Star Trek IV and Environmental Ethics.
In this episode of Meta Treks: A Star Trek Philosophy
Podcast, hosts Mike Morrison and Zachary Fruhling explore the
issues of animal rights and environmental ethics in Star
Trek IV: The Voyage Home. In the wake of a recent announcement
that Sea World is ceasing its captive orca (killer whale) breeding
program, Mike and Zachary consider the possible justification for
considering whales (and fire ants!) as beings entitled to moral
consideration. From whale consciousness and intelligence, to
whales' ability to feel pain, to whale pods and the ethics of care,
Mike and Zachary have a whale of a time discussing environmental
ethics down in Cetacean Ops.
Chapters
Welcome to Episode 22 and Initial Thoughts (00:01:10)
Changing Sensibilities - Whale Shows and Breeding in Captivity
(00:04:56)
Synopsis of Star Trek IV: The Voyage
Home (00:10:00)
Whale Consciousness and Intelligence - Kantian Ethics
(00:12:22)
Whale Pain and Pleasure - Utilitarian Ethics (00:22:27)
Whale Communication - The Turing Test (00:26:43)
The Environmental Movement and the Biosphere as a Whole
(00:35:10)
Critiquing the Romanticism of Nature (00:42:03)
The Value of Nature - Intrinsic Value vs. Usefulness for Humans
(00:46:12)
Whale Pods and Care Ethics (00:50:02)
Animal Ethics and the Burden of Proof (00:52:39)
Sentimentalism - Warm Fuzzy Whales vs. Fire Ants and Snakes
(00:57:29)
Rewriting Star Trek IV - "Save the Fire Ants!"
(1:02:48)
Final Thoughts (01:03:24)
Hosts
Mike Morrison and Zachary
Fruhling
Production
Dennis Castello (Editor and
Producer) Norman C. Lao (Executive Producer) C Bryan Jones
(Executive Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer) Charlynn
Schmiedt (Executive Producer) Patrick Devlin (Associate Producer)
Will Nguyen (Content Manager) Richard Marquez (Production
Manager)
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Manu Intiraymi.
In this episode of Meta Treks, we're joined by Manu
Intiraymi, also known as "Icheb" on Star Trek: Voyager.
Together we talk about Manu's experiences joining the
Voyager cast, the role of Icheb in the Voyager
family, and the evolution of Icheb's character in the fan film
Star Trek: Renegades. We also talk about Manu's latest
film project, The Circuit, a multi-genre anthology film
starring several Star Trek alumni. We conclude with some
philosophical musings on the best and worst of human nature, and
with some final thoughts on the differences and similarities
between Manu the person and Icheb the fictional character.
Chapters
Welcome to Episode 21 (00:01:10)
Introducing Manu Intiraymi (00:04:10)
A Clint Eastwood Story (00:05:03)
Joining the Voyager Cast (00:07:32)
Icheb and the Voyager Family (00:11:56)
The Meaningfulness of Being in Star Trek (00:18:40)
Character Evolution for Icheb in Renegades
(00:25:21)
Future Directions for Star Trek (00:29:40)
The Best and Worst of Human Nature (00:35:44)
The Convention Scene and The Circuit (00:38:28)
Acting vs. Producing (00:47:15)
The Concept of The Circuit (00:51:39)
Following Manu and The Circuit on Social Media
(00:59:47)
Final Thoughts - Manu the Person vs. Icheb the Character
(01:02:36)
Preemptive War and Star Trek Into Darkness.
Star Trek has a long tradition of dealing with ethical,
social, and political issues in the real world, and Star Trek Into
Darkness is no different. One of the most important issues in the
world today is how far a society should go to protect itself. What
freedoms should we be willing to give up for sake of safety and
security? Should a government be allowed to spy on its own
citizens? And is it morally and ethically permissible to start a
preemptive war with a real or perceived enemy? Star Trek Into
Darkness tackles this last question head-on through Admiral
Marcus's attempt to start a preemptive war against the Klingons. In
this episode of Meta Treks: A Star Trek Philosophy
Podcast, hosts Mike Morrison and Zachary Fruhling examine the
ethical issue of preemptive war as the principle ethical dilemma in
Star Trek Into Darkness.
Chapters
Welcome to Episode 20 (00:01:07)
Preemptive War and Star Trek Into Darkness
(00:03:12)
The Portrayal of Khan (00:07:28)
Synopsis of Star Trek Into Darkness (00:09:38)
Star Trek Into Darkness and the Post-9/11 World
(00:11:52)
Preemptive War - Consequentialism vs. Care Ethics (00:20:14)
The Trolley Problem, a.k.a. The Shuttlecraft Problem
(00:28:27)
Preemptive War and Deontological/Kantian Ethics (00:38:08)
Militarism and Fear of the Klingons (00:40:34)
Final Thoughts (00:53:39)
Hermeneutics in Star
Trek.
Hermeneutics is the art and science of meaning and textual
interpretation. In this episode of Meta Treks: A Star Trek
Philosophy Podcast, hosts Zachary Fruhling and Mike Morrison
discuss issues of meaning and interpretation in Star Trek.
From how to interpret Bajoran sacred texts and prophecies, to the
interpretation of Federation law and Starfleet regulations, to the
meaning of the Star Trek franchise itself for us today,
Zachary and Mike cover a range of philosophical issues related to
meaning in Star Trek, such as: original meaning vs. new
interpretations, literal meaning vs. metaphorical meaning, the
relationship between interpretation and hierarchical power
structures, changes in meaning due to evolving language, and
various analytical techniques used in hermeneutics.
Chapters