Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz puts his hand to his chest while his lawyers ask him to sign a document, on October 20, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Cruz pleaded guilty to all 17 counts of premeditated murder and 17 counts of attempted murder in the 2018 shooting in Parkland, Florida. Getty Images / AFP
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz puts his hand to his chest while his lawyers ask him to sign a document, on October 20, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Cruz pleaded guilty to all 17 counts of premeditated murder and 17 counts of attempted murder in the 2018 shooting in Parkland, Florida. Getty Images / AFP
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz puts his hand to his chest while his lawyers ask him to sign a document, on October 20, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Cruz pleaded guilty to all 17 counts of premeditated murder and 17 counts of attempted murder in the 2018 shooting in Parkland, Florida. Getty Images / AFP
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz puts his hand to his chest while his lawyers ask him to sign a document, on October 20, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Cruz pleaded guilty to al


Whether on guns or vaccines, Americans have trouble defining 'liberty'


  • English
  • Arabic

December 28, 2021

2021 should be remembered as a year in which American notions of liberty and security became redefined in stark antagonism along the fault-lines of a bitter national divide.

It has taken two major plagues – the coronavirus pandemic and the uniquely American epidemic of routine mass shootings – to bring this predicament to the forefront. But it now means, effectively, that liberty as many Americans, particularly on the right, define it threatens the health, lives and security of much of the rest of the population.

Americans have always had a relatively libertarian culture, albeit, crucially, in some parts of the country far more than others. Compared to other western societies, the hand of government is quite light on average Americans who can opt out of many forms of social control if they choose.

This liberty has been traditionally understood as personal, private and unlikely to threaten the health, well-being or liberties of other (especially white) citizens, albeit with exceptions until the 1960s allowing for a “freedom” to racially discriminate against African Americans.

A protester holds a sign about racial injustice during a "Justice for Rittenhouse Victims-Abolish White Supremacy" protest in Minneapolis on November 20. AFP
A protester holds a sign about racial injustice during a "Justice for Rittenhouse Victims-Abolish White Supremacy" protest in Minneapolis on November 20. AFP

The government was always there to stop crime, impose order and oversee public health and the general welfare.

So, the freedom of other Americans to do as they please may have been offensive or irritating, even obnoxious, but it has rarely been seen as intolerable or existentially threatening.

In 2021, both the anti-vaccine and pro-gun manias demonstrated the increasing gap between Americans

That is no longer the case. 2021 laid bare a new reality in which the refusal of your next-door neighbour to get vaccinated or to practice basic pandemic mitigation poses a direct threat to your own health and that of your family, neighbourhood and broader environment.

It is not a matter of "my body, my choice”, a phrase teasingly pilfered from abortion-rights groups by anti-vaccination right-wingers. If only! But regarding the coronavirus vaccine and mitigation, it is clearly a case of "my body, your illness".

Students in Novi, Michigan, US. Bloomberg
Students in Novi, Michigan, US. Bloomberg

It has been especially galling for people who have, or care for those with, high comorbidity conditions, impaired immune systems, the elderly and, of course, young children.

Closure of schools has been a major bone of contention in 2021, but nothing exacerbated that problem more than the refusal of huge swaths of the population to accept vaccinations, largely because they see it as a proxy for a huge range of other anxieties. Effectively, this is an angry rejection of the government, the broader culture, and the cultural and demographic changes taking place in the US as it becomes less white and Christian; a rage against assumed loss of presumed power and privilege.

These often may be unconscious or liminal sentiments, but the anti-vaccine movement on the right stresses the idea that personal liberty trumps public health, the public good, and any notion of civic responsibility to contain a pandemic that has taken over 800,000 American lives in less than two years.

Jason Rodriguez, outreach supervisor, hangs a banner as families of victims of gun violence gather at the organisation called 'Where Do We Go From Here' – that helps grieving families that have been affected by gun violence – to drop of memorabilia for the Gun Violence Memorial Project, in New York City, November 11. Getty Images / AFP
Jason Rodriguez, outreach supervisor, hangs a banner as families of victims of gun violence gather at the organisation called 'Where Do We Go From Here' – that helps grieving families that have been affected by gun violence – to drop of memorabilia for the Gun Violence Memorial Project, in New York City, November 11. Getty Images / AFP
Rebecca Turnage joins other families at Where Do We Go From Here to drop of memorabilia for the Gun Violence Memorial Project on November 11. Ms Turnage holds a rosary and photo of her 16-year old son Jaden, who was murdered in September. Getty Images / AFP
Rebecca Turnage joins other families at Where Do We Go From Here to drop of memorabilia for the Gun Violence Memorial Project on November 11. Ms Turnage holds a rosary and photo of her 16-year old son Jaden, who was murdered in September. Getty Images / AFP

This definition of “liberty” not only declines to help the rest of the country avoid becoming ill. It actively contributes to the spread of the disease, its mutation and the broader inability of the society to reduce infections to a manageable point. And it does all that to score some sort of amorphous debating point about how angry such people are about a range of issues that have absolutely nothing to do with the coronavirus, public health, vaccines or masking.

Even former president Donald Trump has received widespread irate right-wing blowback in recent days after praising the vaccine (largely developed under his own administration) and exchanging surprisingly kind words on the topic with current President Joe Biden.

People queue for a Covid-19 test at Times Square in New York City, US, December 26. Reuters
People queue for a Covid-19 test at Times Square in New York City, US, December 26. Reuters

A dead giveaway is that the part of the population that objects so passionately to the coronavirus vaccine has calmly accepted mandates on other vaccinations, wearing seatbelts, speed limits, and all sorts of other measures, often far more sweeping, to keep people safe, especially from each other.

It is not just the pandemic that reveals this growing gap between the ways some Americans define liberty and others seek to protect their security. Gun violence is completely out of control in the US, as the endless raft of random mass murders and school shootings, above all, demonstrate.

School shootings are both routine and a particularly useful insight into this dichotomy. Schoolchildren shooters invariably get their guns from parents, typically because those adults leave these deadly weapons lying around, unsecured and easily accessed.

The recent school shooting in Michigan, in which, for the first time, parents are being charged with involuntary manslaughter because of their extreme negligence towards a troubled child, including providing him the pistol he used as an early "Christmas present", is an excellent example.

Most of the US right, and a solid Supreme Court majority, take an absolutist view of gun rights, rejecting virtually any restrictions on sale, ownership or carrying of deadly weapons. Yet the rest of the country increasingly lives in a kind of terror, particularly regarding schools, because this gun psychosis makes it so easy for disturbed children to follow a now long-established American pattern of taking out their frustrations by mowing down their classmates.

Several recent shooting incidents – such as the one involving 17-year-old vigilante Kyle Rittenhouse who was acquitted of shooting rioters in Wisconsin – reveal another source of terror. In such scenarios, gun-happy Americans bring weapons of war into tense situations, and then successfully justify subsequent shootings by claiming they were afraid their guns might be seized and used against them. Their own deadly weapon becomes not only the means, but also the legal justification, for the killings they perform. It’s a virtual carte blanche.

Kyle Rittenhouse waves to cheering fans as he appears at a panel discussion at a Turning Point USA America Fest 2021 event, on December 20 in Phoenix. The panel discussion, called "Kenosha On Camera," comes a month after Rittenhouse's acquittal on charges in the deadly Kenosha shootings in 2020. AP
Kyle Rittenhouse waves to cheering fans as he appears at a panel discussion at a Turning Point USA America Fest 2021 event, on December 20 in Phoenix. The panel discussion, called "Kenosha On Camera," comes a month after Rittenhouse's acquittal on charges in the deadly Kenosha shootings in 2020. AP

The idea that gun madness – including quite possibly the unsecured, locked and loaded guns next door that could easily find their way into the hands of a disturbed teenager or a clueless toddler – poses an unacceptable threat to the security of other Americans is again rejected because of "liberty".

In 2021, both the anti-vaccine and pro-gun manias demonstrated the increasing gap between Americans who fret they're going to have their guns and freedom taken away and others who worry, with good reason, that such freedoms can pose a mortal threat.

There’s an absolutism and burning rage, especially on the right, that makes efforts at balance seem futile.

Across the country these are neighbours who simply do not trust that the guy next door doesn’t pose a major threat to their own rights or safety. That's a recipe for anarchy in a society in profound crisis.

COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The specs

Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Power: 620hp from 5,750-7,500rpm
Torque: 760Nm from 3,000-5,750rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed dual-clutch auto
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh1.05 million ($286,000)

More from Armen Sarkissian
Sheikh Zayed's poem

When it is unveiled at Abu Dhabi Art, the Standing Tall exhibition will appear as an interplay of poetry and art. The 100 scarves are 100 fragments surrounding five, figurative, female sculptures, and both sculptures and scarves are hand-embroidered by a group of refugee women artisans, who used the Palestinian cross-stitch embroidery art of tatreez. Fragments of Sheikh Zayed’s poem Your Love is Ruling My Heart, written in Arabic as a love poem to his nation, are embroidered onto both the sculptures and the scarves. Here is the English translation.

Your love is ruling over my heart

Your love is ruling over my heart, even a mountain can’t bear all of it

Woe for my heart of such a love, if it befell it and made it its home

You came on me like a gleaming sun, you are the cure for my soul of its sickness

Be lenient on me, oh tender one, and have mercy on who because of you is in ruins

You are like the Ajeed Al-reem [leader of the gazelle herd] for my country, the source of all of its knowledge

You waddle even when you stand still, with feet white like the blooming of the dates of the palm

Oh, who wishes to deprive me of sleep, the night has ended and I still have not seen you

You are the cure for my sickness and my support, you dried my throat up let me go and damp it

Help me, oh children of mine, for in his love my life will pass me by. 

KEY HIGHLIGHTS

Healthcare spending to double to $2.2 trillion rupees

Launched a 641billion-rupee federal health scheme

Allotted 200 billion rupees for the recapitalisation of state-run banks

Around 1.75 trillion rupees allotted for privatisation and stake sales in state-owned assets

RESULT

Bayern Munich 5 Eintrracht Frankfurt 2
Bayern:
 Goretzka (17'), Müller (41'), Lewandowski (46'), Davies (61'), Hinteregger (74' og)    
Frankfurt: Hinteregger (52', 55')

RESULTS

6.30pm: Maiden (TB) Dh 82,500 (Dirt) 1.600m
Winner: Miller’s House, Richard Mullen (jockey), Satish Seemar (trainer).

7.05pm: Maiden (TB) Dh 82,500 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Kanood, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass.

7.50pm: Handicap (TB) Dh 82,500 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Gervais, Sandro Paiva, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.

8.15pm: The Garhoud Sprint Listed (TB) Dh 132,500 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Important Mission, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer.

8.50pm: The Entisar Listed (TB) Dh 132,500 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Firnas, Xavier Ziani, Salem bin Ghadayer.

9.25pm: Conditions (TB) Dh 120,000 (D) 1,400m
Winner: Zhou Storm, Connor Beasley, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.

Brief scores:

Liverpool 3

Mane 24', Shaqiri 73', 80'

Manchester United 1

Lingard 33'

Man of the Match: Fabinho (Liverpool)

Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
  • Priority access to new homes from participating developers
  • Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
  • Flexible payment plans from developers
  • Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
  • DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates

What She Ate: Six Remarkable Women & the Food That Tells Their Stories
Laura Shapiro
Fourth Estate

Global state-owned investor ranking by size

1.

United States

2.

China

3.

UAE

4.

Japan

5

Norway

6.

Canada

7.

Singapore

8.

Australia

9.

Saudi Arabia

10.

South Korea

MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW

Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman

Director: Jesse Armstrong

Rating: 3.5/5

Tonight's Chat on The National

Tonight's Chat is a series of online conversations on The National. The series features a diverse range of celebrities, politicians and business leaders from around the Arab world.

Tonight’s Chat host Ricardo Karam is a renowned author and broadcaster who has previously interviewed Bill Gates, Carlos Ghosn, Andre Agassi and the late Zaha Hadid, among others.

Intellectually curious and thought-provoking, Tonight’s Chat moves the conversation forward.

Facebook | Our website | Instagram

 

MATCH INFO

Norwich City 1 (Cantwell 75') Manchester United 2 (Aghalo 51' 118') After extra time.

Man of the match Harry Maguire (Manchester United)

F1 The Movie

Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem

Director: Joseph Kosinski

Rating: 4/5

Small Victories: The True Story of Faith No More by Adrian Harte
Jawbone Press

Should late investors consider cryptocurrencies?

Wealth managers recommend late investors to have a balanced portfolio that typically includes traditional assets such as cash, government and corporate bonds, equities, commodities and commercial property.

They do not usually recommend investing in Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies due to the risk and volatility associated with them.

“It has produced eye-watering returns for some, whereas others have lost substantially as this has all depended purely on timing and when the buy-in was. If someone still has about 20 to 25 years until retirement, there isn’t any need to take such risks,” Rupert Connor of Abacus Financial Consultant says.

He adds that if a person is interested in owning a business or growing a property portfolio to increase their retirement income, this can be encouraged provided they keep in mind the overall risk profile of these assets.

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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The%20specs
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Updated: December 28, 2021, 1:42 PM`