Paul and Heinrich nodded their heads. Heinrich added, “I want to thank you for the opportunity you have given me. It is a dream come true for me to work for Earth Station. I will try my best to confirm the confidence you have in me.”
“I find if you give someone freedom to express themselves, they will not disappoint you. Try to use that bit of advice in dealing with the people that work for you, numbers which in the near future will probably increase dramatically.”
I turned and waved, as I worked my way back to my office.
As I walked into the office corridor, I passed Mac’s office and glanced inside. A smile spread across my face as I saw Maggie sitting on his lap as they looked into each other’s eyes. I just kept walking. I had a feeling something was going on between them. I wonder when they will make it known to the rest of us? Maybe I will give them a little push at our next meeting by making it plain that fraternization is okay with me as long as it doesn’t interfere with work.
April 11th, 2112
“We have a lot of to go over today and we need to make some crucial decisions. Maggie, you first.”
“Thanks Jake. Our energy needs have increased to the point that we need to add more fusion reactors. Currently, Earth Station has three fusion reactors in the research ring that provide energy for the entire station. When I requested the additional reactors, my engineering team informed me that they discovered they could use gravium to produce a fusion reaction. Currently, a fusion reactor takes up a room about 3 meters cubed. Using gravium allows the reactor to be much smaller, in the order of about 1 meter cubed. The reduction in size is mainly due to the fact that the new reactor does not need the high-energy lasers, only a gravium field generator. This not only reduces the size but also allows a fusion reaction to occur at room temperature. After more than one hundred fifty years, we finally have a device that creates cold fusion. The engineers are installing two of the new reactors in the research ring, as we speak. The plan is to place two reactors in ESSC and two more in the computer ring. The residential ring will get one and the Main Tunnel will get two. After they are all installed, we will dismantle the older reactors. Some of my engineers are foaming at the mouth to get a hold of the high-powered lasers from these reactors so they can use them on projects they are working on.”
“That’s awesome. Do they generate the same amount of power?” asked Charlie.
“Their output is actually 25 percent more than the output of the older reactors. That’s because there is a significant reduction in the power needed by the reactor to function, making more of the power available. To top it all off, they are easy to build, it takes less than a day to build one and we are putting production on an assembly line so we will have all the reactors we need by the end of the week. Paul has requested a reactor for each of the space vehicles. Those should be ready and installed inside of two weeks.”
“I think we should also reserve several of the reactors for our defensive grid and weapons,” I added. “Some of our engineers are working on a defensive grid to protect Earth Station which includes a few new goodies that some of you will find useful. I’ll have John give a summary when they are available. Thanks for the update Maggie, it seems there is an unending supply of new technology coming out of your department.” Maggie smiled and nodded her head as she sat down.
“Okay, John, you’re up.”
John whispered into his communicator and the door opened. A couple of guys wheeled in a rectangular device which was about 1.5 meters tall, a meter in width and about half a meter wide. The top of the device had a lid similar to a bbq grill. Imbedded in the lid was a video screen which currently displayed several small icons.
“Ever since 3D printers have been available, there have been several attempts to make food with the printer. It never took off because it took much longer to print the food than to cook it from scratch. Also, it was very expensive. Our engineers along with the computer geeks, have overcome those problems. We can produce a food product in seconds. The printer builds the food atom by atom so it only needs basic elements - carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, and a few others to produce the food. It can extract the gases it needs from the air and the other elements are stored in a replaceable cartridge that fits in here.” John pointed to a latch on a hinged door at the bottom of the device. “To show you how it works, I will make a veggie pizza.”
John opened the lid of the food printer to show us that there was nothing inside except a flat surface which appeared to be made of some type of ceramic. He closed the lid and began tapping several icons on the video screen. After about thirty seconds there was a ding similar to a microwave oven when it is finished cooking. John opened the lid and there on the flat surface sat a piping hot pizza which had a mouthwatering smell. He slid the pizza out of the printer with a wooden pizza paddle and proceed to cut it into slices. He passed them around and we all took a taste.
“Not too bad,” Mac volunteered, “but nowhere near as good as the one they make in the mess hall.”
“We can change that. Right now, we have only programmed a few food items into the printer. It takes a long time to program a single food item. That is a drawback, but we are working on it. Our engineers are currently working with the computer guys to produce a scanner that will scan a food item at the atomic level and create a template so the printer can make an exact copy of the item That should be done soon.”
Mike looked a little distressed. “What’s going to happen with all the personnel we have working in the mess hall? And what about the chefs? They’re going to be put out of business.”
“The mess hall is like a restaurant. These devices won’t be used there. They are more for private use such as in the home or at a workplace. Think of it more like a microwave oven. They will be for convenience. Have it whip up your breakfast while you are getting ready to go to work. The squints and geeks are working on a data base of about one hundred food items which will be programmed into each food printer.”
“So what if I want eggs benedict for breakfast and the printer doesn’t have that programmed? How do I get my breakfast then?” asked Barry.
“If a chef creates a meal, he can register that meal after it is scanned, like the author of a book copyrights his books. You can then buy the software to create that meal and install it into your printer. The chef that created the meal will get royalties for his creation. We should have the software for just about anything you might want to eat within a short time.”
“That’s a good observation, and I concur with your conclusion. So how do we proceed with this?” I asked.
“We still have some testing to do before making this printer readily available. We are determining nutrient and caloric content of the printed food as well as testing its palatability,” John added.
“This needs to be released to the general public. There is still hunger in this world and this would alleviate that. No one would ever have to go hungry again,” I said.
“There might be a problem with that,” Mike said. “Certain leaders or rulers will be threatened by this technology. They will view it as a means of losing some of their control over their citizens. It could cause some civil unrest.”
“That’s just too bad. Maybe those individuals don’t need to be leaders of anything. I’m for making it as hard on them as possible. Besides, eventually we will be sharing most of our technology and that will put them out of business,” Mac said with conviction.
“Let’s all of us think about this for the next few days and we will bring it up again at one of our meetings next week. John, how long before you have enough of these food printers for our people?”
“I believe that we will have them ready for general use in about a month. We have to finish with the scanner and then get a basic food set installed in each printer.”
“That sounds good. Moving right along, I have someone that I would like to introduce. Charlie, could you please get Mason Baldwin?”
Charlie stepped out of the conference room
and soon returned with a tall, slender, middle aged man. “I would like you to meet Mason Baldwin. He has degrees in history, political science, and philosophy. When I found him, he was working as a full professor of history at Yale University. I believe he will be an asset when we create our country. He has agreed to become part of the staff here and will be working under my department until the Earth Station government is set up.”
“Have a seat Mr. Baldwin.” Mason walked to the conference table and sat at the seat I indicated for him.
“I am very impressed with what you have done here at Earth Station. It is an honor and pleasure to be asked to help you in your endeavor,” Mr. Baldwin said.
“So, Mr. Baldwin, you’ve had a chance to become familiar with Earth Station and our goals, what do you suggest we do politically?” I asked.
“Your growth has gotten to the point where you will not be able to remain hidden. I suggest that you negotiate with the Mexican government as soon as possible. Call me Mason, Mr. Baldwin is my father’s name,” he said with a smile. “I have a detailed proposal for you to consider.” Mason touched his tablet and a copy was sent to all the members of the committee. “You can read the details later but to sum it up, Mexico needs compensation for the land you wish to acquire. They also need to be given preferred nation status. I suggest you give them access to some of your technology. There are several towns inside the border of your projected country. A contingent of the committee needs to meet with the town leaders to convince them of the benefits of becoming a part of this country. Do you have any questions so far?”
“What kind of benefits are you talking about?” I asked.
“They are in the proposal, but essentially you will be bringing them out of the third world by providing modern housing and infrastructure, protection, 100% employment and other technologies that all the citizens of this country will have access to. Have any of you thought of a name for this country?”
“ESSI came up with a name. I haven’t told any of you yet. She came up with the name Bodhi. That’s pronounced ‘bow dee’. What do you think?”
Maggie looked at me and said, “I know what that means and it is perfect.”
Mike added, “I agree; you’ve got my vote.”
Mac looked perplexed. “Sounds okay, but what does it mean?”
“I suggest the rest of you look it up. We can vote on it at our next meeting. We also need to create a Constitution for our country. Mason, could you work up a framework that we can use as a starting point?”
“I’ll have it for you in a couple of days. What type of government model are you considering?”
“Currently, the executive committee makes the rules with myself as the committee chairman – I have the final say. I was thinking in terms of a constitutional monarchy. See what you can come up with along those lines.”
“That’s interesting. Did you know that most political scientists consider the constitutional monarchy to be the best and fairest form of government?”
“Good to know. I would also like the constitution to be fairly short and easily understood by our citizens.”
“I’ll get on it right away. If you don’t need me for anything else, I’ll take my leave.”
“Thanks for coming,” I said as Mason headed for the door.
I turned to look at the rest of the committee. “I suggest that Mike and myself go visit the Mexican president in the near future. Send us your concerns about what we should discuss after you read Mason’s proposal. How about it Mike, are you up for it?”
Mike nodded.
“To summarize, we now have a smaller and more efficient fusion reactor that basically will provide us with as much energy as we could possibly need. A food printer that can produce anything we might want to eat and our country is well on its way to becoming a real political entity. As soon as Mason gives me a copy of the proposed constitution, I will send it to you for suggestions. Getting our country up and running should be the primary focus of this committee. Any other business?”
“I just looked up Bodhi, and I like it. I just sent the definition to all your tablets,” Mac said “I think we can all agree that Bodhi is a good name. I call for a vote on the name.”
The rest of the committee took a quick look at their tablets and either nodded or smiled at what they read. “All those in favor of Bodhi, raise your hands.” It was unanimous. “Bodhi it is then. I also propose that Earth Station be named as Bodhi’s capital.” I looked around and everyone seemed satisfied. “Anybody have anything else?” There were no takers. “Meeting is adjourned, see you guys tomorrow.”
The definition for Bodhi that Mac sent:
Bodhi – supreme enlightenment or knowledge.
April 13th, 2112
The following constitution was presented to the Committee two days later. Some minor adjustments were made and the constitution was approved by unanimous vote.
Constitution of Bodhi
Preamble
The country shall be known as Bodhi.
The citizens of Bodhi have the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
The Bodhi government will provide its citizens with the basic necessities of housing, sustenance, education, protection and medical care.
Bodhi citizens have the right to work in any area they wish provided they have the requisite skill for the job.
It is a privilege to live in Bodhi and as such, all citizens are also obligated to work for the common good.
Citizenship to Bodhi cannot be revoked except by a unanimous vote of the executive committee including the chairman.
The government of Bodhi shall be a constitutional monarchy - a system of government in which a monarch is guided by a constitution whereby his/her rights, duties, and responsibilities are spelled out in written law or by custom.
The committee chairman is considered to be the monarch.
Bill of Rights for Bodhi Citizens
Freedom of religion – no law will infringe upon a person’s freedom to participate in any recognized religion.
Keep and bear arms – no individual will be denied ownership of a gun or rifle unless convicted of a crime using a weapon.
No individual will be subject to unreasonable search and seizure.
If an individual is accused of a crime, he/she will be guaranteed a trial by jury except militia or military.
An individual must be Informed of nature and cause of accusation.
An individual has the right to confront witnesses against him/her.
No cruel and unusual punishment may be inflicted on a guilty individual.
No death penalty.
Maximum penalty is life in prison with isolation.
Basic protection, education, housing, and sustenance will be provided to the entire population of Bodhi.
Anything above basic necessities must be earned by the individual at a job of his/her choosing.
Right to work
If receiving basic necessities, local government can make an individual work at any job that is needed for the common good without additional remuneration.
Government cannot remove an individual from a job that he/she currently has to make him/her work for the common good.
Remuneration from a private job (not a common good job), can be used for whatever the individual wants and is subject to current tax rate, not to exceed 10%. Basic necessities will be provided without requiring payment.
Government
Hierarchy of government
Constitutional monarchy
Order of precedence
Local government – Congress – Executive Committee – Executive Committee Chairman
Taxes cannot exceed 10% of earnings in non-common good jobs.
All government employees must obey and abide by any laws they create.
Government cannot make laws which just apply to government employees.
Each town of Bodhi including Earth Station will elect three congressmen to the Bodhi Congress.
Term l
imits.
Congress - A congressman may only serve two consecutive four year terms maximum.
Once a congressman has served two terms they cannot run again for twelve years.
Executive Committee - members are not elected. New members are appointed for life by executive committee.
An executive committee member can be removed by 75% vote of rest of committee.
Executive Committee Chairman - Chairman is not elected. The appointment is for life. A new committee chairman will be appointed by the existing committee chairman should he/she decide to retire. If the chairman dies or is removed, a new chairman will be elected by the executive committee.
The Executive Committee Chairman is considered the Monarch of Bodhi.
The Executive Committee Chairman cannot be removed except for medical reasons.
The Executive Committee can override Congress but must show cause.
The Executive Committee Chairman can override the Executive Committee and Congress but must show cause.
Executive Committee Chairman has ultimate power and cannot be overturned.
All laws passed by congress must be approved by the executive committee and signed into law by the Executive Committee Chairman.
There shall be Autonomy for town governments.
Local governments are tasked with making laws and enforcement at the local level.
Local governments cannot make a law which effects another town or Bodhi as a whole or part.
Bill of Rights is part of the Constitution.
Amendments can be made to the Constitution by 75% vote of Congress and approval by the Executive Committee and Executive Committee Chairman.
Judiciary
Local governments will provide their own judiciary
Plaintiff and accused may petition Bodhi Judiciary if not satisfied with outcome at the local level
Bodhi judiciary will consist of five judges and two alternates appointed by the executive committee.
Bodhi judiciary will meet when necessary.
Earth Station (Station Series Book 1) Page 9