In 2001, America got smacked ... hard. More than 3,000 people died in a multifaceted attack from Islamic terrorists. They took our own aircraft and flew them into buildings. Terrorism won that round; we were terrified. So, in the name of safety, we surrendered liberty. No, not all liberty, but neither was it an insignificant amount. New agencies sprung into existence. Long lines and travel restrictions at airports became the norm. The TSA assumed greater authority and prominence. People faced arrest and detention with much less protection if they fell in the "possible terrorist" category. "No fly lists" and other measures sprung into place. Clearly there were mistakes, like citizens who were never a threat might have ended up on a "no fly list" or that kind of thing. But, we were ever reminded that safety was paramount and, as such, personal freedoms took a lower place.
That was 20 years ago now, and we haven't had a serious terrorist event since. Success! But the effect wasn't just against terrorism. As we've seen in the last nearly two years, Americans are still willing, nay, eager to surrender freedoms for safety. COVID-19 vastly supplanted our terrorist concerns. We willingly locked ourselves in our homes, lost our jobs, closed our businesses, and endured other hardships because of COVID! "We're all going to die!" was not an uncommon cry. America once again surrendered freedom for safety, and it has not been without cost. Government overreach, in the name of safety, killed unknown numbers of people who, fearing the pandemic, neglected getting life-saving treatment for fear of a pandemic. Suicides, drug overdoses, cancer deaths ... all increased from our "safety measures." But it didn't matter. We feel safer.
Now we have vaccine mandates. It cannot be argued that this is not a violation of personal rights. No one is arguing that. They're arguing, "We must surrender our right to determining what is done to our bodies in favor of safety." Again. But with gusto. Some voices are clamoring for removing the unvaccinated from medical care, from employment, from access to food and clothing and other basic needs. That is, the rights we're willing to surrender are growing if we can just achieve safety!
"Yeah? So what? We'll get past this crisis and move on." I wonder. We have already acclimated ourselves to "The premise of the American dream -- freedom -- is far less important than ... most rights." We've imbibed the Kool-Aid and we're fine with it. Terror wins again. So now comes the Health Department (generic, not specific) with the next crisis. For instance, "Racism is a public health crisis." "Oh, no! We have another safety issue! Time to impose new rules for your safety." Inequity is a danger to health. Therefore, you folks with more health care than others will need to surrender yours to share with others. You may think you have a right to whatever health care you can buy, but think again. In the name of safety, you'll need to surrender that freedom and lower your expectations. Oh, no? On what grounds would you say no? We've already decided that safety is more important than personal freedom and now the powers that be are sure that racism is a matter of health safety, so ...
For all time, the question for any society has been, "Who gets to decide what's right, what's moral?" In a religious society, the dominant religion did. In a secular society, other means are used. In a totalitarian society, the government does it. In America, it's not easy to say. Clearly religion is out. Science isn't very helpful in determining moral questions. Since "harm" is considered a valid method of deciding what is moral, safety would likely be considered a good way. If it's unsafe, it's immoral, right? But that's an extremely squishy line. Cigarettes are unsafe. Ban them? What about Twinkies? Maybe. We understand the term "safe sex," but have opted not to address the legality or freedom of "unsafe sex." And so on. Today, then, if safety is our best determination of moral, the question becomes "Who gets to decide what's unsafe?" Because that will determine what's moral and that will determine our laws and that will determine just how much (or little) freedom you end up with. Beware! Safety can be a harsh task master. It depends on who gets to decide. But your freedoms are not a consideration.
1 comment:
Too many people have made an idol of "safety" and have abandoned their ability to balance risk and reward. What they'll eventually learn is that eliminating or minimizing risk, eliminates any reward.
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