There will always be a long standing conflict between those that have equality and those that have freedom. I personally think that freedom and equality are two things that can coexist, but not to the extremes that everyone would like them to be. There are conflicts that always arise between the two when you try to have them both. So you would have to ask yourself what is more important to you and then you would have to go from there. To really understand the conflict between them; you really have to look at the two extremes of both freedom and equality.
People that have all the freedom they need don’t have as much freedom as they think. Humans are animals and we do find ways of governing ourselves; even if it is through a fight to see who is a stronger person. By doing this they have unknowingly caused inequality within the group. The persons that end up in the governing body will have more power than those that are not. They might take more for themselves and their families, because they are the leader or part of the ones in power. If they don’t like someone in their group; they can have that person picked on, removed from the group, or just ignored within the group. This takes away from the equal treatment that everyone else had once shared.
Then you have the next extreme of everyone being equal; which is slightly impossible because someone will always be in power. As I said before, we are animals and we will find ways to govern ourselves. The best way to look at an extreme like this is to give you an example of this extreme; and the best examples that everyone knows are Russia and China. These people are “equal”, but they have no real freedoms. They are told how they are to run their lives, how many children to have, how much they are going to get to eat, etc. Having a government that tells you how to do all these things would be the only way to keep the equality that one would desire.
So now I am back to the beginning question; what happens? Usually there is a fight between the two groups. Both sides believe that their way of thinking is correct and that no one else is right. We have actually seen this conflict many times in our history and it won’t be our last. World War II is (sort of) an example of these two sides conflicting. Adolf Hitler wanted the world to be full of his Aryan, making everyone equal and the Allied powers were opposed to this and wanted freedoms. This is only one example of many. There is the Revolutionary War, Vietnam, the Crusades, and many numerous wars in Africa between the tribes. This is a conflict that usually has bloody ends because no one is willing to compromise. That is what happens when these two values, freedom and equality, collide.
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Freedom vs. Equality
Today, it seems to me that all people want is to be treated equally yet be free to do as they please. What does it mean to be “free”? Some may say it means that a person can do whatever they want, whenever they want. However, I would have to say that being free means being under a democratic rule where everyone gets to voice their own opinion and it actually matters. What does it mean to be “equal” or have equality? I would say that to be treated equally, everyone would have to be treated the exact same way, no questions asked. How is this possible? How will this work?
When these two come into contact all it starts is conflict. Freedom and Equality to me, are two totally different prospects. People who work hard to become who they are today deserve everything they have and continue to get. There are also people out there who do absolutely nothing with their lives and get everything they want. Those are the people who make me sick to my stomach. I dont understand how anyone could just sit around, do nothing and expect everything they want when they want it. Those people are all about equality. Thinking that all people should be treated equal, whether it is worked for or not.
Those who are for freedom...well. I look at them the same. Believing that everyone should have unlimited freedom. If that was the case, how many people do you think would be left on this Earth? I can honestly say that if everyone had unlimited freedom i would not be writing this blog today. Im not sure where I would be, but I definitely would not be in school. I would probably be in the same situation I was 3 years ago when I still lived in Florida. Not wanting to get into that so just take my word that it was not the place anyone should be in.
I think that freedom and equality should be added to the list of the seven deadly sins. Anyone who acts upon having unlimited freedom will end up in prison or worse dead, and those who act like they deserve everything everyone else has and don't have to work for it, well they are just going to end up very unhappy people. No sane person would want to be associated with anyone who thinks or act like that. I sure dont, but that's just me.
When these two come into contact all it starts is conflict. Freedom and Equality to me, are two totally different prospects. People who work hard to become who they are today deserve everything they have and continue to get. There are also people out there who do absolutely nothing with their lives and get everything they want. Those are the people who make me sick to my stomach. I dont understand how anyone could just sit around, do nothing and expect everything they want when they want it. Those people are all about equality. Thinking that all people should be treated equal, whether it is worked for or not.
Those who are for freedom...well. I look at them the same. Believing that everyone should have unlimited freedom. If that was the case, how many people do you think would be left on this Earth? I can honestly say that if everyone had unlimited freedom i would not be writing this blog today. Im not sure where I would be, but I definitely would not be in school. I would probably be in the same situation I was 3 years ago when I still lived in Florida. Not wanting to get into that so just take my word that it was not the place anyone should be in.
I think that freedom and equality should be added to the list of the seven deadly sins. Anyone who acts upon having unlimited freedom will end up in prison or worse dead, and those who act like they deserve everything everyone else has and don't have to work for it, well they are just going to end up very unhappy people. No sane person would want to be associated with anyone who thinks or act like that. I sure dont, but that's just me.
Blog 1: Freedom vs. Equality
Freedom in America is something our country fought very hard to achieve. We are a free country, but we still have our limits to freedom. We havefreedom, but you cannot abuse the freedom that we have.Equality is saying that everyone in America is being treated equal. It issaying that everyone is going by the same rules. These means citizens aregoing by the same rules that the government are. It is also stating thatone man is not richer than another man.I think when freedom and equality come into conflict it is taking awayfrom one or the other. It seems to me like freedom and equality areopposites. If you are free, you are free to be who you have worked to be. If you have worked to become wealthy then you deserve to be wealthy. Ifeveryone is equal it is taking away from freedom.I think that if we lived in a country that was about equality it wouldsolve a lot of the problems that we do have. There are wealthy peoplethat are throwing away food every day, and then in other parts of thecountry you have people starving. If everything was equal it would makeour world a better place. I don’t see America ever being completelyequal. Americans worked hard to get the freedom that we have and that isnot something that would be given up in anyway.
Americans value freedom and equality. What happens when these values come into conflict? (For example: When free people are against equality or when equal people want to limit freedoms.)
Well first of all I should probably tell you what freedom means to me before we go into talking about what would happen if someone decided to take it away from me. Freedom to me is being able to wash your car in your own drive way wearing anything you would like to wear. There are no rules that say girls can’t wear short shorts and a swim suit top, or having someone say that she is showing too much skin for someone her age. There’s no rule that says by a girls twenty-first birthday does she have to be wed with two children. No, we live in a free state that clearly says in the bill of rights we have the freedom of: Freedom of speech, press, religion, and petition.
If I had grown up in a country were these freedoms aren’t allowed I’m not sure it would bother me too much, yes I’m sure I wouldn’t like them. But I don’t agree with things now! No one is going to agree with everything, or go along with the way our unique government thinks it should run. There will always be that one person who is willing to make waves. The problem arises when an emperor comes in, starts taking charge of everything. Making new rules, religions, and appoints himself head of state! Every normal person with a brain is going to know that isn’t right, and if he has any say in what his life should be like, they will use their voice, I mean after all you might as well use it…Thus I give you the birth of a revolution!
Since the dawn of written word people have been having revolutions over one thing or another, most of it over land and freedom! The ordinary man doesn’t like to be told what to do especially by an outsider. For example: Rome and Egypt. Caesar thought he could come in take control of everything and claim it was for God and country. But in the end we all knew what happened to the mighty Caesar, “Et tu Brutus?” He was betrayed by his “so called” best mate! It just goes to show that no matter what, the human man or woman will not give up freedom for anything in the entire world.
The last part would be equality. The normal person wants to be considered the same as everyone else no matter what color, where you grew up, what side of the tracks they grew up on, or how much money they make in a financial year. They want to be the same as the Joe Blow right next door! My opinion in that is if they can talk, walk, and are breathing, they can do whatever that man down the block can. A person is only held back by themselves, and I truly believe that you are your own worst enemy. Just like Martin Luther King Jr, he was a black man who had a dream that one day our kids would walk down the street and see nothing but people. They would look past what was on the outside and see only what was just like them on the inside! Yet that was how many years ago, and we are still fighting to see that dream come true… So as a closing to thins topic which I’m sure I could go on and on about equality. I leave you with this quote for a very wise man of color proving that not only white men know what they are talking about. “We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools”
Well first of all I should probably tell you what freedom means to me before we go into talking about what would happen if someone decided to take it away from me. Freedom to me is being able to wash your car in your own drive way wearing anything you would like to wear. There are no rules that say girls can’t wear short shorts and a swim suit top, or having someone say that she is showing too much skin for someone her age. There’s no rule that says by a girls twenty-first birthday does she have to be wed with two children. No, we live in a free state that clearly says in the bill of rights we have the freedom of: Freedom of speech, press, religion, and petition.
If I had grown up in a country were these freedoms aren’t allowed I’m not sure it would bother me too much, yes I’m sure I wouldn’t like them. But I don’t agree with things now! No one is going to agree with everything, or go along with the way our unique government thinks it should run. There will always be that one person who is willing to make waves. The problem arises when an emperor comes in, starts taking charge of everything. Making new rules, religions, and appoints himself head of state! Every normal person with a brain is going to know that isn’t right, and if he has any say in what his life should be like, they will use their voice, I mean after all you might as well use it…Thus I give you the birth of a revolution!
Since the dawn of written word people have been having revolutions over one thing or another, most of it over land and freedom! The ordinary man doesn’t like to be told what to do especially by an outsider. For example: Rome and Egypt. Caesar thought he could come in take control of everything and claim it was for God and country. But in the end we all knew what happened to the mighty Caesar, “Et tu Brutus?” He was betrayed by his “so called” best mate! It just goes to show that no matter what, the human man or woman will not give up freedom for anything in the entire world.
The last part would be equality. The normal person wants to be considered the same as everyone else no matter what color, where you grew up, what side of the tracks they grew up on, or how much money they make in a financial year. They want to be the same as the Joe Blow right next door! My opinion in that is if they can talk, walk, and are breathing, they can do whatever that man down the block can. A person is only held back by themselves, and I truly believe that you are your own worst enemy. Just like Martin Luther King Jr, he was a black man who had a dream that one day our kids would walk down the street and see nothing but people. They would look past what was on the outside and see only what was just like them on the inside! Yet that was how many years ago, and we are still fighting to see that dream come true… So as a closing to thins topic which I’m sure I could go on and on about equality. I leave you with this quote for a very wise man of color proving that not only white men know what they are talking about. “We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools”
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