WHAT ARE WE AFRAID OF?

Mr. and Mrs. Huguenon, professional photographers in New Mexico, refused to provide their services to a gay couple having a commitment ceremony on the grounds that it would violate their Christian tenets.   They were sued and found guilty of sexual discrimination.  In his decision, the judge said, in part:

"At its heart, this case teaches that at some point in our lives all of us must compromise, if only a little, to accommodate the contrasting values of others…. That compromise is part of the glue that holds us together as a nation, the tolerance that lubricates the varied moving parts of us as a people…. In short, I would say to the Huguenins, with the utmost respect: it is the price of citizenship."

And I would say to the judge, without the slightest bit of respect:  "You are barred from being a judge.  It is the price of ignorance."

1.  The glue that holds us together is our dedication to individual freedom.
2.  That freedom does not require us TO DO ANYTHING...it requires us TO REFRAIN FROM DOING SOMETHING: from denying others their freedom...which can only be done by force.
3.  Freedom is not alienable, nor subject to compromise.  If it were, it would not be freedom but temporary permission...and that is not what our country was founded on.
4.  When you require  the Huguenins to take those pictures, it is you that is guilty of a crime:  the initiation of force against them.

The Huguenins do not have to give any reason for turning down the job, religious or otherwise.  They are free to turn it down simply because they don't wish to do it.  They do not have to meet social standards for running a business (see 2 above).  They do not have to provide their services to anyone or everyone who walk in their shop (see 2 above).  They are free to choose to take pictures of only African Americans, or of only Jews, or of only people whose name begins with the letter M.  Their freedom is absolute, and their lives are absolutely theirs to live as they, not as judges, choose (see 1-4 above).

And your life is free to live as you choose.

Would someone please tell me why so many seem afraid of...freedom?

(In my book, Awakening the Real You, I discuss in detail how society, parents and teachers, have sought to restrain our freedom...and how to escape the devastating consequences of losing our natural right to live our lives as WE choose.)