One city, Traditionia, was opposed to change. Their answer to every challenge was, "We have never done it that way before." They could not, of course, totally stop the ravages of time. But they were every careful that every repair exactly replicated whatever was there before. They were fortunate that they had started this program after the electric light and the telephone. But the personal computer and cell phone were outlawed. The houses were all very traditional and hinted at nothing modern. Their clothing and demeanor seemed very old-fashioned. As did their taste in entertainment and music. Everything there seemed to stay as it always had been.
The other city, Modernia, was devoted to change. They believed in always following the times or simply changing because something had been that way too long. Their buildings and structures were constantly being changed, even if they were practically new. In fact, many were never really finished, because before they were done, someone decided they needed to be built after a different pattern. They always had to follow the newest fad and do the newest thing, no matter how strange or ridiculous it might look from the outside. They always had to have the latest products, entertainment, and music, no matter how much effort it took to do so. And they were constantly discarding perfectly good items on the ground they were outmoded or obsolete.
In an attempt to resolve their rivalry, they called in a panel of judges from the cities round about. After looking around one of the judges waved his hand in a motion to be heard. "Why do you follow these extreme principles?" he asked. "Why not evaluate what is old and what is new and chose the best things out of each? Why this rigid prejudice regarding a thing's date?" He met only with blank stares.
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