Was Niska a high-ranking Independent? by SoupCatcher

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Was Niska a high-ranking Independent?

POSTED BY: SOUPCATCHER
UPDATED: Tuesday, June 15, 2004 09:52
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Monday, June 14, 2004 8:16 AM

This has been rolling around in my head for a while and it was all sparked by Book recognizing Niska's name in 'Train Job'. Now, granted, since this episode was written over a weekend it might not be a good idea to read too much into the dialogue. With that said, away we go down the slippery slope

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Niska is way too exposed as the owner/operator of a skyplex. Unlike Patience, or the other small time moon rulers we have seen, his activities are not confined to the surface of a planetoid. So why hasn't the Alliance taken him out? My theory is that he has tacit approval because the Alliance owes him something. Niska was part of the Independent leadership that brokered a peace deal while leaving the ground forces without a leg to stand on. Book was also a part of this deal. (I won't go into the rationale behind this one since there are plenty of threads on here about who/what Book was before he entered the Abbey - I subscribe to the view that Book was an Independent, pretty high up, participated in the capitulation talks, and entered the Abbey to atone).

So this is Niska's reward - he gets to operate with impunity from his skyplex. Book recognizes his name and, being familiar with the person he was during the war, knows exactly how dangerous working with him as an employer is.

Just throwing a target out there to be shot at

postscript: I've been trying to get a read on the Independent movement. From some of the episodes we know they have large numbers of troops, have air support so presumably have a fleet, and have uniforms which speaks to some level of organization/logistics. So this leads me to believe that many of the planets identifying themselves as Independent were probably as well developed/sophisticated as the core worlds. Cobbled together with these planetary leaders would be organized crime - the last thing they would want would be more regulation. So I've envisioned the leadership of the Independents as a consortium of planetary leaders, heads of criminal empires, and heads of legitimate large scale trading cartels.

But I could be way off, maybe Niska was like Jayne, didn't fight in the war and didn't want to, just stayed in his own web.

I shaved off my beard for you, devil woman!

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Monday, June 14, 2004 8:31 AM

PURPLEBELLY

I don't know about high-ranking, but the crossover between irregular forces and criminality would fit the Reconstruction period seed of Joss' vision. IIRC this theme has been raised in a Who are the Reavers? thread, too.

It is also true that illicit traders of all sorts thrive during wartime, so Niska and Jayne as career criminals, of very different net worth, is more probable. But I also agree with you that Niska is so shallowly constructed that little should be built around him, because so much could be. It's still fun, though

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Monday, June 14, 2004 8:55 AM

GUNRUNNER

If you look closely at the Skyplex CGI sequences you will see Alliance (but not owned by) Gunship Type ships patrolling outside the Skyplex. So I say he’s got some military grade hardware backing up his Skyplex, in the form of Military Attack Ships probably left over from the war, Modified Civil Ships, and station based weapons.

The Alliance doesn’t want to piss off Niska or he might send those ships off Privateering.

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Monday, June 14, 2004 9:09 AM

STATIC

I don't think Niska was a high-ranking independant. I think he's one of those legendary 'crime lord' types. . .who worked his way up from being someone's paperboy or somesuch, a-la Al Capone or Frank Nitty.

I think the reason the Alliance hasn't shut him down yet is the same reason law enforcement doesn't simply 'shut down' all the organized crime operating in OUR day and age. . .or why they had so much trouble with Capone.

Niska manages to distance himself from his illegal dealings just enough to avoid prosecution.

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Tuesday, June 15, 2004 8:13 AM

BROWNCOAT1

May have been the losing side. Still not convinced it was the wrong one.

I agree w/ Static. I don't believe that Niska was an Independent or even Alliance for that matter. People like Niska thrive during war time because they deal in things that are hard to come by. I would imagine that if Niska was operating during the war (& there is no reason to believe he wasn't) that he was dealing w/ both sides, selling meds, arms, ammo, info, etc. People like him thrive off of war.

I imagine that Niska greases the right palms to stay out of the Alliance crosshairs, and that is why he is still in business.

"May have been the losing side. Still not convinced it was the wrong one."

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Tuesday, June 15, 2004 9:52 AM

BADGERSHAT

Personally, I wonder if it's more of a "Containment" thing, and that, instead of being an Alliance or Independent Member, he's one of those crime lords that's tolerated because he tends to "thin the herd" a bit, thus making the Alliance job easier... much like the way some conspiracy-bent people might believe that the government of the US tolerates certain extremists in the world, because they tend to either be controlled or killed outright...

Then again, I just might not know the hell I'm talking about...

--Jefé The Hat

***************************
"I like smackin 'em"--Jayne

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