Reply to thread

Message

<blockquote data-quote="Lazybones" data-source="post: 5092846" data-attributes="member: 143">Thanks for the posts, everyone. The Alphas were interested in the geopolitical implications of France's betrayal as well, as we learn in today's post...* * * * * Interlude: Base Operations (July 24, 2008)The talk in the common-room was grim. &quot;... think maybe she right, US got plenty to worry about,&quot; Vasily commented.&nbsp; &quot;France over Atlantic, China over Pacific if Doc Ok speak it right.&nbsp; That two nuclear powers, two big members of UN Security Council.&quot; He huffed, irritated.&nbsp; &quot;I guess aliens taking great care over choosing allies in this one.&nbsp; It all feel... strategic.&quot; Jane agreed, &quot;Vasily is right on target here.&nbsp; Two nuclear powers is enough of a threat without us looking for a witchhunt.&nbsp; It proved disastrous with the internment camps in World War II and the tribunals of the McCarthy era.&nbsp; We need to focus on what allies we have remaining, not who we can further alienate next.&nbsp; We do whatever is necessary to survive this mess.&nbsp; I intend on keeping my appointment with Dr. Beauvois.&quot; “Divide and conquer, classic tactics,” Catalina offered.&nbsp; “France capitulating is going to throw the whole of Europe into disarray.&nbsp; Trying to absorb refugees alone is going to strain the EU.&nbsp; Then there's the strike capability, China is a threat but the French have a large submarine based arsenal, some 200 missiles.&nbsp;&nbsp; According to my research, I think a French ICBM launched from, say, the coast of Brest could happily reach Washington DC.&quot; The British agent shook her head.&nbsp; &quot;The same sources estimate China only has about 20 ICBMs capable of targeting the US.&nbsp; The Chinese have been a threat for a while but France?&nbsp; I can't imagine the US ever considering them a true threat, but that's a factor of ten increase.&nbsp; This new front has to be making a few backsides twitchy.&quot;&nbsp; Catalina looked at the door.&nbsp; &quot;If Drake is anything to go by, the US already has plans.&quot;&quot;Eh, people with rank usually can count,&quot; Vasily said dismissively.&nbsp; &quot;Witchhunt may be bad, but this talk of 'clones'...?&nbsp; All we got is hope that aliens don't want to totally destroy planet.&quot; He paused.&nbsp; &quot;Better hope Pentagon feels same way too.&quot; He paused again, longer this time.&nbsp; &quot;So, ah... this 'reactor' idea?&nbsp; Probably pay for itself in time?&nbsp; They keep sending big UFOs at us, we fill stores back up.&quot; The Russian rubbed his chin.&nbsp; &quot;All count on Doc Ok, though.&quot;&nbsp; He looked at the British woman.&nbsp; &quot;You talk to him.&nbsp; A bit.&nbsp; You see his stuff.&nbsp; What your opinion on this guy?&quot; Face creased a little in a thoughtful frown, Catalina looked up for a moment then focused back on the Russian.&nbsp; &quot;He's a patriot, you know how it goes?&nbsp; One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter.&nbsp; One man's dictator is another's political savior.&nbsp; It's more the direction that you look at someone from than the person themselves in some cases.&nbsp; He may have betrayed a trust, but he did it for a cause and for altruistic reasons.&quot;&nbsp; Catalina shook her head a little.&nbsp; &quot;I don't know the man intimately, but I'd say no one could fail to see that Africa would be vulnerable here.&nbsp; If the French have made a treaty, how long before some power hungry African politician finds it a way to rule the continent?&nbsp; He's an intelligent man, he has to see that defeating the aliens takes priority now, and he'll be useful.&nbsp; So for me, I say let him out and use him.&quot; &quot;Besides, the reactor is just the first.&nbsp; You talk about strategy, but as far as I see there are two things we need to do.&quot;&nbsp; Catalina held up the forefinger on her left hand.&nbsp; &quot;We need to know that if it all goes pearshaped, and someone starts throwing missiles, that we can keep on fighting.&nbsp; For that we need self-sufficiency and the reactor is a big part of that.&quot;&nbsp; She held up a second finger.&nbsp; &quot;Our best chance of stopping a world war is to get the little bastards before it happens, and take the fight to them.&nbsp; Defense and sufficiency first, we need the reactor and the laser system badly, but after that we talk to the captive engineer and we get a ship that can take us to them.&quot; Catalina looked at the two fingers and with a hard grin gestured.&nbsp; &quot;Remember Agincourt, you sodding frog eaters.&nbsp; We still have our fingers!&quot;Jane nodded.&nbsp; “Sounds like your points are on target,” she said.&nbsp; She started to say something else, but was interrupted by the familiar ping of her xPhone.&nbsp; Frowning, she took it out and looked at the device; across from her, Catalina and Vasily were doing the same. &nbsp;&quot;What?&quot;&nbsp; An exclamation followed by a profanity in some Mediterranean language burst from Catalina.&nbsp; &quot;Guantanamo Bay all over again?&nbsp; Not a chance.&nbsp; No way will I see him handed over to the US for interrogation.&nbsp; I'll bet he'd end up in the nice little research laboratory where they are conducting that behind the scenes research for the Department of Homeland Security.&quot;&nbsp; She read on.&nbsp; &quot;Nor do I like that ‘War for Humanity’ comment.&nbsp; Does anybody else have a twitchy feeling about this?&quot; “We could keep 24/7 guards on Doctor Ok while he's working,” Jane said, “and have people triple check his work to be sure he's not doing anything to sabotage the reactor.&nbsp; If that will suffice for Agent Drake for now, perhaps we can transfer him later when this project is done.&nbsp; We need him if we’re going to complete this project in a week's time.”Vasily’s eyes lingered on his xPhone, narrowed and thoughtful. &quot;It is not a war for humanity?&quot; he asked. &quot;Then what is it?&quot;</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Lazybones, post: 5092846, member: 143"] Thanks for the posts, everyone. The Alphas were interested in the geopolitical implications of France's betrayal as well, as we learn in today's post... * * * * * [b]Interlude: Base Operations (July 24, 2008)[/b] The talk in the common-room was grim. "... think maybe she right, US got plenty to worry about," Vasily commented. "France over Atlantic, China over Pacific if Doc Ok speak it right. That two nuclear powers, two big members of UN Security Council." He huffed, irritated. "I guess aliens taking great care over choosing allies in this one. It all feel... strategic." Jane agreed, "Vasily is right on target here. Two nuclear powers is enough of a threat without us looking for a witchhunt. It proved disastrous with the internment camps in World War II and the tribunals of the McCarthy era. We need to focus on what allies we have remaining, not who we can further alienate next. We do whatever is necessary to survive this mess. I intend on keeping my appointment with Dr. Beauvois." “Divide and conquer, classic tactics,” Catalina offered. “France capitulating is going to throw the whole of Europe into disarray. Trying to absorb refugees alone is going to strain the EU. Then there's the strike capability, China is a threat but the French have a large submarine based arsenal, some 200 missiles. According to my research, I think a French ICBM launched from, say, the coast of Brest could happily reach Washington DC." The British agent shook her head. "The same sources estimate China only has about 20 ICBMs capable of targeting the US. The Chinese have been a threat for a while but France? I can't imagine the US ever considering them a true threat, but that's a factor of ten increase. This new front has to be making a few backsides twitchy." Catalina looked at the door. "If Drake is anything to go by, the US already has plans." "Eh, people with rank usually can count," Vasily said dismissively. "Witchhunt may be bad, but this talk of 'clones'...? All we got is hope that aliens don't want to totally destroy planet." He paused. "Better hope Pentagon feels same way too." He paused again, longer this time. "So, ah... this 'reactor' idea? Probably pay for itself in time? They keep sending big UFOs at us, we fill stores back up." The Russian rubbed his chin. "All count on Doc Ok, though." He looked at the British woman. "You talk to him. A bit. You see his stuff. What your opinion on this guy?" Face creased a little in a thoughtful frown, Catalina looked up for a moment then focused back on the Russian. "He's a patriot, you know how it goes? One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter. One man's dictator is another's political savior. It's more the direction that you look at someone from than the person themselves in some cases. He may have betrayed a trust, but he did it for a cause and for altruistic reasons." Catalina shook her head a little. "I don't know the man intimately, but I'd say no one could fail to see that Africa would be vulnerable here. If the French have made a treaty, how long before some power hungry African politician finds it a way to rule the continent? He's an intelligent man, he has to see that defeating the aliens takes priority now, and he'll be useful. So for me, I say let him out and use him." "Besides, the reactor is just the first. You talk about strategy, but as far as I see there are two things we need to do." Catalina held up the forefinger on her left hand. "We need to know that if it all goes pearshaped, and someone starts throwing missiles, that we can keep on fighting. For that we need self-sufficiency and the reactor is a big part of that." She held up a second finger. "Our best chance of stopping a world war is to get the little bastards before it happens, and take the fight to them. Defense and sufficiency first, we need the reactor and the laser system badly, but after that we talk to the captive engineer and we get a ship that can take us to them." Catalina looked at the two fingers and with a hard grin gestured. "Remember Agincourt, you sodding frog eaters. We still have our fingers!" Jane nodded. “Sounds like your points are on target,” she said. She started to say something else, but was interrupted by the familiar ping of her xPhone. Frowning, she took it out and looked at the device; across from her, Catalina and Vasily were doing the same. "What?" An exclamation followed by a profanity in some Mediterranean language burst from Catalina. "Guantanamo Bay all over again? Not a chance. No way will I see him handed over to the US for interrogation. I'll bet he'd end up in the nice little research laboratory where they are conducting that behind the scenes research for the Department of Homeland Security." She read on. "Nor do I like that ‘War for Humanity’ comment. Does anybody else have a twitchy feeling about this?" “We could keep 24/7 guards on Doctor Ok while he's working,” Jane said, “and have people triple check his work to be sure he's not doing anything to sabotage the reactor. If that will suffice for Agent Drake for now, perhaps we can transfer him later when this project is done. We need him if we’re going to complete this project in a week's time.” Vasily’s eyes lingered on his xPhone, narrowed and thoughtful. "It is not a war for humanity?" he asked. "Then what is it?" [/QUOTE]

Verification