My recent trip to our nation's capital was not without it's reassurances that ignorance and stupidity remain among our nation's great pastimes. Having only recently begun attending anything remotely political, the experience has served to reinforce my understanding that few people truly grasp what freedom means.
As with the prior events, this spectacle was populated with many people touting their religious zeal, descrying the exercise of personal freedom vis-a-vis the choice to prematurely end pregnancy, and speaking out about their unique ownership of citizenship as it relates to immigration. One prime example of all that is despicable about conservatives repeatedly insisted that Hispanics, there to protest for immigration "reform", return to their home. The fact that they may have been born in this country seemed to escape her.
On the opposite side of the coin were those who, instructing us that we were ill-informed, sought every opportunity to silence our voices while screaming about first amendment rights when others attempted to respond in kind. I always marvel at how arrogant liberals are, insisting that only they are smart enough to understand what is necessary despite the obvious flaws in their "logic".
Why is it so difficult for people to see their own hypocrisy? Each side, liberal and conservative, claims the moral high ground of individual liberty while attempting to squelch the rights of those they oppose. Am I really one of the few who understands this?
I did spend an hour or so engaged in a great conversation with a fellow Marine Corps veteran who found that he and I agreed a great deal on what freedom meant, though he had never considered himself a libertarian. I suppose there is some hope for us yet.
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