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[if you’re new to the Journey, read this to see what we’re all about!]
by Gideon Marcus
There is one singular difference between the Cold War and all conflicts that have preceded it: for the first time in history, both adversaries have the power to wipe each other out utterly. Direct conflict is madness, and indeed, while we may rattle the sabers incessantly, it is this mutually assured destruction that may preserve the peace for longer than in any era before it. Perhaps the Chinese and Indians, whose border is seeing the greatest conflict in the world since Korea, need their own atomic bombs. On the other hand, the deployment of Russian nukes in Cuba, and the responsive blockade, may well turn our Cold War hot any day now, so the jury is still out on the deterrent value of the weapons.
As luck would have it, the Cold War has crept into my SF reading, too. Dean McLaughlin describes a new variety of the conflict in his latest science fiction book, Dome World. Deep sea dome cities have been set up by the world's new superpowers -- the United States of the Americas and the African Union. Their tenuous peace is deteriorating fast as both powers escalate claims over the rich mineral deposits on the ocean floor. The fragile domes are vulnerable to even the slightest attack. As the warships start to circle overhead, what can anyone do to preserve the existence of the undersea communities?
(see the rest at Galactic Journey!)
by Gideon Marcus
There is one singular difference between the Cold War and all conflicts that have preceded it: for the first time in history, both adversaries have the power to wipe each other out utterly. Direct conflict is madness, and indeed, while we may rattle the sabers incessantly, it is this mutually assured destruction that may preserve the peace for longer than in any era before it. Perhaps the Chinese and Indians, whose border is seeing the greatest conflict in the world since Korea, need their own atomic bombs. On the other hand, the deployment of Russian nukes in Cuba, and the responsive blockade, may well turn our Cold War hot any day now, so the jury is still out on the deterrent value of the weapons.
As luck would have it, the Cold War has crept into my SF reading, too. Dean McLaughlin describes a new variety of the conflict in his latest science fiction book, Dome World. Deep sea dome cities have been set up by the world's new superpowers -- the United States of the Americas and the African Union. Their tenuous peace is deteriorating fast as both powers escalate claims over the rich mineral deposits on the ocean floor. The fragile domes are vulnerable to even the slightest attack. As the warships start to circle overhead, what can anyone do to preserve the existence of the undersea communities?
(see the rest at Galactic Journey!)
