Why The Republic DIDN'T INTERVENE During the Blockade of Naboo

[@rexlumontad5644]

"Enter the bureaucrats, the true rulers of the Republic. And on the payroll of the Trade Federation, I might add. This is where Chancellor Valorum's strength will disappear." - Senator Palpatine

[@snusemcgoose1001]

It’s crazy just how well he planned almost everything (at least that were lead to believe in canon, obviously some of this was added later)

[@eddapultstab2078]

@@snusemcgoose1001 the republic was bloated with both pork barrel politics and sheer self serving incompetence. They used bureaucracy to shield themselves from responsibility and neutered defense force to siphon money off of. Even if the clone wars didn't start, the republic was deep in danger of collapsing under its own heavily mismanaged weight.

[@jeffreycarman2185]

Most likely that level of corruption was fomented by Sidious himself…

[@charlielynch3916]

@@jeffreycarman2185 he just built on a foundation of corruption that had existed for centuries before he was even born and exploited it

[@eddapultstab2078]

@@jeffreycarman2185 not really, put enough people trying to get re-elected in the same room and they will take whatever bribes it takes to maintain their position. The likes of padme or the organ organas are a rare lot that are often suppressed by the corrupt.

[@Kubinda12345]

If only the Republic - whether the Galactic one or the New one - had a proper centralized military it would save itself a lot of trouble. After the Sith wars it demilitarized and decentralized and let the planets and systems take care of defense themselves. However the whole problem with this concept is that those planets and systems only take care of themselves and not the other ones. So when Naboo was attacked it was left on its own.

[@Underworlddream]

I think also some planet or system militray would not be up to standard or choose not to spend much money on defense. Like Naboo seams to have just a basic security force, didn't seams to have tanks, artilary, or alot of soldier. Even if they didn't want to waste money on ground troops they should have had good space defense force but they lack cruiser, carrier, battleship, or even anti-ship weapons. The Rebel Alliance a bunch of poor rebel had a shield generator strong enough to protect against planetary bombardment and a Ion Cannon where a rich planet of Naboo barely had anything.

[@xsailor85]

The New Republic Senate was more than useless.

[@KuDastardly]

And this is what happens when a thousand years of peace brought on by the Ruusan Reformation can end up doing.

[@The_Lucent_Archangel]

It's almost a mirror image of real world organizations like NATO.

[@theliato3809]

you can only build up a military so much without a proper threat for it

[@danarogers3489]

The East India Company is a good historical example.

[@calebtar]

Yessir! China’s new Belt and Road is very much the same.

[@casbot71]

@@calebtar I'm surprised Allan didn't mention that when talking about debt trapping.

[@imnotusingmyrealname4566]

@@calebtar Belt and Road consists of transportation routes which are not predatory and of debt slavery which is predatory and would've fit perfectly in this video.

[@wildfire9280]

@@imnotusingmyrealname4566 Back in my day we called debt slavery sharecropping.

[@EMcKelvyF]

How about the C.I.A.?

[@augsdoggs]

I’m born and raised on Staten Island and I worked for a contractor involved with building that Amazon warehouse and developing the surrounding land (I’m a union Truck Driver/ Teamster). I was truly happy and proud when news broke about the Amazon workers there successfully organizing. Very cool and appropriate point of reference for this video.

[@tenn_ore]

Some comments here seem surprised by the trouble Palpatine went to operate incognito, that the Republic basically toppled itself. True, but I think the real reason Palpatine operated as a Sith in the shadows is that in addition to taking over the Republic leadership and declaring it an empire, he wanted and planned to destroy the Jedi Order. The reason the plan was so genius is that it allowed him to paint the Jedi as traitors as well and so he was justified in destroying them.

[@eddapultstab2078]

At that time Palpatine did not have the authority, fame, and influence as he had in the height of clone wars. The jedi were still popular up until mace windu jumped the gun and tried to serve some quite literal die hard justice on Palpatine, which gave him the final piece to complete his plan ironically speaking. But until then Palpatine knew how east it was going to be killed outright on detection, especially if all his contingency plans to protecting his activity with the separatists ever failed and the big secret came to light. I don't think its surprising because Palpatine was only going to get one shot at this and he never, ever, had any plans to pass the torch to a disciple.

[@eddapultstab2078]

The clouding of the jedis vision I now realize was not because of the sith or Palpatine, but it was the shear corruption in the galactic politics itself. The jedi were meant to attuned to their surroundings and sensitive to change but when you live right next door to the biggest source of illicit activity in the galaxy its easy to get blinded and get used to it which makes 700 year old yoda's story all the more tragic as he was desensitized slowly over centuries and did not know it until it was too late. This is arguably the point of Darth banes rule of two plan as nothing unites a nation or people like a common foe but when that's taken away the people are without purpose and are more prone to self serving actions. I don't think the rule of two was meant to be permanent but to come to an end when the republic is weak enough to be chopped up in parts and the sith flourish from it.

[@basedstreamingatcozy-dot-t7126]

This is now canon, as far as I'm concerned. Brilliant theory

[@akale2620]

I mean that's exactly what the plan was. And it worked. But instead of building the sith up again, palpation wanted to keep the power for himself and the death Star was a mistake too.

[@Natedawg1998]

It's legitimately sad that the Trade Federation did a better job of policing and defending the Outer Rim planets than the Republic Really goes to highlight that while the Federation was exploitative, they were still doing better than the Republic, simply because they offered a valuable service

[@seanreynolds7369]

Can't trade with people if some pirates keep killing them and stealing your cargo can you?

[@MrDiplomatSwag]

The republic is just too big tbh its crazy how much power criminal organizations have.

[@girlgarde]

It just goes to show how the Old Republic was crappy and ineffective by that point.

[@andrewharris9302]

It’s funny how Lucas warned us about the power of commerce guilds and then he sold his company to one 😑

[@ML-sc3pt]

Except the warning was mostly bs cause the real warning is that corrupt politicians will blackmail companies to act poorly to take more power (gunray feared sidious)

[@kingnamor777]

Ikr. His mistake surve as a good lesson for all of us.

[@snusemcgoose1001]

@@kingnamor777 at least he knows and admits it was a mistake. There’s still hope I think, if Star Wars eventually does so bad it’s not profitable Disney will eventually be forced to sell it and hopefully either George or a third party who cares will buy it. But for that to happen we have to completely write off Disney Star Wars

[@snusemcgoose1001]

@@Commodore22345 Well that’s why I was saying he could get it back imagine if he used some of the money they payed him for it to buy it back for less lmao it would be the ultimate shame for Disney

[@wanderrussel5668]

“Ironic” - chancellor palpatine

[@MrBCWalker01]

The British East India Company. Yes, we had a real-life Trade Federation. It wasn't the only one.

[@lerneanlion]

"To control the Republic, you have to control its economy" I like the sound of that! I'm glad you said it, Alan! Why rule purely through the military force while economically ruling a planet of even the whole galaxy is even better! To be exact, if Palpatine kept ruling through the Republic's economy by using the Trade Federation, he can get to keep the Jedi as his attack dogs anytime he wanted and when the Jedi and/or the Senate decided not to do something in his favor, he can simply just having the Banking Clan or the Trade Federation did something to force them to do what he wanted. So yeah, ruling from the shadow through the economy sounds like an awesome idea!

[@kingnamor777]

My favorite line is "the Republic is by the Core; for the Core." In other words the Republic's only interest is it's own human rich Core worlds and systems.

[@snusemcgoose1001]

People have no idea that’s how it is in real life too in a many ways

[@grandinquisitor8335]

Wasn't that Plagueis's original goal? rule as a shadow figure and just control the republic that way?

[@lerneanlion]

@@grandinquisitor8335 If that's the case, I like it even more! Sure, Palpatine is a genius but to control the galaxy through brute force from the military alone is not going to last.

[@grandinquisitor8335]

@@lerneanlion I feel like Sith wanting material wealth or controlling the galactic economy is an interesting and underused idea. The concept of a weaker sith lacking the potential of palpatine and vader and instead of using military force or sith powers they just use their sheer political influence and financial power to get what they want. When the sith aren't written as a bunch of murderhobos they can be very interesting.

[@MrGoesBoom]

Still scratching my head over why the Jedi weren't at that first Senate meeting to go over everything they witnessed. Hell, a Republic Judiciary ship and it's crew were killed, the Jedi absolutely witnessed both a blockade and an invasion.....and nothing, they just greeted the chancellor then fucked off back to the Temple

[@girlgarde]

Yeah, that's something that puzzles me. Perhaps the Jedi Council wished to maintain neutrality in political disputes in the Senate and didn't want to be seen as taking sides with certain factions in the Senate? Still, if I'd been the Jedi Council, I'd have told Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan to testify in the Senate as the Trade Federation tried to murder them which is a hostile act against the Jedi Order and to keep Valorum in power as he was buddies with the Jedi. Also, the Trade Federation's antics were undermining the stability and credibility of the Republic so they had to be kept in check.

[@seb2750]

It was a secret hush hush mission by Valorum. It was not a sanctioned mission, that was why they disguised as "Ambassadors" ... while being dressed as obvious Jedi. Even a damn droid made them when they were received into the waiting room. If the Jedi revealed that they were involved, questions will be asked why were the Jedi even involved in this? Edit: Even Palpatine admitted to Nute and his pal that he was shocked that Valorum brought Jedi into this.

[@girlgarde]

@@seb2750 An argument could be made that Valorum trying to strong arm the Trade Federation into agreeing to a settlement by using the Jedi to intimidate them is in violation of Republic law as it was a hush hush mission. While the Federation broke Republic law by invading Naboo, so did Valorum it seems. I can imagine Lott Dodd (the TF senator) saying "Hold up, why were Jedi sent as the diplomats to resolve the Naboo blockade? It is illegal for you to use Jedi as diplomats to resolve disputes such as this! This is an attempt to bully the Trade Federation by using the Jedi as your attack dogs Chancellor and we won't stand for it! I call for a vote of no confidence in Chancellor Valorum's leadership!" if it was revealed that Jedi were involved.

[@seb2750]

@@girlgarde Oh definitely, both sides were in the wrong. That was why they played dumb to avoid escalation and having uneasy questions asked for scrutiny.

[@toportime]

Yeah, that was a massive plot hole in the story.

[@rippera45]

One thing I was never clear on was whether Palpatine was banking on the TF winning, Amidala and the Jedi stopping them, or if the entire conflict didn't matter, as long as it happened. Clearly, we see him playing both sides, heavily favoring the TF. But when Amidala goes to do things herself, Palpatine almost seems surprised, as if things weren't going to plan all of a sudden. Maybe he was acting, maybe not. Regardless, it's not shown whether the blockade's failure had any effect on him; he's elected Chancellor, and things proceed from there. But the question stands: was Naboo a slight hitch in his plan, or did everything work as intended?

[@theliato3809]

It works either way. If they win then the idea of the worlds pushing back against such corrupt behemoths gives ground to the sepratist movement. If the TF wins then he has a major issue that he can then turn into a huge scandal. EIther way it knocks Valorum out of power and he can champion a cause to push his agenda from multiple angles.

[@kingnamor777]

@@theliato3809 I agree. Palpatine wins and becomes chancellor. No matter which sides win. He only loses when our main characters discovers that he is actually the Sith Lord and his plans start to fall apart.

[@kingnamor777]

@@Commodore22345 I agree.

[@basedstreamingatcozy-dot-t7126]

I 100% agree. I hate it when 'brilliant strategists' in fiction can perfectly foresee every event that will happen, and everything goes to plan like they have precognition or something. To me, Palpatine seems much smarter if he adapts his strategy on the fly, and has many backup plans just in case the core plan fails. Him being thrown for a loop and having to react make him a better villain, and it also makes the heroes seem better for not actually just dancing in the palm of his hands. For the same reason, this is why I prefer the idea that Anakin was a force aberration, and not created by Palpatine/Plaugius.

[@kingnamor777]

@@basedstreamingatcozy-dot-t7126 I agree. I like to think Anakin is just a force aberration too. Because it doesn't make any sense on why they would create a living being from the force inside. Inside a slave woman and then just leave without going forward with the plan?

[@johnquach8821]

Bureaucracy: Exists Sith Grand Plan: Time to make it even worse!

[@cmedtheuniverseofcmed8775]

It would have been an interesting "what if" scenario if the old Republic actually did try to launch their own counterattack against the Trade Federation to liberate Naboo. What would they have used for their military? What type of ships or starfighters would have been available? If the Republic barely won or outright lost the battle to liberate Naboo, it would have further served evidence that the Old Republic was just too weak to do anything.

[@girlgarde]

If Naboo's an agricultural planet, then shouldn't the Naboo have been able to feed themselves despite the blockade. The main threat from it I thought was that it was keeping the Naboo from getting other goods that they needed to keep their economy afloat and to sell stuff to get money that they needed for various things.

[@biffbidderman8164]

there was a famine, like he said in the video

[@maestrofeli4259]

yeah that's also something I don't ubderstand, the naboo economy doesn't make sense. Supposedly they export agriculture and import other manufactured, industrial goods, but then it is said that the blockade would cause a famine because they wouldn't be able to import food??? What?????

[@dancorneanu9144]

​@@maestrofeli4259The agriculture industry requires fertilizer, heavy machinery. It also depends on the crops. If they grow only certain crops selling them and importing others, then disruption of this heavily reduces available goods. Most crop produvtion is specialized.

[@RevanX77]

You neglected to mention that the bill was supported and manipulated by Palpatine to cause a conflict, and that Valorum sending in the Jedi was illegal as such an intervention required a Senate resolution.

[@wildfire9280]

So let me get this straight. Naboo was resource-rich but had to rely on the Trade Federation to extract those natural resources because it lacked the infrastructure and means of production to do so? And that very same Trade Federation used this position to ruthlessly exploit the planet rather than enrich it? …does that make Naboo Space Congo?

[@andrewharper3165]

Africa in general, I’d say.

[@TarsonTalon]

I mean, Congo didn't have a hollow water filled mantle, so I think the greater plot hole is figuring out where da faq these supposed resources were found. Where exactly would these resources be found? Do they just spawn in limestone chunks like in Subnautica? Is that why they had to evict the Gungans? Anyways, I suppose the biggest difference between Naboo and Congo is that the Gungans weren't fooled into believing the Naboo were their enemies, despite the amount of suspicion they had for that human society. Meanwhile, in real life the native population in Congo and other African nations was convinced to oust their colonist people, only for them to all starve to death because the colonists were the ones running the infrastructure. Why is it that space frog people have more restraint in not going to war with the humans, despite having completely independent economies, than humans did other humans, when their economy was completely tied with said humans they were trying to oust? I guess George Lucas was an optimist. He probably didn't think so at the time, considering he was writing a movie about corruption, but maybe he's having second thoughts now. If Naboo was truly 'Space Congo' The Trade Federation would have totally started a war between the Nabooians and the Gungans. The Gungans probably would have won, only for the Trade Federation to swoop in and stomp them. They had no connections to the Republic, and thus were no threat to their agendas. In fact, the Republic and surviving Nabooians might have thanked the Trade Federation for "dealing with those savages". It wouldn't have probably helped Palpy though, so there's where creative license comes in.

[@wildfire9280]

@@TarsonTalon The infrastructure in Congo’s case was exclusively for the incredibly small area settled by the colonist population, and if not then for the sole purpose of resource extraction from the periphery to the core. …It also helped that the DRC’s best leadership was assassinated and promptly torn apart by Cold War BS that permanently ruined the entire trajectory of what was then a promising future.

[@taitano12]

One thing that we tend to forget about is the legitimacy of the investigation. The other Senators - including ones that opposed the TF - obviously would know that the Senate was corrupt and Padme could be lying. A drawn out investigation would be a depressingly reasonable response. The blockade wouldn't be able to stop an investigation team, but, the investigation would take a while, as a claim could be made that the droids were there simply to provide security against riots and sabotage as they ramped up production. A very sad and desperate situation for Naboo, indeed.

[@jakealter5504]

Especially since the senator of Naboo at the time was secretly the most corrupt person in the galaxy

[@taitano12]

@@jakealter5504 Yet, his line about "Enter the bureaucracy..." is valid, as is his line about Valorum's weakness. Valorum was in a position to push on behalf of Naboo, and knew that Padme was one of the few truly honest politicians. But, his by-the-books attitude makes him easy to manipulate by corrupt and incorrupt Senators and he like. The sad truth is that, with or without Sith intervention and meddling, the Galaxy was in a state that needed an Emperor/Empress, regardless of how psycho and corrupt they are. The worse the dictator is, the faster an effective rebellion will rise; and the better they are, the less of a rebellion is needed. From what I've seen, Papa Palpatine is somewhere in the middle, leaning strongly in the Purely Evil Dictator side, due to him being a Sith Lord and all.

[@kingnamor777]

@@taitano12 I say Palpatine aka Darth Sidious is in high stage. Being purely and completely evil. When he massacred the Jedi order, stealing and kidnapping force-sensitives, promoting/conducting slavery and finally blowing up the planet of Alderaan.

[@MultiLeonard1000]

These videos are incredibly well thought out and provide a lot of context to the prequels.

[@dennisd4452]

Always full of cool information about my favorite scifi universe. Thanks Allen. Peace all.

[@jimmycarter2927]

I am from Staten Island and that was hysterical

[@isaackim7675]

Palpatine, “I promise to put an end to corruption.” Ten years later: He allowed the Republic to be split in two and the Clone Wars began

[@Kartofelezer1940]

Allowed? He wanted it to

[@jakealter5504]

@@Kartofelezer1940 and he actually caused it

[@DedricSilva]

@@jakealter5504 And not to mention, those who snitches on him of him being a Sith would die.

[@kingnamor777]

@@DedricSilva Also Palpatine isn't a man of his word. Since the corruption still continues when the Republic turn into the Empire. The corruption itself just became more open and widespread view by everyone in the galaxy. Instead it being hidden under close doors like the Republic once did in the past.

[@daniels7907]

One thing that has been missing from Star Wars for decades is any depiction of the Republic that makes the audience want to see it saved (yes, I know about High Republic). Since 1977, the Republic was presented as a nostalgic memory as compared to the fascist Galactic Empire. However, the prequels and Clone Wars depicted a polity so broken that you didn't even really need to be a political genius (or Sith Lord) to topple it. The Republic already looked like a failed state that had ceded too much power to megacorps in order to create a libertarian government. I mean, Naboo seemingly didn't even have a Republic branch office staffed by a droid! When communications were jammed by the blockade ships, no alarms seemed to go off on Coruscant indicating that a member planet had just been cut off from the rest of the Republic! Even without Palpatine, the Republic was going to either fragment or become an Empire. This is why he didn't even need to be subtle about what he was doing.

[@daniels7907]

@@Commodore22345 - That runs counter to all the preaching about democracy though. Especially given that megacorps could have seats in the Senate. Which is exactly what I am talking about. The Republic was initially presented in background as a golden age of peace and justice. We don't see that. What we were shown was a polity that was mostly focused on economics. Whether or not that polity genuinely benefited any people was open to question. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan reported in to Chancellor Valorum and to the Jedi Council. But the Trade Federation sticking the Naboo in concentration camps or trying to wipe out the Gungans was of no real interest to either. So why, as an audience member, I should care about restoring the Republic is never explained. Obviously the Empire was bad and it needed to be overthrown. But returning to another Republic with the same system wasn't any better than slapping a Band-Aid on a lightsaber wound.

[@daniels7907]

@@Commodore22345 - Literally the entire purpose of the Death Star was to keep the Empire's own star systems in line by threatening their own citizens with complete annihilation. That's pretty obviously bad. Imagine if the U.S. government threatened to nuke any states that disputed federal policies.

[@daniels7907]

@@Commodore22345 - You have it backwards. The whole point of the Tarkin Doctrine was that the galaxy at large was *not* fond of the Empire. The Core Worlds were most likely to support it, because Palpatine wasn't stupid enough to be too over the top evil in the most densely-populated part of the galaxy where covering up atrocities was very difficult. But as you moved outward the Empire tended to drop the pretense of benevolence and became very prone to abusing the general public. Especially so in the Outer Rim. Policing such a vast amount of territory with star destroyers was impractical though. There were too many systems to control. The approval and funding for the Death Star came from Palpatine and, as we have been shown, Tarkin didn't even really take over the first Death Star project until it was nearly complete. He himself was worried about systems (especially the former Separatists) aligning with the Rebellion. Leia would also rub this point in his face personally. The Death Star(s) was intended to be the answer to the inherently unstable structure of the authoritarian Empire. The greatest threat that it faced was not external, but from it's own citizens. Tarkin merely broke things because Alderaan was a Core World and destroying it was a massive wakeup call to the other Core Worlds that there was *no* atrocity the Empire wouldn't commit, even if you were a privileged Human living in the Core Worlds. This really goes back to Palpatine himself. Peace is antithetical to the Dark Side of the Force. It is fueled by anger, fear and hatred. Not peace and happiness. So conflict is inherent in *any* Dark Side ruled polity.

[@Hartzilla2007]

Well yeah you don't see democracies where everything works and everyone is generally happy with things go dictatorship.

[@basedstreamingatcozy-dot-t7126]

Same thing with the New Republic, really. Painfully ineffectual. And when you get into the weeds with it, the Empire kinda sucked too. I think it was this channel that pointed out that the Empire didn't even offer that much peace from piracy, or smugglers. This is why the Old Republic was the greatest government shown in the entire setting! Ultra gigachads who weren't afraid to launch wars or show their military might when the need arose!

[@casbot71]

What if the *Stark hyperspace war* had not been a defeat/pyric victory for the Republic, and Ranulph Tarkin had survived… and realised that _"It's a trap!" before it was triggered?_ If the sabotage of Tarkins fleet had been prevented by due diligence and caution (or some Jedi had uncovered a further layer of the plot) and Tarkin's forces and the Jedi Judicial Knights had succeeded in their plans, what then? Ranulph planned to ride the new militarism and creating the Navy and GAR all the way to the Chancellorship. Would that have completely thrown a spanner in the Sith plan? And would the Galaxy be a better place? Could Ranulph have been a good Chancellor? - just keep his nephew on a short leash.

[@yaujj65]

Well he seems more politician than general. That's all I know for sure.

[@somticlight3712]

Allen got a good head on his shoulders and hes going places.

[@kingnamor777]

I just found out that the Republic back then didn't have a navy or militia. They did have a Judicial Forces. It was the closest thing the Republic had to a centralized military. But the Judicial Forces slowly began to lose relevance. Periodic bribery scandals and a weakening of central power eroded the Judicials' funding and standing as many Senators focused more on their sectors' Planetary Security Forces. Furthermore, the PSFs developed traditions of their own, and took over much of the appeal and glamor of military service from the Judicials.

[@girlgarde]

Sounds sort of like what happened to Poland's military back when it was the Commonwealth. Still, I'm annoyed that the Republic didn't have a centralized military and acted like having one would somehow make it into an evil empire. Having a credible Federal military doesn't make a nation evil, it's how it's used that determines whether it's good or evil.

[@kingnamor777]

@@girlgarde I agree. Also having no military within a government setting or place of democracy like the Republic. Makes them vulnerable and weak against other invaders. Which cause the Republic senators and bureaucrats to rely on their own planetary security forces or hiring Jedi during those times. And in doing so; it made the Jedi into dogmatic lapdogs of the Republic.

[@se6369]

Are Jedis the Judicial Forces you speak of?

[@imnotusingmyrealname4566]

George Lucas' world building is just insane. Star Wars truly is special.

[@frenzalrhomb6919]

... And Disney's World Dismantling Squads are equally impressive.

[@kingnamor777]

@@frenzalrhomb6919 before the dark time... before Disney took over and ruined Star Wars for us

[@rexlumontad5644]

3:34 Lok Durd voiced by George "Ooooh Mmmmy!" Takei himself.

[@happydog2905]

This just in amazon spends 1.4 billion dollars funding private military contractors and is preparing flights to Staten Island

[@desjoiremade8396]

l like how in your more recent videos, you've started out with a real world example to set the stage! I love your work - such an inspiration.

[@virginiahansen320]

I hate to be pedantic, but "plasma" is a state of matter. Like "liquid", "solid", or "gas". Exactly what kind of "plasma" was Naboo exporting?

[@5calambres]

I have no degree in fictional science, but here is my take: they have invented a process to convert any kind of plasma into energy. Like we can use any form of pressure to convert into energy. Does not matter if its water or wind, the process is the same. So the problem with plasma is, its a verry instable state of matter that quickly changes into gas or solid. Like air who turns into plasma on a capsule reentering our atmosphere, it quickly turns back to be a gas. So i guess naboo has a unnamed material (or lets say just a fictional name) that is plasma and stays in that state. Its easy to transport, storable and therefore mobile. What makes it the perfect ressource to be obtained and processed at another place.

[@thejuggernaut5327]

They had the “Pew-Pew” type

[@fluffly3606]

I imagine it's some sort of chemical compound that just happens to be named "plasma," like blood plasma. Perhaps it produces a lot of very energetic plasma when subjected to some process or other. In Warhammer 40,000 for example "plasma" seems to be code for "fusion" more often than not, as nuclear fusion in real life tends to require the fusile element to be in a plasma state.

[@NotDustyDrB]

So right on the distracting impact of the 'culture wars'. So many of us are kept on the brink of poverty and what do we focus on? Someone said something dumb on Twitter.

[@treysmith9925]

Obi-Wan: "Oh no, I'm not brave enough for politics." Allen: "Hold my jawa juice"

[@Mr2010forgeben]

Beautiful opening comparison to real life. Further proof that GT is basically just a youtuber's version of a history education class

[@kingnamor777]

Yet there's so much evidence proving that the Trade Federation are blockading and controlling Naboo. 1. A recording from their Naboo ship being attacked by the Trade Federation. Attempting to kill them during the invasion. 2. Then there is the private message from one of the Naboo advisors being held in a prison camp. 3. And there are a ton of witnesses too. The captain, soldiers, pilots and handmaidens who accompanied the princess of Naboo. There were also two Jedi witnesses. Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi.

[@snusemcgoose1001]

Even if that were the case and they brought it up I feel Palpatine would somehow have put a corrupt senate member in there to disregard it no matter what thus disabling the senate from passing anything about it

[@kingnamor777]

@@snusemcgoose1001 Seriously😑. Despite all the evidence I provided? What exactly would this "corrupt senator" say exactly? That the Naboo Princess, her servants and two Jedi are lying😒? That the video itself is a fake. Or maybe the corrupt senator would say that it isn't the Republic's problem and think they should refuses to help. Or just suggest that they follow Republic protocol by surveying Naboo and check to see if it really is under a TF blockade while so many of it citizens continue to suffer. I'm pretty confident that the Valorum would have no choice but take action and help Naboo. Thus Palpatine would've no choice but to alter his original plans to take Naboo. Valorum would probably hired mercenaries pliots, the Judicial Forces and Jedi Starfighers to destroy the Trade Federation blockade and take back control over the Naboo.

[@se6369]

I object! There is no proof!

[@happytimes8623]

Because the plot did not want them to intervene

[@SpenSoar]

I love your videos like this, so well done and they teach me about the real world 😬

[@nunyabusinesss1476]

Gives new meaning to the term "Hostile Takeover" lol. :D

[@lestergordon3698]

Palpatine was smart. He didn't care if the trade Federation won their blockade or not. His goal was to use Naboo as a sympathy cry so he could make the chancellor step down. He could then run and take the position for himself. Even if Amidallia didn't show up on corisant the outcome would have been the same. Now palpatine was worried that Amidallia would get the Jedi involved and they would get the viceroy to unveil who was really responsible.

[@Comrade2261]

Their hands were "tied" lol. Also HI Gen Tech!

[@pyeitme508]

Cause Palpy's moves

[@ewok40k]

First thing, we have no cannons - - Italian city mayor after being asked by Napoleon why there was no cannon salute as he entered this city. To intervene you have to have military!

[@CloneScavengerVulpin8389]

Viceroy gunray: "i want droidekas up here at once."

[@yskywalkery8472]

What would happen if bail organa was elected to succeed chancellor valorum

[@venkelos6996]

I know at some point, Darth Plagueis and Darth Sidious had a hand in hiw things were going on Naboo, and when the king decided he didn't want to play nice anymore, he even tried to assassinate Higo Damask, unaware that the Muun banker was a much more dangerous entity than he first appeared. After this, various elements, including Senator Palpatine, moved to replace him; he stepped down, Padme got the job, and then Plagueis went to Naboo and killed him. I wonder how much of the choice in Amidala was the Force, or just convenience? If Padme had been weaker, she might not have fought so hard, and just accepted TF dominance, making the crisis less valuable to the Sith. Certainly, Senator Palpatine could, as Darth Sidious, draw the TF into their actions, while using his public persona to call for a reaction impotently, but I feel it would have lacked the same pull as giving the queen there; seemed less like him acting for his own interests. Good thing they got a fighter. Honestly, this is why my misguided Imperial "heroes" work in my writings. The Empire ARE the bad guys, at least to many, and they commit terrible crimes, but they were SO divided; so powerless, that the idea of toppling the Empire, just to put that back in its place, was enough to cause them to serve, and hope the Republic never returned.

[@ericdale4641]

It sounds like the Republic never had a monopoly of violence in the outer rim. In other words, it had no ability to exercise its authority or enforce itself in that area. The CIS was in the right. They weren't actually separatists as the Republic never had any real claim of sovereignty over the outer rim.

[@seangray6131]

It really does sound like one of the biggest reasons as to why the trade Federation was allowed to get as strong as they were due to the Republic demilitarizing themselves, I mean I get why the Republic did that but come on doing so leaves planets to the mercy of space pirates and warlords especially planets like Naboo who weren't developed enough to be able to properly defend themselves so when another organization who can protect worlds like this comes along says "sure we can protect you" and actually does so for a while. Of course, they're going to get powerful people crave safety and stability and will pay handsomely for it so when the TF gets powerful enough, they can throw their weight around of course the Republic can't do anything about it and one of the biggest reasons is because they lacked the military might to actually stand up to the TF's forces.

[@hectortellezgarcia1155]

Man, the part of me that loves history and geopolitics absolutely LOVES this kind of lore, but the part of me that loves space fantasy and lightsaber action understands why this movie was so divisive when it came out. Still can't help but appreciate the level of detail that George Lucas put in the prequels worldbuilding.

[@joshuawells835]

Question and Possible Future Video - Say that the Republic did vote to intervene in the Naboo Crisis, as in the HISHE video for Phantom Menace. Given this is 10 years before the Clone Wars and the creation of the Clone Army/the GAR, what forces could the Republic have sent to battle the Trade Federation Droid Army?

[@TheDragonRider6422]

none. like he said after the sith wars the republic was demilitarized and the clone army wasnt even concieved yet so they still wouldnt have any way to stoo the trade federation from interviening

[@theliato3809]

Call on the various defense forces around the galaxy to start arresting and impounding Trade Federation forces while their assets were frozen. Had it happened they would have been given a shock at ever point which they wouldnt have been able to react to.

[@TheDragonRider6422]

@@theliato3809 true but like he said most of these systems either didnt want to intervien in the galactic affairs on behalf of the republic or just outright didnt care enough to have a military. plus with all the beuracracy and corrpution getting the systems to do that wouldve took such a long time

[@joshuawells835]

@@TheDragonRider6422 Ok, then just assuming a force is sent against all odds, what would the Republic send? What could they send? No matter how unlikely you clearly think of the prospects.

[@theliato3809]

@@TheDragonRider6422 Things can change rapidly once a few spanners are thrown into the mix. Local polities seeing the trade fed trying to strong arm Naboo is gonna make people antsy and the trade fed also has a lot of assets worth taking.

[@casbot71]

And Padme nominates Bail Organa as Chancellor - Palpatine…WTF??

[@TheMouse-gc9ft]

Man this explanation is so helpful

[@patrickperalta59]

I love and enjoy theses videos.

[@Mike1064ab]

She should have brought a recording of the trade federation blockade and them attacking her ship. The republic could not ignore that.

[@calebtar]

If you look at China giving loans to smaller countries lately, it’s very similar. We should be worried.. check out the New Silk Road

[@krisgonynor689]

My thoughts exactly - China's "Belt and Road" project is doing the same thing - giving poor countries $billions that they can never repay in exchange for new infrastructure projects. Most built by Chinese workers and companies, no less. Then they can force those countries to send them resources at below market rates - with the bonus of getting their support in the UN if they need it - cough Taiwan cough - and those countries can do little besides declaring bankruptcy. China plans long term, just like the Emperor did.

[@calebtar]

@@krisgonynor689 sorry yes you’re right. The belt and road is what it’s called. Hope I don’t sound like a kook but.. it’s scary that these small countries will never pay that back. What if China forces those countries to take up arms during wartime? They’ll likely be obligated to!

[@vincentbeton]

Ye know for all the Complaints about those Themes being rather boring for a Sci-Fi Action Movie like Star Wars, you cannot deny they put quite a bit of terrifying realism in by having them. We might not have Lightsabers or easy Space Travel but boy do we have Economic Ties and Tactics to wreck sh*t up like in Star Wars

[@jon6309]

Naboo had very poor negotiation skills when it came to their plasma trade! They should have demanded shares or stakes in the trade federation mega corporation in exchange for their plasma! It wouldn’t matter if they were initially being ripped off if they were paid in stock options because it would rise in value as the trade federation profited!

[@basedstreamingatcozy-dot-t7126]

The issue is that (possibly) the Trade Federation held all the cards, so they could just tell them 'no' to that deal. Then, where would Naboo go to? They'd stay in the same, crappy situation they were in beforehand.

[@jon6309]

@@basedstreamingatcozy-dot-t7126 but regardless they were in a crappy situation! The Naboo were paid 10-15 times less than what the galactic prices were for plasma! Naboo is like the third world countries of our world today! Rich in natural resources but unable to utilize it to maximize its benefits for its people! When we look at oil and gas companies the negotiations are different for each country! Norway for example charged high taxes on the oil and gas revenues of private oil prospectors but they still agreed to Norway’s terms even if other countries would charge less taxes or get a small cut of their profits! So that’s no excuse the Naboo could have done the same! We can see how lavishly they spent their plasma wealth on luxury Star ships when they are not even a galactic power! Why would you make an N-1 starfighter a luxury class when these were used for battle and likely to be destroyed in the process? The Naboo was not even known to have the best pilots or security forces in the galaxy so having a flashy star fighter was unnecessary. It just reflected that Naboo were just poor in making decisions for their planet to prosper!

[@bizmasterTheSlav]

The only good option for them was to develop plasma mining themselves, without the help of foreign corporations.

[@jon6309]

@@bizmasterTheSlav they did not have the resources, infrastructure and the know how. Naboo was a planet focused around art and agriculture. They didn’t even have a spaceport capable of exporting their new plasma hence they needed the banking clan and the trade federation to pay and build it!

[@Mrgolden1174]

Even as a 10 year old when I saw the phantom menace in 1999 I found the politics of Star Wars fascinating.

[@dylanthomas385]

Please do a best fantasy army count down and most strength and weakness like you did for space marines and alien invations

[@frankielooch]

Generation Tech! Hello there!

[@jonathan4158]

Properly most of the Senate didn't want to get into a war.

[@MidWestRiverRat]

Thank you

[@nulious]

GoodTimesWithScar: "super fast build mode"

[@scorpiovenator_4736]

6.1K likes to 26 dislikes is the best like to dislike ratio I Have seen in ages.

[@thewestisthebest6608]

When I was a kid I thought a company having so much power over the government was ridiculous. Now I know better

[@austinwilburn1772]

The intro sounds a lot like the plot the Call of Duty game that takes place in the semi near future.

[@The_Lucent_Archangel]

The what if at the beginning is just a tad ridiculous given the premise that it's "likely to happen" due to the government becoming "powerless". The current economic and cultural downswing was set in motion decades ago and only got stalled for a few years since. It's also been at the behest of said long-standing government elites, not in spite of them. Lucas had a decent story, but his attempt at staunchly anti-capitalist allegory fell flat while at the same time brilliantly showing how the sort of crony-socialist nonsense we've fallen back into lately is just going to deliver more and more power to a central authority - not less. And it may not even be to a central authority within the US or West itself.

[@theliato3809]

I dont think it fell flat. He was showing exactly how things worked in such corrupt tyrannical systems

[@The_Lucent_Archangel]

@@theliato3809Then you don't see the irrefutable logic I laid out. The very fact that Palpatine was able to maneuver the TF and other Outer Rim consortiums around like chess pieces the exact same way he did with the Senate and Chancellorship perfectly illustrates my point. The Republic was not in danger of becoming nor had it already become ineffectual. If anything, the way it was structured lent itself to being used by one man, Sith Lord or not, to seize power as a dictator by playing all sides against the middle. He created problems and then "solved" them, which is exactly what a tyrant does in order to maximize influence and consolidate their position as an indispensable leader. These are not things that corporate entities can do, at least not over the long term. Groups like the TF, Techno Union, IGBC, etc. carved out their own little fiefdoms and essentially had VERY oversized PMCs to enforce their will due to the demilitarization of the Republic following Ruusan but according to the basic precepts of government, those at the head of the political system ultimately possess a monopoly on the use of force. Palpatine wielded that monopoly with the Military Creation Act, the Emergency Powers Act, his takeover of the banks, and ongoing nationalization of sectors right on through to formally becoming Emperor. My point still stands just as strong. The danger never was and never will be with corporate entities. They lobby to the government to get away with as much as they can, for as long as they can. The real danger is from a leadership class that sells out their constituents either for personal financial gain or to acquire and maintain greater political capital and power. And that is empowered by a cronyist, socialist system far more readily than by a free market one. Period.

[@theliato3809]

@@The_Lucent_Archangel Thats what lucas was showing. These megacorporate entities the TF in particualr were built up by government to help with economic developement. When we get to the clone wars we see the siths machinations at work making use of war and crisis to help in turn build up the republic goverment into a massive state that was in effect an empire. It mirrors the way the tyrannical types in various governments over the world built up power over the 20th century.

[@wildfire9280]

@@The_Lucent_Archangel The monopoly on the use of force goes to the corporate monopolies (with some individual systems or the judicial fleet). The problem in this scenario is that corporate entities created militaries to invade a planet rather than going through legal channels.

[@The_Lucent_Archangel]

@@wildfire9280 Another master of missing the point and singling out one instance of a symphony of moving pieces. The corporates didn't see the forest for the trees, just the same as you and the other commenter do not. Such is life.

[@aliastheabnormal]

Are you sure that Google isn't building Battle droids and that's why they are making a stink over the fact they made a sentient AI?

[@polishscribe674]

fun fact: Naboo victory inspired Separatist to rise up against Republic

[@Elyseon]

Corruption, incompetence, complacency and a "fuck you, got mine" mentality.

[@Lobsterwithinternet]

The answer is the same as it is in our modern world: Financialization.

[@Zaza-ty2dv]

I was watching a clone wars an during when mace wendo was telling r2 and the droids of there mission when one droid is late he is hardly seen but you can actually see capain fordo and during the rest of the meeting capain fordo

[@salvatorepisano4078]

As someone who lives on Staten Island. I would find it funny if Amazon did do this. Nothing happens here and no one actually knows we even exist.

[@joshuadelbelbelluz8325]

Can you please continue the separatist alliance vs earth series please

[@TheLordUrban]

Because Naboo didn’t have none of that oil son.

[@aaronbasham6554]

Gee, this plasma sure sounds a lot like oil. I hope there aren't any real world comparisons being made here.

[@DogeickBateman]

Kashyyyk has crude oil. : )

[@aaronbasham6554]

@@DogeickBateman so that's why they care about the droid attack on them

[@wildfire9280]

@@aaronbasham6554 Ki-Adi-Mundi: “👀 Oil, you say?”

[@BillyBeenFishing]

Haha Staten Island in the house! Forgotten borough!

[@bobsnow6242]

This is a great breakdown of the backstory and it really illustrates how unfair people were to George Lucas when he tried to give exposition through the political intrigue scenes. It gave some real insight into how the mighty Republic began its slide into tyranny.

[@dreadnaughticus]

Are there any Hermitcraft fans who recognize Good Times with Scar's building timelapse music?

[@stevengill1000]

Yo your a Staten Islander? That’s awesome

[@jimwates8047]

Wow! you do a good job explaining this part of Star Wars. Like you said, some of the same things are happening now in our very lives.. Please more of this. You explain it awesome! As always, Thank you

[@DogeickBateman]

@@Wintermute909 Seems fine if it’s just a system comparison and not, say, some dumb controversy.

[@wildfire9280]

@@Wintermute909 That’s a very strange (or selective) definition of politics.

[@freelancenerd4804]

Never understood the problem for Naboo, it’s a jungle and water world…. And always looked like it had a pretty small population…

[@dancorneanu9144]

If they rely on outside resources and trading their own, then a blockade will destroy the economy.

[@freelancenerd4804]

@@dancorneanu9144 the planet looked pretty lush, what exactly are they dependent on? I mean the planet is so large that an entire civilization of a different species of creature live there that u never see.

[@dancorneanu9144]

@@freelancenerd4804 Having vegetation is quite diferent than having the self sustained agriculture. You need specific crops, with the infrastructure to feed and distribute your food, you need fuel. If you have fuel to extract, you need the means od extraction and refinment. On a scale suficient for your citizens. Even on Earth, countries depend on one another. There is specialization. You produce some crops, sell them, import others. Depending on climate, soil, infrastructure. Civilians, especially those used to conforts, lack the knowledge to farm. Africa has resources, but lacks the means of exploatation. The Gungans were selfsuficient. The Naboo weren't. Blockades create this problems. An invasion cuts them even further from resources. Conflict and confusion will kill.

[@Rosie199X]

The sanctions wouldn't do much for Naboo immediatley "No, really?" - Ukraine

[@fluffly3606]

Fortunately for the Ukrainians, what does help much more immediately (no slower than a mass mobilization does) is extensive logistical support. Unfortunately for the Naboo, they didn't seem to have anybody to receive such support if it was given, as what we see of their PDF was about as militarized as the Republic as a whole was...

[@Robert53area]

Of course are government would let this happen, most of the government works for big companies, and have no problem trying to use the military for things.

[@truetory6231]

I love the Amazon analogy with the Trade Federation. The very fact that any corporate entity had that amount of power stands as proof of how degenerate the Republic had become, in short it deserved to fall

[@tysondennis1016]

When you think about it, The Phantom Menace is about a megacorp invading a poor country with an invaluable natural resource found deep under the ground. And the CEO of the corporation being rich enough to remain above the law, until he is assassinated alongside his other business partners by the now grown-up version of the kid who singlehandedly blew up the ship he was launching the invasion from.

[@adamallen8787]

Was it padme? I always thought it was her decoy that was the one that made the no confidence vote

[@karlrovey]

That was Padme.

[@seb2750]

In an entourage, the decoy was there. But for official business such as Senate, it has to be Padme in person to speak and react in real time. In entourage, Padme always gives cues to her decoy what to do.

[@Boppinabe]

Forgot the Bayonne Bridge.

[@Dan-lk6ou]

Superfast build time

[@scottbarth7155]

"To make matters even worse, Naboo had a really serious shortage in food. This was due to the previous monarch who was an isolationist... and so the blockade of Naboo also threatened to create a famine on the planet...." This makes no sense to me. If the monarch was an isolationist. He'd almost certainly be a prepper. He would likely have 100 years of food for the whole planet....

[@ChrisMillerCrazyHouse]

He was too busy plotting his revenge on the Son of Joe-El

[@theliato3809]

Amazons not really a good comparrison of this. The Tennesse Valley Authority going around using its power to shut down counties that dont play ball with its business plan would be more accurate to the trade federation.

[@addisonsmith1836]

Thank for the economic analysis. It is spot on. However, there is one thing I've never understood that has nothing to do with the economics. It has minable plasma?! Plasma is a state of matter hotter than gas. It's lightening. How could Naboo be habital if the interior of the planet creates enough heat and pressure to create large amounts of plasma? This usually occurs in stars. This is why I can't get into the movie. It makes little sense in just the set up.

[@lagrangewei]

Naboo is an analog for Iran. after the revolution to depose the king and elect their own leader, Iran nationalise their oil and that led to a blockade of their country because of a company which we today know as BP claim to control their oil. in Naboo case, this was plasma that was harvested in the room we see darth maul fight the jedis in...

[@nikrose5229]

HISHE made some really good points. Padme should have showed the footage of the Trade Federation attacking their ship, the message from that one advisor saying "The death toll is catastrophic". She should have also brought Qui Gon and Obi Wan as primary witnesses to testify.

[@seb2750]

hehehe loved that HISHE. A few points to make. No, Quigon and Obiwan, nor the Jedi could testify as it was an illegal move by Valorum. Their involvement should not have happened. Even Palpy commented about this Jedi involvement he did not know about in his position as senator of Naboo. Why did you think the Jedi totally shut up and play dumb about the attempted assassination of 2 of their members? My goodness, if that was a legal mission by the jedi, it would be iron clad casus belli on the TF and testify in the senate against them.

[@ItsNova816]

What is the absolute banger playing in the beginning?

[@BD-yl5mh]

Tbh, I’m legitimately not sure that your example is entirely out of the realms of possibility

[@imnotusingmyrealname4566]

3:28 WHERE IS THAT SCENE FROM⁉️

[@petermills3814]

That's what happens when they have too much growth... the roman empire got way too big to manage by one emperor, so Hadrian pulled out of Iraq + Armenia and Scotland after Trajan died and decided to fix the empire's borders for defensive purposes rather than more conquests and solidify Rome's economy & power. Big governments & civilizations means big problems & trouble... means more money & resources and too many people to support, it just became too much to handle in the long run... you need to manage your size in quality as a nation in order to maintain, not quantity in ambitions. Eventfully, the empire split in two, as before it was too big... while the Western empire fell due to barbarian invasions + corruption + disease + incompetence, infighting + religion and other natural disasters, the Eastern Roman empire survived because it was well established and smaller to defend & maintain for another 1100 plus years. During the old republic era, the population was in the tens of trillions, it was way smaller and easier to handle mostly in the core & mid-rim... by the time of prequels & original trilogy... it's 100 quadrillion people or more and 60 to 80 million worlds... too many people means too many resources in demand and above like Rome went through and today's world in needing more tax money just to grow & maintain. Just like a zombie survival community during an apocalypse of all that, if it gets too big in size... you'll need more resources just to maintain and survive... it's best that you keep it all small and steady just to make due & through it all. Example: 15 to 50 people average if constantly on the move... community; 500 to 4000 people at most... as long as they all know what to do in skills in order to support it all, with apprentices to back them up. Long story short; it all got too big... and never decentralise too much for others to become warlords... China and Rome are perfect examples during their ancient histories. Always learn from past mistakes and learn how to avoid it all again.

[@Jrobidy2]

Hot Labor Summer 👊🏻

[@BlitzøBucko-e9j]

What if goten went to the future to fight zamasu and goku black with the evil containment technique and doesn’t forget the tape