Ben Franklin
2007-05-02 12:50:46 · 18 answers · asked by Anonymous in Politics & Government ➔ Military
Yes, it is true. A government is instituted to protect the rights of the people. And if we give up these freedoms to purchase a little bit of so called "security" from the government then we have fooled ourselves. We are never totally secure in the first place, so when we give up freedoms in the hope of a little bit of security then we really do have neither. We have lost our freedoms, living like slaves to the government in a false sense of security. Kind of like Orwell's 1984. We will never have total security, 9/11 proved it, the Oklahoma City bombings proved it, the Virginia Tech shootings proved it, and every news story that you read about a homicide victim being killed, robbery victim, and when you hear about any kind of identity theft proves it. This is why we lose when we trade our liberty for security, and why we should not trade one ounce of freedom, or liberty, for any kind of security hope or promise.
2007-05-02 13:53:49 · answer #1 · answered by j 4 · 1⤊ 3⤋
No, as usual you've botched it.
Those who would give up ESSENTIAL liberty for TEMPORARY freedome deserve neither. The qualifying terms are important, and you people always leave them out for a good reason - the quote doesn't fit your agenda otherwise. Study history - what civil liberties meant then and now are vastly different. You would not want the founding fathers' version.
"government can only take our freedoms away; it can't give us any, and when they're removed they are never returned. " WRONG. We give the government power, not the other way around. In our system, the people bestow rights upon the government. And, the people can change things. Are the Japanese still in camps? Is FDR still reading your mail? Freedom of the press/speech has expanded, not contracted. Several other freedoms have expanded over the years, not the opposite, so much for not getting them back.
Jes, no wonder America's schools in trouble.
Jenny, in Russia today people are killed for protesting and posting stupid remarks like yours; please get a clue.
2007-05-02 13:19:10 · answer #2 · answered by Tired o 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Well, old Ben isn't in the situation we are intoday. He had never seen an Islamic jihad, or a suicide bomber, or an airplane. He only knew about kites.
Ben too, would choose to eat those words, if he realized the new disciplines we need to establish in order to keep this nation secure.
Identifying little freedoms versus new security, is hardly a big sacrifice, except to those selfish individuals who resent being inconvenienced for the sake of safety !
2007-05-02 13:14:54 · answer #3 · answered by briang731/ bvincent 6 · 2⤊ 2⤋
No. It's "They who would give up an essential liberty for temporary security, deserve neither liberty or security," which is why people today (like the Georgetown law students) always misquote him and leave out the modifiers.
2007-05-02 14:35:46 · answer #4 · answered by hkhkjh k 1 · 3⤊ 0⤋
yes. by giving up a little bit of freedom to a government in the hope of getting security through a law, the government uses that law to limit your freedom a little bit further without providing for your security. then somebody wants another law to compensate for the failures and loopholes in the first. from there its a downward spiral where the government holds all power, people have no freedoms, and the government doesnt give a damn about providing for security.
2007-05-02 14:48:12 · answer #5 · answered by Stand-up Philosopher 5 · 1⤊ 2⤋
Forget the Russians the East German Stasi had the game down. They had files on everyone and they would store scents in glass jars so they could track you down whenever.
Oh yeah the people had complete security except from the goverment.
2007-05-02 12:56:26 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
9/11 changed our world forever. I'm certain that Ben Franklin never imagined the threat that America lives under on a daily basis.
2007-05-02 12:54:39 · answer #7 · answered by Alfie333 7 · 5⤊ 3⤋
Yes. Too many have died in the name of freedom for us to give that up and allow DHS to ride roughshod over us as a society.
Sadly, Americans are a lazy bunch and are willing to go along with almost anything as long as they don't have to work for it.
Ben Franklin lived in a time where it was legal for another country to stop American trading vessels and impress sailors for their own Navy. He knew, better that any today, what world conflict was really about. Sadly, our current administration isn't exactly history savvy.
2007-05-02 12:54:46 · answer #8 · answered by ? 2 · 4⤊ 3⤋
Absolutely. This nation was started because the forefathers would not adhere any longer to a tyrant on the throne. And this example should be a lesson for all men, even until the end of days.
2007-05-02 12:58:22 · answer #9 · answered by MIke B 2 · 2⤊ 2⤋
It's very true, and given what's going on in the world today Franklin's quote is quickly becoming one of my favourite quotes.
2007-05-02 12:56:53 · answer #10 · answered by R 2 · 3⤊ 2⤋