Following the recent breakdown in diplomatic relations, the government of Honestants and Swindlecants is taking a hard line on foreigners, declaring all “Normaltons” (people who can tell the truth or lie at will) detrimental to the logical integrity of society. Yesterday I was backpacking on the island with a companion. The secret police found us and took us both to a detention centre. We were forcibly separated and I was locked in a solitary cell. That night I heard terrible screams, and in the morning there was an eerie silence. Fearing the worst, I called out my companion’s name, but there was no reply. There were two guards outside my cell so I asked them what had become of my companion.
Guard 1: “If your companion is dead, the other guard is an Honestant.”
Guard 2: “If the other guard is an Honestant, your companion is alive. Unfortunately, the other guard is a Swindlecant.”
That sounds like bad news, but is it really? Is my companion alive, or dead?
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Following the recent breakdown in diplomatic relations, the government of Honestants and Swindlecants is taking a hard line on foreigners, declaring all “Normaltons” (people who can tell the truth or lie at will) detrimental to the logical integrity of society. Yesterday I was backpacking on the island with a companion. The secret police found us and took us both to a detention centre. We were forcibly separated and I was locked in a solitary cell. That night I heard terrible screams, and in the morning there was an eerie silence. Fearing the worst, I called out my companion’s name, but there was no reply. There were two guards outside my cell so I asked them what had become of my companion.
Guard 1: “If your companion is dead, the other guard is an Honestant.”
Guard 2: “If the other guard is an Honestant, your companion is alive. Unfortunately, the other guard is a Swindlecant.”
That sounds like bad news, but is it really? Is my companion alive, or dead?
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