Freedom of Speech by Norman Rockwell and referencing TNG s7e12 "The Pegasus"
this post was submitted on 07 Dec 2025
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It wasn’t a cloaking device, it was a phase shift device which the Romulans also experimented with.
It was both.
Somewhere else it's mentioned that the Klingons also worked on the concept.
I'd argue that a device that also happens to render the user invisible is not inherently a cloaking device.
A flintlock pistol is not legally a firearm in the US, and that distinction matters to quite a few people around here.
Now, ultimately the end result is the same (invisibility/shooty stick go boom) so in the end, the romulans would still consider it a cloak.
There was an episode of TNG where the crew was being eaten alive by "inter-phasic" aliens and Dr. Crusher could only see them by using her I P Scanner (tee hee). So my question is: how does Starfleet know they wont phase into a layer of spacetime inhabited by, say, giant spaceship eating worms?
That's the neat part, they don't!
This just reinforces my head canon that other species are terrified of humans for being so reckless with technology.
"Why do you need another warp 5 core? These things are hard to make, you know!"
"Well, we plugged the last two you gave us together.... In case you're wondering, we did NOT hit warp 10, however, we found all kinds of new radiations to study!"
horrified Vulcan stares
18 USC § 921(a)(16) disagrees with you
Out of sheer curiosity I checked. 18 USC § 921(a)(16) defines "antique firearm" for purposes of crimes and criminal procedure. The term "firearm" is defined in 18 USC § 921(a)(3), which includes the text, "Such term does not include an antique firearm." (source)
It's perplexing because the "antique firearm" definition has numerous references to "firearm". The (A) and (B) parts include or reference the text, "any firearm (including any firearm with a matchlock, flintlock, percussion cap, or similar type of ignition system) ...".
So it looks like antique firearms are an instance of Russell's Paradox. I guess a flintlock is not not a firearm. Paradox resolving powers must be one of those things you need law school for.
So, would it fall under projectile weaponry like a cannon/artillery?
As I recall, a flintlock pistol is still considered a firearm. Its just an "antique" firearm which means US regulations and laws around them are more relaxed.
Indeed, invisibility is one of the aspects of cloaking.
An other is being unable to be scanned for example. Was this also the case?
Wording is important. It isn't a cloaking device. It may also cause the user to become invisible, but it is not a cloaking device.
Much in the way that a handgonne isn't a pistol. And how a flintlock pistol isn't legally considered a firearm in the United States (as the founding fathers intended)
That said? The romulans would use any excuse they feel like to launch an attack. They won't care that it isn't a cloak. They'll say it doesn't matter and the intention of the treaty was clear. Ultimately they don't care about wording over intent, they'll interpret the treaty in whichever way is most favorable for themselves and hope they're still standing when the dust settles.
That said, I think any attack they launch would merely be a test of starfleet's response. "if we attack are they going to let us keep what we take in exchange for 'peace', will they fight for its return, or would they press a counter-attack?" kind of thing.
Maybe I'm over thinking it.
It cloaked the ship. The method is likely irrevalent, as the federation was banned by treaty from having cloaked ships. If a deep slathering of mustard had rendered the enterpise cloaked, that would also have been a violation of the treaty.
I guarentee that if you murdered someone with a flintlock pistol by shooting them, arguing that "technically its not a gun" would not help your defense in any reaonable way. That's because the law isnt just about "technicality," but also "intent," as you say. The test ships intent was to phase and to cloak, and that makes it illegal for the federation, no matter the novelty. Its not romulan manipulation of law, its just the law read clearly.
No, but if you get arrested for having one, you absolutely can argue it's not a gun.
Plenty of legal cases have been decided on technicalities.
You can argue it, but it wont mean much after you shoot someone with it.
Thats what the federation did here. They used a "technically not a cloak" to "cloak" their ships. Technical discussions about whether a "Cloak is a cloak or not" are moot when you cloak with it.
Then it wouldn’t have violated the treaty…
That the official Federation position is that Pressman violated the Treaty of Algernon is, in my view, the best argument that it is a cloaking device.