Too Much Freedom Is Unhealthy

Too Much Freedom Is Unhealthy

Too Much Freedom Is Unhealthy

No matter who you are or where you are from, if you ever get to read or listen to the speeches of your nation’s founders and historians, you will get to hear one word for sure: freedom.   The demand for freedom is not new or modern but it has interlaced with the world’s history for centuries. For example, if you turn back to the 18^th century-the time of the French Revolution, you will remember the motto of the French Republic, ‘Liberty, Equality and Fraternity’. By liberty, the French meant freedom for their nation. And if we take a recent example like India or Pakistan, people from both countries bore hardships and sacrificed their lives to have freedom for their nations.     Almost every country in the world that got it liberated from the other states did it in the name of freedom but one thing must be noticed here:  although the factor behind every struggle was freedom its meaning was different in the eye of these nations. For some like Pakistan, it was to attain religious freedom, for India- it was to have political freedom or freedom from any external power. For the French nation, freedom meant to be free of any above authority or monarchy.  Similarly, America was the first state to be found in the name of liberty- a freedom for every citizen to live as he desires. In short, freedom has always served as a dynamic force for states achieving ends. But the real question of this essay is not how much ‘desire for freedom’ has contributed to the formation of state but that how much it has given advantages to the states after founding.

By tone or meaning, freedom is a very soft and positive word but has it always been like this in nature? Or is the use of freedom sometimes proves harmful to the state? America is a unique country in the sense that it provides great liberty or freedom to its citizens that other countries look up to it.  Americans are not bound by any religion or specific way to live by, they have the liberty to lead life according to their choice. America is known as the first state to be emerged out as a liberal nation and is still famous for its diversity today. But today we see America is losing its charm gradually and other nations have stopped looking up to its liberty as they used to. The liberals or majoritarian there are misusing their freedom in the name of their right. For instance, if we ponder on the gun-culture in America, it’s on the rise. A lot has taken place due to this gun-holding debate in the recent years but the authorities there have always failed to take any decision because gun ownership is an individual’s right and freedom according to America’s constituency too.

Similarly, the First Amendment to U.S Constitution calls for complete freedom of speech and freedom of the press for its citizens. Freedom of speech is something that allows a person to speak irreverently of his/her mind. It is something for which America takes pride in itself but here too the phrase ‘excess of everything is bad’ interferes. Freedom of Speech is widely embraced by the general public there but the recent years have forced America to think about this amendment.  Freedom of speech and democracy are interlinked. Freedom of speech serves as a demand and important aspect of democracy but in the past recent years, it can be clearly seen that it is harming democracy. In America, specifically after 9/11, there has been seen a rapid increase in the hatred towards Muslims.  Not only the Muslim community but also the immigrants and minorities have started posing as a threat to the citizens. America is famous for the multiculturalism it possesses but today too much racial discrimination has started taking place due to people bullying and verbally attacking each other. In short, racial sentiments are being inflamed there in the name of free speech.

Now even if we talk about freedom of the press, it is something given too much support like freedom of speech. We live in a technological world. Here, in today’s era, people like to stay aware of each and every happening going on in the world. In this respect, the press plays a major role. Putting a restriction on the press is morally and absolutely wrong. Freedom of the press is impeccably fine as long as it is not used to create hatred and false stories. Similarly, it is perfectly acceptable as long as it does not start invading a person’s life, for example, paparazzi have today become more about money making than rubrics. They wait outside a famous person’s house just to get some news or they follow them 24/7 to get a single photo. They chase them all the time to ignore everything else around them. In this respect, they sometimes harm a common man and disturb their comfort. In short, sometimes they behave so carelessly in the name of freedom.

Sometimes common freedom assigned to man is, in reality, a danger for another person. For instance, if we talk about smoking, the debate on whether smoking should be banned in public spaces is a common one. Those in favor claim that it’s their basic right and liberty without realizing that this same freedom plays with the lives of many around them. Their freedom of smoking becomes dangerous when they smoke in public where a passerby could be an asthma patient or someone allergic to it.

If we talk in terms of common issues then we see in many parts of the world, it’s very common to catch a site of a young underage child riding a bike or driving a car. For example, the ratio of underage driving is alarming in Pakistan and there is no restriction either by parents or government on that. More or less, the police force or traffic wardens on catching them just hand over few hundred rupees fine and let them go. In Pakistan, Kids don’t usually learn driving from professionals or join a driving school; they just learn it at home either by seeing their parents or by learning the basics from them.  On providing their children with freedom and independence, parents forget the danger that comes with the freedom.

Owning a gun for your safety is not wrong, it’s your liberty to defend yourself from any harm but the problem arises when people misuse it, without any license or practice, on the name of freedom. Freedom of speech and press are something related to democracy if they fail democracy cannot function properly. People form societies, they chose leaders, they decide the future hence their voices should be heard at any cost but again when people start using this right to hurt other people, it becomes unsafe.  Similarly, media is a source through which a common man can easily share his views but things become bad when the same media propagates the mind of a common man by creating fabricated stories.

To sum up, freedom is a wonderful thing as long as it is not in excess. Every ungoverned and unlimited freedom comes with certain drawbacks. Just imagine for a while, if there were no rules on traffic, no speed limits, no driving age restriction, no gun control laws, no religion boundedness, and foremost no ruler and you are given absolute freedom. What would be the state of affair? Chaos, anarchy and hustle bustle every moment. Who would decide what to do and how to do? One would want one thing and the other prefers something else. One person’s Free Will will collide with the other person’s. Hence it can be said that no doubt freedom is the fundamental right of a person but rules, regulations, and limitations run the country or lives. Leaving the role of a citizen aside, even our personal lives go on with some rules and balance. Absolute freedom takes the world to anarchy and too little makes it tyranny hence the only solution for the wise is to behave responsibly by crafting a balance always.