Arguing the case for Liberty is never easy. People say they want to be free and know they should be free. It is the means by which we want to get there that is misguided. We will willfully violate Liberty as a means to achieve a free society.

The idea that we can violate Liberty in order to have Liberty is ridiculous. The Western world has taken freedom for granted. We know that a free society is the only humane way to live. What we don’t know realize is that our societies have become less free over time–less humane.

Not only have we not kept our houses in order but, we go around telling everyone else how they should live. Those living in glass houses should not throw stones. We force our way of life on everyone else and expect them to like it. We forget that Liberty means we can live one way and our neighbors another.

We have decided that temporary safety is more important than lasting Liberty. Whether the monsters are terrorists or financial crises, we want protection from them at the expense of our freedoms. So while we say we respect personal Liberties, we act in the exact opposite.

We should stop lying to ourselves and admit it: we don’t believe in freedom. We just give it lip service. Deep down we may still know that Liberty is right but, we have lost our understanding and respect for Liberty. The following are seven reasons for Liberty that will try to reawaken the free spirit inside all of us.

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Shawn Johnson with Peace Earrings

I am as caught up in Olympic-fever as many others. I’ve written about several Olympic things on my personal blog including the gymnastics “controversies”. I have thoroughly enjoyed the events that I usually watch–swimming, gymnastics, basketball, track & field, etc.

Shawn Johnson has impressed me since I first saw her compete at these Olympics. It is easy to see that Shawn is an excellent gymnast–her performances are spectacular and she comes through under pressure. On top of her physically abilities, I am even more impressed by her metal attitude. She had fallen just short of Gold quite a few times but, always finished with a big smile on her face. You could never tell if she was upset or disappointed or feeling any other negative feeling. She always wore a big bright smile.

She did win Gold on the beam event finals and I am very happy for her. She deserved it. In an interview after her Gold medal, Shawn wore a pair of peace earrings. It is hard to tell if she just wore them because she thought they looked nice or if she was actually making a statement–a statement for peace. I did learn that she also sells jewelry at her online store. Those peace earrings aren’t for sale there. Her entrepreneurial spirit with an online store is highly impressive as well.

Since the athletes are not allowed to blog while they the Olympics are going on, there is no way to find out what they feel about current events unless you happen to know them. She might have been making a statement about the Georgia/Russia issue or just taking a general stance against war–for peace. Hard to tell but, I am glad she chose to wear them on an internationally broadcast interview–she could have chosen to promote earrings that she sold.

Shawn Johnson is an incredibly impressive 16 year old from what one can gather without actually knowing her. Olympic champion, entreprenuer, smile-aholic, and peace-lover?