13. The Stinky-Kong 2000

CHAPTER 13 THE STINKY-KONG 2000 The next day, Mr. Meaner looked even more different than he had the day before. He'd been building a mechanical ape suit in his laboratory, and each new morning it got more and more elaborate. The genius gym teacher started the day by spraying all of the children in his classes with his newest mind- control formula, Rid-O-Kid 2000. "Say hello to my stinky friends!" shouted Mr. Meaner with each squirt.

In no time at all, the entire student body of Jerome Horwitz Elementary School was transformed. Now every kid in school had Attention Superfluous Lethargy Syndrome. "This is WONDERFUL!" Mr. Krupp exclaimed. "There's no more laughing, no more daydreaming, and no more running or playing or goofing around. It's like you've crushed their spirits AND their imaginations in one fell swoop!" "I'm really doing the world a great service," Mr. Meaner said with a slithery smile. "I'm raising a new generation of totally compliant button-pushers. They'll do what they're told, they won't question authority, and best of all, NO COMPLAINING!"

"Yeah, but isn't Rid-O-Kid 2000TM dangerous?" asked Ms. Ribbles "Not for us," said Mr. Meaner. "The spray only affects children. Adults are totally immune, so it's perfectly safe!" The only downside to Mr. Meaner's intra- nasally absorbed spray is that it only lasted for twenty-four hours. To be completely effective, it needed to be resprayed every day. "That's the beauty of my system," said ME Meaner. "Once parents see how easy it is to control children, they'll pay ANYTHING for a daily fix!"