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  3. Mad fantasy-fic idea: what if even death is no escape from the law, and contracts signed in life remain binding after shuffling off this mortal coil?

Mad fantasy-fic idea: what if even death is no escape from the law, and contracts signed in life remain binding after shuffling off this mortal coil?

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  • Charlie StrossC Charlie Stross

    @Infoseepage You haven't read my SF, have you? (Hint: try "Glasshouse".)

    InfoseepageI This user is from outside of this forum
    InfoseepageI This user is from outside of this forum
    Infoseepage
    wrote last edited by
    #31

    @cstross I've read your stuff fairly comprehensively, but somehow missed that one. Tossing it on my list now.

    Charlie StrossC 1 Reply Last reply
    0
    • Charlie StrossC Charlie Stross

      Mad fantasy-fic idea: what if even death is no escape from the law, and contracts signed in life remain binding after shuffling off this mortal coil?

      In this setting, all contract lawyers are necromancers. A zombie is what you get when an undischarged bankrupt dies. And so on.

      ALFA This user is from outside of this forum
      ALFA This user is from outside of this forum
      ALF
      wrote last edited by
      #32

      @cstross

      Morten Juhl-JohansenM 1 Reply Last reply
      0
      • Charlie StrossC Charlie Stross

        Mad fantasy-fic idea: what if even death is no escape from the law, and contracts signed in life remain binding after shuffling off this mortal coil?

        In this setting, all contract lawyers are necromancers. A zombie is what you get when an undischarged bankrupt dies. And so on.

        Human Ass EthenesH This user is from outside of this forum
        Human Ass EthenesH This user is from outside of this forum
        Human Ass Ethenes
        wrote last edited by
        #33

        @cstross The Orzhov Syndicate would like a word.

        1 Reply Last reply
        0
        • Charlie StrossC Charlie Stross

          Mad fantasy-fic idea: what if even death is no escape from the law, and contracts signed in life remain binding after shuffling off this mortal coil?

          In this setting, all contract lawyers are necromancers. A zombie is what you get when an undischarged bankrupt dies. And so on.

          Angus McIntyreA This user is from outside of this forum
          Angus McIntyreA This user is from outside of this forum
          Angus McIntyre
          wrote last edited by
          #34

          @cstross "The Victorians were onto something with their debtors' prison. So I'd like to introduce you to a little concept we're working on. It's called debtors' Hell …”

          KrukuK 1 Reply Last reply
          0
          • InfoseepageI Infoseepage

            @cstross I've read your stuff fairly comprehensively, but somehow missed that one. Tossing it on my list now.

            Charlie StrossC This user is from outside of this forum
            Charlie StrossC This user is from outside of this forum
            Charlie Stross
            wrote last edited by
            #35

            @Infoseepage A thing i should have made clear in the front matter is that "the glasshouse" is old British army slang for a military prison.

            1 Reply Last reply
            0
            • David GerardD David Gerard

              @cstross 3dfx inspired, right?

              Michael KohneM This user is from outside of this forum
              Michael KohneM This user is from outside of this forum
              Michael Kohne
              wrote last edited by
              #36

              @davidgerard @cstross Sounds like a mix of the Laundry's 'residual assets' is it? With Max Gladstone's stuff. Neat!

              1 Reply Last reply
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              • LordWoolamalooL LordWoolamaloo

                @cstross I seem to recall Whedon had a subplot like this in an episode of Buffy spinoff, Angel. One character breaks into the satanic legal agency, fights to the secure contracts and destroys the one that bound a now deceased woman he was close to, even after death. But it just reforms, and her spirit thanks him for trying, but she knew this when she signed, it was "forever"

                Tarah WheelerT This user is from outside of this forum
                Tarah WheelerT This user is from outside of this forum
                Tarah Wheeler
                wrote last edited by
                #37

                @LordWoolamaloo @cstross came here to say this.

                1 Reply Last reply
                0
                • Charlie StrossC Charlie Stross

                  Mad fantasy-fic idea: what if even death is no escape from the law, and contracts signed in life remain binding after shuffling off this mortal coil?

                  In this setting, all contract lawyers are necromancers. A zombie is what you get when an undischarged bankrupt dies. And so on.

                  Dr Andrew A. Adams #FBPE 🔶A This user is from outside of this forum
                  Dr Andrew A. Adams #FBPE 🔶A This user is from outside of this forum
                  Dr Andrew A. Adams #FBPE 🔶
                  wrote last edited by
                  #38

                  @cstross
                  There's something of this in Max Gladstone's Craft sequences.

                  1 Reply Last reply
                  0
                  • Charlie StrossC Charlie Stross

                    Mad fantasy-fic idea: what if even death is no escape from the law, and contracts signed in life remain binding after shuffling off this mortal coil?

                    In this setting, all contract lawyers are necromancers. A zombie is what you get when an undischarged bankrupt dies. And so on.

                    Soldier of FORTRAN :ReBoot:​M This user is from outside of this forum
                    Soldier of FORTRAN :ReBoot:​M This user is from outside of this forum
                    Soldier of FORTRAN :ReBoot:​
                    wrote last edited by
                    #39

                    @cstross ah, a fantasy version of RoboCop

                    1 Reply Last reply
                    0
                    • Charlie StrossC Charlie Stross

                      Mad fantasy-fic idea: what if even death is no escape from the law, and contracts signed in life remain binding after shuffling off this mortal coil?

                      In this setting, all contract lawyers are necromancers. A zombie is what you get when an undischarged bankrupt dies. And so on.

                      R This user is from outside of this forum
                      R This user is from outside of this forum
                      RedMeepleRyan 🎲🦯
                      wrote last edited by
                      #40

                      @cstross Just when you thought you were out, iteas for a Laundry Files anthology pull you back in. *chuckles darkly* 🙂

                      1 Reply Last reply
                      0
                      • Charlie StrossC Charlie Stross

                        Mad fantasy-fic idea: what if even death is no escape from the law, and contracts signed in life remain binding after shuffling off this mortal coil?

                        In this setting, all contract lawyers are necromancers. A zombie is what you get when an undischarged bankrupt dies. And so on.

                        ThePdogT This user is from outside of this forum
                        ThePdogT This user is from outside of this forum
                        ThePdog
                        wrote last edited by
                        #41

                        @cstross Great concept. Maybe after you finish your sequel?

                        1 Reply Last reply
                        0
                        • Charlie StrossC Charlie Stross

                          Mad fantasy-fic idea: what if even death is no escape from the law, and contracts signed in life remain binding after shuffling off this mortal coil?

                          In this setting, all contract lawyers are necromancers. A zombie is what you get when an undischarged bankrupt dies. And so on.

                          Nonya Bidniss :CIAverified: 🇺🇸N This user is from outside of this forum
                          Nonya Bidniss :CIAverified: 🇺🇸N This user is from outside of this forum
                          Nonya Bidniss :CIAverified: 🇺🇸
                          wrote last edited by
                          #42

                          @cstross While this idea is quite different, for some reason it reminded me of the Dan Shamble, Zombie P.I. Series by Kevin J. Anderson, which I enjoyed quite a lot & wished there was more of.

                          1 Reply Last reply
                          0
                          • Fucking bitch Martin VermeerM This user is from outside of this forum
                            Fucking bitch Martin VermeerM This user is from outside of this forum
                            Fucking bitch Martin Vermeer
                            wrote last edited by
                            #43

                            @xChaos @moira @cstross In Dutch even the same word: schuld.

                            1 Reply Last reply
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                            • ElectropictE Electropict

                              @cstross

                              I think we're just about there IRL.

                              Someone just needs to pitch it to the VCs and obtainable politicians:

                              LLM bots that not only mimic your features, voice and writing style, but also can maintain your legal existence, rights, liabilities and specifically copyrights until the heat death of capitalism.

                              There's money to be made, or rather, kept...

                              Matthew KenworthyM This user is from outside of this forum
                              Matthew KenworthyM This user is from outside of this forum
                              Matthew Kenworthy
                              wrote last edited by
                              #44

                              @electropict This is very close to Vernor Vinge's novella "The Cookie Monster" : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cookie_Monster_(novella)

                              1 Reply Last reply
                              0
                              • Charlie StrossC Charlie Stross

                                Mad fantasy-fic idea: what if even death is no escape from the law, and contracts signed in life remain binding after shuffling off this mortal coil?

                                In this setting, all contract lawyers are necromancers. A zombie is what you get when an undischarged bankrupt dies. And so on.

                                Dean L. SurkinD This user is from outside of this forum
                                Dean L. SurkinD This user is from outside of this forum
                                Dean L. Surkin
                                wrote last edited by
                                #45

                                @cstross Iain M. Banks had a novel ("Surface Detail") about a planet that enforced post-life hell by digitalizing a person's memories and personality and then installing it in a computer-generated sim of hell.

                                Charlie StrossC 1 Reply Last reply
                                0
                                • Angus McIntyreA Angus McIntyre

                                  @cstross "The Victorians were onto something with their debtors' prison. So I'd like to introduce you to a little concept we're working on. It's called debtors' Hell …”

                                  KrukuK This user is from outside of this forum
                                  KrukuK This user is from outside of this forum
                                  Kruku
                                  wrote last edited by
                                  #46

                                  @angusm @cstross
                                  Should we ever be able to map individual human consciousness, including memories, completely and accurately from human brains the notion of a "debtor's Hell" could become a reality, at least as far as using human minds as computers for unpaid labour is concerned.

                                  1 Reply Last reply
                                  0
                                  • Dean L. SurkinD Dean L. Surkin

                                    @cstross Iain M. Banks had a novel ("Surface Detail") about a planet that enforced post-life hell by digitalizing a person's memories and personality and then installing it in a computer-generated sim of hell.

                                    Charlie StrossC This user is from outside of this forum
                                    Charlie StrossC This user is from outside of this forum
                                    Charlie Stross
                                    wrote last edited by
                                    #47

                                    @dsurkin Yes, I have a signed first edition copy. (It also has a thinly-disguised Elon Musk style entrepreneur who buys up all the bankrupt hells and runs hells as a software service on behalf of their creators.)

                                    1 Reply Last reply
                                    0
                                    • ALFA ALF

                                      @cstross

                                      Morten Juhl-JohansenM This user is from outside of this forum
                                      Morten Juhl-JohansenM This user is from outside of this forum
                                      Morten Juhl-Johansen
                                      wrote last edited by
                                      #48

                                      @Astronomy_A2Z @cstross That is basically what happens to me at work wheneverI have had a heavy lunch.
                                      A resurrection effort around 1 PM.

                                      1 Reply Last reply
                                      0
                                      • Charlie StrossC Charlie Stross

                                        Mad fantasy-fic idea: what if even death is no escape from the law, and contracts signed in life remain binding after shuffling off this mortal coil?

                                        In this setting, all contract lawyers are necromancers. A zombie is what you get when an undischarged bankrupt dies. And so on.

                                        Jürgen HubertJ This user is from outside of this forum
                                        Jürgen HubertJ This user is from outside of this forum
                                        Jürgen Hubert
                                        wrote last edited by
                                        #49

                                        @cstross

                                        This actually pops up in German folklore, and fits with the old Catholic notion that donations made in the name of the dead, or paid masses held in their name, would shorten their time in purgatory.

                                        https://wiki.sunkencastles.com/wiki/The_Fire_Mountain

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