The Importance of Liberty

Liberty is a state of being. Many people take their liberty for granted. They expect to wake up the next day and step out into the world, enjoying the same rights and freedoms that they had the day before; however, the thought never crosses their mind about how different their lives would be if you had no liberties. What if you woke up one day and suddenly realized that you were no longer able to speak your opinions, or express your thoughts, or even practice your religion? What if your family was being assaulted during a home invasion, and you did not have a firearm or the means to defend yourself. Moreover, what if you weren't protected by the sixth amendment and didn't have the right to a trial by jury or to face or your accusers when you are charged with a crime. It's easy to walk around, oblivious to the world about you, when you don't have to worry about losing these basic freedoms. Now instead of thinking about whether or not your football team will make the playoffs, you are forced to think about whether or not something you do or say will get you arrested. Or you might even worry if the next knock at your door is from the police coming to arrest you for some crime they think you committed.

Folks, while these situations seem highly unlikely, they are probable. As a country, we can reach that point very quickly. On a drop of a hat the constitution can go from being the strongest preserver of liberty to an old piece of tattered parchment. And while we have depended on our forefathers to fight for our liberties, we have failed to realized the weight of their sacrifices. They were willing to lose their lives, their families, and their homes for much less than what we are in danger of losing today. They fought for the basic fundamentals of liberty: freedom to practice religion, freedom from unfair taxation, freedom from illegal search and seizure by the government, the right to a trail by a jury of their peers, the freedom to own firearms to protect themselves and their families, freedom of speech, and on and on. They saw the need to protect the things that every individual should be entitled to. The views of our founding fathers were not obscured by X-Box 360's or iPod's or Monday Night Football. Their main focus was the protecting these basic rights. They were faced with the real danger of losing their lives on principle. On the principle that every person, no matter their race, religion, or beliefs is entitled to the basic unalienable rights of Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. These unalienable rights cannot be taken away. These truths were self-evident. By definition, their mere existence made them sacred and undeniable. Think about it. Just stop and think about how different our lives would be if the blood of our predecessors was not spilled to water the tree of liberty. We would definitely be in completely different situation than we are today. All of a sudden, your favorite sports team wouldn't be that appealing to you anymore.