Kirk was far more respectful of the Prime Directive than Picard.
The episode where he just takes Wesley away from the planet that was going to kill him alone should have gotten Picard demoted at the very least. What's the point of a law, let alone the supreme law, if you can just ignore it whenever you feel like it?
I thought the Prime Directive was about preventing developing civilizations from learning about advanced technology and life on other planets before they're ready for it. That was about respecting the laws of a planet that knows there is life on other worlds, a different matter. It doesn't interfere with their development if you whisk away a crew member to avoid punishment, it just pisses them off.
There's also Janeway and Sisko as well
A few days ago, three Orions tried to mug me. Now, I want to be very clear about something. These pieces of garbage—they don't know who they're dealing with. I don't know if they wanted money, or they wanted something more sexual. But it's a lucky thing I had my pieces. So anyway, I started blasting
I'll never not post this when people talk about Kirk this way: Freshly Remember'd: Kirk Drift
