Are we really free?

Question

We're supposed to be free, but the whole freedom of speech thing can land you in jail,you need a license for just about everything, permits to build on your own property......and too much other stuff to list....help me out

Answer 1

No we are not free. Nobody in the world is free. And we loose more freedom each day as new laws are created to remove our freedoms.

Answer 2

Very true...Freedom of speech but watch what you say.... And I think it's pretty sad that you need a permit to build on your OWN property.....No we really aren't free....we have social security numbers which is a like a bar code on anything you buy in a store...just about everywhere you go there are surveilence cameras and it's almost impossible to avoid all of them....if you own credit cards you can be tracked...and what you buy with it is tracked....you are NOT free...plus even on the net there are cookies and things that track where you go and what you do on the net...it's sad but you really aren't very free ANYWHERE you go!!! We do have more freedoms than other countries...but we still are not free.

Answer 3

No, we are not free, and we are being watched by big brother all the time. Perhaps we have more freedom than a lot of other countries but I hate to think of all the personal info which is going around this very minute on the internet alone, who has to know so much about us?

Answer 4

We are free, to do almost anything we want - as long as it does not infringe on the freedoms of someone else.

As to the example of permits - If you think about it enough you may realize that the purpose of many permits is to protect us from our own stupidity - as in Building Permits and Inspections.

Answer 5

A quote from a friend"Bush blew through Clinton's reservoir of excess funds faster than Clinton was able to make the surplus happen.
This war should be with the people who flew into our country and caused the 9/11 tragedy.
Iraq pissed off the oil money people that are friends and cronies of George and his daddy. They used to have parties together. Now they are annoyed and using our soldiers to settle their spat. Thankfully, there is the benefit of freedom for the Iraqi people. That makes this not a mistake, this makes their presence there worth while.
I just want to understand why we are not concentrating on the terrorists that started this. I have many loved ones serving over there, including my youngest child's father. I believe in what they are doing. I thank them for their zeal. I love my country, I cannot fight for it, I thank our veterans for doing what I cannot.
I do want to impeach Bush. He is a liar. He is a thief, and he is too confused and mentally lost to run our country. He "won" both elections with controversy. Why not a re-vote instead of a re-count? If he had won clean, I would say nothing, but two elections with controversy makes me wonder about the truth of the politics in Washington.
I want Clinton back. Hillary too. I want to have a paycheck and get my overtime. I want to take better care of our people here in America before we send money to other countries. I want to have the values of the government to come back closer to the constitution that our country is based on. Please give us a hero for a president. Not a c average screw off who obviously does not understand that you have to have a BUDGET! Some one in charge who understands that America wants to eat too. I was making 24000 a year when Clinton left office, I make 8000 a year now since Bush has been in. I have lost my house, my car, and filed bankruptcy. I never left my job. The American Dream will die if Bush has control much longer. I am not alone, my co-workers are many, and we have all lost. I am in human services.
My stock account has gone from 200 when Clinton took office, 44000 when Clinton left office. My stock is now worth about 12000. I cashed out not long ago before any more disappeared, in an attempt to avoid bankruptcy. Please give me a president who understands that the poor will rise up against an unfair system when it becomes too much of a burden. I fear for our inner cities, I fear for our children who have been slashed form the programs that Bush has removed. Clinton was able to help these people, why can't Bush? Answer, he doesn't care, he is lost, he is taking bad advice..."

Answer 6

the meaning of free in the US is not the same meaning in the dictionary. Your right about needing differnt things like a license, but if you do take the right steps in doing those things you can be free, it's just as far as you wanna take it. I think it's all about respect. So the answer to your question in my oppinion is yes. How free do you want people to be, think about it if anybody could do what they want we would be living in a mess!

Answer 7

Go live in another Country that doesn't have the
freedoms you do, and you'll see there is a big
difference. We have to have some restrictions,
licenses, and permits or things soon go amok
and we want to have "order" in our lives, so things
so more smoothly and we can live in peace.

Answer 8

yes, we're free. this is a democratic republic and all of those limitations on absolute freedom are voluntarily imposed because we as a society realize that they are advantageous to us. but the great thing is that if you disagree with any of those limitations, you are always free to go somewhere else and live in anarchy.

Answer 9

Freedom comes with social responsibility. We will never be free of that, so the short answer is 'no'. We are more free to be safe and to be paid, etc. because of the responsibility. I, therefore, wouldn't change our system.

Answer 10

No, we live in an oligarchic police state. Try getting naked and walking down the street and see how fast you find out the truth
about "freedom". Welcome to reality, sorry about the bruised innocence. Almost everything you have ever heard about American politics has been lies and propaganda in one form or another.