March 10, 2005
Some Thoughts:
...on liberty and freedom
By Jack GrantWhat exactly are liberty and freedom?
We say we want to spread liberty and freedom through the world, but what exactly do we mean when we use the words “liberty” and “freedom”?
Do these words mean now what they meant at the time of the writing of the Constitution? Do these words mean the same thing in different nations and cultures? Do these words even mean the same thing within the US from one region to another?
One man thinks that liberty means the ability to travel within the US without having to show government issued identification. He deliberately created an incident where he tried to fly to Washington, DC, to meet with his Congressional representatives and requested to be shown the regulation that required showing a government issued ID before he could get his boarding pass. He was not shown any regulation at the airport, and in the legal maneuvering since his initial demonstration it has come out that the regulation cannot be shown because it is “secret”.
Most people have no problems in showing identification when they travel by plane. It seems a reasonable and not excessively intrusive means of at least discouraging people who intend harm. However, the use of secret regulations is more than a bit troubling.
Is liberty the ability to travel without having to submit to government officials or their delegates whenever they say “papers please” like in the old World War II movies?
The recent revelations that information that is in many cases considered private (such as Social Security numbers, military records, health records) being not only sold for profit but sold to criminals who used that information to perpetrate fraud seems wrong on many levels. Not only is it that the companies who are profiting from this information do not have to get permission to use personal information in this way, but also by virtue of not having a prior established business relationship with the people whose information is being traded they are shielded from lawsuits when that information is sold to people who misuse the information.
Is freedom the ability to live without having personal information traded and sold for profit, especially to criminals who cause us harm in perpetrating identity theft?
Our credit ratings are now a vital part of our “profile” that is used when corporations do business with us. If we are late making payments on one credit card, a different company that we also hold a credit card with can raise our interest rate or demand immediate payment, even if we have always been on time with them.
Is liberty the ability to live without businesses being able to blackmail us through a mysterious “credit rating” which we are not allowed to know exactly how it is calculated?
As a part of immigration enforcement and the Social Security system, to obtain any job that pays well enough to support a family, a Social Security number and some type of proof of identity has to be shown to the potential employer, who is acting by proxy to enforce US immigration law.
Is freedom the ability to work without having to register with the government?
In order to have a functioning society, some limitations on freedom have to exist, otherwise even more conflict and strife would occur than what we suffer now. In other words, my freedom to swing my arm around ends where someone else’s nose begins. Unfortunately, many people don’t think about that when they start swinging their arms around, or dumping used motor oil into a creek, or filing lawsuits because they spilled hot coffee in their lap.
Benjamin Franklin said, “They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” What are the essential liberties?
Have we already given those liberties up?
Have we already lost our most precious freedoms? We still vote on our government, don't we?
We say we are a democracy, so we have the freedom to choose who represents us in government. How free is that choice? In the 2000 Presidential election the major party candidates were the son of a former President, and the son of a former Senator. It is within the bounds of possibility that the 2008 Presidential race could have the major parties nominate the wife of a former President and the brother of the current President, who is also the son of a former President.
Look at the composition of Congress. What was the distribution of wealth and income in that group before they were elected? A cursory examination reveals that the median wealth and income of each Congress for the last 30 years has been well above the national average and within the range of what most people would call “rich.”
Is liberty the ability to choose leaders who are like us and not members of some elite club of the rich or politically connected?
What is freedom? What is liberty?
What do we mean when we use these terms?
We need to ask ourselves, do we walk the walk that goes with the talk we talk?
Are we as free as we think we are?
Do we keep the liberties we think we do?
What do we mean when we use the words "freedom" and "liberty"?
Posted by Jack Grant at 22:15 on 10 March 2005I have the freedom to do anything that I danged well like.
I have to be prepared to take any consequences that might result.
That is fair, isn't it?
Seriously though, as far as the 'net is concerned the secret is surely, "don't post anything you would be embarrassed to hear read out in Court."
Posted by: probligo at March 11, 2005 01:53 AMTravel without restriction? Yep, now there is a point. Can do in NZ. No ID required at check-in or boarding on internal flights. Like getting on a bus in some ways.
Privacy? NZ has an extensive privacy law. It is quite effective in many respects. It is illegal to "sell" personal information for marketing purposes without the specific consent of the person. I thas also limited the ability of people to gather statistics for medical research - there was a right to-do about cervical cancer studies trying to get hold of women's medical records from GP's a while back.
Freedom from paying taxes? Not while I am paying my share you don't.
Freedom from Social Security? In NZ they use your IRD (tax) registration to control social security access. Not entirely effective, but then if you want charity you should be prepared to go along with the rules.
There is one person I know of NZ who does not have any of the limitations that I live with.
He is now retired but can not claim a pension or benefit. He got out from under by the simple expedient of declaring himself a "work of art". Oh, he is known as "The Wizard of Christchurch". I have met him once and he really is a gas guy. Very switched on.
Posted by: probligo at March 11, 2005 02:07 AMRegarding the guy who wanted to fly w/o ID: Initially, he was told by the clerk that the clerk didn't know if it was a federal or airline rule. To me, that's a huge difference.
As American's we have the right to travel freely, but no freedom of mode of transport. If I want to buy a car, and travel on public roads, I should be able to do so freely. But if I want to fly on a private airline, I've got to follow their rules, or buy my own plane.
I'm quite concerned about the "secret laws". WTF? How could you possibly know you were breaking the law if it isn't published? I would challenge anyone to give an example of a law that had to stay secret to protect national security. How those laws were enforced could surely be secret, but not the law itself.
Posted by: The Other Mike S at March 11, 2005 05:30 PMBrilliant Piece man. I can't really think of anything else to add to the conversation.
Posted by: Jim at March 11, 2005 06:41 PMI have no immediate remedy for you, but David Hackett Fisher has written a wonderful book exploring both of these themes in depth, and what they mean to the United States of America. It's called "Liberty and Freedom: A Visual History of America's Founding Ideas." I highly recommend it to you.
Sincerely,
Jerome du Bois
Posted by: Jerome du Bois at March 12, 2005 06:44 AM
