Captain's Log: Stardate 250121.33
We were contacted by a civilisation calling itself the Zhalosia, inviting us to visit to negotiate a friendship treaty. The Zhalosi described themselves as peaceful utopians. They are technologically advanced and non militaristic.
On arrival we were greeted by Dara, their chief Astronomer. a humanoid of youthful appearance. A ship delegation including Ops, Security and Science officers beamed down to the Zhalosi Space Station for quarantine protocols where we met Ongwan, their xenobiologist. Ongwan explained the basis of their utopia as an immersion of the population in a sense of joy and peace that emanates from their world deity "O". O is a nebulous subterranean entity that emits an energy field of some sort.
We were told that to generate this energy, O consumes the abject misery of one child per generation. This child is a sacrifice who is tortured by O, and after his or her 20 year tenure, the child is euthanised and celebrated as a hero.
Ongwan saw no ethical dilemma in a utopia that is built on suffering, especially if that suffering was limited to one innocent—the needs of the many outweighing the needs of the one. His explanation raised serious questions for our delegation. To what degree are the Zhalosi brainwashed by O and does brainwashing undermine their collective ethical compass? Is O really a deity or some form of brain-washing device. Where do these people sit on an ethical spectrum? What if any action might we take and is any interference ethical anyway?
Our discussion on these topics was overheard by the Zhalosi and we were expelled and ordered not to return.