
[2819-2830  The New Order]

After the war, the Earth Alliance held the single most important
technological breakthrough since the invention of the wheel. They
held the hyperdrive along with the knowledge of how to make more,
and had they chosen to do so, they could have subjugated all of
inhabited space with relative ease (it is useful to realize that
in 2819, all of inhabited space was only about a hundred star
systems). Unfortunately for them, the Terran leaders did not
seize the moment, concentrating their energies instead on
rebuilding the dozens of shattered Core Worlds which had suffered
during the past eight decades of incessant carnage.

   With FTL now a reality, the task of rushing supplies where
they were needed was greatly accelerated, however, in the process
of recontacting the colonies, it was soon discovered that many
had adopted new governments during the recent turmoil, and while
these regimes wished to resume a friendly and cooperative
relationship with Earth, they didn't want to submit to Terran
edicts or the rulership of Terran-appointed governors. Many
argued that it was only their struggle against the Aster & Femm
Corporations which allowed Earth time to win the war, and that if
the U.N. should try to wrest back the colonies, there would be
rebellion.

   Fortunately for these interests, once the hyperdrive
technology was out of the bag, so to speak, it was impossible to
put back in, and in the matter of a few short years, various
colonial governments had their own prototypes. Once this was
accomplished, several of them banded together in what became
known, simply, as the Confederation. The idea took hold, and as
Earth scrambled to reclaim its colonies and topple various
dictatorships which had come into being during the war, the
Confederation continued to grow and gain support, marshalling its
own FTL fleets (usually consisting of overhauled Corporate
vessels which had been hidden during the war's aftermath). The
situation may very well have escalated into a new bloodbath had
not both sides come to the bargaining table in 2830. What came of
their talks was known officially as the Convention for Peaceful
Coexistence and known unofficially as the Great Compromise. What
it basically said was that Earth would relinquish all governing
powers beyond the Core Worlds, and that all outlying worlds would
be free to govern themselves so long as, within a period of
twenty years, their leaders were chosen by popular election
(Earth's leaders were operating on the theory that democracies
tend not to war among themselves, and hence, in order to preserve
the peace, all rival governments must be democratic).

   The following stipulations were also agreed upon:

   * Ban on "dangerous" research (including psionics, human
     genetic engineering, biological warfare, and artificial
     intelligence).

   * No "unnecessary" trade barriers or tariffs between Earth
     and the colonies.

   * No hyperspace-capable war fleets above a certain size.

   * Stiff antitrust regulations to prevent any more supercorps
     from forming.

   * The formation of the IPF (Interplanetary Peace Force) to
     keep the peace and enforce the previous stipulations.

   The sticky point, of course, was who would fund and control
the IPF, which was to be the real teeth behind the agreement. It
was finally settled that each world with a minimum population of
one million could have a vote on the IPF Council, but that Earth
alone would have veto power so that it would be assured that the
force would never be wielded against the mother world. As for the
funding, each participating planet would contribute an amount in
accordance with its population (which meant that the Earth
Alliance, or Core Worlds, ended up shouldering the bulk of the
burden).

   This agreement, of course, gave considerable concessions to
both sides, however, the overall end-result was that except for
Earth's veto power (and their control over the IPF's purse-
strings), the Confederation, when it managed to vote as a single
bloc, could effectively wield the IPF and choose which aspects of
the agreement it wished to enforce and which it wished to ignore.

