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Something That Must Have Happened...
collegepark2151
Member Posts: 0 Arc User
So I was just in the Regulus Sector helping to dispatch another Borg command ship when I was struck by how often the Borg will start off just asking you lower your shields and surrender willingly instead of just zapping you right off. One would assume that this must have worked at some point. I think it may have gone something like this:
Borg Collective (probably like three ships total at the time, maybe a Borg Princess or Lady-in-Waiting or something, but definitely no Queen): Lower your shields and surrender your ships. We will add your technological and biological distinctiveness to our own.
Species 001: Duh, ok.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is why the Borg always just ask before firing. Just think, if that first species had just said, "No, thank you. I don't think so." so much devastation could have been avoided. :eek:
I think this also points to the Pakleds as being the first species to be assimilated.
Borg Collective (probably like three ships total at the time, maybe a Borg Princess or Lady-in-Waiting or something, but definitely no Queen): Lower your shields and surrender your ships. We will add your technological and biological distinctiveness to our own.
Species 001: Duh, ok.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is why the Borg always just ask before firing. Just think, if that first species had just said, "No, thank you. I don't think so." so much devastation could have been avoided. :eek:
I think this also points to the Pakleds as being the first species to be assimilated.
[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
Porthos is not amused.
Post edited by collegepark2151 on
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"Critics who say that the optimistic utopia Star Trek depicted is now outmoded forget the cultural context that gave birth to it: Star Trek was not a manifestation of optimism when optimism was easy. Star Trek declared a hope for a future that nobody stuck in the present could believe in. For all our struggles today, we haven’t outgrown the need for stories like Star Trek. We need tales of optimism, of heroes, of courage and goodness now as much as we’ve ever needed them."
-Thomas Marrone
[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
And already, we join our children to the Facebook Collective from the moment they are born, complete with pictures and daily personal logs of eat sleep cry TRIBBLE...
"Last Engage! Magical Girl Origami-san" is in print! Now with three times more rainbows.
Support the "Armored Unicorn" vehicle initiative today!
Thanks for Harajuku. Now let's get a real "Magical Girl" costume!
Just be sure to include lots of silly hats or something...
I attribute this to their belief in the numerical and technological superiority of the collective. When you believe you have overwhelming advantage, it makes sense to see if your enemy will surrender instead of being destroyed. Plus, for all we know, there might be some desperate people out there who think they need assimilation to survive, not realising what will happen once they join the Borg. People can make strange decisions when under duress or facing certain defeat.
Join Date: Sept 2008
"Holographic tissue paper for the holographic runny nose. Don't give them to patients." - The Doctor
If you don't know what the Borg are all about surrender would make an awful lot of sense in that situation.
That said it's not entirely one-sided. For instance, I would imagine that most captains with a brain in their head, upon seeing that the ship is lost and escape is unlikely, would activate the auto-destruct with a VERY short delay to both spare the crew from being taken by the Borg and to deny the Borg the advantage of an intact ship and new drones.
For what it's worth I think it may be due to Borg arrogance - the Borg strike me as, for all their smarts, being very STUPID in some ways. I think that their intelligence has the advantage of, "Nobody is as smart as all of us," and the corresponding disadvantage of, "Nobody is as stupid as all of us."
Plus, it seems that at least some Borg, with what little thought they have, cannot fathom why anyone would NOT want to be Borg. (See: Hugh) This would be particularly the case for those that were assimilated as babies that likely had little to no identity to fight back and little to no frame of reference as to how things might be any different. As such, they may wish to tell the frightened, foolish individuals that their saviors have come, just hold tight and we'll fix you right up!
It's worth noting that in the first contact with the Federation the Borg were only interested in their technology and not the individuals themselves. I don't recall them giving any ultimatum to the crew at all.
Join Date: Sept 2008
"Holographic tissue paper for the holographic runny nose. Don't give them to patients." - The Doctor
It's not arrogance, it's a pretty universal fact among humans (and all the Star Trek races are some kind of human allegory, even the Borg) that we have difficulty understanding why anyone wouldn't think the way we do. They obviously have nothing but malice in their hearts if they would actually say something so unrepentantly evil as not my exact thoughts. Watch political pundits on TV for a demonstration.
You actually see the same thing a few times in Star Trek (and by a few times I mean every time the crew encounters somebody new and still lingering in most of their dealings with familiar foes) - sometimes in reverse (not understanding why a disconnected drone would want to return to the only thing they knew). Best other example is probably the female changeling. Any thought except belonging to the Link was alien to her. She didn't just assume Odo felt the same, she actually spoke as if she believed solids felt that way too. That all their discord, conflict, distrust, and resistance would simply vanish if they could join the way changelings did.
They did. "We have analyzed your defensive capabilities as being unable to withstand us. If you defend yourselves, you will be punished." It's not the classic line from almost every other appearance, but it's the same basic intent: Hope is lost, surrender still an option.
Now, the Enterprise was the technological marvel of its time and the Federation was arguably the master of their part of the galaxy at that point - their alliance with the Klingons discouraging anyone who might want to test that. That encounter looks a lot different if you're playing from a less secure position.
Imagine if you were one of the aliens Voyager met - Voyager's tech well exceeded most of the Delta Quadrant races', and it outclassed most of the threats it met despite not being top of the line. When you're barely warp capable and the lost ship wandering through your territory has still seen more of your local space than you have, this match up looks a lot different.
Facebook is the origin of the Borg? It would explain so much. The hive mind is just a way of sharing photos faster.
Ah your right, now I remember! It's been a while since I saw "Q Who."
Join Date: Sept 2008
"Holographic tissue paper for the holographic runny nose. Don't give them to patients." - The Doctor
The original name was Faceborg.
[Kluless][Kold][Steel Heels][Snagtooth]
[Louis Cipher][Outta Gum][Thysa Kymbo][Spanner][Frakk]
[D'Mented][D'Licious]
Joined October 2009. READ BEFORE POSTING
LMAO, that's too funny I nearly p*ssed myself.
As a Canadian I say eh?
CRUISERS NEED A 206% HULL BUFF
To paraphrase Hawkeye Pierce
"Why are you shooting at us? All we want to give you is white bread, democracy and indoor plumbing."
Actual Join Date : Feb 2010
[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
Borg Collective : Lower your shields and surrender your ships. We will add your technological and biological distinctiveness to our own.
Pakled 1: "We are smart....."
Borg Collective : yes..*cough*..resistance is futlile, lower your shields and prepare to be assimilated, from this day forward you will service...the Borg...
Pakled 2: "I make ship go fast..."
Borg Collective : riiiiiiight..... we have analysed your defensive capabilities and ... errr.....is your daddy home?.....
Pakled 3:"I make ship go boom..."
Borg Collective : errrm ... sorry...we have the wrong number.....*click*
You're probably not that much off track.
The Borg deemed the Kazon unworthy of assimilation. They at least had the ability to maintian the tech they've stolen, so it's very unlikely the borg would even touch the Pakled.
Hmm... maybe the Borg learned from the Pakleds not to assimilate everything they come across.