A Shift in Priorities - Sequel
- Thread starter rast
- Start date
I almost want to see people bankrupt the entire country to somehow do it anyway, only for everyone there to eventually die after long suffering because of pretty much everything in the human body no longer working correctly in such low gravity.
Amazing, that they have the scientific knowledge to get people to Europa and set up a colony, but no real idea of what it means to create and maintain a long-term, functioning colony of human beings away from Earth.
I feel like we're seeing the beginnings of another disaster, one which will result in Earth swearing off any type of space exploration for decades...
I feel like we're seeing the beginnings of another disaster, one which will result in Earth swearing off any type of space exploration for decades...
Capitalism is the extraordinary belief that the nastiest of men, for the nastiest of reasons, will somehow work for the benefit of us all.
(John Maynard Keynes)
More wine! Rudolf Hanauer caught at the bottle. The Riesling mustn’t become warm. Rudi Amelunxen held out his glass. Yeah, getting drunk was a good idea indeed. One couldn’t rope in Strauß; it was a misery. The bloke had turned the government into his one-man-show. He had ended the riots, that was true. But in truth, he was in league with the chief rioters. Together they were whooping the Reichstag into submission. And the public was applauding…
One had tried to stop him. It was impossible. The assemblymen were refusing to obey. They were fearing to be tarred and feathered at home. Strauß was immensely popular. And now that he had launched the colony caper, he had become virtually unstoppable. The media were celebrating him.
And the crazy thing was: it seemed to work. The economy was booming. Hanauer, as minister of finance, could tell. Despite lowered taxes state revenue was rising. It wasn’t a big surplus, but one definitely wasn’t at a loss. The ministry officials were gaping in disbelief. How could it be? What was happening here?
Of course, it wasn’t enough to pay for all the fancy things Strauß kept dispensing. But nobody seemed to care. Orders were accepted – and the industry was pulling extra shifts. – Rudi Amelunxen, the vice-chancellor, was shouting for another bottle of Riesling.
The paradox was: the DVP dudes were as distraught as Amelunxen, Hanauer and the other Zentrum folks. Strauß was doing what he deemed right and was giving no regard to what his party wanted. Only the AFV bozos thought it was all right. They always had wished for the stars; Strauß was handing them out to them.
It couldn’t go well, but one was unable to stop it. Hanauer took another gulp of wine. It was a debacle. And to think that Strauß once had been one of them, a trim BVP man, an affiliate of the Zentrum… How could that happen?
(John Maynard Keynes)
More wine! Rudolf Hanauer caught at the bottle. The Riesling mustn’t become warm. Rudi Amelunxen held out his glass. Yeah, getting drunk was a good idea indeed. One couldn’t rope in Strauß; it was a misery. The bloke had turned the government into his one-man-show. He had ended the riots, that was true. But in truth, he was in league with the chief rioters. Together they were whooping the Reichstag into submission. And the public was applauding…
One had tried to stop him. It was impossible. The assemblymen were refusing to obey. They were fearing to be tarred and feathered at home. Strauß was immensely popular. And now that he had launched the colony caper, he had become virtually unstoppable. The media were celebrating him.
And the crazy thing was: it seemed to work. The economy was booming. Hanauer, as minister of finance, could tell. Despite lowered taxes state revenue was rising. It wasn’t a big surplus, but one definitely wasn’t at a loss. The ministry officials were gaping in disbelief. How could it be? What was happening here?
Of course, it wasn’t enough to pay for all the fancy things Strauß kept dispensing. But nobody seemed to care. Orders were accepted – and the industry was pulling extra shifts. – Rudi Amelunxen, the vice-chancellor, was shouting for another bottle of Riesling.
The paradox was: the DVP dudes were as distraught as Amelunxen, Hanauer and the other Zentrum folks. Strauß was doing what he deemed right and was giving no regard to what his party wanted. Only the AFV bozos thought it was all right. They always had wished for the stars; Strauß was handing them out to them.
It couldn’t go well, but one was unable to stop it. Hanauer took another gulp of wine. It was a debacle. And to think that Strauß once had been one of them, a trim BVP man, an affiliate of the Zentrum… How could that happen?
Last edited:
Is there a RL example to what Strauß is doing? I'm not an economist so I don't know what exactly is happening.
altamiro
Banned
He is basically radically de-regulating and reducing the tax burden to get to the other side of the Laffer curve. IRL this has never been tried to the same extent as that would go against too many entrenched interests so it remains theoretical.
An illusion shared by everyone becomes a reality.
(Erich Fromm)
Hanne Zülch didn’t have the impression that Franz Josef was in control of anything. He was like a toerag running wild, haphazardly smashing windows and unharnessing the horses. He seemed to enjoy it though. But you couldn’t get him to explain what he really was up to. Demolishing the system certainly was an objective of his. However, what did he intend to establish instead? And how was he going to do it?
Might it indeed be that he had no plan? Hanne hardly dared to belief it. Desultory destruction? And nothing else? Inconceivable! There had to be a secret plan. – Things were happing so fast – and so to Franz Josef’s favour that there must be a hidden plan.
She had asked Albert Leise. He had only shrugged his shoulders. No idea… But it worked, didn’t it? You couldn’t overcome the system by following its rules. The Germans were craving for a system change since many years. Franz Josef was wrecking the old system, quite successfully by the way… He was a true revolutionary. – Well, something new would emerge inevitably…
That hadn’t reassured Hanne. Oskar should not grow up in chaos. The old order had been suffocating, it was true, but it had always provided a certain feeling of security. And now?
(Erich Fromm)
Hanne Zülch didn’t have the impression that Franz Josef was in control of anything. He was like a toerag running wild, haphazardly smashing windows and unharnessing the horses. He seemed to enjoy it though. But you couldn’t get him to explain what he really was up to. Demolishing the system certainly was an objective of his. However, what did he intend to establish instead? And how was he going to do it?
Might it indeed be that he had no plan? Hanne hardly dared to belief it. Desultory destruction? And nothing else? Inconceivable! There had to be a secret plan. – Things were happing so fast – and so to Franz Josef’s favour that there must be a hidden plan.
She had asked Albert Leise. He had only shrugged his shoulders. No idea… But it worked, didn’t it? You couldn’t overcome the system by following its rules. The Germans were craving for a system change since many years. Franz Josef was wrecking the old system, quite successfully by the way… He was a true revolutionary. – Well, something new would emerge inevitably…
That hadn’t reassured Hanne. Oskar should not grow up in chaos. The old order had been suffocating, it was true, but it had always provided a certain feeling of security. And now?
Be independent of the good opinion of other people.
(Abraham Maslow)
The ballad was his invention. It was a concoction of Hegel, Karl Marx and Oswald Mosley – with a little bit of Wukr el-Shabbazz in-between – for rhythm and rhyme. Of course, it didn’t supersede the Quran, nothing could do that. It was just an innocuous tale discussing certain aspects of ordinary life in Ala Ka Kuma. He was using it in his lectures. People seemed to like it – not least because they could sing along.
The Al’iikhwa Miskin, the Brotherhood of the Poor, was growing. In fact, growth had already become a worry for Wukr. How could he control the cells in Dakar, Touba, Kidira and Kita? It was more complicated than he had imagined. There were so many poor in this country. And quite a lot of them were unconnected…
The connected ones, the poor clients of mighty men, he couldn’t reach. They had obligations to their patrons – and were pegged into the latter’s dealings. But the poorest of the poor, those who had no money, no connections, no influence, no nothing, they came flocking to the Al’iikhwa Miskin.
How could you make money from folks who had nothing? Well, Wukr had found a way. There were foreign investors – from Middle Africa and the WAU – who were exploiting the humble wage level of Ala Ka Kuma. He had struck a deal with one of them. His clients, the poorest of the poor, would work for less. And a modest tenth of that went into the brotherhood’s chest, his chest – at least here in Bamako.
Other foreign preyers had already shown interest. But he mustn’t overdo. The powers that were wouldn’t tolerate it. That the brotherhood served one investor was only just acceptable – because charity was an obligation to any believer; but more of it would solicit a violent response. Wukr was very cautious in this regard. But he was currently surveying the possibility of sending clients abroad.
(Abraham Maslow)
The ballad was his invention. It was a concoction of Hegel, Karl Marx and Oswald Mosley – with a little bit of Wukr el-Shabbazz in-between – for rhythm and rhyme. Of course, it didn’t supersede the Quran, nothing could do that. It was just an innocuous tale discussing certain aspects of ordinary life in Ala Ka Kuma. He was using it in his lectures. People seemed to like it – not least because they could sing along.
The Al’iikhwa Miskin, the Brotherhood of the Poor, was growing. In fact, growth had already become a worry for Wukr. How could he control the cells in Dakar, Touba, Kidira and Kita? It was more complicated than he had imagined. There were so many poor in this country. And quite a lot of them were unconnected…
The connected ones, the poor clients of mighty men, he couldn’t reach. They had obligations to their patrons – and were pegged into the latter’s dealings. But the poorest of the poor, those who had no money, no connections, no influence, no nothing, they came flocking to the Al’iikhwa Miskin.
How could you make money from folks who had nothing? Well, Wukr had found a way. There were foreign investors – from Middle Africa and the WAU – who were exploiting the humble wage level of Ala Ka Kuma. He had struck a deal with one of them. His clients, the poorest of the poor, would work for less. And a modest tenth of that went into the brotherhood’s chest, his chest – at least here in Bamako.
Other foreign preyers had already shown interest. But he mustn’t overdo. The powers that were wouldn’t tolerate it. That the brotherhood served one investor was only just acceptable – because charity was an obligation to any believer; but more of it would solicit a violent response. Wukr was very cautious in this regard. But he was currently surveying the possibility of sending clients abroad.
Twelve experts gathered in one room equal one big idiot.
(Carl Jung)
The place was crawling with people; it was quite impressive. Most were construction workers, some were military engineers, others were gaugers; groups of scientists were wandering among them. And of course, there were machines – dozers, graders, backhoes, construction cranes, mixers, quite a fleet of them. Rebel Creek was already unrecognisable for those who had known it before.
Harvey Allen, though, the head of Project Hercules, the US NPP venture, had no eyes for the beauty of the site today. Visitors from Washington never meant anything good. The senators were behaving quite jovially, but Allen thought some fishy outcome had to be assumed. At present, John D. Ryan, Allen’s deputy, was explaining to them the organisation of the construction site.
Next, Jack Muller of US Steel would brief them on the steel plant and how they intended to produce the pusher plate. One of the senators came from Pennsylvania; he seemed to be very interested in US Steel’s activities. And the guy from Michigan should also take to matters concerning steel. That ought to keep the blokes busy for some time. Yeah, steel was something they could understand.
His part, about spaceflight and NPP operations, they hadn’t understood. He had seen it in their eyes. They had been interested, no doubt, but they had understood nothing. They knew that the Germans were doing it, and the Russians too. So, they wanted it for the US as well. But the details were overtaxing them. And Allen had already delivered the popular version…
Well, these kind gentlemen eventually were going to decide on the funding of Project Hercules. It was the usual game: decisions were taken for obscure reasons, and not for the reasons one would expect. The steel industry had profited greatly from railway construction, which recently had slowed down considerably because all main lines were ready. Hence, they were looking for new sources of income.
That was possibly influencing the senators much more than the drive to keep up with foreign nations in regard to space flight. The US were alone and self-sufficient, what Europeans and other aliens were doing was of no significance. Even the fabulous Chinese markets had turned out to be mere chimaeras. So, jobs for steel workers were more important than travelling to Mars and Venus.
But okay, as long as the funds were being allocated, it didn’t really matter why. Nevertheless, it was a precarious affair: one day, the money might be refused for other obscure reasons – like attention shifting to consumer goods, some silly fashion of living or combating climate change...
(Carl Jung)
The place was crawling with people; it was quite impressive. Most were construction workers, some were military engineers, others were gaugers; groups of scientists were wandering among them. And of course, there were machines – dozers, graders, backhoes, construction cranes, mixers, quite a fleet of them. Rebel Creek was already unrecognisable for those who had known it before.
Harvey Allen, though, the head of Project Hercules, the US NPP venture, had no eyes for the beauty of the site today. Visitors from Washington never meant anything good. The senators were behaving quite jovially, but Allen thought some fishy outcome had to be assumed. At present, John D. Ryan, Allen’s deputy, was explaining to them the organisation of the construction site.
Next, Jack Muller of US Steel would brief them on the steel plant and how they intended to produce the pusher plate. One of the senators came from Pennsylvania; he seemed to be very interested in US Steel’s activities. And the guy from Michigan should also take to matters concerning steel. That ought to keep the blokes busy for some time. Yeah, steel was something they could understand.
His part, about spaceflight and NPP operations, they hadn’t understood. He had seen it in their eyes. They had been interested, no doubt, but they had understood nothing. They knew that the Germans were doing it, and the Russians too. So, they wanted it for the US as well. But the details were overtaxing them. And Allen had already delivered the popular version…
Well, these kind gentlemen eventually were going to decide on the funding of Project Hercules. It was the usual game: decisions were taken for obscure reasons, and not for the reasons one would expect. The steel industry had profited greatly from railway construction, which recently had slowed down considerably because all main lines were ready. Hence, they were looking for new sources of income.
That was possibly influencing the senators much more than the drive to keep up with foreign nations in regard to space flight. The US were alone and self-sufficient, what Europeans and other aliens were doing was of no significance. Even the fabulous Chinese markets had turned out to be mere chimaeras. So, jobs for steel workers were more important than travelling to Mars and Venus.
But okay, as long as the funds were being allocated, it didn’t really matter why. Nevertheless, it was a precarious affair: one day, the money might be refused for other obscure reasons – like attention shifting to consumer goods, some silly fashion of living or combating climate change...
History is just new people making old mistakes.
(Sigmund Freud)
It was a see-saw, a bloody see-saw, groused Ukrainian Kantsler Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev. Once you had assuaged the one side, the other side was starting new trouble. Averting the threat posed by the Rodinyadniki of Russia hadn’t been cheap, but he had accomplished it without pillaging the exchequer. And hardly had this menace been pushed back, the Nimtsi were kicking up another shindy.
His good pal Krosigk had been replaced by that idiot Strauß who was now trying to destabilise the Ukraine. Well, there always had been a kind of brain drain. Sergei Korolev by far wasn’t the only prominent Ukrainian scientist working in Germany. But this now was shameless workman drain. It was going to cost another fortune to keep labourers and technicians from emigrating to Nimechchyna – or rather to sway them to come back home.
He had already introduced a lot of social benefits for workers. This time, he would probably be forced to launch the five-day week – and vacation allowance. The employers wouldn’t like it. But they didn’t like deserted workbenches either… Well, the sages said the frenzy couldn’t last long. Strauß was clearly overreaching. However, Brezhnev was sceptical: he sensed an awakening ripping through Nimechchyna.
Strauß might fail – or rather be overrun by events, but things wouldn’t return to the status quo ante. Therefore, he had to act pre-emptively. The Nimtsi were the guarantors of the Ukraine’s freedom. Without them, the cursed Rodinyadniki would easily conquer the country. Therefore, Strauß mustn’t be allowed to wholly ruin Nimechchyna. He should travel to Berlin and rein in the fellow…
(Sigmund Freud)
It was a see-saw, a bloody see-saw, groused Ukrainian Kantsler Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev. Once you had assuaged the one side, the other side was starting new trouble. Averting the threat posed by the Rodinyadniki of Russia hadn’t been cheap, but he had accomplished it without pillaging the exchequer. And hardly had this menace been pushed back, the Nimtsi were kicking up another shindy.
His good pal Krosigk had been replaced by that idiot Strauß who was now trying to destabilise the Ukraine. Well, there always had been a kind of brain drain. Sergei Korolev by far wasn’t the only prominent Ukrainian scientist working in Germany. But this now was shameless workman drain. It was going to cost another fortune to keep labourers and technicians from emigrating to Nimechchyna – or rather to sway them to come back home.
He had already introduced a lot of social benefits for workers. This time, he would probably be forced to launch the five-day week – and vacation allowance. The employers wouldn’t like it. But they didn’t like deserted workbenches either… Well, the sages said the frenzy couldn’t last long. Strauß was clearly overreaching. However, Brezhnev was sceptical: he sensed an awakening ripping through Nimechchyna.
Strauß might fail – or rather be overrun by events, but things wouldn’t return to the status quo ante. Therefore, he had to act pre-emptively. The Nimtsi were the guarantors of the Ukraine’s freedom. Without them, the cursed Rodinyadniki would easily conquer the country. Therefore, Strauß mustn’t be allowed to wholly ruin Nimechchyna. He should travel to Berlin and rein in the fellow…
Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.
(Leo Tolstoy)
Providence was beckoning indeed, mused Russian Kántsler Aleksandr Nikolayevich Zademidko. If there was an unmitigated capitalist country on this earth, it was Russia. And the Russian capitalists – or rather their spokesmen – were all singing from the same hymn sheet: the current German experiment couldn’t succeed; it was bound to fail miserably.
That sounded promising. A ruined Germany would not be capable of thwarting Russian recovery of the territories lost in the Great War. But one had to be very careful and diligent. The Nyemtsi mustn’t know about these plans. And one mustn’t act prematurely. No, let them go down screaming – and do nothing. Only when they were ultimately done should Russia act.
It wouldn’t be easy. The fellow party members – and the media – would demand action too soon. Restraining them would be of paramount importance. – Well, their soldiers were milksops. They hadn’t been in war since 1918. But their nuclear arsenal was formidable, said Pyotr Dementyev, the minister of war. Hence, one had to wait until they disintegrated on their own.
How long was it going to take? Impossible to tell. Strauß was acting at a rapid pace. But the consequences of his doing might need time to materialise. Yeah, longanimity would be required.
(Leo Tolstoy)
Providence was beckoning indeed, mused Russian Kántsler Aleksandr Nikolayevich Zademidko. If there was an unmitigated capitalist country on this earth, it was Russia. And the Russian capitalists – or rather their spokesmen – were all singing from the same hymn sheet: the current German experiment couldn’t succeed; it was bound to fail miserably.
That sounded promising. A ruined Germany would not be capable of thwarting Russian recovery of the territories lost in the Great War. But one had to be very careful and diligent. The Nyemtsi mustn’t know about these plans. And one mustn’t act prematurely. No, let them go down screaming – and do nothing. Only when they were ultimately done should Russia act.
It wouldn’t be easy. The fellow party members – and the media – would demand action too soon. Restraining them would be of paramount importance. – Well, their soldiers were milksops. They hadn’t been in war since 1918. But their nuclear arsenal was formidable, said Pyotr Dementyev, the minister of war. Hence, one had to wait until they disintegrated on their own.
How long was it going to take? Impossible to tell. Strauß was acting at a rapid pace. But the consequences of his doing might need time to materialise. Yeah, longanimity would be required.
Talent and genius operate outside the rules, and theory conflicts with practise.
(Carl von Clausewitz)
The Kántsler was far too cautious, mused Russian foreign minister Yuri Vladimirovich Andropov. Or was it perhaps timidity? – One couldn’t wait till the crows came home. One had to act decisively as early as possible. After the setback opposite the Little Russians and the utter rout in Kazakhstan, the followers of the Rodinyadniki were disenchanted and resentful. They wouldn’t wait until Sasha Zademidko deemed it safe to move.
He had already discussed the situation with Pyotr Dementyev, the minister of war. The guy was of the same mind. The armed forces were as ready as could be. The Nyemtsi were mollycoddles. One had to strike while the iron was hot. – The coalition partners were not posing a problem. The Yedinovértsi, the True Believers, would gladly join in; and the Neokadéty, the Neo-Liberals, wouldn’t object. The Zhivótniki, the Animal Welfarists, would have to be bought off, as usual.
Should one topple the Kántsler? And who should replace him? Andropov was ready to grasp the mantle. The executive committee members still had to be sounded out on the stealth. But he was sure they were going to opt for him. Zademidko was an unlucky fellow, heaping failure on failure. A striking new leader was required – before the Russians became loath of the Rodinyadniki…
(Carl von Clausewitz)
The Kántsler was far too cautious, mused Russian foreign minister Yuri Vladimirovich Andropov. Or was it perhaps timidity? – One couldn’t wait till the crows came home. One had to act decisively as early as possible. After the setback opposite the Little Russians and the utter rout in Kazakhstan, the followers of the Rodinyadniki were disenchanted and resentful. They wouldn’t wait until Sasha Zademidko deemed it safe to move.
He had already discussed the situation with Pyotr Dementyev, the minister of war. The guy was of the same mind. The armed forces were as ready as could be. The Nyemtsi were mollycoddles. One had to strike while the iron was hot. – The coalition partners were not posing a problem. The Yedinovértsi, the True Believers, would gladly join in; and the Neokadéty, the Neo-Liberals, wouldn’t object. The Zhivótniki, the Animal Welfarists, would have to be bought off, as usual.
Should one topple the Kántsler? And who should replace him? Andropov was ready to grasp the mantle. The executive committee members still had to be sounded out on the stealth. But he was sure they were going to opt for him. Zademidko was an unlucky fellow, heaping failure on failure. A striking new leader was required – before the Russians became loath of the Rodinyadniki…
Change has no constituency.
(Niccolò Machiavelli)
Crazy times, thought Helga von Tschirschwitz, sitting at her desk and sifting the headlines. One had fought for space flight for such a long time; and now it had become national objective number one. 40,000 settlers for Europa, that meant an enormous effort – for all of Germany. Helga had seen the preliminary figures: it was breathtaking. And that was only rule-of-the-thumb stuff, hastily composed by the RRA general staff.
Konteradmiral Kastenmüller, the designated commander of Koloniekommando, had just arrived two days ago. He had a list of his future key personnel, at least, but nothing else – except for his experience on the Hammer and in the Jupiter system. Well, he was going to be a major customer of her services, hence she had interviewed him in depth. He was still groping for a sound conception.
There truly would be no lack of applicants; already now the post room was complaining of congestion. However, there was no plan of any kind yet. Kastenmüller had asked many scientists – and even several writers of future stories – for their ideas on how a colony on Europa should be structured. The answers were still pending, of course.
Yeah, this was going to be fascinating. Developing a comprehensive conception would take a lot of effort. Okay, work on the four Feuerdrachen hadn’t begun yet. One had at least three years time for discussion and planning. And four more ships would have to be built as well. – Nine Feuerdrachen, that would be quite a fleet! The old general, Jochen Zeislitz’s special friend, had already shown up at Prerow. He had volunteered for conceiving fleet tactics!
Representatives of the industry would have to be involved too. It was evident that all construction elements of the colony would have to be manufactured here on earth. What an enterprise!
(Niccolò Machiavelli)
Crazy times, thought Helga von Tschirschwitz, sitting at her desk and sifting the headlines. One had fought for space flight for such a long time; and now it had become national objective number one. 40,000 settlers for Europa, that meant an enormous effort – for all of Germany. Helga had seen the preliminary figures: it was breathtaking. And that was only rule-of-the-thumb stuff, hastily composed by the RRA general staff.
Konteradmiral Kastenmüller, the designated commander of Koloniekommando, had just arrived two days ago. He had a list of his future key personnel, at least, but nothing else – except for his experience on the Hammer and in the Jupiter system. Well, he was going to be a major customer of her services, hence she had interviewed him in depth. He was still groping for a sound conception.
There truly would be no lack of applicants; already now the post room was complaining of congestion. However, there was no plan of any kind yet. Kastenmüller had asked many scientists – and even several writers of future stories – for their ideas on how a colony on Europa should be structured. The answers were still pending, of course.
Yeah, this was going to be fascinating. Developing a comprehensive conception would take a lot of effort. Okay, work on the four Feuerdrachen hadn’t begun yet. One had at least three years time for discussion and planning. And four more ships would have to be built as well. – Nine Feuerdrachen, that would be quite a fleet! The old general, Jochen Zeislitz’s special friend, had already shown up at Prerow. He had volunteered for conceiving fleet tactics!
Representatives of the industry would have to be involved too. It was evident that all construction elements of the colony would have to be manufactured here on earth. What an enterprise!
Last edited:
He wants to charm the protestors. Without them the old order will stab him in the back. He has to create a miracle if he wants to survive.
You can’t wait for inspiration. You have to go for it with a club.
(Jack London)
Exceptional! He had received a letter from a certain Herbert Kastenmüller, who claimed to be the man responsible for establishing the German Jupiter colony on the moon Europa. He asked for inputs. – Isaak Yudovich Ozimov had looked it up: Naval Captain Herbert Kastenmüller had been the First Officer onboard the Hammer. Now, he apparently had been promoted to Konteradmiral and appointed commander of the colony effort.
The data the Germans had already published about Europa and the Jupiter system in general provided a good foundation. Ozimov was surprised what whimsical details the Deytshn had cared to collect and record. But it didn’t matter. Gravity on all moons was too low to allow permanent settlement. That ought to be obvious.
One would have to go for a solution in space. A rotating big wheel could provide the gravity required. Already in 1903, Konstantin Tsiolkovsky had proposed such a solution. With a radius of 900 metres and a rotation of one turn per minute, one would be able to achieve 1 g of artificial gravity on the inside of the ring.
Putting such a device into orbit around Europa shouldn’t be impossible with NPP ships. However, for 40,000 colonists one torus wouldn’t be enough. At least four tori would be needed to accommodate all of them – and keep them occupied with useful work. – Quite a heap of material to be moved through the void… Well, the Deytshn were notorious for their penchant for monumental solutions.
(Jack London)
Exceptional! He had received a letter from a certain Herbert Kastenmüller, who claimed to be the man responsible for establishing the German Jupiter colony on the moon Europa. He asked for inputs. – Isaak Yudovich Ozimov had looked it up: Naval Captain Herbert Kastenmüller had been the First Officer onboard the Hammer. Now, he apparently had been promoted to Konteradmiral and appointed commander of the colony effort.
The data the Germans had already published about Europa and the Jupiter system in general provided a good foundation. Ozimov was surprised what whimsical details the Deytshn had cared to collect and record. But it didn’t matter. Gravity on all moons was too low to allow permanent settlement. That ought to be obvious.
One would have to go for a solution in space. A rotating big wheel could provide the gravity required. Already in 1903, Konstantin Tsiolkovsky had proposed such a solution. With a radius of 900 metres and a rotation of one turn per minute, one would be able to achieve 1 g of artificial gravity on the inside of the ring.
Putting such a device into orbit around Europa shouldn’t be impossible with NPP ships. However, for 40,000 colonists one torus wouldn’t be enough. At least four tori would be needed to accommodate all of them – and keep them occupied with useful work. – Quite a heap of material to be moved through the void… Well, the Deytshn were notorious for their penchant for monumental solutions.
Although our intellect always longs for clarity and certainty, our nature often finds uncertainty fascinating.
(Carl von Clausewitz)
What a frenzy! Doris Zülch couldn’t remember anything alike. It was still possible to obtain appointments, but they were short, quasi en passant. People were incredibly busy. The economy was all bats. Everybody was crying for manpower. She was getting far more job offers than she could score orders for Telefunken, which was kind of absurd because advanced telecommunication surely could help in saving manpower.
It felt like strolling through ancient Babylon. The babel was overwhelming. There must be ten aliens in Düsseldorf for every single German. Doris wondered how teamwork was possible under these circumstances. How did they do that? But it seemed to work; all hands were busy; nobody was gawking.
There were many voices claiming that Strauß was overstraining the economy. Well, the folks she had been talking with had unanimously said it was demanding – but great. Finally something was moving. One could handle the challenge. There might be some discard because of the language gap, but that was more than compensated by all-out production.
No, Strauß had done the right thing: he had swept away tons of pointless regulations and had lowered charges substantially. It was a pity that Germany had lost 10 million people in the pest, but nevertheless, one was going to shoulder accretion. The order books were full, yes, but that was how it always should be. Working at full tilt was okay.
(Carl von Clausewitz)
What a frenzy! Doris Zülch couldn’t remember anything alike. It was still possible to obtain appointments, but they were short, quasi en passant. People were incredibly busy. The economy was all bats. Everybody was crying for manpower. She was getting far more job offers than she could score orders for Telefunken, which was kind of absurd because advanced telecommunication surely could help in saving manpower.
It felt like strolling through ancient Babylon. The babel was overwhelming. There must be ten aliens in Düsseldorf for every single German. Doris wondered how teamwork was possible under these circumstances. How did they do that? But it seemed to work; all hands were busy; nobody was gawking.
There were many voices claiming that Strauß was overstraining the economy. Well, the folks she had been talking with had unanimously said it was demanding – but great. Finally something was moving. One could handle the challenge. There might be some discard because of the language gap, but that was more than compensated by all-out production.
No, Strauß had done the right thing: he had swept away tons of pointless regulations and had lowered charges substantially. It was a pity that Germany had lost 10 million people in the pest, but nevertheless, one was going to shoulder accretion. The order books were full, yes, but that was how it always should be. Working at full tilt was okay.
Progress would be wonderful – if only it would stop.
(Robert Musil)
What was going there in Europe? Prime Minister Deng Xixian had asked his diplomatists and the secret services – and they had told him what they knew. Which was quite a lot, but not enough to satisfy Deng’s curiosity. Having been instructed on what was happening, he now was left to wonder about the why. Ever since Fēilóng, he had been toiling non-stop to fire up China’s economy. He knew what a back-breaking job it was.
This Strauß fellow seemed to have found a kind of execrated shortcut. It was intriguing. Might it also work for China? Not that the conditions in Germany were in the least comparable to those prevailing in the Middle Kingdom, yet what was going on over there was not matchable to anything he knew. His old contacts among the German socialists of the SPD, could they help to shed light on the affair?
Well, their point of view saw Strauß as executing the terminal spasms of capitalism. But that was nonsense. Capitalism was not a doctrine conceived by some philosopher, like communism which Marx had invented, but a living evolutionary process. It would not comply with the stale ideas of Marx, Engels or Luxemburg, but stay alive and keep kicking.
No, Strauß had somehow released energies that possibly could also be exploited hereabouts. It wasn’t simply predatory capitalism at work; it was unfettered capitalism – and nobody knew how it was going to operate over time. It was a bold experiment, perhaps a suicidal one, but it was worth to be observed closely. He should send his special envoy Cáo Qiángmīn to Germany. The man possessed exceptional talents; he might discover the why…
(Robert Musil)
What was going there in Europe? Prime Minister Deng Xixian had asked his diplomatists and the secret services – and they had told him what they knew. Which was quite a lot, but not enough to satisfy Deng’s curiosity. Having been instructed on what was happening, he now was left to wonder about the why. Ever since Fēilóng, he had been toiling non-stop to fire up China’s economy. He knew what a back-breaking job it was.
This Strauß fellow seemed to have found a kind of execrated shortcut. It was intriguing. Might it also work for China? Not that the conditions in Germany were in the least comparable to those prevailing in the Middle Kingdom, yet what was going on over there was not matchable to anything he knew. His old contacts among the German socialists of the SPD, could they help to shed light on the affair?
Well, their point of view saw Strauß as executing the terminal spasms of capitalism. But that was nonsense. Capitalism was not a doctrine conceived by some philosopher, like communism which Marx had invented, but a living evolutionary process. It would not comply with the stale ideas of Marx, Engels or Luxemburg, but stay alive and keep kicking.
No, Strauß had somehow released energies that possibly could also be exploited hereabouts. It wasn’t simply predatory capitalism at work; it was unfettered capitalism – and nobody knew how it was going to operate over time. It was a bold experiment, perhaps a suicidal one, but it was worth to be observed closely. He should send his special envoy Cáo Qiángmīn to Germany. The man possessed exceptional talents; he might discover the why…