Photo courtesy of Paul Sieka

We are witnessing the demise of the freest society in human history.

Societies throughout human history have not been known for their benevolence to their citizens. Even in the Greek and Roman states, freedom was experienced by an elite group and slavery was common. Even when the Magna Carta was written, it only afforded freedom to nobility and not the commoner; but the ideals of freedom were simmering in the human heart.

Thinkers like John Locke furthered the ideal of freedom with the idea, “government with the consent of the governed.” This took root in the founders of the New World, and ideals of freedom of the press, speech and religion culminated in the Constitution of the United States and the Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights especially afforded individuals freedoms that otherwise could easily be thwarted by a power-drunk government without limitations. Of course, this new society was far from perfect and didn’t fully embrace its true identity until the abolition of slavery, and later the enforcement of civil rights for all Americans regardless of ethnicity.

This experiment, based on the freedoms given by the Creator, gave rise to the most prosperous, energetic and free society the world has ever known. But, like societies of the past, moral decay and lack of individual responsibility allowed for the ever-increasing encroachment of government into the life of the average citizen.

When I first came to America in 1994, I was astounded by the freedoms that were afforded to the citizens.  Continue Reading…