From: hooverb@h.cs.wvu.wvnet.edu (Bruce Hoover,Armstrong)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.startrek.misc
Subject: Re: DEEP SPACE 9!! UGH!!!
Date: 20 Aug 92 06:23:03 GMT
Originator: hooverb@a.cs.wvu.wvnet.edu

From article <5499@ucsbcsl.ucsb.edu>, by 6500sws@ucsbuxa.ucsb.edu (Susan W. Stockwell):
> 
> I symphathize with your concerns about a holodeck whorehouse.  It is
> a cheesy idea by anyone's standards.  The trouble is, I just
> don't find it out of scope with the Star Trek universe.  Star Fleet 
> is just one aspect of the ST universe, a very well-mannered and 
> civilized portion.  Not every military organization is as well-
> meaning.  8)
> 
> To me it just seems worse to ignore the reality of sex (imaginary or
> not) for money than to pretend that the idea of holodeck prostitutes
> never occurred to anyone.
> 
> I'd be interested to hear if you have further ideas/arguments/etc.
> about this...feel free to email me if you want to discuss (or post away)
> 
> --sue
>
Several interesting ideas arise from this discussion... (In no
particular order)

1. It seems as if "HoloSex" would probably be much more satisfying
(mechanically) than the real thing since one could program exactly what
was desired, and with no worries about satisfying one's partner(s).
(Sort of like masturbation :-) If someone had fantasies about Jodie
Foster (for example) they wouldn't need to shoot anyone; they could just
dial her up on the HoloSex program. which leads to...

2. Would it be some sort of crime to have HoloSex with the computer
generated image of a real human without the consent of that human? In
other words, what if Barclay was boffing "deanna troi, love goddess" on
the holodeck? Since it was without her consent, would that constitute
some sort of rape? What if she never knew about it? What if the computer
changed the image slightly from the real troi, like making her two
inches taller, or maybe slight change in face or hair color? If such
changes were done, how far would it be before it was the "original
person" anymore?

3. What about the possibility for blackmail? Is the 23rd century so
liberal that noone would care about Picard on the holodeck with a couple
of orion slave girls and a donkey :-). Obviously everything done in such
a situation would be recorded and traceable. (in fact, repeatable, with
the holodeck playing the part of the Real Human to boot). For that
matter, you could just create the whole scene with Picard etc. from
scratch and use it for whatever purpose. (aside, is there some way to
tell a recording of a holodeck simulation from a recoding of the real
thing).

4. Given the worries about Barclay and the holodeck, does the computer
have any checks about holodeck activity? i.e. if someone programmed a
specific type of behaviour (such as sex with a replica of a crew member)
wouldn't the computer make a note of this? If this did not happen with
Barclay, then perhaps it suggests that it wasn't WHAT he was doing on
the holodeck which was obnoxious, but rather the fact that it was
totally replacing his having to deal with reality?! (But Riker, and
later Troi did seem to be upset by the way they were portrayed... would
Troi have been less upset if he had been doing whatever with an image of
her which was totally realistic?

Just some thoughts...

Bruce Hoover 
Newsgroups: rec.arts.startrek.misc