“But we don’t need any air conditioning here in heaven,” said an angel fluttering his wings. “The physical body might need it but an astral body lives in a constant state of comfort and bliss, at least when it’s in heaven.”

“Then why aren’t the Americans coming to heaven anymore?” asked a second angel, playing with a cloudlet.

“That’s got me stumped,” said the first angel.

“Me too…do you think they are going to hell?” suggested a third angel.

“I checked with Satan,” said St. Peter. “He said that things were normal and there was no dramatic increase in American souls in hell. He was interested in what was going on, though. I guess he figures that if he could find these lost souls he could get them in to hell somehow.”

“You should know what’s going on,” said the second angel to St. Peter as he shaped a small cloud into a trident.

“Well, I don’t! And stop playing with the cloud!”

“Ok. But don’t these American souls turn up at the Pearly Gates? Perhaps we should check with St. Michael if there’s a problem during the soul’s journey to heaven” the second angel asked.

“I checked with the archangel, but the transportation is progressing normally. I just don’t know where they are disappearing to, or why.”

“Have you spoken to Our Father about it?” asked the third angel.

“You know how busy he is. I don’t want to bother him about some lost souls. Not right now, anyway,” said St. Peter.

“Could it be that the American souls can see souls of people from communist countries here? Or maybe they can see souls of some Iraqi children and innocent bystanders. Do you think we should build a barricade so new souls can’t look into heaven?” asked the first angel.

“That’s as silly as the air-conditioning idea. The astral body perceives everything, it does not need to ‘look.’ And what a crazy idea… partition heaven! I say we keep things as they are and not change any thing. Next, you’ll say let’s introduce sin credits,” said the second angel, as it absent-mindedly shaped a cloud into the Statue of Liberty.

“No, I didn’t mean to suggest...yes, of course...er…could you please stop playing with the clouds, it’s distracting,” said the first angel.

“You know, I feel if we can just get hold of one of these lost American souls we’d be able to get at the bottom of this mystery. Where are they going anyway? I mean, what could be better than going to heaven?” said the second angel.

“Maybe we could tag them somehow when they first appear at the Pearly Gates,” suggested the third angel.

“That can be done only by Our Father. I was given the keys to the heaven, but I don’t have any jurisdiction outside it. Wait! There is one thing. During the interview at the Pearly Gates they all ask one strange question. Maybe that holds the key to this riddle. Come to think of it, I’m certain it does,” said St. Peter.

“Well, what is it?” asked angel two, making a fish out of a cloud.

“They ask if they have voting rights.”

“And what do you say?” asked the first angel.

“What do you think? The obvious thing, that there’s no voting in heaven. They do look very disappointed with that,” said St. Peter.

“Don’t you get it?” said the second angel, chiselling a ballot box from a mid-size cloud. “No voting means no democracy. And what are Americans dying and killing for? Why are decent, god-fearing Americans supporting military action in places far away from their homes? For democracy! And if they die and find out that there’s no democracy in heaven…”

“In the name of Our Father, you could be right. Hey, that’s a nice likeness of a ballot box…you’re getting good at this,” said St. Peter.

“So what do we do now?” asked the third angel. “Should we introduce democracy in heaven?”

“That’s up to Our Father,” said St. Peter. “I don’t think he’ll like the idea too much... it’s not going to be viable to do that. Imagine running the Universe by majority consensus.”

“What about the lost American souls then?” asked the first angel.

“I guess we’ll have to wait for them to get over their democracy trip,” said St. Peter. “Maybe they’ll remember that it’s ‘Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven,’ and not the other way around.”