“What Makes a Ship Tick?”
By Ruton Grax
Freelance Reporter
October 20, 2375
(USS Crossfield) I am now in the process of getting to know the USS Crossfield’
s crew. And, it is a great crew. A simple cursory scan of public records can tell
you of their incredible intelligence, show you their uncanny beauty and provide
you with tales of their extreme courage under fire. So, the usual “getting to
know them” process has been an exercise in humility for me.
Each person who enters Starfleet has some desire to use their life to ensure the
healthy continuation of the “body politic”. They all have agreed to put
themselves in harm’s way to explore our universe, protect us from our
enemies, and to ensure trade and scientific progress. Somehow, for this crew
in particular, that psychological trait that brought them to SF has been further
refined into an new type of self sacrifice. They each have a willingness to put
their lives, their personal freedoms, and their personal security in jeopardy to
ensure the healthy continuation of the “body Crossfield”.
When I asked the crew why the Crossfield outperforms most vessels, I heard
many answers:
“We’ve been together a long time. We can anticipate each other’s needs.”
-Lt. Tara Falon
“We know our jobs. And, we know that if we don’t do our jobs, our fellow
crewmates will have to pick up our slack.”
-ENS Vanore
“We are serious and committed. And, we know what we are doing every
minute of every day.”
– LTjg Daniel West
“We have a happy combination of very gifted personnel and a good overall
crew.”
-CPO Seta
“We trust our leadership.”
-ENS. Charles Benjamin Long
“This crew is defined by a strong sense of purpose, a dedication to duty and
great courage in the face of danger and adversity.”
-Lt. Carla Sue Hawksley
The answer to my query was clear: People. The crew is what makes the
Crossfield outperform other ships. Makes sense, but it can’t be that simple. SF
ships have been lost in this war, and will likely continue to be lost before the
end. And, they are all crewed by Intelligent, self-sacrificing people. Why is this
crew different? I felt that there must be something deeper beyond competent
training and devotion to duty.
My favorite quote comes from the Crossfield’s Chief Engineer, Jonathan
Tiberius Pike. He says that the ship benefits from what he calls a “Cascade of
Successes”. We have all heard of a “Cascade of failures”. But somehow that
has been stopped, if not completely reversed on the Crossfield. It is Pike’s
assertion that each member of the Crossfield’s crew is adept at performing the
right actions at the right times, thus “enabling an ever widening set of paths to
success.” He goes on to attribute this to our Federation Culture of inclusion
and diversity. How each species is capable of contributing the right thing at the
right time to the benefit of the entire UFP.
Pike summarizes, “It's what the Federation is built on and this ship embodies it.”
If I was to extrapolate Pike’s comments out to the Nth degree, we find that what
we expected has come true: Our culture and our federation ideals are not our
downfall, as some of my colleagues in the press have recently suggested,
those ideals are our strength. And, our best hope for success.
By now, most of you have heard that the Cardassians have decided to rebel
against their Changeling overlords. I’m sure we all wish them the best of luck
as they struggle to earn their freedom. It is a struggle we share with them. But,
this action also represents the antithesis of what would be considered normal
behavior in the UFP. Let us all keep hope that this turn of events represents a
“Cascade of Failures” for our foes, and a “Cascade of Successes” for our
Federation Alliance.
By Ruton Grax
Freelance Reporter
October 20, 2375
(USS Crossfield) I am now in the process of getting to know the USS Crossfield’
s crew. And, it is a great crew. A simple cursory scan of public records can tell
you of their incredible intelligence, show you their uncanny beauty and provide
you with tales of their extreme courage under fire. So, the usual “getting to
know them” process has been an exercise in humility for me.
Each person who enters Starfleet has some desire to use their life to ensure the
healthy continuation of the “body politic”. They all have agreed to put
themselves in harm’s way to explore our universe, protect us from our
enemies, and to ensure trade and scientific progress. Somehow, for this crew
in particular, that psychological trait that brought them to SF has been further
refined into an new type of self sacrifice. They each have a willingness to put
their lives, their personal freedoms, and their personal security in jeopardy to
ensure the healthy continuation of the “body Crossfield”.
When I asked the crew why the Crossfield outperforms most vessels, I heard
many answers:
“We’ve been together a long time. We can anticipate each other’s needs.”
-Lt. Tara Falon
“We know our jobs. And, we know that if we don’t do our jobs, our fellow
crewmates will have to pick up our slack.”
-ENS Vanore
“We are serious and committed. And, we know what we are doing every
minute of every day.”
– LTjg Daniel West
“We have a happy combination of very gifted personnel and a good overall
crew.”
-CPO Seta
“We trust our leadership.”
-ENS. Charles Benjamin Long
“This crew is defined by a strong sense of purpose, a dedication to duty and
great courage in the face of danger and adversity.”
-Lt. Carla Sue Hawksley
The answer to my query was clear: People. The crew is what makes the
Crossfield outperform other ships. Makes sense, but it can’t be that simple. SF
ships have been lost in this war, and will likely continue to be lost before the
end. And, they are all crewed by Intelligent, self-sacrificing people. Why is this
crew different? I felt that there must be something deeper beyond competent
training and devotion to duty.
My favorite quote comes from the Crossfield’s Chief Engineer, Jonathan
Tiberius Pike. He says that the ship benefits from what he calls a “Cascade of
Successes”. We have all heard of a “Cascade of failures”. But somehow that
has been stopped, if not completely reversed on the Crossfield. It is Pike’s
assertion that each member of the Crossfield’s crew is adept at performing the
right actions at the right times, thus “enabling an ever widening set of paths to
success.” He goes on to attribute this to our Federation Culture of inclusion
and diversity. How each species is capable of contributing the right thing at the
right time to the benefit of the entire UFP.
Pike summarizes, “It's what the Federation is built on and this ship embodies it.”
If I was to extrapolate Pike’s comments out to the Nth degree, we find that what
we expected has come true: Our culture and our federation ideals are not our
downfall, as some of my colleagues in the press have recently suggested,
those ideals are our strength. And, our best hope for success.
By now, most of you have heard that the Cardassians have decided to rebel
against their Changeling overlords. I’m sure we all wish them the best of luck
as they struggle to earn their freedom. It is a struggle we share with them. But,
this action also represents the antithesis of what would be considered normal
behavior in the UFP. Let us all keep hope that this turn of events represents a
“Cascade of Failures” for our foes, and a “Cascade of Successes” for our
Federation Alliance.
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Updated on 03/06/2009
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