Why were there some corrupt admirals in Star Trek?

[Paulcpick]

im surprised Necheyeve (spelling is not my strong suite) hasn't come up, I suppose she would be the middle of the road, setting things she didnt like in motion because they needed to be done and someones got to bear the burden type

I would classify her as a 'good' admiral

 

[LutherSloan]

im surprised Necheyeve (spelling is not my strong suite) hasn't come up, I suppose she would be the middle of the road, setting things she didnt like in motion because they needed to be done and someones got to bear the burden type

I would classify her as a 'good' admiral

It's Nechayev.

 

[diankra]

If you listen to their justifications for their corruption, they always feel as if they're being selfless and doing it for a much larger issue, such as the Admiral in Insurrection. But I feel as if that particular admiral had known about the bloodfeud he might have called it off.

Admiral Dougherty is arguably a lot less over the line than Sisko in In the Pale Moonlight: both are bending morality so as to get gain an ally in the war against the Dominion, but Dougherty is 'only' conniving at the forcible relocation of a community, whereas Sisko turns a blind eye to a murder...

 

[Starbreaker]

No matter how far into the future we go, there will always be crime. Otherwise, life would be a little boring, no?

 

[The Wormhole]

In addition to all the evil Admirals we've seen in Starfleet, there have been quite a few renegade captains. Starfleet's upper ranks are filled with a shady, questionable lot.

 

[Sector 7]

Star Trek always had an undercurrent of "Once you get behind a desk...you lose touch, and lose yourself."

The uninformed or detached admiral was common as a result of this philosophy. The perfect foil to Picard or Kirk is a superior who "Just doesn't see it that way" from their comfy desk on Earth.

I'm glad there is a certain amount of corruption, it wouldn't be nearly as believable without human foibles! Besides, nefarious plots always work better when high ranking officers are involved. Opens more doors!

In addition to all the evil Admirals we've seen in Starfleet, there have been quite a few renegade captains. Starfleet's upper ranks are filled with a shady, questionable lot.

A few cases of "art imitating life".

 

[ktanner3]

I always found it funny, yet strange, that we saw a good amount of corrupt admirals in the Star Trek shows. You would figure that at that point in human history, when humans have decided to put aside their petty differences towards a better future for the human race, humanity would have evolved to a point where selfless interests would come first rather than selfish interests.

Was it being implied that no matter how enlightened humanity gets, there will always be some degree of corruption among us?

Yes. I never believed the "man will become perfect" argument that rodenberry was trying to force in the TNG universe. A utopian idea and an admirable one. But no way will basic human instincts change. (here comes my DS9 ad) That's why I loved DS9 more than TNG because it showed that basic human instincts will never change no matter how far technology goes.

 

[Cyke101]

In TNG and DS9, to me it seemed that for every bad Admiral, there was a good Admiral. Oh, and Hansen can kick the crud out of Leyton ANY day.

Admiral Ross is a whole other can of worms. I'll leave that up to all of you.

Forget all of those guys. Admiral Forrest was the best of the good ones. He's the Optimus Prime of admirals.

And I salute him. Bless you, Forrest! Bonus points for being named after my favorite Trek actor.

 

[Timo]

...wouldn't admirals be even better human beings than those below them?

Actually, one might argue that Starfleet specifically attracts the dregs of humanity, as it is the one remaining organization for those with active, adventurous spirits, the organization that specializes in anger and aggression. If you are a restless misfit, you leave the paradise of Earth for the stars.

People below Admirals might be even worse than Admirals, but from the 24th century point of view, pretty much everybody would be above Admirals. Everybody except the regular personnel of Starfleet - those psychopaths even their immediate families are deeply ashamed of, unless said families happen to be Starfleet themselves.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Sector 7]

^ Wow.. talk about negativity! Guess who didn't get any last night?
I think StarFleet personnel represent a cross section of society, much the same as current military enlistees. They join for various reasons: adventure, training, education, job skills, power trips, career goals, etc.
There will always be some who make one wonder how they ever got in. There will also be some who represent the best of society. Most are just average folks.