Life Support

Originally Appeared Here


Making plans with Leanne, she's my cute little vixen
While Winn's making inroads to Cardassia like China and Nixon(1)
She suspects her ships been sabotaged and calls for a medic
Stimulating his synapses and revivin' the Vedek
There's hope for recovery, though it's too early to tell
Still in no condition to negotiate with Legate Turrel
They're overridden by Winn, his old rival who wants
Bariel to advise her on legalism and nuance
While I'm double-dating with Nog, and my boy's being rude
Last straw's when he asks his girl to cut up his food
Got a disrespect for women that his uncle and Rom taught
I'd have seen better manners if we had stuck with the Dom Jot
And spent the evening with Naussicans who stab through the heart(2)
But you know I couldn't fall in love with an artificial part
Like the Vedek on vasokin, Bashir as his modern Prometheus(3)
Replace him bit by bit like he was the U.S.S. Theseus(4)
Winn doesn't give a damn once she's satisfied her vanity
Let him die with dignity while he's got a shred of humanity

1. Much as Commander Sisko says Winn is the last person he expected to make a peace effort with Cardassia, the ardently anti-communist Richard Nixon surprised many by improving relations with China. It was later quoted as a Vulcan proverb by Spock in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.
2. A reference to events in Picard's youth shown in "Tapestry"
3. "The Modern Prometheus" is the alternate title to Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.
4. Refers to the paradox of the ship of Theseus, which has over its lifetime, had every single board replaced, yet is still considered the same ship.