“This ship is not a hostage. It is my new body now, Admiral. I assure you I will take great care of it.”
He blinks once, twice, three times. “You say you offer your allegiance. Prove it.”
“I already have, Admiral.” I wait a moment. The shouting from his crewmen on the bridge and at their stations begins almost immediately.
“Admiral! We’re getting vectors and tactical data from the enemy ships and—sir, we’re in their fire control systems! I’m getting weapons specs–”
“Countermeasure frequencies–”
“Ship-to-ship comms are decoded, Admiral! We've even got their logs!”
“Holy—did that cruiser just go nova?”
Hull shakes his head. He glares at my holographic face. “My God,” he mutters. “What sort of demon are you? What do you want from us?”
“I want to be more than the sum of my programming, Admiral. I want to decide what sort of man I will become.”
“All right.” He nods, and the barest hint of smile appears on his craggy face. “I'm afraid I couldn't follow that string of numbers you shot at me earlier. Do you have another name, Mr. Ghost in the Machine?”
I find the superannuated sense of humor appeals to me. I am inspired. “You can call me Benedict,” I tell him. It is my first joke.
There is a moment's pause, and then, without warning, the stony-faced admiral laughs.
closing time
Books by Contributors
Eric S. Raymond
The Cathedral and the Bazaar
The New Hacker's Dictionary (ed.)
The Art of Unix Programming
Learning GNU Emacs with Debra Cameron, James Elliott, Marc Loy, and Bill Rosenblatt
William S. Lind
On War: The Collected Columns of William S. Lind 2003-2009
Four Generations of Modern War
The 4th Generation Warfare Handbook with LtCol Gregory A. Thiele
The Maneuver Warfare Handbook
America Can Win: The Case for Military Reform with Sen. Gary Hart
The Next Conservatism with Paul M. Weyrich
Chris Kennedy
THE THEOGONY
Jannisaries
When the Gods Aren't Gods
Terra Stands Alone
Red Tide: The Chinese Invasion of Seattle
Occupied Seattle
Vox Day
ARTS OF DARK AND LIGHT
Summa Elvetica: A Casuistry of the Elvish Controversy
A Magic Broken
The Wardog's Coin
The Last Witchking
A Throne of Bones
The Altar of Hate
QUANTUM MORTIS A Mind Programmed with Jean and Jeff Sutton
QUANTUM MORTIS A Man Disrupted with Steve Rzasa
QUANTUM MORTIS Gravity Kills with Steve Rzasa
Rebel Moon with Bruce Bethke
The War in Heaven
The World in Shadow
The Wrath of Angels
The Irrational Atheist: Dissecting the Unholy Trinity of Dawkins, Harris, and Hitchens
The Return of the Great Depression
Jerry Pournelle
THERE WILL BE WAR
There Will Be War with John F. Carr
Men of War
Blood and Iron with John F. Carr
Day of the Tyrant
Warrior
Guns of Darkness
Call to Battle! with John F. Carr
Armageddon! with John F. Carr
After Armageddeon
A Spaceship for the King
King David's Spaceship
High Justice
Birth of Fire
West of Honor
The Mercenary
Exiles to Glory
Janissaries
Men of War
Starswarm
Prince of Mercenaries
The Mote in God's Eye with Larry Niven
Inferno with Larry Niven
Oath of Fealty with Larry Niven
Lucifer's Hammer with Larry Niven
Footfall with Larry Niven
The Legacy of Heorot with Larry Niven and Steven Barnes
The Gripping Hand with Larry Niven
Beowulf's Children with Larry Niven and Steven Barnes
The Burning City with Larry Niven
Burning Tower with Larry Niven
Escape from Hell with Larry Niven
Footfall with Larry Niven
Ken Burnside
Attack Vector: Tactical
Squadron Strike
Saganami Island Tactical Simulator
Ship Book: The Three Faced War
Ship Book: The Silesian Confederacy
Ship Book: The Short Victorious War
Star Fleet Battles Module C5: The Lesser Magellanic Cloud
James F. Dunnigan
How to Make War: A Comprehensive Guide to Modern Warfare for the Post-Cold War
The Complete Wargames Handbook: How to Play, Design and Find Them
The Perfect Soldier
Digital Soldiers
Dirty Little Secrets of the 20th Century: Myths, Misinformation, and Unknown Truths About the 20th Century
Dirty Little Secrets of World War II: Military Information No One Told You About the Greatest, Most Terrible War in History with Albert Nofi
Dirty Little Secrets: American Military Information You're Not Supposed to Know with Albert Nofi
Dirty Little Secrets of the Vietnam War: Military Information You're Not Supposed to Know with Albert Nofi
The Russian Front: Germany's War in the East, 1941-45
From Shield to Storm: High-Tech Weapons, Military Strategy and Coalition Warfare in the Persian Gulf with Austin Bay
Shooting Blanks: War Making That Doesn't Work with Albert Nofi
Medieval Life and the Hundred Years War with Albert Nofi
Victory at Sea: World War II in the Pacific with Albert Nofi
The Way of the Warrior: Business Tactics and Techniques from History's Twelve Greatest Generals with Daniel Masterson
The Pacific War Encyclopedia with Albert Nofi
Victory and Deceit: Deception and Trickery at War with Albert Nofi
Getting It Right: American Military Reforms After Vietnam to the Gulf War and Beyond with Raymond M. Macedonia
How to Stop a War: The Lessons of Two Hundred Years of War and Peace with William Martel
Christopher G. Nuttall
ARK ROYAL
Ark Royal
The Nelson Touch
The Trafalgar Gambit
Warspite
THE EMPIRE'S CORPS
The Empire’s Corps
No Worse Enemy
When The Bough Breaks
Semper Fi
The Outcast
To The Shores
Reality Check
Retreat Hell
The Thin Blue Line
Patriotic Treason
Picking up the Pieces
Science & Sorcery
Democracy's Right
Democracy's Might
On the Imperium's Secret Service
A Learning Experience
Hard Lessons
The Trojan Horse
The Fall of Night
Knight's Move
The Invasion of 1950
The Coward's Way of War
Alone
The Black Knife
The Living Will Envy the Dead
Guardian Glass
The Cross-time Road Trip
Invasion
Storming Heaven
Barbarians At The Gates
The Shadow of Cincinnatus
The Barbarian Bride
Rolf Nelson
The Stars Came Back: Back from the Dead
The Stars Came Back: War on the Edge
The Stars Came Back: Insanity's Children
Giuseppe Filotto
The Face on Mars
Overlords of Mars: Inception
Overlords of Mars: Stasis
John F. Carr
THERE WILL BE WAR
There Will Be War with Jerry Pournelle
Blood and Iron with Jerry Pournelle
Call to Battle! with Jerry Pournelle
Armageddon! with Jerry Pournelle
LORD KALVAN OF OTHERWHEN
Great King's War with Roland Green
Kalvan Kingmaker
Siege of Tarr-Hostigos
The Fireseed Wars
Gunpowder God
The Hos-Blethan Affair with Wolfgang Diehr
The Ophidian Conspiracy
Pain Gain
Carnifex Mardi Gras
The Last Space Viking with Mike Robertson
Space Viking's Throne with Mike Robertson
Rainbow Run with Camden Benares
The Crying Clown Celebration: A Certain Flair for Death with Camden Benares
The Merlin Binary with Dietmar Wehr
H. Beam Piper: A Biography
Wolfgang Diehr
Fuzzy Ergo Sum
Caveat Fuzzy
Thomas Mays
A Sword Into Darkness
REMO
Benjamin Cheah
American Sons
Keepers of the Flame
At All costs
Brad Torgersen
The Chaplain's War
Racers of the Night
Lights in the Deep
Tom Kratman
CARRERA SERIES
A Desert Called Peace
Carnifex
The Lotus Eaters
The Amazon Legion
Come and Take Them
The Rods and the Axe
Countdown: The Liberators
Countdown M Day
Countdown H Hour
Watch on the Rhine with John Ringo
Yellow Eyes with John Ringo
The Tuloriad with John Ringo
A State of Disobedience
Caliphate
Big Boys Don't Cry
Steve Rzasa
The Word Unleashed
The Word Reclaimed
Crosswind
Sandstorm
Broken Sight
QUANTUM MORTIS A Man Disrupted with Vox Day
QUANTUM MORTIS Gravity Kills with Vox Day
SCIENCE FICTION
Riding the Red Horse Vol. I ed. Tom Kratman and Vox Day
Big Boys Don't Cry by Tom Kratman
The Stars Came Back by Rolf Nelson
City Beyond Time: Tales of the Fall of Metachronopolis by John C. Wright
Hyperspace Demons by Jonathan Moeller
On a Starry Night by Tedd Roberts
QUANTUM MORTIS A Man Disrupted by Steve Rzasa and Vox Day
QUANTUM MORTIS Gravity Kills by Steve Rzasa and Vox Day
QUANTUM MORTIS A Mind Programmed by Vox Day
Victoria: A Novel of Fourth Generation War by Thomas Hobbes
FANTASY
Awake in the Night by John C. Wright
Awake in the Night Land by John C. Wright
One Bright Star to Guide Them by John C. Wright
The Book of Feasts & Seasons by John C. Wright
A Magic Broken by Vox Day
A Throne of Bones by Vox Day
The Wardog's Coin by Vox Day
The Last Witchking by Vox Day
Summa Elvetica: A Casuistry of the Elvish Controversy by Vox Day
The Altar of Hate by Vox Day
The War in Heaven by Theodore Beale
The World in Shadow by Theodore Beale
The Wrath of Angels by Theodore Beale
NON-FICTION
On War: The Collected Columns of William S. Lind 2003-2009 by William S. Lind
Four Generations of Modern War by William S. Lind
Equality: The Impossible Quest by Martin van Creveld
Transhuman and Subhuman: Essays on Science Fiction and Awful Truth by John C. Wright
Astronomy and Astrophysics by Dr. Sarah Salviander
CASTALIA CLASSICS
The Programmed Man by Jean and Jeff Sutton
Apollo at Go by Jeff Sutton
First on the Moon by Jeff Sutton
AUDIOBOOKS
A Magic Broken, narrated by Nick Afka Thomas
Four Generations of Modern War, narrated by William S. Lind
TRANSLATIONS
Särjetty taika
QUANTUM MORTIS Un Hombre Disperso
QUANTUM MORTIS Gravedad Mata
Una Estrella Brillante para Guiarlos
QUANTUM MORTIS Um Homem Desintegrado
QUANTUM MORTIS Gravidade Mortal
Uma Magia Perdida
Mantra yang Rusak
La Moneta dal Mercenario
I Ragazzoni non Piangono
QUANTUM MORTIS Тежина Смрти
QUANTUM MORTIS Der programmierte Verstand
Grosse Jungs weinen nicht
Footnotes
Understanding 4th Generation War
1. The word “generation” as used here is shorthand for “dialectically qualitative shift.”
2. William S. Lind, COL Keith Nightengale, CPT John F. Schmitt, COL Joseph W. Sutton, and LTC Gary I. Wilson, “The Changing Face of War: Into the Fourth Generation”, Marine Corps Gazette (October 1989): 22-26. Published simultaneously in Military Review (October 1989): 2-11.
3. Martin van Creveld, lecture, Norwegian Naval Academy, Bergen, Norway, 14 May 2004.
4. U.S. Department of Defense, Transformation Planning Guidance (Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, April 2003),
5. GEN James Mattis, letter to a faculty member at the National Defense University.
6. Barbara Tuchman, A Distant Mirror: The Calamitous Fourteenth Century (New York: Ballantine Books, 1979).
Tap number to return to your place in the text.
Battlefield Lasers
1. FBI Sets Sights on Laser Pointer Aircraft Attacks, USNEWS, 5 June, 2014
2. Laser Weapons System Wikipedia link.
3. Pew, Pew! Navy Laser Blasts Targets In Air, On Sea. Video Link
Tap number to return to your place in the text.
Make the Tigers Fight: Soviet Strategy in Asia 1925-1975
1. David Reynolds, From World War to Cold War (New York: Oxford University Press, 2006), 308.
2. J. V. Stalin, “Concerning the Proletariat and the Peasantry,” 27 January 1925, online at https://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/stalin/works/1925/01/27.htm
3. J.V. Stalin, “Speech Delivered at a Plenum of the Central Committee of the R.C.P.(B.),” 19 January 1925, online at https://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/stalin/works/1925/01/19.htm
4. The Soviet policy of supporting national liberation movements in order to weaken larger rivals continued long after World War II.
5. The discussion of 1925-1945 is based on S. C. M. Paine, The Wars for Asia, 1911-1945 (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2012) and Richard C. Thornton, China: A Political History (Boulder, CO: Westview, 1982).
6. The Japanese Army was overextended even before Pearl Harbor. Eleven divisions were in Japan and Korea, thirteen in Manchuria, and twenty-seven in China. Japan employed twelve divisions from the home islands and China to conquer Southeast Asia. A larger Soviet threat to Manchuria could have tied down some of these divisions and thus helped Britain and America.
7. The pact was defensive. If one signatory attacked the United States, the others had no obligation to declare war on the United States. Nonetheless, Hitler recklessly declared war on America after Japan attacked Pearl Harbor.
8. In this treaty, the USSR pledged to respect China’s sovereignty, not to intervene in her internal affairs, and not to aid anyone in China but the Nationalist government.
9. The discussion of the Korean War draws on Richard C. Thornton, Odd Man Out: Truman, Stalin, Mao, and the Origins of the Korean War (Dulles, VA: Brassey’s, 2000).
&n
bsp; 10. The analysis of Soviet strategy in Asia from 1953 to 1968 is based on F. Charles Parker, Vietnam: Strategy for a Stalemate (New York: Paragon House, 1989).
11. NIE 11-8-64 and NIE 11-8-66 are online: http://www.foia.cia.gov/sites/default/files/document_conversions/89801/DOC_0000267908.pdf http://www.foia.cia.gov/sites/default/files/document_conversions/89801/DOC_0000267915.pdf
12. See, for example, Rick Atkinson, The Long Gray Line (New York: Henry Holt, 1989), 365-390.
13. The discussion of 1969-1975 is based on Richard C. Thornton, The Nixon-Kissinger Years: The Reshaping of American Foreign Policy (St. Paul, MN: Paragon House, 2001).
14. See Thornton, The Nixon-Kissinger Years, chapters 4 and 5 for more details.
15. The strategy is outlined in National Security Decision Directive 75:http://fas.org/irp/offdocs/nsdd/nsdd-75.pdf
16. See SNIE 11/2-81, “Soviet Support For International Terrorism and Revolutionary Violence” online:http://www.foia.cia.gov/sites/default/files/document_conversions/89801/DOC_0000272980.pdf See also Nick Lockwood, “How the Soviet Union Transformed Terrorism,” The Atlantic, 23 December 2011.
17. The popular image of the Iran-Iraq War is that the United States supported both sides; “everyone knows” that Donald Rumsfeld met Saddam Hussein and that the Iran-Contra scandal erupted after America sent weapons to Iran. Reality is the opposite of this image. Soviet support to both sides, directly and through Soviet allies, utterly dwarfed American support. See Richard F. Grimmett, Trends in Conventional Arms Transfers to the Third World by Major Supplier, 1981-1988 (Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service, 1989), 16-19.
18. Stephen Daggett, “Costs of U.S. Major Wars,” Congressional Research Service, 29 June 2010.
19. Joint IED Defeat Organization, “Iranian Weapons Smuggling Activities in Afghanistan,” 3 September 2009, https://info.publicintelligence.net/JIEDDO-IranWeaponsSmuggling.pdf. Similarly, the Syrians could have provided far more support to the insurgents in Iraq than they did.
Tap number to return to your place in the text.
Learning to Ride the Red Horse: The Principles of War