Some Thoughts About Liberty and Security During the Extended July 4th Holiday Weekend

Here are some thoughts about liberty and security. Some of us have an extended holiday weekend. I'm easing up on work and trying to enjoy life a bit more than I would if I had a full work load. But since this is a time to celebrate Independence Day, here are some things that came up over the last couple of days, as I applied my reason and common sense to some subjects we're all familiar with.

The noise surrounding Edward Snowdon’s revelations about certain activities of the National Security Administration has certainly awakened at least some Americans to the fact that our Founders’ bequest of liberty remains something that requires defending 237 years after that first July 4th. Whether you agree or not with Mr. Snowdon’s method of leaking security details to newspapers (The Guardian and The Washington Post), few Americans can now remain unaware of the draconian snooping on our private lives undertaken by our government in the name of securing us from the threat of terrorism. And whether or not you agree that such snooping is justified by the threat of terrorism, consider this from Founding Father Benjamin Franklin, which, by the way, appears on the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty:

“They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.”

Note, please the words “essential” and “little.” Franklin, as was true of most of our Founding Fathers, was an educated, intelligent individual capable of subtle thinking and therefore capable of making fine distinctions. Contrast Franklin’s comment with what passes for “thought” in the Age of Google. You’ll find a good example of what I mean if you Google “Ben Franklin security quote.” One version of the above quote you’ll find is: “Those who would sacrifice freedom for security deserve neither.” Notice there’s no “essential” and no “little.”

Now, you do see the difference those two words make here, don’t you? The real quote allows for reasoned discussion and debate. The latter all too typically results in bombast. And, despite what does seem to be an outrageous incursion on our privacy by our government, there should be room for differing opinions and debate on this. I suspect our Founding Fathers would agree. Without allowing for differences and debate, how in heaven’s name do you suppose they agreed to sign the Declaration of Independence - which Jefferson finalized only after several drafts. And ditto for that masterpiece of compromise called the Constitution of the United States.

With all this in mind, perhaps this July 4th might be a good time to dust off your copy of the Declaration of Independence and read it. If you haven’t done so for a while, I suspect you’ll be surprised by the brevity and simplicity of the document. Too few of us ever get beyond those most famous words which are inevitably and generously  quoted every year around this time:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”

How many of us remember, or were ever taught, that those words were not some inspired vision that sprung from the individual imagination of Thomas Jefferson, but emerged from roots firmly planted in natural law. In fact, in the very first paragraph of the Declaration, we find a specific reference to that natural law when the signers stated in no uncertain terms that they were acting in order

“...to assume among the powers of the earth the separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and nature’s God entitle them.” (emphasis added)

The signers justified their claim for independence on natural law. And we note that Jefferson wrote these words with the knowledge that every American of his generation understood exactly what he meant by “laws of nature.” Not only could Americans in Jefferson’s era understand that their claim to independence was justified by natural law, but they also understood that God, Creator of all human beings and everything in the universe in which they lived, was the author of that law.

I think most people today have no idea of what "natural law" means. If that's true, it explains how people put up with some of the legislation as well as the twisted logic of the courts - including the Supreme Court. It also explains how people go along with the ridiculous idea that religion should have nothing to do with our government, our laws and our lives.

God help us if too many of us lose sight of the natural law.

We should talk more about this in future posts. For now,

Happy 4th of July!