Many citizens in the United States take liberty for granted; many citizens don't realize the significance of liberty. Every individual interprets liberty differently. According, to Webster's Dictionary liberty is defined as; (1) freedom from bondage, captivity, and restraint; (2) permission granted; (3) a presumptuous act. The word liberty may be hard to understand, not because of what it means but because of the multiple definitions it has. The most important liberties are religious freedom, freedom to participate in government, and personal freedom.
One kind of liberty, which is of major importance, is the power of an individual to believe in what he/she desires. That person does not have to confirm to the majority opinion; in Iraq individuals have to believe in what Sadam mandated them to. In contrast, in the United Sates that person would have the right to practice any religion of his or her choice. There are many religions in this country such as, Christianity, Catholics, Jewish, Buddha, Muslim, and many others. Depending on the religion one practices, it has a great amount of influence on how the individual is and how he/she perceives the world. People in the same community may go to different churches without the government interfering.
Another liberty is that a citizen may decide to engage in government elections. He/She has the right to vote for any particular candidate of his/her choice. While there maybe people opposing the individuals decision, he/she is the only one reliable for voting as he/she wishes. Arnold Schwarznegger became the governor of California, because the majority of the voters wanted him as governor. Arnold, candidates, and individuals all have freedom of speech that enables them to speak publicly of issues that surround them. No one should be deprived of that liberty. The majority has the freedom to unjust or undue governmental officials. In other countries, such as Cuba, citizen can not speak against their government; in fact, they are imprisoned or tortured if they do.
