With Liberty
columnist: Dan Steward

Topic: Space Colonization Politics
Imagine That: An Anarchist Watching Star Trek

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I don't look at Star Trek the way I did years ago. The anarchy bug bit me.

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by Dan Steward
(libertarian)
Wednesday, January 14, 2009

I watched Star Trek back in the day when I was a Libertarian yet still believed that there was some possible good that "the state" could perform to protect our rights and liberties. Now that I've done the intelligent thing and discarded such pro-state notions, it all makes sense to me. That's right, an anarchist (I prefer to be known as a "voluntaryist", someone who believes in the 100% voluntary society absent all force in transactions between people).

The Trek universe is great escapist fantasy, I got bored at work last week and caught an episode of "Star Trek: Voyager". However, it brought home the fact (I barely noticed and didn't really get it a dozen plus years ago) that the trek series promote government and it's armed agents, as a solution to our problems, and not the source of them. I still do like and enjoy the show on occasion and even quietly almost root for the armed troops of the Federation, as opposed to the even more militaristic likes of the Klingons, Breen, Romulans, or other baddies. Go figure.

It is socialism with magic devices such as a "replicator' that can make food out of the empty atoms floating about. According to the party line, the grub isn't supposed to taste as good as the real deal (yet all the farmers haven't closed up shop, I suppose) and the replicated hooch of choice presumably won't get you as smashed as authentic booze would do or leave you hungover on the morning of a battle against any of the sinister elements that tend to plague the galaxy.

Of course socialism is as socialism does and in this century or future ones, having all your goodies you desire conjured up for you at the push of a button, will make you lazy and sadly enough, an unproductive layabout who will go out of his or her way to convince all his pals to be fellow slackers. The show's writers omitted that tidbit about just how folks would be motivated enough to build a warp capable starship in such a laid back society.

As I watch a show created by socialists, for the enjoyment of a mostly statist (read: state needy) viewing audience, I realize that I had to drive on a government regulated road, to a place of over-regulated healthcare business to watch the show itself, that too made sense as well. Perhaps the true creators of wealth, freedom and goodies that you can munch in zero-gravity, will be fortunate enough to be the ones that will move us to the stars in the future. At least that's my hope.

Live long and prosper anyway, good people.

With Liberty,

Dan Steward

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©2009 Dan Steward, all rights reserved. You must have written permission from the author in order to republish this work.
Published: Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Last modified: Wednesday, January 14, 2009

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