1. Is there an actual evidence that Changelings are not trusted in the Federation? What about other shape-changing races?
Hmm...
I'm sure there are people in the vast Federation who consider Changelings trusted allies or promising new overlords, just as there are people who love the idea of one day becoming Borg Drones. But the war would have been many folks' first exposure to the shapeshifter species, and would have left the species in the unenviable position of bitterly hated enemy.
There are no shapeshifters our Starfleet heroes would have been comfortable about. Such species are considered basically mythical, and they never qualify as a sensible first assumption in explaining the mystery of the week: Vendorians (TAS) and Chameloids (ST6) are known by reputation, but Kirk and pals have never seen them before, and their actions are not just alien but also hostile, even if only on an individual level. Purely individual masters of disguise, such as the Salt Vampire or Garth of Izar, are also purely adversarial (in part because of the attitudes of our heroes) and leave a bad impression.
2. Can the Federation detect Changelings? When did they gain this ability?
The Federation can smoke out Odo by tickling him with phasers on setting 3.5 or higher. The trick obviously doesn't work on adult Changelings, as when Starfleet implements it, it still fails to reveal a high-ranking Admiral as a Changeling! We never learn of a technology that would allow the sensing of Changelings
1) at a distance
2) without alerting them to the fact they are being sensed
3) indeed without involving forcing them out of their currently assumed shape.
3. Could the Changelings actually be disunited? Are there some dissidents lying/floating on the bottom who are non-communicative?
The Founders themselves refer to discussions or negotiations going on within the Link, so presumably there are differing opinions. And Odo and Laas fail to share major parts of the Founder worldview. It is also possible there are isolated groups of the species, unaware of the Dominion or disinterested in dealing with it, but we hear of no such group larger than the individuals Odo and Laas.
4. Given their fear/hate of Solids, why do so many Changlings actually leave the link and play the infiltration game?
To get back at the bullies? Infiltration must really help with subjugating or destroying Solids - say, we were told Jem'Hadar guns sliced through Starfleet shields like butter in DS9 "Jem'Hadar", but perhaps it was all because a Founder aboard was pulling plugs left and right?
If their lives is so precious, why do some even plant bombs and bring their life to risk?
I'm not sure any of the three oft-quoted bomb-planting scenarios in DS9 were for real...
1) In "Adversary", the
Defiant was locked on a suicidal course, but the Founder aboard specifically tried to prevent the ship from being blown up. That he died was sort of unexpected; a bailout should have been possible.
2) In "Homefront", the bombing of the Antwerp meeting served the interests of the human Admiral Leyton, and probably not those of the Founders. It may have been purely the work of Leyton, and the visual recording of a Founder being at the bombing site could have been completely faked. No Founders supposedly were harmed in the action anyway.
3) In "By Inferno's Light", a Founder used the mere threat of a nova-bomb as a diversion for getting a Dominion fleet through the wormhole. In reality, there might have been no bomb at all. Sure, the diversion seemed to cost the Founder his life, but we know Changelings can survive in open space, become fire, etc. Perhaps that Founder in fact fled?
Timo Saloniemi
Anyone remember their name?
