"Those who flee oppression oft' flee to oppression of their own" should come to mind as America celebrates Independence Day .
Happy July 4th to all of our American friends!
It may be time for celebration, but it is also time for thoughtful reflection. How and why was America built? Everybody knows that America the Beautiful was founded by people seeking Independence; people fleeing oppression from European political systems, repressive taxation, stifling political dogma characterized by an agenda driven by monarchies and the self-entitled, the rich, the devious, and the corrupt.
It is little surprise that American leaders, movers and shakers, the self-entitled, the Power, the glorious rich and the deviously corrupt are building the same empires in the "new world", the "thirteen struggling Colonies" now come the most powerful nation in the world. As they do so, the subtle, at times blatant removal of rights from individuals is always justified by those doing so with the "best of intentions".
Since 9/11 one of the issues seemingly becoming more prevalent and a bone of contention is that rights and freedoms have been reduced under the guise of "security" and protection" .
The growing spectre of leadership paranoia is displayed with increasing levels of surveillance, paranoia expressed loudly with "Eye in the sky", street cams, and the use of electronic technology capable of monitoring hundreds of millions of electronic transmissions simultaneously. Millions of telephone calls can be monitored without law, without permission, and without reason; the whereabouts of anyone on earth can literally be determined with electronic monitoring, face-identification technology and Google Earth. If no "boogie-man" exists, create one. Any excuse to garner power.
The far-reaching tentacles of paranoia extend even to individual key-strokes carefully applied on keyboards; senior citizens exploring the world and sending Email to their grandchildren at the blazing rate of 15 words per minute are worthy of watching.
Are such evil keystrokes perceived to be a serious threat to the official status quo of the rich and powerful and their dogma of corrupt power and corporate greed? Let's figure that one out somehow, because I think it approaches the realm of the sublime.
What does this trend say about "freedom" in North America? The noose is tightening on the expression of freedom world-wide. There is no place left to run to. NO place remains on earth that one may flee to in a bid to escape oppression.
Should the population of the United States of America remain silent as babies and grandmothers alike are "patted down" in airports ? Should the population of ANY country remain apathetic and silent until all backs are against the wall and there is nothing left available BUT to fight savagely with tooth and nail ?
At the infamous G20 Summit in Canada, demonstrators were "kettled",--- meaning locked up en masse and detained without cause, without being charged with any crime, -- simply because the "Riot-equipped" police force present COULD use that UGLY method to inspire FEAR in the hearts of demonstrators, trouble-inciters and innocent alike.
The message was "We can take away your freedom arbitrarily, if WE decide to do so".
Is that process acceptable? NO. It is a direct affront on the rights and freedoms of law-abiding citizens. It is government gone mad, far exceeding any mandate to govern.
What has "civilization" in North America become ? A police state? Riot police willfully doing as they wish simply because the "government" allows, even encourages them to do so? Shall we control the masses with fear? What is YOUR government doing?
Excuse us, but freedom-loving people have no intention of accepting that kind of arbitrary treatment with silence or open arms; thinking people will not accept any arbitrary reduction of rights and freedoms or abuse of power.
At Incoming Bytes we encourage freedom-loving people everywhere to be aware of the direction your leadership is taking and speak up. Freedom is under attack --and there is no longer any place to run. Apathy is not an option. Think about it as you celebrate your Happy Independence Day !
That's my opinion and I'm sticking to it.
apathy is NOT an option! sympathy if any pathy left...with the price of hamburger gone to the ever watching sky...and the rent being gouged as the homeless tornado, flood and fire victims search around for life as they knew it---the fourth of July is just a lot of noise and indigestion...
ReplyDeletenow if all the fire rockets and other noisy celebrations had been food packets for the poor, i could enjoy the ideal freedom implied in the date on my calendar...someone said--freedom is a state of mind, well at least i said that, and i do mean it--liberty is behavior at its most respectful.
Nadine, thank you, I did mean that, "Apathy is not an option!" Ordinary people can not ignore the obvious problems. Not any more, there are WAY too many wrongful things done in this society. Too many people are suffering from the agenda of the rich, greedy, powerful and corrupt. Real "liberty IS behaviour at it's most respectful" as you said. Real liberty is sharing and feeding hungry people when you are not obligated to do so. Real liberty is taking care of people who cannot take care of themselves. Real liberty is taking care of the sick, not demanding payment for their medicine. We in North America have a long, long way to go to achieve liberty.
ReplyDeleteIMO, the more people are being educated, the more selfish we are turning out to be. We've started relying on our own abilities to fend for ourselves and 'better' ourselves, that we don't care who we thwart in the bargain. There's no fingers pointed, but what I've noticed is that while the rich get rich the poorer get poor. Its very rare to find people who genuinely inquire about you and bring you food when stores are running out of supply and coffers are emptying.
ReplyDeleteAs for the governments and powers that control the masses, there's no end to corruption. Granted, there 'might' be 'A few good men', but what is being handed out to the vast majority is not one's deserving right to freedom in anyway... freedom of speech, freedom to live as a respectable human being, freedom to live where you want without being HARASSED by so called TAXES and DUTIES. You struggle so hard to earn a daily meal and you're taxed 30% or more in the name of a better future and a better citizen's life. But try to claim that 'better life' at the hospitals and you see how much you have to shell out in addition to all that.
The system is now fashioned in such a way so as to make man a slave to the nation where he dwells in. If you don't pay your taxes, its a crime. If you dont pay your taxes, you are not eligible for certain benefits. If you don't pay for insurance you're as good as dead. If nature doesn't take its toll on you, its the government. And all this in the name of 'FREEDOM" Ironic, don't you think so?
Mandy, the arrogance and sense of "self-entitlement" of the politicians, rich and powerful is mimicked by those who would follow in their footsteps! The pattern of greed and selfishness is passed down to their children and the (non-thinking) envious. Everything is designed to keep the rich wealthy, and the poor even poorer.
ReplyDeleteYour observation of men being slaves to their country through taxation and repression is true--the incredibly narrow vision of the "country" by the "leadership" and the supporting rich and powerful creates a constuct, political agenda, and direction in both society and the country that FEW average people really want to see built--yet the poor average Joe and his family has to pay for it, while the "shakers and movers" enrich themselves IN that same process. Laws are made to favour the rich, and the "system" enforces those same laws with the same bias. That is not freedom at all.
Do you want to see freedom, compassion and kindness? Go to the poorest native people in the world. They have nothing to give, but will virtually always happily share what they have. It is ironic..and very sad. It is very clear that North American society needs to reinvent itself, mature, and re-think existing greedy practices and attitudes which are rapidly destroying genuine freedom.
I am always amazed at the power of the Chinese. They are the most heavily populated country in the world and have found a means to work around their unemployment crisis. They have found a way for common man to earn his living so as to be able to place food on the table for him and his family... and all through the power of 'collective task-force'. They have used the power of the human mind and talent to mass produce items and goods that are readily and cheaply available all over the world. There's nothing that you don't find as 'Made in China'. Its like every one has a dignified place in society. Every one has a job that he can do; be it in the lower level factory workers, or upper level designers, managers, planners, etc etc. The combined task-force of their country has made them able to withstand a lot of financial dips. IMO, many nations need to open their eyes and learn from the Chinese. The old systems need to be re-worked. Give man back his basic right to a dignified life and in turn man can produce results that will make the nation great. Talent, work and free thinking need to grow. it has to be nurtured from the time a person is young. What kids grow up to now-a-days is the very cry of unemployment, poverty, selfishness, greed for power... which in turn has negative repercussions. Drugs, murder, sexual exploits... are all results of man's loss of self-dignity and pride. Restore that back to each citizen and great, positive changes are bound to occur. Then we can say we are truly free.
ReplyDeleteWell said, Mandy. China does have a unique system that seems to function amazingly well considering the sheer number of participants. There is clearly much to think about in North America--we are actually self-destructing with our current economic/political model -but few seem willing to accept or even recognize the possibility of that fact. The restoration of faith in the system and individual dignity is SO important in the structure of freedom. Thanks!
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