[snip]

After another sip of his glass Dol seemed to consider a question of his own, “..Captain Glen, you say your Federation has many members, all with their own cultures and ideas. When a new member joins how does your Federation avoid clashes of choices of say design, fashion, currency, and the like?” he asked.

“We do understand and experience that issue,” Glen agreed, “which can result in a decrease in the uniqueness of once-isolated communities from trans-cultural diffusion. It cannot be avoided as it has always occurred from very ancient times; even times when people only travelled on foot, so it’s nothing new. Better communication just leads to a faster rate of the diffusion of new ideas and technology. The Federation provides assistance to teach local customs and languages in schools, and to study local traditions, and to prevent their extinction. One of the best things about having a intergalactic cultural exchange is the wide variety of choices on offer. No one rightly would want those different elements to be diminished because they make the galaxy a more colourful place, and every culture and person has different knowledge, perspectives, and points of view. Such diversity is something that is actively promoted within the Federation, as it leads to better informed decisions.”

”..I see, Captain Glen, most interesting. If I can be quite honest, from those other species we have met or encountered, none even who are in a collective union like you describe seem as coherently meshed together, there always seem one or two areas that cause conflict as we later find out. So I suppose my next question to you is has your Federation ever had a sort of internal civil war or civil strife? I mean if you do not mind answering that I mean.” Dol asked.

“No civil war, no!” replied Glen, “I’m not saying that such a thing is impossible, of course. However, the four founding races that formed the Federation each had their own destructive planetary strife before they decided to come together in peace. Earth had their World War Three, which came close to total annihilation, while Vulcan had their Time of Awakening. I guess that they wanted an alternative to an apocalyptic future and tried hard to avoid it ever happening again.”

“Nor can I tell you that there are never any arguments or disagreements. When the Federation was about to sign a historic peace treaty with it’s greatest enemy, the Klingon Empire, there were conspirators of both sides who almost plunged them instead into full scale war. The conspiracy was thwarted and the Khitomer Accords were duly signed, but as you say there are always one or two areas where people cannot agree and where conflict is a possibility.” Glen gave as full an answer as he could.

• Glen, CO