Transporter Morality

Uraniun235 · Post by **Uraniun235** » 2002-11-14 11:53pm

Mike has an essay on his site, one part of which tells us how the morality/spirituality/etc. of a body being completely broken down and reassembled is never raised within ST.

Perhaps by the time of TOS, the major arguments had been resolved, but there were still a few stubborn people like McCoy. One would think such an issue would eventually be resolved. Granted, there might always be people who objected, but I doubt that many would ever serve on a starship.

There is also the possibility of ignorance regarding the mechanism of the transporter. Hell, a lot of people today have no concept of how a microwave oven works. With Starfleet probably pushing PR campaigns expounding the 'virtues' of the transporter, it's quite possible a lot of civilians don't know or don't care about how the transporter works.

The Starfleet personnel are either brainwashed into accepting that it's good, or they already believe that anyway thanks to a) the PR campaigns, as mentioned above, or b) the pro-transporter faction largely won in the debates that probably *immediately* followed the suggestion that a man be sent through a transporter.

data_link · Post by **data_link** » 2002-11-15 02:02am

Or, the possibility that people in the Federation have lost all capability for truly independent thought. BTW - this might actually make Feddie communism work. If everyone is too stupid to question the Federation's official stance on anything, then they'll never figure out what's wrong with working for nothing.

Alferd Packer · Post by **Alferd Packer** » 2002-11-15 02:23am

Maybe they've successfully argued the fact that there is no God, and no afterlife either. By this, they could say, death's importance is only what you attach to it. Yes, transporting is a process of death and cloning. But your own subjective consciousness will remain unbroken, so it's not so bad.

Eh, maybe? I just pulled that out of my butt. But then again, that's how most of Trek seems to be written, so....

neoolong · Post by **neoolong** » 2002-11-15 02:24am

data_link wrote:Or, the possibility that people in the Federation have lost all capability for truly independent thought. BTW - this might actually make Feddie communism work. If everyone is too stupid to question the Federation's official stance on anything, then they'll never figure out what's wrong with working for nothing.

Hey, they work and live on ships that are deathtraps. How smart could they possibly be?

The Dark · Post by **The Dark** » 2002-11-15 02:35am

They've mentioned that they're no longer religious (well, exaggerating a bit...there was a comment about Christianity no longer existing, which suggests to me that most other religions would perish also, as their moral and eschatological codes are similar). This would suggest that they also don't believe in a soul (of course, neither do I) and that they would not consider the teleporter to be killing and resurrecting them, but merely transferring them from one location to another.

It is a rather chilling idea, though...how would you know if it did alter you mentally?

Slartibartfast · Post by **Slartibartfast** » 2002-11-15 03:01am

Well they did make a big fuss about the proto-vulcans finally ditching their beliefs about gods and myths, and when the scientist guys suggested they worshipped "The Picard" they didn't want to cause such regression.

guyver · Post by **guyver** » 2002-11-15 09:35am

I think I will stick to a Dr McCoy

I do not like them

pecker · Post by **pecker** » 2002-11-15 11:51am

Maybe, just maybe, transporters don't kill people. I mean, aren't people conscious through the entire proces?

pecker · Post by **pecker** » 2002-11-15 11:51am

The Dark wrote:They've mentioned that they're no longer religious (well, exaggerating a bit...there was a comment about Christianity no longer existing, which suggests to me that most other religions would perish also, as their moral and eschatological codes are similar). This would suggest that they also don't believe in a soul (of course, neither do I) and that they would not consider the teleporter to be killing and resurrecting them, but merely transferring them from one location to another.

It is a rather chilling idea, though...how would you know if it did alter you mentally?

They don't beleive in souls, but they believe in 'life forces' up the wazoo

Yogi · Post by **Yogi** » 2002-11-15 11:54am

If I recall correctly, most of the matter in your body is consantly being discarded and replaced. However, you remain the same.

Also, one DOES remain conscious while in a transporter beam.

pecker · Post by **pecker** » 2002-11-15 11:56am

Yogi wrote:If I recall correctly, most of the matter in your body is consantly being discarded and replaced. However, you remain the same.

Also, one DOES remain conscious while in a transporter beam.

It may simply be the way a transporter works places them in a sort of stasis. I mean, if someone was in stasis, and you cut off his head then reattached it, would he really have been dead?

Uraniun235 · Post by **Uraniun235** » 2002-11-15 04:32pm

I saw it as consciousness continuing right up until the final dematerialization... then it's frozen in place, until transmission and reconstruction is complete, at which point consciousness resumes from where it was.

I didn't see it as death.

My original point is that by TNG, such debates would have been *old*.

pecker · Post by **pecker** » 2002-11-15 05:40pm

Uraniun235 wrote:I saw it as consciousness continuing right up until the final dematerialization... then it's frozen in place, until transmission and reconstruction is complete, at which point consciousness resumes from where it was.

I didn't see it as death.

My original point is that by TNG, such debates would have been *old*.

I really doubt that anybody dies. I mean, not once does anyone mention that they die and are reborn. It's purely a viewer-made idea. In reality, we have no idea WHAT happens.

Raptor 597 · Post by **Raptor 597** » 2002-11-15 05:45pm

In my analysis Feddie Communism is a pussification of the 1984 ideal, they're just Commie Hippies.

pecker · Post by **pecker** » 2002-11-15 05:49pm

Captain Lennox wrote:In my analysis Feddie Communism is a pussification of the 1984 ideal, they're just Commie Hippies.

It's technically not Communism, since nobody actually works