Re: Your papers, please . . .

[Russell Chapman]

The Fool wrote:

> The only way you can know you are free is if you can freely distrust /
> critisize the government.
>

Surely the ability to criticise the government, plus the ability to elect a
better one next time around gives all the freedom we can expect in this day
and age? Why is distrusting them also necessary? I think a certain level of
cynicism is all that's required - these are mostly just citizens who happen
to be elected or happen to have a job in the civil service (or whatever
Americans call government employees).

They come after me when I walk down the street with a critical banner sign,
or when I publish a scathing newspaper article, then I'm not free. They
declare that elections are somehow changed (and get away with it), then I'm
not free, but I can do those things, and so can you. I would have thought
distrust is redundant.

Russell C.