Forge of the Elders
L. Neil Smith
I don't usually forget a face, but in your case I'll make an exception...
Yet another libertarian propaganda piece. He's a snappy enought latter-day Heinlein writer and I again marvel at his revealing that IF ONLY pure libertarianism prevailed we'd be technologically advanced and happily all wearing sidearms...
The amusing premise of the book is a fleet of aging space shuttles (The "Dole, Hatch, and McCain," named for the martyrs of the American Soviet), taken out of mothballs by the American Soviet Socialist Republic is sent to a newly discovered asteroid which if chock-full of everything Earth needs. (Earth, pretty much run by nasty statists, the world Soviet of ASSR and USSR, is short of resources because downtrodden humans have no intitiative, blah, blah, blah).
Turns out the asteroid is inhabited by all kinds of happy go lucky libertarian aliens from differently evolved parallel earths. AND THEY'RE CAPITALISTS....
Ugh.
Couldn't. finish. it.. Could be a fun writer, but at his heart, just a dreary idealogue.
Well enough written, but (to me) so relentlessly promulgating the libertarian ideal you'd think democracy, the republic and federalism caused mental retardation and tooth decay. Heinlein did it better and with a lighter hand.
