“Adjustment Team,” a science fiction story by Philip K. Dick, first appeared autumn 1954 in the Orbit Science Fiction magazine.

Ed Fletcher, the story’s protagonist, misses the designated adjustment for sector T137 and is brought in front of the Old Man in the top administrative chamber. The Old Man, who everyone eventually meets, warns Fletcher he will be allowed to return without being de-energized and adjusted – only if he promises to not tell anyone what he’s seen! The story is better understood by also reading a biographical profile of Dick.

Dick never fully accepted the world we live in “as not up to his standards.” A writer, who suffered in life, found possibilities missing in this world in science fiction. Philip K. Dick just seems ahead of the curve, much like George Orwell, in questioning what is in front of us. Dick’s stature has grown since his death in 1982 from heart failure, hastened by addiction to amphetamines. To question our reality and humanity is a “Phildickian” notion.

‘Adjustment Team’ in .mp3 audio is available for your listening pleasure.

The short story landed in the public domain when copyrights expired – which is an interesting tale in and of itself. Is ‘The Adjustment Bureau’ movie the result of playing word games with copyrights? Either way, The trailer shows it’s just the latest Dick story made into a movie, most notably ‘Blade Runner’ and ‘Total Recall’. Philip K. Dick is an author anyone can relate to if they have a beef with our de-energized and adjusted 21st Century lives!