More Than a Body—It’s My Freedom

How do you know if you are free? Seems like a question with an obvious answer but if you ask someone in Cuba if he is free he may tell you that Castro made him free from the U.S. May be but is he free from Castro?

Philosopher historians long ago wrestled with the question and determined that a fundamental aspect of freedom is the right to personal possessions. It’s right out of the Bible. When God said “Thou shalt not steal” he wasn’t protecting the state. He was establishing an essential right of the individual.

So what do you own that others cannot take and where do your rights of possession begin? One of the first things a parent teaches a child is the right to own his body. But that right comes with responsibilities. As a child grows he overcomes the need for diapers, takes care of personal necessities, and thus earns the right to privacy.

With that in mind there are two things in the news this week that reflect ominous trends. In Italy the National Post reports that in a speech to 1200 airport workers the Pope criticized body scanners insisting that “human dignity must be preserved.” Although he never used the word “body scanner” it was clear that was what he meant when he said: “It is above all essential to protect and value the human person in their integrity.”

One news source referred to the issue as a serious invasion of an individual’s personal privacy to be required to pass before a machine which presents a clear image of a practically naked body to complete strangers.

Israel, which has the safest airports in the world, says such procedures are unnecessary and ineffective. But Israel does two things that America has outlawed. First, they profile potential passengers before they ever arrive so terrorists never enter the airport and second citizens have the right to carry weapons in public. In fact, it is common to see citizens walking through an airport with a rifle slung over one shoulder. Citizens are expected to be part of the Israeli defense team.

These are manifold differences at the basic level. One country requires people to give up a fundamental right of freedom while the citizens are increasingly at risk, while another grants personal freedoms of self-protection and is safe in a land surrounded by terrorists.

The second news story was about Danny Williams the Premier of Newfoundland, a province of Canada along the Atlantic coast, who came to America for a heart value replacement. Since Canada has a much publicized program of socialized medicine, he could have had the procedure done in Canada and paid for by the government. Why come to America and pay for it out of his pocket?

When the government pays for medical treatment the government chooses what procedure the patient will receive. The patient gives up sovereign rights over his body. In this case Canadian law required an “open-sternum” operation. For the not-so-squeamish that means the surgeon uses a saw to cut through the chest to reach the heart. Mr. Williams found a doctor in the U.S. who could replace the value by entering the chest under the arm and thus no bones would be cut.

He responded to mounting criticism from the press by saying “Look, our communications plan here is going to be quite simple: This is my heart, it’s my health and it’s my choice,” Williams told NTV.

Freedom, at its core, is an issue of the spirit. God, who made man in His image, made man to be free, beginning with sovereignty over body and conscience. Maybe adults need to be reminded of what they taught their children. Freedom begins by taking responsibility for your own body.

Until next time,