To the editor:

You can quickly see that I’m a strong advocate for freedom and rights as understood by our Constitution. Sadly, this is not the situation across much of the world. As we read the morning news, we soon recognize that military uprisings, political coups and even free elections are bringing about a resurgence of oppression of people’s fundamental rights. Extreme socialist views and fascist domination of the left and right politics are prevailing even in traditionally liberal free societies.

Anytime we make an effort to contain or direct life and freedom as we interpret it as an individual in one direction or another we slowly chip away at the root of the tree of freedom and liberty. All opinions need to be heard for free people to have the wisdom to govern themselves responsibly. We cannot repress one segment regardless of how ignorant or foolish we believe they may be. Here is where we find discussions on open or closed borders and the acceptance of immigrants, freedom of sexual orientation, the right to gun ownership, and self-protection, and the right to worship God as how you understand the presence of God in the world to be.

We often speak of democracy as though the freedoms we accept as a natural way of life, but our democracy is just one attribute of our freedoms. To maintain our freedoms and a democratically elected republic we must be diligent. We who live with the blessing of liberty can not be tolerant of the errors of the past here in America and all countries that consider themselves free capitalistic democracies.

There are those who consider themselves the self-righteous judge and jury of the morality of their community. Then along with them are the police and a few elected people in positions of authority who feel they have the right to ignore the rights of people accused when protecting us. We need these people to protect the vast majority from those who would assault or cause harm to others. It is important that we support and stand behind our police protecting us. It is important that their action be restrained and stay within the guidelines of our Constitution as set by our Founding Fathers.

Freedom and liberty can only be assured for the future as we restrain our zeal for what we understand as right and do not try to impose our opinions on the opposition.

William Gerhard, Scipio