Region 2 "Best Electronic Newsletter" Award, 2009
Region 2 "Newsletter of the Year" Award, 2nd Place, 2011
Volume I, Number 51
June 2012
CONTENTS
UPCOMING EVENTS
•  Saturday, June 16: STARFLEET Academy & Star Trek Gaming
•  Saturday, July 7: Away Mission to The Amazing Spider-Man
•  Sunday, July 8: Trekkiepalooza!

SAVE THE DATE:  DETAILS TO BE ANNOUNCED
•  Saturday, July 21: Away Mission to The Dark Knight Rises
•  Monday, July 23: Star Trek: TNG 25th Anniversary Event
•  Saturday, August 4: Night at the (Tellus Science) Museum

NEWS & ANNOUNCEMENTS
•  Membership numbers up; participation numbers down.  Hello?
•  Personnel Records
•  Library Computer
•  Recent Chapter Event Photos

SIDEBAR
•  June Birthdays
  Welcome Aboard!
•  Member Reenlistments
• 
June Membership Renewals
•  About the Republic
•  For More Information
•  USS Republic Online
•  Our Member Benefits Program Partners
•  USS Republic & USS Atlanta Crew Rosters
•  News from TrekMovie.com
    Remembering Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
UPCOMING EVENTS
STARFLEET Academy Test Session & Star Trek Gaming Day
A joint event with the USS Atlanta

RSVP REQUIRED!
3:00 - 9:00 p.m., Saturday, June 16, 2012
Hosted by and in the home of Capt Bernadette Ackley
4111 Kings Highway, Douglasville GA  30135-3765
RSVP: Adm Mike Henigan by email or (404) 688-2882
IMPORTANT!  We need a minimum of 5 people to RSVP "Yes, I will be there!" before 12:00 noon on Friday, June 15, in order to make this event worthwhile.  Otherwise, this event will be cancelled.  Please RSVP to USS Atlanta CO Adm Mike Henigan via email as soon as possible.  Thank you!

STARFLEET Academy can be FUN!

Have you ever wanted to take your STARFLEET Academy Officers Training School (OTS) and/or Officers Command College (OCC) exams, but were too apprehensive or just had to have that extra little nudge to do it?  Well, we are here to help... AND have fun while doing it!

Join the USS Republic and the USS Atlanta on Saturday afternoon, June 16, from 3:00 to 9:00 p.m. for this NO-COST event: a STARFLEET Academy Test Session and Star Trek Gaming Day!  We will have at least one computer set up (more if we can get more laptops) for you to get your OTS and OCC tests done and submitted electronically.  Help will be available from several longtime STARFLEET members to get you over that sticky question or phrase that is just slipping your mind.  But wait!  There's more!  While people are testing, there will also be a Star Trek Movie Marathon going on, some serious Star Trek gaming (we have lots and lots and lots of Star Trek games!) and... oh!  Did we say FOOD?

Please Note:
Capt Eric L. Watts' third two-year term as Commanding Officer of the USS Republic will end on December 31, 2012.  All Republic members in good standing will be asked in November to cast their vote for the candidate they want to lead and administrate this chapter for the next two years.  Candidates for the position must be a member in good standing of STARFLEET International, must have taken and passed OTS and OCC, and must be at least 18 years of age.  This event will be a perfect opportunity for anyone who wants to run for CO to take the required OTS and OCC exams, if they have not already done so.  In accordance with the Republic's Rank Assignment & Promotions Policy, members who take and pass both courses receive an automatic promotion to Lieutenant, Junior Grade (Lt. JG).

STARFLEET Academy is a special collection of correspondence courses available to every STARFLEET member.  Not interested in taking the OTS or OCC exam?  That's okay!  Over 60 Academy Colleges offer courses spanning all aspects of Star Trek and science fiction; some courses even cover non-sci-fi real world topics.  Each college offers dozens of different courses at varying levels of challenge from super-easy to really hard.  In total, there are nearly 1,000 different courses available.  Come out for this event and we'll help you find one or more courses that are more to your liking.  It's fun, it's educational, it's entertaining!

Please contact USS Atlanta CO Adm Mike Henigan with any questions or to let us know you are coming and then food will be discussed and decided upon.  We would like you to join us for this fun afternoon!

MAP AND DIRECTIONS
Away Mission to The Amazing Spider-Man

Saturday Afternoon, July 7, 2012
Regal Hollywood 24 @ North I-85
3265 NE Expressway Access Rd
Chamblee GA  30341
(770) 936-8235
Because you demanded it... save the date and plan for a late afternoon showing with matinee pricing!  Exact time to be announced next issue, on Facebook and in our YahooGroups forum.

The Amazing Spider-Man is the story of Peter Parker, an outcast high schooler who was abandoned by his parents as a boy, leaving him to be raised by his Uncle Ben and Aunt May.  Like most teenagers, Peter is trying to figure out who he is and how he got to be the person he is today.  Peter is also finding his way with his first high school crush, Gwen Stacy, and together, they struggle with love, commitment and secrets.  As Peter discovers a mysterious briefcase that belonged to his father, he begins a quest to understand his parents' disappearance, leading him directly to Oscorp and the lab of Dr. Curt Connors, his father's former partner.  As Spider-Man is set on a collision course with Connors' alter-ego, The Lizard, Peter will make life-altering choices to use his powers and shape his destiny to become a hero.

This film opens in the United States on Tuesday, July 3, four days before the date of this "away mission," and you may have numerous opportunities to see it sometime during the first four days of its release, most notably the July 4 holiday.  However, because the majority of our members work on weekdays and celebrate Independence Day with their families, the Republic is waiting until Saturday, July 7, to launch our "away mission."  We hope you'll resist the urge to see the movie before July 7 and will instead plan to see this highly anticipated reboot of the Spider-Man film franchise with your friends and fellow crewmembers aboard the Republic.  Showtimes have not yet been announced, but plan to join us late Saturday afternoon, July 7, for matinee pricing.  An exact showtime and plans for an after-movie dinner will be announced next issue.

WATCH THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN MOVIE TRAILER HERE
Trekkiepalooza!
A fundraising event for TrekTrax Atlanta

3:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m., Sunday, July 8, 2012
The Other Bar, a.k.a. The Tucker Saloon
3766 Lawrenceville Highway, Tucker GA  30084
LIVE BANDS!  STAR TREK VIDEOS!  COSTUMES!  RAFFLES! TRIVIA QUIZ!  TREKKIES VS. STORMTROOPERS COMPETITION!  SILENT AUCTION!  STAR TREK GAMES!  CELEBRITY AUTOGRAPHS!  SOUVENIR T-SHIRTS!  FOOD AND DRINK SPECIALS!  ROMULAN ALE, KLINGON BLOODWINE AND SAURIAN BRANDY SHOOTERS!  AND WHATEVER ELSE WE CAN THINK OF BETWEEN NOW AND THEN!
Makes plans now to join us for a wild and crazy fundraising event to benefit TrekTrax Atlanta!  We're still putting the details together, but we're planning to make this all-day event a spectacular sci-fi occasion that won't soon be forgotten!  More details next issue!  Please contact the Captain if you'd like to help with the planning, preparations and production of this first-ever Trekkie extravaganza!

Donations of products, goods and/or services from members and friends of the Republic, as well as local businesses, to give away as contest and/or raffle prizes are needed!  Thank you!
Away Mission to The Dark Knight Rises

Saturday Afternoon, July 21, 2012
Regal Hollywood 24 @ North I-85
3265 NE Expressway Access Rd
Chamblee GA  30341
(770) 936-8235
WATCH THE DARK NIGHT RISES MOVIE TRAILER HERE
ADDITIONAL DETAILS NEXT ISSUE
Away Mission to Star Trek: The Next Generation 25th Anniversary Event

7:00 p.m., Monday, July 23, 2012
Regal Hollywood 24 @ North I-85
3265 NE Expressway Access Rd
Chamblee GA  30341
(770) 936-8235
PRELIMINARY DETAILS HERE
ADDITIONAL DETAILS NEXT ISSUE
Away Mission to Night at the Museum

6:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Saturday, August 4, 2012
Tellus Science Museum
100 Tellus Drive, Cartersville GA  30120
(770) 386-0576
VISIT THE TELLUS SCIENCE MUSEUM WEB SITE HERE
ADDITIONAL DETAILS NEXT ISSUE
NEWS & ANNOUNCEMENTS

Important!  Membership numbers up; participation numbers down.  Hello?
THE GOOD NEWS
The USS Republic's crew roster currently stands at 39 members, making us the largest chapter in Region 2 (a ranking we've actually held for some time now).  The USS DaVinci from Columbus comes in second with 33 members, followed by the USS Haise of Jackson, Mississippi, with 31.

THE BAD NEWS
Member participation in chapter events seems to have taken a dive over the last few months and frankly, your hard-working Commanding Officer has no idea why.  Five members came to our Christmas Party last December.  Three members came to our Valentine's Day Lonely Hearts Dinner in February and our Spring Dinner & Business Meeting in April.  Worst of all, only two members showed up for the St. Patrick's Day Parade in March.  Only two.  Really?

WHERE IS EVERYBODY?
It doesn't make any sense whatsoever that the largest chapter in Region 2 should be having such dismal attendance at our chapter events.  It's also frustrating to your Commanding Officer to plan event after event after event and the majority of our members don't bother to show up for any of them.  Certainly, geography plays a small part of the problem: nine of our 39 members live out of state, while another half-dozen live outside the metro Atlanta area.  Even so, that leaves 24 members in the metro Atlanta area who aren't attending our events.

The USS Republic cannot survive without the active participation of its members.  If you don't come out for our events, the Captain will stop planning them.  If the Captain stops planning them, membership will collapse and the chapter will ceast to exist.  Contact the Captain and let him know if there are certain types of events you look forward to attending and if there are certain other types of events you avoid.  Let him know if you prefer certain days of the week and/or times of day for chapter events.  Let him know if there are certain parts of town you prefer and/or avoid.  Also let him know if there is a certain price point for "away missions" that dictate whether or not you can attend (i.e., restaurants, movies, local attractions, etc.).  The bottom line here is this: Let us know what it is you want to do as a member of the USS Republic, and we'll do everything we can to plan exactly that.
Personnel Records
Congratulations to Ens Karen Neal, who received a grade of HONORS for the STARFLEET Marine Corps Academy exam XR-11: "The Romulan Government: The Romulan People and the Tal'Shiar" from the School of Romulan Xenostudies, completed on June 6, 2012.
Congratulations to Ens Karen Neal, who received a grade of HONORS for the STARFLEET Marine Corps Academy exam XV-11: "Vulcan Culture and Military" from the School of Vulcan Xenostudies, completed on June 6, 2012.
STARFLEET Academy is a special collection of correspondence courses available to every STARFLEET member.  Over 60 Academy Colleges offer courses spanning all aspects of Star Trek and science fiction; some courses even cover non-sci-fi real world topics.  Each college offers dozens of different courses at varying levels of challenge from super-easy to really hard.  In total, there are nearly 1,000 different courses available.  Take a course today!
Something special going on in your life?  Submit your Personnel Record for publication in the next issue of The Republiqué!
Library Computer
Recent Chapter Event Photos
CLICK ANY PHOTO TO ENLARGE
TimeGate  ||  May 25-27, 2012
Adm Kelly Hilliard (USS Atlanta), Adm Mike Henigan (CO, USS Atlanta), Cmdr Dave Slaughter (USS Republic), "Moxie Magnus," ENS1 Todd Dissinger (USS Republic), ENS3 Chris Seckinger (USS Republic) and Capt Eric L. Watts (CO, USS Republic) at TimeGate 2012 in Chamblee, Georgia.

JUNE BIRTHDAYS

Thursday, June 7
ENS1 Michael Shipley

Friday, June 22
ENS Karen Neal

Thursday, June 28
ENS3 Rob Gilliam

WELCOME ABOARD!
1 New Member in May!

ENS Elizabeth Scott

MEMBER REENLISTMENTS
These members renewed their SFI and chapter dues in May


ENS1 Lea Hepler
ENS2 Marilyn Teague
ENS3 Robert Teague
ENS2 Chris White

JUNE MEMBERSHIP RENEWALS
These members' SFI and chapter dues expire in June


ENS2 Russell J. Broomfield
Ens Karen Neal
Cmdr David A. Slaughter

ABOUT THE REPUBLIC
The USS Republic NCC-1371 was originally commissioned as a chapter of STARFLEET International on May 14, 1988, at the Dixie-Trek convention in Atlanta, Georgia.  As of June 13, 2012, the Republic crew includes 39 members who are active members of STARFLEET in good standing.
The Republic plans and coordinates an active schedule of events for its members, frequently partnering with other local science fiction groups in the Atlanta area for joint activities, but does not hold meetings on a consistently fixed date each month.
Because the USS Republic is a duly commissioned chapter of STARFLEET International and is bound and governed by its Constitution and By-Laws, membership in STARFLEET is a prerequisite for membership in the Republic.  Combined annual dues for both groups are $25 per person and is collected by the chapter (family discounts are available with certain conditions and restrictions).  Membership in the Republic includes access to our YahooGroups message board, voting privileges in chapter elections and a personalized laminated membership card which entitles the member to discounts and rebates on products and services offered by our Member Benefits Program Partners.  Additional information on Republic membership and how to join and reenlist is on our award-winning web site.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

USS REPUBLIC ONLINE

OUR MEMBER BENEFITS PROGRAM PARTNERS

CREW ROSTER
AS OF JUNE 13, 2012
USS ATLANTA CREW ROSTER

NEWS from
Remembering Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan---30 Years Later
By Dayton Ward
June 4, 2012
Still considered by most to be the best film of the franchise, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan was released on June 4, 1982.  Star Trek novelist Dayton Ward remembers what were surely, the best of times from three decades ago...
"Surely, the best of times."
Summer, 1982: After the commercial and critical oddity that was 1979's Star Trek: The Motion Picture, those of us who were all into the Trek were worried what this sequel might bring.  Would it be like the first movie (which was boring as all Hell compared to Kirk drop-kicking and karate-chopping a big green lizard), or the TV series we still loved?  The TV commercials certainly seemed to imply the latter, with lots of phasers firing and starships blowing the shit out of each other, William Shatner snarling into the camera and Ricardo Montalban flexing his pecs at us.  This movie definitely looked like it was going to kick things up a notch.  Or three.
Though it doesn't seem to happen a lot these days, on this occasion, the trailers got it right.
30 years after its release, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan remains the choice of many fans as being among the best---if not the best---of the Star Trek theatrical films.  Pretty much every movie that's come since is compared to Khan, usually with respect to each successive sequel's choice of villain.  Kruge, Sybok, Chang, Soran, Ru'Afo, Shinzon, or Nero?  None of those pansies hold a candle to Khan Noonien Singh, the genetically-engineered mighty man who came to the Final Frontier by way of a 20th century sleeper ship way back in the classic first season Star Trek episode "Space Seed."
Khan and his crew, marooned by Kirk on the remote plant Ceti Alpha V at the end of that episode, are left to their own devices, but a planetary catastrophe soon after their arrival forced them into a constant struggle for simple survival.  By the time the USS Reliant arrives, commanded by Captain Clark Terrell and with former Enterprise crewman Pavel Chekov serving as its first officer, Khan's pretty much gone 'round the bend.  Seizing control of the Reliant by means of one of those cool movie critters that turn people into obedient zombies, Khan sets off to unleash BLOODY VENGEANCE on the man responsible for his downfall: James T. Kirk.
Oh, it's on now.
Directed by Nicholas Meyer from a story by veteran TV producer Harve Bennett and Jack B. Sowards (who also wrote the original screenplay, which Meyer then rewrote... in 12 days), Star Trek II hits almost every right note and avoids the pitfalls which tripped up its theatrical predecessor.  The humor as well as the friendships and camaraderie shared by Kirk and his crew---all but absent from the first film---are here to lend perfect balance to the drama and tension driving most of the story.  Even the color palette is warmer this time around, from the red paint on the Enterprise doors to the crew uniforms, which now look more like something of a natural progression from those of the original series.
Ricardo Montalban, reprising his role from "Space Seed," pulls out all the stops as the maniacal Khan, obsessed with avenging himself upon Kirk.  Strong efforts from supporting actors Bibi Besch, Merritt Butrick, Paul Winfield and Kirstie Alley in her first film role, round out a solid performance by the main cast (wild-eyed "KHAAAAAN!" bit from William Shatner notwithstanding).  Though some footage of the Enterprise is lifted from Star Trek: The Motion Picture, there are plenty of new space scenes to satisfy the Trekkie tech heads among us.  James Horner's musical score, shifting with ease between quiet contemplation and rousing action, is a bow tying up the whole sweet package.
If this film had failed, it arguably could've been the death knell for Kirk and the Enterprise gang.  Instead, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan was a critical and commercial success, bringing with it a fresh new energy to what we now call "the Star Trek franchise." It paved the way for future sequels and the eventual television spin-offs, along with merchandising and other licensing ventures that continue to this day.
"I feel young."
Shit, I feel old.
Happy 30th Birthday, Star Trek II.
REPRINTED FROM TREKMOVIE.COM
© 2012 SciFanatic Network
USS Republic NCC-1371
B O L D L Y    G O I N G 
 B O L D L Y    D O I N G™
2902 Aspen Woods Entry
  Atlanta, Georgia  30360-2759
  www.USSRepublic.com
Commanding Officer, USS Republic
  Captain Eric L. Watts
Executive Officer, USS Republic
  Commander Dave Churvis
Commanding Officer, USS Atlanta
  Admiral W. Michael Henigan

The Republiqué Volume I, Number 51, June 2012.
Published monthly by and Copyright © 2012 USS Republic NCC-1371.
Captain Eric L. Watts, Editor.

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