There is simply no room left for 'freedom from the tyranny of government' since city dwellers depend on it for food, power, water, transportation, protection, and welfare. Your right to live where you want, with companions of your choosing, under laws to which you agree, died in the eighteenth century with Captain Mission. Only a miracle or a disaster could restore it.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- True freedom is impossible because modern life depends on government infrastructure.
- In plain terms
- You need government for basics so you can't be totally free.
- What can you take from it?
- Complete independence is impossible in modern society.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- What does freedom mean now?
- Can you live without government?
Another view
It presents dependency as absolute rather than negotiable.
More from William S. Burroughs
Faced by the actual practice of freedom, the French and American revolutions would be forced to stand by their words.
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