I reeeeaaaly would like to see carriers also... And i will tell u why! Its not that they will bring anything new to the game "gameplay-wise", but its the feeling... Whenever u see a sci-fi movie or series, they ALWAYS use carriers in battlesequenses. Why? Because its a freekin cool thingy to watch

Im a big fan of battlestar Galactica, Stargate SG1 / Atlantis, Babylon 5 etc... Dont u just love it when the cylon basestar comes in and all the fighters breaks off and let hell reign down?
So we dont NEED the carriers for an enhanced or "better" game, but i for one misses the "im-in-a-movie/serie"-feeling when i play GCII due to the absence of carriers.
My way of "solving" this is to build a fleet of 1 humangos (uses large textures at maximum size) basestars (Huge "carriers" filled with defences and fleet-enhancements), 2 Escort Crusaders (large), 2-3 Warships (Medium) and as many fighters as my logistics can handle (tiny). I then just set my mind to the idea that (when i engage in fleetbattle) all the Tiny fighters comes out of the basestar (which then operates as a carrier in my feeble mind).
Its a shame SD dismisses the idea of carriers so harshly.. I realy miss the (and a better planet-invasion and the possibility to use diplomacy to keep others out of your space + + ) complete spacewar-feeling this would give the game.
On the other hand i salute you (SD) for coming so close to fully satisfie my hunger for galactic dominance.. Maybe u will rewise your stand in this matter before GCIII