I understand that. However, if the idea is to make a sirius-wide research ship and we don't care about its firepower, it would be better to make it a small-cargo liner and be done with it.
Enough factions can use cruisers, and enough cruisers are available, that I don't see how one could 'go crazy' with a civ cruiser, especially one that is nerfed halfway to gunboat levels, as I described. What undesirable behavior could one get away with using a civ cruiser, that one could not do using some other unlawful faction's cruiser?