The Demise Of Freedom In America Rant       

We are losing our freedom. Either it is being taken from us or we are blindly giving it away. More likely, it is a combination of both. This trend has been ongoing, relentless, and undeniable since at least Roosevelt’s inaptly named New Deal of the Great Depression days. This, we are told, was but a necessary reaction to the worst economic downturn in American history and extraordinary measures were required lest our nation be destroyed. That has always been the excuse of tyrants and has been employed for thousands of years by those who would enslave populations and destroy freedom. In our case, it has been done with what might be termed a “soft” tyranny. It hasn’t been imposed all at once in one fell swoop as in, for example, a coup in some Latin American or African Third World Shithole. That kind of direct, radical approach would invite instant opposition which would then have to be brutally and permanently suppressed and crushed. In our case, America’s freedoms have been gently but relentlessly stripped away over the decades and it has been so gradual and seemingly benign as to be barely noticed by the average citizen. Those responsible use a strategy which might be termed “incrementalism” or maybe just a, “little bit at a timeism.” Those folks can’t bite off more than they can chew for fear of choking on their own designs and freedom-denying plans and machinations. A little lost freedom here, a little loss of rights there and the population doesn’t even realize what’s happening to them. When and if they finally awaken from their apathetic stupor and become cognizant of the undeniable fact that life has changed drastically for the worse, there’s absolutely nothing they can do about it save wonder what the Hell happened.



Am I suggesting that America is the victim of some vast, hidden evil conspiracy designed to make us less free than at any time since our founding? Am I further suggesting that there exists some hidden cabal at the center of a movement to deny Americans our cherished and precious rights and freedoms? Well, actually – yes. Am I some kind of wigged-out, paranoid conspiracy nut who sees danger and darkness lurking in every corner and behind every tree in the forest? Well, no. I’m sure you’ve heard the old cliché that just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they’re not out to get you! This has always been and still is eminently true.



I have identified the conspirators in many past screeds and have provided an appropriate name for them: the LFE (Liberal Fucking Elite). They exist, they are real, and their purpose is to destroy America’s hard fought for freedoms and liberties that have created the freest, most powerful, wealthiest, and most generous nation God ever gave mankind. The LFE is populated by those on America’s extreme Far Left and they despise the United States and all that it symbolizes and represents. They are ultra-elitists and don’t trust the average citizen to run their own lives let alone their own country. They view us as severely retarded children who cannot be trusted to make sound and wise decisions for ourselves but must be forever told what to do regarding every aspect of our lives. Those of the LFE are nothing if not paternalistic.



They view the United States as the central force and cause of all the world’s problems and believe that America is the embodiment of evil incarnate. They don’t recognize such concepts as American Exceptionalism, self-reliance, or rugged individualism. They work feverishly at turning our nation into nothing more than a replica of socialized Western Europe and see Free Market Capitalism as the worst socio-economic system devised in the history of the planet (see The Morality of Free Market Capitalism Rant of 12/1/11). They control most if not all of society’s major institutions. These include but are not limited to things like America’s educational system at all levels, our news media, our entertainment industry, publishing, and our political institutions.



They, therefore, can shape and mold public opinion and popular culture like no other force in the country. These folks and their armies of utter lemmings are those that want to strip Americans of their rights and freedoms. They are the ones that view our Founding Documents – you know, the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights – as nothing more than outmoded and useless relics from our horribly unenlightened and brutally flawed past. They certainly have no place in 21st Century America. These are the folks Hell-bent on destroying freedom in our country and they have been far more successful than most of us realize. They are the ones that have turned what was once termed charity into entitlements and dependence. They are the ones determined to see an ever growing, far reaching, and encroaching Big Government as opposed to a limited Constitutional republic that was created by our Founders.



Well, alrighty then. How about just a few examples of this loss of freedom? Enough ranting and raving your paranoid Bullshit of how we’re on the verge of becoming mere slaves to those who would subvert and pervert the freest society that our planet has ever seen? Okay, I believe that I’m up to the challenge. Let’s see, where to start? When is the last time you hopped into your vehicle, fired ‘er up, and took off? If you did not buckle up, then you’ve committed a crime. That’s right, you have just violated the mandatory seat belt statutes and therefore deserve to be justly punished. This, folks, constitutes a loss of freedom. Doesn’t sound like that much of a big deal now does it? Make no mistake – it is. Whatever happened to the concept of choice? When did my freedom to choose whether or not I ought to wear my seat belt get turned over to the State? I remember many years ago when I wasn’t forced to strap myself in and if I didn’t it was a risk I chose to take which in no way interfered with others or placed anyone else in danger.



This may be viewed by many as only a small thing but it is a huge deal. Come on, you might say, I’m over the top here. The government is only trying to keep you safe. After all, it’s really for your own good. Talk about Nanny-Statism and Big Brother, well I guess! What happened to my rights as an individual living in a free country to make my own decisions about what is best for me? It’s gone. Well, you might reply, statistics prove that seat belts help prevent serious injury and death in the case of car accidents so how can you possibly object to the government stepping in and forcing you to comply with what’s deemed in your own best interest? This is the height of paternalism and condescension. It’s obvious that those who instituted the seat belt statutes all those years ago did not trust us ignorant, little people to be mature or wise enough to on our own act safely and prudently. Oh no, we’re just not that capable, intelligent, or imbued with even a modicum of common sense. These decisions must be made for us and be backed by the coercive power of the State. Yeah, I know. It’s just a little thing – except that it isn’t.



The same exact argument can be made for the “helmet laws” governing our behavior when riding bikes or motorcycles. The Nanny-State is forcing these things on me whether I want them or not. Once again, I am not deemed bright or intelligent enough to make this decision for myself or act in my own best interest. No, my freedom of choice has yet again been usurped by Big Brother. My right to make my own decisions and live with the consequences has been purloined by those who are supposedly far better equipped to run my life than I am. This is nothing more than the epitome of arrogance and hubris. I know the risks and dangers of riding without a helmet and I realize that there are those who would consider me a complete fool for not doing so. Since when has being a fool been declared illegal? Since when has been putting myself at risk or in harm’s way been deemed anything but a personal and private decision as long as it impacts no one else? Small things, you say? A loss of freedom no matter how seemingly innocuous is never a small thing. When you look around and add up all of the “small” examples of freedom and choice lost, you’re confronted with the inescapable conclusion that government is trespassing and intruding into areas of our lives where it was never intended to go. Our limited Constitutional republic was never designed to micromanage every aspect of life for our Founders actually trusted the common, ordinary citizen to make wise and prudent decisions for himself and his family. This trust no longer exists and we have become a society ruled from the top down rather than from the bottom up and that never bodes well for individual freedom, choice, or responsibility.



Then, of course, we have the example of one Michael Bloomberg, the diminutive mayor of New York City. The man may be small of stature but he’s possessed of an ego the size of at least Mt. Everest if not the entire Himalayan range. Maybe earning something like 25 billion dollars has a little to do with that because that kind of “green” might just lead to an over-inflated opinion of oneself along with a habit of dictating to others. Perhaps Mayor Mike suffers from what has been termed a Napoleonic Complex or maybe he’s just an egotistical, bossy Son of a Bitch who is used to getting his way and has difficulty when his judgment and decisions are questioned by those “lesser” types he has to put up with and tolerate. Under His Honor’s tenure, the ban on smoking and smokers has been ramped up exponentially to the point that those who indulge in this particular vice are both stigmatized and ostracized. They are treated as outcasts and pariahs and are viewed as anathema by all right-thinking and feeling people.



Well, the argument goes, you know you shouldn’t smoke. After all, it’s bad for you and it puts those around you at risk as well. Yes, that constitutes both the compassionate and common sense argument and reasoning of the anti-smoking mob. There are those out here, however, who object to yet another example of one more instance of a loss of freedom and choice. Smoking is a freedom you ask? Well not anymore but it certainly used to be. In New York City, the “filthy” habit has been banned in all public buildings, government or privately owned. Try lighting up in a restaurant, bar, pool hall, government or private building and the full weight of government as well as public opinion will descend all over your sorry ass like the legendary ton of bricks!



Let’s suppose, for example, that you own a bar-restaurant and you would like your place to be a smoking establishment. Forget it. The law says that you may not – must not – even consider such an option. Hmmmm, you own the restaurant, the building, and the land upon which it is situated. It’s your private property. You pay your taxes and the city inspectors consistently present you with a clean bill of health. You have signs both outside and in your establishment informing patrons that while you appreciate their trade, it is a smoking establishment and they therefore have the option of spending their money elsewhere. As for your employees, they too can find employment elsewhere should the atmosphere at your place of business not be to their liking. Sounds reasonable to me, right? Wrong! You as a private property and business owner are forced to comply with the anti-smoking Nazis whether you agree or not. Congratulations Mayor Mike, for you are now complicit in the destruction of the rights of property owners and the right to own property has been cherished as fundamental since our nation’s inception. It has become so intrusive that smoking is now forbidden outdoors in places like public parks and beaches. Whether you are a smoker or not, this absolutely constitutes a loss of freedom and liberty.



It appears that whatever happens to annoy or offend Mr. Bloomberg at a given moment is then targeted as something the rest of us must never do. He, for example, has a distinct bias against the use of such things as salt and transfats and wherever he can he has prevented their use in the Big Apple. If Mayor Mike says no, then that’s all there is to it. The deed is done, the King has spoken and must be obeyed. Well, it just so happens that I and millions of other Americans enjoy seasoning certain foods with salt and we also agree that some amount of transfats can really stimulate the old taste buds. Well, that’s just too damned bad. New York City’s mayor has declared them verboten and the rest of us will comply whether we agree or not. The Mayor justifies his imperious decisions by claiming that too much salt and the use of transfat constitutes a hazard to our health. Well, isn’t that just so kind, caring, and patronizing?



No discussion of His Majesty would be complete without at least mentioning his latest pet peeve concerning soda consumption. In his bid to help remedy the city’s problem of increased obesity and all of its attendant and related health risks, “Bloomy” has decreed that no New York City resident may consume a carbonated beverage that exceeds sixteen ounces. No Big Gulps for you, my friend! When the Hell is this kind of micromanagement going to end and if it doesn’t where the Hell is it going to lead us? Seriously, Mr. Mayor you must be doing one Hell of a bang-up job as the city’s chief executive if the size of soft drinks can take up so much of your time and attention.



Thanks so much Mayor Mike because it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy knowing you are there to make sure I don’t ingest things that may harm me. I’m obviously incapable of looking after my own health and am too stupid to figure out for myself what constitutes a good and healthy diet. Once again, whatever happened to my right of choice when it comes to what I put into my own body? How about the concept of personal responsibility which has been a major cornerstone of this nation’s character since it was created? No more. We are again being treated like minor children who are not capable of making sound, intelligent decisions for ourselves. Instead, we must trust the government to relieve us from what might be viewed as mature and intelligent behavior and decision-making. This certainly sounds like a further erosion of liberty and choice to me but I am no doubt overreacting. I should probably just sit back, relax, and trust government to act in my own best interest. After all, doesn’t it always do that?



The loss of freedom catalogued thus far may leave people somewhat underwhelmed. After all, in and of themselves they appear to be only minor infringements on our rights as a free and independent people. That kind of thinking and mind-set can only lead to eventual serfdom for the citizens of this nation. Those of the LFE take away freedom in little bits and pieces which can be easily digested by an unaware and apathetic population. Oh, all right, so I can’t consume a thirty-two ounce cup of Coke or Pepsi in New York City and the state forces me to wear seat belts and riding helmets. Most people do not see these types of impositions as anything but minor inconveniences and not as something to get your shorts all in a twist about. This is the way it’s done. It starts with small, seemingly insignificant losses of freedom and over time people will get used to it and view it as just a normal part of life in 21st Century America. An article entitled, “10 Examples(http://endoftheamericandream.com),” provides additional examples of how we have lost even more of these small, insignificant freedoms that most folks really don’t get all that excited about.



In New York State, for instance, activities including wiffle ball, dodge ball, kick ball, and freeze tag are in the process of being banned because of the supposed danger they represent to the kiddies. These activities have been a staple of growing up in America since at least forever and they are quickly becoming no more than fond memories for old farts like me. At a public school in Chicago, the young ‘uns are prohibited from bringing their lunch that mom or dad packed for them at home. Apparently, that responsibility can’t be trusted to the parents any longer because what the Hell do they know about what’s best for their own kids? Furthermore, in Delaware the state authorized the police to tear down a basketball hoop right out of the family’s yard because it was deemed too close to the street. We assume that the offending hoop was privately purchased by the home owner and that no public funding was involved. We can further speculate that the sporting equipment was erected on someone’s private property and presented no hazard or inconvenience to the public at large. This constitutes nothing more than an unwarranted intrusion into the lives of law-abiding, private citizens by an ever more powerful and invasive State that is bent on controlling every aspect of our existence no matter how small or insignificant.



How about an incident that took place in Missouri where two young girls were forced to cease and desist the evil and dangerous practice of selling Girl Scout cookies in their own front yard? Yeah, I can see how these kids obviously represented a clear and present danger to the neighbors and I’m sure everyone out there sleeps better at night secure in the knowledge that Big Brother is being ever vigilant. How about this for an example of how free we are in America today? Go to your local supermarket and try to purchase an incandescent light bulb – the one Edison invented all those years ago. Good luck with that. Now we are forced to buy those far less effective squiggly damned things that, by the way, are filled with mercury. When you break one, an entire Hazmat Team will descend all over your sorry ass to clean up your man-made enviro-hazard and you’ll be charged thousands for the privilege! This doesn’t sound like freedom to me. Yeah, but you’re probably right. These are just little, meaningless things and certainly nothing to get into a snit over.



In a piece entitled, “Freedom in America: Is the Glass Half-Full or Half-Empty?(www.fee.org),” the author posits that more and more of us have come to realize, “that a lot of freedom is missing,” and that, “in the past there were far fewer restrictions on freedom than today.” This is obviously true and no thinking person can deny that fact of life in America today. The key word here is “thinking”. There exist out there far too many Americans who, “rarely think about the government’s innumerable laws and taxes as deprivations of their freedom. They focus on what freedom they still have and regard it as enough.”



This mind-set can only mean one thing and it does not speak well for the future of a free people. It means that the LFE, those on the Far Left, are winning. They are succeeding in stripping us of our freedoms and most Americans do not even notice it let alone object to it. The Left has convinced far too many of us that the government is acting in our best interests and is actually a benign force in our lives. This attitude defeats the entire purpose and meaning of the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights. The Founders knew full well that government was NEVER to be trusted and that any government, including the one they created, must be carefully and vigilantly checked and scrutinized. They understood, as we do not today, that government by its very nature will always acquire more and more power for itself at the expense of and to the detriment of individual freedom and liberty. This is the story of world history and it has ever been so. As soon as a population ceases to jealously and vigorously guard its rights and freedom, they are lost never to be regained. Liberty lost is never recovered. In America today, we have become so lazy, fat, happy, and stupid that protecting our precious freedom is just not a priority. It just doesn’t seem to matter anymore as long as Big Brother and the Nanny-State are there to provide for our needs, wants, and desires. This is the end result whenever a population becomes apathetic and complacent and that always destroys freedom.



Author George C. Leef points to a number of instances of freedom lost and an apathetic population not even batting an eye let alone vigorously protesting. For example, the “government punishes merchants if they increase prices too much following a natural disaster. Hardly any Americans object that this deprives merchants (not to mention consumers) of freedom.” Additionally, the “government dictates that only certain kinds of light bulbs may be used in the future. Americans offer hardly a peep of protest.” Leef reminds us that, “the government makes it illegal to drive a car unless the driver and passengers are buckled in. Are any of the politicians who supported the law voted out of office? No.” Finally, the author points out that the, “government forces banks to make mortgage loans to people who would not qualify for one under prudent lending practices,” and notes that there is nary a complaint about that attack on freedom. Remember the whole sub-prime mortgage debacle that ushered in America’s most severe economic recession? Sure you do. Folks, our nation is in big trouble and it is morphing into something never intended by the Founders who absolutely knew how precious and fragile freedom and liberty truly are. For them to realize that at some future date, Americans would fail to appreciate and honor the sacrifices made by their generation would have them spinning in their graves. We have wasted and squandered their magnificent legacy and in the end we have no one to blame but ourselves.



There are many out there who recognize the perils to freedom described thus far including a fellow named “Spease.” He wrote a piece entitled, “What is Freedom in America?(http://spease.hubpages.com),” in which he correctly posits that, “the U.S. government is now trying to take control of many of the areas of our life, and taking away our liberty, and our freedom to make our own decisions.” The author opines that, “the Obama administration is not taking their powers from the consent of the governed, they are telling us that we are not smart enough to debate the issues of health care, global warming, etc. They are telling us that they know better than we do what is best for us. They want to take away your freedom to do what you want.” This is the LFE, folks. This is full-blown, unfettered Liberalism run completely amok. “Spease” correctly notes that the government is, “forcing people to buy health insurance and fining them if they don’t.” Furthermore, we are forced, “to pay huge increases in costs for energy to line the pockets of a few people in the name of saving the planet from something that many prominent scientists don’t even think exist, or don’t think it has any effect on the temperature of the earth.” Well, here are two crucially important issues that effect each and every American each and every day and yet the vast majority of us do not associate either with the concept of freedom or choice.



Nothing could be further from the truth. Health care, for example, has everything to do with freedom especially as it relates to how we live our lives and the decisions we make regarding the quality of life we choose. Up until Obamacare was rammed down our throats by the Tyrant-Wannabe and his minions, our health was a very personal and private issue that involved you, your family, and your doctor. Not anymore. This government take over has drastically changed life in our country for virtually every single American citizen because it constitutes the ultimate wet dream for any committed, hardcore Socialist. The government now literally controls between one-sixth and one-fifth of the entire American economy and that is something never intended by the Founding Fathers. Talk about anything but a limited Constitutional republic, well I guess so! Everything you can think of can in some manner or fashion be related to and connected with health and health care – everything. This gives government unprecedented and overwhelming control over our lives and how we live them.



There is now no area of life into which the government cannot interfere and the concept of privacy has been effectively and forever destroyed. Your health is now under the control of some nameless, faceless, and unaccountable fucking bureaucrat and you’d damned well better do as the government requires or the bureaucracy will come down on you so hard you’ll be nothing but a bruise by the time it chews you up and spits you out! Are you aware that something so common and mundane as your tooth brush is no longer that simple under Obamacare? Oh no, it is now classified as an official Medical Device and is therefore subject to an additional tax that consumers must pay? By now, most of us who are not completely brain dead or thoroughly brainwashed are aware that the Affordable Health Care Act ran something close to twenty-seven hundred pages and that literally no one has read the damned thing and therefore can’t possibly know or understand what’s in it (see The Obama Care Rationing Rant of 4/15/12). What most people do not realize, however, is that along with this monstrosity comes something like twenty thousand pages of new regulations that no one can possibly comply with because virtually no one knows about them. We won’t know if we are in “noncompliance” until we have “noncomplied” and the government jumps all over us for whatever violations we are guilty of committing. Does that sound much like freedom to you or a free and open society?



Obamacare becomes particularly odious as one approaches those so-called “Golden Years” and, in fact, can be downright deadly. The medical profession, for example, has for many years recommended that we get screened at regular intervals for this thing called colon cancer which if left unchecked only has but one outcome. When you’re in your “forties”, the procedure called a Colonoscopy is done about every five years but once you hit sixty, it is recommended every three years. Well, this certainly seems prudent enough. Now, however, under Obamacare you will be “permitted” to get this crucial screening no more than once a decade. When this is fully implemented, you can bet the ranch and your first-born that the colon cancer mortality rate in this country will soar. This is a basic feature of the Obamacare rationing mentality that is a huge part of the Affordable Health Care Act. You see, a panel of bureaucrats – Death Panels – will evaluate a person’s condition, the age of the patient, the number of years left that the individual can reasonably expect to live and will then decide whether or not to provide any life-saving or drastic measures. Basically, they are saying that it’s not worth wasting the time, expense, and expertise on some unproductive Old Bastard whose days on the planet are just about over anyway. As the Scum Dog-in-Chief once said at a town hall meeting, “Sometimes it’s just better to give them a pill.” This system already exists in socialized Western Europe and it looks like it’s coming here too. Does that sound like freedom to you?



The Liar-in-Chief made other promises about his vaunted health care proposal which he knew were false even before he uttered them. Lying, you see, is a major part of his skill-set. He solemnly swore that those of us out here who are satisfied with our current health care will not at all be affected by his plan. For those who like and trust our doctors – hey, not to worry. Lies, lies, and more damned lies! First of all, there are far fewer young folks going to medical school than there used to be because of our new system of socialized medicine. Why incur the massive amount of debt associated with becoming a doctor when the field is becoming increasingly less profitable for those involved? Economically, it just doesn’t compute. This, of course, means that the consumer of health care – you and me – will have far fewer doctors to choose from. In addition, as private health insurers are forced out of the field because of Obamacare we will have no choice but to turn to the government for our insurance and that is known as a monopoly. As with all monopolies in any field, the quality of products and services quickly deteriorates while the price quickly sky-rockets.



But wait, you say! Obama promised that under his system the quality of service will rise while the costs will be greatly reduced. Now, if you actually believe that I’ve got this really great bridge in Brooklyn I’d be happy to sell you. Under Obamacare, everything connected to medical and insurance costs go up while the quality suffers drastically. We can start with his proposed Bronze Plan which will cost roughly five thousand bucks per person per household and that’s for the bare-bones level of insurance. We can, of course, opt to purchase his Silver, Gold, or Platinum Plans at overly exorbitant rates. There will be no more private health insurers in the coming years. Does that sound like freedom to you? The author of the above referenced piece correctly maintains that if, “they control the health care system, they will be able to control most of the aspects of our lives, they will be able to tell us if we can get treatment for an ailment, if we can smoke, if we can eat fast food, if we can drink alcohol, or if we can do anything else that they feel we shouldn’t do.” I’d just love someone out there to try and convince me that Obamacare has anything at all to do with improving our health care system or that its main goal is not about control, coercion, and massively increasing the power, size, and scope of government. Freedom, my sorry old ass!



Another of our cherished freedoms that is going by the boards is one we virtually never even give a passing thought to. You will not find it in our Bill of Rights or the Declaration of Independence but without it life in the United States would be forever changed for the worse. It’s something we do every day, three hundred and sixty-five days per year. It is our freedom to come and go wherever we please whenever we please. It is our freedom of mobility without which this nation would never have been settled from East to West or from top to bottom. We take this freedom of mobility, as we do all of our freedoms, completely for granted. If you desire to travel from your current location to anywhere else in the country, go right ahead. If you want to drive across this great and vast land vis-à-vis a northerly route and return via a more southerly one, go for it.



There are as of yet no government restrictions on travel. You don’t need documentation or a passport to travel from one state to another and you must pass through no government checkpoints where you, your vehicle, and your belongings will be subject to search and seizure without reasonable suspicion or probable cause. You will, however, need money for fuel and as of late this is no mean or small feat. The price at the pump really hasn’t been an issue since the 1970s when that damned fool peanut farmer occupied the White House. In fact, that entire so-called energy crisis was artificial and could have been easily avoided. Now, however, the cost of fuel cannot be ignored regardless of the mode of transportation you use. Automobiles, planes, trains, and buses all need fuel or they don’t move. They simply cannot function as deigned and constructed.



In my neck of the woods, for example, the price for a gallon of regular hovers at around four bucks and that is becoming prohibitive for many families in this area. Whereas the cost of fueling up used to be but a minor consideration it is now a major factor in how we plan our activities. Whether it be the daily commute to and from work or a long overdue extended vacation, the cost of fuel has become something that must be factored in. In a recent excursion into the hinterland, for example, my fuel bill outstripped that of my food and lodging. Many folks have cancelled planned activities based solely on the price of gas. All manner of transportation has become costlier because fuel prices are heading off the charts and this absolutely reduces our cherished freedom of mobility as well as our freedom of choice. The cost of fuel now hugely impacts such decisions as where we can and cannot live and work as well as whether certain favorite leisure activities will be continued. I know more than just a few boating enthusiasts who have sold their vessels based on the rising cost of fuel. Well, yeah, you might say. That’s all true but what the Hell can we do about it? Rising energy costs are just part of life in 21st Century America. Just suck it up and deal with it.


This attitude is common and it is completely wrong-headed. It is more than anything else the result of decades of brainwashing by those on the Far Left in our country. Americans have been so conditioned to think this way that our consumption habits have changed. We will do with less even though it is completely unnecessary and unwarranted. In fact, we have more oil and natural gas under our feet than anyplace on the planet and the technology exists to extract it economically, safely, and in a way that does not harm the environment. You ever hear of a much maligned practice called Fracking (see The Freaking Fracking Fracus Rant 0f 1/31/13). The LFE and their staunch allies among the Enviro-Crazies will simply not allow fracking in any meaningful way. They claim to be anti-frackers in the name of saving the planet but this is pure Hooey and Horseshit!



They simply do not want to see America become energy independent but would much prefer that we continue to import it from foreign sources many of whom completely despise the United States. Our continued dependence on others instead of ourselves certainly represents but one more example of freedom lost. Ronald Reagan once said that, “Freedom is never more than one generation from extinction,” and author “Spease” concurs. He notes that we, “are on the threshold of that becoming a reality if we don’t stop the loss of liberty. The next generation will not have freedom in the way the founding fathers wanted us to have freedom. We must stop it and hold on to the beliefs of our founding fathers, to be able to do what ever we want as long as it doesn’t hurt others trying to do the same thing. They really knew what they were talking about.” Yes, they certainly did but too many of us in America today are no longer paying attention to these long dead white guys.

The loss of freedom in America discussed thus far is merely a partial list but it is nonetheless real. The Far Left in our country is in fact succeeding . According to the plan they began implementing over half a century ago, they do not want to see a free and independent America or Americans. They desire nothing less than a completely dependent population that must turn to an ever more powerful and centralized government for its needs and wants and one of the most effective ways to accomplish this is to deny us of one of the most precious freedoms we have – our economic freedom. Without a healthy measure of economic freedom, the others don’t really seem to amount to much. What good, after all, is freedom of speech, press, or religion if you can’t make enough of a living to feed yourself and your family? Who thinks about the importance of due process or prohibitions against unreasonable searches and seizures when you can’t afford housing?



Make no mistake, folks, for these are exactly the conditions that are being purposely created by the LFE in the United States. If you become an economic slave to the government, then indeed Big Brother has been victorious. Are you aware that the “real” unemployment number in this nation is not 7.8% as touted by the Bamster and his minions but rather hovers at just about 15%? Didn’t know that did you? The latter figure is known as the U-6 number and is compiled by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is the honest measure because it includes all those who have simply stopped looking for work altogether and have given up hope. The U-6 number also includes those folks who are only working part-time as opposed to full-time. These people are not free. Since the Destroyer-in-Chief has been in office, over 8,000,000 jobs in the United States no longer exist. They have disappeared and therefore can no longer be filled. These “former” jobs have resulted from businesses going under or because they have moved overseas. Americans who once filled these positions are economically unfree.



There are now more than fifty million of us who rely on food stamps - read that government – to sustain ourselves and our families. They can no longer feed themselves. They are not free. There are tens of millions whose unemployment insurance has expired and who now rely on Social Security Disability Insurance to sustain themselves and their loved ones. They are certainly not free. There exist now over 90,000,000 adult Americans who are no longer working and the number of those who are still in the labor participation force dwindles with each passing year. While this is not freedom, it is exactly the outcome desired by the Far Left Liberals in the United States today. Those affected have come to view government as the only source of wealth, happiness, and fulfillment. They have lost any sense of self-reliance and responsibility and have absolutely no concept as to what was once referred to as rugged individualism or self-respect. This not only flies in the face of freedom but it is patently un-American. This is what decades of Liberalism have wrought in America and Obama and his Socialist Saboteurs couldn’t be more well pleased.



Perhaps you are aware of something called the Index of American Economic Freedom which is annually compiled by the Heritage Foundation, a leading Conservative think tank(www.heritage.org). Authors Terry Miller and Kim R. Holmes composed a study entitled, “Mostly Free: The Startling Decline of America’s Economic Freedom and What to Do About It,” which was based on the 2010 Index of Economic Freedom. The authors note that in 2010, “for the first time ever, the United States has fallen from the ranks of the economically free,” and that with a, “score of only 78.0 on the Index’s 0-100 scale, the United States has fallen below the cutoff (an average score of 80 or above) that earns countries the right to call themselves truly free. The United States’ current status? Mostly free.”



Think about that for a moment. We have been the world’s bastion of freedom, economic or otherwise, since our inception and now with the advent of Obama and his Socialist destruction, our freedom has been downgraded, not to mention degraded. I wonder if a correlation exists between this phenomenon and the fairly recent loss of our country’s AAA credit rating by Standard and Poors? In fact, continues the study, “The United States is the 8th freest economy in the Index of Economic Freedom,” and we see discernible decreases in such areas as financial freedom, monetary freedom, and property rights. This marked decline in America’s economic freedom coincides precisely and exactly with policies and plans instituted by Barry and the Boys. For example, “tax rates are increasingly uncompetitive, and massive stimulus spending is creating unprecedented deficits. Bailouts of financial and automotive firms have generated concerns about property rights. The health care law is adding billions of dollars to the nation’s medical bill, as well as federal and state deficits, while fundamentally altering the structure of employment compensation.”



What do these examples have to do with the demise of freedom in America, you may ask? Everything. Heritage reminds us that the, “U.S. Constitution was established, in the words of its Preamble, to ‘secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity.’ That liberty is under assault today, and the threat, now as at the time of the Declaration of Independence, comes from a government that has become destructive of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” The Foundation points out the obvious by explaining that government is, “encroaching daily into areas that Americans have traditionally regarded as private.” This absolutely cannot be denied and it is indeed a large part of the Far Left’s Playbook for the future of the United States. While the Heritage Foundation recognizes the horribly Socialist direction our Great Leader is taking us it maintains that we, “don’t need a revolution, but we do need a restoration of the rights once considered unalienable by the Founders and by the generations of Americans that followed them.”



I truly hope that these folks at Heritage are correct and that we do not need a revolution. In my darker moments, however, I have my doubts about their optimism for I sincerely believe we are witnessing the purposeful destruction of the greatest nation that the planet has ever seen.

Much Luv Y’all and Have a Great Day!

The Fifth Horseman

(Dr. David M. Rich, Ph.D.)