How big was the Enterprise?

[knightgrace]

Aww, you almost completely spoiled it.

Well, to continue...

The last people alive on the Vanguard were so embedded in their beliefs that the ship WAS the entire universe, so to get more room, a crew opened the porthole. After all, it was just one more compartment.

I wonder how it took the air to be sucked out?

Heinlein's point is obvious; at some point idiots come into a given culture and destroy everything.
Idiots are neither conservative nor liberal, they are simply idiots.

Dangerous idiots.

 

[Warp Core Breach]

I wonder how it took the air to be sucked out?

Excuse me, sir. That's blown out.

 

[Firebird]

Aww, you almost completely spoiled it.

No, he didn't. What do you think the purpose of using the SPOILER function is?

 

[Mudd]

Aww, you almost completely spoiled it.

He did nothing of the kind.

He just gave people who wanted information the information they wanted, properly tagged and masked for those who don't want to see it.

Which you could have done to begin with.

Instead, you went on to spoil it yourself.

 

[FredH]

For that matter, no one volunteers to be born, so procreation is unethical.

The older I get, the less I disagree with this proposition. But I’m not going to throw shade on biological beings doing (and wanting to do) what they’re essentially programmed to.

 

[ZapBrannigan]

This would imply that living on any extra-terrestrial body or planet would also be unethical.

For that matter, no one volunteers to be born, so procreation is unethical.

You don't get it. Persons born on a generation ship would have no choice about anything, and they'd be confined inside a ship for their entire lives.

 

[T'Bonz]

And they probably wouldn't care because it was what they knew.

When it comes to the Big E, I'm going to be blasphemous here. As far as I'm concerned, it was just the vehicle to take the people to the story, or on which the story happened. I didn't have a great attachment to facts about it one way or the other.

But as always YMMV.

 

[Tomalak]

You don't get it. Persons born on a generation ship would have no choice about anything, and they'd be confined inside a ship for their entire lives.

I get it, but we're all confined to the environment in which we are born.

 

[knightgrace]

And they probably wouldn't care because it was what they knew.

When it comes to the Big E, I'm going to be blasphemous here. As far as I'm concerned, it was just the vehicle to take the people to the story, or on which the story happened. I didn't have a great attachment to facts about it one way or the other.

But as always YMMV.

I am very deeply shock this thing, that you have brought up

 

[Mudd]

You don't get it. Persons born on a generation ship would have no choice about anything, and they'd be confined inside a ship for their entire lives.

This is a nonsensical distinction.

 

[Redfern]

I will freely admit this could be considered spamming if actually done, but I feel each page of this discussion should start and end with a post containing that clip from "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" with Terry Gilliam as Patsy the squire shrugging "It's only a model."

 

[Tallguy]

I will freely admit this could be considered spamming if actually done, but I feel each page of this discussion should start and end with a post containing that clip from "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" with Terry Gilliam as Patsy the squire shrugging "It's only a model."

To be clear I am using ironically.

When it comes to the Big E, I'm going to be blasphemous here. As far as I'm concerned, it was just the vehicle to take the people to the story, or on which the story happened. I didn't have a great attachment to facts about it one way or the other.

But as always YMMV.

Fair. Some Tolkien fans don't care about the Silmarillion either. Some don't even care about the books!

But now I'm curious: What would be the "thing" that would make you say "The ship can't do that?"

"Captain's Log, Stardate 48999.87. After the horrified looks I have gotten from my crew, excepting the stalwart Lieutenant Worf, I am rethinking my enthusiasm for genocide in the name of the Prime Directive (all hail the Prime Directive). As such we will not allow the inhabitants of planet Abowttyme VII to perish in fire and plague because they are backward and stupid. Not that I'm judging.

Instead we will evacuating half of the the population of 926 million onto the starboard cargo hold and the remaining opposing cultures onto decks 23 and 24.

I will be rehearsing for my performance of Some Shakespeare Analogy until this all blows over."

Clearly argumentum ad absurdum, but everyone's suspension of disbelief has a breaking point. What's yours? (I'm hoping it's before the above, but maybe not?)

 

[Redfern]

To be clear I am using ironically.

Glad you clarified that. When I saw my "alerts" and it revealed you had used that emoji, I did wonder, "Uh, did I actually irk Tallguy?"

 

[Tallguy]

Glad you clarified that. When I saw my "alerts" and it revealed you had used that emoji, I did wonder, "Uh, did I actually irk Tallguy?"

"You are beginning to irk me, Professor. I am irked. And that will not do."

 

[Maurice]

Aww, you almost completely spoiled it.

Did you seriously expect anyone to go read two books just for context?

 

[fireproof78]

And they probably wouldn't care because it was what they knew.

When it comes to the Big E, I'm going to be blasphemous here. As far as I'm concerned, it was just the vehicle to take the people to the story, or on which the story happened. I didn't have a great attachment to facts about it one way or the other.

But as always YMMV.

I feel this in my bones.

 

[knightgrace]

Did you seriously expect anyone to go read two books just for context?

It was a homework assignment.

 

[Firebird]

It was a homework assignment.

This ain’t class. It’s a message board.

 

[cooleddie74]

And barely that, to be blunt.

 

[fireproof78]

Will that be on the test?