Why do non-fans think we think it's real?

Discussion in 'General Trek Discussion' started by gomtuu20, Oct 5, 2010.

  1. gomtuu20

    gomtuu20 Commander Red Shirt

    Joined:
    Nov 22, 2008
    Location:
    Beyond Antares
    Why do non-fans think we believe Star Trek is real? I don't understand that. When I was in Junior High School I had a couple of Star Trek iron-on T-shirts; one that said "How's your Tribble" with a picture of a tribble and another that said "Klingon Power" with a picture of the Klingon ship. I actually had other kids going around saying that I thought Star Trek was real. While I thoroughly love the "Galaxy Quest" movie, one of the plot lines in the movie is an example of this myth. It's just one of those things that I have always found strange. What are your thougts?
     
  2. YARN

    YARN Fleet Captain

    Joined:
    Aug 8, 2010
    Dude, it is real. You think I went to the trouble of learning Klingon to talk to myself?
     
  3. AdmiralGarak

    AdmiralGarak Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

    Joined:
    Jul 29, 2004
    Location:
    TrekBBS, apparently
    HIja'. ;)
     
  4. Temis the Vorta

    Temis the Vorta Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Oct 30, 1999
    Location:
    Tatoinne
    ....



    ....




    ....




    ...it's not real? :(

    Oh NOW you tell me!!!
     
  5. Alienesse

    Alienesse Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

    Joined:
    Jun 7, 2010
    Location:
    In Thorin's company
    What do you mean it's not real? I just bumped into Scotty!

    Seriously now, couldn't it be that those very people gomtuu20 is talking about are the ones who don't know the difference between fiction and reality? And I really saw a guy in the street today that looked like Scotty, honest to Surak.

    Besides, to a certain extent, Star Trek is real. We have mobile phones, iPads, computers, Internet, even automatic doors. Almost every time I use my cell phone I think about the fact that I'm actually holding a piece of Star Trek in my hands and that gives me great joy, because it makes it real.
     
  6. Nardpuncher

    Nardpuncher Rear Admiral

    Joined:
    Nov 17, 2003
    Location:
    Taipei
    This has happened to me a few times over the years too.

    I also wish people would ask me first before they assume I believe in UFOs because I like Star Trek.
     
  7. Pauln6

    Pauln6 Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

    Joined:
    Jul 24, 2009
    Location:
    Bristol, United Kingdom
    I think non-fans may have difficulty getting to grips with the nature of allegorical storytelling. Scarily, a lot of people also believe that actors in soaps really are their characters. Some poor actors get abused in the streets by crazy women if their characters are mean.
     
  8. Deckerd

    Deckerd Fleet Arse Premium Member

    Joined:
    Oct 27, 2005
    Location:
    the Frozen Wastes
    It's the ones who think warp drive engines are a possibility that make me wonder about their sanity.
     
  9. iguana_tonante

    iguana_tonante Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Sep 15, 2006
    Location:
    Italy, EU
    I've never met anyone who thought I believed Star Trek was real. :shrug:
     
  10. Forbin

    Forbin Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Mar 15, 2001
    Location:
    I said out, dammit!
    Just ask them if they think they're really members of their favorite sports team when they wear the team's jersey, and paint their faces in team colors, and tattoo the team's friggin logo on their arms.
     
  11. Cheapjack

    Cheapjack Fleet Captain

    Joined:
    May 12, 2007
    I tell you what convinced me:

    That bit in 'Amok Time', when Leonard Nimoy took a fit and lumped his monitor flat.

    Only a true half vulcan, with the strength of two men, could do that.

    :guffaw::guffaw::guffaw::guffaw::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol:
     
  12. mythme

    mythme Commodore Commodore

    Joined:
    Jan 18, 2001
    Location:
    Jim Thorpe, PA, USA

    Doesn't Stephen Hawking think they are a possibility?
     
  13. Praxius

    Praxius Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

    Joined:
    Nov 9, 2009
    Location:
    Melbourne, AUS
    It's because Star Wars fans think their movies are real, they decided to form up a religion...... they in turn think that Star Trek fans are the same, especially since klingon dictionaries exist..... only star trek fans are nerdier because there's no light sabers and evil Vader.



    I don't think it was him.... he just believes we should never contact any aliens because he believes they'll only be out to kill us all and rape our planet of its resources.

    I believe it was in Shatner's documentary "How William Shatner Changed the World" ~ Where they interviewed some wiz who actually said faster then light speed is theoretically possible, based on moving space around the ship, rather then moving the ship through space..... which I believe Scotty touched on in Star Trek 2009 when he was trying to figure out how to transport at warp speed.

    The conclusion was that because space was moving around the ship and not the ship moving through space, that there'd be no issues with mass and speed, etc. that originally restricted the concept of faster then light speed.

    The only problem is that it takes a tremendous amount of energy to move space.... which the dilithium crystals exist to fill in that gap..... but technically speaking, if one could produce enough energy, one could produce warp speed.
     
    Last edited: Oct 5, 2010
  14. Deckerd

    Deckerd Fleet Arse Premium Member

    Joined:
    Oct 27, 2005
    Location:
    the Frozen Wastes
    Not tidily packed into a small spaceship he doesn't.
     
  15. Tora Ziyal

    Tora Ziyal Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Feb 27, 2010
    I suspect they don't appreciate how captivating good fiction -- whether in a novel or on a large or small screen -- can be. And how true it can be, without being factual.

    In my other favorite fantasy universe, they'd all be muggles. ;)
     
  16. Ziz

    Ziz Commodore Commodore

    Joined:
    Sep 25, 2001
    Location:
    NY
    Ditto.

    It's just their way of feeling superior and pissing you off.

    That being said, I always like to think that some of the other stuff like warp drive and transporters will eventually happen, thereby making Trek truly real and proving all of them wrong, it probably just won't be in my lifetime.
     
  17. Greg Cox

    Greg Cox Admiral Premium Member

    Joined:
    May 12, 2004
    Location:
    Lancaster, PA
    It's not just a TREK thing. Some people just don't comprehend appreciating fiction as fiction. Look at the nutcases who think that the Harry Potter books are going to convert children to Satanism or whatever. And, growing up, I don't know how many times I had to explain to concerned teachers and grown-ups that, no, I didn't really believe in vampires and werewolves. I just liked to read about them.

    The other explanation, of course, is that the really nutty fans, who take Trek or Star Wars or Twilight too seriously, are the ones who get all the press!
     
  18. barnaclelapse

    barnaclelapse Commodore Commodore

    Joined:
    May 10, 2009
    Location:
    Waverly, VA.
    I suppose it's because the franchise generates so much sincere, serious discussion amongst its fan base. I've never actually met someone who believed with frightening dedication that all of it was one hundred percent non-fiction.

    Star Trek isn't the only thing to get this reputation from non-fans. I've run into similar reactions from people regarding everything from pro wrestling to old sitcoms.

    For me it's just fun to discuss/debate things like movies, video games and TV shows. As long as no one gets TOO invested in it I get a big kick out of it all.
     
  19. Sigh

    Sigh Lieutenant Red Shirt

    Joined:
    Oct 4, 2010
    Put it on a t-shirt.
     
  20. UncleRogi

    UncleRogi Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

    Joined:
    Jul 8, 2009
    Location:
    Hanover NH, catspaw of Atoning Unifex
    Another problem non-TrekKers can't get around is the large continuity base vs Trek Lit. (Iknow, I know--another arguement) Most of us can rattle off trivia endlessly.

    Sherlock Holmes is another fictional character that a lot of otherwise grounded folks will get red in the face insisting was a real person.