I kind of agree with Red. If someone wants to limit themselves to a tiny Neutral-legal ship and trade, why not? They could make cash a whole lot faster if they switched to a Trader, and that's even after paying off the occasional pirate. I guess the problem is people who get larger ships and stay Neutral... But I do think that officially what qualifies as a 'freighter' and what doesn't should be clearer in some cases.
Like I already mentioned, I'm just sticking with my Neutral ID and Turanic Freighter while I explore (an excellent exploration ship) and until I get enough cash together to get a Whale... I just choose to earn that cash by trading goods instead of getting job after job. Both methods seem to work out about the same, unless you have a 'freighter' with a cargo hold bigger than 400.
OK, one last question from me: What kind of ID do you need to trade illegal goods? Trader and Zoner IDs say no unlawful actions, which I assume means smuggling. Do you have to go Pirate to smuggle?
