PeterZ wrote:I searched but did not find the specific section I was thinking of. I could have sworn there was a conversation between Toralk and Harshu that touched on Harshu's suspicions of mul Gurthak, Neshok and Carthos. I'll reread RTH and find it then.
In the mean time I will settle for speculation that Harshu suspected mul Gurthak of wanting to disregard the Kerellian Accords for some political manoeuvre. Accepting command of the AEF was his attempt to give Arcana its military goals while not letting the Accords be completely ignored.
One can argue whether Harshu chose the lesser of two evils in a binary solution set or took an expedient choice that was avoidable to attaining his goal. I don't believe it can be argued he made the choice without thinking of those his choice would impact as the primary concern. He truly wanted to do the best he could for all concerned within the priorities set by his responsibilities.
I think I remember that. It happened about the time Harshu started getting dispatches from mul Gurthak repriminding him for exceeding his written instructions with his offensive which occured after the repulse of the attack on Ft Salby.
I've never thought that Harshu didn't mean well. My criticism of him has focused more around the narrowness of his concern. You remember my discussion of actions and consequences some of which were hidden from the view of the person making the choices. Sometimes we hear that an officier must act "for the benefit of the service." The benefit of the service goes far beyond the tactical choices a commander must make in a specific campaign.
Now, for example, we know that his service superior was plotting to deliver not only the army, but all of Arcana over into Mythaln control. If the plot succeeds, the Skakiran Line Lords will be able to say to their Ransaran audience, "Look at what so called Andaran honor is worth. In violation of the Accords, they tortured POWs, murdered people out of expediency and lied to their own people about what was going on. Further, look how inept those Andarans are. They led an army out and then allowed it to be trapped and destroyed by the Sharonians. Maybe it's time for a change in management."
Now there is no way that Harshu could have known about or be held responsible for a Shakira plot. Yet by his choices, he fed into the plot's story line. He was set up for it all along. That is what I'm talking about when I say that his compromise of his honor led to consequences hidden from him.
May I suggest that this is always how it is? The consequences of our choices always have a ripple effect that goes beyond the focus of our immediate concern, and yes, beyond our awareness. The only way we can deal with that is to make good honorable choices and be that person others can trust. While that doesn't neccessarily mitigate all the hidden consequences of our actions, what it does do if we are consistent with that is gain us the credibility to cope with those consequences once they come out in the open.
Right now Harshu is out of both credibility and luck. He should stand down his army to avoid getting his men killed for no good purpose.
Don
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