Illusion of freedom

Wisdom of the week

[Reprinted from Issues & Views May 5, 2003]

A friend of mine observes that the state achieves its real victory when the people call the state "we." It means that the people have become so servile that they no longer consider themselves separate from their masters. . . .

Why do people feel they must justify those who tyrannize them? I think it's because their self-respect is at stake. They don't want to feel or recognize that they have become voluntary slaves of the state. That would be too humiliating. So they consent to their own servitude with a vengeance.

By defending the state, they can feel that they are on the side of power--which is true. They can also feel, in spite of the most obvious facts, the illusion of freedom. Like children sucking up to a schoolyard bully, they can pretend they are not in abject fear of what they defend.

-- Joseph Sobran, excerpt from his syndicated column, "Voluntary Slaves" (April 15, 2003). He is author of several books, and is currently writing one about the abandonment of the Constitution. For the most candid insights on culture, government and society, subscribe to Sobran's newsletter.

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