When they were off camera, Jack thanked her and shook her hand. “You’re a great guest, Priscilla.” He handed her his card with its Black Cat Network imprint. “In case you need to reach me. It’s my commlink. If you get out there again, and you get some pictures or whatever, send them along. We’ll be happy to see what you have. Anyhow, you’re welcome here anytime. If you want to talk about the shutdown effort, or if, as I hope, they decide to go with at least one more mission, we’d like very much to have you back on the show to talk about it. I’d love to find out who’s transmitting pictures of a waterfall.”

“Thanks, Jack.”

“Something I can’t resist telling you. My boss is in step with the president on this. He didn’t like my bringing you in to defend interstellar travel. He thinks it’s a crazy idea.”

“You mean Harold Billings?”

“Yes.”

“So, why’d he allow it?”

“Ratings. You come on the show and the viewers go through the roof.”

“You’re kidding.”

“I never kid, Priscilla. I shouldn’t be telling you this, and if it goes any farther, I’ll deny it. He had a hard time giving us a go-ahead. But at heart he’s a good guy and he did the right thing. Next time, though, we should probably change the subject.”

THE WORLD REVIEW

Wednesday, February 13, 2256

We’ve come a long way. A century ago famine was a global problem of monumental dimensions. Population continued to increase throughout the underdeveloped world; regional violence, spurred by desperation, and whatever political or religious differences that extremists could exploit, occurred with stunning regularity; and armies of people, fleeing lethal conditions, were beginning to destabilize China, Japan, Russia, and the Western world.

Next week, on February 26, we will celebrate the one hundredth anniversary of the launch of the Gehringer Project. Ahmad Gehringer spent his early years in desperate circumstances, but he has emerged as one of the great leaders of the twenty-third century. He understood that, in order to build a more reasonable world, we needed to find a way to eliminate famine, to replace ideology with open minds, to control the growth of world population, to prevent unfettered capitalism from wrecking the world. And to make liberal education possible around the planet. Not until people could question not only local dogma but also their own beliefs, and accept the possibility they may be wrong about some issues, not until we learn to consider whether someone else may have a valid point even when it conflicts with our own perspective, only when we reach that day can we hope for a peaceful planet.