Freedom

What's freedom worth? I'd say it's worth going the whole mile for, battling and dying. John Updike quoted in his essay that "risk is a price of freedom". In other words, one must take chances in order to be free. From the pit of my heart, I see eye to eye with those words and in my mind, Updike's assertion is true.

In the past, many perished for what they had faith in and what they wanted for their descendants. Having liberty was the goal; Not exactly being in the eyes of a guardian angel or being secure. Risking your life is a great deal, but if freedom for your country is what you desire for generations to come, then it's a chance you ought to take.

What makes me upset these days is that our nation's government is trying to take all the risk out of life, leaving us with limited freedom.

John Updike liked being on the show and tried not ...

English: John Updike giving the 2008 Jefferson Lec...

A caricature of John Updike from The New York Revi...

The government looks at Americans as malfunctioned kids who cannot help themselves. For example, there are helmet requirements for bike and motorcycle riders, seatbelt requirements, and anti-cigarette propaganda from those who try to protect Americans who can't diaper-change themselves. If these thoughts and ideas prevailed 500 years ago, our land would most likely be undiscovered and the West would certainly never have been settled. Our ancestors accepted risk as a part of life and a price to be paid for freedom. Attempting to blow away risks reduces the opportunity for everybody to be the best they can. Our forefathers fought for freedom without a fret of risk; Seeing what we've become would appall them. If you ponder about it enough, the dependency that the government creates surrounds us with doleful auras. It will get to the point where people just can't breathe.

Risk may disappear and eventually...