I’m Talking About Freedom

cross-posted at the OrangeBehemoth

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I’m talking about Freedom.

There are so many definitions of Freedom.

My progressive view of it is exactly that: Freedom.

We are all born Free, and yet so few of us remain so during our lives.

People call me an asshole or nut, or other complimentary terms, because I have a unique, I suppose, view of Freedom, for which I have fought tooth and nail, to overcome the barriers placed to block my path to Freedom, and I refuse to yield one inch of mine, ever again, without fighting to the Death to retain it.

Freedom or Death, and I kid you not, brothers and sisters…I don’t know what Liberty is, but I know fucking Freedom when I see it…

Let me ask you all something: Who owns the earth?

If you answer, “No one,” then you’d probably agree with my view of Freedom.  You see, I view us all as guests upon this earth…we were not the first here, we shall hopefully not be the last…we are, at best, stewards.

But no one owns this earth.

So no man is my master.

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I used to be a patriotic Canadian, but I am no longer.  I consider myself a world citizen, and I will defend Canada if it is attacked, for it is the country of my birth.  If it is attacked, I will rise to defend it.

But Canada, as every other nation on earth, does not actually exist in my mind.  It is a collection of peoples gathered within invisible, imaginary and politically-drawn lines and borders, divided into nation, provinces, regions and municipalities.

If these people work together for a common good, I shall join them happily.  If they do not, I shall leave them.

To whom do I owe allegiance?  To my self and my conscience.  And to nothing and no one else.

I was born Free.  I have managed to return to that state, and there I shall remain until I die.

If Canada, or any other “country,” introduces laws, or allows the breakdown of its existing laws, to impinge upon my natural rights to Freedom, I will leave it without qualm and find another “country” in which to live, regardless of location, if it accepts me.

That’s called “emigrating,” not betraying one’s country.  Billions of people, over history, have left the regions of their birth and traveled elsewhere in search of better and more, and no one called them traitors.

America and Canada, for that matter, would not even exist, if people had viewed leaving Europe as “traitorous.”

No, I am no traitor, but I owe Canada nothing more than that which it merits, by its laws, and the conduct of its citizens.  When these and my own conscience part ways, I am gone…book it…I will not live under tyranny, simply because I was born to it, or because the land or peoples among which I was born accept it.

Not I.

I will live wherever on this green earth that I am afforded the Freedom to which I was born.

And what is this Freedom?

I view Freedom as the right, granted by natural law and birth, to be the Right:

1. To live unmolested by other people who simply view me as different, or who dislike me for merely cosmetic reasons such as my appearance or race or ethnic background.  If I must, I am prepared to live alone, apart from “society,” to ensure this.  I have no more use for “society” than it has for me.

2. To seek employment without interference due to my political, religious, moral or other views or beliefs.  I was born with a mind and the right to think what I think, and if any society wishes to impose thought upon me, I shall seek another which doesn’t.

3. To access to education and medical care, at a reasonable (meaning, affordable) cost to me.  I don’t think much of any society which gives tax breaks to the filthy rich and leaves its citizens without affordable education and health care.  I give up many freedoms to live within any nation’s political boundaries, and in return, I expect to be able to learn and live without dying from treatable ailments without it bankrupting me.  If I cannot find that in Canada, or any nation in which I live, I shall seek another.

4. To believe or not believe what I wish, without social stigma.  If a society wishes to spurn me because of my beliefs or lack thereof, I shall seek another.  I will not “Die” for my rights until there is nowhere left to go, for no piece of earth on this globe is so “precious” to me that I shall give up my life to remain there.  This is how territorial and imperial wars arise, and if you want “my” land are stronger than me, go ahead and take it.  However, if I have nowhere left to go, or if you try to take my life while doing so, I shall fight you for my survival- to the Death…so be prepared when you come for me…

5. To participate, should I choose, in the selection process of appointing the political leaders of the society in which I live.  If I have no say, I have no obligation to this society.

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You see, none of my described Freedoms involve pushing my views or beliefs upon others, which I view as “Oppression.”

The religious seek to oppress others when they say, “What you’re doing is a sin,” and then seek to control the actions of others.

Leave the punishment of sinners to your Gods, and leave the punishment of criminals to the State.

If a sin is not a crime, you are an Oppressor to seek to suppress this sin.  You have no earthly right to do so, other than that which you believe that your God has granted, but your beliefs do not extend beyond your own mind and brain– I have my own, thank you…even as a group, your beliefs are your beliefs, and you have no right to impose these beliefs upon those whom do not share them.

A nation which allows this is a Theocracy.

I will not live in a Theocracy, however benevolent it appears, because I know what eventually happens- Oppression.

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In short, leave others the hell alone.  Their lives are none of your business.

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I see many things daily which I find “offensive” or “immoral,” and I have the right to view them as such.  However, if they are not Illegal, I have no right whatsoever to interfere with the behavior or actions I deplore.

That is Vigilantism.

I am not an Oppressor.  I shall never be one, for I believe in Freedom.

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The question is;

Are You?

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