He stepped up to the sliding-glass doors of the new 22nd Century, Green Badge food station. It had been so long since he had tasted a real hamburger. The light beams measured his height as the floor sensors took his weight. Yet again, a pixilated, red X came up on the plasma glass.

“You are still…67.5 pounds…over the entrance weight for your height class,” said the automated voice, “you may enjoy a delicious tofu-burger next door at the Yellow Badge food station.”

He sighed, ignoring the laughs of a few greenbadgers waiting to enter. He made his way to the ‘trough’, as it was known. He didn’t want to be the cow, but rather to be thin and happy like the rest of the town.

“Hey Lardo!” yelled one of the greenbadgers. “Why don’t you just have yourself euthanized?” The Centre of Population Control was just across the street.

‘Maybe I will’