"Those who would sacrifice liberty for security deserve neither."I thought it would be easy to track it down but there seems to be some disagreement about it. The best I could come up with was Benjamin Franklin in the Pennsylvania Assembly, November 11, 1755.
What made me think of it was a statement by C.S. Lewis in Mere Christianity, p. 32.
“Comfort is the one thing you cannot get by looking for it. If you look for truth, you may find comfort in the end: if you look for comfort you will not get either comfort or truth...”Franklin was of course talking about how some people want the government to take care of them. One of the benefits of civilization is that the safety that comes in numbers means we do not need to be as alert as a frontier farmer or explorer would need to be. There is safely in numbers. Like any drug, it can become an overdose. There are many readily available drugs today that become addictive and destructive because they become substitutes for healthy living.
We live in a world where the masses want perfect security. They want someone to filter their water, inspect their food, approve their medications, eliminate air pollution, guarantee their health, remove weeds from their lawn.... Remember the acronym: TANSTASFL. Everything costs.
When you give someone else the responsibility to care for you, they also receive the power to control you. It is a necessary trade off. If you want to enter into that exchange, enjoy your slavery. It may be comfortable and secure. It is still slavery. The problem I have is when you force it on me.
I have always thought the quote was Franklin and it has always been one of my favorites
ReplyDeletethank you for commenting on my photos, I'm glad that you've been enjoying them
Thank you and I hope you are feeling better.
ReplyDeleteBlessings