[HFQ] SPOILERS -- Why didn't Merlin?

Didn't Rayno lament that Mab's pamphlets were darn near ubiquitous? Won't surprise me if similar pamphlets don't show up all over Dohlar heralding the Haaralds and posing the question about whose side God is really on. There might not be CNN, but the Seijin News Network might suffice to disseminate enough information to keep the public somewhat informed.

PeterZ wrote:Didn't Rayno lament that Mab's pamphlets were darn near ubiquitous? Won't surprise me if similar pamphlets don't show up all over Dohlar heralding the Haaralds and posing the question about whose side God is really on. There might not be CNN, but the Seijin News Network might suffice to disseminate enough information to keep the public somewhat informed.

He also noted that they were printed in such a way that they HAD to be locally made. And that because of that no one but the highest levels of the Inquisition were aware of how ubiquitous they REALLY were.

If the pamphlets started going on about the Charisians most advanced warship before said warship leaves the construction yards, that would be a huge clue that they AREN'T locally made. It would also prove to EVERYONE that the pamphlet makers are Charisian agents and not local disgruntled citizens. Assuming they're even believed to begin with.

Absolutely. But that doesn't mean that they're identifying Clyntahn as the problem yet.

Which, now that I think about it, could be a good thing: it may be their ties to the Church, as an institution, that are fraying, precisely because of how they're affected by the Church's actions, but they aren't in a position to see that the misbehaviour is at the top. IOW, the situation in Dohlar may be [becoming] more similar to that in Zebediah, if for rather different reasons. People identify with _their_ clergy, not the hierarchy, and the pull to reform is typically stronger [not necessarily _strong_] among those members of the Church. And that raises the interesting possibility that Stephan Maik may be more typical of Dohlar's Schuelerites than we have assumed.

n7axw wrote:

True. But it is also true that Dohlar has just lost an army and is facing severe military pressure from two directions as a consequence of its participation in the Jihad. Prior to this it lost a large galley fleet at Armageddon Reef....all of this while fighting for God and Mother Church. Lots of sons, brothers and husbands not coming home. Eventually it has to get old and start raising questions about whose side God is really on.

Don

Oh, my, are you ever on to something there.

Imagine targeted propaganda in the form of polite well-argued letters appearing mysteriously at every parsonage on the planet or at least in key areas.

OWL's broadsides are a blunt instrument. Giving local priests and bishops theological excuses to change their mind gives great leverage.

Mmmm... yes. I was actually including them in the 'closely held' group, but I guess I didn't make that clear.

What they know, though, won't filter out onto the street quickly unless they a) think they need to build support for future actions and b) don't think the Inquisition will get on their case for letting it out. Much of it will still get out eventually via the servants' entrance, but by the time it reaches the street it will be more rumours among the thousands already circulating.

CJK wrote:< snip >

Now the fact the CoGA has control of the semaphore helps them greatly, as well as the authority they have from the writ. That said the events don't have to be that widespread in some cases, Clyntahn's actions are also scrutinized by national leaders, not just the man in the street. Leaders are not going to buy the propaganda unless they choose to, they have spies of their own. In this regard, especially given how much power the upper class citizens have I would expect them to be far more informed. After all at this time not knowing what the undercurrents are can be deadly for anyone with an insane inquisition.

During the Age of Faith it was possible to get armies of devoted Catholics to march on Rome when their local clergy told them it was their duty.

Louis R wrote:What they know, though, won't filter out onto the street quickly unless they a) think they need to build support for future actions and b) don't think the Inquisition will get on their case for letting it out. Much of it will still get out eventually via the servants' entrance, but by the time it reaches the street it will be more rumours among the thousands already circulating.

You know, one thing Merlin can get out of a meeting with Thirsk - assuming Thirsk is to remain in Dohlar, not get himself killed in a hurry, and begin preparations to liberate his nation from the Temple - is his feedback for what sorts of news on the broadsheets will help pave the way for popular acceptance of that kind of move. Whatever OWL and Nahrmahn's surveillance capabilities, Thirsk's own sense of Dohlaran values and what would make crucial differences were those facts to become better known, is likely to at least add a useful perspective to the broadsheet writing in Dohlar.

In addition, if he's going to help flip Dohlar, he should have some knowledge of and input into the broadsheet content there, so that he's not operating at cross purposes with it.

Hmm. Would an Earl be that in touch with popular thinking and sentiment?

He works with a lot of commoners but even if he has a policy of letting them speak freely sometimes they may not dare to do it.

evilauthor wrote:
He also noted that they were printed in such a way that they HAD to be locally made. And that because of that no one but the highest levels of the Inquisition were aware of how ubiquitous they REALLY were.

If the pamphlets started going on about the Charisians most advanced warship before said warship leaves the construction yards, that would be a huge clue that they AREN'T locally made. It would also prove to EVERYONE that the pamphlet makers are Charisian agents and not local disgruntled citizens. Assuming they're even believed to begin with.

I wasn't thinking about advanced knowledge of the KH VIIs. I was thinking that once the Haaralds became active in the region, the pamphlets make sure that knowledge is disseminated rather than remain limited to those that actually saw the ships. General descriptions can convey the technological power of the ships. forex asking questions like....How do enough people fit in that ship to move guns that big? How doe they load the shells for such monsters? Those brutes are 15,000 tonnes if they are a pound, how do they make that much steel? That monster is faster than a courier galley at full sprint!

That sort of pamphlet discussion can keep to the local tenor of the prose, but still convey core elements of what the KH VIIs represent. Add the theological arguments both in support and against Charis as a whole and the ships in particular and the result would be a whole lot of people thinking for themselves and discussing their thoughts with quite a few local priests. Just the sort of thing that will further separate the local priests trying to protect their flock from the Inquisition and their hierarchy.

Expert snuggler wrote:Hmm. Would an Earl be that in touch with popular thinking and sentiment?

He works with a lot of commoners but even if he has a policy of letting them speak freely sometimes they may not dare to do it.

That's a point, but by the same token, he's working a lot with the manufacturers and tradesmen who are the core urban literate readership, and I don't think Dohlar has nearly the social distance between its aristocrats - Earl Thirsk especially - that most mainland realms do. It's not Charis, of course, but it's far, far from Desnair or Harchong. And the aristocrats are important, another portion of that readership, and precisely his social peers.

Naturally, even more help may be useful, and Thirsk isn't an ideal window into every Dohlaran social class. But he's probably got one of the widest perspectives to be found there, an excellent mind, and most importantly, he's going to be among a very, very exclusive membership when it comes to being eligible for tapping for advice that way at all, so there's a beggars can't be choosers thing going on too.

There may be some of Aivah Pahrsahn's business contacts, or Mother Superior Nynian's SSK members, who may be able to offer some perspective - without, probably, having much idea that that's what they're being used for - on Dohlaran popular opinion, but that's speculative at best and how much good they can do being as kept in the dark as security would demand they be is doubtful.