Carl lifts his chin. “Not if it means shooting ourselves in the foot. If we confront the enemy, there will be retaliation. My guess is they will turn to their last resort, which would be nuclear weapons. Mr. President, if we launch missiles, we should be prepared for annihilation at home.”
The President grimaces. “We’ve gotten ourselves into a shithole.” He rubs his face. “If anyone launches nukes, the game is over.”
“EMP missiles are precise,” Stan assures. “We can take down New China while disabling nuclear facilities in Asia. Best of all, we won’t inflict any casualties. Even if we intend to de-escalate, we should first gain the upper hand prior to negotiating. Otherwise, the enemy will have the bargaining chips. Mr. President, I implore we use EMP to end the blockade.”
A staffer rushes to the President with a memo. He reads it with apparent concern. “More bad news. There’s another round of cyberattacks hitting banks and corporations across the nation.” He shakes his head. “This is unacceptable. What happened to the counter strikes I ordered last week?”
“We launched them,” Carl says. “They accomplished nothing. China has built a wall and our viruses can’t penetrate. That’s the advantage of an authoritarian system.”
The room quiets. Gareth leans to Stan and whispers. “I have an idea.”
Stan turns his head. “What is it?”
“Our man Manos runs Google now.”
“So what?”
“He can turn Silicon Valley into a war factory. We can design new munitions—A.I. viruses that evolve on the battlefield. They will penetrate China’s defenses easily.”
Stan’s eyes widen and he turns to the group. “Mr. President, we have a solution. Thanks to the successful Information Tariffs the CIA implemented, we have access to the country’s most valuable technology company, Google. We can develop the most sophisticated cyber weapons on the planet.”
The President looks at Stan. “I like what I’m hearing.”
“Sir, we will win with innovation,” Stan says. “In space and on the ground, we’ll launch EMP and disable the enemy, just as we did successfully in Greenland. Concurrently, Google will prepare next-generation arms for the second wave.”
The President sits quietly in contemplation. “Here’s where I stand.” All eyes turn to him. “Prepare the EMP missiles and remain on high alert. If China harasses our colony on Mars, we will immediately unleash in space and in Asia. Until that happens, wait for a green light from me.”
Stan beams. “Yes, Mr. President.”
“In the meantime, we need effective warfare that will disable the enemy. So far, nothing’s worked. Google represents the best of our country and it will be great to have them on our side. If they’re willing to help us, I would like to see new A.I. weapons systems. Keep me informed of all developments.”
“Absolutely,” Stan asserts. “Our response will be overwhelming, sir.”
“Any other comments?”
Stan grins at Carl, who sits quietly at the conference table. The generals in the room appear upbeat.
“Meeting adjourned.”
Stan gets up and exits, rushing back to his jet drone. His long legs stride across the marble hallway to the White House entryway.
Gareth tries to keep up with his boss. “Great job, sir. That was excellent.”
Stan stares straight ahead. “Prepare a new war dossier with the President’s recommendations. And get Manos on the line. We need him to deliver.”
“He will, sir. Google will be our new armory.”
23.
ON A BLISTERING September morning in Berkeley, Beth steps into a chopper parked on her home’s helipad. She straps in and summons her A.I. “Cooper, fly me to the Lawrence Livermore Laboratory.”
“Okay, you will arrive in fifteen minutes.”
As the helicopter ascends and flies towards the East Bay, a request arrives in her Vision smartglasses. “Please grant access to Google’s private servers.”
“Cooper, who sent me this?”
“It’s from Seth Wengardt, Chief of Staff at GoldRock.”
“Why does he want our confidential data?”
“I don’t know.”
She frets as she looks down to the wide banks of the Sacramento River and the flooded cities of Richmond and Oakland. Stress floods her mind.
I have to stop Manos.
“Cooper, reject GoldRock’s attempt and get my executive staff on the line.”
On a tablet, a video conference launches and Beth’s staff appear. They are quiet and their expressions are grim.
Thomas speaks up. “I haven’t recovered from the All-Staff Meeting.”
Beth’s voice lowers. “Me neither. I’m deeply troubled by recent events.”
“It is depressing to see you leave like this.”
She points at the camera. “I’m not resigning. No one is forcing me out.”
Camila stammers. “You were right, boss. We should have pushed harder against the Information Tariffs. GoldRock had bigger intentions all along.”
“I told you,” Beth says. “Manos is someone who leads with his self-pride. It’s always about himself. He doesn’t care about anything that won’t make him wealthier, and he’s willing to destroy everything in his path for self-promotion.”
“What does he want from us?” Camila asks.
“Total control. My guess is he will oust all of you and replace our management with their own. The ego perceives control as the way to ensure self-survival.”
“We will lose our jobs?”
“Yes, likely. The tariffs are a preview of what’s to come. GoldRock will try to take over and restructure our company.”
Thomas shakes his head. “But that will tear Google apart. Don’t they see how taxes destroy the business?”
Beth stares off. “They’ll justify it to themselves somehow.”
“But they crashed the stock market! Their self-destructive policies bring everyone down. Don’t they see that?”
Beth shrugs. “Apparently not. These people have no awareness of their actions. The ego makes a decision based on how it pleases the self. Anything that satisfies me is good, even if it’s illegal or morally reprehensible. Tyrants choose me first, and that’s why they have no problems breaking laws and acting against the common good. Their world view is limited to themselves, which is also why they can’t innovate or advance social good.”
“That’s so true,” Ben says. “Manos can’t look beyond himself.”
“Precisely. He is a slave to his primitive self. It takes courage and strength to transcend your pride and do what’s right for the world.”
“It’s a shame he can’t see the big picture and help humanity. He must have a disease.”
Beth holds out her hand. “To be fair, the ego lives within all of us. It’s an important part of our early development as toddlers, but in later life, it becomes the source of racism and sexism. Shiv Patel, our former CEO, wrote about this in ‘Awaken the Power of Insight.’”
“I’ll have to read it,” Camila says.
“You should. The problem with Manos is that he lacks awareness. That’s the critical issue. When you become mindful of your inner demons, you will come face to face with the source of your problems.”
“Interesting,” Ben says. “So in a way, Manos is trapped in his own psyche.”
“Exactly. If he could develop his mind’s awareness, he would break free from his selfish motives and reach an awakened state, but that’s not likely to happen.”
Camila grimaces. “I’m sorry, Beth. I should have listened to you and stalled GoldRock, and now it’s too late.”