this post was submitted on 31 Jul 2024
52 points (89.4% liked)

Star Trek

10619 readers
33 users here now

r/startrek: The Next Generation

Star Trek news and discussion. No slash fic...

Maybe a little slash fic.


New to Star Trek and wondering where to start?


Rules

1 Be constructiveAll posts/comments must be thoughtful and balanced.


2 Be welcomingIt is important that everyone from newbies to OG Trekkers feel welcome, no matter their gender, sexual orientation, religion or race.


3 Be truthfulAll posts/comments must be factually accurate and verifiable. We are not a place for gossip, rumors, or manipulative or misleading content.


4 Be niceIf a polite way cannot be found to phrase what it is you want to say, don't say anything at all. Insulting or disparaging remarks about any human being are expressly not allowed.


5 SpoilersUtilize the spoiler system for any and all spoilers relating to the most recently-aired episodes, as well as previews for upcoming episodes. There is no formal spoiler protection for episodes/films after they have been available for approximately one week.


6 Keep on-topicAll submissions must be directly about the Star Trek franchise (the shows, movies, books etc.). Off-topic discussions are welcome at c/quarks.


7 MetaQuestions and concerns about moderator actions should be brought forward via DM.


Upcoming Episodes

Date Episode Title
11-21 LD 5x06 "Of Gods and Angles"
11-28 LD 5x07 "Fully Dilated"
12-05 LD 5x08 "Upper Decks"
12-12 LD 5x09 "Fissue Quest"
12-19 LD 5x10 "The New Next Generation"

Episode Discussion Archive


In Production

Strange New Worlds (2025)

Section 31 (2025-01-24)

Starfleet Academy (TBA)

In Development

Untitled comedy series


Wondering where to stream a series? Check here.


Allied Discord Server


founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
 

Hi there, I'm not trying to start a political argument or anything, I'm just curious what people here think about this often repeated claim that the Federation is a socialist or even communist utopia? I know Strange New Worlds did say in dialogue it is socialist but I was wondering if people here think that's accurate? I'm not a communist or a marxist or anything like that, but I've had people who identify as such tell me the Federation basically is communist. So anyway, what's your thoughts?

(page 2) 50 comments
sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago

Not communist but I would say Communitarianism

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago (1 children)

I thought it was widely understood that Star Trek is FALGSC

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago (2 children)
load more comments (2 replies)
[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

Idk... for good starters, I'd ask ye this

I'd rather ask how it is not capitalist

Is it capitalist and hegemonicDoes this federation have a system of unequal exchange and resource exploitation of one place to another, the core, essentially, with the majority of the federation being an large mass of desperate wage and salary laborers, once self-sufficient peasants, in the resource-rich place of the periphery, under the guise of "investment"?

Does this federation love to lend and privatize foreign economies, and cut social spending, a la IMF, in order to dominate the latter's economy?

Does this federation have a policy of CAPITALIST settler-colonialism, based on classical-liberal style property rights and genocide of the indigenous people?

If this is all merely in the past of class struggles and national liberation movements, and the federation has fought and abolished such forms of exploitation, yay

To check if its communist, in the more modern form {there is such thing as primitive communism}, however:

Does this federation wrecked out any chance of capitalist and liberal restoration, due to past 'authoritarianism'?

Does this federation work without the use of money, any proprietorship, social class, and the force of government, but instead with collective ownership of major assets and modern cooperative values or 'ideology' being casually accepted as the norm, instead of as an old-fashioned ideology or academic subject?

This is to ensure that Communism is dominant, as to be practically 'Communist', in such a federation

Does surplus value, from labor, go into the needs of the people, even in its 'authoritarian' fetus defensive form, instead of going towards any capitalist profit or landlord's rent, or any past economic mode of production?

Note: Personal property, such as watches and purses, do not count as private property, unless you're using it to make into an asset, like a steam engine, to run a metro-train system, or a collection of buildings, to take rent upon

[–] [email protected] -3 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (15 children)

I would say the Federation is basically a liberal utopia so it's not against being liberal

load more comments (15 replies)
[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 months ago

OK, Memory Alpha says the President of the Federation is democratically elected
#^https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/United_Federation_of_Planets#The_executive_branch

[–] [email protected] 0 points 3 months ago (7 children)

The federation tends to let member planets be independent, the federation doesn't come in and be like "we own your planet and we provide for you in return we take everything", so it's definitely leaning socialist.

The main difference is who owns the means of production. In communism, the government does. In socialism, the people do.

Both aim to provide for the population at large and not just benefit to a few rich elites that own everything, but socialism is a bit more robust against tyrannical governments.

[–] [email protected] -1 points 3 months ago (13 children)

Yeah I'm not a communist primarily because I'm against dictatorship and human rights abuse but socialism sounds more interesting

load more comments (13 replies)
load more comments (5 replies)
[–] [email protected] -5 points 3 months ago

(to my knowledge) they never actually said who controls the means of production. But so called "true communism" is impossible, even in post scarcity, so we can rule that out.

So it's either capitalist or socialist, and in post scarcity societies, there's no real difference.

load more comments
view more: ‹ prev next ›