Is Starfleet a military organization?

Because under law, militaries and occasionally law enforcement are the ones that are tasked with the defence of a country.

Whereas there are no legal restrictions over who can do most of the other things that Starfleet does.

 

I think we need to calm down, relax, think over all the carefully thought out replies in this topic by people who truly want to settle this important question once and for all, and with calmness we can ask ourselves WOULD A NON-MILITARY ORGANIZATION HAVE MURDERED TUVIX?!

 

Would a Non-Military Organization have saved Tuvok & Nelix at the cost of Tuvix?

Obviously, the ideal outcome would be to have all 3x be alive.

Tuvok & Nelix & Tuvix.

But since you can't get all 3, you had to chose.

 

Well, two out of three ain't bad...

 

Then it is clear that the law differs centuries from now. What modern day military takes families on their mobile "base" into uncharted territory or allows a counselor to command a ship in an emergency? I don't place too much stock on any one analog because Starfleet clearly operates far more broadly than any single modern day organization.

Edit: I'm fairly certain that, in order to represent/negotiate on behalf of a nation/federation as a diplomat, one requires training, experience and authorization. There's clearly some legal machinery chugging away in the background.

 

Since she took a course to make her capable of commanding the bridge I would say that she is more than just a counselor, and perhaps would be comparable to a restricted line officer, vs. a support officer in today's United States Navy.

I put it this way-Starfleet can also be a military.

 

That's fair: assuming a military posture only when necessary.

 

Which they do, regularly, so calling them a military organization is not out of turn.

 

Indeed, which parallels my frequent example of the US Coast Guard.

Legally, they are military organisation.

However, on a practical day-to-day level unless required, they do "non-military" things like law enforcement, search and rescue, navigational aids maintenance etc.

 

It is. They're a multi-faceted organization.

 

I don't like this idea of folding many other details into a military to the point where its umbrella continues to expand; we've seen what happens when a military-industrial complex has justification for growing.

 

It attempts to take over. That would never happen in Star Trek...

 

Those sort of problems mainly come up because Rule of Acquisition # 34 and 35 very much apply in the real world. Without getting too much into the weeds on that issue, it's clear that being wealthy is not seen as a desirable situation in-universe and may even be regarded somewhere between mildly to extremely negatively.

 

Starfleet is the military. They're just uncomfortable with being the military. They've tried to change their image to look like they're not the military, but it never lasts. Switching from the TWOK Uniforms to the TNG Uniforms comes across to me as Starfleet trying to change their image. Then that all came undone during the later seasons of DS9.

Probably not the first time Starfleet tried to change its image either. Tried. The TMP Uniforms look a lot less militaristic, then we got the TWOK Uniforms I mentioned above. I agree with the notion that Starfleet Uniforms represent where Starfleet is at a particular moment in time.

Starfleet doesn't accept what it is and has a love/hate relationship with itself.

EDITED TO ADD: In the 32nd Century, the uniforms turn gray. They're a shell of their former self. Then in Season 4, we see color added back, which means Starfleet is coming back. Again, a reflection of where Starfleet is, even now.

 

A major difference, though, is that the Coast Guard is not given primary responsibility for national defense, they don't plan for that mission and they don't have all the tools required for that mission. In actual war-fighting, they become an adjunct of a larger organization which does have that responsibility.

 

Actually, I would argue that the Coast Guard with the National Guard are the US's primary means of defence, just not the US's primary on fighting wars.

The flip side of the argument that the Coast Guard -- like Starfleet -- does routinely get involved in law enforcement, which the Navy is technically barred from.

It might be more accurate to say that Starfleet is analogus to what the US Coast Guard might have become if Congress hadn't opted to create a separate navy in 1794, but had instead empowered the Coast Guard to expand in order to meet the threats of the time.

 

In modern times "national defense" is a standard term used to describe a nation's war-fighting structures and capabilities. It's questionable how the USCG could be a primary means of defense without being able to contest air or sea superiority with its own assets. At any rate, whatever the USCG's role is in national defense, it will be executed under the plans and orders of a command authority in which USCG officers are not involved.

But which the British Royal Navy was involved in for centuries.

 

I would agree that the Royal Navy, particularly the Age of Sail/Exploration era force, is a significant influence on Starfleet, I merely suggest that the Coast Guard seems to a more comfortable and appropriate contributor as far the American aspects go than the Navy.

 

And I was pointing out a major difference in those aspects: Starfleet takes the lead role in the war-fighting mission, and the US Coast Guard does not.

 

Given that the Royal Navy does take the lead in the war-fighting mission, I'm not sure what the US Navy would add to the mix whereas the Coast Guard adds general law enforcement duties and a possible explanation why some Starfleeters think they "aren't the military" (a reporting line through a government department other than Defence), but perhaps that's splitting hairs so YMMV.