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Sometimes when I pick up our youngest cat, Rambo (short for Rambunctious), she will -- for no apparent reason -- emit this high-pitched whine. Anyone listening to her cry might assume I was mercilessly tormenting her when, in reality, she is perfectly fine and pampered. Her whimsical wail of "distress" has earned her the title of "drama queen."
As a writer promoting freedom in a country that steadily and systematically adds thousands of laws and regulations yearly to the nearly incomprehensible load already weighting us down, I frequently raise a warning about serious problems few other people recognize or are willing to combat. One potential danger in this Cassandrian occupation is losing perspective. The context of life in the United States includes much that is good and enjoyable intermixed with the sorrows and troubles confronting us.
In maintaining the proper outlook, one must be cognizant not only of one's own weltanschauung but of the worldview held by other citizens. A common reply I have heard lately to some of my concerns is that "It's not so bad. It could be a lot worse."
For example, complaints about how U.S. soldiers recently treated prisoners in Iraq might be countered with "The inmates did not suffer all that much physical pain. It's not like what the Japanese did to Americans in WW II. The Iraqis got off easy. Saddam did much worse. In fact, by comparison, what the U.S. people did was relatively benign."
While it is good for understanding and decision-making not to over-dramatize a situation, examining the implicit premise behind an argument such as "It's not so bad. It could be worse." as an excuse for bad behavior conjures up disturbing possibilities.
The strategy adopted by those who bristle at strong (and allegedly ill-advised) criticism of our government echoes the words frequently uttered by children who have been discovered engaged in mischief. You find your young son in the midst of coloring the living room wallpaper. Alarmed, he looks wide-eyed at you, points a trembling finger at his older brother, and says in a hurt, self-righteous tone of voice, "Well, Sam was naughtier than me. He broke the dining room lamp!"
As a diversion, this approach might serve temporarily to shift your attention to a different perpetrator. But the failings of a third party does nothing to mitigate the initial transgression by the accused any more than the sufferings of a stranger who, say, lost a house in a fire diminishes your present upset at having your wallpaper ruined.
When used in a political context, the "Not so bad. It could be worse." defense is no defense, at all. In judging those who routinely and/or egregiously violate our rights, what these folks ask us to accept is the worst as the standard for our evaluations rather than the best.
Object to taxes or unconstitutional laws or abuses and you are likely to hear answers similar to these:
"We pay fewer taxes than people do in other countries."
But the government has no right to any of our income. Legalized theft is no less theft and no less hurtful because the crook does not take nearly everything we possess but instead leaves us half rather than merely a tenth of our income.
"We have freedom of expression. You can still publish your writings, can't you?"
But what we write and say is subject to censorship if it is deemed a matter of "national security"; if it criticizes a political candidate too closely to an election; if someone "feels" it is insensitive or racist or sexist or discriminatory or demeaning or insulting or suspicious; if it violates "community standards" and is "obscene"; if it relates to tobacco products; if we are engaged in "commercial" writing; if we want to have a broadcast TV station or cable service or offer local channels on our satellite system; and what we read is subject to State scrutiny if we purchase or read the "wrong" books.
"We can buy a house and own property."
But the State can take it from us whenever it wants by deeming our property required for a "public use"; if we fail to pay taxes on it; if we do not build or remodel or paint it or use it in accordance with a confusing array of zoning and building codes and regulations and with the required permits; if we try to install an unapproved high-flow toilet; if we use too much water for our lawn; or if it lies in a "wetlands" or on not enough land.
"We can get married and enjoy personal intimacy."
But only if we get a license and are not gay or want to marry multiple partners and do not engage in the wrong sexual practices or with the wrong people or purchase and use the wrong sexual aids.
"We can raise our families as we want."
But not if we fail to adhere to the dictates of the State on how to educate our children and where; what we teach them; how we decide to keep them safe in cars or on bikes or skateboards; what vaccines or medical treatment we give them; what movies they can watch; whether we let them own and use guns; and whether we accept our children being turned into finks by cops in the D.A.R.E. program.
"We can still own guns."
But not if you live where they are completely banned; or if you fail to store them as required; or own too many guns or the wrong kinds of guns or too much ammunition; or if you carry them openly or concealed without the permission of the State; or use them to defend your family or home when you are forbidden to own a weapon.
"We can work at whatever jobs we want."
But only if we can produce a Social Security card and photo I.D. for our employer; if we give up half our income to Social Security, Medicare, the federal government, our state government, and our city government; if we do not work in certain professions without permission, i.e., licenses, from the State; if we do not try to perform work that the government declares to be illegal and immoral; if we hire the State-approved number of women or minorities or handicapped people; if we don't sell our products for too much or too little and don't sell to the wrong countries or pay our employees too little or too much and are willing to accept State-subsidized or -owned competitors; and if we don't insist on receiving gold rather than paper money for our wages or income.
"We can still get great medical care."
But only if we get permission from the State by providing proof of who we are and accept its right to access our medical records at its discretion; if we don't try to use unapproved procedures or treatments or take the wrong medicine or receive drugs without a State-sanctioned permission slip; and if we don't mind paying far more for insurance because of State-imposed coverage mandates.
"We can own a car and drive wherever we want."
But only if we buy cars that have State-dictated features and gas-mileage; if our cars have State-approved licenses; if we have State-approved drivers licenses; if we do not try to use Freon in our air-conditioning units; if we place our children in State-approved places and seats in our cars; if we accept random checks on the highway regardless of probable cause; and if we do not match a particular racial or economic profile.
"We have more food available than anywhere else."
But only if the food is labeled and packaged and inspected according to State standards; if we don't mind paying more because of State-created agricultural monopolies and subsidies; if we run a restaurant and are willing to accept the risk of lawsuits because we offer large proportions of good-tasting food or a customer drinks too much booze; if we are of a State-approved age to drink alcoholic beverages and drink when and where the State dictates and are willing to pay twice as much for our beer because of "sin" taxes.
Yes. Things are not so bad...as long as we use the worst alternative as the guide for making our judgments. To those who use the "It's not so bad. It could be worse." rationale, we should not complain when the government passes another restrictive law or regulation; we should not gripe when we discover there are more and more things we are required to do or are forbidden to do and less and less we are allowed to do. We should just accept what trickles of liberty remain to us and "be thankful" we don't live in a dictatorship.
However... Do we really want to hold our government to such a loose standard that as long as its agents don't out-and-out kill us or directly enslave us, we should hold our tongues and quietly and meekly go about our business? Are our lives, our goals, our property, our moral autonomy worth so little that we would surrender them with silent and grateful compliance?
Patrick Henry declared that he preferred death to a life sans freedom. Is that noble and inspiring principle now dead and forgotten in our society?
No infringement. No transgression. No theft. My life, my liberty, my soul are too precious to treat them as lightly as the "not so bad" crowd would have me do.
I expect the best of people. I expect the best of myself. I expect the best from those who are charged with protecting my freedom.
Nothing less than the best will do.
That outcome would definitely be "not so bad."
