The Worst Decision by a Starfleet Cpt/Cdr.

[Six of Twelve]

With Tuvix, couldn't the Doctor have cloned him, then did what they did with the first Tuvix to get Tuvok and Neelix back? It seems that by that time, they could clone someone without them having to start out as a baby, and also have a way for the clone Tuvix to retain the memories the original Tuvix had been able to accumulate in his short life.

 

[Kilana2]

With Tuvix, couldn't the Doctor have cloned him, then did what they did with the first Tuvix to get Tuvok and Neelix back? It seems that by that time, they could clone someone without them having to start out as a baby, and also have a way for the clone Tuvix to retain the memories the original Tuvix had been able to accumulate in his short life.

Yeah. Cloning would have been good. I'm a clone, too....

 

[Rollar]

But if we save Hugh's life we also have the knowledge that one real person's life was most certainly saved, not just millions of potential lives which might be saved.

But there the consideration of Picard's (supposed) sworn duty. Do you place the lives of enemy "soldiers" above the protection of your civilization's civilians and your fellow Starfleet members?

The Borg are attacking the Federation. Destroying, killing and enslaving. Picard is presented with a opportunity to end these actions against his civilization.

Picard is subsequently told by his leadership that his actions were wrong, and he's directly ordered never to repeat them.

 

[Griffeytrek]

Thinking on it a bit more. Picards decision not to infect and eliminate the Borg may be among the worst ever shown on screen. Both as a character choice and a writer choice. Both Piccard and the writers went for the default "we don't perform genocide on sentient life" both ignoring the seemingly numerous times they do, through negligence, deliberate inaction, or simply because they had to.

At that moment they had a chance to explore what genocide was. What sentience was. And truthfully question whether the Borg met either set of circumstances. Does the Federation have any problem with wiping out a disease? Ending a virus? Because for all purposes that is what the Borg are. What genocide is on Piccards head for that failure alone? How many worlds fell in the Delta Quadrant because he held to his principles? How many souls lost to the crushing assimilation. To become nothing more than a meat puppet for the parasitical collective?

 

[Longinus]

I think the biggest problem with Picard's behavior in 'I Borg' is that it completely contradicts his vengeful attitude in FC.

 

[BillJ]

I think the biggest problem with Picard's behavior in 'I Borg' is that it completely contradict his vengeful attitude in FC.

I'm not so sure. His emotions were played on by his friends in "I, Borg" during an encounter with a single Borg. In First Contact, the Borg seemed to have launched another invasion which probably forced buried feelings back to the surface. Especially since Picard had to watch some of his crew be assimilated.

 

[Six of Twelve]

Because he was dealing with a single drone, and a teenage one at that, Picard was able to see Hugh as a fellow victim of the Borg and feel compassion. He did not have this issue when dealing with them as a whole, with th identities of the individual drones obscured.

 

[Griffeytrek]

Garth of Izar's decision and order (not implemented by his crew) to annihilate the Antosians. Has any other Starfleet captain actually ordered a genocide? (Kirk's General Order 24 on Emeniar would have been devastating, but I doubt genocidal.)

Does Archer's weekly cry of "hey! Does anybody remember what this button does? I'm gonna push it to find out!" Count? Or does it have to be deliberate and intentional genocide? And not simply incompetence?

 

[Griffeytrek]

Because he was dealing with a single drone, and a teenage one at that, Picard was able to see Hugh as a fellow victim of the Borg and feel compassion. He did not have this issue when dealing with them as a whole, with th identities of the individual drones obscured.

I get that. He managed to free Hugh, somewhat. And he sympathized with this one freed meat puppet. Or at least the meat portion of the meat puppet. But it was still a bad decision. One with genocidal consequences for who knows how many races.

Astonishingly the writers never gave us a Borg origin story. Nor did they ever actually define them. What exactly are the Borg? They are clearly a form of nanite cyber parasite that infects and subverts humanoid biological hosts. How do they fit in the Federations nice neat rules beyond "clear and unquestionable existential threat to every being in the Federation". Wasn't one of the core Starfleet officer tests that "you can't save everybody" and "sometimes sacrifices need be made". Yes Piccard faced a standard Star Trek ethical conundrum in I'Borg. And they soft balled it. They and Piccard went if the easy path rather than the right one.

 

[BillJ]

Astonishingly the writers never gave us a Borg origin story. Nor did they ever actually define them. What exactly are the Borg? They are clearly a form of nanite cyber parasite that infects and subverts humanoid biological hosts. How do they fit in the Federations nice neat rules beyond "clear and unquestionable existential threat to every being in the Federation". Wasn't one of the core Starfleet officer tests that "you can't save everybody" and "sometimes sacrifices need be made". Yes Piccard faced a standard Star Trek ethical conundrum in I'Borg. And they soft balled it. They and Piccard went if the easy path rather than the right one.

The Destiny trilogy by David Mack gives an interesting origin to the Borg.

 

[Nyotarules]

The Destiny trilogy by David Mack gives an interesting original to the Borg.

Oh yes its..... fault

 

[BillJ]

Oh yes its..... fault

How did I miss that typo?!?

 

[Richard Baker]

Kirk's derision to destroy the giant space amoeba.

It was the beginning of a new form of life, who knows what it could have evolved into? It was also in it's own pocket universe, there was no indication that even if it multiplied that the 'hole in space' would have changed size or position.

 

[Six of Twelve]

Decker's decision to take on the Big Cigar planet eater on his own and beaming his crew down on the planet.

 

[BillJ]

Kirk's derision to destroy the giant space amoeba.

It was the beginning of a new form of life, who knows what it could have evolved into? It was also in it's own pocket universe, there was no indication that even if it multiplied that the 'hole in space' would have changed size or position.

Umm... it was eating whole star systems. As it grew, it would need more fuel.

How exactly should Kirk have handled it?