GRAYBEARDS:: A CAUTIONARY TALE

by J.F. Leahy

We live in dangerous times. Wars and terrorism threaten us daily. Men and women are killed indiscriminately; small children are kidnapped from their beds and forced into a life of slavery deep in the forest. Even the strongest military force and the wisest diplomatic initiatives seem, at times, to be powerless and unable to protect us.

But, even so, some threats can never be controlled. When the Sun, acting through its immutable physical force, erupts again, as it has in 1859, 1988, and 2012, our planet's vital infrastructure – satellite communications, GPS, power distribution and hundreds of other artifacts of modern life risk disruption or destruction.

Doctor Tom Kane, director of the Navy' Heliospheric Observatory in Hawaii understood the challenge. And when belligerent nuclear threats by a regional power took advantage of the largest Coronal Mass Ejection in human history, the entire region found itself in mortal danger. The Navy had lost contact with the Entire Seventh Fleet. Dr. Kane and six elderly retired navy radiomen conceived a plan and convinced the military to resurrect a long-forgotten, century old technology.

Admiral William Halsey, of WW-II fame once said: “There are no great men. There are only ordinary men – like you and me – who are forced by circumstances to overcome extraordinary challenges. There are no great men.”

This is the story of such men and women, who, through bravery and skill, overcame adversity, and saved the world from imminent catastrophe.

Unknown Binding

About the author

After retiring as a director of international operations for a major telecommunications company in 2000, Jack Leahy joined the Naval Institute Press at Annapolis to write a series of non-fictional books about the modern U.S. Navy. A Navy veteran, he had previously served with USN Mobile Construction Battalion One at Phu Bai and Danang Vietnam in 1969-70. After completing his graduate education as a civilian, he spent nearly thirty years in the intelligence community and telecommunications industry. Upon retiring in 2000, he returned to professional communications at the Naval Institute, and also became an adjunct professor of Humanities, retiring as Vice President for Strategic Planning and Extension Services of the Pontifical College Josephinum, a Roman Catholic seminary in Columbus, Ohio, where he resides with his wife, Margaret. They have three sons, and three grandsons, and enjoy rail travel throughout North America.

About The Naval Writers Group

Established by a cadre of writers who first met through the Naval Institute at the Naval Academy, Annapolis in 2002, the Naval Writers Group is a specialized publishing imprint which provides a voice to “the sailor on the deck plates.” No distinction is ever made based upon the author’s rating or rank – be it seaman or admiral – for we strongly believe that each story deserves to be evaluated on its merit alone. You may learn more about the Naval Writers Group at www.navalwritersgroup.us .