Free The Emerald Virus by Patrick Shea Page B

enough to deal with the pressure of this assignment.
Jack explained his reasoning and analysis. After discussing Irene’s skills Vis
a Vis those of the individual she would be replacing A.J. agreed to support
Jack’s choice.
        
Following the meeting with Secretary Kemper, Jack and A.J. walked back to
A.J.’s office. The Secretary had agreed with their list of candidates but had
first gone over the background of everyone on the list in some detail. Jack
thought it was interesting that the Secretary had listened intently to the rationale
for wanting Irene on the team but did not question the choice. A.J. had
explained that one of their criteria was no spouses and no children. Of the
twelve candidates on the list, five were single, three were divorced, two were
separated from their spouses and the remaining two were widowed. Two of the
team had adult children who lived in different regions of the country and would
stay at their own homes during the crisis.
        
A.J. said, “I was surprised that Secretary Kemper so quickly agreed with our
list. I was also surprised that we could have additional people if we thought it
helpful. I’m glad you had an answer in mind.”
        
“Fortunately, I had thought about the merits of including John Needle just to
add redundancy in the high-tech communications area but that would have meant
one less scientist and I couldn’t make that trade. John also has experience in
low-tech communications and in the back of my mind I think that might be
critical to the survivors in the long run. John was a radio operator in the
Navy, and he is currently licensed as a ham radio operator. I’m glad we could
add him to the team.” 
        
“Why do you think low-tech communications will be so important?”
        
“First, because of the electrical power requirements; it takes a lot less power
to operate a ham radio than it does to keep a computer network active.
Secondly, cell phone networks will all fail over time due to lack of
maintenance. Ham radios can be used indefinitely, especially with the amount of
inventory currently available in stores today. They don’t use any kind of a
network that has to be maintained. You just need a radio on each end of the
conversation.”
        
A.J. laughed lightly as she said, “Jack, will you continue to think of
everything?”
        
Jack smiled at the compliment and responded, “My team and I, with the help of a
lot of others, will think of all of the big things, and we will be able to help
survivors prepare for them. My fear is that we will miss one small but
important thing that will cost lives. That one little thing is what we’ll
continue to search for as survivors share early experiences with us.”
        
“Jack, you are the best I’ve ever known at visualizing the unintended
consequences of current actions. I’m very confident that you’re the best person
for this job. But, you’re human and you’ll make mistakes. Your most important
job will be to deal with those mistakes quickly and get back to the business of
saving lives.”
        
“Thanks Doc. I just hope I’m nearly as good as you think I am.”
        
“There is one last thing, Jack. Let your folks know that the bunker we will be
assigned to will be in the southwest, but the name and location will remain
classified until the team arrives at the bunker. Everyone needs to be prepared
to fly as early as Tuesday morning. The military will provide us with large backpacks
for everyone to use. We should have those tomorrow. Gear for each team member
will be restricted to what they can fit in that backpack and one small carry-on
for personal gear like laptops, cell phones, electronic storage devices, etc.
The military will also provide the carry-on bag. Redundant equipment will be
available at the bunker so no one will need to take duplicate equipment. I let
our military contact know that we will need both PCs and Macs. Additionally, if
need be, we will