Rights are manifestations of social liberty. They are given by God for mere existence, not by man nor by government. Since rights are given for being alive, and nothing else, neither man nor government can claim the rights of another at any time, unless he has violated the rights of another (and then, only government can retaliate). But, in an age of a new enlightenment, in an era that champions liberty and freedom, the rights of the citizens of the country that pioneered and whose foundation rests in the idea of inalienable rights that belong to all men and women are being taken away faster than ever. America's founding ideology is ignored and disregarded by the very entity that should respect it most- its government.
The United States are a constitutional republic. A republic is a type of government that, through fair elections and representation, introduces lawmakers from specific areas, who better know the needs of their people (as opposed to a lawmaker a thousand miles away, living in an entirely different culture and environment), and make laws on that basis. The system works so that, for instance, southern Californians are not bothered with the appropriation of money to melt ice from the highways of Vermont, nor do Vermonters have to vote about beach laws in Los Angeles. By representatives congregating from different places to form Congress, each person is equally represented, but must not vote for problems that do not affect them, assuming that the representatives properly vote as their constituents would. However, most politicians now do not decide laws on the behalf of their people, but in spite of them. They now vote for what will further their own advancement or what they think is "right", regardless of what their constituents think.
The Constitution, the other element of the United States government, is a contract with all citizens of the country. It is supposed to protect the citizens and their rights from the hubristic and blind ambition that often follows great power. It was made to deem what the government could and could not do, especially regarding the violation of basic, God-given rights of the people. Should such a document, universally applicable to all government acts, be disregarded? Should the Necessary and Proper Clause, which gives the government the right to make laws deemed "necessary and proper" to the execution of enumerated powers be interpreted so loosely that the laws made as a result of this clause violate the Bill of Rights? The list of enumerated powers and the Bill of Rights are so plain in their meaning, and are there to limit what the federal government does: should they be disregarded as outdated documents that cannot evolve?
If the Bill of Rights and the Constitution are misused or entirely disregarded, no freedom can exist in this country. These documents are the only wall defending American rights and are the only things that prevent the government from taking rights by force (for that is the only way to take them). Without such documents acting as a safeguard for the American people, the United States would not have survived into the twentieth century, and would definitely not be the nation it is today.
That is why man must fight against the tide of socialism. There is no freedom of mind or body in a society that tries to regard everyone as completely equal, and which uses force to do so, either by limiting rights or punishing those that are different than others. Though America calls itself "free", it is not free, because freedom must encompass all laws. New laws that ban, limit, or decide things for people are what makes America no better than a prison. As long as one's actions do not violate the rights of another, he should be free to do what he pleases- without interference by anyone or anything, but including and especially the government.
While it is the government that takes these rights, many American citizens are willing to live out their lives oblivious to politics. They do not care about which rights they have or lose, so long as they have food and shelter, and enough money to buy a television or a data plan for a cell phone. Only when they believe their welfare is directly threatened will they act- they give the higher meaning of life and liberty no quarter in their hearts or minds. As this new kind of citizen rises in number, the government shall be able to take what rights they please in a way not unlike that expressed in George Orwell's work Animal Farm.
The government has already begun to take its nation's citizens' rights to eat and drink certain things; to do what they like in public places, even if those acts do not violate the liberty of others; and to feel safe in a nation whose government wields more control with every passing day.
Shall America, with its noble founding principles, be known as the haven for the downtrodden and weak, and as the greatest nation that has ever risen, or shall it be regarded as a failed experiment of liberty and freedom?
The answer to this question is contingent on how many among us feel total apathy in regards to the theft of their rights.