"[T]he Prime Directive, Starfleet's General Order #1, is the most prominent guiding principle of the United Federation of Planets. The Prime Directive dictates that there can be no interference with the internal affairs of other civilizations, consistent with the historical real world concept of Westphalian sovereignty." -- Wikipedia
p>The Prime Directive is the logical extension of the "Leave Us Alone" philosophical position stated by our Founding Fathers in the Constitution. These ideas were taken up by such conservative/libertarian luminaries as Ayn Rand, William F. Buckley, Grover Norquist, and many contributors to The America Spectator . That Captain Kirk (Mr. Shatner) himself doesn't see his position on the "2% Solution Campaign" as directly violating of the Prime Directive is a sad irony for any Trekkie to bear. br> -- Ira M. Kessel br> Rochester, New York /p>As concerned Americans, we should be dialing back our energy consumption. I think our government offices should lead in this effort. First, we should encourage IE: DEMAND that our Federal representatives dial back their own air-conditioning use between the months of April and September...to zero. Yes, the halls of Congress and other federal entities would be uncomfortable, possibly stifling enough for those officeholders to seek relief elsewhere...outside of Washington. This would in turn provide some relief to the American taxpayer in the form of less legislation and perhaps preserve liberty for a few moments longer.