That politicians are beholden to corporations and lobbyists rather than the American people. It's apparent that the GOP got very, very rich being the party of opposition for the last 8 years and as long as they pretended to try to pass healthcare bills they knew wouldn't go anywhere, their constituents would keep voting them in office because "they're fighting the good fight!"
But then Trump gets elected and the GOP is caught with their pants down immediately. "Umm...you mean we were supposed to actually have a healthcare bill of our own worked out and ready to be passed by a Republican House and Senate?!"
There are Democrat Representatives and Senators that keep getting reelected just because they are pro-gun control (or voted for ACA), even though they don't really seem to see the need to do anything about things like rising tuition costs and unemployment.
The illusion of freedom is that you are free to vote for people who won't actually do much of anything to help you.
You are "free" to get a job where you spend the majority of your time working so you can be "successful" by the standard that has been defined for you.
This is the part where you need to get out of your own head a little.
Try to imagine a world where most of the money and resources weren't hoarded by a very few, where technology is allowed to be developed and distributed easily and automating meaningless tasks is the standard. What do you think people would be "free" to do then?
Try not paying taxes, smoking weed or drinking in the streets, or protest without a permit. All will land you a cozy seat in jail. Or hey tired of work? Just stop working and live on the streets, you do have freedom I guess but you'll be punished for exercising it.
Freedom is relative to what you are. Aristotle wrote that man is a rational animal, a being that cognates in a particular way. If you are unhindered in thinking and hence acting as a man, then you are free.
With advertising manipulating what we should buy, leaders telling us what to think, politicians making laws telling us weed is bad, drug makers making drugs to "cure" us and keep us on meds for life...
"At least I'm safe inside my mind."
Yep... you are totally free to do what you're told:
According to ABC affiliate KLTV, about an hour later and after a $25 profit, Overton police showed up and shut the lemonade stand down because the Green sisters did not have a "Peddler's Permit," which comes with a $150 fee.
Every dollar in circulation is has been taxed by interest from the fed.
The money you pay to the government in taxes mostly goes to pay interest and principal on bonds issued to lenders.
If the federal budget is 4 trillion and the nation debt is 20 trillion.. imagine how much more service you could get if the government didn't go in debt?
At the moment interest payments on U.S. debt exceed U.S. tax revenue. Meaning you can never pay that debt off... oh well 2 bad so sad for the debt holders.
Try to film inside an abattoir. Try to vote against israel, banks, oil, pharma, big ag, "defense" industry etc. Try to go completely off grid and build your house the way you want with materials you choose. Try to unionize. Try to defend yourself against unwarranted aggression from cops. Try to convince a jury to use nullification. Try to overturn unjust laws using the legal system put in place. Try going off the main routes during a protest downtown. Try to block something being built that would harm your local biome.
We're free to do what we want as long as it's something the govt and corporate interests don't mind us doing.
What are we free to do that isn't bound in consumerism, being productive members of society or otherwise generating $ activity for someone else to benefit from?
They mean the fact that at any given moment a federal agent can storm into your house whisk you away to a black site and have you legally tortured under the patriot act. You're at the mercy of the surveillance state at all times.
26 comments
n/a NoahWebstersGhost 2017-05-07
Sure, as soon as you pay the tax.
n/a LeftOfTheDials 2017-05-07
Free to make money for the bankers yes.
n/a Empire_of_Liberty 2017-05-07
That politicians are beholden to corporations and lobbyists rather than the American people. It's apparent that the GOP got very, very rich being the party of opposition for the last 8 years and as long as they pretended to try to pass healthcare bills they knew wouldn't go anywhere, their constituents would keep voting them in office because "they're fighting the good fight!"
But then Trump gets elected and the GOP is caught with their pants down immediately. "Umm...you mean we were supposed to actually have a healthcare bill of our own worked out and ready to be passed by a Republican House and Senate?!"
There are Democrat Representatives and Senators that keep getting reelected just because they are pro-gun control (or voted for ACA), even though they don't really seem to see the need to do anything about things like rising tuition costs and unemployment.
The illusion of freedom is that you are free to vote for people who won't actually do much of anything to help you.
n/a aleister 2017-05-07
You are "free" to get a job where you spend the majority of your time working so you can be "successful" by the standard that has been defined for you.
n/a Groomper 2017-05-07
But you're free to not conform to that standard. That's what freedom is. You have a choice.
n/a aleister 2017-05-07
Correct. I'm free to live in poverty on the street, and many people do.
This also keeps you busy so you don't make any trouble for those in charge.
n/a Groomper 2017-05-07
This has nothing to do with people in charge. That's just how societies function.
n/a aleister 2017-05-07
This is the part where you need to get out of your own head a little.
Try to imagine a world where most of the money and resources weren't hoarded by a very few, where technology is allowed to be developed and distributed easily and automating meaningless tasks is the standard. What do you think people would be "free" to do then?
n/a MKULTRAserialkillers 2017-05-07
Tell that to my hobo buddies on the rails! Lol
n/a KiwiBattlerNZ 2017-05-07
Are you?
https://definitions.uslegal.com/v/vagrancy/
n/a MKULTRAserialkillers 2017-05-07
No, you're not. The FBI routinely infiltrates the most peaceful of groups and tries to lure them into all sorts of situations.
Gas lighting, COINTELPRO, Branden Darby stuff.
n/a fortuneteller00 2017-05-07
Try not paying taxes, smoking weed or drinking in the streets, or protest without a permit. All will land you a cozy seat in jail. Or hey tired of work? Just stop working and live on the streets, you do have freedom I guess but you'll be punished for exercising it.
n/a forefather6667 2017-05-07
Baaaahhhhhhhhhhh
n/a Groomper 2017-05-07
Do you expect people to house and feed you for zero work?
n/a fortuneteller00 2017-05-07
No? Look at the post and my answer, that's not what I'm saying.
n/a SpecOpsAlpha 2017-05-07
Freedom is relative to what you are. Aristotle wrote that man is a rational animal, a being that cognates in a particular way. If you are unhindered in thinking and hence acting as a man, then you are free.
n/a Mecanatron 2017-05-07
You are free and 'freedom' is just their latest control system in a long line of failed systems.
To quote a famous architect...
"While it remains a burden assiduously avoided, it is not unexpected, and thus not beyond a measure of control."
n/a Dippy_Egg 2017-05-07
Ask yourself this: are you free to leave?
n/a MKULTRAserialkillers 2017-05-07
Doug Stanhope summed it up very well and that's just surface level, pre Wikileaks stuff.
n/a RedditIsSoCucked 2017-05-07
It means you that the US is ruled by oligarchy.
n/a chickenshitmchammers 2017-05-07
We're not free because most of us are debt slaves.
n/a Sevans1223 2017-05-07
With advertising manipulating what we should buy, leaders telling us what to think, politicians making laws telling us weed is bad, drug makers making drugs to "cure" us and keep us on meds for life... "At least I'm safe inside my mind."
n/a KiwiBattlerNZ 2017-05-07
Yep... you are totally free to do what you're told:
http://edition.cnn.com/2015/06/11/politics/lemonade-stand-shut-down-texas/
n/a txp33 2017-05-07
Every dollar in circulation is has been taxed by interest from the fed. The money you pay to the government in taxes mostly goes to pay interest and principal on bonds issued to lenders. If the federal budget is 4 trillion and the nation debt is 20 trillion.. imagine how much more service you could get if the government didn't go in debt? At the moment interest payments on U.S. debt exceed U.S. tax revenue. Meaning you can never pay that debt off... oh well 2 bad so sad for the debt holders.
n/a Dissociatve 2017-05-07
Read about Ruby Ridge and see if you still want to ask that question
n/a digdog303 2017-05-07
Try to film inside an abattoir. Try to vote against israel, banks, oil, pharma, big ag, "defense" industry etc. Try to go completely off grid and build your house the way you want with materials you choose. Try to unionize. Try to defend yourself against unwarranted aggression from cops. Try to convince a jury to use nullification. Try to overturn unjust laws using the legal system put in place. Try going off the main routes during a protest downtown. Try to block something being built that would harm your local biome.
We're free to do what we want as long as it's something the govt and corporate interests don't mind us doing.
What are we free to do that isn't bound in consumerism, being productive members of society or otherwise generating $ activity for someone else to benefit from?
n/a Deathbytiger 2017-05-07
We have freedom of choice.
n/a ring-ring-ring 2017-05-07
They mean we only have the illusion of freedom in America. How could it be stated any more plainly?
n/a IronSavage3 2017-05-07
They mean the fact that at any given moment a federal agent can storm into your house whisk you away to a black site and have you legally tortured under the patriot act. You're at the mercy of the surveillance state at all times.