Sci-fi and Heroic Fantasy discussion

This is our discussion of the short story....

"The Event" by Autumn Kalquist

From the scifi anthology Dark Beyond the Stars, part of our discussion of Dark Beyond the Stars anthology.

The titular Event doesn't seem to have been too memorable, though it also seems to have wiped out all life on earth. Global thermonuclear war? Anyway, the sole remaining humans are 50 females in some sort of suspension on a interstellar seed ship of sorts. These women are forced to viscerally experience the lives of a variety of women back on planet Earth via some sort of neurological hookup. (One might quibble and ask how some of these recordings were made, since a couple of the women in question were alone at the time the bombs went off.)

Anyway, when they reach the target planet, apparently suitable for human life, one of the women is awakened then asked to decide whether to go ahead with the revival program. (Presumably parthenogenesis will be involved, since there don't seem to be any males on board.)

So, this lone woman is tasked with making the decision of whether to spread the human race or destroy it. No pressure. (One might quibble why so many resources were expended creating this ship if the founders weren't committed to the project; I will.)

Anyway, in terms of plot there are number of points I can pick at. The author doesn't really seem to be interested in those details so much as posing the question, is humanity worth saving? Why give it another planet when it's just destroyed the one it had? (The same reason I always make a practice pancake before I get serious about breakfast?)

I can understand that one might find the question interesting, but I would think that it would have been better asked *before* they left the earth. Also, why leave it up to just this one woman? Why not take a poll of all the passengers if they've all been fed the lives of multiple women who didn't survive the end of the world?