Freedom

It seems like our most-high President has been throwing the word around for the last few years and it's gotten me thinking (yet another dangerous by-product of the war on Iraq).
One of my favorite lines from a song (by Kris Kristofferson)... "Freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose"... Someone I know spoke about that line in deeper terms once. I think it has to be one of the all-time most profound statements made by someone without Deep Thinking credentials. Maybe it's because it reminds me of a certain family member of ours who seems to think that doing "his thing" at the expense of everyone else's feelings and life is the way to be happy. Interestingly enough, he has to be one of the most unhappy people I know. I wonder how long it'll take before he comes to the realization that living his life "freely" is only a result of having nothing to live for.
While I know people have been self-serving to a certain extent from the beginning of time, I think there was a time when freedom meant being able to live within the laws while following one's own moral codes and ethos. Respect for others was part of that freedom, not separate from it. My generation seems to take "freedom" to a whole new level. Being free now means being able to do what we want when we want it, regardless of the personal or financial costs to ourselves or others. Like not showing up to our parents' as planned and not calling to explain until a day later. Or like when a credit card's marketing scheme includes words like "live freely". Huh? On credit? How does that happen? I wonder what survivors of Auschwitz or internment camps or various other forms of imprisonment think of that. After their experiences do they need a Mastercard to experience real freedom? Or have their experiences led them to believe that it's just another word for nothing left to lose?