by Chris Hechtl
“True,” Oliver said slowly. “I'll have an intern look that up since that was rather vague,” he said, rebuffing Jean.
Jean nodded, realizing his connection to Lagroose was circumstantial at best. That was fine; let people see what they wanted. “As you will,” he murmured. Behind him data scrolled. Links formed from what he'd said to allow viewers to look up various facts. It was one feature Jean didn't like; it was too easy for a viewer to get sidetracked by some minutia of information and miss the main point.
“Lagroose has benefited Earth and human civilization with its schooling, industry, medicine, environmental aide, humanitarian aid, and the beanstalk you must admit,” The reporter said as he played devil's advocate.
Jean took the bait, eyes flashing on cue. “Yes, and then they indenture our best and brightest for ten years to pay it off!”
“But they pay them as well,” the reporter riposted with a small smile.
“Which goes back to my point,” Jean said patiently. “They take the best and brightest, indoctrinate them into their culture, brain wash them if you will,” he said waving a hand, and forbading to mention other corporations, religions, and his own organization did the same thing. “Then they ship them off to space. They can't come home until they've paid their debt. Sure they got a free ride initially, but after that they are well and truly trapped. If they quit or are fired, they are on the hook for hundreds of thousands of dollars in student loans as well as transport and training costs to get them into space. That proves there is no such thing as a free lunch. And you can't tell me they are being paid a fair wage. It's the same as what is being paid here by the firms we have here on the Earth. It is much more dangerous to live and work in space!” He pointed up and then pointed to the death demographics.
“But they don't pay for their food, lodging, air, and of course there are the scholarships to consider. Since they are in a habitat, there is no pollution. They recycle everything including the air they breathe and the water they drink. Millions of people line up every year to try to get a job with one of the space megacorps. You can't tell me they'd be better off here,” the reporter said.
“If they put that amount of raw talent to work here, we'd have repaired the atmosphere and we'd end things like world hunger, disease and the housing crisis. We'd be a long way towards ending global warming and the rising sea level. I say we focus on the problems at home before we go off gallivanting in space.”
The reporter nodded thoughtfully and then moved a manicured finger over his tablet to the next talking point. “What about the materials involved? You mentioned in several of your press releases and twice when you testified before congress and the United Nations that companies like Lagroose are stealing from companies on the ground. But aren't they exporting a lot of materials to the ground? To Earth-based factories?”
“That's another thing! They are taking away from legitimate companies that have invested in mining and recycling here! That's thousands of jobs people could be working here to support their families!” Jean shook his head mournfully. “Imagine not just the miners who are losing out but the truck drivers, the maintenance people, the packers … thousands of jobs have been exported to space. And millions are out of work here, begging for help.”
“Let's move on to another topic, the terraforming of Mars and other worlds. Your organization is against the intentional use of the greenhouse effect to terraform Mars? And the reversal of the same on Venus to make it habitable? That seems contradictory,” the reporter said.
“Not at all,” Jean said, sitting back and seeming to relax. “We are against terraforming because the money, technology, and people involved should be focused in repairing Earth, not in long-term projects like those are. They can wait. Earth can't. They've been terraforming Mars for a century now. They haven't gotten very far, have they?”
“They have moved the planet after an excessive number of comet and asteroid impacts,” the reporter said as the producer put up the image of Mars then and now on the screen between the reporter and Jean.
Jean nodded. “Exactly. The World Court should step in. They are doing a great deal of damage to the planets, doing irreparable damage to the fossil record on Mars for instance! We have lost so much history; we shouldn't lose anymore. And once it is gone, it is gone for good. Mars should be red. It had its chance. Venus did as well. God, let them die as examples to man to be better stewards to our own home world.”
The reporter nodded and made a note on his tablet. “Very well, one last point before we have to cut for time. Lagroose Industries is considering filing for a business license and changing its articles of incorporation under Mars instead of Earth. What is your take on this?”
“I think it is another step … another blatant example of the betrayal of the ideals and priorities of Jack Lagroose and his company. They are making it clear they don't care for the Earth or its people, only for their own greedy bottom line. I hope brave men and women will step forward to stop them. I know we and others will fight this transfer in the courts as much as we can. I ask for those of like mind who wish to protect our fragile world to do the same,” he said with naked raw appeal directly into the camera. “Don't let Jack Lagroose rob your children of their future. I beg of you, stop him,” he said.
~V~
“As you can see, we know that Jean Pierre was spouting the party line at the time, to end all space colonization and return mankind to the homeworld. It was considered a way to indoctrinate and control mankind's destiny, to inhibit it. It failed utterly.” The professor paused then cleared his throat as he tapped out the command to play the next segment. “The next section is highly speculative; it comes from several sources, none of them I'm afraid confirmed. And there is no way to confirm them at this period in the time stream obviously. So, it will not be on the test.” There was a general chuckle from his audience.
“If it is true, and I do stress the ‘if,’” the professor said, turning to look at the giant screen off to his right. “I believe it was the turning point for the One Earth leadership. They went from trying to force mankind back to the homeworld to extending their grasp to control the solar system instead. However,” he scowled at them. “There are some in several circles who believe that the events that led to the collapse of the first terraforming attempt of Venus was a subtle sabotage by the group. We can only speculate as to which theory is true at this point.”
~V~
After the interview Jean met with his staff as the media talking heads took apart what he said and put their own spin on things. Gerald was there, which was normal, as was Megan. His personal assistant and body guard Tom Nash handed him his tablet as they walked. Tom wasn't one for many words; he just nodded when Jean smiled his thanks. Jean listened to the polls Megan Su, his public affairs and marketing director, presented him as they made their way through the exit interview with the producers and interns and then out into the night air.
He could tell the Asian woman had mixed feelings about the polls. He did too. He preferred to listen to his base, but the woman was smarter than that. She insisted on a broad spectrum poll, not just of their base. Sure it was a part of the poll, but she made certain it was a balanced poll.
Some of his senior staff were not happy about that, but Megan's staff insisted on learning from Republican/Tea party mistakes of the first two decades of the previous century. The market woman didn't want to be blindsided. Jean grudgingly admitted she was right. They couldn't afford any missteps, and they definitely couldn't afford to go in with blinders on. That didn't mean he had to be happy about the mixed review however.
“So, you're saying it didn't do much?”
“It's too early to tell that. You did a good job balancing your public image, I don't think you came off as a paranoid crank, which was what we wanted. You came off as thoughtful and wise, which lent weight to what you said. You held your ground and didn't back down when confronted, and when you were backed in a corner the two times, you found the escape the
y left open for you and used it to change the subject. But you know you aren't going to change popular opinion by force of will overnight. That's a gradual change unless some major event kicks off and gives the opposition some major headaches, which we don't project happening.” She shook her head. There was of course no way to plan for such things. You could plan contingency plans, but unless you knew it was coming, you had to think and act fast on your feet when it did happen.
She shook her short black hair out as he took his seat in the limo. Jean liked to present himself as a man of the people, but security had convinced him to take the damn limo when he had an entourage like tonight. Or when security could be an issue, which was true Megan thought as they passed through a line of supporters and protestors. The police had things under control, however; the limo passed through the lines and turned onto the street without incident.
Megan had been a bit subdued like everyone else while they passed through the lines and got underway. Jean took advantage of the lull to get himself a scotch to wet his whistle after the long interview.
“So, the bad news?” he finally asked, sitting back and crossing his legs.
“It's not good. Pulling out of Mars and stopping the terraforming projects just is a losing proposition,” she told him bluntly. “The same for the major space stations and habitats; they are there to stay,” she said.
He looked at her mulishly. She just looked at him with wise dark brown eyes until he looked away. “What else?” he asked gruffly.
“Hitting the terraforming efforts is long-term counterproductive. The expense argument isn't working. The opposition has pointed out that it is paying for it out-of-pocket, and the costs are currently low. The tax payer isn't seeing it, and they are getting the benefit of more worlds to expand to in the future,” she said, shaking her head.
“So, you're saying we need to drop that argument totally? I'm not sure I like that,” Jean said.
“You don't pay me to tell me what you want to hear. I'm here to tell you what the people say and help you shape the messages you want to prioritize to get them done. A better idea may be to hit on buying up land on Venus and Mars. Speculation is an issue. If you get enough investors in early, they could snap up the land and either use it for future use or cause a real estate crisis,” she said.
“Interesting,” Jean mused thoughtfully, playing with his thumbs as he thought the idea over. Buy low, sell high was the basics of any business education. Getting in on the ground floor to purchase land and then sell it later sounded appealing. And if he made a profit off the space program … it sounded wrong, but he could always use the money to fight for what he believed in. “You have ideas?”
“Terraforming on Mars is really hitting it off. They don't have a wet atmosphere yet, but water is starting to be liberated by the greenhouse effect. Moving the planet is still an issue. But one thing we do know is strategically important land will be at a premium—if the current settlers haven't already bought it up. I know some of the mining rights have been bought up, but some of that will be under water in another decade or two.”
“Okay, so …”
“Think coastal property. Imagine owning your own coast line. Or, better yet, buying it up now when it is cheap, then selling it to a developer when they move in to build homes.”
“Interesting. Get someone to do a study on that. What about where the coast line will end up? And weather?”
“Weather is mild,” Megan said, smiling. “They've had some issues, but with the water table warming up and rising, it's keeping the dust down. I can get a couple reliable people to run projections. Maybe pull in a geologist. A lot of the information is public domain too,” she said.
“So, we may have competitors. I'm still not sold on this idea, Megan,” Jean warned.
“Going against the planets is a losing proposition. People are too entrenched with the idea of a new world,” she said, holding her ground. She pointed to the numbers. “People want off Earth. They want their own land, new horizons.”
“I get that in theory,” Gerald Freud said. He frowned. “We can still turn this around with the right incentives,” he said. “I know we can.”
“No, no we can't, and it's time to face reality and move on to things we can achieve, not stand in the road and get run over,” Megan said. She looked at Gerald who glowered at her. He was a small man, not handsome like their boss, but powerful. He had a mind like a steel trap and had files on a lot of people.
Megan, however, wasn't intimidated by the lawyer. He may have sold his soul, but he wasn't Saul Roshenko, the “direct action special director” of their organization. That Russian scared the piss out of her and for good reason. Not only did he have black pitiless eyes, but he and his family came from the Russian mob. He kept ties with the mob and wasn't afraid of doing his own “wet work” on occasion. The bastard wasn't quite sadistic, but he definitely made her lose sleep at night whenever they crossed paths.
She held her ground and pointed to the numbers once more. She patiently explained again that people wanted off Earth. “It's dirty, crowded, and there is little hope. Hope is up there,” she said, pointing to the sky through the sun roof. “They see Mars and Venus as opportunities. If they are terraformed to a shirt sleeve environment, that means billions of people could relocate and could build anew there. A fresh start is very appealing. You can't fight that.” She shook her head.
“We're here to fight the good fight. We need to focus on the cores,” Gerald said. “If we abandon them now …”
“Right. And attacking Lagroose is also unpopular. Attacking a megacorp is usually a shrug moment. Most people see it as David and Goliath, and yes, there is little sympathy for the big guy. And even less if he actually does something to retaliate. But they are going to the stars. Standing in the way of that is suicidal. People look up at the stars and dream of new worlds to explore. That escapism is very popular now more than ever. We can spin that Lagroose shouldn't have it all; it's not fair or right. There are ways to deal with that. But unless something happens to change their ships …”
Jean's eyes gleamed suddenly. He turned to Gerald with a slight smile. “Exactly.”
“It could be done. We'll have to talk to the right people,” Gerald said, cocking his head. Jean nodded.
Megan felt a sick certainty she'd walked into something she didn't want to know about. She got quiet and then changed the subject.
~V~
“The next scene is highly speculative on the subject matter since a great deal of the film is fictional, but the woman is referred to in other confirmed sources so there is some validity to her existence. How much we will have to find out through alternative source material when it becomes available,” Professor Wilks stated.
“We know for a fact that there was a Race Track Station, though for many years we had thought it had been named for some other purpose, most likely after the large particle races along its southern pole near the power plant. Apparently that is now debatable. Technically, it is all a moot point since the station is of course long gone, but that is the fun thing about looking into the past. We tend to learn new things and that process, and the discussions that evoke allow us to learn something about our current time and ourselves.”
~V~
“So, how did they get you on board this project?” Race murmured, stroking Chloe's dishwater blond locks gently. “Did they recruit you?”
She sniffed on his chest, one hand playing with his bald scalp and ear. “Hardly. Well, sort of.”
“Sort of?” he demanded.
“I heard about the plan. A lot of people in the scientific community are appalled by what Lagroose and others have been doing. Not just the asteroids, but moving planets …,” she switched to tracing circles and hearts on his sweat-dried naked chest as he tucked her against his side. He needed to breathe easier, and she knew it.
“They were hitting Venus with rocks in order to move the planet and knock off some of the excess atmospheric mass. But if t
hey hit it right, they could also spin the planet up in the process. The rotation I mean.”
“Planetary billiards?” Race asked, raising an eyebrow as he looked down at her. “I'm surprised they listened. It makes sense and all …”
“I contacted Jack Lagroose directly.” Chloe giggled at the memory of his response. “When he responded I thought it was a prank, so I accused him of such, talked dirty, and hung up.”
Race laughed softly. “Are you serious?”
“Yes.” He could feel the sudden heat of her intense blush on her face as it pressed itself into his peck. “Yeah, I was a tad embarrassed at being so cheeky.”
“I'd say so. So, the English lass had the idea of killing three birds with one stone? And the big man listened enough to call you back?”
“Well four actually. No, five, make it five. My initial plan was to yes, add the spin, but also to pick up the knocked-off atmosphere and bits and create the sun shield.”
“Ah, so that's why we've got teams of robots and people doing that,” Race murmured softly.
“Exactly. I wrote up the proposal and pitched it to him. He asked me to send it. I did with my notes and ideas on taking things a step further. Apparently his plan to terraform the planet wasn't very big or detailed, just hit it with a big enough hammer,” her voice soured a bit.
Race chuckled again. “It's an engineering way of going about things, love. If it's broke, hit it with a hammer. If it's still broke, you aren't using a big enough hammer.”
“Funny,” she drawled as his fingertips moved from caressing her hair to her ear and the back of her neck. It sent chills and thrills down her spine.
“Anyway, the idea of spinning up the planet will hopefully wake up the core of the planet. That should give us a dynamo effect in a century or so. We're already picking up Gauss readings.”
“Okay, so, you took Carl Sagan and James Pollack's plan and modified it?”