Land of the free

I wanted to take a moment to reflect on how lucky I am.

This blog often critiques power; sometimes with satire, sometimes with teeth; but I don’t take for granted the freedom I have to write it. I live in a liberal democracy. I can post, protest, and poke at the system without fearing a knock at the door. That’s no small thing.

There are millions of people around the world who do not share the freedom I take for granted.

If I lived in Russia, I might have ended up like Alexei Navalny, poisoned, imprisoned, and dead in a penal colony for daring to challenge the regime.

If I lived in Iran, I might have ended up like Mahsa Amini, beaten to death by morality police for wearing her headscarf “improperly”.

Or if I lived in America, I might have ended up like Renee Good, shot in the head through her car window by a federal agent while observing a protest.