By Josh Tolley
GCN Live.com
People like to say that America is the land of the free and home of the brave.
As I look around, I am left with a question which nobody seems to want to ask. Where in our American lives do we still have freedom?
Let us take a look at American life together, and see if we are in disagreement.
The freedom of the press:
Once referred to as the “4th branch of government” the media has, for decades now, perverted true journalism. As sad as that may be, what is truly alarming is the fact that even if true journalism was to try to make a comeback it would be met by a government which is trying to kill it. With recent administrations cracking down on information available to the media, punishing reports for use of video phones, and even the FBI/DHS admitting to spying on and keeping files of journalists, the message is clear; do not speak freely. Don’t believe me, ask the reporter who was locked in a closet during a Joe Biden event. You may think to yourself; “Well that is fine, I’m not a journalist. I can still say whatever I want.” You would be wrong.
Freedom of religion:
This is a basic pillar of what makes America great. The ability for people to live out their faith (or lack thereof) free from persecution or punishment is vital to the “land of the free.”
However, this freedom is being destroyed. From street preachers being arrested, to Bibles being illegal in Colorado. From the government using the EPA to influence churches, to the ability to live out your faith. Religious life is becoming more of a criminal act every day.
The right to keep and bear arms:
This once great hitching post of American freedom has become equally abused, but under the guise of liberty. Today, most states issue a concealed carry permit. This of course is not only against the founding fathers desire regarding “arms” but it is actually a way to strip you of your “right” and turn it into a licensed privilege. Through the use of fear and perversion, the government literally stole a right, right from under our noses.
Not to mention, as seen during hurricane Katrina, the government is more than willing to mute your rights through gun confiscation when they so desire.
Food and Water:
With less than 2% of food grown and eaten locally, the majority of our food choices are no longer choices at all. Combine that with the fact that in many states it is now illegal to consume raw milk and produce, illegal to hunt game and give meat to your neighbors, illegal to grow gardens, and illegal to even collect rainwater.
Let us also not forget the government’s role in promoting GMO crops, GMO livestock, and a USDA/FDA system which rewards bad behavior while punishing health. We even have local governments purposefully drugging drinking water.
As stated recently by a judge in Wisconsin: “Plaintiffs do not have a fundamental right to produce and consume the foods of their choice.”
Parenting of our children:
You would think that parenting would remain a right of the parents. However, we are seeing increasingly the ability for the government to strip parents from their fundamental rights and duties. Abortion and drug administration without parental consent or even knowledge, vaccinations without parental consent or knowledge, restrictions on schooling options, and many others are just examples of how parents are really no longer parents in the eyes of the government but rather just regulated providers of shelter until the government deems otherwise. Even after the rights of the parents have been stripped the children are subjected to continued abuse at the hands of “the system.”
Rights of privacy:
This has become a joke. From illegal search and seizure in places like Tennessee, to the outright destruction of privacy as seen in Indiana when the court ruled against 400+ years of law and common decency, privacy has become footnote in history. Our government is making the push to get 30,000 drones in the sky and a stated goal to gain access to all your electronic information, including your cell phone. It is become abundantly clear that we can never put this genie back in the bottle and our ability to have some amount of privacy is gone for good.
Right to our own bodies:
Recently the FDA filed a court case claiming the right of regulation over human lives. Based on the premise that stem cells are used in treatment, the stem cells are therefor considered to be a drug. If you have stem cell treatment it then means YOU are a drug and as a drug you fall under regulation of the FDA. Keep in mind; this is only one sentence away from making everyone with stem cells (which is everyone) a drug and falling under their authority.
Privacy of your own thoughts:
The government is working hard to implement “pre-crime” which should have stayed in Sci-fi movies. This reality is gaining traction through implementation screening processes and research has even gone as far as being able to download your mind. No more ability to plead the 5th!
Earning and keeping of financial gain:
Our financial system has been corrupted now for 100 years. The government dictates the worth of our labor through inflation and debt with no input for the generators of that labor. Your ability to keep the little you do earn is becoming increasingly hard as taxes continue to rise on all Americans. Many people believe that income tax is the only tax we pay, but when you look at gas tax, sales tax, sin tax, restaurant tax, building permits, parking meters, car registration, and the dozens of other expenses that are paid by you to the government, our ability to keep the rewards from our labor are limited at best.
Property rights:
From the EPA classifying your land as “wetland” to the local counties instituting nuisance enforcement teams to prevent people from going “off grid” and become self-sufficient; the ability for you to own property is only a myth. This illusion is little more than your ability to rent the land from the government through the payment of property tax, maintain that property according to their regulations, build upon it only that which the government approves, and then limit your activity to that which benefits said government.
The right to vote:
As we have seen even as recently as 2012, the voting system has been compromised, it has been breached. Matter of fact, there was even testimony in recent years regarding the ability for voting to be falsely thrown 51/49 without even the local officials being able to tell the system has been hijacked.
This list of lost freedom could continue for pages and include the right to a jury of our peers, search warrants based on probably cause, legal representation, and so on. So I ask you, what part of our life in America is still free?
I contend that there is not one, no not one, area in which we could make the case that the people are free. If freedom does not exist for the people and that freedom is essential to the definition of America, then I must ask with a heavy heart; does America itself actually exist any longer?
Josh Tolley is the host of The Josh Tolley Show, which airs on GCN Monday-Friday 9:00-11:00am Central Time. Listen to the show On Demand.
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