I feel that Young gets way too hard a time both on Destiny and on the forums and even (much as I hate to admit it) on the podcast.
Wray calls him a military dictator. Yes he is military, yes he is in command, that is not the same thing. When the civilians in Faith said they wanted to leave the ship, he let them. If he had truly been a military dictator he would have done what Rush suggested and rounded them up at gunpoint. He wouldn't be watching the civilians through the kino talking about how unhappy they are with him he would have had them rounded up and imprisoned at least.
The civilians are unhappy with him because he is in charge. They see him as the focus of their unhappiness, everything that goes wrong, the reason they are lost, alone and in danger is HIS fault when anyone who looks at the situation logically has to see that it isn't. Civilians (at least those from a democratic societies like in the west) don't like to live in an autocratic society because unless we make the choice to give up our democratic rights to be part of the military it makes us feel vulnerable and out of control. This impulse is ingrained in us our whole lives by the example of "reigns of terror" and all the other nasty things that other autocratic societies have done and suffered and how they have ultimately failed.
What everybody forgets though is that if the autocrat is a good man (and I haven't heard any of Young's dissenters call him bad or evil) and if there is an emergency, temporary situation comprising of a very small society (less than 100 people) then autocracy is the only way to go. Civilisations always begin that way after all, and the fact that they survive long enough to change is proof of how effective they are.
The problem occurs when the power is inherited, and instead of being given to the one who can do it is given to the son of the one who can do it (did you know that the Roman Emperor Nero was the son of a much loved and respected general? His is an extreme example). Or when the society grows so large and the civilians vastly outnumber the military and so they are not represented.
This is where BSG and SGU are different. BSG had a huge civilian population and so required a democratic system. There are less than 80 people on Destiny, at least a 3rd of them military, in a position where one person must be in charge - there is no time to vote on all decisons.
And who else wants command? Rush (the guy who is truly to blame for stranding them all on Destiny) or Wray (who was so bad at her job that she got stuck in the back end of nowhere).
Does anyone really think that Wray would be better at running the ship than Young? Or that Rush would put the welfare of the crew above his thirst for knowledge and exploration?
I will admit that Young is not perfect. He clearly has some issues, whether from PTSD from losing those 37 people under his command or from the subsequent lack of confidence in himself is not clear. But he stepped up. He has the experience to save lives and if he has difficulty treating the civilians as civilians rather than soldiers (he does yell a lot) he obviously does not value their lives any less. On several occaisions he has been willing to sacrifice himself for those under him, and not just those in uniform.
The way I see it, Young has made 3 mistakes. He slept with a subordinate officer, he balked at sacrificing Rush (as he saw it - if he had known it was Telford I think he would have done it with the knowledge that Telford had volunteered to endanger himself when he joined the airforce) and he marooned Rush. The thing with Rush though I even can explain - the guy pretty much told him "I am never going to stop trying to undermine/kill you". As I say the safety of the crew requires that one person be in command and anyone who goes against that is endangering everyone. That is after all what mutiny IS and why it is so harshly punished. I have always seen Young like the Captain of an old sailing ship. These guys would be referred to as "Master After God" because of the power they had, and needed. They were out of touch with their superiors for months at least with hundred(s) of people to look after and the need to survive all sorts of things, including enemy action.
Finally, if we discount the 3 mistakes I mention, EVERY decision Young has made has turned out to be right. Everyone was howling that Young was guilty of torture and murder when he spaced Telford, and yet he gained an ally and destroyed an enemy in one go.
I firmly believe that in giving up control of Destiny to LA he has them right where he wants them. He appears to have lost, and people are clamouring for his replacement, but have faith. He has an ace up his sleeve. Greer has the right attitude. In Young we trust.
Wray calls him a military dictator. Yes he is military, yes he is in command, that is not the same thing. When the civilians in Faith said they wanted to leave the ship, he let them. If he had truly been a military dictator he would have done what Rush suggested and rounded them up at gunpoint. He wouldn't be watching the civilians through the kino talking about how unhappy they are with him he would have had them rounded up and imprisoned at least.
The civilians are unhappy with him because he is in charge. They see him as the focus of their unhappiness, everything that goes wrong, the reason they are lost, alone and in danger is HIS fault when anyone who looks at the situation logically has to see that it isn't. Civilians (at least those from a democratic societies like in the west) don't like to live in an autocratic society because unless we make the choice to give up our democratic rights to be part of the military it makes us feel vulnerable and out of control. This impulse is ingrained in us our whole lives by the example of "reigns of terror" and all the other nasty things that other autocratic societies have done and suffered and how they have ultimately failed.
What everybody forgets though is that if the autocrat is a good man (and I haven't heard any of Young's dissenters call him bad or evil) and if there is an emergency, temporary situation comprising of a very small society (less than 100 people) then autocracy is the only way to go. Civilisations always begin that way after all, and the fact that they survive long enough to change is proof of how effective they are.
The problem occurs when the power is inherited, and instead of being given to the one who can do it is given to the son of the one who can do it (did you know that the Roman Emperor Nero was the son of a much loved and respected general? His is an extreme example). Or when the society grows so large and the civilians vastly outnumber the military and so they are not represented.
This is where BSG and SGU are different. BSG had a huge civilian population and so required a democratic system. There are less than 80 people on Destiny, at least a 3rd of them military, in a position where one person must be in charge - there is no time to vote on all decisons.
And who else wants command? Rush (the guy who is truly to blame for stranding them all on Destiny) or Wray (who was so bad at her job that she got stuck in the back end of nowhere).
Does anyone really think that Wray would be better at running the ship than Young? Or that Rush would put the welfare of the crew above his thirst for knowledge and exploration?
I will admit that Young is not perfect. He clearly has some issues, whether from PTSD from losing those 37 people under his command or from the subsequent lack of confidence in himself is not clear. But he stepped up. He has the experience to save lives and if he has difficulty treating the civilians as civilians rather than soldiers (he does yell a lot) he obviously does not value their lives any less. On several occaisions he has been willing to sacrifice himself for those under him, and not just those in uniform.
The way I see it, Young has made 3 mistakes. He slept with a subordinate officer, he balked at sacrificing Rush (as he saw it - if he had known it was Telford I think he would have done it with the knowledge that Telford had volunteered to endanger himself when he joined the airforce) and he marooned Rush. The thing with Rush though I even can explain - the guy pretty much told him "I am never going to stop trying to undermine/kill you". As I say the safety of the crew requires that one person be in command and anyone who goes against that is endangering everyone. That is after all what mutiny IS and why it is so harshly punished. I have always seen Young like the Captain of an old sailing ship. These guys would be referred to as "Master After God" because of the power they had, and needed. They were out of touch with their superiors for months at least with hundred(s) of people to look after and the need to survive all sorts of things, including enemy action.
Finally, if we discount the 3 mistakes I mention, EVERY decision Young has made has turned out to be right. Everyone was howling that Young was guilty of torture and murder when he spaced Telford, and yet he gained an ally and destroyed an enemy in one go.
I firmly believe that in giving up control of Destiny to LA he has them right where he wants them. He appears to have lost, and people are clamouring for his replacement, but have faith. He has an ace up his sleeve. Greer has the right attitude. In Young we trust.
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