What species would you want to be?
- Thread starter PTRACER
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On this board--not only do I like the Cardassians, but I very much feel like a Cardassian among humans, not being comfortable with the naive trust I see in the idea that people will ever overcome their nature.
Oh yeah, I should be very optimistic about humanity but my inner Cardassian cynic keeps telling me that there is a lot to dislike about the denizens of Earth (basically my cardassianness is driven by misanthropy
). Mind you I became a Cardassian for the intellectual qualities and of course the monologues.
I honestly do not know anymore how to be optimistic about humanity as a whole. Now, I have belief in something BEYOND us, and that's something that comes far more easily. And I can actually be quite trusting of individuals. But society as a whole? Nope.
Which is why I think my true "avatar" in the Trekiverse would be a Cardassian religious dissident.
Which is why I think my true "avatar" in the Trekiverse would be a Cardassian religious dissident.
I'd more likely be a political dissident so unfortunately I would end up at the mercy of the Order or the Jem'Hadar.
Now that you guys mention it, Cardassian cynicism is something I find a bit hard to deal with. I enjoy it on the screen, but in real life (and I have known people even more pessimistic than the average Cardassian), not so much.
I mean, jeez, "Joy is vulnerability"? What kind of life can you have with that philosophy? OK, I realize that this was said by Dukat, who isn't among Cardassia's finest, but still, it's a very...Cardassian thing to say, don't you think? Not just Dukatian.
I mean, jeez, "Joy is vulnerability"? What kind of life can you have with that philosophy? OK, I realize that this was said by Dukat, who isn't among Cardassia's finest, but still, it's a very...Cardassian thing to say, don't you think? Not just Dukatian.
I know, I have friends like this (that is overly cynical and essentially self professed misanthrope, though not using that word), and sometimes I wonder how they can function in a human society.
Hence why I prefer Klingons. Sure they may be violent, but they enjoy life to the full, even if it includes ending others and potentially their's early. They're direct (some may say blunt, but I prefer this), loud, gregarious, and generally loyal to the very end to those who've earned their trust and respect. And you can rely on them to lend you their arm in a brawl
I always describe myself as an optimistic cynic. I'm both very optimistic and very cynical, and the combination leads to a very humour-orientated outlook. I have a deep, deep love for humanity even if, as a collective, it tends to irritate me just as deeply. I share Nerys' distaste of society, but individuals, I find, are usually well-meaning, pleasant and generally demonstrate good qualities- once they are removed from the context of that society. To me, the problem is in the way the collective society works, not with the individuals in it. And the way to change that society is to demonstrate to individuals that there are better ways of relating to one another and their world as a whole. If enough people see it, the society as a whole will shift to accomodate these new ways.
Personally, I've been dealt a lot of pain over my admittedly short life as a result of the current standards, and I could never not be cynical as a result-and I certainly lost any enthusiasm I had for my world and its people some time ago- but I'm certainly not misanthropic and I retain a generally positive outlook. Knowing your people- and their rather "messed-up" means of thinking and relating to one another- is essential, but so is the belief that you can demonstrate it doesn't have to be that way; that's how I see it, personally. So this is why I too would likely be a Cardassian dissidant in the Trek-verse, someone trying to build a new Cardassia that does not turn its back on what the Cardassian people are, but resolves the problems inherent in their thinking and relating to the world (let's face it- there are a lot of them! 
)in order to create something more functional. And Garak has the right idea- keep your sense of humour. Everything's more worthwhile when your eyes are twinkling over it...
I'm both very optimistic and very cynical, and the combination leads to a very humour-orientated outlook. I have a deep, deep love for humanity even if, as a collective, it tends to irritate me just as deeply. I share Nerys' distaste of society, but individuals, I find, are usually well-meaning, pleasant and generally demonstrate good qualities- once they are removed from the context of that society. To me, the problem is in the way the collective society works, not with the individuals in it. And the way to change that society is to demonstrate to individuals that there are better ways of relating to one another and their world as a whole. If enough people see it, the society as a whole will shift to accomodate these new ways. Personally, I've been dealt a lot of pain over my admittedly short life as a result of the current standards, and I could never not be cynical as a result-and I certainly lost any enthusiasm I had for my world and its people some time ago- but I'm certainly not misanthropic and I retain a generally positive outlook. Knowing your people- and their rather "messed-up" means of thinking and relating to one another- is essential, but so is the belief that you can demonstrate it doesn't have to be that way; that's how I see it, personally.
So this is why I too would likely be a Cardassian dissidant in the Trek-verse, someone trying to build a new Cardassia that does not turn its back on what the Cardassian people are, but resolves the problems inherent in their thinking and relating to the world (let's face it- there are a lot of them! )in order to create something more functional. And Garak has the right idea- keep your sense of humour. Everything's more worthwhile when your eyes are twinkling over it...I'd have to be a founder, preferably one that was sent out to explore the universe as a 'baby'. I'm suspicious by nature, so the role would suit me.
It depends on how you look at it--but admittedly it takes some editing to get useful lessons out of that particular aphorism.
Here's a way I think you can actually get sense out of it: "Getting caught up in joy can blind you to what's going on around you." Or even "Never rest on your laurels." And going back to the original context of the saying, which is the school system, your first purpose in being there is to LEARN. All other interests and social drama are secondary and should not be allowed to get in the way of academic success.
If Dukat had just SAID that, I would've agreed wholeheartedly. But it definitely takes a lot of editing to get the useful lesson from this very blunt saying.
Romulan. Because they are so mysterious and cunning and ruthless.
Beinf a member of the Q continum comes a close second.
Beinf a member of the Q continum comes a close second.
ProtoAvatar
Fleet Captain
You already lost hope in the human species and you would like to help with Cardassia's reconstruction?
You do realize that Cardassia's reconstruction would last centuries - that it would be an exercise in frustration and losing hope of ever achieving anything - confronted not only by the scarcity of the remaining resources, but by the emergent corruption and criminality?
Fulfilling I can't call it - unless you find small victories fulfilling.
That is, of course, unless you accept the equivalent of the Marshall Plan from the Federation, becoming part of it.
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El-Aurian -- Because I would join star fleet as a counseler and make a difference as a listener.
El-Aurian -- Because I would join star fleet as a counseler and make a difference as a listener.
And you'll have a long life-span!
And how do you KNOW for a fact that it would be futile? There would surely be very severe challenges, but if there were good leadership from within--i.e. NOT a puppet of the Allies--then there would be a chance.
And I should add to this that were I to do this as a Cardassian, I would also be a beneficiary of the Cardassian lifespan, which if we are to judge by "Wrongs Darker than Death or Night," is longer than the human lifespan and possibly longer than that of the Bajorans too (though there is evidence from "Dax" that Bajorans may also be longer lived than humans). Time, in other words, would be less of a constraint, and I would be able to take a longer view and be more likely to actually see results.
(Granted, I'm not sure the Cardassian lifespan is quite Vulcan-long, or even Klingon long, but I think when you compare Vulcans and humans, they fall somewhere in the middle.)
That is, of course, unless you accept the equivalent of the Marshall Plan from the Federation, becoming part of it.
Absorption, or the threat of it, would only CREATE the backlash you speak of--or exacerbate it. That would become a self-fulfilling prophecy.
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