pappilon wrote:Well put. I will only add:
The defeat of such a huge part of one of their raiding parties by 4 - 5 Manty CLs and DDs, Saltash, Thimble, Manticore,etc should have made the military disparity more than painfully obvious.
All that can be suggested is the idiocy coming out of the Ministry of Education and Information was not idiotic propaganda but the real and
serious delusional belief of the Mandarins involved.
Also wasn't Kingsfors actively trying to get in touch with the Mandarins and Kolokoltsov was actively
not accepting calls because one of their August Company was not there? (Could be me mis-remembering
)
Slneezy wrote:They only knew about Thimble and later on Manticore - initial Crandall's defeat was downplayed by Rajampet and that faulty infor have had a fair mation which coupled with Oyster Bay made the Mandarins give the OK for Manticore (not knowing that Haven was going to join in and having SLN's CNO falsify stuff makes their assessment reasonable).
After Manticore the Mandarins pretty much had all the info - but their acceptable options were pretty much nil.
So, by the tome The Salamander comes blasting across the hyperwall right on top of a squadron of BCs or whatever, the Mandarins, with Kingsford's help,
shouldhave had a fair idea that nothing they had could
possibly stand up to 400 SD(p)s. Yes at that point their options were: accept whatever terms Honor offered. So McArtney pulled an Elvis Santino, except Kingsford refused the order.
Slneezy wrote:Kingsford's raiding strategy was a desperate attempt at salvaging the situation.
Neither Beowulf/GA nor MAlign were willing to ease up the pressure and allow a negotiated peace.
Before the Massacre at Manticore (or the great kitten drowning), yes, the GA/Beowulf would have considered any serious peace negotiation.
Everything after Crandall "was a desperate attempt at salvaging the situation." Refusing to even open talks with Manticore after Byng was said "desperate attempt."
Slneezy wrote:Indeed Beowulf's actions in particular as a member of the League carried a certain amount of bad faith - I'm inclined to give the Mandarins a partial pass on that one counterbalanced by the fact that they had very little idea on what was happening in the League's core worlds AKA the very places that should have been supporting the transtelars and the federal government.
Only viewed through the rather twisty lens of The Mandarins. Canada, as a member of the British Commonwealth is free to make trade deals with the US &Mexico without being traitorous to the UK, I think. I admit my knowledge of the Commonwealth's rules, regs, and politics is marginal at best.
But The UK would need Canada's permission to use CFB Gander to launch an attack on the US, I think. The Solaran League is
not The US of A where each state is constitutionally forbidden to make separate trade deals and treaties with foreign powers. It, so it seems to me, to be More the Commonwealth of independent star nations able to do their own thing with whomever including building their own navy, which again is something each state is specifically forbidden.
Beowulf was playing by the rules as it reasonably interpreted them. And yes, reasonable persons may reasonably disagree. Which, from Beowulf's perspective was exactly what was occurring until Kolokoltsov pulled Reid out of the Chamber of Stars' woodwork to begin the debate on Beowulf's actions.
At which point Beowulf respectfully announces it was seceding pending passage of the plebescite. Again, from Beowulf's perspective reasonable persons reasonably disagreeing until the vote made it official.
Yes anything that tossed sand into the machinations of the Mandarins would certainly be viewed as treason to them, because the constitution was so much toilet paper.
