her foot wrong. Still, she kept her voice controlled, her manner calm. Much calmer than she felt inside.
“I don’t know enough about politics to have an opinion that would matter. Not when it comes to Republican and Democratic pissing contests. If we’re talking the politics of science, then I land on the humanist side.”
“Meaning—?”
“Meaning that science should benefit humanity. I have a private loathing for any science that exists for its own sake. Science should be used. It should be applied. The end result of research is practical and beneficial application.”
“What about military applications?” asked Mr. Church.
“Is that a trick question?”
“No.”
“I won’t build nukes, I won’t create bioweapons. Beyond that … if you’re talking about drone technology that can fight an enemy in a modern combat scenario while keeping U.S. troops out of the line of fire, then … sure. I’d do that. Would I build a space-based laser system so the CIA can assassinate whoever’s on their shit list, then no. That’s bullshit and it’s too much of a gray area.”
“You distrust the Agency?”
“Of course.”
“Why?”
“Because they’re untrustworthy.”
“How so?”
She took a moment to find the word that she thought would work best. “They’re inept.”
The Whoopi Goldberg lookalike turned away to hide a smile. Dr. Hu studied his nails.
“What makes you say that?”
Now she did shrug. “Because they get too much press, and none of it’s good.”
“It could be a front,” he said. “A misdirection.”
“Sure. But I don’t think it is. I think they’ve had to do too much and never had enough legal funding. They let their need to accomplish an impossible agenda trick them into making bad choices. The whole drug thing in the sixties. That may even have begun as a well-intentioned reaction to the threat of Soviet expansion, but it was badly played. They broke so many laws while trying to save capitalism that it became their knee-jerk reaction. It became the easiest path to a series of short-term goals that probably looked good on reports to Congress but were chump change in terms of real global control. The space race did more to scare the Soviets, as did the Reagan-era military buildup. That’s what tore the wall down and collapsed communism.”
“So you do have politics,” observed the woman.
“No,” said Artemisia, shaking her head. “I’m aware of politics … but really what I’m aware of is the evolution of military sciences since the Manhattan Project.”
Mr. Church selected a cookie, tapped crumbs off, took a bite. “Why?”
“Because that’s the sandbox I want to play in, and I can’t do it from the outside. All of the university research projects are in permanent stall mode, presenting only enough results to renew their grants. And don’t get me started on the private sector. If I were a male Asian scientist I’d already have a job in the high six figures, but there is a bizarrely counterproductive bigotry against placing women, particularly ethnic women, in the trenches of the top military contract teams. That leaves DARPA or something like DARPA. Some kind of think tank way out on the cutting edge where results matter more than gender, race, age, or any other bias.”
Aunt Sallie opened a file folder, read for a moment, her lips moving, then raised her head and gave Bliss a direct stare. “What would you say if I told you that we have transcripts of your therapy sessions going back to junior high?”
“Hmm. Two things occur to me.”
“And they are?”
“First, fuck you.”
Auntie measured out a slice of a smile. “Fair enough. What’s the second thing?”
“I’d be surprised and a little disappointed if you hadn’t.”
That seemed to surprise Aunt Sallie. “Oh?”
“I’m beginning to get an idea of the scope of this organization, or division or whatever it is. If I was on that side of the table I wouldn’t hire anyone whose
“I don’t know enough about politics to have an opinion that would matter. Not when it comes to Republican and Democratic pissing contests. If we’re talking the politics of science, then I land on the humanist side.”
“Meaning—?”
“Meaning that science should benefit humanity. I have a private loathing for any science that exists for its own sake. Science should be used. It should be applied. The end result of research is practical and beneficial application.”
“What about military applications?” asked Mr. Church.
“Is that a trick question?”
“No.”
“I won’t build nukes, I won’t create bioweapons. Beyond that … if you’re talking about drone technology that can fight an enemy in a modern combat scenario while keeping U.S. troops out of the line of fire, then … sure. I’d do that. Would I build a space-based laser system so the CIA can assassinate whoever’s on their shit list, then no. That’s bullshit and it’s too much of a gray area.”
“You distrust the Agency?”
“Of course.”
“Why?”
“Because they’re untrustworthy.”
“How so?”
She took a moment to find the word that she thought would work best. “They’re inept.”
The Whoopi Goldberg lookalike turned away to hide a smile. Dr. Hu studied his nails.
“What makes you say that?”
Now she did shrug. “Because they get too much press, and none of it’s good.”
“It could be a front,” he said. “A misdirection.”
“Sure. But I don’t think it is. I think they’ve had to do too much and never had enough legal funding. They let their need to accomplish an impossible agenda trick them into making bad choices. The whole drug thing in the sixties. That may even have begun as a well-intentioned reaction to the threat of Soviet expansion, but it was badly played. They broke so many laws while trying to save capitalism that it became their knee-jerk reaction. It became the easiest path to a series of short-term goals that probably looked good on reports to Congress but were chump change in terms of real global control. The space race did more to scare the Soviets, as did the Reagan-era military buildup. That’s what tore the wall down and collapsed communism.”
“So you do have politics,” observed the woman.
“No,” said Artemisia, shaking her head. “I’m aware of politics … but really what I’m aware of is the evolution of military sciences since the Manhattan Project.”
Mr. Church selected a cookie, tapped crumbs off, took a bite. “Why?”
“Because that’s the sandbox I want to play in, and I can’t do it from the outside. All of the university research projects are in permanent stall mode, presenting only enough results to renew their grants. And don’t get me started on the private sector. If I were a male Asian scientist I’d already have a job in the high six figures, but there is a bizarrely counterproductive bigotry against placing women, particularly ethnic women, in the trenches of the top military contract teams. That leaves DARPA or something like DARPA. Some kind of think tank way out on the cutting edge where results matter more than gender, race, age, or any other bias.”
Aunt Sallie opened a file folder, read for a moment, her lips moving, then raised her head and gave Bliss a direct stare. “What would you say if I told you that we have transcripts of your therapy sessions going back to junior high?”
“Hmm. Two things occur to me.”
“And they are?”
“First, fuck you.”
Auntie measured out a slice of a smile. “Fair enough. What’s the second thing?”
“I’d be surprised and a little disappointed if you hadn’t.”
That seemed to surprise Aunt Sallie. “Oh?”
“I’m beginning to get an idea of the scope of this organization, or division or whatever it is. If I was on that side of the table I wouldn’t hire anyone whose
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