I just returned from the local supermarket here at Base Camp
West Virginia. I was running in to pick up a couple items I couldn't find at
the local Wally World (yep, WalMart carries a lot of stuff, but they don't carry
everything). I walked in this supermarket with exactly two items I needed. I
knew where one item was since I've purchased it there before. The other item I
was looking for is something I wouldn't normally buy, but was getting it to
save a friend a trip, if I could.
Now, most commercial establishments have some form of
background music playing - it's often referred to as Muzak, after the
trademarked name of a generations old commercial music service. Alternately,
it's referred to as elevator music, affectionately named for the typically,
lush, instrumental music one endures during an elevator ride. There are
psychological reasons for providing this music service to patrons of all kinds
of businesses whether on an elevator, walking through a store, sitting in a
doctor's office or calling your dentist on the phone and being lullabied to
distract the caller from realizing how long they have been sitting on hold.
Often an establishment will have a choice of musical genre
when contracting with a commercial music service provider. One might be
listening to the lush strings of Yanni or the 101 Strings, the Classic rock
songs and ballads from the 50's and 60's, smooooooth jazz, Beatlemania, a
classic country collection and so on. My experience in the supermarket today
was a bit jarring, yet, for me, particularly inspirational.
Sing Our Own Song
I was listening to the lyrics of a song composed and
originally recorded by UB40, a 1986 song titled Sing Our Own Song. But,
it was the main chorus lyric that was repeated over and over that got my
attention. The line went, We will fight for the right to be free. At
first, I thought I was listening to an American patriotic protest song that I'd
never heard before. But, after a little research I discovered some interesting
facts.
First, UB40 is a British rock/pop/reggae group founded in
1978 and not really coming on the scene until 1979 and about 1980 in the U.S.
It is an ethnically diverse group of friends who were all born (apparently) and
raised in Birmingham, England. That in itself was a reason that I wasn't
familiar with the group or much of their music since, perhaps, like many
people, I was no longer as interested in the newest generation of music. I
heard it on the radio, but I didn't pay much attention to it. By 1980 I was 35
years old, married, a father and deeply involved in four businesses. My head
was someplace other then the current pop music scene.
The reason I had not become familiar with this particular
song is because it never reached any of the U.S. music "charts" that
follow how popular any given piece of music is. Most countries have their own
music charts, but if a piece of music doesn't hit the U.S. charts, few people
will have heard it here. It's apparently been covered (recorded by) at least a
few other artists, but none who I can honestly say I've followed. So, all that
in mind, this was like a breath of fresh air to me. I wondered, as I walked
through the supermarket taking care of my business, if any of the other
customers or the store employees were listening to the lyrics.
In fact, the song was not written about the U.K. or the U.S.
It was written about and for the fight for freedom of the nonwhite, South
African population who were oppressed by segregation laws under Apartheid.
Fortunately and finally Apartheid was officially renounced in 1990, though the
full impact didn't take effect until 1994 when Nelson Mandela was the first
black African to be elected in a free election as the president of the Republic
of South Africa.
Non-partisan, Apolitical Freedom Lover
I've stated this several times. This blog is not and does
not indulge itself in political rhetoric other then how it may impact the
personal rights and personal freedoms of myself and, in some manner, you, the
reader. The reason that song caught my attention in the supermarket today is
that, and maybe it's just me and maybe it's just because I'm base camped in a
rural, heartland area of the U.S., but I hear more and more people talking
about freedom and personal freedom.
Freedom isn't just unique to the America. Freedom is
something that is part of the human DNA. We don't have an edge on the freedom
market. And, freedom isn't defined in any one specific way. We have a very
unique form of freedom in the U.S. As I listened to that song, thinking at that
time that it was written as a patriotic and inspirational anthem for the U.S.,
I thought about Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Libya, Egypt, Israel and the
Palestinians, others in Africa, Asia, parts of Europe and the former Soviet
Union block countries - and even Cuba and South America. Freedom is a very
fragile commodity. I've used and, probably, you have, too, the overused adage
that "Freedom isn't Free." Actually, it is free. Unfortunately, there
are both powers of good and evil in this world that usurp freedom from the
individual to who it belongs by birthright.
Our society and our world are unbelievably complex. There no
longer is (and may never have been) a defined line dividing black and white. I
often find myself siding with those I would normally not side with because of
that gray area. Of course, in other instances, I side with the other side of
the line. I dislike labels and titles. I was never particularly enamored with
being the "president," "CEO" or most other designations of
distinction and authority. I felt separated from everyone else. Likewise, I do
not like being labeled a "conservative," "liberal,"
Republican or Democrat. In truth, when I take any of the quizzes that determine
where one fits into the political landscape, I usually come out smack in the
middle of the Libertarian territory. That's probably no surprise to you. But,
in fact, I really don't want to carry that label, either. What I want to be
known as is an "independent," free-thinking individual.
My philosophy and mantra with this blog is all about
personal freedom and living free. I write about the things that are working for
me and are important to me as one individual doing my best to maintain and live
free in a world and, more specifically, a society that self-proclaims being a
free society. Supposedly, because we have some form of democratic electoral
process, this is a shining light of our freedom. Yet, in more and more ways,
our very democratic systems are beginning to fail us more as individuals.
Perhaps that's because we are becoming more and more dependent on a government
structure that believes it can, under its own terms, do better and more for us
as individuals than we can do for ourselves.
Personal Freedom, Personal Choices, Personal
Responsibility
I have to question this idea when we have national disasters
like Katrina, seven years ago and Super Storm Sandy a few weeks ago. Without
questions, these are horrible disasters. But, this is also part of the nature
of living on this planet. We can't legislate away these events. Neither we or
the government have any control over the weather. I won't even touch on the
volatile subject of "human created" climate change. If we go back to
the historical accounts of the Bible, people were taught about the difference
between building a house on a rock or on sand. People want to be free, great! They
made a free choice to build their homes in areas very prone to violent natural
events.
That was, as I said, a FREE choice. But, after the disaster,
how responsible should those who built their homes on the rock be for those
unfortunate people in the path of Sandy? These are rhetorical questions. I
certainly believe we should reach out and help our friends and fellow
countrymen. But, I've already read several articles by various scientific
authorities suggesting that the damaged and demolished homes and businesses
shouldn't be rebuilt in the same locations because it's going to happen again
and again. But, they will. The same is true for the Gulf states, especially the
New Orleans area. And, they have. We can say the same for people who build
homes in areas that are prone and known to have severe forest and brush fires,
mudslides, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, etc.
I don't have any problem with anyone making a free choice to
live in these places, but when someone makes a free choice for themselves,
should they not also be accepting whatever the possible consequences of that
choice are? That is really what personal freedom is all about. It's interesting
to note that the largest population densities, not only in the U.S. but in countries
on every continent, seem to be where many, if not most or the worst natural
disasters occur, often repeatedly. I guess it goes without saying it's not nice
to fool with Mother Nature.
Another topic dealing with freedom in the news of late is
our involvement in the Middle East. The loss of four Americans in what is,
variably, described as a cover-up, incompetence or political posturing during
an important election cycle. This has slid down the chute to the question about
"intelligence" and is there any? And then we look at the concept of
privacy and any expectation of privacy. Personally, General Petraeus and
General Allen and their dalliances are really of no interest to me. However,
the invasion of our privacy is a big question.
I read an article this morning in the New York Times about
this privacy issue. I found it interesting that some, supposed, authority on
such matters stated that we mere mortals don't have to concern ourselves with
the FBI doing warrant-less taps on our phones and tracking and reading our
emails. Yet, according to other authorities, the National Security Agency
(NSA), another "secret" intelligence organization, has software that
listens or can listen to virtually every phone call and scan every email and
text in the U.S. and going out of and coming into the U.S. Of course, they
can't actually listen to or read every communication. But, the software is
designed to recognize sensitive words or terms and raises a red flag that can
trigger your phone or emails to be monitored. So, beware of what you say, even
in jest, on the phone or in emails or texts.
This goes on and on. There are video cameras watching where
you are driving, where you are shopping, what you're doing when you use an ATM
and walking through a parking lot to mention only a few. You can be tracked by
which cell phone towers your phone is pinging. GPS can pinpoint your location
within a few feet. You can go on Google Earth and look at where you are from
above or at street level. Without question, all of these technologies can be
used for your convenience, safety and security and that's exactly how they are
sold to you. It's the guy in the white hat convincing you of the immense
personal value of all this. But, there is also a guy in a black hat and he also
has a set of controls to all this technology and anytime he chooses, he can use
if for whatever nefarious purposes he deems worthy.
Sure, we could get paranoid about all of this, but
that doesn't change anything and just makes our lives more stressful. The best
thing we can do is to make careful, researched choices about our personal
freedom. Use the technology to our best advantage. Do your best to find ways to
stay beneath the radar and off the grid as much as is possible and reasonable
in your own determination. And, remember the words of the song, We will
fight for the right to be free.
