Living in Fear of living free. is not living at all

We live in unusual times, a saying that has been said over and over to describe periods of time in our history as human beings. The one thing that has remained constant is the relevancy of that statement each time it is used, and again it has relevancy in the era that we find ourselves in at the moment. We can also say that freedom is being attacked on all fronts in our world, freedom of speech, freedom from starvation, freedom to have healthcare, freedom of movement, freedom of belief and most important, freedom from fear.

We find ourselves living in fear of living free in the 21st century, this has some part in the way that the century began, with the attacks on 9/11. But that was not the first time we have been attacked, in the past attacks like these strengthened our resolve to protect freedoms, not erode or eliminate them in exchange for "security." We have become a nation who sees the ability to consume and collect things as the most important expression of life. While we have shifted away from thinking and acting to protect freedom to protecting our ability to consume, the foundations of our society have also been weakened. We knowingly and gladly allow the wholesale marginalization of segments of our population. This is done not in the dark as in the past, but in the light of the day for the whole world to see and make a judgement on us for it.

We just observed a national day of thanksgiving, first declared by Abraham Lincoln in 1863 to honor those who sacrificed to preserve this union that is our nation. This observance has been bastardized and commodified by business just as every other holiday we observe each year. Thanksgiving has become a day to stuff ourselves and rest for the next day, "Black Friday." A day called that by business because of the connotation of making profits from the shopping frenzy that has been carefully created and nurtured over time on that day.

We are fearful of living free because of the responsibility it implies, which is using those freedoms even when they place you outside of the mainstream of popular opinion. It is far easier to hang your head and go along with the herd or better yet, the flock of sheep that Americans have evolved into in the 21st Century.

The pundits talk about the Tea Party phenomenon, but if you look at those who are part of the rank and file, you  will see people transfixed by fear; fear of change, fear of those who are different, fear of losing what little they have held onto over the years and fear of the feeling that they have of impending doom and being helpless in the face of it. Those who created the Tea party and funded it, are masters of placing groups of people who share common interests against one another.

That is why you see people who want single payer healthcare involved in the Tea Party, for they see it as a way to deep six the heavily insurer weighted healthcare reform passed by congress and replace it with single payer. Does that make sense, for if healthcare reform is repealed, it will not be replaced with single payer; but will take fhe form of "No Payer," or if you are sick, sorry, you are on your own.

So why is someone who is on the opposite end of the spectrum from the puppetmasters of this movement, involved so heavily? Because the Tea Party was the only game in town, they were the only ones tapping into the frustration of the electorate, over bank bailouts, the foreclosure crisis, the war, the size of government and its cost. The people on the left who tried to hold the feet of those in the Democratic Party to the fire, were told that they were not being constructive, in other words, get in line. So the talking points of this populist movement were formulated, articulated and dominated by the Becks, Limbaugh's, O'Reilly's and Savage's of talk radio.

This script was picked up and used on the local level, I was at a local eatery, a Mc something, and overheard a male who was telling four older ladies that their health care would be run by the government and they gasped. I inserted myself in the discussion by asking these nice ladies if they were on medicare, to which they replied in the affirmative. I said that Medicare, was a government program and it was unlikely that anything would be done to hurt it. Also that it is the most successful government program alongside Social Security, both of which could be called "socialist" in principle. I have no doubt that on election day, that some of these gentle ladies voted against their interests, and supported Tea Party candidates.

Prior to the election we were bombarded with the phrase, "Commonsense in Government." It would be commonsense that programs that have most impact on people in need should be the last to cut, correct? No, they will be the first to be cut as the recent vote against extending unemployment benefits for 2 million Americans points out. At the same time, tax cuts for the rich is being presented as positives in bringing an end to the economic decline,even though the evidence shows that they do little other than enriching the rich even more, than to help the economy. Those who question the inequities in the tax system are automatically marginalized by the defenders of the top 5%, but what about the other 95%? No one defends them in this system, for it is not politically correct, because it means to exercise your freedom and that is feared.

 Why do we continue to live in fear of living free? Because it is easier.