Bribed, Blackmailed & Brainwashed: “People Got To Be Free?” - Pt. 4

Do People Really Yearn To Breathe Free?

By Richard Allen – May 13, 2024

In this installment of “Bribed, Blackmailed and Brainwashed,” I am actually alluding to two modern ideas that are typical of Western thought regarding “Freedom.” The First Idea is from a poem entitled: “The New Colossus,” written by Emma Lazarus in 1883, to help raise money for the huge pedestal base being constructed to hold the Statue of Liberty on Ellis Island in New York’s harbor. The First Idea is that: “Huddled Masses” (of people) from around the world “yearn to breathe free.” These very words are engraved on a bronze plaque on the Statue of Liberty.  Here’s what Wikipedia says about this poem:

"The New Colossus is a sonnet by American poet Emma Lazarus (1849–1887). She wrote the poem in 1883 to raise money for the construction of a pedestal for the Statue of Liberty (Liberty Enlightening the World). In 1903, the poem was cast onto a bronze plaque and mounted inside the pedestal's lower level.” [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_New_Colossus]

The Second Idea I’m alluding to is the actual title of a song written and performed by the Young Rascals that I first heard as a teenager in 1968.  The song is entitled: “People Got To Be Free.” The song has a great melody, expressing wholesome and positive messages about the virtues of Freedom, and showing kindness and charity to our Neighbor. The lyrics even partially quote Jesus’ words from the Sermon on the Mount as the band sings: “And I’ll do unto you as you do to me.” But it’s the first verse and chorus that tug at our hearts as the Young Rascals sing out:

“Chorus: All the world over, so easy to see. People everywhere just wanna be free. Listen, please listen, that's the way it should be. Peace in the valley, people got to be free.  Verse: You should see, what a lovely, lovely world this would be, if everyone learns to live together. Seems to me such an easy, easy thing should be. Why can't you and me learn to love one another?”

While both Emma Lazarus and the Young Rascals appear to be “altruistic” in their promotion of Freedom, the question we need to ask is:  “Do people all over the world really long to be Free?”  In order to answer that question, first we’ll need to define what we mean by Freedom. Is it Political Freedom we’re seeking?  Or, like the Pilgrims who came to America’s shores, Religious Freedom? Or even, the Sexual Freedom movement of the 1960’s that spawned most of the craziness with which we are still struggling? Some believe in Absolute Freedom as the Libertarians’ champion, that is: “The right to do whatever I want, as long as it doesn’t infringe on someone else’s freedoms?”  These are all valid questions – especially in light of the often “Lawless” values of modern-day Immigrants and U.S. Citizens.  But for most people who arrived here in the United States, the sight of seeing Lady Liberty shining in New York’s Harbor – holding forth the “Torch of Freedom” meant Political and Economic Freedom that would allow them to escape bondage from the Feudal, Monarchical, Socialist or Religious Oppression they faced in the war-torn countries from which they came.

The past 60+ years of life have given me a completely different perspective – partly because of unfolding events around the world – but mostly because of the understanding that God’s Word has given me regarding life from His perspective. I know this may not be a popular position, but I “do not believe that most people yearn to be free.”  I’m sure some do – especially those who have lived under the oppressive Socialist regimes of the past 100+ years:  The National Socialist German Workers Party (NAZI), the Union of Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR), the Peoples (Socialist) Republic of China (PRC) and a host of lesser Totalitarian Governments, have caused more death, misery and violence than all World Wars and most of the major wars over the past millennia caused. People fleeing these countries do value Political Freedom more than many of our own young college-educated children who have had life easy. But there are also roughly 25% of the world’s population who live under the tyranny of Islam.  Let me explain that. Islam is a perversion of the Jewish word Shalom or Salem. In Hebrew, it means Peace. But “Islam” means to be in suugation. Yes, there are elements of being at peace, but that peace comes as a result of finally ceasing one’s struggle to be free.  It’s a resignation or submission to the bondage of someone or something greater. That’s a far cry from Freedom. Failure to understand this concept allowed the “Neo-Cons” (New Conservatives), to fool the American people into thinking the people of Afghanistan and Iraq wanted freedom as we enjoy in the West. That’s just not true!

Now 20+ years after 9 - 11 and several Trillions of dollars in taxpayer money, it’s clear: The People in Afghanistan, Iraq and Iran for that matter – Do Not Want Freedom as Westerners understand it. The irony is, the most militant and Radical Islamic country of that trio is Iran. And Iran alone actually enjoyed Freedom on a level seldom achieved in Islamic countries. Women in the 1950’s and 1960’s were actually allowed to Read, Drive and Attend School!  Just think of that! The problem for these Islamic countries is, their religion engenders Elite Rule:  Emirs, Califs, Mullahs, Kings and other Ruling Classes who by “divine right” ruled over the common people.  It’s just the way things have always been. Truth be told, in pre-Christian (i.e. Pagan) Europe, the Absolute Rule of the Ruling Class over the Common Man, was also a forgone conclusion. After the defeat of Paganism and the Rise of the Holy Roman Empire, the Church mandated “Care for the Poor,” and “the Dignity of the Common Man.” Nowhere in the world had these ideas been seen prior to Christ’s Advent, Death and Resurrection. If there were a culmination of this thought, it was in the New World, in America, where it blossomed. Whether we like it or not, most of mankind in recorded World History, has accepted the “two-tiered” system. The Elite, Royal Ruling Minority (or whatever they called themselves), was firmly in control of the Serf-Slave Majority of People. To men and women living under the Huns, Vikings, Mongol Hordes, Mayan or Aztec Kings, the idea that “People Just Got To Be Free” would be strange indeed! Very few (if any) ever “Yearned to Breathe Free.” It was just accepted that their station in life was to be subject to the Ruling Class, until the American Revolution!

When first heard, the idea of “Self-Governance” was considered crazy and unworkable. Even the French, who helped America in our revolt against the British Monarchy, thought the American Experiment would be a short-lived phenomenon.  And the British believed these “upstart” Americans would soon be begging King George to take them back, once it was apparent that “we could not govern ourselves.” But these “rascally Americans” crafted two wonderful documents that would change the world: 1.) The Declaration of Independence, and 2.) The Constitution of the United States. By debating and then crafting documents with “checks and balances,” our Founding Fathers “codified” (i.e. gave the force of law), to Political Freedom.  And this Freedom has lasted 200+ years. Then to mandate that Political Freedom would be guaranteed to future generations, a “Bill of Rights” was also added shortly afterward. I wish I could report that all is well with our current generation of Americans, especially that we understand and value the Political Freedoms that Our Founders guaranteed – in Writing!  But we live during the “dumbed down fat and lazy” era – where very few Americans understand or know to value their Freedom.

This is a big part of why all the forces that Whitney Webb identifies in her 2-Volume work, “One Nation Under Blackmail” have been so successful in corrupting the masses with bribery, blackmail and brainwashing. Most people in so-called Western cultures, are now living in a Post Christian and Post Constitutional World. Not valuing the Freedoms they once enjoyed, they appear to be all too willing to give up their sovereignty and power to the powers that be within these modern societies. In a very real sense: “The Kings and Queens are Back,” and they are in firm control of most of the modern world – Technology and all!  And the common people just trust that “their betters” are smarter and should dictate the direction for everyone else. That’s what Kings and Queens do:  They rule.  And submission is what common Serfs do – without dispute!  A follow-up question needs to be asked: “Has mankind always been willing to let the Kings and Queens Rule?”  And if so, what is the cause of this phenomenon? Our first parents:  Adam and Eve, longed to be “gods, knowing both good and evil.” So, they rebelled against God’s rule and reign – seeking to be their own “lord and master.” Why then did Adam and Eve’s descendants willingly submit to the Rule of other Fallen Men and Women?

In my next Blog, we’ll explore the “root cause” of why – not just Americans, but “all people on earth” have been so ready to give up their rights and subjugate themselves to Bondage. I’m sure it will not surprise any of my readers, as the Bible explains, the cause of our Bondage is Spiritual and not Political!  But I won’t leave you in dismay, I’ll point all of us to the only Freedom that ultimately matters:  “Freedom in Christ!”

“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not allow anyone to put the yoke of slavery on you again” (Galatians 5:1).

Soli Deo Gloria!