Over at Superversive SF, Amy Sterling Casil weighs in on the recent massacre in Paris:

All I will add is that this is yet another reminder, for those that need to be reminded, that freedom is neither free nor the default state of mankind. It is immensely costly, and those who enjoy the benefits of freedom the most are often the most isolated from and unaware of the daily sacrifices needed and made to preserve and defend it.

There are and have always been entities, groups and philosophies that hate freedom and given the opportunity will gleefully slaughter or crush the rest of us underfoot, whether we are innocent or not, and silence all dissent. My own father-in-law was imprisoned for handing out leaflets in favour of free elections, a friend of the family was imprisoned and tortured for close to a decade for being ‘too great a religious influence’. That regime is now thankfully gone, but there are many others like it, and many who pine for it to come back or for something similar to ‘succeed’ where it failed.

My gratitude and utmost respect goes out to those who each day put their lives on the line and do all they can to not give such people the opportunities they crave.