Darth Onasi wrote:Why would 8472 go around destroying deserted planets? Moreover if they were deserted, why would the Borg consider them a loss?
It's utterly retarded to suggest that the destruction of planetary sized resource pools wouldn't be considered a loss since no living beings actually died.
That's like saying the destruction of the entire US Navy's fleet and logistical infrastructure wouldn't be a signficant loss if no personnel died.
The only way that mindset would apply is if the Borg control enough planets that the destruction of eight of them (or however many they lost in total) relative to their total number is extremely low. In which case the onus is upon you to provide evidence of their planetary numbers.
"Now let us be clear, my friends. The fruits of our science that you receive and the many millions of benefits that justify them, are a gift. Be grateful. Or be silent." -Modified Quote
That's besides the point, if they're considered a controlled asset and resource pool then the Borg need them for something and are not deserted in the strategic sense.
If I had something interesting, profound or incredibly stupid to say, it would go here.
apocolypse wrote:It depends on what you consider "significant". The actual snippet of the quote is "Eight planets destroyed. 312 vessels disabled. Four million, six hundred and twenty one drones killed." If you reject any drone figures from the vessels and use only planets, it represents an average of slightly over half a million drones a planet.
Also, if you take the opposite approach and assume the planets were deserted you get about fourteen thousands drones per ship - well within the capacity of a cube, given the nubers we heard of elsewhere. It's at least possible, if not likely, that those planets were deserted.
Oh that's a definite possibility too. There's no way that all those ships were automated or whatnot. It was more of an example to show that the planets involved were not largely populated. Even using the best case scenario possible for the planets, you only get a little over half a million drones each assuming equal distribution.
Surely the reason that in First Contact they scan Earth and find lots of Borg on it, where usually they might not set themselves up on planets is because Earth had to be assimilated by a single sphere, it became a home base for the Borg in this alternate timeline.
"Yeah, funny how that works - you giving hungry people food they vote for you. You give homeless people shelter they vote for you. You give the unemployed a job they vote for you.
Maybe if the conservative ideology put a roof overhead, food on the table, and employed the downtrodden the poor folk would be all for it, too". - Broomstick
