Freedom, a double-edged sword

We've had a week of tragedy, sorrow, heated rhetoric, and talk. I've ranted, politicians have ranted, people here have ranted, media pundits have ranted.

Now is the time to take a deep breath and speak about the issues in a calm and reasoned manner.

Americans shouldn't take their freedoms for granted. Yes, a horrible event recently occurred. Tomorrow, another may happen. It's what happens when you have freedom.

Freedom to be who you want to be is a great thing. But what many fail to understand is that freedom carries with it a price. In that there might be people who want to be free to hurt or harm others.
We can't just allow freedoms to exist that are going to be used for the betterment of people. Because then it stops being a freedom and instead, becomes an allowance. Personal responsibility for ones actions are paramount in any truly free society.

Some haven't, some won't take that responsibility.

So do we deny freedoms for everyone based on the irresponsibility on a few? Do we deny intrinsic freedoms for everyone because some may not handle their own in a manner that is acceptable?

What we have to ask ourselves is how much freedom are we willing to sacrifice in order to have a safe society. Some here argue that America has too many freedoms. That we squandered our freedoms on things that have no value.

But isn't that the very definition of freedom? Don't we have that inalienable right to "spend" our freedoms how we see fit?

In order to hold onto our freedoms we must accept the fact that horrible tragedies will occur. There will be more shootings. There will be more useless deaths. That is a fact. Some people will always use their freedoms to act horribly. We must embrace the survivors, remember and honour the lost lives. But we must also embrace and hold onto our freedoms and our rights.

Eliminating all driving would certainly end all traffic accidents. All traffic-related deaths. But is the sacrifice worth the value of freedoms lost?

I leave it to you, society, to decide which is more important. The freedom to reach for the stars always carries with it the risk of falling. But nothing of any value doesn't carry with it, an element of risk.

Thank you for reading.

beez

(Mods, feel free to move if this isn't the correct forum.)

I thought I'd give this a wee bump, since I feel it is relevant to the ongoing debate.

Donkey_Dean had a reply. But first, let me add, just hitting the link to Bully Pulpit will tell you the rules for this forum. It is not exclusive, nor is it for the "elites" as some have U2U'd me. It is a serious forum and does not suffer partisanship lightly. It is somewhat restricted, but by simply signing a pledge to behave, you can have access. It is not a oft-used forum, but one I enjoy for penning editorials of a serious nature.