Monday, June 24, 2013

WHEN DID WE JUMP OFF OF THE 'FREEDOM TRAIN'?

The 'Freedom Train' is a powerful metaphor describing an oppressed people running and escaping from their enslaved condition toward the ability to think and act for themselves. From the founding of this country to present, people both here domestically and abroad have understood this concept. Freedom is moving from being coddled and cared for all in the name of "for your own good" yet all the while increasingly removing personal choices, toward the ability to think for oneself. Kings did it (and still do), slave owners did it (and still do around the world). Pretty much anyone in a position of authority has the ability to do it to us -IF WE LET THEM.

And there is the rub -IF WE LET THEM! In America, we turned the traditional idea of authority over an individual on its head. Some very smart founders of our country looked at all of recorded history to date and realized that traditionally the individual had been on the bottom rung of that ladder with layers of human authority over them, intertwining, restricting and choking the ability of people to make choices for themselves. 

They asked a great question, perhaps the greatest of all questions -HOW DO WE GET FREEDOM? Freedom to think, freedom to speak, freedom to act as long as we do not harm our fellow humans ability to do the same for themselves. The answer? WE HAVE INDIVIDUALLY BEEN ENDOWED BY OUR CREATOR WITH THAT FREEDOM. The Founders belief in a Supreme Being that created humans with freedom was not new. Their enshrining it in a national Constitution, a document that all parties agreed would be the ruling law of the land -NOT A KING OR A HUMAN MASTER OF ANY KIND, WAS! In fact, it was REVOLUTIONARY!

So for centuries now we have had people(s) from all over the world buying into this concept of freedom that we once held so dearly. Yet, decades now of neglect to tending the fires of freedom have left the main stakeholders indifferent as to why we in these United States are exceptional in a world of schemes to run and control orderly societies. We have lost sight of the forest for the trees. We have become so inured with enjoying the benefits of freedom that we have lost sight of the most fundamental aspect of freedom. YOU CANNOT EXERCISE THE BENEFITS OF FREEDOM WITHOUT ACCEPTING THE CONCURRENT RESPONSIBILITIES NEEDEDTO MAINTAIN  FREEDOM!

We have been taught/conditioned to believe that the opposite, in fact, is true. You CAN get something for nothing. There IS such a thing as a free lunch (at least in schools) you DIDN’T earn (or deserve) what you worked hard for, you DON’T have to think and make hard choices because that is what Government is for. In other words, personal responsibility no longer matters. Actions (or inaction) do not have consequences!

You see, we have forgotten the basics. Freedom in the fallen world of humanity is not the default condition. Quite the opposite, mankind’s oppression and enslavement of fellow humans is the norm of the self-absorbed human soul. 

In other words, FREEDOM HAS AN ENEMY! The founders knew this and sought in all ways possible to bind the dark nature of the sinful soul. They put ties and binds on the evil that rises up to seek to enslave one to another. They sought to restrict the natural craving that humans have for power over one another. Was the system perfect? –not by any means. The most glaring example was the inclusion of man’s inhumanity towards African slaves. Yet even in that, there was a very real split between those that sought to profit through slavery and those that saw the evil portrayed through slavery because they believed in the value of every living soul created by Maker of the universe; a problem that festered until it could be stood no more and eventuated a civil war amongst Americans.

So today the ‘Freedom Train’ and all its players still exists. There are still those who will risk life and limb to claw their way on board to ride into into this country. There are still those that think they are the ‘masters’ who wish to pull us off the train and club us into submission with ever increasingly obtrusive laws over our lives. There are still those who pretend they are in charge of the train and tell us where they will be taking us “FOR OUR OWN GOOD”!

We are told by Congressman and Presidents that they will “look out for us” and that we should just relax because talk of “tyrannies” and gov’t oppression is just silly talk. They will tell us that they will protect us and that they just need to know a little more about our lives in order to make us safer from the bad people and that if we would just trust them with that we will all be happier!

There is one problem with that, it flies in the face of all the recorded history of mankind. There are those who know history and live as if freedom is the most precious jewel given as an inheritance from generation to generation in this country. And then there are those who USE their freedom to undermine and erode the freedom of others in order to consolidate power to unto themselves. Freedom, at its base, is the ability to live our lives free from intrusion from anyone or any entity as much as possible –to live act and be as we choose to be! You cannot give government power over Americans without first taking the freedom to choose in some way away from Americans!

So freedom DOES have an enemy and it is our job to distinguish friend from foe and make sure we elect those in authority over us who understand what dangers there are to our freedom. IT IS OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO KNOW WHO THE FRIENDS OF FREEDOM ARE. IT IS OUR DUTY TO FUTURE GENERATIONS TO SECURE LIBERTY FOR THEM JUST AS THOSE WHO HAVE GONE BEFORE US HAVE PREVIOUSLY DONE!

In the end, we all decide if we want to continue to be a part of this great ‘Freedom Train’.  We get to choose if we want to keep the gifts of freedom to body, mind and soul given to us freely by our Creator God. We get to choose to hop on board, stay on board or crash this train forever. We get to choose our destination because our
Maker first gave us that choice.

Please choose wisely!

Yours in His freedom,
Vincent C. Schmuki

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