published on
The Trial
A Pico-Operetta for our Times
International Cast:
Lady Humanity - Oddrun Eikli - Norway, vocals and lyric on the last song; @oddrun-eikli
Lord Mammon - Peter - England, All poetic lyrics in the operetta, except the last song; soundcloud.com/user-264930040/tracks
The Judge - David Dunham - USA, nylon-string guitar in the song for Lady Humanity's defense; @david dunhamuser589535203
Music & Production - Seagull - Sweden, compilation, mixing, sound effects, and acoustic guitars in last song; @farout-music-studio
Here you can download all poetic lyrics: www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/37k203an5c…5u74dp2i&e=1&dl=0
Synopsis
Following unprecedented worldwide growth in human conflict, an emergency plenary session of the United Nations was convened late in 2023, tasked with finding new approaches to defuse global tension and ease conciliation. Recognizing the abject failure of extant UN jurisdictions and powers, and in a radical restructuring of the international legal and security framework, that session established a new UN institution to sit alongside the International Court of Criminal Justice. The International Court of Moral Justice was formally incorporated into the UN Constitution on 1 January 2024.
The foundations of this infant organization and those of the UN itself were shaken when it was revealed that the inaugural case to be heard by the ICMJ was to be a private prosecution brought by greed (Lord Mammon) against the defendant, mankind’s innate sense of humanity personified by Lady Humanity
In papers lodged with the court, the protagonist, Lord Mammon has asserted that the fundamental basis for human misery, the creation of discontent, thence envy and hence conflict, is to be found exclusively in false moral goodness and self-righteousness borne of a misplaced sense of benevolence. The human race survived and thrived, he states, not by moving at the pace of the slowest, or sharing resources with the weakest, but by taking and keeping, for the self alone, much more than is needed for basic subsistence, this being the singular route to strength, individual contentment and thus tolerance of others.
In reply, a broken and demoralized Lady Humanity has been compelled to present her own defense after failing to secure funding for a legal team to counter the advocates ranged in front of Lord Mammon. The case for the defense rests solely on the premise that good comes from within and cannot be created from nothing. So whilst she may try to bolster the moral cause in her work, she increasingly finds that the human souls she sees have no humanity in them whatsoever for her to strengthen, nothing to work with and as such, concedes that she has failed, but denounces the notion that it was for want of trying. Devoid of resources, supporters and allies of any kind she single handedly has held the fort against the self-perpetuating, self-reinforcing massed ranks of Mammon.
The Lord Chief Justice of the ICMJ along with his bench of associate judiciary adjourn proceedings to consider their findings and in the final act, return to deliver their verdict.
- Genre
- Operetta