posted
OK, I saw this and it was OK, and I had a few thoughts.
Obviously they're playing up the issue of political legitimacy. Which is neat. But I wonder; they've got an executive branch, but what about a legislature? Presumably the various bylaws of the Colonies provide for the emergency reconstitution of whatever sort of legislature they have. (Well, presuming they do have one, but they're pretty Western in all the other political senses, so I can only assume they do.) The thing is, those usually depend on their being other, surviving governmental bodies available to appoint new leaders, or to arrange for their election.
I know there was a civilian council of some sort in the original show, but I don't remember how they were organized.
If political continuity is what they want to preserve, then their legislative body probably consists of some number of representatives from each colony. (Maybe fewer from the colony which nobody likes, I guess.) But those representatives are probably appointed, in emergencies, by smaller, local governments, none of which exist anymore. Or what if they've got a system similar to the U.S. House of Representatives, with each colony getting X representatives per every X x 10,000 citizens, or what have you. There might not be enough survivors from each colony.
Now that's just an example; my point being that no matter what the rules are, some of them will probably have to be bent or broken to get a complete government in place.
On the other hand, it seems kind of odd to represent colonial governments which no longer exist. A handful of people from one colony scattered across a dozen different ships don't really have much in the way of "local" concerns in common. For these people, the most logical governmental subdivision is the ship. But I doubt there's any provision in their aforementioned bylaws for what to do in case all their planets blow up.
So, anyway, it would be interesting to see how that is handled. Or, at least, it would be interesting to me.
Re the episode: How come that city hadn't been leveled? I guess there is something in it that the Cylons want, maybe.
(Normally this would be where people make their own interesting speculations, but in this case I suppose someone could say exactly what the deal turns out to be, so, uh, if that is so, please consider my questions rhetorical.)
Registered: Mar 1999
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Based on some pictures that Topher posted, the Quorum of Twelve is back and seen in the 11th episode. Topher can probably swing in and answer whether or not it acts as the legislative branch if he sees this. As a note for the 11th episode, though, the quorum is meeting and voting to select a vice-president.
$$ Spoilers above.
Also, another thing worth wondering is if anyone in the judicial branch survived and how reconstructive efforts on that are going.
-------------------- The philosopher's stone. Those who possess it are no longer bound by the laws of equivalent exchange in alchemy. They gain without sacrifice and create without equal exchange. We searched for it, and we found it.
Registered: Mar 1999
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posted
For all those buildings to survive, the Cylons must have used air bursts in their bombing.
quote: Air Bursts. An air burst is an explosion in which a weapon is detonated in air at an altitude below 30 km but at sufficient height that the fireball does not contact the surface of the earth. After such a burst, blast may cause considerable damage and injury. The altitude of an air burst can be varied to obtain maximum blast effects, maximum thermal effects, desired radiation effects, or a balanced combination of these effects. Burns to exposed skin may be produced over many square kilometers and eye injuries over a still larger area. Initial nuclear radiation will be a significant hazard with smaller weapons, but the fallout hazard can be ignored as there is essentially no local fallout from an air burst. The fission products are generally dispersed over a large area of the globe unless there is local rainfall resulting in localized fallout. In the vicinity of ground zero, there may be a small area of neutron-induced activity which could be hazardous to troops required to pass through the area. Tactically, air bursts are the most likely to be used against ground forces.
Perhaps pare of the plan is returning and occupying Caprica and the rest of the 12 Colonies for themselves. The question I have is why are they playing the cat and mouse/play with your food before you kill it game? What is going on between Helio and Boomer (and them being observed by others)and between Six and Baltar (why the constant mind-game?)
How does that fit in with their plan? It seems more different than straight anihilation
Registered: Feb 2004
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About the whole Quorum thing, it wasn't explicitly mentioned in the episode what the Quorum does, exactly. We're just told that each colony has selected a representative and they're going to meet to decide things like a VP, housing, welfare, rations, water, etc. Caprica picked Baltar, Sagittaron picked Zarek, and it seems Picon and Leonis picked the same guy or something.
No reason is given for the city on Caprica to still be standing. However, Helo has to constantly take radiation meds so the planet is quite toasty. And as for the games between Boomer and Helo, she's trying to get him to love her, for whatever reason.
-------------------- I haul cardboard and cardboard accessories
Registered: Mar 1999
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posted
My guess is that the Cylons wanted them to settle down and have kids, though who knows why. It's also possible they wanted to create a Cylon Helo. Under any circumstances, I'd say Caprica Boomer really does love Helo at this point, or at least cares about him.
-------------------- "This is why you people think I'm so unknowable. You don't listen!" - God, "God, the Devil and Bob"
Registered: Mar 1999
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posted
Of course she does. They were co-pilots on the raptor for how long before the war? If Caprica-Boomer has the same memories of Helio that Galactica-Boomer does (and she should or else the ploy won't work), then they've already had some history together.
Not necessarilly romantic.
RE: The "Are you alive..." and kissing... Perhaps the Cylons won't truly feel alive until their "parents" say they are. Despite destroying the human race, the Cylons are seeking their approval. Six, with her kissing ways, seems to me to "need" to be reassured that she is alive, instead of just a collection of chips...
Registered: Feb 2004
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posted
Helo and Boomer probably didn't have romantic relations before the war unless she was going behind Tyrol's back, and even on a just-under-1.4km long ship that'd still be some task - looks pretty small inside.
-------------------- Garbled, confusing and quite frankly duller than an inflight magazine produced by Air Belgium.
Registered: May 2004
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posted
I thought that one of the major plot points of the episode, was the main characters realizing that 'your filling-out the remainder of President's Adar's term, the law says that there will be elections in 7 months'.
I caught the collective 'oh yeah....' look from Adama and madam president.. that sort of thing is easy to overlook in an emergancy. In the future, look for debates about preventing the democratic process.
-------------------- joH'a' 'oH wIj DevwI' jIH DIchDaq Hutlh pagh (some days it's just not worth chewing through the leather straps in the morning) The Woozle!
Registered: Nov 2002
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posted
I thought that one of the major plot points of the episode, was the main characters realizing that 'your filling-out the remainder of President's Adar's term, the law says that there will be elections in 7 months'.
I caught the collective 'oh yeah....' look from Adama and madam president.. that sort of thing is easy to overlook in an emergancy. In the future, look for debates about preventing the democratic process.
-------------------- joH'a' 'oH wIj DevwI' jIH DIchDaq Hutlh pagh (some days it's just not worth chewing through the leather straps in the morning) The Woozle!
Registered: Nov 2002
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One of the neat parallels I liked was the "Apollo versus Apollo", making for a neat kind of in-joke.
It seems that the Human-like Cylons are doing a lot of "soul-searching" (so to speak) about the nature of their being. The simple question, "Are you alive?" seems to have a lot of interesting implications. I wonder if they're basically not yet sure if they're alive?
Just how that ties into their decision to basically try to wipe out Humanity remains to be seen, of course.
-------------------- “Those people who think they know everything are a great annoyance to those of us who do.” — Isaac Asimov Star Trek Minutiae | Memory Alpha
Registered: Nov 2000
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posted
Well, if they decide they truly are "alive" they'll stop killing their fellow sentient creatures and live in peace.
Just as we do now.
-------------------- Justice inclines her scales so that wisdom comes at the price of suffering. -Aeschylus, Agamemnon
Registered: Aug 2002
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quote:Originally posted by Jason Abbadon: Well, if they decide they truly are "alive" they'll stop killing their fellow sentient creatures and live in peace.
Just as we do now.
It's ok for the Cylons because God is on their side.
Registered: Apr 2001
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