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Starfleet is a Space Navy (military fleet)

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One of the ones you mention, actually, O'Brien.
"I'm not a soldier anymore. I'm an engineer." (Empok Nor, DS9)
It appears from this and other presentations of O'Brien's war record (The Wounded, Tribunal) that he considered himself a 'soldier' only for the period that he was actually fighting. He is still a Starfleet non-com as he was then, but he is not a 'soldier' anymore. Clearly, membership of Starfleet wasn't the defining factor.

Okay, not quite what I meant, but ok...

This actually isn't surprising... Starfleet appears to focus more on role and purpose than legal status so for instance the equivalent of a Basic Marine Rifleman https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MOS_0311, Recon Marine https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MOS_0321 or Critical Skills Operator https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MOS_0372 would be termed "a soldier" whereas a 1371 Combat Engineer would - despite being trained as a soldier, would be classed as a "engineer"?
 
I would take the usage of the words court martial and JAG to be loan words used by Starfleet to get the ideas across without them actually being what they were intended to be in the 20th century. We use load words all the time in the 21st century that aren't what they are actually for, but get the point across to people even if the word is actually the wrong usage of said word. Especially in business. In business and the corporate world, terms that should be military only get thrown around a lot and accepted because people understand what it meant by them, even if the terms are linguistically military only. The English language is evolving to not actually care where a word is from or what a word is suppose to be, but instead to take the most basic meaning of a word and run with it if it sounds cool. Largely due to the Internet and the post-Cable/Satellite TV generation. The logical evolution of this is that in two to three centuries, there will be words used that do not conform to their traditional meanings anymore, so long as they get the general definition of the word across to others.

And yet the court martials shown in the Star Trek universe were recognisable to what might take place in our reality...funny that. When Picard mentioned the words 'court martial', he was not talking about a civil hearing.


It took about 36 pages but I'm fully in support of Crazy Eddie's crazy (see what I did there) point of view. Following the example of Japan, which constitutionally does not have a military despite having soldiers (I presume they are called soldiers), military equipment and the ability to wage war defend themselves from outside aggression, Starfleet is a Defense Force. Starfleet is not a military because the Federation constitution (no-doubt/this is head-canon) forbids the formation of a military and makes it unlawful for the Federation to start a war (the fact they did with the Dominion is a source of debate for another topic).

Outside countries might feel Japan has a military. If some nation were to invade Japan, they would expect to fight the Japanese Defense Force. Japan and the Japanese people do not believe they have a military and they will state they do not have a military.

Japan has a Defense Force. Who cares what Korea or China thinks? Let them call it a military if they want.

Outside civilizations may view Starfleet as the military arm of the Federation. Starfleet is capable of waging war but they are legally forbidden to start one. The Federation and Starfleet personnel (Picard, Scotty in NuTrek) do not believe they are a military and will state they aren't a military, Kirk can still claim to be a soldier just like Japanese Defense Force personnel can claim to be a soldier.

Starfleet is the de-facto military arm of the Federation but they shun the term and are (probably) constitutionally forbidden to use the term. Yes, it's self-imposed. Yes, it's PR. Yes, it's word-games but such verbal acrobatic are probably necessary when unifying alien species with vastly different thought processes and possible fears of alien conquest.

Starfleet is a Defense Force. Who cares what the Romulans or Klingons think. Let them consider Starfleet a military.

Starfleet can call itself whatever it likes, when it acts like the military arm of the Federation Romulans and Klingons treat them like the military. Same goes for the Japanese, if it is ever invaded we'll see how nonmilitary the Defense Force is.

The majority of Starfleet's missions are basically what the 19th Century Royal and US Navy's missions. They both set up colonies, outposts/stations (akin to coaling stations), showed the flag (diplomacy), engaged in both anti-piracy and anti-slavery patrols, fought in wars, engaged in blockades, engaged in humanitarian relief missions, and explored their respective mediums (space and oceans).

Exactly! Starfleet is in denial....big time or playing Orwellian word games.

Are you kidding? Those puny Humonns whooped them and their cranial ridges.
Disclaimer: By "humonns" I mean the totally Diverse species of Starfleet
Kidding about what? Did I state the humans never won a battle against the Klingons? No.

If you are talking about Q, than no, frankly I don't care what he thinks Starfleet is, because his information on "humanity" in Encounter at Farpoint was outdated, much like Trelane's information was back in the 23rd century. He is not all-knowing it would appear.


And yet legally it is not and cannot be a military.

Then it should keep its ass at home when war begins

And legally Kim Jong-un's North Korea is the Democratic People's Republic of Korea!

Applause!


P.S I am a billionaire, I said it so it must be so.
 
Okay, not quite what I meant, but ok...

This actually isn't surprising... Starfleet appears to focus more on role and purpose than legal status so for instance the equivalent of a Basic Marine Rifleman https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MOS_0311, Recon Marine https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MOS_0321 or Critical Skills Operator https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MOS_0372 would be termed "a soldier" whereas a 1371 Combat Engineer would - despite being trained as a soldier, would be classed as a "engineer"?
Indeed. Membership of Starfleet alone does not seem to attract the term 'soldier' in the way that membership in the US Army does, for example, it appears to be used in the generic sense of 'one who fights in a war' when describing O'Brien's history. A role he fulfilled, as you put it, rather than a legal status. O'Brien is a Starfleet (non commissioned) Officer and as part of that he has fulfilled a range of roles. Soldier, transporter chief, helmsman, engineer, and now teacher. Given his expertise on the subject, engineering seems likely to have been his main training focus.
 
US Navy may do things other than fight, but if the need to fight wars were removed, there would be no US Navy in anything like the form that we know it.

The US Navy was established to protect maritime commerce. And from the "Navy Claus" there was to be a standing Navy at all times, whether it be during war or peace. So from 1814-1848, 1850-1861, 1865-1898, etc, etc, there was a standing peacetime navy, but no standing military. The Navy's presence is the greatest deterrent to war, piracy, price gouging, et al.
 
Kidding about what? Did I state the humans never won a battle against the Klingons? No.
I was joking. sorry I'm not good about using emojis. Q has a line about the Federation beating the Klingons because they were too dumb.
 
This topic still boils down to what Starfleet's primary mission is.

A military's primary mission is to fight a war, whether real or theoretical.

Starfleet's primary mission is to explore space. Yes, Starfleet is responsible for defending the Federation and fighting in wars when and if they occur, but that is not its primary purpose. Even when conflicts arise, much of Starfleet continues in its primary mission of space exploration. Throughout the Cardassian, Tzenkethi, and even, yes, the Dominion wars, Starfleet continued to pursue space exploration at the same time as it pursued its defense commitments.
 
Indeed. Membership of Starfleet alone does not seem to attract the term 'soldier' in the way that membership in the US Army does, for example, it appears to be used in the generic sense of 'one who fights in a war' when describing O'Brien's history. A role he fulfilled, as you put it, rather than a legal status. O'Brien is a Starfleet (non commissioned) Officer and as part of that he has fulfilled a range of roles. Soldier, transporter chief, helmsman, engineer, and now teacher. Given his expertise on the subject, engineering seems likely to have been his main training focus.

Personally, I've always assumed Miles started as either Armory or "Boatswain's Mate" (both of which would include knowledge of power and data systems and the latter at least would include pilot training) rather than an Engineer (IMO combination of USN ratings EM, EN, GS & MM [tho the last might be Environmental Systems rather than Engineering] or EM, ET & MK for Coast Guard).
 
While exploration is always stated to be Starfleet's supposed purpose, the truth is very little Starfleet actually engages in exploration. At the time of TNG exploration is only done by Galaxy class ships, of which there are six, with science ships doing follow up surveys of planets discovered by the Galaxy class. And even then, go look at TOS and TNG, very few episodes are actually about exploration anyway. Hell, we know of more types of Federation starships which are combat oriented than ones that are purely scientific in nature. The only pure science ships Starfleet has are the Oberth and Nova classes. For combat, there's the Defiant, Intrepid, Akira, Sovereign, and Prometheus classes, and that's just off the top of my head.

But besides, even if we entertain the idea that Starfleet is dedicated to exploration first and foremost, how does this make them non-military? Because the fact remains, defense of the Federation and its worlds is Starfleet's responsibility, and they appear to be the only force defending the Federation. When Betazed fell to the Dominion, it was because of Starfleet's inaction and mistakes, no mention was made of any other military or anyone else who might have had a role in defending Betazed.

Starfleet is a combat force, and are apparently the only such one in the Federation. That makes them the military. They are tasked with Federation defense, it is Starfleet ships which patrol the borders, Starfleet space stations which monitor the borders. The Neutral Zone with the Romulans and the DMZ with the Cardassians are monitored by Starfleet. It was Starfleet that represented the Federation at the armistice to end the Dominion War, which was attended by the militaries of all the other powers, and indeed Admiral Ross was basically a stand in for General MacArthur at the end of WWII.

Compare this body of evidence with what the not a military camp has to offer: a line spoken five times in the franchise's fifty year history.
 
Compare this body of evidence with what the not a military camp has to offer: a line spoken five times in the franchise's fifty year history
So you keep repeating, but that doesn't make it true. Casual dismissals of the counter arguments doesn't make them invalid.

At the time of TNG exploration is only done by Galaxy class ships
Based on what?

For combat, there's the Defiant, Intrepid, Akira, Sovereign, and Prometheus classes, and that's just off the top of my head.
What makes you think the Akira or Sovereign classes are warships? The Defiant and Prometheus were presented as one off prototypes until the Defiant was retconned into a class in the final episodes of DS9 so they could reuse the sets and stock shots. And The Search goes to great lengths to show the crews shock and surprise at Starfleet building such a ship.
 
If Starfleet were meant to be a military, why do the writers time and again go out of their way to state that it isn't? Why are they universally wrong, and the trace similarities to a military organization on the superficial level given more credence than the characters actually living in that universe, or the people who write the very episodes of the series? The people behind Star Trek clearly do not want us to consider Starfleet to be a military organization.
 
So this thread has gone on for 40 pages, and something that hasn't been brought up yet, and in fact is rarely brought up in these discussions in general. That's the fact that there is a civilian space exploration agency in the Federation, or at least in the 24th century. I'm talking about people we see in such episodes as Who Watches the Watchers, Devil's Due, A Matter of Time, Realm of Fear. The guys we see wearing the gray jumpsuits throughout TNG are clearly non-Starfleet, are unarmed, but conduct exploration on planets, even make contact with aliens, or observe the pre-warp ones. They usually lack rank structure, most of the ones use either Doctor or Professor for their titles. True, one of them was a Lieutenant, but as pointed out earlier active duty military officers are part of NASA, so maybe this guy was a Starfleet officer on detached duty. Actually, considering in this episode (Realm of Fear) they were using a Starfleet science ship, and he was the chief engineer, so likely when Starfleet loaned them the ship, a Starfleet engineer was assigned due to his familiarity with it
I had a thought about that, but the "agency" those different groups all work for was never actually named. To be sure, I don't actually think there IS a separate agency, just a whole lot of independent scientists who aren't themselves part of Starfleet but still depend on Starfleet for mission support (and Starfleet also loans them ships, equipment and personnel to this effect on an as-needed basis).

The group in "Who Watches the Watchers" is a good example of this:
LAFORGE: We've finished replicating the parts they'll need, but what I don't understand is why a three man station would need a reactor capable of producing four point two gigawatts.
RIKER: Enough to power a small phaser bank, a subspace relay station, or
LAFORGE: A hologram generator. Oh, a duck blind. Right. They're anthropologists.​

And Picard's log entry calls them a "Federation Anthropological Team"

So it's not like there's a "Federation Science Agency" that runs parallel to Starfleet, at least not that's ever been mentioned AFAIK. That's Starfleet's role, but government work isn't the only work that goes on.
 
I really don't think that such a sexually explicit example is necessary to the discussion in this thread.
That's exactly my point. Because what ACTUALLY happened was that Mike accidentally shot Marcus in the ass during a drug bust at the beginning of the movie. Because these two guys are actually Miami PD detectives.
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But someone who doesn't know their history and background -- like, for example, everyone in the video store who overheard this conversation -- would have to conclude that they're a couple of very gay men having a private moment. This is why context matters.

What's interesting is, we have people in this thread who insist on ignoring the context and providing their own no matter what anyone else says. That's where we have Wormhole, Billj and Laser Beam to helpfully tell us that no matter what anyone says, no matter what evidence contradicts the idea, Mike and Marcus really ARE gay couple and NOT a couple of police detectives with a hilariously dysfunctional friendship.
 
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If Starfleet were meant to be a military, why do the writers time and again go out of their way to state that it isn't? Why are they universally wrong, and the trace similarities to a military organization on the superficial level given more credence than the characters actually living in that universe, or the people who write the very episodes of the series? The people behind Star Trek clearly do not want us to consider Starfleet to be a military organization.
I'm that some psychological analysis would be appropriate this point to consider the writers' reluctance about the term "military."

I still stand by my answer that it is both. In times of war, it becomes a military organization and defends the Federation against enemies. There is no other organization that does this for the Federation as a whole.

Answer: C.
 
Is the court martial in Trek basically acting as a form of 'frontier justice' as much as anything though?
Pretty much. Half the time they form the "court" out of the 3 or 4 most senior officers who happen to be nearby. They have protocols for how it's supposed to be, of course, but a Starfleet court martial isn't functionally any different from meeting with the school principal.

I don't get what you're asking. We've seen Starfleet court martials, boards of inquiry, disciplinary hearing, you name it. They've all come of as formal, professional, and in line with such proceedings as they're depicted today.
I'm beginning to think you've never actually seen a real military court martial.

Actually it was just Picard and (nu)Scotty.

And Erica Hernandez, and John Archer, and Admiral Gardner, making a total of five. Earth Starfleet IS the same organization as the Federation Starfleet in every way that matters; more importantly, all the (very selective) evidence of Fed Starfleet's military status apply just as well to Earth Starfleet, which is NOT a military organization despite the fact that it still court martials officers for disciplinary issues.

There's also Major Kira's line in DS9 "I thought Starfleet didn't believe in warships?" And Data, Picard and Guinan all saying explicitly "The Enterprise is a ship of peace."

So yeah, it's a lot more than two.

No, the ramification is that what we're shown again, and again, and again, is what's valid. And that is that Starfleet very much functions as a military, ergo it's a military. If that makes Picard an unreliable narrator in that sense, then so be it.
Problematic: there's no logical reason why something that acts as a military necessarily is one. This point was explained in detail earlier in the definition of "paramilitary." To wit: history is full of examples of things that aren't militaries and may even be explicitly civilian still participating in war, preparing for war, and taking up arms in a military conflict despite never actually having the status OF a military. This is frowned upon in the modern political landscape because such paramilitaries usually wind up fighting against the interests of powerful countries in NATO and the EU. Two hundred years ago, everyone thought the paramilitary groups that opposed the British and Spanish Empires were the GOOD GUYS, and double for the private settler armies that did a lot of the grunt work in the Indian Wars.

A military isn't defined by what it does, how it acts, how it looks, or even where it operates. A military is defined by one thing and one thing only: the law.

Federation law doesn't define Starfleet as a military organization for reasons that have already been explained to death. That is an established fact, and the only way to disagree with it is BY CHOICE.
 
Of course context matters! The context in "Preemptive Strike" is as straight forward as it gets! Picard, the superior officer, has given his subordinate, Ro Laren, a mission and an order. If she chooses to disobey her orders or deliberately blows the mission he threatens her with court-martial. Like in any military...
That's the problem, you see: "Like a military" isn't context, it's a comparison. It's sort of like how the "like a duck" argument basically falls apart if the thing that "looks like a duck" is being seen at the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disney (in which case, it's probably not a duck, it's actually an animatronic prop).

Again, as straight forward as it gets!
I agree. Starfleet is not a military organization. It's a militaristic exploration fleet.
 
It's always worked for me to think of Starfleet being a hybrid military/space agency service. There are ships assigned to scientific research and exploratory missions, and those crews would probably think of themselves as explorers. And then there are ships assigned to militaristic missions, like patrolling the a neutral zone, or responding to hostel threats. It's just a matter of what best serves the story.
 
Okay, not quite what I meant, but ok...

This actually isn't surprising... Starfleet appears to focus more on role and purpose than legal status so for instance the equivalent of a Basic Marine Rifleman https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MOS_0311, Recon Marine https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MOS_0321 or Critical Skills Operator https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MOS_0372 would be termed "a soldier" whereas a 1371 Combat Engineer would - despite being trained as a soldier, would be classed as a "engineer"?
That's something I hadn't even thought of before... it could be the idea that Starfleet is a "combined service" is that it LITERALLY combines both military and non-military components into a single command structure and assign them to the same mission.

It would be like if you formed an exploration team made up of three marines, three astrophysicists, three State Department officials, three NASA astronauts with spacewalk experience, three computer engineers, three air force fighter pilots (to help run the space ship) and then put a guy from the Richmond Police Department in charge of the whole thing because he's really good at organizing group projects.

Starfleet doesn't seem to care about its legal status except that it knows that it hasn't been given the status of a military organization. It does clearly include a military ROLE for some of its members, either because they're trained for it or because they're a military contribution TO it (or both). This would explain why Kirk can say "I'm a soldier" and O'Brien can say "I'm an engineer" and Bones can say "I'm a doctor" without actually speaking for the totality of what their parent agency really is (the Enterprise, after all, is not an ambulance).
 
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