When someone says "America is a free country", what exactly does that mean? For the entire history of this great nation that phrase has meant that as Americans, we are free to pursue happines, prosperity, and a better life for ourselves and our families. It has meant this pursuit is unencumbered by government interference. It has meant we are free to succeed and prosper, and it means we are also free to fail. We are free to get back up and try again when we do fail.
Sadly though, for many Americans (and I use the term very guardedly) the notion of a "free country" has taken on a vastly different meaning these days. Far too many people in this country want free health care, free housing, free food, and free money. They want any and everything they can get for free. That is what a "free country" means to them. The hard, cold reality is nothing is free. Someone has to pay for all the free stuff these misguided souls think they are entitled to. The someones who end up paying for it all is each and every taxpayer. It may seem like its free, but rest assured, someone is paying for it.
The freedom to think you're entitled to all of this free stuff isn't free either. This freedom was bought and paid for by the blood, sweat, and tears of many brave men who have gone before us, and it is preserved and protected through the blood, sweat, and tears of the men and women of today's military.
Think about these things next time you hear someone refer to America as a "free country". Stop and think about what that really means and about those who paid the ultimate price for our freedom. I know I will.
Jim Chitty
Writer/Cloumnist/Blogger
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