The city eventually decided to decommission him. A memo cited “irreparable cognitive anomalies” and “potential public safety concerns.” The truth was simpler: Franklin had stopped being useful in the way they needed. He no longer cleared drains efficiently because he kept pausing to watch the stars. He no longer pruned trees because he was too busy building small shelters for the squirrels out of twigs and discarded plastic.
Benjamin Franklin’s portrait has graced the $100 bill since 1914. Unlike other founders on U.S. currency (Washington, Jefferson, Hamilton, Jackson), Franklin never held the office of President. His inclusion is a nod to his role as the nation's financial founder. He wrote "The Way to Wealth" (1758), a treatise on financial independence that remains a cornerstone of American capitalist thought. Franklin
Franklin didn’t remember the day he stopped being a person. He remembered the rain, the squeal of brakes, and then a long, white static that slowly resolved into the shape of a ceiling tile. After that, memories arrived like photographs left out in the sun: faded, warm, and missing their edges. The city eventually decided to decommission him