Americans Don’t Understand Freedom Anymore
What is happening to my country? What happened to patriotism, people’s belief in the Constitution, people’s belief in free speech and personal responsibility, people’s mistrust in government and large corporations? What once was a country of optimists with meaningful lives has turned into a country of nihilists who need the government to take care of them. In a few short months, due to a virus with a 99% survival rate and encroaching Marxism, it seems that everything is changing at an astonishing pace.
It used to be that the Internet, much like real-life America, was free, beautiful, slightly dangerous, and more than a little crazy. There was also an entry barrier, you kinda had to know what you were doing in order to use a computer and literally dial onto the Web, especially if you wanted to avoid viruses. Nowadays the Web is a corporatized, regulated monolith, simultaneously much modernized yet also a shadow of its former glory. Gone are the days of laugh-out-loud offensive comedy, creative and cute cat videos, and anonymously saying whatever the hell you want. Instead, censorship is everywhere, the Web is accessible to every poorly parented toddler with a phone, and everything is a safe space. True anonymity is almost impossible, as most social media sites require a real functioning cell phone to log in. Google knows everything about everyone, even records your voice every time you say “hey Google,” and most people don’t care. Everything you do online is tracked, and privacy is nonexistent.
Much like the Internet, in real life (at least in cities), people live out their entire lives in effective safe spaces. Entrepreneurs are becoming rarer and rarer, people are looking more for stability and are content with less. Young people are full of anxiety and trauma, pushed by a society that entered the digital age too fast. Many young people nowadays are so uncomfortable with themselves that they take the most drastic measures possible. Drugs are now commonplace, sex changes growing in popularity, and suicides are going up. Young Americans have no meaning in their lives, pursue no lofty goals, and stick to their own comfort zones. True challenges are shied away from, and our cities and Internet are rife with socialism. The words “bravery” and “courage” do not exist in most young people. Women are encouraged to become men, and men are encouraged to become women. As a culture, we have embraced some form of anti-male sexism/misandry in the form of the phrase “toxic masculinity.” Anything masculine is shunned, and as a result men have become less courageous and free.
I grew up on the concepts of natural rights and constitutional rights. Free speech, freedom of thought, personal responsibility. America was the land of opportunity, they told me, where anyone with ability who would make an effort would be able to make it in life. Talent, virtue, honesty, and hard work used to be valued commodities. Nowadays, everything is flipped on its head. More important than your abilities are apparently your race and color. Major companies have race and diversity requirements now, and force themselves to consider not just talent, but also race quotas. Corporations care less and less about making money and satisfying consumers, and more about the modern-day religion that is “wokeness”. What happened to the ideals of Martin Luther King, and “I look to a day when people will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character”? Why should an unskilled trans black buzzword person be prized over a skilled non-buzzword person? Concepts of personal responsibility and effort are seen less and less in society. Young people spend more time addicted to social media than they do finding their passions. People say “I can’t do that” rather than “I can.”
We are becoming a pathetic, perpetually triggered, paranoid, risk-averse people. Other countries still stereotype us as the country of giant hamburgers, over-the-top sex, trucks, guns, and loud friendly people who love doing whatever the hell they want. We no longer are that country, and have not been so for quite some time. The people who do act like that, those happy few MAGA hat people, are shunned from society. We used to be a country that prized not listening to authority, never ever. We used to be a country of scientists, always questioning, always searching, always passionate. Now we are a country of sheep bullied around by politicians and corporations so powerful they shape the culture of society. We used to be a country where if anybody told you what to do, you would laugh at him and then sock ’em in the eye. Nowadays you can’t do that, cause you can’t call him “him” until you ask his pronouns.
We push “equity” instead of “equality,” obedience over rebelliousness, globalism instead of patriotism. We used to value our soldiers and veterans, those who fought and died to preserve our freedoms and the ideals of democracy, now we no longer value our country or those who died to protect it. Politicians used to work for us, never control us. We used to be a country controlled by the people, for the people. Now we are a country controlled by massive corporations, corrupt politicians, and fear-mongers, especially during COVID. Instead of “nobody can tell us what to do,” we now say “listen to everyone who knows better than you do.”
America is a country founded on rebellion and disrespect for authority. I want that America back, and I want my freedom back.
As always, feel free to sound off in the comments if you agree, disagree, think I’m a biased racist, think I’m evil because I’m white, think straight people should be cancelled, etc. :)
