This proves to be useful later when Heim kidnaps that very same Aleriona in order to persuade him to lean on the peace militants who have kidnapped Heim's own daughter! The Aleriona, Cynbe, is a no holds barred kind of guy. When he has been shown that it is in his interests to cooperate with Heim, he coerces the peace movement leader by threatening war! It is sickening to see the pacifist leader deferring to the manipulative alien when he has nothing but contempt for his fellow human being.
I often oppose war as a solution to inter- or intra-national problems but Anderson makes the point that it can be necessary.
"'It's so awful,' Lisa said. 'That there has to be war.'
"'There doesn't, pony,' Heim answered. 'In fact, that's what we're trying to prevent.'
"She regarded him in bewilderment." (NESFA collections, Volume 2, p. 426)
Prevention is by showing Alerion that Earth is strong, not weak, and, here again, Heim displays his talent for leaving no stone unturned. No national government can act independently of the Federation, where the peace party prevails. National military action is neither legal nor even possible because the Peace Control Authority monopolizes heavy weapons. However, no government can prevent a private individual from privateering. It can even be argued that, in some circumstances, this is legal! Preposterous argument? Sure, that is what lawyers are hired for.
Finally, from his time in the Deepspace Fleet, Heim knows where to buy nuclear weapons outside the Federation. I definitely disapprove of instruments of genocide but these nukes are to be used only against hostile spacecraft, not against planetary populations.
5 comments:
Hi, Paul!
Whoa, careful! No UNAUTHORIZED private person can go privateering. Such persons historically needed to obtain Letters of Marque and Reprisal from their countries or sovereigns before privateering could be legal. And such letters were valid only for attacks on the ships of nations at war with the privateer's country, and became void once peace was made. Otherwise, he would indeed be only a pirate, and considered an enemy of all mankind.
I forget the exact details of the arguments made by the French Foreign Minister in the debates of the World Federation Parliament, but I think Coquelin argued that while France as SUCH no longer had the legal right to issue letters of marque and reprisal, she could do so on BEHALF of the Federation. Not only was this done to give Gunnar Heim at least a debatable argument that his actions as a privateer were legal, it was hoped the turmoil in Parliament would give him time to escape the Solar System with his new privateering war ship (before the "peace" militants could use violence to stop him).
Sean
Sean,
Yes, my way of putting it was legally hopeless but Coquelin presents a well fine-tuned argument!
Paul.
Hi, Paul!
My view is that Coquelin's speech in defense of the legality of France issuing letters of marque and reprisal is an esp. interesting part of THE STAR FOX.
Sean
Sean,
It certainly is. I thought that I had discussed this novel in detail before but I had barely scratched the surface.
Paul.
Hi, Paul!
And what we see here in THE STAR FOX about not only letters of marque and reprisal, but also Commander Abrams words to Brechdan Ironrede in ENSIGN FLANDRY about the Covenant of Alfzar shows how carefully Poul Anderson thought thru questions of war, peace, and diplomacy on an interstellar scale. And in ways that makes me think something very like what we see in those books may well become an actuality if mankind ever reaches the stars.
Sean
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