Dr. Martin Hash Podcast

Benjamin Franklin famously said, “those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty or safety.” The Corona virus scare tested Americans on this issue and we failed; at least the half the nation was willing to give up Freedom of Movement, Right to Assemble, Freedom of commerce, and even Freedom of Speech if it conflicted with the State-sponsored narrative; all because they chose life over liberty. It shouldn't even have been a contest: “I only regret that I have but one life to give for my county,” “give me liberty or give me death,” “better to die for freedom than remain a prisoner,” are the sentiments Americans used to aspire to. Life means little if you sacrifice what you're living for, but the only choice given was healthy people had to stay indefinitely confined to ostensibly save the lives of unhealthy people; a measure of how much our liberty is worth in comparison to a slight risk to their life.

Human life is definitely not the primary imperative: we send our best to be killed in war for our way of life; we drive even though there is epic lose of life in automobiles; not to mention extreme sports. People try to insist the choice is between life and money but it's definitely life vs. liberty, and there was another choice rather than choosing lockdowns. The liberty solution, the one Sweden adopted, was that people can make the individual decision of what risks to take for themselves and others; and their economy was saved along the way. When the priority is liberty, the details always seem to work themselves out.