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JUDGMENT

DAY

// a man pulls a trigger know-ing what a gun is, and how pow-der works, and what bullets can do, thaCs murder. But if he pulls a psgchological trigger —other people wouldn't accuse him ot murdering a planet, would they?

BY L. SPRAGUE de CAMP

MlutUAIcd by frtoi

It took me a long time to deeide whether to let the carth livc. Somc might łhinfc this an casy dccision. Weil, it was and it wasn't. I wanted one tlłing, while the mores of my culturc said to do the other.

This is a dccision that fcw havc to make. Hitler rnight give orders for the cxccution of ten million. and Stalin orders that would kill another ten million. But ncithcr could send the world up in a puff of flamc by a fcw marks on a piece of paper.

Only now has physics go: to the point whcrc such a dccision is pos-sible. Yet, with duc modesty, I don't think my discovcty was incviub!e.

JUDGMENT DAY

57