Earl Grey 115: Mr. President, Tear Down This Neutral Zone

Debate: Is Starfleet Military or Exploration? There are fan arguments that have been debated since Star Trek: The Next Generation first aired on television - Who is the better Enterprise captain? Which starship would win in a fight? Is Starfleet a military or exploratory organization? Earl Grey tackles this last question for this week's episode and attempts to explore (or militarize!) the answer.Phillip moderates the debate that examines the origins of Starfleet in the 22nd and 23rd Century, as well as how it is portrayed in the 24th century. Darren powers up the phaser array and loads the torpedo tubes for his arguments that Starfleet is a military organization. From its use of naval ranks, a chain of command, weapons, patrols of Federation space, and the use of Starfleet personnel as soldiers in the "bloody, bloody" Cardassian War, we see an organization that is similar to the armed services of the 21st Century. Daniel, Mr. Blue Shirt himself, explains how Starfleet is a futuristic NASA, with its focus on scientific missions, a Starfleet Academy that instructs its people on science and enginnering principles, and how its mantra is literally to "explore strange, new worlds."Join this episode of Earl Grey, as these #BridgeMates name drop Zefram Cochrane at the drop of a tequila glass in order to prove their points, and finally put to rest whether Starfleet is a military or exploratory organization.HostsDaniel Proulx, Phillip Gilfus, & Darren MoserEditor / ProducerDarren MoserExecutive ProducersNorman C. Lao, Matthew Rushing, & C Bryan Jones Production Manager Richard Marquez   Content Manager Will Nguyen ChaptersThe Fan Debate (00:03:13)Bolian Contingent (00:06:57) 24th Century Starfleet/TNG (00:09:23) 23rd Century Starfleet (00:20:27)Military Starlet (00:23:54) Exploration Starfleet (00:35:30)Admirals? (00:48:27) Final Thoughts (00:50:70) Send us your feedback! Twitter: @trekfm Facebook: http://facebook.com/trekfm Voicemail: http://www.speakpipe.com/trekfm Contact Form: http://www.trek.fm/contact Visit the Trek.fm website at http://trek.fm/ Subscribe in iTunes: http://itunes.com/trekfm Support the Network! Become a Trek.fm Patron on Patreon and help us keep our shows coming to you every week. We have great perks for you at http://patreon.com/trekfm