The Ironies of Freedom

<p><strong>THE IRONIES OF FREEDOM: WHEN PEOPLE USE FREEDOM AS A DEFENSE TO HARM OTHERS AND EVEN THEMSELVES</strong></p><p><br></p><p>There is no higher value in American politics than freedom. Yet it is a highly contested concept. Indeed persons-both individuals and entities-have used freedom and liberty-based arguments to suppress or even destroy the liberty rights of others throughout the history of the United States.</p><p><br></p><p>These same persons also seem willing to put themselves in harm's way in the name of freedom. They typically base their rationale on individual freedom against government paternalism personal sovereignty to make final decisions about life and death and the primacy of individual choice over public needs.</p><p><br></p><p>Consequently many tolerate gun violence an emerging climate disaster a dangerous reduction in the social safety net and a host of preventable injuries all in the name of freedom. Sometimes they base their positions on the right to be free <strong><em>from</em></strong> government regulation. However on other occasions they justify policies that may even cause them harm on the freedom <strong><em>to</em></strong> engage in certain activities.</p><p><br></p><p>Ultimately only the readers of this book can determine whether they justify their use of freedom and liberty for their positions-with respect to a wide variety of important issues-on tribal instincts and emotions a reasoned and informed analysis or some other basis.</p><p><br></p><p>The author of this book W. Sherman Rogers is Professor of Law at the Howard University School of Law. Rogers provides an analysis of these often-contradictory notions of freedom in a wide variety of contexts. Freedom and liberty-based concerns he notes are at the root of many of the most contentious and controversial issues of the day. Therefore Rogers has included a detailed table of contents that allows readers to cherry-pick those topics they find most interesting.</p>