"I pledge allegiance to the Flag of
the United
States of America, and to the Republic
for which it stands, one Nation under GOD,
I n d I v I s I b l e, with liberty
and justice for all"
These
are the words we say with our hand over our heart to a crimson striped and
indigo field of stars cloth as a symbol to our nation. We could also say the
“Lord’s Prayer” and sing “Amazing Grace” in unison.
Liberty.
Our
country has a statue of Liberty given by France. It is the symbol for
immigrants coming into New York harbor as a beacon for a better life.
These
people, who left their homelands for various reasons, came to the colonies,
just like the pilgrims of old, to break the chains of oppression and find
freedom. The land of the FREE and the home of the BRAVE.
Liberty
is the state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions imposed
by authority on one’s way of life, behavior, or political views. Independence, freedom,
autonomy, sovereignty, self-government, self-rule, self-determination is all
part of the liberty belief.
Freedom,
independence, free rein, freeness, license, self-determination, free will, latitude,
option, choice, volition, no compulsion, noncoercion, nonconfinement, leeway, margin,
scope, elbow room are all associated with the word “Liberty”.
In
a biblical context, “Liberty” signifies freedom from oppressive restrictions or
bondage, whether physical, spiritual, or moral, ultimately enabling individuals
to fulfill God’s purposes and experience the abundant life offered
through Jesus Christ.
While
“Liberty” and “Freedom” are often used interchangeably, “Liberty” generally
refers to the state of being free from oppression or control, especially
political or legal control, while “Freedom” is a broader concept encompassing
the absence of constraints or restrictions in general.
Libertarians
They advocate a much smaller
government; one that is limited to protecting individuals from coercion and
violence. Libertarians tend to embrace individual responsibility, oppose
government bureaucracy and taxes, promote private charity, tolerate diverse
lifestyles, support the free market, and defend civil liberties.
According to common United
States meanings of conservative and liberal, libertarianism in the United
States has been described as conservative on economic issues (economic
liberalism and fiscal conservatism) and liberal on personal freedom (civil
libertarianism and cultural liberalism).
With right-libertarianism,
critics have argued that laissez-faire capitalism does not necessarily produce
the best or most efficient outcome, and that libertarianism’s philosophy of
individualism and policies of deregulation fail to prevent the abuse of natural
resources.
Democracy (from Ancient Greek: δημοκρατία, romanized: dēmokratía, dēmos
'people' and kratos 'rule') is a form of government in which political power is
vested in the people or the population of a state. a
system of government where power ultimately resides in the people, who exercise
it through voting and electing representatives
The values of
freedom, respect for human rights and the principle of holding periodic and
genuine elections by universal suffrage are essential elements of democracy. In turn, democracy
Democratic governments exercise
authority by way of law and are themselves subject to law's constraints. Laws
should express the will of the people, not the whims of kings, dictators,
military officials, religious leaders, or self-appointed political parties.
A democracy provides an
environment for the protection and effective realization of human rights
Republic
A republic, based on the Latin phrase res publica (‘public
affair’ or ‘people’s affair’), is a state
in which political power rests with the public (people)
A
republic is a form of government where power resides in the people and is
exercised by their elected representatives, not a monarch or hereditary
ruler.
People also ask…
What
is a republic government?
A “republic” is a form of
government in which the people hold power, but elect representatives exercise
that power.
Indivisible
Indivisible
refers to something that cannot be divided or torn apart. It speaks to unity,
to the idea that despite our differences — whether in opinion, background or perspective
— there’s an underlying bond that connects us. It suggests that there’s
strength in sticking together, in refusing to let those differences become
insurmountable barriers.
Indivisibility
isn’t just about patriotism or a pledge to a flag. It’s about our day-to-day
interactions and the choices we make to seek connection over division. It’s
about finding ways to create a bridge, hearing one another, and remembering
that, no matter our differences, we are all part of something larger than
ourselves.
Indivisibility
is unable to be divided or separated.
Freedom
The
aforementioned migrants came looking for Freedom. Still, they were not totally
welcomed, so they stayed with their similar family groups forming segregated Little
Italy or Chinatown. They brought their skills and trades to the New World
colonies constructing fine furniture and musical instruments, repairing shoes,
baking breads and pizza, sewing couture, haberdashery and dining establishments
with the menus and flavors of the old-world traditions. They brought their
music and poetry and art and dance and bias. They attended the church of their
choice.
Cohabitation
and procreation blended the cultures into the diversity we have today. They
could even take an oath and become a citizen of the nation that allowed you to
vote for your leaders and officials who make the rules.
The
American dream was to assimilate into the masses, get gainful employment and
make enough dough to buy a plot of land and build a house surrounded by a white
picket fence with a two-car garage and two cars and two children and a dog.
Private
property refers to ownership of land or belongings by individuals or groups,
distinct from public or state-owned property, and includes both tangible and
intangible assets.
Private
property is a legal concept defined and enforced by a country's political
system. The area of law that deals with the subject is called property law. The
enforcement of property law concerning private property is a matter of public
expense. Defense of property is a common method of justification used by
defendants who argue that they should not be held liable for any loss and
injury that they have caused because they were acting to protect their
property. Courts have generally ruled that the use of force may be acceptable. Remember
Home Owner’s Association when a neighborhood agrees to a contract and fee to
present your property in a certain consistent manner to match your neighbors.
Consistency matters to conform to liberty.
In
many political systems, the government requests that owners pay for the
privilege of ownership. A property tax is an ad valorem tax on the value of a
property, usually levied on real estate. The tax is levied by the governing
authority of the jurisdiction in which the property is located. It may be
imposed annually or at the time of a real estate transaction, such as in real
estate transfer tax. Under a property-tax system, the government requires or
performs an appraisal of the monetary value of each property, and tax is assessed
in proportion to that value. The four broad types of property taxes are land,
improvements to land (immovable human-made objects, such as buildings),
personal property (movable human-made objects), and intangible property.
The
social and political context in which private property is administered will
determine the extent to which an owner will be able to exercise rights over the
same. The rights to private property often come with limitations. For example,
local government may enforce rules about what kind of building may be built on
private land (building code), or whether a historical building may be
demolished or not. Theft is common in many societies, and the extent to which
central administration will pursue property crime varies enormously.
Some
forms of private property are uniquely identifiable and may be described in a
title or a certificate of ownership. The rights to a property may be
transferred from one “owner” to another. A transfer tax is a tax on the passing
of title to property from one person (or entity) to another. An owner may
request that, after death, private property be transferred to family members,
through inheritance. In certain cases, ownership may be lost to the public
interest. Private real estate may be confiscated or used for public purposes,
for example to build a road.
In
capitalism, ownership can be viewed as a “bundle of rights” over an asset that
entitles its holder to a strong form of authority over it. Such a bundle is
composed of a set of rights that allows the owner of the asset to control it
and decide on its use, claim the value generated by it, exclude others from
using it, and the right to transfer the ownership (set of rights over the
asset) of it to another holder. In Marxian economics and socialist politics, a
distinction is made between “private property” and “personal property”. The
former is defined as the means of production about private ownership over an
economic enterprise based on socialized production and wage labor whereas the
latter is defined as consumer goods or goods produced by an individual. Eminent
domain is the government’s power to take private property for public use, but
only with just compensation to the owner, as mandated by the Fifth Amendment to
the U.S. Constitution, Prior to the 18th century, private
property usually referred to land ownership.
It
really isn’t YOUR land and house and picket fence, but part of the grid owned
by the city or county utilizing the roads and water and gas and police and fire
and the government will assess YOUR property to fine you an appropriate tax
similar to the neighbors. Whether you have done no improvements to YOUR
property, if your neighbor builds an extension to their house, you get to raise
your property tax rate.
Rights
Human
rights are rights we have simply because we exist as human beings - they are
not granted by any state. These universal rights are inherent to us all, regardless
of nationality, sex, national or ethnic origin, color, religion, language, or
any other status. They range from the most fundamental - the right to life - to
those that make life worth living, such as the rights to food, education, work,
health, and liberty. Our only FREE right is to breath the air. The air is for
all of us and without it – we are not alive.
Whatever
your opinions, views, beliefs or heritage; we who live in the United States of
America are questioning our liberty. How ‘free’ are we?
Just
like the dollar bill sez: “In God We Trust”, but it doesn’t say which God?
