Do you know when and how you are going to die? While I not be among the majority, I believe only God knows when I am going to die, and I can’t live my life in constant fear of that day arriving. I am in complete agreement with something Thomas ‘Stonewall’ Jackson once said, “God has fixed the time for my death. I do not concern myself about that, but to be always ready, no matter when it may overtake me.”

If I’m going to die from a virus, then I’m going to die from a virus; there isn’t a damned thing I can do about it. But I’m not going to cower in fear over it – SCREW THAT! There’s another thing I refuse to do as well, that being give up my freedom due to fear; especially when the level of fear is not proportional to whatever threat is causing it.

Before I go a single step further let me make it absolutely clear that I am not saying that there isn’t a virus, that this virus is not killing people, and that the way in which it kills is not a horrific way to go; but then again it is mild if you compare it to certain viral pathogens such as Ebola.

Yes this is a nasty disease, but the media’s constant reporting on it is causing people to believe that if you contract it you are going to die when a more accurate assessment is that only 1 out of every 1,000 people who come down with it end up dying.

That said, any death caused by this is a terrible loss for their friends and family, yet as it stands right now only 18.6 thousand people have died from Covid-19; yet every year upwards of 55.6 thousand die from regular influenza – the flu. So why all this panic? Every year some new strain of flu makes its way across the globe, yet the news media does not spend 2/3 of its broadcast time preaching fear over it.

Look at what has happened to us because of this widespread fear and panic; we have allowed government to tell us we must lock ourselves away in our homes and avoid places where we can socialize with others, we have been forced to endure both shortages in goods and long waits in lines just to get into stores so we can purchase our weekly groceries; we have seen people freak out if someone gets too close to them, and giving others a wary eye if the cough or sneeze; we have seen people arrested for violating social distancing rules, or for leaving their homes for non-essential purposes; we have seen people snitching on others for doing those things; we have seen States evict those who are not residents of that State and other States completely shutting down all traffic entering their State; as has the State of Utah.

All of that over a virus that is, in all likelihood, going to kill fewer people than the influenza virus. I have my own thoughts on the origin of this virus, and for now I’ll keep them to myself as they are not pertinent to the subject at hand. That subject is; how much freedom are you willing to sacrifice just to be promised that government is doing all that is within its power to keep you safe?

The ultimate freedom is being able to leave your domicile and travel wherever you want, whenever you want, and interact with others while doing so; and we have seen that right stripped away from us simply because we cower in fear over this virus.

My fear, and I have history on my side in supporting that fear, is that once this virus passes the precautions undertaken to prevent its spread will remain in place. I’m not saying with 100% certainty that they will remain in place, but if history is used as a guide in forming an opinion on the matter, there is a good chance that some, if not all, of these precautions may become a permanent part of our lives.

Just look at what happened after 9/11 if you don’t believe me. The government enacted all kinds of laws and created an entire agency to fight the supposed terrorist threat; while greatly expanding the power of agencies such as the TSA and NSA. How much freedom did we surrender so that we could go to bed at night knowing our government was keeping us safe from the bogeymen terrorists? How many of those freedoms have we had restored to us in the 19 years since 9/11? My fear is that history is repeating itself, and once we surrender the freedom we are being asked to surrender to keep us safe from the Covid virus, we will never see those freedoms again.

Then there is the hope people are putting in a vaccine, and the fact that there are many out there who are saying that it be made mandatory for every person living in the U.S. I have seen and heard people leading the fight against this virus say that those who have received any vaccine they produce be given papers certifying that they have done so, and that those who refuse to take it be kept in self imposed quarantine status inside their homes. Again, this hasn’t come to pass, it is only what I’ve been seeing and hearing.

What if you don’t want the vaccine; are you going to be treated just like those who did not believe the official story regarding 9/11; are you going to be shunned and ostracized; not allowed to leave your home for the remainder of your days? What if you believe that your body’s immune system is far better equipped to fight the Covid virus than something concocted in a lab somewhere; are you going to suffer the consequences of being denied your freedom to travel?

This virus does not scare me. The government enacting all these new laws and rules by which we must live our lives only angers me; it does not scare me. What scares me is how willingly people submit to encroachments upon their freedom simply because they are scared of catching a cold.

Whether this virus was a naturally occurring event or if it was produced in a lab and either accidentally or intentionally made its way out into society is irrelevant. What is relevant is that the government used its spread as a test to see how much freedom we would surrender under the guise of keeping them safe; you know the old Rahm Emmanuel quote, “You never want a serious crisis to go to waste. And what I mean by that [is] it’s an opportunity to do things that you think you could not before.” (Interview with the Wall Street Journal, November 19, 2008)

Well the government sure made the best use of this crisis, aided by their flunkies in the news media who spread fear and panic with every word that spewed forth from their poisonous lips; and we, the American people, bent over and let them rape us of more of our freedom.

Well not me, thank you very much. I was practicing social distancing before that became a thing; not because of some virus however. I practiced it because I simply did not want to associate with people who let fear and abject ignorance and stupidity rule their lives.

I refuse to let this virus scare me, or deprive me of my freedom. They can kill me if they want, but then I will have obtained the ultimate freedom; for in death I will no longer be bound by the ridiculous laws they impose that deny me my freedom while I inhabit this body of flesh and blood.

Two-hundred forty five years ago Patrick Henry stood up before the delegates of the Virginia House of Burgesses and said, “Give me liberty or give me death.” Henry would be sickened at how readily you people comply with laws that deny or restrict your liberty.

Ben Franklin once said, “Those who would give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, will deserve neither and lose both.”

The question is, how much longer are you going to take it, and how many more of your freedoms are you going to have to lose before you say ENOUGH ALREADY? I’ve reached my breaking point, have you? Whatever happens, I will be free; and if that bothers you, then to quote my friend Bart Stewart, GET OFF MY ROCK!

April 10, 2020

~ The Author ~
Neal Ross, Student of history, politics, patriot and staunch supporter of the 2nd Amendment. Send all comments to: [email protected].

If you liked Neal’s latest column, maybe you’ll like his latest booklet: The Civil War: (The Truth You Have Not Been Told). Life continues to expand for this prolific writer and guardian of TRUE American history.