Actually, I think Q brings this up pretty constantly, especially in later episodes. It was his saving grace as a character, I think. It wasn't always as explored as thoroughly as it could have been, but it was stated explicitly: "What makes you think your way is so superior?"
It might be the central paradox of the old show, though: every time they hit a new, unknown civilization, they mention the Prime Directive (alter nothing! every culture is unique and valuable! your concept of right might not apply on some planets!), and then Kirk goes and spews a buncha individualistic propaganda, freeing hereditary slaves, turning off the suicide machines, that sort of thing.
I'm pretty sure Picard struggled with this a little more explicitly with the Borg - although these stories got an extra twist from Picard's vexed relationship with the Borg. (He was part of the collective at one point, and in some way, kind of misses the constant companionship.)
There was one specific episode I remember with the Borg they captured and returned to the collective after giving him a virus. Two viruses, actually: one, a mathematical paradox, and the other, a sense of individuality. I recall, I hope correctly, a lot of debate over a. whether giving a Borg a sense of self constituted a form of torture, and b. whether sending that new individual back to his home constituted a form of murder. Of course, it being a time of war, they went and did it.
I'm embarrassed I'm able to go on like this.
Oh, and there are hints of Federation cultural critique in the old show in a few folks who remembered Kirk in his academy days, or humans set up as adversaries to the Federation. But those were only hints, and only spoken by antagonists.
[ 04-12-2001: Message edited by: grant ] |
