You will not be surprised to learn that Star Trek ranks amongst my favourite TV shows.  I should say that we're not in an exclusive relationship.  I'm a fan of Star Wars, Stargate, Babylon 5, Doctor Who, The Expanse… the list goes on and on.  I can even be persuaded to watch things without any kind of science fiction element - occasionally.

I hate to break it to people, but I'm far from convinced that Star Trek will ever become a reality.  But it has some core themes running through it that I wish were so - and they don't involve warp drives.  Gene Rodenberry wanted to create a world where different people worked together towards common goals.  The original series had a Russian on the bridge of the Enterprise when Russia (then the core of the Soviet Union) was, arguably, less favourably regarded in the west than it is now.  The Next Generation (new crew and new adventures from the 80's) went even further and had (horror of horrors) a Klingon officer.  

One of the core setups of Star Trek is that we humans are part of a Federation - a collection of alien civilisations that work together to make the galaxy a better place.  The message being that we can find ways to get along.

However, it has to be acknowledged that, when it comes to storytelling, we don't tend to favour getting along over conflict.  

In the original series, Kirk fought many enemies: Klingons, Romulans, slow-moving, green lizard, type humanoids etc etc.  When the same crew moved to films, one of the most highly regarded Star Trek movies is Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan - a Hornblower-esque tale where Kirk battles a genetically enhanced ruler from the 1990's (see what I mean about not becoming reality?).  Truth be told, it was very exciting, I watched in the cinema as a kid and got desperately upset about the ending (another story).  Admittedly, by modern standard, it is sometimes laughable.  For example, did you know that you can gain control of a starship by broadcasting a 5 digit pin (with no repeating numbers allowed)?  I guess firewalls are no longer a thing in the 23rd century.  But the point is that it was the struggle that makes the film so compelling.

In Star Trek: The Next Generation some of the most popular episodes revolve around battles with the Borg, a cybernetic race who talk about the futility of resistance (not existence - that's a whole other philosophical discussion).  The same goes for its movies, First Contact (the one with the Borg), is seen as the best.

I get that conflict is what makes stories involving and exciting - it excites me too.  However, much as Trekkies might be accused on not living in the real world, it's a shame we can't get more interested in Star Trek's core ideas.

We know that a good team is greater than the sum of its parts.  The same goes for nations.  Wars, tariffs, Brexits help no one (apart from a few who seek personal gain at the expense of millions).  Wouldn't it be great if we could leave the conflict to the TV, stage, cinema, books i.e. fiction? 

All I would like to suggest is let's keep working towards a world where we can get along, even if all we can do to contribute is to get on with our friends and neighbours.  I might be just preaching to the converted or… no one at all.  But I enjoy writing and this is cathartic - if nothing else.   Star Trek might be coming up on 60 years old and you might not think your hot, leaf-infused, beverage of choice, but you can't deny that it has some things right.  

Working together is never wrong.