Unanswered Questions

[Infinite-Possibilities]

To be fair the Cylons were being force to fight colonies wars for them, even through they knew on some levels the Cylons were sentient, at least the singular god fraction did . An they are religious nutters because most of there programming was derived from a religious nutters. This was reveal in Caprica, at least in the episodes I have watched.

I will admit I've never watched Caprica. It never looked interesting to me. But I also don't think it should be necessary to make my point. Battlestar Galactica is a self contained show, who's story can, should and does stand on it's own. I was also under the impression the series never really covered the war, just how the Cylons were first introduced to the Colonies.

The Miniseries intro explained that origins of the First Cylon War. "Then came the day the Cylons decided to kill their masters."

The Cylons were never intended to be build as slaves. They were not considered to be self aware by many Colonials even by the Second Cylon War, much less before they rebelled. Not all the skinjobs were religious, so whatever programming from the Centurions they got was not absolute or universal. So I'm disinclined to place responsibility for the genocide on anyone but the them.

Those that were religious used it in conjunction with their racist beliefs to justify exterminating humanity, so I think they were fairly divorced from their original "coreligionists" in the cult.

[heavyneos]

i always thought that the cylons were those religios nuts, i thought that they downloded into Cylon bodys or something.

[thekillman]

An important note i remembered:

The colonials made the first move in the Second war: they sent a scout party to colonial space, which was discovered. Although left ambiguous, the Cylons might've taken that as an act of war (especially since it violates the armistice treaty).



I must say: yes the cylons grew increasingly evil, but especially in season 1 they weren't. the cylons were the first to commit genocide, but it's quite obvious that the colonials would've done the same given the chance. Especially as the colonials do not see the cylons as human or even as equals.

[Infinite-Possibilities]

No it isn't obvious. The Colonials weren't trying to start a war, they were trying to mend fences right up until the Cylons killed them all. That's why they kept sending officers to the armistice station. Did we ever see or hear about the Colonials plotting to wipe out the Cylons before the war ever? The same episode with Bulldog's scouting mission even mentions that the Admiralty thought the Adar Administration was blind to the Cylon threat. The Cylons already had humanity's extermination in mind well before the scouting mission and even if they didn't anyone who considers the murder of 50 billion men, women and children as the appropriate response for a single snub fighter crossing 3 meters over an invisible line and then getting blown up by its own capital ship to avoid detection is evil. They were most evil in Season one and stayed evil for most of the show. In the end some of them grew into slightly less evil. In Season 4, the Sixes, Eights and Twos starting acting good with no explanation or remorse.

[thekillman]

The Colonials weren't trying to start a war

Let me get this straight:

If someone sends a military scout over to your area of space, that's not a good sign.

The same episode with Bulldog's scouting mission even mentions that the Admiralty thought the Adar Administration was blind to the Cylon threat.

The military considers them a threat. If the scout had found evidence that points to an invasion, even when it's just appearances and not the truth, it might've swayed the government and caused war.

The Cylons already had humanity's extermination in mind well before the scouting mission and even if they didn't anyone who considers the murder of 50 billion men, women and children as the appropriate response for a single snub fighter crossing 3 meters over an invisible line and then getting blown up by its own capital ship to avoid detection is evil.

The cylons considered it just another example of the fact that Humans can not be trusted, do not believe the Cylons are humans or even equals and that the Colonials consider the extermination of the Cylons no crime.

The cylons simply reversed it. The Cylons do not consider the Humans equal, not worthy of life, and think it's fine to exterminate billions of humans.

the colonials feel just the same about the Cylons.

then getting blown up by its own capital ship to avoid detection is evil.

That is about the most suspicious thing you can do in such a situation. The cylons thought the Colonials were up to something. This sort of thing is the smoking gun of potential hostilities.


Are you familliar with Game theory?

[Infinite-Possibilities]

I didn't say it was a "good sign". I said it wasn't an attempt to start a war.

The military considered the Cylons a threat because they were. They had heard nothing from them for decades and the Admirality wanted more information about the machines who once fought to destroy all the 12 Colonies. If every intelligence gathering operation counted as provocation for war, then everybody would be at war with everybody all the time. Just because Colonials correctly saw the Cylons as a threat doesn't mean they were trying to wipe them out.

The Colonials were largely content to put the Cylons out of their minds as the decades went by and had no designs on eradicating them. By contrast the Cylons had long plans set in motion for the express purpose carrying out the Genocide of the Colonies.

[thekillman]

Just because Colonials correctly saw the Cylons as a threat doesn't mean they were trying to wipe them out.

Maybe the Cylons didn't know their actual intentions?

the Admirality wanted more information about the machines who once fought to destroy all the 12 Colonies

Again, at that time the Cylons were considered a threat and not seen as actual beings. The rebellion would've been stopped with all the force the Colonials could muster and the Cylons reacted accordingly

[Infinite-Possibilities]

Maybe the Cylons didn't know their actual intentions?

That strikes me as unlikely considering they had been infiltrating the colonies for years before the genocide. Even if they didn't, it doesn't excuse their actions in the slightest. They were still wrong to think the Colonials wanted to wipe them out, and also wrong to exterminate humanity regardless. The Colonials SHOULD perceive the Cylons as a threat after what they did, and the Cylons mistakenly assuming that automatically meant they had plans to kill them all is their fault.

It's like a guy who once was convicted of attempted murder realizing that his victim still sees him as a threat and so kills them later anyway, because he was convinced they were plotting against him.

Anyway, in either case it's moot because the Cylons' motives were not self defense, it was because they thought that "children needed to kill their parents to replace them." Among other similar philosophies, like Cavil's hated of the human body.They exterminated humanity because they were essentially psychopaths not because they were scared for their safety.

Again, at that time the Cylons were considered a threat and not seen as actual beings. The rebellion would've been stopped with all the force the Colonials could muster and the Cylons reacted accordingly

The Cylons reacted accordingly? They reacted accordingly to the Colonials reacting accordingly to the murderous Rebellion the Cylons started. The Cylons are the aggressors here. It's baffling to to me to try to paint it otherwise.

[thekillman]

They were still wrong to think the Colonials wanted to wipe them out,

But again: the Colonials had no problem with it, aside from the fairly obvious fact that it would've been messy to do and unnecesary.

[RamonaThePest]

IIRC that was the same priest, played by Rhea Pearlman.

I checked IMDB and Rhea Pearlman's credits do not include BSG.

[Infinite-Possibilities]

But again: the Colonials had no problem with it, aside from the fairly obvious fact that it would've been messy to do and unnecesary.

That's still not ethically the same thing. If the Cylons had never troubled the Colonies again, there is a good chance the Colonials would have simply ignored them indefinitely, certainly long enough to move past the pain of the First Cylon War.

The Colonials had mostly apathy towards the Cylons. The Cylons were actively collectively plotting to exterminate humanity with extreme prejudice. They never even put any effort into maintaining relations with the Colonies. These are not morally equivalent stances. Nothing about the conflict was morally equivalent. The Cylons were unambiguously more evil.