This scene pretty much summarizes why DS9 is, IMHO, the best Trek series. It took Roddenberry’s dream and flipped it on its head—which you may or may not like—but I adored it.
TNG presented a world where humanity had surpassed its ills. The Federation’s values made humans the good guys, compared to species like the Romulans and the Cardassians. Principles and ethics, are what set us apart. As Picard said, "The first duty of every Starfleet officer is to the truth… It is the guiding principle on which Starfleet is based. And if you can’t find it within yourself to stand up and tell the truth…you don’t deserve to wear that uniform!" It’s all very idealistic.
Honesty and ethics are what Starfleet is based on, yet Starfleet gives Sisko authorization to forge evidence in order to trick Romulus into joining the war. Because of our principles, humans always thought we were above our enemies — who had the Obsidian Order/Tal Shiar — only to find out we have our own version, Section 31. As Admiral Ross put it, "Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges." In other words, we can stay clean as long as things are going our way. If not, we’ll think nothing of getting our hands dirty.
The underlying message of DS9 was, although we like to think—maybe even deceive ourselves into thinking that we’ve evolved, when the chips are down, we are just as ruthless as the cultures we purport to have progressed beyond. And, if you stop and look at our own culture, you will see how absolutely true that is.
We all like to think of ourselves as good, moral people. That’s the easy part. DS9 challenged us to question how good we really are.
cucumber-s
