I’m referring to their DS9 incarnation, not the new show.

I kinda come down on the side of space KGB.

Most of the actions they did, was just standard spycraft that you would see in any war, and the dominion war was as brutal as you could get.

The worst action you could say that Sloan and section 31 attempted, was trying to genocide the founders via that genetic virus plot. Probably okay because the founders were all collectively involved (excepting Odo) in brutal space imperialism, subjecting the entire delta and alpha quadrants to subjugation and enslavement from their home planet, that was the target of the virus.

  • AgreeableLandscape☭
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    2 years ago

    Section 31 is portrayed as the worst thing ever in universe but it’s a declawed kitten compared to the real intelligence agencies in the West.

    “Oh you gaslit a doctor on the holodeck to get information out of him? That’s cute, we tortured his seven year old daughter and made him watch.”

    • Muad'DibberOP
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      72 years ago

      lol true, section 31 shouldn’t even be comparable to the CIA or MI6, who have absolutely no scruples.

      • AgreeableLandscape☭
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        52 years ago

        It should also be noted that Section 31 is interested merely in the survival of the Federation and its people. Morally grey methods or not, it’s entirely NOT like the CIA ideologically, that’s the more important part. It is not imperialist and does not attempt to subjugate unrelated nations and make them subservient to the Federation’s interests. If you don’t threaten the survival of Federation, Section 31 has no interest in you, which can’t be said for the CIA or MI6.

        • @RedSquid@lemmygrad.ml
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          12 years ago

          Senator Kimara Cretak says hi. Section 31 absolutely is imperialist, they put a handpicked traitor in one of the highest positions of power of a rival government while ensuring that a by all accounts decent woman was at bare minimum getting life inprisonment in probably rather unpleasant conditions, if not just execution.

  • @201dberg@lemmygrad.ml
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    122 years ago

    section 31 was cool and necessary and no one will ever change me from that opinion.

    I assume they were also the ones behind the unofficial stealth starfleet vessel in TNG? The one that could phase through solid objects? Them giving that shit up in that episode because of some dumbass treaty pissed me off. Just from the research implications such tech could be used for. Imagine having the tech to be able to fly through a planet or star and study it from the inside? Then some asshats like "ugh but this this counts as “stealth” tech so we have to give it to the Romulans cause of stupid reasons. Then they take a shotgun to their own knees.

    Ok rant over.

    • Muad'DibberOP
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      62 years ago

      Gotta agree. I have no idea how TNG federation survived against romulans and such. Its easy to be space tankies when there’s no war going on. In DS9 tho, it amps up and they gotta whip out the big guns against the dominion.

    • AgreeableLandscape☭
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      2 years ago

      It’s like your immune system. It’s ruthless, causes a lot of real damage to you when fighting germs, and sometimes drops the ball and harms you for no reason. Some diseases, like COVID-19, can even manipulate it to harm you way more than it should. But, would you rather deal with carrying epipens for a nut allergy, or be dead an hour after you’re born from pathogens?

    • @mylifeforaiur@lemmygrad.ml
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      22 years ago

      The Pegasus incident was too sloppy for section 31. That incident seemed more likely the work of a lifelong intelligence analyst who thought they could run a field op.

  • @PolandIsAStateOfMind@lemmygrad.ml
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    2 years ago

    Neither i think. There’s a lot of theories about it, from the omnipotent illuminati or foreign plot (i think we can rule those out, no matter how much Tal’shiar would like that) through the unoffical hardcore faction in Starfleet Intelligence (this is the most supported one), legitimate black ops division of Starfleet Intelligence, black ops insider cell by some other part of Federation inside SI up to literally one smart guy with many contacts.

    I kinda forgot how it was in DS9 though :)

    • @Cassilda@lemmygrad.ml
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      42 years ago

      According to Memory Alpha, it was a legitimate section of Starfleet Intelligence in the 22d and 23rd centuries, but by the 24th was a splinter group operating without official sanction.