Permission

In London, they lament it and welcome him, but everyone is inside their shell. And they obey indifferently. Society divided into classes. Indians run minimarkets. The British are superior beings. Progress within the rules set by business. Private property is sacred. The owner and his slaves keep watch. Every corporation, company, or luxury store has one or more employees who watch, control, and spy. In the British Library, I counted 50. You can't enter any reading room without a pass. Police officers and poachers firmly turn me away as soon as I try to film. Everything belongs to someone: only the owner can allow its use. A fortified city. Men in a vault. Getting rich. Marvelous designer skyscrapers draw the line between the select few and the indistinct masses. Empty, docile bodies.

Documentary