Does it feel a little hollow this year? Maybe. But I’ll stand by the need to remember what we’re supposed to be aspiring to as Americans.
2024 update: Every 4th of July weekend, it has become my tradition to run this excerpt from “The Omega Glory,” episode #52 of Star Trek. Written by series creator Gene Roddenberry (himself a WWII vet and LAPD officer), the episode takes Kirk, Spock, and McCoy to a planet revealed to have an almost too coincidental parallel history with Earth’s. It takes a Canadian-born actor playing an Iowan farm boy grown up to be a Federation hero to give us the dramatic interpretation of what should make America great. It’s not the Declaration of Independence, which we celebrate on the 4th. Kirk quotes the preamble to the Constitution.
“No words… have said this thing of importance in quite this way.” To my fellow Americans, honor this Independence Day and what it means, and to our global audience — well, we don’t always live up to these words, but some of us are trying. “They must apply to everyone, or they mean nothing. Do you understand?”
I do, more than ever, on a Monday after the Supreme Court decided they don’t. As I had to say this weekend a few times, remember that Senator Ted Cruz claims to be a big Star Trek fan. I want these words to mean something, but clearly we “…have slurred the meaning.” At least some have.
We must stand firm for truth, justice, and the American way — for what that really means, not the way we’ve been living it.
By the way, I watched the entire episode in 2021 and as many critics will tell you, the whole thing is pretty terrible. More than most Star Trek: TOS episodes, it is fraught with bad ethnic stereotypes and 60s misconceptions. Worse, it really makes no sense. Writer Keith DeCandido has pointed out that there’s a novel that helps explain the biggest WTF of the episode. I respect Keith’s opinion, but I do disagree about there being no redeeming feature to this episode. I’d say there’s 2 minutes and 30 seconds that are great.
I’ll also admit to my friends at BayCon, this is NOT the episode to use as an introduction to Star Trek for your wife.
