Child abandonment in the 24th century

[Mary Ann]

It was only stated that Worf wanted Troi to raise Alexander in the event of his death during the risky spinal cord transplant in "Ethics".

When Worf was off the ship, why would anyone need to watch Alexander? The kid's probably going to be in school for some part of the day, and during the rest of the day, he's as safe in his quarters as he would be in anyone else's quarters.

It's not the "where" I'm questioning; it's the "with whom". Technically Alexander is as safe as anyone else on the ship, but (for most of TNG anyway) he strikes me as too young to be completely unsupervised outside school hours. He's a smart kid but he's impulsive, and I'm sure that Federation rules regarding child welfare are pretty darned strict.

 

[T'Girl]

no pedophiles.

I guess someone here doesn't believe in total sexual freedom.

A completely unsupervised child, whether Alexander or Will, can be a present and future problem for the society they live in, especially Alexander would need structure outside of school, with parents on various duty shifts the Enterprise must have had some form of 24/7 day care - activities program.

 

[Anwar]

Didn't Worf pretty much abandon Alexander too? I remember that Alexander was pretty upset over how Worf basically ditched him on Earth and never bothered trying to contact him ONCE in over 5 years.

 

[The Wormhole]

Didn't Worf pretty much abandon Alexander too? I remember that Alexander was pretty upset over how Worf basically ditched him on Earth and never bothered trying to contact him ONCE in over 5 years.

Yeah, but at least Alexander stayed with Worf's foster parents. Unlike Kyle Riker who may have just abandoned his son with no one to look after him.

 

[Deranged Nasat]

We know that Kyle Riker, for some reason, abandoned his teenaged son Will in 2350. What happened to this 15-year-old Will? Was he taken into custody by the state? Was he moved into a foster family? Or did he raise himself? Any of these options are an interesting possibility and would reveal much about the workings of 24th century human society on Earth.

You're right, and it's a wasted opportunity. One of Trek's weaknesses is that it never actually explores the humans as a society. Oh, sure, we know quite a bit about the Federation of which they are part, but what of humanity as a culture? What are their customs in the 24th century, their laws, their approach(es) to family, work, social responsibility, relationships, etc? Beyond unconvincing "everything's perfect, no war, no hunger, la la la" comments we don't learn much- and those mean little anyway. Okay, so no war or hunger. That doesn't actually tell us anything about the reality in which humans live, other than that it's comfortable. They'll still have relationships of all descriptions, with all the conflict that entails. How do they respond to or resolve these conflicts? What are the dominant perspectives and ideologies?

Who are the humans? We know much less about them than we do the Bajorans, Vulcans or Cardassians.

 

[Crazy Eddie]

Worf doesn't know every member of the crew personally. There's no way he would let Alexander just wander around. Who knows what some of those people are capable of. Just because they're in Starfleet doesn't mean they couldn't hurt the kid.

Wait, what?

Dude this is Star Trek we're talking about, the show that asks us to believe that "the problems" of humanity have all been totally and completely solved, that there's no crime, no war, no poverty, no mental illness... it isn't said openly, but that definitely implies no pedophiles.

Admit it. You don't believe that new age utopia shit any more than I do.

As far as Earth is concerned, I do, though I understand it would come at the cost of turning the entire planet into a giant gated community. I wouldn't be worried about other Starfleet officers so much as potential alien visitors to the ship who might consider Klingon renal glands to be a delicacy.

Besides, the lack of random weirdos/criminals/pedophiles on the Enterprise is a fairly good explanation for why security on the ship is so typically lax.

 

[Crazy Eddie]

no pedophiles.

I guess someone here doesn't believe in total sexual freedom.

Sure I do. Just that sexual freedom and pedophilia are two VERY different things.

A completely unsupervised child, whether Alexander or Will, can be a present and future problem for the society they live in, especially Alexander would need structure outside of school, with parents on various duty shifts the Enterprise must have had some form of 24/7 day care - activities program.

And I'm sure there are all kinds of programs designed to provide exactly that, even on the Enterprise. As far as his home life he has everything he need, a replicator, clothes, and he apparently knows how to operate the holodeck, so unless he gets his father's security codes his safety isn't really an issue in the absence of a guardian. His mental welfare and progress as a person is another matter.