I always had a problem with the Star Trek future. They had replicator technology and the ability to create unlimited (for their use at least) energy. And they handed out replicators like they were pretty common pieces of equipment as each time we encounter a new colony of settlers seemed to get one. So here we have a piece of technology that can take energy and make it into whatever non-living item you could want (as long as its pattern is known). This literally destroys any economy as they would no longer need to be services performed anyone. For example, Captain Sisko's father was a restaurantor. Why would we need such a person as we could just take any dish he "created", scan it and save that pattern in the replicator and have that meal whenever we wanted in our homes? (I am operating on the assumption that I could take ordered food home in a doggy bag). This works with artists in other fields as well because there have been numerous examples of using the holodeck and computers to make items to exacting specifications. Now what would stop someone from just making larger and larger replicators to eventually make one large enough to build starships (a computer lock preventing it could easily be circumvented as the numerous times the Enterprise computers were hijacked has shown in the series). At which point the control the Federation exerts goes away, as anyone could create a fleet of ships to go off exploring on their own without Star Fleet interference.

I'm with you, but I run into so many parents whose kids don't have any chores.

When I was 11 or 12 we moved to a place with over an acre of lawn. I was very quickly shown how to drive the lawn tractor. A woman I work with would fret because her husband injured his wrist very badly and couldn't use his hand at all for many weeks. She had to learn to drive the lawn tractor and it frightened her. I asked why her son, who was a few years older than 11, didn't do the lawn. Nope, too dangerous. He just finished his freshman year of college and he's never mowed the lawn or pulled a weed. Baffling!

I thought he was really good in the role as well.

One of my favorite was the American saying, Charity begins at home.Ferengi:

Exploitation begins at home. One of my favorite.

I am forever telling parents when they complain about work that needs done. "That's what kids are for...USE them."

Rule #106. There is no honor in poverty.
Rule #137. Necessity is the mother of invention. Profit is the father.

However, the caricature backfired, as fans quickly took a liking to the Ferengi. Writers recognize what makes a series popular, and gave the Ferengi characters depth. In the end, the Ferengi were regarded as the "lovable scoundrels" that Americans regard with affection.

The socialist hypocrites are only too happy to smear others while cashing in on worn out shows like Star Trek that have nothing new to offer except for milking the audience.

I found the Ferengi to be a Straw Man caricature of Capitalism offered by socialist Trek writers to discredit free market thinking with Rules of Acquistion like "Employees are rungs on the ladder of success... never hesitate to step on them." and "Treat people in your debt like family... exploit them." designed to install a visceral resentment of those engaged in commerce.

Mike, I liked the Ferengi, only because of their audacity and total dedication to their own gains. It seemed they were rather unbalanced in the way they were handled, and a lot of liberties were taken by different writers who twisted some of their original form. There are 3 YouTube videos on Star Trek Inconsistencies, which I find funny as all out. In the 2nd one they go over the whole Ferengie creation issue, as in a TNG episode, they run into them for "the first time" then supposedly 200 years earlier on Enterprise, Capt Archer runs into them, claiming they had found their "first dangerous species". String it altogether and have Picard saying "Why wasn't I told" was pretty funny.

Armin Shimerman was the best of the Floyd Ferrises.

Free advice is seldom cheap.