True Freedom

Hello friends, 

I guess that I am getting used to the ‘out of the closet skeptic/atheist’ thing in that I’m being forced to put on my Skepo-vision goggles more often. I still do tend to knee jerk on some things and am trying harder to catch myself when it occurs so bear with me. I was pondering the subject of freedom the other day and came to a conclusion about most of the rhetoric coming from the media about it today. Most liberals hail Edward Snowden as a hero for exposing what he called invasions of public privacy and want him to be fully pardoned. Conservatives want him shot for treason and used as an example of what happens to people who ‘betray U.S interest.’  

I say that freedom is a double edged sword that can cut unclear both ways. People had true freedom in the early 1800’s in that they could strike out on their own, stake a land claim and die of disease, get attacked and slaughtered by the natives or starve to death. In some instances things worked out very well for these people, and as it did, they expanded Government to take on more of humanity’s problems. Branches of Gov. on food inspection, disease, healthcare, etc. started popping up and problems got solved, but as usual, Gov. always oversteps bounds because it is controlled by the greedy and dishonest life form Homo Sapiens. Now we find ourselves watched by cameras on every building and street corner, drones are starting to pop up in the civilian circle and spy equipment has become so sophisticated that it can be used to see through solid walls.

Today we are living in a world that is the natural outcome of the installation of central Government. We cry about violations of our freedom, yet like thought police we tattle on co-workers who talk of non-politically correct things. We curse the police for not coming sooner but decry the use of drones to identify criminal perpetrators. We want to be free of cameras but get pissed when mugged for our paychecks at an ATM. There are many more. Humans do nothing in moderation and usually take the path of least resistance, meaning that we want our freedoms but we will also allow Big Brother access to certain private matters KNOWING that if given them, BB will abuse the people’s trust almost every time! Freedom has it’s trade offs. If you want certain safety, then you have to roll the dice and hope that these safeguards won’t be used for invading your privacy. The human thing to do is to use these safeguards for selfish reasons, so there are your consequences for a central Government. If done away with, the country goes back to robber barons and chaos with people dying at an average age of 40-50. This is actual freedom; really not what you thought of when defining the word, huh? Excuse the simplistic view and analysis, but I was looking for a generic explanation to convey a complex thought. Peace!