Freedom

Freedom is a slippery concept, very personal to the individual that contemplates it. We citizens of the United States view ourselves as being more free than other citizens of other countries but there are those that believe that we are still terribly restricted. I usually don’t have a lot of patience with these individuals for, many times, their idea of freedom means that the rest of the country (and the world, for that matter) must believe and act as they do. I don’t see that as freedom, except to the doctrinaires.

U.S. citizens have certain freedoms guaranteed to us by our Constitution: freedom of speech, freedom of religion and the press, the right to bear arms (or the right to arm bears as a good friend likes to say). Which of these freedoms is the most important? Which one would you personally go to war and die for? Again, this is a very subjective concept but, since I am the author of this little broadside, I have the freedom to give you my opinion (just as you have the freedom to tell me I’m goofy).

In George Orwell’s grim view of the future, 1984, the world is ruled by a totalitarian dictatorship, which watches your every move. The protagonists, Winston and Julia, belong to a secret club that wants to overthrow Big Brother. They fall in love but, since the society to which they belong does not tolerate love, they are brainwashed and forced to betray each other. They have lost the freedom to have a friend, the freedom to meet with others of like minds, the freedom to love. How can we truly live unless we can love? To lose that freedom, the freedom to dance that exquisite dance of entanglement that begins with a look, a touch, a kiss and that ends in a lifetime’s fulfillment, would be unbearable. I can live without religion. I can live without the press. I cannot live without love and friendship and would not want to. This, to me, is the scariest part of Orwell’s prophecy.

Give me the liberty to love…..or give me death.

Dave McKinney
Parker, CO
August, 2003

Editors note-
Here's my own contribution-

-Freedom-

I love this country that I live in, the United States of America. I’d be hard-pressed to find something nice to say about the current administration but, while we have our share of narrow-minded jerks and criminals, the people here are generally pretty nice and some of the places are spectacular. One thing that I’ve almost always felt, at least as an adult and to a great extent when I was a child, is a great sense of freedom. Lately this feeling has been called into question by the actions that our government has taken since the terrorist attacks of 9/11.

We were told that the people who sponsored the terrorists hate us for our way of life, for our freedom. And then the same people who told us that started telling us that we had to start giving up those freedoms so that we could be safe, so that it would be easier to stop those who would do us harm. Our founding fathers must be fairly spinning in their graves at the events that have happened and actions that the current regime has taken since then.

Now I am wondering just how far things will go- does the government have the right to examine people’s computer hard drives without their permission or even a court order, listen to phone calls and go through their mail? All in the name of “protecting” us? It seems like something Adolph Hitler would have approved of.

There are other freedoms that have been disappearing through the fear of reprisal by our neighbors- what of those who wish to criticize the government and its policies, or the military? Or people who voice support for the people of Iraq or Afghanistan? Around here, at least, that can get you into a fight if you aren’t careful, and I myself have a experienced the fear my wife feels, as I do, for what might happen to my children on the school playground if I speak out too loudly about what I feel is gross misconduct and abuse of power by the current administration.

I dread the day when I will be interrupted while I am speaking by somebody saying “you can’t say that,” period, and they will be right. What I have always loved about being here is that I can say what I like politically and know that I have the right to do so.

Artistically I have known that I could do just about anything and be able to get away with it in the name of free speech. Now I wonder how long this is going to remain true, if we aren’t just about to the point where those Artists who push the boundaries and make some people uncomfortable are going to get their wings clipped.

For myself, in the near future, I’m not too worried. With very few exceptions, the stuff that I have been creating in the past decade or so really hasn’t pushed many boundaries except my own technical skill. But I do fear for those Artists who are the mirrors of our culture. When what those Artists see is so ugly that it becomes hard to look at, those who have created the problems get annoyed to see their own reflection. And when it becomes impossible for those Artists to work, it is only a matter of time before I get told what should be doing if I want to keep working. Is it such a slippery slope? I think that it is.

I think the Artists that some people find so offensive are very important. I’m probably not as familiar with their work as I should be, but I’m glad they are there. I kind of get a kick out of it when I hear a person bitching about who’s done what with this or that, whose sacred cow has just been gored. I often tell these people that they are the ones that the Artist was aiming at when they created the piece. The Artist wanted them to be offended, to talk about it, to get outraged, and maybe, just maybe...to think.

I don’t wish to put words into the mouth of Jesus Christ, but I often wonder how he would feel about having the instrument of his death become the major symbol adopted by his followers. And I wonder how he would feel about those of his followers who feel indignant when someone does something with or to a cross. Aren’t we Christians supposed to be loving our neighbors, visiting the sick and imprisoned and feeding the hungry and some of the other things that he mentioned? Isn’t getting angry over someone doing this or that to something that is a symbol, one that has been used to by other people as a rallying point for war and murder and repression, isn’t that sort of getting distracted from the point of his teachings?

And what about the flag of the United States? There is a large movement afoot to make it illegal to burn the flag as a form of political protest. Personally I would rather have the freedom to do so, for freedom is what makes us such a great nation. If the freedom to express ourselves is lessened then the greatness represented by that flag is lessened as well. I would rather have the freedom than the symbol.

But freedom is a hard thing to understand; you can’t wrap yourself in it like you can a flag or wear it on your lapel like you can a cross. It is intangible and therefore easily lost and very difficult to regain once it is gone. The creators of our Constitution and the Bill of Rights knew this and wanted us to be free thinkers and to express ourselves when we feel that the government is becoming oppressive and needs a good poke in the eye or kick in the arse. As Thomas Jefferson said in a letter to Dr. Benjamin Rush on September 23, 1800 "I have sworn upon the altar of God, eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man."

The phrase “live free or die” comes to mind. Unfortunately I see death on both sides of this phrase- we may have to fight to the death to maintain our freedoms if we are not free, and we will die under the repression that ensues if we don’t. I would rather not loose the freedoms in the first place and am quite willing to fight to maintain what freedoms we have. And I feel that it is the responsibility of each generation to maintain the wonderful gifts provided by the founding fathers of our nation so that we may pass them on to our children. It seems to me that so many of us have become complacent or never learned the value of freedom in the first place. Ignorance and complacency are powerful tools in the hands of those who would like to exercise control over every aspect of our lives.

I hope that we, as a nation, wake up in time to stop the slow (or perhaps not so slow) surrender of what we have that makes our form of government worth having and our way of life worth maintaining, our freedom. If we don’t, then the administration has played right into the hands of the terrorists and they will have won. I do feel that God has truly blessed America, but I feel that it is up to us, every American who wishes to remain free of the yoke of repression, to maintain those blessings.

Dave Cofell
Early August, 2003