Doctor Rush - A look at the man.

[Alterans]

Doctor Rush, often implicated as a villain in the series. Assumptions are made time and time again to the man's motive in the day-to-day activities he performs. Is he or is he not, determined to get home, or determined to monitor Destiny at the expense of all else?

Pretend you're the psych grad here and lets take a look at the man himself.

[teyla-nick94]

In my opinion he just doesn't want to show anyone his emotions. The only person he was open to was his wife and she died. He has no friends and no family left and that's a terrible feeling. And of course there's this lack of trust. He buried himself in his work after she died and doesn't want to end his own caused isolation. He doesn't want to get hurt again, that's why he doesn't show anyone how he feels.
Mandy was the only one he trusted since then and he lost her too. I think he trusted her because he could understand her. She was in a situation where everyone would act different around her and that must have been a bad feeling. I think Rush was the only one who didn't. I think he treated her as a normal human being - without disabilty.
But now he has lost her too and that brought him back to his isolation. I feel sorry for him and I can truly understand him - this feeling of not being able to trust someone.

[Alterans]

In my opinion he just doesn't want to show anyone his emotions. The only person he was open to was his wife and she died. He has no friends and no family left and that's a terrible feeling. And of course there's this lack of trust. He buried himself in his work after she died and doesn't want to end his own caused isolation. He doesn't want to get hurt again, that's why he doesn't show anyone how he feels.
Mandy was the only one he trusted since then and he lost her too. I think he trusted her because he could understand her. She was in a situation where everyone would act different around her and that must have been a bad feeling. I think Rush was the only one who didn't. I think he treated her as a normal human being - without disabilty.
But now he has lost her too and that brought him back to his isolation. I feel sorry for him and I can truly understand him - this feeling of not being able to trust someone.

I know the show cast him in a bad light on occasion, but seriously, if Destiny was real life situation, I would have backed him. I understand isolation, I understand its appeal, I understand his arrogance. Around someone like Rush, you must realize that what you think does not matter, at least not at first.

I wonder how he would have worked side-by-side with Carter?

[Ser Scot A Ellison]

Casting Rush as "Villian" is far too simplistic.

[teyla-nick94]

I know the show cast him in a bad light on occasion, but seriously, if Destiny was real life situation, I would have backed him. I understand isolation, I understand its appeal, I understand his arrogance. Around someone like Rush, you must realize that what you think does not matter, at least not at first.

I wonder how he would have worked side-by-side with Carter?

Maybe because he thinks he can trust Carter? I also would have backed him

[jelgate]

Not so much a villian but more of self-centered. Rush is so obsessed with the 9th chevron and then Destiny it is all he cares. Everyone else is expendable to his pursuit of this obsession

[Alterans]

But after finding out Destiny's true mission, I would agree that everything else is expendable.

[jelgate]

Human life is never expendable

[Alterans]

Human life is never expendable

War is a fine example of the expendable human. And to be honest, in the face of discovering that the universe may be concerted, life loses some value. But that is my own opinion.

The day science can create a living breathing organism is the day such life loses it's glamour. It only maintains it's value as long as the creation is capitalized by nature.

[jelgate]

War is different. Life is sacrificed to save more life. In the case of Rush he sacrificed life to further his scientific curiousity. That is unethical and wrong.

[Alterans]

War is different. Life is sacrificed to save more life. In the case of Rush he sacrificed life to further his scientific curiousity. That is unethical and wrong.

That is not always true with war. The saving of more life is often an excuse. No life was saved by the American Revolutionary War. True, we would still be under English rule but they did prevent life on a grand scale. Pay their taxes and they would let us live.

Rush believed that in order to make certain advances, risks had to be taken. Loss of life was regrettable to Rush. He believed that greater knowledge allowed for greater gain.

Also, ethics are set by the generations of today. The ethics of 2 thousand plus years ago would be repulsive to many of us now. Look up pederasty, which was ethically sound in the days of Ancient Greece. Ethics and morals can and do change, I am not saying that the ways of yesteryear were sound, but the ethics of today will most certainly not be the ethics of tomorrow.

[jelgate]

Living life under perscution is not really living

Rush regretting the actions does not change the actions he comitted. It is never right to risk a human life for scientific curiousity.

[Alterans]

Living life under perscution is not really living

Rush regretting the actions does not change the actions he comitted. It is never right to risk a human life for scientific curiousity.

Freedom is an idea, not a basis of life.

The scientific community risks human life constantly, pharmaceuticals, risky procedures, malfunctioning equipment. Yet we do not condemn this.

If killing my neighbor would reveal the secrets of the universe, I would kill that person so that I could share that knowledge. Knowledge is power. Knowledge can also save lives.

[jeri]

Rush isn't a villain, just an emotional basket case who made serious judgement errors. He's an obsessed, pragmatic scientist who is desperately clinging to his work to keep himself from falling into emotional oblivion over the tragic death of his beloved wife. Just when he starts to come out of this self-inflicted exile with Amanda, tragedy strikes again. Classic human drama, a timeless theme.

Yes, Alterans, Young should have backed him asap, but alas, another wounded soul. So then we had two very messed up people vying for control, which confused the h**l out of the rest. But is this not the human condition? We are constantly our own worst enemies.

I strongly disagree with the idea that Rush sees everyone as expendable. I don't believe he did. The only one he ever consciously decided to kill was Simeon, who certainly deserved it. His pragmatism is what saved them time and again, when hesitation would have lost many more lives, if not all. It is easy to lay blame on someone who has to make such decisions. When Col. Young finally got his head together and started to work with Rush, things changed for the better. By this time Rush was well aware that he was not the one to lead, but respect was required for his scientific expertise to proceed with Destiny's mission, which at this point was clear to all, the path for their survival.

[jelgate]

Rush isn't a villain, just an emotional basket case who made serious judgement errors. He's an obsessed, pragmatic scientist who is desperately clinging to his work to keep himself from falling into emotional oblivion over the tragic death of his beloved wife. Just when he starts to come out of this self-inflicted exile with Amanda, tragedy strikes again. Classic human drama, a timeless theme.

Yes, Alterans, Young should have backed him asap, but alas, another wounded soul. So then we had two very messed up people vying for control, which confused the h**l out of the rest. But is this not the human condition? We are constantly our own worst enemies.

I strongly disagree with the idea that Rush sees everyone as expendable. I don't believe he did. The only one he ever consciously decided to kill was Simeon, who certainly deserved it. His pragmatism is what saved them time and again, when hesitation would have lost many more lives, if not all. It is easy to lay blame on someone who has to make such decisions. When Col. Young finally got his head together and started to work with Rush, things changed for the better. By this time Rush was well aware that he was not the one to lead, but respect was required for his scientific expertise to proceed with Destiny's mission, which at this point was clear to all, the path for their survival.

He has on many occasions he has put others at risk to further his own goals. Rush doesn't maliciously try to kill people or doesn't care. He just is obsessed with Destiny and care about it more. The death of Sen. Armstrong or Riley is a result of Rush caring about Destiny above all else