Why was Worf allowed the sash?

[FaxModem1]

Worf, from day one, was allowed to wear his sash on the Enterprise, while Ensign Ro was chewed out by Riker when she beamed aboard the Enterprise for wearing her her family earring. Any reason for that?

[Tsyroc]

It might have been something that Worf had arranged with Starfleet or his command before TNG started. Also, remember that Ensign Ro was pretty much looked upon as undeserving of being in Starfleet after whatever she did previously. Riker seemed to be the hardest on her, but a lot of the time it's the XO's job to be a dick.

Given the inclusiveness that Starfleet likes to think it has it is kind of fucked up that she wasn't allowed something rather insignificant that was so important to her people's religion and culture. There are legitimate reasons for not wanting people wearing dangly earrings in the work place, and especially on a military vessel, but it's one of those things that could easily have been granted on a case by case basis. She didn't seem to have any problems after she got it cleared with Picard.

[Stofsk]

Wrong forum for this /captain obvious

Anyway Tsyroc has the best conjecture. There isn't any real answer in the show. Worf was allowed to wear the sash, almost certainly because Picard's nice like that - at the end of 'Ensign Ro' Ro agrees to join the crew on one condition, which was to wear her earring. It's obviously an area of discretion for officers.

[Gandalf]

Anyway Tsyroc has the best conjecture. There isn't any real answer in the show. Worf was allowed to wear the sash, almost certainly because Picard's nice like that - at the end of 'Ensign Ro' Ro agrees to join the crew on one condition, which was to wear her earring. It's obviously an area of discretion for officers.

He also got to wear it with Sisko.

Maybe Starfleet has an approved list of accoutrements, and the paperwork wasn't through on the Bajorans' gear.

[Stofsk]

Well yeah but Sisko is a pretty cool dude too.

[Thanas]

Sisko also had better things to worry about than going after his people for not wearing the correct uniform. After all, the Klingons were killing people left and right.

[Havok]

Maybe they thought it looked cool. Why did they wear pajamas for uniforms?

Wrong forum hur hur.

[Connor MacLeod]

Didn't the Bajoran earrings have some religious significance? I'm pretty sure Worf's sash wasn't religious.

[Stofsk]

Didn't the Bajoran earrings have some religious significance? I'm pretty sure Worf's sash wasn't religious.

No but I'll bet my left nutsack that it has cultural significance.

[FaxModem1]

Oh darn, could a mod move this to the Trek forum?

[Sarevok]

Worf is also pretty important. A Klingon raised with human values and serving in Starfleet is a great diplomatic asset. If wearing a sash helps him relate to his people better then more power to him.

[Crazedwraith]

Oddly, Nog and Rom also got to wear Ferengi headdress in their uniforms colours. And that's probably not of great cultural or religious significance to them. Or at least if it was, it was never really elaborated upon.

UFP: will respect the fashion sense of other cultures...

[Sarevok]

Eh being multi cultural IS a big part of the whole Federation shtick.

[Azron_Stoma]

Personally I found the whole forcing them to take off the earring thing to be offensive and hypocritical, but that's me.

[Darth Tedious]

I also think Tisroc is right on with one small exception- while I'd agree that not wearing dangly earrings makes sense on a military vessel, they did also have kids on board... I don't think I'll ever understand what they were thinking there.

The funniest thing about the wrong forum thing is, a mod has been here, and didn't move it!

[Connor MacLeod]

it could be political. Things in the late TNG era were pretty prickly when it came to the CArdassians, and Bajor was definitely a factor there. Given how they dealt with the CArdassians in certain cases (leading to the Maquis problem) it could be that the discrimination against Ro was politically motivated because she was Bajoran.

It probably also didn't help that Bajoran religion was one of the big headaches to the Federation in DS9 (either Sisko being the prophet, or in Bajor's inclusion into the Federation.)

In another vein, allowing Worf to wear his sash may be intended to be a positive sign to the Klingons, who are a powerful and politically important ally through much of TNG and DS9.

[TOSDOC]

Worf could have earned his sash somehow, rather than it be just a cultural statement. In either case, he then could have applied to Starfleet for, and been granted, special dispensation to wear it as part of the duty uniform. Such permission would be part of his permanent record and dossier for future commanding officers, and this can set precedent for future cases of people serving in the fleet, especially new Fed members. The Bajorans might simply not have explained to Starfleet the significance of their jewelry yet, which means no permission so far as Riker was concerned (i.e. doing his job as executive).

I've seen the dangers and consequences of wearing dangling jewelry in the workplace. Not a good idea.

[Purple]

I've seen the dangers and consequences of wearing dangling jewelry in the workplace. Not a good idea.

Just for the record, what exactly are these dangers?
I have seen multiple people on this thread mention them but somehow I can't imagine anything on the bridge of the big E that the earing could catch on.

[Simon_Jester]

If you work with your head near moving objects, dangling jewelry can get caught in the moving object. If the moving object is heavy machinery, this may result in bits of you being ripped off, or in something getting drawn around your wrist/neck/whatever tightly enough to strangle/cripple/amputate body parts.

This can also happen with intense magnetic fields, which might for all I know be an issue on a starship.

None of this is necessarily a problem on the bridge, but in general, shipboard uniform regulations are set by what you need to operate in the dangerous parts of the ship. In an emergency, pretty much anyone may be needed to help with damage control or the like, so the uniform will be governed by what it's safe to wear under those conditions.

[Stofsk]

I doubt it's a big problem on the Enterprise or any star trek ship really. I never got the impression there were industrial machines onboard or rather machines which employed moving parts the likes of which Simon describes. Even if there were, it takes like a second to remove the earring and put it away.

EDIT

The funniest thing about the wrong forum thing is, a mod has been here, and didn't move it!

Thanas is the mod of N&P, poor devil, and I don't know if any mod can move it or he just doesn't want to step on Vympel's toes.

[Vympel]

Moved. Jeez, stop yer whinging.

[Stofsk]

I told him to do it.

[lstyer]

Didn't the Bajoran earrings have some religious significance? I'm pretty sure Worf's sash wasn't religious.

No but I'll bet my left nutsack that it has cultural significance.

As far as I can remember, prior to Worf, the only Klingons we saw wearing sashes were in command positions. Worf pretty clearly wasn't in any kind of command position, at least in Season 1. That said, of the "Big Three" Klingon commanders from TOS, Kor and Kang wore the sash, but Koloth didn't, so maybe it didn't have anything to do do with holding a command position. I'm kind of curious what it was originally meant to signify.

[Skylon]

As far as I can remember, prior to Worf, the only Klingons we saw wearing sashes were in command positions. Worf pretty clearly wasn't in any kind of command position, at least in Season 1. That said, of the "Big Three" Klingon commanders from TOS, Kor and Kang wore the sash, but Koloth didn't, so maybe it didn't have anything to do do with holding a command position. I'm kind of curious what it was originally meant to signify.

Likewise the Klingon Captain in TMP was sporting a sash of sorts. Worf's season 1 sash is actually damn close, if not the same as the one worn by Kor and Kang.

I always figured it had signified ones family. Maybe it represents belonging to a noble house?

To sidestep for a moment also, this conversation reminded me why I hated the introduction episode for Ensign Ro (and actually, was never too fond of the character). Suddenly the crew of the good ship Enterprise turn into utter dickheads. The earring bit was the most extreme example. Normally I wouldn't mind some tension (as there should be considering she had disobeyed orders and gotten people killed), but instead it came across as so jarring it all just seemed out of character.

[JME2]

I always assumed Worf had incriminating photos of a Starfleet muckety muck and was blackmailing him/her/it into letting him wear the sash.

Seriously, I always assumed it represented a Klingon Noble House too.