Rick Santorum: “Freedom’s not absolute. What rights in the Constitution are absolute?”

By Gary P Jackson

Holy Bill of Rights Batman:

Freedom’s not absolute. What rights in the Constitution are absolute? There is no right to absolute freedom. There are limitations. You might want to say the same thing about a whole variety of other things that are on the Internet — “let everybody have it, let everybody do it.” No. There are certain things that actually do cost people a lot of money, cost them their lives, cost them their fortunes that we shouldn’t have and make available, to make it that easy to do. That’s why we regulate gambling. You have a big commission here that regulates gambling, for a reason.

If the above quote from Rick Santorum doesn’t have chills running up and down your spine, there is something seriously wrong with you!

Now let me put this in context. This quote, and more, comes from an article Jim Geraghty wrote about Newt Gingrich’s sugar daddy, billionaire casino owner Sheldon Adelson. Santorum is talking about internet gambling, and evidently, in Rick’s world it’s evil, and the government, being our nanny, must take steps to protect the American people from itself. You can read the entire article here.

Now Rick may be right, in theory, there are some legitimate limits on freedom that are also constitutional, they are, however, few and far between.

The American experiment, as envisioned by our founders, is based on personal Liberty and Freedom, as well as personal responsibility. In other words, you are free to do pretty much as you wish, as long as you break no laws. If your actions causes you problems, well, you made your bed, now lie in it!

This is pretty much how God works as well. He gave us the ability to distinguish right from wrong, and the free will to choose. He also gave us a strong path to redemption. But, we have to live with the consequences of our actions.

Thing is, government isn’t God, and neither are our lawmakers. Government has no business trying to be the nanny of over 300 million Americans, micro managing our lives down to the last detail.

Government has no business trying to protects, from ourselves.

Yeah, there are obvious exceptions to that, but we now have government officials trying to control our ever action. That ain’t Liberty and that ain’t Freedom.

There are far too many, in both political parties, who want to do just that. Politicians who think they know what’s best for everyone.

I’ve always been rather neutral on Santorum, seeing him as a mixed bag, some good, some bad. My only real concern, since day one, is he has always seemed to be more interested in being the bedroom police, rather then Senator, or President. Other than that, I thought he was at least somewhat Conservative. That was a grave error on my part.

I’d call Santorum a “compassionate conservative” in the mold of George W Bush, but looking into Rick’s record, I see nothing particularly compassionate or conservative about the man. What I see is just another Big Government Statist. Just another person who wants to exert his power over everyone else.

There is little difference between Santorum and those who want to regulate what you can eat, what you can drink, what kind of car you can drive, what kind of toilet and shower head you must buy, and what sort of light bulb you must have.

For people like Santorum, government knows best. As a free man or woman, you don’t have the capability of exercising good judgment, so government must protect you from yourself.

There’s something inherently evil in this sort of thing. Something un-American.

Santorum’s argument on gambling, online gambling, is troubling. From the article Rick says:

I’m someone who takes the opinion that gaming is not something that is beneficial, particularly having that access on the Internet. Just as we’ve seen from a lot of other things that are vices on the Internet, they tend to grow exponentially as a result of that.

It’s one thing to come to Las Vegas and do gaming and participate in the shows and that kind of thing as entertainment, it’s another thing to sit in your home and have access to that it. I think it would be dangerous to our country to have that type of access to gaming on the Internet.

I like Vegas and since I’m not that much of a gambler, I enjoy the shows and the good eats. That said, what business is it of Santorum’s? Even more so, what business is it Rick’s what I do on the internet? If Rick is worried about gambling on the internet, folks can find a game anywhere. Don’t need the internet for that, unless you are booking a hotel!

Look, I know why Baptists don’t like gambling, they are afraid it might lead to dancing! [relax it’s just a joke] But what is Rick’s excuse?

Oh, and about those shows and fine dining in Las Vegas? Lots of folks have a problem with overeating. Vegas is a place where that is not only possible, but probable. What is Rick’s position on this?

Most Americans don’t like the idea of government telling them what they can and can’t do, within reason, and gambling, while most certainly a vice, is also reasonable.

In fact, this entire election, for the American people, is about getting away from a government that wants to control our every move.

Sarah Palin put it best when she said this election will come down to the “Freedom Party” vs the “Government Party.”

Between this latest by Santorum, and his extreme ideas about all things of a sexual nature, as well as many of his votes and positions over the years, I’m beginning to thing Santorum belongs in the “Government Party.”

I have no qualms with Rick’s personal beliefs, though I disagree with many. What I have a problem with is his desire to impose those beliefs on others.

People need to take a long, hard look at Rick Santorum. He is not what he represents himself to be. He is a progressive, not a Conservative. He’s the sort who can’t wait to get in power so he can exert his authority over the American people.

We already have a nanny state president, and a nanny state government. No use to send them re-enforcements like Rick Santorum.