It’s hard to say without knowing what country you’re in now. PRC is an undemocratic system to be embraced, escaped, or endured, but so are PRK, Iran, and a bunch others

OTOH, Canada or the USA were designed on the assumption that you’d agitate for the form of government. If you’re in either one, especially if you’re a citizen, you should definitely argue for the government you want.

The rest of the world is an interesting mix of “started undemocratic, embraced democracy” to “started democratic, embraced autocracy.”

This isnt 1984. You have as much freedom to say whatever you want as you did in an equally-dense area in 1955, and you’re exactly as subject to what you say being reported inaccurately.

What’s changed is that you actually have a plausible ability to broadcast yourself. Today’s equivalent of newspapers and TV stations have infinite channels and infinite paper, and mostly just let you say whatever you want.

If you do cross that “whatever” , though, they can and do refuse to publish your stuff, but you’re free to go elsewhere.

And if it’s actual surveillance you’re worried about… Well, much hasn’t changed since “Enemy of the state” and you should be practicing both good privacy safeguards and rhetorical defense of the same whenever you can.

My parents chose each other. They’re both good people, but they weren’t a good match at all and none of us were especially surprised when they divorced.

The Mrs and I chose each other, and while it would be arrogant to assert that we’re definitely a good match I get the impression that my kids would be shocked if we split.

The structural key to a happy marriage is, I think, the freedom to leave. If my parents had split when I was a kid they’d probably have a better relationship. But because of economics and law and pride they didn’t, which made the pain last way longer than it should have.