do u think that the american ideal of freedom is realized in american society today?

Answer 1

Freedom? That's a funny thing to say in the middle of the Patriot Act, and the removal of Habeas corpus. We lost our ability to have a say in politics, (since apparently we no longer choose our leaders--our votes mean nothing), we cannot obtain a plot of land without forever paying our debts to it in the form of property taxes (didn't the constitution grant us property rights?) even after the mortgage is paid, our land is succomb to random seizures at their discretion, we have no right to express our disdain for governmental institutions and enact change without being silenced,... So...where is this freedom you speak of?

Freedom is...the right to elect our leaders, lawfully and representative of the opinions of the majority, the right to the ownership of land without taxation, the right to censure and recall our leaders for unsatisfactory performance, the right to publically assemble to express our protests, the right to a jury and a trial process, the right to maintain our privacy without intermitment inspections at every entertainment venue and event, and the right to privacy on in all public arenas, the internet, department stores, the street without constant surveillance.

I think that ideal has long past us.

Answer 2

No, not anymore.

This is because, many different types of special interest groups are out there today and they want to limit peoples freedom to do almost anything. Take the smoking issue for instance. It's almost if they want them out of sight and out of mind. But, they want to tax the heck out of tobacco to shore up some issue. In my area, we pay taxes on tobacco for schools, roads, health care, building projects and so on. Now our current governor wants to add more taxes on tobacco to help pay for more health care for the poor.

But, once you take away someone's freedom from them, you leave it open to the taking of various forms of freedom from others. But, most do not agree. They just think that certain types of people need to be put in their place.