Thursday, May 14, 2026

I Will Not Condone a Course of Action ...

I've been annoyed for almost 30 years at the seeming non-sequitur of Queen Amidala telling her advisors that she won't condone action that would lead to war, considering that nobody described such an action in the discussion that leads up to her avowal. The governor says an invasion is imminent, and her security chief says that the security forces will be no match for the Trade Federation's troops, but neither makes any recommendation of what should be done about that. They're basically telling her that the Trade Federation is about to start a war, and that if that happens, the Naboo will lose, and her response is that she refuses to start a war. It's always provoked a big "Huh?" from me.

But as I watched the scene yesterday, I did what I always advise people to do, and instead of thinking she has no reason to say what she says, I asked myself, "Why would she say that?" And the answer is pretty obvious, actually: the Naboo have excellent starfighters, and they're unaware of how well-defended the Trade Federation ships are. We see both of those facts play out later in the film.

So what was really being said in those lines was this: 

Sio Bibble: The Trade Federation is about to land troops on the planet to attack us.

Captain Panaka: If they do that, we'll be wiped out. 

Queen Amidala: I hear what you're saying, but I am not going to be the one to attack first.

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