The uneducated are forced to work in dilithium mines. That enables the others to live well while not working.
For what it’s worth, I think a part of the problem of defining Starfleet as military or not is how the different captains defined themselves. Kirk sees himself in his own words as a soldier, and puts the safety of his ship and crew before diplomatic and exploration duties (not always, but in general). I doubt that the Vulcan commander of the Intrepid would identify the same way however. And as others have pointed out, there is a definite difference in attitude between the different generations of Trek as well.
I would agree 100% that Starfleet fills the role of a military as we define it, but that was envisioned as a predominantly defensive, rather than offensive force. BUT just like we like to consider the American military as a ‘defensive’ in nature, in practice is is used to thrown the Federation’s might around. As to the writers intent, feel free to visit Memory Alpha, which has a whole section on the debate. I’ll include a small segment of the section on Starfleet as a Military organization.
The extent to which Starfleet may be considered a military organization is somewhat questionable. Nicholas Meyer remarked of Starfleet’s militarism, “It existed to some extent in the [original] television series but Gene Roddenberry was very adamant that the Starfleet was not a military or a militaristic operation […] I thought it was at least as militaristic as, say, the Coast Guard.” (audio commentary, Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (Special Edition) DVD) Meyer also wrote about these ideological differences in his autobiographical book The View from the Bridge - Memories of Star Trek and a Life in Hollywood. Therein, he recalled, “[Roddenberry] was emphatic that Starfleet was not a military organization but something akin to the Coast Guard. This struck me as manifestly absurd, for what were Kirk’s adventures but a species of gunboat diplomacy wherein the Federation (read America, read the Anglo-Saxons) was always right and aliens were – in Kipling’s queasy phrase – ‘lesser breeds’? Yes, there was lip service to minority participation, but it was clear who was driving the boat.” (The View from the Bridge - Memories of Star Trek and a Life in Hollywood, hardcover ed., p. 81) On another instance, Meyer observed that, beginning with Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (which Meyer himself directed), later Star Trek productions placed more emphasis on the militaristic perspective of Starfleet than the original series had. (audio commentary, Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (Special Edition) DVD) However, in Star Trek: The Next Generation, Roddenberry was determined to downplay the more militaristic aspects of Starfleet. (Star Trek: The Next Generation - The Continuing Mission, p. 36)
Well Bezos might think otherwise. 
Seriously they can order that but they cannot enforce it with the threats of criminal sanction, only dismissal from employment and a suit for damages, at best with whether or not they will succeed is an open question.
For a military organisation once a lawful order is given by a properly authorised superior then there is no discretion whatsoever to act (or not) outside its scope.
There’s still plenty of jockeying for power and prestige (command jobs, scientific postings, etc.) but for the most part it’s rarely about a competition for material resources. The redshirts (sacrificial crew members) can replicate food and use holodeck porn like anyone else.
The notable exception to that always seems to be land. Some settler alien or another is always in need a shiny new planet.
The Federation isn’t all that different from the Borg… fly big ships around, ask aliens to join them. Starfleet uses Picard and propaganda to subjugate, the Borg uses small brainwashing robots and sexy queens. The end result is largely similar, with formerly independent civilizations put under control of a large federated military organization who thinks they’re operating benevolently. The Borg do more assimilation and collectivism, but civilizations don’t have much autonomy / sovereignty under the Federation either. Space age luxury colonialism.
Thanks for that amusing distillation, Reply.
I get that there are other reasons for mastering difficult and prestigious positions than material compensation. People don’t become doctors just for the money, I imagine.
But what about someone who decides they just don’t want to work— should they get access to the same delicious replicator food and holodeck porn as captains and scientists? Don’t get me wrong, I think a truly civilized society should treat those unwilling or unable to work better than we treat our homeless. But not exactly the same as say, a world-renowned epidemiologist.
Maybe instead of money in the future they come up with some sort of system of credits people can earn, based on the amount and difficulty of tasks they perform. The people they do those tasks for give their credits for having the tasks done. Then the people who earn the credits can trade them for more and better goods and services. A perfect money-free world!
So in other words, they don’t have money in exactly the same sense as they don’t have a military. Good idea! Doubleplus good!
In order to earn replicator time, they get to clean up the holodeck.
Maybe they’re just really aggressive law enforcement.
Exactly, Also, war is peace.
Ewww. Ok, that’s good motivation to go out and get a real job.
I could take that seriously, only my next question would be, okay, if they’re just law enforcement or whatever, then who’s the military that you’d call in if an enemy fleet ever shows up with marauding warships out to wreak havoc? And if the answer is, well, see, when that happens, we of course turn to the same uniformed officers, who of course keep our best torpedos at the ready on the delivery system that’s the Enterprise in case of just this sort of event, and there isn’t anyone else, then — what?
Easy. Just travel through time and/or wait for letters of the alphabet.
Exactly.
The “we’re not a military” is a ridiculous contrivance,
I can get the “no money” society, but, what i don’t get is why anyone would work menial jobs. In the DS9 episode where the visit Sisko’s dad’s restaurant, there are servers.
Why would you want to be a server if you don’t need the money?
This point is made by a member of the Maquis in the DS9 episode “For the Uniform”:
“Why is the Federation so obsessed with the Maquis? We’ve never harmed you. And yet we’re constantly arrested and charged with terrorism. Starships chase us through the Badlands, and our supporters are harassed and ridiculed. Why? Because we’ve left the Federation, and that’s the one thing you can’t accept. Nobody leaves Paradise, everyone should want to be in the Federation! Hell, you even want the Cardassians to join. You’re only sending them replicators because one day, they can take their rightful place on the Federation Council. You know, in some ways, you’re even worse than the Borg. At least they tell you about their plans for assimilation. You’re more insidious, you assimilate people - and they don’t even know it.”
I never bought the “Federation is just a nicer Borg” line of thought. The difference is Borg doesn’t give you a choice. Also, more importantly, the Federation wants you to join so it can celebrate what makes you different while the Borg wants you to join to make you the same as they are.
Of course the whole point is to make current Earth US audiences think about the obvious parallels with current Great Power relations. ST has always liked to serve a chaser of Deep Significance along with the main course of preachy and high camp.
As for the “no money” future, I’ve pictured that a large chunk of humans do nothing. The government (whatever it’s called) provides a minimum in food, clothing and shelter and healthcare. You can do absolutely nothing for your entire life and you’ll be fine.
But, other than their personal friends, no one likes those people. They lead lives of quiet serenity, but they don’t get to eat at the fancy restaurants, or get the latest toys, or have the nicest houses. You want that, and you have to provide something useful. Art, science, inventions, save humanity from alien invasion, something.
However, I haven’t envisioned how the wealth is divided. Maybe there’s a judging council, maybe it’s public vote on social media, or maybe there’s “social money”. You do something good for society, you get “credits” that can be exchanged for goods and services.
But it isn’t vulgar money, nope nope.
For the novelty of the experience? Being a server at Sisko’s Creole Kitchen would be like someone from our era working at a Renaissance Faire or living history museum. Hell, given that Pere Sisko’s labor pool is all of Earth most of his servers could even be history students interning for school credit.
It’s just bureaucracy. How is it that in today’s US Navy, the captain of an aircraft carrier gets a comfortable cabin and an office while a shmoe gets a bunk with a bunch of other shmoes? He doesn’t pay for it. It’s just assigned to him by a system. That’s all.
That said, in an economy where energy is basically free and can be turned into matter for very little more, there wouldn’t be much need for rationing. Even a shmoe can have pretty nice digs and all the toys he or she wants.