> [Although, FWIW, I would not at all be surprised if Hagelin bailed one of > these days. Of the three (Hagelin, Morris, Ram), I think he is the only one > with the strength to do so and definitely the only one with any chance of > making it in the real world. Given the culture Ram comes from, if he > prostrates himself again and again and again....(something he should be used > to by now) before his family and if they have money, he would be covered, I > guess.] > Hagelin is an interesting case. I think there is some part of him which is dimly aware that he's spouting junk. All that time with proper scientists and having to do hard calculations must have left an impression somewhere. He's the one who has to work hardest to keep himself convinced of what he's saying because he does have the intelligence and the training to work out that it's garbage. The others, Bevan and Tony, don't have the intellect to appreciate fine points of reason and logic.
Hagelin keeps himself convinced by making lots of speeches to people who know little or nothing about science and getting plenty of adulation from the credulous. "All these people think I'm wonderful therefore I must be right" is the rather distorted reasoning going on there. If he withdrew from the adoring crowds and sat down with a pencil and paper to work things out he might start having doubts Of the other characters, Tony is quite a mild mannered person, even if he doesn't have the training and natural aptitude to spot that his ideas are garbage, he does at least have the temperament to stop the wilder nutjobs at Vlodrop getting too far out of sync with reality. Seeing as he wears a crown and issues "decrees" that's a relative thing only by comparison with people like Schiffgens, Konhaus and Morris who really are out of it.
