Traitors Tried in the Court of Public Opinion (June 9, 2012)
- Thread starter ChrisReid
- Start date
Quarto
Unknown Enemy
I'm sure it would be tough to completely ignore such a message. However, there is a crucial option between refusal and betrayal, which Jamison should have taken: go to his superior and inform him. All too frequently in such situations (historically), military intelligence would be very glad to exploit the opportunity. The person in question would (often at his own insistence) be cut off from any truly critical decisions and information, while being supplied with less critical (but accurate) information that he can pass on to the enemy.
Bandit LOAF
Long Live the Confederation!
Her superior, (Rhonda) Jamison was a woman. Which is in and of itself a little more interesting, because there's something a little more compelling about a mother doing anything to protect her child.
... but it's also important to note that we /don't really know what she did/. All we know is that she passed information to the Kilrathi, specifically that the Confederation suspected they were building the Hakagas. Fleet Action never claims that she orchestrated the armistice because the Kilrathi told her to... in fact, we're specifically told that she was opposed to the war BEFORE she was broken. (Actually, it's implied that she wasn't turned until after the armistice, since we're told the contact with her was through the Kilrathi embassy established on Earth after the treaty.)
True. On the other hand, going to your superiors generally results in forfeiting any chance to recover your loved one, so it is not realistic to always expect somebody without military-style loyalty conditioning to willingly write off said loved one.
Mekt-Hakkikt
Mpanty's bane
You're right, I never bothered to look so closely but we really don't know whether the damage Jamison did was that big.
Quarto
Unknown Enemy
That's the thing - it doesn't (in the same way that, contrary to what kidnappers might tell you, going to the police does not forfeit your chances of recovering the kidnapped person). As I said, for military intelligence, it is far preferable to keep up the game, letting the enemy think that the person in question is fully cooperating with them.
Bandit LOAF
Long Live the Confederation!
This is an interesting case, though, as Jamison likely knows exactly what the Confederation's plans for Kilrah, where here son was being held, were...
Ilanin
Captain
Well, that's a bit up in the air, isn't it? The Behemoth is under construction at this point, but not ready yet, and if attacks like Operation Red Three had been authorised then the war might not have lasted long enough - other than in a mopping-up sense - for it to be deployed (and I have strong doubts that Rodham would have permitted the Behemoth to be used in a war clearly already won). And while Confederation projections showed that Red Three was far from a certain bet, the Kilrathi, even knowing of the Confederation plan, considered it likely to be a crippling blow.
Fleet Action says the following things about Jamison:
-Vance Richards told President Rodham Jamison might represent a security risk six months before the start of the Hakaga campaign, after her son was captured.
-Rodham says that Jamison's briefings on Kilrathi intentions were a major factor in his decision to sign the armistice against the Fleet's opposition.
-Banbridge and Grecko both state that Jamison was the driving force behind the deactivation order that resulted in only two Confed carriers being ready for active duty at the resumption of hostilities; the fleet would have lost at Sirius anyway, but Kilrathi fighter losses would have been much higher without it, possibly high enough to make Thrakhath consider turning back.
-I cannot see anywhere that the specifics of when first contact with Jamison is actually made.
Fleet Action says the following things about Jamison:
-Vance Richards told President Rodham Jamison might represent a security risk six months before the start of the Hakaga campaign, after her son was captured.
-Rodham says that Jamison's briefings on Kilrathi intentions were a major factor in his decision to sign the armistice against the Fleet's opposition.
-Banbridge and Grecko both state that Jamison was the driving force behind the deactivation order that resulted in only two Confed carriers being ready for active duty at the resumption of hostilities; the fleet would have lost at Sirius anyway, but Kilrathi fighter losses would have been much higher without it, possibly high enough to make Thrakhath consider turning back.
-I cannot see anywhere that the specifics of when first contact with Jamison is actually made.