How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
"All I can promise at this stage is that I will make a report to the Council. I'll let you know as soon as I can their decision about granting you emergency priority. Personally, I think it's a bit of a long shot. I don't know if we can afford to take chances."
"We can't afford not to," Markham said with sudden energy. "Why keep on plugging the leaks here and there, sinking money into relief funds for drought and dieback? You can slap on patches but the dam's going to burst. Unless—" (4.39-40)
Money and politics go hand in hand in Timescape—one is rarely far from the other. The question here is whether those who create policy use the money effectively, and Markham's answer seems to be no. By playing it safe in the short term, they don't spend the money to fix the problem, and in doing so, ultimately solve nothing in the long term.
Quote #2
"I fear your 'judgment' is not the only factor at work here," Lakin said, giving him a stony look.
"What does that mean?"
"You are inexperienced at these matters. We are working under a deadline. The NSF renewal is more important than your objections. I dislike putting it so bluntly, but —"
"Yes, yes you have the best interests of the entire group in mind."
"I do not believe I need my sentences finished for me."
Gordon blinked and looked out the window. "Sorry." (8.35-40)
Of course, politics aren't left to the politicians. Every job has its own internal political structure, including our La Jolla professors. Here, Lakin plays the political game to help secure their NSF grant.
Quote #3
Renfrew scrubbed his hands in the washbasin. "True enough. The snag is that the Brazilians cut back so much of their jungle for the sugar cane fields. That lowers the number of plants which can absorb carbon dioxide from the air. Trace that effect round a bit and it explains the shifts in the world climate, greenhouse effect and rainfall and so on."
"The Council decided that?"
"No, no, research teams worldwide did. The Council simply make policy to offset problems. The UN mandate, extraordinary powers, and all that." (10.20-22)
The people with the information are the research teams, but the Council makes the policy. You might think this simply means the research people tell the Council what needs doing and it gets done, but, as we'll see elsewhere in this section, communication is far more complex than simply telling someone something. And that's not what you want when the end of the world is at stake.