at the Bureau:

"Thank you, sir," said the hostess. "Your city thanks you; your country thanks you; your planet thanks you. But the deepest thanks of all is from all of the future generations."