Watered-Down Freedom

The left is constantly criticizing the United States of America. The beacon of freedom for the world is not what they want. Their decades of attacking our guaranteed rights and freedoms has changed our country, but they still want to erode it even further.

Many of their grievances are a result of their own creation. They attempt to degrade our Constitution while trying to usher in socialist policies, as they simultaneously protest the supposed tyranny of any Republican, especially Donald Trump.

Our Founding Fathers made an unequivocal commitment to the personal freedoms of Americans. The Constitution sent a message to the world that We, the People, were responsible for our own future. We allowed (yes, allowed) a government to work for us toward the common good.

Defense of our country. Building roads. Settling disputes. Government was extremely limited in its power. After all, we had just freed ourselves from tyrannical rule. Why would we want to set ourselves up for that possibility again?

Yet 240-plus years later, we find ourselves coming under the thumb of a faceless, uncaring, bureaucratic behemoth that neither respects the people, nor considers itself subservient to them.

As with all things, time has eroded the black and white statements of our Bill of Rights. Legal challenges, imagined loopholes and the interpretation of the Constitution as a "living document" instead of a decree, have reduced our freedoms to mere allowed, or even taxed, behavior by our "rulers." The muddling of black and white restraints on governmental rule have created the gray areas of our subordination.

For example, the Second Amendment clearly states, "the Right of the PEOPLE to Keep and Bear Arms," as well as the most definitive statement of the first 10 amendments, "Shall Not Be Infringed." Those two phrases are explicit directives.

Legal attacks have argued that merely because the word "militia" is used, the writers were referring to the equivalent of the modern-day National Guard. Richard Henry Lee, signer of the Declaration of Independence, clearly states. "A militia, when properly formed, are in fact the people themselves ... and include all men capable of bearing arms ... To preserve liberty, it is essential that the whole body of people always possess arms."

As far as infringement, most states today force you to pay taxes on your firearm, as well as pay for a background check, and then pay for a permit to carry or just own any firearm. This is extremely similar to a "poll tax" which has been ruled unconstitutional. There are also restrictions in many states on magazine capacity, firearm accessories and calibers. Although you can legally buy and carry a firearm in certain states, as soon as you cross a different state line, you automatically become a felon if found in possession of it.

These unamerican infringements have reduced the number of citizens who carry weapons, thereby increasing dependency on government to protect unarmed Americans and their families. Firearms, despite what leftists say, are a good thing. They allow the weaker to stand against stronger criminals, individuals to defend themselves against gangs, or women and the elderly to protect themselves from male aggressors.

Regarding the First Amendment and the gray areas that dilute it, Freedom of Religion is being trounced right now by Tory-like state governors who are using COVID-19 to restrict Christian mass and celebrations. Church congregations were limited to 25% of their capacity to worship, even as liberal mayors and Democratic senators joined mobs in the streets celebrating a supposed Joe Biden election win.

Apparently, Freedom of Speech means nothing on a "public" forum like Twitter or Facebook. Many conservative voices are shadow banned or suspended with no recourse, and "independent" fact checkers decide what is true, sometimes even contradicting medical professionals and experts.

I understand that the First Amendment restricts the government, but "public use" technologies, even when owned by a private entity, still consist of ideas, thoughts and statements made by the public, and that property must be protected. Imagine if the phone company decided what calls were inappropriate.

Freedom of the Press only applies now if you are a loyal leftist, and even then, you had better "toe the liberal line." In 2013, the Obama administration spied on Fox News reporter James Rosen, as well as seized phone records of other reporters and editors.

In a "double team" of violations, the social media giants have restricted the sharing of conservative articles or videos. News articles about Hunter Biden's questionable foreign activities were suppressed. Currently, many articles supporting President Trumps claims of election fraud are labeled as "false" or "untrue."

Protection against "unreasonable search and seizure" was lost when the government gained the technology to capture and retain every digital communication used. Cell phone calls, emails and social media messaging can be accessed whenever the government feels that you have become a threat. (I am sure the writing of this and other articles has made me known to some basement bureaucrat.)

As much as I want this piece to end on a positive note, I do not think that I can. Continuing down the current path, our country will no longer be a republic, governed by laws and the Constitution. We are on a path of true Democracy (mob rule), which will consist of everyone voting for more "free" things from the government. Healthcare. Tuition. Guaranteed income.

This will lead to a bigger government, capable of providing even the most basic necessities, which will then devolve into socialism. The leap from there to communism merely involves removal of our basic rights, which are already being eroded.

We conservative and Trump-supporting Americans can see what is happening. Those attacking or diluting our freedoms deny their actions. The leftist media does not need to actively support these changes. They merely need to keep most of the public from understanding that these changes are happening at all. They use projection (blaming your opponent for what you are actually doing) and distraction to keep the ignorant in the dark.

The most important thing is for us to merely get the message out, informing the indifferent and the uninformed. We must educate, not confront. Our battle is uphill, against a liberal media monopoly, but we must expose the lies, the theft of our freedom and the goals of the left to the general public. Whereas we have logic and reason on our side, the left merely has emotion. This battle is winnable but will take a massive effort.

John Cylc is a conservative Christian and eight year U.S. Army veteran who primarily speaks out on the Second Amendment, gun rights issues, and contemporary topics. Born and raised in Philadelphia, he currently resides with his wife and youngest son in the foothills of the Smoky Mountains in beautiful East Tennessee. He is the founder of ThirteenFox.com and a former contributor to LifeZette. Read John Cylc's Reports — More Here.