I mis-typed, it was "Armageddon 2419" and was last re-issued in the 1980s by Ace when Jim Baen was editor there. ISTR that they did several authorized sequels to it from outlines done by Niven and Pournelle.
Yep, I'm not blowing smoke, I worked on that puppy from late-1982 to early-1989; there are parts that were a real headache, especially with the tools we had at the time (great compared to working "on the board" but nowhere near as good as what's available now). I can honestly swear to be intimately familiar with the first one (I've been there at midnight at Plant 42, Site 4, in Palmdale supporting the crew installing some of my handiwork). Yeah, it's not the most aesthetically attractive aircraft, but it does what it's supposed to do and does it well. Fortunately, low observables materials have developed significantly since it was designed and modenr stealthy aircraft are as much of a maintenance headache. These days, I'm working at Sikorsky on their Black Hawk and Sea Hawk helicopters.
I'll agree with you about Albus and the goblins, he's woefully ignorant and doesn't care. I suspect Sun-Tzu would be dismissed as "just another muggle" and not bothered with (that's an attitude that's going to bite the wizarding world more and more as more and more airborne and space-borne reconnaisance and imaging platforms go up; I doubt protective and concealing wards were intended to deal with all that).
Author's response
I've read several (dozen) from the Ace/Baen collection. It's strange.. Larry and Jerry are two of my favorite writers...by themselves, but put them together and their work is a train wreck. The Mote in God's Eye and The Gripping Hand, both stand out as being particularly bad.
I often design model airplanes, both as display and flying models and so, I can easily understand. Even when starting out with an established planform, every new requirement needs something else to be changed.
After I left the service, and before we moved up here to Washington, I worked in the helicopter simulators on NAS North Island, I taught my then-five year old daughter, to fly an SH60F ASW helicopter(in the box). She was so short, her feet wouldn't reach the pedals, so I handled them for her. She managed to take it off and hover. It was ugly, but she did it.
When I brought the simulator down off it's struts and opened the door, I saw a bunch of Lt's and LCdr's waiting to give me a hard time for the wobbly flight. One asked: "Hey Dave, who flew that?" I just reached behind me and brought out my little girl, her face split in half by a grin.
The: "NO!" that sounded that day, echoed through the barn.
Shortly after that, I was told not to bring her to work. "It was too dangerous." Crap! I'd been bringing her on occasion for the previous two years.
I guess the zeroes didn't like to learn that a five year old could do what they could.
You're right about the Purists dismissing Sun-Tzu. Being a mere muggle, he was obviously of no consequence.
I'm hoping that by the time the muggles see the wizards as a threat, Harry will have given them a reason to let them be. After all, he's going to be above board about everything. You'll learn more in the next chapter when Harry goes to visit the Queen.
Alorkin