Desire for Freedom and Desire for Limitations on Freedom
People have the desire for freedom as well as a desire for limitations on their freedom. Freedom and the limitations on freedom are both needed to live peacefully. Absolute freedom cannot be achieved because when you take away limitations you take away a freedom. With out rules governing our society, people would be able to do what they want to each other with out fear of punishment. An examination of the advantages and disadvantages of both arguments helps this become clearer.
One of the major reasons freedom is so desirable is because many of the limitations on freedom are disallowing humans the right to have control over their bodies. Control of the human body is the only thing that people have power over. A large number of the prohibited freedoms are crimes where the criminal makes himself the victim. For example, the use of drugs, prostitution, suicide, vagrancy, minor in possession, dodging the draft, entering the country illegally, and disregard for the age limits set on the purchase of pornographic materials. All of these crimes are punishable under the law. These crimes are set apart from most others because the person willingly chooses to victimize themselves (An exception can be made sometimes in the case of prostitution if they are being forced to prostitute against there own will). What people choose to do to themselves, in my opinion, is the least of our worries as a country. The last thing the government should have control over is what you choose to do to yourself. As long as you are not directly harming anyone else in the process, the government should not waste their time and money on something that is so trivial in comparison to crimes involving a victim. In general, ...