I object to the use of "scam". Only one party receives anything of value from a scam.

>Sure they can spin it, an already successful ship is getting an
>upgrade that puts it decades in advance of its neighbors, but
>still....

Starfleet's PR people will find a way to make the transfer of Enterprise and the mass defection of Kirk and his officer corps seem like part of a coordinated gesture of extreme magnanimity from the Fleet to a storied and much-abused galactic defense organization that is getting back on its feet. Since this aligns quite well with the WDF Public Affairs Office's own overarching goal in those years of shaking off the lingering tendrils of its GENOM-built Exile bad image, they're more than happy to let Starfleet's people tell that story.

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
zgryphon at that email service Google has
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.