Liberty

Liberty, a small yet powerful word; in it lies the true essence of democracy for which thousands have fought and died, Patrick Henry epitomized this as he declared: "Give me liberty or give me death!" Synonymous to freedom, liberty is the power that we have over ourselves, to do as we would be done by, as John Q. Adams stated. It is not the right to do wrong but the right to be wrong. Everyone is entitled to his own freedom of thought, but liberty does not include the freedom of illegal action. Liberty must be limited in order to be fully enjoyed. Thomas Jefferson wisely stated, "it is unobstructed action according to our will within the limits drawn around us by the equal rights of others. As my father used to say, "Our liberty ends where someone else's starts".

Real liberty cannot be attained unless one is willing to give it to others, since the liberty of one is exercised only at the expense of anothers'. Although patriotic-sounding and spirit-lifting, liberty means responsibility and that is why most men dread it. With liberty comes the duty to protect and guard it from external corruption. Consequently, it is relative to ourselves, for God only grants liberty to those who love it, and are always ready to defend and guard it. Once achieved, liberty must be lived and fought for again and again, for it is a precious asset we possess and we must preserve it for posterity. To finish, I quote a poem by James Russell Lowell, attesting to the fact that freedom must be defended once attained.

And I honor the man who is willing to sink
Half his present repute for the freedom to think,
And, when he has thought, be his cause strong or weak,
Will risk t' other half for the freedom to speak.