Double Flee A

the land of the free

You're free to drink alcohol, if you're at least twenty-one years old. But not in your car, and not too much, and not in public. Because most states are apparently in competition to see who can look the most like Disneyland.

You're free to own land, as long as you pay your property taxes, or the state decides it wants your land, even if it's for a commercial development. Then you're not free to own it any more.

You're free to drive a car within the speed limit, as long as you renew your tabs every year, pay your parking tickets, use your blinkers, buckle your seat belt, have all your taillights working, and as long as you don't get your license taken away for some unrelated reason.

You're free to go to the park, until ten o'clock when the park closes. You're free to pay taxes on the park, though, so you're free to feel a sense of ownership from behind that fence over there.

You're free to go to war, even if there's no reason for it but a bunch of lies, if you're eighteen and male.

You're free to own any gun you want, but you're only allowed to shoot it in very special places and if you want to actually shoot anything good, with special permits. And unless you're Randy Weaver.

You're free to take any drug the government says you can, which I think still includes sudafed.

You're free to check out books from the library, and then you're free to have the government come get a list of the books you checked out. You're free to wonder whether they've done that or not, which is more important than actually being able to find out.

You're free to vote in an election. The results of the election are handled privately, and have shockingly lop-sided irregularities, and you're free to think whatever you want about it, if you ever find out in the first place. (link to story explaining in depth)

You're free to buy all the support the troops magnets your car can possibly carry.

You're free to peaceably assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances, but the government can decide you have to do it in a designated protest area someplace far away.

You're free to expect due process if accused of a crime, unless that crime is one of terrorism, a term which is so broad as to be practically arbitrary. If that happens, you go away somewhere forever and you're totally fucked. That's where the glorious freedom starts to wear off a little.

You're free to write whatever you want on the internet, as long as you don't threaten people, or the stability of the monolithic government, even if that government is essentially unelected, at war on the people of the United States by taking away their rights, and acting at the discretion of the military-industrial complex.

posted by dale @ 7:40 AM