TenForward: Where Every Vulcan Knows Your Name
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Latnium can't be replicated so it can be properly used as a store of wealth and replicated antiquities can be detected. Large items like ships can be replicated in parts, but need to be complete to exceed the value of their replicated parts.
When a culture is built around trade, they will find ways to trade.
Also, it's likely that the writers needed that culture type to directly conflict with the ideals of Starfleet. Conflict makes for a good plot line.
And what can I buy with latnium? Couldn't I just hop into the holo deck and swim in my personal lake of it? As far as assembling a ship it's almost like I could replicate one small bot to build consecutively bigger assembly bots. It was just lazy writing for a bad premise of a star Trek, where is the trekking? More like Star Trek deep snooze nine.
If you're on Deep Space 9, you have to pay to use Quark's holodecks in the first place. They don't show it much, but they do mention in the first or second episode that Starfleet get a few slips of latinum as a per diem when stationed somewhere not part of the Federation. There has also been at least one occasion where Bashir mentions eating at the replimat instead of Quark's because he was saving up to buy something, implying that they all pay to eat at the bar.
How did quark acquire this holodeck on a federation/ bajoran space station anyhow? oh yeah he traded info on self sealing stem bolts. Next you'll tell me it cost money to transport and o Brian was raking in coin to buy antique whiskey with...
It was absolutely a plot device; they've said as much. The rest is just the in-story rationalizations to give viewers something - however difficult to believe - to accept so the story can go forward.
Star Trek is full of these. TNG was chock fucking full of Mordor Eagle plot devices. Quark is Harry Mudd, with a bumpy head. The Federation exists within a universe of civilizations which haven't yet reached post-scarcity and, frankly, I think even in a post scarcity utopia we'll still have money and be trading. Consider, we'll probably still have the very first profession, and you'll likely have other services. You'll still have a lot of people like McCoy, who reject the technological solution and want "the real thing" and not a holodeck.