H. L. Mencken On Safety And Freedom

What is the perfect balance between freedom and order? Not only is it a question American society has been asking itself since its creation but also a question humanity has yet to answer. In all likelihood such a perfect balance will never be achieved but doesn’t mean people won’t strive for such perfection. Before delving on deeper one must first ask, ‘what is order?’ Order is the limitation of freedom; limitation of freedom is necessary, to an extent, to uphold society. Human society has two extremes at each end of its spectrum, anarchy and tyranny. Two complete opposites, anarchy is pure freedom and tyranny is the ultimate repression of freedom. In the middle

The common man today does not necessary want to be completely free if that forfeits his right to feel safe in his own nation. Many individuals are willing to give up their freedoms in many things in order to secure a sense of welfare and security in life. People are giving up their freedom of speech, their freedom of expression, their freedom in many things, in order to simply be safe. H.L. Mencken’s quote only applies to a certain extent in contemporary societies because sometimes we are giving up our safety in order to find our freedom such as loyal patriots who help the nation by fighting overseas or the brave policemen and firefighters that help all communities nationwide.

"Freedom is Slavery" is a paradoxical phrase that George Orwell utilizes in 1984. It is a tactic used by the government to manipulate its citizens and keep them under their power by allowing them to believe in a contradicting phrase. To have ultimate control over its citizens the party believes to limit the freedom the citizens hold. The government is trying to sway its citizens away from complete freedom and enforcing them to enslave themselves to Big Brother. Although there are no laws in Oceania the party enforces the idea that if you are completely free you have many responsibilities but if you are a slave all you have to do is follow directions.

When founding the United States, the founding fathers sought to avoid the tyrannical rule they thought Great Britain exemplified. In order to do this, the founding fathers looked to history, specifically, the failed democracies of Ancient Greece and Rome, to model their country after. Now, the United States is regarded as a nation being founded upon and one that upholds the principles of democracy and liberty. Due to the United States’ association with liberty and democracy, it has become the common assumption that tyrannical rule could never occur here. However, recent occurrences of authoritarianism in Europe throughout the twentieth century, show that there is not much of a difference between Americans today and

Benjamin Franklin wrote, "They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."

As Benjamin Franklin once said, “They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety”. In Benjamin Franklin’s quote is saying that if someone gives up the necessary liberty to receive safety that means they do not deserve neither safety nor liberty. Safety can be defined as the state of being safe; freedom from the occurrence or risk of injury, danger, or loss. It can also be defined as the quality of averting or not causing injury, danger, or loss. In modern day safety is prominent in the society, safety has even been questioned in today’s society.

Foner emphasizes on the diverse interpretations of freedom, and based on people’s lived experiences within American society, it can represent different things. Since it has no fixed definition within the article, Foner views freedom as a concept and states “by its very nature is the subject of disagreement” (xiv). People’s worldview can help shape what freedom means to them and it may limit what freedom means to others. Although the Declaration of Independence promotes all humans having unalienable rights given by the creator, which are life , liberty and the pursuit of happiness, not all americans are able to enjoy those rights in American society. As American societal norms constantly change (eventually),

Safety and freedom are both essential components of society and many argue over which component holds desirability in modern civilization. Many, like H.L. Mencken, believe that humanity’s desire to be safe trumps their ambition to be free. This view may hold true for multitudinous individuals, however safety is defined differently by each person based on their own morals and values.

However, with freedom, whether spiritual or political, come the social evils of immoderation and lawlessness. Also, with political liberty comes economic freedom (or

Benjamin Franklin, one of the founding fathers of the United States, once said “Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.” In America’s society today, some are willing to sacrifice their civil liberties in order to gain protection and security over some potential threat. Especially after the events of September 11th and several attempted bombings in U.S. cities. This sacrifice of individual freedoms such as the freedom of speech, expression, the right to information, to new technologies, and so forth, for additional protection is more of a loss than a gain. Citizens of the United States deserve equal liberty and safety overall, as someone should not have to give up

In 1784, Benjamin Franklin stated, "They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." It is hard to say whether or not Benjamin Franklin is right due to the fact that we face different struggles in this day and age that people in Napoleon Bonaparte’s and Franklin’s era did not have to worry about. Our situations regarding security and freedom, especially after September 11, 2001, dramatically changed as citizens realized how often their everyday lives were jeopardized with each new discovery and invention concerning weapons or violence.

Self-protection has always been a staunch priority for any civilization, society, or for even an individual. It has been said that the U.S was founded on certain God-given rights and that those rights may not be infringed upon by governments. Furthermore, to ensure those rights remain protected, certain assurances were written into the U.S. Constitution’s Bill Of Rights. According to the Lonang Library, “It is [the peoples] Right, it is their duty, to throw off...[a] Government [i.e. tyrannical one], and to provide new Guards for their future security” (Pratt 2014). This quotation represents the mentality of, and often the ability of, a self-governing and free society. With this ability, however, comes necessary responsibilities such as

As Benjamin Franklin once said, “Those who would give up essential liberty, to purchase temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.”

In the 1880’s to 1990’s, the government had not yet reached a point at which they could proclaim the United States as safe. However, in our contemporary society, this is not the case, as a majority of the U.S. is considered safe. It is safe to say that, although, the people of other centuries viewed freedom as a trivial and considered their safety to be of utmost importance. This phenomena in the centuries happens to not apply in our current society. Therefore, H.L. Mencken’s statement about not wanting to be free is not necessarily wrong, but does not apply to society at the moment. There are many examples of new men in this case adults who view freedom from their parent’s gaze is far more important than them securing a good life, good wealth,

The concept of freedom is always changing and is often open to interpretation. In today’s society, humans are generally born free with equal dignity and rights. Depending on the society one is born into, their interpretation of who really has freedom can change. In Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, the mass production of humans, conditioning, and the use of drugs through technology maintains sovereignty within society. This results in freedom being taken from citizens living in a dehumanized society.