What does freedom mean?

a reply to: Maxmars
Hmmm..
I don't know, perhaps freedom means the same to most, despite political parties. Maybe it is the way we get our freedom that isn't understood by many.
Some feel that freedom is "given" by the government.
When it is actually the governments responsibility is to protect our freedoms, not to "give" them.
We already have them, but we can give them away, as we seem to be doing.

Freedom is a state of neutrality for me.

An example would be the freedom to practice religion and also concurrently the freedom not to be exposed to religion. That would indicate neutrality, and freedom for everyone.

edit to add:

Before I'm misunderstood, that would mean the right to practice any religion in private, on private property, be it a home, or a church, or a mosque, temple, whatever. It also means no religion in politics, government or during SuperBowl.

a reply to: Nothin


Thanks

There are loads of ways you can look at freedom and what it means.
To some all they care about is the freedom from hunger or want...They could find happiness as well fed slaves of a benevolent owner...they wouldn't be free though.

Ultimately, the only sort of freedom any of us can exercise is the freedom to live and accept the consequences of our actions.

Whether its a bad accident, a nasty kicking off some nutcase in a bar no one else answers back to or the old bill kicking your door in for refusing to obey a law you regard as unjust.

You can find freedom anywhere as long as you are brave enough.

I love the smell of freedom in the morning .......smells like...

a reply to: greendust


Here's an example of freedom we could all be faced with. I 'm driving down the street and am blocked by a group .....they're waving signs , swearing at me ......some are armed with guns and bats.....two with bats break my back window and one guy with a gun points it at me ....I roll down my window and tell the guy with the gun to lower his weapon....he starts closing the gap between us ...I shoot him twice....the crowd scatters and I drive to the police station. Was I FREE to defend myself seeing I was being directly threatened with bodily harm ?? Will I be FREE to go at the police station or will I be charged ?

a reply to: Banquo

That goes both ways, some people don't approve right things, some people don't approve wrong things. Bad things may not be allowed, but they can't return time, it's only fined or punished when it happened. Thinking the law will make them act right, rest assured bad stuff will happen. The law is only there for when the bad already happened or in some cases to stop the ongoing.

Only unity acts as a moral compass, the freedom from hate.

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You really want to know? You might not like it, but freedom is the idea given by those with power to those without, in exchange for giving them more power. Freedom is the theft of your own power which is willingly handed over to someone else.

Freedom is double speak for servitude.

a reply to: greendust

a reply to: greendust

It Means the OPPOSITE of This.................

If you have a problem with people living however they please sexually,

Oh, you mean like pedophilia and rape? That sort of doing as they please sexually?

believing in whatever they want to, hateful or crazy included,

human sacrifice is awesome I hear and brings the rains every spring

freedom to choose one’s own morality and sacred subjects,

Pretty awesome when your new neighbors believe that what's theirs is theirs and also what's yours is theirs too.

then you’re already against everything America is all about, and it’s sickening watching you actually attempt to rally support behind those things.

I think we have a country where basic law is no longer in effect. Those are mostly places in Africa ruled by tribal warlords. America is all about some degree of law though or we wouldn't have a COTUS where it is supposed there will also be other laws made at both the state and federal level. So, yeah, some of this stuff you're railing against is actually pretty American.

Stealing, btw, is an issue of morality as much as it is an issue of legality. The two things overlap quite a bit.

Freedom is where I get to watch people be self-destructively crazy, but they don't get to force me to go along with them.

originally posted by: ITSALIVE
You really want to know? You might not like it, but freedom is the idea given by those with power to those without, in exchange for giving them more power. Freedom is the theft of your own power which is willingly handed over to someone else.

Freedom is double speak for servitude.

a reply to: greendust

I think you entirely missed the point of the Bill of Rights and why we fought a Revolution.

Don't fret about it... a lot of so-called Americans feel the same way that you do.

They are being screwed by the system.

What they don't understand is that they are weak and have brought it on themselves.

Don't get upset about it... if History is any lesson, it will balance itself out soon enough.

a reply to: Maxmars

Too much irony?

To put freedom into context is restrictive because it's a concept, an illusion at best. Even a god would be restricted, lower case ones have a personality and the big G ones have immortality. The word constraint comes to mind.

Could argue freedom is anarchy with responsibility but then the definition of sacrifice will worm it's way into the discussion somewhere. It genuinely does depend where one looks and how what one sees is reflected upon.

It's a philosophical question. The concept of freedom could simply be a tool to engage in higher thinking and understanding although it often feels like a weapon. I'd argue time alone is the biggest thing that dispels the idea of freedom, religious concepts are important here too since free will has a lot to do with the ability to be free.

Yeah... It really is a great question, worthy of discussion imho. I can grasp some basics and I want to challenge my thoughts on such an illusory thought form such freedom.

I need other thoughts for that right? Otherwise bias will ensue...

Ah, so someone needs to authorize your freedom for you as you apparently didn’t have it before it was written on paper and people died. It’s you who is missed the point- you already had your freedoms but choose to give them up to a monarch, a government, an entity that will always have more power than you. After all, that authority has the power to send people to die, all in the name of protecting freedom. Thanks for letting us know that’s what freedom is to you, I shudder than there are others who agree.

After all here in America, we have the freedom to pay taxes, to have our property taken, to have our sons taken to die and fight in foreign wars, to be taxed and have that money go overseas. We’re free to be incarcerated for conducting business outside of their rules, free to be beaten when expressing political beliefs, free to be incarcerated for possessing the wrong substances, were free to be oppressed by our race, sex, and anything else. The bill of rights protected us during the pandemic, we were free to lose employment, free to not show our faces, free to wait in bread lines. We were free to demonize those that questioned rules, we were so free to be locked down- all in the name of freedom! Boy thank you for the point of the bill of rights, just driving right to the truth and protecting our freedoms.

You’re welcome to hold onto the impression (propaganda) they fed you in elementary school- it clearly still holds a biblical meaning for you.

I just prefer my glasses clear, not rose tinted is all. You proved my point better than you realize with this emotional response with a piece of propaganda. You choose to put on shackles and call that freedom because they told you that’s what freedom is.






a reply to: Lumenari

a reply to: greendust

"Freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose".
-Kris Kristopherson/Me n Bobby McGee- Janis Joplin

a reply to: mysterioustranger

originally posted by: chiefsmom
Freedoms just another word, for, nothing left to lose.....


Sorry.

Freedom to me means being able to do what I want, as long as it doesn't harm or hinder anyone else.

Don't feel like I have much anymore, when out in the "real" world.

a reply to: SprocketUK

Ok...wait a second here. You said "Freedom to me means being able to do what I want, as long as it doesn't harm or hinder anyone else."

What you described was a perfect Alister Crowley-Satanism: "Do what thou wilt" Do whatever you want...as long as you don't hurt someone.

Curious attitude there....but hey..I get it. Best. 2 ya😎✌️

a reply to: SprocketUK

May I reply again? You DO have much still...you're a valuable piece of humanity. Understand you're special, different, needed by others...because you really really are.

I wrote a song once that seems to fit called: "Find your Heaven in the sky"..meaning to look up: stay up there long enuff to look down and see yourself as an equal part of the total. Helped me....

God Bless. Jesus Saves...or whatever God you pray to.

Freedom to do what I want so long as I don't hurt someone ...

That seems really simple, but ...

Let's examine this from the perspective of the trans debate. To a transperson who has not done anything to change their outward appearance and only claims to mentally be the gender they say they are (biological man who feels like a woman), they aren't technically hurting anyone when they come into a women's crisis center. After all, we're all girls together, right?

But what about from the perspective of the women in that center? How do they feel about it? They see a man coming into their safe space when they've just suffered a massive psychological and physical hurt at the hands of a man. That's continuing mental trauma.

Is that transperson doing no harm? But this is what activists are demanding, and they've vandalized places like this.

It shows that one person's definition of "do no harm" necessarily does not match another person's. So that idea, while neat, isn't sufficient.

originally posted by: mysterioustranger
a reply to: SprocketUK

Ok...wait a second here. You said "Freedom to me means being able to do what I want, as long as it doesn't harm or hinder anyone else."

What you described was a perfect Alister Crowley-Satanism: "Do what thou wilt" Do whatever you want...as long as you don't hurt someone.

Curious attitude there....but hey..I get it. Best. 2 ya😎✌️

Nope try again you are mixing folks up I think