Tag Archive for: Captain Kirk

Save the World: Someone’s Gotta Do It

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Are you tired of feeling helpless in the face of global crises? Are you tired of watching the news and feeling like there’s nothing you can do to save the world?

Well, have no fear, my fellow dreamers — for I have discovered the ultimate solution to all of our problems: fictional heroes. That’s right, you heard me correctly: Fictional. Heroes.

Now, I know what you’re thinking: But wait a minute — fictional heroes aren’t real! How can they possibly save the world?

Let me explain.

Fictional heroes have the power to inspire us in ways that real people can’t. Listen up. They embody the values and ideals that we all hold dear, and they show us that even in the darkest of times, there is always hope. They give us the courage to stand up for what’s right, even when it feels like the whole world is against us. And perhaps most importantly, they give us something to believe in. Truth, justice, and the American way comes to mind.

 

Let’s take a look at another example. And you know what? Let’s think big. How about saving not just our world, but many worlds?

Kirk saves the world(s)Ever hear of Star Trek’s Captain Kirk? He may be a fictional Starfleet captain, but he inspired interest in the exploration of space. The exciting discovery of new worlds is a goal that all of humanity can unite behind. At present, the utopian-but-fictional United Federation of Planets (UFP) seems like the closest we can come to an interplanetary society. But whether or not we colonize outer space, the UFP’s values would go a long way to saving the world we know.

 

 

 

 

 

Cord Devlin takes this to heart. His valuable assistance to U.S. intelligence has helped save the world on more than one occasion.

Now, I know what you’re thinking: Wait a minute. Those examples are from movies, TV shows and novels, not real life. How can they possibly help us in the real world? Well, my dear naysayers, let me tell you something: the line between fiction and reality is blurrier than you might think. Fictional heroes have already inspired real behaviors.

 

 

 

 

Hercules inspired modern athletics. Sherlock Holmes revolutionized police procedures. Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon inspired Apollo astronauts. I could go on, but the stories that fictional heroes star in can be powerful tools for education and activism.

So how can you use fictional heroes to save the world?

It’s simple: watch their shows and movies, and let their examples inspire you to take action. Get involved in causes you care about, and don’t be afraid to speak out against injustice. Remember that even small acts of kindness can make a huge difference. And most importantly, always remember that hope is the greatest weapon we have against despair.

 

The world may be a dark and scary place, but with the help of fictional heroes, we can make it a little brighter. So go forth, my friends, and save the world. And remember: even if the world doesn’t  change perceptibly, you will.

And that is the most important thing of all.

The End

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Does Absolute Power Corrupt Absolutely?

Do you know where the title of this piece comes from? No, it wasn’t Star Trek. It was first uttered by Sir John Dalberg-Acton, a European Baronet from 1837 to 1869. But in my opinion, it was never uttered more powerfully than in the Star Trek: The Original Series episode Where No Man Has Gone Before.

In that show, the starship Enterprise attempts to penetrate an energy barrier at the edge of our galaxy, in order to discover the fate of a previous expedition. They failed, and were lucky to extract themselves from the barrier without blowing up. With the ship badly damaged, they decide to limp to an automated facility on the uninhabited planet Delta Vega and attempt repairs. As a result of their contact with the energy barrier, Captain Kirk’s friend Gary Mitchell (he of the glowing eyes) seems to have developed telekinetic abilities. And they’re growing every day.

An ever-more-powerful Gary eventually decides that the ship and its crew aren’t worth his caring. Before he can take over, however, Kirk and Spock manhandle him down to the planet’s surface. There, they imprison him as they cannibalize the station to fix the ship’s warp drive.

But it wouldn’t be a show if everything went smoothly; Gary escapes. He takes a female psychiatrist, Dr. Elizabeth Dehner, with him after he converts her into a godlike being as well.

Recognizing a threat to the whole of humanity, Kirk follows Mitchell with a phaser rifle — like that’s going to kill him!

During their confrontation, which Kirk is losing, he turns to Dehner and asks: “Do you like what you see? Absolute power corrupting absolutely.” Pause there.

Let’s think about this for a minute. If you were suddenly given godlike powers, how would you behave? Would you respect the same things? Would you respect human life, for instance?

My guess is that it would depend on your individual makeup.

 

I created a character, Cord Devlin, who also comes by near-absolute power in Ghosts of Forgotten Empires. He’s an intelligence freelancer, and his handlers at the CIA wonder if he can be trusted. Like Gary Mitchell, they know he faces a similar moral dilemma. Will he be corrupted? Will he lose respect for humanity? They deploy him anyway, because they don’t have any other way to counter an enemy that’s also armed with unearthly powers.

In addition to Cord’s suspect loyalty, he also has an inexplicable preoccupation with Star Trek. It does, however, provide him with a moral compass and typically restrains him from causing undue destruction. But would some personally-held ideal of human behavior be enough to restrict his darker impulses? The stakes are high, given his newfound abilities to annihilate.

 

Kirk defeats the corrupted Gary by using his phaser rifle to dislodge several tons of rock from above. The rocks fall on Gary while he’s conveniently standing in a grave he meant for Kirk. Problem solved, and humanity is safe from Kirk’s former friend.

So does absolute power corrupt absolutely? Who can know, judging by the experiences of a couple of fictional characters? But it’s a worthy thought experiment.

 

Do you know anyone who is typically virtuous? How do you think they’d behave, given absolute power?

 

The End

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