Ship visitors getting a uniform and free run of the ship. Why?

[Captain Al]

Whenever I watch Space Seed, and to a lesser extent, Galileo 7, and even Charlie X, it sort of bothers me that a visitor to the ship gets not only a Starfleet uniform, but free run of the ship. I've always wondered why this would happen.

For instance, Space Seed. They pick up Khan and his followers from the Botany Bay. As they get to know more about him, they issue him a red Starfleet uniform. Plus all the access to the library database he wants. Why? They know nothing (yet) about this man. And he didn't serve in Starfleet, why give him a uniform?

Charlie X. They issue him one of the "older" uniforms left over from WNMHGO days. And he gets to pretty much wander freely around the ship as though he was on a cruiseliner.

Galileo 7. The shuttlecraft's in trouble down on the planet, but the Enterprise is supposed to be delivering medical supplies to (a planet? I forget exactly where.) Periodically Commander Ferris rides up to the Bridge to give Kirk a serving of holy hell and tell him to forget the planet and deliver those medical supplies! I can't figure out why Ferris has such authority to order Kirk around, plus, why is he allowed to travel the ship as he pleases? And to the Bridge, no less? He might as well have gone to Engineering and told Scotty to fire up the engines.


There are other examples of ship visitors being issued uniforms, but Space Seed and Charlie X are the only ones that come to mind. For a modern example, say you're taking a boat trip around the world and your boat's in danger. A nearby US Naval ship happens to pick up your distress call. They take you on board their ship and will drop you off at the next port of call. Would they issue you a naval uniform and let you roam the ship at your leisure? Would you be allowed to step into the Bridge whenever you felt like it? I kind of doubt it.

 

[SeerSGB]

Well TOS was pre-replicators, they probably just gave folks that didn't have any luggage just whatever spares that fit that were in the ship's stores.

As for free run:

-- Giving Khan the library probably wasn't seen as a big deal. In general, even with the tech manuals, he shouldn't have been able to do anything with the info. They under estimated how intelligent the man was.

-- Charlie, another underestimation. He was a cute kid that was on his first trip on a "real" starship, they probably figured he was just curious and the let him be; humoring him the way you would any child.

-- Ferris was an official of the Federation Govt., a 'High Commissioner', so he most likely had rank and privilege to do whatever he wanted.

 

[T'Girl]

Ferris wasn't a commander, he was a commissioner, a government official. As such he would have some level of authority over a Starfleet captain, but only in limited areas. And if he were to walk into engineering and tried to tell Scotty what to do, Scotty would have told Ferris to go fuck himself.

In A Taste of Armageddon, Ambassador Fox had special powers to give Captain Kirk direct orders.

On top of the general files that Kirk gave him access to, I believe Khan "hacked in" to the Enterprise's computers to obtain more detailed information.

 

[SeerSGB]

Even the general technical manuals on ship's operations would be enough for someone like Khan to piece together what needed to be done. Even if it wasn't, once he was shagging McGivers, he wouldn't need to hack anything, she could get him access to another level of documents.

I figure Ferris's "High Comissioner" rank is straddles the line between Govt. and military-- especially in emergency situations. Besides, the TOS crew has shown their not to incline to take orders from anyone that isn't Kirk-- if they can avoid it. So Ferris's rank probably meant jack all to them.

 

[Christopher]

For instance, Space Seed. They pick up Khan and his followers from the Botany Bay. As they get to know more about him, they issue him a red Starfleet uniform. Plus all the access to the library database he wants. Why? They know nothing (yet) about this man. And he didn't serve in Starfleet, why give him a uniform?

For what it's worth, there were no rank insignia on the sleeves. I figure maybe the clothing synthesizers just weren't programmed for a wide variety of stuff. (Or, in other words, the costumers used what they had in stock to save money.)

Galileo 7. The shuttlecraft's in trouble down on the planet, but the Enterprise is supposed to be delivering medical supplies to (a planet? I forget exactly where.) Periodically Commander Ferris rides up to the Bridge to give Kirk a serving of holy hell and tell him to forget the planet and deliver those medical supplies! I can't figure out why Ferris has such authority to order Kirk around, plus, why is he allowed to travel the ship as he pleases? And to the Bridge, no less? He might as well have gone to Engineering and told Scotty to fire up the engines.

His title is Federation High Commissioner Ferris. A high commissioner is a high-ranked special executive which can be anything from a senior diplomat to a territorial administrator. So he probably had more authority within the UFP government than any other civilian we saw in ST until the Federation President showed up in TVH.

There are other examples of ship visitors being issued uniforms, but Space Seed and Charlie X are the only ones that come to mind.

Capt. Christopher in "Tomorrow is Yesterday."

For a modern example, say you're taking a boat trip around the world and your boat's in danger. A nearby US Naval ship happens to pick up your distress call. They take you on board their ship and will drop you off at the next port of call. Would they issue you a naval uniform and let you roam the ship at your leisure? Would you be allowed to step into the Bridge whenever you felt like it? I kind of doubt it.

Khan never set foot on the bridge, and prior to his escape and takeover, he wasn't seen anywhere except sickbay, his quarters, and a dining room, and was clearly kept under guard the whole time. Charlie only came onto the bridge the first time with Kirk's permission, and Kirk hesitated to grant it; later, he was only able to come to the bridge because he was using his powers to enforce his will. Capt. Christopher was also only seen on the bridge when invited and escorted by Kirk. High Commissioner Ferris was able to enter the bridge at will because he was a high-ranking Federation official with authority over the mission.

So there was no "run of the ship." As a rule, guests were limited to non-critical areas of the ship and only entered critical areas such as the bridge and engineering under escort by authorized personnel or by force. The only non-crewmembers with free run of the critical areas were high-ranking officials.

 

[Ryan Thomas Riddle]

For a modern example, say you're taking a boat trip around the world and your boat's in danger. A nearby US Naval ship happens to pick up your distress call. They take you on board their ship and will drop you off at the next port of call. Would they issue you a naval uniform and let you roam the ship at your leisure? Would you be allowed to step into the Bridge whenever you felt like it? I kind of doubt it.

Khan never set foot on the bridge, and prior to his escape and takeover, he wasn't seen anywhere except sickbay, his quarters, and a dining room, and was clearly kept under guard the whole time. Charlie only came onto the bridge the first time with Kirk's permission, and Kirk hesitated to grant it; later, he was only able to come to the bridge because he was using his powers to enforce his will. Capt. Christopher was also only seen on the bridge when invited and escorted by Kirk. High Commissioner Ferris was able to enter the bridge at will because he was a high-ranking Federation official with authority over the mission.

So there was no "run of the ship." As a rule, guests were limited to non-critical areas of the ship and only entered critical areas such as the bridge and engineering under escort by authorized personnel or by force. The only non-crewmembers with free run of the critical areas were high-ranking officials.

The biggest offender of a civilian on the bridge is really the first-season TNG episode, "The Neutral Zone." In the turbolift, Ralph Offenhouse simply asks the computer to take him to Captain Picard, who happens to be on the bridge at the moment. Without asking for authorization, the computer just whisks Offenhouse to the bridge in the middle of a perilous situation.

Weird considering that several episodes beforehand bridge access could be made limited or denied ("11001001").

 

[Doug Otte]

Another example is Lazarus in The Alternative Factor. They didn't give him a uniform, but they let him wander the ship so he could sabotage the Engineering Extension Office (or whatever it was called).

Doug

 

[Wingsley]

I was also bothered by Khan, Capt. Christopher and Charlie Evans being given Starfleet officers' uniforms. That seemed inappropriate and poorly thought-out. Now, I could see them being given crewman-style jumpsuits. Maybe colored some unusual color like grey or green to set them off from the crew.

Putting the "guests" in Starfleet officers' uniforms was too much, though.

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

Well, that must be the way it was done in the U.S. Navy in the '60s, since TOS mirrored real-world military practice so closely.

 

[Hober Mallow]

My favorite is when the crazy dude from "The Alternative Factor" leaves sickbay and goes running around the ship. When Kirk asks McCoy where his crazy patient went -- you know, the guy who is supposed to be watched by his doctor -- McCoy says, astoundly unconcered, "duhhh, I dunno Jim, I'm just an ol' country doctor."

 

[Red Ranger]

The example of Lazarus in The Alternative Factor is probably the most egregious example of an unknown quantity allowed free reign on the Enterprise. As I recall, the ship was on a special alert status -- invasion -- and Lazarus should've at least been under guard, particularly given how nutty he was acting.

 

[Hober Mallow]

The example of Lazarus in The Alternative Factor is probably the most egregious example of an unknown quantity allowed free reign on the Enterprise. As I recall, the ship was on a special alert status -- invasion -- and Lazarus should've at least been under guard, particularly given how nutty he was acting.

Given that, I was always floored by McCoy's attitude. "I'm just an ol' hick, what do I know? Now let me get back to work."

 

[ToddPence]

Funny that they didn't get Lazarus a uniform, considering how torn and bedraggled his clothing was. They just let him wander around the ship looking like a bum.

 

[plynch]

They're just so trusting. As Captain Picard would later put it so eloquently in the TNG episode, "The Uniforms":

Though once like you, humanity has lahned to put aside its petty differences, its angah, and . . . hatred of waht is different. We've lahned to treat outsidahs as equals and give them ouh best unifaums and the run of ouh ships. We hope you too [smiles] will someday . . . leave aside yoah prejudices and become as enlightened and benevolent as we have become.

 

[blssdwlf]

My favorite is when the crazy dude from "The Alternative Factor" leaves sickbay and goes running around the ship. When Kirk asks McCoy where his crazy patient went -- you know, the guy who is supposed to be watched by his doctor -- McCoy says, astoundly unconcered, "duhhh, I dunno Jim, I'm just an ol' country doctor."

This is the same Dr. McCoy who ignored the Red Alert and made Kirk finish his physical in "The Corbomite Maneuver", IIRC

 

[Sir Rhosis]

I always figured Kirk giving (allowing) Captain Christopher a uniform was just a professional courtesy from one military man to another.

Sir Rhosis

 

[Captain Al]

^See, I disagree on that point. It doesn't make sense that someone who wasn't in Starfleet would wear a Starfleet uniform. It's like saying, welcome to the naval destroyer tour, here's your uniform. Now you'll look just like one of our crew.

 

[Sir Rhosis]

When I was in the Marines, a couple times we had reporters out with us (Stateside, I was never in a combat zone). Uusually, if it got cold enough, they'd loan the guys a field jacket to wear if they foolishly only wore some silly windbreaker. Granted, this was not a full uniform, just a coat, and done just to be nice but there some precedent for such things.

Sir Rhosis

 

[Timo]

...With Capt. Christopher, our heroes went one step further: they not only gave him the uniform, they gave him the correct rank braid!

Basically, that'd mean they made Christopher an honorary Starfleet Lieutenant. I mean, how could Kirk's crew tell this guy apart from the other Lieutenants aboard? Some might not know all the 430 onboard people personally, and Christopher would be wearing the uniform, speaking English and knowing his military jargon.

By the same token, they made Khan an honorary Ensign. Crewpeople seeing him would have to guess between considering him crewman or officer, and would probably err on the side of caution. Although in this case, Khan's presence would probably be widely announced, and his shining personality would leave nobody in the dark...

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Shatnertage]

I always figured the "letting the guests on the bridge" thing was more about limited sets than any thought-out protocol. It kind of bugged me, but I'm not exactly looking for gritty realism with this show.