[Nate the Great]

ANTHWARA: Then you can respect the fact that this planet holds a deep spiritual significance for us. It has taken us two centuries to find this place. We do not want to spend another two hundred years searching for what we already have.

I know something about feeling a spiritual connection to a place. Even so, I have to agree with SF Debris; the people's lives are still more important.

It occurs to me that they dropped the ball by not introducing a natural resource that the Cardassians would want. Hence you could point at the Bajoran Occupation and say, "Do you want that to happen to your people?" Because without a natural resource, why would the Cardassians bother with this planet? They might put up a sensor array or repair facilities in orbit, but by no means would they occupy the entire planet.

CRUSHER: I shouldn't have to. You're a fourth year Starfleet cadet. You should have a certain level of maturity.
WESLEY: Maybe I am sick of following rules and regulations. Maybe I am sick of living up to everyone else's expectations. Did you ever think of that?

And here's where Wesley really dropped the ball. If he felt this way he should've dropped out of the Academy and not worn a uniform while visiting the ship. And this whole thing really feels like a shoehorn to get Wesley to where he needs to be for this episode to happen. Couldn't they have had an intermediate episode where he feels discontented and drops out to rejoin the Enterprise as a civilian, THEN do this episode where he finds another path? It's not like there aren't a ton of other Season Seven episodes that could've been dropped to make room for it. And now that I think of it, it would've made for an interesting reverse parallel with Troi's path to the Bridge Officer's test; she wants to stretch herself and he's tired of doing it all the time.

PICARD: Beverly, he's got to want that help. If he doesn't, then any efforts on our part can only push him further away. He's got to work this out for himself.

Exactly.

LAKANTA: The Habak is holy to us. We hold our rituals and our ceremonies there. It's sacred to us. What's sacred to you, Wesley?
WESLEY: I don't know. I mean, I think a lot of things are important, I have a lot of respect for things. But I don't really consider anything sacred.

It's an interesting question. It wouldn't be odd to discover that Felisa Howard had religious beliefs, and Beverly doesn't quite seem like an atheist. Has Wesley been so busy that he didn't take time to explore his own spirituality?

LAKANTA: Everything is sacred to us. The buildings, the food, the sky, the dirt beneath your feet. And you. Whether you believe in your spirit or not, we believe in it. You are a sacred person here, Wesley.
WESLEY: I think that's the first time anyone's used that particular word to describe me.
LAKANTA: So, if you are sacred, then you must treat yourself with respect. To do otherwise is to desecrate something that is holy.
WESLEY: Is that what you think I've been doing?
LAKANTA: Only you can decide that.
WESLEY: I guess I haven't had a lot of respect for myself lately.

Without going into detail on my beliefs, I understand this.

ANTHWARA: When you first came to us, we did not know why you were sent by the Federation but we knew there must be a good reason. To us, nothing that happens is truly random. So we searched for the true reason you were sent. We did not find it until last night. Are you familiar with the Pueblo Revolt of sixteen eighty?
TROI: I am. Several Indian tribes rose up to overthrow their Spanish overlords and drove them out of what is now called New Mexico.
ANTHWARA: Ten years later, the Spanish returned to reconquer the area. They were brutal. I would use the word savage. They killed hundreds of our people. Thousands more were maimed. The name of one of the soldiers was Javier Maribona-Picard. Your ancestor.
PICARD: I'm not aware of this incident or of the man you named, and this happened seven hundred years ago. I do not see what bearing it can have
ANTHWARA: That is why you have come to us, to erase a stain of blood worn by your family for twenty three generations.

This is complete nonsense. Whatever Picard's opinions on spirituality, he doesn't believe in blood curses. Furthermore, this is not the way to convince him to help. Picard already wants to help and he's made clear that he doesn't want to do this. Even if he choses to defy Starfleet orders, what is he going to do, keep the Enterprise in orbit forever to fight any Cardassians who try to claim the planet?

LAKANTA: The spirits of the Klingon, the Vulcan, the Ferengi come to us just as the bear and the coyote and the parrot. There's no difference.

This is a loaded issue. How will religious people react to the existence of alien life, sentient or not? Will they treat alien races as being of a lesser stage of glory than humanity?

PICARD: Anthwara, I want to make absolutely sure that you understand the implications of this agreement. By giving up your status as Federation citizens, any future request you or your people make to Starfleet will go unanswered. You will be on your own and under Cardassian jurisdiction.
ANTHWARA: I understand, Captain. And we are prepared to take that risk. Will the Cardassian government honour your agreement here?
GUL EVEK: I believe I can convince them that this is an equitable solution. I cannot speak for every Cardassian you may encounter, but if you leave us alone I suspect that we will do the same. Will this be acceptable to the Starfleet Command?

And this is my basis for why I hate how the writers handled the Maquis. They were formally introduced over on DS9 a month after this, but there must've been discussions about them long before this. This episode clearly says "they're not Federation citizens anymore, we won't defend them" but DS9 says "they are Federation citizens, we have to defend them". Talk about the left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing.

Memory Alpha

* Beverly recalls details of Picard's conversation with the Traveler back in "Where No One Has Gone Before", but the Traveler specifically told him not to tell her. Oops.

Nitpicker's Guide

* Why would these Indians have records going back to the 1600s, and why would Troi know anything about early European/Indian relations?