I truly know what it is like to have no freedom; for lack of a better word I was a “ slave” to the United States Military. I was stripped of all of my constitutional rights and subjected to the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ). UCMJ is a set of laws that governs over everyone in the United States Military. The laws were harsh and in my opinion seemed unethical. For instance, my body was property of the United States Army. If I was to injure myself due to my own negligence, like not wearing a seatbelt in a car accident, I could face criminal charges. There are laws governing sex, missionary is the only legal position and oral sex is illegal. Leaving the post could even pose a problem,

Reflecting back on my experiences in the Army tells me what the definition of freedom is to me, control. Control over my life from the time I wake up in the morning, to the clothing that I am going to wear for the day, to the time I go to bed. Being able to watch TV when I want and having the choice to do anything I want any day of the week. Just like I have the option of writing this paper. But no single person is truly free. In order to be completely free people would follow no laws, rules or taboos. Society would not be able to function. There would be nothing but chaos: people driving on the wrong side of the road, no one wanting to wait in lines at stores, people would be afraid to even leave their houses. We give up some of our freedoms to live in a functional society.

if you are going beyond a fifty-mile radius from the base you need to have written permission from your Company Commander. My whole world had changed with an oath to my country.

For the first nine weeks I had absolutely no control over my life. I was stripped of my clothing, pictures, jewelry, etc. I even think that they wanted my thoughts. I had no idea what was going on in the world pa

Some topics in this essay:
Company Commander, , United Army, United Military, UCMJ UCMJ, control life, nine weeks, wear day, own life, united military,