Do we really own ourselves?

Back in April of 1996, in Phoenix, Arizona, a rather disturbed young man took a shotgun and blew his penis off. Phoenix police spokesman, Sgt. Mike Torres, was quoted as saying, "It's no crime. You can do whatever you want to your own body." Sgt. Torres was wrong of course. It seems that you can do stupid, violent, bloody things to your body. The "State" doesn't care about that. But don't violate one of the many pseudo-religions sins...I mean laws of the "State", then you will be arrested and incarcerated. What do I mean? If that poor young man had not mutilated himself with the shotgun; if, instead, he had been standing next to, say, Sgt. Torres, and pull out and lit up a marijuana cigarette, Sgt. Torres would have arrested that young man.

Is it just me, or is that absolutely insane? The government will allow a person to mutilate themselves but if they are just trying to enjoy themselves...not violating any one's rights...they can be arrested, convicted, imprisoned, and forever be classified as a felon? (Herein lies the myth of inalienable rights.)

So, you see, you really don't own yourself. The government does. When it can tell you what you can or cannot ingest--your own body, not involving anyone else--then you really are a slave to the government.

I leave you with a quote by Thomas Jefferson that's rather on point. "Rightful liberty is unobstructed action according to our will within limits drawn around us by the equal rights of others. I do not add 'within the limits of the law' because law is often but the tyrant's will, and always so when it violates the rights of the individual." (P.S.--Tyranny can be imposed by an elected legislature, as well as a king or emperor.)