LET FREEDOM RING!

Church bells rang out over Philadelphia on July 4, 1776 signaling the Declaration of Independence was approved and officially adopted by the Continental Congress.
At the ringing of the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia after the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776, the crowd resounded with the phrase, "Let Freedom Ring."

Our nation has passed through 233 years since that time of great triumph. Near the end of this document it states, " . . . that these United Colonies are, and have a right to be, FREE and Independent States . . . " It just might be time to examine where we’ve been and what has happened to "free" since those heady days of the New Republic.

Before going on, it is best to get a definition of the word. Freedom, n, 1: the quality or state of being free: as a: the absence of necessity, coercion, or constraint in choice or action b: liberation from slavery or restraint or from the power of another independence c: the quality or state of being exempt or released usually from something onerous d: ease, facility e: the quality of being frank, open, or outspoken f: improper familiarity g: boldness of conception or execution h: unrestricted use

In the 18th century, "The Restraint of Government is the True Liberty and Freedom of the People" was a common saying among Americans. Our Founding Fathers sought to protect freedom by creating a government of laws, not of men. The Constitution states, " . . . in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty [note: freedom is not mentioned] . . . also includes the celebrated phrase "all Men are created equal."

But, the Founding Fathers may not have believed all Americans should have equal rights. Women did not enjoy political or civil rights, the vast majority of Africans in this country remained enslaved, and Native Indians were considered separate peoples outside the bounds of citizenship.

Prominent Americans were disturbed at the omission of individual liberties in the proposed constitution. George Mason of Virginia and Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts refused to sign the document. Thomas Jefferson, Minister to France at the time, wrote James Madison, concerned about "the omission of a bill of rights . . . providing clearly . . . for freedom of religion, freedom of the press, protection against standing armies, and restriction against monopolies." Aware of the lack of these provisions, George Washington urged Congress in his first inaugural address to propose amendments that offered "a reverence for the characteristic rights of freemen and a regard for public harmony." Thus, "freedom" struck a note in the business of government.

Let’s jump forward in history to the war that tore at the fabric of this nation. I learned that Abraham Lincoln preserved the union, freed the slaves, set up reconstruction of the south, was a humble and persistent president. Later study brought me to question these early teachings; where in the Constitution does it prohibit States from seceding from the Union? Lincoln’s Emancipation only freed southern slaves, permitting slavery to continue in Maryland, Kentucky and the border states that did not secede. Lincoln and Seward, a Senator from New York, tried to get a Constitutional amendment through congress, to wit: Forbid the Federal Government from Interfering with Slavery in the South.

What else did our humble President Lincoln do? Here’s a short list: (1) Suspended the writ of Habeas Corpus, — something only Congress can do, (2) Had more than 300 newspapers shut down, (3) He started the "War Between the States" without Congressional approval, (4) He ordered firearms confiscated in border states, (5) Ordered all telegraphic communications censored, (6) Confiscated private property of critics of the Lincoln administration, (7) He arrested detractors — most notable was democratic governor Vallandigham of Ohio. Why? He delivered speeches criticizing Lincoln’s suspension of habeas corpus. For these reasons (and others) I have come to regard Lincoln as not deserving the reputation as a man of "freedom."

Franklin Delano Roosevelt was the nation’s longest serving "war" president. He delivered a State of the Union address in 1942, which I condense here his words on freedom: Freedom of speech and expression; Freedom of worship; Freedom from want; Freedom from fear. I think you can judge for yourself how many people since then have received benefits from those flowery desires of Roosevelt’s freedoms.

The republican party likes the fact that Ronald Reagan was a "great" president. His administration had its Iran-Contra Affair and other pranks played by his underlings, but the one thing I’d like you to take from this is the following quote:
"Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it was once like in the United States where men were free."

Did you get that?

Now we come to the other republican that the party loved, The Cowboy. What did freedom mean in the era of George W. Bush? From the beginning, Bush invoked freedom to sanctify his war on terrorism. From the Oval Office address on September 11, 2001, Bush declared, "America was targeted for attack because we’re the brightest beacon for freedom and opportunity in the world."
U.S. freedom, world freedom, or the freedom of future generations, to little king George, it mattered not. When Bush claimed freedom was his goal, then any opponents became enemies of freedom. More Bush homilies:
— the "Department of Defense has become the most powerful force for freedom the world has ever seen." and "my defense budget is the largest increase in 20 years. You know, the price of freedom is high, but for me it’s never too high because we fight for freedom." (2002)
— people were "going to find out the word ‘freedom’ and ‘America’ are synonymous."
— In contradiction of James Madison, the father of the Constitution, who warned in 1795, "Of all enemies to public liberty, war is perhaps the most to be dreaded because it comprises and develops the germ of every other." The cowboy president said, "I believe in the transformational power of liberty: The wisest use of American strength is to advance freedom."
Bush proudly declared in 2003, "No president has ever done more for human rights than I have."
So the cowboy’s White House SS set out "free speech zones" to put demonstrators in quarantined areas so presidential photo ops showed a gleefully screaming loyalist crowd. Bush freedom meant allowing the National Security Agency to vacuum up Americans’ email and cell phone calls without a warrant. Bush freedom meant entitling the Justice Department to round up the names of book buyers and library users under the USA PATRIOT Act.

That Act, by the way, is still in force.

And the current occupant of the White House, what does he have to say about freedom?
"Today we are engaged in a deadly global struggle for those who would intimidate, torture, and murder people for exercising the most basic freedoms. If we are to win this struggle and spread those freedoms, we must keep our own moral compass pointed in a true direction."

It remains to be seen how much more lasting damage they will do to Americans’ vocabulary and political understanding.