Is the USA Really...

[Optimus Prime]

The Land of The Free?

I don't think so, i heard yesterday that you aren't even allowed to fly into Cuba or Russia. Is that true?

[ben-the-slacker]

Cuba - yes
Russia - not sure, prolly false

[chipbgt]

H. L. Mencken:

The average man does not want to be free. He simply wants to be safe.

Mark Twain:

It is by the goodness of God that in our country we have those three unspeakably precious things: freedom of speech, freedom of conscience, and the prudence never to practice either of them.

Napoleon Bonaparte:

Nothing is more difficult, and therefore more precious, than to be able to decide.

I'm just really bored and looked up quotes on freedom to move threads around in the night.

[JacobM5727]

cuba, you can go there, but i think its illegal to spend money
there, or something stupid like that,
http://travel.state.gov/cuba.html
it says you cant go there.. but there are unofficial ways to go there, since i know a guy who was there

http://travel.state.gov/russia.html
and russia
you can go there i think, but its not advised

didnt really read the links, so dont take my word on this stuff

its not to restrict our freedom, its to protect them from our money, and for political reasons

[vass0922]

a friend of mine went to russia with his family in December, so you can most certainly go there.

He's not exactly the type to "acquire alternative travel" either, so it was most likely legit.

[Optimus Prime]

So you can go to Russia but not to Cuba, alright, ta .

[vass0922]

There are TIGHT trade sanctions with Cuba so its completely illegal to even own a cuban cigar.

[John Prophet]

Too bad...they say Cuba used to be a really nice place to go....sort of in the Pre Castro years. Of course when they let Russia put nukes there pointing at us..it sort of soured things a wee bit, lol.


"The Land of The Free?" Well...I think anyone can see that freedom comes at a price....you have to work at certain things to become free. If freedom means a society with no rules whatsoever..then I dont want to be free, lol. Freedom and mob rules chaos are two different things.

On a personal level its also true.....when I was "living for myself" and I suppose "trying to be free"....doing anything I wanted anytime blah blah...hitting the bars, partying, hooking up with the women etc etc...I was a miserable, lazy, chubby 20 something failure...slaving for other people in dead end jobs.

Now that I am "living for Jesus"...I have truely found freedom. I am relaxed with myself, run my own business, understand life in general much better, have way more confidence. Some people would say "yeah whatever, but I dont want all those rules". lol....I say "what rules"? You mean "rules" like not partying? Wow, I REALLY miss going somewhere and getting wasted, spending 60$ on drinks and waking up feeling like an idiot.

So if you really want to be "free" there HAS to be some certain restrictions to actually give you that freedom..there is always a tradeoff of sorts. I suppose one must decide what is really important.

Same for countries, same for businesses, same for individuals.


Like Tiger Woods....he is young, plays golf for a living, hasnt "worked" a day in his life. But he was a slave to his golf practice for MANY years and even still is....and he had NO GUARANTEE that things would turn out so rosy for all his efforts. So we would look at him with envy and say "must be nice"...yeah...he is "free" but he has paid the price to enjoy that freedom.


Like the old commercial said "you can pay me now, or you can pay me later"

Sometimes it's "you can pay a LITTLE now or a LOT later".

So far the "restrictions" placed on Americans must not be TOO terribly bad......else why are so many people flooding our borders risking life and limb to get in?? Even the ones who cry oppression..uhh, yeah I dont really see them leaving too quickly, lol. The very things they cry foul about are part of the price of freedom that allow them to cry in the first place, lol...if they really thought it was so bad here I guess theyd be packing their bags for...I dont know, Cuba maybe?

JP

[Optimus Prime]

Are they still there though?

[John Prophet]

The nukes? I doubt it....but I am sure they are still communist and I dont think it would take too much sleuth work to determine that many spies etc pass from their borders over to ours, not to mention drug traffic (of course we supply the demand, lol).

Either way sometimes you need a fence up to have good relations with a neighbor, lol. Sometimes freedom must come thru strength.


Please tell me you are not one of those who want us all to just put flowers in our hair and lay down all the weapons and "just get along".
(see---> John Lennon)
--------------------------

I have to be careful in these kinds of threads because I believe in theocracy...not communism or even frankly, not democracy. I dont want to come off as defending the kind of things this country or that country do because brute force is also wrong. Democracy will fail just as surely as communism. Some people say America nowadays practices "social democracy" which isnt too far different from "democratic socialism". I dont know about all that and I dont really try to formulate all my opinions along political lines of thinking....rather along spiritual.

In the kind of kingdom that Jesus will run there will be no weapons...there'll be no need for them..nor for political pressuring and endless crooked compromises.

JP