Is it normal to not feel so free in america?

84% Normal
47 Comments

Is it normal that I feel that I'm not really free as an American? We are forced into so many things yet with so many laws trying to keep us in one straight line. I think I read somewhere we as a country is extremely far I dept with money. So they tax us more. Okay I get that, but is it really necessary to make so many laws and restrictions? Not going to go into far detail. For example the whole insurance thing is crazy. The gun laws in most states are crazy. How much tax is for different things. I could go on and on but what really bothers me the most is on the 4th of July why are fireworks so illegal in most places? We set off fireworks because it stands for celebrating the lives given by the brave soldiers who fought for our country's freedom. But at the same time are held away from lighting the fuse. Anyways others may have other opinions. Tell me what you think, is it normal?

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84% Normal
Based on 45 votes (38 yes)
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Comments ( 47 )
  • DumBelle
    10 years ago

    What I always say is go live somewhere else for 5-10 years and still tell me how lifestyle/your 'freedom' adds up. To be exact, the debt in this country is beyond outstanding and outrageous, but most of it is American's fault. If you (millions) in our country take out a loan/numerous mortgages out on your home (lacking the appropriate means or intention to pay a bank back) alongside numerous credit cards--racking up debt also without intention to pay back-- and then file for essentially bail outs, which is bankruptcy, allow swarms of illegal immigrants who do nothing for the country and it's economy (sending all American made money 'home'..)Another pointless war ect ect -- what would you expect? Really?

    But all of this and still if one argues Americans do not live comfortably, given all of that, you'd be lying. Sure there's trying times for some, but A LOT of people have the luxury of being and acting 'lazy' here. If you sit on your computer, playing online for hours at a time, eat out constantly, spend money you don't have (like a lot of people I see doing who still have this lament) and guess what, the government is NOT bashing your door in and taking everything you have to your name to reconcile the problem. You're pretty damn comfortable. Lifestyle is other countries are very different. People here tend to complain, mostly the ones' with no intention to work hard or work towards a better future for the US. This generation is incredibly spoiled (and lazy) yet discuss issues in a country they do not understand. If your biggest concerns are justifiable and can be solved with your own hard work, I get it.
    But if it's as simple as laws in different states? You do not have a entirely justified complaint and should realize you can literally 'go' where you belong in this country with that complaint and it's over; You want to be a pothead? Move where it's LEGALIZED. Marry your partner/own a gun/stand your ground/even choose how you die (The Right to Die) etc ect--Not everywhere has this luxury. So how about take a few minutes to realize how really 'free' you actually are, be it very Liberal OR Conservative. There's a state which coincides belief or lifestyle.

    If ones' biggest concern is a damn firework, you need to get a few priorities worked out -- (having lived on sovereign land my entire childhood/adulthood, it was obviously legal for us -- and the crazy illegal fireworks were great, but not something I'd listen to a complaint over, because the reasons they ARE illegal are not irrational/or indicative of any extremes; socialism. We all vote (haa!ha!--if you do not), so if one doesn't like something, get more proactive in realistic means for lamenting, such as politics.
    Not jabbering over the internet. Probably one of the funniest counter productive and contradictory things I see, here.

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    • iEatZombies_
      10 years ago

      I agree with almost everything you said. The only part I disagree with is calling out this generation as spoiled and lazy. I've seen weaknesses and strengths in every generation alive today. Being spoiled and lazy, depending on the type, are shared attributes across the generations.

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  • thegypsysailor
    10 years ago

    "fireworks so illegal in most places?" Well, because some really stupid people blow off fingers, blind themselves and burn down houses and businesses, every single fucking year, that's why. Not that I'm real fan of not letting Darwin's evolutionary theory do it's job, but you asked the question.

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    • [Old Memory]
      10 years ago

      I remember when I was a little kid the neighbor held onto a firework and blew off his fingers.

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  • anti-hero
    10 years ago

    You sound like a 14 year old.

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  • iEatZombies_
    10 years ago

    That's it, I'm done with this. *Flips everyone off* Screw you all, I'm moving to Mars.

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    • Anonymous Post Author
      10 years ago

      This is one of my favorite comments.

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      • iEatZombies_
        10 years ago

        =P

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  • Tommythecat.
    10 years ago

    I get you, but there are worse places to live one would think.

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    • [Old Memory]
      10 years ago

      ...and we're progressively becoming a worse place to live because we keep conceding Individual Liberty.

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      • Tommythecat.
        10 years ago

        Oh that will become a world wide problem, you'll see.

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        • [Old Memory]
          10 years ago

          Funny how you agreed with me (didn't you? or...am I reading it wrong?)

          ..but I got thumbed down, and you up.

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          • Tommythecat.
            10 years ago

            I do agree.

            I just noticed that but I seriously think the thumbs up/down system is pointless anyway.

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        • iEatZombies_
          10 years ago

          You're waiting for it, too, huh?

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          • Tommythecat.
            10 years ago

            yep.

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  • handsignals
    10 years ago

    IROC Z, AK-47, 40oz, Valium, fake tities, 6 sliders lrg fries lrg soda 2.95, hardcore porn, steroids, chilli dogs, Ghetto Booty, Bro's before Ho's and chicks with no clothes crushing pussy marry a man.

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    • VirgilManly
      10 years ago

      AK-47? That's goddamn communism!

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    • Hugh*Janus
      10 years ago

      WHO DOWNVOTED THIS!!??

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    • Anonymous Post Author
      10 years ago

      Is that a yes, it is normal, or no, it isn't normal?

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      • handsignals
        10 years ago

        This is America! It's not frickin China or whatever.

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      • Riddler
        10 years ago

        Well you need to realize freedom costs. In fact everything cost. The price of absolute freedom is having criminals on the street raping women and stealing tvs. The price of too little freedom is having camera in the bathroom and chopping off your hands for stealing and those type of extremism. So really we are never completely free and when we are its not very pleasant. The world needs order and without it we have death, war, crime.

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  • dom180
    10 years ago

    For better or for worse, I get the impression words like "freedom" and "individualism" are defined very differently in American culture to how they are defined in some other cultures of the world.

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    • [Old Memory]
      10 years ago

      Oh. Don't get me started again. ;)

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      • dom180
        10 years ago

        Haha ;) But that's just an invitation.

        It's not that the way you define it is bad. It's all in balancing rights and responsibilities, and that's something truly subjective. I strongly believe in the principle of individual freedom - honestly! Probably the only thing I believe in more strongly is the principle of utilitarianism, and there are certain liberties which I still don't think can be said to constitute "the greater good" - the lens through which all activity should be examined.

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        • [Old Memory]
          10 years ago

          To a certain extent, I agree. However, I think that Utilitarianism has it's limits. There's a fine line between responsible laws created to protect innocents from direct harm from irresponsible behavior, and creating restrictive laws "for the common good" using the Butterfly Effect.

          For example...

          Riding a motorcycle without eye protection should be illegal. The likelihood of an insect or road debris hitting him in the eye, causing him to lose vision, and impacting another person or object is very high without it.

          Riding a motorcycle without a helmet effects no one but the rider. Do-gooders always used the excuse that accidents without helmets affect us all because of higher insurance rates, etc.
          ...Now you're approaching the Butterfly Effect. That's as valid as claiming that the beans I ate contributed to global warming because it made me fart.

          ...nonetheless...we now have helmet laws. Funny how insurance rates never dropped (as a sidenote).

          These are all little pieces of Liberty that we seem so willing to give away to the powers that we elect...then there comes a point that we look around, and we're living in a Hunger Games or Logan's Run world...and we ask, "when did this happen?"

          My god...I sound like a nut job conspiracy guy, but I remember what life was like when I was your age. How free we really were. I look around now and ask..."what happened?" In 30 years, when you're my age, what is life going to be like when you look around and ask, "what happened?" Seriously think about that.

          Anyone in power can claim that a law is for the "common good." In fact...they *always* do. Surveillance of your personal calls and online activity is "for your own good. We're protecting you."

          Read Orwell. "1984"

          ...I'm gunna don my tinfoil hat now...and go to bed ;)

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          • Freedom_
            10 years ago

            I love it when you talk like that.

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          • VirgilManly
            10 years ago

            Some of what you complain about are laws enacted due to pressure from insurance companies. Welcome to free market capitalism.

            If you live within a society there are going to be rules to live by and not everyone will be happy.

            There are reasons I am not free to drive drunk at 150mph thru a school zone with a naked hooker, spead eagle, on the hood of a TransAm and flame-throwers blazing out the windows even though that's how I'd like to celebrate my freedom.

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            • [Old Memory]
              10 years ago

              That's not even remotely "Free Market Capitalism," that's cronyism. Free markets allow us the freedom to sell a product, unrestricted, to a willing public within reasonable boundaries (monopoly and truth in advertising laws). Cronyism imposes laws requiring purchases, or imposing burdens on the transaction.

              I addressed your second and third paragraphs clearly already. Reasonable laws are necessary to guide a free society. I've never been an anarchist. Anarchy is actually impossible if you know anything about human nature.

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  • Dot123
    10 years ago

    The government is controlling us. NWO. America is not the home of the free and brave.

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  • green_boogers
    10 years ago

    Arm yourself with weapons, vote Libertarian, and lobby for nude beaches.

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  • [Old Memory]
    10 years ago

    there is no government just people telling other people to kill/imprison those who won't obey

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  • [Old Memory]
    10 years ago

    Trust me. I question this too...though I have a different set of priorities.

    Here's one I posted a few months ago:

    http://isitnormal.com/story/iin-to-want-to-live-this-free-166390/

    Individual Liberty is fading. Collectivism is being perceived as Freedom, despite historical evidence to the contrary. In the 90s, seatbelt and helmet laws set a precedence of dictating personal choices.

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    • anti-hero
      10 years ago

      Fun fact, here you have to wear a seatbelt but not a helmet. How much fucking sense does that make?

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      • Hugh*Janus
        10 years ago

        It makes sense. Helmets don't 'save' people from injury or death at the same rate that seatbelts do. Helmets and seatbelts serve different ends so it's not right to directly compare them like that.

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        • anti-hero
          10 years ago

          Let's see some stats Janus. I would rather wreck a car without a seat belt than a motorcycle without a helmet.

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          • Hugh*Janus
            10 years ago

            Seatbelts prevent injury and death at a rate of 50%. Helmets prevent head injury and death from head injury at a 37% rate, but helmets also cause serious or fatal neck injury at about a 13% rate.

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      • [Old Memory]
        10 years ago

        It doesn't make any sense at all. It's like that in Iowa too. I do know that the reason Iowa refuses to enact helmet laws is because Iowa makes an enormous amount of revenue from bikers bypassing neighboring states on their trek to Sturgis, South Dakota every August...

        In my opinion, both laws cross a boundary that opened the door for busy bodies to dictate individual choices.

        I wish I could tag Janus in this too...I read this whole argument, and in my opinion, his statistics, real or not, are irrelevant.

        ...but that's just me. I'm obviously not getting much support, but I stand by my opinions.

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        • anti-hero
          10 years ago

          Probably the same in SC we have a big bike week at the beach among other rallies. Hell you can do a lot here. Every NC and GA border town has a dozen fireworks stores.

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          • Hugh*Janus
            10 years ago

            Riiiight near da beach, mon!

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        • Hugh*Janus
          10 years ago

          I agree with you actually. But the laws are made (or not made) based mostly on statistics, money and for political gain so that's generally how you explain why the law is as such.

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