the news has been full of political unrest in multiple countries lately--the latest being egypt. the world is full of countries that don't allow the freedoms that european countries have--let alone the freedoms that we have as Americans. yet, i'm amazed at the amount of people that trivialize what that means. as the bleeding heart liberals are afraid (as are the staunch conservatives) of political unrest in the middle east, the reality is the world is changing. Americans assume that the freedom that we have is the same freedom that others have. yet, it is not. we need to remember that even our european cousins are not as free as we are. our, American, definition of freedom is uniquely our own and as good as it gets anywhere on this planet.
egypt wants freedom to choose. they want a man who, perhaps, has been a US ally and was an egyptian war hero, to step down as their president. he has held that position for over 30 years. we, Americans, forget that our first President, George Washington, voluntarily stepped down after two terms (8 years for those of you that forgot your American history). we forget that FDR served 4 terms, totally 16 years, and that our great-grandparents and grandparents, were so afraid of the amount of power that he accumulated over that long of a period--to the point of changing our laws to only allow a maximum of two terms for the President. it's a reality. we know the amount of power that people like edward kennedy and strom thurman had after decades in Congress. the power that they wielded decided our policies for decades and we may or may not be better for the wear. we often cry that our congressmen and senators do not hear us. why would they if we vote them into office like sheep to the slaughter? yet, our vote counts. we know it does. even when we imagine that our candidate was wronged by chaff or by uncounted absentee votes, we know that our system works better than almost all others. the right to vote, the concept of all people having a say--male, female, old, young, regardless of race and religion--that is our creation. we take it for granted, never realizing how many people in this world do not have that right. egyptians want that right. can we blame them?
china is having similar problems. there are parts of china that are off-limits to westerners, and we turn the blind eye because of the all mighty dollar. there's a power struggle going on there between the communist party (yes, people, they are still "commies"), their leadership and their military. they've maintained control over north korea for decades, and now north korea has become more and more emboldened. either china is losing control over north korea or they are pulling those strings. that is still an iron fist over there--regardless of whether it's getting rusty or has a more conniving hand now. we forget (or overlook) the death mobiles (mobile death sentence vans), the jailing or disappearances of anyone that speaks openly against the communist party or current leadership, the forced takeover of tibet, the lack of religious freedoms, the threats to the sea of japan and other territorial waters surrounding the area, and the tight control over the internet. for what? the almighty dollar perhaps. but, there will come a time that inequity there will rise up again. we like to say they've come a long way. no doubt. but they are not even close to the freedoms that we enjoy daily.
even some of our european cousins have limited freedoms. the british are monitored all over the UK with government cameras. they can't own a gun except for hunting. they pay even more outrageous taxes than we do at equivalent income levels. they even pay taxes on their vehicles by the rated horsepower. it's illegal to modify their engines on their own vehicles. while they have lead the way in abolishing slavery, equal rights for women, and child labor reform, even their police are unarmed. how safe would any of us feel if our police were unarmed? their society is different than ours, granted, but freedoms that we take for granted are freedoms that they don't have. it's debatable for the greater good or not, but many Americans cannot remember our Bill of Rights, let alone truly debate the Bill of RIghts to the freedoms (or lack thereof) of other NATO countries.
we forget that women can speak out, marry whom they choose, vote, serve in the military. we accept that as day to day norm. yet, we forget that women in the middle east in only few countries have the right to show their hair or even their faces. they are not allowed education in many countries there. their families can mutilate their genitals for religion. they are viewed as property in some forums there. the freedom of the women there is still so far behind us, let alone how many of the men there are often deprived of what we take for granted as general human freedoms. speaking out against the current regime, let alone females participating, is still a risk of life. do we here in the United States even understand that risk? nope. i don't care how bleeding heart we are; we have no concept.
i love the saying "all we are is all we know". i'll admit that i don't know what it's like to have no right to vote or be "property" or be facing life imprisonment or death because i have spoken my mind about my government. i don't know what it's like to be told where i can or cannot go. i have no concept of 50 foot walls that block me from my own land because the fears of what i might do in the middle of the night to my neighbor. i have no idea what it is like there. there is not anyone in our great country that can--unless they came from over there.
yes, some of our military has had a taste. some of us have traveled there or have friends that are from there that explain what it's like. we can talk about it. we can offer our support or not. we can debate the sides, but we cannot know what it's like to have the freedoms that we take for granted taken away--or worse yet, to have never had them at all. so, the next time the casted shadow of what freedoms we don't have comes over you...consider that this is the free-ist country in the world. next time that a debate gets started amongst friends, note that for all of our faults, we are free or that debate wouldn't even get started.
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