This is another short story, the stand-alone publication of which was made possible by the advent of electronic publishing (though, in my case, it was read in hard copy). If you've read the above description, you'll know that judging the plot here on the basis of realistic plausibility isn't a consideration. Even if our hero is a computer programmer, when he develops a program to train an "army" of 100 squirrels, using Pavlovian conditioning, to perform sabotage functions at corporate headquarters of his old employer, you know you've crossed the border into tongue-in-cheek territory a long time ago. :-) (Even though the titular Dribbles doesn't really wield a bazooka in the story --only on the cover!) In fact, I don't think squirrels can be bought at a pet shop in the first place. This isn't intended to be realistic; it's purely and simply zany, off-the-wall, satiric humor, and it succeeds very well at being that. But the satire has a bite; Toye puts the skewer to modern corporate America, and his sympathies are 100% with the underdog (in the form of exploited employees). His perspective did not come across as "anti-business" (at least to me, though some will no doubt label it that way) as such, nor as opposed to honest profit fairly earned. Rather, it struck me as anti-selfishness and anti-exploitation, opposed to the untempered pursuit of profit at the expense of human decency, and to the mindset that treats other people as things to be used for the satisfaction of a few power freaks. Those aren't hallmarks of proper business policy; and the widespread conviction that they are is a symptom of an economic order that's run amok. Most readers, IMO, will recognize this --and won't have any trouble rooting for Bob and the squirrels. :-)
Dribbles Review
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