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<blockquote data-quote="Man in the Funny Hat" data-source="post: 7050617" data-attributes="member: 32740"><p>People in Star Trek typically want for nothing - but not always. And even though their needs are generally met quite capably, they have appreciation for things that are made by other people, not replicators. If a character has a choice between a suit made by a replicator and a suit made by an actual tailor - they'll generally WANT the tailor-made one, but will use a replicator to make it if they have to. If they have a choice between a meal prepared by an actual living cook and a replicated meal with all the recommended daily nutrition values they'll typically opt for the manually prepared meal.</p><p></p><p>However, people don't generally sew clothing, cook meals, or whatever in anticipation of monetary payment. They do so because of the satisfaction found in doing the work and the appreciation of those who benefit from that work.</p><p></p><p>But that's only within the confines of the heart of the Federation and on planets that are FULL MEMBERS of the Federation because it does not have a monetary economy (at least not by TNG era; iirc, in TOS era there are still references to credits). Planets that have been contacted by the Federation and that want to join are expected to wean themselves off their old economies before being finally accepted - economies which would be WRECKED by sudden introduction into a universe of replicators anyway. They have to demonstrate that at least as a society they have adapted to the Federation's level of technology AND have learned how to live with it without abusing it (though obviously individuals are still going to be problems).</p><p></p><p>At the edges of the Federation there are other governments that still do operate with monetary economies. To interact with them on an economic level generally means that at the fringes there are Federation worlds that operate on both levels at once. These are the places where, for example, federation facilities would deal in latinum (that being a currency made of a material that can't be replicated).</p><p></p><p>Colonies within the Federation are established for various reasons, few of which are actually economic. They may want to exercise alternative political or religious ideals. Colonies, especially in early stages, would need to then be largely self-sufficient with minimal or no modern tech making it possible. The Federation still fully supports some colonies, typically because they will produce goods and materials of use within the Federation or provide people new places to live.</p><p></p><p>People in the Federation also recognize the need to do work of value even in a society where you don't need to work to get food and shelter, so they work at jobs that need doing and that give them satisfaction as a result, not because they get paid for it. Traders and merchants travelling around the Federation are going to be mostly TRADERS. They'd barter a lot more than SELL things. If they do SELL things then the payment would need to be in the form of something that they know where to exchange again for something of value - and they're not going to BUY much while deep inside the Federation. Travelling traders and merchants will be travelling to those outlying and isolated worlds that still have market needs not provided for by the Federation, whether that's by their own choice or various aforementioned circumstances.</p><p></p><p>The OP seems to be talking about putting the entire Federation on a command/planned economic model and that just is weird to me except as a mirror-universe sort of thing. Roddenberry's vision of a future world without money is SO futuristic it's the equivalent of magic - just like the technology which is so advanced that it makes it even possible. I still question that it would be possible even WITH such technology given the nature of man (not to mention the potential TRULY alien nature of aliens), but it's a pleasant pipe-dream at least. But that fantasy economy is part and parcel of what makes the Federation the Federation. I don't quite see how it's really still going to be Star Trek if you move from a Socialist Utopia economy to one that is simply dictated from the top-down. You can still have a fun game based on that but it feels a lot less StarTrekIsh.</p><p></p><p>That said, I've mentioned before that I think it would be an interesting show/series of movies that explored those FRINGES of the Federation where Starfleet in particular did not feature in any prominent role, and where the Socialist Utopia still ran into holdover issues from old-style economies of various member worlds. For example, what if PC's were policemen on a planet that was NOT a Federation member, but where Federation technology was being smuggled in? How would their old-style economy and society deal with the issues created?</p><p></p><p>Note also that across all the Trek shows and series, Mr. R's socialist utopia seems to be plagued with the fact that the nature of Man does not change, even if he changes his outward circumstances so radically. There are still ruthless, unethical, violent, evil people everywhere. There kind of has to be bad guys in and around the Utopia or else the show has no dramatic tension beyond taming the monster of the week.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Man in the Funny Hat, post: 7050617, member: 32740"] People in Star Trek typically want for nothing - but not always. And even though their needs are generally met quite capably, they have appreciation for things that are made by other people, not replicators. If a character has a choice between a suit made by a replicator and a suit made by an actual tailor - they'll generally WANT the tailor-made one, but will use a replicator to make it if they have to. If they have a choice between a meal prepared by an actual living cook and a replicated meal with all the recommended daily nutrition values they'll typically opt for the manually prepared meal. However, people don't generally sew clothing, cook meals, or whatever in anticipation of monetary payment. They do so because of the satisfaction found in doing the work and the appreciation of those who benefit from that work. But that's only within the confines of the heart of the Federation and on planets that are FULL MEMBERS of the Federation because it does not have a monetary economy (at least not by TNG era; iirc, in TOS era there are still references to credits). Planets that have been contacted by the Federation and that want to join are expected to wean themselves off their old economies before being finally accepted - economies which would be WRECKED by sudden introduction into a universe of replicators anyway. They have to demonstrate that at least as a society they have adapted to the Federation's level of technology AND have learned how to live with it without abusing it (though obviously individuals are still going to be problems). At the edges of the Federation there are other governments that still do operate with monetary economies. To interact with them on an economic level generally means that at the fringes there are Federation worlds that operate on both levels at once. These are the places where, for example, federation facilities would deal in latinum (that being a currency made of a material that can't be replicated). Colonies within the Federation are established for various reasons, few of which are actually economic. They may want to exercise alternative political or religious ideals. Colonies, especially in early stages, would need to then be largely self-sufficient with minimal or no modern tech making it possible. The Federation still fully supports some colonies, typically because they will produce goods and materials of use within the Federation or provide people new places to live. People in the Federation also recognize the need to do work of value even in a society where you don't need to work to get food and shelter, so they work at jobs that need doing and that give them satisfaction as a result, not because they get paid for it. Traders and merchants travelling around the Federation are going to be mostly TRADERS. They'd barter a lot more than SELL things. If they do SELL things then the payment would need to be in the form of something that they know where to exchange again for something of value - and they're not going to BUY much while deep inside the Federation. Travelling traders and merchants will be travelling to those outlying and isolated worlds that still have market needs not provided for by the Federation, whether that's by their own choice or various aforementioned circumstances. The OP seems to be talking about putting the entire Federation on a command/planned economic model and that just is weird to me except as a mirror-universe sort of thing. Roddenberry's vision of a future world without money is SO futuristic it's the equivalent of magic - just like the technology which is so advanced that it makes it even possible. I still question that it would be possible even WITH such technology given the nature of man (not to mention the potential TRULY alien nature of aliens), but it's a pleasant pipe-dream at least. But that fantasy economy is part and parcel of what makes the Federation the Federation. I don't quite see how it's really still going to be Star Trek if you move from a Socialist Utopia economy to one that is simply dictated from the top-down. You can still have a fun game based on that but it feels a lot less StarTrekIsh. That said, I've mentioned before that I think it would be an interesting show/series of movies that explored those FRINGES of the Federation where Starfleet in particular did not feature in any prominent role, and where the Socialist Utopia still ran into holdover issues from old-style economies of various member worlds. For example, what if PC's were policemen on a planet that was NOT a Federation member, but where Federation technology was being smuggled in? How would their old-style economy and society deal with the issues created? Note also that across all the Trek shows and series, Mr. R's socialist utopia seems to be plagued with the fact that the nature of Man does not change, even if he changes his outward circumstances so radically. There are still ruthless, unethical, violent, evil people everywhere. There kind of has to be bad guys in and around the Utopia or else the show has no dramatic tension beyond taming the monster of the week. [/QUOTE]
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