Marriage is between a Man and a Woman, And There are Four Lights

Most fans of science fiction will be aware of this episode of "Star Trek the Next Generation", which may itself be a nod to some of the events in the classic novel "1984."    In the episode Captain Picard is captured by the ruthless Cardassians.   Madred is the Cardassian commander responsible for extracting information from Picard.   Picard reveals nothing to Madred, and indeed has nothing to reveal- he does not possess the information Cardassia is interested in.   Over time however, the test of wills between torturer and tortured becomes an end in itself, and Madred turns his efforts to breaking Picard's will, even if it is of no military value to his superiors.   It becomes personal.

Madred sets up four lights over Picards head, and asks him how many lights their are.   When Picard answers "four" Madred tells him that there are five lights (something which is obviously untrue).   He then administers agonizing torture on Picard for giving the "wrong" answer.   This goes on day after day.   Picard is determined to resist saying that the lie is true, and Madred is determined to break him and get him to say that what is false is true.

Finally the Federation reaches a settlement with Cardassia.  Among the terms is that Picard is to be returned to the Federation.   Madred, in one last attempt to break Picard's will, tells him that Cardassia has won even without his information and that Picard must live on Cardassia forever.  He has one choice though, he can live out his life in ease and comfort, or he can stay in the torture pit.  All he has to do to escape the torture pit is to tell Madred how many lights there are- or rather give as "truth" the false number Madred wants him to give.

Picard's face is contorted in agony as he wrestles with this choice.  Just at that moment, the guards come in and berate Madred for his failure to have Picard cleaned up and readied for release.   Madred's lie is exposed, and before Picard leaves the room his shouts defiantly at Madred that there are four lights. Later though, Picard confesses to his first officer that he was ready to break.  He was ready to say the lie was true, even believe the lie was true, to escape the relentless pressure of upholding the tiny truth regarding the number of lights.

This brings us to Marriage and the pressure to change its meaning.  Marriage is between a man and a woman.   It has been so since time immemorial.  Today's Neo-Cardassians really want us to say differently, and like Madred are willing to apply relentless pressure in order to bring this about.      They want us to say that one man and one man equals one man and one woman, and that two women equals one man and one woman as well.

This is untrue.  Those two things are not equal.   They are not equal biologically, sociologically, parentally, mathematically, or morally.   It is obvious they are not equal, as obvious as the number of lights over the head of Captain Picard.   Still, big government (and the big science which it now funds), big media, and big business, and yes to a growing extent even big religion, are all trying to get us to say that there are five lights, that five equals four, that something that is obviously not equal is equal.

Why was Madred so keen on getting Picard to accept a lie as truth on such a small point, and why was Picard so keen to resist?    Once one breaks, once one lets a master or government or the collective or whatever, define truth for us, over and against even our own reason and our own will, we become the most abject of creatures.  We become malleable on all other matters as well.  We lose our will to whoever or whatever defines truth for us.  We lose authority even over our own senses, because we dare not see what our master says is unreal, and we must see whatever phantoms our master claims are present.

The pressure that the governmental-corpro-religious axis is applying to the population in order to coerce them into saying that homosexual "marriage" is legitimate and equal to real marriage is only going to increase.   And its not just because those at the top are such fans of homosexuals.  What they are fans of is the power to re-define reality.   They crave power over truth, and like Madred and his number of lights, the particular subject over which they break one's will is not so important to them as the idea that they can break it.  The issue is just the tool.  Power to redefine truth is the goal.   In the brave new world, reality is what the Collective says it is on any given day, subject to change at their whim, and the elites control the Collective.  East Asia has always been the enemy, there are five lights, and two men are equal to a man and a woman.

Expect the pressure to increase.  It may be that one will have difficulty holding a high paying job or conducting business unless one subscribes to the collective's wish on this matter (and soon after, on all matters).   Just as Picard was ready to not only say there were five lights, but to believe it, those who cast away their free will in order to escape the collective's pressure will become vocal enemies of those who still reserve the right to evaluate reality for themselves.   Those who forfeit their senses to the collective will really believe what they knew before was a lie, and attack those who believe otherwise.

Despite all of this, and whatever else we face that I have not written about here, I choose to remain free.  When anyone or anything demands, whether through cajoling, pleading, or threats, that I accept as true something I know to be false, they would steal from me my very self.    They would annex my will and make it subject to their own.    Essential to remaining free is retaining my own judgement, my own will, and my own authority to either grant approval or with-hold it.    There are four lights, and the collective is not going to make me say any differently.