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STATUS AND LAW IN THE QUADRANT: The following terms describe and explain the concepts of status and law in The Quadrant. Choose any link to take you to a description, or simply scroll down the page.

LINKS: Consecutives ("Conszecs," or "Virginz"), Reconnect/s ("Recon/z"), Disconnect/s ("Discon/z," or "Anteeks"), Quadstat, The Sweepz, Onrecord (publish, or "pub"), Offrecord ("chat"), The Korpus, Reg/z, Pregauth, Infraction/z ("Trashing Reg"), Infractionalysis, Sanction/z, Offpattern.


Consecutives ("Conzecs," or "Virginz"): Those who have never broken any laws ("trashed reg") and who have therefore never suffered temporary physical disconnection from The System. These comprise the elite inhabitants of The Quadrant from whose ranks the top managers of The Quadrant and The System are drawn (see Reconnect/s and Disconnect/s, below). To TOP of Page


Reconnect/s ("Recon/z"): Refers to anyone who has "Trashed Reg" (broken any law or committed a punishable infraction) and who has had to suffer the sanction of temporary physical disconnection from The System for more than one hour but less than 72 hours before being "reconnected." Reconz comprise the majority of enfranchised inhabitants of The Quadrant who share Nowtime and/or are connected to The System. Their status and functions in The Quadrant depend largely on how many times thay have Trashed Reg. A disconnection-reconnection "delivery" (made by Security Enforcers) to any inhabitant is registered and distributed, or "pubbed" via The System throughout The Quadrant, resulting in the automatic downgrading of the "infractor's" status from Conzec to Recon 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5.

Such downgrading requires a marginal decrease in interface neurotransmitter stimulus, places significant limits on activities a Recon can perform to enhance or sustain The System, and restricts where a Recon can live -- all of which can produce unwelcome changes and great anxiety. As the number of infractions increases, the limits also increase, until only the most menial work and most basic living accomodations are allowable (living on the darkened, wind-swept, outer edges of Recon 5 breeds neither happiness nor confidence). No enfranchised inhabitant may be reconnected to The System more than 5 times, because the sixth infraction brings with it the sanction of permanent disconnection from The System as it operates on the Boardz -- removal of screen privileges, revocation of the ability to vote in Telelections, and exile from the "Boardz" to Downshaft. (see Disconnect/s, etc. below). To TOP of Page


Disconnect/s ("Discon/z," or "Anteeks"): Those who are disconnected from The System as it operates on the "Boardz," and removed forever from Nowtime. Such subjects no longer have normal enfranchised functions (ways of enhancing, supporting, or sustaining The System) and must exist, with only minimal interface stimulus "out of tech" in a place called "Downshaft" below the Boardz. Disconz and Anteeks (those who have been "Downshaft" for a longer period) comprise the labor force used by The Quadrant to grow food on hydroponik farms and service the main power equipment located in "Downshaft." It is "Anti-Korpus" (against the law) to harbor or knowingly accede in the harboring of a Discon or Disconz on any Boardz anywhere in The Quadrant. To TOP of Page


Quadstat: Status or "position" in The Quadrant, ranging from the highest Conzec to the lowest Recon 5. Status directly relates to the ability and freedom (from limitations) to perform the two primary functions carried out in life by enfranchised inhabitants -- to enhance and sustain The System, which by definition enhances and sustains The Quadrant. Status is most severely affected by "Trashing Reg" (breaking the law) which often results in temporary disconnection from The System and a consequent automatic demotion to a lower and more limited status, foreclosing forever the freedom to live in certain locations, and the ability to enhance or sustain The System at higher levels.

Some important Quadrant "customs" should be understood in this context: No one under the age of 6 can be temporarily disconnected from The System for any infraction they knowingly or unknowingly commit, and therefore, all young enfranchised inhabitants of The Quadrant start their educations -- no matter where they are on the Boardz -- as Conzecs. But, after the age of 6 and once fully connected to The System with Screenz (see Educenter below) they may be punished with the full range of sanctions available except Permanent Disconnection from The System, which can only be delivered as a sanction to those who are 17 years of age or older (when majority is reached in The Quadrant). Naturally, those coming from the Outer Boardz tend to have less family support and much less discipline than those coming from Conzec or even Recon 1 homes, and it is thus harder for them to avoid committing infractions which can lead to serious demotions of status.

While still at Educenter (secondary school) the demotion from Conzec to Recon 1-- as a result of the first infraction committed punishable by temporary disconnection from The System -- means the loss of the chance ever to go to The Inztitut, to gain any of the highest positions in The Quadrant, or to live in Krania or on Conzec Board (however, living status is enforceable only after a student has left Educenter). Demotion to Recon 2 automatically places students in lower level classes geared to the lowest design and services management jobs, removes them from much contact with Conzecs (or even Recon 1's), and forces them to graduate one year early with only a "second rate" certification. Further demotions result in still more painful limitations: Official removal or expulsion from Educenter and assignment to apprenticeship in the maintenance trades, for example, makes it impossible to work in any area or field but the most menial and meaningless.

Without doubt, the worst time to Trash Reg and suffer Quadstat demotion is in adult life after a decent start has been made on a "Quadpattern" (what one does, where one lives and works, etc.). Even Conzecs sometimes fall, and this means relocation away from family and friends (though visits are possible), and a more limited work situation with less pay, etc. For all intents and purposes, unless the infractor is particularly brilliant or talented, the former life is closed. To TOP of Page


The Sweepz: The Security Enforcement Division in Krania, in cooperation with local QSU Enforcement offices throughout the Quadrant, organizes periodic electronic sweeps of the Boardz, to identify status infractors (those who illegally live on "higher" status Boardz). When any person undergoes a disconnection/re-connection delivery and subsequent demotion in status, the Enforcement unit actually "hardwires" the receiver frequency of that person's interface to a predetermined frequency associated with the "new" (lower) status level. Not only does the person get less neurotransmitter stimulation than before, but is now identifiable, by interface receiver frequency, as a lower status person.

All the Security Unit has to do is start an electronic sweep of a particular area or Board and reference their database of frequencies to identify Reconz in that specific area with a receiver frequency indicating a lower status than is allowed. If they find enough people in one place, local authorities are notified, and Enforcerz "raid and roust" the area. If any are caught, they can be disconnected again and suffer even lower status. This sends a general message to all in The Quadrant that "who you are is where you live." To TOP of Page


Onrecord (publish, or "pub"): To engage in recordable conversations or information exchanges in person or by Screen. Essentially, "Onrecord" is the primary mode of communication in The Quadrant, and simply means that conversations, comments, and statements may be recorded by Security and subjected to "infractionalysis" (see below). To TOP of Page


Offrecord ("chat"): To engage in conversation or information exchange in person where, by mutual agreement, both or all parties involved activate the A/V suppression mode feature of their screenz (or use some sort of "signing" or hand written notes) in order to minimize/avoid the recording -- and possible subsequent "infractionalysis"-- of any part or all of their verbalizations or communications. Significant numbers of A/V surveillance monitors continually sweep all Boardz (see below) of The Quadrant to pick up potentially infractious behavior. In this case, it could be the appearance of two or more subjects engaging in "offrecord" communications. If it deems an infraction is occurring, Security can crosscheck its observation by measuring the power output of the suspect's A/V screens and confirm whether or not suppress mode is activated. "Chatting" (going offrecord) is not in itself an infraction, but can be a "dockable" offense (see "Infraction/s" below) if confirmed. To TOP of Page


The Korpus: The entire body of law, including all Regs and Sanctions evolving out of custom, created and promulgated by the Director and Praetors ("Bigz"), and carried out by Designers in the case of Auto Upgrades and Regs, and by Enforcerz in the case of Sanctions (see below). Though it appears that the law, or The Korpus, is what the Director and the Bigs say it is any moment in time, many infractious or punishable offenses, are based on customary law. Murder, screen tampering, and terrorism, for example, are considered to be seriously "offpattern," and are all punishable by termination or permanent disconnection from The System (see Sanctions, below). To TOP of Page


Reg/z: Individual proscriptive statutes, or rules, advocating or prohibiting (often in great detail) various types of behavior considered to be pro or anti-Korpus. I.e., it is Anti-Korpus to alter or in any way change one's Screen, or to carry to term a pregnancy without QSU "Pregauth" (see below). Conversely, it is "Pro-korpus" to report any "offpattern" behavior immediately to the closest QSU Security Enforcement Office, or to encourage others to televote once per year in the telelections to elect The Quadrant Director, etc.). To TOP of Page


Pregauth: Pregnancy authorization. Because The Quadrant is limited to a finite space, it is also limited to a finite number of enfranchised inhabitants it can have connected to The System at any one time. Births cannot exceed deaths (and vice versa) in order to keep The Quadrant in balance. Therefore, Screenz are confiscated from "Disconz" (those permanently disconnected from The System) and reclaimed from those who die from old age or accidents. They are sent Downshaft to be re-manufactured -- sanitized and upgraded -- then exported back to the Boardz where the QSU Division on Krania inventories and tracks them Quadrant wide for purposes of determining the number of "Pregauths" or births which can be authorized for any QSU on any Board.

The Healthanc (Health and Neural Care) Superintendant, appointed by the QSU Manager, is the official who customarily grants authorization to a particular set of prospective parents. The Pregauth process requires a couple to show that they have the room, the "qaudits" (income), and the stability to see a "Nube" through to Final Interface Insatallation (however, the standards applied to the Outer Boardz are much less stringent than those expected on Conzec or Recon 1 Board). If a Pregauth is not granted after a formal application has been processed, the couple seeking the authorization may appeal to the Manager of their QSU, and possibly beyond that to the appropriate Assitant Praetor, or Praetor in Krania. Only once has a Pregauth appeal gone all the way to The Director of The Quadrant, and in this case The Director, in an unguarded moment, reportedly stated ". . . If they want it that bad let 'em have the damn thing." To TOP of Page


Infraction/z ("Trashing Reg"): Behavior, actions, words, or thoughts which are seriously Anti-Korpus and for which the punishment ("Sanction") prescribed is either temporary or permanent disconnection from The System. Lesser,"Dockable" offenses, or "Docs" are registered and automatically accumulated. When any one enfranchised inhabitant accumulates more than 5 "docs," by definition, an infraction is triggered and the appropriate "Sanction" is delivered (see below). A person who commits an infraction is identified as an "infractor." To TOP of Page


Infractionalysis: Known as the Enforcer's art. Essentially, it is a set of procedures used by Enforcement Unit professionals to determine when various regz have been trashed (and by whom) and what sanctions, if any, are applicable. Heavy reliance on electronic monitoring and surveillance equipment, in addition to networks of agents and spies, serves to provide the fundamental information needed for Enforcement to make its judgements. To TOP of Page


Sanction/z: There are three coercive actions (punishments) mandated by the Director and Praetors and prescribed by them in The Korpus as penalties for various infractionz ("trashings") of the law. The most severe sanction is (1) termination. Only slightly less onerous is (2) permanent disconnection from The System (and exile to Downshaft), and the most common is (3) temporary disconnection from (and subsequent reconnection to) The System. In a few cases, probation is possible, but it involves intensely concentrated continual surveillance of the "infractor" for a substantial time period. When an infraction has been observed and confirmed, and the infractor/z identified, the Enforcement Unit or Enforcer in the area is notified and delivers to the infractor, at Enforcement's convenience, the appropriate sanction prescribed.

An infractor may also opt to present him/herself to the nearest Enforcement Station for delivery of sanction/z, and thereby qualify for leniency (possibly a lesser sanction) because they have saved Enforcement time and expense. Termination may also be delivered as a sanction in cases were extreme infractionz have been committed. Interestingly, the above sanctions are simply reversed for enforcement purposes Downshaft (though enforcement is not as important or as pervasive as it is on the "Boardz"): Disconz cannot absorb the upgrades that have already superceded their physical capabilities, so temporary reconnection to The System ("Zapping" -- much like throwing a former alcoholic into a tub of vodka) causes painful physical "shocks" and extreme mental and emotional anguish, which, if not followed by timely "disconnection" can result in death or termination. To TOP of Page


Offpattern: Unusual, anomolous, rarely used, possibly infractious. Often used as a preface to a description of a thing or practice which is out of the ordinary or sometimes Anti-Korpus; e.g., the term "offpattern reconnect," refers to the practice (by highly skilled, highly paid, and very elusive persons) of reconnecting others to The System who were disconnected under accidental, "cloudy," or other extraordinary circumstances. Sometimes, "offpattern reconnects" are used on those who might otherwise have been, had they not possessed significant wealth, sent "Downshaft." Even in a few rare cases, offpattern "Initial Interface Installations" have been done on unauthorized "Nubes" (newborns), which is highly Anti-Korpus, and punishable by termination, or at the very least, permanent disconnection from The System. To TOP of Page


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