Depending upon their age, the reader may or may not recognize the title of today’s post. If you don’t recognize the title of today’s post, then you’re probably not a Baby Boomer. If you do recognize the title, then you probably are a Baby Boomer, or older. Boomers were almost universally commanded to memorize portions, or perhaps the entirety of certain historical documents, and speeches. Because of this post World War II social studies requirement, most all Boomers immediately recognize the first sentence of the second paragraph of the Declaration of Independence. At the time of the experience, I did not appreciate nor did I understand the purpose of these requirements. Now, many years later I do. Life and happiness are wonderful, but life itself has provided no greater gift than liberty. Liberty was not defined in any prior post, because defining liberty would have no purpose. Liberty simply implies freedom, free will, and freedom of choice. All human beings, no matter their station in life, are free. Free. Free to chose what they think. Free to choose what they believe. Free to choose where they go. Free to choose whom or what they worship of don’t worship. Free to choose whatever they wish to choose.
“Now, wait a minute”, you say. “No, no I’m not free to choose”. “I’m fourteen years of age, and I Had To Go To School Today“, or “I’m a married man with three kids, a mortgage, and two car payments, and I Had To Go To Work Today“! No you didn’t. You didn’t have to do anything you didn’t want to do. You choose to go to school, work, or whatever because you didn’t want to deal with what would happen if you didn’t. No one, however made you do anything, and don’t fool yourself into believing someone else makes your decisions for you. I don’t blame you for going to school or work, my choice would be to do the same, but it would be My Choice. I made the choice. If I were imprisoned I could choose to not obey the guards, if enslaved I could choose not to obey my master, if held at gunpoint I could choose to try to escape. My freedom, my freedom of choice, my free will is a gift that can not be taken away by man. Now granted, some of us are blessed with less restricted choices. More freedom. Greater rights. If you are an American, living in America, your choices are less restricted by government than in any other country, keeping in mind however, that my rights, my freedoms, end where the next persons freedoms begin. That’s why we have governments and laws. To provide protection for the freedom that others wish to take from us. American, do you realize how blessed you are, and are you thankful for this blessing. Do you realize how many have died, and continue to die for your liberty? Do you think of those that have been maimed and continue to be maimed for your liberty?
As a free thinker, I’m asking you to be a free thinker. When I use the term free thinker, I’m referring to Webster’s first definition of free thinker, that is One who forms his own opinions independently of others. I’m not asking you to believe anything that I believe because I think it best. I’m asking you to open up your brain, your ability to reason, your good judgment, and decide what you want to believe and to do what you choose to do. If you are old enough to make your own decisions, make them. Make your own decisions about everything, but especially about what you believe about everything, including your personal freedom.