BY RUSSELL TURNER
A LITTLE GIVE AND TAKE
I have found from experience one of the greatest skills that a person can develop is the ability to know how to negotiate effectively. A person needs to know when to give a little and when to walk away from the table. For example, a business man knows if he compromises too much and gives more than he should his business will not survive. When we negotiate over some property or something like a car it can be serious but we know that most tangible things can be replaced, but some of the most precious things we have, we often take for granted. We Americans like to have our freedoms but just like a car, if we fail to make the payments sooner or later that car will be gone.
The founders of this nation did all that they could to ensure that future generations would be ruled by the rule of law and not by the whim of a future leader. The freedom of speech and the freedom of unreasonable searches are just two of the freedoms that we all should cherish. A couple of days ago theObama administration argued before the U.S. Supreme Court that, “a person’s cell phone is fair game (to confiscate & inspect) during an arrest.” Some would argue that allowing law enforcement to look through personal records on a cell phone without a warrant would save time and prevent crime. Think about all the information stored on your smart phone: your e-books from Amazon, the list of websites you visited, your financial records, and more. The average citizen carries his whole life story in his pocket.
My question is, are we willing to sacrifice our freedoms in the name of security? If memory serves me correctly it was Benjamin Franklin that said if we are willing to sacrifice our freedom for security we will have neither and deserve neither.
I am not ready to go down the slippery slope in allowing our government to ignore the protection that our founders gave us. We Americans have allowed our government to become too large and too involved in our every day lives. Too many of us are continually running to the government for more and more programs that the taxpayers must pay for. There is a price that has to be paid when any people allow their government to become too large. There are examples in many countries. The whole world paid a huge price when the Nazis of Germany were given the power to decide life or death for certain ethnic groups, Paul Pott of Cambodia killed millions because there was no one to stop him. The price of this kind of security is too high. Sadly many of our people are not concerned about illegal search and seizure until it affects them. Most of us know when we are asked to give more than we can afford when buying an auto, it is time that we say no to giving away our most precious asset, our God-given right of freedom.
Comments
Post a Comment