Δαφνη Ευτυχια Αρθουρος

From The Gentle Giants of Ganymede by James P. Hogan (1978, Del Rey, New York):

"Oh, I assumed that was why they built a defensive system around the place," the Ganymean said.

Hunt laughed. "That's not to keep carnivores out," he said. It's to keep humans out."

"You mean they might attack us?" There was a sudden note of alarm in the question.

"Not at all. It's simply to insure your privacy and to make sure that nobody makes a nuisance of himself. The government assumed that you wouldn't want crowds of sightseers and tourists wandering around you all the time and getting in the way."

"Couldn't the government just make a law ordering them to stay away?" Shilohin asked from across the room. "That sounds much simpler."

Hunt laughed again, probably because the feeling of seeing hone again was affecting him a little. "You haven't met many Earth-people yet," he said. "I don't think they'd take very much notice. They're not what you might call ... easily disciplined."

Shilohin was evidently surprised by the statement. "Really?" she said. "I had always imagined them to be precisely the opposite. I mean ... I've watched some of the old newsreels from Earth -- from the archives of your J5 computers, newsreels from the times when there were wars on Earth. Thousands of Earthmen all dressed the same walked backward and forward in straight lines while others shouted commands which they obeyed instantly. And the wars ... when they were ordered to fight the wars and kill other Earthmen, they obeyed. Is that not being disciplined?"

"Yes ... it is," Hunt admitted uncomfortably, hoping he wasn't about to be asked for an explanation; there wasn't one.

But the Ganymean who had been worried about carnivores was persistent.

"You mean that if they are ordered to do something that is clearly irrational, they will do it unhesitatingly," he said. "But if they are ordered to do something that is not only eminently sensible but also polite, they will take no notice?"

"Er ... I guess that's about it, Hunt said weakly. "Very often anyway."

Another Ganymean half turned from the console that he was watching.

"They're all mad," he declared firmly. "I've always said so. It's the biggest madhouse in the Galaxy."