COLUMN: America’s idea of ‘freedom’ is scaring rest of the world
More than two centuries ago, our forefathers felt tyrannized by a king, King George III of England. They felt like they were oppressed. So they rebelled.
We threw some tea around a harbor and eventually fought a revolution-13 little, podunk colonies against the premiere navy in the world.
And we won.
As such, in declaring our independence, the Founding Fathers stated, “Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes . . . but when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.”
So the story goes. At least that’s how I remember it. But somewhere in the whole scheme of things were the French.
Something about them helping us win the war or something. I don’t know, sometimes I forget.
Of course, these days we don’t think too highly of France. With their refusal to help in the Iraqi conflict, we almost changed the name of French fries to Freedom fries. Ya, that would have shown them.
You see, freedom seems to be the talk of the town these days. On Thursday, President Bush in his second inaugural address chose to address such a theme.
“We are led, by events and common sense, to one conclusion: The survival of liberty in our land increasingly depends on the success of liberty in other lands. The best hope for peace in our world is the expansion of freedom in all the world,” he said.
Such a phrase, “expansion of freedom,” has many in the world scared like the dickens.
With a whole lot of petroleum and strategic positioning in an extremely volatile part of the world at stake, many could see our occupation of Iraq as being a bit selfish.
All the same, will democracy succeed in Iraq? These days, it’s hard to say.
This Sunday will perhaps be its biggest step as Iraqi citizens vote for the future leadership of their country. It hasn’t been easy. Many insurgents have taken the opportunity with the world watching to attempt to disrupt such elections. And to a large extent, they’ve been successful.
The U.S. has stood at arms to help defend, but in the end it comes down to the question: will Iraqis want freedom enough that they will fight for it?
Democracy can never be forced on other countries. As President Bush stated in his inaugural address:
“Freedom, by its nature, must be chosen, and defended by citizens, and sustained by the rule of law and the protection of minorities . . . America will not impose our own style of government on the unwilling. Our goal instead is to help others find their own voice, attain their own freedom, and make their own way.”
Having said that, a champion for the underdog is still needed. In our own history, it was the French. For Iraq, it has been the United States among others.
And it is for that reason, I believe our cause is a noble one.
Perhaps many of us have taken our liberty for granted – we’ve had it for so long that we don’t realize how precious it really is. But for those who have lived a life full of oppression and tyranny, an innate desire for freedom certainly burns strong.
So it once was with us, and I believe it can still be so.
As President Bush said, “When the Declaration of Independence was first read in public and the Liberty Bell was sounded in celebration, a witness said, ‘It rang as if it meant something.'”
And I’m convinced it still does.
Jon Cox is a junior majoring in print journalism. Comments can be sent to jcox@cc.usu.edu.