"Because spies and saboteurs don't like the bright light of an open inquiry. They're like roaches, scurrying for the dark corner." -The Drumhead, Stardate: 44769.2, Original Airdate: 29 Apr, 1991. "Five hundred years ago, military officers would upend a drum on the battlefield sit at it and dispense summary justice. Decisions were quick, punishments severe, appeals denied. Those who came to a drumhead were doomed." "The blood of all Klingons has become water! Ever since the Federation Alliance, we have turned into a nation of mewling babies! The Romulans are strong; they are worthy allies! They do not turn Klingons into weaklings like you!" "This must stop. It has gone too far. You lied to him about the Engine Room. There were no volatile chemicals found there." "It was a tactic. A way of applying pressure." "We are hounding an innocent man." "And how, may I ask, have you managed to determine that?" "I've talked with him." "I see. And he told you he was a victim of circumstance, blameless and pure." "No, he admits his mistake in falsifying his application. That does not make him a traitor." "Admiral. I have to tell you; you must not expect me to permit any action against Mr. Tarses solely on the basis of Betazoid intuition." "But you have a Betazoid counselor. Surely, you're aware of the advantages. If Counselor Troi suggested to you that someone on the ship were dangerous, would you not act on that? Observe him? Curb his activity?" "Yes, I admit I probably would, and perhaps I should re-evaluate that behavior." "But we know there is a traitor here. J'Dan has admitted his guilt. Tarses has all but done the same." "How?" "He refused to answer the question about his Romulan grandfather." "That is not a crime, Worf! Nor can we infer his guilt because he didn't respond. We cannot allow ourselves to think that. The Seventh Guarantee is one of the most important rights granted by the Federation. We cannot take a fundamental principle of the Constitution and turn it against a citizen!" "Sir, the Federation does have enemies! We must seek them out!" "Oh, yes. That's how it starts. But the road from legitimate suspicion to rampant paranoia is very much shorter than we think." "You know, there are some words I've known since I was a schoolboy: 'With the first link, the chain is forged. The first speech censored… the first thought forbidden… the first freedom denied – chains us all irrevocably.'" "We think we've come so far. Torture of heretics, burning of witches, it's all ancient history. And then, before you can blink an eye, suddenly, it threatens to start all over again."
