where's Dharma? (spoilers thru 5x07)

[Temis the Vorta]

So what are those jump-suit-wearing Namaste-spouters up to? Have they really been "wiped out"? Somehow I just can't see them going down that easily...

Code any spoilers beyond 5x07 if you know they're appearing in future eps.

 

[Mr Light]

Maybe the off-Island survivors of Dharma are the yet-unseen big bad that Widmore is talking about when he says there's a war coming. After all, were Alvar Hanso and the DeGroots on the Island when the Purge happened? But as for on-Island, yeah they're all dead.

 

[spocksbrain]

Dharma may still be around simply because we may be in the past. Jin drives up in that shiny new Volkswagen bus and jumpsuit, so it appears that he, Jack, Kate, Hurley et al. are all in the past, when Dharma is very much active.

What about John Locke and the survivors of the new plane crash? They crash near one of the Dharma stations which is obviously abandoned ... so are they in our present?

At least one group is in the past, and maybe Widmore knew they would end up back in the past, hence the war with Dharma ... a "back in time" war of some sort. Time travel isn't treated realistically (thus far), so a time war could very well be possible.

 

[Brent]

Well, remember, all Dharma people were killed in the Purge, Ben assisted in all their deaths on the Island.

Now, the question is are there any Dharma people out there off the island, in the real world. I would venture to guess there are maybe some retired Dharma people out there. But the initiative itself is dead.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

Maybe the off-Island survivors of Dharma are the yet-unseen big bad that Widmore is talking about when he says there's a war coming.

I like this idea. I think there's a lot more to Dharma than they let on.

If Dharma happens to know how to use time travel to get around, being "wiped out" at any given period of time would be meaningless for them, if they are like Desmond and immune to the no-impact rule about changing the timeline. And why is Desmond immune? We don't know that, so we don't know whether Dharma would also fall under that rule.

 

[ITL]

Yup. Dharma may have been "purged" from the island, but what about the off-island Hanso/Dharma people? And because Richard, Ethan and others used to have access to the outside world, did they interact with them?

 

[Brent]

The mystery still remains about the Dharma parachute food drops as well.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

Ben and Widmore will fight to a draw and then Dharma will swoop in and win the war. Dharma is just biding their time, and why not? Let the other guys pound each other into hamburger.

I'll bet even that purge wasn't quite as thorough as we've been led to believe. Dharma would have good reasons for playing possum.

 

[Stone_Cold_Sisko]

It does seem odd that The Lampost is just abandoned, at least for Ellie to take control of it.

 

[Brent]

^ Maybe she worked for Dharma?

 

[Velocity]

Maybe the off-Island survivors of Dharma are the yet-unseen big bad that Widmore is talking about when he says there's a war coming.

I like this idea. I think there's a lot more to Dharma than they let on.

If Dharma happens to know how to use time travel to get around, being "wiped out" at any given period of time would be meaningless for them, if they are like Desmond and immune to the no-impact rule about changing the timeline. And why is Desmond immune? We don't know that, so we don't know whether Dharma would also fall under that rule.

there was a big pile of Dharma bodies at one time because Locke was shot and left for dead on top of them.

 

[Crewman47]

Is it assumed that Radzinski from the Swan station worked for Dharma and had someone working with him before Kelvin came along in 91/92 if so how is it that only they survived the Purge but yet nobody else thought to take shelter in any of the other stations that are or have access to underground facilities?

I think it's been said on here before that the Others didn't know about the Swan or they did but knew that it had to be kept manned and for anyone in the other stations, could it be possible that the Others manage to take of anyone who might have been in them at the time?

 

[Capn Flukie]

where's Dharma?

Hey, wasn't he a mod here?

 

[Mallet]

Yah, Ben knew about the Swan and he help the Others wipe out Dharma, so they had to know about it. Ben also knew how to monitor the Swan by using the monitors in the Pearl station.

SO... Why did they not take over the station? Why would they risk the button not being pushed?

They knew about the station and the button, but didn't care if it got pushed on time or not. Did they think it was a joke/test? That nothing would happen if it wasn't pushed? That doesn't seem likely, but what other answer could there be?

Also, Widmore must have know about it, plus Ms. Hawking knew for sure about it. She told Desmond he had to go back and keep pushing the button.

So what did Widmore know that Ben didn't?

Or... What if young Ben will now meet the future Losties and he learns that the button would keep being pressed by Kelvin and Desmond so he know that when the purge happens he doesn't have to worry about taking over the Swan becasue it will be in good hands up until teh present time period.

It currently doesn't make sense, but hopefully they will answer that at some point.

 

[Brent]

Well maybe they knew someone was inside it and that he wasn't going to die cause he was sealed in, so they felt safe to go ahead and do the purge knowing the guy inside would keep pushing the button no matter what, cause he had no contact with the outside. They weren't worried cause they knew he'd still be in there doing his job.

 

[Mallet]

Well maybe they knew someone was inside it and that he wasn't going to die cause he was sealed in, so they felt safe to go ahead and do the purge knowing the guy inside would keep pushing the button no matter what, cause he had no contact with the outside. They weren't worried cause they knew he'd still be in there doing his job.

But what if he had an accident, or a heart attack or killed himself? That would be a major risk to take if the whole world was at stake if the button wasn't pushed (or the fail safe used).

 

[Hermiod]

They could see what Desmond was doing from one of the other Dharma stations. If he had fallen ill, I imagine they might have the means to break in and send someone in to push the button themselves.

 

[Mallet]

They could see what Desmond was doing from one of the other Dharma stations. If he had fallen ill, I imagine they might have the means to break in and send someone in to push the button themselves.

With only 108 minutes at the very most (and that's assuming that the person pressing the button died just after entering the numbers)? Thats not enough time. Not unless they had someone stationed in the Pearl, watching Desmond 24/7 and even then they would have to have people close enough to the Swan to run there, break in, and enter the numbers. I mean what if Desmond tripped walking over to the computer and knocked himself out 4 minutes before he had to enter the numbers? No way the Others could do anything in 4 minutes.

And if they were willing to do all of that, having people sitting there watching Desmond 24/7, why not just take over the Swan and have a few of there own people manning the button?

It just doesn't make sense.

...Unless they knew the future...

 

[Brent]

maybe they just didn't care? maybe they knew nothing actually would happen? i don't know

 

[Mr Light]

We know that Ben had the Swan under observation before he was taken there, and since half the Others are former Dharma they clearly knew about the Swan. So I'm going to go with they knew Des would keep pushing the button, probably from time-travel-foreknowledge. Who knows, maybe the time travellers will tell Young Ben this season to leave the Swan alone.