They Who Would Give Up an Essential Liberty For Temporary Security Deserve Neither Liberty or Security

I was in Amoeba Music this afternoon in L.A. watching hoards of people purchasing CD's and DVD's {has the internet and file sharing not made the voyage to the west coast yet?} and checking out the wall of movie posters when the Clockwork Orange one caught my eye. This movie was great for many reasons. Beyond introducing me to senseless violence and misleading nudity at an early age, this film had a really deep and thought provoking theme. It brought up the question (also touched upon in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest): is having the will to choose and making the wrong choice more important than not having a choice, but being forced to do the right thing? Eventually the film comes to the [somewhat obvious] conclusion that maintaining free will is more important than having a society where everyone is forced to do the right thing. Ultimately this is one of the pillar principals on which our country was founded - the pursuit of happiness in a somewhat free market economy (as long as it doesn't intrude on other's). Fortunately it has been quite clear in the past when we have infringed on this basic liberty and in due time the right to vote, the right to drink, the right to free speech and hopefully the right to play some poker shall remain basic freedoms. It's funny how the colors of the real world only seem really real when you viddy them on the screen.