I have decided that the common value almost all Americans share is freedom. But there are at least two schools of thought about freedom, and many variations in between.
Freedom Philosophy #1
One philosophy is that you should be free to do whatever feels good for you. Your freedom is what matters. Your choices, your dreams, your body, your thoughts, your beliefs are preeminent. With a person who has no desire to harm others, this definition can function in a fairly civil manner.
But if taken to an extreme, this philosophy enables you to take what you want, appropriate what you need, do what feels good for you at the expense of anyone else.
Freedom Philosophy #2
The second school of thought is that freedom isn’t freedom unless it has boundaries that protect everyone’s freedom. Freedom without boundaries is like a river overflowing its banks, a glass of water spilling onto the floor, a tsunami crashing upon the shore.
Without checks, balances and laws with appropriate consequences as a container, freedom becomes destructive and eventually becomes anarchy.
Anarchy never exists long term. Tyranny is always its swift replacement. Tyranny is the ultimate “freedom” of a small power group (oligarchy) at the expense of oppressing the rest of society.
Under either definition, beware that a society self destructs when freedom is not married to morality. Boundaries are essential in a life, a marriage, a family, a nation, a society. Avoid, subvert, or destroy them at your own peril.
For more from Marnie Pehrson Kuhns’ on freedom, pick up her book in paperback or on Kindle at Amazon, “Restoring Liberty: Reviving America.”