#freedom #responsibility #COVID19 #coronavirus #FlattenTheCurve #vaccinations
Personal freedom is your right.
But you have to use it responsibly.
You have the right to hurt yourself, but you have the responsibility not to hurt others.
To paraphrase the late Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, you have the right to swing your fist, but the responsibility not to bloody someone’s nose.
To again paraphrase Ben Franklin, we have the right to create a republic, but the responsibility to do what we must to keep it.
Personal freedoms are not just given. They are given with the caveat that we will use them responsibly.
Most of us, deep down, understand the concept. But, today, there are a few who apparently do not.
In terms of COVID-19 vaccinations, you have the right to refuse it, get ill, even die, though no one wishes that for anyone. You don’t have the right to get the virus and, however unintentionally, give it to someone else.
It all boils down to risk. Most everything we do in life involves risk. We make decisions on what to do, or not do, based on a risk (and reward) assessment.
Certainly, not all risks are worth taking. Some risks can be minimized. Some can be avoided. The key is to determine your risk tolerance based on good information, a strong feeling of self-preservation and a strong desire not to inflict unwanted hardship on others – even others you may not know.
Risk also abounds in the workplace. Most people, unless they are in knowingly risky professions, don’t see taking a job as a risk.
In fact, they see taking a job as a necessity, regardless of the hardship it brings. The risk comes in the form of missed opportunity, taking Job X instead of Job Y.
What if you took Job X, but Job Y is completely different. And you could do Job Y while keeping Job X?
There are programs out there that allow people to, while they are off from Job X, to devote a few part-time hours to Job Y. Perhaps, eventually, unless they really love Job X, Job Y may be all they need to thrive financially.
To learn about one of the best such programs, message me.
Personal freedom ALWAYS comes with responsibility.
Think of freedom like a paycheck. You have the right to collect it, but you have the responsibility to do what you must to earn it.
One craves the freedom, but also must embrace the responsibility. One has the freedom to marry, but one must have the responsibility of fidelity to that marriage.
One has the freedom to choose, but has the responsibility to choose wisely.
One has the freedom to be a daredevil, but has the responsibility to ensure daredevil antics hurt no innocent bystanders.
So, if you support personal freedom, you MUST support taking the responsibility it requires.
Freedom and requirement are not mutually exclusive terms. We all cherish the freedom the U.S. allows. We have the responsibility to ensure that freedom does not hurt others.
Peter