[COMPETITION][FAMOUS PEOPLE] - Cello vs Arthadonis Kalderis.

The rules are as follows:

1. Each participant has to make three posts.
   Each post has to count at least 250 words and the maximum of 2500 words.
   Not meeting the minimum word count discounts a post.
   Not posting three posts makes a participant lose the debate.
   The participant, who is assigned to start a debate, chooses the first option.
   The first round lasts till the 10th of April.[/list:u]
   
   Topic of the debate: Borsk Fey’lya – a brave hero or an egoistic politician?
   
   Cello: You provide arguments for Borsk Fey’lya being a brave hero.
   Arthadonis Kalderis: You provide arguments for Borsk Fey’lya being an egoistic politician?

The well-known Bothan, Borsk Fey'lya, was a true hero. His unique skill set, combined with an irresistible charisma, led him to play a pivotal role in the Alliance to Restore the Republic, and during the difficult fledgling years of that New Republic.

Borsk was undoubtedly ambitious. It would be folly to claim otherwise, or to minimize the effects that this ambition had on his actions. His name is Bothese for 'proud'; indeed, his ambition carried him to the highest leadership position in the New Republic, a mere 23 years ABY. It was an unfortunate twist of fate that his term coincided with the initially successful Yuuzhan Vong invasion. He also could be called paranoid; having obtained power he was terrified that he might lose it. In fact, his distrust of the military after the Thrawn incidents led him to refuse to acknowledge the threat the Yuuzhan Vong posed during the initial stages of the invasion.

However, character is destiny. Despite these character flaws, the good that Borsk brought to the galaxy, and the improved situation that he left upon his death, more than compensated for his shortcomings. For example, although he was accused of anti-human feelings, he restored a sense of belonging to the billions of non-human sentients throughout the galaxy that had been marginalized during the Dark Times of the Empire. In addition, the anti-human feelings of which he was accused arose during the rebellion against an Empire clearly biased against non-humanoids. As they led him to join a Bothan Spynet whose skill was invaluable to the success of the rebellion, again the positive nature of his contributions more than compensated for the perceived character flaw. Indeed, Borsk was personally involved in the appropriation of the Death Star II plans - a truly heroic act in and of itself.

Despite his misgivings about the military, Borsk worked with the armed forces to serve the greater good of the New Republic. He called for Kessel-based criminals to be placed on Coruscant to weaken the Empire's grip on the capital. In addition, he encouraged his true nemesis, Admiral Ackbar, to strike at Coruscant before the Empire forces could organize, which proved successful.

Most importantly, Borsk, unlike so many before and after him, was able to change his beliefs to benefit the greater good. Despite his misgivings about the New Jedi Order - which were shared by many in the galaxy who saw them as responsible for the rise of Darth Vader - he came to realize after many clashes of will with the Order as well as those associated with it, that the Jedi were the only true, worthy guardians of peace and justice in the galaxy. He thus famously reversed his public disdain for the order during Nom Anor's Senate appearance. He also approached another nemesis, Leia Organa Solo, as Coruscant was attacked, beseeching her to lead the New Republic to an improbable victory.

He considered himself personally responsible for the likely loss of Coruscant, and again realizing the need for the greater good, he gave his life and legacy new meaning by voluntarily connecting a huge bomb to a heart monitor. He then refused to surrender when the Yuuzhan Vong attempted to capture him, and was killed - detonating the bomb. He clearly also knew the devastation this would bring to the Imperial Palace, half of which was destroyed by the blast, preventing certain military secrets from falling into the hands of his would-be captors.

Ironically, given his desire to use the martyred Bothans who died stealing the Death Star II plans for his own political gain, his last act ensured he too would be remembered as a true Bothan martyr.

This final act, during which he sacrificed his own life to kill 25,000+ Yuuzhan Vong along with him, exemplified the one truly consistent trait of Borsk Fey'lya. His actions were always motivated by the desire to do the greatest good for the most beings. To call him anything less is to fly in the face of the facts, and more importantly, the gratitude of billions of beings.

Scheming. Secretive. Manipulative. Paranoid. These are just a few ‘qualities’ that Borsk Fey’lya displayed throughout his entire career as a politician.

There is no dispute that many of Borsk’s actions led to good things for the galaxy but the reasons for his involvement in many of them were purely self-motivated. The first example of this is when he was a child before he had anything to do with the Republic or Alliance. He was known to have been involved in several business schemes including shipping, mining and merchandising before proceeding to a more lucrative career as a politician. Several years later, he undertook a secretive mission to re-enlist the support of former Senator and Alliance pariah Garm Bel Iblis. His reason for doing this was to increase his own prestige among the Bothan Spynet.

Again there is no argument against his heroism, he played a pivotal role in procuring the second Death Star plans and detonated a bomb that killed many thousands of Yuuzhan Vong however, a few selfless actions don’t excuse his history of blatant selfishness.

The procurement of the Death Star plans themselves is a strong example of his scheming and selfish ways. The unfortunate deaths of several Bothans while obtaining the information were utilized by Borsk as a political tool long after the fall of the Empire. No hero would ever in good conscious use something like that for his own benefit let alone continue parading it after the war was over.

Following this, Borsk became a member of the Provisional Council, he obtained this position after manipulatively ordering his fleet to aid the Rebel Alliance during a pivotal moment, thus gathering masses of gratitude and respect. Being one of the signatories who signed the Declaration of a New Republic, he obtained even more power and influence and through his guile and charm soon became one of the dominant politicians of the New Republic.

Borsk was known to have had a long running feud with several heroes of the Alliance including Wedge Antillies, the entire Rogue Squadron, one of the most highly decorated soldiers within the Alliance Admiral Ackbar, and indeed the entire Republic military. His reason for all of this stemmed from his idea that it threatened his species' status as martyrs. This again solidifies his immensely self-involved nature, paranoid personality and desire for power.

Unbelievably, Borsk perceived his own personal gain as what was best for the galaxy. Any other member of the Alliance he saw as possessing too much power or influence he would attempt to weaken to ensure he had more. Continuing his feud, Borsk took constant steps weaken Admiral Ackbar’s reputation and political strength. A rather despicable example of this is when Borsk purposefully hosted a council meeting on a planet that was extremely uncomfortable for the Mon Calamari Admiral to be on.

Yes Borsk was responsible for the transfer of criminals from the prison world of Kessel onto Coruscant, however his reason for doing both this and urging his rival Ackbar to conquer the planet at the time was because he was worried that his inactivity could harm his reputation, not just because he wanted the planet liberated. This move translated into him holding his position on the council when Imperial Center fell to the Alliance.
After this, Borsk remained opposed to Rogue Squadron, even supporting the trial of Tycho Celchu, a war hero. Once again his actions were a direct result of his paranoia and inherent distrust. He believed a Human-dominated New Republic would weaken his hold of the Humans on the new government which led him to suspect that the infamous Krytos virus ravaging non-humans on Coruscant all a massive conspiracy. He attempted to increase his power by using the virus as a political tool, going to far as to force a Bothan on Rogue Squadron to create a false report detailing that alien species were being deliberately denied aid by Humans in the fight against the virus. Thankfully the young Bothan denied Borsk’s orders and Rogue Squadron were once again decorated for their efforts against the virus after the Coruscant campaign.

I could go on but the picture is crystal clear, Borsk Fey’lya was nothing more than a deceitful, selfish and uncaring man whose desire for power, time and time again led him to make decisions for his own benefit and not that of the greater good. The few seemingly heroic actions taken by him almost always furthered his political career and desire for power with good results merely a byproduct.