This woman, Anne Hefley, says she went to her car and found that the city had put a "boot" — apparently some kind of metal device that is clamped onto the tire — on it so that she couldn't drive it.
I must plead ignorance here, since I don't live in the city. I didn't know they were doing this.
At any rate, she finds the boot on her car, and says that she "deserved it".
Most might get mad at this, but I deserved it. I wholeheartedly and stupidly had it coming. In fact, I knew I'd had a couple of outstanding parking tickets for a long time and every morning that I looked outside at my car I wondered, "Is the boot there?" Yeah, I could have paid the tickets any time. But, I didn't. I let it go on, and on, ignored the notices because when it comes to responsibility with anything to do with the city government and especially dealing with cars, I suck. I knew I was in their crosshairs and it was only time before they pulled the trigger.
She then describes the feelings of "shame" that she experienced as she walked to her car in front of her nosy neighbors to retrieve a bright orange card from her windshield. The card would let her know to which government entity she must pay the extortion money (my words — not hers) so that she can again drive her car.
She imagined that her neighbors would be looking for a tantrum of rage from her. "But I will give them nothing", she says. "I walk with my chin up, shoulders back, not a hint of emotion on my face as I cross the street. My eyes remain on that big orange notice, and do not waver from my target. I think to myself, 'I am a strong, confident woman who is the proud owner of that car with the boot on it.'"
I must say that when I read a piece like that, I am overwhelmed with a feeling of sadness. This woman has been tyrannized by her government and she believes she "deserved it". There is a reason that people get angry about this sort of thing. It's because it's extortion with a flag on the wall.
This attitude is way too prevalent in our country today. Too many people are willing to just take it on the chin. No one is willing to fight for their rights to remain free. Free of taxation without representation. Free from government oppression.
My wife recently took our children to a show at the community college here. She received a parking ticket in their parking lot. Unlike Anne, she didn't believe she "deserved it", and was extremely agitated. I was outside on a ladder doing some wiring when my cell phone rang. She informed me of the circumstance. A feeling of anxiety began to boil in my stomach. I had fought tickets like this before in traffic court. You often don't win. Even so, I told her that she should fight it. She should tell the college that she would never come back again if they didn't waive it. The next day, she protested and it was rescinded.
Now, she could have just paid the fine and went about her business. After all, it was only $25. A lot of people would not have hassled with it.
But there comes a time when you must stand up for what is right. I'm not saying that Anne would have had the same result. Maybe she would have eventually had to pay the tickets to keep them from further assaulting her, but from her essay, it seems apparent to me that she was not the slightest bit inclined to voice her opposition. Instead, she embraced her servitude and subjugation to them by saying that she "deserved" their humiliating treatment. And deserved it to the choking tune of $185.
I feel genuine sadness for her, and the rest of my fellow countrymen who exhibit this type of defeated demeanor.
It reminds me of something Samuel Adams said in a speech he delivered a month after the signing of the Declaration of Independence. At the State House in Philadelphia on August 1, 1776, he told the "Annes" of his day:
"Contemplate the mangled bodies of your countrymen, and then say, What should be the reward of such sacrifices? Bid us and our posterity bow the knee, supplicate the friendship, and plough, and sow, and reap, to glut the avarice of the men who have let loose on us the dogs of war to riot in our blood and hunt us from the face of the earth? If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animating contest of freedom, go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that ye were our countrymen!"
In Samuel Adams day, the "animated contest of freedom" could have very well cost you your life. In our day, it more than likely will cost you a little time and perhaps a little money. A little effort can have a big impact.
But we must not lay down and indulge in the "tranquility of servitude" by saying that we "deserve" the assaults and insults that are maliciously heaped upon us. We should never "lick the hands" of those who would fasten the chains of slavery around us.
We are not animals, we are human beings, created by God with inalienable rights. And it's high time we started demanding those rights from those in positions of power.
She concludes her dissertation with the words, "A few phone calls, $185 (ouch), and a nap later, the boot was gone. But defiantly, I remain."
No Anne. There was nothing defiant about your reaction. You were molested, and you just laid there and took it. And it pains me to say this. But you are a typical American.
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