Star Trek/Headscratchers: Difference between revisions
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**** The Neutral Zone is only off-limits to the Federation and the Romulans (and often not them, either, it seems). Even the Jem'Hadar were allowed to use it before they found themselves at war with the Federation ''and'' the Romulans. So there should be neutral species at peace with both powers who can carry ale into the Federation. Of course, if the embargo is strict enough, a third-party middleman wouldn't be legal, either, as with Cuban products in the United States. |
**** The Neutral Zone is only off-limits to the Federation and the Romulans (and often not them, either, it seems). Even the Jem'Hadar were allowed to use it before they found themselves at war with the Federation ''and'' the Romulans. So there should be neutral species at peace with both powers who can carry ale into the Federation. Of course, if the embargo is strict enough, a third-party middleman wouldn't be legal, either, as with Cuban products in the United States. |
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**** And it is, amusingly one of the most loosely enforced laws on the books. Every time they break out the Romulan Ale, someone remarks that it is illegal, yet it is given as gifts amongst officers, a Federation starship on a diplomatic mission has it in stock to serve to foreign dignitaries, and it is even brought up during Kirk and McCoy's trial on Q'Onos in ''[[Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country|Star Trek VI the Undiscovered Country]]''. Notably, it ''wasn't'' brought up to discredit them because it was illegal, but merely to bring up the possibility that McCoy was ''drunk''. If there was a great time for anyone to use Romulan Ale's illegality against the heroes, that would have been it. So why didn't they? Even in a sham trial, ''nobody cared.'' Presumably both the Romulans and Federation turn a blind eye to traders carrying the stuff back and forth, because the humans like to drink it and the Romulans like to sell it. Hell, [[Wild Mass Guessing|the traders might even double as low-profile spies and couriers]], discretely carrying information (and booze) back and forth, giving both sides further reason to laxly enforce the embargo: If one side cracks down, their own information flow from the other side gets clamped off too. |
**** And it is, amusingly one of the most loosely enforced laws on the books. Every time they break out the Romulan Ale, someone remarks that it is illegal, yet it is given as gifts amongst officers, a Federation starship on a diplomatic mission has it in stock to serve to foreign dignitaries, and it is even brought up during Kirk and McCoy's trial on Q'Onos in ''[[Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country|Star Trek VI the Undiscovered Country]]''. Notably, it ''wasn't'' brought up to discredit them because it was illegal, but merely to bring up the possibility that McCoy was ''drunk''. If there was a great time for anyone to use Romulan Ale's illegality against the heroes, that would have been it. So why didn't they? Even in a sham trial, ''nobody cared.'' Presumably both the Romulans and Federation turn a blind eye to traders carrying the stuff back and forth, because the humans like to drink it and the Romulans like to sell it. Hell, [[Wild Mass Guessing|the traders might even double as low-profile spies and couriers]], discretely carrying information (and booze) back and forth, giving both sides further reason to laxly enforce the embargo: If one side cracks down, their own information flow from the other side gets clamped off too. |
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**** The tie-in novels state that the main conduit for Romulan Ale to the Federation is via Orion space... which makes sense, as during the TOS era the Orion Congeries are the only interstellar polity in the Alpha Quadrant that have trade relations with both the Federation and the Romulan Empire. |
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** Presumably it's a deliberate parallel to Cuban tobacco products being illegal in the US. |
** Presumably it's a deliberate parallel to Cuban tobacco products being illegal in the US. |
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** Because it ''[[Gargle Blaster|should]]'' be ([[Hangover Sensitivity|owwww]]). |
** Because it ''[[Gargle Blaster|should]]'' be ([[Hangover Sensitivity|owwww]]). |
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== United Federation of Nutcase Bureaucrats? == |
== United Federation of Nutcase Bureaucrats? == |
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