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Surax

Missed Opportunity

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Way back when the Original Series was on the air, having Chekov was big because of the Cold War and having Uhura was big because of the treatment of Blacks. I think that in the upcoming episode, Daedalus, the producers had an opportunity to use an Arab be the inventor of the transporter, much in the same way that Richard Daystrom was Black. However, someone dropped the ball on this, which is somewhat disappointing.

 

Any thoughts?

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It would not have been a bad idea, but to be honest myself I do not really pay much attention to nationality on Trek, it is not really that important to me.

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Yeah, I usually don't care where they came from either

295894[/snapback]

 

I have just never found it to be a very important point, either in Trek or in real life, to me a persons nationality does not determine the person inside.

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I also agree about a person's nationality not being a big deal to me. I grew up in a diverse place and Trek is very ethnically diverse as well.

 

I just never notice that sort of stuff because I think of all people as just people. They may be nice, they may be mean, but we're all just people.

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The nationality was never that important to me (except for Chief O' Brien, my follow Irishman) as it always seemed that racism and prejudice on Earth had been eradicated.

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Let's wait and see how the episode plays out. The storyline may have been such that

a racial issue would have overshadowed themes intended to be central to the story.

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Way back when the Original Series was on the air, having Chekov was big because of the Cold War and having Uhura was big because of the treatment of Blacks.  I think that in the upcoming episode, Daedalus, the producers had an opportunity to use an Arab be the inventor of the transporter, much in the same way that Richard Daystrom was Black.  However, someone dropped the ball on this, which is somewhat disappointing.

 

Any thoughts?

295373[/snapback]

 

Yes Surax I agree they dropped the ball. One important aspect of Trek has always been about showing that we survived our past. As you made example of Chekov and how his presence proved we got through the Cold War in one piece so would having an Arab playing this role show the War on Terror was overcome. Tptb don't seem to carry the same edge they used to...

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Yes Surax I agree they dropped the ball. One important aspect of Trek has always been about showing that we survived our past. As you made example of Chekov and how his presence proved we got through the Cold War in one piece so would having an Arab playing this role show the War on Terror was overcome. Tptb don't seem to carry the same edge they used to...

296470[/snapback]

 

I'm not sure if they need to prove it though as, in a way, they already have with the character of Julian Bashir on DS9.

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Yes Surax I agree they dropped the ball. One important aspect of Trek has always been about showing that we survived our past. As you made example of Chekov and how his presence proved we got through the Cold War in one piece so would having an Arab playing this role show the War on Terror was overcome. Tptb don't seem to carry the same edge they used to...

296470[/snapback]

 

I'm not sure if they need to prove it though as, in a way, they already have with the character of Julian Bashir on DS9.

296521[/snapback]

 

I know that the actor who play Julian Bashir is Arab.

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True, but he wasn't *obviously* Arab the way Chekov was *obviously* Russian and proud of it.

 

What I mean by this is, because of his accent and the lines he was given, you couldn't escape the fact that Chekov was Russian. It was in your face, you had to acknologe it. The way Bashir played his part you just couldn't tell without looking at the credits.

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That was the point. People move around the planet and will it will change their mannar. Why does the late 24 century need to be hold to the late 20th and early 21st stereo types?

 

That was one aspect that I didn't like about Chekov. He was too "Russian." It was like he need to point in very instance that he was Russian and life there was better. My great-grandfather never acted like that. Yeah, he came to America to get away from Russia, but it was to much for me. It just went against everything that great-grandfather taught me.

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It's amusing (and ironic?) that a show that supposedly takes place after humanity had set aside their generations old stereotypes and supposedly looked at the person within and their abilities and not their race, religion, etc, is now supposed to emphasize that same race, religion, etc.

 

So which is it, are they supposed to not care who invented what, or are they supposed to point out and make exceptions for stereotypes to try to prove some srt of point.

 

From the pictures I have seen the inventor is handicapped, though not sure if that happened before or after he invented the Teleporter. If before I think that's a good example of 'showcasing' the abilities of someone regardless of their physical looks, history or condition more than having some 'token' something or other just to appeal to those in the audience who like to say "we're all equal" and then proceed to categorize and label people on how they look, dress, act, etc.

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Way back when the Original Series was on the air, having Chekov was big because of the Cold War and having Uhura was big because of the treatment of Blacks.  I think that in the upcoming episode, Daedalus, the producers had an opportunity to use an Arab be the inventor of the transporter, much in the same way that Richard Daystrom was Black.  However, someone dropped the ball on this, which is somewhat disappointing.

 

Any thoughts?

295373[/snapback]

 

Yes Surax I agree they dropped the ball. One important aspect of Trek has always been about showing that we survived our past. As you made example of Chekov and how his presence proved we got through the Cold War in one piece so would having an Arab playing this role show the War on Terror was overcome. Tptb don't seem to carry the same edge they used to...

296470[/snapback]

 

Well, one inconsistancy is that at least in the Trek Time Line, the war on terror never happened, at least as far a I can tell. Things like the Eugenics Wars took place well before things like 9/11 and the Irag War.

 

I still think it would be good idea, if for no better reason than to say "we did it". Granted Star Trek doesn't have the influence they used to have, but it would be a good idea over all.

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I'm not sure if they need to prove it though as, in a way, they already have with the character of Julian Bashir on DS9.

296521[/snapback]

I know that the actor who play Julian Bashir is Arab.

296526[/snapback]

 

The character was as well.

 

Full Name: Julian Subatoi Bashir

Parents: Richard and Amsha Bashir

StarTrekDS9.jpg

 

Amsha Bashir was played by Fadwa El Guindi who is a retired professor of Anthropology at the University of California, Los Angeles. She also taught at the University of California, Santa Barbara, at the University of Southern California and at 'Ain Shams University in Cairo. She is currently (2004-2005) a Visiting Professor of Anthropology at the Center of Contemporary Arab Studies, Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University, Washington DC. DS9 was her only acting credit.

 

Richard Bashir was played by Brian George. He's one of those actors whose face you see everywhere but you don't know his name.

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From the pictures I have seen the inventor is handicapped, though not sure if that happened before or after he invented the Teleporter.  If before I think that's a good example of 'showcasing' the abilities of someone regardless of their physical looks, history or condition more than having some 'token' something or other just to appeal to those in the audience who like to say "we're all equal" and then proceed to categorize and label people on how they look, dress, act, etc.

296592[/snapback]

 

 

I think he probably became handicapped after some kind of transporter accident. Remember he expereimented with himself first. And his back was clearly disfigured in the way T'pol's hand was, and he had to take injections.

 

Still, it is important that the handicapped are represented, but I think most of the Star Trek series had someone handicapped. I remember an episode of TOS were the blindness of an ambassador was actually an asset, because viewing the Medusans with the human eye caused madness. There were others. In TNG they had a mute ( or was it a deaf -mute) who had a 'chorus', and he was a special ambassador or negotiator.

 

Those with handicaps have been well, and often creatively, represented in Star Trek.

 

I agree with Takara that the Arabs were represented by Bashir, and just because he was well assimliated into the culture of the day does not make his heritage less important in representing the future unity of humanity.

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Way back when the Original Series was on the air, having Chekov was big because of the Cold War and having Uhura was big because of the treatment of Blacks.  I think that in the upcoming episode, Daedalus, the producers had an opportunity to use an Arab be the inventor of the transporter, much in the same way that Richard Daystrom was Black.  However, someone dropped the ball on this, which is somewhat disappointing.

 

Any thoughts?

295373[/snapback]

 

Yes Surax I agree they dropped the ball. One important aspect of Trek has always been about showing that we survived our past. As you made example of Chekov and how his presence proved we got through the Cold War in one piece so would having an Arab playing this role show the War on Terror was overcome. Tptb don't seem to carry the same edge they used to...

296470[/snapback]

 

Well, one inconsistancy is that at least in the Trek Time Line, the war on terror never happened, at least as far a I can tell. Things like the Eugenics Wars took place well before things like 9/11 and the Irag War.

 

Funny they created things that didn't happen and ignore things that are. All it would take is one mention of the WOT to become a canon item.

 

Agreed about Bashir Takara but having an Arab play the part would be more a current event item.

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