Freedom, well:
I can't ever legally own a fire arm (convicted felon; involuntary mental health committments)
I can't consume a legally made, legally sold, legally purchased product in places of business where the business owners overwhelming preference is that I be able to consume this entirely legally made product in their establishment (cigarettes).
I cannot vote for a state or national official who will represent my interests in the state capital or in Washington DC (because such officials only represent corporate interests, and the interests of the wealthy elites)
If I were employed and making, say $50,000 a year, I would pay more in taxes (percentage basis - all taxes, including FIT, Social Security / Medicare, State, munincipal, sales) So I am not even free to keep as much of the money I make as a very much wealthier person (on a percentage basis)
Without a savings account nor a checking account, I am not free to get my checks cashed for free
When I was in the mental hospital, I was not free to request a change of doctors, the DR assigned to me told me the other doctor wouldn't take me
When my ex-wife took our son out of the country, in clear violation of a court order, I had no money, and could not afford to seek legal intervention to prevent her from violating the court order. I was not free to have the parenting rights that were guaranteed me in the divorce decree
Shall I go on? JUST WHAT freedoms are we talking about when we speak of being "Proud to be an American where at least I can be free ..."
The largest truth of 9-11 was this: that when our nation was under attack, the ONLY LINE OF DEFENSE our citizens had was our own citizens on Flight 93; not our military (the air force did not have the coordinates of any of the major city air ports), not our police, not our national guard, but citizens who took it upon themselves to GIVE THEIR LIVES to protect us on the ground.
Our government, and our military, and our intelligence gathering apparatus failed us so miserably on 9-11 that there should have been an uprising and a removal from office of the President and Vice President, the Secretary of Defense, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the director of the CIA, the director of the FBI, the director of the DIA. These all should have been fired for negligence, incompetence, and non-feasance.
The Republican Party should have issued an apology to Bill Clinton for ever accusing him of his attempt to assassinate Bin Laden for being a political cover for the Lewinsky blow jobs. President Dick Cheney and the Smirking Chimp George W Bush whould have prostrated themselves on the floor in the show window of Macy's and kissed Bill Clinton's fat ass for having failed to heed Slick Willy's warnings about Bin Laden. Richard Clark should have been promoted to Director of the DIA and Michael Scheurer should have been promoted to head the CIA and tasked exclusively with killing Bin Laden.
And the Media should have offered a public policy for having been so biased in its coverage of Al Gore that it (they) were far more guilty of stealing the election from Gore than even the Supreme Court Jefkoffs (yes, including that egomaniacal piece of crap lady justice, Sandra Day O'Connor, who got her just deserts in retirement.
