Lost Freedoms

[finnbow]

To me, the heart of freedom is the right to choose your own path in life. To choose lifestyle, career, friends, mates, hobbies, where you wish to live........ and yes, I believe you have the right to pursue financial goals as well, so long as you don't trample on the rights and wellbeing of others in the process.

Damn, Dave. You sound like one of those liberal control freaks!

[BlueStreak]

I do know some real control freaks. "Liberal" is not the word I would use to describe them. These are the people who want to run everything, including your spiritual and personal matters, they want you squarely and firmly stuffed into their mold. And they tend to vote Republican.

Dave

[piece-itpete]

Except the right to work hard and get rich, because if you get rich it MUST be by robbing people.

Finn, go through your paperwork and see how many of those papers are required. I used to be a Real Estate Agent.

I have no problem with those folks attemping to build a mosque. I also have no problems with folks using their right to peaceably assemble.

Of course we must expand government without the consent of the governed as expressly laid out in the Constitution.

Pete

[Boreas]

Originally Posted by BlueStreak

To me, the heart of freedom is the right to choose your own path in life. To choose lifestyle, career, friends, mates, hobbies, where you wish to live........ and yes, I believe you have the right to pursue financial goals as well, so long as you don't trample on the rights and wellbeing of others in the process.

That's the key.

Dave

There's always a tension between the rights of the individual and the rights of society collectively. As I see it, the Teabaggers are about settling the dispute once and for all by making individual rights the standard and society be damned.

They think they've lost their freedom when they can't smoke in a crowded elevator.

They think they've had their property seized when they have to let those porch monkeys eat in their hash joint.

They think they've lost their right to the free exercise of religion when some other religion wants to build a house of worship in their country.

They think they've been disenfranchised when the other guy wins.

They think they're being oppressed when they can't take their MAC-10 to class with them.

They think............

Actually, they don't think. They react.

Amygdala uber alles!

John

[noonereal]

Originally Posted by Boreas

Not really. As with Sarah asserting the fierce independence of Alaska while it is the biggest welfare state in the country the teabaggers also have a mistaken self identity.

It is interesting that the teabaggers feel that this is "their country" and their religion is the only one also. Very egocentric. Very unhealthy.

To place party above country is as unpatriotic as it gets yet these teabaggers claim to be all filled with county love.

Indeed, this is the genesis of the movement.

[finnbow]

It is interesting that the teabaggers feel that this is "their country" and their religion is the only one also. Very egocentric. Very unhealthy.

...and yet, it is their religion that is under siege? As I've stated before, these folks are completely immune to irony.

[noonereal]

Originally Posted by finnbow

...and yet, it is their religion that is under siege? As I've stated before, these folks are completely immune to irony.

that is correct, somehow they are the victim

[electronjohn]

I really have absolutely no clue what the teabaggers are saying. All it is is whine, bitch, complain...never any proposed solutions. The light bulb thing is a perfect example of their grasping at something and making a big issue out of nothing. Even the most cursory research would show that it's not a total ban...just a phase-out of the most common types. There's a LONG list of exceptions covering rough-service bulb, floods & spots, bulbs under (or over) a certain wattage, etc.

The most laughable thing occurred recently here in Minnesota. One of our state legislators decided to introduce a bill providing that if a light bulb was made in Minnesota it was legal to use. In an interview, he stated that he hoped his bill would lead to the construction of a light bulb plant in Minnesota...providing new jobs! Needless to say, I took him to task in a letter to the editor...the gist of which was that it was much like seeing horses in a pasture and deciding that now would be a great time to build a buggy whip factory. You can easily imagine what part of the political spectrum this esteemed legislator is from.

[Boreas]

Originally Posted by electronjohn

much like seeing horses in a pasture and deciding that now would be a great time to build a buggy whip factory.

I like it!

John

[finnbow]

Originally Posted by electronjohn

I really have absolutely no clue what the teabaggers are saying. All it is is whine, bitch, complain...never any proposed solutions.

I sometimes think that it is nothing but a cynical ploy to empower and give meaning to the deluded, shallow and bitter lives these people live.

Notice I said sometimes. Sometimes I also think they're good honest people voicing their frustrations over the status of governance in this country. Then I see the pandering, exploitation and manipulation by the GOP/Fox/Talk Radio and I'm back to my original thought.