What if Augmentation was accepted in the Federation?
- Thread starter dswynne1
- Start date
The only way that could possibly work would be for the augmentation to be completely voluntary, and for the resettlement to apply to the augments, not those who opt out. If Trek is to be believed, there are trillions of worlds available in our galaxy alone, and the augments could easily enough go the whole hog and develop features that normal people don't have. I could easily imagine colonizing a water world by giving the colonizers gills.
Augmentation can be done both before and after birth. I assume most serious birth defects (spina bifida, down's syndrome and other trisomies) could be corrected in vivo. Bashir received treatment when he was about six years old. However, it's entirely possible any treatments would no longer be as effective after adolescence.
Augmentation can be done both before and after birth. I assume most serious birth defects (spina bifida, down's syndrome and other trisomies) could be corrected in vivo. Bashir received treatment when he was about six years old. However, it's entirely possible any treatments would no longer be as effective after adolescence.
It seemed pretty clear that Khan intended the complete genocide of all non-Augments. Spock actually points this out in STID...and Khan doesn't deny it...
Bah, what is this STID you speak of? Is this some non canon fan film?
In Space Seed, it is made clear that far from wanting to commit genocide Khan was perceived as the best of a bad bunch, showing a measure of compassion and mercy that others did not, his rule lacking massacres and internal conflict.
Actually, Space Seed makes it clear that the history books were vastly incomplete on the issue.
I mean they listed the war in the 1990's instead of the correct 2020's, didn't mention the thousands of Augment foetuses held at secret Starfleet facilities like CS-12 and so on.
What Khan let the world see, and what the historians chose to impart to later generations to cover an even more horrible side to the war, is very different to what actually happened.
And even had Khan not committed the acts Spock mentioned, it's possible the world finding out that he was about to was the tipping point that saw him otherthrown and driven off the planet.
The Eugenics Wars involved a lot of bloodshed, and Augments would have had to have helped ordinary humans otherthrow Khan, there was unpleasantness everywhere. You really think he was going to give the world "order" by asking nicely? and since when did expressing that intent mean nearly breaking the table with anger just to mention it?
"All of you in turn will go in there!" Not an idle threat to kill the entire 'inferior' Enterprise crew, or anyone else in his way.
I mean they listed the war in the 1990's instead of the correct 2020's, didn't mention the thousands of Augment foetuses held at secret Starfleet facilities like CS-12 and so on.
What Khan let the world see, and what the historians chose to impart to later generations to cover an even more horrible side to the war, is very different to what actually happened.
And even had Khan not committed the acts Spock mentioned, it's possible the world finding out that he was about to was the tipping point that saw him otherthrown and driven off the planet.
The Eugenics Wars involved a lot of bloodshed, and Augments would have had to have helped ordinary humans otherthrow Khan, there was unpleasantness everywhere. You really think he was going to give the world "order" by asking nicely? and since when did expressing that intent mean nearly breaking the table with anger just to mention it?
"All of you in turn will go in there!" Not an idle threat to kill the entire 'inferior' Enterprise crew, or anyone else in his way.
What makes you believe they did that? The records were obviously clear that atrocities happened, they mitigated that by saying they were lesser under Khan.
Where does the 2020's date comes from? Seems more in line with WWIII, which is often taken to have been a seperate conflict. Certainly every canon source I'm aware of that refers to the Eugenics wars refers to the 20th century except DBIP which puts in the 22nd century. This has been confirmed as a scripting error.
Khan is incompatible with the concepts of "compassion" or "mercy". As are all Augments. It's simply the way they are. (You want proof? Look what Khan did to the crew of Regula 1.)
Edit: What @Kemtrail said. Khan, being an Augment, is a dictator and a madman (it's what they were designed to be). He would naturally control, to a ruthless extent, all information that is spread within his empire (and outside of it). The only reason anyone ever thought there were no massacres under his rule is because he didn't allow anyone to know about them.
Again, based on what? How would khan have control over the research of historians 200 plus years later? Such things are largely impossible to cover up even with modern forensic and archaeological techniques. The federations historians would have no difficulty getting to a reasonable facsimile of truth.
Khan was never meant to be a cackling one dimensional cartoon villain, in space seed he is both described and portrayed as being more complex than that. Not once is he shown to have designs on exterminating humanity.
Rule? Yes, that's in his nature. Conquer? He relishes the challenge, the conflict. Killing off the enterprise crew? Why not? He perceives them as legitimate military targets in his fledgling campaign.
None of this translates into a desire to destroy humanity.
By wrath of Khan he has changed dramatically, being fixated on kirk, but he's been marooned on a desert planet watching his loved ones die off one by one. He's even further from rational after that point, but still ultimately his designs are now about revenge then domination, still not extermination.
Khan was never meant to be a cackling one dimensional cartoon villain, in space seed he is both described and portrayed as being more complex than that. Not once is he shown to have designs on exterminating humanity.
Rule? Yes, that's in his nature. Conquer? He relishes the challenge, the conflict. Killing off the enterprise crew? Why not? He perceives them as legitimate military targets in his fledgling campaign.
None of this translates into a desire to destroy humanity.
By wrath of Khan he has changed dramatically, being fixated on kirk, but he's been marooned on a desert planet watching his loved ones die off one by one. He's even further from rational after that point, but still ultimately his designs are now about revenge then domination, still not extermination.
I suspect the Khan of Space Seed would ultimately have turned his attentions to dealing with "The Non-Augmented Problem", but I'm not sure the episode specifically indicates he intended to. During his time on Earth he seemed to have enough trouble with consolidating his power that dealing with such things was more of a long-term concern.
Then again, the Eugenics Wars novels make it clear that Khan had very hostile intentions toward the non-augmented.
Then again, the Eugenics Wars novels make it clear that Khan had very hostile intentions toward the non-augmented.
Yeah, I see a bunch of revisionism happening here, especially those based on NON-canon sources (like the novels, which have been contradicted by the IDW comics detailing Khan's origins).
In the actual "Space Seed" episode, Kirk himself admired Khan, even to the point of giving Khan the choice of rehabilitation or exile to create his own community. Even after Khan's attempt at taking over Kirk's ship, Kirk still had respect for the man. And even taking into account TWOK, Khan wanted revenge for the death of his wife, after going insane from his 15 years in a literal hell-hole, thinking that Kirk purposely abandoned him and his people. Ergo, Khan is still an anomaly even among the Augments of his day.
At any rate, I contend that if everyone was Augmented, everyone would be normal. And even if some chose Augmentation, eventually, everyone will become Augmented anyway, within a few generations (either with subsequent interbreeding or parents choosing to Augment their kids in order to remain competitive). Maybe, while all of this is going on, you might have an affirmative action for non-Augments. And taking all that into consideration, ultimately, morality and ethics will play an important factor in how Augments will behave towards each other and to non-Augments.
Food for thought.
In the actual "Space Seed" episode, Kirk himself admired Khan, even to the point of giving Khan the choice of rehabilitation or exile to create his own community. Even after Khan's attempt at taking over Kirk's ship, Kirk still had respect for the man. And even taking into account TWOK, Khan wanted revenge for the death of his wife, after going insane from his 15 years in a literal hell-hole, thinking that Kirk purposely abandoned him and his people. Ergo, Khan is still an anomaly even among the Augments of his day.
At any rate, I contend that if everyone was Augmented, everyone would be normal. And even if some chose Augmentation, eventually, everyone will become Augmented anyway, within a few generations (either with subsequent interbreeding or parents choosing to Augment their kids in order to remain competitive). Maybe, while all of this is going on, you might have an affirmative action for non-Augments. And taking all that into consideration, ultimately, morality and ethics will play an important factor in how Augments will behave towards each other and to non-Augments.
Food for thought.
But are the "augments" of ENT the same group as the selectively breed "supermen" of TOS?
Things do make more sense if these are two separate populations. The timeline certainly make a lot more sense.
This, he's been utterly defeated twice, forced into retreat then exiled on a barren hostile wasteland where he watched his "beloved wife" and followers dying. By TWoK he's focussed on Kirk to the exclusion of pretty much all else.
Until STID, however, we never see him, nor hear of him described as being bent on the destruction of humanity. On the contrary the only time he's genuinely found a position of power history describes him as having been relatively benign compared to his augmented peers.
Perhaps they feel that they are above our "primitive" notions of morality.
The augments on ENT were supposed to be leftover preserved embryos from the Eugenics Wars. I think Arik Soong was doing some extra tinkering to their DNA as well, but I can't remember the details for sure.
Kor
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