Veterans Day 2023
Thoughts on Freedom and Sacrifice
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| The Price for Freedom is Always Paid |
I am old guy now and as a vet who participated in several of our conflicts - ostensibly about freedom - I have been thinking more deeply about what freedom means; what have we been defending?
It seems we Americans have a very broad definition of the word freedom - and a singular bond with it. People in most other countries are happy to just have the freedom of a peaceful, decent life. Not us, we think of almost everything we can - and cannot - do in terms of freedom. Here's an interesting local example:
A couple years ago the city of St Paul decided to centralize trash collection, a fairly common thing in most cities. At that time the residents were responsible for hiring their trash collector which, of course, meant that there were many different trash days and many different trash trucks beating up the city streets. Well, from the reaction of many folks you would have thought the city was going to come in and take their guns.
By God, give me liberty to choose my own trash hauler or give me death!
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| . . . Or My Favorite Trash Collector! |
Is this a frivolous expression of freedom? That is not for me to say but I doubt it is worth dying for. Which brings me to sacrifice. We know the sacrifice that the military makes but what about the rest of society? It occurs to me that we all pay a price, sometimes obvious and sometimes unnoticed, for certain aspects of our freedom.
Some sacrifices are self-inflicted. Once upon a time we went to the polls and elected our government representatives. Very simple. Sometime, somehow, however, this freedom is now expressed mostly via campaign contributions. $$$$, lots and lots of $$$$. You could say we put a "for sale" sign on politicians. In fact, money is so important now that members of congress spend up to 30 hrs/wk dialing for dollars. (I know, they could be doing their actual job but apparently our country doesn’t have any real problems that require full-time effort.) Anyway, their money solicitation has been made easier by the 2010 SCOTUS Citizens United ruling that "corporations are people." Of course, they aren’t really people but their money is just as good and is actually better. Why should a politician fiddle around with us individuals when they are free to grab a ton of cash in a single bag from a large corporation or a "dark" PAC? In 2022 (a non-presidential election year) we “citizens” gave about $16.6 MILLION for each of our hard-working senators and representatives.
We have all sacrificed here;
sacrificed the direction of our country to the wealthy and the corporations who now have a larger voice than we peons, er, individuals in running the country. For proof, look no further than the struggling middle and lower classes these last 30-40 years.
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| Thank Heaven for Free Speech! |
Others are inexplicable. For example our freedom to “choose” our healthcare. Every other modern country has some sort of imperfect but decent, government-paid system that everyone can access. Not us, we fight to protect our private healthcare system which is provided by five or six giant insurance companies run by executives who make eight figure incomes. We also happily pay about twice as much as any other country and accept that 65% of bankruptcies are caused by medical expenses. There is also the likelihood that it will bankrupt the nation eventually.
It's not just the 28 million folks without insurance who are sacrificing for this.
There have been nearly 600 mass shootings in the US so far this year. So what, we are not alone in mass shootings. There have been 18 in the UK – since 2000. France has had 12 since 2012. See?
We had 48,000+ deaths by guns last year including over 6,000 kids killed or injured. Is there a relationship between our gun laws or lack thereof and these deaths? You be the judge but it seems like a heavy price is being paid by someone for "thoughts and prayers."
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Kyle Rittenhouse and fellow teen patriot |
Ironically, sometimes sacrifice is required for freedoms we don't even have. Probably the most fundamental right of all democracies is the election of their country’s leader. Not us. Through the ingenious - and convoluted - logic of the Electoral College the Founding Father’s relieved us of that responsibility. Interesting that a people who resist city trash collection will accept that just a few “swing states” get to choose their president. Presumably at some point that sacrifice will be questioned. Probably by the majority of voters.
There are many other examples of we Americans expressing our freedoms in “unique” ways.
As
recently as a couple years ago many of us, in the name of freedom, refused to
wear a mask. It is, of course, an American’s right to deny that there is any
common good for which to sacrifice. (Although not for those in the military.)
Many of us employ the 1st Amendment to use religious beliefs to force other Americans to sacrifice their common civil rights. A belief that overrules a right. Hmmm
We apparently also have the right to harass and threaten friends and neighbors doing the jobs the country needs and the rest us cannot or won’t do - teachers, librarians, school boards, election workers and anyone else we disagree with.
In the end, nothing in life is free. For every single
choice and decision there is a price that must be paid. For all those freedoms
we take for granted, someone is picking up the tab. If not
you then a relative, a friend or a fellow citizen.
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| The ultimate price for your Freedom |
I apologize for this long-winded way to say that no matter how important - or petty - the freedoms that we Americans enjoy, in the end they will be guaranteed by vets with their lives.
To my many vet friends a special belated thanks for your service, you are the best.
Some music to ponder the price of Freedom
Everybody Wants to Rule the World Tears for Fear (Geezer version!)
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