Worst command decisions by Captain James T. Kirk

[Spock's Barber]

Was anyone else surprised when it was revealed that the T stood for Tiberius?

 

[Poltargyst]

It was Tiberius as spoken by Scooby-Doo. Ris riddle rame ris Riberius!

 

[mb22]

Good one. I bow down before you.

Yeah, but there were no red shirts back then.

 

[Herbert]

Allowing Khan access to the Enterprise technical library in "Space Seed". Stranding Khan and his followers.

General lack of security on the Enterprise.

This kind of stuff was rampant on Voyager. They had security breeches all the time. Tuvok had some 'splainin' to do.

 

[Herbert]

I was just trying to add a little zip, a little pizazz, a little electricity to their humdrum lives and what do I get for it? A boulder for a hat.

Who Mourns For Mitchell?

 

[Gary Mitchell]

Who Mourns For Mitchell?

Oh, I'm not dead. I can carry a serving tray on top of my head a lot easier now.

 

[Herbert]

Oh, I'm not dead. I can carry a serving tray on top of my head a lot easier now.

You seem less murderous too

 

[Gary Mitchell]

Yeah, I have a Kafarian apple orchard now. Being nice is good for business.

 

[Gary7]

Was anyone else surprised when it was revealed that the T stood for Tiberius?

I sometimes wonder if that was supposed give Kirk a kind of "gladiator" nuance. It does sound Roman.

 

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

Or in the future, some things never change. Like parents saddling their kids with embarrassing middle names. (BTW. mine is my mom's first name. Not embarrassed in the least. )

 

[Poltargyst]

My middle name is my dad's first name.

 

[Tenacity]

Esmeralda, maternal grandma's first name. I can live with it.

 

[Shawnster]

Any time they went down on to a pre-warp planet.

What's the point of a prime directive if you constantly ignore it?

I disagree. It seems the Prime Directive was perverted between Kirk and Picard's era.

Bread and Circuses

SPOCK: Then the Prime Directive is in full force, Captain?
KIRK: No identification of self or mission. No interference with the social development of said planet.
MCCOY: No references to space, or the fact that there are other worlds, or more advanced civilisations.

Nothing against contact. Just don't reveal anything about extra terrestrial life or space travel. Nothing wrong with interfering, either., just so long as the interference looks natural and not alien.

 

[φ of π]

And Kirk's habit of trying to introduce Human DNA into every planet's gene pool?

 

[Spock's Barber]

In Obsession, Kirk tells Scotty to flush the radioactive waste into the ventilation system in an attempt to force the Vampire Cloud out of the ship. Okay, if that works isn't it also going to eventually contaminate the whole ship and irradiate the entire crew?

 

[Balok's Decoy]

Throwing my hat in for marooning Khan rather than taking him back to the Federation for prosecution. That didn't make any sense whatsoever.

And if he'd been prosecuted, he could've been sent to the penal colony on Elba II and shown up in Whom Gods Destroy...

 

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

Khan vs Garth smackdown? Garth teaching Khan how to change shape? Eek!

 

[Spock's Barber]

Well, like he said, Spock's Barber, nothing is more important than his ship.

I guess that is why so many red shirts bit the dust under Kirk's command.

 

[GNDN18]

Yeah, Kirk made the final decision, but it really was Spock's idea.

You were seen as a rival, and with you gone his power position aboard the ship was even more secure.

It was the logical thing to do.

I agree. The truth is that Spock used his Vulcan telepathy to plant a murderous impulse in the friend Captain's mind. As a matter of fact, the entire ill-fated voyage through the galactic barrier was part of an elaborate plot hatched by Spock, meant to eliminate Mitchell.

The Vulcan was unsatisfied as a mere science officer; moreover, his secret longing for Kirk was frustrated by the telegenic Mitchell.

 

[Qonundrum]

My problem with this episode is how long it took for Kirk & co to make the realization that the war being fought was a theoretical one. Firstly, it was quite stupid for Anan7 not to mention it much earlier on... as certainly their theoretical war was highly unusual and would be unknown to outsiders.

ANAN: Welcome to Eminiar Seven. Well, Captain, what can we do for you?
KIRK: My mission is to establish diplomatic relations between your people and mine.
ANAN: That is impossible.
KIRK: Would you mind telling me why?
ANAN: Because of the war.
KIRK: You're still at war?
ANAN: We have been at war for five hundred years.
KIRK: You conceal it very well. Mister Spock?
SPOCK: Sir, we have completely scanned your planet. We find it highly advanced, prosperous in a material sense, comfortable for your people, and peaceful in the extreme. Yet you say you are at war. There is no evidence of this.
ANAN: Casualties among our civilian population total from one to three million dead each year from direct enemy attack. That is one reason, Captain, why we told you to stay away. As long as your ship is orbiting our planet, it is in severe danger.

As soon as Kirk said "You conceal it very well," Anan should have certainly informed him about how the war is all managed by computer and attacks are launched theoretically. Next, he should have said "Your ship and crew are valid targets while in our space." And at that point Kirk could ask "What would be the safe distance for my ship to no longer be a target?"

But then... things just go on and then there's an attack a few minutes later. The Enterprise is "theoretically" destroyed.

Of course, the whole thing is just outright stupid. The Enterprise has nothing to do with Eminiar Seven. No registry of the crew with either side of the war. It's presence is completely irrelevant. So, in essence, the ship should have been disqualified from being a target or an attacker. Anan claiming otherwise... well, made a very stupid mistake. An enormous diplomatic blunder.

Getting back to the main point, I think Kirk failed to push on getting a clear understanding of what was going on and the risk to his ship and crew. If he'd done that, he would have had the Enterprise move to a safe distance. And he'd have a minimal landing party on the planet as well.

But was it Kirk's decision? Ambassador Fox was the lead of the diplomatic mission, citing Starfleet wanting to get involved in the system, and had final say. He turns out to be a really wet noodle.

Fox himself made Kirk depressingly clear: " I have my orders, Captain, and now you have yours. You will proceed on course. Achieve orbit status and just leave the rest to me. You're well aware that my mission gives me the power of command. I now exercise it. You will proceed on course. That's a direct order. "

Kirk disobeying without any reason, since he'd have no knowledge of the virtual war with real deaths, would lead to court martial right off the bat.