It’s almost Independence Day here in the United States of America. A time where people usually let off fireworks, drink a bunch of alcohol, have their barbeques, howl at the moon, and revel in the fact that we live in a “free country.”

I’m not going to talk about all of that today. What I am going to talk about is Easy Rider. Easy Rider is a movie that was released in 1969, about 3 years before I was born. It stars Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, Jack Nicholson, and even a small part for a very young Toni Basil. I just saw this film over this last weekend while hanging out with my Dad. We had just finished watching drag racing and he was flipping channels, and lo and behold, there is Easy Rider, just starting. I can’t honestly remember the last time that I watched the film, suffice it to say that I was back in my 20’s when I did. I didn’t remember the entirety of the story, but I did remember how it ended.

Spoiler alert: It doesn’t end well for our motorcycling hippy champions.

There was a couple of scenes that stood out to me though, something that was relevant back in the “free love 60’s,” and is still relevant today. The first scene that stood out to me was when Peter, Jack, and Dennis stopped off at some little diner somewhere in Louisiana I believe. They walk in and all the locals that are there, including the sheriff, look them up and down, give them the stink eye, and then proceed to talk shit about them.

Pan left, we have the local jailbait sitting in a booth giving giggles, smiles, and googily eyes at our hero’s. Well the trio wait and wait and wait, and wait some more, hoping to get service, which they don’t, all the while the natives, other than the jailbait, are growing more hostile.

The trio decide to leave to avoid any hostilities, and the jailbait follows them outside, wanting to go for a ride on the back of the motorcycles of our hero’s.

Enter the second scene:

Here is a transcript of the conversation between Jack and Dennis. Emphasis is mine.

George: You know, this used to be a helluva good country. I can’t understand what’s gone wrong with it.

Billy: Huh. Man, everybody got chicken, that’s what happened, man. Hey, we can’t even get into like, uh, second-rate hotel, I mean, a second-rate motel. You dig? They think we’re gonna cut their throat or something, man. They’re scared, man.

George: Oh, they’re not scared of you. They’re scared of what you represent to ’em.

Billy: Hey man. All we represent to them, man, is somebody needs a haircut.

George: Oh no. What you represent to them is freedom.

Billy: What the hell’s wrong with freedom, man? That’s what it’s all about.

George: Oh yeah, that’s right, that’s what it’s all about, all right. But talkin’ about it and bein’ it – that’s two different things. I mean, it’s real hard to be free when you are bought and sold in the marketplace. ‘Course, don’t ever tell anybody that they’re not free ’cause then they’re gonna get real busy killin’ and maimin’ to prove to you that they are. Oh yeah, they’re gonna talk to you, and talk to you, and talk to you about individual freedom, but they see a free individual, it’s gonna scare ’em.

Billy: Mmmm, well, that don’t make ’em runnin’ scared.

George: No, it makes ’em dangerous.

Shortly after this, the guys go to sleep, and in the night they are attacked by men wielding baseball bats, and George (Jack Nicholson) ends up dead.

Why is this relevant today?

Because a Man that is his own Man represents freedom. A Man not tied down to debt represents freedom. A Man that can choose where he goes, what he does, and who he does it with, represents freedom. Jack, Dennis, and Peter, in Easy Rider, represented all of those things, and then some. And ultimately, they died because of it.

There are plenty on the “left” and the “right” of politics that don’t want that freedom for you if you are a Man.

Feminists claim they don’t want or even need a Man. Except for you to keep paying your taxes for their welfare programs. “Man up and pay for my programs!”

Traditional Conservatives (TradCons) want you to “Man up and marry that whore!” Also, you need to pay your taxes and support your family, and society at large.

Both sides are of the same coin.

Both sides want to either get you “back on the plantation,” or “keep you on the plantation.”

Shame and guilt tactics abound.

“You are a sexist, racist, misogynist!” (Pay for my stuff!)

“You need to save the west and stop being a degenerate!” (Pay for me and my children’s stuff!)

“We need a man like a fish needs a bicycle!”

“What would your ancestors think about you!”

People on both sides of the coin want to talk about the state of affairs for men? Here’s your actual state of affairs:

Both sides have an agenda. Both sides have a plan for you. It’s for you to be a plow horse and get you back on the plantation.

“Do it for the good of society.”

“Do it because you owe a debt of gratitude to your nation.”

“Do it because it’s the right thing to do.”

“Man up and…..”

“A Real Man…”

“As a Real Man…”

Being a Man who isn’t beholden to any side of the coin is dangerous to them, because that Man represents real freedom. Not the bullshit pipe-dream that you’ve been sold your whole life, but actual freedom.

Freedom to walk away. Freedom to do what you want. Freedom to say no.

Freedom that they don’t actually have. They see it, and they know it.

And that, is what makes them dangerous to you.

Back in the late 60’s the shame talk was, “Cut your hair! Get a real job! Marry that girl and settle down! Raise a family!”

Today it is “Cut your hair! Get a real job! Marry that girl and settle down! Raise a family!”

Not much has changed in 50 years if you ask me.

Let me ask you this:

Do you want to be only seen and known as a plow-horse? Or do you want something else?

Don’t get me wrong, if wanting a family and raising children is something you want for yourself, by all means, do that. Just make sure that it’s what you want. Not what “society” is telling you to do.

Is there an easy answer to all of this? Unfortunately no. I don’t have the answer(s) but I do know that “doing the right thing,” getting yourself buried in debt, and having a bunch of shit that you don’t need ain’t it.

So this Independence Day, while you are drinking your drinks, lighting off your fireworks, and waving your flags around, I hope you take a moment and reflect on what real freedom is. Remember that there are those around you that have an agenda, and it’s not necessarily to your benefit. And I say, let them burn.

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