Even after a tragedy as devastating as what happened on Sept. 11, many of us still take for granted the freedoms we have here in our great nation. In this country we can freely voice our opposition to our government’s positions when we disagree. All of our citizens have a voice and we are all equal. Here we may do as we please, to a reasonable extent. We have a voluntary military: only in times of great need are we drafted to serve our country. We can even choose not to go and consequently serve a brief prison sentence. As many of us here on this campus exercise these freedoms and criticize our government’s current and past policies, we should not forget that in many nations’ people do not have these luxuries. In Afghanistan, refugees are trying to flee their country because they do not want to fight on the side of the Taliban. Instead of being allowed to flee, they are dragged out of buses, given guns and made to fight along side the people that attacked the USA. If these people voice opposition or refuse to fight, they are killed.
So the next time you use your freedom of speech, think about how hard our forefathers fought so that you could have that freedom, and think about how hard some Americans will fight now, be it with the pen or the sword, so that others may enjoy such a luxury.
—Justin Fleshman