Message-ID: <4026@sri-arpa.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 9-Aug-83 13:14:44 EDT
Article-I.D.: sri-arpa.4026
Posted: Tue Aug  9 13:14:44 1983
Date-Received: Fri, 12-Aug-83 11:37:49 EDT
Lines: 13


 This is brushed over in a line about culling out the aggressive ones and
making them sheepdogs so the sheep won't give you trouble. What's happening is
a little more complicated: you have to have immense self discipline to survive
entry into the pool of \potential/ voters (so external revolutionaries are
unlikely to be even the vaguely competent types seen in THE MOON IS A HARSH
MISTRESS) and to get any authority you have to pass a second vetting of your
views (the H&MP course at OCS, which must be passed for the candidate to remain
in the military at all, is bluntly described as having this purpose --- and no
bunch of retired soldiers will elect a ranker over an officer!). It's sealed by
giving the vote only to \retired/ soldiers, preventing any tinge of reality
from entering the political process. (Those who've read Mark Clifton's novels
may recall frequent remarks that wars are the old sending their young rivals
out to die.)