DS9: Honor Among Thieves

[Fuzzy Necromancer]

Sounds about right. =/

[griffeytrek]

Post-scarcity Federation... Assuming he didn't somehow grow up outside of the Federation and lacks the citizenship and thus access to all those resources, then he has no reason to get such a job outside of him willingly and intentionally killing people.

Even in Gene Roddenberry's idealized future, there are still humans who are greedy, unscrupulous little bastards (Harry Mudd, anyone?).

I've said this before, but under 60's Rodenberry's pen the Federation IS the Greedy Unscrupulous Little Bastard. Or rather the giant Megacorporation Big Bastard. Don't believe me? Stop and figure out what the Enterprise's 5 year mission really was? Watch what they do week to week. Note the Captain's Logs. Kirk's mission is to secure mining rights to dilithium and other rare materials. Opening trade agreements where possible, or establishing the mines in other ways. By any means possible. The Enterprise works for the East India Tea Company of the 23rd century. Their conflicts with the Klingons specifically are over those mining rights and minerals. Think on that one for awhile and let it really sink in. It helps put the happy hippy dippy Piccard era in perspective.