{"id":2987,"date":"2018-11-11T08:55:04","date_gmt":"2018-11-11T15:55:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/journeyinstitute.org\/?p=2987"},"modified":"2018-11-11T09:56:34","modified_gmt":"2018-11-11T16:56:34","slug":"freedom","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/devjourneyinstitute.com\/ji\/index.php\/2018\/11\/11\/freedom\/","title":{"rendered":"Freedom"},"content":{"rendered":"

I\u2019m a veteran.
\nEvery year I read \u2018thank you for your service\u2019 messages and I\u2019m grateful. Truly, I am.
\nThis year, I\u2019m also frustrated.<\/p>\n

FREEDOM!<\/strong><\/p>\n

That\u2019s what most people equate to Veterans as to why we serve, why we fight. To protect and preserve that most basic of American values: Freedom.
\nSo what, exactly is this thing we\u2019re fighting for?<\/p>\n

Look it up.<\/p>\n

Google\u2019s dictionary has the easiest to read answer.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Webster\u2019s Dictionary is more proper though it essentially says the same thing:<\/p>\n

freedom<\/strong>
\n free\u00b7dom | \\\u02c8fr\u0113-d\u0259m \\
\n noun
\n1: the quality or state of being free: such as
\na: the absence of necessity, coercion, or constraint in choice or action<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

So why am I frustrated? Because this \u201cfreedom\u201d you think I was fighting for isn\u2019t the freedom you say it is.
\nThis past election showed me that what you call freedom isn\u2019t the same thing as what freedom ACTUALLY is.<\/p>\n

Look at those definitions again: the right to act, speak, or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint.<\/p>\n

Basically, if you want to boil this down to its simplest form it means \u201cLive and Let Live\u201d.<\/p>\n

The vitriol and hate, the accusations, lies, and outright disdain for each other, FROM BOTH SIDES, that spewed across social media this past election proves one thing. You think Freedom means you get to think and act and believe the way you do but everyone who doesn\u2019t agree with you doesn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s not how this works.<\/p>\n

The \u2018absence of necessity, coercion, or constraint in choice or action\u2019 means that you get to believe and think and act (within the boundaries of the law) the way you want to AND SO DOES EVERYONE ELSE.<\/p>\n

THAT is what I spent my years serving to protect. Freedom for all.<\/p>\n

Stop trying to make everyone act and think and believe the way you do. That\u2019s not freedom, that\u2019s oppression.<\/p>\n

The vast majority of American\u2019s want practical, common sense government. Stop letting the fringes (on both sides) dictate your opinion of what \u201cthose people\u201d are like.
\nFind out for yourself. Talk to people who disagree with you. It\u2019s okay. We\u2019re not supposed to all think alike and it\u2019s okay to have differences of opinion.<\/p>\n

Find somewhere to start. Find a point you can all agree on and then start the conversation on the various (there are almost always more than one) solutions to those problems.<\/p>\n

Yes, there will be fundamental points on which you cannot find consensus. That doesn\u2019t mean you have to hate someone or accuse them of doing despicable things. The vast majority of people who belong to political parties, as well as those who belong to none, are just like you. They have their opinions and by and large they are rational thinking people.<\/p>\n

So, thank you for thanking me for my service. I appreciate it, truly.
\nAnd if you really want to thank me and other veterans for their sacrifices, maybe you could try respecting the freedom we fought for. I mean actually respecting it. Acting like adults instead of spoilt children who didn\u2019t get the toy they wanted.<\/p>\n

This isn\u2019t about just you.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s about all of us.<\/p>\n

Freedom is not free, and it doesn\u2019t apply to just those who think, act, look, and behave like you do.
\nIt belongs to us all.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I\u2019m a veteran. Every year I read \u2018thank you for your service\u2019 messages and I\u2019m grateful. Truly, I am. This year, I\u2019m also frustrated. FREEDOM! That\u2019s what most people equate to Veterans as to why we serve, why we fight. To protect and preserve that most basic of American values: Freedom. So what, exactly is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"builder_content":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/devjourneyinstitute.com\/ji\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2987"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/devjourneyinstitute.com\/ji\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/devjourneyinstitute.com\/ji\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devjourneyinstitute.com\/ji\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devjourneyinstitute.com\/ji\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2987"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/devjourneyinstitute.com\/ji\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2987\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2990,"href":"https:\/\/devjourneyinstitute.com\/ji\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2987\/revisions\/2990"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/devjourneyinstitute.com\/ji\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2987"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devjourneyinstitute.com\/ji\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2987"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devjourneyinstitute.com\/ji\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2987"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}