Beverley McLachlin, former chief justice of the Supreme Court of Canada, recently wrote an opinion piece in which she said of those in the Canadian truckers' Freedom Convoy: "Freedom, misconstrued as a license to do and say whatever one wants, is dangerous."  The erstwhile jurist stated, "Let's not allow the freedoms we cherish to become ugly freedoms."  She added, "Freedom without limits slides imperceptibly into freedom to say and do what you want about people who don't look like you or talk like you."

Huh?  The protest she was referencing had absolutely nothing to do with "people who don't look like" the truckers.  This wasn't on their minds or radar.  In fact, the truckers were a diverse group of men and women of various ethnicities, backgrounds, and skin colors.  The protest was about unconstitutional, illegal, authoritarian — and immoral — government overreach and its usurping of inherent rights and freedoms.

Yet, incredibly and on cue, McLachlin spoke for those in the deep state–government-media complex, labeling freedom as "dangerous," "ugly," and potentially racist.

She wrote: "Our governments must draw the difficult lines that mark the limits of freedom in a particular situation.  When you must wear a mask.  Whether you can cross a border without a vaccine certificate.  How many people can attend a party and who gets to go to school."

Governments "must" determine when we "must" wear a mask?  Governments must determine who "gets" to go to school?  Governments must determine how many people can attend a party?!  If that's not a preposterous — and chilling — notion, nothing is.

Image: Beverley McLachlin by Gervásio Baptista/ABr — Agência Brasil.  CC BY 3.0 BR.

Legitimate governments are instituted among men — by, of, and for the people — in large part to support and protect individuals' natural rights as granted by their Creator.

But that tenet of classical liberalism is being inexorably replaced by leftist authoritarians' attempts to coerce citizens to allow themselves to be enslaved "for the common good."  Tragically, these Orwellian attempts have been mostly successful.

Progressives' notion about a doomsday clock and it being "three minutes to midnight" due to the threat of climate change/white supremacy/MAGA adherents is comically off base.  Life on Earth is not going to end in 10 or 12 years.  The Earth will still be here millennia from now, whether progressives like it or not.

Our freedoms may not be, however.  They could essentially — and permanently — be "repealed" by our governments, as recent events have clearly shown.  Given governments' power and weaponry, and Big Tech's and Big Business's collusion with governments, the bulk of humanity could be sentenced to eternal bondage and hopelessness.

And that is more than an "ugly" thought.

It behooves all of us to realize that now is our last best chance to stop the descent into authoritarianism.