But you have to shelter them somewhere, and feed them something. And if you’re not going to do those things well, then you’re going to have to make sure you have hundreds of slaves to make sure all the work still gets done. So take your pick...treat a few slaves well, or treat many, many slaves not so good. Either…

Seasonal work by definition isn’t very compatible with slavery. What do you do with the slaves for the rest of the year then?

Well. Enjoy then.

Amazon Prime members?

I agree...you can make the case for slavery continuing on in a fashion akin to what conditions are like in China right now. But that’s not solely a Black issue. That encompasses all of the lower and lower-middle class of America. That takes quite a bit of wind out of the sails of the shock value of this show.

So then how will this show be relevant in any way? The form of modern slavery you describe isn’t limited to just Blacks, it encompasses all the the lower and lower-middle class Americans of all races. That wouldn’t do anything to spark any sort of conversation regarding race topics in the modern era.

I don’t know. Probably not. But it’s all stuff my wife watches, so it all just blends together for me. I pretty much abandon my television between June and October.

Eh. I’m skeptical they put that much thought into it. But then, I naturally have a low opinion of the industry that gives us Housewives of Whereverthefuckville, Olympic Swimmer Races Virtual Shark, and We Keep Looking But Never Find Ghosts shows.

You speak far more eloquently and knowledgeably on the subject than I. Thank you. 

I do believe I’ve read at least one article in which they stated there had been subsequent American Civil Wars, and we’re left to speculate that the Confederacy must have come out the victor, or at least not the loser.

Yeah. More good points regarding America’s place in world changing events. We’ll see if these things are addressed or not.

Possibilities. But it also seems to me that the further away you move from real life today, the less value this show has towards the “conversation” the HBO suits are talking about.

Good points. But then, if you take the time to train your slaves, you’re going to also invest in their continued well-being. Fast-forward to today, and you’re going to be diluting the point of your alternate history story, in that these fairly maintained, skilled slaves aren’t really going to be that much different…

Sorry. I’m not convinced the economics of white greed work out in this case. Again, this isn’t the most pressing concern related to this show, but a few pieces of farming equipment are going to be much cheaper in the long run than an entire stable of slaves, whether you treat them poorly or not. If you treat them…

Maybe. But the show premise doesn’t seem to lend itself to gratuitous nudity very well.

You forgot Fraggle Rock.

“People who want to be entertained” is a mighty wide demographic net. I’m fairly certain the entertainment business doesn’t work like that anymore. Media properties are usually developed with a certain specific audience in mind.

Eh. Seems like that would be a task more suited to at least semi-skilled labor, and ill suited for slaves.

Well, I won’t deny that I like me some boobs. You know the old saying...you’ve seen one pair, you want to see them all. But the fact remains, I’ve heard outrage from both sides of the political equation about this show, and everyone else expects boobs from HBO. Well, actually, everyone including the political people…

Actually, I’m not sure who the intended audience is for this show. Seems like folks on either side of the political aisle are taking issue with it for various reasons, and folks who aren’t politically inclined at all will probably stop watching the minute they realize there aren’t a ton of boobs in an HBO show (unless…