We’ve all seen the bumper sticker or the sign, or have had someone claim that “Freedom doesn’t come free.” But more to the point, what is the cost of freedom, and what is it? Most people aren’t free.

Most people must make their way in the world in any way they can. Most people do not have the luxury of choosing a profession or getting a degree. Most people on this planet must live out their lives with as little as others are willing to allow them.

There is a price for freedom, no matter how we define it. And while freedom does not come free, it is much more than the platitudinous statement that we so often see and hear. It is so much more than simply protecting our “freedoms” with war, or having the “freedom” to do what I want to do, or being free from regulations.

There is a price for freedom and there are at least two necessary ways of paying for it: intellect and allowance.

We are only as free as we are intellectual, only as much as we understand that we are free. And we are only as free as we allow others to be free. We allow each other our freedoms.

We owe each other our freedoms and we owe ourselves to ability to know why.