#choice #freedom #FreedomofChoice #limitations #DiversityofThought
Whoever thought that the concept of choice would be so misunderstood?
Freedom is a second concept that seems misconstrued in today’s world.
Those combine for the misconception of the term Freedom of Choice.
Let’s start with choice. A person walks into a store, is confronted with an array of choices, decides and buys.
That simple concept has evolved into a case of having an array of choices in life, none of which is ideal. That means one has to decide on the lesser of evils. Some may feel that way as they, say, walk into a voting booth. Just because no choice is ideal doesn’t mean we should not make a choice. By all means, go to the polls and vote!
We have to evaluate in our minds which choice would be, for lack of a better term, less bad.
In terms of voting, sometimes one must use his or her vote to help prevent the worst of choices from getting elected.
In short, our lives revolve around choices. There may not be such things as the BEST choices, but, chances are, if the majority of one’s choices are BETTER, the better one’s life will turn out.
Freedom is another matter. Often, those who talk a lot about freedom do not want any of us to be free at all. THEY want to be free to make the rules, but they expect us to follow THEIR rules.
As a corollary, complete freedom for EVERY individual would lead to community chaos. Therefore, freedom has, and must have, its limits.
As an example, one may want to paint his or her house bright purple. But, neighbors will find it an eyesore, affecting their property value. Therefore, Mr. or Ms. purple house need some sort of approval to paint.
Most of what we do, and decisions we make, affect others. Therefore, we are not completely free to do as we wish, in many instances. So, we must agree on limitations and abide by those agreements. It’s called compromise, which has become a dirty word among a few.
If absolute freedom and best choices are not available to us in practical terms, what exactly is Freedom of Choice?
Does the concept really exist? How do we reconcile confining choice and limiting freedom into what most would see as a good life?
It involves being free to choose one’s limitations. It involves coexisting in a community in which there are diverse ideas of limiting freedom and choosing better.
To quote a Rolling Stones lyric, “You can’t always get what you want. But, if you try, sometimes you get what you need.”
We live in a world of diverse ideas of freedom and choice. That’s not something to be feared. It’s something to be embraced.
We actually might not only learn from each other, but also might draw from others’ belief systems ideas that will improve our own.
We may not be free to choose everything. But we should be grateful that we are allowed to experience diversity of thought, lifestyle and ideas. We can all be better for that privilege.
Peter