Modern Britain has many ironies. In the first government speech of the new year, we were assured that every government minute not devoted to the cost of living would be a minute wasted. A few months on, and we've heard of foreign affairs, technological anxieties, and familiar political dramas, but not much about the cost of living. So much for that.
More choice, less freedom
More profoundly, there is a deep irony in our perception of personal freedom. Few generations have known possibilities like those we now take for granted. We can buy food from anywhere in the world and have it delivered to our door, often the next day. We can learn nearly anything about anything at the click of a mouse. We can stream almost any film, programme, or piece of music ever made, on demand, at any hour of the day.
However, in this world of opportunity, self-control seems increasingly elusive. We can eat food from anywhere in the world and yet struggle more than ever to stop. We have a wealth of knowledge at our fingertips but can't think for ourselves. We are surrounded by entertainment and yet incapable of sitting still and paying attention.
These ironies indicate that our understanding of freedom is fundamentally mistaken. Modernity has reduced it to access and choice – the removal of limits, the breaking of boundaries, the right to choose. This vision of freedom ignores the spiritual condition of the heart. A person may be free to choose and yet unable to choose what is good.
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