At the beginning of the story, there is still—barely—a Soviet Union. By the end of the story, and for reasons not in any way connected to the events OF the story, there is not.

I mention this because it just crossed my mind and I thought it was interesting, and also because it led to a train of thought about how coming of age in that very particular time—at what felt then like the end of a period of endemic global danger encompassing not only their lifetimes to date, but in many cases their parents' as well—will have shaped their view of and approach to the armed galactic do-gooder business.

Unfortunately I didn't get articulably far on that train of thought because it's 3 AM and I had it while trying to go to sleep, but still, I was struck by what a curious convergence of events that is, in hindsight—that the USSR happened to be falling exactly as the Core 1 endgame was playing out in Worcester.

--G.
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Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
zgryphon at that email service Google has
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.