FinalEvangelion said:
Porcupine_I said:
Define Freedom first. |
That's the point. They never really define it. Does freedom mean being able to start a business without so many government regulations and tax? The US is probably better than most places for that. Or does freedom mean that I can go to a bar after 2AM with a 20 year old responsible adult? The US is worse about that than most of the world. Or does it simply mean that I can speak against the government, assemble peaceably, etc. OWS is testing the boundaries for that freedom at the moment. Let's not forget "free speech zones" which is a paradox in itself. Does it mean the freedom for citizens to have equal opportunity to find employment without having to worry about race, gender, religion, SO, etc.? Or does it mean that business owners can hire or deny anyone for race or any other reason?
There are many ways to define freedom, which is one reason I think that the statement is too vague.
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Definition is the fundamental problem with a lot of discussions.
but freedom is especially hard to define, since when you try to you will find that you either don't have that much more freedom than anyone else in the world, or the kind of freedom you have is impossible to defend outside your countries borders.
“It appeared that there had even been demonstrations to thank Big Brother for raising the chocolate ration to twenty grams a week. And only yesterday, he reflected, it had been announced that the ration was to be reduced to twenty grams a week. Was it possible that they could swallow that, after only twenty-four hours? Yes, they swallowed it.”
- George Orwell, ‘1984’
