the lottery

In a small town, there is a traditional lottery where the winner is stoned to death. Lady Warner, an expert of the game, defends the tradition, saying it ensures a good harvest. She has never won, but won a microwave in a TV lottery. Families of the winners are honored. The host reflects on the tradition and suggests we all have bad habits we justify with tradition. Good morning, fellows, and welcome to our daily podcast, Strange News from the World. Today I've got a really interesting and really weird one. Let's see an article that will introduce it better to us. It's the 27th of June, an ordinary summer day in every town in the USA, except in one of them. Here, in this small and suggestive town, is a special morning. The traditional lottery the villagers are looking forward to is taking place. When the man in charge, who for some years has been Mr. Summers, takes the iconic black box, this particular game can officially start. At first he has a penalty, and then the other members have to draw a paper sleeve from the box, and the one who has a black dot on it is the winner. Would I be the next one to be hit by victory? Personally, I don't think so, but I like to choose. Maybe an opinion from some players will clear your minds about that. And today we're very lucky because we have a special guest. Ladies and gentlemen, directly from the Midlands, there's Lady Warner, that is an expert of this game. Thank you for the compliment, my dear. More precisely, it has been 77 years that I've participated to the lottery. I'm a milestone. Thank you for coming, Mrs. Warner. We're really glad to have such an important personality for the town. Do you have any message for the audience connected with us? I already miss you all, fellow villagers. I've never been so far from my town, and honestly it hasn't been such a lovely trip to come here. These new generations love huge cities with two sands and two sands of streets and buildings and people everywhere. I definitely prefer mine, quite enough for a lady of my age. I'm sorry for that, Mrs. Warner, but in the meantime I was thinking about something you said. In all these years... 77, darling. 77, yum. By the way, during all this time you've never won a prize from the lottery, have you? Actually, once I won a microwave from a lottery on TV. Not so efficient, but more than nothing. That's nice, but I mean, you've never won a prize from a traditional one, right? What a question. Luckily, no. I'm sorry, but what do you mean with luckily? I don't think you'd like to be stoned, would you? What? Sorry, darling, maybe I've been a little too direct. I wasn't joking, by the way. For so many years we've been doing this ritual. Lottery in June, corns will be heavy soon, they say. And that's true. We just preserve an ancient tradition, and it's a benefit for the whole village. Even if a member of your community dies? It might be a bit cruel, but it's the price we have to pay for a good harvest. I prefer the death of a single stoned person instead of the one of the whole community caused by hunger. I see this point of view, but, well, personally I don't agree with that. I don't see all this tragedy. It's the tradition, and that's how it goes. And what about the families of the winners? How do they react to the loss? Naturally they mourn and are in pain, but they're never really upset. Indeed, they often feel honored for the contribute given by their relatives for the village. Well, I'd like to talk some more with you, but our time just finished. I'm sorry. Thank you for coming and for sharing us your precious opinion, Mrs. Warner. Nice to meet you, too, darling. I greet you all, my fellows. They will want to know you personally, for sure. Alright, folks, here we are. This interview made me think really much, and I wanted to reflect with you. Dear listeners, fortunately the homicide of an innocent person just for a tradition is out of our way of thinking. But don't we also have some bad habits which are to justify with this excuse? Everybody does. It's also, and only, a tradition. Thank you very much.